A/N : Loving the feedback I'm gettng on this fic, especially last chapter on that joke about James Marsters. Originally I was going to steal the whole line from the Angel ep 'In the Dark' where the actor stated was Matthew McConoughy, but I couldn't resist the extra joke, plus I'm not sure I spelt that guys name right! Anywho, hope you all enjoy reading this new chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it...
(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 9

"I can't believe this" Doyle smirked as he and Spike worked the bar together, "She's pretty good" he said, glancing over at Buffy as she moved through the crowds with a tray of drinks in her hand, not spilling a drop. The crowd around the bar was dissipating, the rush almost over after a manic hour. Buffy had helped both behind the bar and with taking drinks to the tables. Cordy had been quite surprised to see her friend and boss helping out the workforce as she was, but glad to know that it wasn't just her who'd made the transition from bitch-queen to decent human being. Buffy hadn't even needed to have her cash taken away in order to change.

"The bint's got style" Spike agreed as he watched Buffy work, "Gotta hand it to her, not many bosses would muck in with the staff when things get rough"

"Damn, Spike, tell me you didn't just compliment the woman" Doyle laughed as he popped the tops off two bottles of beer and handed them over to the waiting customers.

"Yeah, well" Spike snapped, "She's still a bitch" he assured his friend as he moved down the bar to serve some new arrivals.

With both of the guys now paying attention to their jobs and not to Buffy, they didn't see her next move as she tried to get between two men that were arguing.

"Guys, calm it down" she told them, completely without fear. It was brave but also incredibly stupid considering these guys were almost twice her height and weight and had several large friends each.

"Stay out of this, bitch" one of them snapped at her, "and get to bringing the beer we asked for"

"No way" Buffy said, standing her ground, hands on her hips as she glared, "I'm not serving you people any more alcohol, I want you all to leave"

"What?" one of them asked incredulously.

"You heard me" she said with slightly less confidence as the two gangs all stood up.

One of the two that had originally been about to brawl took advantage of the fact Buffy had got all the attention, bringing back his fist and smacking his 'opponent' in the face. In seconds a fight broke out, at least ten men all knocking the crap out of each other in the middle of the floor, whilst a group of the Bronze patrons cheered them on and others ran screaming from the fray. Buffy attempted to get out of the middle of the whole thing, finding it near impossible, even when a few large security guys came to break it up.

"What the bloody hell is goin' on there?" Doyle said, suddenly noticing the fracas, and bringing Spike's attention to it too.

"One major ass fight" Cordy told them as he hurried to the bar, "and Buffy's caught in the middle" she said, looking a little scared for her friend.

Before his work mates had barely had time to register that he'd moved, Spike had vaulted over the bar top and was striding though the crowds towards the fight. He barged one bloke out the way and took on another who turned and made to punch him in the face. Spike ducked the drunken man's attack, moving to sweep his legs out from under him, before cracking him over the head with a bar stool and ensuring he stayed down.

He spotted Buffy being pushed back and forth between a couple of much larger guys. As he reached her she got her footing, kicking out with one leg and catching one of the ring leaders between the legs, her high heeled shoes doing untold damage as the bloke winced and fell to the floor. She looked severely pissed when Spike grabbed her wrist and hauled her out of the way, but he wasn't about to let her try to be a hero with those kind of people. She got a lucky strike in then but they'd pummel her given half a chance. They weren't the type to have been brought up well enough to know you don't hit a woman, and no matter how he felt about her, Spike was not about to let Buffy take a beating from anyone, especially not the likes of these thugs.

Gunn, the head of security, soon had his men organised and got the situation under control. The guys who had been at the centre of the fight were escorted out and told in no uncertain terms never to return to the establishment. Though Buffy thanked Gunn for his efforts, she soon snapped at him and the others to get back to work as all the remaining customers that had not been scared off by the brawl began to dance again and order drinks.

"Are you sure you're okay, Buffy?" Cordy asked her as the blonde sat on a stool at the end of the bar.

"I'm fine, Cordy, I swear" she assured her with a smile. They used to best friends, and despite the changes that had happened in their lives, Buffy wasn't about to forget all she'd shared with Cordy whilst they'd been growing up. The concern from her she knew at least was genuine and she was grateful for it.

"I guess we have Spike to thank for that" the brunette sighed, smiling at Doyle as he handed her next order of drinks to her.

"I don't have Spike to thank for anything" Buffy snapped, face hardening at the very idea, "I didn't need his help out there, I was doing just fine"

"Tell that to the cut on your arm" said an English voice in her ear and she jumped, not having realised Spike had crept up behind her. She glanced down at her arm to see a gash near her elbow and blood dripping out. She hadn't even noticed it happen.

"You should get that fixed up, Buffy" Cordy told her, "Cos y'know if that was from the glass of one of those Hells Angel's wannabes, you might need some kind of shot" she said semi-seriously as she walked away to serve the drinks she had in her hand.

"Here" Doyle called as he tossed a clean bar towel over to Spike. He nodded a thanks, pressing the towel to the cut in Buffy's arm and making her wince.

"Ow, get off me!" she yelled, attracting the attention of a couple of patrons of the Bronze. She smiled brightly at them though it was entirely fake, "Hi, hope you're having a good time" she told them as she hopped off her stool, attempting to prise Spike's hand from her arm but having no luck at all as they both went towards the Staff Only door and disappeared.

"Get your hands off me!" she protested as soon as she was sure no-one would overhear, "If I want your help I'll... I will never want your help" she snapped, eyes flashing angrily as she finally got free from his grasp, but kept the towel to stem the blood flow from her arm which was just now starting to hurt.

Spike shook his head at her attitude and followed her down the hall, slamming into her office just moments after she'd done the same thing.

"Get. Out!" she told him, emphasising both words to the extreme. Spike didn't move.

"What is your problem, luv?" he asked her, fairly calmly despite the fact she was royally pissing him off right now.

"Er, I think that's pretty obvious" she told him with a look, "You are my problem"

"Yeah, well, that bit's becoming a tad obvious" Spike snapped as he grabbed the first aid box from the wall and set it on the desk. He could murder the bint some days but right now he really didn't feel like watching her bleed to death just for kicks.

"You made me look ridiculous out there" she told him angrily as he got her by the shoulders and sat her on the edge of the desk. She was yelling too much and in pain from her arm, she wasn't really thinking about the fact she was letting him control her a little bit here.

"I thought actually, luv, I was making you look a little less dead that you might've done if I hadn't've intervened" he told her as he took the towel away from her and cleaned up her arm properly.

"You think I can't handle myself?" she asked incredulously, "I know how to handle myself, Spike. Just cos I didn't grow up in back alleys and seedy little dives like some people doesn't mean I can't defend myself"

"My upbringing has sod all to do with you" he said coldly, staring at her too much for her liking before going back to fixing her arm, "And as far as your self defence goes, a bit of that karate crap they teach you girls might save you from pervs down back alleys, but it's not gonna help in the middle of a bikers bar-room brawl" he told her simply, as he fastened the bandage around her arm.

Buffy had hardly realised he was still tending to her as they argued like they always did. She glanced down at her arm as Spike snapped the lid of the first aid box down and put it back in it's proper place.

"Don't feel you need to come and thank me for saving your ass or anything" he told her as he headed towards the door, "Even if it all sinks in through that bloody thick skull of yours, I know you're still too high and mighty to be grateful to us lower beings for anything" he said, opening the door but not quite leaving yet, "Rest assured, pet, I won't make such a mistake and save your life again" he said nastily as he finally slammed out the office.

A paperweight hit the back of the door just seconds after it had closed and Buffy let out the sound of annoyance that rose in her throat. The man was insufferable, and arrogant, and stupid, and okay gorgeous too, but Buffy still hated Spike Blackstone. He had absolutely no good qualities, she told herself as she hopped off the desk, her hand going absently to the bandage that covered the cut on her other arm. He had been trying to help, she supposed, and she probably could've got more seriously hurt in that fight if he hadn't dragged her out. She just hated to be thought of as weak, especially by those she employed. It didn't do for others to think you couldn't handle yourself, to think they could walk all over you whenever they wanted. Buffy had been taught all that so well by her mother, it never occurred to her that sometimes everybody needed a little help, nobody is invincible.

It was strange, Buffy realised as she continued to stare at the patched up wound near her elbow, Spike had been so great storming into that fray, knocking a couple of guys out she was sure, and yet when he'd tended to her arm she'd barely felt a thing. Despite the fact that they were yelling angrily at each other he still managed to be so gentle she barely realised what he was doing till it was done.

Buffy hated to think she'd yelled at Spike when she shouldn't have, mostly because it meant she should apologise and that didn't come easy, especially when he was so pleased about it. She sighed to herself as she went towards the door, head held high. She would apologise if it killed her, she was a bigger person than Spike was and she was going to act like it, she told herself as she exited the office and moved down the corridor.

She paused at the end of the hallway as she heard voices coming from the basement, the door of which was just a few feet away and open. It was Spike and Doyle talking and instead of just barging in she stopped and listened to what they were saying, mostly because she heard them say her name and wished to know why.

"Gonna start callin' you Mighty Mouse after that little performance"

"Shut it, Doyle. You know that's not the first time I helped break up a fight. 'S not even the first time I saved a woman from a sound beating"

"That is not the point and you know it, Spike. Y'know you claim to hate the boss lady so much and yet the minute she's the damsel in distress you're her knight in shining armour, leaping over the bar to her rescue and all that"

"Did what anyone'd do. Doesn't mean I like the stupid bint. Some damsel anyway, aren't they s'posed to be grateful when you save them?"

"Exactly how grateful did you want her to be?"

"You've got a filthy mind, Doyle, d'you know that? Thank you would've done, 's not like I want anything else from that stupid cow. Probably catch somethin', like rich-bitch lurgee or whatever"

"You tellin' me if Miss Buffy Summers offered it to you on a plate you'd say no? Cos you've changed your bloody tune. Just the other day you said you'd..."

"Yeah, well. As hot as she is I don't think I could go through with it. Probably as damn demanding in bed as she is everywhere else"

"You serious? You really wouldn't go for it given half the chance?"

"You're so interested, mate, you take a shot. I wouldn't touch Buffy Summers if she were the last woman alive"

Buffy had got more and more angry as she listened to their conversation. She ducked back behind the wall when she heard them exiting the basement, having changed another beer barrel and fetched more bottles of other drinks.

Of course a part of her was screaming and wanting to storm around the corner and yell at the both of them for discussing her in such a way. She should fire them for it really, but she wouldn't. Spike would still suffer for what he'd said. She'd already proven a couple of times that she could get him all hot and bothered without hardly trying and he'd just admitted she was attractive. By the time she was through with him he'd be wishing she'd offer him everything, but of course she never would.

Buffy smiled as she watched the two barman go back to their work. Oh she was going to have fun with this.

To Be Continued...