Detached

by Bensler

Chapter 8

Lenburg's Bar & Grill, Destin, CT – Saturday, February 15 – 8:35 p.m.

"He's not worth it," the man said as he slid onto the stool next to Olivia.

Pulled from her deep thoughts, she looked at the stranger. "Excuse me?"

He was about her age, with silver temples and a full head of slightly salt and pepper dark brown hair cut medium short. His green eyes twinkled mischievously when he smiled at her. "Whoever you're pining over – he's not worth it," he repeated.

"What makes you think I'm pining over someone?" she asked with a cocked eyebrow then took a sip of her bottled drink.

"Been there, done that. Way too many times. I know the look." He raised his eyebrows and shrugged.

"If I were pining – which I'm not – how can you say he's not worth it?" She was surprised to find she was enjoying this banter. Normally, she would have had some biting, sarcastic remark that would have had the guy backing off in a nanosecond.

The man smiled again. He had a very nice smile, Olivia decided. "Because he let you get away."

She felt the blush crawl up her neck to her face and hoped the darkness of the bar hid it from his view. "What if I'm the one who dumped him?"

The man leaned closer and whispered, "He didn't come after you. So not only is he still not worth it, he's an idiot."

Olivia laughed at his assessment. "What? Do you know him?"

"So, I was right. You are pining."

"Not really."

"What he forget Valentine's Day or something?"

Olivia scoffed and shook her head.

"I'm sure he'll more than make it up to you when he realizes whatever it is he did wrong. Wanna tell me about it?"

Narrowing her gaze she looked at the man. "No." With that she was suddenly tired of the exchange and turned back toward the bar and away from this man. He was getting way too personal too quick.

Sensing he had overstepped a boundary, the man motioned to the barkeep. "I'll have what the lady's having and bring her another."

The barkeep looked puzzled. "You sure, Chief?"

"Yeah, Hank, I'm sure." He turned toward Olivia. "I didn't catch your name?"

"Didn't give it." She cut him an icy glare still not offering her name. But the name 'Chief' had sure caught her attention and peaked her interest in him once again.

He chuckled. The moment he had seen her come in he knew he would like this woman and he already did. He enjoyed a challenge. Especially one as beautiful as this one. "I'm sorry. I should have introduced myself first. Cade Timmons, Destin's Chief of Police."

Olivia scoffed again. Chief of Police? Even though she was no longer a LEO herself, she still attracted law enforcement types. At that realization, she felt a pang of sadness wing its way through her body. She had been a police officer over half her life and now that part was gone.

"You got something against policemen?" The chief now frowned as his eyes searched her face.

Smiling, she shook her head. "No. Just surprised."

"Surprised? I look like a thug?" he asked with mock hurt in his voice and eyes.

Giving him a quick once over, she noted that he was quite handsome. He wore a red cable knit sweater under his black leather jacket. He had on jeans and hiking boots. And when he leaned close a whiff of his cologne filled the air between them – and she liked the clean masculine smell.

"Thugs come from all socio-economic backgrounds. But you don't fit the preconceived profile of a thug," she told him.

He frowned at her pronouncement. He started to ask her was she in law enforcement, but decided not to push his luck. Instead, he agreed with her. "Well, said."

The barkeep placed Cade and Olivia's drinks on the counter. Cade's eyes on Olivia, he picked up the bottle and took a slug of the beverage, sputtered, then yelled, "Hank! What is this?"

"Flavored tea, Chief."

"Flavored tea? What the…"

"You said you'd have what the lady was having," Hank said defensively.

Olivia laughed then as she downed half of her new bottle of tea. Cade looked at her in amazement.

"Thanks for the tea, Chief," Olivia said as she stood and put on her coat.

"Hey! Wait!" Cade called out as he shifted on the stool. "You never told me your name."

"You're the chief. You should know your citizens," she smarted back.

Yes. He liked this woman, he thought as he chuckled to himself as he watched her long legs carry her out of the bar.

O'Reilly's Pub, Manhattan, NY – Saturday, February 15 – 8:35 p.m.

Elliot swirled the ice cubes in his coke with his finger as he stared blankly into the dark liquid. As hard as he tried he simply could not get Olivia out of his mind. It seemed there was never a time when she was not part of his thoughts. Yesterday had been spent trying to make her face quit popping in his head. Valentine's Day. The day for lovers. No, they weren't lovers. But he loved her like he had never loved another woman in his life. Sitting here tonight he wondered where those thoughts he had had yesterday came from? Wondered just how long he had felt that way? Never mind the holidays and special days, the job was even worse when it came to making him think of her.

Working most any case made him wish she were here beside him. They made a great team. Sure they argued and bickered but most of the time that simply served to make the other more open minded about solving the case at hand. And that's why Benson and Stabler had one of the highest solve rates for any partnership in the NYPD.

Thier current case really got under Elliot's skin and for once he was glad Olivia was not here. It involved a young woman, Marnie Jankowski, whose father had raped her mother then later returned to kidnap Marnie, the product of that rape, when she was a baby. The girl who had been raised believing her mother didn't love or want her had just found out that the man she had called 'daddy' was her mother's rapist. His DNA had been found on a recent string of rapes and it also proved he had raped at least eleven other women during the last twenty years.

Marnie reminded him of Olivia when they were first partnered. The girl had the same slender build, huge brown eyes, dark brown shoulder length hair but a peaches and cream complexion, much lighter than Olivia's. The emotional pain wrought on Marnie at her recent discoveries were overwhelming. She was confused by her mother's insistence that she did love her and wanted a relationship. How could she love her, Marnie had asked Elliot? How could she love the reminder of her rapist? Because of Olivia, Elliot knew how to answer her; knew to get them both into counseling. And he knew if she were here, Olivia would make it her personal mission to see to Marnie's well being. In her absence, he vowed to take on that responsibility.

"Liv," he whispered to himself. "I need you…I need to know you are all right." He blinked back the salty tears stinging his eyelids. "That's all I need to know, Liv."

"Munch said I'd probably find you here." The woman leaned her hip against the side of the bar and looked at Elliot.

Though her voice was soft, Elliot startled then glanced up at his new partner. Or was she his old partner? His former partner? He didn't know what exactly to call her but he wished Cragen had put her with anyone but him. SVU was short handed and they had to have help with the caseload, and since she was experienced here she was again. Dani Beck. Elliot prayed it was temporary.

"What's up?" he asked as he downed the rest of the coke.

"That depends."

He turned on the stool to face her, his gaze boring into her. Why can't you be Olivia, he thought? "On what?"

"You been drinking yourself into oblivion?"

"And if I have?"

Dani sighed and pulled up the stool next to him and sat down. "She's gone, Elliot. You need to get over it and get back in the game. I know she wouldn't want you to be acting like this."

His face tightened at her remarks. "You know nothing about Olivia. Don't you ever say you know what she wants." He pointed his finger in at her and spoke so quietly and with such a menacing tone, Dani knew she had crossed a line.

Dani threw up her hands and backed up a bit. "Fine." But it wasn't fine. Elliot had become careless on the streets. Going in without waiting for backup; provoking armed perps – Dani feared it was only a matter of time before one or both of them took a hit.

Then Elliot picked up his empty glass and stuck in Dani's face. "Take a whiff. It's coke. Straight."

She took the glass and sniffed at it amazed that it was indeed just coca-cola. She nodded. "Okay. Cragen just got a call from Bellvue. Another rape. Same MO."

Elliot looked at her in understanding. "Jankowski made bail?"

"Yeah."

Elliot slapped a twenty on the bar and followed Dani out to the car.

Main Street, Destin, CT – Friday, February 21 – 10:05 a.m.

Olivia saw him coming down the sidewalk and thought about ducking into the nearest store to avoid him. Not that he was a bad guy or anything, she simply was not interested in people getting in her space. Especially not a man who might view her as a potential date. And Cade Timmons seemed a little too interested.

She had been in town right at three weeks and besides going to Lenburg's the other night had barely been out of the house other than to pick up a few groceries. Having cracked the coffee decanter when washing it out that morning, she was in search of a replacement.

Watching Cade walk, his strut that of a self-confident man, made her miss Elliot and his larger than life presence. The energy that roiled around Elliot made people take notice – other men tended to let him take control; perps were intimdated; victims felt protected; and too many woman, for Olivia's liking, took far too much interest in him. And all he had to do was be himself.

Cade was twenty feet or so away when he smiled and threw up a hand in greeting. She smiled back and stopped as he neared and came to stand in front of her.

"Good morning, Olivia," he said with a huge grin.

Cocking an eyebrow in amazement, she noted, "So, how'd you get my name?"

Shrugging, he told her, "It's the Chief of Police's duty to should know the citizens of his town."

Giving him a closed mouth smile, she nodded.

"Say, how about a cup of coffee?"

"Oh…I…I…don't think so. I have some errands to run and…"

"And they can't wait until you have a cup of coffee?" he asked.

"Well…"

"Just one cup. Iva makes some great coffee," he suggested still smiling as he tipped his head toward Iva's Café across the street.

Olivia wanted to say 'no' but she had not had her morning cup and the smell of coffee and bacon and eggs wafting from the café got the best of her. "I suppose I could have one cup."

Over an hour and a whole pot of coffee later, Olivia was laughing at one of Cade's comments when it dawned on her she was truly enjoying herself. Then she remembered she had never asked him how he found out her name.

"So, just how much homework did you have to do to find out my name?" Olivia asked taking a sip of her coffee.

Cade's eyes narrowed in thought as he wondered if he should tell her everything he found out about her. He decided to be truthful. "Well, as a law enforcement officer, I have a lot of programs and applications at my disposal. So, it didn't take me long to put together a profile on you."

Chuckling, she repeated, "Profile? I'm not a perp." As soon as she used that term she wished she could take it back. She sounded like a cop.

"Far from it, Detective Olivia Benson, Shield number 4015, NYPD, 23 years, 7 months. The last twelve in the Special Victims Unit, Manhattan South except for a short stint in Computer Crimes and an undercover venture in Oregon for the FBI. Commendations too numerous to mention; reprimands, suspensions all perfectly understandable, I'm sure. Graduate of Sienna College. Never married. No signifcant other…that is, unless you count Elliot Stabler, your partner of twelve years. No children. Father unknown, mother deceased. One half-brother. On extended leave from the department with an unknown report back date."

Olivia stared at Cade. She knew he would be able to find out who she was but hearing it stated in such concise manner made her both angry and sad. And she wanted nothing more than to be as far away as possible from the man sitting across from her.

"Hmmm…so now that you know all about me, I guess it's time I get head back to the house," she said as she shouldered her carry bag and stood.

"All I know are the stats. And that I've had a really nice time talking with you. Getting to know the real Olivia. What's the hurry?

"Trust me," she said as her eyes darkened, "you don't want to know the real Olvia."

~~~eoeoeoeoeo~~~