After everyone had calmed down, Cordelia realised something.
She had three presents in front of her, one from Angel, one from Wesley, and one from Gunn, as well as the cake, but Doyle had not even mentioned having anything for her.
When she realised what she was thinking, she mentally chastised herself, 'Cordelia Angela Chase! He's just came back from the *dead*, of *course* he wouldn't have a present for you!'
However, Doyle saw her looking at her other presents and guessed what she was thinking, and decided to put her out of her misery.
He smiled at her and said, " 'Delia honey, I have summat for you."
Cordelia looked at him, surprised, and her face lit up when she realised what he meant.
"It's not much, but the PTB where nice enough to give me summat back that I'd bought ya *before* I died," he said as he stood up to get it from the back pocket of his jeans, and placed it into the palm of her hand.
She looked at it, and her smile widened.
It was a beautiful silver heart-shaped locket, with a shamrock engraved on it, she turned it over, and put a hand to her mouth in an attempt to stop herself from crying, because, engraved onto the back, were the words 'Princess. All my love, Doyle'.
When she opened it, she could not stop the tears from flowing.
There were two pictures inside. One of her - Doyle's favourite, and one of Doyle.
Doyle crouched in front of her and gently wiped the tears away. "You can change the pictures if you want ta." he whispered.
"No. Thank you Doyle. I love it. *All* of it," she whispered back.
Then she thought of something. "When had you been planning on giving this to me?"
Doyle blushed before replying quietly, "I don't know. I'd just had a win, and I was on me way home when I saw it in a window, and I just had ta get it for ya, and I just hoped that I'd have the right ta give it ta ya one day. I know I don't have the right now b-"
Cordelia cut him off.
"But you do have the right Doyle," she told him.
"What?" he replied, more than a little puzzled.
She took a deep breath, and glanced at Angel, who nodded, and said, "You can tell him to his face now. He's back."
"What? Tell me what ta me face?" Doyle said, looking back and forth between Angel and Cordelia, as if he was watching a tennis match.
Cordelia took another deep breath before saying, "While you were...gone, I did some thinking about my life, and what it would be like without you in it. I know, how self-centred can I get, but hear me out. I realised that, had I let it, there could have been more to our relationship than just friendship. That's why you have the right to give me the locket. Because I realised - although I'd thought it was too late, that I love you too."
Doyle gaped in amazement, and just sat there open-mouthed for a minute, before saying, "I think I'm going a little deaf during me death and resurrection, so could ya repeat that for me please?"
Cordelia sighed, but decided to humour him. She took both of his hands in hers, and said, "I, Cordelia Angela Chase, have fallen in love with you, Allen Francis Doyle."
At that, Doyle's legs gave way beneath him, and he flopped onto the floor, glad that he had been crouching, and not standing.
From this new stance, he whispered, "That's what I thought you said."
They just gazed into each others eyes for a moment, forgetting that there was anyone else in the room until they absorbed the sounds of applause.
"Congratulations guys! I'm glad you finally got it together," Angel said to them.
"Yeah. Maybe *you* will be able to succeed were we couldn't - keeping Cordy outta trouble," Gunn added.
Doyle grinned at him in reply. "No chance."
"Yes. Congratulations. I wish you all the best. Both of you," Wesley said quietly, nodding.
Doyle was sitting there on the floor in front of Cordelia, when he remembered something, and he stood up suddenly, rooting through his pockets.
"Oh! I forgot! The PTB gave me summat else back."
The others looked at him, intrigued.
"What?" Cordelia asked.
"I'll show ya in a minute, when I remember where it is. Where in the blue blazes is me brown leather?" Doyle said, as he stopped looking through his pockets and started looking round the room.
Cordelia blushed slightly, remembering what she had been doing earlier that morning, and pulled the jacket out from under the chair.
"It's here, but it won't be in there, because I've had it ever since you -"
Doyle cut her off by taking it off her and pulling a dark velvety jewellery box out of the inside pocket.
"-died," Cordelia finished, staring at the box.
"That wasn't there before!" she cried.
"I know. When the PTB said that they'd send me back, I asked them for the locket, and this. So they gave me the locket, but put this back were I'd last had it - in me coat," Doyle explained.
"Oh. Well then, what is it?" Cordelia asked.
Angel looked at him questioningly, "It's not?..."
Doyle nodded at him. "Yeah, 'tis."
"What? What is it? And why does Angel know what it is and I don't?" Cordelia asked.
Even Wesley and Gunn looked curious.
"Angel knows what 'tis 'coz I remembered it when Harry came ta see me, and I showed him it. It's a family heirloom, and it's bin in the family - me mother's side, for generations," Doyle explained, then he opened the box, and gave it to Cordelia.
She gasped as she took the gold claddagh ring out of the box, and turned it so that the light glinted off it's smooth, shiny golden surface, and created facets of red light when the light split through the garnet heart in the centre.
"Ya know what ya do with a claddagh ring don't ya 'Delia?" he asked nervously.
"Of course I do. When you wear the heart pointing away from you, it means you're single and when you wear it pointing towards you, it means that you belong to someone," Cordelia whispered in reply.
She waited for a minute, and when Doyle did not do anything, she handed him the ring, and said, "Well then, are you gonna put it on me or not?"
He looked into her eyes, and she smiled. He smiled back, and put it on her engagement finger, the heart pointing toward her.
They smiled at each other, eyes shining with love, as if they were the only two people in the world.
"I love ye 'Delia."
"I love you too Doyle."
Then they kissed. Another bone-melter. But this time, it was a kiss that both of them knew was full of love, from both parties.
As they came out of the kiss slowly, Doyle smiled at Cordelia, a typical Irish smile in the way that only Doyle can, and said, "Happy Birthday Princess."
Cordelia smiled back, and, tightening her grip around him, she glanced around the room before saying, "Doyle, having you back is the best birthday present ever!"
She had three presents in front of her, one from Angel, one from Wesley, and one from Gunn, as well as the cake, but Doyle had not even mentioned having anything for her.
When she realised what she was thinking, she mentally chastised herself, 'Cordelia Angela Chase! He's just came back from the *dead*, of *course* he wouldn't have a present for you!'
However, Doyle saw her looking at her other presents and guessed what she was thinking, and decided to put her out of her misery.
He smiled at her and said, " 'Delia honey, I have summat for you."
Cordelia looked at him, surprised, and her face lit up when she realised what he meant.
"It's not much, but the PTB where nice enough to give me summat back that I'd bought ya *before* I died," he said as he stood up to get it from the back pocket of his jeans, and placed it into the palm of her hand.
She looked at it, and her smile widened.
It was a beautiful silver heart-shaped locket, with a shamrock engraved on it, she turned it over, and put a hand to her mouth in an attempt to stop herself from crying, because, engraved onto the back, were the words 'Princess. All my love, Doyle'.
When she opened it, she could not stop the tears from flowing.
There were two pictures inside. One of her - Doyle's favourite, and one of Doyle.
Doyle crouched in front of her and gently wiped the tears away. "You can change the pictures if you want ta." he whispered.
"No. Thank you Doyle. I love it. *All* of it," she whispered back.
Then she thought of something. "When had you been planning on giving this to me?"
Doyle blushed before replying quietly, "I don't know. I'd just had a win, and I was on me way home when I saw it in a window, and I just had ta get it for ya, and I just hoped that I'd have the right ta give it ta ya one day. I know I don't have the right now b-"
Cordelia cut him off.
"But you do have the right Doyle," she told him.
"What?" he replied, more than a little puzzled.
She took a deep breath, and glanced at Angel, who nodded, and said, "You can tell him to his face now. He's back."
"What? Tell me what ta me face?" Doyle said, looking back and forth between Angel and Cordelia, as if he was watching a tennis match.
Cordelia took another deep breath before saying, "While you were...gone, I did some thinking about my life, and what it would be like without you in it. I know, how self-centred can I get, but hear me out. I realised that, had I let it, there could have been more to our relationship than just friendship. That's why you have the right to give me the locket. Because I realised - although I'd thought it was too late, that I love you too."
Doyle gaped in amazement, and just sat there open-mouthed for a minute, before saying, "I think I'm going a little deaf during me death and resurrection, so could ya repeat that for me please?"
Cordelia sighed, but decided to humour him. She took both of his hands in hers, and said, "I, Cordelia Angela Chase, have fallen in love with you, Allen Francis Doyle."
At that, Doyle's legs gave way beneath him, and he flopped onto the floor, glad that he had been crouching, and not standing.
From this new stance, he whispered, "That's what I thought you said."
They just gazed into each others eyes for a moment, forgetting that there was anyone else in the room until they absorbed the sounds of applause.
"Congratulations guys! I'm glad you finally got it together," Angel said to them.
"Yeah. Maybe *you* will be able to succeed were we couldn't - keeping Cordy outta trouble," Gunn added.
Doyle grinned at him in reply. "No chance."
"Yes. Congratulations. I wish you all the best. Both of you," Wesley said quietly, nodding.
Doyle was sitting there on the floor in front of Cordelia, when he remembered something, and he stood up suddenly, rooting through his pockets.
"Oh! I forgot! The PTB gave me summat else back."
The others looked at him, intrigued.
"What?" Cordelia asked.
"I'll show ya in a minute, when I remember where it is. Where in the blue blazes is me brown leather?" Doyle said, as he stopped looking through his pockets and started looking round the room.
Cordelia blushed slightly, remembering what she had been doing earlier that morning, and pulled the jacket out from under the chair.
"It's here, but it won't be in there, because I've had it ever since you -"
Doyle cut her off by taking it off her and pulling a dark velvety jewellery box out of the inside pocket.
"-died," Cordelia finished, staring at the box.
"That wasn't there before!" she cried.
"I know. When the PTB said that they'd send me back, I asked them for the locket, and this. So they gave me the locket, but put this back were I'd last had it - in me coat," Doyle explained.
"Oh. Well then, what is it?" Cordelia asked.
Angel looked at him questioningly, "It's not?..."
Doyle nodded at him. "Yeah, 'tis."
"What? What is it? And why does Angel know what it is and I don't?" Cordelia asked.
Even Wesley and Gunn looked curious.
"Angel knows what 'tis 'coz I remembered it when Harry came ta see me, and I showed him it. It's a family heirloom, and it's bin in the family - me mother's side, for generations," Doyle explained, then he opened the box, and gave it to Cordelia.
She gasped as she took the gold claddagh ring out of the box, and turned it so that the light glinted off it's smooth, shiny golden surface, and created facets of red light when the light split through the garnet heart in the centre.
"Ya know what ya do with a claddagh ring don't ya 'Delia?" he asked nervously.
"Of course I do. When you wear the heart pointing away from you, it means you're single and when you wear it pointing towards you, it means that you belong to someone," Cordelia whispered in reply.
She waited for a minute, and when Doyle did not do anything, she handed him the ring, and said, "Well then, are you gonna put it on me or not?"
He looked into her eyes, and she smiled. He smiled back, and put it on her engagement finger, the heart pointing toward her.
They smiled at each other, eyes shining with love, as if they were the only two people in the world.
"I love ye 'Delia."
"I love you too Doyle."
Then they kissed. Another bone-melter. But this time, it was a kiss that both of them knew was full of love, from both parties.
As they came out of the kiss slowly, Doyle smiled at Cordelia, a typical Irish smile in the way that only Doyle can, and said, "Happy Birthday Princess."
Cordelia smiled back, and, tightening her grip around him, she glanced around the room before saying, "Doyle, having you back is the best birthday present ever!"
