Sorry it's been so long! Thanks to confusedmuse for the beta. I'm working on the next part, don't worry, it won't be months again. (no really!)
(end chapter 25)
He was just in time to see his dream car slide smoothly from the curb and through the drivers side window, a finger with chipped black nail polish waved a silent salute back at him.
“Bastard,” Xander grumbled, scuffing the ground with his shoe. A moment too slow on the uptake, he tried to flick Spike back off but with a flash of the brake lights, his dream car and his dream girl disappeared around the corner and Xander didn’t even want to think of where they were headed.
Because sometimes denial was just so much easier.
Chapter 26
The majority of the drive back to the hotel passed quickly, both lost in the lulling tide of their own thoughts.
"You know, you didn't have to bait Angel like that," Buffy finally announced with a mock glare, breaking the silence.
"Yeah, I did," Spike replied easily, plucking her hand from her lap and relocating it to his thigh, sandwiching it there with his own. Buffy could feel the hard muscles flex beneath her palm as his foot worked the gas pedal. Was it any wonder when her mind took a trip to the gutter? Imagining what his body was going to feel like naked against hers... .
Boy, was she looking forward to finding out.
As they pulled into the circular driveway of the now too-familiar hotel and cruised to a stop for valet parking, something profound occurred to Buffy. In the hour since she had last seen the same dorky valet guy that was currently walking towards the car, her life had changed irrevocably.
Her mom now knew she was the slayer.
Angel now knew she was with Spike.
Her dad knew that her mom knew, and vice versa.
Giles was drunk and making an ass of himself.
And she was going to have sex.
At least she thought she was going to have sex... suddenly doubting herself. Could she have read Spike's intent wrong? Maybe the not-so-subtle innuendos he had made at her house were just that - innuendos - and hadn't really meant anything...
"Just to make it clear before we step out of the car... this time, I do intend on having my wicked way with you," Spike supplied matter-of-factly, as if he had just been privvy to her thoughts; not aware that they were stamped across her face.
Nope, definitely nothing wrong there with her intention reading skills.
"Um... ok?" Buffy replied uncertainly, not quite sure exactly how one responded to such a statement. Could there be some sort of protocol for this situation that she was naively unaware of? It was probably in the Slayer handbook that she had never received, she thought bitterly.
But the sensual smile that was flashed in her direction assured her that as far as answers went, hers was obviously more than sufficient. "It'll be a damn spot better than ok, I can assure you," he announced wickedly, opening the driver side door and exiting the vehicle with his usual graceful movements. God, she loved to watch him move.
Suddenly, the interior car was entirely too empty. Self-doubt and nerves decided to rear their heads, and Buffy forced herself to take deep, calming breaths like Giles had shown her to get this sudden attack of random spaz under firm control.
But then Spike was there, opening her door and helping her out. A monster with manners, she realized. Well, until he got a wicked look in his eyes and yanked on the hand he held firmly. Not expecting that little maneuver, she was sent flying off-balance; colliding with the hardness that was his chest and... other hard things.
"Better watch yourself, pet," Spike chided, his voice thick with amusement as his eager hands took advantage of Buffy's close proximity. They skimmed down the satiny smoothness of her back before coming to rest possessively on her ass, pulling her more intimately against him. As Spike stared down into the voluminous green eyes regarding him, he added gruffly, "Uh uh, none of that now. Your heart is pounding a mile a minute."
Buffy's slipped her arms around his waist, perfectly content. "That's because you scared me, you big dope."
"Liar."
"Am not," she pouted with little conviction, tipping her head back to look him defiantly in the eye; the sensation of his body against hers quite possibly the best thing she had ever felt.
"Are too." Unable to resist the sight of her lips so delectable and plump, Spike swooped down to capture them with his own, undisturbed by the fact that they had somebody waiting on them.
An exaggerated throat clearing broke the mood that had instantly stirred within Buffy at his first touch, leaving her completely dazed and breathless in its wake. Wow, he could kiss, she thought again as she watched Spike glare murderously at the offending interrupter.
Boy, these valet guys sure weren't the smartest tacks in the drawer.
Pushing herself away from Spike's tight embrace, Buffy spun around determinedly, her own murderous glare firmly in place. "The valet guy who was on duty before you didn't warn you about Billy Idol in the Porsche?" she couldn't help but ask, noting that Spike seemed to have a firm rein on his temper.
When a dubious look met her question, Buffy rolled her eyes. "Boy, he must not like you very much."
Muttering, "That's not Billy Idol", the hotel employee handed Spike his claim ticket before quickly retreating into the driver's seat of Spike's car without having any idea just how close he had come to pain and possible death.
And they were alone again.
"Want to continue this inside, eh sweets?" Spike asked, curling his tongue behind his top teeth as he regarded her in that way that made her feel all hot and tingly at the same time.
Did she?
"Yes," she replied confidently, turning to face him. He'd been caught off-guard by her decisiveness, she realized, watching as his gaze become an intent pool of blue, telling her without words just how much she meant to him. It warmed and thrilled her... and even better, it chased away any lingering doubt she maybe have been harboring.
Because this was right.
Making their way through the lobby, Buffy marveled at how different she felt. No longer was self-consciousness making her want to disappear through the floor with each step she took. If people wanted to stare? Fine, let them. The confrontation that had just taken place with her mom, with Angel - had somehow freed her. She felt liberated, dammit, and the smile on her face reflected that.
As they stepped into the elevator, Buffy looked around for the elderly couple that Spike had previously terrorized. Fortunately for them, they were nowhere to be seen. Darn. Just when Buffy felt like having a few words with Grandma too...
The doors opened at the top floor with an air of finality. Second thoughts? Not even a twinge.
Buffy could practically feel the concentrated primal energy pouring off of Spike - and was empowered by the knowledge that it had nothing to do with any post-musical performance frenzy... and had everything to do her.
Because she could feel it too.
A/N-Don't kill me! wulfie told me to post dammit! I was going to wait until I had the next part finished, but well, *points at Wulfie* **runs away**
|
