Don't own anything AtS or BtVS.

Pairings are almost nonexistent but they're pretty much B/A, a mention of A/F, W/O, X/Anya, Gunn/Fred, S/D, Giles/Jenny

~I started writing this without thinking about the age limit on alcohol so to save me from going crazy, they can drink at 18.

Buffy stared at the paper on her boss's desk before looking at the man that had put it there. "I... I love Angel. I didn't marry him for his money."

Cool eyes met hers. "My nephew's young and unfortunately believes he's in love. An even colder look crossed his face. "And wasn't that oh so convenient for you?"

She looked away, one hand unconsciously covering her slender stomach as a bought of nausea ran through it. "It's not like that. I'm not quitting my job... and I'm going to pay my way through school."

"Yes you are," Daniel Holtz agreed as he leaned toward her, "because Angel's being disinherited. He won't touch a cent of family money as long as he's married to you."

"We don't need it." Buffy picked up the paper and held it out for him to take.

He didn't. Instead, his eyes raked over her waitress uniform with distaste. "So you'd stay with him even knowing what you're costing him? How long do you think it'll be before he resents you for it?" She didn't answer, and he gave a shake of his head. "The architectural company alone is worth *millions*."

Her hand wavered and she looked at the expensive diamond ring on her finger. She loved Angel, but did he love her enough? She swallowed thickly before giving a slow shake of her head. "I'll sign papers... *other* papers," she told him quietly. "Anything you want, if you'll give Angel his inheritance while I'm married to him."

"This isn't a negotiation. It's a choice. You can either have Angel and live in poverty, or you can give him back his world." Buffy dropped her eyes to the floor, and his voice softened as he reached out to give her arm an encouraging squeeze. "I'm not taking him away from you. He can put you in an apartment for all I care. Your relationship could last years."

She pulled away before looking at him with tears in her eyes. "So you're saying I can be his whore but not his wife?"

"I can assure you it's not personal. I would do the same to any woman I found to be unacceptable."

She fought to remain standing as her world spun out of control. "Buffy," the call broke into the standoff. "Post is due back any minute. You'd better get out of her office or she'll throw a fit."

Amy disappeared back into the restaurant, and Buffy wiped at tear streaked cheeks. "I'll sign the papers."

Holtz watched with hard eyes as she put the paper back on the desk and picked up a pen before he stepped forward and showed her where to sign.

It took a while, she hesitated, pressed the pen to the paper as her whole body screamed in protest before she took a shaky breath and signed her name. A fresh wave of tears fell as she pulled off the ring and left it on the desk before hurrying out of the room.

Holtz picked up the paper, the ring, slid them into a manila envelope before turning to leave the restaurant. He hadn't been pleased when Angel had married her without his knowledge... but would have been willing to overlook his misgivings if the girl had passed his test. That she hadn't, only assured him he'd been right to interfere.

He slid into the Cadillac parked near the doors of Homestead before starting the engine. The only thing left to do now was tell his nephew, the boy he and Giles had raised after his parents had died in a plane crash.

21 months later (May)

Angel made the turn for Sunnydale and his red Jaguar sped toward the city limits as he thoughtfully looked at the familiar landscape. He'd left after graduation and hadn't looked back, but after two years of college with a spring break spent at the family ski lodge in Colorado, he was finally looking forward to returning home.

A brand new sign got his attention as he neared the edge of town, and he slowed and turned into the new housing development, Prosperous Acres. He didn't do any more than glance at the immaculate houses and manicured lawns as he slowly drove down the winding street to look for the address he had been gifted... and was surprised when he found it surrounded by people and cars before giving a slow smile when he began to recognize them. He pulled into the driveway... parked, got out.

"Angel!" Spike walked over to slap him on the back as Doyle moved up to shake his hand.

"Good to have you back," the shorter brunette greeted.

"Good to be back," he returned before looking toward the porch to see Holtz and Giles sitting on the steps. Darla stepped in front of him, and he was instantly engulfed in her arms. "Hey," he murmured as he pulled her closer. "It's been a while."

"And yet you're still as handsome as ever," she answered before pulling back to study him.

Doyle and Spike groaned, and Angel grinned before turning approving eyes on her. "And you're just as gorgeous as I remember." Gunn walked over, and Angel turned to greet him with a smile.

"Angel," Holtz called before motioning toward the house. "What do you think of it?"

"It's a surprise," he answered as he glanced over the house before walking over to his uncles. It wasn't a place he would have picked. It was impressive but there wasn't anything special about it. It blended into a hillside of similarly large impressive houses. "Thank you."

"Not a problem my boy," Holtz held out a set of keys and waited for his nephew to take them. "A new home for a new start."

Angel's smile became forced as he gripped the keys, but he nodded before turning to the man sitting beside Holtz. "Uncle Rupert," he greeted as his smile became more genuine. "Congratulations on your take over of The Dusty Page."

Giles beamed at his nephew's mention of his newest business venture. "Yes. It's wonderful to have a business that's more of a hobby than Triad Industries."

Angel's smile grew. He'd missed his friends and family. It was one of the reasons he'd decided to come home.

"Since you brought it up Giles, maybe we should tell him he's expected to be at Triad at 10 am Monday?" Holtz asked.

"Yes, he is," Giles answered with a glance at Holtz before turning back to Angel. "In the meantime though, I believe your friends have your evening planned."

"We've got a few plans for him," Gunn agreed.

"Yes," Darla leaned in to kiss Angel on the cheek. "And I need to make sure everything's in order. I'll see you later tonight." She turned toward Giles and Holtz. "I'll mention your proposal to my uncle. I think he'll be interested."

"Do that my dear," Holtz agreed as Darla turned toward her BMW.

"Spike." Angel tossed the keys to him before heading back to get his suitcases. "Let's check the place out."

Three hours later:

"You've got to be kidding me..." Angel murmured as he pulled into the Bronze's parking lot with a frown before looking at the bleached blonde sitting in the passenger's seat. "*This* is what you guys planned for my return? A night in Sunnydale's slums?"

"Yes," Spike answered with a wicked smile before getting out of the car.

"Some friends," the brunette answered as he got out and walked to the door, pulled it open. He grinned when he started recognizing the people sitting at the tables.

"Hey B," Faith looked up and smiled before glancing down to make sure all the drinks she needed were on the tray. "It looks like a full house tonight."

"Yeah." Buffy glanced over the well dressed crowd with a frown of recognition. Ever since the annulment tore up her life, she'd tried to avoid Angel's friends, and up until now had been fairly successful. It wasn't like they ran in the same circles. She slid around to the back of the bar and set her purse under it before grabbing one of the small white aprons. "So... do you know what's going on?"

Faith shrugged. "Does it matter? The guys are gorgeous and loaded. That's all I need to know." She winked before walking off with a swing in her step, the short black skirt that was the uniform for all the waitress's clinging tightly to her hips.

Buffy frowned at Faith's outfit before trying to tug her own skirt down. It didn't work, and she gave up as she looked over to where she could see Spike sitting at one of the side tables before taking a slow breath. She didn't know what they were doing here but wasn't looking forward to being so outnumbered tonight.

"Well, well," a voice broke into her thoughts. "Look who made it in the nick of time." Snyder made his way over to Buffy and looked her over critically before looking into her eyes. "Tonight's big time Summers... don't do anything to drive them away."

"Actually," she began uneasily, "I thought I could work tonight but I don't feel very..."

"If you leave now, don't come back." He leaned in, his voice soft and venomous. "This is my chance to get some real money in this place and you *will* work if you want to keep your job."

The knot already in her stomach tightened more, but she didn't argue as she watched her boss stalk off. She couldn't afford to lose her job over a seven hour shift, but that didn't mean it wouldn't suck, and she picked up her tray with resignation before starting toward the tables.

Angel was also weaving his way through the bodies as he led Darla off the dance floor. Someone bumped into him, and he glanced up to see Lindsey looking at him with a smile. "So Angel... how was Harvard?"

"Good, but it's better to be home."

Lindsey nodded. "So you're not going back?"

"No. I'm here to stay." Darla's hand slid over his back, and he tugged her closer to his side. "Doesn't look like many of us moved away."

"No, but," Lindsey stepped closer as the jukebox started to blare now that the band was taking a break, "most of us have apartments in L.A. for when we get bored."

Angel shook his head. "Why do I think you spend a lot of time there?"

"Maybe because you remember how exciting this place can be?"

"Yeah," Angel agreed as Darla started to pull him toward their table, "but it's home."

Buffy had just made the first round through her tables and was waiting at the bar when Faith lightly elbowed her. "Kathy was 10 minutes late getting here tonight," the brunette stated, "and Snyder fired her."

"You're kidding."

"No. He told her to clean out her locker and leave."

"And he thinks firing us is going to keep him in customers?" Buffy rolled her eyes before sighing and giving a shake of her head. "I need a new job." She looked at Faith. "Know any place that's hiring?"

"Not now, but Triad should be before too much longer. Xander said the factory expansion would be done in a month or so."

"Yeah well... I'm not sure they'd be better." Buffy watched as the last drink was put on her tray before looking up as Snyder walked over.

"You two need to start picking up Kathy's tables." He looked at Buffy. "Summers, you take tables 21 to 25, and," he looked at Faith, "you take 26 to 30."

Buffy nodded as she felt her heart drop. The extra assignment would have her serving Spike's table. She picked up her tray and delivered drinks before heading over to her new assignment.

She was just going to walk by and let them stop her if they needed anything. That was when she heard *his* voice. It brought her to a stop and caused her to jerk her head around before trying to move away. She didn't make it. A hand came down on her arm, and she slowly turned to look into Spike's amused blue eyes. "You didn't get our order ducks. I'll have a scotch."

Doyle looked up at the pale faced blonde before leaning back in his chair. "I'll have a whiskey."

"Yeah," Angel agreed as he continued to nuzzle Darla's neck. "I'll have one too." He looked away from the blonde in his lap and straight into Buffy's horrified eyes. "Buffy," he murmured with surprise before his eyes turned cool and slid over her skimpy outfit.

Darla scowled at losing Angel's attention before casting a cold look at Buffy. "I'll take a screwdriver."

"Vodka collins," Cordelia smiled ruthlessly from her place beside Doyle before turning to the brunette beside Spike. "What do you want Dru?"

"I don't know." She turned to Buffy with a gleam in her eye. "Do you have gold diggers?"

Buffy felt nauseous as she listened to Darla and Cordelia's laughter. "I... I don't think we... "

"Bring her a bloody mary," Spike broke in as he pulled a smirking Dru to him. "You *do* serve them here don't you?"

"Yeah," Buffy mumbled as she started toward the bar and walked past Lindsey's table when he tried to get her to stop. She set her tray in front of the bartender with an order pad on it before quickly making her way into the bathroom as tears started to fall.

"Geez..." Lilah looked at her coolly as Buffy's tears turned into quiet sobs. "Maybe you should take the night off or something."

"That would be nice," Buffy got out before grabbing a few sheets of toilet paper and blowing her nose as she tried to regain control. It took a minute, and another handful of toilet paper before she'd quieted and the tears slowed. She took a breath, wiped at her face before dropping the tissue into the trash. It wasn't until she was ready to leave that she noticed Lilah was studying her with narrowed eyes.

"You're Buffy aren't you?"

The blonde nodded. "Yeah. This place is a few steps down for you guys isn't it?"

Lilah shrugged but a slight smile played on her lips. "Darla picked it out. She thought it would be perfect for Angel's coming home party." She cocked her head and looked over Buffy's outfit. "Have you seen him yet? Angel, I mean. He's just as good looking as ever." She leaned slightly closer. "And his bank account... Let's just say Triad Industries is worth a *lot* more than it was two years ago."

"Good for him," she answered flatly before turning toward the door and starting to push it open.

"Yes. It is," Lilah called before the blonde could get out of the bathroom. "Maybe if you play your cards right, you can get some payment for 'services rendered' before he finds someone more suitable to spend the rest of his life with. No one would blame you. You're a working girl after all."

Buffy closed the door with a little more force than necessary as she made her way to the bar, and her now full tray. She handed out drinks to her tables first before turning to the tables on the other side of the room.

She walked past Lindsey who held up a glass, "No need to stop darling. I've got it covered."

His statement caused a round of laughter at the nearby tables, and Buffy did her best to ignore it as she set out the drinks at Angel's table and waited for payment.

"The drinks are on me," Spike informed as he pulled out a hundred and dropped it on her tray.

She looked at him, and he coolly appraised her. "Just give me my change. I'll have to evaluate whether the service is worth a tip or not."

She nodded... feeling more than a little grateful she wouldn't have to stand at the table and make change. "I'll be right back," she murmured before starting to walk away.

"It's on me," Angel broke in as he pulled a hundred out of his wallet and handed it to the bleached blonde before getting up and starting to follow Buffy.

Her steps slowed when she was a few feet from the table, and she turned to look at him with tears in her eyes. Cold brown eyes met hers, and she tore a sheet out of the order pad before holding it and the hundred out to him. "We both know you can pay for your own drinks."

"True, but I'm not the one working here am I?" He leaned in closer and lowered his voice, "Besides, don't you usually do what the customer wants Buff?"

"No. Not always." He ignored the money she was trying to hand him and studied something over her shoulder with seeming interest. "Angel..." she started quietly.

"Is there a problem?" Snyder asked, and she tensed before slowly turning to face him.

"No. We're just..."

"I wasn't talking to you Summers," the middle aged man cut her off before looking back at Angel. "My employees are not known for their ability to graduate college. If Summers has offended you in any way I can assure you she will be dealt with appropriately."

Angel's eyes glittered with cool amusement. "I'm not here to cause trouble... It's just that I've given her a good deal of money, and I'm waiting for my change."

Snyder nodded. "If you'd prefer, I can handle the transaction myself."

"That's not necessary. I'm certain it will be handled to my satisfaction."

Snyder nodded and eyed Buffy warningly before disappearing into the crowd, and Angel watched him before turning cold eyes to her. "I like your boss Buffy. He seems to have you figured out."

"Angel..." she turned to look at him. "I need this job. You might be having fun tonight but I'm trying to make a living."

"That dream of college didn't work out for you?" he asked in a hard voice. "Or did you intend to marry wealth?"

She felt as if he'd hit her. It was something she would have expected from his friends and family, but to hear it from him hurt more than she thought possible, and she couldn't stop from taking an audible breath. There wasn't any need to tell him the one thing she'd gotten out of their being together had made college nothing more than a dream for her. There was no way she'd regret having Liam, but not even the sale of the art gallery had been enough to cover the bills from her mother's death and the complications she'd had when giving birth. "I wasn't after your money," she stated quietly, honestly. "I signed the annulment because I was trying to do what was best for you."

He nodded, let his gaze slide over her before meeting her eyes. "I think that's something we can both agree on." A moment later, he turned away. "I'll be at the table when you get my change."

Buffy wiped at tears before making her way to the bar. "Faith," she started quietly when she got close to the brunette that was already there. "Will you change tables with me? I can't..." She broke off as a few more tears fell.

"Sure," Faith agreed as she looked at Buffy with concern. "Don't worry about it." She leaned closer and lowered her voice. "Don't let these snobs get you down. They're not worth it."

"N... No problem," she answered with a forced wavering smile before starting to fill her in on the tables they were swapping.

Almost six hours later, Buffy glanced at the car parked in her driveway before tiredly making her way to the door and then stepping into the house. "Hey guys," she greeted with forced casualness.

"Hey." Xander looked up from where he was sitting on the sofa. "Anya and I were in the neighborhood..." he broke off. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she answered as she glanced at the pizza box on the coffee table before heading toward the stairs.

He took a breath. "How bad was it?"

"Wh... What?" she swung around and stared at him as a few tears spilled.

"Forrest said the Bronze was booked for a party tonight... and I knew Angel was coming back." He got up before walking over to embrace her. "I was hoping I was wrong."

"He hates me." Buffy pressed her face into his shirt. "He asked Faith out."

Xander frowned and looked at the two women that had gathered around them before looking at the blonde he was holding. "He's hurt... I was there when Holtz told him you'd signed the papers."

"I was hurt too," she answered.

Anya crossed her arms before giving a shake of her head. "If they'd tried that with me, I'd have torn up the annulment and taken them to court."

Silence fell... drug on, and Tara glanced at Xander uncertainly before forcing a smile. "Liam woke up about half an hour ago. I gave him a bottle and he went right back to sleep."

Buffy took a shaky breath. "Thanks, Tara."

The blonde smiled. "No problem. He's a sweetheart Buffy."

Sunday morning Angel woke with a groan before rolling under the soft sheet to see what time it was. The clock showed ten thirty, and he dropped back onto the bed with a thoughtful frown as his thoughts turned to his first night back in town. He hadn't expected to see Buffy... not so soon anyway. He hadn't even been sure she'd still be around. On the other hand, he knew her mother was the only family she had, and he doubted she'd want to leave her... not like she'd left him.

He shifted and ran a hand through his hair as the old bitter feelings of resentment and anger threatened to overwhelm him before he took a deep breath. There was no way he was going to go through that again, not live in the past, or allow anything like it to happen in the future. He took one last deep breath before getting up and going to take a shower.

"So," Spike started a few hours later when he dropped into a chair and studied his friend. "What did you think of your welcome home party?"

Angel glanced up before shrugging and leaning back. "It was alright."

"It didn't bother you that Fluffy was there then?"

"Did it look like it did?"

"No. Not when you took that brunette into the john with you." He leaned back in his chair. "Was she good?"

"Good enough."

"And you used a condom right?"

"Oh yeah," he gave a slow shake of his head. "I've made mistakes with women before but that's not going to be one of them." Spike chuckled, and Angel's expression grew more serious as he changed the subject. "You know we haven't really had a chance to talk. How are things going for you?"

"For me? It's all good mate. I mean, Cordelia and I have been talking about opening an apartment building. We've even picked out a location and talked to Holtz about how to go about buying it."

Angel nodded. "I take it it's not exactly for sale?"

"No... But the location's perfect." Spike shrugged. "Daniel said he'd take care of it for us." He glanced back at Angel casually. "I suppose you know about the latest project Triad's been working on?"

"One or two of them... but I've been out of town for close to two years."

Spike nodded. "Well.. the gambling casino's being held up by an old man that doesn't want to sell. Then there's a huge protest going on about the tearing down of a one hundred year old church."

"I'm sure I'll be informed," Angel murmured before emptying his beer and looking back up at Spike. "So...are you still with Dru?"

"Oh yeah." Spike gave a wicked smile. "She's still my favorite." He shook his head. "And doing a bloody good business with her new fashion shop."

"Really?"

"Uh huh... " Spike glanced up seriously. "She's even got her own line of clothes." Angel raised an eyebrow skeptically and Spike shook his head. "Hey... Cordy, Darla, and Lilah have worn them on occasion."

"I'm impressed," Angel murmured with a faint smile.

"Yeah," Spike agreed. "Who would have thought my girl had such great fashion sense?"

"She always did have her own style."

Spike nodded. "Well anyway, she's doing well. And Lindsey and Lilah are in college to be lawyers. Darla's looking to follow her mother and be a surgeon." He broke off and took a swallow of beer. "Gunn's got that shop he tinkers around in working on cars, and Fred's his receptionist."

Angel nodded. "I guess he's pretty serious about her?"

"Oh yeah. He hasn't looked at another girl since she moved into town." Angel gave a faint smile before standing and depositing his bottle off to the side of the counter to dispose of later as Spike watched him. "What about you? Anyone special back at Harvard?"

"The way I studied?" He shook his head. "I barely had time to sleep between classes."

Spike snorted. "Yeah, I believe that one." He eyed his friend before sighing. "Well, I have to get going. Promised my parents I'd stop off today for the family reunion." Rolling his eyes, he got to his feet and looked over Angel's house. "You've got a nice place here, but I still wouldn't give up my apartment for it. It's just a little too family oriented for my taste."

Angel shrugged indifferently. "It's alright. It's got a hot tub and pool so I've got a good excuse to tell the girls to bring over bikinis."

Spike smirked before nodding, his gaze staying a little longer on Angel than necessary. "You're okay then," he asked, "with... everything?"

Angel steeled himself before looking up and nodding. "Yeah. I'm good." He met Spike's eyes. "If anything I'm angry, but I guess it'll just take time."

Seemingly satisfied, Spike nodded. "Well, you've got us mate. If you need anything, we've got your back."

"I know."

Spike opened the door and found himself staring at the new Jaguar in Angel's driveway. "Now that's what I call a car."

The brunette rolled his eyes as he leaned against the counter. "Maybe I'll let you drive it sometime."

"You're kidding right?" Spike turned to look at him skeptically. "You wouldn't let me drive that old GTX you had two years ago."

"It was a classic... and a lot more difficult to replace than something just off the assembly line. I mean, let's face it, if I have to replace something because you wreck it, it might as well be something easily replaceable."

Spike laughed. "It's good to have you back Angel."

"Yeah," Angel agreed as he watched Spike close the door behind him. A moment later, he turned to look over the house and allowed it to be with the eyes of the 18 year old he'd been two years ago, the one that had bought a vintage car and a limestone mansion, the one that had made up his mind to take art classes and marry a woman that barely had $100.00 to her name. He didn't like what he saw.

Irritation ran through him and he snorted before giving a shake of his head. He'd never been happier than when he'd been with Buffy, but their relationship had been a lie, and that meant going back to his old life, even if this was it. Oh... but he still had the memories she'd left him with... and someday he wanted to make her pay for them.