Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.
Summary: A different turn of events after Season 1 Episode 12 "Expecting" A/C pairing
CHAPTER 55Cordelia slowly opened the door to Jessica's room to find her daughter sprawled out in her bed, snoring. Cordelia smiled as she took in the picture of her daughter, safe and sound. She gently closed the door and turned to make her way into the kitchen for some breakfast. Being pregnant meant on thing was certain in Cordelia's world, she woke up starving.
She waddled into the kitchen, grabbing a bagel and dropping it into the toaster, all the while humming quietly to herself.
It had been two weeks since Lindsey and Eve's attack on Wolfram and Hart and since then things in the law firm had been rather quiet, but in a good way. Everyone seemed to need the recovery time and Angel needed the time to rework how he was going to run things at the law firm.
Cordelia grabbed her bagel from the toaster, dropping it on a plate and turning to make her way to the kitchen table but instead, bumping right into Angel.
"Hey you." Angel smiled down at her. He was in a gray and black-stripped button up shirt with a black jacket over it, and Cordelia thought he looked extremely handsome this morning.
"Hey yourself." Cordelia smiled at him before giving him a quick kiss and then slowly making her way to the table.
"So, what are you up to today?" Angel asked as he poured himself a cup of blood.
Cordelia shrugged. "I think I might drag Jess and Fred shopping. We need to pick up some things for the baby." She patted her huge stomach. "Only a month and a half to go."
Angel smiled. He couldn't wait for the new baby to be born. "Well, Jess and Fred do have jobs incase you forgot."
"Oh please, like you can't give them one day off? Things have been dead around here anyway." Cordelia said, taking a bite out of her bagel.
"Well, see what they say." Angel told her. "If they want to go I don't mind them taking the day off."
"Day off?" Jessica's voice was filled with surprise as she lazily made her way into the kitchen.
"Why are you not dressed? It's ten already, the workday starts at eight." Angel frowned at his daughter.
"Okay, just because your boss doesn't mean you can order me around." Jess told him, pouring herself a cup of blood.
"Actually, that's exactly what it means." Angel tried not to laugh at Jessica's comment.
"Well, technically it does, but still…" Jess took a swig from her cup. "Anyway, I woke up late this morning. I guess I was just tired. Now…what were you saying about a day off?"
"Your mother wants to take you and Fred shopping with her today." Angel told her.
"Shopping?" Jess raised an eyebrow.
"For stuff for the baby…" Angel added, knowing Jess hated Cordelia's shopping trips almost as much as he did, but she hated them even more when they weren't going shopping for her.
"Sounds good." Jess smiled at her mother. "What time are we going?"
"As soon as we can get ready." Cordelia smiled back at her daughter. She had been meaning to get in some mother-daughter bonding before the new baby came, it just seemed she and Jessica could never find the time.
"Sweet." Jess said. "I'll go get dressed."
"I'll call Fred." Cordelia waddled out of the kitchen and into the living room.
The minute she was gone, Angel turned to his daughter. "You hate going shopping with her."
Jess nodded. "I know."
"So why are you going then?"
"Its better then just sitting around here all day and doing pointless, stupid work. I'm so sick of this place."
"You signed us up for it."
"And now you're in charge of it, and you just gave me the day off, so I'm technically free to do what I want." Jess grinned before making her way back to her bedroom.
Angel sighed, looking at the clock, and realizing he really needed to get down to his office.
Fred hung up the phone in her lab and turned to the door with a big smile on her face. She finally had a day off from the boring nothingness of her lab. Right now there were no new cases or clients or anything really going on in any part of the building and Fred's lab was no different. She was so happy Cordelia had called and invited her to go shopping.
She grabbed coat and made her way out of the lab, accidentally bumping into someone on her way out.
"Sorry…" Fred mumbled.
"Quite alright." Wesley smiled down at Fred. "I was actually just coming to see you."
Fred smiled at Wesley, planting a kiss on his lips. The two of them had pretty much been attached at the hips since the night Lindsey had attacked the firm, and they were now officially an item.
"Where are you heading?" Wesley asked when they finally broke apart.
"Out for the day." Fred said with a smile.
"Out?"
"Cordy just called. I'm going shopping with her and Jess today. Angel gave us off."
"Oh…" Wesley seemed to frown.
"Why?" Fred questioned.
"I just thought we could spend some time together." Wesley said truthfully.
"Wes, you have to work today. Anyway, I'll be back tonight. Cordelia is in no shape to stay out all day, even if we are going to the mall." Fred joked.
"Well, how about dinner tonight then, me and you?" Wesley asked.
"Sounds great." Fred gave Wesley another kiss before making her way to the garage.
Jess huffled, leaning against the wall by the door, checking her watch. Her mother had told her she would be ready in five minutes. Cordelia also had said that twenty minutes ago. Jess rolled her eyes, playing with the zipper to her black hooded sweatshirt, and then fixing the white tank top she was wearing underneath it.
"Mom!" Jess yelled through the penthouse. "Move it! Fred's probably waiting downstairs for us already."
"Sorry…" Cordelia waddled out of her bedroom in a brown long sleeve shirt and black maternity pants. Her hair was curled and sat neatly just below her shoulders. "I had to pee. You're little brother or sister decided to drum on my bladder."
"Too much information." Jess said, putting her hands up. "Come on." She opened the door and waited for Cordelia to make her way through before locking it behind them.
Angel sighed, going through a stack of files that sat on his desk. Gunn and Lorne were sitting across from him, also going over some files. Angel had decided the first step in turning things around at Wolfram and Hart was getting rid of all the clients that were threats to humanity. Unfortunately, that meant going through all the files and separating them. So far, the pile of threats was beating the pile of not-so-evil clients twenty to one.
"This is ridiculous." Gunn sighed. "There are so many files."
"Got that right." Lorne leaned back in his chair, rubbing his eyes. "Where are Spike and Wesley? Shouldn't they be helping us?"
"Well…" Spike's voice filled the room. "Spike doesn't technically work here, but I'm around if you need the help."
"Actually…we could use it." Angel said, not wanting Spike around, but not willing to turn down the extra help.
"Sounds good." Spike sat down taking a pile of folders in his hand.
Angel then shifted from the files in front of him to his phone. He hit a button and waited for Harmony to respond.
A minute later, Harmony's voice filled the room. "What is it boss?"
"Harmony, can you call Wesley down to my office. Tell him I need some help going through some files." Angel spoke into the phone.
"Sure can." Harmony said.
About ten minutes later Wesley trudged into he room. "You rang?"
"We need some help with these files." Angel told him. "There's to many of them for us to read."
"Damn right there are…" Spike sighed, looking at the files all over Angel's desk that still needed to be read.
"Well, I can help but I need to be out of here by five." Wesley smiled.
"How come?" Lorne asked. "You have a date or something?"
"Actually, I do." Wesley told them.
"Alright English! With who?" Gunn said, slapping Wesley high-five.
"Fred..." Wesley said.
"You and Fred?" Angel asked, a little taken back. "When did this happen?"
"Right after Lindsey attacked us." Wesley said. "Is it okay with everyone?" He directed his comment more towards Gunn.
"Sure man." Gunn smiled at Wesley. "As long as she is happy, and you treat her good."
"I will." Wesley said, relieved that Gunn wasn't angry with him for being with his ex-girlfriend.
Cordelia made her way into the mall with her famous smile on her face and Fred and Jess trailing behind her. The seer had forgotten how much she had missed the malls of LA and couldn't wait to begin her shopping trip.
"Let's go check out the baby store first." Cordelia turned to Fred and Jess.
"Sure." Fred smiled; glad to be out for the day.
"Well…actually…" Jess started pointing in the direction Cordelia wasn't going in. Sure, she had said she wanted to come shopping with her mother, but she didn't actually want to shop with Cordelia, she just wanted the day off and any excuse to be in the mall.
"You told your father you would come shopping with me. Well, I need help carrying stuff." Cordelia pointed to her huge belly. "So lets go." She took her daughter by the arm and led her in the direction of the baby store with Fred a step behind her.
Angel sighed, closing his eyes and rubbing his forehead. He and the rest of the gang had been in his office reading files for hours. He was tired and when he looked up to see the rest of the room, everyone else looked equally as tired.
"Okay…" Angel stood. "Break time."
"Brilliant." Spike grinned, his eyes red from reading. "Because this is killing me…if I wasn't dead, I mean."
"We got you." Lorne stood. "And I've got a sea breeze with my name on it waiting for me down in the bar. Who's coming?"
"We have a bar?" Angel was confused.
"Second floor, first door on the left." Lorne told the vampire.
Angel nodded. "Good to know."
"Well, I could use a drink." Gunn told the demon.
"I second that." Spike agreed.
"Let's all go. We deserve the break." Wesley told them. "I mean, here we are, working all day while the girls are out shopping."
"Exactly." Gunn said. "Break time."
Angel nodded, but before he could say another word, Harmony entered his office.
"Boss?" Harmony asked.
"Yeah?" Angel turned to the other vampire.
"You've got someone out here to see you." Harmony told him.
"Who?" Angel asked.
"Um…wolf girl? The one you saved a few weeks ago." Harmony said.
Angel nodded. "Send her in."
"Uh, Angel?" Gunn asked.
"You guys go ahead." Angel told them, and watched as Wesley, Lorne, Gunn, and Spike made their way out of his office and Nina entered it.
"Nina, right?" Angel asked, motioning for her to take a seat.
Nina nodded. "That's me."
"What's up?" Angel asked.
"I actually came to talk to you." Nina told him truthfully. "I stayed here a few nights ago."
Angel nodded. "Yeah, Gunn told me you came in. Sorry I didn't come to check in on you, I was a little busy."
"I heard." Nina said. "Gunn told me about your wife being kidnapped and then the kidnapper trying to kill you all. Tough break."
"Hasn't been the easiest month." Angel sighed.
"Well, then I'm not going to make it any easier…" Nina stood, taking a deep breath, before she leaned across the desk and kissed Angel.
A moment later Angel pulled away, confused at what the blonde, who happened to remind him a lot of Buffy, had just done.
"What the hell was that?" Angel asked.
"I needed to see if it was real." Nina sighed. "That this wasn't just some horrible nightmare I was living over and over again. I needed to see if you were real."
"So you kissed me?"
Nina shrugged. "I don't know."
Angel nodded, understanding. He had been where Nina was. Right after he had gotten his soul back it took him so much time and energy to cope with the fact that he was a demon. Nina was going through that now. He sighed, running his hands through his hair, touching each gelled spike. "You want to talk?"
Nina nodded, sitting back down.
Jess sighed as she followed Cordelia and Fred around the baby store. Both the seer and physicists were having way too much fun gathering baby clothes and blankets and toys that Jessica wanted to just smack them both in the head. But she didn't, of course; instead she followed her pregnant mother around without saying a word.
"Jess?" Cordelia turned around to face her daughter. "What do you think of this?" She held up a blue pair of pajamas. "In case it's a boy."
"Don't we have things in case it's a boy?" Jess asked, tired of walking around the store.
"No. I only have things from you, so if it's a girl I've got it covered, if it's a boy I cant put him in pink." Cordelia told her daughter.
"What about Connor's stuff?" Jess asked, and then immediately covered her mouth after her brother's name slipped through her lips.
"Whose stuff?" Fred asked.
"Nobodies…" Jess said, trying to shake the chill that was running down her spin. How stupid could she be bringing Connor into the conversation like they all knew who he was? No one knew. No one except Spike and Eve. Jess sighed. "The blue's cute, Mom." She said, pointing to the clothing in Cordelia's hand.
Angel sat across from Nina, trying to get her to open up to him. So far they had talked about everything except her being a werewolf. He knew it was the reason she had come to see him, the reason she had kissed him, so he didn't understand why she wouldn't talk about it. He of all people would understand what she was going through.
"So…" Nina looked up at the vampire. "I guess I should thank you for listening."
"We haven't even talked yet." Angel told her.
Nina looked confused.
"I mean sure, you told me about your job, and niece, and car, and where you grew up and went to college, but we still haven't talked about the real reason you're here." Angel explained.
Nina took a deep breath, nodding her head slowly. "Right…that…"
"Yeah. So, you're scared, I get that. I was there."
"Not like this." Nina shook her head. "I get what I am. I mean, after talking to you a few weeks ago, and going through two changes, and kissing you, which by the way I'm totally sorry for doing, I get this is my life."
Angel nodded. "So, what's the problem then?"
"I can't even tell my family. Even if I could, they wouldn't except me."
"You don't know that."
Nina nodded. "Yes, I do. I mean, how could anyone understand this, let alone except it?"
"People do it all the time." Angel said truthfully. "And I bet your family would too."
"It's just all to weird. No one would believe it."
"You'd be surprised…" Angel smiled slightly, remembering how Cordelia, Xander, and Willow had been back in Sunnydale when they first found out that vampires and demons were real.
"You really think I can tell them?"
"I think it's worth a shot." Angel told her.
Jessica sighed, her hands full of bags of things for the new baby that they had gotten at the mall, as she and Fred followed Cordelia into the elevator of Wolfram and Hart.
"All these bags and not one thing for me." Jess whined.
"I told you we were shopping for the baby today." Cordelia said, rubbing her big belly.
"And you know what I think of that?" Jess started.
Fred quickly nudged Jessica before the younger girl could say anything that might set Cordelia off on a hormonal roller coaster.
"I had fun today, Cordy." Fred smiled. "It was good to get out."
Cordelia nodded, as the elevator doors opened and she stepped into the main lobby of the law firm. "I'm glad."
"Whoa!" Gunn's voice filled the lobby, as he watched Jessica trying to balance all the bags in her arms. "When you girls go shopping you really mean shopping."
Jess turned to see Gunn, Lorne, Wesley, and Spike entered. "A little help here?" She asked.
Spike was the first to react, grabbing three bags from Jessica and then smiling awkwardly at her. She had a presence about her that reminded him so much of Buffy.
"Thanks." Jess smiled back at the blonde vampire.
"Anytime." Spike told her.
"So, did you ladies have fun today?" Lorne asked.
Cordelia flashed her gorgeous smile. "We sure did. My feet are killing me though, I was on them way to long."
Wesley checked his watch, turning to Fred with a smile. "Are you tired? Because I can cancel our dinner reservations if you are."
Fred gave Wesley a kiss. "Nope. I can go for dinner."
"Then we should probably head out now." Wesley said, taking Fred's arm.
"Have fun." Gunn told them.
"Where's Angel?" Cordelia asked.
"His office." Gunn replied. "Nina stopped by to see him."
"The werewolf?" Cordelia asked.
Gunn nodded. "That's her."
"I'll go see them." Cordelia said, making her way to Angel's office doors. "Jess? Spike? Bring the baby stuff upstairs."
Jess looked to Spike and then nodded. "Will do." She then led the vampire down the hall.
Cordelia waddled her way into Angel's office to see him in an intense conversation with Nina. Both the vampire and werewolf were surprised when Cordelia entered.
"Hey." Cordelia smiled at Angel and walked around his desk to give him a kiss. She then turned to Nina. "Nice to see you again, Nina."
Nina smiled back at Cordelia, awkwardly. She felt uncomfortable about being in the room with Angel's wife after she had kissed Angel. Hopefully, that would be a secret she and Angel kept to themselves though. "You too."
"How was shopping?" Angel asked, placing a hand on Cordelia's stomach.
"I had a good time, Jess hated it." Cordelia told him. "I bought tons of stuff for the baby."
"I can only imagine." Angel sighed, wondering how much money Cordelia had spent at the mall.
"Well, you two seem busy, so I'm just going to go." Nina stood. "Thanks for everything, Angel."
"Anytime." Angel told her. "I'll see you in a few weeks."
Nina nodded before she exited.
Cordelia then turned to Angel, wrapping her arms around his neck. "What did she want?"
"Just to talk." Angel told Cordelia, not wanting to get into a deep conversation about Nina's visit. He didn't want to have to tell Cordelia that the werewolf had kissed him to make sure her life was actually happening.
"About?" Cordelia pressed.
"Her condition. Her family relating to it." Angel said. "She figured I could relate I guess."
"That's it?" Cordelia asked, not actually caring about Nina's visit. She just wanted to warm Angel up so he wouldn't freak out about the credit card bill they received from her shopping trip earlier that day.
"She kissed me." Angel blurted out, unable to keep it to himself anymore, and not wanting to lie to Cordelia.
"She what?" Cordelia immediately pulled away from Angel, completely shocked.
"She kissed me." Angel repeated, digging his hands into his pockets.
"Yeah, I heard that part." Cordelia snorted. "Why?"
"She was confused." Angel told her. "She said she needed to see if her life was really happening."
"So she kissed you?" Cordelia raised an eyebrow.
Angel nodded. "I didn't kiss her back."
"Well gee! That's a relief." Cordelia said sarcastically.
"It's the truth, Cordy. I wouldn't do that to you." Angel said, taking Cordelia's hand in his. "Why do you think I told you?"
"Because you knew I'd find out somehow?" Cordelia told him.
"Well…maybe, but also because I love you and I don't want secrets between us." He moved closer to her, and was almost surprised when she allowed him to kiss her on the forehead.
Cordelia nodded. "She just won't come back here."
"What?" Angel looked down at his wife, relieved that with her hormones raging she didn't try and stake him. "She needs our help."
"Well fine, but you don't see her anymore." Cordelia ordered. "Understand?"
Angel nodded. "But she can still stay here for the full moons?"
"As long as someone else takes care of it." Cordelia said, making her way to the elevator, but stopping short when she heard another female voice in the room.
"And I thought you were the new boss around here, Angel." Eve smiled from her spot at the door. "Looks like Cordelia is giving the orders."
"Eve." Angel clenched his jaw as he felt Cordelia move up next to him. "I thought I told you to stay the hell away from here."
"You did." Eve made her way over to the chair Nina had been sitting in earlier. "Except, oh wait, you work for the Senior Partners and I'm your connection to them, so you can't fire me."
"I doubt they want to find out you tried to kill me." Angel told her, wrapping his arm protectively around Cordelia's huge waist.
"Like they didn't already know." Eve told the vampire. "Point is, I took my punishment and they allowed me to keep my job." She stood, and made her way to the door, but turned back when she got there. "You can't touch me, Angel." She then made her way out of the room.
Angel looked at Cordelia to see the worry in her eyes. "Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on her."
"I'm not worried about her." Cordelia told him. "I'm worried that she is a free invitation for Lindsey to come back here."
"She isn't." Angel told Cordelia. "I'll make sure of that."
Spike followed Jessica into the room that Cordelia and Angel had gotten ready for the new baby. It was the room closest to their bedroom, and the farthest from Jessica's, which the young girl was happy about, considering she didn't want to be kept up all night by a screaming baby.
"Where do you want this?" Spike asked.
"Anywhere." Jess said, dropping her bags on the floor. "Mom will sort it all out when she comes up."
Spike nodded, also placing his bags on the floor next to the ones Jessica had just put down, and then looking around the room. "Room looks good."
"Me and Dad painted it last week." Jess told him.
"You excited for the new baby?" Spike asked.
Jess shrugged. "I guess, I don't know. It will be a change."
"You'll have a new brother or sister though. You won't be any only child." Spike said, and then regretted his words as he saw Jessica's face look to the ground. He remembered she had told him about Connor. "I mean, since you know, Connor…since he…"
"Doesn't remember me, or this family." Jess looked up at the vampire. "Yeah, I know what you mean."
Spike nodded, placing his hand on Jessica's shoulder. "He might not remember you, but you'll never forget him, and never stop loving him."
"I have eternity to live with what I did to him." Jessica looked Spike in the eye.
"I have eternity to live with a lot of stuff I did." Spike told her. "And we'll both get through it."
Jess nodded, and before she knew it, Spike's lips were on hers. It was a sweet kiss, but Jessica pulled away when they heard the door to the penthouse open.
"We can't do this again." Jess told Spike, moving away from him.
Spike looked hurt, but understood. Angel would kill him for kissing his daughter, and Spike wasn't even sure if he had feelings for Jessica. He might have, but he also had feelings for Buffy that weren't going to go away over night.
Just then the door to the baby's room swung open and Angel and Cordelia stood there.
"Eve's back!" Cordelia told the blonde vampire and her daughter.
"What?" Jessica was shocked.
"Yeah." Cordelia said.
"What the hell?" Angel's eyes grew wide.
"What?" Spike asked, following Angel's gaze to the piles of bags on the floor.
Angel turned back to Cordelia. "You were only out for a couple of hours. How did you buy that much stuff?" He pointed to the bags.
Cordelia flashed him her famous smile. "I'm a fast shopper."