Chapter 2
Buffy could hear Dawn
screeching all the way to the elevator. She took off at a run, more terrified
by the silence that followed it than by the scream itself. Had they been found
out already? It didn’t seem possible. But yet she knew that anything could
happen in her world. She fumbled with the card key, cursing the temperamental
lock until it finally clicked. She burst into the hotel room, and skidded to a
stop at the sight of Spike rubbing his jaw and being helped to his feet by
Angel.
“What the hell is going on?”
Buffy demanded, looking from one guilty looking party to the next. And that
encompassed everyone in the room. “Spike, Angel, what did you do?”
“Oh, always the vampires
fault,” Spike bit out. “Twasn’t doing anything but coming here, trying to help,
and was making an apology when she slugged me.” He waved his hand at Dawn.
Dawn shrugged. Her arms were
crossed over her stomach and her chin was jutted out. “He deserved it. Andrew
says that I need to release all my negative vibes. When I saw Spike here I
realized I had a lot of left over bad feelings so I acted. Now, I feel a lot
better.”
Buffy rolled her eyes.
“Isn’t that just lovely? You’re the one who kept saying you didn’t care about
Spike anymore. So, where did the negative vibes come from all of a sudden?” She
was using her sweet voice. The one she used when she was really nervous or
upset. Like she was now.
Her sister didn’t even
flinch. “I don’t care about him,” Dawn said, tossing her hair over her shoulder
before gesturing at Spike. “It’s you I care about and after you came home all
depressed yesterday I thought maybe he needed a little reminder not to mess
with you.”
Two pair of vampire eye’s
swung toward her at Dawn’s statement. It had just the exact impact she wanted
it to have. The attention was now away from her and onto her older sister.
Buffy squirmed under the intense scrutiny she was now getting. A glance at
Dawn’s smug face made Buffy want to slug her, but no, Buffy had to be the
adult. Her feelings, no matter what they were, were no longer the concern of
her past lovers. Steeling herself with that thought, she turned what she hoped
was a glacial stare at them.
“What brought you here
today?” Buffy asked, ignoring and hopefully avoiding any discussion of her mood
the day before. “I thought we decided to leave things be yesterday.”
“You decided,” Angel
responded with a chuckle, “That it was not worth discussing as you stormed from
my office.”
“You didn’t want to discuss
anything,” Buffy retorted, pulling herself up to her full 5’4” height which
left her staring squarely in the middle of the larger vampire’s chest. “All you
wanted to do was rub it in my face that the two of you are now a couple.”
“Huh? When did this happen?”
Andrew asked, interrupting the conversation. His gaze went from the vamps to
the Slayer and back again. “Why didn’t anyone tell me this? These things are
important…research…”
“Shut up, Andrew,” Dawn
hissed, smacking him with the back of her hand. “I’ll explain everything
later.”
Buffy ignored the disruption,
keeping her eyes firmly fixed on Angel and Spike. They were doing the same
thing. She could feel the hundred questions radiating off the two, but she
wasn’t going to give in. Keeping a tight rein on her rampaging emotions she
waited for them to make the next move. It didn’t take long.
“Look, Buffy,” Angel said,
taking a step closer to her. “We talked it over and decided that maybe we
should see if there is anything we can do to help you with what’s brought you
to town. You know, in the spirit of cooperation and everything.”
“There isn’t anything you
can do,” Buffy said, shaking her head. She glanced around the room trying to
find a way to let him know they were being listened to. Their hotel suite wasn’t
a safe place for them to discuss her business. The night before Andrew located listening
devices scattered throughout the suite. Luckily, there hadn’t been time for
them to spill anything. “I was just
letting you know I was in town. Here to get a tan and some shopping. You know
stuff.”
“Stuff?” Spike asked. “Then
what was all that business…”
“About missing us,” Angel
said with a smirk. “Wanting to see how we were doing? You know, Buf, maybe we
could spend some time together and…”
“Hey, what the bleeding hell
are you going on about?” Spike interrupted, not picking up on what Angel
obviously had.
Buffy put her finger over
her lips hoping Spike wouldn’t say anything else. She added in her annoyed look
for a bonus. He raised an eyebrow at her in confusion then turned toward Angel
who was grinning at all the intrigue. The damn vampire was enjoying himself. No
wonder demons all over the world were laughing at him. Being with Spike was
making them an easy target. It was one of the reasons she was here, to help
protect them. She just didn’t want them to know she still cared that much
though.
“Oh, come on, lover,” Angel
purred, slinging an arm around Spike’s shoulders and pulling him close. “It
could be fun…the three of us reliving old times.”
Buffy watched as he leaned
closer to the blonde and whispered something in his ear. Spike grinned and
nodded.
“You may be right,” Spike
added. “So, how about it, pet? Dinner tonight? The three of us…”
Dawn looked about ready to
punch him again and Buffy would have sworn that Andrew was drooling. Personally
she felt sick to her stomach. They’d boxed her into a corner and the only way
out was to go with them. She nodded then softly sighed, hoping her acting
skills were up to par.
“Then it’s unanimous,” Buffy
replied, in what she hoped was a seductive tone. “I’d love to catch up with you
two. How about coming back about seven? I promise I’ll be ready for you.”
Okay, now she was enjoying
herself. The incredulous, lust glazed looks her exes gave her was enough to
give her a sense of satisfaction. The woman in her couldn’t help but respond to
the fact they both still wanted her. The two of them may be in a relationship
together but there was still something there. Without really being aware of it
her hand slowly made its way down her bare stomach. They watched its journey
down toward her hips and the towel that was tied around them.
Buffy stopped moving as she
remembered she’d been on her way back from the pool when Dawn screamed. A blush
cascaded along her cheeks as she realized she was standing in front of Angel and
Spike in a bikini and a towel. Spike grinned at her in that sexy way of his
while she clumsily tied the towel again.
“Let’s hope you are, Luv,”
Spike whispered, kissing her cheek before heading for the door. “We’ll be
here.”
There wasn’t a coherent thought
in her mind as she watched the two vampires leave. Mortification was the only
thing she was feeling and as soon as the door closed behind them, Buffy slapped
her hands over her face.
“What the hell did I just
do?” She moaned.
“You got yourself a date
with your ex-lovers,” Andrew chortled. “The Slayer returns to LA and in one day
has the only two souled vampires eating out of her hands.”
“Shut up, Andrew,” Buffy
said. “You know there’s only one male in my life now,” she added for effect. “I
just want to make sure they know it, too.” She shrugged. “Maybe I can find
something out that will help the Immortal.”
“Well then,” Dawn said, with
a twinkle in her eyes. “You’ll want to keep them off balance. Let’s go look
over what you brought with you.” She headed for their bedroom. “You’ll need
something sexy with a lot of cleavage showing.”
“Excuse me,” Buffy mumbled,
following her. “Why do I want to do that?”
“I think it would work,”
Andrew said. “If they’re busy looking at your boobs and legs then you might get
more information on their operation from them.”
“Watch it,” Buffy warned, raising an eyebrow. “I don’t
think I need to do that. They’ll talk because they trust me.”
Maybe she didn’t need to
dress sexy for them to talk, but she wanted to so they would look at her with
desire again. It was a high to have Angel and Spike look at her like she was
their favorite dessert. Her feelings of worth as a woman had been severely
dented when she discovered that the two vamps that once fought over her didn’t
care anymore. She knew it wasn’t fair to keep them hanging on just so she would
feel wanted, but it didn’t stop the rush of knowing that they were still
interested. Tonight might be fun after all, she decided as she went to stand
beside Dawn.
“There’s nothing here,” Dawn
complained. “You dress like an old woman.”
“I do not,” Buffy protested,
reaching into the closet to pull out a dress. “What’s wrong with this?”
“It makes you look like a
society matron,” Andrew contributed, plopping down onto one of the beds. “You
need to look young and hot to compete with what they see everyday here in the
big city.”
“Okay, what about…?”
“Why don’t we go shopping?”
Dawn suggested with a squeal. “Come on, we have hours before they’re picking
you up. “ She tickled her sister. “You know you’ve been dying for an excuse to
melt some plastic.”
“All right,” Buffy giggled.
“I give. We go shopping.”
She didn’t really want to
cause trouble between Spike and Angel. And maybe what she was doing was really
selfish, but it was what she needed for a few hours; flirting without
consequences, feeling desired, and enjoying the feeling of wanting again even
if nothing would come out of it. Maybe, just maybe, it would be enough to fill
her lonely existence for a while longer and fill her fantasy life.
~~~~~~
Spike kept waiting for Angel
to say something, but he didn’t. Not a peep out of him all the way down to the
car. His whole world had been tilted off it axis and he needed his mate to
reassure him that they were still solid. Not confusing lust and love was a
lesson he’d learned long ago, but this was Buffy. The girl they both loved at
one time and apparently they both still wanted, at least physically. And she
still wanted them. It could be trouble, big trouble, and he needed to know that
he was still loved.
The big lug wasn’t saying
anything though. He was brooding, off in his own little world, while Spike’s
kept growing more confused. Biting his tongue wasn’t his strong point and this
was killing him slowly. But he waited; waited until they were striding through
the lobby of Wolfram and Hart, waited until it seemed like his mate was going
to disappear into a meeting. It was too much.
“Angel, can I have a
moment,” Spike interrupted, insinuating himself between Angel and Harmony who
was trying to get her bosses attention. She rolled her eyes at Spike, but he
just smirked at her.
“Look, Angel, has to meet
with the leader of the dr’ikrin tribe to settle a dispute,” Harmony said. “He
doesn’t have time to listen to his wife whine about some little matter that ultimately
doesn’t matter.”
“Whatever,” Spike said,
leaning closer to the petite vampire. “Harm, is that a gray hair? Oh my god, I
think it is.”
“What? Where?” Harmony
shrieked, her hands covering her head. “I’ll be right back.” She scurried off
in the direction of the bathroom.
“Spike, did you have to do
that?” Angel said, shaking his head. “She’ll be worthless all day now.”
“Oh, come on,” Spike
protested. Now, he was being reprimanded. It was just making him feel worse.
“Whatever, I’ll head up to the penthouse until you have time for me.”
Without waiting for a reply,
he turned to head toward the elevator. He knew Angel was following him but he
refused to turn around. It was time to turn the tables. Let Mr. Broody be the
one to be ignored, except Angel followed him into the elevator, catching his
hand as he reached to press the button for the top floor. The doors closed just
as Angel pushed him against the wall.
“I love you even if you are
a pain in my ass,” Angel whispered, cupping his cheek. “No one is going to come
between us,” then he kissed him.
It wasn’t just a kiss. It
was one of those kisses that made him want to melt like a girl. Lips prying his
apart, letting that tongue that brought him so much pleasure into his mouth. Sweeping
around, tasting him, sucking his tongue into his Sire’s mouth. It was nighttime
sin and morning innocence all rolled up into one. Spike tilted his head back,
pushed his hips forward, and held onto shoulders that would take on the world
for him. It was all he needed to be reminded to whom he belonged.
“Don’t ever forget it,”
Angel promised, his lips still pressed against his. “Okay?”
“Yeah,” Spike whispered,
taking the last taste before Angel pushed for the door to open. “Come up
early,” he asked as he watched his Sire walk away. Then when he was alone
again, he stroked his erection through his jeans. “Yep, still got the magic
touch,” he smirked to himself. “Got the big ponce wrapped tight around your
balls.”
But his heart was overflowing
from the love he’d been given.
to be continued…
