Summerhaven

Chapter 14

Buffy smiled as she opened the thank you letters from Dawn’s party. Everyone was so happy to have been invited and were showering her with compliments on the lavish soiree. Her heart contracted tightly when she thought of all the things Xander had down for her and her sister.

It was the right thing, turning down his proposal…I don’t love him, Buffy thought as she placed the cards on the heavy oak table in front of her.

She knew it wouldn’t be right to marry one man when she was in love with another. She knew it. But it still didn’t help the guilt she felt when she saw Xander’s face.

Buffy sighed and stood, walking over to the large bay windows overlooking the mansion’s garden. A slight breeze blew through the various plants and bushes, the sunlight streaming and dancing among the flowers. It looked so inviting Buffy couldn’t help herself as she abandoned her stack of correspondence and went outside.

Anything to get away for a moment.

To not think, to relax in the sun-drenched atmosphere, the birds singing and the flower’s scent wafting around her.

Buffy smiled as she sat on her cobblestone bench. The same bench that was still cracked from when she fell off of it. After William left she didn’t have the heart to change anything he had touched, everything was like a security blanket, all she had left.

In the days that followed her miscarriage she was despondent. They told her that she lapsed into a coma type state, her fevered flesh sweating and shaking as she moaned for William, begged for William to come back. The servants and her mom were afraid for her, not knowing if she would pull through. Her father was still mad, humiliated at the fact a lowly stable hand had knocked up his eldest daughter.

And it was Joyce who practically had to use force to get Hank to see his error. It didn’t matter what happened in the past, the fact remained that their daughter was going to die if they didn’t do something soon. It was then that Giles Leslie was allowed to see Buffy. For hours everyday he would sit at her bedside and read William’s letters over and over to her. He would talk about when they were young and the mischief they used to get into. It took four days and then miraculously Buffy’s fevered lowered and was gone completely. She slept silently for another fortnight before finally opening her eyes.

The people of Summerhaven all took a collective sigh of relief when the town doctor assured them that their mistress would pull through.

It wasn’t long thereafter that Hank died followed by Joyce.

It was still hard to talk about her mom and Buffy choked at the lump forming in her throat.

What she wouldn’t give to have her mother here now.

*~*

Spike and Oz finished their business and headed back to their rented house. Spike closed himself up in the library again, doing paperwork and trying his hardest not to think about Buffy. It wasn’t working well and he decided he needed air. The house he had rented was not far from the creek where he and Buffy used to play as children. He longed to get the comfort he felt when looking at the calming water. He put his pen down and gathered his long coat.

The cool air felt good as he breathed it in, the sun playing on his face. It was the afternoon so the sun was still high in the sky. Birds sang happily as they flew from tree to tree above him. He entered the forest that led to the water and stopped, next to the old eucalyptus tree that had always been his favorite stood Buffy. She had heard the crunching of leaves and turned around, catching Spike looking at her.

“Hello,” she said calmly. Her voice may have been calm but her insides were churning. She had wandered here after being in the garden, her legs and feet just took her here. Leading her as if they knew Spikewould show up.

“Hello,” he reciprocated walking up and standing next to her.

“Have you seen your father yet?”

“Briefly. I’m going to see him again later,” Spike answered trying like hell not to look at her. He could see her out of the corner of his eye. Her blond hair shining in the sun, her skin golden and flushed, the yellow dress she had on clinging to all the delicious curves of her body.

Buffy nodded and looked at him. It was hard not to wrap her arms around him and tell him the truth about the baby, her father, and her feelings. Instead she put her arms around herself as the air started to chill.

“It’s getting cold,” Spike said looking up at the sky. He didn’t know why he didn’t notice before but huge black thunderclouds were forming and had started to cover the sun.

“William…”

“I told you I go by Spike now.”

Buffy laughed softly as he stepped closer to her.

“How did you get that name anyway?” She asked, her body starting to break out in goose flesh at the mere nearness of him.

Spike smirked and turned to look at her, his eyes darkening to a deep midnight blue.

“Do you really want to know?”

Buffy nodded, unable to break their gaze, his eyes hypnotic in their intensity.

A large clap of thunder sounded, breaking them both out of their reveries.

“We better go inside,” he said as Buffy looked up.

“Yes like now,” Buffy agreed as a fat raindrop hit her face. Within seconds the rain started, pouring down on them like a waterfall. Spike grabbed her arm and pulled her. They ran looking for shelter.

“Over there,” Spike yelled above the sound of the thunder as it pounded in the sky. They ran to an abandoned guesthouse. Luckily the door was unlocked and Spike flung it open, rushing Buffy inside.

Just as he shut the door a huge lightning bolt shot across the sky, landing with a clap of thunder. Buffy jumped as the bright light filled the house they were in.

“Oh my god,” She said as she jumped again.

The thunder was getting louder and the lightning more frequent. The wind had picked up and flung the raindrops against the windows. Spike locked the door and turned around, surveying their surroundings. The house was small but was in good shape. They seemed to be standing in the living room area and there was a couch with a small table and some chairs. Spike walked to the right and found the kitchen and next to that was a small bedroom complete with a large sized bed.

“Ok well the house is sturdy and the roof strong. We should be ok here for some time,” Spike said as another huge clap of thunder sounded and lightning streaked across the sky.

“I wonder who lived here,” Buffy mused as she looked around the large room.

“Well who ever was here left us with some good stuff. There are towels and candles.” Spike wrapped a large fluffy white towel around Buffy and put the candles on the table. He lit the candles and the room was flooded with a soft, dancing light.

“There’s even firewood.” Spike noticed as he looked over at the fireplace. As Spike lit up a nice fire, Buffy turned her back to him and pulled off her soaked dress. She stood with just her chemise on. It’s material wet and molded to her body. Spike glanced over and couldn’t take his eyes off the way the fabric clung to her body. Buffy looked at him over his shoulder and Spike ripped his head away back to the fire, making it look like he was tending to it’s glowing embers.

Buffy sneezed and Spike got up and walked over by her. She was shivering even with the large towel covering her form.

“Go sit by the fire. It’ll warm you,” he said coming up behind her and rubbing her arms. He led her over by the fire and sat her down, careful to cover her legs.

“Where are you going?” she asked as he left her.

“To get out of these wet clothes. I’ll never warm up with these on. No sense in attempting to catch my death,” he shrugged as he pulled the wet black jacket off his arms.

Buffy glanced at him over her shoulder as he began to slide his black breeches down his lean legs. She held a gasp in her throat as he stood and removed his white shirt. He wrapped the towel around his waist took his and her wet clothes into the kitchen area. Buffy could hear him wringing out the excess water into a pail.

She shuddered and tried to huddle in as close to the fire she could get without getting burned. She closed her eyes and must have fallen asleep because when she opened them Spike was next to her, shaking her shoulder.

“Buffy?”

“Hmm?”

“Here drink this. It will warm you up,” he said as he handed her a glass of something.

“I found some mulled wine in the pantry. There was also some crackers and dried fruit. Whoever lived here before must have left recently. Thank god for that,” Spike mused as he took a drink of the red liquid. Buffy watched as his mouth molded around the rim of the glass. He took a deep swallow and licked his lips as he brought the glass down. Buffy shuddered.

“Drink Buffy. It will warm you.” Spike put his arms around her pulled her against his bare chest.

Buffy laid against his body and her senses tingled with the acute awareness of his skin, his touch. She brought the glass to her lips and drank. The cool liquid formed a trail of warmth as is flowed through her body.

“That is good,” She said as she took another drink.

“Don’t drink it too fast. I don’t want you to get drunk.”

“Drunk? I never get drunk,” she protested as she finished off what was left in her glass.

“More?” she asked holding her glass out to him and twisting in his arms so she could look at him.

She didn’t realize their heads were so close that when she turned her head her lips brushed against his.

They looked at each other shocked as thunder sounded outside shaking the house. A crack of lighting zigzagged across the sky illuminating their faces as Spike leant down and brushed his lips against hers again.

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