A/N: I know, I know. Four years of nothing, and now two chapters in the same month. Can you handle my crazy?

Thanks for the positive vibes.

- Alexa

P.S. - I would like to point out that I named Prue's stuffed animal Prince George in 2007!

Cole looked up at the clock from his desk and sighed. He'd been working for 11 hours and he hadn't gotten up in four. This case was kicking his ass and he was no closer to winning it than he was this morning. He'd probably have to sneak in some work on his days off just to avoid loosing his mind in this petty vendetta. He looked over at the clock again; Prue would be so upset if he didn't make it home for dinner after sticking her with Anna and Phoebe all day. Anna had texted him hours ago to tell him everything was going well but he never got anymore updates, despite his incessant questioning. He couldn't help but worry about Prue's relationship with her mother, and he would have much rather been there to watch them himself. He sighed and shoved some of the case files into his briefcase. He could ask Prue all about her day once he got home. At the very least, he could always count on his daughter to enthusiastically tell him everything.

When Cole walked into his apartment, he couldn't help but laugh at the mess. Prue's toys and coloring books were everywhere, and the little nugget was passed out on the couch, clutching Prince George. Anna was doing work at the kitchen counter, and Phoebe didn't seem to be around. Anna looked up from her computer and laughed with him, "Yeah, we had a fun day. I promise I'll help you clean all of this." "I assume everything went well, then?" Anna shrugged,"As well as it could, I guess. Phoebe felt left out and Prue wasn't that into it in the beginning - you know how she is around new people. But, they talked and played so I'd say it was a success." Cole smiled, "I'm glad. Nothing weird?" Anna shook her head, "No. I think you should call Phoebe, though. She mentioned you guys had a fight and she was pretty bummed about it. I know you're not interested in getting involved with the Halliwells again, but you if you're going to have them in your life, you have to be on speaking terms! You owe Prue that." She got up from her seat and began picking up some of the crayons scattered around the table before Cole stopped her. She looked at him, confused, and placed the crayons back on the table. Cole smirked, "What kind of gentleman would I be if I let you clean when it'll take me two seconds to make it all magically disappear." Anna raised an eyebrow. She was still getting used to this whole magic thing and who even knew you could use magic to clean. It was really rude of Jake and Cole to leave that out when discussing the whole magic situation with her. Cole waved his hand and all of Prue's toys were in their proper places, the crayons color-coordinated in the art box, the coloring books organized on their shelf, the dishes cleaned, and the floors spotless. Anna looked around in surprise, "I always wondered how you kept this place so clean." Cole shrugged. It was nice to have real friends who knew about his magic and still thought he was a good guy.

Anna went home, and Cole barely got the files out of his briefcase when Prue shouted, "Daddy!" and ran at him. He scooped her up in his arms and hugged her tightly. "Hey, Princess, how was your day?" As expected, Prue excitedly told him every single detail about her day with Anna and Phoebe. He happily listened to her stories, but he couldn't help but think about his situation with Phoebe. He was so pissed at her for putting him in the position of being pissed at her again. He hated himself for letting her get to him and for caring about her feelings after everything she and her sisters did to him. They all treated him like dirt after he came back from the wasteland, but he couldn't get the few words Phoebe spoke to him out of his head. You're evil, stay away from me and from my baby had been the first words she said to him. He hadn't expected her to be happy to see him when he came back, per se, but he sure as hell hadn't expected her to reject him flat out and stick him with divorce papers. She avoided him for over a month after that, but their next encounter had haunted him since.

He rang the Halliwell doorbell, hoping to soothe them a little by avoiding his demonic powers. Leo opened the door and immediately scowled at Cole. "You need to leave." Cole sighed. He knew talking to Phoebe wouldn't be easy, but if he could just talk to her instead of Paige, maybe she would listen. He knew the baby was drawing her to him, he assumed as much when Paige insisted she be the only one to deal with him. He hoped that talking to Phoebe would get her to soften up a little bit. "Leo, please, I need to talk to Phoebe." He felt the urge to call her his wife, but he knew it would only agitate the Halliwells, and they were already pissed that he hadn't signed the divorce papers yet. Phoebe came out of the living room, "It's okay, Leo. I'm fine." Leo seemed conflicted, but gave up and went upstairs. Cole walked into the foyer and Phoebe marched up to him. "You have to stop," she demanded. Cole reached out to grab her hand, but she flinched and moved away. He couldn't believe she was scared of him. Phoebe was scared of him and it hurt him more than her vanquishing him ever could. "Phoebe, listen to me." Phoebe shook her head, "No, you listen. You owe me that after the hell you put me through. I want you out of my life Cole, for good. The only way you're getting anywhere near my baby is over my dead body. Our marriage is over. Our relationship is over. If you come near me again, I swear I will find a way to vanquish you for good." With that, she flamed out of the Halliwell manor. If he hadn't felt like he had been stabbed in the heart, he might have laughed at the sight of good Phoebe flaming away. Phoebe knew him better than he knew himself, and she knew exactly what to say to make him feel like he wanted her to make good on the threat of vanquishing him.

These past few weeks were the first time he'd spoken to Phoebe since that day, and the first time they talked since before the vanquish. He wondered if she realized that when she saw him in the toy store, whether she'd remembered the last words she said to him. He forced himself to stop wondering. She didn't care about him and she didn't deserve his kindness or his friendship. He refused to let the Halliwells use this situation to pretend like everything was okay and he had too much on his plate to deal them. He decided not to call Phoebe. He decided he wouldn't go to Quake for a few days. This was happening on his terms, whether they liked it or not.

Well? Thoughts, suggestions, comments, questions, concerns?

P.S. I'm not well versed in lawyer-y things so I'm just making everything up as I go along. Most of my knowledge of corporate lawyers is from USA's Suits, so, sorry 'bout it.

Love ya. Thanks for putting up with me.