Disclaimer: Do you own them? I surely don't!

Disclaimer: Don't own them, no Buffy character or hookers. I swear.
Distribution: Take it! Just tell me where it is going.
Pairing: B/A is the most important. some A/C but I promise bashing.
Rating: R
Summary: Buffy is a famous prostitute. Angel meets her. Stuff happens just read it!
Feedback: I'm STARVING! Feed me damnit!

"No way, money first." Buffy chided gently when Spike's hands started traveling downwards, she gently pushed him away. Spike groaned in frustration.

"Come on, Summers, you know I am good for it." The bleach blonde teased, pushing her on his lap but was once again denied.

"Yeah, good for nothing." Buffy chuckled. Spike was one of her regular customers so she wasn't frightened when she realized they were all alone in his apartment. Spike sighed as he let the bra clad blonde get off him. He knew that Buffy wouldn't do anything until she had the feel of cool cash against her hand. Everyone that had their hand in the seedy underworld of Los Angeles knew that Buffy was the most beautiful and infamous prostitute. But to anyone else, she was just another gorgeous woman. She didn't dress skanky or gave away any hint of her line of work. She tread dangerously under police's noses with ease by wearing only designer clothes.

"You’re killing me, Summers!" Spike threw his head back, letting it hit the back of the couch that he was sitting on, referring to his obvious arousal.

Buffy just shrugged with a small smile as she put on her Gucci shirt. Her and Spike have been friends for a couple of months now, well more like fuck buddies but it is the closest you can get with this kind of job. It was a sucky job, Buffy knew that she should get out of it one day but she needed the money and boy did it pay good with the right guy. Take Spike for an example, she had him wrapped around her finger and he constantly showered her with gifts.

"I'm using your bathroom to freshen up." Buffy invited herself to the huge marble bathroom.

"Damnit, my brother is flying in tonight and he has got more money than Bill Gates. I'll pay you when I borrow some from him." Spike pleaded. He didn't care. He wanted Buffy. Badly.

"You don't give up Spike, do you?" Buffy chuckled. She applied a fresh coat of lipstick, fixing her straight her that ran below her shoulders.

Spike shook his head, listening to her get ready for another night on the streets. The bleach blonde jumped when he heard a knock on the door. He hurried to answer it, if Dru knew that he was visiting a hooker she would lose it.

"Get ready to hide, Buffy." Spike whispered, peeking into the bathroom. Buffy's eyes widened. Nothing worse than a jealous wife.

"I thought you said she was out of town!" Buffy hissed, looking crazily around the large bathroom for a good hiding space. Spike shot her an apologetic look before looking to the front door.

"Coming, sweetheart!" Spike yelled as he ushered Buffy into the large shower and pulled the curtain closed. Spike reached the front door and took a deep breath before opening it.

"It is sweetheart now?" A man laughed heartily. Spike could have cried in relief when it was his brother.

"Angelus! Man, it's been years." Spike happily embraced his older brother. Angel smiled looking around Spike's glorious apartment.

"Damn, you've been living the high life." Angel grinned.

"Way better then that hole in the wall you live in." The younger of the two joked. Angel's crooked smile was his reply. Angel didn't have the success with money as his younger brother did, but it didn't bug him much. He had rented a cozy little apartment for his stay in Los Angeles, it was big enough for one person but he knew that Cordelia would take up the whole place with everything she brought. It was made simply of a kitchen that went into the living, a tiny bathroom, and a bedroom the size of a closet.

"I just flew in, I hope you don't mind if I brought a friend..." Angel gestured to the door to see Cordelia carrying two out of the ten bags.

"Posh crib." Cordy commented. Spike's smile dropped quicker than a ton of bricks.

"You brought *her*?" His lips curled into disgust. This should be a fun visit from Hell. Buffy took the momentary distraction to quietly slip out of the shower and move slowly to the front door.

"Who the hell are you?" Cordelia snapped, her head held high, spotting the not so sneaky blonde trying to slip away from behind her.

"Buffy, its okay. This is my brother, Angel and his bitch...I meant friend Cordelia." Spike introduced. Buffy's jaw dropped at the beautiful sight of this gorgeous god in front of her. She was convinced that she had gone insane and was seeing things because no one else seemed to be fazed by Angel's godly figure. His chocolate eyes and hair stuck out of his features compared to his pale smooth skin. She could bring herself to care about his non-designer wear.

"Uh..." Was her reply. Right, real smart, Summers, she cursed herself.

"Miss, Buffy Uh, glad to meet you." Angel smiled at the lovely figure before him, he held out his hand. Buffy looked at his large hand as if it would kill her, but reached for it anyway. She could have cried from the feeling of a simple handshake. Angel was hesitant to let go, trying to get over the unfamiliar feeling of pulling her flush up against him. The hand shake seem to go on forever, well, maybe that was because Angel had never let her hand go, just kept shaking in. He was desperate for her touch.

Another minute of staring and shaking was enough for the snotty brunette on Angel's free arm.

"Okay, are you guys glued together or something?" Cordy snapped. Spike frowned at the interaction between the two.

"Ooh sorry," Angel muttered, his face turning a hint of red. Had he really been shaking her hand that whole time? Buffy shrugged, she didn't mind one bit.

"I'm Cordelia, Angel's *good* friend." Cordelia draped over his arm in a dramatic gesture of possession. Buffy lifted an eyebrow at her, discarding the brunette with a simple look.

"So what do you do, Buffy?" Angel asked, intrigued by the woman in front of him. Spike chuckled and Buffy's eyes widened.

"Oh, this is hilarious mate, think she is great now? Wait until she find out she is h-" Spike started but Buffy quickly squeaked to stop him, for the first time feeling ashamed at what she did. She felt dirty under Angel's eyes. This is bad. Someone in her line of work *cannot* feel that way or they would be hanging themselves the next night.

"Huge lawyer!" Buffy yelled, to shut Spike up. Spike gave her a shocked look. "Uh...yeah, that it, I'm Spike's lawyer. He just called me over for some business."

"Oh, that's nice. What is so funny about being a lawyer?" Angel's question towards Spike. The bleach blonde opened his mouth to answer, glancing at Buffy, shaking his head slightly giving her the impression that he was clueless on what to do.

"I'm dirty!" Buffy blurted out, getting the attention off Spike. Angel and Cordelia's shocked gaze when to her. "Uh, dirty lawyer. I'm a bad, bad lawyer, I cheat and lie and everything. I could be sent to jail for lying under oath!"

"What are you-" Cordelia started.

"Well, its been lovely to meet you two, but I have to go hit streets-" Buffy stopped herself her eyes wide in embarrassment. "I mean to the street to go get my car, where it is parked."

"Yeah, right, let me walk you out, Ms. Lawyer." Spike chuckled as Buffy mentally kicked herself for her blubbering. She was the best prostitute in the damn world and she was blubbering like a school girl when it came to Angel.

"Bye." Angel said but Spike had already ushered her out.

******* "Ugh...give me another shot, Willow." Buffy muttered, burying her face into her hands. Willow, the bartender, smiled at her. Willow has known Buffy ever since she opened her hit blues bar.

"Tough night?" The redhead said as she prepared her a drink.

"You have no idea, and it is only eleven." Buffy muttered.

"Hey baby," A sandy blonde slid into barstool next to Buffy. The petite blonde looked over Riley was a dwindling interest. He was wearing regular jeans and a soft baby blue t-shirt and a fake wrist watch.

"No thanks." Buffy dismissed him with a wave of her hand. She could tell just by his look and attitude that he had no money. And that was all she cared about. Really, she didn't care that she was comparing all of her customers to Angel, or how great she would look with him.

Riley looked smug as he pressed a hundred dollars into her hands. Buffy raised an eyebrow, a look of disgust. Willow watched the reaction with interest. She knew what Buffy did, and lent the blonde her bar for a usual spot.

Buffy slipped the hundred into her pocket before leaning over to give Riley a quick peck on the cheek and then looked to Willow.

"How about that drink, Wills?" Buffy asked.

"Uh, excuse me?" Riley snapped, looking a bit confused. Buffy looked to him surprised.

"Oh, you are still here?" Her brow furrowed.

"Where is the rest of my...purchase?" Riley asked.

"You gave me a hundred dollars and I gave you a kiss on the cheek. You're lucky I even gave you that much for that amount. My price is a thousand and up." Buffy said nonchalantly with a sweet smile.

Riley finally got the hint as he angrily stood up, stalking away.

Willow laughed out loud. "Damn, I wish people would give me a hundred dollars if I kiss their cheek, I'd kiss everyone in this room for that much." The redhead handed the blonde her drink. Buffy downed it in a quick second, and slipped the hundred that Riley gave her to her friend.

"Thanks Will." The blonde smiled at her friend and stalked over to the dance floor where a band was playing. Buffy recognized the guitarist as Willow's boyfriend Oz, she gave him a small wave before searching around the rest of the club.

"B!" Someone yelled and Buffy turned to see her good friend and partner, Faith. Faith was a bit more obvious than her since noting touched her skin but leather.

"Hey, how's your night so far?" Buffy asked, having to yell over the Oz's loud band. Faith flashed her a toothy grin, holding up her hand to reveal a couple thousand. Buffy laughed and clapped her hands together.

"Damn, Faith! Let me at this guy that you have been hiding."

"Get your own sugar daddy." Faith grinned.

"'Ello ladies." Spike came up behind the two prostitutes and wrapped an arm around both of them.

"Lawyer," Spike teased too Buffy. Buffy rolled her eyes and blushed at the same time. She couldn't get Spike to stop laughing at her for last night.

"Well, I gotta friend that just *has* to get laid. Will one of you ladies like to help him?" Spike asked, waving a hand full of hundreds in their faces. Buffy snatched it before Faith could.

"Whose your friend?" Buffy asked as Faith pouted.

"Just an old friend looking for a good time." Spike shurgged.

"Sounds like fun." Buffy muttered, before running her fingers through her hair and checking her makeup in her small carry-around mirror. Once she was sure her appearance was perfect she turned to Spike.

"Lead the way."  Buffy muttered, feeling less enthusiastic then she sounded.

Part 2

Spike ended up leading Buffy back to his loft. Buffy herself lived in a simply nice small apartment, it wasn't no Hollywood Mansion but she would survive for a little while longer.

"'Ey Spike, who is this beauty?" A Irish accent came from the kitchen. A short man stepped out, he had dark hair with nice eyes. A bottle of whiskey in one hand and then a beer in the other. Buffy decided on cute, she had been with worse.

"Doyle, this is Buffy." Spike introduced.

"Pleasures all mine." Doyle smiled at her. Buffy quickly slipped into the hooker routine.

"It will be soon." She gave him a flashing smile. Doyle chuckled and looked at Spike.

"I like her, a bit on the strong side but fine nonetheless." Doyle smiled at her again before taking a swig of whiskey.

Buffy reached up and slowly started unbuttoning her shirt, giving Doyle a suggestive wiggle. Doyle's whiskey shot from his mouth and he looked like a water fountain gone haywire.

"Hey! None of that, pet." Spike grabbed Buffy's hand before she could completely take off her shirt.

"What? But I thought..." Buffy frowned. She knew she shouldn't have worn these jeans. They were always bad luck.

"He isn't *that* friend." Spike looked at her, a smug grin. Buffy pulled her shirt closed, not bothering with the buttons. Doyle was left staring at her, his mouth open slightly and his eyes wide.

"Damnit, Spike. You did that on purpose." Buffy glared at her annoying friend.

"Yeah, I'm a bad man. You should punish me later." Spike chuckled.

"Show me where your friend is before I kick your ass." Buffy threatened, rubbing her knuckles for emphasis.

"Come on, this way." Spike straightened up, ushering her to the closet. Doyle was left staring at her. Buffy looked at the closet door, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not going to believe that your friend is in the closet." Buffy crossed her arms over her chest. She was wasting her night. Well, she had done it in weirder places then a closet but she had a feeling this wasn't going to turn out good.

"He is shy." Spike grinned.

"Spike? You better let me out of here before I kick you ass!" A booming voice threatened from inside the locked closet. Buffy gave Spike a pointed look.

"What?" Spike asked innocently.

"If I go in there and touch, god only knows who you are holding prisoner, I will probably be charged for rape." Buffy muttered, only half joking.

"You can get out of it, you're a lawyer." Spike joked before quickly opening the closet door and pushing Buffy inside. Buffy's eyes tried to adjust to the complete darkness. She reached for a light switch, groping the wall for the familiar feel.

"Spike? Is that you?" The tone of the man's voice bordering on murder. Buffy closed her eyes and took a deep breath, tuning herself back into hooker mode.

"No, baby." She used her best sexy voice, reaching for the large body she knew was in front of her. She couldn't see a damn thing and wouldn't be surprised if she fell over something and embarrassed herself even more. Once she had a good hold on whoever was in the closet with her, she pushed him forward until he hit the back of the closet. Buffy pressed herself against him, quickly finding his lips with her own.

The bittersweet kiss lasted only a couple of seconds before the man pushed her away.

"Wait, wait, who the hell are you?" He asked, his voice softer this time. Buffy didn't answer but pressed against him again, her lips burning for another kiss. She felt addicted, it was scaring her. She never felt this way before, this attached. It was a dangerous high but she couldn't get enough.

"Does it matter?" She whispered again seductively. It was still complete darkness and she wished she had a lightbulb handy to see who the hell this guy was.

"Actually, it do-" His answer ended in a groan as her hand wandered lower, tracing his arousal through his pants. His arms gripped her shoulders holding her in place as she continued to stroke him. The blonde felt the man bury his face in her neck, taking a deep breath. His hand snaked around her, pushing her shirt from her shoulders.

"Wait!" He muttered startled before pushing her away. Buffy's annoyance was knocked up a scale.

"Okay, do you want this or not?" She snapped, putting her hands on her hips. She felt foolish since she realized he couldn't see her anyway.

"We...I can't do this." He muttered.

"It *felt* like you could do anything." Buffy grinned despite herself.

"Just let me find the light." He asked after an embarrassed pause. They both blindly groped the walls of the unusually large closet.

"Got it." Buffy said before flipping the switch. The bright light blinded her for a second before her eyes could focus.

"Oh my god..." The man trailed and she turned to look at him.

Buffy shrieked. "Angel!?" Her hand flew to her mouth in embarrassment and shame.

"Buffy...what are you...are you a prostitute?" Angel looked shocked, his eyes wide as he openly stared at her beauty...and her black lacy bra. Buffy seemed to realize her shirt was at his feet the same time that he did. She quickly grabbed Spike's coat that was hanging on the rack next to her head.

"Maybe." Buffy squeaked, feeling ashamed. She bowed her head, mentally cursing Spike.

"Spike got me a prostitute that was over at his house the night before. Spike is having an affair?" Angel seemed to be stuttering to himself by now. "I thought you were a lawyer!"

"Lawyers, prostitute, same thing." Buffy winced. "Look, Angel, I'm really sorry, Spike didn't tell me that it was you. Me and him are just friends. Don't tell his wife." Buffy couldn't help but cover for Spike.

"Right. This...uh...never happened." Angel agreed. Then why did he still want to kiss her? He hadn't even realized he started advancing on her until she was pressed against the wall and he was hovering over her. His hands fluttered down to her small hips and he inhaled her expensive perfume. His nails dug into her tight jeans.

"I...um..." Buffy trailed off as Angel's lips neared hers. She closed her eyes, the feeling of almost being complete made her toes curl in her boots.

"Do you think they are doing it now?" A loud Irish voice called from outside. It was obvious that Doyle and Spike was trying to hear what was going on from the other side of the door. It seemed to break up the romantic mood. Angel quickly stepped back from her and Buffy looked downwards.

"We should really get out of here, it is affecting our minds." Buffy reasoned. Angel nodded vigorously, unconsciously licking his lips as he stared at her. Buffy felt frozen under his gaze so she quickly turned around.

"Spike, let me out." Buffy called through the door.

"No way. Just fuck him already!" Spike yelled back. Angel winced, this night seemed to be a one big embarrassment on his behalf.

Buffy rolled her eyes. "I forgot my props."

"Props?" She heard Doyle squeak. Spike opened the door a tiny bit and Angel took the advantage to slam him palm against it, hitting both Spike and Doyle in the face.

The two accented men laid on the floor when Buffy and Angel stepped out.

"Well, as much fun as it has been, I have to go." Buffy shifted uncomfortably under Angel's intense gaze.

"No." Angel said softly. "I mean...you can stay awhile. We aren't do anything. It will be fun." Angel gestured to the empty apartment. Buffy smiled slightly, staying and just having fun with guys without having to give them a blow job was something she missed.

"You mean an orgy?" Doyle looked shocked, his voice sounding squeaky and high. Angel shot him a look.

"Uh, no can do. Dru is coming back tonight, I don't think she would like you in the house and hey, is that my jacket?" Spike frowned.

"Yeah, this is your payment for locking me in the closet and making me flash Doyle." Buffy muttered, retrieving her shirt from the closet floor.

"You flashed Doyle?" Angel frowned, trying to control the feeling of jealousy.

"I have never seen such a sight." Doyle held his hand to his heart in fake drama. Buffy smiled softly.

"I guess I'll go then. I'll see you at the Willow's, Spike." Buffy forced a smile from the pain of leaving Angel.

"Nice meeting you Doyle."

"Hey, I'll tell you what. Any time you want to flash me, just go ahead and do it, its just fine with me." Doyle joked. Buffy bit her cheek to stop from smiling.

"Bye Angel." She turned to tall, dark, and handsome. He smiled at her but said nothing more.

With that, she turned and walked out of the apartment, smiling as she left. Okay, it might have ended with no bang, literally, but Buffy could say that groping Angel in the dark was definitely cause for celebration.

Part 3

Buffy placed all of the money that she had made last night on the counter of her kitchen. It was only about five hundred, she was off her game. Of course it had nothing to do with Angel and feeling of her lips against his and the feel of his erection against her hip.

Nope, it has nothing to do with him at all.

Well, only one thing to do with the money that she had.

Shopping.

A couple cups of coffee, a shower, and a cab ride later, Buffy ended up at the shopping central of LA. She glanced inside Tiffany's for a moment before counting her cash again. She would have to save a lot more money than that if she wanted her imported diamond necklace. Maybe she should just get Spike to buy it for her, he was wiping his ass with excess money.

She proceeded on her journey and a couple of hours later she decided on a plain black peasant top. Nothing really flashy and expensive.

"Oh, excuse me." Buffy turned to see Faith bump into the disheveled man next to her. Faith apologized with a sweet smile, holding her arms behind her back as the man quickly muttered a sorry as well and continued on his way. Faith grinned at Buffy before holding out the man's wallet she had pick-pocketed.

The sneaky brunette flipped it open and glanced at the license. "Mr. Ethan Rayne, thanks for the cash." Faith pulled out the credit card and the money before dropping the wallet on the floor. The brunette looked to her blonde friend for approval.

"I can't wait until you accidentally steal from a cop. Besides, you don't know who that guy is. It could be dirty money." Buffy shook her head.

"Twinkie, everything we get is dirty money. Might as well get some more while I am at it." Faith shrugged and stuffed the money in her pocket.

"You've been acting strange lately. It is as if you have seen the light or something like that. If I didn't know any better, I would say you want out." Faith raised a perfect eyebrow at the blonde.

Buffy shrugged, the thought had crossed her mind more than once.

"So, maybe I do." The blonde continued walking, heading towards the food court.

"No way, blondie. As long as I am in this business, you have to stay with me. Besides, why would you want to leave? You get more money in a night then some people make all month and plus you get a free fuck out of it." Faith grinned and sat down next to Buffy at the food court.

Faith frowned when a disturbing thought struck her. "You didn't meet someone, did you?"

"What? No." Buffy denied quickly. Too quickly.

"Buffy, no boyfriends." Faith said strictly.

"I know but...there is this one guy and when I think of him, I want out. I feel...ashamed thinking that he knows I am out here selling myself." Buffy confessed, staring down at her hands as she twisted them in her lap.

"Holy shit, this is serious. This is what you have to do, cut off all contact from whoever this is. It is just a crush, you'll get over it. I promise." Faith stared intently at the blonde. She need Buffy in this with her, she would go crazy if she did this alone.

"You're right. I'm probably just overreacting, I mean what are the chances that I will see him again and....holy god." Buffy trailed off as she spotted Cordelia across the court, Angel and Doyle following closely behind. The two men seemed to be falling over from the amount of bags that they were carrying.

Buffy's heart dropped, Angel and Cordelia were now for sure seeing each other. No man holds a woman's shopping bags unless that have a serious relationship.

Buffy gasped in shock as Angel's gaze settled directly on her. She felt herself blush.

"Faith, we need to go now." Buffy muttered quickly. Too late. The three were already coming over here.

"What...why?" Faith asked. Buffy looked around desperately for a place to hide. She couldn't face Angel and Cordelia together as a couple. Remember, cut off all contact. Buffy quickly dove under the table.

"Buffy!" Faith hissed at her. Buffy slowly started crawling away from the table, hiding under someone else's.

"Hey." Doyle looked at the sexy brunette at the table, while Cordelia invited herself to the seat across from Faith.

"Uh, hey. Do I know you?" Faith asked confused.

"No, we know you're friend. I could have sworn I saw her here." Doyle looked around bewildered.

"Uh, where is Angel?" Cordelia looked around, feeling uncomfortable with the leather clad brunette.

Buffy listened to their conversation, hiding under a table a couple feet away and sighed with relief. That was too close for comfort.

"Hey. Did you drop something?"

Buffy shrieked in surprise as she spun to find Angel on all fours behind her. Her movement was so fast she bumped her head on the table's surface. Angel winced and chuckled.

"That had to hurt." Angel smiled brightly at her and Buffy found herself out of breath.

No! Bad Buffy, she cursed herself.

"What are you doing?" She glared at the handsome, completely lickable man.

"I saw you crawling around on the floor and you looked like you were having so much fun that I decided to join you." Angel smug smile made her want to kiss him more than ever. Ugh, she was never going to get out of this alive.

"I dropped my uh...," Buffy grabbed the near object on the floor. " ...french fry."

"You must really love that fry." Angel joked.

"What can I say? I'm a junkie." Buffy tried to cover up this horribly embarrassing situation.

"Can we get up now? My back is starting to hurt, I think I'm too tall for this table. We will have to find a taller one to hide under next time." Angel backed out from under the table and got up. Buffy said a silent prayer to herself and grasped Angel's offered hand. The familiar electricity made Buffy step closer to Angel, invading his personal space. Angel breathed her now familiar scent in with a sigh of pleasure.

"Ah, there they are. Thought we lost ya." Doyle beckoned the couple and Buffy quickly pushed him away.

"Uh, I can't. I just realized, I'm really busy today. Maybe some other time." Buffy called to Doyle, motioning for Faith to follow her.

Faith gladly obliged, two seconds with Cordelia was more than enough for her.

"No, stay." Angel asked, his voice soft and pleading. Buffy looked into his puppy eyes and felt will leaving her.

"Busy." Buffy managed to mutter, her gaze never leaving his.

"Then maybe tomorrow. We are all going over to Spike's again. I want you to be there." Angel asked, feeling and sounding desperate but he couldn't help it. He needed to see her, he wanted her with him instead of selling her body to filthy men. Maybe he could save her one night from that hell.

"I don't think your girlfriend would like it very much." Buffy gestured to Cordy who was shooting her death glares.

"Oh, don't mind her. We're not really dating...well we might but...it's complicated." Angel tried to explain his relationship with Cordelia. "Just come, it will be fun. Just no more flashing Doyle."

"I'll see." Buffy decided. It was good enough for Angel.

"I'll wait up." He smiled.

"Nice no contact, B." Faith muttered from behind her. Buffy flashed Angel a hurried smile before Faith grabbed her arm and dragged her away.

*****  "I invited Buffy, if that's okay." Angel said to Spike as he grabbed a bag of chips, pouring it in a large bowl. Spike stopped his movements.

"You did what?" The bleach blonde demanded.

"Buffy. I invited her." Angel looked towards Spike, confused. "Why?"

Spike threw his hands in the air. "Angel, don't tell me you invited a hooker that you can't afford to pay. I'm not loaning you money."

"No one is paying her. I invited her just to have fun, not in the sexual way." Angel placed the bowl of chips on the counter.

"I don't get it." Spike said confused.

"I invited her as a friend." Angel snapped, getting annoyed. What was so hard to understand about it?

"Look, Buffy and I are close, real close, but you don't get involved with someone like that." Spike explained.

"Why not, they are people too." Angel glared at Spike. Spike gazed closely, examining him closely.

"You are falling for her!" He exclaimed suddenly. Angel looked shocked and tried to deny it.

"No, no way." He muttered, looking down. "Let's move on."

"No, you are falling for a call girl. I mean, Buffy is great but you can't fall in love with someone like that." Spike shook his head and chuckled.

"I can't help it, everytime I see her...it is like....I can't explain." Angel tried to express his feelings but found no words.

"Like you wanna fuck her senseless?" Spike quipped.

"No! Well, yeah, but something else too." Angel frowned.

"You just should stop yourself right now, this is only gonna end bad." Spike muttered before turning on the television.

Angel sighed, happy that Spike dropped the subject for now. He knew he was right but every second Buffy didn't show up, the more jealous he got. He couldn't stand someone else touching her and it enraged him to know that Spike had, probably more than once.

"Forget about her, peaches. It happens to everyman who see's Buffy for the first time. I was obsessed with the bint myself." Spike looked at the pathetic look on his brother's face.

"Yeah, I guess you're-" He was cut off as the doorbell rang and Angel practically sprinted to the door, tripping over himself in the process.

Spike shook his head. This should be a interesting night.

********

*******

*

When Angel answered the door, the well prepared speech he had practiced was quickly forgotten when he saw the sight before him.

"Doyle!" Angel snapped, his disappointment palpable and his good mannered stance shrunk.

"What?" Doyle looked confused. "What did I do?"

"Nothing, you mick. Peaches is just waiting for his beloved hooker." Spike chuckled, switching channels on the television.

"Ah, Buffy is coming? Finally, some real entertainment." Doyle patted Angel on the shoulder with a smug smile.

"Why do I put up with you two? I should have just stayed home for a peaceful quiet night." Angel rolled his eyes towards the heavens and closed the door when Doyle stepped inside.

"It won't be quiet if you have the big mouth living with you. Why did you bring Cordelia again?" Spike chuckled. Doyle flopped down next to him, stealing the remote.

"Cordy is...Cordy. I don't know how I feel about her." Angel ran a hand through his thick hair with a sigh.

"Well, if you could have Cordy or Buffy which would you screw?" Doyle asked.

"That's a tough one. Cordelia does have amazing legs, all I have to do is tape her mouth shut, but then Buffy can fuck like a..." Spike stopped seeing the enraged look on his older brother's face. He coughed into his hand.

"I mean...Drusilla, of course." The bleach blonde covered up horribly.

"Where is Dru, anyway?" Angel asked, glad to have the subject off him or his feelings for Buffy for that matter.

"I don't care, that girls give me the creeps. I feel like she wants to slit my throat or turn me into a toad." Doyle shuddered thinking about the creepy brunette.

"Leave my Dru alone. I think she is at her friend's house or something." Spike dismissed his wife with a wave of his hand and took a long sip of his beer. Angel still had a hard time believing that Spike had constantly been cheating on his wife, with prostitutes no less. Spike and Drusilla always seem to be a lovely couple whenever he saw them together. Angel, though, had a sneaky suspicion that Drusilla was probably not staying faithful either.

By the time the three were done talking and making fun of each other it was midnight and no sign of Buffy. Angel's jealous eyes ticked to the clock every couple of minutes and it seemed the hour were dragging by. When he blinked, he could see Buffy and some random guy in a passionate embrace as he shoved her money on the back of his eyelids.

"Wow, this looks like some party." A voice from the front door chuckled. Angel spun to happily see Buffy in the doorway. Her hair was a bit tousled and her clothes were uneven and it made his smile dissolved. She was with a man before she came here. The thought made Angel angrily turn around on the couch, facing away from her.

The small blonde closed the door behind her and nervously tucked a stray strand behind her ear.

"Hey, pet." Spike motioned to a vacant seat next to Angel. Buffy gladly took it. She had quickly stopped at her apartment after two clients before coming here. She had to wash the horrible taste of giving them a blow job out of her mouth with ten minutes of vigorous teeth brushing and mouth wash. She was positive that her teeth were so white and clean that they would glow in the dark.

"So what did I miss?" Buffy asked, she could feel Angel moving over on the couch, away from her. She looked down to quickly hide the hurt she felt at the simple movement.

"Nothing, we were just talking about guy stuff." Doyle filled in, trying to make the blonde more comfortable.

"It's pretty late, I thought you weren't going to show." Angel said, trying to hold back the jealousy he felt.

"I was busy." Buffy shrugged, desperately trying to change the subject quickly. She so did not want to talk about what she did with Angel.

"With what?" Angel prodded. Maybe she just fell asleep, that's why her hair is messy, Angel tried to reason.

"More like with whom." Spike chuckled. Buffy glared at him, before grabbing a pillow near her and throwing it at him and hit the British man right in the face. Buffy smirked in satisfaction.

"So, Doyle, I don't know you that well. Tell me about yourself." Buffy changed the subject to Doyle who was her most vulnerable victim.

"Well, I'm from Ireland." Doyle supplied. Buffy chuckled.

"Really? I would have never guessed. What do you do?"

"I work at a private investigations place, it pays the rent." Doyle answered.

"What about you, Angel?" Buffy tried not to seem so eager to know more about the mystery sitting next to her.

Angel shrugged, feeling more comfortable and eased closer to the blonde next to him. He could push away the ridiculous feelings of jealousy about a girl he didn't even know.

"I'm...unemployed. I make a few bucks drawing, which is a talent I have." He didn't mention the dozens of drawings of her that were scattered around his closet sized apartment. Cordelia didn't notice them since she was spending numerous nights at her friend's who had a connection that could give Cordy an acting career.

Buffy's brow furrowed. He was broke? She felt mind telling her to quickly get the hell out of this obsession if he had no money but her heart didn't care.

"I thought you had your own business, like Spike." Buffy said, it seems ironic that Spike had all the money and Angel had none, that she still fell for Angel instead.

Angel shook his head, looking down at his hands. He could practically hear the disappointment in her voice. Why would someone high class like her want someone who was barely making ends meat?

"You think this is Spike's money?" Doyle chuckled. "He just mooches off Drusilla, shes the brain of this operation."

"I hope you know that I make more than half of the profit." Spike yelled in his defense.

"Doing what? I have never seen you go to work once." Angel chuckled, quickly noting that Buffy's shoulder was touching his. He seem to unconsciously move closer to her every passing second. Doyle passed the two on the love seat beers, laughing as he did.

An hour later, there was beer bottles scattered across the floor, mostly from Spike and Doyle trying to out drink each other and Buffy was leaning into Angel with his arm around her shoulder.

Buffy sighed at the feeling, the drinks that she had and the feeling of comfort making her eyes droop slightly. Angel leaned his cheek against her head, basking in the feeling.

"Tired?" He muttered as she yawned. Buffy nodded before boldly crawling on to his lap, curling next to him, burying her face in the crook of his neck happily. Angel was at lost on what to do, his heart racing with the closeness. His strong arms seem to wrap around her on their own accord. He took note to remember how perfectly her small body fit next to his.

"Holy shit..." Spike muttered looking at the couple, oblivious to everything. Spike, in all his time knowing Buffy, has never seen her close her eyes when she was near a man but she seemed to be sleeping in Angel's arms. It was like the first rule of the Hooker Handbook, never stay and cuddle after sex or sleep in their arms.

A repeated knocking on the door made Spike's blood freeze in his veins.

"SHIT!" He yelled, making Buffy jump, her eyes snap open and the moment ruined.

"Spike? My sweet? Why is the door locked?" A soft British voice wafted from the front door.

"It's Dru!" Spike hissed, grabbing Buffy by the arm, dragging her away from Angel. Angel let out a small cry of protest.

Buffy seemed to be in a panic. She remembered the time that Dru caught Spike and her in a very compromising position. Dru had flipped and tried to kill her, it wasn't a pretty sight.

"Shit, what do I do?" Buffy asked, slipping on her shoes and grabbing her coat, quickly.

"One moment, my duck!" Spike called to Dru from the other side of the door.

"Doyle, get rid of those beer cans!" Spike ordered and chaos ensued. Doyle was falling all over the floor trying to get rid of the twenty beers. Angel looked nervous, not wanting for Drusilla to throw one of those infamous fits.

"How does she knew Buffy?" Angel asked while Spike and said hooker were running around frantically.

"She caught us once." Spike hissed and pushed Buffy towards the window.

"There, go out the damn window. Quick!" Spike ushered.

Buffy stopped and gave Spike a deadly glare. "We are on the fortieth floor, you jackass!"

"Closet!" Angel ushered her into the room where they had their first kiss.

"Oh God." Buffy whimpered as she hid in the closet. She knew this wasn't going to end good.

Doyle was panting by the time Spike opened the door for his wife. The floor was clean of beer bottles.

"Hello, luv." Spike greeted his wife with a kiss on the lips. Drusilla looked around suspiciously.

"What's going on here?" Her soft voice questioned as she took off her coat and headed towards the closet.

"Drusilla!" Angel called loudly and the brunette spun, startled.

"Angel, my sweet!" They embraced, the last time Angel saw her was over five years when Spike first got married to her.

"Here, let me take your coat." Angel took her coat and Spike ushered her to the bedroom, promising a glass of tea and a foot massage.

Angel quickly grabbed Buffy from the closet and ushered her out the front door.

"I had fun." Buffy whispered hurriedly, looking past Angel for any sign of the bad tempered brunette.

"I'm glad." Angel smiled, forgetting about the upending danger of Drusilla.

"I wanna do this again, with you." Buffy added again, licking her suddenly dry lips. Angel's smile reached his ears.

"There is this blues club that my friend owns, I can meet your there tomorrow. Spike knows where it is." Buffy explained quickly.

"I'll be there." Angel promised.

Buffy smiled and quickly fled from the scene.

*******

*

Buffy pushed a guy who got too close away as she danced wildly on the dance floor. Angel was already 15 minutes late and she had begun to think he stood her up. Of course he would. He had Cordelia, a beautiful model-material woman, why would he want some whore on the streets? Anger fueled her at the thought.

Who the hell did he think he was? She was best God damn prostitute in the whole state of California. Buffy literally had guys lining up to dance with her. They men seemed to get impatient when they realized she wasn't taking any clients yet and crowded around her, smothering her with their bodies. It looked like they were having a damn orgy on the dance floor.

"Oh boy." Willow muttered, when did her bar turn into a porn film?

Angel nervously licked his lips, he didn't actually know why his palms were sweating and his hands were shaking. He was just going to see a friend. A friend that is a prostitute. A friend that is a prostitute that he got felt up by. Not that he minded, of course. Cordelia was out at some big dinner, she says that she will be a next Julia Roberts if she talked to this big shot millionaire. Yeah, right.

The nervous man looked at the small cramped building in front of him. He could hear the pounding jazz music shake the ground. Angel took a deep breath before paying the entree fee and walking inside. His nose was assaulted by the musk of perfume, sweat, alcohol. The lights were dim and there seem to be an orange glow around the whole club. A large bar, tables, a stage, and what seemed like thousands of people were all cramped in the tiny space.

Angel stumbled over to the bar, Spike said that it where Buffy was all of the time. He threw in a quip about how he and the blonde had sex on one of the barstools. It seemed to be his brother's new hobby to make fun of him and his lov- ... friend, Buffy.

He found a small redhead at the bar who was working like a machine. She must of have twenty people at the bar and she never looked away from the bottles that were flying threw her hands as she prepared drinks Angel have never even heard of.

"Uh, excuse me." Angel raised his hand trying to get the talented bartender's attention.

Willow looked up and tossed him a beer. "That should tie you over." The redhead smirked before taking a woman's order.

"Thanks, but I'm actually looking for a short blonde girl. She told me to meet her here." Angel yelled over the loud music and people yelling for drinks.

"What's her name?" Willow asked, never looking up but she had a suspicion that he was looking for Buffy. All men asking for a short blonde meant Buffy.

"Buffy, Buffy Summers. Do you know her?" Angel asked, taking a sip of his drink.

Willow chuckled and stopped her pouring for a brief second before pointing to the crowded mass of bodies on the dance floor.

Angel turned to see almost every man in the club on the dance floor all crowded around one girl. Angel's heart dropped along with his jaw as Buffy was grinding with what seemed like everyone on the floor.

"It might be a while until she comes out of that mess. She brings half of my business here." Willow laughed at the shocked look on the handsome man's face. Angel turned away from the heated dance to stare down at his drink. He watched Buffy's face as she laughed but pushed another man away. She seemed to be having fun....or multiple orgasms. Angel had never seen so many men around one girl but he couldn't blame them.

"Well?" Willow asked as Angel gave her a tip.

"Well what?" Angel asked confused as he put his coat back on.

"Aren't you going to join every other man?" Willow raised an eyebrow. Angel shook his head and turned to leave but the redhead reached over and grabbed him by the lapels of his jacket, pushing him back towards the bar. Angel's eyes widen at the strength in one little woman.

"You aren't going to get anywhere with her if you just sit back and let every other man take advantage." The redhead glared at him. Angel stared at for a second, scared to move. He had a feeling that one wrong move and the petite woman would beat the shit out of him.

"Look at those men and look at me. By their clothes alone, those men look like millionaires. One of them probably owns the damn Playboy mansion. I don't even remember the last time I had money for clothes shopping." Angel hissed, feeling more comfortable with the freakishly strong redhead.

Willow looked him up and down before smiling slightly. "I believe it."

A sweaty blonde leaned heavily against the bar, letting at least ten hundred dollar bills on the surface.

"Damn, Willow! Look at this money that I got-" Buffy trailed off as she turned to see Angel staring at her.

Oh God.

"Did I say got? I meant, found on the floor!" Buffy finished horribly. "I was hoping that you could return all this money to whoever dropped this if they come and asks about it." Buffy quickly pushed the money towards Willow. She felt herself blushing despite herself. Some guy paid her two hundred for a heated dance and it caught on quick.

"Angel!" Buffy turned to face him fully.

"Wow, that's a lot of money to drop on the floor." He frowned despite himself. He hated how jealous he got whenever he thought of her line of work.

"You know people nowadays, they carry their life savings with them for a trip to the grocery store." Buffy covered up, wincing inwardly. She couldn't stop making herself look like an idiot for one moment when she was around him.

"I didn't think you would show." Buffy said, quickly changing the subject.

"Traffic." Angel lied. The truth was that he was simply standing outside the club, fighting an inner struggle of stay or flee.

"Oh." Buffy nodded before grabbing his beer out of his hands, gulping it down. She couldn't even begin to believe how horrible she looked. She had been dancing nonstop and she felt like she was on fire. The crowded mass of hot bodies didn't make her any less dehydrated.

"Thirsty?" Angel chuckled, asking Willow for another drink. Buffy smiled her thanks before greedily snatching the drink Angel offered.

"This man here was about to go ask you for a dance before you came here." Willow hinted to Angel while she smiled cheerfully at Buffy.

Buffy smiled as Angel turned from possessive to shy in under a second. He looked down at his feet.

"You must be tired, you've been dancing a while." Angel looked anywhere but her. He had seen how she had danced with those other men, it looked like they were having sex on the dance floor. He didn't want to come off as another one of those guys looking for a whore to play around with.

"Well, there is no rest for the wicked." Buffy grinned before grabbing Angel's hand and pulling him to the dance floor. She pulled herself flush up against him, her hands wandering to his perfect ass. If he wanted to dance with her, then he probably wanted to grind. Buffy couldn't help but feel disappointed, she only wanted to be wrapped snug into his arms like the night before.

"I don't dance." Angel shouted, stepping away from Buffy when she pressed herself tightly against him. He wanted nothing more than to drag her away from here and back to his small apartment and fuck her senseless. It was going to happen if she kept touching him like that.

"But I thought you wanted this." Buffy suggestivly whispered, her hands roaming downwards. Angel gasped when he felt her grasp him through his pants.

"Hands!" Angel yelled, once again stepping away, feeling a little foolish. Compared to her, he felt prude but he couldn't help it. He could taste the fakeness through it all, she didn't really want to do this.

Buffy frowned and threw her hands in the air. "I don't get you."

"I don't want that...I just...I want this." Angel started out loudly, angry at her for trying to treat him like one of her mindless clients. The rest of the sentense ended in a whisper when Angel wrapped his arms around her small waist, holding her at a respectable distant, trying not to make her feel uncomfortable.

Buffy frowned at the new feeling. "I've never danced like this."

Angel smiled softly. "Just put your arms around my neck."

Buffy did as she was told and smiled at the comfortable position as she swayed softly with him. This kind of slow dancing was foreign to her but she instantly fell in love with it. They were was no sweating, grinding, or some guy trying to feel her up it was just simply Angel. A nice comfort zone.

"Could lean my head on your shoulder?" Buffy asked as the distance between them was closed. Was that allowed? Angel nodded, finding no words. He couldn't believe she had never slow danced before but he felt some manly pride knowing he was the first to teach her.

Buffy sighed happily, burying her face in the familiar crook of his neck. She loved that spot, it was made only for her.

"I like this dancing." She stated happily as she felt Angel lean his cheek on her head.

"Me too but only with you." Angel sighed against her hair.

Buffy's smile grew against the smooth column of his neck. When the slow song was over and a fast song started, the couple still did not part, lost in their happiness. The men that were waiting to start another dancing orgy with Buffy become envious and impatient when she kept slow dancing with only one guy. They were all thinking one thing. That man must have a paid a shit load of money to get to dance that long with Buffy.

Angel tipped her chin with his finger staring at her directly in the eyes. He bent forward so their foreheads touched.

"Why do you do it?" He asked softly, one hand absently stroking her cheek while the other gripped her hip. Buffy knew what he was talking about. He wanted to know why she did the things that she did.

"I need the money." Buffy cast her eyes downwards.

"You make so much, can't you just store it all away or find a job. A real job." Angel practically pleaded.

"I dropped out of high school and never went to college. What kind of job can I get? This is the only thing I got and it is real to me." Buffy snapped bitterly, taking offense.

"I didn't mean it like that." Angel tried to amend, Buffy's features soften.

"I've thought about stopping but my career will haunt me where ever I go. Besides, I make money and that's the only thing that matters." Buffy reasoned.

"Money isn't the only thing. Don't you understand how dangerous this is? You could get sick or get killed." Angel argued.

"I'm good at what I do and I would rather do it then be homeless on the street somewhere. You're not my mother, Angel, don't baby me." Buffy glared.

"I'm not trying to baby you, Buffy. I'm just saying that if you want to quit or if you don't ever have money, you could always come to me. I could help you get a job or give you a room or something." The couple never stopped swaying in their movement but their foreheads were no longer touching, they simply glared at each other.

"How can you give me a job when you don't even have your own?" Buffy bit out before she could stop herself. Angel's arms quickly fell from around her waist as he stepped back. The subject of him being poor and unemployed hitting a close to home.

Buffy closed her eyes, cursing herself as she felt Angel withdraw from her. "I'm sorry, that was unfair."

Angel looked down at his shoes.

"What you do is your choice. I was being stupid in thinking that I, some poor wannabe artist, could change your mind with a few words and a dance." Angel turned away from her, grabbing his coat back at the bar. Willow looked like she was about to object, witnessing the entire scene from her bar but Angel shot her a look.

"Angel, wait!" Buffy called to him but he already left.

She wrapped her arms around herself, feeling cold for the first time that night.

*******

*

Angel stormed into his small cramped apartment, he moved to take his jacket off but only ended banging his elbow on the wall. He frowned at the ridiculous size of the place that he called home, he seemed to tower over the place, the tips of his hair hitting the ceiling. Angel tried one more time but only ended up tripping on Cordelia's shoes and slamming his head against the wall. He could barely move in the confined space.

The artist frowned and decided to leave the jacket on while he slipped off his shoes with no minor accidents. He walked into the kitchen, witch was made up of a couple cabinets and a small cafe table fit for two people, a loveseat and a couple of framed pictures drawn by Angel made up the living room. Drawings of various things were all over the floor, on the tables.

Angel loved to draw, he felt the need to capture everything he saw in his memory and draw it with the beauty he knew it possessed. Angel looked in the empty fridge, feeling his stomach growl. The beer he had at Willow's would probably not be held down if he didn't get anything to eat.

Angel looked through the cabinets, in search for a bag of chips he bought a couple days before. Everything was empty. Angel reached his hand in the wooden cabinet, quickly retracting when his fingers met something alive and rough.

"What the-" Angel started and shuddered when he saw a cockroach fall from the place his hand just occupied. Angel fought the urge to scream and turned towards the bedroom. He would stop by Spike's tomorrow morning for some breakfast.

All he wanted to do now was curl under the covers and desperately try to forget Buffy and her beautiful face.

"Angel? Is that you? Where did you go?" Cordelia's voice called from the bedroom.

Fat chance of anything he wanted happening now that she was home.

"Yeah. Thought you went to that big dinner." Angel grumbled when he saw Cordelia finish eating the rest of his chips on the bed. His stomach gave another growl of protest.

"I did." Cordelia smiled cheerfully and raised a business card in his face as he stripped into his boxers.

"I got this big Hollywood producer's number. He said I have major potential and the right form for an actress." Cordy beamed proudly, holding the card to her as if it was her life line.

"Great. I'm so happy for you." Angel's dry voice didn't match to his words. He sluggishly got into bed, feeling weighed down after his little dance with Buffy. Part of him was going crazy that he got to hold her close and kiss the top of her head, but the rest of the night didn't seem to go as well.

"What's wrong? You've been a big bum this whole trip. You better start looking lively if we are going to live here." Cordy warned, slipping under the covers beside Angel. She reached over and turned off the lights, sighing happily at her lucky day.

Angel frowned, staring around the small bedroom, feeling Buffy's words burn into him. The bedroom was nothing more than a bed barely big enough for the both of them, a small desk and a closet. Angel sighed, staring ahead, waiting for his vision to adjust to the dark. He would probably get up in an hour and go into the kitchen to draw. A dealer was interested in his work and that is the only money he could get, and it was fine by him.

Angel's frown deepened when he heard Cordelia start to snore. No, he wouldn't be getting much sleep tonight.

*******

Drusilla's started scream made Angel yell himself as he rolled off Spike's couch, startled from his sleep.

"What? Where's the fire? I told you that you can't cook, Dru!" Spike yelled, stumbling from his bedroom in his boxers and shirt.

"No fire. Just Angel." Dru sighed, holding a hand to her racing heart. She had come to make breakfast only to find a large frame of a man on her couch.

"Sorry." Angel muttered, he had only about a couple hours before he couldn't stand Cordelia's snoring anymore and had welcomed himself into Spike's house and on his couch. He actually had an hour of sleep before Drusilla scared the shit out him.

"Does it say, 'Motel Spike' on the front door, you ninny!" Spike shook his head, walking back into his bedroom and slammed his door, trying to get a couple more hours of sleep.

"Hey Dru." Angel sighed, running a hand through his tangled hair. His stomach ached from the lack of food.

"'Ello, my sweet." Her soft British accent made him want to fall asleep but he forced himself up. He went into the kitchen, quickly trying to usher Drusilla out of the there. She wasn't exactly a star cook, she had started more stove fires than Cordelia.

"Here, let me make breakfast, it is the least I can do." Angel quickly moved to make an omelet and toast.

"Such a dear." She smiled at him before heading to the bedroom to get ready for work. She runs Spike's company and Angel couldn't believe a mood swinger like Drusilla could every handle the pressure.

After a polite breakfast with Dru, she left and Spike finally woke up. Angel helped himself to his fourth serving, pigging out on Spike's food. Cordy seemed well fed since she went out to parties every night.

"So, how was the date?" Spike asked bluntly, flopping down in a chair next to his elder brother.

"It wasn't a date." Angel muttered through a mouth full of eggs.

"Guess it went badly. You didn't pay her then, did you? Bad service doesn't get paid." Spike said matter of factly.

"I didn't...." Angel stopped, he gave up. He couldn't seem to hammer into Spike's head that he didn't ever intend to treat Buffy like a prostitute. "Forget it."

Spike shrugged, grabbing Angel's toast. "Why the hell are you here, again?"

Angel shrugged. "I didn't feel like sleeping with the cockroach in my apartment."

"Yeah, Cordelia can be a bitch." Spike muttered.

"I mean the actual bug type cockroach." The elder frowned at the bleach blonde with a sigh.

"Sure." Spike chuckled. The phone rang loudly, interrupting their small talk. Angel reached over to answer it.

"Hello?"

Silence.

"Angel?" A small voice whispered. Angel could hear quick breathing over the other line and he seemed to freeze at the voice.

"Buffy? What are you doing calling Spike's house?" Jealousy slipping into his voice.

"I called for your number. I realized I didn't have it. I wanted to apologize. This might sound crazy and weird but I couldn't sleep last night, I felt real bad." Buffy answered truthfully. Angel could hear the hesitating in her voice. He could tell that this was hard for her. Buffy didn't seem like the type of person to be eager to apologize for wrong doings.

"I know how you feel." Angel smiled despite himself. "I'm sorry also, I was being possessive, when I have no right to be. I shouldn't have judge you."

"It's okay. A lot of people do." Buffy answered and Angel could hear the smile in her voice.

"I...uh...I didn't eat breakfast yet, do you wanna go for a cup of coffee or a biscuit or something?" Buffy asked nervously. Angel could almost picture her chewing her lower lip.

"Yeah, that sounds nice, I didn't eat either." Angel lied.

"Great. I'll meet you at the cafe at the corner of Spike's place." Buffy said.

"See you then." Angel hung up and turned to Spike with a large smile on his face. Spike had his mouth stuffed with the rest of Angel's eggs which he had stolen during the phone call.

"Have fun with Pretty Woman." He muttered, toast crumbs falling from his mouth. Angel chuckled before looking down at his attire. The same clothes he wore last night.

"Uh, I need to borrow some clothes." Angel felt his hair. "And *lots* of gel."

****** Buffy smiled as she took a seat next to Angel, pleased to find a blueberry muffin waiting for her. Angel smiled at her, anxiously waiting her approval.

"It was the muffin or some kind of bread I can't pronounce." Angel shrugged.

"Thanks." Buffy quickly taking a bite of her food.

"So what were you doing at Spike's house so early?" Buffy asked.

"I was just stopping by to say hi." Angel lied, it would sound pretty pathetic that went to his brother's to raid his kitchen. He *needed* to go grocery shopping.

"You two must be close." Buffy saw through his lie but decided not to push.

"How about you? Any brothers or sisters?" Angel asked.

"No, only child, but Faith, the girl you met at the mall, is like a sister." Buffy said.

"Right, she was..." Angel struggled to find the words. Faith was exotic but he decided on the word biker slut. A bad girl by sight.

"I know, I know. She is a bit more obvious than me." Buffy chuckled at Angel's blush at Faith's attire.

"Oh, so she works with you?" Angel asked, unsure if the subject was uncomfortable between them.

"Yeah, we watch each other's back." Buffy nodded, secretly telling Angel it was okay.

Buffy's chair was pushed forward, her muffin falling on the ground, when someone pushed walking by fell on her chair.

"Hey, watch it!" Buffy snapped, looking down at her smashed muffin, then to the man that bumped into her. He was an unfamiliar man, not entirely ugly but not her type.

"Oh, my dear lady, I'm so sorry. My name is Holland Manners and you are..." The man in a expensive business suit introduced.

"Not interested and expecting money for my ruined muffin." Buffy glared, Angel quickly at her side, glaring at the middle aged man eyeing Buffy.

"Holly, what's going on?" A woman came up next to him, pecking him on the cheek before turning to look at Buffy and Angel. Angel's eyes widened.

"Cordelia?" Angel gasped.

"Angel!" Cordy blushed, fiddling with the hem of her new shirt.

"What are you doing here and why did you just kiss that guy?And what are you wearing?" Angel wanted to know, staring at an outfit that he couldn't possible afford. Did she steal his credit card again? Buffy felt very uncomfortable. Cordelia could easy counter on what they were doing here together.

"Uh, Angel, we need to talk." Cordelia led Angel away quickly.

"Look, sweetie, this is Holland Manners, the guy that said I could be an actress. He gave me this Gucci suit and everything." Cordy said cheerfully, spinning to show off her new, what looked like, a very expensive outfit, made for a superstar.

"Yeah but what does that have to do with you kissing this guy?" Angel snapped angrily.

"Well, last night I might have told a little lie. The party I went to, was busted by the cops and I got nobody's number and while trying to get a taxi, Holland picked me up in his limo. He told me that I could be a star actress and then one thing led to another and we ended up in his mansion and..." Cordelia trailed off, implying that she had had sex with him. Angel held down a gag reflex, though he hadn't been entirely faithful, it hurt that it came down to who had the most money.

"So you slept with him to get a part in a movie?" Angel snapped. Cordy looked down.

"Sorry, Angel but if I'm going to be a big Hollywood star, I can't hang out with people like you." Cordy looked sympathetic. She never was good with tact. Angel couldn't think of anything to say, Cordelia had been his friend and a little more since he was a kid.

"I'll be sure to call though." The actress gave him a bright winning smile and walked away, back to her millionaire. Angel stared after her, a pained expression on his face.

The couple walked out of the cafe cheerfully, leaving Angel and Buffy behind.

"Angel..." Buffy started, even though Cordelia had led them away, almost everyone in the cafe could hear the break up. Angel looked startled, as if he didn't know she was there.

"Oh, it's..." Angel couldn't finish the sentence, at a total loss of words.

"Do you wanna do something some other time?" Buffy asked, he probably would want to be alone. When Angel didn't answer, she gently touched his arm and grabbed her purse to leave.

"No!" Angel panicked when he saw her leaving him as well. "Let's just go somewhere else." Angel frowned, looking at the people at the cafe, staring at him slightly.

"Are you sure?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah." Angel forced a smile.

"We can stop at my place and I can make you a drink." Buffy smiled back for his sake. Although Angel was pained, Buffy couldn't help but smile in victory as her only competition was out of the way.

*******

*

"Okay, okay, before you say anything-" Buffy started as she opened the door to her room but her sentence was quickly muffled by a pillow hitting her square in the face.

Buffy ducked another one flying at her doing thirty miles per hour.

"All right, you are mad and for good reason." The blonde under attack held her hands up in surrender, waving the white pillow case from the object thrown at her.

"Damn right, I'm mad. You are breaking all the rules in the book!" Faith yelled, wishing she had more pillows to throw.

"I know, I know. Bad Buffy." The blonde sighed, not really sorry about it. The only thing she could think of was seeing Angel again.

"You do realize you get paid for having sex with men. *Men.* Plural. Not one guy for the rest of your life, thousands of guys. No prostitute can hold a relationship, its like an unwritten law." Faith sighed, letting Buffy come in and sit on her bed.

"Alright, I know its gonna be tough but I'm sure that if we try..." Buffy said slowly, knowing Faith was not liking anything that she was saying.

"How do you even know he wants to try? How long have you even known this guy? You two were already about to get freaky if I hadn't interrupted. He is just like everyone else B." Faith tried to convince her friend. Faith was not only scared for Buffy but scared for herself. Buffy had been everything to her, if she lost her, she would be alone for the first time in her job. It would drive her insane.

"Look, Faith, I know you have gotten burned-" Faith's look of anger and pain made her quickly continue. "but Angel isn't like that. He is sweet and funny and...one *hell* of a kisser." Buffy trailed off.

"What about your work, Buffy? I mean do you really think you are gonna survive living on the street? You already told me this guy is poor, what kind of life can he give you?" Faith tried a different tactic, one that hit closer to home.

"I..." Buffy frowned, she had thought before about the money status if Angel and her were together. She certainly couldn't continue doing what she did if Angel wanted her to be with him entirely, but he couldn't make enough money on his own to support the both of them. She wouldn't be able to get a good enough job either with her nonexistent education.

"I could get a job." Buffy muttered, but her reply was more like an unsure question then an argument.

"Have fun flipping burgers." Faith snorted. "How much money do you even have in your bank right now?"

"Well, I only worked two days this week and I spent that on this new bra..." That Angel effectively tore in frustration. "Which means about....five hundred." Buffy's brow furrowed and her heart sank.

"If you could live on five hundred dollars the rest of your life then I will wrap a naked Angel in a bow and deliver him to you myself." Faith chuckled, throwing an arm around her friend.

"I really like him, Faith." Buffy whispered, looking down at her hands. She wanted nothing more than for Angel's arms to be around her, comforting her with his words.

"I know, I never said that you can't ever see him again. You can have fun with him but you are getting too attached. Fuck him then forget him." Faith urged.

"Right. Easy as cake." Buffy took a deep breath, ridding the feeling of Angel from her skin with a slight shake of her head.

"Thats my girl." Faith beamed proudly at Buffy who stood up straight, her head held high.

"Well, I have to go to work, might as well start saving." Buffy made her desicion as she searched inside her closet for something sexy to wear. A part of nagged that she promised to see Angel but with Faith standing right next to her, her pride was boosted. Work before men.

Always.

*******

Angel rushed around, tripping over various items around his cramped apartment. He quickly grabbed at all the paper covering every inch of his home. Thousands of pictures of Buffy were hid neatly in his locked desk drawer. He glanced at the clock, quickly washing the dirty dishes in the sink and throwing food from the grocery store into his cabinet and fridge.

Angel looked around the apartment and panicked. He was running around cleaning for a half an hour and it still looked like a tornado went through it. Buffy would be here any minute and this simply wouldn't do.

Another hour of cleaning made him feel better. As soon as he had gotten home he had washed the sheets in the bathtub, hanging them to dry. The now dry sheets were now on the neatly made bed. Angel rummaged through his closet, making sure Cordelia didn't take his precious maroon silk sheets. It had cost him his only pretty penny.

"There you are." Angel muttered to himself as he grabbed the hidden sheets from the closet corner, he placed them on the bed expertly. His whole body hummed with the anticipation of Buffy being here, next to him, on his bed, with him when he woke up in the morning.

The artist rummaged in the kitchen for his newly bought bottle of wine. It wasn't the greatest but it was the best he could afford. He made sure everything was ready for Buffy. Everything had to be perfect. When everything looked just the way he wanted it, or as best as it could in this hell hole, he sunk into the kitchen chair with a sigh of exhaustion.

Two hours went by as he waited in the uncomfortable chair, a frown started to settle on his face as he glanced at the clock. It was one o'clock. His heart sank and broke as he faced the realization that Buffy wasn't coming. She stood him up.

Jealousy overtook Angel as he knew that Buffy could only be doing one thing at one in the morning. Working, prostituting. Selling herself to the highest bidder. Giving away her precious body to some drunk with cash.

Angel pushed away his heartache which would only make him stay home and brood. He wanted to do something, wanted to hurt somebody. He wanted to lock Buffy away with only him for her to be with. He wanted to kill whoever she was with right now.

With a howl of anger and hurt, he threw the wine bottle with all his might. He had his coat on and was out the door before the bottle shattered in a million tragic pieces.

*******

* Buffy smiled flirtatiously at the man sitting next to her at the bar. He was a rugged looking man, staring down at the hard liquor in front of him. He looked up at her but didn't return her smile. He simply frowned with a clear uninterested look.

Buffy frowned. "Rough night."

The man looked at a couple on the dance floor. A black man and a small petite woman that Buffy was sure she could break with her pinkie, was dancing closely on the dance floor. Buffy could recognize the jealousy and the love that the man next to her could feel for the small girl on the dance floor.

"You have no idea." He frowned and turned back to the bar.

"I think I do." Buffy sighed and turned back to her drink also.

"Wesley." The man held his hand out to her and Buffy accepted, her flirty smile turned into a kind one. This man obviously wasn't interested into buying a hooker tonight, she could talk with him until the night sped up.

"Buffy." She exchanged.

"So who is the girl?" Buffy asked.

"Fred. She is very brilliant, me and her are exactly alike, but she picks him." Wesley frowned.

"That must suck." Buffy wished she could say something more intelligent to make the obviously distressed man feel better but her mouth had run away with her.

Wesley chuckled. "To sum it up, yes it does."

"I know what it is like to like someone but they are out of your reach." Buffy admitted. "But you just have to get over it, move on."

"I have...but I don't think it is a step forward." Wesley frowned and as if on cue a brunette blocked Buffy's view of the rugged man.

"Back off, twinkie. Wes here is all mine." Lilah Morgan smiled at Buffy wickedly.

Lilah was another prostitute that Buffy knew, she wasn't exactly her friend. More like someone to compete with and a class A bitch.

Buffy held her hands up. "I'm clean."

"Sure." Lilah dismissed her quickly and turned to her usual customer. "Come on, Wes. I'll put the glasses on again for you."

Wesley sighed and Buffy felt her heart go out to the man. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Buffy. I own a bookstore downtown, you should come stop by and I'll treat you to some tea." He smiled at her, placing his card into Buffy's hand. Buffy could tell that he was being legit and overall plain friendly.

"I'd like that." Buffy smiled, slipping the card into her purse. She never actually read a whole lot of books but she would like to talk to Wesley again.

With that, the couple strolled away, leaving Buffy by herself.

"What's your name, hot stuff?" A voice asked from behind her.

Or not.

Buffy rolled her eyes in disgust. Who actually said that name anymore? Buffy turned in her bar stool to find a tall brunette man, obviously from some frat club. He looked no more older than eighteen.

"Excuse me?" Buffy asked, not in the mood after a semi-depressing talk with Wesley, which made her think about Angel. Which made her think that he was sitting at his home, waiting for her arrival. She couldn't imagine how the eager Angel must have been crushed. It made her heart bleed and weep.

"You working tonight?" Parker asked, licking his lips looking at her delectable body.

"What did you just say?" Buffy turned in her chair, glaring at him. She loved pulling this trick. It made her get money without having to do anything.

"You aren't a...whore?" Parker started to turn red.

Buffy fake gasped. "How dare you!"

"I'm sorry Miss, my bad." Parker started to walk away.

"Since you have mistaking me for a prostitute you might as well pay me for my embarrassment." Buffy snapped. Parker stuttered an apology quickly pushing money into her hands.

"Really sorry about that Miss." He practically ran away. Buffy smiled pleased, counting the two hundred and slipping it into her purse.

So far, a pretty uneventful night but at least she getting a little bit of money.

"Hey." A familiar sandy haired blonde man slid next to her. He at least seemed more decent than the frat boy.

"Do I know you?" Buffy asked.

"Riley Finn. You gave me a kiss on the cheek once." He smiled good heartedly.

"Right. I hope you got more money this time." Buffy forced a smile.

"Tons, my father owns a huge farming industry in Iowa." Riley beamed proudly. Buffy couldn't help but chuckle.

"I've been watching you everytime I see you at these bars and I really like you. I want to get to know you." Riley smiled, a very friendly smile.

"Like I've never heard that one before." Buffy rolled her eyes.

"I will pay you five hundred just to sit and talk with me tonight. Have you heard that one before?" Riley asked. Buffy blinked, shocked.

"Let me get this straight, you just wanna talk with me and are willing to pay me five hundred for it?"

"Yeah and maybe a slow dance." Riley shrugged. Buffy seemed hesitant, there had to be a catch. "Oh come on, it is only a talk."

"You got it, mister." Buffy smiled, taking the money from him.

"So tell me about yourself." Riley started off the conversation. After talking for an hour, Buffy was surprised to say that Riley wasn't that bad and quite interesting.

But he was no Angel.

Angel had returned home after an angry search for the missing blonde. It was sunrise and there was no word or sight of her. She wasn't at Willow's, Spike's, or any place that he could think of.

His anger had quickly changed into worry. What if something had happened to her? What if she was lying in a street gutter? What if she was just disgusted with him and didn't even want to see shitty excuse for an apartment?

A thousand questions plagued him as he fell into a troubled sleep.

*******

The next morning Buffy, looked at the answering machine, a couple messages but Buffy deleted them all. She knew that Angel had called her and she couldn't stand to hear his heartbroken or probably pissed off voice. She couldn't think about him or she would be rushing into his arms.

Not wanting to stay at home and mope, she took a shower and was off to the bookstore that Wesley owned. After the Riley there was a couple of guys that she banged for big bucks that resulted into a good night money wise.

Everything else from that was horrible, she had to bite her lip to call out for Angel when the other men were rubbing against her, fucking her. Riley turned out to be legit and they had talked for a couple of hours. He told her that he wanted to meet her again, have lunch maybe, and would the double the price. Buffy was eager to obliged.

Though, Buffy's sore body was a constant reminder of her body's betrayal. She knew she was overreacting because guys like Angel probably had women all over them, yet she knew that Angel wasn't that kind of guy.

Buffy's feet had walked her to the bookstore as she looked down at the card to make sure she had the right address. She had a couple of hours before she was scheduled to meet Riley for lunch. The bookstore was a quaint little place complete with stacks of books and a cafe. It didn't seem to fit the rugged man she met at the bar. This was the kind of place for tweed and glasses.

As soon as she stepped into the store, she was assaulted by the pleasant smell of tea and herbs. Musky books of all kinds covered every wall of the store.

"Buffy." A kind voice smiled from the register and Buffy was pleased to see Wesley there.

"Hey. I didn't think you would remember me, you were kind of drunk." Buffy smiled as they shook hands.

"I don't forget faces like yours." Wesley complimented.

"So, Lilah...she is uh... interesting." Buffy tried to make conversation.

"Who is Lilah?" A small soft voice called and the woman's face from the dance floor appeared behind a large book.

"Fred, this Buffy. Buffy meet Fred." Wesley beamed proudly at his colleague and a fool could see that Wesley was in love. Buffy smiled at the sweet scene.

"Hey," Fred greeted politely, but sizing her up with her eyes, and the blonde could tell that Fred was just as over protective of Wesley as he was to her.

"Hey man check out these weapons!" A loud voice along with a long clatter of bangs came from the second story which was restricted to everyone but employees. Buffy peered upstairs with an amused smile.

"Gunn!" Wesley yelled, irritated.

"It was his fault!" An aching familiar voice called back and Buffy felt dread build in her stomach.

The black man from last night peered from the railing down at Wesley.

"Nah, Angel touched your sword, I was just looking at the armor. He knocked everything down like some dominos." Gunn held his hands up innocently. Buffy's fears were confirmed.

Buffy gasped, a hand flying to her racing heart. "Oh God." Wesley looked at the blonde strangely as she panicked, looking around wildly for place to hide.

"Liar!" Angel called desperately trying to straighten the rows of fallen weapons. He gave up, letting the ancient armory fall to the floor and ran to defend himself. He looked down at Wesley and Fred, shocked to see a scared Buffy looking up at him.

"Buffy!" Angel called out, his features forming into relief which was quickly replaced by anger.

"You two know each other?" Wesley asked.

"Oh God, Angel..." Buffy trailed off, quickly turning to Wesley. She couldn't face him, half because it would make it harder to stay away from him if he kept showing up everywhere. She wanted nothing more than to grab him and make love to him forever. She also couldn't face him because she wouldn't be able to handle his pain and anger. Buffy couldn't break his heart that he offered so tentatively.

"I'm sorry, I have to go." Buffy whispered breathlessly.

"No!" Angel shouted, jumping three stairs at a time before Buffy could get out of the store. He needed to talk to her, yell at her, touch her. "Buffy, stay right there."

Before Buffy could make it to the door, her arm was caught by Angel's bruising grip, spinning her around.

"Where were you? I waited...I thought... I even looked for you. You scared the shit out of me. I thought something happened..." Angel's brow furrowed in anger, his words coming out in a rush, his voice an inch of shouting.

"Angel, please..." Buffy tried to explain why they could never be but she only ended up stepping closer to him, wanting desperately to be held.

"You went out!" Angel yelled, his grip on her arm turning from bruising to caressing. "You were...selling yourself," Angel practically spat. "right after you were with me. How can you stand it? Do you even care what I feel, what you said you felt?"

"We can't, Angel." Her voice nothing more than a hushed whisper, as if she was hiding something forbidden. "I can't do this, I can't feel something for you." Her hand fluttered to land over his heart, trying to mend it with her touch.

"Why?" Angel's angry eyes turned to pleading and he was surprised to find his arms were wrapped tightly around her. He had no control over his body whenever she was near.

How did their argument turn into a needy embrace?

"Because of what I do, what I need." Buffy sighed, her every word pained when it all came down to her job and money.

"I'll take care of you, we'll get jobs." Angel caught on to her meaning. She was scared of being out on the street, of starving to death.

"It's not that easy. It would never work, you deserve so much better than me." Buffy felt her heart constricting and squeezing painfully until she was sure she was having a heart attack. Tears stung the back of her eyes at the helpless look on Angel's face.

"I don't care." Angel sighed, leaning his forehead against hers.

"It's my decision, Angel." Buffy sighed, nuzzling his cheek. "I just have to be the strong one here." It took all of Buffy's will to push away from him but it was in vain when Angel let out a whimper, bringing her back against him. Buffy sighed, allowing herself to have these last few minutes of pure heaven in his strong arms.

Wesley, Fred, and Gunn stared wide eyed at the scene, feeling as if they shouldn't be here during this sacred moment.

"Wow..." Fred, sighed, her heart swelling at the romantically tragic scene.

"Buffy?" A new character entered and everyone turned to the blonde in the doorway.

Buffy's heart sunk and she knew that she had to part from Angel, for good this time.

"Is that guy bothering you?" Riley asked, glaring openly at the man holding Buffy possessively. He had seen Buffy try go get away from this man through the store window and he deciceded he better check it out.

"Who the fuck are you?" Angel growled.

"Angel." Buffy warned, pulling away from him slightly. Angel's arms dropped to his side, hurt and anger evident in his features. Riley was obviously rich man with an expensive silk business suit and a Ferrari car parked outside. The obvious struck him hard, this was one of Buffy's clients.

No way in hell was he going to let Buffy leave with this guy.

"Buffy is fine, no one is bothering her." Angel growled at the other man. Riley looked over the man in distaste. A black sweater and sweatpants with some black loafers was the man's attire, obviously not of the higher class.

"It looks like you are." Riley challenged. Buffy could feel the jealousy rolling off both of the men in waves.

"Listen, Preppy, you just better leave this place befor I open up a can of whip ass. The lady is fine." Gunn threatened.

"Buffy?" Riley asked.

Buffy sighed, either way this wasn't going to end nicely. "I'll see you later, Riley. Thanks for your concern but I'm fine."

"You sure?" Riley asked, looking suspiciously at Angel.

"Positive. Are we still on for lunch?" Buffy asked cheerfully.

"Always." Riley smiled for her sake before leaving the store. Buffy's bright demeanor vanished and Buffy closed her eyes tightly, not wanting to see the look in Angel's eyes.

"And how much is he paying?" Angel snarled. His arms feeling empty without her.

Buffy took a shuddering breath, wondering how things got so complicated. She was living her life guilt free, rolling in money, and then *he* had to come along.

"If we are going to be together, Angel. Stuff like this has to happen." Buffy ground her teeth together, gathering her strength together. She faced Angel, this time her head held high, standing up straight.

"What?" Angel asked confused.

"I want to be with you Angel, but in order to do that I need us to be financially stable. I'll need a while...of working....in order to support us." Buffy tried to explain. It would be hard but if this was the only way she could get Angel then she would have to take it.

"So you have to sleep with other guys while I wait for you to get enough money?" Angel exploded.

"It is this or nothing!" Buffy shouted back, her resolve face on. "You could work double time on your art, apply for galleries or something."

It was Angel's turn to grind his teeth together in frustration, he raked his hands through his hair.

"I don't like it. I can't even stand the thought of someone else touching you." Angel spat.

"You think I like it?" Buffy yelled. "You think it is easy for me to sleep with someone that I barley know? Someone that isn't you...This is the only thing that I can think of. After this, we can be together with nothing stopping us." Buffy couldn't suppress the smile at the thought.

Angel sighed, turning away from her. His love for her already was stitched throughout his entire soul. There was no way he could ever handle this well. But it was the only way for them to be together. Wouldn't it all be worth it in the end if he could spend the rest of his life with her?

"Fine." Angel snapped. Buffy ran a soothing hand up and down his back, trying to relieve some of the tension.

"Everything will be fine, you'll see." Buffy promised, with a sad smile. Angel shook his head, taking her into his arms once again.

"Well, that was way better than any movie I have ever seen." Gunn whistled.

"I think that this calls for some tea." Wesley looked a bit unsure of what to do and he felt out of place.

But whatever the question, tea was always the right answer.

*******

*

The job that Buffy had found fun at one time, was becoming more and more of a burden. She wanted nothing more than to get out of this dinner with the polite Riley and return home. Return to Angel. She faked a smile as Riley poured her another glass of wine, she was sure that Riley was trying to get her drunk. Although he was paying five hundred for dinner and a dance and no sex, she found that she was hating herself more and more. The father she went with him, the more he spent.

The couldn't imagine how angry Angel must be at her.

"So, then I said, if that is a BMW than I am the Princess Elizabeth." Riley laughed at his own joke and Buffy smiled but it didn't reach her ears.

God, now she knew what Hell really was. Well, it could be worse, she could have been giving Riley a hand job under the table like most of her customers.

"You seem distracted." Riley frowned.

"It's nothing." Buffy flashed him a cheerleader smile.

"It's that man from the bookstore, isn't it?" Riley's frown grew into a scowl.

"I said it's nothing." Buffy bit her cheek to stop from screaming at him.

Number two rule of being a hooker, never reveal emotion or give any sign of your true self. It is just easier that way. But since Buffy broke rule number one, no dating, then she might as well break all the other ones as well. Faith would be having a hissy fit right now. Buffy didn't have the heart to tell her that she was quitting whenever she had enough money for her and Angel to get away.

"I knew he was bothering you when I saw you two." Riley ignored the warning in her tone.

"He wasn't bothering me." Buffy sighed, quickly downing her third cup of expensive, straight from Italy, wine.

"Oh, so he was a client?" Riley asked.

"You can say that." Buffy gave up.

"He didn't look he had enough money to afford you." Riley chuckled, giving Buffy a winning smile, his eyes showing his obvious disgust towards Angel.

Buffy glared at him. "I have to go." She sat up, angrily grabbing her coat.

"No! Don't go, I've upset you, I'm sorry." Riley stood up with her, grabbing her arm.

"Look, Riley, I need to go. You are not the only guy I have to see tonight." Buffy snapped, her liking of Riley going down a couple of notches.

"Right. So, when will I see you again?" Riley asked, disappointment evident in his features as he fingered the hundred dollar bills in his pocket.

Buffy shrugged, yanking her arm out of his grip. "I don't know. I'll probably be at Willow's bar tomorrow."

"See you then." Riley handed the bills to her secretly. Buffy quickly fled the restaurant, not looking back.

In the parking lot, she quickly ran to the pay phone, her shaky fingers dialing his number. She knew Angel would be at his apartment and would wait for her until she would stop by. Preferably with donuts. The phone rang once before an out of breath voice answered it.

"Hello?" His smooth voice was like cool balm to her aching heart.

"Hi, it's me from last night? Remember, the brunette with the amazing rack and a good lay?" Buffy imitated a high voice and she could hear a sigh of relief and chuckle from the other line.

"I thought I told you not to call here, my girlfriend might pick up." Buffy could hear Angel's smile.

"God, you don't know how good it feels to hear your voice." Buffy sighed into the phone.

"I miss you. Come home." Angel begged.

"I will, just not yet." Buffy promised, wanting to do as he pleaded but knowing she needed more money before the night was over.

Jealous silence was her answer.

"Did you go to the gallery?" Buffy asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Yeah. I sold some drawings, all of you. The owner said that I caught your soul in your perfect eyes, but I feel like I wasn't even close to catching your beauty." Angel smiled softly, imaging the dreamy look on her face at his words.

His words were enough to make her whole week twenty times better.

"You will have to make more drawings of me. And you, naked, in a bed..." The rest of the reply was cut off by the sound of a police siren getting closer to her position.

"Shit, I got to go." Buffy said hurriedly.

"Not that reply I was looking for." Angel frowned.

"I'll be home soon, I promise." With that, Buffy hung up, quickly walking away from the booth. A black car with a light and siren on the dashboard quickly pulled up next to her. Buffy cursed under her breath and turned to the driver.

"Stay there! You are under arrest." A booming voice called from within the car. Buffy rolled her eyes.

"What did I do wrong, officer?" Buffy pouted, using her innocent voice.

"For not doing a quickie with Spike in the back seat." Spike raised his eyebrows as he rolled down the window. Buffy's eyes widened.

"Spike?! You stole a cop car?" Buffy looked around nervously.

"Of course not, just stole the siren." Spike pointed to the red light twirling around.

"I think professional help with make this all better." Buffy shook her head.

"Come babe, I'll give you a lift." Spike opened the passenger door for her with a cocky grin. He knew that them having sex was a big no from now on since she was dating his brother. Who said that he didn't have values?

*******

"Are you sure this is a good idea, man?" Doyle asked looking at Angel as if he had a third head when he hung up the phone with Buffy.

"No! It's a terrible idea, I can't stand it." Angel paced angrily in his living room. She had gone out with Riley for the night, who was paying more money every time and they hadn't even kissed yet. The thought still drove him mad, he was teetering on the edge of insanity these past couple of nights. He would wait until he was sure that she had come home safe since she always stopped by his house.

"Then why you doing it?" Doyle had come and kept him company. Angel was extremely grateful since he was about to go out and drag Buffy back home.

"It's not like a have a choice. She is too stubborn and independent." Angel cursed, even though that is why he fell for her in the first place.

"Damn women, I knew we should have never let them start voting." Doyle shook his head, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Amen." Wesley called as he walked out from the kitchen. Wesley sometimes was called over also when Angel felt he was going to choke Doyle to death.

"Enough about Buffy, what's going on with Fred?" Angel quickly changed the subject before he choked both of them.

"What?" Wesley looked surpised as his head shot up.

"We know you got a hard on for the girl." Doyle grinned, raising his eyebrows.

Wesley shook his head, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "I told you repeatedly that I am over Fred."

"And moved on to Lilah." Angel couldn't help but snicker. He had met Lilah once when she interrupted a dinner between Angel and Wesley, walking in to Wes's apartment half naked. Angel had choked on his food and practically ran away from the place.

"I guess prostitutes run in the family." Wesley shot back. Of course, they weren't really family but Angel, Wes, and Cordelia were always really close.

Angel was quickly quieted.

"Anyone seen 'Delia, by the way? She called me a couple of nights ago saying she got a role in a movie." Doyle couldn't hold back the grin.

"What's so funny?" Wesley asked. He hadn't heard from Cordelia in a long time.

"What kind of movie it is?" Angel asked. Cordy had broken her promise and hadn't kept in contact ever since the breakup.

"Probably a horrible one, knowing her acting experience." Wesley winced.

"Oh, I think you'll disagree, since there isn't much acting involved." Doyle laughed at the joke that only he got. "It's a porno!"

Angel laughed, burying his face in his hands. It was sadly ironic that poor Cordy wanted nothing more to be a superstar and would literally do anything for it but she only ended up getting a role in a porno film. Guess Holland wasn't all he cracked up to be.

"Well, if that makes her happy." Wesley shrugged.

An hour later, the door swung open to reveal Buffy and more importantly to Doyle and Wesley, donuts.

Angel breathed out a sigh of relief that he didn't even know he was holding. He quickly ran to greet her. Doyle snatched the donuts away before Angel could crush them in his tight embrace on his blonde. Angel kissed Buffy's wet hair that smelled strongly of her strawberry shampoo. He breathed in his scent with a soft smile. It was obvious that she had just come back from taking a shower and Angel was grateful. He wouldn't be able to stand it if he smelled other men on her.

"What? No jelly?" Doyle yelled in outrage.

"Sorry." Buffy muttered absentmindedly. She was staring into Angel's face, his eyes holding much more than he would ever tell her. She saw jealousy, passion, and something that she had never saw before when someone looked at her. Love? Buffy shook the thought from her head. Love was for fairy tales.

Angel bent down, greedily claiming her lips, kissing her thoroughly. Trying to rid all over the other men from her. Buffy moaned, pushing herself up on her toes, pressing into him, her hand snaked into his hair. She raked her nails against his scalp, knowing that always made him moan. Angel's muffled sound was her reward.

"Suddenly feeling like I'm in one of Cordelia's movies." Doyle looked away from the scene with a small chuckle.

"Right, we should be leaving." Wesley quickly grabbed his coat from the couch before the kissing couple collapsed on it. Doyle frowned when he saw his coat under Buffy and Angel, held captive against the couch and Buffy's back.

"Damnit." Doyle cursed and Wesley grabbed the donuts and pulled the Irish man towards the door.

"Let's go." The Brit ushered him outside.

"But my coat! It will never feel the same after they are done having sex on it!" Doyle yelled in outrage.

"You have to leave it behind." Wesley said dramatically, patting his arm.

"Good bye ole' friend. We had some good times." Doyle muttered sadly to his coat before closing the door to give his friends some privacy.

Not that they really minded since Angel's shirt was tossed away and Buffy's was joining it. Buffy wrapped her legs around his waist, grinding against him harshly. The artist grunted against her lips.

Angel's lips tore from hers, making a path down to her neck and collarbone, in between the valley of her breasts and across her flat belly. His tongue swirled in her belly button and he was rewarded with a girl giggle by the blonde. He smiled against her skin, quickly undoing the button to her pants.

"Angel?" An unfamiliar and unwanted voice called out. Angel and Buffy sat up quickly, their angry eyes turning to meet the last person Angel thought he would see.

"Sorry, I interrupted by I just need to know where I can put my stuff." The brunette asked nonchalantly.

"What?" Angel tried to stop from yelling.

"I'm back!" Cordy replied cheerfully.

*******

*

Buffy quickly grabbed at her shirt, clad in only her bra and her undone jeans. She felt uncharacteristic jealousy at Cordelia moving back in with Angel. She suddenly felt very stupid for feeling jealous about Cordelia when she had sex with other men before coming here. The blonde frowned and pondered if she would ever have sex with Angel without being interrupted. Even though, what they were doing a couple of minutes ago didn't feel like just having casual sex, it was more than that. Something deeper.

It scared Buffy to no end, but also fascinated her.

"Cordelia, can I talk to you in the bedroom?" Angel gritted between clenched teeth. Why did everything have to go wrong whenever he and Buffy try to have some privacy?

"Don't bother. I should be going, it looks like you two have a lot to talk about." Buffy untangled herself from Angel and grabbed her jacket.

"Wait-" Angel stumbled after her as she reached the door.

"No, I'll see you tomorrow, it's fine." Buffy assured him, wanting to get away from Cordelia or else she would probably punch her.

Angel sighed and nodded, obviously unhappy with the situation.

"I'm sorry, I'll try to sort this thing out."

Buffy nodded, giving him a quick peck before bolting out of his apartment. Angel watched her go with a pained expression. He closed his eyes and counted backwards from ten before he turned and faced Cordelia.

Her happy expression only dampened his mood more. Why she was smiling at his obvious rage?

"What are you doing here?" Angel asked, stalking into the kitchen.

"Well, things didn't work out with Holland and I, so I figured-" Cordelia started.

"You figured that after dumping me to go be a porn star, after you left Wes and Doyle without a word of where you are, that you would come back and interrupt my life by moving back in?" Angel snapped.

"Yeah!" Cordy beamed cheerfully. Angel stared at her. Cordelia cheerful smile vanished and she collapsed into a chair.

"Holland was a big Hollywood producer for *porn* but he didn't tell me until after I left you, I thought I could be the next Nicole Kidman, but he lied. I had no money and he offered me a job in one of his movies so I took it. He let me stay with him but I couldn't stand it. Please, Angel, I have no where to go." Cordy muttered her story in a dry tone and despite himself, Angel's anger slowly diminished.

Angel fell into the chair next to her, putting his face in his hands.

"Why don't you ask Doyle, I'm sure he will let you stay." Angel said slowly.

"Did I see you with that hooker when I came in here?" Cordelia stood up, avoiding the question. She wanted to stay with Angel, mend their relationship.

"Her name is Buffy." Angel replied.

"Buffy, yeah, that's it." Cordy muttered, her jealousy slipping into her voice.

"Are you two an...item?" There was a small hint of amusement in her voice and it made Angel's anger come back full force.

"Yes," He bit out.

"Oh." Cordy hid a smirk.

"What?" Angel snapped.

"You do know that she has to sleep with other guys right?"

"I'm not stupid, Cordelia." Angel growled, standing up and pacing. Out of all people, he didn't want to hear this from his ex.

"Just wanted to let you know, because that's what whores do." The brunette shrugged.

"Yeah, you would know." Angel muttered under his breath. "Look, Cordelia, you can't stay here. I'm sorry. Go to Doyle, he will let you stay."

"Angel..." Cordy pleaded.

"Go." Angel crossed his arms over his chest, his mind made up. There is no way in hell that he would let Cordelia stay with him. Cordy angrily stomped and grabbed her bags.

"Have fun with your whore." She snapped as she slammed the door.

****** "What? I thought I was going to see you today." Angel sighed into the phone, his big plans of having a romantic dinner with Buffy was smashed into a billion pieces.

"I know, baby." Buffy tried to soothe him, knowing how this was going to make him extremely angry.

"I need to go to dinner to Riley, he is paying a thousand dollars." Buffy confessed. There was a long pause over the phone and Buffy didn't even want to know what he was thinking of her.

"I'm sorry." She whispered. She was, for more than just dinner, for making him go through all this.

Angel tried to sort out his feelings but they were all crashing together in a big wave of emotions. He shook his head, everything before Buffy was fine. He was perfectly sane, not really worried about money or his appearance but he wasn't perfectly happy. Buffy made him that, but she also made him a lot of other things. Like insanely jealous for example.

"I..." Angel quickly closed his mouth before he said something he would regret. Buffy chewed her lip nervously, pressing the phone tightly to her ear, waiting for him to say something. Anything.

"I need a cigarette." Angel muttered, an accidental out burst.

"When did you start smoking?" Buffy frowned.

"Five minutes ago." He replied. A spell of silence fell over them.

"I have to go." He said finally, his voice shook and Buffy could tell he was gritting his teeth again. He had a bad habit of doing that.

"Okay-" Before the blonde could get another word out the line went dead. Buffy sighed and banged her head against the counter. She wanted nothing more than to see Angel tonight, to finally finish what they never could without someone barging in. But no, Riley wanted to see her tonight, just one night this week.

A thousand dollars. Her savings have been stacking up and she couldn't wait until she finally had enough for her and Angel to runaway with. If he still wanted her by then.

Buffy swallowed hard and pushed the terrifying thought away before going into the bedroom to get dressed.

****** "I'm sorry I made you upset the other night." Riley apologized as he pulled a chair out for Buffy. Buffy sat down in the beautiful expensive Italian restaurant across from Riley. He ordered wine and looked to Buffy expectantly.

"Don't worry about it." Buffy waved her hand in a dismissing manner.

"I do." Riley reached over and grabbed her hand. Buffy wanted nothing more to shrug it off but forced a smile. Her hand twitched to get away from Riley's and into Angel's but she could do nothing.

Buffy grabbed the menu, a perfect excuse to free her hand.

"So, how have you've been?" Riley asked, they always started with the small talk. Buffy covered her face by holding her menu up high, a look of despair over her features. She was off her game tonight, her mind on Angel. She needed to get into the act now before she had another panic attack.

"It's been great. How is your business going?" Buffy smiled flirtatiously.

"Wonderful. I'm bringing in more profit then half of my predecessors." Riley beamed proudly about inherited business.

"That's great. I'm happy for you."

"Buffy, I know we have had this arrangement for only a couple of weeks now, but I'm ready to take it to the next step." Riley cut straight to the case.

He wanted her.

Badly.

Buffy, on the other hand, choked on her wine. She held a hand to her heart, clearing her throat.

"What do you mean?" She asked innocently, hoping he would change his mind. The arrangement she had with Riley was the best money she made without having sex or doing more than a few kisses. Now with Angel in her life, she could barley look at another man or sleep with him for that matter. She had to force every moan and movement.

"Don't by coy, you know what I mean." Riley grinned mischievously, he put a hand on her leg under the table. Buffy closed her eyes, taking a quick but deep breath.

"Right." Was all she could think of to say.

"Your reward would be quite handsome." Riley said with a proud smile. Buffy leaned forward, licking her lips. Do anything for a man to raise his price. Another rule of prostitution.

"How handsome?" Buffy asked.

Someone cleared their throat to the side of them and Buffy frowned. The waiter couldn't have had a worse timing. Buffy sighed and picked up her menu, looking quickly to not to keep the man waiting.

"You." Riley hissed and Buffy's head snapped up in confusion. Buffy's heart quickened and she felt herself losing control of what was going to be a horrible situation.

"Oh God." She whispered so softly, no one could have heard her.

"What are you doing here?" Riley snapped, his voice low as to not cause attention from onlookers.

"Buffy." Angel whispered, his voice pained. He ignored the foolish boy sitting across from her, his hand on her leg had not been missed by him. After an hour of sitting at home, he snapped. He couldn't take this waiting anymore. Doyle or Wesley couldn't help his heartache and jealousy. He had searched through five restaurants before he found her. He needed her to come home.

"Angel, what are doing here?" Buffy asked, nervously rubbing the back of her neck, staring at Angel in despair. She never wanted him to see her with a client. It wasn't right.

"I suggest you leave now." Riley sat up, challenging Angel. Angel's pained look turned to inhuman jealousy and rage in less than a second as he turned to Riley.

"I'm not leaving without her, now back off." Angel invaded his space, practically growling the words.

"Then you won't be leaving." Riley snapped.

"Hello?" Buffy snapped, agitated that they were talking about her as if she wasn't there. Several people started to stare now. Her outburst went ignored.

While Angel and Riley glared each other down, Buffy quickly grabbed Angel's arm and dragged him away before he caused Riley some serious damage. Once they were outside, Buffy felt everything let go.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" Buffy yelled at Angel who was looking away from her.

"I don't know!" Angel snapped back. "I never know anymore. You make me crazy and I can't stand it! I can't stand what you do, I can't stand that you can't just be with me, I might be poor but I could give you more than million dollars could!"

Buffy looked away, ashamed at her need for stability and her fear of being poor. Her heart reached out for Angel, wanting to comfort him and kiss him but another part wanted to slap him.

She watched as Angel's shaking hands pulled out a pack of cigarettes, that look suspiciously like Spike's, and lit one. Buffy snatched it away before he could inhale and threw it on the ground.

"I'm sorry about what I need, Angel but...damnit, you can't just walk in when I'm with someone." She cried.

"Why? Does that lower the price?" Angel sneered, angry and hurt. He quickly drew another cigarette out and Buffy didn't stop him this time.

"You knew what would happen if you were with me, Angel. You know what I have to do. This is my job and it was my whole life. I knew nothing but this until I met you. Then..." Buffy sighed shaking her head, turning away from his so he couldn't see her tears.

"If you want to leave me, you are free to go, I'm not stopping you." Buffy forced out, closing her eyes tightly. She wrapped her arms around her, holding off the chill that only she could feel. Angel took a deep drag of his cancer stick before throwing on the ground and smashing it under his shoe. He stuck his hands deep in his pockets, his mind racing.

"I love you." He said softly, something forbidden, the answer to all of their arguments and questions. Buffy slowly turned and looked at him, stared at him.

"What?" She whispered so softly.

"Nothing." Angel quickly covered, hoping he didn't make a complete fool out of himself. "Forget I said anything."

Buffy swallowed hard, she couldn't count how many men that have said 'I love you,' to her. She seemed to shrug it off then but when Angel said it, it was something different. Something incredible that swarmed in her belly, spreading warmth throughout her whole body. Despite her tears and the heart wrenching conversation she smiled. Angel stared at her, his intense gaze reading every expression and movement, analyzing like a true artist. Her smile grew until it turned into a full teeth grin, she couldn't help it. A small giggle escaped and Angel half smiled despite himself.

He was totally in awe that his words could make this beautiful creature in front of him smile and laugh. He was totally and truly in love with her. When Buffy finally got her emotions and smiles under control, she tried to focus at the enormous problem at hand. She would probably do a Buffy Victory Dance when she was all alone later.

"So what happens now?" Buffy asked, she couldn't go back in there with Riley, not with Angel professing his love for her.

"How about, you come home with me tonight and I won't go crazy and try to beat up your clients." Angel held out his hand. Buffy knew that most their problems would not be solved tonight, no point in yelling in circles about the same thing over and over. She could enjoy the rest of her night with Angel and apologize to Riley later.

She slipped her small hand into his, Angel smiled at her, leading her over to his car.

*******

*

Angel woke groggily, his limbs refused to move and his head felt too heavy for him to lift. A blond head was tucked neatly and perfectly under his chin, the smell of vanilla and strawberries being his air.

Buffy's lithe body wrapped around his, a leg thrown over his hip, and an arm wrapped around his side, she was as close as she could get without crawling inside of him. Angel didn't dare move, trying not to wake the image before him. He was filled to the brink with comfort and contentness. His fingers ached for lead so he could draw the beauty before him, flush from sleep.

Angel suddenly remembered the previous night's activities. They came to his apartment, talked, talked some more.

Then they had fallen onto the bed with one thing in mind.

Sleep, of course.

And what a night of sleep it had been. Angel had never slept so deeply in his life, dreams of Buffy danced in his head and to wake up with her actually next to him in flesh and blood, was more than he could ever ask for. He kissed the top of her golden head softly.

Angel reared his head back slightly, glancing at her face. A small smile dance across her lips and her beautiful eyes hidden by her calm eyelids. He couldn't suppress a kiss to her brow, another to her forehead, her nose, her lips.

His arms tightened around her, bringing her closer, if possible. She muttered something before burying her head in his shirt, clutching handfuls of the cloth in her tiny fist. Angel chuckled and he was sure that the sound rang in her ears, loud enough to wake her up.

She groaned and rubbed her cheek against his neck.

"Shut. Up." She growled. Angel smiled against the top of her head.

"You are not a morning person, are you?"

"I have no use for mornings except to sleep." Buffy muttered matter-of-factly.

"How about I make you some breakfast?" Angel asked, stroking her silky hair, loving the way it felt slipping through his fingers.

"So I'm left with no blanket?" Buffy whimpered, pulling at his shirt. Angel had to admit that it was absolutely freezing in his apartment, it was a crappy apartment in the bad side of town and the air conditioning for the building always go stuck. The place was too poor to buy another one.

Buffy's stomach growled loudly, ruining her argument. Angel chuckled, she was the only person that could make him laugh every minute.

"Fine, go make the eggs, damnit." Buffy playfully mocked anger and untangled herself from her boyfriend but didn't get out of bed. She grabbed the thin comforted at the foot of the bed and quickly pulled it on top of her.

"I feel like I'm in Alaska." She muttered from under the thin blanket. Angel grabbed the silk sheets from his closet, throwing them over her for more warmth.

"Yeah, this complex is the only place you have to open a window to chase away the air conditioning." Angel shrugged, trotting into the kitchen for some breakfast. He felt like he was walking on air, he could barely feel the cold. He was wrapped so tightly in the feeling of Buffy's warm flesh against him throughout the whole night, he wasn't sure he could ever feel cold again.

Angel quickly made from scrambled eggs, his grocery shopping couldn't really afford more than what was needed, so eggs it was. When the phone rang, Angel dove for it in case Buffy had fallen back asleep.

"Hello?" He answered.

"Hey, you bloody bastard." An Irish accent hissed through the phone. Angel smirked.

"I've heard you got a new roommate."

"Thanks to you. I has always been a dream of mine to get to live in the same place with a chick from a porno but not the porno star from hell!" Doyle snapped.

"Oh come on, Cordy ain't that bad." Angel said halfheartedly, in defense of the old Cordelia.

"You should see my bathroom. There is not one inch on manliness left in it. All I see if make up and hair spray. And I swear to God, that if I see one more tampon then all hell is breaking loose!" Doyle yelled this time.

Angel laughed, this day was off to a great start.

"Oh my God! I have to go!" Buffy called in a rush from the bedroom, walking out quickly desperately trying to fix her bedhead hair.

Angel cursed, why did he always have to jinx himself?

"What?" Angel frowned, desperate for more time with her. The phrase 'she made his heart sing' was so corny but Angel knew that is what Buffy did to him.

"Faith and I always have lunch at the mall on Sunday's and it's already one o'clock. I have to be at my house in five minutes." Buffy searched wildly around the living room for her shoes.

"Can't you just skip it for today?" Angel grabbed her arm, pulling her tightly against him. Buffy's breath caught and her will was quickly evaporating, his body hard and warm against hers was more than she could stand.

"Uh..." Was Buffy's futile argument. Angel's lips pressed roughly against hers, the smiling and happy Angel was gone in a second replaced by a demanding possessive man. Buffy loved it. He urged her legs around his waist as he slammed her roughly against the wall. He ground their pelvises together with an urgency. His tongue forced it's way into her soft mouth, twisting with hers. His large hands grabbed at her ass, pressing her more tightly against him.

"Angel..." Buffy gasped at the delicious friction, her whole world spinning. The only thing she could feel was Angel, all around her, pressing her painfully against the wall.

He grunted in response, his lips sucking roughly on her neck. Buffy's eyes fluttered closed, a hand tangled in his hair, holding him to the sensitive part of her neck.

"I *really* have to go...Faith..." Buffy tried again, her heart pounding. Her voice didn't really agree with her body language, as she rocked her lower body against him, an aching need growing.

"Your not convincing me." Angel paused in his administrations against her neck, he need to breathe. He was feeling this incredible need growing, taking him over. He needed to get back in control but he couldn't. He could barely see straight. He could feel Buffy moving against him, the only barrier was their clothes. Angel gasped for breath as Buffy nibbled on his earlobe.

Angel's legs suddenly turned to jelly and they sunk to the floor. Angel quickly leaned over her, his large frame covering hers completely. Her fingers, icy from the temperature of the room, felt good over his skin and made him shiver. She quickly pulled his shirt over his head, throwing it away, admiring his hard chest. She ran her hands over the muscles of his stomach, delighted as they jumped beneath her fingertips. She smoothed her hands down his back, loving the feeling of his marble skin.

At first glance, Buffy knew that Angel hadn't lived in LA for long, his skin was too white, no tan. Even though he did now live in California, he still hasn't tanned a bit. Buffy wouldn't have liked it any other way.

"What?" Angel breathed, her wide eyes staring at him, soaking him into her.

"I love you." She whispered, the way Angel had some it before. Angel stared down at her, his love coursing through him. It had not gone missed by him that she hadn't said it back when he did last night, but to hear her say it was enough to make him fly. When did he get so corny?

Angel didn't answer but dipped his head down, his kiss now more demanding and urgent. He would die if he wasn't inside of her. His hurried hands rid her quickly of her shirt. He let her tongue explore his mouth, moving against his in a gentle rhythm that drove him mad.

"I need you." He whispered urgently. He pulled at her pants, stripping her down to her underwear and bra. She was beautiful, breath taking. There was no time to worship her perfect body now, he needed her. *Now.* He felt that he was going to go crazy if he wasn't inside of her. He ground his erection against her center, groaning, searching for relief. Buffy undid his slacks with shaky hands, it was stupid that a girl who was paid to sleep with men, felt like a virgin with Angel. Angel quickly pushed down his pants and boxers, tearing at her underwear with a bruising need. He couldn't wait, he needed her, more than he could ever say.

There was only one thing he could think of, to be inside Buffy, filling her and surrounding her.

*****

Angel collapsed on top of her, sparing her none of his weight. He felt like he could finally breath, that he was seeing everything for the first time. He laid his head on top of her bra clad breasts and he cursed himself for not slowing down, for not exploring and worshipping her body like a goddess that she is. She probably gets this from men all the time.

"Sorry." Angel muttered, his body content and too lazy to move.

"For what?" Buffy asked breathlessly, running her fingers through his hair, soothing him.

"I wanted this to be perfect, romantic. Not on the floor of my apartment." Angel sighed.

"It was perfect." Buffy smiled and wiggled against him. Her grin grew when Angel grew hard, still inside of her.

"Again?" She asked innocently.

"Yes, this time much slower." Angel agreed, kissing her breasts through her bra, his talented fingers ridding her of the annoying object.

"Slow is good." Buffy moaned, her eyes rolling back as she pressed against Angel once more.

*******

*

Buffy skipped up the stairs to her apartment, although she had to stop due to the soreness between her legs. She smiled at the sweet pain. Making love to Angel all day. Oh God, she wanted to do that for the rest of her life.

She unlocked her apartment, a large smile on her face. After a two more times of rutting on the floor, they managed to make it to the bed. She couldn't get enough of his skin and she could imagine running back to him right now for more. Though, he would probably be repelled by her smell. She was in a desperate need of a shower.

Buffy threw her keys on the table, spinning around, doing the famous Buffy victory dance.

"I hope that is because you got a lot of money for blowing me off." Faith snapped glancing at Buffy from the bedroom. Buffy simply smiled at her, determined to not let Faith ruin her mood.

"I got something better than that." Buffy laughed, feeling truly happy for once in her life. Whoever thinks that prostitution is a great job because they get sex and money is deadly wrong. It made Buffy miserable, now that she thought about. She couldn't even remember a time she was simply and purely happy until now.

"What's better than money?" Faith asked.

"Angel." Buffy sighed, a dreamy look on her face. Faith opened her mouth to say something but quickly closed it at the look on Buffy's face. A look a happiness. She could give her that for tonight. Whatever she said seemed to make Buffy want Angel more, hopefully this fling wouldn't last that long.

"I took the liberty of eating half your kitchen and checked your answering machine." Faith flopped down on the couch, relaxing.

"Thanks." Buffy muttered, raising an eyebrow. The brunette shrugged.

"You stood me up, I was bored. You now owe me two lunches and you have to let me borrow those black boots of yours." Faith gave Buffy a sweet smile and the blonde shook her head with a small smile. She couldn't stop smiling, her mouth hurt but she still couldn't shake it from her face.

"So, who called?" Buffy shrugged off her coat and kicked off her shoes, gathering two towels for her shower.

"Why don't you listen yourself?" Faith turned on her answering machine, letting the first of seven messages run. An angry male voice filled the air.

"Where the fuck were you? You left me at dinner by myself when you left with that poor asshole and made me look like a fool! I need to talk to you, damnit Buffy." Riley's voice left with a beep and Faith quickly turned off the answering machine.

"The next six messages are from him and similar." Faith raised an eyebrow at Buffy's confused look as she stood motionless by the bedroom door.

"Who was that guy, B? He sounded pissed." Faith stated the obvious with a snort.

"Riley, one of my clients, we were supposed to have dinner but I left and spent the night with Angel." Buffy frowned, her brow furrowed. She looked a little upset.

"Screw him, B. What is he gonna do on an answering machine?" Faith shrugged, trying to ease the worry on her friend's face.

"I never gave him my number, Faith. I'm not even listed." Buffy's frown deepened.

"Maybe you don't remember that you did." Faith tried but Buffy shook her head.

"I never give my client's my number. The only who I did give it to was Spike, God only knows why." Buffy shrugged it off. Maybe she had just forgotten, Angel was pretty much clogging her memory up. Her happy mood was dampened but not destroyed. She would worry about Riley later. Faith was right, he couldn't hurt by leaving messages.

"Just delete them all, I'll take you out to dinner to make up for everything." Buffy headed to the shower as Faith did what she asked.

*******

The next morning, Angel walked into Wesley's book shop. Gunn was probably upstairs, playing with Wes's antique weapons again. When Wesley was out or too into watching Fred, Angel and Gunn would spar. It once ended up as bad as Gunn having to get a couple stitches where Angel accidentally cut his arm.

"Angel!" Doyle looked up at him with a grin, raising his eyebrows twice. Wes also smiled at him, though not as obvious as Doyle. Wesley was too British to be that outright.

"What?" Angel frowned, not liking the way the two men were looking at him.

"You know, when I talked to you on the phone the other morning, well, you forgot to hang up." Doyle chuckled, his grin reaching his ears. Angel blinked at him, not understanding.

"Oh, Angel! More, Angel, more! Harder!" Doyle faked a woman's breathy voice, his eyes rolling back and his hand over his heart. Angel cringed.

"Oh no, you didn't hear that, did you?" Angel buried his face in his hands, shaking his head.

"Every moan and hump." Doyle answered with a sweet smile.

He felt a sweep of jealousy of Doyle listening to Buffy like that but then he felt scared. Buffy would *kill* him if she ever found out that he forgot to hang up.

"I can't believe you listened to us." Angel shook his trying not to chuckle.

"Yeah, let's just say you two are not the only ones that got off." Doyle joked and Angel's face scrunched up in disgust.

"Pig." He shot back.

"Well, hearing what Doyle had to say, I presume you had a nice day before?" Wesley asked politely.

"Perfect." Angel smirked at the memory but changed the subject. "Gunn or Fred here?"

Wes shook his head, knowing where Fred was at every moment. "They went out for food, they will be back shortly."

"Oh come on, Angel. You slept with *Buffy*, one of the hottest chicks in LA that I have seen yet. I assume she quit work now that you guys are griony." Doyle asked.

Before Angel could answer, the bell above the front door rang, signaling someone had entered. Wes quickly went to help the customer.

"Is Buffy Summers here?" A familiar voice asked. Angel frowned and turned to look at Riley. The jealousy and rage from the night before came back in full swing when he saw Riley. What the hell was he doing looking for Buffy? Now that he and Buffy were intimately together, there was no way in hell she was going back to her profession.

"No, you can just leave here. Better yet, how about leaving town? It might be much...safer." Angel hinted, glaring at the farmboy. Riley, clad in his Gucci suit, glared back, recognizing the poor man anywhere.

"Is that a threat? Do you even know who I am? How powerful I am?" Riley snapped.

Angel felt Doyle tense behind him, ready to back him up if need be.

"I don't care how rich you are or what car you drive. I told you once to stay away from *my* girl. If you don't, you will be using all your money for hospital bills." Angel snarled, the two face to face now.

"At least I have money to pay for what I need." Riley looked over him in disgust. "You obviously can't support yourself so how can you support her?" Angel's jaw tightened but he didn't flinch. He just retorted with a sweet smile.

"Ironic, isn't it? How you have all the money in the world and she still pi cks me, a *poor* unemployed man. Your pathetic." Angel spat. "You have to pay women to even *look* at you and you'll need all your money for that."

Riley's fist shot out, catching against Angel's cheek bone. Angel's first reaction was, of course, to punch him back. His knuckles slammed against Riley's nose, blood spilling from it.

"You bastard!" Riley screamed, holding his nose with one hand and throwing another punch with the other. His aim was distorted with rage and Angel could easily avoid it.

"Come on! All that money, you could at least afford some boxing lessons or something!" Angel taunted with an evil smirk, landing another punch to Riley's face.

Angel went after him again, the image of Riley and Buffy implanted in his head, but Doyle pulled Angel back as Wesley grabbed Riley and pushed him out of the store quickly. Angel struggled against his Irish friend, needing to feel Riley's bones break under his hands.

Angel finally calmed and Doyle's grip on him slowly loosened. Angel looked apologetic to Doyle before turning to blood spots on Wesley's floor.

"Sorry. I really hate that guy." Angel sighed, going in the back room to get a cleaning rag.

"Don't worry, Ang. You kicked his ass." Doyle grinned. Wes frowned and looked at his ruined white rug.

"Damnit, Angel, I got this rug from France." The Brit frowned.

"Damn, I think I missed something good." Gunn walked in, Fred against his side. Wesley frowned at the sight, turning away to look at the blood on his rug.

"I told you we should have waited until the store was closed." Gunn frowned to Fred who insisted they go out for something to eat sooner.

"Yeah, Angie kicked Riley's ass with a baseball bat but then the loser pulled out a gun. So I, being the heroic one, tackled him from behind and got the gun away-" Before Doyle could finish his lie, Angel came back to clean the rug.

Buffy's boyfriend frowned, touching his cheek. "I'll have a bruise." Then he looked down at his knuckles that were red and he flexed his fingers.

"Make that bruises, oh, and don't tell Buffy. I don't want that ass to scare her or anything." Angel said. Everyone nodded in agreement and went to work on cleaning Wes's expensive French rug.

*******

*

Buffy leaned back in contentment against the bare chest of her lover. She sighed a deep sigh of fulfillment and peace. She closed her eyes and tilted her head to the side. Angel dropped opened mouth kisses against her neck and wrapped his arms tightly around her.

"I love you." He whispered huskily against her ear, basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking.

Buffy simply moaned in agreement, deliciously spent and aching. They enjoyed the comfortable silence before Angel ushered them out of her bed.

"Come on, I want to make you breakfast." Angel grabbed his slacks, slipping them on before looking at his lover, laying stubbornly in bed.

"I'm tired." She held a pillow over head, her tone had a whine in it. Angel chuckled, dipping down to tickle her ear with his breath.

"Did I wear you out?" He grinned. Buffy removed the pillow to give him an evil smirk.

"Not yet, but you still have time to make up for it." She laughed as Angel growled playfully. He grabbed her, wrapped only in a blanket, and threw her over his shoulder. Buffy laughed, squirming to get down. He walked over to her kitchen before setting her in the chair. Buffy shook her head, wrapped the blanket around her like a toga before relaxing in the chair.

"Why are you making breakfast when it is 8:00 at night and why do you always want to eat after sex?" Buffy raised an eyebrow a small smile on her lips.

"Because breakfast is the only meal that I can make good and I have no idea." Angel answered her questions in order with a happy smile. He always was smiling around her now.

Buffy chuckled and looked at her kitchen table. "I'm not really sure I want to eat on this after what we did on it."

Angel frowned. "Good point."

"You are ruining all my furniture." Buffy accused.

"We'll just have to make love on everything in my apartment then, just to be even. It's gonna be tough but I will do what I have to do." Angel mocked a sigh of sadness as he looked about her kitchen for the right utensils.

Buffy grinned and their happy silence was broken by the phone ringing violently. Buffy rolled her eyes and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Buffy?" Riley's voice asked. Buffy cursed silently, she really needed caller ID or a number block.

"You really shouldn't call here." Buffy sighed, just the sound of Riley's voice made her skin crawl. His phone calls have been increasing ever since she broke contact. Angel was listening discreetly as he made French toast, watching his lover out of the corner of his eye.

"I've been trying to get a hold of you for days. Where the hell have you been?" He snapped, his voice shaking and Buffy leisurely relaxed in her chair.

"With Angel." Buffy said proudly, waiting for Riley to blow up. He deserved it for filling up her answering machine. She wasn't scared of him.

"What?" Riley asked after an angry silence.

"I've been sleeping with Angel nonstop for the last couple of days. On the bed, in the shower, on tables, does that answer your question?" Buffy smirked and she could feel Angel's eyes burning into her in question.

Riley cleared his throat, his voice shaking. "Right, that's okay, it's what you do. I accept that."

"Oh, you must be confused. I'm not doing it for any money." Buffy clarified spinning in her chair.

"You little bitch..." Riley spat. Buffy laughed.

"Does that mean you are mad?" She asked innocently.

"You don't know who are messing with." Riley threatened.

"Blah, blah, blah. I heard the whole 'I'm so powerful' speech, give it up Riley." Buffy's cheerfulness dropped as her tone grew serious and angry.

"Stop calling me. I don't want anything to do with you. Goodbye Riley." She hang up the phone with a slam to find Angel staring at her.

"He's been calling you?" Angel growled, wanting nothing more to snap the boy's neck. Control, Angel, he told himself.

"He won't call me anymore. You should have heard him, he was so pissed off." Buffy laughed reaching her hands out to Angel. Angel obeyed as he kneeled down beside her, he grabbed her hand, playing with her fingers.

"So, this means, that you won't be...that you'll stop, now?" Angel treaded gingerly, his hope rising.

"Yes, it does. I want to be completely yours, Angel." Buffy smiled at him, tangling her hands in his hair.

Angel's whole body was flooded with relief and joy and he laughed at the fuzzy feeling that the words caused him. His hand snaked to her neck, pulling her head down to his.

Their kiss was passionate and joyous, Angel having trouble controlling the large smile as he kissed his lover.

Buffy broke away from him, giving him a stern look.

"Stop smiling, it's hard to kiss you." Angel's smile made her smile.

"I can't." Angel laughed, getting up and kissed her forehead.

"I have the best place you can work. It won't pay a lot but I know that you will love it." Angel promised as he tried to concentrate on making the french toast instead of his girlfriend only clad in a blanket.

*******

Buffy stood nervously in front of Wesley's bookstore, shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"Why are you fidgeting?" Angel asked, glancing down at her with an amused smile.

"Do you know how long it has been since I have had a real job? I've only been a waitress for about a week when I was sixteen." Buffy frowned.

"Come on." Angel placed a hand on her back, pushing her inside. The bell rang as they went inside and Wesley came down, his nose stuck in a book.

"We aren't open until another hour." He said but smiled when he looked up at Angel and Buffy. Buffy was nervously fiddling with her application and stood close to Angel, who had a warm smile.

"Why, hello you two." Wes smiled back. Angel nodded his hello and he pushed Buffy towards the Brit.

"Uh, hi. I'm Buffy." Buffy unconsciously folded her application, too nervous to make sensible words come out.

"Yes, I'm quite aware of that." Wesley looked at Angel curiously and Buffy mentally kicked herself.

"Oh, yeah. I wanted to ask if you had any openings for the store. I don't have much expirence but I can work any hours and I learn fast and I-" Buffy started, nervously rambling. Wesley glanced at Angel who beamed proudly at Buffy.

"Of course, you can have a job here. I usually keep everything pretty organized but I can always use the extra help." Wesley took her application and put it on the counter. "You can start today, if you like."

A huge smile broke out on her face and Buffy refrained herself from jumping up and down.

"Oh, of course, anything you want." Buffy looked around. "Uh...what do I do?"

"Fred!" Wesley called down and Fred peaked from over the balcony from upstairs.

"Buffy is our new employee, want to show her how things work?" Wesely asked and Fred smiled.

"Sure, come up here, Buffy." Fred's smile was friendly and Buffy obeyed by practically skipping up the stairs. She blew Angel a kiss before disappearing behind the stacks of books and antique weapons. Angel chuckled.

"Thanks for doing this, Wes. You have no idea what it means to me, to her." Angel turned to his friend. Wesley smiled.

"Anything I can do to help, I'm glad she had decided to quit her profession. I'm sure she will be a wonderful employee." As if on cue, a loud crash came from up stairs.

"Whoops!" Buffy called.

Angel turned to Wes with an apologetic look. Wesley sighed.

"Why does everyone have to knock down something in my store?" The Brit asked himself.

"It's a curse." Angel answered.

"I have to go, a gallery wants to take a look at some of my drawings. Make sure she doesn't hurt herself, I don't trust her around sharp objects." Angel joked and Wes nodded.

"I'm leaving, baby!" Angel called and he was rewarded with Buffy waving from upstairs.

"I love you, good luck." She called out, blowing him another kiss. Angel grinned and with a wave he was gone.

Wesley looked up to Buffy and she beamed down at him.

"Well, at least your axe didn't break." She said positively to her new boss. Another crash, this time made by Fred interrupted Wesley's answer.

Buffy frowned. "I think it is now, though."

"I really have to move those weapons." Wes shook his head.

A couple of hours later, Wesley was showing Buffy how to use the register as the store became increasingly more busy. Buffy caught on quick but Wes still supervised incase anything happened.

"So," Buffy rang up books for an old lady. "how is the thing with Lilah going?" She tried to make conversation with her new boss.

"It's over." Wesley said, shifting uncomfortably.

"What happened?" Buffy asked, collecting the money and turning to the next customer.

"Fred found out." Wes looked down ashamed. Buffy glanced over to Fred and Gunn who were sitting on a couch talking quietly.

"Oh, sorry." Buffy said sincerely.

"Why look at the blondie, all grown up." A cocky British accent interrupted as Spike cut in front of the customers, glancing at Buffy.

"Get out of the way, Spike." Buffy cursed.

"Heard that you quit, couldn't quite believe it." Spike shook his head. "Had to come and see it with my own eyes."

Buffy turned to Wesely and he nodded, taking over the register so she could talk to Spike. She led him to sit down on the couch across from Fred and Gunn, who were too wrapped up in their conversation.

"'Ello cutie, I missed you. I've been becoming bored with Dru." Spike said honestly. He might be a pain in the ass but he really cared about Buffy.

"Faith always had an eye out for you." Buffy suggested. Spike raised an eyebrow.

"Really? That woman is a spitfire." Spike nodded, grinning at what he and Faith could do together.

"How have things been going?" Buffy asked, she hadn't talked to Spike in a while. Most of her time was occupied by Angel, not that she was complaining.

"Pretty good, actually. Heard you and Peaches have been getting it on a regular basis now. It's good to see him with someone besides the Cordy bitch." Spike took a cigarette and took a long drag.

"No smoking." Wesley called from the register.

"You are seeing things, there is no smoke here." Spike ignored the other Brit.

"Where do you hear all this stuff from?" Buffy wondered.

"Doyle." Spike yelled in protest as Buffy pulled the cancer stick from his lips.

"You have been getting Angel into this habit." Buffy accused.

Spike shrugged. "Nothing wrong with a stick here or there."

The bleach blonde stood up, glancing at his watch. "The wife will be calling any second, I better get going. You and I will have to have dinner sometime."

Buffy raised an eyebrow, an amused smile on her lips.

"Fine you can bring the Poof too." Spike kissed Buffy on the cheek before leaving.

Buffy chuckled before quickly getting back to her first day of work.

*******

*

Angel woke up with fluttering eyelids and he was immediately greeted by the lovely sight of....an empty pillow. Angel forced his tired eyes open.

"Buffy?" He called out, his voice deep from sleep.

"I'm getting ready for work. God, do you know how different it is to get ready for work in the morning? By the way, how did the thing with the gallery go?" Buffy called to her tired lover. She was in her bathroom putting on minimal makeup. She knew that this wasn't the type of job that you get dressed up over but she wanted to look good for her new work.

"Great, they loved my drawings of you. They took a whole bunch of my drawings to put on their display. You are my muse." Angel answered groggily.

"That's fantastic. I'm so happy for you." Buffy said sincerely.

Angel's muffled reply had something to do with sleeping as he fell back into her bed. They rarely slept at their own apartment anymore, it was almost as if it hurt to be away from each other too long. Buffy could think back to the miserable times when she would go to bed alone and wake up the same. Now, she would make love to Angel until her body couldn't stand it before falling into a spent slumber, then waking up to his beautiful smiling face only centimeters from hers. Buffy couldn't even imagine sleeping alone ever again when she had Angel with her.

Choosing a simple pair of jeans and a pink peasant top, with matching shoes, she glanced in her full length mirror, her head now naturally held high. She loved the way she looked now, her outside appearance didn't change but she felt different. Healthier, happier, proud, and the list goes on. All because of the man laying in her bed.

She stepped into her bedroom on a mission for a goodbye kiss but she found Angel dead asleep. She smiled softly and took time to admire and mentally worship his perfect body. A muscular arm was thrown over his eyes while the other was resting on his stomach. His muscular chest made Buffy want to drool, it was her head's usual resting spot. Her eyes made a path down to his belly, then to the thin trail of dark hair leading down to his most intimate place, which was hidden under the blanket. His powerful and strong thighs where tangled in sheets. An ache in her chest reminded her that she wanted to crawl back in bed and fall asleep against him but she couldn't ditch her second day of work.

She made sure she wasn't drooling before walking over and placing a gentle kiss on his lips before leaving.

***** "What? This is outrageous!" Wesley cried. Buffy frowned, hearing her boss's enraged voice. She squinted against the bright California sun as she quickened her place to the bookstore. She found a big white van that had a label in front of it. Several man with clipboards and some type of badges were arguing with her employees.

It seemed like forever until she managed to get to the store.

"What the hell is going on here?" She snapped, grabbing a man who was nailing something to the door and pushing him against the wall.

"Damn." Gunn commented, looking Buffy up and down in appreciation, ready to pull Buffy off the man if need be. "Good looks and all that muscle to go with it." Fred swatted him in the arm.

"Health violation." The man glared at Buffy. "We are closing the place down."

"What? It is a book store!" Buffy cried, her fists clenched into fists.

"Buffy..." Wesley warned putting a calming hand on her shoulder.

"What's wrong with it? This must be some kind of mistake, we passed all the tests for a store." Fred tried to rationalized, sounding lost and confused.

The man turned to nail the warning back on the front door but Buffy pulled him back once again.

"You should really learn how to control your employees." A voice said to Wesley. Buffy turned around slowly.

Riley smiled innocently, something dark in his eyes. "Hello Buffy."

"You bastard." Buffy cursed, advancing on him. "You call these men off, now! This is my *work* and my friends, Riley. If you have a problem with me, then deal with *me*." Buffy said very slowly, gritting her teeth together. She felt Wes and Gunn hovering over her and she was glad. She felt like she was going to explode and hit Riley with a very big metal object. Maybe a semi truck.

"Why, Buffy, I'm hurt. Did you really think that I have something to do with this? I just stopped by to buy a book. Guess I will have to go somewhere else now." Riley sighed, mocking sadness.

"You are the only person sick enough to do this, Riley." Buffy invaded his personal space, glaring hard at him, her voice low and threatening.

"What are you going to do about it? I'm above you, the police, everybody. You didn't believe me when I said I had power, now what do you think?" Riley smirked, obviously high with power. Buffy was shaking, she was so mad. Riley reached out, his finger tips brushing against her cheek and Buffy pulled away.

"See you around, sweet cheeks." Riley strolled off, when Buffy was too angry at herself and at him to speak. She buried her head in her hands and ran her fingers through her hair. The health inspectors piled in their van and left when Riley did. She turned to her employees.

"God, you guys this is all my fault. I'm so sorry." Buffy sighed, feeling helpless for the first time in a long while, as she hung her head. Wesley sighed with her and put a friendly arm around her shoulders.

"It's okay, we don't blame you."

"Yeah, it's okay, Buffy. Angel and I will go and just beat the crap out of him until he backs down." Gunn said, ripping the notice off the door and opening it for everyone. They slowly piled inside, thinking of ways on how to resolve their problem.

Buffy went to the phone and angrily called her apartment, she needed to hear Angel's soothing voice before she snapped. She called him and spilled the whole story to him in an angry rush, breathing heavily.

"That explains it..." He mumbled to himself.

"What?" Buffy asked, growing dread in her stomach.

"I checked my answering machine from your phone and the gallery left a message saying that they couldn't take my drawings, that they were going to send them all back. That son of a bitch, I'll kill him." Angel snarled, gripping the phone tightly. he always knew that Riley was a farmboy from hell. He could hear the distress and anger in his beloved's voice and he felt the need to bring Riley's head to her when he was done with him.

"I'll take care of this, Buffy." Angel promised. Spike could help him out, he could use his money and power influence to get everything back to normal. His brother was a powerful alley and a feared enemy in business.

"Don't do anything to Riley." Buffy warned. She heard Angel growl and there was pause and Buffy knew he was searching for his cigarettes, luckily she had thrown them all out the other day.

"Angel, I don't need Riley pissed off more than he already is, God only knows what he could do next." Buffy couldn't even handle the thought of what would happen if Riley hurt one of her friends or Angel.

"I can't promise anything." Angel gave up the search for his cigs.

"I have to go, I love you." Buffy sighed.

"I love you too." Angel whispered, trying to soothe his lover with his voice. There was a soft sigh before Buffy hung up.

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