"Angel, I need to talk to you."

Angel, who had literally just stepped out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a towel, regarded his best friend curiously. He wasn't surprised at her brashness about walking in on him, he just wondered why. "What's up?"

She hesitated, and that surprised him. "What is it? Is it the kids?"

"No," she said, rolling her eyes. "Not really. I've been thinking about something for awhile, and now that the kids are in school I think we can do it."

"Do what?"

"Expand the business."

"What? How?"

Cordelia started pacing then. She'd been making plans for months, had done countless hours of research. She'd been so sure of herself and her idea that she wasn't sure how she'd handle the situation if Angel shot it down.

"By doing security. Like bodyguards, events, that kind of thing. We'd have a bigger client base, too, because we could do humans and demons. And that totally came out wrong -- but you get my drift. So," she said, crossing her arms. "What do you think?"

"We don't have enough people for that kind of thing."

Anticipating that reaction, she had her answer prepared. "We'd hire two more people at first. Once things picked up, we could hire more."

The look in his eyes told her all she needed to know. Angel didn't want to hire more people because that would be putting innocent people at risk or something dumb like that. But still, she waited for him to speak. "Well?" She prodded.

"I don't know, Cordy. Do you really think it's good for the kids?"

"What?"

"I mean, how do you think they'll be affected by this? From the sounds of it, we'd all have a lot more work, which means less time for them."

Cordelia opened her mouth, closed it, and then narrowed her eyes dangerously. "I can't believe you! The world does not revolve around those kids! Angel, I'm trying to do something good here for all of us, and all you can think about is whether or not you'll get to be there for dinner and baths every damn night? God! Grow up! The kids are in school now, and they're getting older. Soon they're not going to need you around all the time. What then, huh?"

Looking wholly unaffected by her outburst, Angel frowned. "What do the others think about this?"

"Nothing. I came to you first as a professional courtesy. That, and I wanted my best friend's support," she replied icily.

Finally realizing to some degree how big an ass he was being, Angel softened his tone. "It's a good idea, Cordy, and if we didn't have the kids I would definitely go for it. But..."

"But we have the kids." Her tone matched his, but with a twinge of disappointment added in. What he didn't realize was that her disappointment was directed at him, not the fact that he hadn't gone for her idea.

"You really surprise me sometimes, you know that?" She said, sounding decidedly un-Cordy-like. "The kids would be fine with this and you know it. You're just afraid of the change."

"Please, Cordelia. I am not afraid of change."

"Then why are you trying your damnedest to stop it? You won't accept the fact that the kids are getting older, you've worn the same coat for five years, you still pine over Buffy when you drink -- yeah, I know about that -- and you refuse to accept this idea of mine. You're afraid of what might happen if you change anything."

"I am not afraid of change! If I was I'd still have long hair."

"Well thank God for small miracles," she muttered. Angel sighed in frustration and raked a hand through his hair. "Cordelia, I am not afraid of change. I don't necessarily like it, but I'm not afraid of it."

"Fine, you don't like it. Either way, you'd think you would have gotten used to it by now."

Angel started to defend himself, but stopped when he realized that Cordelia seemed to be looking for a fight. "Cordy, what's going on? Where is this coming from?"

"Four years of you becoming a slave to those kids!" She snapped immediately. "Look, I get that you're grateful to have them, but you shouldn't put your life on hold until they're eighteen, Angel."

"I have not."

"Right," she said with a snort. "When was the last time you went on a date? Ninety-seven?"

"Cordy, I can't-"

"Yes you can. A date does not mean you have to sleep with the person. Besides, Wes was right. Hardly any relationships are perfect. You and Buffy were just a freak occurrence."

Angel, not wanting to admit that she was right, folded his arms across his chest (realizing that he was still only wearing a towel) and replied, "I don't want to take the chance."

"Angel, sex isn't the only thing that can make you lose your soul. You're so happy around the kids that half the time I expect to come home to Angelus playing babysitter."

Angel dropped his arms. He hadn't ever considered that possibility. If she was right and he became so happy around his children that he lost his soul, not one of them would stand a chance.

At his stricken look, Cordelia bit her lip. "It sucks to think about, but it could happen," she said, a little less harshly. "Angel..... I just want you to start being you again. You can brood sometimes, you can be bossy, you can date, whatever. Hell, just go to one movie that has a higher rating than G and I'll be happy. And think about my idea," she added, remembering why she'd gotten mad in the first place.

"Cordy..." he sighed, and was interrupted by a small voice.

"Are you fighting?"

Both he and Cordy looked down at Bridget, who'd come in the room unnoticed. She looked so perfect in her white pants and little green sleeveless shirt, with a ribbon in her slightly curled hair to match. Angel smiled at her. "No, princess, we weren't fighting. We were just talking. How come you changed your outfit?" He knew for a fact that wasn't what she was wearing when she left for school that morning because he'd helped her pick that outfit out.

"That's what she's wearing to the audition," Cordelia explained, checking her watch. "Which is in an hour, so we have to get going. Are your brothers ready?" She asked her daughter, who nodded. "Good. Why don't you go wait with them?"

"'Kay. Bye Daddy."

"Bye, kiddo. Good luck!"

As Bridget skipped out of the room, Angel turned to Cordy. "When are you going stop with that?"

"When they ask me to. You know that I'm not forcing them to go to these auditions -- I didn't say a word when Libby, Ivy, and Darren wanted to stop." As infants the kids had gotten a lot of commercials and bit parts in movies and TV. It wasn't until recently that a few of them had grown tired with the acting gig. "I've gotta go or we'll be late. Think about it, Angel!" Offering her a half-hearted reply, Angel watched her saunter out the door in a skirt that was all together too tight for a mother to be wearing. The instant the thought entered his head, his lips curled in distaste.

When the hell had he become such an...... old man?

"Cordy's right," he mused, shaking his head as the reality of his life over the past four years hit him fast and hard. "I really need a girlfriend."

................................................................................................................................................................

A/N: Short, I know, but what can ya do? This chapter's really just setting some minor stuff up, and I wanted to give Angel some airtime. Also, I was wondering what you all think about Spike: should I bring him in or not? Either way, it doesn't matter to me. I'd just like some feedback on that.

And for those wondering, Marek will be back! (And for the record, I'm aware of the fact that white pants on a child is a stupid idea, lol)