Here for You Ch. 03-04

Author's Note: Sorry for the slow update. I thought I had an editor but it didn't work out in the end hence the delay. I've tried to edit this to the best of my ability. Please do vote!

Thanks and enjoy!

***

Chapter 3

After Elle finished her shift at the diner on Sunday, she headed to the local animal shelter where she volunteered once a month. While on the train she decided to call her mother. It had been a while since she heard from her anyway.

"How is work, Elle?" Laura asked after the initial greetings.

"It's fine, Mom. I've just finished my shift at the diner," Elle said. She heard her mother sighed and immediately knew what she was going to say next.

"You know you can't work just as a waitress forever. When will you continue on with your studies? You know you still have the college funds," Laura said.

"I'm not 'just a waitress', Mom. I have a fulltime job working in a respectable hotel too," Elle reminded.

Laura sighed again. "How on earth are you going to make it work? You're working seven days a week; you're not a robot, darling."

"Mom, relax. I know what I'm doing," Elle assured. "I know you're worried about me but I want to make something of myself. I'm still young; I can take working seven days a week."

"I get that you don't want to use the college funds your father and I had saved for you. But at least come home. You can still go to work if you want to. You can save even more money if you stay here. At least you won't need waste so much time like you did with your diploma," her mother said.

Elle ran a hand over her face and suppressed the urge to groan. The reason why she hadn't taken her parents' money was because she didn't want to come home. "Mom, I am happy here, living with Zoe. I am happy with my job, I am happy with my life—"

"You would be safer here at home with your mother to take care of you!" Laura snapped.

"Mom, I love you and I appreciate everything you've done for me. But I can't let what happened to Evan control my life! I am not going to live my life in fear," Elle said adamantly.

"Elle, honey..."

Elle had had enough of their conversation. "Mom, I got to go. My station's here," she said even though she was still two stations' away.

"Fine, I'll talk to you later." Laura said a stiff goodbye before ending the call.

Guilt rose up in Elle, a feeling all too familiar in the years growing up under her mother's thumb. She refused to call her mother back to apologize, to explain. She had worked hard to kick that habit of trying to please her mother all the time, and she knew that if her mother loved her, she would accept the choices she made and to support her. It was not as if she was doing anything illegal.

She was twenty two, coming to twenty three. In her determination not to depend on her mother financially, she had just gotten her diploma from the local community college after saving enough for tuition fee from working various waitressing jobs for more than three years. At the rate she was going, it would take a miracle if she could get her degree before she hit thirty. Her mother was right: things would be easier if she went home. She could just let her mother take care of everything.

By the time Elle arrived at the animal shelter, she was still feeling down from the fight she had with her mother over the phone and she questioned about everything she had done for the past four years living in this city.

At the shelter, Elle was tasked with cleaning out the kennels. Once she got the dogs out to the dog runs, it was noticeably quieter and she began to clean out the kennels one by one. She concentrated on the push and pull of her muscles as she scrubbed out the scum from the concrete, even though she knew that they would hurt the next day yet she reveled in the physical labor. It distracted her from her thoughts.

When the kennels were cleaned, dried and disinfected and smelling less gross, Elle let the dogs back into their respective pens. One of them, a Pit-bull named Colt caught her attention as usual. It had a smooth grey coat of fur and blue eyes and Elle had fallen in love with it the first time she saw it.

"Hey, girl," she greeted softly. "No luck finding a human yet? Don't worry, we'll figure it out." Colt tilted its' head to the side as if listening and licked her hand.

Once Elle was done at the kennel, she went to organize the files at the office when the door opened and a family of three entered the room, led by another volunteer.

"Ben?" Elle got on her feet when she saw her boss. Then she looked down to see his son, River, surprise and recognition on his little face. He gave an excited cry and ran up to her. She dropped onto her knees and gave the little boy a hug.

"Hey, buddy," she greeted and ruffled his light brown hair. She straightened and smiled at Ben before her gaze cut to Karen who was standing beside him. Elle smiled politely, which the other woman returned. They had known each other since Elle started working at Becky's Diner, but they had never exchanged more than a few words.

Karen was slightly taller than Elle with wide blue eyes, a turned-up nose and a small mouth. With her porcelain complexion and long curly blond hair falling around her shoulders, Elle thought she looked like a doll. River tugged at Elle's hand to gain her attention.

"Ellie, my Mommy and Daddy are getting me a dog for my birthday!" he announced.

"Wow, you must be so excited!" Elle replied with equal enthusiasm.

"Yeah!" River answered, laughing. "What are you doing here, Ellie? Are you getting a dog too?"

"Ellie works here, son," Ben answered on her behalf. Her heart stuttered when she heard the nickname that his son gave her fell so naturally from his lips.

River frowned. "Aren't you working at Daddy's diner anymore?" he asked her.

"Yes, I still work at the diner. I volunteer here," Elle said.

River looked at his father. "Can Ellie take us to look at the dogs, Daddy? She volunteers here."

Ben's gaze was on Elle as he directed the question to his son. "Why don't you ask her?"

"Ellie, please can you take us to look at the dogs?" River asked in such a sweet voice that it melted her heart.

She smiled at him. "Okay."

"Ellie's busy with her work, honey," Karen said. "Leo here can take us." She indicated to the staff who had led them in earlier.

River turned to his mother then. "But she just said yes," he said before looking back up at Elle. "You don't mind, do you, Ellie?"

"If you don't mind putting off your work to attend to us, Elle," Ben added for him.

"Um, of course I don't mind," she replied. Her gaze immediately flitted to Karen, who was shaking her head, though there was no trace of malice on her face, only mild exasperation. Elle began to relax as she realized Karen was only worried about her inconvenience and not because she was an unwelcome presence in their little family outing.

"Maybe we can look at the animals' profiles first before we take the tour?" Leo suggested and took a file down from the cabinet. He led them to a clutter-free table and launched into an introduction for the animals which were available for adoption. Ben asked a few questions and Elle found that he was quite experienced with keeping and taking care of dogs.

River had instantly gravitated towards the picture of the one and only Pit-bull in the list. He said he liked the dog's blue eyes. Karen tried to persuade him from it, concerned that the dog might be aggressive. Leo tried to reassure the parents that Colt had only belonged to one family previously and they never had issues with it.

"What do you think, River?" Ben asked after they have perused the profiles.

"I still like this one," he answered, pointing at Colt's picture.

"I'm not sure about this," Karen said, concern etched on her face.

"What do you think of the dog, Elle?" Ben asked. Elle was startled that he directed the question at her and she quickly looked at Leo, who nodded encouragingly.

"Um, I was here when Colt came in nine months ago," she started. "The family who brought her in had three kids. She was obviously loved by them but they had to let her go because they had to move to another state and could not bring Colt with them." She still remembered how one of the children cried when she found out the dog won't be going home with them and she tried not to let her own emotions showed. "We monitor and put the dogs through multiple tests to assess their behavior and never once have Colt displayed any sort of aggressiveness."

Ben nodded slowly before glancing down at his son. "Want to get a look at Colt before we decide?"

"Yes, I want to!" River answered enthusiastically. "Ellie, let's go see Colt!"

"Why don't I go fetch Colt while you wait here with your parents?" Leo suggested to River. "Then Elle and I will leave you guys to spend some time with her." He looked at Ben and Karen. "Colt will be on a leash at all times and we will not leave until we are absolutely sure the dog is able to handle your presence." He then left the room and Ben and Karen continued to look through the files and talked in low voices.

"I can't wait to see Colt," River whispered to Elle.

She smiled at the boy. "I'm sure she's going to love you." A moment later the door opened and Leo reentered the room with Colt on a leash at his heels.

"Daddy, Mommy, look," River said, pointing at the beautiful grey-haired dog.

***

Ben looked at the grey Pit-bull standing close to Leo's legs. He took note of the dog's calm demeanor and how it surveyed its' surroundings with benign interest before lying down on its' stomach.

"Come on, guys, let's go see her up close," Elle said. They all stood and Colt lifted its' head to watch them approached and its' tail wagged slightly. Elle patted Colt and was rewarded with a quick lick on the hand. Then she put her hand over River's and held it close for Colt to sniff. River was a little excited and nervous so Elle kept talking to him in a low voice, encouraging him to touch the warm and smooth fur on its' head. Soon, it was accepting treats right out from his hand. Elle and Leo stepped back but remained close, letting the boy to interact with Colt on his own. Ben was happy that Colt was calm and patient as River fussed over it. Ben crouched down beside his son and together they showered Colt with gentle affection, which the dog responded in kind.

Several minutes later, Ben stood up straight and told Leo that he would like to proceed with the adoption. Leo nodded and went to the counter to fetch the paperwork.

"Are we adopting Colty?" River asked, his eyes glittering with excitement.

Ben smiled. "Yes, we are, if you want to."

River stood up and gave his father a hug. "Yes, I want to. Thank you so much, Daddy."

"What about me, darling?" Karen asked, holding out her arms to her son, which he responded with another thank you and a kiss on her cheek before bending down to Colt again.

Ben turned and walked towards Elle. "Karen's still a little nervous about adopting a dog like Colt. But she's fine with it as long as the dog stays with me."

"It's no problem," Elle said. "I understand her trepidation; after all, Pit-bulls do have a notorious reputation." She smiled as Colt sat down again for the umpteenth time on River's command and remaining as calm and patient as ever. "But this one's special," she added.

"Yes, she is," he agreed softly. He turned around as Leo returned with the paperwork. "All right, son. Let's make it official."

Chapter 4

"Hey, roomie," Zoe said when Elle opened the front door of the apartment that they shared. "Something's up?" she asked when she noticed the grin on Elle's face.

"Yeah," Elle said, flopping on the couch next to Zoe. "Colt got adopted today."

Zoe sat up and stared at Elle with wide eyes. "That's great!" She gave her a hug. "About time, too."

"Yes," Elle replied. "Leo told me Colt was actually scheduled to be put down next week."

Zoe shook her head slowly. "I hate that thought. It's a good thing the new owner showed up in time."

"You will not believe who adopted her," Elle said. "Ben Garrett!"

Zoe stared at her for a moment before holding up both hands with her palms facing Elle. "This must be divine intervention. A sign more things are about to happen to you two."

Elle bit back a smile. "What are you talking about?"

"Come on, don't tell me this isn't what you want," Zoe said. "You held a crush on him for the longest time and you didn't mind him having a son from a previous relationship. And now you find out that he likes animals. That's like icing on a really yummy cake."

"Don't forget he blew me off," Elle reminded her. "I laid myself out there for me and he blew me off."

Zoe rolled her eyes. "Grow up, will you? You told me the guy was working that night. So what if he owns the nightclub; the guy has a job to do."

"You know he could have easily told me what time he was going to finish work," Elle argued even though she knew Zoe had a point.

"I don't know about men but if I had to run a nightclub and not allowed one drop of alcohol, I probably wouldn't be able to get my vagina to work afterwards," Zoe said. "I'd probably just want to crash."

"I don't know; I still feel awkward," Elle admitted.

"If you wanted something, you'd find a way to it," Zoe said.

***

A week passed and Ben entered the kitchen on Saturday morning, his eyes automatically seek out Elle as usual. He had been thinking about her all week, probably due to the fact that now he had a four-legged constant reminder walking around the house all day. He shook his head; who was he kidding? Elle had been on his mind for the past year.

Elle had been nothing but professional throughout the adoption process yet he thought he caught her slight desperation when they were talking about Colt, as if she could not wait to get rid of it. He had been unsure about adopting a Pit-bull as a family pet, but as soon as he saw Colt and how easily it had interacted with the people around it, he felt it was right.

He wanted to thank Elle for the help but the Sunday breakfast crowd kept all of them busy. So when it was time for Elle to take a break, he quickly washed his hands and grabbed a cup of coffee to join her at the back.

"I just want to let you know that Colt's settling in and she's been amazing. River was reluctant to leave her yesterday," he said.

Elle's answering smile was brilliant. "I'm glad to hear you guys are bonding with Colt. She's a sweet dog."

"Yes, she is," he agreed. "Now he is talking about doing a welcome home party for Colt in addition to the party for his birthday, like a joint event thing and he's thinking of inviting you and Leo."

"Aww, that's so sweet of him," she gushed. "I'll ask Leo later. Do you need help with the party?"

He was surprised by her spontaneity. "You agree to the party?"

"Sure, why not? I'm sure Leo will be glad to attend and so would I," she said.

"Oh, that's...that's great," he said, smiling with relief. "You guys can bring some friends if you want to. We'll have plenty of food."

She returned his smile. "You tell me about the details later, okay?"

When Ben had discussed with Karen over River's request for a welcome home party in honor of Colt, she had agreed to it, although she made her concerns clear when he talked about inviting Elle and Leo. She thought it should be a small party with close friends and family, and Elle and Leo were just two volunteers from the shelter who did their job and nothing more.

Ben could see her point, but it was River's party after all, and he had requested their invitation. Ben couldn't see why they shouldn't be invited to the party. In the end, Karen relented to the invitations. She knew River was growing up and had a mind of his own, and at the end of the day she didn't want to disappoint him unnecessarily.

***

Elle and Leo arrived at Ben's house for the joint event of River's birthday party and Colt's welcome home party. Both of them felt out of place as they didn't know anybody else at the party. But their awkwardness was soon forgotten after River introduced them to the other kids. They all looked up at Elle and Leo like they were superheroes as soon as River said they worked at the animal shelter where he had adopted Colt.

About a dozen children crowded around them, asking about a million questions before Ben came to the rescue by announcing that the food was ready. He took one look at Leo's and Elle's relieved expressions and burst into laughter before leading them to where the barbeque was.

After they had eaten their fill, most of the kids ran off to play at the mini playground set up at the spacious backyard that also featured a swimming pool and Jacuzzi. Elle had a brief look-around Ben's Cape Cod when she went to visit the powder room. The kitchen was spacious with plenty of windows letting in the sunlight and the island was littered with plates and cups. The pictures hanging in the hallway was a mix of black and white family portraits and colorful scenery paintings.

Elle returned to the backyard to find Leo surrounded by the children. She went to take a seat nearby and watched as he entertained them with an impromptu magic show. The children watched in fascination as he got River to assist him with a trick and they each gave a delighted squeal when Leo made them think that apparently they had hidden a coin in their hair.

"Your friend has a way with kids," Ben said as he came to sit down beside Elle. "You have no idea how stressful this is. And having the kids to just...sit," He moaned dramatically. "I'm glad that River decided to invite Leo too."

She grinned. "Yes, he took me by surprise as well. I didn't know he was so good with kids."

Colt ambled slowly up to them, gave each of their hand a lick before settling down at Ben's feet. "Old girl's getting beat from being the life of the party," he said with a chuckle.

"Yep, she handles it like a pro," she agreed.

"I'm glad I got her for River; she's perfect," he said and looked at her. "All thanks to you."

She smiled. "It's no big deal. I love doing what I do."

"So you said that day at the shelter that Colt had been there for nine months?" he asked curiously and Elle nodded. "That's a really long time. I'm surprised the shelter's still keeping her instead of..." he trailed off, as if unable to finish the thought.

"You're right. Colt wouldn't be there any more if you hadn't come to pick her up when you did. You've rescued her in the nick of time," she said. Ben's eyes widened as realization dawned on him. "Now that you've adopted her, I can be honest with you about it. Even though she's considered a senior she's in excellent health; that was why the shelter wouldn't give up on her. But there is always a time limit, even for animals that could potentially be adopted and Colt had already reached the limit. If you hadn't come to adopt her, she would have gone already."

"Why hadn't you or Leo told us about this?" he asked.

"We are not supposed to let this issue play into the adoption process," she explained. "The animals needed to be loved, not pitied."

"How long have you been working at the shelter?" he asked.

"Just a year," she answered. "I always wanted to have a dog growing up but my brother was allergic to animal fur. So this is like a dream-come-true of sorts."

"So you work at the hotel weekdays, the diner on weekends and do volunteer work," Ben concluded. He ran a hand across his forehead as if to wipe away his perspiration. "Phew!"

Elle laughed. "At least I have my nights free."

"Nah, I don't work every night. My partners and I shift our time at the nightclub. I only work like seven nights in a month," he said.

"That explains why I've never seen you at the Chameleon before," she said.