Consent

“Who is responsible for this? Who approved this,” the young man’s mother demanded.

Cragen, Benson, and Stabler avoided the woman’s eyes.

“I did,” Alex Cabot said.

“You should be ashamed of yourself,” the woman said quietly.

“We’ve got the person who did this to him,” Cragen said, attempting to alleviate some of the tension in the hallway.

“That’ll be a comfort to my Tommy if he lives.” The woman placed the surgical mask back over her nose and mouth and pushed through the swinging door into the burn unit. Alex tried to swallow the guilt clawing its way up her throat from her stomach.

Cragen looked at his detectives. “Go back through the files and see if we can find anything, and I mean anything, that ties these cases together.”

Stabler nodded and started down the hall toward the elevators. Olivia shot Alex a quick look of sympathy and headed after her partner. Cragen turned to Alex. “It wasn’t your fault, Alex. There’s no way you could have anticipated this.”

“Call me, at home if you have to, when you get them. I want to be there for the interview.”

---

Alex tried to concentrate on the case file in front of her but she couldn’t get Tommy Dowd out of her mind. He’d been a good looking young man who’d taken a job with Man About Town out of financial desperation. Thanks to Leslie DeSantis and a pot of boiling water, it would be years, if ever, before he could walk down the street without suffering horrified stares.

The problem of the escort service manager was a knotty one, ethically and legally. There was no question that Leslie DeSantis had broken the law. But the escort service’s records had proven that attempted murder wasn’t among her crimes. All the reservations had been made by a client using stolen credit cards so the dates couldn’t be used as evidence against her. Felony assault and pimping were the minimum Alex would settle for, if it were still her case. Alex pulled the woman’s case file out of the stack in her outbox and made a couple of notes she hoped the ADA for Major Crimes had the time to read.

Completely separate from the legalities was the moral dilemma of whether or not society should be worrying about sexual transactions willingly made between consenting adults. The phone on the corner of her desk rang. “Alex Cabot,” she said. She paused to listen. “Can you hold off until I get there? About 15 minutes.”

Alex allowed herself a small smile as she grabbed her brief case and coat. She was looking forward to making sure the couple who’d made those dates through Leslie DeSantis spent the rest of their years apart.

---

“You’ll protect me, won’t you?”

Stabler pulled his hand from underneath the suspect’s lightly resting fingers. Olivia glanced away from the woman and at the observation mirror. Alex stood next to Cragen behind the one-way glass. She shook her head as a small shiver ran through her.

“Munch and Fin have already gotten a confession out of the husband. He claims it was all her fantasy. He was just drawn into it,” Cragen said.

Alex tapped her pen against her palm. “It’s going to be expert witness hell, Captain. A half-decent psychiatrist will have no problems making a jury believe that she’s delusional. After that performance, I’m not sure I’d disagree with that.”

“Have we got enough?”

“If you’re running tape we’ve got enough to charge her with 5 counts of conspiracy to commit assault and as an accessory after the fact to murder. That’s 25 to life any way you slice it.”

Cragen knocked on the window. Olivia got up from the table. She exited the interview room into the observation area. She noticed Alex’s white-knuckle grip on the pen she held.

“We’ve got her confession. Let her call a lawyer and get her down to processing. I want this over with,” Cragen said.

“What about the husband?”

“Munch and Fin already have him downstairs.”

Olivia nodded. She caught Alex’s eye. “You going to be around later?”

“I can be if you need something.”

“Elliot’s going to want a stiff drink after that. Join us?”

Alex tried to keep her surprise from showing on her face. While Olivia as the only other female member of the unit had taken care to make Alex feel welcome, social invitations hadn’t come in a torrent from the detectives as a group in the year she’d been assigned to SVU. Alex hesitated.

“I’m sure we can get the boss here to tag along,” Olivia said with a small smile.

“I’d love to. I just need to make some calls.”

Olivia nodded again and headed back into the interview room.

---

That O’Malley’s was a cop bar was unmistakable, from the shields above the bar representing every precinct in the five boroughs to the wary air with which newcomers were evaluated. An oak bar with a brass foot rail ran from front to back along the place’s long wall. No stools at the end of the bar meant no one sat back to the door. A battered pool table took up about a third of the space in the back. It was from one of the side tables there that John Munch stood and waved to his colleagues. A pitcher of beer already sweated in the middle of a ring of empty glasses. Elliot made his way to the table, heedless of the three people following him.

“I’m going to get something lighter,” Cragen said over the music, “Save me a seat that’s not right next to Munch.”

Olivia nodded and considered Alex Cabot, who’d entered last and was taking a minute to survey the bar. Her blonde hair and finely sculpted features drew attention to her no matter what the tenor of the room. Olivia’s mind flitted back to the first courtroom case she’d watched Alex work. She’d had the male jurors eating out of her hand in the first 15 minutes. Even in a dive like O’Malley’s she looked regal. Years of prep schools and formal events will teach you how to be at home anywhere, Olivia thought. Alex caught Olivia’s measuring gaze. Something lurked behind the other woman’s dark eyes. Alex wasn’t sure what.

“Thank you for the invitation. I appreciate it.”

“No problem, Counselor. This was a hard one for you. A little unwinding seems like the right thing just about now.”

Alex smiled. “Lead the way.”

---

“All I’m saying is that fantasies have their place. In a healthy psyche they provide an outlet for impulses that are better not unleashed on society,” Munch said, swallowing a mouthful of beer.

“So you’re saying that what started out for this woman as a ‘knight in shining armor’ fantasy was healthy,” Olivia asked, dipping her hand into the bowl of pretzels.

“Absolutely.” Munch looked over the top rim of his glasses. “There are no sins of the mind. Only of behavior.”

“I think that’s a crock, John. And I don’t think you believe it either,” Stabler winked at his partner across the table.

Olivia smiled into her beer mug. Getting Munch playfully worked up was just the relaxation Elliot needed. The need to reconcile the passion that drives people to fall in love with the inevitable familiarity of a long-term relationship had been brought to the surface by this case. That he was facing the same problems in his own marriage which led these people to this extreme had him unnerved.

“You’re telling me you don’t have fantasies,” Munch retorted.

“Sure I do, but I’ve been married 17 years. Mostly they involve two uninterrupted hours with my wife. My question to you is, who decides what society can bear?”

“Let’s ask our legal expert. Alex?”

Alex’s attention had been divided between the piercing looks one of the pool players kept throwing toward their group and the warmth of Olivia’s knee pressed against hers under the table. It was a fair sized table and Alex was getting the impression the distraction was deliberate. “You want the legal or the personal opinion?”

“Do they differ,” Olivia regarded her with a steady gaze.

“Sometimes. Legally, what society can bear is codified as law but laws change. Thirty years ago the city of New York still had sodomy laws on the books that made anything except heterosexual intercourse illegal. Now, what consenting adults do, within certain strictures, is none of the state’s business.” Alex pulled a pretzel out of the bowl and snapped it in half.

“And, personally,” Olivia asked.

“Personally, I believe the majority wrongly determines what society can deem ‘abnormal’. Consent belongs with the individuals not the group.” Alex popped half of the pretzel in her mouth. Munch pulled Alex’s empty mug toward him and refilled it from the nearly empty pitcher. He motioned for Stabler’s mug but Elliot put his hand over the top. Stabler stood and pulled his jacket off the back of his chair.

“Typical. Starts a discussion and then leaves when it gets juicy,” Munch said with mock anger.

“Heading home,” Olivia asked.

Elliot nodded, putting on his coat. “Gonna try and get two uninterrupted hours with my wife. I’ll see you guys on Monday.”

“I’ll walk out with you, Elliot.” Cragen downed the rest of the club soda in his glass and pulled his jacket off the back of his chair. He followed Elliot through the crush at the bar.

The younger of the two men playing pool broke off from the game and approached the table. “Hey John. How goes it? Hi Olivia.”

“If it isn’t our wandering boy detective. Are you sure you’re old enough to be in here,” Munch asked with a grin.

“Brian,” Olivia said, not quite making eye contact.

“Just barely,” Cassidy said with a lopsided grin. He stretched a hand out across the table toward Alex. “Brian Cassidy.”

Alex shook his hand. “Alex Cabot, nice to meet you.”

Olivia pulled the pitcher toward her and emptied it into her mug. Under the table, her leg moved away from Alex’s. Cassidy rocked on the balls of his feet at the edge of the table. Unspoken words, suddenly thick in the air, made the hair on the back of Alex’s neck stand up. She crunched the remaining half a pretzel.

“Hey Cassidy,” the other pool player yelled, “you playing, or what?”

“Good to see you again, Olivia. Munch. Nice to meet you, Alex.”

“Take it easy Bri,” Munch said to Cassidy’s retreating back. Munch regarded the two women across the table. “I’m afraid that I’m going to have to abandon you ladies as well. I have got a date.”

Olivia shot Munch a wide smile. “That’s a first.”

“Actually, it’s not, as any one of my four ex-wives will confirm. Watch out for this one, Alex. I’ve had her drink me under the table.” Munch gave Alex a friendly pat on the shoulder as he made his way past her and into the crowd that thronged the bar.

Alex held up her mug in mock toast. “To the stout of heart.”

“Absolutely.” Olivia downed the rest of her beer. “I’m not sure how hearty I’m going to be if I don’t get some food,” Olivia said, wiggling the empty pretzel bowl. “There’s a tapas place I like a few blocks over.”

“Sounds great.”

---

The tapas bar successfully managed to mix the feeling of old Spain with the halo of hipness implied by its Tribeca location. An open kitchen accented stucco walls inlaid with handcrafted tile mosaics. Flamenco music helped cover the noise from the bar.

Alex took a moment to contemplate the woman across the table from her. Olivia had a certain magnetism which shown through not only in the extremely competent way she pursued her job but also in how she managed to hold a part of herself private at all times. The combination of almond shaped eyes, strong cheek bones, and dark coloring gave Alex the impression of effortless, understated beauty. Olivia’s dark eyes flicked up from her menu and caught Alex’s lingering gaze. Alex felt the blush begin to darken her cheeks.”What’s good here?”

“Everything,” Olivia replied, holding Alex’s gaze before returning to her menu.

After they ordered Alex took a minute to relish the sangria in her glass. It’s deep ruby hue was undisturbed by the orange slice floating on the wine’s surface. Across the table, Olivia seemed to relax into herself the first time that evening. The effect was a metamorphosis. The mask of hard-nosed detective fell away to reveal the woman underneath. No less strong, Alex thought, but a bit more approachable.

“Do you think Munch is right,” Alex asked.

“About fantasies? Sure, they’ve got their place, and everyone has them.”

“Even you?”

Olivia gave Alex a half smile. “Why even me? What makes you think I wouldn’t have them?”

“I didn’t mean to imply…It’s just…”

Olivia arched an eyebrow. So, the always collected Alex Cabot does get nervous.

“You deal with the cases when they are fresh, when the
emotions of the people involved are raw,” Alex continued. “By the time they get to me they have gotten somewhat used to being in the system so the event is less immediate. That must have an effect on your personal life.”

Olivia put her hand over Alex’s nervously tapping fingers. “Alex, relax.”

Olivia’s fingers were warm, her hand unexpectedly soft. Her dark eyes seemed to Alex to hold a little bit of danger while her lingering hand held the promise of caress. Jesus, Alex, get a grip, she thought, fighting the urge to twine her fingers with Olivia’s.

Their waiter, arms loaded with small plates, gave a small, interrupting cough. Olivia withdrew her hand and picked up her wine glass as the waiter arranged their order.

---

They’d passed the rest of dinner talking about decidedly impersonal “personal details.” Alex spent most of her time regaling Olivia with tales of life at Bryn Mawr as an undergraduate and what little of Boston she’d experienced during law school. Olivia, Alex noted, spent most of the time artfully dodging questions about her personal life outside the job. Other than her mother’s recent, unexpected death, Alex still had little inkling about Olivia’s family, or about her love life. The cab they’d shared uptown hadn’t provided a suitable venue for conversation other than the driver’s complaints about the Giants already giving up on the season and it only being October.

Alex inhaled the cool, crisp air, glad to be out of the cab and hoping to clear some of the sangria from her head. She heard the door shut behind her and the taxi honk its way back into traffic.

“Beautiful, isn’t it,” Olivia said, very near Alex’s ear. She inhaled the light smell of apples drifting off Alex’s hair.

‘It’ was the fountain in front of Lincoln center. “Gorgeous, actually. I keep forgetting it’s here. It’s a bit sad that something that pretty could become ‘landscape’ and be taken for granted.”

“I come here sometimes to remind myself that it’s possible to have a bit of tranquility in the midst of the city.”

They contemplated the fountain for a few moments, its water glowing under a million watts of spotlights. With a sigh Alex turned to start the short walk home. Olivia fell in step with her. “You never did tell me whether or not you agreed with Munch,” Olivia said, glancing sideways at Alex’s blue blood profile and the sway of her beautiful, golden hair. Even her posture screams old money, Olivia thought.

“It’s human nature to fantasize. Sometimes it’s better than the real thing.” Alex shot Olivia a wry grin. “Why did you invite me tonight? I’ve been working with the unit nearly a year and this is only my second evening out with the squad.”

“I had my reasons.”

It was Alex’s turn to arch a questioning eyebrow.

“The work we do isn’t kind to women, Alex,” Olivia continued, “When I meet someone who seems to be able to hold up it only makes sense to see if there might be a friend there.”

The ambient noise dropped off slightly as the two women made the turn on to 69th street and toward Central Park. They walked in silence as a light snow began to fall.

“So, what’s the story with you and Cragen,” Olivia asked.

“No story, we’re getting to be friends. Why, does it seem like more than that?”

“Sometimes.”

“He reminds me a lot of an uncle, a professor. Very smart man, thinks he’s great at his job and not so good with personal relationships.”

Olivia smiled. “That would be our Captain.”

“Who’s been wondering,” Alex asked.

“No one specific. Look, everyone knows too much about everyone in that office. People talk.”

Alex nodded, still not quite convinced. She came to a stop in front a solid, pre-war building whose modern security door did nothing to detract from its elegance. The light from the street lamp cast a soft halo through the falling snow. “This is me.”

“So it would seem.”

“Thank you, again, for the invitation. It means a lot, and, I had a good time.”

“Good,” Olivia said, “Let’s not make it another year before we do this again, OK?”

Alex smiled broadly. Does she know how that smile lights up her face, Olivia wondered.

“Agreed,” Alex replied, “and one other thing…” Alex leaned forward. She brushed Olivia’s full lips lightly and pulled away. Emotion flashed across Olivia’s face. Alex felt the warmth of the blush begin to creep up her neck to her cheeks. “I’ve been getting these signals all night and I thought…Look, I’m a little drunk and I’m sorry if…”

She felt Olivia’s hand slide up her back as the other woman drew Alex back toward her. Olivia’s lips met hers, her mouth responding softly at first but with increasing intensity. Alex felt the full length of Olivia’s body pressed against her, the spicy scent of her perfume mixing with the snow-chilled air. The rest of her body started to respond to the sensory explosion at her mouth. Alex pulled away from the kiss, breathless.

Olivia’s hand on her back held Alex close. “Alex…” The single word was barely audible.

“Do you want to come up?”

“Yes, but…”

“You can’t?”

“I shouldn’t.”

Alex stepped back slightly so she could get a good look at Olivia’s face. Olivia’s hand slid down her back and Alex captured it with her own. “This isn’t about Cragen, is it?”

Olivia shook her head.

“Then what?”

“I just can’t. I’ve already done this once. I can’t let myself do it again. I’m sorry, Alex.”

Olivia pulled her fingers from Alex’s. She buried her hands deep in her coat pockets, turned, and walked quickly down the sidewalk, disappearing behind the falling snow. Alex watched her go, sweet sangria turning sour in her stomach. When she could no longer make out Olivia’s silhouette she turned and made her way into the building.

---

Alex took a deep breath as the elevator doors outside the SVU squad room slid open. You can do this, Alex. You can, she thought. She pushed through the double doors, and the squad room was empty. Despite the open door, Alex knocked on Cragen’s door frame.

“What brings you around today, Counselor,” Cragen said with a grin.

“Just wrapping up Leslie DeSantis. She pled out. Three to five for the pimping charges, and five to seven for the felony assault.”

“That’s not a lot. With good behavior she’ll be out in 18 months.”

“Consecutive.”

“Really?”

Alex smiled wickedly. “Really. You seem to be missing a few detectives who might appreciate the news.”

“They’re at a chain of custody seminar. One PP said jump. For once we said how high.”

“Sounds enthralling.”

“I think they literally had to drag Munch out the door,” Cragen said. He glanced at his watch. “Do you want to grab a bite? I can’t remember the last time I ate.”

Alex hefted her briefcase. “I’ve got a date with some paperwork. Pass the news on for me?”

“Will do.”

---

Alex curled up on the couch, legal pad on her lap, case file in hand, and a glass of red wine breathing on the coffee table. Several of her colleagues dictated their opening arguments to get the composition and the practicing out of the way in one step. Alex preferred the way she’d learned in law school, long hand on a legal pad. She’d just uncapped her pen when the intercom buzzed loudly. Mrs. Williams locked herself out again, she thought as she piled the work on the coffee table. The voice that came through the speaker didn’t belong to her elderly neighbor. Alex hit the button to buzz her visitor in. At the knock, she opened the door.

“Hi,” Olivia said.

“Hi. This is unexpected.”

“I’m not completely interrupting your evening, am I?”

“Just some work, that’s all.”

Olivia paused. “So…can I come in?

“I’m sorry.” Alex swung the door inward. “Of course.”

Olivia stepped into the apartment. Warm tones and a slight Southwest flavor gave the space a comfortable feel without being overwhelming. Large windows showed a view of the building next door, and a small slice of Central Park. Waves of cold air rolled off Olivia’s coat carrying the complex sweetness of her perfume to Alex’s nose. The scent was enough to trigger her body’s memory of their kiss in the snow. Alex shut the door. “Do you want a drink? I’ve got some wine open.”

“That would be great.”

Olivia took off her coat and laid it across the back of a chair. In the kitchen, Alex pulled another wine glass out of the rack. “Nice place,” Olivia said.

“Thanks. If you get right up to the window and lean a bit to your left you can actually see the park.” Alex steadied the glass with her free hand, willing herself not to spill as she poured the wine. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Olivia take the short trip across the room to the window. Maybe it was the gun still attached to her hip but it seemed to Alex as if Olivia moved like she owned the room. She set the bottle back down on the counter and moved into the living room.

Alex smiled and handed Olivia her wine. It was a smile Olivia had been thinking about for several days. “Cragen told me about Leslie DeSantis. It’s a good job on the sentencing.”

“I can’t take the credit. Major crimes took the case because they thought there might be a RICO implication. She pled out when they hit her with the potential for a federal grand jury.”

Olivia nodded.

“You didn’t come here to talk about Leslie DeSantis, did you,” Alex asked, crossing over to the couch and curling her feet under her as she sat.

“No.” Olivia rolled the wine glass between her hands. The detective’s obvious discomfort brought a rise of sympathy in Alex’s chest.

“I owe you an apology Olivia. I’ve been out of the game a while and I read some signals wrong. And, I think we were both a little drunk.”

“You got the signals I sent. I should be doing the apologizing.” Olivia moved to the couch, sitting as far away from Alex as she could. She took a sip from her glass and set it on the coffee table. “You remember the guy who came over to the table?”

“Brian?”

“He used to be Munch’s partner. He transferred out of the SVU just before you got assigned to us.” Olivia took another sip from her wine glass. “We had a short thing. I broke a personal rule with him, Alex.”

Alex nodded. So that’s what ‘this’ meant. “How short?”

“Just once. He wanted more and it got weird to be working together.”

“Once?”

“When you do what I do every day you’ve got to learn to shut a part of yourself away, to not let the job touch the you underneath. He dragged what happened between us into a disagreement over a case. There was no way mixing the job and a relationship was going to work.”

“It’s easy to see why you wouldn’t want to make the same mistake twice.” Alex took a sip from her glass as she studied Olivia. Tension knotted the detective’s shoulders and twisted her posture. Alex fought an urge to brush her hand through Olivia’s thick, short, brown hair and rub that tension away. Olivia glanced over at Alex.

“Answer a rude question for me?”

“Shoot.”

“Are you a lesbian?”

Alex smiled wryly. “Does it matter?”

“Not really.”

“Then why ask?”

“Curiosity. It’s a professional habit,” Olivia said, taking another sip from her glass.

“I think it would depend on who you asked. The older I get the more I realize that while a man has been fun occasionally, and while they have certain…social uses, I like the way I feel with another woman.”

“Social uses? That sounds a bit cold.”

“Pragmatic is how I prefer to think of it. Despite the changes in the legal code, if I showed up with a female date it would still be very much frowned upon in certain circles. Unfortunately, the legal community is one of them, and law enforcement is another.”

“I thought consent belonged with the individuals, not the group.”

Alex grinned. “You were paying attention I see. It does when you’re talking about private individuals, and it works well in practice. If I play my cards right, my life is going to be very public for a long time.”

“Looking at the DA’s chair?”

“Eventually, yes.” Alex uncurled herself from her position on the couch and padded into the kitchen. She returned with the half empty bottle of wine and sat down on the couch. “It’s a moot point, though. There hasn’t been anyone at all in some time, and no one serious in ages,” Alex continued as she topped off Olivia’s glass, and then her own.

“I find that hard to believe.”

“‘Serious’ was second term at law school. Apparently, her ambition was stronger than her heart. I made law review, she didn’t. You aren’t then?”

“A lesbian?”

Alex nodded.

“Does it matter,” Olivia asked with a sideways grin.

“Touche, detective.”

Olivia moved across the intervening space on the couch. She slid the palm of her hand over the plane of Alex’s cheek and around to the back of her neck. This time when their lips met there was no hesitancy. Underneath the full grape of the wine Alex tasted desire on Olivia’s mouth.

Alex’s hand skimmed up Olivia’s arm and tracked the line of Olivia’s shoulder to the open collar of her shirt. Alex’s fingers found the buttons, freeing the first two easily. Her fingers continued to work the third as she pulled her mouth away from Olivia’s and followed the line of her jaw down to the leaping pulse at the side of Olivia’s throat. Freeing the third button, Alex slid her hand inside Olivia’s shirt, cupping her full, round breast and grazing her thumb lightly over Olivia’s already erect nipple. Olivia let out a small moan. Gotcha, Alex thought.

With her free hand Alex pulled open the snap on the handcuff case she found at Olivia’s waist. Olivia grasped Alex’s wrist, pulling away slightly. Alex met her suspicious eyes with a grin. “You’ll just have to think about trusting me, won’t you?”

Alex pulled the handcuffs out of the case and dropped them on top of the stack of files on the coffee table. She moved to pull the holstered automatic from Olivia’s belt but Olivia got there first. The gun and holster, and Olivia’s badge, ended up on the coffee table beside the handcuffs.

Alex withdrew her hand from inside Olivia’s shirt. She gently pushed Olivia to rest against the back of the couch and straddled her. She raked her fingers through Olivia’s hair, trailing them down to cup Olivia’s face. Alex smiled as she bent down to Olivia’s ripe mouth. The silky brush of her hair and the light smell of apples came to Olivia with the pressure of Alex’s mouth on hers. Alex slipped the tip of her tongue between Olivia’s lips, exploring gently. Olivia answered Alex’s explorations just as gently as her strong hands stroked the extra sensitive nerves running along Alex’s inner thighs.

Alex quickly undid the remaining buttons on Olivia’s shirt, pulling away from her mouth to take in a full view of the woman underneath her. “White lace and underwire, not what I expected at all,” Alex said, cocking her head with a smile.

“You had expectations?”

“Fantasies do, occasionally, substitute for reality, Detective.”

Olivia’s expression became serious. Way to go, Alex, she thought as Olivia’s eyes searched her face.

“How long have I been a part of your fantasy life?”

Alex fisted both sides of Olivia’s shirt in her hands as her chest tightened. She felt the mixed heat of frustration, embarrassment, and desire begin crawl its way up her throat to her cheeks. She looked away from Olivia’s steady gaze and out the window calm herself. Alex let go of Olivia’s shirt and shifted her weight to move off Olivia’s lap.

Feeling the movement, Olivia slipped her fingers inside the waistband of Alex’s jeans to keep her from leaving. She caught one of Alex’s hands in her free one, stroking her palm lightly until Alex met her eyes. “Alex…how long?”

“Several weeks. I don’t have an explanation.”

“Attraction is like that.”

“That night, after O’Malley’s, I thought…but then you just walked away…and now you’re here. I haven’t been this tongue-tied since college.”

Olivia smiled. She let go of Alex’s jeans and stilled Alex’s mouth with her fingertips. Alex turned her head so Olivia’s fingers brushed her cheek.

“Just tell me one thing.”

Alex met Olivia’s eyes. “What?”

“You do have a bedroom, don’t you?”

---

Alex folded back the down comforter on the queen sized bed revealing royal blue flannel sheets. Olivia came up behind her and moved the fall of her blonde hair aside. Her lips caressed the back of Alex’s neck as her free hand worked Alex’s t-shirt from the waistband of her jeans. Alex’s skin jumped, her body unable to focus on the reactions to Olivia’s lips and still track the motion of her hand. Olivia moved her hand under the soft, cotton shirt and gave a sharp intake of breath as she found Alex bare breasted. Alex, grinning widely, turned to face Olivia.

They made quick work of each other’s clothes, with Alex unable to contain a laugh as her jeans went flying too far and landed in the bathroom.

Alex tumbled Olivia onto her back into the middle of the bed. Her hands roamed the length of Olivia’s body, skimming muscles well kept through jogging and rock climbing at the behest of the NYPD’s mandatory physical fitness tests. Olivia drew Alex toward her and buried her face in the soft cascade of Alex’s hair against her cheek.

“You smell…fantastic,” Olivia murmured.

Alex pulled back and flipped her hair over her shoulder. Olivia’s laugh was lost as Alex’s mouth found hers. Olivia ran a hand over Alex’s arm and down to her breast. Her fingers skipped lightly over Alex’s nipple. Alex broke their kiss and pulled away from Olivia’s hand. “Trying to distract me from what I want?”

“And what would that be?”

Alex’s blue eyes locked with Olivia’s. “I want you to come for me.”

Olivia shivered as Alex drew a hand up the inside of her thigh. Alex’s fingers slid easily into the warm, moist tangle between Olivia’s legs. Olivia moaned as Alex found her swollen clit. Alex slid her fingers lower, dipping into the wetness at Olivia’s core.

The musky smell of Olivia’s need brought a heightened response in her own body that Alex felt keenly in the throbbing between her legs. She dipped her head to suck Olivia’s firm, dark nipple as she moved her fingers back to Olivia’s delicious bundle of nerves.

Alex established a rhythm which Olivia guided with gentle murmurs and reinforced with the increasingly urgent thrusting of her hips.

“Oh god, Alex, don’t stop.”

Alex propped her head on her free hand to get a glimpse of Olivia’s face. A red flush crept over Olivia’s chest, neck, and face as Alex’s insistent fingers worked her closer and closer to a climax. Olivia let out a low moan as her orgasm rushed to meet her. Olivia stilled Alex’s hand with her own as her body began to subside. She held Alex pressed against the length of her body as her breathing returned to normal.

Alex drew her dripping fingers from between Olivia’s lips slowly. She sat up to reach for the top sheet and felt Olivia sit up next to her. Olivia drew a languid hand down Alex’s back. “You didn’t plan on just going to sleep after that did you,” Olivia whispered in Alex’s ear, sending a jolt through her already over-aroused body.

Alex lay back and Olivia rolled to meet her. She turned Alex’s jaw toward her with a light finger. “You do know you have the most transfixing smile don’t you? It completely changes your face.”

“I’m glad you like it.”

“I’m probably not the first person to tell you that.”

“No,” Alex said, stretching up to kiss her lightly on the mouth, “but that doesn’t make the sentiment meaningless either.”

Olivia responded to Alex’s kiss with need, her tongue unabashed between Alex’s lips. Olivia ran her hand over the flat of Alex’s belly, around the curve of her hip, and back up her side to come to rest on one of her small, firm breasts. Olivia broke the kiss and rolled to a kneeling position above Alex, one knee firmly ensconced between Alex’s parted thighs.

Olivia lowered her head to Alex’s breast. Her tongue was soft, but unrelenting as she teased one of Alex’s nipples to an even firmer state while she rolled the other between a gentle thumb and forefinger. Alex rocked slightly against the upward press of Olivia’s leg at the delta of her thighs. Olivia shifted and took some of Alex’s wetness away with her.

Olivia began a deliberately slow trip down Alex’s body, her kisses leaving scattered patches of blush across Alex’s pale skin. She didn’t get very far before Alex drew her back upward. Olivia’s dark eyes locked with Alex’s.

“Not that,” Alex said, “I want your hands.”

Not breaking eye contact, Olivia shifted again. She glided her hand over Alex’s belly and into the deeper blonde triangle between her legs. The rich sent of Alex’s heightened arousal drifted upward. Olivia’s fingers found Alex wet and open. She slid a slow, teasing finger inside. Alex moaned, eyelids fluttering but not quite closing.

Olivia removed her hand just as slowly as she’d entered. She brought her wet finger up to her mouth and tasted. Olivia grinned at the slightly shocked look on Alex’s face. “I decided when you were on my lap I was going to taste you tonight,” she said.

She slipped her fingers into Alex’s warmth once more and quickly found her distended clit. Alex moved her hand to the back of Olivia’s neck and drew her into a deep kiss as Olivia’s fingers found Alex’s rhythm. Alex’s orgasm was quick and powerful, the edge brought closer in the process of getting Olivia to climax. As the flush receded from Alex’s skin and the arch in her back relaxed, Olivia gently removed her hand. She drew the top sheet over both of them and relaxed into the pillow beside Alex.

“I gather I’m not the first woman you’ve been with,” Alex said without opening her eyes.

Olivia laughed. “Winter semester, junior year in college.”

“I trust that was more that once,” Alex said, turning finally to look at her.

“About a month. Then the guy I didn’t know she was also dating suggested a three-way. I bailed.”

“Understandable, particularly if you weren’t expecting it.” Alex shivered. Olivia gathered up the comforter and pulled it over them. Alex rolled over into the open crook of Olivia’s arm. “I am tired, and I will fall asleep. Will you be here when I wake up?”

“Probably not. I can’t go to work smelling like you, and in yesterday’s clothes.”

“You’re welcome stay as long as you can, or would like.”

“Thank you.”

“It was my pleasure.”

“I think there was pleasure had on both sides.”

“This wasn’t a mistake was it?”

Olivia kissed her lightly. “I hope not.”

“We’ll deal with the rest of it as it comes?”

“I think we will.”

Alex smiled.