Hi everyone! I've been at my cabin on the lake up in Northern Minnesota this week and I keep thinking of Elliot and Olivia doing the same. So, I just had to get it out of my head and down on paper. I just can't get these two out of my head, and this is the only way I can make them do what I want. I know there are probably other versions of similar stories, like there is with almost any FF. But this is my version and any similarities are not intentional.

This is set in early Season 7. As you will see, Elliot is divorced. As always, thanks for reading. You guys are awesome!

EOEOEOEO

"Stabler." Elliot answered his phone as he snagged a pickle off Olivia's plate. He saw Olivia scowl at him and he shrugged and gave her an innocent smile as he listened to Kathleen on the other end of the line.

Did you ask her yet?

Elliot rolled his eyes slightly, even though Kathleen couldn't see him. "No, honey. Not yet." He saw Olivia relax slightly when she realized the call wasn't work related.

What are you waiting for?

Elliot watched Olivia as she took a bite of her grilled chicken sandwich, and gave her another small smile as she narrowed her eyes at him just as he focused on the remaining pickle on her plate. "Just haven't had a chance."

We leave in four days!

"I know Kathleen. Don't worry about it."

But people need time to get ready Dad. You just throw a pair of shorts in a bag and call it good. Us girls need more time. Like maybe she needs a new swimsuit or something.

Elliot chuckled at the drama in his daughter's voice. "I get it. OK. I'll do it today."

Are you with her right now?

"I'll take care of it." Elliot said. "I have to go. I'll call you later." He didn't want to give her any time to pressure him into asking Olivia right now, while she was on the phone.

Dad…

Elliot hung up before his daughter could say anything else.

"Do I even want to know?" Olivia asked, a moment before she took a sip of her iced tea.

Elliot considered her for a second. He didn't normally shy away from doing anything, but he'd been putting this off. He didn't know why, but he knew he couldn't much longer. "Nah." He said, snagging Olivia's pickle before she could stop him. Olivia started to protest but he heard his phone vibrate on the table and he looked down at the text message. It was from Kathleen.

Ask her or I'll text her myself.

Elliot let out a sigh and looked up at Olivia. She had an expectant look on her face and he realized that maybe she had asked him something. "What?"

Olivia shook her head. "I asked you why you don't order extra pickles for yourself."

Elliot broke out in a grin. "Because it's fun to see if I can get away with stealing yours."

"You always get away with it." Olivia said. "Because I let you. If I wanted to stop you, I could." She needed to remind him sometimes that she was faster than him. She just chose her battles. And it was always fun to watch him. He looked like a little boy…a small look of triumph on his face when he succeeded. They didn't have enough of those moments in their days.

"I know." He said. Elliot lounged back in the booth. "So, only three more days of work until vacation." He said. "What did you decide to do?"

"What did I decide to do?" Olivia repeated. "I'm not doing anything. I'm not working any 14 or 16-hour days. I'm not taking any calls to a crime scene in the middle of the night." She sighed. "And I'm not living on squad room coffee and take-out."

"Sounds like heaven." Elliot said, with a small laugh.

"It will be. I may even turn my cell phone off." Olivia said.

"Really?" Elliot said, raising one eyebrow in disbelief. Olivia was attached to her cell phone.

"The only people that I ever talk to is the squad or Casey. Or you." Olivia took another sip of her iced tea. "I don't want to hear from Cragen or Casey. And you…well…you're going to be away at that lake place." She knew Elliot had rented a cabin for the week and was taking the kids and some of their friends. It sounded like chaos to her, but she knew he was really looking forward to it. He never felt as if he got to spend enough time with the kids since the divorce, and he felt he had a lot of time to make up for before that split even happened.

"Yeah…about that." Elliot said tentatively.

"Did something happen? Are you not going?" Olivia asked. She really hoped nothing had happened with the rental of the cabin or that Kathy hadn't come up with something last minute to keep the kids from going.

"No, we're going." Elliot said. "I mean…well…I already told you that Maureen couldn't get time off from her internship."

Olivia nodded. Elliot had been really disappointed when Maureen had called. But that had been weeks ago.

"Well, I got together with the kids last night. We talked about meals and what kinds of things they wanted to do and that kind of stuff…" Elliot said, his voice trailing off at the end.

"Yeah…" Olivia prompted. Elliot was hedging, and he didn't normally do that. She had never known him to shy away from saying what was on his mind. She couldn't imagine what it could be that he wanted to avoid telling her.

"The kids were talking about their friends, and Elizabeth pointed out that I didn't have a friend to hang out with. I told them I'd be just fine keeping them all in line, but…" He scrubbed a hand over his head.

Olivia started laughing. She could imagine the conversation. The thought of Elliot needing a friend to "play" with…

Olivia stopped laughing and looked down at her plate. "Oh." She said quickly. "Well, that will be nice for you. I mean…" She looked up at him, at a loss for words. She knew she need to finish her thought but nothing was coming to her. "We'd better get going." She said, reaching for the check.

"Hold on." Elliot said, placing his hand over hers. "I'm not done talking yet."

Olivia quickly pulled her hand out from underneath his. "Elliot, I don't really care about the..." she hesitated for a second. "Person that you're taking with you." She didn't know why he had felt the need to tell her. In fact, she would be happier NOT knowing. His love life was his business.

Elliot was staring at Olivia,

"Liv…what…" Elliot said, confused by the sudden change in her demeanor. But then he realized that she thought he was bringing a woman up to the lake, and she was bothered by it. And trying hard to act like she wasn't.

Interesting. He was going to store that away and think about that later.

Olivia reached into the pocket of her jacket and grabbed some cash. She didn't even know how much it was as she tossed it on the table, but she looked up quickly as Elliot grabbed her wrist.

"Liv!" He said sharply before he released her hand. "Let me finish." He saw a wary look on her face, but she settled back in the booth.

"Fine." She said, biting off the word. She really didn't want to hear this.

Elliot let out a small sigh. The woman was so stubborn sometimes. "The kids suggested I ask you to come to the cabin with us." He said. "Well, Kathleen suggested it, but the other kids jumped right in and agreed. I couldn't shut them up."

Olivia was genuinely surprised. "Me?" She asked, pressing her fingers against her chest.

"Yes. You."

"But…why me?"

Elliot gave a little shrug and a small smile played across his mouth. "Maybe because we're good friends and because they like you." He didn't add the part where Kathleen had asked him to name the last time he went an entire week without Olivia. "Maybe they think I'll be on my best behavior or won't rag on them. I don't know."

Olivia was trying to process what he was saying. She knew Elliot's kids, but not well. They came into the squad room periodically, and she had been invited to a few…very few…family events or parties over the years. She'd had a few dinners with Maureen or Kathleen while she and Elliot had time for a quick dinner break. But she had assumed they saw her as the job…his partner…the one that he was with when he wasn't home with them. "Well, what did you say when they asked you to invite me?"

"I said I would." Elliot said simply. He could see the doubt on Olivia's face. "I told them that I thought it was a great idea." He had been surprised by their request at first, but he was on board. The kids liked her. It gave him another adult to talk to, especially when the kids were about to push him over the edge. And he was comfortable with Olivia.

"I'd think you'd want a break from me." Olivia said.

"A break from you?" Elliot asked. "Why would I need a break from you?"

"Because it's your vacation. A break from work." Olivia wondered if he'd thought this through.

Elliot leaned over towards her slightly. "Liv, you and the job are two different things. I don't need a break from you." He leaned back. "Unless you're planning on working. And you told me very clearly that you're not. So, no, I don't need a break from you." Then a thought occurred to him. "Do you feel like you need a break from me?"

Olivia shook her head slightly. "No."

"Then what's the problem?" Elliot said. He could see the wheels turning in her head, trying to think of reasons why she shouldn't come. "C'mon. A beautiful lake, a nice sandy beach. Swimming, waterskiing, bonfires. It'll be a blast. Leave this damned city for once. Get some fresh air."

"Are you sure you have room for me?" Olivia asked.

Elliot smiled. He was wearing her down. "Yes, of course. You can stay in my room." He saw Olivia arch one of her brows and he realized what he'd said. He rushed to clarify. "I mean, you can have the bedroom I was going to sleep in and I'll take Mo's room. Upstairs." He added. "The master is on the main floor and has its' own bathroom. So, you'll have your privacy."

"I'm not going to take your room El." Olivia said.

"It's fine. They're my kids and I'm used to the commotion. If you sleep upstairs, they're going to keep you up all night."

"El…" Olivia said.

"How about we agree to fight about it when we get there?" Elliot said.

Olivia pressed her lips together. A week at a lakeside house sounded wonderful. She'd never really left the city much, even as a child. She remembered a few trips to the Jersey Shore or out to Long Island when she was young, but being out of her routine never suited her mother well, and she'd drink more than usual. They always seemed to end up leaving early. Eventually her mother had given up on going anywhere on vacation, and they trolled museums and art exhibits and other things on the rare days they spent together. "OK."

"So, you're coming with us?" Elliot asked, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"I can't think of any reason to say no." Olivia said, as she noticed Elliot's phone light up with another incoming text message. "And I don't want your kids to be mad at you." She said, giving him a small smile.

"Great!" Elliot said. He hadn't realized how much he was hoping she would accept, and now he felt as if he couldn't get the stupid grin off his face.

"Now can we get back to work?" Olivia asked, starting the slide out of the booth.

Elliot followed suit and pulled up Kathleen's message. He hit reply and typed She said yes. A moment later, he got a reply. "She said to remind you to bring at least two suits."

"Two suits?" Olivia asked as she got into the car.

"Yes. I don't know. It seems like the girls always have multiple swimsuits. They're always hanging all over the railing." He said as he slid into the driver's seat. "Apparently one is good for sunning or this one is good for waterskiing." He waved a hand in the air. "I don't know and frankly, I stopped asking. But it must be important because it's the only thing she told me to remind you about."

Olivia's mind was stuck on the word swimsuit. She hadn't really thought about the fact that they'd be swimming…that she'd have to wear a swimsuit. That she'd be parading around in front of her partner in something akin to her underwear. And God help her, but Elliot would be wearing only swim trunks too. That bare chest…those chiseled abs…those arms. She closed her eyes as a mental picture of it assaulted her. Seven days of that…

"Are you OK?" Elliot asked, and she felt his hand on her shoulder. She turned and saw a look of concern on his face.

"I'm fine, why?" She asked, shrugging his hand off her shoulder.

"I just thought I heard…" Elliot stopped. He wasn't about to tell her that he thought he'd heard a small sound escape her throat. "I just thought maybe you weren't feeling well. You had your eyes closed."

"Just drive Elliot." She said as she settled back against the seat. A bare-chested Elliot was not going to be a problem for her, and she wasn't going to worry about what she was going to wear around him, because Elliot obviously wasn't interested in her. He'd been separated for a long time, and now divorced for almost a year, and he'd made no move to change their relationship. Whatever feelings she thought he might harbor for her were apparently non-existent. So, she had tucked hers away; pushed them deep down. Elliot had said it himself just a few minutes ago. They were friends.

Friends did things together, like go on vacation.

So, she was going on vacation with Elliot. Her friend.

End of story.

More to come...