Most people may have thought that Elle was dangerous to society, but that's because they didn't really see her. They might just glance at one layer, make assumptions off of it, and try to decide her fate, judge her as they pleased. They didn't start to comprehend the kind of person that she really was. What was underneath the surface, what caused her behavior, and who she could really be. It was something that Peter was still learning himself. Who Elle really was. And the more he understood, the more he came to care for her, the more she meant to him.
It also meant that he was unconvering more and more about her past, some things he was learning almost simultaneously with her. Part of it angered him, to know the way she had been treated, and the other part filled him with a desire to change it. Nothing could be done about it now, at least not in that regard, besides trying to build towards a better future. One arm wrapped around her shoulders when she leaned in against him, he could have held her all night. It was a peaceful feeling, able to feel the warmth of her body, hear the soft sound of her breathing.
"This is a new place for both of us...we're new people." He wanted to beieve in Elle, show her that she could trust him. Nathan had been the first person to do that for him, his older brother had been skeptical, but he had pulled through in the end. "And..it's just you and me. Just us...that's all."