She'd fallen asleep in his arms hours ago, her head resting in his chest, her arm splayed across his stomach . She'd asked him to spend the night with her, not to leave her and he had complied. When he'd told her to get in to bed and climbed in next to her he'd expected her to turn away from him, to lie on her side and ignore the kisses that they had shared, this was her usual technique, ignore and avoid. When she turned to him and looked at him, cautiously moving towards him his heart skipped a beat, for the first time in their long relationship she was reaching out to him instead of pulling away. He gently pulled her into his arms, holding her in place as she settled her head on his chest.

This was perfection. He'd been watching her sleep for hours, struggling to remember every detail of her perfectly formed face. He'd been thinking about exactly what form their relationship would take, he'd listened to her telling him that she wanted more than what they had before but that could mean anything, they were barely speaking before. Something more could be them talking daily, them calling each other outside of work, spending time together out of work. It could also mean beyond friendship, the thought made his heart skip a beat...could she really want him, the way that he wanted her?

He looked down as she shifted in her sleep for the first time since she'd relaxed into his arms. Her peaceful expression changed to a frown, she clenched her fist, grasping his shirt in between her fingers and an audible whimper escaped her lips.

"No," she barely whispered, twisting our of Elliot's grasp, pushing him away, releasing her grip on his shirt.

"Hey," Elliot whispered, trying not to startle her, just to let her know that she was safe. He sat up slightly. "Liv..."

"No!"she shot up in the bed, eye wide. Her heart was beating double its usual rate, she placed her hand over her chest, struggling to calm herself. She'd been having the greatest dream, she was lying in Elliot's arms, the gentle rise and fall of his chest had lulled her into a beautiful calming haze. She'd never felt so safe, but suddenly it wasn't Elliot anymore. It was May, he was on top of her, holding her down, his hand on her throat blocking off her air supply.

She shook her head, he was locked up, far away from her, she was safe. She felt Elliot's strong hand on her shoulder. Without words she let him envelope her from behind, wrapping his arms around her, holding her closely so that her back was pressed against his toned stomach. He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and leant against the headboard, pulling her gently until she was sat in between his legs.

"We shouldn't..." she closed her eyes as he reached for her hands and tangled his fingers with hers.

"We're not doing anything wrong," he whispered. They weren't. The Captain had told him to keep an eye on her. Okay, he didn't tell him to sleep in the same bed as her, to hold and watch her as she slept and he certainly didn't tell him to cuddle her and hold her hands but he had told him to make sure she was okay and he wasn't going to let her go until he knew she was alright...maybe not even then.

She'd never felt so safe and secure, so calm and unsure at the same time. She'd told him she wanted more and he hadn't run away, he hadn't knocked her back like she imagined he would and it frightened the hell out of her. For the first time in a long time they were facing the truth head on. She didn't know what he wanted, maybe he just wanted them to be friends again? She would welcome that with open arms, being able to talk to him again to smile at him and see him smile back...maybe that was all she wanted? Maybe by missing his friendship she confused herself into believing that she...

She mentally shook herself. Even when she was sat in his arms, his hands tangled with hers, she was still trying to run, trying to think of any reason to get away, to decline the love she so obviously felt.

"You okay?" he whispered, rubbing his thumb softly across her hand. She wasn't used to his sensitive side, she'd seen it with victims so many times but very rarely been on the receiving end of it. "Liv?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm okay..." as she spoke Elliot moved from behind her and lay down, pulling him close to her again. She ran her hand along his perfectly formed chest, unable to hide the chill that ran down her spine as her breath caught in her throat.

"You're not freaking out on me?" he whispered. He knew her too well.

"I'm not freaking out, I'm just...we don't do this. We're lying in bed...cuddling." She sat up slightly so that she could see his face. He was so beautiful.

"You don't like it?" How could he not feel weird about this?

"Elliot-"

"Do we have to label it? I know how I feel, you know how you feel?"

"What if I feel differently to how you feel?" she asked, sitting up further.

"Do you want me to go and sleep on the couch?" he asked, praying she wouldn't say yes.

She shook her head.

"What do you want me to do?" he was as confused as she was now, why did she have to complicate things. He thought he knew what she wanted, he thought she wanted him the way that he wanted her but...maybe he was wrong?

She needed him to tell him exactly what he wanted, she promised herself that she would never admit how she felt if she wasn't one hundred percent sure that he felt the same way which she never had been. There had been times when she had wondered but she could never be sure and it would just be too painful, she'd already spent years longing for something she couldn't have. Maybe...maybe she had misunderstood his kindness, his kisses...there was every chance this meant nothing to him...no, not nothing, but not as much as it meant to her and she couldn't stand to have her heart broken after years of that dull ache that would just never go away.

There was a large chance that Elliot was simply attracted to her, she'd felt the sexual tension too many times to mention, maybe he thought he felt more for her than he actually did...maybe it was always inevitable that they would sleep together. Maybe he was telling her he had feelings for her because he thought it was the right thing to do...because he no longer had Kathy and he was lonely. She shook her head. Too many maybe's were reminding her of why she had stayed quiet about her feelings for so long, this could go wrong, this could really hurt.

"Uh..." She shifted, pulling away from his grasp. She watched as his smile faded, she felt like she'd just stolen candy from a child. "I...I think that I should go-"

"Go where?" he asked, trying not to sound upset. Her apartment was still a crime scene, she had nowhere else to go. He struggled not to reach for her as she climbed off of the bed.

"We don't do this Elliot." She shimmied into her jeans, not bothering to take off her hot pants. She quickly grabbed and zipped up her grey hoodie, the grey hoodie she was sure was actually his...That didn't matter she had to leave. What the hell had she been thinking with Elliot? She'd kissed him, more than once, invited him into her bedroom, accepted an invitation into his. She had to get out now before there was no going back.

"I know we don't usually-" he started.

"No, we don't ever...we don't touch...we don't cuddle and we certainly don't kiss okay?" she didn't mean to snap at him, she needed to get away from him. How could she have been so stupid? There were boundaries, specific boundaries that aren't supposed to crossed and she had managed so well for 10 years suddenly everything's changed? No. No, this just wouldn't work.

"Liv, you can't go to your apartment," he clambered off of the bed as she walked out of his bedroom. He was shirtless in only a pair of bottoms. She would always amaze him, her absolute ability to freak herself out in the space of just a few seconds. IN the space of just a few seconds she decided to do what she was best at, run. "Look, if I got this wrong I'm sorry – it's weird I know-" he tried to explain. Maybe that was it, she didn't actually want him...just someone? It seemed almost inevitable that they would end up in each other's arms, after every fight, every hard case he wondered if one day he would just brake and kiss her, take her there and then...Maybe she had never felt it, he thought...when she looked at him sometimes he thought he saw it, but it looked like he was wrong.

She reached for the door, pulling it open, ready to run when she felt his string hand grip her arm.

"Please don't do this...I couldn't take it if you left again," he whispered, moving closer until his chest was pressed against her back. He tried to make himself sound stronger than he actually was, failing miserably. He decided to take a chance and hope to hell it would pay off. "I know you're scared...but I know you feel the same way that I do. And I know I've been...I've been an ass, and I've hurt you and we've done nothing but argue for what seems like forever but I know you, I know you want this as much as I do."

As much as I do. She swallowed the lump in her throat, still unable to face him, she was being a coward. He was baring his soul and she couldn't even look him in the eye. "For...for a few hours you let your guard down in there and it felt right, tell me it didn't?" he paused.

"We don't do this..." she whispered, turning as he pulled her until she was facing him. "We shouldn't..." she stopped as he cupped her cheek, pressing his perfect lips against her for a short, soft kiss that took her breath away. "I can't-" He kissed her again, threading his fingers through her hair, pulling her closer to him. "We can't-" Her arguments sounded so pathetic as this time she leant into the kiss, cutting herself off. She placed her hands on the side of his face as he wrapped his arms around her, pressing her chest against his. She had never, ever been kissed like this, her head was spinning as his tongue began to seek entrance into her mouth. She was overwhelmed, his mouth, his tongue, his hands, his body...it was everything she had yearned for for so long.

He pulled her away from the open door and kicked it shut before pressing her back against the wooden frame. She was so beautiful. He wanted to soak every single bit of her in, to know every curve, every inch of her body, every mark and every scar. There was nothing frantic about their movements, they were stuck in the moment and unwilling to get out of it, this was heaven. Finally letting go, finally reaching out and feeling something in return.

She moaned into his mouth as he unzipped his grey hoodie, the hoodie that looked so amazing on her even though it was his, to reveal the black tank top she had fallen asleep in. As soon as it dropped to the floor her hands her on him again, his neck, the back of his head, his chest. Before she could even think about protesting he wrapped his arms around her tightly and lifted her until she had no choice but to wrap her legs around his waist.

She didn't want to protest, she just wanted him to keep his lips on hers for the rest of their lives. Millions of thoughts ran through her mind but for once she wasn't struggling to push the excuses and reasons why they should be doing anything but this out of her head, they were nowhere to be heard. All she could think of was him, what was about to happen and why the hell she'd waited so long to do it. She was being carried to the bedroom by her partner and she'd never been more sure of anything in her life, no words were needed.

She struggled not to laugh as he walked them into the wooden frame of his bedroom door.

"No giggling," he murmured against her lips. He found his way and safely carried her to the bed before laying her down on the bed she had exited just a few minutes before. He covered her body with his and took a moment to simply look at her. God, she was so beautiful, looking at him with those beautiful brown eyes, her lips perfectly formed even after kissing for what seemed like forever. He ran his finger along her cheek and moved the hair from her face.

His eyes were glazed over with need, with want and she fought the urge to tell him to take her there and then. She ran her hands along the back of his head, his neck and eventually his perfectly formed back as she felt his arousal against her thigh. They stared into each other's eyes, silently speaking to each other. Her heart was beating so hard he must have been able to hear it, to feel it. She couldn't believe it was finally happening, that she was letting it finally happen...

**

His teeth nipped at her neck, his dick twitching as she moaned. He erased the distance between their mouths as he settled over her. There were no longer any barriers between them, clothes a mere pile on the floor and in moments he would be exactly where he had wanted to be for nearly ten years. He'd already slid his hand along the inside of her thigh watching her chest heave as she fought to control her breathing, he'd felt her quiver as his index finger barely grazed her centre, it had taken every ounce of his self control not to come on the spot, she was so incredibly sexy. Did she know? Did she know how sexy she was?

He had already kissed nearly every inch of her body, her beautiful neck, her shoulders, chest and breast. She had amazing breasts, he'd grazed her nipple with his teeth and froze as she gasped and bucked into him, overwhelmed by the sensation. When she first took his cock in her hand he thought he'd died and gone to heaven, after just a few strokes he was ready.

She didn't want foreplay, she'd had ten years of foreplay and she was more than ready. He had magical hands, she'd already decided as he ran his hands along her flat stomach travelling to her centre. After barely grazing her centre she was on the verge of coming there and then.

Words weren't necessary, she simply reached between them and took his more than adequate manhood into her hand.

"Liv..." the low guttural sound nearly pushed her over the edge. He moaned and pressed his lips against hers as she lead him to her entrance, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders as he made love to her mouth. She could feel the tip of his cock grazing her clit, she stifled her moan with his lips she was going to pass out if he didn't just push inside her there and then. "I...I need you to know..." he whispered, rolling his hips so that his hard cock rubbed her clit again. "You and me...I..."

"I know," she nodded softly, looking into his eyes. She did know, she knew exactly what he was trying to say because she'd tried to vocalise it so many times before even to herself. He pressed his forehead against hers as he slowly entered her, both of them releasing a sigh of utter relief and surprise.

"Oh..." she moaned as he filled her completely, it was the perfect fit, she should have known. He paused, all of him inside of her.

"God," he kissed her, slowly, passionately. He was going to make this last. He pulled out slowly, thrusting back into her at equal pace as she dug her nails into her back. She was so wet, so aroused, so ready to come there and then. She clenched around him, crying out as he quickly pulled out and thrust into her again. She lifted her ass off of the mattress and hooked her leg around his waist, she wanted to feel every inch of him.

"Mmmm..." she hummed into his mouth as they found their perfect pace. He cupped her cheek as she met every thrust, moaning and gasping as they both slowly lost their self control. She knew she was marking him, digging her nails into his shoulder but she didn't care, she had never felt so complete in her life. She'd moaned his name twice, each time he grunted in response and thrust into her with more force.

"God, you're so beautiful." He thrust into her, moving his lips to her neck. "So beautiful," he told her breathlessly.

She clenched around him and tightened her grip on his shoulders as she felt the familiar blur begin to take over her. She bit into his shoulder as she struggled not to cry out, failing miserably. "Oh, God!"

He lost it completely, growling as he thrust into her quickly, pushing her over the edge and allowing her to take him with her. He collapsed on top of her, sweat dripping off of them both. She whimpered as he shifted slightly, about to get off of her for fear of crushing her.

"Stay," she whispered, holding him in place, his penis still inside of her. He kissed her forehead before resting his head in the crook of her neck. Why the hell had they waited so long?

She fell asleep with him ontop of her, still in her feeling more loved than she ever had ever felt in her life and she was never going to forget it.