Thanks so much for all the great feedback from my first Rolivia story. Here's another...

She hates warehouses.

Too many dark corners, too many hiding places, too much unpredictability.

It seems like no matter how much backup you bring, you're always at a disadvantage; it's always predator becoming prey and not even realizing the shift until it's almost too late.

Like today.

Olivia takes a steadying breath, eyes staring blankly at a fixed spot on her desk as she relives the moment for what feels like the thousandth time since they left the warehouse this morning.

They were on the trail of a serial rapist; a psycho who had attacked 7 little girls in as many weeks, and it seemed like they were always one step behind. He was taunting them, but in his thrill of being the hunted instead of the hunter, he'd finally made a mistake. He left DNA-trace amounts, but it was there, and it was enough to give them a name. A name led to a cell phone, and the GPS led them there-to the warehouse.

Guns drawn, she and her detectives had moved stealthily through the sweltering, dimly lit open space; Olivia could recall barely hearing the sirens of their backup surrounding the building over the sound of her own heart thundering in her ears. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing at attention, unable to shake the feeling of being watched as her eyes frantically moved back-and-forth across her sight line, ensuring she had eyes on her team as well as trying to identify any threat to their safety amongst the shadows.

Fin and Carisi were covering each other ahead of her; Rollins paced silently to her left, their backs somewhat toward each other as they swept the periphery, eyes peeled for movement, ears perked up for any sound that wasn't them.

She swallows thickly at the memory of it; the sound of a gun cocking. She'd been stunned temporarily still as the figure came out from behind a tall crate, and she'd barely had time to yell "GUN!" in warning to her squad before the gunshot shattered the silence. She whirled around just in time to see the bullet pierce another crate, just behind where Amanda was standing.

Fin had reacted quickly, returning fire to disable their perp while Carisi stepped in to slap cuffs on the guy. She watched silently as Rollins unclipped the radio that had been attached to her belt, giving the team outside the all-clear to do a full sweep & letting them know that everything was alright, they were coming out unharmed, suspect apprehended.

Everything that happened after that had been a blur, and even now, Olivia couldn't reconcile just how close that bullet had been to her detective. Amanda.

It couldn't have been more than an inch.

If Amanda had planted her foot even just a little bit differently, Olivia knew she'd be standing vigil in a hospital waiting room right now instead of holing up in her office, glancing upward every ten seconds to check on the blonde detective, making sure she was still there.

The fear she'd felt today, in the split second before her brain had caught up to what her eyes were seeing and she knew Rollins was okay, was unlike anything she'd felt before. And once the shock had worn off, the fear had given way to other things; things she'd never allowed herself to feel for the blonde before.

Amanda Rollins had made her feel many things over the years: anger and frustration taking high spots on that list; even pride, occasionally. But never this.

Nothing had ever made her feel this.

The rest of the day passes without major fanfare, and Olivia is thankful, given her tenuous grip on the here-and-now. She does her best to bury herself in paperwork-God knows there's plenty of it after this morning and the interrogation that followed-and for the most part it works; though she's powerless to stop the slips into flashbacks of the warehouse, the periodic clandestine glances at the younger detective as the day wears on.

She has no concept of the time other than the daylight still peeking through her office windows when she is jarred from the case files littering her desk by light knocking at her cracked office door.

It's her, Amanda, hovering almost hesitantly in her doorway. "Hey," the detective greets meekly, taking steps forward and pulling a file from behind her back when Olivia beckons her closer. "The Donalds case," Amanda explains. "Ready for Barba."

"Thanks," Olivia replies, taking the file and briefly skimming a couple of pages. "I'll get it to him." She turns her attention back to Amanda, who's tucked her hands in the back pockets of her slacks. "How is it out there?" she asks, cocking her head toward the squad room, where her other detectives remain busy, either bent over their own case files or with phones pressed to their ears.

"Uh," Amanda shrugs, following the Lieutenant's gaze to her colleagues. "Quiet," she finally says. "For now."

She snorts when Olivia's knuckles rap gently on the surface of her wooden desk, knocking on wood. "Don't jinx it, Rollins," Olivia says, giving her detective a wry look and a tight smile.

It seems silly to her, having this mundane exchange of words in her office when all day, she's been grappling with a tightness in her chest that had manifested in that warehouse and had hardly let up since.

She finds that, simultaneously, she can't stand to be near this woman for a second longer, while at the same time even the thought of letting her go leaves a pit in her stomach.

"So, while it's quiet..." Amanda broaches cautiously, squaring her shoulders as she meets her Lieutenant's eyes, "I can't remember the last time I got out of here while the sun was still up," she says. "Carisi's catching." Her eyes flit out the window behind her Lieutenant's desk briefly. "And," she adds, sighing in resignation, "...it's been a day, ya know?"

"It has," Olivia confirms tightly, hardly daring to breathe at the vague mention of all that had transpired.

"I was thinkin' about takin' the long way home," Amanda said, her voice wistful. "...Gettin' some vitamin D…"

Olivia nods, understanding all too well the urge to see the city as a civilian once in a while, after the horrors you see of it as a cop. "Go," she says simply, watching Amanda nod gratefully before turning toward the door. She can't resist saying one more thing, though, and the blonde turns back to face her at the sound of her name being called. "Take care of yourself, okay?" Olivia reminds her.

Amanda cocks her head, resting one hand on the doorframe as she hovers half-in and half-out of Olivia's office. "Been doin' that my whole life, Lieutenant," she drawls, with what can only be described as a self-deprecating smile. She taps her fingers against the doorframe and mutters, "Get home safe."

If Rollins is aware of the brown eyes that follow her as she moves toward her desk, packing up what little she'd brought with her before heading to the elevators and out of sight, she gives no indication, and Olivia waits until the exact second the lithe frame of her blonde detective disappears around the far corner before her body physically deflates in her chair.

She doesn't allow herself much time to wallow in whatever it was that had her locked in its talons, taking a deep breath and straightening up in her seat before returning to the mess of dead trees that lay scattered across her desk.

As the light beaming through her windows gradually dims into dusk, she makes a show of working diligently, trying to convince herself that not having Rollins in the squad room, blonde hair peeking just over the shade of her desk lamp, does anything to quell the distraction she feels.

And finally, when "working" becomes a glorified dance of pushing papers across her desk and she is no longer absorbing things without reading them four, five, even six times, she runs a tired hand through hair that is in desperate need of a wash, packs up her purse, and strides toward the elevator, exuding a quiet confidence that she knows is merely an elaborate front for the emotions warring inside of her.

Olivia has lost count of the number of times she's almost turned around and gone back home, but every time her steps have faltered, something keeps her pushing forward.

Maybe that second glass of wine wasn't such a good idea, she thinks to herself, stepping off the elevator and taking a wary step forward. As she approaches the younger woman's apartment, she can hear the dull din of Amanda's television through the paper-thin walls, followed by a groan of what sounds like disappointment. The latter makes her lips twitch in amusement, the sound so patently Amanda that it's oddly comforting in its own way, and she steels herself as she comes to a stop in front of the familiar door, hand poised to knock.

Last chance, she tells herself. If you leave now, she'll never have to know you were here…

And then, as if her hand has a mind of it's own, she feels her knuckles rap against the door, consciously knocking loud enough to compete with the television to be heard.

Olivia can almost envision the blonde as she hears the TV go silent; Amanda yells, "Coming!" through the door to her unannounced guest, and then Olivia can hear footsteps padding against hardwood floors before coming to a stop on the other side of the door. It opens then, revealing a casual but distracted Amanda, who's keeping one eye on the TV as it registers who's at her door. "Liv," she says, surprised, stepping back to allow the other woman entrance.

"Hey," Olivia answers quietly. She steps into the apartment, following Amanda toward the kitchen. "Sorry to just...drop by," she offers.

"No, no. It's fine. I was just watchin' the game," she shrugs, gesturing at the TV before sliding her hands into the back pockets of her faded jeans. She watches Olivia turn to see the Knicks game on mute, and promptly turns back to the younger woman, eyebrow arched. "I don't have any money on it, Lieutenant," Amanda assures her with a patient eye roll, knowing exactly what she's thinking. When Olivia's gaze doesn't relent, she adds, "Honest, I don't. I'm just watchin'. It's just…" she runs a hand through soft blonde hair, "It's a good distraction, y'know? It's mindless."

At this, Olivia nods, understanding. "Okay."

As the brunette makes herself comfortable, dropping her purse onto the counter of her kitchen, Amanda remembers her manners. "D'you want a beer, or..." She turns to survey the meager contents of her refrigerator before glancing back at her lieutenant with a sheepish smile. "...Water? Sorry, it looks like I need to go shoppin' again."

"I'm fine," Olivia declines with a small smile, shaking her head. Despite their stark differences, the younger detective reminds her so much of herself sometimes it's almost jarring.

Amanda grabs a fresh beer for herself and straddles the arm of her couch, curious blue eyes following Olivia as the older woman makes her way deeper into the living room. The TV stays muted as the brunette slowly rounds the room, stopping on occasion to study the spine of a criminology textbook or to study one of the few pictures Amanda has prominently displayed.

After a several agonizing moments of utter silence, Amanda can't take it anymore, quietly broaching, "Everything okay?" She absently picks at the label on her bottle, feeling oddly exposed by the thorough examination Olivia is conducting of her living room.

"Yeah," Olivia nods. She finally stops, rooted to one spot, and shrugs one shoulder as she crosses her arms over her chest and meets Amanda's concerned gaze. "Yeah, I just wanted to...check on you." The older woman is thankful for the dim light in the room that hides her blush when Amanda's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "After today, y'know," she adds, before she can stop herself.

"I'm fine, Liv," Amanda assures her with a shrug, then pauses. "Are you?"

Olivia is silent for a long moment, redirecting her gaze to a photo she can tell is of Amanda and Kim when they were much younger, knowing innately that the blonde keeps these mementos out to remind of a time when things weren't so complicated between them. She can feel the blonde's eyes on her, and she squares her shoulders, letting the words escape her lips before she can think twice about the implications. "Do you have any idea how close that bullet came to hitting you today, Amanda?" she asks, so quietly Amanda has to lean closer to hear her.

Several seconds go by without a response and Olivia finally turns just in time to see Amanda take a deep, steadying breath before setting her beer on the coffee table and disappearing without a word toward the hallway. Luckily, she returns before the brunette has time to worry over what her departure means, and Olivia recognizes immediately that Amanda is not empty-handed. She's holding the blouse the older woman recognizes as the one she'd been wearing earlier. At the warehouse.

Amanda draws her attention to the seam on the side of the blouse, and Olivia gasps when she identifies the tear in the fabric. "I found this when I changed earlier," the younger woman explains softly, her voice barely above a whisper. "I didn't even feel it."

Olivia rubs her thumb along the torn material, feeling the sting of tears behind her eyes as she takes in a shaky breath. "Amanda…" she chokes out. "If you'd've been hit, I don't know what I would've done…" she sighs, teeth worrying her lower lip before she adds brokenly, "And honestly…" she breathes out a humorless chuckle, "That scares the shit out of me."

"We're cops, Olivia," Amanda argues gently, resting a hand on Olivia's forearm, blue orbs overflowing with concern as she eyes her boss. "There's always a chance of something like that happening… It's just the job."

"I know that," the brunette nods, sparing a glance upward to meet Amanda's eyes. "I do. But today," she tries, "It wasn't Detective Rollins that I was worried over," she confesses. "Not as much, anyway. It was more you, Amanda."

The detective's eyes widen at the admission and she looks down at Olivia's hand as it worries over the fabric of her blouse. Her heart is in her throat, so thrown by her boss's presence in her living room right now that she struggles to reconcile the words that the older woman is saying. She lightly squeezes the arm that's still in her grasp as the brunette struggles to maintain eye contact. "What are you saying, Liv?"

It's a valid question, but Olivia finds she doesn't have words to answer it. So, for once in her life, despite feeling like she's apt to pass out on the floor of Amanda's living room, she throws caution to the wind and just doesn't think, letting her lips-her heart-do the talking as she cradles Amanda's cheek in one hand and pulls the younger woman in for a kiss.

After stiffening briefly in surprise at the initial contact of plump, glossed lips pressing firmly against her own, Amanda's eyes fall shut instinctively and her hand tightens around Olivia's arm as she slowly begins to return the pressure against the older woman's mouth.

Shuffling closer to the blonde once it becomes obvious that the younger woman isn't pushing her away, Olivia wills her brain into silence, barely breathing as she allows herself to relax into the kiss. She tightens her grip on Amanda's cheek, parting her lips and angling her head slightly as she pulls the blonde's lower lip between her own and suckles gently. When she introduces her teeth, nibbling lightly on Amanda's lower lip, she feels the other woman gasp against her, and that is what ultimately pulls her out of the moment.

"Shit," Olivia gasps, pulling her lips away with a light smack. "I'm sorry," she says, covering her face with both of her hands and feeling the heat of embarrassment rise in her cheeks. "God, I'm so sorry… I shouldn't have done that…"

"Liv…" Amanda tries, resting her hands on Olivia's shoulders and dipping her head down to try to meet the older woman's eyes.

"No," the brunette shakes her off, trying to dart around the other woman to get to her purse and leave before she can do any more damage. She brings herself to glance at the detective. "I'm sorry, Amanda."

"Can you wait a second?" Amanda asks desperately, taking the purse out of Olivia's hands and pulling the older woman back toward the couch. "Let's sit, okay? And-and… Talk."

Grudgingly, Olivia allows herself to be pulled onto the couch, stubbornly refusing to meet Amanda's eyes. "I don't even know what to say," she whines. "That shouldn't have happened."

The younger woman pulls a hand from in front of Olivia's face, grasping it in her own and squeezing gently before she expels a slow breath. "Why not?" she asks bluntly, her voice soft.

Olivia scoffs, dropping her other hand into her lap and looking at the blonde incredulously. "Why not?" she repeats. "I'm your boss, for starters..."

Amanda shrugs, "Okay, that's true," she allows. "But, we're not on duty right now, Liv. Don't think about that."

"You-you don't feel...that way about me…"

The younger woman raises her eyebrows, not missing a beat when she asks, "I don't?"

Brown eyes dart to blue and their gazes lock before Olivia shakes her head. "You don't have to patronize me, Amanda. It's okay," the older woman sighs, resigned. "Look, I crossed a line. I'm sorry for that. If we can just forget this happened, I'll go and leave you to your game."

The brunette goes to stand but is tugged back down almost immediately. "I don't care about the game, Olivia," Amanda says frustratedly, shifting on the couch until she's facing the older woman and taking both of Olivia's hands in hers. She watches silently as Olivia stares, awed by her thumbs rubbing softly over tanned knuckles. "God, you really have no idea, do you?" she asks rhetorically after studying the brunette for a long moment.

"No idea about what?" Olivia asks absently.

Amanda purses her lips, thinking about how to broach what she has to say. Finally, she tugs on Olivia's hands, drawing the older woman's gaze up to meet her own. She cocks her head to the side, smiling slightly. "I've had," she looks up, shaking her head, "the biggest crush on you," she shares shyly. "For as long as I can remember." She bites her lip to keep from laughing at the look of shock on Olivia's face. "Years," she adds.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Olivia whispers.

The question sparks a burst of laughter from the blonde, and Olivia jumps in surprise at the sudden sound. "You're my boss, for starters," the younger woman mocks, squeezing the brunette's hands in her own. "And… up until recently I was pretty sure you hated me," she says dryly, shrugging as the other woman absorbs what she's saying.

"I never hated you," Olivia finally says. Amanda scoffs, rolling her eyes in disbelief, and the older woman shakes her head. "I'm serious, Amanda." She disentangles one of her hands from the blonde's, reaching up to stroke the other woman's cheek. "I know we haven't exactly seen eye to eye," she admits, brown eyes lovingly roving over Amanda's face, as if she's seeing the younger woman for the very first time, "but I have always cared about you. Even if I didn't know how to show it."

Amanda nods, swallowing thickly. "Okay," she whispers, looking down at their hands that are still joined and lacing their fingers together. "So, now what?"

The older woman chuckles, letting her hand drop from Amanda's face. "That's a good question," she concedes. "I guess I don't really know. This is all...new," she admits, gesturing between them.

"You know," Amanda begins quietly, after a comfortable silence stretched for long seconds between them, "When I heard that shot go off…." she squeezes Olivia's hand when she feels the brunette tense beside her, "For a second there, I was afraid I'd never get the chance to kiss you…"

Olivia's heart rate picks up but she says nothing, staring silently at the younger woman until Amanda is compelled to look up at her, blue eyes locking onto warm brown. Finally, as she grazes the back of Amanda's hand with her thumb, she whispers, "So...what's stopping you now?"

Amanda smirks at the shift, slowly leaning into the older woman's space and lifting her free hand to push wavy strands of brown hair out of Olivia's face. The brunette watches with bated breath as darkening blue eyes drift down to her lips in time with Amanda's movements closer to her.

Finally, as mere millimeters separate their mouths from touching for the second time, their breaths mingling in the shrinking space between them, Amanda's eyes dart back up to connect with brown, and the younger woman rasps, "Nothing," before closing the distance.

Olivia whimpers as the younger woman's lips press against her own, and her free hand rises, fingers threading through silky blonde hair before cradling the back of Amanda's head. Their lips separate briefly before reconnecting, and Olivia sighs against Amanda's mouth as she feels the other woman's hand drop down to her hip, lips parting and wrapping around her lower lip.

Amanda moans softly as her tongue lightly flicks the brunette's lower lip, tasting the other woman's gloss before delving into the warmth of Olivia's mouth. Her grip tightens on the older woman's hip, her body moving impossibly closer until she's practically on top of her lieutenant, relishing the feeling of their tongues sliding wetly against each other for the first time.

The sensations are overwhelming and Olivia's brain effectively shuts down as Amanda kisses her fervently, years of pent-up attraction exploding between the two women. She doesn't want to think about what led them here, or what happens after. Her mind can only focus on the way the younger woman is devouring her, the way Amanda's hair feels between her fingers, the way her skin tingles beneath her t-shirt as Amanda's hand slowly drifts up from her hip to rest just beneath her breast.

Olivia's nipples tighten in anticipation of Amanda's hand on her breast, and it's then that she wrenches her mouth away, desperately needing air and to wrap her mind around everything that has transpired. She presses their foreheads together, tenderly squeezing the back of Amanda's neck as they both struggle to catch their breath. "Wow," Olivia pants raggedly, cheeks tinged with pink as she shyly meets the younger woman's gaze.

Amanda hums in agreement, turning her head slightly and trailing open-mouthed kisses along Olivia's jaw before sucking the older woman's earlobe between her lips and moving down to her neck.

"I think..." Olivia gasps, arching her neck back to give Amanda more room, "I think I'm gonna go."

The blonde stops abruptly and pulls back, confused blue eyes searching Olivia's. "What? Why?" she asks.

"Not because I want to," Olivia assures her breathlessly, letting go of Amanda's hand and cupping the younger woman's cheeks before kissing her chastely. "Because I don't trust myself to stay," she whispers, kissing the blonde again before standing up. She can feel Amanda's eyes on her as she makes her way toward the counter to retrieve her purse, and she smiles at the faraway look on the other woman's face-Amanda still clearly entrenched in the fog of arousal. "Walk me out?"

"'kay." Amanda clears her throat, rubbing her palms along the tops of her thighs before standing and following Olivia to the door. They stare at each other silently for a moment before Amanda reaches for the older woman's hand. "You don't have to go, you know," she tries, cocking her head in the direction of her living room. "We were onto somethin' pretty good over there, I thought…"

Olivia chuckles, wrapping an arm around Amanda's waist and pulling their bodies closer together. "Oh I know… I thought, too," she hums, giving into temptation and kissing her way from Amanda's cheek to her lips. "That's why I'm leaving, 'Manda," she husks, pressing her forehead to the younger woman's. "I care about you, so much… and I want to do this the right way."

"There was nothing wrong about what happened over there, Liv," Amanda complains, pressing Olivia against the wall next to the door. Before the older woman has a chance to respond, Amanda covers her mouth with her own, erotically parting the brunette's lips with her tongue and pressing their bodies tightly together. She smirks against Olivia's lips when she feels the vibration of a moan against her mouth, and she pulls away panting, her thumbs drifting beneath the material of Olivia's shirt and grazing the soft skin of her hips. "You sure I can't convince you to stay?" Amanda husks, watching the rapid rise-and-fall of Olivia's chest as the other woman catches her breath.

"No, I'm not," Olivia breathes honestly, snickering as she meets Amanda's eyes. "The opposite actually," she says lightly, hugging Amanda to her. "I'm sure you could convince me-probably very easily."

"Then…"

Olivia shakes her head slightly, pushing back from the wall. "We'll get there," she promises, nuzzling Amanda's nose with her own as she reaches for the doorknob and pulls the door open. She presses a lingering kiss to Amanda's lips, whispering against the younger woman's mouth as she pulls away, "I just don't want to put too much pressure on us, too soon, okay?"

Seeing the resolve in Olivia's eyes, Amanda groans, giving in and nodding as she leans against the doorframe, smiling softly at the brunette who now stands in the hallway. Wordlessly, she reaches a hand out, wrapping it around the side of Olivia's neck and pulling the older woman in. She steals another kiss, tugging gently on a plump lower lip as she pulls away.

"Text me when you're home safe?" Amanda requests gently.

Olivia nods. "Of course." The tenderness in the blonde's blue eyes is almost enough to wilt her steadfastness all by itself, and as she squeezes Amanda's hand affectionately and walks away, she curses herself for not seeing that look sooner, for letting the fear of nearly losing the younger woman push her into doing something she should've done a long time ago.

The road they're about to embark on together will be complicated-she has no misunderstandings about that. They'll have to be careful & it's entirely possible (probable?) that things within the squad will have to change eventually…

She feels butterflies swirl in her belly and a blush tint her cheeks, remembering heated kisses and the anticipation she'd felt for Amanda's hand to move even just an inch higher on her body, and she can't help but think that whatever comes next will be worth it.

It had taken a close call to open her eyes, but, as she leans against the back wall of the elevator, a silly grin on her face as she descends to the ground floor of the younger woman's building, she promises herself that when it comes to Amanda, she'll never lose sight again.

...

I think there's potential for a part 2 here, if there's a demand. You know what to do...