THE RETURN

Chapter 8

The next couple weeks went by in chaos. The Lieutenant was working anywhere from 12-14 hour days trying to break the case. Noah had begged both her and Elliot to allow him to stay with Elliot while she was working. At first she was skeptical but when Elliot ensured her that it was fine, she let it happen. They had exchanged keys so that they wouldn't have any issues with picking up or dropping off Noah. With her being as busy as she was, she hadn't found any time to speak to Elliot accept for a hello and goodbye at either of their apartment doors. He had managed to steal a few hugs and she was grateful for some sort of physical contact.

It was now Friday night and she had promised Noah and Elliot a movie night at her apartment. Since they had finally broke the case that morning, she was looking forward to finally having a full weekend off to spend with them. She didn't quite know when it became 'them' instead of just Noah, but she tried not to think of that to much. When she walked through the door, she was hit by the smell of spaghetti and the sight of the two boys running around the couch playing tag. They had pushed the coffee table back against the wall, so that they would apparently have more room. She couldn't help but smile at them.

"Hi mom!" Noah explained as he jumped over the back of the couch to get to Elliot. The man fell dramatically on the ground with Noah on top of him, "I got you!"

"That wasn't fair, you cheated."

"I still got you though." Noah giggled when Elliot tickled him lightly before running to give his mom a hug. "How was your day? Did you catch the bad guys?"

"We did. So now I have the whole weekend." Olivia kissed the top of his head and laughed at Elliot who was still lying on the ground trying to catch his breath. "Go wash your hands for dinner please."

"Okay."

When he disappeared into the bathroom, she made her way to Elliot. She squatted down so she could look him in the eye, "You good?"

He nodded, "Don't need a gym with him."

Olivia smiled, "Hmm, I don't know, I don't think he would be enough to keep these." She pointed at the muscles in his chest that were evident through the shirt he had on.

"You'd be surprised how many times I pick him up during the day Liv, the lifting amounts to these."

"I suppose."

Elliot laughed, "What? You nervous I'm gonna lose them?"

She ran her hand lightly down his clothed chest, "Maybe." This was stepping into more than just uncharted territory.

He smirked and sat up so that their faces were inches apart, "Trust me, you have nothing to worry about."

She laughed, rubbed her hand across the stubble on his cheek and stood up, "I'm so glad I have the weekend with you both."

He couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. "We're so glad we get you."

They talked all through dinner. Mostly about all the things Elliot and Noah had done while she was drowning at work. She enjoyed listening to them. It was like watching a father and son talk about their outings. Although that thought frightened her a bit, it put her at ease also. As much as she tried to tell herself that she could raise a boy on her own, she could tell how positive a stable male influence was having on her son.

While they set up for the movie, Olivia grabbed a quick shower. She settled on something light to wear. A pair of pajama shorts with a tank top and an oversized sweater that hung off one of her shoulders. When she came out of the bathroom, she noticed that Elliot had changed from his jeans and t shirt, to a pair of basketball shorts and a tank top. He was bending over setting pillows on the ground and she couldn't help but stare at his backside. It was clear to her years ago that Elliot Stabler had a nice ass and that fact hadn't changed over the years.