They were quiet on the car ride to Mill's listed residence. Olivia wasn't sure if she should be mad, annoyed, or excited. All of the emotions just made her nervous.
"You know, if you told Dodds that your daughter was one of the victims he'd never have allowed this," Olivia said to break the silence. "You could have said something."
"So could you," Elliot fired back simply.
Olivia continued to watch the road, tapping the steering wheel.
"Come on, Liv, admit it. It felt good to bounce off each other in there and figure out a case. It was like I never left. You know that nobody works better together than you and me. If anyone is going to find the prick that raped my Lizzy, it has to be Benson and Stabler."
She couldn't disagree, but she wasn't going to let him know that. She remained silent. She still felt the need to stay guarded, like he could turn her life upside down again at any moment. She didn't want to get too attached, but it was difficult not to. Being with Elliot was so… easy.
"Liv," Elliot began, lowering his voice like he was about to tell her a secret. "I don't know how else to apologize."
She glanced at him briefly and sighed before turning back to the road. "I don't need you to apologize again, Elliot," she explained. "I just…"
"You need time?"
She nodded. "Yeah… I guess."
Elliot nodded and his lips curved into a mischievous smile. "Well, I just hope all this time hasn't put a damper on our long-lasting sexual tension," he said as if it was the most casual thing in the world.
Olivia's jaw dropped and she turned completely toward him for the first time since they'd been in the car. "Excuse me?" she asked.
Elliot was laughing at her reaction. "Oh don't play naive, Liv!"
"Um… I'm not… But in twelve years of sexual tension it was never once addressed, so forgive me if I'm a little shocked!"
"Wrong," Elliot said. "It was addressed after Gitano when you left for Computer Crimes and it was addressed five years ago when I couldn't say goodbye to you."
"Okay, it was never address out loud," Olivia corrected. Elliot continued to laugh as he watched the people he passed through the window.
Olivia tapped the steering wheel again. "Kathy confronted me about it once," she said. She saw Elliot's face turn to her in her peripheral vision. "Said she worried that you would rather spend time at work with me than at home."
Elliot focused on the people outside again and shrugged his shoulders. "Sometimes I did," he said.
"I know," Olivia replied. She couldn't help the small smile that formed on her lips. The topic of conversation something she never thought they would address. It was funny to her. They both knew that the sexual tension was no secret, but they never dared mention anything at the time. "But hell if I was going to tell her that. You're an idiot," she added.
They pulled up to Mills' apartment complex and got out of the car. It was so natural to them that they didn't even notice it, but anyone else would have seen that the detectives' steps were perfectly in sync as they walked.
…
Olivia let out an exasperated breath and rubbed her neck to relieve the tension. She and Elliot sat at her desk. The rest of the precinct was empty. "His apartment is cleared out, his probation record was perfect, no other criminal activity, family says they haven't seen him… I don't know where else to look for this guy."
Elliot finished his last bite of takeout and set the box down on Olivia's desk. "It's like he just went cold-turkey off his meds one day and started raping again," he said.
"Or it wasn't him," Olivia suggested.
Elliot shook his head. "No… I have a feeling about this guy Liv."
She rubbed her neck again. "Yeah, I know… Me too, but we can't just close off other options."
Elliot stood from his seat and moved around the desk. "Got a knot?" he asked.
Olivia's heart skipped a beat. They used to do this all the time as partners, but back then they were so used to suppressing their feelings that they could be that close and not act. Things felt different now for some reason. "No no… It's fine."
"It's not fine," Elliot said. "Let me rub it out for you." He was already behind her chair and she gave in, needing the tension in her neck released.
He moved her hair to the side. The tips of his fingers brushed her neck so lightly that she broke out in goosebumps. He smoothed his palms up her arms and squeezed firmly when she got to her shoulders. Her eyes fluttered closed at the contact, but she suppressed a moan.
"God, you're so tense, Liv," Elliot said as he started working her shoulders and moved to her neck. "Is it the job or that little boy of yours?"
Olivia let out a breathy laugh as she let her head fall forward so he could massage her neck more thoroughly. "Probably both," she said. "He's into everything now. It's terrifying."
Elliot laughed. "I remember that age. It is scary, but they're also the sweetest and funniest at that age."
"Mmmmm," Olivia moaned as he hit a particularly good spot. "Mmhm," she covered it with. "He's hilarious."
Elliot continued to rub her neck, but she felt his head come closer to hers. Suddenly he was right next to her ear and she found herself breathing more deeply.
Olivia's eyes widened at his proxmity and she felt a rush of tightness in her core. She needed to stop this now. What was he doing? But her eyes fell shut again when he released his thumb from a knot in the side of her neck, and replaced it with a light peck of his lips.
She shuddered. "El…" Olivia whispered so quietly she could barely hear herself. Just tell him to stop, she thought.
"Yeah," he breathed out in a voice so low she swore she felt it vibrate her seat. His lips met the nape of her neck once more and his hands slid down her arms. She sucked in a breath and opened her eyes, hoping it would give her more focus. That's when she saw Tucker walk into the precinct through the window.
"Shit." Olivia jerked up and stood. "Sit back where you were," she demanded as she walked to the office door, slickness evident in her panties as she went.
"Okay…" Elliot said.
Olivia walked out of her office, shut the door and met Ed before he could get there. "Hey babe!" she said cheerfully.
"Hey, I hadn't heard from you, so I assumed you were having a late night," Ed told her as he walked up to her. He reached an arm out to grab her waist and pull her in for a kiss, but Olivia side stepped and reached for some papers on Fin's desk, acting like she didn't see the gesture. She pretended to tidy up his desk. She normally loved his affection, but she knew Elliot was watching and she wasn't ready for him to know she was dating Tucker. Not yet.
"Yeah, I'm sorry," she said. "We ran into some dead ends with our lead."
Tucker nodded his understanding.
"Listen," Olivia said. "I need to tell you something." She tried to remain at a respectable distance so Elliot wouldn't suspect anything.
"What is it?" Tucker asked.
"Well, Dodds was here earlier and… some things happened, and uh… he… Dodds temporarily reinstated Elliot to work this case."
Tucker's head fell back slightly as his eyes widened. He looked toward her office. Through the window, Elliot was leaning forward in his chair, watching the interaction take place. He didn't even flinch when Tucker met his glare. "Jesus, Olivia…" Tucker said. He turned back and started walking toward the exit.
"Ed?" Olivia called, walking after him. "Ed, stop. Just talk to me."
They were in the hallway to the elevators now, out of Elliot's sight. "Did you set this up? So you could work with him?" Ed asked as he whipped back around. "You two, alone late at night, just like old times?"
"No!" she answered. "I had nothing to do with it. Elliot recognized a suspect's name when he was here for questioning. It was a perp we had years ago who fits the profile of our rapist. Dodds was there and he was impressed with Elliot and he asked him to work the case."
"And after everything last night, you didn't think I'd want to know about this?" Ed seethed.
Olivia cursed herself. She had already been suppressing images of fucking Elliot all day and had internally decided to fuck it out with Ed later, but now Ed's anger was turning her on even more. There's something seriously wrong with her, she thought.
"I did think of it, Ed," she assured him, "but I thought it would be better to talk in person than to explain through a text."
Ed rolled his eyes and shook his head.
Olivia paced a few steps and pressed the elevator button.
"What are you doing?" Tucker asked.
"Com'ere," Olivia said. She took his hand as the elevator door opened and pulled him in. When the door shut, she grabbed him by his blazer and pulled him in for a heated kiss.
"Olivia, you don't have to—"
She shut him up with another kiss, then rested her head on his forehead. She really did love Ed. He was caring, strong, angry, and faithful. She wanted things to work out with him. She couldn't help that she was turned on by Elliot, but she would use it to her advantage right now to make things right.
She reached down and unbuttoned her slacks.
"Olivia, we can't do this here."
She took his hand in hers. "Shut up, Ed." She kissed him again, then let her lips linger centimeters away from his as she guided his hand down her slacks and into her wet panties. "Seeing you get all worked up and jealous?" she said. "This is what it does to me." A half-lie. Most of her wetness was Elliot's doing, but she didn't' want to lose Ed. She pushed his hand down and his middle finger slipped into her wet folds. Tucker groaned. His finger traced her slit twice, then he pushed her back into the wall of the elevator aggressively. She took his head in her hands and moaned as he touched her. "I only want you, Ed, I swear." Another lie—one she might also be trying to tell herself.
Ed dipped his hand in deeper, penetrating her with two fingers as she gasped for air. He stared into her eyes with a dangerous glare. "When you're with him," Ed growled. He pumped his fingers in and out of her, his thumb pressing circles into her clit, making her moan. "Remember this…" he said. "Remember that it's my fingers you go home to at night." Olivia was so fucking turned on by his aggressiveness and jealously. He talked dirty every once in a while, and she loved it. She thought she was going to come in seconds. "Remember my tongue tasting you, licking you clean until you scream my name. Remember my thick, hard, long cock sliding in and out of you, and my body pounding into you, making you come over and over… I'll mark my territory if I have to, Liv… Fuck you on every inch of that office."
"Oh god, Ed…" Olivia moaned.
"Come Olivia. Come on my hand."
"Fuck! Fuck! Yes! I'm coming!" Olivia gasped as her walls contracted and she held onto Ed's shoulders, holding herself up as she came.
Her breathing slowed and Ed removed his hand. She rebuttoned herself and smirked as Ed licked his hand of her juices.
Ed stepped away from her and opened the door to the elevator to let her out. "I'll see you tomorrow," he said.
…
"Is IAB here because of me?" Elliot asked when Olivia returned.
"Ah, no. No…" she answered. "E—uh, Tucker was here for something… unrelated."
"You okay?" Elliot asked, standing to check on her. "You seem flustered or something."
She stepped back when he stepped forward. Something about having just come in her pants at the hand of another man made her want to keep her distance. "Yeah, I'm fine. I think we should call it a night."
"Yeah. Yeah, okay."
And even though the tension went further than it ever had in their relationship, they treated that moment like they always had—silently.
"Can I give you a ride home?" Elliot asked.
"No thanks, I think I'll walk."
"It's the middle of the night, Liv."
Olivia's mouth curved into a half-smile. "I'm a cop, El."
He nodded. "Okay. See you tomorrow."
As soon as Elliot drove away, Olivia hailed a cab and headed to her apartment, her mind running in circles the whole ride home.