A/N : Thanx to all my recent reviewers; Mita427, Baby Girl Geller-Green, EMBER91, spuffymonica, Spuffy2008, bella-lover, Moluvsnumber17, Brunettepet, PltnmDancer, Sandra, LiLi, katie, aej1085, Life'sSlayer, Rebel Goddess, Spike And Kasha, spuffygrl, Bittersweetbloodbaby, angelfan86, and Alba (hope you get better soon!). To all who mentioned that they hoped I got better soon, I am now fine. Thank you so much for your kind words about that, and of course about the chapter. Here's the next part...
(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)
Chapter 18 - Family Dinner
"Wow" Dawn commented as she came down the stairs and into the dining room, "Double wow" she amended. The first one had been for how good the food smelt suddenly, the second for the very stylishly set dinner table, "Way to get fancy with the table decoration, Dad" his daughter smirked from the doorway.
"Too much?" Spike worried, stopping half way to putting the third set of cutlery on the table.
"No" Dawn told him, pausing as he sighed with relief before adding, "I mean if Buffy was like the Princess of something, it'd be perfect" she giggled and Spike rolled his eyes.
"It is too much" he sighed, "and I should've known that. I don't know what the bloody hell's the matter with me" he muttered as he stormed through to the kitchen and Dawn followed him, feeling bad that she might've upset him.
"You okay, Dad?" she asked as she came through the door and found him leaning on the counter looking pained.
"Sure, Nibblet, I'm fine" he assured her as he opened his arms and she went to him for a hug, "'S just weird is all" he admitted, "I mean, yeah, I invited Buffy over and everything, and I like her and all but..."
"You never did this for anyone but Mom?" Dawn supplied, guessing that was the problem.
It was weird for her too, having a new woman in her and her father's life, but she liked Buffy and as strange as it was, it was kind of nice to have her around too.
"I fell for Dru in High School, ended up marrying her, there never was anyone else" Spike sighed as he looked down at his little girl and pushed her hair off her face affectionately, "Now I don't want you thinkin' I regret anything, not a bit of it. Two best things to happen in my life were Dru and you, luv"
"But maybe Buffy's the third best thing?" Dawn ventured.
"Could be, Bit" Spike nodded, "My liking her so much doesn't make Drusilla any less special to me though, you either for that matter. You will always be my precious girl, yeah?"
"Always" Dawn smiled, both of them feeling stupidly emotional as he hugged her again and kissed the top of her head.
"Now then" he said a moment later, "Seems to me we ought to sort that mess of a table out and get changed before Buffy gets here"
"The table I get" Dawn nodded, "but we have to change clothes for her. Again I say, is she the Princess of something?"
"I know she'll make an effort, always bloody does" Spike told her as they de-fancied the table, "and I won't have us disgracing ourselves in front of company, right?"
"Message received, loud and clear" Dawn mock saluted, only to have a napkin thrown in her face, which made her laugh.
"You sure you're okay here alone?" Buffy asked Xander as she hovered by the front door.
"Buff, I got beer, chips, and rented videos of sports" her cousin grinned from his position on the couch, "Throw in Angelina Jolie in her underwear and it's pretty much guy heaven" he told her.
"Okay, first eeeww" Buffy replied, "Second, what would Cordelia think if she heard you say that?"
"Pretty much what you just said actually" Xander shrugged, "All big with the eeeww, but it's not like she doesn't get the lusty wrong feelings for famous guys, like the guy in that show with the vampires..."
"Spare me the details" Buffy begged of him, "I can live without knowing your girlfriends blood-lust fantasies" she smiled, "I should be going anyway" she said, hand reaching for the door but not actually opening it yet.
"I think that book on telekinesis you bought was a big waste of time and money" Xander said a few moment later, off his cousins confused look he explained, "No matter how long you stare at that door it really is not going to open by itself" he smirked.
"I know" Buffy sighed, "I just... Oh God Xand what if all goes wrong?" she said, the panicked hysteria already creeping into her voice, "What if Dawn thinks I'm horrible? Or what if I say something stupid? Or what if I forget and kiss Spike in front of Dawn and she freaks out? Or what if he leaves us alone and she asks a lot of questions I can't answer, or worse tells me she wishes I'd never come into her life?"
"Buff, breathe" Xander begged of her as he got up from the couch and came over to her. She was having a real panic about this, to the point where she wasn't breathing so well and she was turning a funny colour.
"But Xander what if...?" she began only to be interrupted by her cousin.
"Buffy, enough with the what if's already" he told her, hands on her upper arms and he made her look at him, "Sweetie, you can't live life around all the maybe problems and possible issues, you know you can't"
"I know" Buffy nodded eventually, "but Xander, I've waited so long to find her, and without knowing it, him too. I finally have this great guy in my life that I could really love, and I found my little girl right in the same place" she said, voice wavering as tears sprang to her eyes, "One wrong move and I could lose them both forever" she cried and Xander pulled her into a hug.
"Buffy, sweetie" he said as he rubbed her back, "I know it's a huge deal, and I get it, I do, but you have to face this situation some time and the longer you wait the more you'll worry about it til it becomes an even bigger deal than it already is" he explained.
"I know, you're right" Buffy smiled as she sniffed and brought there head up from his shoulder, "I hate that" she joked and he kissed the top of her head.
"Now, go clean up for your face and leave me to my guy time" he told her mock sternly, "You got a place to be"
"I do" she nodded as she hurried to the bathroom to fix her make-up before she left. She looked at herself in the mirror and put the lid back on her lip gloss. She was going to have a nice simple dinner with her daughter, who didn't know yet that they were related, and her boyfriend who was the adoptive father of her biological daughter.
"Simple. Not at all daunting" she told herself as she took a deep breath and left the apartment, headed for Revello Drive.
"I got it!" Dawn yelled as she responded to the knock on the front door, "Hey" she smiled when she opened it and found Buffy on the other side, looking a little dressed up in a fancy blouse and skirt. The young girl was now kind of glad her Dad had made her change into something a little smarter.
"Hi Dawn" Buffy smiled back, "Wow, you look so grown up in that dress" she told her, firstly because it was true and a little shocking, secondly because she knew all teenage girls loved to be told that.
"Thanks" came the immediate response as she invited Buffy to come into the house, "You look nice too" she returned the compliment just as Spike appeared from the kitchen in a smart blue shirt and black pants.
He and Buffy greeted each other and Dawn bit her lip to keep from giggling as the two adults shifted awkwardly before her father finally kissed Buffy's cheek and told her she looked stunning.
The three were soon sat at the table, the food was served and they got on with eating the meal Spike had spent the better part of the morning preparing. The whole point had been for the three of them to talk, get to know each other better all round, but Buffy felt terribly awkward and almost like she were invading, whilst Spike felt very odd sitting here with his daughter and his girlfriend who was also Dawnie's real mother.
"So" the young girl said suddenly, so bored of the silence, "I guess you and your cousin are staying in Sunnydale now, Buffy?" she checked, "I mean, Dad told me you got a place and everything"
"Oh yeah, we're definitely staying" the blonde smiled, "I like it here" she said, looking at Spike, her expression telling him he was a major reason for her liking her new home so much, of course Dawn was another part but that was a conversation to be saved for another day.
"I dunno why anybody would move here, really" the girl went on to say, "I mean, I grew up here, it's home, but it's not like a place you really move to unless you have family or whatever..."
"Eat your food before it goes cold, Bit" Spike interrupted her, giving her a warning look when she opened her mouth to protest.
"What did I say?" she muttered, not really expecting an answer and almost glad she didn't get one since Spike was likely to just embarrass her in front of Buffy, something she would really hate.
The meal continued and Buffy felt bad for Dawn. She was just asking a simple question, didn't mean to offend anybody. She couldn't possibly know how awkward she was making everybody feel.
"So, Dawn, how's High School working out for you?" she asked her, "No more trouble from the mean girls?"
"Not really" the brunette shrugged, "I can deal. Besides, they're mostly just jealous now cos RJ talked to me" she giggled, a dreamy look coming over her face.
"Who's RJ?" Buffy was interested to know, not noticing Spike's unimpressed expression til he spoke up.
"Some boy who is too old for the Bit here" he snapped a little too harshly and Dawn rolled her eyes.
"He's a nice guy, Dad" she snapped back, "And for the millionth time, I am not stupid. He didn't even ask me out yet and even if that little miracle happened, I'm almost fifteen years old! I am not some kind of idiot-whore who just lets guys... y'know, take advantage or whatever" she said, feeling a little hurt that he'd admit to thinking she might in front of company.
"I'm sure your Dad doesn't think that" Buffy said quietly, feeling sick as she realised her own daughter thought she was idiot for what she'd done, or she would if she knew. She'd been just fifteen when she'd let Angel sleep with her and she hated herself for being so naive, and yet had that mistake not been made, Dawnie wouldn't be here now for Spike and Drusilla to have loved as their own and for Buffy to get to know.
"I'm sorry, Spike" the blonde said as she put down her knife and fork, "It's delicious really but... I'm kinda full" she smiled. Truth be told she just completely lost her appetite after what Dawn had said, and Spike knew it too.
"'S alright, pet" he assured her, the look in his eyes telling her there was more than one meaning to his words. He didn't want her to take to heart what Dawn had said. She was just a child and she tended to see things in black and white, which in most cases was a good thing. As much as Spike loved Buffy the last thing he wanted was for his own daughter to do what she had done, to get herself in trouble so young.
"If you don't want dessert, I can eat two servings" Dawn grinned, "We have chocolate gateaux, it's a personal favourite of mine"
"Mine too" Buffy smiled, liking the fact there were similarities between them, "Maybe I'll manage a small piece"
"I dunno, too full for the main course but offer her chocolate..." Spike smirked as he took the plates away.
"What can I say?" Buffy shrugged, "Woman's prerogative to be difficult sometimes"
"Don't I bloody know it" Spike joked as he took the plates away into the kitchen and sliced up the gateaux, leaving Buffy and Dawn alone.
"So, you and my Dad seem to like each other a lot" the brunette girl said immediately her father was out of ear shot.
"Yes, we do" Buffy nodded, "He's a very special man, and obviously a great father. He talks about you all the time"
"I'll bet" Dawn rolled her eyes, "He doesn't have much else to talk about. Since Mom... well, you're the first girlfriend he's had"
There was an awkward pause and Buffy took a deep breath before turning to Dawn and putting her hand over hers on the table.
"Dawn, I want you to know that, that as much as I like your Dad, I don't want to come between you two at all" she assured her, "and I'm not trying to be a replacement for... for your Mom" she said awkwardly, "I know I never could be, and I really would never try"
"I know" Dawn replied softly as she nodded her head, "And it's okay, I get it. I get that Dad needs somebody and you're cooler than most of the other women around here" she smiled, "I can deal with having you around"
"Thank you, Dawn" Buffy said, trying not to get too emotional and finding it almost impossible, "It means a lot to me that you accept me right now"
"Sure" the younger girl smiled, "Not a big deal" she shrugged, although she knew it was even from her own perspective.
Accepting another woman into her father's life and her own was a major thing, since the only one up to now had been her mother, Dru. Still, she liked Buffy, and it might be nice to have a fellow female around to talk to. Sometimes it was hard being a teenage girl without a mother to confide in, not just about boys but other more personal things, questions that a Dad would find awkward and probably not really understand.
Dawn smiled as her piece of double chocolate cream gateaux was placed in front of her and thanked her father. He really was the best Dad ever, and so much more happy since he'd met Buffy. It seemed to Dawn that it might a good thing all round that the blonde had come to Sunnydale.
To Be Continued...