Mrs Chase came to the Hyperion early Sunday morning to meet everyone.
"Hello!" She announced, coming through the doors wearing a bright red skirt suit with open toe peep shoes. "I'm here!"
Cordelia jumped up from her desk and waved her over. "Hey Mom, sleep alright?"
"Like a log, I had my facial and then a Chinese herbal massage. It was very relaxing. How was the morning sickness?"
"Bearable." She told her.
"I booked you in for a massage too this afternoon. A special rose petal one. It's supposed to be very soothing. If you want I could arrange for manicures and pedicures. I might even join you. When in LA!"
"Get a manicure?" Cordelia laughed.
"Precisely!" Mrs Chase decided. "Now, please tell me just who is that stunning looking man!"
She pointed to where Angel and Gunn were sorting through the books on the bookcase.
Both of them looked up.
"Which one?" Cordelia whispered.
"The tall brooding one." She whispered back.
"That's Angel." Cordelia told her, adding stress to his name.
Mrs Chase caught it. "Oh. Angel!"
Angel was grinning from ear to ear while Gunn looked slightly put out. "Mrs Chase, it's so good to finally meet you!"
"And you too." She purred and held out her hand which Angel accepted.
Cordelia elbowed her. "And that is Charles Gunn."
Gunn bounded across to shake her hand.
"Nice strong handshake." Mrs Chase commented. "I like that in a man."
Fred and Wes chose that moment to come out of the office. "Oh, we have a guest." Fred exclaimed. "Hi, I'm Fred."
"Wesley Wyndham-Price." Wes introduced himself.
"Oh, an Englishman! Cordelia, you didn't tell me you worked with an Englishman! They're so polite."
Fred giggled and Wes just blushed.
"Why don't I get you some coffee?" Cordelia suggested.
"Darling, you should get off your feet! I'll make the coffee."
"Do you know how to make coffee?" She asked.
"Okay, you make the coffee and I'll talk to your friends." She decided and perched on the end of the Cordelia's chair.
Cordelia made a pot of regular coffee and made herself a decaf.
She went back to the office area to discover her mom talking about Cordelia's childhood.
"Well, I think we need a change of subject here." She decided, handing her mother a mug.
"Come on Barbie, we were just hearing about how you threw a tantrum when you were given an Armani dress for your eighth birthday instead of a Gucci one." He grinned.
She poked him in the side. "I so did not."
"I beg to differ." Her mother disagreed.
Cordelia's phone started to ring which put an end to the conversation. She grabbed it gratefully. "Angel Investigations."
She got engrossed in taking a history from a client and when she'd done Fred was showing her mom how to make Origami birds.
She walked across to Angel and handed him the sheet of lined paper she'd wrote the details down on. "Here."
He took it and scanned it quickly. "Your mom is nice."
Cordelia shrugged. "She's okay most of the time. She's the only one I've got."
"At least you have one." He reminded her. "Are you going to see your dad again?"
She frowned. "I doubt it. My mom told me a few things about him. About why they left me. It wasn't her idea, she didn't want to. He made her leave me. I'll tell you about it later."
"Okay." He smiled.
"And then you can tell me what you were going to tell me yesterday." She told him pointedly.
"When?"
"You know when." She told him, slapping him on his arm. "I'm not dumb Angel; I know you were going to tell me something. I know you too well."
He watched as she walked back to her mom. She was right; she did know him too well.
Cordelia enjoyed her massage that much that she booked to have another one closer to her due date. Her finger and toe nails looked all pink and shiny.
Cordelia said goodbye to Mrs Chase that night because she was leaving early in the morning to get back for a lunch she had to attend in San Francisco.
"Promise me you'll call if you need anything." Mrs Chase told her, hugging her close. "Anything at all."
"I promise."
"I'll come and see you soon." She promised.
"Or I could come and see you and Daddy." Cordelia suggested. "I have a car, I could drive through."
"Not in your condition!" Mrs Chase told her aghast. "I'll send a car."
Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Fine."
"Goodbye darling. Here's money for your cab home." She told her, thrusting a twenty in hand. "Look after yourself and my granddaughter!"
"Granddaughter? How do you know it's a girl?"
"I have a feeling! Goodbye darling!"
Cordelia waved and went out of the hotel to grab a cab. She caught one quickly and told him to drive her back to the Hyperion.
She still had some paperwork she should have already done. With her mom being in LA she hadn't done much work. She didn't want to make Wesley mad.
Within minutes they'd pulled up outside the Hyperion. She paid the driver and ran up the path. It had dropped cold and she hadn't thought to take her coat with her.
There was no-one in the hotel when she got back but Angel had left a note on her desk saying that they'd gone to clean out a vamp nest downtown.
She smiled as she read the last line 'Eat something!'
Doing as she was told she went into the small kitchen to make herself a sandwich.
By the time she'd had two cups of coffee, a tuna sandwich and checked her e- mails they came back.
"Anyone need patching up?" She asked as they trooped in, dropping weapons and coats on the couch. "Angel?"
"Why do you always assume that I got hurt?" He asked.
She rolled her eyes. "Because you always get hurt."
"Well, not this time. Did you get something to eat?"
She nodded. "Yeah, I did as I was told. This time anyway."
He smiled and came to sit down next to her. "I was surprised you came back, you should have gone home."
"I've got a lot of work to catch up on. I thought I'd stay late and catch up."
Wes heard as he walked past. "There really is no need. The world will not end if you don't finish filing."
"Anyone would think that's all I did!" She complained with a grin.
Wes smiled. "You should go home and rest."
"Because I had such a stressful day doing nothing." She told him sarcastically. "No, it's okay, I'll hibernate here for a couple of hours and then I'll go home."
"If you insist." Wes told her, picking up a couple of files and a book. "I'm going home. See you all tomorrow!"
"Bye Wes!" Fred called out from where she was talking with Gunn. "Hey Cordy, do you think Gunn should grow his hair?"
"No." She replied simply.
"There you go Fred, don't go getting any ideas!" He warned. "I'm going to take off too. You wanna go get Mexican?" He asked Fred.
"Sure!" They cast quick waves over their shoulders as they left.
Leaving Cordelia and Angel alone.
They worked in silence for about ten minutes and then Cordelia threw her pen down. "I'm bored!"
He looked up and grinned. "I was wondering how long it would take for that to happen."
"So, tell me what you were going to ask me." She pressed.
He looked uncomfortable. "It was nothing."
"It was." She argued. "Come on Angel, it's me. You can talk to me about anything."
"I was just wondering if you wanted to go out to dinner with me one night. On our own. Just us."
"I'd love to." She replied, smiling.
"You would?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"I don't know." He admitted.
"Is this anything to do with me being pregnant?" She suddenly asked. "Because if you feel like you have to pity the pregnant woman then..."
"No!" He reassured her. "No. I've wanted to ask you for a while. Before you told me."
She nodded. "It's just that sometimes I wonder if I'm going to end up alone."
"Why?"
"Because of the baby. I'll be a single mom Angel; no-one wants a single mom. It's extra baggage. I'm going to be on my own with a baby. No man will want me." She told him what she had been feeling. "And then I think that if I want to have a relationship with a man I'm going to have to not have the baby. But thinking about it, I really do want it. I can't get rid of it. It's a part of me now, a part of who I am. It's like I have to pick. A baby or a man."
"Well, your last encounter with a man wasn't exactly outstanding."
She burst out laughing. "That's true!"
"Let me go and make you some coffee and then we'll talk." He promised and squeezed her hand. "Okay?"
She nodded and grabbed her pen again, intent on doing some more work.
When he came back Cordelia was slumped over her desk asleep.
He smiled and set the coffee down on the counter. He slipped an arm under her legs and the other across her back and lifted her from her chair. Her head rested against his chest and he could smell her shampoo. Coconut and a hint of lime. She carried her upstairs and took her to the room Wes used sometimes.
He lay her down on the bed and slipped her shoes off. He covered her with a thick blanket and made sure the radiator was on.
Before he left her brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her forehead.
"Goodnight Cordelia." He whispered, looking at her lovingly. "I'll see you in the morning."
She apologised for falling asleep when she woke up and found he had made her breakfast.
"I get eggs and toast? Wow!" She exclaimed. "I fall asleep on you when we were going to talk and I get good food? I should go into a coma next time and see what you make me."
He laughed. "I wanted to make sure you ate well, you are eating for two now."
"Yeah yeah, like I need to be reminded." She took a bite of egg. "This is amazing!"
"I like to cook." He told her, drinking his own breakfast.
"You don't eat." She pointed out.
He shrugged. "I don't know where I get it from. It relaxes me."
She nodded. "I get that. So, you wanted to talk last night?"
"It was not so much as me wanting to talk." He stuttered. "It was more a mutual decision to talk about... It doesn't matter. We can talk anytime. Wes and Gunn will be here soon and I'm sure Fred will come downstairs any minute."
She nodded. "Okay. I'll look forward to it then."
"Hello!" She announced, coming through the doors wearing a bright red skirt suit with open toe peep shoes. "I'm here!"
Cordelia jumped up from her desk and waved her over. "Hey Mom, sleep alright?"
"Like a log, I had my facial and then a Chinese herbal massage. It was very relaxing. How was the morning sickness?"
"Bearable." She told her.
"I booked you in for a massage too this afternoon. A special rose petal one. It's supposed to be very soothing. If you want I could arrange for manicures and pedicures. I might even join you. When in LA!"
"Get a manicure?" Cordelia laughed.
"Precisely!" Mrs Chase decided. "Now, please tell me just who is that stunning looking man!"
She pointed to where Angel and Gunn were sorting through the books on the bookcase.
Both of them looked up.
"Which one?" Cordelia whispered.
"The tall brooding one." She whispered back.
"That's Angel." Cordelia told her, adding stress to his name.
Mrs Chase caught it. "Oh. Angel!"
Angel was grinning from ear to ear while Gunn looked slightly put out. "Mrs Chase, it's so good to finally meet you!"
"And you too." She purred and held out her hand which Angel accepted.
Cordelia elbowed her. "And that is Charles Gunn."
Gunn bounded across to shake her hand.
"Nice strong handshake." Mrs Chase commented. "I like that in a man."
Fred and Wes chose that moment to come out of the office. "Oh, we have a guest." Fred exclaimed. "Hi, I'm Fred."
"Wesley Wyndham-Price." Wes introduced himself.
"Oh, an Englishman! Cordelia, you didn't tell me you worked with an Englishman! They're so polite."
Fred giggled and Wes just blushed.
"Why don't I get you some coffee?" Cordelia suggested.
"Darling, you should get off your feet! I'll make the coffee."
"Do you know how to make coffee?" She asked.
"Okay, you make the coffee and I'll talk to your friends." She decided and perched on the end of the Cordelia's chair.
Cordelia made a pot of regular coffee and made herself a decaf.
She went back to the office area to discover her mom talking about Cordelia's childhood.
"Well, I think we need a change of subject here." She decided, handing her mother a mug.
"Come on Barbie, we were just hearing about how you threw a tantrum when you were given an Armani dress for your eighth birthday instead of a Gucci one." He grinned.
She poked him in the side. "I so did not."
"I beg to differ." Her mother disagreed.
Cordelia's phone started to ring which put an end to the conversation. She grabbed it gratefully. "Angel Investigations."
She got engrossed in taking a history from a client and when she'd done Fred was showing her mom how to make Origami birds.
She walked across to Angel and handed him the sheet of lined paper she'd wrote the details down on. "Here."
He took it and scanned it quickly. "Your mom is nice."
Cordelia shrugged. "She's okay most of the time. She's the only one I've got."
"At least you have one." He reminded her. "Are you going to see your dad again?"
She frowned. "I doubt it. My mom told me a few things about him. About why they left me. It wasn't her idea, she didn't want to. He made her leave me. I'll tell you about it later."
"Okay." He smiled.
"And then you can tell me what you were going to tell me yesterday." She told him pointedly.
"When?"
"You know when." She told him, slapping him on his arm. "I'm not dumb Angel; I know you were going to tell me something. I know you too well."
He watched as she walked back to her mom. She was right; she did know him too well.
Cordelia enjoyed her massage that much that she booked to have another one closer to her due date. Her finger and toe nails looked all pink and shiny.
Cordelia said goodbye to Mrs Chase that night because she was leaving early in the morning to get back for a lunch she had to attend in San Francisco.
"Promise me you'll call if you need anything." Mrs Chase told her, hugging her close. "Anything at all."
"I promise."
"I'll come and see you soon." She promised.
"Or I could come and see you and Daddy." Cordelia suggested. "I have a car, I could drive through."
"Not in your condition!" Mrs Chase told her aghast. "I'll send a car."
Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Fine."
"Goodbye darling. Here's money for your cab home." She told her, thrusting a twenty in hand. "Look after yourself and my granddaughter!"
"Granddaughter? How do you know it's a girl?"
"I have a feeling! Goodbye darling!"
Cordelia waved and went out of the hotel to grab a cab. She caught one quickly and told him to drive her back to the Hyperion.
She still had some paperwork she should have already done. With her mom being in LA she hadn't done much work. She didn't want to make Wesley mad.
Within minutes they'd pulled up outside the Hyperion. She paid the driver and ran up the path. It had dropped cold and she hadn't thought to take her coat with her.
There was no-one in the hotel when she got back but Angel had left a note on her desk saying that they'd gone to clean out a vamp nest downtown.
She smiled as she read the last line 'Eat something!'
Doing as she was told she went into the small kitchen to make herself a sandwich.
By the time she'd had two cups of coffee, a tuna sandwich and checked her e- mails they came back.
"Anyone need patching up?" She asked as they trooped in, dropping weapons and coats on the couch. "Angel?"
"Why do you always assume that I got hurt?" He asked.
She rolled her eyes. "Because you always get hurt."
"Well, not this time. Did you get something to eat?"
She nodded. "Yeah, I did as I was told. This time anyway."
He smiled and came to sit down next to her. "I was surprised you came back, you should have gone home."
"I've got a lot of work to catch up on. I thought I'd stay late and catch up."
Wes heard as he walked past. "There really is no need. The world will not end if you don't finish filing."
"Anyone would think that's all I did!" She complained with a grin.
Wes smiled. "You should go home and rest."
"Because I had such a stressful day doing nothing." She told him sarcastically. "No, it's okay, I'll hibernate here for a couple of hours and then I'll go home."
"If you insist." Wes told her, picking up a couple of files and a book. "I'm going home. See you all tomorrow!"
"Bye Wes!" Fred called out from where she was talking with Gunn. "Hey Cordy, do you think Gunn should grow his hair?"
"No." She replied simply.
"There you go Fred, don't go getting any ideas!" He warned. "I'm going to take off too. You wanna go get Mexican?" He asked Fred.
"Sure!" They cast quick waves over their shoulders as they left.
Leaving Cordelia and Angel alone.
They worked in silence for about ten minutes and then Cordelia threw her pen down. "I'm bored!"
He looked up and grinned. "I was wondering how long it would take for that to happen."
"So, tell me what you were going to ask me." She pressed.
He looked uncomfortable. "It was nothing."
"It was." She argued. "Come on Angel, it's me. You can talk to me about anything."
"I was just wondering if you wanted to go out to dinner with me one night. On our own. Just us."
"I'd love to." She replied, smiling.
"You would?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"I don't know." He admitted.
"Is this anything to do with me being pregnant?" She suddenly asked. "Because if you feel like you have to pity the pregnant woman then..."
"No!" He reassured her. "No. I've wanted to ask you for a while. Before you told me."
She nodded. "It's just that sometimes I wonder if I'm going to end up alone."
"Why?"
"Because of the baby. I'll be a single mom Angel; no-one wants a single mom. It's extra baggage. I'm going to be on my own with a baby. No man will want me." She told him what she had been feeling. "And then I think that if I want to have a relationship with a man I'm going to have to not have the baby. But thinking about it, I really do want it. I can't get rid of it. It's a part of me now, a part of who I am. It's like I have to pick. A baby or a man."
"Well, your last encounter with a man wasn't exactly outstanding."
She burst out laughing. "That's true!"
"Let me go and make you some coffee and then we'll talk." He promised and squeezed her hand. "Okay?"
She nodded and grabbed her pen again, intent on doing some more work.
When he came back Cordelia was slumped over her desk asleep.
He smiled and set the coffee down on the counter. He slipped an arm under her legs and the other across her back and lifted her from her chair. Her head rested against his chest and he could smell her shampoo. Coconut and a hint of lime. She carried her upstairs and took her to the room Wes used sometimes.
He lay her down on the bed and slipped her shoes off. He covered her with a thick blanket and made sure the radiator was on.
Before he left her brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her forehead.
"Goodnight Cordelia." He whispered, looking at her lovingly. "I'll see you in the morning."
She apologised for falling asleep when she woke up and found he had made her breakfast.
"I get eggs and toast? Wow!" She exclaimed. "I fall asleep on you when we were going to talk and I get good food? I should go into a coma next time and see what you make me."
He laughed. "I wanted to make sure you ate well, you are eating for two now."
"Yeah yeah, like I need to be reminded." She took a bite of egg. "This is amazing!"
"I like to cook." He told her, drinking his own breakfast.
"You don't eat." She pointed out.
He shrugged. "I don't know where I get it from. It relaxes me."
She nodded. "I get that. So, you wanted to talk last night?"
"It was not so much as me wanting to talk." He stuttered. "It was more a mutual decision to talk about... It doesn't matter. We can talk anytime. Wes and Gunn will be here soon and I'm sure Fred will come downstairs any minute."
She nodded. "Okay. I'll look forward to it then."
