~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"ARRRRRGH!" Willow screamed and tossed her econ book across the room. Buffy
opened the door and thanks to her cat-like Slayer reflexes caught the flying
tome before it broke her pert little nose.

"Stressed much, Will?" she grinned.

"Oh, shut up!" Willow snapped.

Buffy arches her eyebrows and placed the book on the end of Will's bed.

"I'm sorry, Buffy, but I've got what I anticipate to be a truly hideous
final tomorrow morning in 17th century British poetry tomorrow morning. What
am I going to do? High school finals were easy. I was top 3rd percentile
girl, here I'm just mildly mediocre girl."

"Willow, you're brilliant, you could never be mediocre."

"Oh yeah? How do explain my B+ in econ?" Willow demanded.

"Cosmic justice finally catching up to you?" Buffy shrugged. Willow's eyes
narrowed. "Obviously not the time to make with the joking."

"I'm sorry," Willow sighed. "I'm being a complete bitch. I'm going for a
walk. Clear my head."

"Want me to go with?" Buffy asked.

"Nah, I'll be fine." Willow shrugged into her jacket. "I'll just go to the
library, chill out for a while. Not think about profit projection or
variable investment indicators. Or the fact that I think my head may
actually burst with the stress."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Willow fanned her fingers out, enjoying the warm spring breeze against her
palms. She still loved the night. No matter how dangerous it was, no matter
how many times Buffy and Giles warned her to be careful, she always felt a
part of it.

She closed her eyes and inhaled the sweet heady scent of the honeysuckle
creeping over Grayson Hall. She didn't hear the rustle in the bushes behind
her. She barely registered the rush of air behind her as an air wrapped
around her lithe body and a cool hand clamped over her mouth.

She screamed fruitlessly.

"Shhhh," her attacker whispered against her neck. She stomped down, catching
his toes. He released her mouth. She brought her heel back in a crippling
horse-kick to his crotch. He yelped and collapsed to the ground. She whirled
around angrily.

"Bloody hell, love!" he whined as he writhed in pain.

"SPIKE!" she cried. "What the hell are you doing?"

She kicked him in the gut. He groaned and doubled over. "Don't you know
better than to sneak up on an unarmed woman in the dark when she's got a
chem final and a twelve page research paper due in the morning?"

She kicked him again.

"AHH!" he screamed. "I surrender."

She rolled her eyes and helped him to his feet.

"Bleeding Christ, Willow, what's gotten into you?"

Willow was surprised to find she actually felt a little better. Maybe that's
why Buffy seemed so stress-free. Kicking ass was a definite stress-reliever.
"I'm sorry, Spike, I'm just, I'm just-"

She sank to the ground next to him and sighed heavily. "I'm so stressed out
I can't even see straight."

"Aw, pet," Spike stroked her hair back from her cheeks. "What can I do to
make it better?"

"Take all my tests for me?" she asked hopefully.

He arched his eyebrows.

"Good point," she nodded.

"How about I take you away from all this?" he asked.

"Don't tease," she said, her emerald eyes pleading.

"Honestly," he whispered. "When's your last exam?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"And what do you have planned after that?" he asked.

"Summer of slayage," she shrugged. "Ascensions, Apocalypse, Armageddon. You
know, the usual."

He grinned. "I'm going to make you an offer."

This time it was her eyebrows that arched.

"Spike's guaranteed soul-soothing get-away," he grinned. "You take your last
final and we get the hell out of dodge."

"Where would we go?"

He shrugged.

"What would we do?"

He shrugged. "Do it really matter? We'll just hit the road and see where it
takes us."

"And I'm supposed to trust you... why?" Willow asked.

"Because I can't hurt you with this blasted chip in my head. and I wouldn't
want to anyway. I just think you need a break, love. And I want to be the
one to give it to you. What do you think would happen if you went away with
Chubs or Slutty?"

"Daily designated driver," Willow grimaced.

"I want to watch you bloom away from this place," Spike said. "Please?"

"Let me think about it," Willow said, getting up.

"Don't make me wait too long, love," Spike laughed. "Makes me cranky."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a grueling poetry final, Willow snapped her suitcase and dropped a
explanation note on Buffy's bed.

She tucked her econ book under her arm and took one last look at her room.
She grinned and closed the door. As she passed the dumpster, she tossed the
book in a beautiful arc into the metal container.

"Spike," she whispered against the sleeping vampire's smooth silky cheek.

His eyes snapped open, devouring the ethereal redhead hovering above his
bed. He resisted the urge to pull her under the sheets with him. She kept
her eyes trained away from his bare rippling chest. She grinned.

"When do we leave?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ugghhh," Willow groaned. She twisted in the passenger seat of the De Soto.
They had been on the road for hours and her ass could be declared legally
dead. "Can't we stop and eat?"

"Well, unless you know of any IHOP's that serve O negative, that counts me
out," he grinned.

She laughed. "I never thought about the diificulties involved in vampire
travel."

"It's a cross to bear... but not really." he grimaced. "That would blister a
bit."

"So seriously, when are we stopping?"

"Well, we're heading south," he said. "What does that tell you?"

"Warmer climate?" Willow shrugged.

He nodded.

"Fruity drinks involving tequila?"

Spike began humming the opening bars of "La Cucaracha." She squealed.

"MEXICO!?" she shouted.

"At first," he nodded. "And then I thought we'd just bump around South
America for a while."

"I've always wanted to go to Mexico!" Willow cried. "My parents have been
five times. I begged them to take me, but they said it was too dirty and
dangerous."

"Not with me, pet," he said. "With me, everything will be safe. I guarantee
it. We're going to visit some of the most beautiful secluded beaches in the
world. They're almost deserted, but with enough of a local population to
keep me in el sangre caliente."

She looked slightly stricken.

"If you makes you feel any better, love, I'll only nibble," he promised,
knowing full well he probably wouldn't keep his word.

She sighed. "How much longer?"

"We're almost there," he said.

After another hour or so, he turned off the main road. Willow could see the
ground getting sandier and sandier. She was getting excited. She had
actually forgotten all about finals and Sunnydale and the Hellmouth. She
grinned.

"Are we there yet?" she begged, tugging at his sleeve. "Are we there yet?"

He pulled to a slow stop. "Yes."

She dashed out of the car and found herself standing on the whitest sand she
had ever seen. The full moon reflected off the rippling waves. She marveled
at the soothing sound of water lapping at her feet.

"What is this place?" she asked.

"The La Playa Del La Luna." he whispered against her cheek. "And that's
where we're staying."

He turned her head towards a small alabaster cottage sitting alone on the
sand.

"Now THIS, I could used to," Willow sighed.

He chuckled and pulled her bag on his shoulder. "Please, do."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Willlllow."

Willow swiped at the soft perfumed object brushing her face.

"Come on, love, wake up."

She pulled the sheets over her head and growled. Spike grinned.

"If you don't get up, I'm coming in after you...."

"I'm UP! I'M UP!" she crowed, bolting out of bed. She slowly recognized her
surroundings, she was in her room in Spike's little cottage. The sparse but
cozy furnishings seemed like home already.

"Good," he grinned. He set a tray on her lap containing sliced guava,
strawberries, orange juice and toast. Her stomach grumbled in appreciation
as she devoured her breakfast.

"What do you want to do today?" he asked.

"I thought I'd email Giles," Willow said around a slice of sweet fruit. "See
how things are going on the Hellmouth-"

"That's going to be sort of difficult."

"What do you mean?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.

"I hid your computer," he shrugged.

"SPIKE!" she howled.

"Just until you learn to relax, love," he said. "I'm afraid if you talk to
Giles or Buffy then you'll start worrying about them and not concentrating
on your vacation."

"Do you really concentrate on vacation?" Willow asked.

"With me, you do," he laughed. "You are going to be so immersed in having a
jolly old time that you won't even remember whats-her-face and the
whatchamacallit-mouth."

She laughed, but suddenly her thoughts turned to Oz. "How about heartbreak,
can you make me forget that?"

"I guarantee it," he said. "How up, out of bed. We have a festival to
attend."

"A festival?" she said, her interest piqued. "Sounds like fun"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You were right, this is fun!" she shouted over the blaring mariachi music.
Spike twirled her in a complicated box step.

"I told you, all Spike vacations are a guaranteed good time," he grinned.

"What are we celebrating, again?"

"The festival of San Martin," Spike said.

"And he's the patron saint of what?"

"Something..." Spike shrugged.

Willow giggled.

"Wait a minute," Spike said, peering over her shoulder. He lead her to a
stall where the merchant was selling brightly colored wraps and sarongs.

He selected a bright red length of material swirled with blue and green. He
brought it around her body and tied in an intricate knot at her waist- over
her jeans. "This is perfect for you."

"Oh, I couldn't Spike, that would involve showing leg. Lots of it."

"Go in that cantina over there and try it on," he grinned. "It'll look
great, I promise."

"Arrrgh," she groaned and rolled her eyes. "How do you argue with your pushy
vampiric tour guide?"

She made her way through the crowd to the cantina and changed quickly in the
bathroom. When she came back, he wasn't where she left him.

"Spike?" she called. "Spike?"

She searched the sea of faces, not one of them were pale or blonde. She
heard a scuffle in the adjacent alley. She blinked, letting her eyes adjust
to the dark. Spike had a young man pushed against the wall of the church,
draining him as he clamped his hand over the youth's mouth.

"Oh my god," Willow cried. "NO!"

Spike turned, still in game face. "Willow!"

"NO!" she shouted and ran through the crowd. What a fool she had been.

Spike dropped the boy to the ground. He had only drained him of a pint or
two. He would live. Spike hadn't intended to kill him anyway. What a fool he
had been. Thinking he could hide the fact that he could feed again.

Willow was frantically throwing her clothes in a bag and searching for
Spike's keys when he came running into the cottage.

"I guess I have some explaining to do," he said, wiping the blood moustache
from his upper lip.

"Yeah, you might say that," she glared.
 
 

"Spike!" Willow shouted. "What directly the FUCK is going on? Why were you
feeding off that poor man!"

"I have a teeny confession to make, Will, um... it seems my chip's chipped.
You might say."

"WHAT?!"

"About a month ago, I was helping Chubs, er, Xander with the laundry. Of
course the git asked me to plug in the iron while I was standing in a
puddle. I got the shock of my bloody unlife. Once Xander got off the floor,
recovering from his laughing fit, he helped me. It seems the chip shorted
out and it isn't working any more. I've been feeding for a while now."

"I can't BELIEVE this!" Willow cried. "I agreed to go on this trip because
you said you were all defanged!"

"I know."

"You- stupid- undead- meshuggenah!!!" she yelled throwing her hairbrush at
him.

"OW!" he cried. "That really hurt! Who throws a hairbrush?"

"Shut up!"

"Look, pet, I'm sorry I hurt your feelings," he stepped closer to her. She
retreated until she was pressed against the dresser. "But I'm not sorry if
it convinced you to come with me. I wanted you to come with me. I wanted you
with me. How can that be bad?"

He stroked her bare arms tenderly. She looked up, searching ice blue eyes.
"Please, stay with me, love, please?"

"Spike, you big vampiric moron," she whispered. "I would have come with you
anyway."

She dropped her suitcase and pushed past him.

"Goodnight." She shut her door with a soft click.

"Bloody hell," Spike grinned. "Well, what do you know?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Spike drifted off to sleep the next morning, he could Willow stirring in
the next room. He rose as he heard the front door open and close.

Had she lied? Was she leaving him now that he couldn't leave the safety of
the darkened cottage? He rushed the the covered window and pushed the
curtain aside. Willow was walking past the car, towards the turquoise water
of the gulf. She shucked her jean cut-offs and stripped to her red tank
suit. He watched carefully, with increasing admiration as the tropical sun
reflected off her pale skin. He wondered how long it would stay that pale.
He had never had a woman with tan lines before, he thought with a wry grin.

The cold tide washed over her feet. She squealed and scampered back. He
chuckled. She mustered her courage and took a running start towards the
water, diving in head-first. She came sputtering to the surface, yelling,
but with an insurmoutable grin on her face.

He laughed. This was why he wanted her to come on this trip with him. She
never would have thought to do something like that with the blasted Scooby
Gang around. Buffy would say, "No, willow, don't be silly, I'll do it
first. Then maybe you can try." Giles would tell her to forget about it and
go do some research. Xander would ask her to go get him some Cheesy Chips.

She came back to shore and ran back to the water, diving in all over again.

He chuckled and pulled the curtain back into place. Maybe this wasn't a
mistake after all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Spike woke, Willow was still out on the sand watching the sunset.
When the last crimson rays turned to lavender dusk, he joined her. Her
cheeks were flushed pink with the sun's kiss. She smelled of salt and
humanity and... raspberries.

Must be the lotion she uses, he thought.

"Enjoy your day, love?" he asked.

"Tremendously," she grinned, munching on a papaya. "I met a nice boy named
Enrique, he taught me how to net fish."

Suddenly Spike had the urge to strangle Enrique and drain him til he turned
gray. He grit his fangs tried not to let his emotion show. He hadn't told
the chit she couldn't talk to others, and if she got a little piece on the
road, good for her.

It was just too bad he was going to have to destroy Enrique's whole damned
family as she slept.

"What's with the sour face?" she asked, shoving a slice of fruit between his
lips. "Enrique is just a boy... who was nice to me. I'm not planning to
announce our engagement for at least another few months."

He grinned. This is why he wanted Willow with him. She was barely
recognizable as the tense, bunged up little girl he has whisked away from
Sunnydale. He chuckled and caught her wrist, licking the tangy fruit pulp
away from her fingertips.

"That is why God invented napkins, you know," she teased, hauling her cute
little ass out of the sand. He grimaced and relinquished her hand. Why did
she have to be so damned immune to his charms when he was getting
light-headed every time she tossed that ridiculously cute red-hair?
"Besides, we have to get dressed. Enrique's having a party and we're going."

"Does he even know about me, love?" Spike asked.

"What? My ridiculously over-protective cousin?" she asked. "Sure he does.
It's just such a shame you have to stay inside all day writing your novel,
otherwise you would have been able to come out and have fun with us."

"Cousin, eh?" Spike snorted as he brushed stray grains of sand from her
calf. Willow tried not to let her eyes roll back in her head.

"I'm just leaing my options open," she grinned. "Come on.... it'll be fun!
You said you like Mexican food."

He cocked an eyebrow. "You're going to let me feed on his guests?"

"Just a little nibble," Willow warned him. "No drainage."

She really was in a good mood. He nodded solemnly. "I promise."

She tugged on his arm and led him back into the house. "Good, now help me
decide what to wear."

(Bloody hell, Spike thought, how about nothing? We can just stay here and
you prance around in the buff for the next few hours? eeehhhh, I didn't
think so.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Willow!" Enrique grinned as they approached their patio. He had to shout
over the pulsing salsa music blaring throughout the house. His heavy
accented English only added to his charm. Not that his well-deep brown eyes
and exotic good looks hurt it. "So glad to see you."

Spike rolled his eyes. Willow smacked his chest as she kissed Enrique's
cheek.

"Enrique, this is my cousin, William," she said.

"Me gusta," Enrique shook his hand. "Is a shame that you do not venture out
into the sun with your cousine. You could use a little color."

"I don't really tan all that much," Spike snorted. "I just burn."

"Is a shame." Enrique shrugged. He tugged on Willow's arm and led her into
the house. Spike practically growled as the slick-haired lothario wound his
arm about her waist. He had the overwhelming urge to throw a blanket over
her tiny red tank top and the sarong he had chosen for her only yesterday.
She had made him relinquish his duster in favor of a black tee shirt and
jeans.

"It's my mission to get you into a tacky Hawaiin shirt by the end of this
trip," she had told him.

"You're going to have to invite my cousin in," Willow said. "Stuffy British
manners and all that."

"Of course, please join us William," Enrique nodded. He led Willow around
the crowded house with ease, pressing her closer to him with each step.

Spike stepped through the door, glaring at the back of Enrique's head and
wishing for a blunt object.

This was not going to be a fun night.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike glowered at the dance floor as Willow and Enrique caught the whole
crowd's attention with a complicated dance move. The salsa band trilled,
Enrique dipped her and twirled her out.

Spike rolled his eyes. Willow had been introduced to the joys of the
margarita and was having a grand time of it.

Across the room, a rather pretty girl winked at him. He smiled back. Though
he had fed off one of the mariachi right after they showed up, he was
getting a bit peckish. Maybe a quick snack...

He crossed the dance floor to reach his bit of stuff. Just as he passed
Willow, her dance partner clamped a very eager hand across her rear.
Instinctively, Spike peeled back Enrique's fingers and held him in a wrist
lock. Willow could barely register what was going on.

"Mind if I cut in with my cousin?" Spike asked through gritted teeth.

"Sure," Enrique nodded, eager to have his hand released from the iron grip.

Spike flung him into another girl and wrapped his arm around Willow's waist.

"Hiya, Spike!" Willow chirped happily.

"Hello, pet," he grinned as he dipped her. "Having a good time?"

"Uh-huh," she giggled. "Better now."

"How's that?"

"Dancin' with you," she shrugged.

He laughed and nuzzled her luscious neck, tracing a pattern on the silky
skin with his nose.

"Close family," Enrique grimaced as he watched them from across the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"How come you never tole me you could dance, Spike?" Willow asked.

Spike grinned and twirled her into a dip.

"Never came up in conversation, love," he said. "How come you never told me
you are fluent in Spanish?"

"I'm really not, just a little here and there," she shrugged.

"Then how did you wrap Ricky over there around your little finger?" he
asked, nuzzling her throat.

"Hmm?"

"He's enthralled with you, love," he whispered. "He's watching every move
your sweet little body makes. The way your hips sway as you dance. Your
breasts rising and falling. Your plump pink lips parting as you laugh."

"Oh," she nodded and kept her body moving to the beat.

Spike had to laugh. She was so addled his usually bone-melting charm was
completely ineffectual.

"Phew!" Willow sighed, fanning her face. "It's hot in here."

"Want to go outside?" Spike asked.

"Uh-huh," she nodded. He led her through the crowd, Willow grabbed another
margarita on their way out.

Willow walked past the patio and towards the beach, still sipping her drink.

"Are we done with the party, love?" he asked as she splashed her feet in the
sea-spray.

"Uh-huh, Enrique is a big stupid dope," she nodded. "Can't even pronounce my
name right 'Weeellow. Weeellow.' The only reason I even paid any attention
to him was because I wanted..."

"You wanted...."

"I wanted you to come with me," she shrugged.

"Oh," he nodded. Damn, he was THIS close. He took her drink and sipped from
it. The glass was empty.

"Hey!" he cried.

She giggled. "Sorry."

"No fair, pet!"

"Do you want a drink?" she asked, leaning against him. The warm water lapped
against her legs, tugging at her skirt.

"Very much," he grinned. He cupped her elbows in his palms, pulling her
against him. She curled her fingers around the nape of his neck and pulled
him down to her mouth.

He moaned as her tongue snaked between his lips, filling his mouth with the
taste of triple sec and the subtle tang of her.

His hands traced the lines of her back, curving around her waist and
pressing her against his aching erection.

"Let's go home, Spike," she whispered huskily.

"Home?" he asked, bewildered. She wanted to leave him already?

"Home to the cottage, silly," she giggled. "Take me home."
 

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