Further Down The Road

(Chapter Fifteen: Gaining A Son)

Elliot stood outside the closed bedroom door and listened as she talked to him on the phone.

"I love you too," she said with a sigh as she fell back against the bed. "No, I love you more. Yes, I do. Well, I do. And I miss you like crazy and cannot wait to be able to see you again. Two more days. I love you so much. And I cannot wait until this is all over with and we can start our lives together."

She rolled over to look at the door as she heard the creaking of the floor boards in the hallway.

"Listen, it's late and I should get off of here. I still have a lot to do before Saturday. I love you and I will see you in two days. Goodnight," she said as she hung up the phone.

She heard the creaking again and smiled as she sat up on the bed.

"Come on in dad, I know you're there," Maureen said with a smile.

"How is everything going?" Elliot asked pushing the door open and stepping into the room.

"Great. I have pretty much all of the wedding details taken care of. Michael will be in from Cambridge in two days and I cannot wait to see him."

"You miss him, huh?"

"Yeah, I do. I really love him, daddy. And I can't wait to be his wife."

"There was a time when I would have sat down here on the edge of the bed and tried to talk you out of this."

"But you're not going to now?"

"No," he said sitting down beside her. "I think that the two of you have really thought this through and you both know that this is what you want to do."

"And you like him?"

"Love him."

"Daddy," she laughed. "That wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that he graduated top of his class from Harvard Law, would it?"

"That, I will have to admit, as a father is a big factor. Knowing he can provide for my daughter and future grandchildren makes giving you away a lot easier. But he is a good guy. The two of you have been dating for three years…."

"Four," she corrected him.

"Four years. And Michael loves you and wants the same things for you that I do."

"What is that?"

"For you to finish Medical school and be successful. For you to be happy and healthy and to get all of the things you want out of life. I do love him," Elliot said hugging his daughter. "And in three days he will be my son in law."

Maureen smiled.

"Like they say, you are not losing a daughter, you are gaining a son."

"Well, I think Michael is going to be an amazing addition to our family."

"Good, because you are stuck with him now."

"Olivia made everyone's hair appointments."

"I made appointments for everyone to get manicures and pedicures."

"Everyone?"

"All of the girls in my wedding party."

"Even the little girls?"

"It is a wedding bonding thing, dad. The women are all supposed to get together and spend a little time doing girly things before the wedding."

"Hannah is eight and Abby is only four."

"She is almost five."

"Almost five and still too young for a pedicure."

"All they will do is let her soak her feet. Then they will paint her nails. It is okay, daddy. I really want her to be there."

"She will be there. Are you getting nervous?"

"About the marriage part, no. But I am nervous that my dress didn't make it in on my flight. I called around and they said they are still tracking it down and they assured me they will overnight it to make sure it is here in time."

"That is good."

"But dad, what if it isn't here in time?"

"If they said it will be, then I am sure it will be."

"Maybe you're right. I am just so nervous something is gonna go wrong and ruin my wedding day."

"You should try to relax. No matter what happens on the day of the wedding, the important thing to remember is that you and Michael will be husband and wife. Everything else is trivial. And I think everyone feels like things are all going wrong right before the wedding. It is probably just your nerves, but it is normal."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I remember the day Olivia and I were married. Things were crazy and she was so nervous something would go horribly wrong and ruin the entire ceremony."

"Did anything go wrong?"

"A whole series of things. But you don't remember them, do you?"

"No. All I remember is how pretty the wedding was and how happy you guys looked."

"There you go. All people are going to notice is how beautiful the bride is and how handsome her father is."

Maureen laughed.

"Dad."

"Everyone is going to be focusing on you and Michael and thinking what a beautiful couple you make. They are going to be wishing you both their best and dancing away the night. Fun will be had by all."

"I hope you're right."

"You should get some sleep. You probably have a lot of wedding stuff to look over tomorrow."

"I do. I have to go with Olivia to pick up the girls' dresses."

"I thought she bought those weeks ago."

"She did, but they had to be fitted. And I can't wait to see how adorable little Landon looks in his tuxedo."

Elliot smiled.

"I still can't believe they make tuxedos to fit a two year old."

"They do and they are so cute."

"Good night, honey."

"Night dad," Maureen said hugging and kissing her father.

Elliot moved down the hall checking on the three smallest Stabler children, before going on to bed.

"Everything, okay?" Olivia asked as he climbed into bed beside her.

"Everything is good. The little kids are asleep and I was just talking to Maureen about the wedding."

"Is she nervous?"

"She is scared to death something is going to go wrong with the ceremony."

"Everyone is right before they get married."

"That is what I told her. And she is worried the dress won't be here in time."

"But they said it would, right?"

"They said it would."

"But that's not all, is it? There is something else on your mind," Olivia said as she nestled herself in against her husband.

"It just kills me that Kathy wont be here to see any of this. Maureen won't come out and say it, but it is bothering her, too."

"She would be here if she could, El. She wouldn't have missed this for the world."

"But she will miss it. She will miss this wedding and the other children's weddings. She wont be here when her first grandchild is born. She will never see her grandchildren. It is just hard to accept. I remember when Maureen was a tiny baby and we used to sit up at night waiting for her to fall asleep and try to imagine her wedding day. I know things changed with the divorce, but I still thought we would be there together on that day, watching our little girl walk down the aisle."

"She should be here, El. But that car accident last year changed everything. She would be here if she had the choice."

"I know that," Elliot said looking into her eyes. "But I also know how hard this has been on Maureen. This day should be a happy one for her, not sad. But as long as her mother isn't there beside her, I know there will be tears in my little girl's eyes on what is supposed to be the happiest day of her life."

Olivia raised up and kissed him tenderly.

"You should try to get some rest. One more day of work, then you get to spend the day with your son in law and the boys playing golf. That will be fun."

"Good night, baby."

"Goodnight," Olivia whispered as she kissed him tenderly and Elliot turned out the light.

Two days later Elliot stood in the airport with Maureen waiting for Michael's plane to land. She sat like a child staring out the window as the planes landed waiting to see him.

"Are you sure this is the right gate dad?"

"There is the plane right there. He will be here in a minute."

"I'm going to go stand by the gate so I can see him. Are you coming?"

"No, honey. You go ahead. I will wait here."

Elliot sat down in a chair and watched Maureen's anticipation as people started exiting the plane. A few minutes later he heard her squeal like she did when she was a child, as she leaped into Michael's arms and he held her tight.

Normally any guy who displayed this much affection toward his daughter in public would be on the top of Elliot's shit list. But this time was different. In one more day, this man would be Maureen's husband. And something about the way they interacted with each other now reminded Elliot of he and Olivia. Michael and Maureen shared the same kind of bond that Elliot and Olivia did, and that was what made it so easy for Elliot to trust this man with his daughter.

Maureen locked her fingers in Michaels as they approached Elliot.

"Michael, good to see you," Elliot said extending his hand for Michael to shake.

"It is good to be back. I have to tell you, I never thought I would have a reason to miss New York City," Michael said staring into Maureen's eyes.

"I missed you," she said standing on her toes to kiss him tenderly.

"I missed you too, baby. I didn't know I could miss someone so much in just two days."

"Well, you're together now," Elliot said as they walked toward the baggage carousel to collect Michael's suitcases. "Well, I'll take you back to the hotel for a little while so you can get settled in. We're supposed to meet Liv and the other kids in a couple of hours for a family lunch. Then all of the girls are going to get their nails done."

"I called the country club before we left and reserved a couple of golf carts. After that I thought we could hit the batting cages for a little while."

"Sounds good. Liv is taking Landon to the salon with her. I don't think there is much for a two year old to do at the golf course."

"I was hoping to take everyone out for dinner tonight. Kind of in place of a rehearsal dinner. Just to thank you all for accepting me into your family."

"That is the funny thing, Michael. You couldn't fit better if you were born into this family. We are glad to have you."

"Mom and dad will be in this afternoon," Michael said looking over at Maureen. "I thought we could stop by their hotel before dinner and visit them for a few moments."

"Why don't you just invite them to dinner? They met my mom and dad, but they have not met Olivia and the kids yet."

"Okay, I will do that. I will give dad a call in a few hours and see how they are getting settled in and ask him about dinner."

Maureen smiled as he kissed her forehead.

Everything went well at dinner that evening and as they were leaving Maureen got a call from the airport.

"They have my dress," she said in relief. "I need to run pick it up, so I have it for tomorrow."

"I've got to take mom and dad back to the hotel, then I can take you to pick up the dress. Then I'll take you back to your dad's."

"Okay," she said kissing Michael. "Dad, I shouldn't be long."

"You have a key. We need to get home and get the kids to bed."

"I don't want to go to bed daddy," Hannah whined.

Maureen smiled at her little sister. She knelt beside the little girl to talk to her.

"Hannah, tomorrow is a very big day. We all need to go to bed early tonight to make sure we get enough rest so we're not tired tomorrow. So go on home and get some rest, okay?"

"Okay," Hannah agreed as she rubbed her eyes.

Elliot and Olivia loaded up the kids and headed home. An hour later Michael and Maureen arrived back at the house and Maureen was in tears.

"Honey, what is wrong?" Elliot asked as he and Olivia entered the room.

"My dress is….it's…."

"It was damaged in transport," Michael clarified.

"How bad is it, sweetheart?" Olivia asked. "Maybe we can fix it before tomorrow."

"No," Maureen answered as she unzipped the garment bag and pulled out the gown.

The material was torn in several places and it had water stains on it.

"It can't be fixed. My wedding dress is ruined and I am supposed to get married tomorrow evening," she sobbed.

Olivia took a deep breath and looked at Elliot, there had to be something they could do.

"Maureen, I know it isn't going to be the same, but what if you and I get up early tomorrow and go find a dress. There has to be something in this city that will be beautiful for your special day."

"I had the perfect dress. It took me six months to find it."

"I know honey," Elliot said. "But that dress isn't going to work anymore, so you're going to have to find something else."

Maureen stared at her father as the idea began to sink in.

"Alright," she said as she wiped away her tears.

"Get some sleep, honey," Elliot said kissing her forehead. "I'll make breakfast in the morning, then you and Liv can go dress shopping. It is all going to work out just fine, I promise."

"I will see you in the morning, sweetheart," Michael said kissing her. "We will all tear this city upside down until we find the perfect dress."

"You're not supposed to see the dress before the wedding."

"I don't think I am supposed to see the bride in the dress. I think we can make an acceptation here."

"I'll see you in the morning," she said softly.

"I love you," Michael said kissing her.

"I love you, too."

Elliot stood downstairs until Maureen had turned in for the evening. He did his nightly walkthrough the house checking to make sure doors and windows were all locked. He checked each of the kids, tucking in Hannah and laying Abby's doll in the bed beside her. Then he headed into the bedroom with his wife.

"Kids are all asleep. Including Maureen."

"She has had a rough day."

"It was really sweet of you to offer to take her shopping."

"I feel so bad for her. There has to be something we can do to help. It was the only thing I could think of."

"Take the credit card and buy her anything she wants," Elliot said. "It is her day and I want it to be perfect for her. No price limit on the dress."

"Okay," Olivia agreed. "I figured we would get up around seven and leave here about eight thirty. I just hope that we find something that fits right and doesn't need alterations."

"Well, for now, lets try to get some sleep."

Elliot turned out the light and Olivia laid her head against his chest as they drifted off to sleep.