Love and Litigation - An Alex Cabot/Law and Order SVU fanfiction

Chapter 1

For Luke Dawson, the thrill of the chase only got more entertaining as he grew older. At thirty-eight years old, he was still young. Maybe not as young as he once was, but young nonetheless. As a detective for Manhattan's Special Victims Unit, he still enjoyed the feeling he got when catching the bad guys. Whether it was heart-thumping foot pursuits or testifying in open court, he never tired of the career he had chosen.

As the hot shower water streamed over his body, he soaked in the temporary silence. He had to be at work in 45 minutes, and he hadn't been home all that long. That was the life of a public servant though; long hours and not enough sleep.

After stepping out of the shower and toweling off, he pulled on a pair of black slacks and a green collared button-up shirt. Pairing it with a solid black tie and matching dress shoes, he bounded down his apartment stairs and to his car.

The ride both to and from work was Luke's "me" time. Whether in silence or to the sounds of classic rock humming from the radio, he did his best thinking in his truck.

A 1970 GMC Pickup, light green in color with leather interior, it had been left to him in his grandfather's will. Luke had fond memories riding around his hometown in this truck as a boy with his grandpa. Now, it was his and had been for the past 12 years. He had inherited it just before his move to New York from South Carolina. Losing the man who first drove it had been tough, but Luke was just thankful to still have it in the family.

After parking and walking inside the precinct, he headed straight for the coffee pot. Steam rolled against his face as he took a lengthy sip. He found himself wishing for an extra ten minutes to walk down the street for a decent cup of brew. The stuff in the station had always been swill.

"You didn't sleep either, huh?" His partner Amanda Rollins asked as she walked up beside him.

"Not nearly enough." His voice was rugged and hoarse as if he'd just crawled out of bed. Indeed, he had.

Amanda was 5'7" to Luke's 6'2". She couldnt have weighed much more than 120 pounds soaking weight, but she was the perfect sassy compliment to his tough guy exterior. Although thick as thieves now, the two hadn't always been that way. When Rollins was assigned as his partner nearly three years ago, Luke had his reservations. She was a fairly green Detective transferred in from Atlanta, GA, a border state to her new partner's home state. A thready past with gambling had dampened her first year, but she had shaped up since then. After that, it didn't take long to prove herself and land in Luke's good graces. They had since learned to bond over a good coffee and similar stories of growing up in the south.

Luke took his pitiful cup of coffee and sat down at his desk. Praying the caffeine would soon take effect, he flipped through some case files.

"Alright, everyone. Listen up."

Luke looked up to see his Captain, Olivia Benson, enter the squad room. She had already commanded the attention of everyone in sight.

"We've got a temporary ADA coming in until a replacement is found for Novak. She should be here today. Make her feel welcome." She ordered before walking back into her office.

Casey Novak had been the Assistant District Attorney for the past few years. She was recently accused of withholding evidence from the defense in a recent trial. Rumors have been floating around that she had been censured, maybe even disbarred but there was no confirmation on either.

Luke liked Casey from the beginning. She was hard-nosed and a staunch advocate for the victim. But that wasn't the only reason he liked her. She was beautiful and fiery, true to the reputation of most redheads. They flirted for awhile before getting hot and heavy in her office one night. Their entanglement had been kept quiet due to what the higher ups would've considered "a conflict of interest". It was highly frowned upon that a detective have any romantic liaisons with their sector's member of the bar. But that had just added another layer of excitement for the forbidden twosome. Sneaking around can be a lot more fun when it's that dangerous.

The morning steadily drifted into the afternoon as Luke and Amanda questioned witnesses and followed up on leads. After a long day at the office, Luke picked up some Chinese takeout and went home. Sitting on the couch in front of the tv, that first taste of fried rice was pure Heaven. It definitely hits different when you haven't had a chance to eat all day.

With a full belly, Luke shed his work clothes and stepped into his scalding hot shower. As he allowed the water to wash away the grime of the day, he thought about Casey. He hadn't heard from her since she left town. I guess that was to be expected since their relationship was never that serious. Still, he thought of her as a friend and was concerned about her. Maybe he'd text her soon and get a feel for how she's doing, he thought.

After toweling off and putting on some boxers, sans shirt, Luke headed to his bedroom. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and momentarily held his gaze. His cropped black hair had started to gray near his temples and crow's feet were slightly making themselves known near the corners of his green eyes. Sometimes he hardly recognized the figure staring back at him. Here he was, pushing forty, but still felt like he was in his twenties. Sure, his body had been through quite a bit in his lifetime but he could still bust down doors and run after perps better than most any rookie. He had always prided himself in staying in shape and his muscular physique proved as much.

Luke crawled into bed and pulled the covers up to his neck. It didn't take long for his eyes to grow heavy enough to close and send him off to sleep.