What Happens In Vegas

(Chapter One: Glutton For Punishment)

Elliot and Olivia sat side by side in Cragen's office waiting for him to come in and yell at them. Elliot stared at the floor as Olivia bit her bottom lip nervously, they had really done it this time. Together during a little verbal dispute between them they had managed to let a suspect get past them during a stake out. A suspect who was on his way to raping a sixth victim.

Their argument was over the latest man Olivia had chosen to have a relationship with and the fact that Elliot, in feeling the man was not good enough for her, had chased him off like he had done with so many other guys before. He was over protective of her. And while this was sometimes a good quality, it was starting to piss her off. Since his divorce had finally gone through six months earlier Elliot had dated no one. He was miserable and at this rate he was determine to keep her that way as well.

"This is all your fault," she scoffed looking at the wall still feeling hurt and pissed off that he had chased off her chance for happiness.

"Olivia, don't start! The guy was an ass!"

"You're an ass! An ass who needs to learn to mind his own damn business!"

Elliot turned to look at her. "Look, you would have dated this guy and he would have treated you badly. The when it went bad you would have gotten hurt. I just prevented that. I would think you would be grateful."

"Elliot, how can I have the chance to get hurt if you never let me have a relationship?"

"Olivia, trust me I was right about this guy."

She exhaled and stared at him. "Shouldn't it be my decision who I date?"

"Yes. To some extent."

"Some extent?"

"Well, when you pick guys like that someone has to intervene. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't keep someone from hurting you?"

"How would you know he would hurt me?" She raised her eyes and her look quickly turned to a glare. "You didn't!"

"What?"

"You did!"

Elliot tried not to look guilty as he shook his head.

"You ran a back ground check on him?"

"I..I…Yes. But I did it to make sure he was good for you. And trust me, you should be glad I did."

Olivia slapped him.

"No, I'm not happy. You ruined what could have been a great relationship with a wonderful man!"

"Where have you been through this entire conversation, Olivia? He was not a wonderful man! He was a skeezy liar!"

"Like someone else I know," she shouted glaring at him.

"He was married, Olivia! Married with children!"

"It was still none of your business," she said softly partly in shock of what he had just told her. "You did this behind his back, Elliot. Behind my back."

"I had a bad feeling. I couldn't let him hurt you. So I made him leave."

She exhaled. "Elliot…."

Just then the door flew opened as a pissed off Cragen stepped inside and it slammed shut again.

"Are you two finished?" He growled at them.

"Captain…." Elliot began.

"Sit down and shut up," Cragen demanded cutting him off. "I don't want excuses. I don't want apologies. I just want you two to know that because of your little disagreement during our steak out our suspect is still at large and has now claimed another victim. And you two are going to do whatever it takes to make this right! I want you to talk to her, get every detail you can and find this guy so that we can get him into custody."

"We will," Olivia said with a nod of her head.

"You're damn right you will. And don't think for a second that I am finished with you two! Get out there and get some work done!"

They stumbled out the door grabbing their jackets before they headed for the car to go interview their victim.

Over the next few days they managed to track down the suspect and bring him in. They tied up the case in a neat little package, but neither of them were ever able to forget about the victim. The one who would have never been a victim, if they had been focused on their job and not the matters of their personal life. That guilt had now become a part of them and it would always be there, deep inside somewhere.

Now, three weeks later they sat here in the same seats waiting once more to speak with Cragen.

"Do you have any idea what we are in for this time?" Elliot asked.

"Nope." Olivia replied.

Cragen entered and sat behind his desk as he looked at a file on his computer. Olivia looked at Elliot as he glanced back at her and she shrugged her shoulders.

"Captain?" He asked.

"Yes, Elliot."

"We were just wondering what it was you wanted to speak to us about."

"Ahh, yes." Cragen leaned forward handing them each a plane ticket.

"What is this?" Olivia asked looking confused.

"Do you remember when we had our little talk about that case you two botched a few weeks back. I said I wasn't finished with you two. Consider this your punishment."

Olivia opened the envelope the ticket was in to find a ticket on a flight to Las Vegas.

"Our punishment?" She asked.

Elliot looked down at his ticket.

"No," he said shaking his head.

Olivia looked confused.

"The conference," he replied.

"That's right Detective Stabler. This year it will be the two of you who will have the honor of representing our precinct."

"I thought they always sent the big shots from downstairs."

"This year they wanted to send someone from Special Victims. They thought we could use the training. It was going to be John Munch and I who got stuck with the detail. The two of you graciously volunteered when you screwed up that investigation a few weeks ago. The arrangements have already been made. Your flight leaves in the morning. I suggest you go home and get packed."

Olivia climbed into the car and watched as Elliot got in and slammed the door.

"Okay, I'm confused. What is so bad? I know it is a conference, but it is two days in Las Vegas, how bad could it be?"

"Oh, it's bad. It is two days of the longest, most boring lectures you have ever heard. It is like two days of never ending Hell. I was supposed to have my kids this weekend."

"Well, the conference is over Friday evening. You could still have the kids on Saturday."

"No, our return flight isn't until Sunday morning. Kathy is going to kill me."

"Will she let you switch weekends?"

"I don't know. But it's going to piss her off. And there is no way Cragen is going to let me out of this."

"If this conference is a bad as you say it is, there is no way I am going to let you out of this."

Elliot pulled the car up in front of Olivia's apartment building.

"I'll pick you up at seven, our flight is at eight."

"See you then," she said as she closed the car door. Elliot watched her as she climbed the stairs in front of the building. He waited until she was safely inside before he pulled away and headed home to call his ex-wife and break the news to her.

The next morning Olivia had her suitcase sitting next to the door ready to go. She climbed into the shower then slipped into a pair of jeans and a comfortable tee shirt for the flight. She finished off the last few drops of her coffee just as her phone chimed. She picked it up to read a text from Elliot telling her he was out front and ready to go. She tucked her phone into her purse as she slipped the strap over her shoulder, grabbed the handle of her suitcase and was out the door.

She grabbed them both coffee from a Starbucks in the airport as Elliot checked their luggage. They sat in some chairs and shared conversation as they waited to board their flight. The plane didn't take off until quarter after ten. It was Wednesday morning and their conference started Thursday morning.

That evening they met up for dinner in the hotel restaurant. Elliot moped around still pissed off that he even had to be here as Olivia was more occupied with the fact that their work had just paid to fly them to Vegas. She was going to get at least a little fun out of this weekend.

"I was thinking about going down to the casino for a few hours, you up for it?" She asked in an attempt to remove the pissy look from his face.

"I'm thinking shower and bed. I just want to get this weekend over with."

"Elliot, come on. We might as well make the best of it. Here," she said handing a hundred dollar bill. "Join me. Just a few hours. Besides the drinks are free."

"Olivia, I don't want your money." He pushed the bill back across the table.

"Really, it's okay." She pushed it back to him. "But, if you win big you have to split it with me." She smiled at him and he couldn't tell her no.

"Two hours, then it is off to bed. Both of us. We have to get up early for this stupid conference and be tortured all day. We need our rest so we don't fall asleep tomorrow. I don't want to know what other bad things Cragen will dream up to punish us if we manage to get into trouble here and they report it back to him."

Olivia laughed.

"Come on," she took him by the arm and lead him to the casino downstairs.

The next two days were long and painful. And Elliot was right, their main goal for each day was to keep each other awake. Friday night they had dinner together once more and a few more hours gambling then off to bed. It was amazing how two days of lectures could completely wear you out.

Saturday evening they decided to go out and check out a bar near by. Olivia slipped on a black mini dress and fixed her hair and make up. She was not above one of those infamous what happens in Vegas one night stands tonight. It had been way too long and she was out to have a little fun tonight. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and pressed her lips together as she headed for the door. She walked down the hall to the next room and knocked on Elliot's door.

He opened the door wearing nothing but a towel.

"You're kidding me! You are not ready yet?"

"Kathy called and we had to argue for two hours about me taking the kids next weekend. I think she finally gave in. I will only be a minute. You look fantastic, by the way," he called to her as he walked back toward the bathroom to finish brushing his teeth.

"Is this what you are wearing?" She called to him looking down at his usual blue suit and tie.

"Yeah, what's wrong with it?"

"Nothing. If you're going to church," she mumbled.

She made her way to the closet of his suite and riffled through his clothing. She picked up a pair of black slacks and a white button down shirt. She tossed them on the bed and changed out his black pinstriped tie for a cornflower blue one. Then selected a black pinstriped jacket that was slightly less formal than the blue on he had picked out. She laid out the clothing on the bed and stepped back to get a look at the outfit put together.

"Much better," she said with a smile as he entered the room behind her in his boxer shorts and tee shirt.

"You didn't like what I had?"

"Trust me, this is better."

"It is, huh?"

"Umm hmm."

"Okay," he said as he picked up the pants from the bed.

Though he didn't seem shy to dress in front of her and this was not the first time she had seen him in his boxers she walked over to stare out the window as he dressed behind her. After a few minutes she caught herself watching his reflection in the glass and pulled the curtains shut.

"There," he said as she turned around.

"Let me fix your tie," she said as she tried to straighten the mess he had made with it.

"You don't think the blue tie is too much?"

"It brings out the blue of your eyes and adds just a bit of color to your outfit. It is perfect. You'll have your pick of any woman in the club."

"Club?"

Olivia pressed her lips together again and avoided eye contact.

"You said it was a bar."

"It is a bar…club thing. Oh, come on, Elliot. Please? Don't back out on me."

"I'm not a club person, Liv."

"Well, neither am I."

"I don't even dance. I can't."

"I wont make you dance, I promise. I just want to go somewhere and do something, anything. We never get to do anything back in New York. Besides, maybe we will find you a woman."

"Now, see. I knew you were up to something. I'm not looking."

"Elliot, you have been not looking for over twenty years. And single for six months. I think maybe it is time you looked. Besides it will be good practice for back home."

"You're trying to pimp me out?"

"I'm trying to hook you up."

"Hook me up?"

She leaned in against his ear. "Get you laid," she whispered with a smile.

"Oh no."

"What? I just want you to meet someone, what you do with her is totally up to you. But you know, if you don't start using that thing it is liable to fall off."

"Liv…."

"Relax, I'm not going to let you go home with someone who is wrong for you."

"I don't plan on going home with anyone."

"Well, yeah. But what happens in Vegas…"

"You are so bad."

"You will thank me later."

"So you're really going out tonight just to find me a one night stand?"

"Well, I never said I wasn't looking myself."

"You think you are going to find Mr. Right here?"

"Maybe Mr. Tonight."

"And you are going to make me sit and watch this?"

She smiled a guilty smile.

"Okay, I will make you a deal."

"What is that?"

"Well, you are always saying that I pick the worst men. Then you run them off and blah, blah, blah. Tonight, you pick the guy. But I have a few standards. And I reserve the right to say no. Kind of a trial, to see if you can pick guys who are better for me than the ones I choose."

"You want me to pick out a guy for you to spend the night with?"

"I might not take it that far. But it has been four…"

Elliot placed his hand over her mouth.

"I really don't need to know."

Olivia smiled.

"What? I know. Six months since your divorce went through and it was the week before that."

Elliot looked at her.

"You don't always think that I listen to what you are saying, but I do. I just don't always react to it."

"Okay so I get to pick the guy. What's the catch?"

"I get to pick out a woman for you. My ideal woman for you."

"How bad could that be? Deal." Elliot smiled at her as he slipped on his jacket and they walked toward the elevator.