For several weeks it had been quiet, Daniel hadn't been on his case and had actually given him a pair of light blue baby shoes. Angel wasn't sure if that meant that he wanted his first great grandchild to be a boy or that he knew the sex of the baby. Either way, Angel was happy and content, and unlike he had feared he still found Buffy unbelievably sexy. In other words, everything was too perfect. Too quiet.

With a sigh Angel pushed a stack of papers away from his line of sight and rubbed his tired eyes. Hank Summers had done everything he could to postpone the court day and Angel was getting tired of waiting, he kept double checking everything he had worked out because he was not willing to lose the case. Working was actually hard work.

The day before he had met Hank's client, warned him that if he didn't get another lawyer he was going to lose everything he had, but the man had just laughed at him, repeating what Hank had said about his abilities. A smirk rose to Angel's lips, it was actually to his advantage that nobody believed he could get the job done.

His eyes drifted down to his hand, the simple masculine engagement ring caught his eye. He still couldn't believe he was engaged and that it didn't bother him, didn't fill his insides with fear. He almost chuckled out loud as he remembered his friends reaction when they saw the ring on his finger. He hadn't seen Gunn that disappointed since he lost 2 000 dollars in a gambling den, while Doyle was already planning the bachelor party. Angel chuckled and shook his head, shaking the thoughts away before concentrating back to his work.

Buffy was on a cloud number nine despite the fickle artist whose work was going to be on her next showing. No matter how much the man bitched, it didn't spoil her good mood, all she had to do was to look at her engagement ring and the smile returned to her face. After finally getting rid of the man, she was sitting in her office going through the polaroids of his latest work. She was feeling a little guilty of the fact that her work hadn't played such a big part of her life after she started seeing Angel as it had before she met him. Suddenly the former workaholic was waiting for the minute she could leave her office, lock the doors and go home to her fiancé.

Buffy shook her head, trying to shake thoughts of Angel out of her head so she could get some work done. She frowned at the picture she was looking at, hormone induced thoughts of naked Angel were so much more pleasant than the semi-ugly painting that was going to mess with the whole arrangement of the others. Quickly she changed the photo, deciding to stress about it later.

There was a quick knock on the door and as Buffy raised her gaze from the photos, she saw Faith walking in. “It's lunch time already?” she asked with surprise, then glanced at the small clock on her desk.

“Yep”, Faith answered and threw a brown paper bag to the desk.

“What did you bring?” Buffy asked while reaching for the bag.

“A chicken salad and a yogurt for you, a beef sandwich and coke for me”, Faith answered and grabbed the bag, quickly placing its content to the desk. She grabbed her sandwich, unwrapped it from the paper and took a big bite of it in the time that Buffy managed to just open the container of her salad.

“Spike asked me to tag along on the tour with him and the boys”, Faith announced, her mouth still half full. Buffy raised her gaze to the brunette, her lunch momentarily forgotten.

“You're not thinking of going, are you? Cause I doubt it would sit well with Dru. Remember the last time she suspected there was something between you and Spike, she almost scratched your eyes out.”

“She's not going, they're on their off-period at the moment”, Faith answered with a dismissive wave of a hand.

“You know that doesn't mean anything, they'll be back together next month. She'll see someone else, he will see someone else and then he'll write another song about it and Dru will come back to him, that's how it always goes”, Buffy said matter-of-factly and Faith nodded in agreement, making a disgusted face.

“Yeah. It was funny the first time, but during the next five to seven times it started to get old.”

“But promise me you'll still reconsider going to the tour, Dru is unpredictable and just between us two, I think she's a little crazy too. Besides wouldn't it be a little awkward between you and Brad since you two... you know...”

“Slept together?” Faith finished for her helpfully. Buffy nodded and Faith shrugged. “Don't know. Maybe. But it was just sex, I know it and he should know it. Although he did get strangely clingy before I split”, she finished with another shrug. “And I didn't say I was going, I'm just thinking about it. I have some paintings that need to be finished, but life can't be all work and no play.”

Buffy rolled her eyes at the brunette and decided to concentrate back to her lunch.

A small glimmer of light caught Faith's attention. “Let me see the rock again”, she commanded and Buffy laughed before extending her left hand so the brunette could once again look at her ring. “I still can't believe Angelus put a ring on your finger. He doesn't seem like the marrying type. But it's a freaking beautiful ring.”

Buffy smiled and looked at the platinum ring with three cut diamonds, a large one in the middle with two smaller ones on each side of it. “Shouldn't it have sunk in already, we've been engaged for weeks now”, she said and pulled her hand back.

“Yeah, but isn't it kinda moving fast, you know. You've known him less than a year and you're already marrying him.”

“Faith, we're engaged, not married. And the wedding isn't going to be any time soon cause there is no way I'm gonna wobble down the aisle looking like I've swallowed a beach ball.”

Faith chuckled. “Yeah, I get your point, but still...”

“But what would be the point in waiting longer? I know how I feel about him, I was with Riley for two years and I never felt this way about him. I just know Angel is the one”, Buffy said, finishing with a smile. Faith rolled her eyes and shook her head.

“You're hopeless, B. Once you've popped out the kid, you'll be a married woman with a rugrat and won't have time to party with your old friend”, she said dramatically.

“But you can be the cool aunt”, Buffy offered with a crooked smile.

“Thanks, I appreciate it”, the brunette answered sardonically.

The intercom buzzed and a moment later Harmony's voice came through it. “Mr. O'Reilly, your girlfriend is here to see you.”

“What are you waiting for, send her in”, Angel answered impatiently, he couldn't wait to get Fred back.

“Where the fuck have you been, Angelus?! I had to wait an hour naked in your bed to give you a proper welcome and you didn't show up!” the blond screeched in outrage.

Angel stared at the woman in front of him, this wasn't something he had expected. “Hello to you too, Darla”, he said dismissively and got up from his chair, walking past the fuming woman and yanked the office door open. “Harmony, you fucking idiot, *she*”, he pointed at Darla, “is not my girlfriend!”

“But she said she was”, Harmony tried to explain, shrinking back under her boss' dark stare.

“I don't care what she told you, you dimwit!” Angel ground out struggling to keep himself calm. He looked heavenwards and sighed. “From now on, you will not let anybody in without giving me a name, you won't make any assumptions, you don't try to use that little brain of yours or improvise, just do how I tell you”, he added considerably more calmly and gave the blond another glare before slamming the door shut and turning back to Darla who was now leaning against his desk with a wry smile on her bright red lips.

“Care to explain me what the fuck is going on? I came back from Europe last night, your place was dark so I waited till today to give you a proper homecoming present and you didn't show up”, Darla questioned hotly, narrowing her eyes as she was waiting for his respond.

“Well, I'm sorry, Darla, for not being there to fuck you, but as you can see I'm working now. And didn't you get laid regularly in Europe?” Angel shot back, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Darla's eyes lit with fury and quickly she pulled away from the desk and charged at him with her hand raised. She tried to slap him, but he caught her hand by the wrist and pushed her back a step before calmly walking around his desk. Quickly he gathered the papers on the desk and hid them to the top drawer, into safety from Darla's possible temper tantrums.

The furious blond was watching his every move, hating that she had been dismissed so casually and now ignored, but the longer she watched him, the more she realized she had to change tactics because Angelus had never appreciated women who acted out. She smoothed her dress and fluffed her hair before slowly slinking to him, leaning against the desk in a seductive pose.

“Come on, Angelus, there's no need to be mean to me”, she cooed and reached out, running her hand through his hair. Angel rose up to his feet, shaking her hand away. He turned to look at her, his expression saying that he didn't want to play games.

“What are you really doing here, Darla? We've never been nothing more than casual and there are plenty of rich men in Europe to keep you entertained. So why are you here acting like a cat in heat?”

Darla's eyes turned into angry slits, but she held her tongue. “You can't deny we've always had fun together”, she tried, but as she noticed his expression didn't change, she sighed and switched tactics, “I heard you'd picked up something unsuitable while you were all alone in this big city and you know I always look after my dear boy.”

“So you met Janine?” Angel said with a tight voice, it was more of a statement than a question.

“Yes, we happened to be at the same hotel in Nice. She was very concerned about you”, she answered and moved closer to him, trying to clue herself into his side. “And so was I.”

“Give me a break, Darla”, Angel sighed and moved away from her, heading straight to the whiskey bottle that was standing in the bookcase. The thought of his mother made his blood pressure rise and the lies about her being worried about him made the feeling even worse, all Janine was worried about was the money.

There was a quick knock on the door and Buffy peeked inside. “Sorry, your secretary wasn't here and...” she stopped as she saw the seductive blond in a black dress that showed plenty of cleavage and only reached mid-thigh. “I think I should come back later”, she added, thinking and hoping that this was a client.

“No, don't! Darla was just leaving”, Angel said in a hurry, moving away from the whiskey bottle and closer to Buffy.

“No, I wasn't”, Darla protested, then eyed the small blond that had interrupted them. “What? You gonna ditch me for some fat twinkie?!”

Buffy's eyes narrowed, this was not a client. “That hair color must have settled into your brain as well. A dummy can see I'm not fat, I'm pregnant!”

“Pregnant?” Darla questioned in surprise, then turned her gaze to Angel, lifting a perfectly plucked eyebrow at him. “I never knew you were into pregnant chicks, Angelus.”

“Only into one”, Angel answered, his voice cold and his dark eyes drilling into her skull. “The baby is mine.”

Darla laughed, but it wasn't a joyous sound. “Come on, Angelus. This little girl says she's carrying your spawn and you buy it. I don't remember you ever being this gullible.”

“Hey!” Buffy yelped in protest, insulted. That vamp had just called her a little girl and a gold digger, not to mention her child a spawn.

“Darla”, Angel growled, pointing his finger at her as a sign for her to shut up. Her eyes fell down to his hand, fixing on the ring on his finger and a cool, sardonic smile rose to her lips before she laughed. The sound was just as cold as the smile on her lips.

“This is just priceless.”

Angel's eyes snapped to her face, his eyes darkening threateningly. “I think you better leave. Now, Darla”, he ground out, his hands curling into tight fists. Darla's eyes drifted up to his face, but despite the murderous look she was receiving, the cool smile didn't leave her lips. They stared at each other, neither willing to give up first.

Finally Darla let out a dramatic sigh, she knew it was best to not get him too angry. “Fine. We'll continue this later”, she said and walked past Angel, her hand brushing against his. She gave Buffy one more measuring look with a smile of superiority on her lips and walked out of the office.

Buffy looked after the seductive blond, she really didn't like the woman. Angel stepped next to her and closed the door, hiding the other blond from her line of sight. She turned to look at him with a frown on her face, she wasn't all that sure how she felt about what had just happened. Noticing her displeasure, Angel knew he had to do something to reassure her that she was his girl.

“Hey, I haven't given you a proper hello”, he said with sexy grin and hooked his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. The way he looked down to her made her knees go weak and thoughts of the blond seductress vanish from her mind. His grin widened before his lips met hers, the kiss starting slow and sweet before heating up. His hand buried itself into her long blond locks as he deepened the kiss, his tongue playing with hers.

She let out a breathy sigh before breaking the kiss and slowly opening her eyes to look at him from under her lashes. “That was a nice hello. I should come by more often”, she said, licking her lips and effectively drawing his attention back to them.

“You won't hear any objections from me”, he answered and stole a quick kiss from her. She flashed him a full blown smile and pulled a brown paper bag out of her purse.

“I brought you late lunch”, she stated and walked past him to the desk where it was more convenient to eat. She was about to empty the bag to the table when she noticed the card laying on the edge of it. A frown formed to her face when she saw the woman's name and phone number written on it, neither she or Angel had seen Darla leave her calling card there. Abandoning the thought of food she turned to look at him.

“I don't want to be a nag, but who was she?” Buffy asked uncertainly, nodding to the door while nervously fingering the card, drawing his attention to it. She wasn't all that sure if she wanted to know the answer and she also feared that she sounded like a whiny, jealous girlfriend. She admitted that she was jealous, the blond had been more beautiful than she was allowed and the skintight dress screamed maneater. And she herself wasn't feeling particularly desirable with the large pregnant stomach that made her feel like she was a beached whale that walked like a duck.

“No one. She was no one important”, Angel answered, but Buffy just kept looking at him wanting to believe him, but all her insecurities were resurfacing as her pregnancy went further. Noting that she just kept on looking at him, he decided to elaborate. “She's just someone I know. I haven't seen or talked to her in months. She just returned from Europe, came here unannounced and Harmony let her in because she thought Darla was you.”

“Why would Harmony think she was me?” Buffy asked skeptically.

“I don't know. Who knows what Harmony thinks, if she thinks at all”, Angel answered with a shrug and quickly crossed the distance between them. He took a hold of her shoulders and pulled her closer, not continuing until she looked him in the eyes. “Darla means nothing to me. We had a thing before I met you, but it was casual at best and I have no intention of seeing her again.”

She stared into his eyes, seeing no lies only sincerity. She nodded and gave him a small reassuring smile. “I believe you.” She shook her head and ran a hand through her hair. “I'm sorry about this, the whole meltdown thing”, she said with a embarrassed smile. He let out a soft laugh, barely audible and cupped her cheek with his large hand.

“Nothing to be sorry about”, he answered and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. She looked at him adoringly, a small silly smile forming to her lips.

“I love you”, she stated dreamily, not expecting him to say it back. He looked at her like he wanted to say something back to her, but decided to leave it unsaid. Deciding not to push him, Buffy pretended that she didn't notice it. “I'm lucky to have found you, plus you're a great catch.” She glanced at the temporarily forgotten paper bag on his desk. “But you also need to be fed”, she added and took his hand, pulling him to the other side of the desk before pushing him down to his chair. He watched with avid interest as she bent over the desk, giving him a much appreciated view of her backside. She picked up the bag and pulled two containers from it, giving the other one to him.

“You didn't have lunch?” he asked raising a questioning eyebrow, that didn't sound right. She turned to look at him like he had said something funny.

“Oh I did, Faith brought me lunch. But you know I won't pass a chance to eat.” She flashed him a playful smile and he couldn't help but return it with one of his own.

“Yeah, I know”, he answered and scraped the lettuce, tomato and cucumber slices from between his sandwich to her plate.

“They are edible, you know”, she commented wryly before stabbing one of the tomato's with a plastic fork.

“I'm not a rabbit. In case you haven't noticed, I'm a man and I need real food, not weeds.”

She raked her eyes over his body and stopped at his dark eyes, giving him a impish grin. “I've noticed”, she answered huskily, then commanded, “Now eat your manly food.”

“Yes, ma'am”, he replied with a amused smirk on his lips and gave her a mock salute.

Buffy listened to the sounds of water running and immediately her thoughts went to wet and naked Angel standing in the shower, soaping himself. She pushed down the urge to join him, she had other plans and she needed to stick to them. She put on her new nightie that she had felt compelled to buy after leaving Angel's office. The white slip of clothing showed off her new generous cleavage without being slutty, it was sexy and made for seduction. The only trouble was that it also made her conscious of her still growing pregnant stomach.

Her thoughts drifted back to the blond in Angel's office and suddenly she didn't feel so confident anymore. A frown formed to her face. It was hard to look sexy and seductive when you had a beach ball for a stomach. Sighing in resignation she headed to the light switch and turned the lights off, leaving only the bedside lamp on. She made her way to the bed, fluffing her hair before taking a pose against the pillows. She could hear the water being turned off in the shower and instantly her mind was filled with images of wet Angel with water droplets making their way down his hard sculptured body before he dried it off with a towel.

Her train of thought was cut off when Angel opened the bathroom door, looking just as lickable as she had imagined, with a towel wrapped around his hips. He ran a hand through his hair, brushing the wet strands off his forehead before ruffling it into a spiky mess. He looked up, his gaze landing on her before slowly traveling over her body, appreciating the view. A crooked smile rose to his lips as he finally focused on her face.

“Wow”, he breathed out. Buffy flashed him a beaming smile, her insecurities momentarily flying out of the window.

“You like?” she asked playfully, her smile turning into a impish grin.

“Definitely”, he answered, once again running his eyes over her figure. “But what's the occasion?”

“No occasion. Just thought I'd try this on”, she answered innocently and picked a piece of imaginary lint off the bodice, bringing his attention to the cleavage. Slowly Angel brought his eyes back to her face, their eyes meeting. He had his own ideas of what had brought on this sudden need to model sexy “clothing” to him, but he was in no way complaining. He didn't understand what was wrong with him, usually displays of jealousy annoyed him but when it was Buffy, he was actually getting turned on and not just because of the nightie.

He closed the bathroom door and quickly crossed the distance between them, sitting to the edge of the bed. He placed his hand to her ankle and slowly trailed it up her leg till he reached the hem of the nightie. While playing with the soft fabric he turned to looked at her face.

“Haven't seen this one before”, he stated, his fingers releasing the hem and disappearing under it, slowly inching up her thigh. She licked her lips, watching him from under hooded eyes.

“It's new”, she breathed out and bit into her lip to keep herself from moaning out loud, his gentle touch was driving her crazy. He smirked and scooted even closer to her, the towel loosening its hold around him. He leaned over her, placing his free hand to the mattress next to her, efficiently trapping her between his body and the bed.

“You look very beautiful”, he whispered to her ear, his voice soft and seductive. Her eyes closed and a breathy moan escaped her lips, the nearness of him was making her whole body hum. His lips brushed a soft kiss to her cheek before slowly trailing down to her mouth, claiming her lips with a slow kiss to which she responded wholeheartedly.

Her hand searched for the light switch to the table lamp, blindly moving on the nightstand before finding the switch, turning the light off. Feeling more comfortable, she buried her hand into his hair as her other hand slowly made its way down his naked back, slowly pushing down the loose towel and she couldn't help but grin. Her mischievous mood was infectious and Angel smiled against her lips before playfully nipping at them, making her giggle. But her laughter turned into a moan as his hand moved further up her thigh, briefly toying with the edge of her panties.

With a final kiss, he released her lips and moved down her throat with a trail of kisses. She let out a disgruntled whine when she lost contact with his tantalizing hand at her thigh and he turned on the bedside lamp.

“Not that I'm complaining, but you didn't have to do this”, he stated looking up at her, ignoring the frown on her face. “I think you're incredibly sexy.” He pressed a soft kiss to her chest, not loosing eye-contact. “Desirable” Another kiss. “Beautiful.” A kiss to the crook of her neck. “And simply hot”, he finished with a whisper into her ear, his low voice sending shivers through her body. She reached out to the lamp, but he grabbed her hand, twining his fingers with hers before bringing it to his lips, pressing a soft kiss to her knuckles.

“Don't hide. I meant what I said, you're beautiful”, he said, looking straight into her eyes so she would know he wasn't lying. The sincerity in his voice and the sweet look in his eyes caused tears to cloud her vision, but she blinked them away not wanting hormones to ruin the night.

“Can't I just seduce you with the lights off?” she asked with a pout, batting her eyelashes at him to bend him to her will.

“You already have seduced me with the lights on”, he answered and claimed her lips with another kiss, making her forget everything but him.