Chapter Fourteen – Several Strategic Slaps Upside the Head

The door opened with a creak, and the silhouette of a hooded figure stepped into the darkened room, his form outlined by the dim, orange glow of the streetlights outside. He surveyed the occupants in the room carefully, before closing the door behind him and enfolding them all in pitch-blackness.

However, in response to the newfound darkness, another shadowy figure lit the candle before her, the flickering of its flame casting eerie shadows across her face.

“You’re late,” another of the women present addressed the hooded man still in the doorway.

He pushed the hood off of his head then, revealing his features for the first time.

“Sorry, Ahn,” Xander said sheepishly, cuddling into his hooded sweatshirt. “I got held up at work. Why does everyone insist on ordering their pizzas fifteen minutes before we close? And on the coldest day of the year, too…” He shivered slightly and approached the three women. “And what’s with the dark, secret meeting anyway, Will?” he asked the candle’s holder.

“This is clandestine, conspiracy stuff,” the redheaded Witch huffed. “We need the darkness and the candles,” she insisted, crossing her arms in front of her.

“It’s very effective,” Tara reassured her, patting her arm comfortingly.

“Well, I can’t see a thing,” Anya complained. “I can’t even tell if this cookie is chocolate or oatmeal raisin in this light…”

“There are cookies?” Xander demanded with sudden excitement. “Quick, turn of the lights!”

“Oh, fine,” Willow finally conceded, flipping on the switch behind her and illuminating Xander’s way to chocolatey goodness.

“You’re the best cook ever!” Xander informed her enthusiastically through a mouthful of chocolate crumbs.

“Personally, I prefer the oatmeal raisin,” Anya commented, “but that in no way detracts from your all-around baking skills.”

“Yeah,” Xander commented, “so what’d you do this time to bring the guilt on?”

“What? I can’t just bake cookies for my friends now?” Willow demanded.

Everyone else in the room gave her a look, and she blushed.

“OK, so our little matchmaking effort went awry, and now Buffy and Spike are both miserable,” she finally confessed.

“So, why are we getting the cookies?” Xander inquired. “Not that I’m complaining or anything…”

“Because we’re the ones that are going to make it better,” Tara said. “Right?”

Willow nodded. “It’s time to go to Plan B,” she said decisively.

“There was a Plan A?” Xander said in surprise.

“Plan A was subtly implying that they should go see each other and have orgasms,” Anya responded helpfully.

Everyone else’s face suddenly turned a deep maroon color.

“So, er…uh,” Xander finally broke the awkward silence, “what’s Plan B then? Hit them over the head, strip them naked, and tie ‘em up together?”

Willow considered this for a second. “I don’t think we’re quite that desperate yet,” she finally responded, “but that can be Plan C.”

“So?” Anya said, growing boring now that the novelty of Willow’s homemade cookies had worn off. “What’s Plan B then?”

Willow proudly pulled out a sheet of 4x5 poster-board upon which was illustrated a complicated battle plan. “Operation Smoochies: Plan B” was written across the top in bold red letters. Willow gestured for them to all move in around the plan in a huddle.

“This time,” she said in a secretive whisper, “we go out for the full two-pronged attack…”

Buffy started in alarm when desperate pounding began on her door. She flashed a quick look at Willow, who was lying on her book thumbing through a history textbook, before hurrying to unlock the door.

Anya practically collapsed into the room when the door was finally opened, and Buffy managed to awkwardly catch her before she fell onto the floor. Tears were streaming down the ex-vengeance demon’s cheeks as she clung onto Buffy.

“They got Xander!” she managed to exclaim before breaking down in the middle of the room.

Together, Buffy and Willow half dragged, half carried her over onto Willow’s bed.

“What happened, Anya?” Buffy demanded, concerned. “What happened to Xander?”

“A-A gang of Krellik Demons,” Anya said between sobs. “They just…grabbed him. I couldn’t do anything to stop him…”

“Was he all right?” Buffy demanded, worried.

Anya shrugged helplessly. “They knocked him out,” she explained. “I don’t know.”

“We have to find them!” Willow exclaimed in horror.

Buffy nodded. “Do you have any idea where they might have taken him?” she demanded of Anya.

The former demon nodded. “Rumor has it their lair’s in the basement under the music building. I-In the storage room next to the boiler room…”

“Buffy, you have to go now,” Willow insisted, “before it’s too late.”

“You?” Buffy demanded, grabbing a hefty sword from her closet.

“I’ll call the rest of the Scoobies together in case you need back-up,” Willow explained, “and then I’ll stay here with Anya.”

“Right,” Buffy agreed.

“Hurry, Buffy. Please?” Anya pleaded.

“Xander’ll be fine,” Buffy assured her before rushing out the door.

Willow and Anya looked at the closed door for a second before turning to each other. For a second, the looks of terror and grief remained on their faces. And then they began giggling.

“You were perfect!” Willow exclaimed in delight. “How did you do that fake crying thing?”

Anya proudly held up a little bottle. “Fake tears,” she explained. “And people think I’m incapable of deception…”

“That was great,” Willow repeated. “I totally bought it.”

“And so did Buffy,” Anya agreed. “You did a good job, too.”

“Thanks,” Willow said with a small smile before picking up the phone and dialing. “Hey, Xander,” she said after he’d picked up the other end of the line, “Phase One is a success…”

“Th-This is really nice of you,” Tara said nervously, shifting from one foot to another.

“Yeah, yeah,” Spike grumbled under his breath as he fiddled with the lock on the music building, “jus’ better have my money…”

Tara nodded vigorously. “I just need a few scales,” she reminded him, “but i-if you want to kill it… It is pretty dangerous…”

“Still don’ see why you can’t get the Slayer to do this for you,” he complained just as the lock clicked open in response to the latest twist of the pick.

“W-Willow wants this spell to be a surprise for Buffy,” Tara explained.

“Right,” Spike said disinterestedly. “So, basement, next to th’ boiler room?”

Tara nodded. “Good luck!” she called out after him as he disappeared into the building. She listened for a minute to make sure that he’d gone and then whispered: “The coast is clear!”

Xander appeared from around the corner of a neighboring dorm a few seconds later and quickly made his way over to her. “Willow called to say that Buffy’s on her way,” he told her, handing off the cell-phone.

Tara nodded. “Let’s go,” she agreed before they entered the building as well.

They followed Spike at what they hoped was a safe distance and breathed a sigh of relief when he finally slipped into the storage room. With a quick run, Xander slammed the heavy metal door shut behind the vampire and bolted it shut. Almost instantly muffled noises and bangs emanated from the room.

“Stage Two complete,” Xander said with a wicked grin. “So,” he addressed Tara conversationally, “ready to tie me up?”

Tara blushed and giggled before taking the rope Xander had brought with him and doing exactly as he asked…

Buffy smiled at her good fortune when she realized the back door to the music building had been left slightly ajar. She really did feel guilty about destroying school property…even if it was a matter of life and death.

As silently as she could, she crept down to the basement. A slight tingling at the back of her neck told her that something pretty powerful of the demonic persuasion was around, but it wasn’t close enough to worry about yet.

The door to the basement stairs was open as well. Buffy bit her lip for a second. This was almost too easy; it had all the makings of a trap. But still her Slayer sense said that everything was OK, so she took a deep breath and slowly descended the flight of stairs into the bowls of the building.

She flinched and stopped only once when the third step from the top creaked, but nothing came out to attack her, so she proceeded with utmost caution…

And then she saw Xander, and caution went to the wind.

She was at his side in a second, undoing the ropes that held him fast.

“Good timing, Buff,” he breathed a sigh of relief when the gag was removed from his mouth.

“Where are they?” she whispered back, looking around furtively.

“In the storage room,” he responded. “Follow me…”

Buffy could hear muffled words and some slight banging from inside the room and took a deep breath, preparing herself for battle. She nodded to Xander, who opened the bolt of the door – a detail which unfortunately escaped her at the time.

She barged right into the room just as someone else was barging out. Fortunately, her Slayer strength gave her the advantage and she tackled Xander’s kidnapper back to the ground inside easily. She quickly raised her fight to pummel her opponent when she got a good look at the struggling form beneath her…

“Spike?!” she exclaimed in disbelief, her fist still poised in mid-strike.

“Slayer?!” Spike exclaimed with equal confusion, ceasing his struggles for an instant.

“What the hell are you doing here?!” they managed to demand in unison.

And then there was a slam of metal and the distinctive click of the bolt being fastened behind them. They spun to look at the door simultaneously and discovered that they were indeed locked in…

Xander and Tara listened to absolute dumbfounded silence in the room for a second, and then the pounding began anew twice as loud as before.

Tara couldn’t help but giggle as they headed upstairs. It really was quite an impressive racket.

Outside, they were greeted by an equally amused Willow and Anya, who got the thumbs up from Xander before bursting into hysterics on their own.

“That’ll teach ‘em not to have sex,” Anya commented before the four friends returned home, basking in the success of their mission…

“’S’all your fault, Slayer,” Spike accused, finally giving up on the door and settling himself down on the edge of the sofa that rested against the back wall. Apparently, some of the leftover furniture from the dorms was stored here. He was conspicuously not looking at the mattress over against the corner…

“My fault?!” Buffy exclaimed in disbelief. “What’re you doing down here anyway? You weren’t in on the Xander kidnapping, were you?” She raised her sword menacingly.

Spike rolled his eyes and pulled out his pack of cigarettes. “Kidnappin’?” he snorted. “Who the hell d’you think locked us in here, Summers?”

Buffy sighed and brushed her hair back out of her face. “Damn,” she swore, “we’ve been set up, haven’t we?”

He nodded. “An’ well, too.”

“I am so going to kill them when we get out off here,” she declared, stomping her foot on the floor.

“Oh, real good idea,” Spike snorted. “Throw a li’l temper tantrum. ‘m sure that’ll get us out ‘f here…”

“I don’t see you coming up with any brilliant plans,” she retorted.

He shrugged. “Who says ‘m tryin’ to get out?” he said snidely. “’Cause I know sooner or later you’re gonna give in an’ show me a good time…”

“You’re disgusting,” she responded, her face contorting with that emotion. “If anything, I’m the one who has to worry—”

He laughed. “Don’t flatter yourself, pet,” he said derisively. “’S not like you’re irresistible or anythin’. Barely even temptin’.” He plucked on cigarette from the pack.

Buffy raised an eyebrow. “You’re not smoking in here,” she informed him.

“No?” he asked with a sly smirk, placing the fag between his lips and flicking on his lighter.

“There’s no way for me to escape the second-hand smoke,” Buffy said firmly.

“And I care…why?” he retorted, moving to light the cigarette.

In the blink of an eye, Buffy has crossed the distance between them and yanked the cigarette from right between his lips. “Because I can kick your ass,” she retorted, her eyes narrowed.

Spike scowled in return and leaned in close. “You won’t do it, Slayer,” he taunted her.

“Wanna bet?” Her hands were now fisted in his tee shirt.

He snorted derisively. “’f not for this bleedin’ chip, you wouldn’t stand a chance, luv,” he retorted.

“Oh, yeah?” she seethed. “Who kick who’s ass on Parent Teacher Night again? And on Halloween? And during Drusilla’s restoration ceremony? And during the whole Gem of Amara thing?”

“Can’t beat me now, though, pet,” he practically purred, his voice all husky seduction.

“And why’s that?” she demanded, a bit nervously.

“’Cause you want me,” he replied with a confident smirk.

His head turned to the side with the force of her slap. Yes, that’s right: slap. Not punch. The smirk returned to his face tenfold at this knowledge.

“Y-You complete and utter pig!” Buffy exclaimed indignantly.

“Y’know, Slayer, the whole ‘pig’ bit’s gettin’ a bit old,” he said sarcastically. “Whatsa matter? Havin’ difficulty comin’ up with new smartass remarks as of late? Slippin’ a bit?”

“In your dreams, Spikey,” she hissed, gripping him tighter and pulling him up just a little bit closer…

He rolled his eyes. “Oh yeah,” he said, a slight growl in his tone, “y’know ‘s only a matter’a time before I get my fangs good an’ deep in your throat…”

Buffy gulped slightly at the incredibly erotic images in her head. She yanked him another inch closer. “Are we forgetting about the chip?” she teased. “Pool little Spike can’t even take a taste now that he’s chipped. Defanged. Fixed. Neutered.” She stretched her neck a bit for emphasis at this point, giving him a good, long look at what he’d never be able to have.

He licked his lips slightly in response before the cockiness took over once more. “Your loss, Slayer,” he retorted. “Too bad you’ll never get to feel a real vamp’s fangs in your throat.” He glanced at the mark there. “After all, Peaches always did come up a bit…short…”

“Don’t know about that,” she countered, looking him right in the eyes and smiling wickedly. “He felt sooo good inside me,” she taunted. “So strong and deep and—”

She squealed and was cut off abruptly when Spike grabbed hold of her shoulders roughly and shook her. “Why, Spikey,” she began coyly, “we’re not jealous, are we?”

He growled, and his eyes flashed yellow for a second. “Nothin’ t’be jealous of,” he finally responded. “After all, he’s not the one tha’s gonna end your miserable existence.” He yanked her closer, right in his face, her body in danger of falling into his lap…

Buffy scowled at him. “I hate you,” she said venomously. “And, really, there’s no reason I shouldn’t stake you right now. Save myself some aggravation in the future…” She plucked the stake from her waistband and held it right over his heart, threateningly.

He merely smiled in response. “Yeah, right. You’ll never go through with it, so jus’ give up the act, Brittany.”

Buffy’s eyes widened. “Wh-What did you call me?” she asked nervously.

Spike swore internally when he realized he’d reverted to his ‘Jonathan’s spell’ pattern of annoying her. “Brittany,” he finally responded. “After all, you’re jus’ as irritatin’ an’ whiny as—”

“You annoying, arrogant—” she began.

And then simultaneously, they closed the distance between them, their lips coming together with bruising intensity.

Spike’s hand came up to catch her wrist gently, and he massaged little circles into the pulse point there until she relaxed and let the stake clatter to the ground.

Her hand now free, she took the opportunity presented her to wrap both her arms around his neck, pressing his mouth to hers urgently.

His hands pulled her hips into him with bruising force, and she fell into his lap, her thighs straddling her waist.

At the point of their union, their tongues fought and danced, each savoring the taste they’d been dreaming of ever since that stupid spell had been broken a week ago.

Their hips ground together with need, Buffy finding the hardness she sought and Spike discovering her delightful warm wetness.

“Oh god,” Buffy moaned, breaking away from their kiss to gasp for breath. “Want you…”

“Want you, too,” Spike moaned in response before tackling her back onto the couch…

“Has anyone seen Buffy tonight?” Giles commented off-handedly to the Scoobies gathered in his living room. “I thought she was going to stop by here before her patrol…”

The four conspirators exchanged nervous, guilty glances.

Anya opened her mouth to speak, but Xander quickly slapped his hand over it.

“Sh-She probably just changed her plans,” Willow suggested nervously before all four of them turned studiously back to their task of not looking Giles in the eye…

Chapter Fifteen – When In Rome…

“Oh god, I missed you…” Buffy murmured, her lips tracing the sharp line of Spike’s jaw with soft kisses.

His hand slipped up under the hem of her shirt, and he began to draw lazy circles across her tanned stomach muscles. “Couldn’t stop thinkin’ about you,” he confessed.

“You were everywhere.” Buffy’s lips found his ear, and she began to nibble lightly at the lobe. “I kept seeing you: just around the corner, on the other side of the street, at the far end of the crowd…”

His hands were now actively pulling her blouse up and off, and he rose away from her delightful touch to do so. “In all my dreams,” he agreed. “Every time I closed my eyes, I could see you…see us…”

She arched her back a bit, allowing him to yank the offending blouse off over her head. Now, for that irritating black tee he was wearing… How dare it cover up his immensely lickable chest?! She pulled it from his jeans roughly and half-clawed, half-tore the garment up and over his shoulders. “I wanted you every second,” she said, wide-eyed at the magnificent physique before her once more. “I never stopped wanting you, even for a moment…”

He dove down to meet her lips with bruising intensity, muffling her moan of his name with his tongue. He pulled back just as quickly and looked deep into her emerald eyes. “The thought that I could never be with you again, luv,” he said softly. “’t was almost more’n I could bear. Like the unlife wasn’t worth livin’ anymore, y’know?”

“I know,” she said with a small smile. “I’m so sorry, baby,” she finally whispered. “All those bitchy things I said…” Her hands were on his zipper now, shakily pulling it down. “…I didn’t mean any of it. And I’m so, sooo sorry…”

He let out a heady little gasp and closed his eyes tight when she opened the top button of his jeans, and his length sprung out into her warm and waiting hands. “’m sorry, too, kitten,” he mumbled against her throat. “Was so stupid… Never wanted to ‘urt you…”

“Me, either,” she hissed slightly when his hands moved to return the favor, sliding down beneath both her sweat pants and her panties, removing them both in one graceful motion. She cupped his cheek with her free hand and looked right into his eyes. “You’re beautiful,” she informed him. “You know that, right?” He turned his head away bashfully, and she frowned. “Don’t you ever believe that you’re disgusting,” she insisted. “You’re so beautiful…in every way…”

He ventured to look down at her again and felt himself drowning in those eyes, now wet with tears at how she’d hurt him. “’ve never met anyone that does to me what you do,” he admitted in return. “You’re,” he actually managed to blush slightly, “the best ‘ve ever had, Buffy. They were all crazy to leave you. Crazy an’ stupid.”

Her lips met his in another passionate kiss, and she tried to work his jeans down lower on his hips. He complied with her unspoken request and shimmied out of them, kicking them to the side. “The ones who…gasp…left you…gasp…were the crazy ones – literally.” This got a small smile from him. “You’re the kind of man most women only dream about. It’s…”

She froze abruptly, terrified of what she’d almost said. Because this time it was real; there was no taking it back. And, for some reason, this was more frightening for the Buffy who had the fate of the world resting upon her shoulders. Suddenly, she missed that old Buffy – the one who just let herself feel…

“It’s…” she began again shakily. “It’s so easy to love you, Spike,” she finally said.

He just lay there above her for a second, poised, ready, stunned, uncertain, wary…

“I love you,” she whispered softly, a tear escaping her eye at the intensity of her emotions at that moment. “Heaven help me, Spike, but I still love you…”

He kissed the tear away as it fell down her cheek. “Love you too, pet. Never stopped for a second…”

Their lips met once more, and Buffy could have sworn that Spike’s cheeks were wet as well…and not just from her tears. Dammit! She was no good at this teary, emotional stuff!

Apparently, neither was Spike because they both simultaneously changed the nature of their kiss, making it all about happiness and desire and love again and not about sorrow and loss.

Spike’s deft fingers found the back clasp to her bra, and with one skillful twist, she was finally fully bared to his gaze. “Love you,” he whispered, bending over to take one rose-tipped peak into his mouth.

“Love you,” Buffy echoed, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him close, her nails tracing lightly over his spine, sending shivers all up and down his body.

“Love you,” he repeated, his mouth moving to lavish its attention on her other breast.

“Love you.” Her fingers twining through his hair, gently massaging the knots in his neck and stroking the peroxide curls lovingly…

“Love you.” His lips back on her throat now, his thumbs each taking one nipple and pebbling them back and forth in syncopation, playing her body like a fine, golden harp…

“Love you.” Her thighs spreading wide, allowing him to slip in between, cradling his hips with her own…

“Love you.” His hands cupping her butt cheeks before trailing down to her knees, lifting them up and bringing her into proper alignment…

“Love you.” Her hiss of anticipation as his velvety tip came into contact with her wet outer folds…

“Love you.” His hard cock pressing just slightly into her, savoring the first licks of heat that stoked up and down his trembling need…

And then their eyes locked, and the need for speaking the words aloud vanished. Their hands met, their fingers intertwining. Buffy’s ankles locked at the small of his back. And never once did they escape the opposing gaze, both sets of pupils dilated so completely that they provided windows into the other’s soul…albeit, only metaphorically in one case…

And they each took a deep breath, and Spike plunged deep within her.

They both cried out in ecstasy at this most intimate of unions rediscovered. However, their mutual need was too great, and they began moving together, feverishly, violently…

Spike’s blunt teeth bit into her shoulder, muffling his cry at the feel of her nails scraping up and down his back, leaving red furrows in their wake. He grabbed hold of her ankles in response and pushed them up and back, forcing her knees up closer to her shoulders and allowing him to plow into her harder and faster than ever before.

Buffy screamed in ecstasy as he pounded into her with superhuman intensity. Her head flew back, and her hands cupped his ass, sharp nails leaving five crescent marks deep in each cheek. She managed to slip her ankles over his shoulders, pulling him into her with newfound urgency.

His hands managed to be everywhere at once, finding every sensitized nerve in her body. They roughly caught her ass before moving up her back, discovering her breasts, the flat of her stomach, the line of her collarbone, the pounding pulse points in her wrists, the curve of her throat…

Buffy returned the favor, exploring cool alabaster skin warmed up by her own inner fires and wet with her borrowed sweat. She managed to cover every inch of his beautiful body all within the space of the few minutes before their bruising, frantic rhythm became too much to handle.

Spike squeezed his eyes shut when her inner muscles first began to clench around him, pulling him further into her body than he had believed possible and pummeling him with exquisite pleasure. He ground hard and deep within her, his wiry curls catching her clit on the in-stroke and his hardened tip hammering into that secret spot deep inside…

“AaaaaiiiiSpppiiiikeeeee!” Buffy screamed at the top of her lungs as infinite pleasure crashed through her, causing her vision to black out from its intensity and shattering everything in the world around except for the feel of their joining together, the feel of him becoming her, conquering her from inside and out…

She was now squeezing him so hard that he was sure he would be crushed. But, oh, what a way to go! Despite the rapid staccato of her muscles pulsing around him, he managed to pump into her one, two, three more times before he exploded deep within her as well. He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his teeth, hissing and whispering as his seed shot out into her in erratic, electrifying bursts.

And then the pleasure became too much for him to bear anymore, and he followed her over the edge, his arms shaking and giving out, causing him to collapse upon her soft, warm body.

For a while, the pair was absolutely still, the only motion caused by the regular heaves of Buffy’s chest as she fought to return the air to her lungs. And then, lazily, one eye slowly opened. It was a dark eye, the pupil still greatly dilated with lust, but the rim of hazel around it began to show ever brighter.

Buffy moaned slightly and opened her other eye as well, blinking a bit at the realization that she had passed out from the intensity of her orgasm. She giggled slightly when she realized that Spike had as well and was now sleeping while still inside her. She lifted one shaky hand to lightly stroke the soft platinum curls that had become tousled during sex and cautiously lowered her legs until they were back around his waist and much for comfortable for enjoying the glowing aftermath.

Her movement caused the angle of his still semi-hard cock to shift within her, and he groaned into her throat lightly in response.

“My pretty vampire,” Buffy cooed in his ear, giggling slightly at attaching this epithet to the former Big Bad.

He did that little whimper-nuzzle-purr thing that made her want to stay in his arms for all eternity before he raised his head sleepily to look at her. “’Mornin’, luv,” he said with a tired smile.

“It’s evening,” she couldn’t help but seek revenge after he’d used that line on her several times. “That, and you were only asleep for all of five minutes.”

“Wasn’t asleep,” he said, still in that dreamy state. “Was dead. You must’ve killed me, kitten, ‘cause I was in heaven…”

“Or maybe we just brought heaven down to earth for a minute,” she replied, smiling as well at the oddly poetic note of their conversation. She’d never really seen this side of him before, but being with him like this was so very intimate…

“Love you,” he whispered one last time before burying his face in her throat and hair, kissing every spot he could find that would make her shiver.

“Love you more,” she teased, the soft pads of her fingers soothing the already-healing red marks that her nails had left on his back.

He growled slightly and playfully nipped at the bite mark on her throat – the one he’d taken from Angel to be his pleasure spot while they had been under the spell together.

Buffy let out a heady little gasp in response.

“Love you more,” Spike insisted, smirking at her response.

She scowled at him. “Persistent bastard,” she sulked.

“That’s why you love me,” he teased.

“Mmm…” Buffy agreed, running one index finger down the center of his chest seductively. “Either that or the great sex,” she joked.

He mock growled at her and lunged for her throat. She let out a little delighted squeal and mock-struggled beneath him.

Unfortunately, they’d both forgot that a narrow couch was no place to engage in their more exuberant forms of recreation and they accidentally rolled of the edge, both yelping slightly as they did so.

It turned out that Buffy landed on the top, and the force of their fall caused Spike’s growing erection to plunge deep within her.

“Oh god!” Buffy gasped, rising up over him and bracing her hands against his chest as she rode him slowly.

“Slayer,” Spike hissed, the force of their collision at impact sending equal jolts of pain and pleasure throughout his length.

“Vampire,” Buffy retorted with a sly little smirk. “If you insist of calling me by my title, I’m going to call you by yours right back,” she explained off of his confused look. She gently squeezed him with her inner muscles for emphasis.

“Cor, luv!” he hissed before scowling up at her. By the time his spoke, that seductive smirk was back on his face, though. “Technically,” he said smugly, “my proper title ‘s Master. You’re free to call me that all you want, pet…”

“And who exactly is lying back and begging who, now?” she teased. “Maybe you should call me Master…”

“’m not beggin’ anyone,” he countered.

“Not yet,” she said with a mischievous, feline smile.

He was about to bite back with a sharp retort – something thoroughly annoying and cocky and absolutely sure to send her over the edge. However, before he even had the chance to open his mouth, those amazing inner muscles worked their magic on him once again.

Squeeze.

His eyes widened at the pressure and suction to his aching, swollen cock. Unconsciously, the tongue reached out to lick his lips.

“You like that, Spike-baby?” Buffy teased, riding him a slow, even pace so that he reached deep, deep inside her with every stroke.

The fiery spirit returned to his glazed eyes, and he refused to cave in and beg her.

Buffy’s wicked smile grew wider.

Squeeze.

He gasped and threw his head back.

Squeeze.

His hands clutched desperately at the concrete floor beneath him, desperate to find something to gain purchase on and finally finding her discarded jeans.

Squeeze.

He bit his lip to keep from crying out and curled his toes into the leather of his jacket.

Squeeze. Squeeze. Squeeeeeeeeze.

“Oh, Buffy! Yes, Buffy! Please! Please more!” The words escaped his mouth before he even realized it. Oh well, he shrugged it off. Harm’s already done… “Don’ stop, luv!” he cried out. “’m beggin’ you. Please, don’t stop!”

“There’s a good, little Big Bad,” she said with a triumphant smile. “Now, keep it up…” Squeeze. Squeeze.

He scowled at her, and his eyes flashed yellow for a second, but then that warm, wet ecstasy enveloped him once more, and he no longer cared. “Yes, Buffy,” he whimpered. “That’s so good…sooo good, pet. Please more? Ahhh yeah, like that. Jus’ a li’l further over? Yeah, there. There! There! BUFFY!!”

He roared aloud, vamping as he came, streams of cool, milky liquid shooting inside of her, calming the raging fire that burned deep within.

Buffy gasped at the feeling of sudden cold – his thick member had long since been thoroughly heated by her touch – but then the inferno blazed anew, not even the power of Spike’s orgasm enough to quench the rising flames.

She began to whimper slightly, rubbing her body against him desperately as she felt his body relax and his climax recede.

“Oh, Buffy…” he moaned softly as those long, beautiful eyelashes of his fluttered open.

She made a little mewling noise. “Spike…” she pleaded raggedly.

He instantly noticed that she had yet to be satisfied and gently rolled her over until she was beneath him. Her legs clung to his waist despairingly, but he brushed them both aside.

“Please?” she whispered, thinking that this was his revenge.

He flashed her a cocky grin. “Don’ worry, luv,” he said, that insufferably arrogant tone back in his voice, “my women ‘re never left wantin’…not that I don’t ‘ppreciate the thought…” And then he slunk back down her body, agile as a jungle cat until his nose rested in her dark curls.

“Pig,” Buffy gasped when he lightly nuzzled her just above where she needed his touch the most.

He chuckled wryly. “An’ don’t you love it?”

“Yessss,” she agreed as the tip of his tongue finally flicked out at brushed the trembling, needy nub of flesh before him.

He used the sharp tip of his tongue to twirl the rosy bud around a bit, eliciting tentative gasps and moans from his ladylove. He gently lapped up the tangy juices there before flattening his tongue out and rubbing it back and forth across her roughly.

Buffy arched up into his face, her back bent like a bow. One flailing hand happened to come across his silky peroxide locks, and she dug her nails into his scalp, frantically holding him down to her.

With a sly smile, he brought one of his hands up to play, his thumb flicking her clit back and forth while his mouth sought out sweeter pastures. Her slit quivered against his touch, and he breathed in the heady aroma of Slayer arousal before continuing to pleasure her.

Buffy’s knees clenched around Spike’s head, effectively trapping him, as he began to lightly nibble at her outer folds. Her tender nerve endings sent electric jolts of delight throughout her body, culminating in the aching mound that his thumb was tending to so reverently.

He parted her folds so slowly she thought she would explode, but then finally his tongue was within her, relishing her flavor and lavishing attention upon all the most needy spots within her.

She began to rock her hips slowly in time with his tongue’s thrusts, feeling her orgasm building and building and…

She finally screamed her release out to the world when he pinched her clit sharply in time with his tongue’s deepest thrust yet. Her body spasmed in ecstasy beneath him as he lapped up all the spicy, exotic Slayer taste that flooded out onto his eager tongue, the salty flavor of his own pleasure blending to form the most mouth-watering cocktail he’d ever experienced.

“Oh, Spike…” she sighed, her knees finally releasing him when that wonderful post-orgasmic lassitude spread throughout her body.

He crawled up beside her and cradled her head against his shoulder as they both closed their eyes…

And then each opened one in perfect time to each other.

“This floor is hard,” Spike complained.

Buffy rolled her eyes. “This from a guy who sleeps on a stone sarcophagus every night…” she grumbled under her breath. “Anyway, I was going to complain about the cold.”

“There’s a nice mattress propped up against the wall there, luv,” he pointed out. “Bet ‘s more comfy than this.”

“Agreed,” Buffy groaned, reluctantly separating herself from his embrace and getting up.

Despite the weariness brought on by the multiple orgasms they’d each experienced, they managed to move the mattress out into the center of the room and dropped it to the floor unceremoniously.

Buffy curled up on it instantly, mumbling slightly in contentment when Spike settled down beside her, spreading his duster over them as a blanket.

“Love you,” she whispered, using the smooth planes of his chest as a pillow once more.

“Love you,” he agreed sleepily before sleep overcame him…

Chapter Sixteen – Tête-à-tête with the Vampire

Buffy squeezed her eyes shut tight the instant she regained consciousness, desperately trying to hold back reality. If she kept her mind perfectly focused, she could ignore the truth of her situation just a little longer. And she just couldn’t face reality right now.

She took deep, steady breaths and attempted to project the world of her dreams onto her waking state.

The feel of a strong chest against her back. Cool, erratic, unnecessary breaths against her hair. A powerful, well-muscled arm around her waist. Skilled fingers caressing her stomach gently, lovingly…

She was surprised at just how realistic her fantasy world felt today. But it would undoubtedly make things even more painful when she woke up once more to find that Spike’s presence had just been a fragment from her dreams. So she kept her eyes closed and forced herself to feel him for as long as was physically possible…

“Luv?”

One eye cracked open involuntarily at the roughly accented syllable. No dream ever was this vivid…

“Buffy-luv,” Spike whispered against her shoulder, “I know you’re awake…”

“Spike?” Buffy asked breathlessly, hardly daring to believe. “You’re really here?”

“’Course, kitten,” he said with a slight smile against the back of her neck. “’m trapped with you, remember?”

Not a dream, not a dream, not a dream! Buffy’s mind was screaming in joy. “Spike?” Buffy repeated, a bit coyly, a bit seductively this time.

“Yes, pet?” He gently kissed her shoulder blade.

“Why aren’t you making love to me?”

He chuckled, and the hand on her stomach slid down to catch one leg and lift it up and back over his lean hip. She felt his long hardness press up against her backside for a second before it slipped between her thighs and pressed slowly into her opening until he was all the way inside.

“That better, princess?” he teased lightly as he slowly began to thrust within her.

“Oh god, Spike!” she exclaimed, biting her bottom lip slightly. It was always a bit of a shock just how big he really was. “Now that’ll wake a girl up…”

“I take it you approve of my…dimensions then?” he joked, nibbling at her ear.

“They’re…satisfactory,” Buffy giggled in response.

“Hmph. Maybe I should jus’ send you packin’ back to Soldier Boy since you’re so unappreciative…” He pulled out of her a bit more than usual, adding a physical aspect to his mock-threat.

Instantly her hand flew back to catch his ass and pull him back up against her with renewed vigor. “Sorry, baby,” she patted his rump once affectionately, “didn’t mean to sully your manhood. And there’s no way I’m going back to…ugh.”

He gave a harder thrust than usual in pleasure at her obvious preference of him over her ex.

“You feel so good, Spike…” she whispered softly, craning her neck so that she could see him behind her.

Their lips met in a light kiss, but the angle of their bodies made it impossible to deepen it enough to satisfy either.

“I want to see you…” Buffy managed to get out her breathless request before Spike pulled out of her, flipped her onto her back, and was inside of her again all in less than a second. She giggled slightly. “That should be an Olympic event,” she said, looking deep into his eyes. “You’d win the gold, love.”

“We’d win the gold,” he agreed with a slight grin.

Their lips met again, this time able to fully convey just how badly they wanted and needed each other. Their lips slanted repeatedly against each other, exploring new, deeper angles with each pass. Teeth caught lips, tongues flicked over teeth, and then the kiss turned into a battle of tongues, just like it always did. Neither sought victory, merely the desire to keep the fight up forever and ever…

Their hips took on a lazy pace, enjoying being locked together but neither to eager to force their climaxes yet. They both wanted this to last as long as possible, to remain one being for as long as they could hold out…

“Spike.” That breathy sound was the first that escaped Buffy’s lips after she pulled away from their kiss for air.

“Buffy.” He didn’t move to kiss her again, content to keep his distance for a bit, give him a chance to see her face, memorize every little detail…

She studied his eyes seriously, watching with amazement just how clearly the emotion shone through them. She’d never really noticed just how clear and open they were before, and it fascinated her. It was almost like she could feel his pleasure as well, and she wished that he could see the same thing in her eyes, discover that same marvelous connection… Although, by the way he was looking at her, she was pretty confident he could and was.

His hand came up to gently twine in her long, golden hair, stroking the perfumed silk in time with the gentle rocking of their hips.

She smiled and returned the favor, her fingers tracing the strong outline of his face, lingering slightly on the scar on his left eyebrow and soothing the old wound with the heat of her touch.

They gasped and hissed and murmured as they petted and touched each other in the most tender and intimate ways imaginable. Finally their hands met, their fingers slowly intertwining, joining, becoming one…

“I love you, Spike,” Buffy finally said in a lazy whisper.

“Love you, too,” he agreed.

“It’s stupid, you know. I shouldn’t, but I do.”

“Feelin’s more’n mutual, Slayer,” he teased.

“Why do I love you so much?” she asked curiously, cupping his cheek with her free palm.

A passionate, blue fire burned deep in his eyes, and then he was moving within her in the most exquisite ways. She couldn’t even begin to describe what he was doing…a straight thrust here and a quick twirl of his hips there...but the overall effect had her dizzy from pleasure.

That would be the one hundred plus years of experience… The thought somehow flitted through her mind, which was impressive given that her mind seemed to have completely shut off beyond the rote repetition of: Spike, good.

“Startin’ to remember why you love me so much, kitten?” he whispered huskily into her ear, his hips never slowing in their erotic dance.

“Spi-i-ike!” her voice quavered with the force of the fire that was building deep within her womb.

“’ll take that as a ‘yes’,” he teased before ducking down to lavish his mouth’s attentions upon the exposed column of her throat.

Buffy clutched him to her desperately, her arms wrapping around his back, squeezing him so tightly to her that her breasts flattened against the planes of his chest, the friction between their bodies stoking an almost unbearable heat.

And still it wasn’t close enough.

She felt the irrational desire to crawl under his skin at that moment, to bury herself deep inside him, completely surrender herself to him, and be kept safe forever from the outside world by his love…

“Need you!” she gasped.

“You got me.” His own voice sounded just as tense as she felt, as the intensity of their coupling got to be almost more than he could handle.

“You’re mine?” She hadn’t meant for it to come out as a question. It wasn’t supposed to sound so needy, so wanting, so…vulnerable…

“’m yours, luv,” he answered before she could worry about her admission too much. “You mine?”

“Y-Yes,” she agreed shakily. “All yours, Spike. No one but you, baby…”

“Mine,” he murmured contently, his voice muffled by the waves of her silken hair.

“Mine,” she said softly, stroking his hair and massaging his back.

And then the steadily building pleasure within them exploded, and everything dissolved. There was no basement, no room, no mattress, no united bodies, no Buffy and Spike even. All that existed at that moment were two spiritually linked beings, blending so closely into each other that for one instant they were indistinguishable.

And then the universe came rushing back.

They both started in amazement when they found themselves back in their bodies, once again apart but still together at least in the coupling of their bodies and the combined pleasure that still raked through them.

They gasped in awe and rode out the final waves before collapsing together in a tangled mass of limbs, both desperately trying to grasp the magnitude of what just happened.

“Was that…magic?” Spike finally hazarded to ask.

“Not the way you mean it, baby,” Buffy smiled at him lazily and stroked his cheek one more. She didn’t think she could ever get tired of feel of his razor-sharp cheekbones. “Just the two of us really making love…although I suppose that’s magical enough in and of itself…”

“Mmm…” he murmured against her still-heated flesh. “Never felt that before…”

“Never?” There was a hint of anguish in Buffy’s voice as she turned his chin to look him in the eyes.

He shook his head. “No one’s ever really loved me before,” he said simply.

“Oh, my baby…” Buffy pulled him tight into her embrace and let one tear slip down her cheek. “My love, my soul, my Spike…”

He cuddled deep into her arms and sniffled a bit himself. “Love you,” he whispered softly. “You know that, right? I really do love you…”

“I know,” Buffy agreed with a small smile, letting her grip on him loosen. She leaned in towards him conspiratorially. “Actually,” she giggled as she whispered, “you’re not very good at hiding it.”

He pretended to look offended, but this just got another laugh from Buffy. “Bloody irritatin’ chit,” he grumbled under his breath.

“Mmm-hmm,” she agreed curling up against the back he’d just turned to her. “I’m just as annoying and impossible as you. Why do you think we’re so good together, baby?”

He sighed and relaxed against her touch. “Got me there,” he conceded.

Buffy gasped in mock-amazement. “Do mine ears deceive me? Did William the Bloody, Spike, the most stubborn and pigheaded man on the planet actually admit that I was right?”

He scowled and rolled over onto his back so he could see her. “Very cute, Slayer,” he said sarcastically. “With a razor-sharp wit like that, you’ve got quite a career in comedy ahead of you…”

She smiled and rested her head on his chest. “Well, I do practice every night on the vamps I slay…except tonight, of course. How long do you think they’ll keep us locked up in here anyway?”

He shrugged. “I presume they’ll let us out before we starve to death.”

Buffy nodded in agreement. “Although I’m a bit more worried about the lack of a bathroom…I’d say that one limits it to a day, tops. Probably less.”

“Dunno, kitten,” he sighed. “They prob’ly figured we’ve got lots to work out…”

“Well, we kinda do,” Buffy pointed out with a sheepish smile.

“So,” he took a deep breath, “do I get to start?”

“Shoot.”

“Wha’d you ever do with C—er, Riley anyway?” he demanded.

Buffy gave him a wicked little smile. “You mean Captain Cardboard?” she teased. “I dumped him. Then, he wouldn’t leave me alone so I reported him to the Initiative. He’s currently far, far away undergoing psych evaluations.”

“I love a story with a happy ending,” he joked lightly. “OK, pet, no more worryin’ ‘bout you ex.”

“My turn then,” she declared. “I want a deal.”

“A deal?” Spike raised one scarred eyebrow while he fished around in his discarded clothing for his cigarettes. He silently asked her if it was all right to light one up, and she agreed.

“If we’re going to keep this up, I need some kind of assurance you’re not going to go all Angelus on me,” she explained.

“Chip,” he said, using his cigarette as a pointer to gesture to his right temple.

Buffy snorted. “Yeah, Initiative chip. Given how completely incompetent they are at everything else, I can’t trust that thing in your head to last.”

Spike smiled a delighted little smile, this idea obviously not having occurred to him before. The smile quickly dropped at the pissed off look she was giving him, though. “Er, that’s…bad?” he hazarded a guess.

She rolled her eyes. “No, Spike,” she retorted, her voice practically oozing sarcasm, “it’s a good thing that you could be running loose again in another few months, trying to kill me and my friends.”

“Now, why on earth would I wanna kill you when there ‘re so many more…pleasurable things we could do together?” he asked, a seductive smirk on his lips.

“Spike, be serious,” she scolded him.

He rolled his eyes and stubbed his cigarette out on the floor. “Whattaya want me ta say then, Slayer?” he demanded.

“That I can trust you. In every sense of the word.”

He looked deep into her eyes for a second as if gauging her mood, and then he responded with the only answer he could give. “I love you.”

Buffy’s steely gaze melted as she first considered the implications of that statement for the first time. She leaned into him then and stole a long, languid kiss, the unspoken words flitting through her mind. I love you. You can trust me. Her fingers twined into his platinum curls and pulled him in deeper. I love you. I would never hurt you. His hand caught her thigh and brought it up over his hip, allowing their bodies to press together more intimately. I love you. Your pain is my pain…

Buffy finally pulled back before things got out of hand again. She took several calming breaths and then flashed him a radiant smile. “That answers my question,” she assured him, “but still… Deal? Could be fun. You and me. Alone together. Killing things.”

“Three ‘f my favorite phrases,” he chuckled, a slight purr vibrating through his chest at being a part of an unstoppable team once more.

“Mine, too,” she agreed. “So? I’m severely short a slaying partner right now…not that Riley was much help anyway. He kind of spent most of his time getting beaten up and screaming like a little girl. It was more hassle than it was worth. Which is why I’m looking for someone stronger now…” She decided a little ego stroking and ex bashing couldn’t hurt.

“You’ve got yourself a deal, partner,” he agreed with a sly smile.

She let out a delighted little squeal and wrapped her arms around his neck. “We’re going to have so much fun, baby,” she informed him.

He gave her a wry grin. “Havin’ fun already, luv,” he said, grinding his hips up against her.

She playfully batted him in the shoulder. “Sex later. Conversation now. You’re turn.”

Spike rolled his eyes and let his head fall back against the mattress in despair. “Fine, I get the easy one then. Me Vampire, you Slayer.”

“Me Slayer, me love Vampire, me not stake Vampire. You Vampire, you love Slayer, you not kill Slayer. Problem solved,” she joked.

His expression remained sober, however. “Luv,” he began, “you’re ignorin’ the issue here. What you’re seein’ of me…” he shifted over into game face, “…’s the whole me.”

She studied his demonic countenance for a little while before cautiously lifting up one hand to stroke his scarred brow ridge. “Beautiful,” she said softly. She looked deep into his yellowed eyes and saw the same man hidden beneath their depths as she always did. “You’re so beautiful like this,” she informed him, the tip of her index finger stroking up and down the length of his fang.

The action caused his cock to spring straight up to his stomach, and she giggled in response. Certain of Giles’ dirtier vampire books had mentioned that the fangs were a sexual organ, but she’d never gotten to see such obvious first-hand evidence of it before.

“Oops,” she said with a feline smile, “my bad. Don’t worry, lover. I’ll fix it…”

He was about to comment, but then she slid down his body and the tip of her tongue lashed out and caught the salty drop of precum that had escaped his foreskin. Needless to say, all coherent speech vanished for him at this point.

She took him slowly into her mouth at first, hesitant and experimental. After all, she’d never actually gotten a chance to do this before – an unfortunate side effect of having only had three one-night stands before him.

However, she caught on pretty fast. Licking veins was definitely good. As was pushing back the foreskin. As was cupping his balls. As was pretty much anything involving her body in contact with his sex.

Beneath her, Spike was whimpering and then roaring and then purring and then growling. His rapid changes vocalization just urged her to do even more wicked things to him. He vamped out and fisted his hands in the mattress when her mouth finally engulfed him all the way, his head pressing into the back of her throat.

“Y’know,” Buffy commented as she pulled back and returned to simple licks and sucks, “they always say that you have to suppress your gag reflex while deep-throating. They’re wrong, though. I don’t want to gag, baby; I want to eat you right up.” And with that she was deep-throating him in earnest.

“Cor, Buffy!” he cried out, his balls beginning to clench at her naughty words. “So good! So wonderful! Warm an’-an’ wet, an’…don’ stop, luv! Please, don’ stop! I’m gonna…”

She felt him quiver with tension within her mouth, and she sucked her cheeks in around him tighter.

“…Cummmm…Arrggghhh….!” Spike finally roared as he shot into her hot, willing mouth.

Buffy drank down what she could, enjoying the cool, salty liquid. She’d never really tasted anything like it before, but it felt very much like…Spike. Concentrated essence of Spike. No wonder she liked it so much.

She released him when he softened in her mouth and meticulously lapped up all the cum that had escaped her mouth. By the time she was done licking and cleaning, he had his eyes squeezed shut tight and a deep, resonant purr was vibrating through his chest, making her shiver when she rested her head against one magnificently muscled pec once more.

“I take it you like,” she finally asked slyly.

“Oh, I more than ‘like’. I love, I worship, I…” His tone turned serious once more. “Buffy, you didn’t have to do that to—”

“Shh…” she hushed, putting her index finger to his lips. “I wanted to, baby. I wanted to give you pleasure. I wanted you to feel good…”

“Did at that, luv,” he agreed, drifting off into a comfortable sleep. “Did at that…”

Buffy snuggled closer to him and wrapped the black leather duster around them once more. I could stay like this forever, she thought lazily to herself as she drifted off to sleep. Warm, safe, comfortable, in Spike’s arms…

Chapter Seventeen – Annoyed Contentment

Xander gulped. He turned to look at Willow pleadingly, but her Resolve Face was out in full force. There was no way in hell to persuade her. He was stuck. He took a deep breath and reached out one shaky hand to lift the latch.

He froze, feeling the three behind him still as well. They waited for a minute. Two. Still, nothing but silence from inside the storage room.

With aching slowness, Xander opened the large, metal door, praying to every higher power he could think that he not die today. The sight that met him once the door was fully opened was not encouraging.

Buffy stood in the middle of the room, several feet back from the door, her hands on her hips in a ‘you’re about to be slain’ manner. Her eyes were molten with fury, and she scowled as she saw those who had tricked her.

Spike was beside her, leaning back against a tall holder of collapsible chairs, occasionally taking a drag from the cigarette between his lips with the best ‘pissed off Master Vampire’ look he could manage. No one who looked into his eyes at that moment could have any doubt that he was gleefully disemboweling them in his mind.

Oh well, it could be slightly worse, Xander decided. They could be naked. “Hi, guys,” Xander’s voice squeaked up several octaves on the ‘hi’.

“Xander.” Buffy’s tone was frigid. “Willow. Anya. Tara.”

“Hi?” Willow gave the two of them a nervous little finger wave.

Buffy and Spike exchanged a glance before turning back to look at the four nervous Scoobies.

“Do you have any idea how dead you are?” Buffy asked curiously, tilting her head to one side. She smiled slightly when she saw Xander flinch.

“Uh…sorry?” he apologized anxiously.

“I have been in here for sixteen hours with no toilet,” Buffy scowled. “You owe me for life.”

Xander nodded nervously in agreement.

Anya rolled her eyes and decided that it was once again time to rush to her boyfriend’s rescue. “I don’t see what you’re complaining about,” she informed Buffy. “You’ve obviously been getting many orgasms while you were here. This whole place smells of sex. And there are no windows, either. I wonder how long it will take to air out?”

Buffy and Spike both gave Anya a hard look, and then both their faces began to crack into little, amused smiles. That was the great thing about the former vengeance demon; no matter how angry you were, she could always find something so completely outrageous to say that you just had to cheer up.

“Maybe they could get some fans,” Spike suggested off-handedly. “’Sides, we’re helpin’ ‘em with the hardest part.”

Buffy struggled to turn her expression serious again. “That’s right,” she said sternly. “You’re going to make this up to us, and you’re going to start by helping Spike.” She quickly walked passed them and out the door. “I’m going to find the bathroom…”

Willow and Tara snickered slightly, but sobered at the evil-glare-of-death Spike gave them.

“You’re all carryin’,” he informed them, gesturing over to the mattress.

Xander looked at him quizzically. “Huh?” he finally demanded.

“We’re movin’ it over to my crypt,” Spike explained patiently. “Don’ really fancy sleepin’ on that sarcophagus forever, y’know. That, and the Slayer an’ I have fond memories…”

“Y-You want us to touch…?” Xander gaped in horror. “Where you and Buffy…?”

“Oh, don’t be a prude, honey,” Anya patted him on the shoulder and moved to the far side of the mattress to help lift up one corner. “Your friends have come into physical contact with many objects we have had sex upon.” She turned to Spike and gave him a bright smile. “I also find myself nostalgic for places I have copulated in.” she informed him.

Spike chuckled as everyone else in the room’s faces turned bright red. “Always knew you ‘ad a bit ‘f sense to you, Anyanka,” he commented.

“Riiight then,” Xander sighed. “Let’s get this over with. Will, you and Tara take that corner, and – Spike? – you go kitty-corner from me, and…there. On three then?” he inquired then before they all lifted on the count of three…

The Scooby Gang lay strewn about the room in defeat. Willow and Tara were curled up together in the reclining chair, eyes closed in exhaustion. Xander sat on a cushion on the floor, leaning back up against the wall, Anya sleeping in his lap. He pulled up the edge of the navy blue blanket that covered them when she shivered and then spared a glance for the final couple in the room.

Spike lay on his back, sprawled across the mattress that now rested atop the stone sarcophagus. The fact that his eyes were closed and he wasn’t breathing were pretty good signs that he actually was asleep.

Buffy lay beside him, her body wrapped up around his in a way she would never allow in public if she were awake.

Xander fought back the urge to make gagging noises. Honestly, if the two of them decided to carry on in that insufferably cutesy manner they’d taken to during the engagement spell, he would never forgive himself for his part in the setting them up together. Fortunately, so far they’d just been their usual fighty/flirty selves with only occasionally more touching. Xander decided that he could live with that.

As he watched, Buffy stirred slightly, a murmur of contentment escaping her lips when she found herself next to the peroxide blond vampire. She yawned, smacked her lips together, and sat up to stretch.

That was when she saw that Xander was there.

She instantly blushed and attempted to untangle her limbs from Spike’s. The effort was futile, of course. Even in his sleep, he was annoyingly persistent. She finally gave up with a sigh.

“You still here?” she asked Xander softly, so as not to wake Anya or Spike.

He nodded. “We all are,” he gestured over to where Willow and Tara slept as well. “Damn, that thing was hard to move…”

“It wasn’t even that heavy,” Buffy complained, “just floppy and awkward.”

“Lucky thing you helped us,” Xander agreed. A little smile quirked on his lips. “Especially when we had to explain what we were doing to that campus police officer…”

Buffy giggled at the memory. “I swear he thought we were off to an orgy in the woods.”

Xander smiled fondly at the memory of their conflicting and nonsensical excuses. “Yeah… Lucky the campus police don’t give a damn.”

Buffy laughed and rested her head back against Spike’s chest. “Xander?” she said after a minute.

“Yeah?”

“Er…um…I don’t quite know how to ask this…” she began nervously.

He look turned several degrees more curious.

“What I mean is…OK, me, vampire,” Buffy finally said. “What’s up with that? I mean, you hate vampires, and then you’re setting me up with one, and…it’s weird.”

“Who said I hate vampires?” Xander asked in surprise.

Buffy gave him a disbelieving look. “You did,” she informed him, “like every single day I was dating Angel. And then you said that I was crazy for dating one and that you would kill Angel, and—”

“Ah!” Xander cut her off with a wave of his hand. “Sensing the source of the confusion here. See, what you’re missing here is the extreme degree to which I just did not like Angel…”

“Because he was a vampire.”

“No, because he was Angel,” Xander clarified. “Yeah, the vampire thing was a bit of a concern, especially since he couldn’t control himself for more than two seconds without the soul, but Angel himself was the thing I objected to.”

“What’s wrong with Angel?” Buffy huffed, irritated.

Xander rolled his eyes sarcastically. “Oh, let’s see… He puts on this whole brooding, tortured, hey-all-you-women-feel-really-sorry-for-me-and-get-sucked-into-my-land-of-misery-by-trying-to-redeem-me act, and then he goes through this whole star-crossed lovers bit where he loves you and then he can’t and then he does and then his trying to fight it, and he flings you back and forth on this emotional roller-coaster for no good reason other than it makes him seem more like the poor, suffering hero, and then—”

“OK, OK, I get the picture!” Buffy cut him off. “But it’s not his fault that he was—”

“Argh!” Xander exclaimed. “That’s exactly why I can’t stand the guy! He had the damn act down so well that everyone excused everything he ever did. Well, I’m sorry, but he was just weak and sad and depressed and way too addicted to the pain, and no one should have to put up with that with him. Honestly, Buffy, you still worship the ground he walks on so much that you let him dictate your entire relationship with Riley. It’s not healthy to let your ex run your life like that!”

“Angel wouldn’t approve of Spike,” Buffy pointed out.

Xander smiled. “And that’s part of why I think he’s good for you. You’ve been living in Angel’s shadow less and less ever since you and Spike started working together. It’s like I can see that spark of life and happiness back in your eyes whenever he’s around you. He brings out the best in you, Buff, and strangely I think you bring out the best in him, too…”

She considered this for a moment. “He agreed to help me with my patrols, you know.”

“See?” Xander insisted. “You’ve been together for one day, and already you’ve dragged him over to the forces of light. And Giles will be so psyched. He’s been trying to convince Spike to help out for months.”

Buffy flinched. “I get the feeling he’ll be less thrilled about the vampire lovin’.”

Xander shrugged. “Actually, he was kinda surprised it didn’t start up again after the wedding spell. According to him, it’s scandalous the way you two flirt all the time.”

“Giles says this?!” she asked in disbelief.

He nodded.

“Why did everyone know I was in love with Spike before I did?” she sighed in exasperation.

“You were pretty obvious,” he pointed out.

Buffy nodded in defeat. “So,” she got back on track, “this cancels out the vampire thing?” She still wasn’t convinced.

Xander gave her a sheepish look and opened his mouth to speak before his eyes widened in worry. “You sure he’s asleep?” he demanded.

Buffy leaned over and kissed Drusilla’s bite mark on his neck, smiling at the memories of all the fun she’d gotten to have breaking the insane vampiress’ claim on him. He murmured and curled up against her a bit more at her reassertion of her claim, but he didn’t awaken.

“Like a baby,” she assured Xander.

“OK, then,” Xander agreed. “You never, ever tell him this, right?”

“Xander, what is it?” Buffy demanded, suddenly horribly curious.

“Promise,” he insisted.

Buffy rolled her eyes. “All right, I promise,” she agreed. “Now tell me.”

“For a vampire,” Xander said in a conspiratorial whisper, “he’s actually kinda cool. I mean, we argue like crazy and all, but he’s fun to hang out with, and he plays a mean game of pool, and he treats Anya like she’s a real person, and he defends me against nasty burly guys at the Bronze who think I’ve swindled them – that last one being hypothetical, of course.”

Buffy giggled at the image. “Hypothetical, right,” she said with false conviction before she started laughing again.

Xander muttered under his breath about how he never got any respect. “And he’s so not Angel, I’m not even going to go there,” he finished. “He’s honest and straightforward, and he won’t fuck with you head, Buffy. If he says he loves you—”

“He does.”

“—Then he loves you, and he’s not going to leave you with some half-assed excuse,” Xander finished.

“And when did you become an expert on all things Spike?” Buffy demanded with a small smile.

Xander groaned. “Since I had to live with him for two months,” he informed her. “I gotta tell you, I may like the guy, but if I ever have to live with him again, he is so dust. He’s like the poster boy for World’s Worst Roommate.”

“Yeah,” Buffy agreed, gesturing to the crypt around them, “just look at his decorating sense…”

Xander snorted. “You shoulda seen it when he first moved in,” he retorted.

“I can only imagine… But, thanks,” she said with a small smile.

“For what?” He seemed honestly not to know.

“For being cool with this. For letting me do what makes me happy. For putting up with another of my demon lovers,” she answered in quick succession.

“What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t want you to be happy?” he shrugged it off. “Plus, I’ve discovered the joys of the demon lover as well.”

Buffy giggled. “We should start a club.”

“Demon Lovers Anonymous,” Xander agreed, “except it’s not a problem…”

“Nope,” Buffy agreed, gently ruffling Spike’s hair. “In fact some demons know how to love better than humans do…”

“Like, say, Riley,” Xander retorted.

“Amen to that,” Buffy agreed…

Buffy and Spike let out a sigh of relief when the four Scoobies finally recovered enough to leave. Frankly, the effort of keeping their clothes on was far too great, and the instant they were alone they quickly remedied the problem.

However, the desperation ended there. As they together, side by side and skin to skin on the mattress, they suddenly became content with just being with one another.

“Y’know,” Buffy said with a small smile, “I’ve been dreaming about just this all week…”

“What?” Spike teased. “Not havin’ sex?”

She playfully swatted at his head. “No, silly. You. Me. Sarcophagus. Nakedness.”

“’S a lovely combination,” he agreed with a little wink.

She rested her head in the crook of his shoulder and looked up at the stone ceiling. For a while, she just allowed her body to feel every inch of Spike that was pressed up against her, savoring his cool, smooth alabaster skin and the hard muscles beneath it…one of which was becoming increasingly harder…

“It’s strange,” she finally said, breaking the comfortable silence between them.

“What is, kitten?” he inquired, his lips gently brushing her temple.

“This,” she said. “You. Me. How we came to be.”

“No arguments there, luv,” he said with a small grin. “No complaints, either…”

“It’s just…what if we hadn’t started working together under that spell? Would all this have happened?” she asked nervously.

He shrugged. “Prob’ly not,” he agreed. “Never would’ve even let myself look at my mortal enemy…”

“Me, neither,” Buffy agreed. “I never would’ve trusted you, gotten to know you, fallen in love… My job as the Slayer would have prevented it all.”

“We’re lucky it did happen then,” he agreed.

She nodded. “It’s just sad,” she sighed. “That I could have gone all my life with you right there beside me, and me never seeing how we could be together…” She trailed off and began to stroke his hair. “I mean, I’d like to think that love was like destiny and that we were inevitable no matter what, but somehow I don’t think it would have worked.”

“Maybe ‘f you’d gotten off you high horse for one second an’ admitted how you jus’ wanted to jump me all along,” Spike joked.

Buffy swatted him on the shoulder. “I’m trying to be emotional and sappy here, and you’re making it difficult,” she complained.

“Vampires don’ get emotional an’ sappy,” he retorted.

“What about back in the storage room when you said that—Mmf!” she was abruptly cut off when his hand covered her mouth.

“Vampire don’ get emotional an’ sappy,” he insisted again. “’m the Big Bad. I don’ say sweet things like…whatever it was you were thinkin’ of…” he nervously trailed off.

“Right,” Buffy giggled. “You’re way too evil and manly. I’m sure all gushiness I was hearing was just some demon dialogue for ‘Unh! Good fuck!’.”

He sulked. “There’s no reason to mock me,” he retorted.

“You were ruining my ‘moment’,” she countered.

“Well then, carry on, luv,” he said with a sly smirk. “Din’t mean to annoy…”

“Yes, you did,” she accused. “’Cause you know how sexy I find it…”

“Mmm,” he murmured into her hair, inhaling the fragrant vanilla perfume.

“So, where was I?” Buffy demanded.

“Us not ever gettin’ together,” he provided.

“Right,” she agreed. “It’s so sad…”

“Yeah,” Spike agreed with a chuckle, “you could still be stuck with Cap’n Cardboard.”

Buffy shuddered. “Don’t think I could’ve pulled that act off much longer, though. Sooner or later we’d ‘ve realized just how terribly not right we were together.”

“Dunno,” he retorted, “White Bread seemed pretty dense ‘bout it.”

“So was I,” she pointed out, “until you opened my eyes to something better…”

Their lips met in a brief kiss that naturally deepened, and before either of them knew what was happening, Buffy was on her back and Spike was inside her.

They clutched each other’s bodies tightly, reasserting that this was real, that they had found each other in this world and would never let go again.

Their lips latched together, licking and biting and tasting and savoring, tongues dueling and teeth nipping as their hips thrust together in a steadily increasing rhythm.

Neither bothered to hold their lovemaking out, knowing that they had forever to take their time. It was a gentle climax for both, and they held each other tightly and let out little cries of each other’s name as the smooth waves of pleasure washed over them.

“I love you,” Spike whispered, rolling to the side and pulling her with him.

She snuggled against his chest and smiled lazily. “Love you, too,” she whispered into the pillow of his chest. “You know,” she said, “we really owe Jonathan…”

“Yeah…” Spike agreed, closing his eyes.

Then one quirked back open. “Jus’ one question, Betty,” he began.

“Buffy. Yeah?”

“Who’s Jonathan?”