It was a working weekend on Oak Hills Drive; for Tony and Angela at least. Angela had shut herself up in her office just after breakfast, not only to avoid Tony, but to do some actual work as well. Tony wasn't happy about this choice as it barred him from starting any conversation with Angela, but he was still maintaining his 'keep everything as normal as we can' position and decided that he could talk to Angela about whatever was bothering her later in the day. Jonathan was out with friends; and no one was quite sure where Mona was. She wasn't home, that's all anyone knew.

Tony had deputized himself as Angela's watchdog and was camped out in the living room, as close to her office as he could get, just in case she needed him, or didn't need him as the case may be; he was ready to cater to whatever whim she had in mind. Whether Angela had the whim for it or not, in the back of his mind he was preparing to whisk Angela away on a 'spontaneous' trip for ice cream at some point in the afternoon. Getting her out of the house and plying her with chocolate might get her to open up about whatever was bothering her a little more easily. He was immersed in writing a paper when the sound of a car engine being revved shattered the calm suburban silence of a weekend afternoon. Curious, and no longer able to concentrate on his school work, Tony got up from the couch and looked through the front window.

"Corvette, red, convertible; trite, but effective," he silently noted. Unfortunately, that car was also bad news for there could only be one person who would own that car and have reason to be in their driveway: Stanley Harrington. Sure enough, there he was, over-confidently striding up the path to the front door. A tweed blazer covering a turtleneck sweater over chinos and penny loafers was enough in itself to make Tony roll his eyes, but the white silk fringed scarf turned the whole outfit into such a cliché, Tony could only laugh instead. He couldn't possibly be wearing driving gloves, could he? He could. Tony thought that was a good sign, gloves made it more difficult to make a pass at Angela; and Tony definitely wanted Stanley to keep his paws off Angela. Tony wondered where Stanley's driving hat was, maybe the wind blew it off on the way up, he mused.

Tony moved away from the window to avoid being seen by Stanley, and to prepare Angela for this (hopefully) unwanted intrusion on their weekend. As he didn't have much time before the doorbell rang, he ran to Angela's office door and knocked quickly.

"Come in," Angela answered, glad for the break from work.

Tony only opened the door slightly and leaned in, "you expecting company, Angela?"

Angela looked puzzled and shook her head.

"I thought so, well, whether you want company or not..." at that point the doorbell rang, "he's here."

"Who's here?"

"Stanley Harrington."

Tony could see Angela was not happy about this; and inwardly he was jumping for joy, thinking, "ha ha, Harrington, she doesn't want to see you!"

"I can't believe he came up here uninvited."

"I can tell him you aren't here."

"It would be pointless, he won't leave." Resigned to this unwanted attention, Angela arose from her desk and steeled herself to confront Stanley. As much as she didn't want to talk to him, she knew she had to; it would be the only way to get rid of him.

Tony opened the office door fully to let Angela pass through, then he hurried before her and put his hand on the front door knob. Angela took off her glasses to give her hands something to play with; having something to hold gave her an excuse to avoid physical contact with Stanley.

"Tony, you don't have to do that, I can handle this."

"I'm sure you can, Angela, but it's a guy thing, humor me."

Angela rolled her eyes, the last thing she needed right now was to be caught in the middle of some macho display between two so-called adult men. Her ego intruded just a tiny bit, prompting her to see a positive side; at least Tony cared enough about her to want to make sure no one hurt her. Reluctantly, she nodded, taking some solace in Tony's presence.

Tony opened the front door. Stanley ignored him as he stepped over the threshold, "Angie, baby," he held out his arms to her.

"Baby?" Tony mouthed behind him as he closed the door. Angela saw this and shrugged.

"Stanley, what a...surprise," Angela said, not moving from where she was leaning on the arm of the couch. He couldn't think she'd run into his arms, could he?

Whether he did or not, he dropped one arm and pointed the other toward the window, acknowledging the waiting vehicle, "thought I'd take the car out for a spin today, poor thing spends too much time cooped up in a Manhattan parking garage. It needs to be out in the country, zooming down the roads, the wind whipping through our hair."

"Our hair?"

"Sure! Driving this baby is no fun alone. Envious looks are more envious with a blonde in the car."

Behind Stanley, Tony was leaning against the door openly mocking him. Angela was grateful for this as it alleviated the unpleasantness of having Stanley in their home and it gave her a taste of what their relationship used to be, she was actually momentarily happy. Tony was on her side and it felt good for him to be there. The only drawback was that she was paying more attention to him than to Stanley. Stanley noticed that Angela's attention was focused behind him, he turned around and Tony waved at him. "Why don't I get some refreshments?" Tony covered.

"No need; Angela and I will be leaving as soon as she gets her coat."

Tony decided to stay where he was; not only to bug Stanley; but more importantly, he liked seeing a glint of happiness back in Angela's eyes, it had been missing for far too long.

Angela had to keep herself from laughing out loud, "sorry, Stanley, I appreciate your coming all the way out here; but I have a lot of work to do."

"Work? Ange, all work and no play makes Angie a dull girl."

"I'll just have to be dull."

"Come on," he cajoled, "I want you to meet Princess."

"Princess?" Angela repeated, confused.

"Princess?" Tony silently derided.

"My car."

"You named your car Princess?" Tony was so glad Angela asked that question, because if she hadn't he would have had to and it would not have been possible for him to keep the sarcasm out of his voice. As for Angela, even if she had been considering going out with Stanley, which she most certainly was not, this would have been a red flag to her.

"Of course." Stanley answered, after all his car was part of the statement of who he was, why shouldn't he treat her as royalty? His answer told Tony more about Stanley and his relationship with his car than he ever wanted to know.

Tony made a gagging motion behind Stanley's back; Angela had to bite her cheeks to keep from laughing. She dropped her head down and twirled her glasses to keep Stanley from seeing the mirth on her face. Stanley didn't need to see it, he felt the connection between Tony and Angela, and he could sense their nonverbal communication. He didn't like it, and he was losing patience. Angela was going for a drive with him today if he had to pick her up and carry her to the car. He could do it too, he inwardly preened, after all, he did have a personal trainer. He ignored the fact that Tony had a personal trainer too, himself, and the results were far superior.

Stanley's next move was so shocking and fast it took both Tony and Angela by surprise, he reached out and grabbed Angela's wrist, pulling her off the couch and causing her glasses to fall to the floor. Tony was away from the door and by her side in a heartbeat; angling to pry Stanley's fingers off Angela's wrist, but the leather glove gripped Angela's wrist as tightly as it grasped the steering wheel.

"Stanley, let go, you're hurting me," Angela demanded.

"I said we were going for a drive today, and we are," Stanley started to pull Angela to the door.

Tony did the only thing he could do, he punched Stanley in the face. It worked. Stanley instantaneously dropped Angela's wrist to sooth his sore jaw. "I'm calling my lawyer."

Tony moved to stand in between Angela and Stanley, "I think the police might have an interest in seeing Angela's wrist."

Chagrined and beaten, Stanley decided to cut his losses, there were plenty of other babes in the City for him to pursue, but he wasn't leaving without a parting shot, "you've made your choice, Angela; have fun playing house with your housekeeper." He slammed the door on the way out and squealed out of the driveway.

Angela was shaking, she tried to put her arms around herself in an effort to find strength, but couldn't control her gasping sobs. It was all too much; distancing herself from Tony was taking its toll, this combined with the stress of the past few seconds resulted in a complete breakdown.

Tony turned around at the sound of Angela crying, she looked so uncharacteristically vulnerable. He put his arms around her and she gratefully put her arms around him. He felt so warm and strong, nothing could harm her when she was in his arms. She clung to him, letting herself fully cry. Tony soothed her as best he could, softly stroking her back and telling her she was safe. He hated having Angela end up in his arms like this, but he was going to hold and comfort her for as long as she let him. He made a silent vow that the next time he saw Stanley Harrington he was not going to be responsible for his actions; Angela was going to have to physically restrain him from requiring Stanley to make a few more visits to his favorite plastic surgeon for repairs.

"It's ok, Angela, he's gone. He won't come back."

Angela only held on more tightly, it felt so good to be in his arms again, she'd missed him so much.

"C'mon and sit down."

Angela didn't want to sit down, she was afraid Tony wouldn't hold her again if she let go of him, but she was unsteady on her feet so she pulled away just enough to let Tony walk her to the couch.

They sat down and Tony gently picked up her bruised arm, "I'm going to get some ice for this," but before he could move Angela jumped closer into his arms and pleaded, "no, don't go." He stayed, and held her gently.

Angela wanted to crawl into Tony's lap and stay there forever. His touch was sweet and tender in contrast to Stanley's which was harsh and brutal. Why couldn't Tony like her the way Stanley did? Angela scoffed, Stanley didn't really like her, he liked the prestige; when it came right down to it, he didn't know many facets of Angela at all, and he didn't seem to want to know them.

Tony pulled Angela a little closer and they settled in on the couch. He'd hold her for as long as she wanted to be held, even forever if need be. Angela continued to cling to Tony, succumbing to crying on his shoulder, her bruised wrist combining with her bruised heart to overwhelm her. Tony pulled her on to his lap, he moved one arm away from her long enough to grab a box of tissues off the table behind them. She saw the tissue box appear and gratefully whispered, "thank you" as she grabbed several tissues from the box. Tony propped the box on the back of the couch, he had a feeling it might be needed again soon. He let Angela cry and continued to stroke her back in an attempt to soothe her.

"Everything's all right. He's gone. He won't hurt you again. I won't let him hurt you again. I'm sorry I let him get close enough to hurt you, I should have knocked his overly tanned ass out the door and down the street the second you said you didn't want to go out with him." Angela actually managed a little laugh at that and it went a long way to helping him deal with his guilt over letting Stanley get close enough to Angela to physically hurt her. He felt he failed at keeping her safe and he was mad at himself for that. He was judging himself far too harshly, there was no way he could have known a pillar of the advertising community was going to turn violent. Angela certainly didn't hold Tony responsible for Stanley's actions, and if she had known that Tony was bothered by what just happened she would have alleviated his pain. But she didn't know, and he wasn't going to tell her; the lack of communication that had insinuated itself in their relationship over the past couple of weeks was once again creating problems with long term effects neither could foresee at the moment. Right now all Angela wished for was to stay cradled in Tony's arms forever; but the knowledge that that couldn't be was breaking her heart all over again and adding more to the pain of the past few minutes.

Tony's mind was wandering just a little. As much as he hated himself for not giving his full attention to Angela, and as much as he hated to admit it; he was bothered by the way Stanley used the word 'housekeeper' as an epithet. Once again the differences in their lives were pointed out; rather harshly. He knew Stanley only said it to rankle him and he shouldn't let it bother him, but it did.

Then Tony's optimistic nature took over; if Stanley wanted to goad him it could only be because he saw Tony as a threat in his pursuit of Angela. A small smile even managed to form at that thought; and a sing-song, "ha ha, you lose, Stanley!" floated through his head. It was not a very mature thought, but it was far more mature than Stanley's behavior. He hugged Angela a little more tightly, she seemed to be calming down.

"How about we get that ice now?" he asked tentatively.

"'k," Angela still didn't want to leave the comfort of Tony's arms, but her wrist did need some ice. She dried the remains of her tears and looked up at him with an attempt at a smile. He touched her cheek and dried a final tear with his thumb.

"Angela, are you all right? I've been worried about you."

She hadn't expected this, but covered like a pro, "I'm fine, Tony; you're a worry wort."

"I am not!" he protested, a little jokingly.

She smiled a little more, "please, if you could, you would never let Samantha out of your sight."

"That's called being a concerned parent."

"Uh huh."

"And we aren't talking about Sam, we are talking about you. You've been distant and I don't know why."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

If she thought she was getting out of this conversation that easily, she was quickly shown how wrong she could be. Tony started citing examples, "you've stayed at work, you haven't been home for dinner in...I don't even know how long. I've barely seen you. Are you mad at me for something?"

"Of course not." Lying was a good companion to denial. She did not want Tony to pursue this any further, so she changed the subject by holding up her wrist, "ice?"

"Ice," he agreed. Angela left the couch and went to the kitchen. Tony followed her, perplexed; and worse, even more unsettled by Angela's non-answers to his questions. Obviously she didn't want to talk to him about what was bothering her; and that bothered him, a lot. What secret could she have that she didn't want to share with him? Did she have a boyfriend in the City? It didn't seem likely because Mona would have figured that out instantaneously. He'd struck out at trying to solve the puzzle that was Angela. He hated to admit it, but he was going to have to turn this back over to Mona; maybe she could get some answers.

Tony pulled a chair out for Angela to sit in, she smiled her thanks and he went to the freezer to get a cold pack. His heart broke as Angela lifted her arm so he could fix the wrap around her wrist. She looked like a lost little girl, there was a sadness in her eyes that he had never seen before. She'd been so evasive, how was he to know she'd been mentally beating herself up since their anniversary? He couldn't know. All he knew right now was that he wished he could kiss her wrist and make it all better.

Angela felt the cold pack encase her wrist and gasped, "colder than I expected."

"I'll make you some chicken soup to warm up," he smiled.

She smiled back, the smile even making it to her eyes for a very brief moment. Tony saw this and felt a little better. Things were looking up, Angela was recovering and he believed her when she said she wasn't mad at him. Maybe whatever was bothering her had to do with Stanley, and now that that was resolved, she'd be back to her normal self.

Tony had a better idea, going out for ice cream was not going to work now, but that didn't mean they still couldn't enjoy the treat. He jumped up from the table and headed back to the freezer, Angela wondered what he was up to, she certainly did not need a second ice pack. Tony peeked his head around the open freezer door and grinned, "ice cream?" he said as he pulled the carton out to show her and shut the door with his foot.

Now Angela smiled for real, "double chocolate with nuts?"

"Of course. Nothing cures everything like ice cream," he said as he dropped the carton on the table and went to get bowls and spoons.

Angela laughed in agreement, and Tony felt that equilibrium was being restored in the household. In a few months he would be out of school, ready to take on new challenges and finally able to be honest with Angela about his feelings for her. He couldn't make himself believe that Mona was right; he and Angela hadn't missed their chance, they were only waiting...for what he wasn't really sure. Hadn't Angela once said she didn't care what he did? And hadn't she kissed him in Washington? Then there was the "I love you," Tony was finally considering the fact that maybe she had meant that in a romantic way. He'd always thought they'd wait until he graduated; maybe he should discuss that with Angela at some point. Maybe she didn't want to wait anymore. The revelation was important; but it was hardly a topic he could broach at the moment, it would have to wait for a better opportunity.

When Mona finally returned home, all she had to do was look at Tony to ask him if he had been able to get any answers out of Angela, his quick shake of the head exasperated her. Her exasperation turned to anger when she saw Angela's wrist and was told the story of Stanley's visit. It was a good thing he was long gone because Mona would have torn him limb from limb; no one messed with her baby but her. Angela asked her mother not to tell anyone in the office about what happened, against which Mona argued vehemently. As far as she was concerned, Stanley should be exposed for the rat he was. However, Angela was adamant, and her mother finally grudgingly agreed to her request.

On Monday the advertising world was shocked. Reports flew through every agency that Stanley Harrington had crashed his car into a tree somewhere in Connecticut over the weekend. The car was totaled and he was in a coma, the doctors still unsure if he would ever come out of it. When Angela heard the news she tried to feel some sympathy for him, but then she looked at her wrist and sympathy was difficult to come by. She went on with her day, trying to come to terms with this news and her lack of feeling over it, finally coming to the conclusion that she was working so hard to suppress her feelings for Tony, that she had suppressed all of her emotions.

Mona had no trouble expressing her emotions, remarking that she felt Stanley got what he deserved to anyone who would listen; and everyone in the office listened as they all agreed with her. Mona could only imagine how much more everyone would agree with her if they knew about Angela's wrist; a detail she did not betray, no matter how much she wanted to. She did call Tony and let him in on the news. Tony tried to be charitable, he really did; after all, that was a great car that was now totaled, but forgiveness for the way Stanley harmed Angela was going to take a while.

Stanley never did come out of the coma.