A/N Thanks for the lovely reviews, all. Thought I had just better clear up a point in one of the early chapters about the amount Spike had to pay Ethan for the arranged marriage In England Fifty grand would mean $50,000 Just incase anyone thoughtI meant $500,000 which would be rather steep to obtain a greencard lol. Ultrawoman I have started reading your sequel, loving it so far, sorry i cant review on site :(

Chapter 16

"I think you broke my nose," groaned Hank as he struggled to get up from the floor.

Spike stood there watching him, not at all inclined to lend a helping hand as the older man got to his feet. He flexed his knuckles, they would be bruised tomorrow, but it had been worth it.

"You deserve that and worse mate," said Spike haughtily.

"I'll call the cops and have you arrested," said Hank attempting to shut the door.

Spike wedged his boot in the doorway making it impossible for him to do so.

"Stop, you are scaring me. Now is that anyway to greet your son-in-law?" asked Spike sarcastically.

Hank looked at Spike, slack jawed, the shock evident in his eyes. "You're lying! If Buffy were married I would know,"

"Really, like you know that your youngest is hospital, very sick, and maybe even dying," he replied.

"Dawnie? But she was fine last time I wrote to her," said Hank, as he paled.

"Well news flash, she isn't now. Those girls have been to hell and back, and where were you? You were slumming it in LA is what you were doing. I ought to smash your face in…"

"I think you've already done that," said Hank, cradling his nose.

"Well, I didn't come here for chit chat. Your daughter Dawn has leukaemia and needs a transplant. Thought you might do the fatherly thing and care enough to get tested," sneered Spike.

Hank went back into his apartment and slumped down in an armchair as Spike's bluntly spoken news sunk in. Spike followed him, looking around the room; he was surprised to see a framed picture of Buffy and Dawn resting on one of the dusty sideboards.

"Dawn…she is going to be okay right?" asked Hank.

Spike looked down at him, "What part about the being sick and hospitalised didn't you understand?"

Hank got up and walked over to the sideboard opening one of the doors, he took out a tumbler and poured a generous amount of whiskey into it. He took a deep gulp from the glass and leaned back against the wall. Spike tried to feel pity for the older man; it was obvious that the news about Dawn had come as quite a shock. He just couldn't muster any feeling for him, as he knew that Hank had abandoned them in their time of need, especially after their mom had died.

"I have been a bad father," said Hank shakily as he drank more from the glass.

"It takes a drink to realise that?" asked Spike.

"I know it's no excuse, but after the divorce it just seemed easier to stay away. The spilt between Joyce and I was a very bitter one. I made a new life here and they moved on without me. I guess I felt like a third wheel,"

"More like a self pitying bastard you mean. You may have divorced the mother, but you didn't divorce the kids you know. If only you could know what you did to them," said Spike, he clenched his fists tightly at his side to stop himself from punching him again, as much as the idea appealed he really didn't want to return Hank to his daughters, black and blue. "Enough of this, you know why I am here, you have five minutes to pack or I'll do it for you," growled Spike.

Hank sighed and put the glass down and left the room. Spike walked around the room disinterestedly, he looked at the photo he had noticed earlier. It had to be at least several years old. Buffy looked so young, she still was, but she had had to carry so much since then. It was about time the git in the other room changed that and took some responsibility for Dawn thought Spike angrily. He checked his watch; Hank had been gone for all of four minutes. Spike readied himself to charge in there when the five minutes were up; he was in no mood to wait. Also eager to get back to Sunnydale and Buffy and find out if Hank was actually going to be of any use to Dawn. Spike was also feeling a little edgy thinking about Buffy's reaction to her father's return. Surely she couldn't blame him for doing the right thing? Being Dawn's welfare.

Spike glanced at his watch again, it had been five minutes and still no Hank. Spike strode into the man's bedroom just as he was coming out with a holdall. "You were serious about the five minutes weren't you?" asked Hank.

"Getting back to Buffy and Dawn is all I care about, and if it requires you tagging along then so be it," said Spike as the older man followed him out of the apartment.

As they took the elevator down to the ground floor, Hank looked at Spike. "You know Buffy is going to be as mad as hell don't you?" he asked him.

"That I can handle," said Spike as he opened the car door and waited for Hank to join him.

Buffy looked at the clock in the lounge, Spike had been gone all day. Okay it had only been a few hours, but it was the longest she had been without him since he had moved in. She was eager for him to return home. Now that she knew how much she loved him, she wanted to tell him. She felt a seething anger for the unknown woman, Drusilla. Was the girl touched in the head to throw away someone as caring and wonderful as Spike? Buffy felt tears spring to her eyes on his behalf at the pain he must have suffered. Also she was glad of it, because without Drusilla's duplicity she would have never met him. He had changed her life so much in such a short time and had restored her faith in many things that she had thought were forever lost to her. Most of all she believed in love and that there could be such a thing as a happy ending and that it was finally within her reach.

The guest room was ready and waiting for their mystery guest. Buffy had gone to the hospital after she had been to the diner, to check on her scheming sister. Dawn had remained stubborn and tight-lipped, and had seemed a little brighter than earlier. Buffy was sure it was fuelled by the knowledge of Spike's secret little quest on her behalf.

The phone rang and made her start. Buffy walked over to it and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Spike!" She was unable to keep the happiness out of her voice.

"Miss me baby?" he asked.

"Always," she replied, breathily.

"Things went better than expected. I'll be back in a couple of hours luv,"

"Are you hungry? Because I can make something…" she offered.

"Spoken like a true wife. That would be great pet, but do you know what I am really hungry for at the moment?" he purred.

Buffy felt her face suffuse with colour, she licked her suddenly dry lips. "No…what?"

"You," he replied as he hung up.

Spike grinned to himself as he put away his phone. He glanced over at Hank. The man had fallen asleep not long after they had gotten out of LA. He would never have dreamed of speaking like that to Buffy if Hank had been awake. His body hardened in anticipation of their reunion as he thought of her beautiful body and how it had responded to him the night they had made love. Spike shook himself mentally and focused on the road ahead, all he needed now to add to her troubles was go get himself in a car crash or worse. He just hoped she would feel the same way when daddy dearest returned to the old homestead.

He didn't want to dwell on that now; he just hoped in helping one sister, he hadn't lost the other. Spike fingers tightened on the steering wheel. God he loved her so much. Dru had meant nothing in comparison, as he realised the truth of his thoughts, he also realised he no longer wished his ex fiancée a plague of boils. He let out a whoop which woke Hank out of his alcohol induced slumber.

"Are we there yet?" mumbled Hank.

"Nope, but not long now," said Spike.

Hank turned over in his seat and went back to sleep. If only he could be so nonchalant about the rest of the evening, he sighed to himself.

Faith pulled the shutters down on the diner. It had been a long day. With Buffy away, she had volunteered to do a double shift and she was now feeling it in her feet as she made the walk to the employee's washroom. She smiled as she thought of Angel; he had been acting weird all day. He'd hung around for most of her early shift as he'd had a late start at the office. She changed out of her uniform, glad to be free of the smell of hamburger grease and coffee. Faith quickly grabbed her bag as she readied herself to leave, being the only one left in the diner always gave her the wiggins for some reason.

As she walked back out into the diner, she noted that the lights were no longer on. "Funny, don't remember switching them off," she said aloud, looking around the darkened diner a little nervously.

She sucked in a breath as she felt someone come up behind her; she was ready for whoever it was. As she felt hands try to cover her eyes she grabbed her assailant and threw him over her shoulder, he landed on the floor in a groaning heap.

"Always knew those self-defence lessons would pay off ya creep. You'd better stay down if you know what's good for you,"

"Faith," groaned the darkened form.

"Angel, oh hell, but what do you expect creeping up on a girl like that?" she asked as she dropped to the floor.

Angel sat up slowly. "Well I was going to get on my knee for this, but I guess my ass on the floor is a good a place as any," he replied.

"For what…Angel?" asked Faith.

Angel reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a little box and held it out. Faith took it and looked at him, wishing she could read his expression better.

"A present? For me?" she asked. "Ya shouldn't have. Let me shed some light on the situation so I can actually see it," she said getting up on shaky legs as she switched on the lights. She just hoped she wouldn't be disappointed when she opened it, to find it was only a new pair of earrings. It felt as if all the air had been sucked out of her lungs as she looked down at Angel, still sitting on the floor, as she read his expression.

"Well are you going to open it or shall I just take it back to the jewellers?" he asked.

Faith lifted the lid and looked inside. She looked back at Angel, tears formed in her eyes. "Is this what I think it is?" she asked.

Angel nodded. "But the question is, do you want it?" he replied.

Faith closed the distance between them and handed him the box back. Disappointment flickered in his eyes, before he masked it. He sighed, well he had tried, but it seemed that Faith wasn't the marrying kind.

"I'll take that as a no then,"

"I want it, Angel I love you so much. I gave it back to you so you could put it on my finger you dumb ass," cried Faith as she dropped to the floor covering him in kisses.

Angel laughed at his mistake as he took the ring from the box and slid it on her ring finger. "I love you the future Mrs O'Connor,"

Faith stopped kissing him. "God how to make a girl feel all old and domestic," she teased.

"There will never be anything domestic and old about you Faith. You're too wild," he grinned.

"And don't you just love it," she whispered in his ear.

Spike pulled the car in the driveway and switched off the engine. He sat there for a few minutes, before waking Hank. The lights were shining from almost every window of the house, as if welcoming him home.

"This is it mate, the end of the road," said Spike.

Hank sighed as he looked at his former home. "This is going to be harder than I thought," he admitted.

"Good," said Spike, hardly.

"You're all full of tea and sympathy," muttered Hank resentfully.

"Yeah I am…to those who deserve it," said Spike as he got out of the car and waited for Hank to do the same. He still didn't trust the other man to try and do a runner, even at so late a stage in the game.

It wasn't until Buffy heard the car pull up in the drive, that she realised that she had been listening out for its return. Spike was home. Buffy resisted the urge to leap out of her seat and run to him, inhibited by the fact that he was possibly going to be accompanied by some unknown stranger. She walked over to the window and drew back the nets, she could see someone sitting in the passenger seat of Angel's borrowed car and from what she could make out, it looked male.

She saw Spike get out of the car and she pulled back from the window, not wanting to be caught spying on them by who ever was with him. She waited for the sound of his key, as the door opened.

"Wait here," she heard him instruct their visitor. "Buffy?" he called out.

"I'm in the lounge," she replied. Her heartbeat accelerated at the sound of his voice.

Spike walked in, and he held out his arms to her. She ran into them and rested her head against his chest. "I missed you so much," she replied as she breathed in his warm scent.

"Buffy?" came a voice from behind them.

Spike felt her stiffen in his arms. He inwardly cursed the impatience of the other man as he called out her name. Buffy looked up at Spike, tears glistened in her eyes. "You brought my father?" she asked.

Spike looked at her apologetically. "I'm sorry, but Dawn asked me…" he trailed off, as he read the hurt in her eyes.

She pulled fully out of Spike's embrace to look over his shoulder at her long absent father. Her eyes hardened as they rested on him.

"Hank," she said coldly.

"Is that anyway to greet your father?" he asked.

"I don't have a father," she replied in icy tones as she walked past him and up the stairs to her room.

Hank looked at Spike. "I guess I deserved that," he sighed.

"That, and worse," said Spike as he went after his wife.

Spike took the stairs two at a time in his urgency to reach Buffy. He stopped outside their door, almost afraid to try the handle in case she had locked it like before. He took a deep breath and to his surprise and relief it opened. He went inside to find Buffy sprawled on the bed, huge sobs racked her slender body.

"Bloody hell," Spike cursed aloud as he went over to the bed and sat down next to her. "Buffy love, talk to me," he pleaded as he stroked her hair.

Buffy lifted tearstained eyes to look at him. "I'm sorry, it's just that seeing him…here…and…" she trailed off in between sobs.

"It's okay, you don't have to say anything, I understand if you hate me for bringing him here," he soothed her, his expression one of pained sadness.

"But I do Spike," Buffy saw his stricken expression at her words "I don't mean I hate you, I mean seeing him again made me realise what I have. You are everything he never was or will be," she sniffed as she wiped at her eyes. "I must look a mess, and I wanted to look so pretty for you when I told you…" she sighed.

Spike looked down at her blotchy face, but seeing nothing but perfection. "When you told me what?" he asked.

"T-that, I love you," she blurted out in a rush.

TBC