WHAT BROUGHT US HERE 3
by Spikedluv

The Christmas holidays were too short, and Dawn left soon after the New Year to go back to LA, but she did return to Sunnydale in February for Jess’s third birthday. Once again, Xander went all out planning the birthday party. He decorated the living room with crepe paper, banners, and balloons while Spike baked and decorated the cake. He insisted that Jess deserved a homemade cake instead of a store bought one, and thus garnered the chore.

When the house was clean and decorated, the dining room table covered with a Spiderman tablecloth and matching paper plates and napkins, and the party favors set out, they set about showering and getting dressed for the party. Spike sat on the couch with the newspaper as he listened to Xander and Jess chattering as he dressed her in the new clothes he’d gotten for the party.

"Look at me!" Jess cried.

Spike lowered the paper and glanced over the top. Jess stood before him in a blue velvet dress with white lace trim and white tights. She twirled and the skirt of the dress flew out. Giggling, she stood facing him. "It’s a dress!"

Spike smiled. "And a very beautiful dress it is, too. But not as beautiful as you. You gonna let Daddy do your hair?"

Jess sighed a very put-upon sigh. "Yes. I just wanted to show you my dress."

"I’m glad you did. Thank you, precious."

Jess beamed, and then turned and raced out of the room. He could hear her stockinged feet pounding as she ran down the hallway. "You need to do my hair!" she squealed.

Spike let the domestic sounds wash over him as he continued to read. He didn’t really care about world events, but Dawn was out there, and now there was Jess to consider, so he figured he needed to keep up on what was going on.

"Daddy, buckle my shoe."

Spike smiled to himself as he read. Little chit was already demanding. He felt sorry for the man she decided she was gonna marry. A sudden, sharp pain to his shin made Spike swear and drop the paper so he could rub it. Jess was sitting on the coffee table in front of him.

"Did you just kick me?" he whined.

Jess ignored him. "Buckle my shoe," she said, daintily placing her foot on his knee.

Spike’s mouth dropped open.

"Daddy?" she said, staring at him with big brown eyes.

Spike blinked back hot tears and sat up, dropping the paper. "You, um, need me to buckle your shoe?" he asked stupidly.

Jess rolled her eyes, and then leaned back on her hands. "We don’t have all day," she said, repeating the words Xander had been telling Spike all morning. "Com’ny is gonna be here soon."

"Right. Well then." Unable to see well through watery eyes, Spike struggled with the buckle. When he was done he patted her foot. "All done."

Jess merely removed her foot and replaced it with the other. "I have two feet," she informed him.

"Of course you do," he said, buckling the other shoe.

Jess swung her foot down and stood up. "Thank you, Daddy," she said, lifting her face for a kiss.

"You’re, um, you’re welcome, luv," Spike said after giving her the obligatory kiss, still shell-shocked. He watched Jess skip across the room, and then saw Xander standing in the doorway. "Xander!" He fidgeted nervously. "It’s not what you think," he began. "I didn’t... I mean, you’re the daddy. I know you’re the daddy, and I would never..."

Xander had crossed the room while he babbled, and now slid onto his lap. Tears shone in his eyes. "Did you think I’d be mad that she called you ‘Daddy’?" he asked.

Spike’s mouth opened and closed at Xander’s reaction. The thought *had* crossed his mind.

"Idiot," Xander whispered, and then kissed him.

Jess climbed onto the couch beside them and wrapped her arms around both their necks. "You have to stop that now," she whispered. "Com’ny’s here."

Xander pulled back with a grin, and then placed a wet kiss on Jess’s face.

"Euwww!" she squealed, jumping down off the couch and racing for the front door when the bell rang.

"Come on, Daddy," Xander said as he stood and tugged on Spike’s hand. He frowned. "Shit." He adjusted himself. "How deranged is it that Jess calling you Daddy makes me hard?" he asked before pulling Spike to the foyer to greet their guests.

Spike moaned and adjusted himself as he followed Xander out. He barely remembered greeting their ‘com’ny’, too busy thinking about ways he could get Jess’s other dad naked. Preferably sweaty and squirming beneath him.

***

Later that afternoon, Jess and Joy asleep on the floor, the adults sat sprawled around the living room chatting, catching up, and laughing softy so as not to wake the babies. Spike got up to get everyone refills, and Dawn said, "I’ll take a beer this time."

Spike looked at her appraisingly.

"What? I’m old enough."

Without another word he got the soda and beer from the fridge and brought over the bottle of scotch for the watcher, all the while wondering what she was up to. He knew she had something planned, since her heart rate had accelerated, and he didn’t think it was just because she’d asked him for a beer. He handed out the drinks and gave Dawn’s to her last. She took the bottle with a soft, "Thanks," and proceeded to twist it between both hands without taking a sip.

"Spike," she said seriously before he could resume his seat beside Xander.

"Niblet," he replied, just as gravely.

"I need to tell you something. And could you stop calling me that? I’m 22 now, you know!"

"You could be 80 and you’ll still be my Niblet," he told her.

She sighed in annoyance, offering a small, pleased smile at the same time.

"What is it you needed to tell me?"

The smile faded and she looked up at him intently. His heart flipped at the worried expression on her face, and he wondered what she had to say that had her so worked up.

"I’m seeing someone!" she blurted. "A boy."

Spike felt faint with relief. "I know," he said.

"I didn’t..." Her head snapped up. "You know?" She glared at the witches. "You told him?" she whined.

"You made us spit on our hands and shake on it," Tara reminded her. "Of course we wouldn’t break such a sacred promise."

"Spit?" Giles shuddered.

"They suggested a blood oath, but I’ve had enough cutting," Dawn explained earnestly.

"Of course," Giles said, nodding as if it all made sense.

She looked back at Spike. "Well, if they didn’t tell you, how’d you know?"

Spike just looked at her, then tapped his nose. "Vampire, pet. Smelled him on you."

"Oh," Dawn said. "That’s kinda creepy." She turned to the witches. "Sorry."

"That’s okay," they both assured her.

"This boy have a name?" Spike asked.

Dawn’s face lit up. "Connor," she said.

"Connor," Spike repeated thoughtfully. "Seems I’ve heard that name mentioned once or twice." The witches fidgeted nervously.

"Um, yeah," Dawn said distractedly, her brow furrowed in thought. "When you say you smelled him on me, what exactly did you mean?"

Spike’s only reply was a raised eyebrow.

"No," Dawn said, shaking her head. "Tell me that doesn’t mean you can tell I’ve had sex!"

"Wait, you’ve had sex?" Xander asked. "You knew she had sex?"

Giles made a strangled noise.

"Oh. My. God," she breathed, her face going blotchy, as if her blood was unsure whether it wanted to rush to the surface of her skin or drain away. "That’s...disgusting. And so embarrassing. What else can you smell?" she demanded.

Spike remained silent, but glanced out of the corner of his eye at Willow, whose mouth dropped open in stunned disbelief.

"No!"

Spike shrugged. "Blood’s blood, pet."

"Euwww, gross!" Dawn yelped in understanding.

"Oh...crap," Willow muttered, flushing crimson and crossing her legs.

"Dear Lord," Giles said, probably wishing he was back in the Motherland, or fighting a Crimshaw demon. Anywhere but here. Spike handed him the bottle of scotch off the coffee table.

"How long you been seeing this...Connor?" he asked.

Dawn swallowed hard. "About a year," she admitted, and then hurried on. "We’ve known each other longer. Since, um, well, since Cordy introduced us my first year in LA. But we didn’t get to really know each other..."

"I presume you don’t mean carnally?" Xander mumbled, but everyone ignored him.

"...until last year. He’s really nice," she added, pasting a hopeful smile on her face.

"He treats you right?" Spike asked.

Dawn’s smile widened. "Oh, yeah," she said sappily. "He can be really sweet. When he’s not killing things." Her smile faded when she realized what she’d said.

"Something else you need to tell us, pet?" Spike asked, stiffening. He had a feeling he wasn’t going to like this part.

Dawn mumbled something beneath her breath and Spike’s eyes widened. His demon visage flickered.

"What was that?" he growled.

"He’s Angel’s son," she whispered.

Spike felt frozen. He could almost live with the fact that Dawn had been afraid to tell him about her new boyfriend, given his track record, but to find out that it was Angel’s mutt, and that the poof had known about their relationship before he had, tore a hole in his gut. He turned away from everyone and stumbled towards the doorway.

Dawn called his name, but it was the sound of Xander’s worried voice that got through to him. "Just need some air," he said, squeezing Xander’s shoulder without looking at him, afraid Xander would see the depth of the pain in his eyes. He escaped to the roofed-deck Xander had built onto the back of the house last fall with the help of Todd and Bill, whose wives came over and joined them, the witches, and the babies as they christened it with a bar-b-que. Spike helped Xander install the hot tub, and they’d christened that alone.

He lit a cigarette and smoked it slowly, letting the familiar motion calm him. He sensed Dawn coming long before she stepped out onto the deck.

"Spike?"

"Jess called me ‘Daddy’ today," he blurted.

"Oh my god! That’s so cuuute!" she squealed.

Spike shrugged. Dawn playfully punched his arm.

"You loved it."

"Yeah," he admitted, "but..."

"But what?"

Spike shrugged again.

"What’s wrong?"

"Was afraid Xander would be upset. He’s her dad. Her real dad. I didn’t want..."

"You’re an idiot," Dawn said lovingly.

Spike grinned. "‘S what Xan said."

"Well, he’s right."

"I hate him, ya know?"

"Xander?" she asked, confused.

Spike snorted. "No."

"Connor?" she guessed.

"Only if he acts like his father. Or his mother." He’d heard all about the bloody miracle child, human baby born of two vampires. And the prophecy.

"Oh. Well," she considered, "he doesn’t brood." She moved up to stand beside him, one hand gripping the railing, the other, the beer bottle she still held. "Although, I think he used to. Of course, Angel doesn’t brood much anymore, either. He’s too busy arguing with Wesley and then having make-up sex."

Spike choked on smoke. "‘Nough said, Bit," he said, begging her not to mention the ponce and his boy toy again.

"Boy toy!" Dawn giggled.

"Well, wanker’s over 250 now, right? He’s gettin’ up there in years, and the watcher, he’s just a babe."

"He sure *is*!" Dawn replied wickedly. She turned serious. "I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, Spike, but I didn’t know how. I know how you feel about Angel, and..."

"That’s all right, Bit," Spike lied. His issues with Angel shouldn’t be her problem. "Come here." He held his arm out and Dawn slipped beneath it, settling against his side. "You gonna drink that?" He indicated the warming beer.

"No," she said, offering it up to him. "I don’t like beer. I just asked for it to remind you that I was old enough to drink before telling you about Connor," she admitted.

Spike dropped his cigarette butt into the sand-filled container Xander had put out there for that purpose, took the beer, and drank half of it down. "You got a break comin’ up, right?"

"Yeah, spring break," Dawn said.

"Got your tickets to go anywhere, yet?" he asked.

Dawn laughed. "Yeah, I’m heading down to Cancun. No. I figured I’d stay in LA. Get ahead on my class work."

Spike snorted. "See your boy."

Dawn blushed pink.

"You’ll be coming home for spring break this year," Spike said firmly, having made up his mind.

Dawn’s jaw dropped. "Spike!"

"Bring your boy with you. ‘Bout time we got to know him, yeah?"

Dawn smiled even as a tear slipped out of her eye and ran down her cheek. "Really?" she asked.

"Bloody right," Spike said, setting the bottle on the railing and pulling her into a tight embrace.

"Everything all right?" Xander asked hesitantly.

"Everything’s fine, right Bit?" Spike said, holding one hand out. Xander took it and wrapped his free arm around Dawn’s back.

"Yes," she sniffled. "Thanks Spike."

"You’re welcome." He let go of Xander to cradle Dawn’s face in both hands and kissed her forehead.

With a watery smile at Xander she left them alone. Spike yelled after her, "He’s sleeping in the basement! And you’re not! And the witches are gonna spell the door to make bloody sure!"

"All right, Spike, geez," Dawn’s happily irritated voice drifted back to them.

"Really okay?" Xander asked.

"No," Spike admitted, letting his honey snuggle him. "How the bloody hell dare she go and grow up?" he asked. "I’m not standin’ for it," he added petulantly.

"It had to happen," Xander said sadly, repositioning them so Spike was leaning against the railing and Xander was at his back, arms wrapped tightly around him. "I love it out here," he said, resting his chin on Spike’s shoulder and looking out over their lawn.

"Me, too," Spike agreed.

"Remember our first night in the hot tub?" Xander asked, grinning, his hand rubbing Spike’s chest.

"Hell yeah! Maybe we can use it tonight."

"Sounds like a plan," Xander said, his wandering hand pausing to play with a nipple.

"Mmm, luv," Spike moaned.

"Did you ever smell me?" Xander asked out of the blue.

"Smell you?"

"Yeah, you know."

"Ahh," Spike said in sudden understanding. "Sex?"

"Well, not...actual sex...exactly," he hedged.

Spike turned in his arms. "Not exactly? I’m not following you, luv."

"You *know*," Xander said, gesturing with his hand as he tried to come up with the words to explain what he meant.

"Ahhh," Spike said. "Jerkin’ off?"

Xander’s expression was cross between mortification and relief. "Yeah."

"Smelled it," Spike told him evenly. "Usually heard it before I smelled it, though."

Xander froze. "Heard it?" he squeaked.

"Yeah. Heart rate gets goin’, breathin’ speeds up, then there’s the, uh, actual..." He made a hand motion.

Xander slapped his hand down. "Got it!"

"...and the moaning and groaning..."

"Oh god." Xander dropped his forehead onto Spike’s shoulder, then lifted it and dropped it again for good measure. "Please tell me you did *not* hear me call out your name," he begged.

It was Spike’s turn to freeze. "You called out my name?"

"Spike, please," he pleaded.

Spike lifted Xander’s head. "You thought about me when you..." He waggled his eyebrows.

"Are you trying to embarrass me to death?"

"Just answer the question, luv."

Xander huffed. "Yes!"

"You mean, before we..."

"Yes."

"How often?

"Spike!"

"How often, Xander?" He followed the question up with a grind that showed Xander how turned on he was getting.

"Once. A month." Rub. Moan. "A week." Slide. Groan. "Okay, daily!" He grabbed Spike’s hips and pushed back. "Maybe twice a day. But that time I did it three times was purely a one-off!"

Spike shut him up with a kiss.

"Would it bother you if I knew?" Spike asked when he pulled back so Xander could breathe.

"Yes," Xander gasped. "I mean, not now, obviously, but then. If you knew and didn’t..."

"I didn’t know, but I wish I had. Do you have any idea how many times I came listening to you? Imagining you spread out naked, touching yourself? Pretty cock all hard, and purple, and aching."

"But you said..."

"Yeah." Spike smiled sheepishly. "Thought it was just sex, those feelings. Guess I was lying to myself for a long time."

"And it’s not just sex now, right?"

"How can you ask me that, Xander? Especially after..."

"Because I’m me. Underneath all this, I’m still the Zeppo. And I’m jealous and insecure, too. And because I...I made you do that."

Spike looked at him in disbelief. "You really believe that? You silly sod!" He gently shook his lover. "I’ve wanted to mark you, claim you...forever! Christ, Xander, I..."

He never got a chance to finish. Xander kissed him as if he wished he could crawl inside him.

"I...oh, dear Lord, sorry." Giles did a swift about turn. "I just came to let you know I was leaving. Lovely party."

"Sure you don’t want to stay?" Spike asked while Xander leaned against him and caught his breath. "We’ll be using the hot tub later."

"No, no, I have a book and a glass of port waiting for me at home."

"You don’t know what you’re missing," Spike cajoled. "Get enough beers in Xan, he runs around the back yard screaming, ‘Mine, mine, all mine!’.

"Shut *up*, Spike!" Xander socked him in the shoulder. "Besides, I only did that once."

"Yes, well, as lovely as that sounds, I think I’ll pass."

***

Dawn had brought Connor home to meet her family over spring break. Spike had driven everyone crazy in the weeks leading up to the visit with his desire for everything to be perfect. He was certain he’d easily find a dozen things to dislike about Connor the moment they met—and that wasn’t counting the fact that he was Angel’s boy and nicknamed The Destroyer, a fact he hadn’t found out until Dawn left to go back to LA the day after Jess’s birthday party—but he was determined that Connor not find them lacking in any respect.

As much as he hated cleaning, he made sure the house was spotless, going so far as to dust off the light bulbs, while Xander looked on in wonder as Spike scurried about. The night before Dawn was expected, he snuck out after sunset to re-mow the lawn Xander had mowed two days previous. His lover just shook his head, kissed him when Spike slowed down enough for it, and let the vampire get it out of his system.

Dawn and Connor drove down from LA early Saturday morning and arrived at Willow and Tara’s in time for brunch. Spike nervously paced the house while Willow and Tara cooked and arranged trays, and Jess and Joy played in the family room while Xander watched cartoons in the guise of keeping an eye on them. During one circuit of the house he pulled Xander out of his chair and nearly squashed him to death with a desperate hug.

"Nervous?" Xander whispered.

"‘Course not," Spike lied, and then started when he heard a car pull into the drive. "Just the watcher," he whispered as he snuggled closer to Xander’s warmth.

Excitement reigned when Giles entered the foyer as Jess and Joy, who both adored the older man, squealed and abandoned their toys to race over to him and be swept up into a hug. Giles greeted the rest of them with smiles and ‘good morning’s, and then turned his attention to the two girls who sat on his hips and clung to his neck. Spike, still wrapped in Xander’s arms, let the cozy, homey sounds wash over him—Willow and Tara’s softly spoken words in the kitchen, punctuated by frequent pauses to share a kiss, and the animated chatter as Jess and Joy tried to outdo each other in capturing Giles’ attention for themselves.

Spike buried his face in Xander’s neck, breathed in the scent of him, and then kissed him, taking strength from his lover’s presence. He tensed when he heard a second car pull in. "They’re here," he choked out. He pulled away from Xander and smoothed his shirt. "Do I look all right?"

Xander had made a show of looking him over carefully. He’d worn a new pair of black jeans and a light blue Henley, both washed twice so they didn’t look new—he wanted to make an impression without looking like he’d actually made an effort, and black boots. No matter how Xander tried to expand his wardrobe, he wouldn’t let his lover mess with the boots.

"You look fabulous," he whispered, and then pulled Spike in for a deep kiss that momentarily took his mind off the impending visit. Xander pulled back and looked at him, eyes on his lips, and then ran a thumb over them. "There," he said with a satisfied smile, "now you look better. Well-kissed. I like that look on you."

Spike blushed and hardened. He grabbed Xander’s ass and pulled his lover against him, watched Xander’s eyes go dark. "You should know better than to tease a vampire, luv," he purred. "Remember what happened last time?"

He could tell Xander did remember by the way his eyes glazed over. The last time he and Xander had visited the witches, his lover had teased him relentlessly with shy glances, loaded comments, and soft, seemingly-innocent touches until Spike hadn’t been able to take it any more, and dragged Xander into the bathroom for a buggering they wouldn’t soon forget. Nor the witches, if the blushes and hint of arousal in the air when they returned to the living room were any indication.

Tara’s laugh drew him back to the present. She had opened the front door and stood on the porch, laughing at something Dawn had said. When she stepped back inside she carried one of Dawn’s bags, a wide smile on her face. Dawn and a slender boy followed her. They set their bags down and Dawn greeted Willow with a hug and kiss, and then turned to Giles. As she pulled away from the watcher, the babies transferred themselves to her. Dawn had grown up, but she hadn’t grown very tall. With her arms full of the two girls, she looked like nothing more than a young girl herself.

As much as Spike wanted to throw himself at Dawn, her greeting of the others gave him a moment to examine the boy who stood behind her. He was slim, several inches taller than Dawn, and had light hair and eyes. He looked nothing like the great brooder, which surprised him. He’d almost been afraid that Dawn had fallen for an Angel-clone, and the fact that she hadn’t made him feel a bit better. Actually, he thought with a internal smirk, the kid resembled him more than Angel.

When Dawn put the girls down, Spike pushed Xander forward. Xander gave him a raised eyebrow and a smile, and then pulled Dawn into a hug. When he was the only one left to be greeted, Spike self-consciously held out his arms and Dawn raced into them. "Bit," he whispered hoarsely.

"Spike," she whispered back.

He hugged her until her bones creaked.

"Ugh, Spike, you’re squishing me!" she laughed.

Spike loosened his hold so she could turn around and stand at his side, but draped his left arm possessively over her shoulder. Feeling more himself, he raked his eyes over the boy he’d already examined, and said, "So, you’re Angel’s whelp."

"Spike!" Dawn smacked him on the chest. The boy merely raised an eyebrow.

Oh, he was good! Spike thought. Aloud, he asked, "What?" with faked-innocence as he grabbed Dawn’s hand so she couldn’t hit him again.

"This is *Connor*." She pulled her hand out of Spike’s grasp and reached out for Connor’s hand. The boy allowed himself to be pulled forward. "Connor, this is Spike, Spike, Connor."

Connor held his hand out to Spike. "I’ve heard a lot about you. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you."

Spike raised an eyebrow of his own—he was the master—and smirked as he slowly reached out and clasped his fingers around the proffered hand. "If you’re pleased to meet me, you’ve not been hearing the right things." He tightened his grip. Connor’s eyes widened slightly, and then his own grip tightened. The mutt had a bit of strength, he’d give him that.

He pulled Dawn tight against him with a little warning shake. "Heard they call you The Destroyer," he said to Connor. Dawn gulped audibly.

Willow and Tara interrupted their manly display. "Why don’t we talk about that later?... Don’t want the food to get cold... Come on, everyone, let’s go sit down... Spike... Spike... Spike let go of Connor... And Dawn."

Brunch was filled with loud voices, laughter, and the squeal of babies, and Spike refrained from grilling Dawn and her boy. He did, however, keep a close eye on them, noticing the shy glances and reassuring touches they stole. He tried to keep a stern expression on his face so neither one got complacent, but that plan went out the window when Jess crawled onto his lap and demanded kisses.

After brunch, Dawn and the witches cleaned up, the babies scampered off to the living room to play, and Xander and Giles strove to dominate the conversation with Connor in an attempt to keep Spike from interrogating him. Spike crossed his arms over his chest and stared in an intimidating manner, but listened closely to Connor’s answers, surprised to learn so much about the boy, who was very open about his past. And a little too open about Angel and Wesley’s past for Spike’s comfort.

When the clean-up was done, they separated. Giles had to open the Magic Box for the afternoon, having closed it for the morning so he could attend the brunch, Willow and Tara were going to walk around town with Dawn and Connor, giving him a tour of Sunnydale, while Xander and Spike watched the babies. Spike darted under the car port the witches had built just for him and dove into their car, behind the safety of spelled windows. He drove back to their house and pulled into the garage while Xander walked across lots with the two girls.

While the babies napped, Xander pulled Spike into their bedroom and took his mind off everything but the feel of skin sliding over skin as he was sucked, bit, pulled, spread, filled, and loved until there was nothing on his mind but Xander, and then, wrapped around each other, they fell into a light doze. When Spike woke he was alone, but he could hear Xander down the hallway talking quietly with the girls. He stretched like a cat and considered snuggling back down for more sleep when he remembered that Dawn was home. He jumped out of bed, quickly showered and dressed, and then joined Xander, Jess, and Joy in the living room.

The three of them were on the floor playing with Barbies. Spike smirked at his lover, and then dragged him to his feet for a kiss. "Why don’t you go take a shower, luv?" he suggested with a raised eyebrow.

"Sounds like a good idea," Xander replied, and then handed him the Barbie. "Here."

Spike stared at the doll. Xander laughed and slapped his bum, and then ran out of the room and down the hall to their bathroom. With a shrug, Spike sat on the floor. "What ‘re we playin’?"

A couple hours later the doorbell rang. Jess and Joy ran to answer it with Spike and Xander following behind. Willow, Tara, Dawn, and Connor stood on the porch, red-faced, sweaty, and drooping.

"Looks like you folks could use a cold drink," Xander said with a laugh. "Why don’t you go make yourselves comfortable in the living room while Spike and I get the drinks?"

"Need a pool," Dawn muttered as she pushed into the cool house. "Why didn’t we ever put in a pool?"

"I have to use the bathroom," Tara announced softly. "Hi, sweeties," she greeted the two girls, then nearly ran down the hall.

Refreshed, they all piled into the mini-van and Xander’s car to head over to the Magic Box for research and patrol. Everyone but Spike usually took turns staying with Giles and the babies, since they needed his strength on patrol, but since Dawn refused to stay back, and no one wanted to be parted from her, chaos reigned while they tried to decide who would watch the girls. Finally, a shrill whistle cut through the air.

"Why don’t I just take them both to Willow and Tara’s?" Giles suggested. "The three of us will be fine. I’ll take a book," he forestalled Tara’s argument. "Go, patrol, have fun. Oh, wait, no, don’t go! Help me get their car seats into one vehicle."

Because of the size of their group and the loudness of their chatter, patrol wasn’t too busy that night, but Spike did have an opportunity to see how well Connor fought when they came upon a group of vampires having a party with two co-eds. He didn’t fail to notice how the boy moved in front of Dawn at the first sign of danger, either, the same way he’d stepped in front of Xander. Or the way both Dawn and Xander rolled their eyes at each other. Wankers.

The next day, everyone slept in. Later that afternoon, the witches, Joy, Dawn, and Connor trooped over to their place for a bar-b-que. Everyone sat out on the deck, with Spike in a shaded spot behind a rose-bush-covered lattice that Xander had built for him, drinking cold beer, iced tea, and soda while the girls splashed in the kiddie pool until they were tired and cranky and had to be put down for a nap.

Stomachs eventually began to growl. Xander put on the steaks while the witches and Dawn cut up the greens for a salad. When Connor slipped inside the house with the excuse of getting another beer, Xander slid onto Spike’s lap. "This is nice," he said.

"Sittin’ on my lap?" Spike teased as he ran his hands over Xander’s legs while his lover snuggled up against him.

"Yes," Xander said with a smile, "but I meant, this." He waved his hand to encompass everything. "Having everyone here."

"Yeah," Spike agreed, "that is nice. Like havin’ you on my lap, too."

Xander pulled back and grinned down at him, and then kissed him until they were interrupted by Dawn’s, "Euww, get a room!"

After everyone left, Xander found Spike out on the deck. He wasn’t smoking as one might have expected, something he only did now when he was stressed. His shoulders were slumped and he knew he radiated misery. Xander placed a comforting hand on his back and rubbed.

"Spike? What’s wrong, sweetheart?"

They didn’t use endearments often, so Spike knew he had Xander really worried. He turned to his lover, his face screwed up in anguish. "I like him!" he wailed.

"Like who?" Xander asked, confused.

"Angel’s soddin’ miracle destroyer mutt!" he yelled. "I want to *kill* him! I don’t want to *like* him! Wanker’s takin’ Dawn away, he deserves to be skinned alive and left out for a pack of Moreay demons to devour! Instead he’s *nice*," he spat, "and good to her, and strong enough to protect her," he finished, breathing hard after his passionate speech, despite the fact that he didn’t need to breathe at all.

"I’m sorry?" Xander replied.

"Jess isn’t dating until she’s 30," Spike muttered, pouting.

Xander laughed as he pulled Spike into his arms. "Wait until she’s 13. You’ll be trying to *give* her away."

"I have mentioned that I hate change, right?"

"Once or twice," Xander said, and then kissed him. "Wanna go skinny dipping in the hot tub?"

The rest of the week went horribly fast. The witches and Xander each took a day or two off so they could spend it with Dawn, though Spike figured they just wanted to make sure he didn’t drive them back to LA ahead of the scheduled time.

Before she left, Dawn had brought up graduation and told them that Angel had offered to let them all stay at The Hyperion while they were in LA, if they wanted to. As soon as Dawn and Connor had driven out of sight, Spike quickly put the kibosh on that idea. "There is no way I’m stayin’ with that wanker!" he’d growled, and then stormed across the lawn to their house.

WHAT BROUGHT US HERE 4