Anne was very thankful for fast healing. She still wasn't in top form and needed her rest, but at least she could go to the bathroom without Cordelia's help. That was a definite improvement….

Spike hadn't left her side, and while she was grateful that her father cared that much, she wanted to talk to Connor. He'd stayed away from her room all day, though she could sense him in the hotel. Having him that close and not with her was making her antsy.

The only warning before Angel barged into the room was a brief knock on the door with no time given for a response. Spike shot an annoyed look at the vampire who had been his grandsire. "You know, Anne's still not feeling her best. You could come in a little quieter."

"Yeah, sorry. I'm heading out for a look around to see if I can find those demons. You want to come?"

Spike glanced between Anne and Angel. He wanted to be proactive where the threats on his daughter's life were concerned, but at the same time, she was vulnerable. "Don't know if I should leave the hotel. Not with Anne like this…"

"Cordelia and Connor will both be here," Angel said. "They can protect her."

"And I'm not completely helpless, you know," Anne insisted. "I'm healing up really well."

"I know you are, princess, but you're still not at top form," Spike said. "You really can't afford anymore damage."

"But I'll be fine if you go out," Anne replied. "Connor and Cordy will be here. Angel will have an easier time hunting them down if he has you to help."

Spike's brow wrinkled as he thought about what to do. Anne was doing better. And it wasn't like he'd be leaving her to fend for herself. Connor and Cordelia were both more than capable of protecting her. "I won't be gone too long," he said, standing.

"Take as long as you need," Anne replied. "I want those things gone."

"Me, too." Spike turned to Angel. "Are you ready to leave?"

"Yeah. Just need to grab some weapons from downstairs and head out. It's not quite sunset yet, so…" Angel trailed off, Spike's heartbeat suddenly seeming louder to his ears. "I was going to start in the sewers."

"That's fine. I've got no problem with the sewers."

Angel nodded, feeling a small amount of gratitude towards Spike for not making a big deal out of that. "So…weapons?"

"Yeah." Spike leaned down and kissed Anne's forehead. "I'll be back soon."

"I know. Be careful, Daddy."

"I will."

Anne flopped back against the pillows as the door shut behind her father and Angel. She wondered how long it would be until they were gone from the hotel and she could go find Connor…


Connor leaned against the front desk, his eyebrow arched as he watched Anne come down the stairs. "You really shouldn't be out of bed."

Anne gave him a pout. "I missed you."

Connor shivered. Just a look and she had him desperate. "Our fathers won't be gone all night…"

Anne approached him, running her hands down his chest. "Then we better not waste any time."

"Cordelia is…"

"In her room. I passed her on the way down."

Connor looked into her eyes, his breathing heavy. "We shouldn't do this."

"Say that like you mean it."

Connor's response was to kiss her, his mouth hard on hers as he pulled her up and carried her behind the counter. Something in the back of his mind was telling him this wasn't the place for this, but he couldn't seem to find the ability to care. Anne was in his arms, kissing him, and she tasted so damn good…

He lowered her down to the floor, bracing her head with his hand as he rested his body on top of hers. Anne wrapped her legs around his waist, only to let them drop to the floor again with a cry of pain. Connor pulled up immediately, looking down at her with a worried expression. "Are you okay?"

"I'm sorry," Anne replied, blushing. "I thought I could do this, but it hurts…"

Connor sat up, pulling her with him. "Shh…don't be sorry. I shouldn't have been trying to anyway, knowing you were hurt. I just lose my head around you."

"I've noticed," Anne said with a wry smile. She kissed his cheek. "Just because I'm not in top form doesn't mean we can't do anything, you know." She opened up the front of his jeans, slipping her hand inside.

"We shouldn't," Connor said, though his voice was shaky. "It wasn't a good idea to start anything right here in the lobby anyway, and…"

Anne lowered her head, and soon all Connor's attempts at rational thought were long gone.


When she was finished, Anne moved beside Connor, her head resting on his shoulder. "I would ask if you liked that, but it would be a little pointless," she said with a grin.

"Yeah, I guess I made that pretty obvious," he said, kissing the top of her head. "It's been a long time since anyone's done that for me."

"Why am I not surprised?" Anne muttered. "Laura doesn't seem like the type to…"

"She left me," Connor said, cutting her off.

Anne sat up. "What?"

Connor shifted. "This trip to her mother's, it was more than that. We had a fight, and she took off to think about some things. And she told me last night that she made up her mind. She's leaving me."

"So all this time you've been all 'oh, we can do this—I'm married' and your wife had taken off?"

"It wasn't official," Connor said. "She's left before, but she always comes back. I just assumed she would this time, too. To be honest, she still might."

"And then you'll what? Take her back?"

Connor looked at the woman beside him. She was flushed with anger, and if it were possible, he thought that made her even more beautiful. Her fire, her passion, were something he'd never felt before. She made him feel alive. With her touch, she could let him know he was real. He knew that even if Laura did come back this time, he couldn't return to that life. The lie would feel too empty now. "No."

"So…so we can be together now? Your wife is gone, and I know you want me, and…"

"Anne, Laura wasn't the only obstacle for us. You're still sixteen."

"But that doesn't matter! You can come with me to London. We can be together there."

"It's not that simple. I can't just up and leave Los Angeles."

"Why not!" Anne demanded, pulling away from him. "You did it before. And it's not like you couldn't come visit. If Angel needed you for something, the Council could get you here very quickly."

"So what, I just move in with you? Where do we live? In your bedroom with your parents down the hall?"

"The Council owns apartments. We could live in one of those," Anne said.

"And your parents are just going to allow this? They're going to let you move in with an older man who, oh by the way, happens to be Angel's son."

"They'll deal with it! Connor, I want to be with you. I don't care about anything that's in our way. We can deal with it. You just have to want to be with me, and we can make it happen."

Connor shook his head. She wasn't looking at this rationally, focusing instead on a naïve belief that everything could just magically fall in to place the way she wanted it. "God, Anne, grow up."

Anne's hurt from his words was clear on her face. "I'm not a child, Connor. I know there will be difficulties. But we fit so well. I'm not being naïve in believing we can work it out."

"Yeah, you really are." Connor stood. "You should get back to bed. You need your rest."

Anne looked up at him from the floor. "Please, Connor. Don't just walk away from this."

"I have to. We can't ever have anything together."

Anne pulled herself off the ground, wincing slightly in pain. "I'm so tired of this! One minute you want me, and the next you're making up excuses to try to keep me away!"

"They're not excuses! They're actual problems, and if you could act like an adult for five seconds, you'd so that."

Anne scoffed. "That is the second time tonight you've called me a child, which you know, is more than a little twisted seeing as what I did to you all of five minutes ago."

Connor swore under his breath. "Anne, this isn't about that…"

"What? I'm old enough for a fuck but not old enough for a relationship? Is that it?"

"No! You just…don't have a lot of experience with this sort of thing, okay?"

"No, it's not okay. I don't care about experience. I know what I'm feeling, Connor. I love you."

"Don't…don't say that. You just…" Connor stopped, looking down. "Go back to bed, Anne."

Anne fought the tears that threatened to spill, letting anger be the overriding emotion. It hurt too much for her to let Connor see what he'd done to her. "You are one cold bastard," she snapped. "I can see why your wife left you."

Anne saw the hurt she'd put in his eyes, saw how the words made him flinch, but she didn't care. Not now. She pushed past him and made her way back up the stairs.

Connor's shoulders slumped as he let her go.


Spike was frustrated. He and Angel had been gone for hours and they'd come up with nothing. Not even a trace of the demons that were hell-bent on killing his oldest child. Top that off with the fact that he'd had to spend all that time in Angel's company…

He walked into the lobby wanting nothing more than to check on Anne before taking a hot shower to wash off the Los Angeles grime. He'd forgotten just how much he didn't like this place.

And then it hit him. The scents had faded some, but were obviously recent enough to linger. They were clearly recognizable to his enhanced senses, and the implication that accompanied them made Spike's head spin. He thought back to the night before, and realized with a sinking feeling that his suspicions had been more correct than he'd wanted to believe.

"Spike, don't…"

Spike turned slowly towards Angel as he realized something else as well. "You knew. You knew what he was doing to my daughter…"

"What was I supposed to do?"

"Stop it! Bloody hell, I sent her to you for protection, Angel! Not to shag your son!"

"I know! I asked Connor to stop, but…"

"But what? He didn't, so you just let him go right ahead and have an affair with a sixteen year old girl? Although I guess you wouldn't see anything wrong with that, given your track record."

"Look, Spike, Connor's an adult. I can't…"

"My daughter's not!" Spike yelled. "I can't believe you just sat back and let this happen! You sodding bastard! My little girl, and you let him…" Spike shook his head, pushing past Angel.

Angel ran in front of him. "Whoa. Where are you going?"

"To beat the crap out of your son."

"I can't let you do that, Spike."

"Yeah, don't remember asking you." Spike reared back and punched Angel hard, sending him tumbling to the ground.

Angel wiped the blood off his mouth as he got back to his feet. "Spike, stop. You don't need to hurt Connor."

"I sorta do," Spike called back, going up the stairs.

Angel ran after him, grabbing his arm. "You're not going to lay a hand on my son."

Spike turned, hitting Angel again and sending him down the stairs. "Stay out of my way, Angel. As far as I'm concerned, you're to blame for this, too."

"Look, there's things going on here that you don't understand."

"All I know is that he had sex with my little girl. Nothing else really matters."

Angel ran after Spike as he got to the top of the stairs. "Spike, I'm not letting you get to Connor."

"And I already told you, I wasn't asking you," Spike grabbed Angel by the lapels of his coat, throwing him back down the stairs before sprinting towards Connor's room.


Look at that…a cliffhanger. What makes me write the next chapter after one of those? Reviews!

This chapter has been edited for content.