Unforgettable - Part 6
By Jill

Sunday, August 27th, 5.00 p.m., Los Angeles

They spent the whole weekend in Buffy's apartment talking, watching TV or
sleeping. Saturday night Buffy fell asleep again in Angel's arms only this
time he didn't carry her to bed but held her in his arms. Sunday morning
found them on the sofa with arms and limbs entwined. It was a bit awkward at
first, but then Buffy began to laugh because the belt of her robe had caught
on the buttons of his shirt and that saved the situation.

If someone had told Angel that he would spend a weekend with Buffy talking
and holding her, he would've laughed. Firstly because not in his wildest
dreams had he expected to be there at all and secondly if the unlikely case
did occur talking wouldn't be on his mind. But of course he hadn't counted
on Buffy getting a divorce or that she didn't blame him anymore. And by no
means would he have ever imagined Riley going completely crazy.

Again and again Angel's thoughts returned to the blue-eyed, blond-haired,
laughing boy he once knew and somehow a part of his mind just couldn't
comprehend that boy was the same one who had tried to rape his wife. What
had happened to change him so profoundly? Or had he just been too blind to
see that it had been there the whole time? The anger, the jealousy, the
violence.

##
"Hey, Angel."

A grinning Riley stood on the Reardon's doorstep, his hands bruised and his
ten-year-old face smeared with dirt. Angel found himself grinning in return.
"Riley! What happened to you?"

"I borrowed Connor's bike," the blond answered, his grin wider than before.

"And?" Angel asked, not understanding what happened. Connor was Riley's
older brother by six years and he was a rebel. He drove a Harley, wore
leather clothes and a red bandanna. Carmen Reardon always crossed herself
when he drove by. Her husband just laughed. Angel and Riley on the other
hand saw him as their hero. The only thing that irritated them was that
Connor always had girls with him and kissed them a lot. What could a guy
probably want from a girl?

"The motorcycle," Riley clarified.

Angel's eyes grew wide, "The motorbike? Oh sh-" he started saying, then
quickly glanced behind himself to see if his mother heard him. Releasing a
breath of relief, he amended, "I mean, wow. Where is it?"

The blond turned his head and Angel followed his eyes to see the red machine
standing on the sideway. And he figured out that the filth on Riley's face
was nothing but motor oil. "What have you done?" he asked alarmed that the
motorbike might be damaged. Connor most certainly wouldn't like to hear
that.

"Nothing," Riley shook his head as if the question was an insult. "I just
took it. Connor's gone for two days. Dad gave him his car and so the bike
stayed at home." He winked, "Wanna go for a ride?"

"A ... ride?" Angel's mouth went dry with the thought of riding Connor's
sacred bike. "But what if something happens? I mean we aren't allowed to
ride a bike at all and Connor..." he trailed off, giving his friend a
sceptic look.

Riley made a dismissive gesture with his hand and snorted, "Nothing's going
to happen. And it'll be fun." ##

And Angel had gone with him. The result had been a bruised knee for Riley
and a broken wrist for Angel. Their parents had scolded them and Connor
who'd quickly discovered the damage to his bike looked as if he was ready to
kill. Only after they'd sworn to pay for the repairs he grinned and
winked at them. He really was a nice guy even though Connor made himself
look tough and dangerous. Today he was working as a lawyer in Washington.
Angel could still remember his mother's disbelief the day Mr. Finn had told
them his oldest son was going to law school.

God, those times had been fun. He had loved driving Connor's bike, Riley
laughing all the time. It had even been worth the broken wrist.

"Hey."

Buffy's soft voice pulled him from his thoughts as she slipped onto the sofa
beside him. "Hey," he replied, trying to come back to the present.

She tilted her head and eyed him carefully, "Heavy thoughts?"

He slightly shook his head, "No, not really. Or... well, I was just
remembering when Riley took his brother's bike and we drove it right down a
hill. He bruised his knee and I broke my wrist, but it was great. I..." he
looked up and lifted his shoulders in a helpless gesture.

"I know," she replied, leaning her head against his right shoulder. "I think
it's even harder for you. You have so many memories, good ones. I just..."
she trailed off, not knowing how to explain, but knowing also that she wouldn't
need to, that Angel would understand without words.

"Do you know how Connor is?" he asked after a moment.

"He's fine. Riley and him don't talk very often as far as I know. He came to
our wedding, then twice afterwards, but I don't know if they called each
other once the last two years. That's when... when Riley started seeing
other women," she said, and he heard it in her voice that she had problems
saying it. He knew she hadn't loved Riley, but she still was his wife and he
had cheated on her, it was humiliating nevertheless, and obviously
everyone at the precinct knew about it.

"Riley wasn't bad the first two years," she continued calmly, "We had some
really good times. Fun. Laughter. Then suddenly everything changed. I
still-" she paused abruptly and her head came up from his shoulder, an odd
expression on her face, "You know," she said, "Don't you think it's strange
that almost over night his attitude, not just towards me, but his whole
attitude changed? I never even tried to find out why. But now..." she looked
speculatively, and Angel knew what she was referring to.

"You think he might be...?"

"I don't know," she lifted her shoulders in a helpless shrug, "and I really
hope I'm wrong. I mean there might be something else, something we just
don't know about. He isn't the most communicative guy. I know he seems open
and all, but he never really confided in me."

"No he doesn't," Angel confirmed. "The blond California boy look fools a lot
of people. But deep down, Riley is a completely different person. And you're
right you know. It's one thing to be jealous and to try to steal your
friend's girlfriend but that..." he shook his head, still not able to accept
that fact that his former best friend had tried to rape his wife. "I just
don't get it."

"Last night you said you followed him. Did you find anything interesting?"

He hesitated only a second, he told her everything he'd found out, including
Riley's encounter with Simone Chambers and his own suspicions about it.

She wasn't surprised, but her eyes were incredibly sad, "Yeah. That sounds
like him. Unfortunately that's the Riley I've known the last two years. That
was the reason I finally found the courage to file for divorce. Oh, Angel,"
she put her head back on his shoulder, "What are we going to do?"

He desperately wanted to make this easier for her, so he suggested, "How
about telling Cordelia about that you know about the investigation?" He had
wanted to wait until Monday, but maybe, he thought, it was better to talk to
the brunette in private.

She rolled her eyes, and blinked, understanding what he was trying to do,
"Gee, and I thought this weekend couldn't get worse."

*****

Riley didn't have a nice weekend. After he left the apartment he'd once
lived in, he went to the closest bar and got incredibly drunk. But the image
of Angel kissing Buffy and especially her response wouldn't let go. God, he
hated the bastard. And he hated the fact that his wife had never stopped
loving Angel. And more than anything he hated himself for being so stupid to
think that would ever change. That the mere fact that she was wearing his
ring would wipe the memory of another man away.

God, how stupid could a guy be?

Groaning, he turned in his bed and wasn't really surprised to find a naked
woman beside him, although for the life of him he couldn't remember her name
or how she'd gotten there. What, however, they'd done in the bed was quite
obvious, regarding the fact that he was naked too. It was late Sunday
afternoon and he had no memory of the last 40 hours and he desperately
wished his temporary amnesia would include a little earlier. Then, he
thought, he wouldn't have to remember what he'd almost done to the woman he
still loved more than he could express. The only woman he had ever loved.
The one who never loved him back.

Hissing some expletive he pushed the naked woman's warm body away, stumbled
from his bed and into his trousers to pour himself a drink and light a
cigarette. Running a hand through his tousled hair, he let out a harsh
laugh. God, he was pathetic. His father would turn in his grave if he were
able to see him like this. And his deeply catholic mother wouldn't stop
reciting Hail Marys, hoping that that would somehow make up for her son's
sins and reduce his time in the purgatory.

Purgatory. Another harsh laugh came out of his mouth, and he downed the
whiskey in one large gulp. His mother had no idea. He was in his own
personal purgatory. Ever since two years ago, almost to the day, when he'd
almost by accident, been able to read the final report about the shooting in
front of the bank, the shooting that had killed Buffy's brother Mike.

His hand suddenly shaky he poured himself another drink and downed it the
same way he'd done with the other. God, he needed it. He managed to go
through weekdays without it, he was occupied then, dealing with cases, but
he also had to look at her, and at night, or after waking up, the reality
would crush down on him, almost making him drown under the weight of his own
guilt.

He could still hear his mother say, "isn't he a nice boy", and he wanted to
smash something thinking back to her words. His mother had been dead for
over five years and not for the first time Riley was glad. She wouldn't have
been able to live with the shame of what her son had done with his life. Her
son meaning Riley. Not Connor, whom everyone had expected to fail.

But of course Connor hadn't failed. On the contrary. He was a successful
lawyer in Washington, working for a Senator from time to time, making good
money and he was happily married with three kids. With 41, Connor had
managed to get all the things Riley had wanted for himself. And he hadn't
screwed up, the way his little brother had done. Buffy had once asked him
why he didn't call Connor anymore. The brothers had always been close
despite the age difference in their youth. But how could he face Connor,
look into his brother's eyes after the things he'd done?

He felt better after the fourth drink, but of course he still wasn't drunk.
His increasing alcohol abuse during the last two years demanded more than
four shots to make him numb enough to be able to live with himself. He
turned when he heard the woman yawn and looked down at her. She was pretty
he had to admit. It should boost his ego to see that good-looking women
easily fell for him. He knew why. Somehow he had managed to preserve his
body. He was still fit and well trained, despite the alcohol. It was
necessary for his job.

He loved being a cop, had always loved it. He had been so incredibly proud
after the Academy. Now it was the only thing he'd left. The only thing that
held him together. He couldn't afford to lose his job. Without it, there
would be nothing left. So he held his body fit and did his job. And he did
it well, he was a good cop.

"Can I have a drink too?" the woman asked, slipping from the bed, completely
unconcerned about her own nakedness. Her voice was soft and sexy. Her eyes
were still half-closed and under normal circumstances Riley would've found
it attractive. Now, it simply repulsed him.

"No," he said sharply, hating the woman, hating himself more. "Get your
clothes and get out."

"Hey," she smiled and came closer. "No need to get angry. I don't need a
drink." She reached out, her finger trailed down his chest, and stopped at his
denims, "We can do other things instead."

He slapped her hand away and stepped back, "I said, get out," he almost
shouted.

Her eyes widened for a moment, then they narrowed, "Geez, no need to get
insulting. I'm gone in a minute."

"Make it a second," he hissed and turned away. He didn't want to see her
again. Didn't want to think about her. She was just a woman, without a name,
and in a minute without a face. He wouldn't even remember her tomorrow.

Mike's face came into his mind again and with a tortured sound he threw his
half-full glass across the room and it smashed against the wall breaking into a
thousand pieces. The woman, who was still only in her bra and panties,
gathered the rest of her clothes and hurried out, not willing to risk
staying close to him.

Riley didn't even notice it. He walked over to the kitchen counter and took
another glass, then filled it to the rim. Maybe after he'd downed the
contents he would be able to forget. And if he was lucky the booze would
some day make the memories disappear all together.

*****

Same day, 7.00 p.m.

If Cordelia hadn't told him about what had happened in Buffy's apartment two
days ago, Doyle would've grinned seeing Angel and his former, and judging
his friend's expression also, his present love-interest standing there when
he opened the door. But because he knew, his face was compassionate when it
fell on the tiny blond, "Buffy," he said gently and smiled, then nodded at
Angel. "What can we do for you?"

"We need to talk to your fiancée," Angel announced and nodded as well, when
Doyle stepped back to invite them in. They went past him and Doyle was
surprised to see Buffy smile slightly. He had seen rape-victims before and
they usually looked frightened or subdued, some of them even angry, but the
blond was calm, and if it hadn't been for the colorful bruise on her cheek
nobody would've guessed what had occurred not even 48 hours ago.

Okay, so was "only" an attempted rape, but Doyle learned quickly that for
some women that didn't make a difference. The violation of their individual
space and the feeling of complete helplessness also left those who had
escaped rape at the last possible moment shaken and scarred. Why it seemed
so different for Buffy, he could only guess. She must be incredibly strong
or it could have been Angel's company; probably it was a combination of
both. Or, she just didn't show her feelings, let others only see a pretty
surface, not wanting them to detect what was underneath.

He was pulled from his thoughts by the appearance of his soon-to-be wife who
just came from the bedroom, concentrating on inserting an earring. They were
due for a dinner with Cordelia's boss in an hour and she'd been particularly
careful in choosing the right dress. A moment before she would've ran right
into Angel's chest she became aware of the company and stopped with a
startled gasp, put a hand over her chest, "Oh my God," she closed her eyes
for a moment, then looked at Angel, "*What* are you doing here? You almost
gave me a heart attack."

She took a deep breath, ignored Angel's amused grin and shifted her
attention towards Buffy, "How are you?" she asked immediately.

"I'm okay," the blond replied and Cordelia's concern settled a little. She'd
expected some bright 'I'm fine', but Buffy's quiet reaction gave her the
feeling that the blond meant what she said. "A bit shaken still," Buffy
added, smiling at Angel when he took her hand, "but so far okay."

"That's good," Cordelia gave her a friendly smile, then looked back and
forth between her two visitors, "So why are you here?"

"What?" Angel raised a brow, "No tantrum today?"

Doyle snickered and his fiancée shot him a nasty look, before she turned
back to Angel, "Just tell me why you're here. I have an important date in an
hour. My boss throws a birthday party for his wife and has invited us. I
can't be late." She sighed, then amended, "*We* can't be late."

Buffy pulled slightly at Angel's hand, when she replied, "Oh, well, if
you're busy... We can talk about this tomorrow," she suggested.

Codelia's gaze again went back and forward between her guests, and after a
moment of considering the situation, she sighed, "No. I'd rather hear the
bad news now."

"Bad news?" Buffy asked a bit breathless. "Who said it was bad news?"

"Buffy," the brunette sounded as if the blonde's question had been an insult
to her intelligence, "I've known you almost twenty years. Don't you think I
can notice a guilty expression when I see one?"

The blond was about to reply again when she felt Angel squeeze the hand he
was still holding. When she turned to look at him she saw him shaking his
head slightly, signaling her to let the explaining to him. "May we sit down
for a minute?" he asked.

"Sit down, huh?" Doyle grinned. "That bad?"

Cordelia glared at him again, but couldn't shake off the feeling that his
comment was - as so often - right on the money. Doyle was rarely wrong, and
if nothing else, the way Buffy and Angel were looking at each other was more
than just slightly suspicious. "Okay, then," she said with an exaggerated
sigh, "spill it. Ruin my evening."

Angel smiled slightly, "Ruin your evening? I wouldn't dare." His smile
widened into a grin when he saw her narrowing her eyes. "Never mind," he
continued, "The reason we came was that I told Buffy about the
investigation." He said it calmly, almost casually, and then glancing
shortly at Doyle, whose eyes had widened in surprise and understanding, he
shifted his attention back to Cordelia.

It was almost funny to see the myriad of emotions crossing the brunette's
face in a matter of seconds. There was surprise, disbelief, anger, and many
more Angel wasn't able to name. In the end she just stared at him as if he'd
suddenly grown a second head. "You're sure you are alright?" she asked, her
voice a bit shaky, the disbelief clearly audible. "I mean just to make sure.
You didn't recently split your personality and thought, what the heck, I'm
undercover for the Internal Department and in my other life I choose to do
whatever I want?" Now her voice was soft, too soft, and Angel could already
anticipate the explosion of anger that was about to erupt any minute.

"Cordelia-" Buffy tried to intervene and explain but she was cut off when
the assistant DA jumped to her feet and began to pace the room, her hands
waving frantically through the air.

"I don't believe it. Who else knows about this? Riley, because he was your
pal once, or Darla, because you and her hit the sack together all those
years ago, or... hey, why not Drusilla, because she was your rookie and if
I'm guessing right, Spike is probably bonking her this very moment," she
raged, her strides getting more agitated by the minute.

"Cordy, darling-" Doyle tried to soothe her but the dark glare she shot him
made him shut up instantly. He knew her well enough to see that now was not the
time to discuss things. Or to try to calm the waves. The hurricane was in
full force and nothing would stop it now.

She stopped suddenly, straightened, her hands firmly planted at her hips,
she took two menacing steps in Angel's direction, who to Doyle's utter
surprise was sitting calmly, seemingly not caring for the storm that was
about to come upon him. Like a very old, strong tree, Doyle mused.
Completely unconcerned about the upcoming danger. But, even the strongest
tree could be felled if the storm was furious enough.

"I should fire you," she hissed, "Fire you right now. It's inexcusable."
Almost audibly her head snapped around and her eyes focused on Buffy for a
moment, "I hope you know this has nothing to do with you personally," she
said a little calmer. "I'm your friend and I never thought you were involved
in any of this, but," her eyes narrowed again when they came back to rest on
Angel, "this is a matter of trust and obedience. You knew exactly what your
job was. You knew what you were meant to do and... what not."

She took a deep breath and combed a hand through her hair, "Unfortunately,
you're already in too deep to replace you. Besides there's nobody equally
qualified for the job. With enough inside knowledge, enough experience, and
still distant enough to be objective. Or at least that's what I thought. It
seems at least in point three I was wrong," she ended her rant. Then
noticing the smug look on Angel's face, she sighed, "And I suppose you
already knew."

"Of course I did," he grinned, "but I also knew you had to get some steam
out of your system."

"You're very sure of yourself," a warning entered Cordelia's voice. A
warning that she would only tolerate so much.

"In this case, I was," Angel replied, winking at her, making her laugh
against her own will. "Cordelia," his voice was suddenly serious, almost
pleading, "I couldn't keep it from Buffy. She needed to know what was going
on. I refuse to start anything on a lie."

"I can understand that," she replied after a minute, "A lie can be... wait a
moment," she stared at her visitors, "You refuse to start what? What is
going on here?" Then her eyes suddenly widened and now a grin appeared on
her face, "My, my, this is even more serious than I thought yesterday," she
stated, exchanging a short glance with her future husband.

Angel felt suddenly uncomfortable with her excitement. Sure, he and Buffy
had spent a weekend together. But it had been unusual circumstances that led
to it and they'd spent the time as friends only. Yes, there was still a
strong sexual attraction. Angel wasn't oblivious to it, and he also didn't
want to deny it. But they hadn't once discussed any future plans or what her
plans were. She was, after all, still married to Riley. And although he knew
there were no feelings from her side and that she was glad it would be over
soon, there was no guarantee she would jump into the next relationship,
giving up the independence she just gained. "Cordelia, you're jumping to
conclusions here," he said and now there was a warning in his voice.

Of course the brunette ignored it, too happy with her friends and feeling
too smug at the moment. She was the one amongst her friends who'd always
insisted Buffy and Angel would get together again, who'd all but ignored
Riley's existence, and who was now feeling better than ever. She could
hardly wait to call Willow, Xander and Faith to tell them the good news.
Besides, underneath all her tough behavior, the heart of a romantic was
beating strongly, a side of her only very few people were allowed to see. "I
still see what I see," she replied, her gaze darting back and forth between
Buffy and Angel.

"We had one dinner together," the blond tried to calm down her friend's
excitement. At the moment Buffy felt a bit cornered. There was no denying of
her feelings for Angel, and she felt comfortable in his presence, was
grateful for the understanding that had helped her to get through the
weekend, but besides a toe curling kiss at her car, Angel had behaved like a
friend, and for all she knew it could be all he intended to be. Plus, she
had absolutely no urge to have all her friends interfere with her love life.
She could almost hear Willow's excited babble, and Xander's oh so funny
remarks or Faith's smug grin.

"So you had dinner together already," Cordelia raised a knowing brow at the
couple. "And why didn't you tell me?" she demanded, feeling slightly hurt by
the lack of confidence by her friend.

"Cordy, leave them alone," Doyle said, giving Buffy and Angel a
compassionate glance. He of all people knew exactly how persistent his
fiancée could be. "It's none of your business."

The look she gave him when she turned around was so funny he had a hard time
not laughing. She stared at him with utter disbelief, "Not my business?" She
could have asked referring to her own hair or to her bank account. The
remark seemed absolutely ridiculous to her. "Of course this is my business.
Buffy is my friend. Angel works for me. Whatever happens to them is
absolutely my business."

Angel decided that now was not the time to discuss the matter, "Anyways," he
said, looking at Cordelia, "Wasn't there a dinner you had to attend?"

"A dinner?" she stared at him, completely at loss for a moment, then panic
entered her eyes. "The dinner! Christ almighty. We need to be there on
time." Like a bullet she shot up from the chair she'd been sitting on, "I
need to finish my makeup." She was almost out of the room, when she turned,
"We have to talk about this tomorrow. With my bossy," she told Angel. "Be at
my office at two, both of you."

"Yes, sir," the dark-haired man joked when the door slammed behind her. He
heard Buffy chuckle, and gave her a warm smile. It was so good to feel her
relax and think about things other than Riley for a moment. "Sorry," he said
after a moment, shifting his eyes towards Doyle.

"No worries," his friend grinned when they all walked to the door, "I
understand you had to tell her. Besides," he winked at them, "doesn't she
look great when she's all worked up. Of course I'd never tell her, but she
is even more beautiful this way."

Buffy grinned back, "Yes, but you better never tell her."

"Never," Angel agreed and the three laughed.

They shook hands at the door and Doyle gave the blond a warm smile, "Take
care of yourself," he said. Then his eyes were on Angel for a moment, "But I
guess I don't have to worry."

Buffy followed his eyes and smiled too, "No, I don't think so."

*****

Monday, August 28th, 9.00 a.m., Los Angeles

Riley couldn't remember when he ever dreaded entering his precinct the way
he did now. He had been numb the whole weekend, couldn't even remember most
of it. His only hour of awareness, when he woke up with a heavy head and an
even heavier heart beside a woman whose name he still couldn't remember, had
been drowned in two bottles of Scottish Whisky.

But with Monday morning where there was no opportunity to escape into a
alcohol oblivion, the memories were back in full force. There was no way of
denying it anymore. He'd gone into a jealous rage and tried to rape his
wife.

There was a feeling of disgust inside of him, but it was also mixed with the
dread that everyone would know, that she would've told her friends, namely
Xander and Willow and of course that bitch Cordelia Chase. Riley hadn't even
contemplated the idea that Buffy might have reported him for what he'd done.
But now, entering the place where the good guys were trying to get the bad
guys, he was hit front with it and he could feel cold sweat forming on his
forehead, some of it even trickling down between his shoulder blades. God,
what was he going to do if she'd reported him?

It wasn't that he didn't feel sorry for what he'd done. Because he did. He
felt sorry and disgusted with himself, knowing what he'd almost done,
remembering the fear and panic in her eyes when he'd thrown her to the
ground, his large body pinning her down. But there was already so much he
felt sorry for in his life, this was just one thing more on his
overloaded conscience.

The thought, however, of being reported for attempted rape, being prosecuted
and probably convicted in the end made his throat close up and his gut knot
in fear. The consequence would be that he would lose his job and that was
something that he wouldn't be able to deal with.

Not really caring where he was going he bumped right into another body and
startled he was looking at the last person he wanted to face today.

"Buffy," he almost whispered.

"Ri - Riley."

He saw a shudder running over her body, but she controlled it after only a
second. They stared at each other, neither of them able to move, although
all they both wanted was to run for cover. But somehow they seemed frozen in
shock at the unexpected closeness after what had happened barely more than
48 hours ago.

Then suddenly she seemed to shake herself out of whatever had been holding
her in place and wanted to hurry away, when he reached for her and held onto
her arm, "Wait," he said.

She turned slowly and the look in her eyes took his breath away. On the
surface they were cool and controlled, but underneath he could see pure
hatred. "Let go," she hissed.

"Buffy, please," he said, ignoring her command, "I just want to talk to
you."

"But I don't want to talk," she replied, shifting to get her arm free. "And
I said, let go."

Again, he ignored her, "I just want to say how sorry I am, I-"

He couldn't finish his sentence since a hand came down on his shoulder and
his body was propelled backward with great force. He slammed against the
wall, the force of the impact pressing the air from his lungs so that he had
trouble drawing a breath.

"She said, let go," came Angel's angry and biting voice and Riley's head
jerked up.

He stared at the other man, whose body was trembling with rage. The blond
tried to form words, but he still couldn't make his voice work. So he just
held up his hands in surrender.

"Stay away from her," Angel warned, "Do you understand? Stay away or our
next encounter won't be just a free flight through a room."

"I just... tried to say I'm sorry," Riley finally managed, straightening
against the wall. "And I am sorry."

"Nobody cares if you're sorry," Angel hissed advancing the other man again.

The blond looked at his former friend and with sudden understanding he could
feel the anger boiling up in him as well, "Oh, I see, she called you. Her
white knight in shining armor." He should've known that she would run to
her beloved, he thought bitingly.

"You better shut up," Angel warned again, "You should be glad I'm a cop.
Because if I wasn't, I would end this here and now."

"Oh really," Riley mocked, his guilt instantly forgotten, overruled by well
known jealousy, "Did she call you to finish what I didn't give her?" he
asked, "She was hot you know, but honestly, she isn't as tempting as she was
before. That's the reason she had to call you for what she couldn't get from
me."

It all happened the same moment. Buffy gasped in shock while Angel - with an
outcry of rage - hurled himself on Riley. The same moment Xander, Spike,
Drusilla and Faith entered the precinct and seeing what was happening they
launched themselves between the two enraged men and separated them by sheer
force.

"WHOA," Xander said when Riley swung his fist and missed the dark-haired
man's face only by an inch. "Take his other arm," he hissed at Faith, while
Spike tried to hold Angel back. The blond had known Angel for a while but
never before had he seen such an expression of rage in the other man's eyes.

"Angel."

Buffy's soft, pleading voice finally managed to cut through the red haze
that was still swimming in front of Angel's eyes at Riley's words and he had
to take several calming breaths to think clearly again. For a moment he
really lost it and all he wanted was kill the bastard who had done this to
Buffy and was now mocking her with it.

Running a shaky hand through his hair he focused on Buffy, "I'm sorry," he
whispered. "I lost it for a second."

She smiled a bit crookedly, "I noticed. But Angel, he isn't worth it."

"I know," he replied and turned his head towards Spike who was still holding
his arm. "I'm okay now," he told his friend with a nod.

"You sure?" the blond asked not quite convinced. He had still problems
recognizing his friend in the raging maniac he'd seen only minutes ago.
"What happened?"

Angel glanced quickly at the spot where Riley had been standing just before,
but his former friend was gone. Xander and Faith had led him quickly away to
avoid any further confrontation. "It's not important."

Spike raised a brow at that, and so Buffy said, "He wanted to apologize, I
think, but he touched me and I didn't... want it. So Angel pulled him away
from me and then..." she shrugged, "the situation escalated from there."

"So I saw." Spike sighed, "You almost lost it there my friend," he told
Angel with a serious face. "I wouldn't have liked to arrest you for the
murder of filth."

The dark-haired man closed his eyes for a moment, "Sorry. He... he said
things..." His hands were still shaky and he was grateful when Buffy took
one of them. "I can't believe that's the person I once knew." He swallowed
hard and shook his head as if he had to clear his mind.

Seeing Angel's distress Buffy gave Spike a quick sign and with a nod and a
last look at his friend he walked away while Buffy was already pulling the
other man into the women's bathroom.

Angel was following her without resistance and only when the door closed
behind them he blinked, "It seems we end up in here a lot," he murmured.

Buffy smiled at his words, "Last time you had to hold me, today it's my
turn," she said and slung her arms around his waist holding him close.

His arms came around her after only a short hesitation, "You shouldn't have
to do this," he whispered against her ear, "What he said to you..." his
voice trailed off, the pain clearly audible.

"Shhhh," she soothed, stroking his back, feeling a thrill of pleasure
holding him, being held by him, despite the horrible scene with Riley
before. "It's okay. I was surprised, that's all. He can't really hurt me
anymore."

He raised his hand and took her chin between thumb and forefinger so that
she had to look at him, "You sure?"

"Yes," she replied honestly and smiled. "You can only be hurt by people who
mean something to you."

He was watching her face intently and finally he nodded, obviously satisfied
with what he was seeing there. "How was your night?" he asked softly, the
back of his fingers caressing her cheek, where the bruise Riley had caused
was hidden under makeup.

"Okay," she told him. "After you left, I drank the tea you made for me, then
I went to sleep. I'm alright, really."

"Good," he said, then bent down and kissed her forehead. "Will you be
alright for the day?" he wanted to know, concern in his eyes.

"Yes," she assured him, touching his cheek with one hand. The emotions
whirling through her this moment were so strong, so overwhelming. She felt
so close to him, not just physically, but in every possible way. Remembering
that they were still in the women's bathroom of the police station, she
cleared her throat and straightened. "What are you going to do today?" she
asked to change the subject.

Angel straightened as well. He pulled back and Buffy stifled a moan at the
sudden loss of his warmth. "Well, there's still our date with Cordelia. She
called me this morning, insisting again that you'd come with me."

"Oh?" Buffy raised a brow.

"Yeah. Spike and I complained we weren't enough people to do the job, so
they agreed we'd get some help." He suddenly grinned, "Seems my indiscretion
brought you a new job."

Her eyes rounded, "What?"

"Yeah," was all he replied, an apologetic look in his eyes. "I should've
kept my mouth shut. I'm sorry, I know how it feels to spy on friends and-"

Her fingers on his lips stopped him, "No need to apologize. It was the right
thing to do. I'm glad you trusted me with it." She suddenly rolled her eyes,
"Although, maybe I should amend that. The idea of Cordelia being my boss
now..."

As a reply he grinned, "Pretty scary, huh? But we can suffer together." He
reached for the door-handle, "How about we go tell Giles?"

She nodded, "Yeah, that'd be good."

*****

His eyes drifted to the lieutenant's office from time to time, what the hell
were they doing with Giles, Riley thought. Ten minutes after he'd been
pulled away from Angel, the dark-haired man and Buffy had entered Giles'
office. That had been half an hour ago.

Were they telling him about what had happened in Buffy's apartment Friday
night? Would they report him now? God, he should've known that she'd call
Angel the moment he was out of the door. His former so-called friend was
back for a week and he and Buffy were already attached at the hip. The way
Angel had come to her rescue, the way Angel had looked at him, with murder
in his eyes. Angel had been ready to kill him, for a moment Riley had seen
it in the other man's eyes, the cold determination, that made him shiver
even now.

Angel wasn't a violent person, he was usually the type who would try to talk
and discuss things through, try to persuade people. Riley had often mocked
him for being too soft, for still being a virgin when they'd started college
all those years ago. He had felt good because as far as girls were
concerned, Riley had the advantage.

But to Riley's amazement, Angel didn't care. He showed no intention to get
even with his friend and when they'd left college and entered the Police
Academy, Angel had only had two girlfriends, while Riley hadn't been quite
as selective and in his senior year had developed a special taste for
freshmen. There had been Darla then and Riley thought about the nice
brunette Angel met for a while, but nothing more.

Where girls were concerned Angel was downright boring. Riley had never been
able to understand why he hadn't used his position as quarterback of the
college football team. The girls were throwing themselves at Angel, but he
wouldn't even look. Riley once asked, and his friend had shrugged and told
him that he wasn't interested in casual sex.

And then they met Buffy. They had been on an assignment and Buffy had worked
at the same case. The attraction between Angel and her had been immediate
and strong. The air crackled between them, and they weren't able to look
anywhere but at each other. Within a week they were a couple, inseparable
and deeply in love. So deep that neither of them noticed that Riley had been
falling in love with her as well.

He'd known from the first moment that she was the one. The woman you met
once in a lifetime, but she didn't look at him, not even once. Her eyes were
on Angel, and only on Angel. Riley would never forget the pain slicing
through him when Angel showed him the engagement ring he'd bought for Buffy
and Riley knew that it was the end of his dreams, knew without a doubt that
she would accept Angel's proposal.

Then Mike had died and everything changed. Riley had seen his opportunity in
holding Buffy's hand when it was certain it had been Angel's weapon. She'd
cried in his arms for days and then after an especially horrible day for her
they ended up in bed. Two weeks later Buffy accepted his proposal and after
another two weeks they were married. Riley didn't ask why, he didn't want to
know. All he knew was that the woman of his dreams was finally his and that
Angel was out of their lives, for what Riley believed had been for good.

Of course his luck never stayed for long, and now Angel was back, his wife
was divorcing him and if he was guessing right they were destroying his
career right this moment.

No, he thought, and pressed thumb and forefinger against his eyes, rubbing
them roughly. They weren't destroying his career. He did that all by
himself. Not just 48 hours ago when he'd lost it and tried to rape his wife,
but two years ago when an accident had ended all his dreams forever.

But even knowing that, he found himself hoping they were talking about a
completely different subject in Giles' office.

... to be continued