A/N: Thanks for waiting for the new chapter. I hope it's worth it. I kind of did it in a rush because I have two stories to write at the same time. Carry on reviewing, good or bad and thanks for reading!

There was a long silence. Almost a minute passed as Spike and Charlotte sat there staring at each other. Buffy had expected her to say something sarcastic, like she herself would have done if she was in the same position.

The silence was extremely uncomfortable. I can't sit here like this any longer, Buffy thought.

"So, anyone for afters?" That was the best I could come up with? She thought.

Finally, Charlotte spoke up. "So where have you been all this time?" She asked him. From the look on Spikes face he didn't want to answer that question, at least not to Charlotte.

"Oh, you know, I've been around. I had some work to do abroad."

Buffy laughed at this. Spike's idea of work was sitting around all day in front of the television watching that awful "Passions" and "Dawson's Creek."

"Abroad? Doing what?" Charlotte asked. It was obvious that Charlotte wasn't going to give up so easily. She was a very inquisitive child.

Buffy could see the clocks ticking inside Spike's brain as he tried to come up with an answer that was as far from the truth as possible and would satisfy Charlotte.

"I was a chef in a restaurant in London," was the answer he came up with.

Buffy smirked, knowing she had one over on Spike. "You'll have to impress us with your culinary expertise one day." She said, knowing full well he couldn't cook to save his life.

"Yeah," Spike glared at Buffy, "That will be fun." He glanced at Charlotte and noticed that she had tears in her eyes, upset that no one was taking her seriously. His look softened and he shuffled along the couch to put his arms around her. "I know I haven't been around for much of your life, but I do love you, and I'm never gonna leave you again." he told her as he wiped a tear away that was sliding down her cheek.

Buffy stood up. She hated to break the emotional reunion but it was time Charlotte went to bed. "Charlotte, its way past your bedtime, you can see your father tomorrow." She said, to no avail. Charlotte stayed firmly in Spikes arms not wanting to let go.

Spike glanced at Buffy and whispered "I'll take her." Scooping Charlotte up into his arms he carried her upstairs and into her bedroom where he placed her in bed, pulling the covers over her. Charlotte spoke up and said "I've missed you Dad."

Spike smiled happily as he looked at his beautiful daughter who was just like her mother. "I've missed you too, L'il Bit." He kissed her forehead and she closed her eyes, falling asleep with a smile on her face. Spike stayed with her until she was fast asleep. He kissed her one last time and left the room. "Goodnight, Nibblet." He said softly.

*****

Half an hour later, Spike came back downstairs. Buffy had cleared the dishes away and was sat watching T.V. As soon as she saw Spike she turned it off.

"That was beautiful, what you did, what you said." She said. "I think she likes you."

Spike smiled. "Well it's true. I did miss her, even though I didn't know. I missed watching her grow up. But I also missed you too."

This was what Buffy had been waiting for. She had missed him more than anything, but never liked admitting it to herself. Not after he tried to rape her. Buffy looked into Spikes eyes which were full of life, something he never used to have when he was a vampire. "I missed you too."

Before she could stop herself, she was leaning closer to him and to her surprise he was too, until they were so close they could fell each others breath. Finally, their lips met, and they kissed, Spikes lips warm and gentle as opposed to being cold, like all those years ago.

The kiss seemed to last a lifetime and eventually, they broke off.

Buffy looked at Spike, smiling and said "I love you."

Spike kissed her on the lips gently. "I love you too."

*****

From her position on the stairs, Charlotte smiled. She had seen everything. For once in her life everything was perfect. Her father was here and her parents were back together. Satisfied, she crept back up the stairs to bed, careful not to disturb her parents. She would wait and find out what happened in the morning.