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angellwings

A Girl's Best Friend

By angellwings

Ella had just permanently moved to California. Until this past year she'd been working out of Savannah, Georgia. Nate was on his way to her house for the very first time. She'd purchased a rather large house with a lot of land and he'd yet to figure out why. She'd been improving the house this week before she started working at the label next week. He knew she'd just had her yard fenced in and from what he'd heard her fences were all insanely tall. He was honestly beginning to wonder why such a petite person would need such a large residence.

He pulled past her large iron front gate and down her long and winding driveway before he finally parked his car outside of her front door. He knocked on the door and it immediately opened. Ella beamed at him and threw her arms around his neck. "Nate! You're early!"

He smiled softly and hugged her close. "I wanted to get the full tour of the house. It's so massive that it might take a couple of hours."

Ella chuckled and rolled her eyes as she pulled back to look at him. "It's not that big."

She opened the door wider and let him in and he froze once he spotted what appeared to be a small horse staring him down at the end of her foyer hallway. "What is that?"

Ella followed his gaze and then gave him a confused glance. "That? You mean my dog?"

"Your…dog?" Nate asked as he squinted at the animal. "That's a dog?"

"A Great Pyrenees to be exact. Named Neville. I call him Nev for short," Ella said with a wink. "He's a big sweetheart."

"Sweetheart, right," Nate said sarcastically. "Because it's not like he's the size of a large jungle cat or anything."

"Come on, Nev," Ella said as she patted her legs and called the dog over.

"Oh, oh no, he can stay over there," Nate said nervously. "He doesn't have to-"

The dog began to slowly trot toward them and Nate gulped. This dogs head was twice the size of his own. And the paws…were the size of large human hands. Standing on all fours Neville far surpassed Ella's waist. Neville plopped down at Ella's feet and then continued to stare at Nate. To Nate the look almost appeared challenging as if Neville were daring Nate to make a move toward his owner and friend.

"See," Ella said as she leaned down and pet the dog's massive head. "He's a big harmless puppy."

Nate gingerly knelt beside of Neville and reached forward to pet the dog's thick fur coat. Neville huffed softly at him but didn't move as Nate's hand touched the cream colored fur. Ella sat down beside of Neville and the dog immediately rested it's head in her lap and she smiled affectionately at the beast.

"Who's my big man?" Ella asked the dog in a childlike voice. "You are. Yes, you are. You won't let anything happen to me, will you?"

The dog whined softly in an affirmative tone and nuzzled Ella's free hand with its nose.

"When did you get this guy?" Nate asked as he relaxed a bit and continued to pet Neville.

"My dad gave him to me while I was still in college. He was nervous about me living in Georgia all alone and thought Neville would be good protection. Which he is," Ella said with a soft chuckle as she scratched behind Neville's ear.

"So, he's what? Six years old?" Nate asked.

Ella nodded. "Almost exactly. I moved out here to give him more space. He kept jumping the fence at my place in Savannah."

"Is he a good judge of character?" Nate asked. "Jason thinks pets are an excellent judge of character."

Ella smiled at Nate and nodded. "He meets all my dates. If he likes them they stand a chance and if not then I reserve the right to Lemon Law them."

Nate grinned at her and chuckled. "Lemon Law? From How I Met Your Mother?"

She winked at him. "I'm glad you got that reference. If you were opposed to sitcoms I would have to seriously rethink our friendship. If he doesn't like them then I give them five minutes before I ditch them."

Nate chuckled and nodded before he spoke up nervously. "I see. Would you use the Lemon Law if you were going to date…an old friend?"

Ella blushed and smiled flirtatiously at him. "Well, if it's an old friend then I'd hope they'd already passed the Lemon Law test because clearly I've known them for more than five minutes."

Ella stood up and both Nate and Neville followed her lead.

"You wanted a tour, right?" Ella asked as she changed the subject.

He nodded. "Yes, I did."

"Then we should start with the living room. I had to buy new furniture. This couch…is amazing. It's leather and so cushiony. I spent an arm and a leg on it, but I think it will be worth it," Ella said as she grabbed his hand and led him toward her living room. Neville suddenly got between them used his head to nudge their hands apart. He chuffed at Nate the way Nate had heard the tigers chuff at each other during many childhood visits to the Zoo.

Ella gave Neville a scolding look and rolled her eyes. "I swear, you're worse than my father. Chill out, Nev."

"He doesn't want us holding hands?" Nate asked curiously as his hand itched to grab Ella's again.

Ella chuckled. "He's protective. He doesn't like it when I hug my own brother."

Nate chuckled and nodded. "I see."

Ella turned toward her new couch and as she did so Neville hopped up on it and the length of his body covered half of it. Ella grinned at the dog and used him as a large pillow as she sat down beside of him. She patted the empty spot on the couch next to her and looked at Nate expectantly. "Come on, have a seat."

"Are you sure he won't mind?" Nate asked as he motioned to Neville.

Ella shrugged. "He'll deal. It's my house and my couch. Have a seat, please?"

Nate nodded and reluctantly sat down. Neville let out a soft growl and Nate tensed before Ella poked the bear of a dog and glared at him like a parent would a naughty child.

"Neville, hush. Be nice."

Neville looked at her and let out a quiet bark and Ella rolled her eyes.

"I've known Nate longer than I've known you," Ella told him. "Stop acting like a jealous puppy."

Neville huffed and turned his head away from Ella and rested it on the couch.

"Well," Ella said with a sigh. "He's not going to be much fun anymore. Why don't I show you the upstairs while we wait for Neville to get over himself." Neville huffed again but didn't move and after a moment Ella stood and chuckled. "Crazy dog. Come on, Nate. Let's leave him be for a while."

Nate followed Ella up the stairs to the second level and as they reached her bedroom he felt someone's eyes on him. He turned to see Neville slowly slinking up the stairs behind them. The brute kept a watchful eye on Nate as Ella opened her bedroom door.

"This is the master bedroom," Ella said as she grabbed Nate's arm and pulled him into the room. Nate had planned on staying at the threshold. Being in Ella's room alone with her just felt…too tempting. "Complete with a huge walk in closet that I cannot wait to fill to the brim with stunning clothes."

Ella closed the door behind them just as Neville began to turn the corner and follow them through the door. He whined on the other side and Nate heard him scratch the door lightly.

"I think he wants inside," Nate told her as he motioned to the door.

"He always does when I come up here. He'll be fine. He'll sit down outside the door and pout for a while but he'll be fine," Ella told him dismissively. "So, what do you think?"

"Of the house or the dog?" Nate asked.

"Of both," Ella said with a decisive nod.

"The house is huge," Nate told her. "It's beautiful but huge. I couldn't imagine living in a house like this by myself."

"And the dog?" Ella asked with a smirk.

"Still undecided. He seems suspicious of me and so I'm suspicious of him," Nate told her with a chuckle.

Ella grinned at Nate and shook her head. "Don't worry about Neville. He's just trying to decide whether or not he likes you. But you'll grow on him. I've known you for years, Nate. You always grow on people."

Nate's brow furrowed and he grinned at her. "Was that a compliment or an insult?"

Ella laughed lightly and shrugged. "A little of both, I guess."

"Did I have to grow on you?" Nate asked. "I mean, what was your first impression of me?"

Ella bit her bottom lip nervously. "You probably don't want to know."

He quirked a brow at her and grinned. "That bad, huh?"

She blushed and shook her head. "No, not bad. Just a bit embarrassing…for me."

His grin widened and he crossed the room to stand in front of her. "Okay, now I have to know."

She rolled her eyes and shoved him playfully. "No, you don't."

"Uh, yes, I believe I do," Nate said with a chuckle. "You've intrigued me."

"I'm not going to tell you," Ella said as she crossed her arms over her chest and smirked at him. "So deal with it."

She started to walk past him but Nate gently wrapped a hand around her upper arm to stop her. "Come on, Ells. You can tell me. How bad can it be?"

"Nate—"

"Come on, Ella. If you tell me about your first impression then I'll tell you about mine of you," Nate said hopefully. "It can't be any more embarrassing than mine."

"Nate, really, I don't want to—"

"The very first time I saw you I thought you looked like a spotlight. A shiny pink spotlight and I couldn't stop watching you even at the after party in the Mess Hall. Through it all your pink sequined shirt kept my attention."

Ella gulped and her mouth fell open slightly. "What?"

"You were happy and bubbly and everyone seemed to love you," Nate said with a grin. "It was kind of intimidating actually. I couldn't quite bring myself to talk to you because of it."

"Nate," Ella said softly. "That's so…"

"Creepy?" Nate asked with a dry chuckle.

"No," Ella said as she shook her head. "It's sweet."

Nate blushed and rubbed the back of his neck as he avoided Ella's eyes. "Sure it is."

Ella cleared her throat and took a deep breath. "I thought you just had to be a genius and that there was no way I could talk to you, even if it was to tell you I was a big fan and had all of your CDs. Seriously, all of them. Even your solo CD, from when you were like nine. You looked so serious and…in control. I thought I was probably too stupid, I guess, to talk to you. I kind of thought you were out of my league, even on a friendship level. It didn't help that I…"

"That you what?" Nate asked as she let her sentence drift off.

"That I thought you were absolutely gorgeous," Ella admitted with a nervous gulp. "I had a fan girl crush on you the size of Texas."

Nate smirked at her. "That was all from your first impression of me?"

Ella took a deep breath and nodded. "I told you. Embarrassing."

"Not embarrassing," Nate corrected her.

Ella rolled her eyes at him. "Stop being nice. It's embarrassing and we both know it."

There was another scratch at the door and Ella smiled softly at it.

"I should probably go let Neville in…"

She turned and started to walk past him toward the door but Nate reached out and quickly stopped her. "Wait. There's something I've been wanting to do for a while and I can't do it with your dog…staring at me."

Ella chuckled and gave him a strange look. "What? What can't you do with—"

Ella's sentence was cut off by Nate suddenly placing his lips on hers. Ella tensed in surprise but immediately relaxed when Nate's arms went around her waist. He was kissing her. Nate Gray, who she'd had a crush on for most of her life, was kissing her. Through all the other dates, boyfriends, and crushes it had always been Nate. But she'd never realistically thought they'd be anything more than friends. Clearly, Nate didn't agree with that if the way he was kissing her was any indication. Her arms went around his neck and Nate deepened the kiss. Ella suddenly felt her back being pressed against a wall and pulled back a little to grin against Nate's lips. She hadn't even realized he'd been moving her at all. His arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her flush against him as he dipped his lips back down to hers for another kiss. She chuckled and pulled away again and when Nate attempted to touch his lips to hers yet again Ella placed her palms flat against his shoulders and held him back with a light laugh.

"Wait," She said in amused voice. "Wait. Shouldn't we talk about this?"

"I thought we already did that? You know, with all of that first impression talk," Nate said with a whine.

Ella laughed and shook her head. "No, Nathaniel. That's not quite the talk I mean."

"You mean, the what-are-we-really-doing talk, don't you?" Nate asked with a sigh.

Ella nodded. "Is this just…kissing or is it leading somewhere? Or…is it a mistake?"

Nate gave her a stern look after that last suggestion and spoke up in a growly voice. "It's definitely not a mistake. Don't even think that. Please."

Ella gulped at his tone and nodded. "I don't and won't, Nate. I just had to make sure you didn't see it as a mistake."

"You know me, Ells," Nate said as he traced a finger across her cheek. "I'm too logical to consciously do something that would be a mistake."

Ella flushed at the intimate gesture before she chuckled and nodded. "You do tend to over analyze your decisions."

"We've known each other for too long for me to risk just jumping into it," Nate said softly. "I don't want to lose you, Ella. As a friend or otherwise."

"You won't, Nate," Ella promised.

"Good," Nate said with a soft smile. He kissed Ella's lips softly once more and then pulled back to look her in the eyes. "And you won't lose me either. How's that for the talk?"

Ella smirked at him and shook her head. "Knowing you'll always be around is wonderful, Nate, but it doesn't tell me what we're doing."

"Shouldn't that be obvious?" Nate asked with a grin as he tightened his arms around her waist and held her closer to him.

Ella's face grew serious and she sighed. She attempted to wiggle out from in between Nate's chest and the wall but he refused to let her. She huffed and looked down at his arms as they firmly held her waist. "You'd think, but the last time I thought something was obvious I was very mistaken. So, I'd like to make sure this time."

His brow furrowed and he removed one hand from her waist to tilt her chin upward so he could see her face. "The last time?"

Ella bit her lip. "It's nothing, Nate, okay? Can we just address the kissing so we can get back to it?"

"No," Nate said with a skeptical glare. "I don't think it's 'nothing' like you claim, Ells. You'd talk about it more freely, otherwise."

"It's embarrassing, Nate, and I doubt you actually want to know," Ella said as she gulped nervously. "Besides, it was years ago. No worries, Nate. I'm over it, really."

"Wait," Nate said as her reluctance to talk suddenly made sense to him. "Am I involved in this? Was it about me?"

Ella blushed furiously and looked away from him again. "Like I said it was years ago, Nate. And it's very embarrassing for me so I'd rather we just not—"

"C'mon, Ella. I have to know now, please?" Nate begged. "How can I make up to you for whatever I did if you won't tell me what it was?"

"You came to the wardrobe cabin one day and you started asking all these questions about girls and what to do when you, you know, like one and you were being very vague and you sounded nervous and so I thought…well, I started to think…that you were talking about me," Ella admitted. Nate winced as he quickly realized where this was going. "But you weren't. You—"

"I was talking about Dana, wasn't I?"

Ella nodded wordlessly and hid her face in his chest. He could tell by the extremely pink tips of her ears that she was blushing from embarrassment. Neville scratched at the door again and Ella automatically turned toward it. "Oh gosh, Nev, I forgot to let him in. You distracted me."

She avoided looking at him and Nate immediately felt like a jerk. Ella's feelings far outlasted his own and he'd been blind to them for so long. He mentally kicked himself for not seeing her sooner. She'd been there in front of him all along. Nate held her waist tighter and shook his head at her. "Wait, Ella. Just wait. I…I need to say something."

Ella still didn't look at him but she stayed where she was and kept her eyes focused on his chest. "Yes?"

"You know, all teenage males are jerks. I was no exception. I'm sorry, Ella—"

"We were kids, Nate. It doesn't matter now."

Nate shook his head. "No, it does matter. I'm embarrassed, Ells. Embarrassed that I had my head so far up my ass for so long that I just couldn't see the girl that was standing on my doorstep. I should've noticed you Ella, and I hate that I didn't."

"Really?" Ella asked as she finally looked up at him again with wide emotional eyes.

"Really," Nate said with a nod. "And if you really want to know what I think we're doing I'll tell you. I'll clearly spell it out for you because you deserve it. You've dealt with me for so long that you deserve a little honesty."

Ella bit her bottom lip and smiled hopefully at him. "And? What do you think we're doing?"

"Well, right now, we're not doing much of anything, but we will be dating. I want a relationship with you and I want to spend time with just you, and I'm hoping it leads to something long lasting. In fact, I'm counting on it. Because, in case you didn't know it, I'm pretty crazy about you, Ella Pador,"

Ella beamed at him and suddenly threw her arms around his neck. He braced himself and chuckled as he held her tighter and rested his head on her shoulder. She pulled back and turned her bright smile on him again. "I'm pretty crazy about you too, Nate."

Nate smiled slowly and then quirked a brow at her. "Now can we get back to kissing?"

Ella laughed and nodded. "We can get back to kissing."

Nate started to lean in but before he crossed the rest of the distance there was a very loud bark from the other side of the door.

"Oh!" Ella said as she urgently pulled away and crossed the room. "Neville!"

Nate groaned as she opened the door and Neville slowly entered. He looked between Nate and Ella before stopping to stare at Nate. Nate crossed his arms over his chest and stared right back. "Hello, Neville."

Ella rolled her eyes at Nate. "You're just as bad as him. Excuse me, I need to go to the ladies room."

Nate gave her a small nod in acknowledgment but kept his eyes on Neville. Ella smirked at the scene they made as she walked away. It was a staring contest between her dog and her potential boyfriend. How many girls could say they've seen that happen?

Out of the corner of his eye Nate saw the bathroom door close and that's when he sighed and gave Neville a stern look. "Alright, you and I need to come to an understanding." Neville let out a seemingly affirmative huff and Nate continued. "I get that you love her, and I can understand why, but you're not the only one who cares about her. I care about her too and I'm hoping I'll be hanging around here a lot more. We're going to have to get along. Can you deal with that?"

Neville made a noise that was half bark and half huff and peacefully walked past Nate top hop up on Ella's bed. He rested his head on his paws and closed his eyes. Nate blinked at the large dog. He hoped that meant yes. Ella came back then and looked between Nate and Neville.

"How did you get him to do that?" She asked.

"What?" Nate asked.

"When I have company he doesn't usually go to bed until everyone's gone," Ella said as she stared at her dog in shock. "He follows me and whoever it is around. He always does. No exceptions."

Nate smiled triumphantly and uncrossed his arms. "I guess he and I came to an understanding then."

"What did you do to him?" Ella asked with a grin.

"I just talked," Nate said with a shrug.

"Alright then, Dog Whisperer, why don't you come and talk to me downstairs," Ella said with a wink as she grabbed his hand and laced her fingers through his. "On the couch where it's a little more comfortable."

Nate smirked at her and pulled her close so he could put an arm around her waist. "You want to talk, huh? Any particular topic?"

"Oh, I can think of a few," Ella said with a light laugh as she slipped her hand into the back pocket of his jeans and led him out of her bedroom door. "In fact it might get a little heated."

Nate laughed loudly and poked her side playfully before he kissed her temple. "I certainly hope so."