"Where am I?" Liam heard the girl whisper. He half-sprinted from his place in the kitchen to his couch where he had placed her after she passed out in the elevator. Unsure of which apartment was hers, he figured it was safest to keep an eye on her in his apartment until she gained consciousness.

"You're safe," he told her in a soothing tone, as he kneeled beside the couch. For some reason, although he'd just met the girl, he felt an overwhelming desire to protect her. She blinked hard and opened her eyes to meet his pools of dark chocolate, which she just wanted to drown in. Snapping out of her second reverie, she bolted upright and backed up away from him as far as she possibly could.

'No, no, no, no, no. I can't relapse now. I can't, I can't go back there. I've done so well! I just want to be normal again.'

"Whoa! Are you okay?", He asked, now worried that he had frightened her "I'm not gonna hurt you, I promise." At the sight of the girl relaxing a little, he continued, "I'm Liam, we met earlier. You're in my apartment, I think we live on the same floor. I'm not sure which one you live in exactly, so I brought you here after you blacked out in the elevator. Are you alright?"

I can't tell him, he'll think I'm completely nuts!

She smiled faintly at him in reassurance that he hadn't done anything to scare her. "Liam", she said softly. He thought the way she said his name flowed so easily, as though it was so natural to her. It made him feel slightly warm just thinking about the way she said it again. "I'm Buffy." She sat up, now face-to-face with Liam. "I just moved into the building, but you already know that. I'm sorry about… passing out on you. Low blood sugar." She lied. But all the while, she couldn't take her eyes off him. She took in every detail of his features, wanting to just reach out and cup his face and kiss him with all the might she could, so badly.

'Buffy. She's so beautiful… and so familiar. Do I know her? I can't know her, I've only just met her! She looks quite a bit younger than me so I can't know her from school…'

At the lack of his response, Buffy lifted herself off the couch, keeping herself steady. "Well I guess I'd better get going…"

"Uh, yeah. Of course, sorry." Liam stood himself up and looked her in the eyes. "May I walk you to your apartment?" 'There it is again, that weird feeling I got earlier… the need to protect her.'

Buffy smiled sheepishly at him without realising as she blushed a little. "Well aren't you a gentleman? I'd like that."

…

That night, Buffy laid in bed for what felt like hours, trying to get to sleep. All she could think about were his soft-looking lips, his big brown eyes that were filled with warmth and his muscular, toned body. Thinking about him made her feel like a 14 year old girl with a crush; her belly was filled with butterflies that warmed her yet made her want to puke her guts up from anxiety of ever seeing him again. And of course the chances of seeing him again were very large, considering they lived in the same building, on the same floor. Tossing and turning, she looked at the bright red glow of the digits on her alarm clock every time: 00:30, 00:35, 00:40… and it went on for hours.

….

Deciding she couldn't sit around doing nothing forever, the next morning Buffy decided to do some shopping, with a side of possibly looking for a job. As she waited for the elevator, she felt a familiar presence approaching. Looking towards Liam's apartment, sure enough, there he was – in what Buffy recognized couldn't be anything but a designer business suit, dark grey, with a dark blue silk shirt – its collar button unfastened, was Liam walking right towards her with a leather briefcase in hand. She gave him a small smile as he came nearer, wondering what his occupation might be. Living in a luxury building, she didn't think he'd be anything less than a company executive.

"We've gotta stop meeting like this," he grinned at her as he assumed a stance next to her. Buffy couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

"I know, I might get used to these elevator meetings. " She said quietly. They entered the elevator in silence, although, not the awkward sort.

"So what are you up to today?" He asked, sounding sincerely interested. Hoping she wouldn't notice, he gave her a quick glance over – she was wearing a pair of tight black jeans that accentuated her curves – especially her ass, which he paid a particular interest in – a simple white vest and a light denim jacket. Her soft curls were in a slightly messed ponytail which flattered her face. Beautiful.

"I'm just heading to Santa Monica to do some shopping… could you tell me where the bus stop is please? Every time I've been here I've either got a ride or a cab," she asked politely.

"I work in Santa Monica, would you like a ride?" Liam asked. Anything to spend as much time with her as possible. I want to get to know her…

Buffy bit her lip as she was tempted by the offer. Smiling up at him, she nodded. "Sure. I'd like that very much," And the two exited the elevator on the car park level, with Liam leading the way towards his car. Upon arriving at the maroon-coloured vehicle, Buffy let out a wolf whistle. "2004 Rolls Royce Phantom…you must be doing well for yourself," she winked playfully. Liam chuckled as he unlocked the doors and motioned for her to get in. Buffy strapped herself in as he started the engine, which she didn't even notice had been started as it was so quiet.

"So, what do you do, Buffy?" He asked as he drove, glancing at her slightly, and move that didn't go unnoticed by the blonde.

"Well," she felt herself blush "at the moment, I'm useless. I…" How do I say this? "…went away for a while and didn't go to college, or even, finish high school for that matter…but I'm thinking of starting my own business. How about you? Flashy business executive?"

He smiled at her reassuringly, figuring it was a touchy subject for her. "I'm a senior partner and owner of a law firm, Wolfram & Hart, but I mostly take on social services cases." He said simply, trying his hardest not to sound conceited.

"Wow," Buffy said. "all that power and you take on the cases that don't pay? You must be an Angel or something…" 'Did I seriously just say that?'

Liam chuckled as the vehicle slowed down to stop at a red light. Looking at her, he smiled. "I like to think that I'm giving something back… I promised myself a while ago that I didn't want to be one of those attorneys who did a job they hated just for the cash flow – it's not who I am. And I'm happy with what I've got." 'And I'll be even happier with you in my life… If you give me the chance.' He thought to himself. He didn't know what had come over him – one day of knowing this woman, and everything that he never thought he'd feel came gushing along with her. "Well, we're in Santa Monica. Shall I drop you off here?," He motioned towards a Starbuck's.

"Sure," she agreed "thank you so much for the ride, Liam, I owe you one. Again." Buffy smiled as she reached to undo the seat belt, and then opened the door to exit the car.

"Buffy," Liam said before she shut the door. At her questioning look, he continued "how about… you meet me for lunch later, and we'll call it even?"

Surprised at his request, Buffy shyly tucked a tuft of hair back behind her ear. "Sure…"

Once more, Liam grinned at her. He reached into his inside pocket and handed her a card and a pen. "May I uh… have your number? Uh, you know to… uh… arrange where and when we can have lunch."

"Of course you may," she returned his grin as she jotted down her cell phone number on the back of the card, and returning it to him. She shut the car door and headed off into the Starbuck's, looking back and smiling widely as Liam drove away.