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She had been there a little over four weeks, and in more ways than he could measure she had changed his life with everything from her happy chatter to her quiet thoughtfulness. He could simply no longer imagine his little flat without her presence to brighten it. Unfortunately, it seemed that such was exactly the reality with which he would shortly be faced.

 

“I see.” He tried to keep his voice light, to hide the disappointment her words had conjured. To say that her sudden announcement had come as rather a shock was an understatement. He had believed that things were going well; she had been staying with him in Bath for the past month, ever since that idiot boy had walked out on their wedding. Honestly, he had always known that Xander Harris was a little lacking in the brains department; however, with this most recent stunt, he had managed to sink to a new level of inanity that Giles found simply astounding.

 

During her stay, they had fallen into an easy companionship, spending their days more often than not going for scenic walks, visiting museums, or catching a matinee at the local theatre. Their evenings were generally spent in pleasant conversation. He had found her to be a remarkably intelligent and insightful young woman, much more so than he had previously imagined—not to mention that she made him feel, for lack of a better word, appreciated, as well as wanted, youthful, and almost carefree. Quite simply, she was a delight, and the thought of her leaving and returning to that demon dimension left an emptiness in his heart that he hadn’t experienced in a remarkably long time.

 

She had been terribly hurt, and the last thing he wanted was to add to her pain by placing her in any sort of position that would cause her discomfort. He was, however, finding that his resolve weakened further each day. More and more often he found himself fighting the impulse to brush a stray lock of hair tenderly from her face or to bury his nose in the fragrant warmth of her neck, battling against the urgent need to pull her against him and kiss her senseless or to throw her across the dinning table and feel her exquisitely long, shapely legs wrap themselves around him as he buried himself deep inside her.

 

She began to pace, and he watched spellbound as she moved back and forth across his kitchen, her hands wringing nervously, the soft, currently-blonde wavy locks bouncing as she moved, her hips swaying so enticingly.  It was a moment before he realised that she was talking again, and he forced himself to concentrate on her words rather than the lush full lips with their shiny red lip-gloss.

 

“I mean, it’s not like I can just stay here forever. You've already been so kind, being my friend and letting me stay here for so long… but I am sure you would like your privacy and to be able to have your orgasm friend over, which for some reason you don’t seem to feel you can while I am here—although I really don’t understand why. Humans really are very strange when it comes to sex. Everyone knows you're having it, but no one is allowed to talk about it, and I really just don’t understand any of you. And…”

 

A slow smile stole across his face, and he began to wonder if she would ever take a breath. “I’d really rather you didn’t leave. Of course if you still want to, I’d understand,” he interrupted, stopping her in mid-rant as she stopped pacing to stare open-mouthed at him.

 

“You want me to stay?” she asked incredulously. “You’re not just saying that to be nice, are you? I mean, I know you are nice, and you often do nice things for people even when you might not really want to. And as much as it is nice of you, I don’t want you to…”

 

His eyes twinkled; she really was such a delight.  He stepped forward impulsively, his hand snaking behind her head to tangle in the soft golden mane, his mouth silencing her as he captured her lips in a gentle, tentative kiss. He hoped he was not overstepping the mark even as memories of the passionate embraces they had shared whilst under the influence of Willow’s spell played across his mind. A soft moan accompanied by her hand gently reaching up to stroke his cheek were all the indication he required that his attentions were not unwanted; thus reassured, he slowly deepened the kiss. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close, delighting in the way her body moulded supplely against him.

 

Eventually he released her mouth, each of them drawing deep lungsfull of air as their minds spun in a desperate effort to catch up with their bodies. Neither spoke, opting simply to stare into each others' eyes, searching for the answer to what had just occurred between them.

 

Anya broke the spell, her uncertainty forcing her to voice the question even as she feared the answer. “What about your friend? You know, your…”

 

“Olivia?” Giles cut in. At her answering nod, he continued, “I haven’t seen Olivia for quite some time. It seems the events in Sunnydale were a little too… remarkable… for her liking.” He reached out to gently stroke the soft creamy skin of her cheek, his voice softening as he spoke again. “I haven’t seen anyone in a very long time. I just haven’t really had the time. No…” he laughed quietly for a moment, “that’s not entirely true; there hasn’t been anyone I was interested in seeing. Until recently, that is.” He searched her face hopefully.

 

He watched entranced as she unconsciously bit down gently on her bottom lip; his pulse quickened as he imagined that soft sweet flesh between his own teeth while he tasted her mouth once again. The taste of her kiss was still fresh on his tongue, and he ached for more; it was all he could do not to seize her and take her right there on the kitchen counter. But he knew that wasn’t what he wanted—not that he objected to the imaginative use of kitchen counters, or any other obliging surface for that matter; it was more that he wanted to do this right, wanted it to be her choice, her decision. So he patiently pushed his inner ‘Ripper’ down once more and waited for the woman—whom he knew he was rapidly coming to love—to decide what, if anything, she wanted to do with this new information.

 

“I like you a lot, as a friend as well as for your very aesthetically pleasing body, and I know that sometimes when friends have orgasms together it causes all sorts of strange uneasiness between them. And then they stop being friends, and I don’t want you to stop being my friend.” She raised her eyes to meet his. "I mean, I would very much like to have intercourse with you, and I am sure it would be very good. I remember from the memory spell that you seemed to be a very competent lover, so I am certain we would both enjoy the experience very much.” She paused, searching for any indication that her words were causing any sort of upset; seeing nothing but patient, if amused, attentiveness in his face she continued. “I just don’t want to lose you. I lost my best friend when Xander left, and for a long time it hurt so badly that I thought I wouldn’t be able to breathe. Then I came here, and you were so wonderful, and we have become very good friends, better even than Xander and I, and I don’t want to lose that.”

 

“You won’t,” he promised quietly, reaching for her hand, their fingers entwining and his thumb rubbing slow soothing circles across the back of her hand. “I can assure you, my dearest Anyanka, that losing your friendship is the last thing I would ever want to have happen. Losing the chance we may have at happiness, however, is not something I want, either.” He smiled hopefully. “Do you think you would like to give ‘us’ a chance?”

 

She thought for a moment, her brow creasing slightly in the most delightful way, before answering sincerely, “Yes, I think I would like that very much.”

 

Gathering her in his arms, he lifted her, cradling her close to his chest as he headed quickly out the door and up the hall towards his room.

 

“What is this?” she asked quietly, her lips brushing feather-light against his as she spoke.

 

He looked into her eyes, smiling gently as he spoke. “A beginning, I hope.”

 

the end

 

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