Disclaimer: The characters from SVU belong to Dick Wolf and the powers that be at NBC

Alfresco

By vivalaB

The desktop fan whirred loudly, annoying the seated blonde as she tried in vain to ignore the oppressive heat. She looked up at the broken air conditioning unit and sighed wearily before glancing at her watch and groaning. Her only court appearance had been postponed until Monday which meant she was spending a hot and humid Friday afternoon in her office doing paperwork.

She looked up as a figure appeared in the open doorway.

"What brings you here?" she asked, placing the pen on her desk.

Olivia entered the office and sighed, "It's too hot in the squad room, I volunteered to bring over these DD5's," she answered, placing the files on the corner of the desk.

Alex pointed to the visitors chair and frowned when Olivia shook her head. She looked at the flushed face, "Can't stay?"

"Won't stay…Jesus Alex, it's like an oven in here," she replied, pulling her form fitting shirt away from her chest and blowing cool air onto her heated breasts.

Alex snorted softly, "You want to get some lunch?"

Olivia looked at her watch, "It's almost three," she commented.

"So? Call it a late lunch," she replied, rising from her chair.

"This is bliss," Alex said absently, sipping slowly from her ice cold soda.

Olivia nodded in agreement as she looked out across the park, enjoying the shade from the tree they were both sitting under.

Alex speared the last piece of her salad and chewed thoughtfully, studying Olivia's profile. She admired the strong set of her jaw and the way her dark eyes scanned the surrounding area, always on the lookout for trouble.

"What?" Olivia asked, without turning round.

Alex smiled, "Nothing," she said, gathering their empty food cartons.

Olivia turned to look at her, "You were staring at me," she stated smiling.

Alex averted her gaze, "You were in my line of sight," she responded coolly.

Olivia nodded knowingly, "Whatever you say, Counselor"

Alex snorted softly, "Why must you always be so annoying?"

"Because I can"

Alex shook her head as she stood and headed for the nearest trash can, needing to put some distance between them. She crossed the grass barefoot, lost in thoughts of the woman under the tree. Their flirtatious dance showed no sign of slowing, even after all these years. She smiled, wondering if either of them would ever muster the courage to make the first move. She was so engrossed in her thoughts of Olivia that she failed to notice the man running towards her.

Olivia looked over at Alex and gasped in horror as she saw a man clutching a football, collide heavily with the blonde. She leapt to her feet and raced over to the fallen woman, sliding to her knees as she roughly shoved the puffing man off the slender frame.

"Watch it lady!" he growled.

Olivia unclipped the shield from her belt and threw it in his face, "Get away from her before I arrest you for assault," she snapped back.

He dropped the football and raised his hands as he spotted the holstered weapon, "I'm sorry… I never saw her," he stammered, crawling away on his knees.

Olivia tentatively rolled Alex on to her back, searching her face and body for any sign of injury, she ran her hands along her sides, accidently brushing the soft breasts as they made their way to her head before smoothing away blonde hair, "Alex?" she whispered.

Alex's eyes fluttered open, "What hit me?" she groaned, lifting a hand to her chest.

"A three hindered pound idiot," she replied, glaring over at the embarrassed man.

Alex blinked a few times, "Where are my glasses?" she asked.

Olivia searched the ground and saw the lens glinting in the sunlight, "Here," she said reaching over for them.

Alex slipped them on to her nose and blew out a steadying breath, "That hurt," she admitted, rubbing her hand across her chest.

"We should get you to hospital, make sure you didn't crack any ribs" she advised.

Alex shook her head as she raised herself on to her elbows, "No, I'm okay, just a little sore," she replied.

The man approached them warily, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt your girlfriend," he said, glancing down at the weapon again before gingerly lifting the football.

Olivia was about to correct him when Alex interrupted, "I'm okay, no harm done, I should have been paying more attention," she replied, smiling as she used Olivia's arm to help her to her feet.

He shook his head, "I'm sorry," he repeated, taking a nervous step backwards at the brown eyed glare, cast in his direction.

Alex nodded her head, "I'm fine, honestly," she said, snaking an arm around Olivia's waist and tugging her towards the tree.

Olivia draped a supportive arm around Alex's shoulders and pulled her closer, "You sure you're okay?" she asked softly.

"I just need out of the sun and a minute to get my breath back," she replied honestly.

Olivia tilted her head, "I could arrest him," she suggested.

Alex snorted, "It was an a accident, besides it was my fault," she added.

They stopped under the tree and enjoyed the cool breeze the shade provided. Olivia sat on the ground and looked up at her friend, "You don't have eyes on the back of your head, you couldn't have seen him coming," she said.

Alex nodded, "I know, but I was distracted and not paying attention," she replied as she lowered herself to the grass and blew out a steadying breath.

Olivia moved beside her, "He thought you were my girlfriend," she said smiling, nudging her shoulder gently.

"Not surprising, considering you copped a feel while I was flat on my back," she replied, shifting her head and catching the surprised look on Olivia's face.

Olivia turned her head away, "I was checking for injuries," she said defensively.

Alex frowned, "Is that what they're calling tit these days?"

Olivia dipped her head, "It was an accident," she said quietly.

Alex was about to respond when Olivia suddenly got up, "Will you be okay getting back to the office? I need to go," she said, looking down at the seated woman.

Alex studied the expression on Olivia's face and felt guilty for teasing her friend, she nodded absently as she eased to her feet, "I'm sorry," she said quietly.

Olivia shrugged, "I was just worried about you, I thought you were hurt, I wasn't thinking about where my hands were…I just wanted to make sure you were okay," she shrugged as she turned, "I'll call you later," she added as she began to walk away.

Alex watched her leave and noticed the slump in her shoulders, she lifted her shoes from the grass and ran after the retreating figure.

She reached for Olivia's hand, halting her movement.

Olivia turned and gazed with surprise into Alex's flushed face.

Alex squeezed her hand, "I was thinking about you," she said, panting lightly.

Olivia held her hand gently and frowned, "What?"

"When I went to the trash can, I was thinking about you, that's why I never heard him approaching," she said.

Olivia shook her head, "What about me?"

Alex swallowed nervously as she let her shoes drop to the ground and cupped Olivia's cheek, "About how long we've danced around each other," she said quietly.

Olivia's mouth fell open, "I would never do anything to make you feel uncomfortable," she whispered.

"I know"

Olivia took a step closer, "But when I'm with you, I forget the job and everything else, I get lost in you Alex," she admitted shyly.

Alex's heart thumped in her chest as she brushed her thumb lightly across Olivia's smooth cheek, "I know what you mean," she said softly.

Olivia's eyes glanced at parted lips, "I really want to kiss you," she breathed out.

"In the middle of Central Park?"

Olivia nodded, "Anywhere, as long as I can finally kiss you," she whispered.

Alex removed her hand and dipped her head, pausing an inch away from parted lips, "I really want to kiss you too," she husked out before capturing Olivia's mouth in a tender kiss.

The end