Bruised, Battered, and In Tears [ A Benson Fan Fic]

Twenty-Nine

Olivia looked at Kathy before swallowing hard. She couldn't blame her for protecting Maureen, but she wished that she would trust her enough to know that she wasn't going to hurt Maureen again. She didn't want too. She had been in such a bad place after Cleo's birth, that she wasn't herself. She was far from herself.

"I'm trying to change, Kathy. I don't want to hurt Maureen... and I'm so sorry for having hurt her before. But it's been a month since Elliot and I got back together and I'm doing really good. Please, Kathy... Please let me just see if she wants to talk to me." Olivia whispered.

"She doesn't want anything to do with you, Olivia. And just saying you have changed doesn't mean you have. So why don't you just leave." Kathy spoke, before slamming the door in Olivia's face. Olivia drew in a sharp breath before starting to try and calm herself down.

She couldn't let this bring her down. She just had to keep moving forward, and that was her plan.

"Just turn around and go home," Olivia whispered to herself, before turning and moving down the stairs. She got to Elliot's car before opening the door and looking back at the house. She saw that the front door had opened, and Maureen stood there.

"Mau-" Olivia started, but Maureen shook her head.

"I want you to leave my father!" Maureen yelled. Olivia bit her lip and shook her head.

"I can't do that, Mo! We are working on our relationship so it can get stronger. I'm not going to leave him just because you want me too. The kids are happy, and we wish you were with them and happy too!" Olivia exclaimed.

"I'll never be happy because you are taking advantage of my father! It's wrong, and you are a bitch!" Maureen yelled. Olivia shrugged before looking away from Maureen.

"I may be a bitch, but your father still loves me and I'm not breaking his heart again."

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Olivia went home and pulled in behind the van. Elliot was just getting Cleo out of her car seat, so at least he wouldn't be focusing on why Olivia had left and was just now getting back.

"How was she?" Olivia questioned, as she rested her head against Elliot's shoulder as he cradled Cleo close.

"She was a very good baby. She's a chick magnet." Elliot chuckled, before passing the small girl into her mother's arms.

"Maybe you should go after a few of those interested women." Olivia sighed, as she held Cleo in one arm and opened the trunk with her free hand.

"Uh, I'm kinda dating you. Or did you forget?" Elliot asked, as he grabbed the diaper bag and placed the strap on his shoulder.

"No, I didn't forget. But..."

"But what?" Elliot asked with wide and concerned filled eyes. He knew that Olivia was trying hard to get through everything she was struggling with, but he was wondering now if it would take years to get over what happened after Cleo was born.

"You deserve to have all of your kids together. You deserve to come home and see all of your kids. I think that it would be better for the sake of your kids if we broke up. I already broke you and Kathy up, so I think that maybe our relationship is just not going to work out at all." Olivia breathed.

"Did you go and see Maureen?" Elliot asked, and Olivia frowned before nodding.

"Yeah. She didn't want to talk to me, Kathy wouldn't even let me talk to Mo even if she did want to talk, and Maureen wants me to leave you."

"So is that why you want me to call some of those ladies that think I'm cute and Cleo is cute too?" Elliot asked, and Olivia nodded slowly.

"Yeah." Olivia frowned. Elliot followed her into the house, and once her arms were free of groceries and little Cleo, he hugged her tightly.

"I still love you, Olivia. I'll always love you no matter what our relationship is... but I hope that our relationship will only grow. That we will get through this rough patch, that we can trust each other again, and maybe get married one day."

"El, why would you want to marry me?!" Olivia cried as she pushed him away.

"Because I love you, Olivia," Elliot spoke. Olivia looked at his lips for a moment before turning to walk away.

"I'm sorry that I haven't been willing to kiss you... but if you want to I think I'm ready," Elliot spoke.

"I don't want to force anything." Olivia frowned, before going and lifting Cleo up and walking upstairs.

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Elliot decided that after dropping the kids off at Kathy's, that he'd check in on Maureen. See if he could pull any strings to get her to talk to him or maybe even accept Olivia.

"Hey, Mo." Elliot smiled, as he opened her bedroom door.

"Dad," Maureen replied.

"How was your Hudson tour?" Elliot asked.

"They had to reschedule it. Something having to do with one of their buildings flooding." Maureen replied.

"That sucks. At least you got a day off from school." Elliot smiled, and Maureen nodded slowly.

"So, heading home?" Maureen sighed, and Elliot shrugged.

"Depends if you feel like talking about something." Elliot smiled.

"Not really, Dad. So why don't you just head on home to your bitch." Maureen spoke, as she turned back to look at her laptop.

"Okay, well we are going to talk," Elliot spoke, as he shut Maureen's door tightly before walking over and shutting her laptop.

"Dad, just go home."

"Mo, I know that you aren't happy with Olivia. But you watched her over the years and saw how she changed. You saw how she turned from being your Aunt and one of your best friends to become quiet and shy. For eight years, she was beaten. For eight years, she feared for her life and the lives of her little girls. So when Cleo was ready to come into the world, she was scared of her getting hurt. Since Chris couldn't hurt her, she was worried that something else would. That's why. That's why she got all messed up. But she's doing better, and as your father, I'm telling you to give her another shot."

"As your daughter, I'm telling you that you are going to get hurt again. She's going to hurt you because that's what a homewrecker and a freak does."