Dealing, Chapter 10
Title: Dealing
Pairing: Alex/Olivia
Rating: M (for some chapters)
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters contained here, but I am thankful to have these wonderful people to play with.
Notes: Itallics are thoughts. I apologize in advance for any errors in grammar and spelling.
CHAPTER 10
Sunday found the pair lounging around the apartment, doing laundry and other mundane activities. Alex finished packing what she wanted to take in the car while Olivia packed up the last of her things as well. When the late afternoon rolled in they made plans for an early dinner.
When Olivia led Alex back into the bar they ate at on Thursday, both women noticed that there was definitely more of a crowd. Most of the seats were filled but Alex smiled when she saw her favorite booth empty. Her eyes then scanned the room for Paul.
Paul approached the pair and greeted them warmly. Alex motioned to her favorite table and soon found herself seated with Olivia. After the women were seated Paul picked up the ‘reserved’ sign from the table and sat down next to Alex.
“This evening is on me.” Paul halted the protests. “Of course you have to put up with me for awhile.” A waiter approached the table and paused to take their drink orders. After conferring with the women Paul placed the order and took the menus to pass around.
The women settled on what they wanted and Paul signaled to the waiter that they were ready. Paul watched the two women as he placed the orders. After the waiter left Paul broke the ice.
“So, Alex, do you have a job lined up for you when you get back to New York or are you going to be lazy for awhile?”
“Sure do, at least temporarily. I’m going to be handling the cases in Manhattan’s Special Victims Unit.” Alex and Olivia both had smiles on their faces. “That’s the unit Olivia works for and the one I prosecuted for when I was there.”
“How long have you two known each other?” Paul enjoyed the interaction between the attorney and the detective. Alex had been fascinating to talk to in the past and he sensed that Olivia would be just as interesting.
“About 10 years.” Olivia announced, taking hold of Alex’s hand. “But we’ve been apart for almost half of that.” Paul recognized the sadness in the detective’s eyes after having seen the same in Alex’s in the past.
“Sounds like you two have some wild stories to tell.”
All three laughed. “You have no idea, Paul.” Alex sobered quickly and continued. “But it’s all in the past now. We have nothing but happy times to look forward to.”
When the food was delivered the three friends ate quietly, enjoying the food. After the dishes were cleared and drinks refilled the conversation continued.
“So, Olivia, how did you pick up that bruise? I didn’t notice you having it on Thursday.”
“I guess Alex isn’t as good with the makeup as I thought.” Olivia smiled shyly as she acknowledged the dark spot showing through the makeup.
“She got between me and a former stalker at the office on Friday.” Alex hugged her girlfriend with one arm. “He took a swing at her and she forgot to duck.” Even Olivia laughed as Alex tried to make light of the encounter but they all could see that the blonde had been worried.
“Ouch. Hopefully no permanent damage.” He winced in sympathy.
“Nope, just a bruise covering half of my face.”
“When are you two leaving?” Paul knew that this was the last time he would see them on this trip but wasn’t sure how much longer Alex was going to be in town.
“Monday morning. We have a prisoner to take back to New York with us.” Olivia didn’t look too happy at Alex’s release of that information. The detective’s professional side kicked in as she worried about giving out too much information.
“Ooh, sounds interesting. What did he do?”
“He had a warrant back in Manhattan so I arranged to collect him and Alex on the same trip.” This time it was Alex’s turn to scowl at Olivia.
“Collect me?” Alex was indignant.
“You know what I mean.” Olivia joked at her girlfriend.
“It sounds like you two are enjoying being together now after all that time apart.” Paul picked up on a bit of the excitement as they talked about going back.
“Yeah, it’s been a few years.” Olivia replied, sadly.
“But now that we’re back together nothing will separate us again.” Alex kissed Olivia briefly and sat back smiling.
“I’ll drink to that.” Paul raised his glass in a toast. The women tapped their glasses against his and swallowed the last of the liquid in them. Paul excused himself and went to get refills for their drinks. After a few minutes he brought back two glasses and picking up his own, stepped away from the table. “I’ll leave you ladies alone to enjoy your evening but please swing by the bar before you leave.”
“Sure Paul.” Alex quickly got to her feet and gave Paul a tight hug. “Thanks for everything you’ve done for me. I won’t forget it...or you. We’ll come back for a visit.” Olivia nodded her head in agreement.
When he left Alex took the opportunity to visit the restroom. Olivia took a few sips and sat back to wait. She had her eyes closed and failed to notice when a familiar young man walked through the door. He slipped into the crowd before Olivia looked back up.
Olivia turned to watch as Alex walked back to their table. She was as beautiful as ever, even dressed down in jeans and T-shirt. Things seemed to move in slow motion as Olivia finally caught sight of Kevin, seconds before he got to Alex. Olivia leapt from the booth, nearly clearing the table in a single stride.
Alex looked at her girlfriend in shock until she noticed sudden movement to the right and saw Kevin moving through the crowd towards her. Alex nearly ran to Olivia’s side as Kevin made a change in trajectory. Olivia pushed Alex behind her to screen the blonde from danger.
Alex managed to get Paul’s attention and yell at him to call the police as Olivia squared off against Alex’s stalker. Kevin moved closer, anger clearly written on his face. The two faced off, only a few feet separating them.
“Not you again.” Olivia groaned as Kevin used the classic comment but widened her eyes when she saw something shiny in his right hand. He was armed with a knife. Olivia pushed Alex farther away from her and was glad to see Paul pull her behind the bar and out of harm’s way.
Turning her attention back to the knife Olivia jumped out of the way as he swung the blade wildly. He slashed several times but Olivia easily moved away. Olivia watched for her opportunity to disarm the man as she continued to dodge the blade.
Most of the patrons had cleared out and were huddled by the end of the bar closest to the door. The two had most of the floor open to maneuver. Olivia used one of the tables as she slid it between her and Kevin. Expecting him to move around the table Olivia was caught off guard by his actions. Instead of going around the obstruction Kevin vaulted over the top of the table and tackled Olivia to the ground. Alex screamed when she saw the detective go down under the man. He completely obscured Olivia from view as the two wrestled for the knife.
Suddenly there was a loud growl and a flying fist in the middle of the melee. Kevin flew backwards, the knife left imbedded in the floor next to Olivia’s head. The detective climbed to her feet before he could recover from the blow and forced him over, face down on the floor. She pounded her knee into the center of his back and pulled his wrists together behind his back. Though he was flopping wildly, Olivia maintained her grip.
Olivia was concentrating on keeping him subdued when she was gripped by strong hands and pulled from the floor. When she tried to turn around to face the person that had moved her she found that a strong uniformed officer restrained her. The police had confused her with the bad guy.
When Olivia relaxed in the grip Alex rushed forward, concern written all over her face. She stopped over at the table to grab her ID from her purse before confronting the officer holding Olivia. The other one was pulling Kevin to his feet as blood poured from the assailant’s nose.
“Now we’re even!” Olivia yelled in frustration as Alex came closer. She showed her ID to the nearest officer and proceeded to explain what had happened.
“Sorry, Ma’am. I wasn’t sure who was who there for a while.” He hastily released Olivia and the detective proceeded to flop down into the nearest chair. The adrenaline was fading fast.
“You hurt?” Alex kneeled next to Olivia and took her chin in her hand, turning the brunette’s face towards her to inspect the damage. Olivia shook her head in the negative, still recovering from the shock of the fight. Alex looked like she wasn’t convinced.
“I’m okay, Alex. Not a scratch this time.” She smiled at the blonde.
“This time. You need to learn to stay out of trouble.” Alex was relieved to find her girlfriend unharmed, especially when she had seen how close the knife had been to Olivia’s head.
“I’ll try if you can learn not to attract the lunatics.” The nervous laughter that followed released the tension. Alex let her hand rest on Olivia’s knee as Paul approached.
“You ladies all right?” He quietly asked as the patrons began to return to their seats. Olivia nodded as Alex unconsciously shivered.
“It looks like it.” Alex looked to Paul, her nerves finally settling a bit. “Sorry to make a mess out of your evening.”
“No harm done. It’ll be the talk of the town for awhile.” Olivia pushed to her feet, Alex right behind.
Walking towards the two officers Olivia pulled out her wallet to show ID. Two other officers had taken Kevin from the room while the women were recovering.
“Detective, I’m sorry for grabbing you like that.” The officer that had pulled Olivia from the floor was looking at the floor, expecting to be scolded.
“It’s okay. I would have done the same if it were I. It’s nothing to be sorry about.” Olivia was concerned about the fact that Kevin had gotten out so quickly. She turned to Alex. “You think you can find out how he got out so fast?”
“I’m sure he posted bail, but I’ll check.” Alex turned to the officers and spoke. “Which station are you taking him to?” The question was answered and Alex made plans to call over there later to make sure he was not going to be going anywhere. “I’ll be leaving town tomorrow; do you think you guys can hold him till then?”
“I think we can get away with that, counselor.” He smiled at Alex as they shook hands. Olivia stepped forward and bid farewell before the ladies returned to their table.
“Are we going to be able to get away from this town before someone finally ruins our getaway?” Olivia was smiling but Alex knew she was frustrated with the interruptions.
“Of course. The rest of the trip will go off without a hitch.” Alex kissed Olivia on the cheek. “You’ll see babe, no more trouble.”
“Don’t jinx us Alex.” Olivia glanced at her girlfriend, a smile on her face. “We still have to get through tomorrow.” Alex playfully shoved Olivia back towards their table.
Once the adrenaline had worn off Olivia was fading rapidly. She tried to hide it but Alex picked up on things as her girlfriend went silent and only sipped her drink occasionally.
“Liv, why don’t we get out of here? You look like you could use a good soak in the tub before a nice nights sleep.” She ruffled Olivia’s hair before pushing it behind the brunette’s ear.
“Okay.” Olivia downed another swallow of her drink before sliding out of the booth. She pulled her keys out of her pocket but Alex reached out.
“Let me drive. You’ve had enough excitement for one day.”
“And you driving will be less exciting?” Olivia cocked an eyebrow at Alex, waiting for her to rise to the bait.
“Very funny.” Alex snatched the keys anyway and led the way to the bar to say her good-byes. Paul acknowledged their presence and gave Alex a tight hug before shaking Olivia’s hand.
“You’re welcome here anytime, Alex.” Paul spread his arms wide, indicating the room. “This will always be your home here in Harrisburg.”
“Thanks again, Paul. I’m glad Alex had someone here who cares about her.” Olivia placed her hand on Alex’s shoulder and guided her from the bar.
The drive home was quick and uneventful, despite Olivia’s teasing. They reached the living room about 8PM and Olivia dropped onto the couch, her head resting on the back.
“What are you going to do about the movers? Are they coming in tomorrow morning?”
“No. I’ve got the lease on this place until the end of March so I figured I’d leave this stuff here and maybe we’ll have found a place by then so it’ll only be moved once.” Alex sat down carefully next to Olivia, careful not to cause any movement for the detective.
“Makes sense. I would think we’d be able to find something in two months.” Olivia smirked at Alex. “Of course you’re the one who’s going to be looking.”
“I’ll take that responsibility as long as you agree to look at a few places. I don’t want to buy something that you haven’t even seen.”
“I trust you, Alex. You know that.” Olivia leaned forward and gave Alex a big hug. When they separated Alex stood up.
“I’m going to go run you a nice hot bath.” Alex headed down the hall but turned around when Olivia hadn’t moved from the couch. “You need help getting undressed?”
“If I’m not there when you’re done, come get me.” Olivia was obviously running on fumes. She had definitely had enough excitement for one weekend.
Alex nodded and disappeared into the bedroom. She pulled out a pair of shorts and T-shirt for Olivia to wear when she got out and headed for the bath.
After running the water and Olivia hadn’t made it to the bedroom, Alex headed back to the living room. The detective was still in the same place on the couch. Alex approached quietly and watched her girlfriend sleep.
“Wake up, Liv.” Alex gently shook the shoulder closest to her not wanting to startle the woman.
“I’m awake, just resting my eyes.” Olivia slowly climbed to her feet and putting an arm around Alex’s waist, moved down the hall. “I believe I was promised a bath?” Olivia waggled her eyebrows at the blonde and Alex broke into laughter at her friend’s antics.
While Olivia relaxed in the hot bath Alex set about getting the place ready for her absence. Perishables were removed; pictures and personal stuff was packed. After about thirty minutes of silence from the bath Alex decided to investigate.
Poking her head around the corner of the open door Alex wasn’t surprised to see Olivia asleep in the tub. The soap and washcloth were still where the blonde had left them. Alex took a few minutes to admire the detective and look her over. In addition to the massive bruise on the side of her face, Alex thought she saw the beginning of one on the back of Olivia’s right shoulder. She must have the floor pretty hard.
“Okay sleepyhead, time for the rest of your bath.” Alex smiled as she watched Olivia rouse from her impromptu nap. Olivia put her arms in front of her to stretch but stopped suddenly with a wince of pain.
“Damn, I guess the floor was harder than I thought.” Olivia tried to laugh it off but Alex saw through the façade and was being the concerned girlfriend.
“You’ve got a bruise showing up on the back of your right shoulder. Looks like it could be big. How much does it hurt?”
“Just a little tender. I didn’t even notice it until I stretched.” Alex wasn’t convinced but decided to let it go for now. Olivia was relaxed and Alex knew she would get riled up if pushed.
“If you say so, sweetie.” When it looked as if Olivia was going to fall asleep again Alex picked up the soap and cloth and finished the bath. The two women finished in the bathroom and finally settled into bed. Within minutes they were sound asleep.