Buffy stared at herself in the mirror and sighed. It wasn’t that Willow hadn’t done a fine job in helping her get ready for tonight’s big valentines ball at the O’Connor mansion, it was just that she really didn’t want to go after the week she’d had.

At the age of eighteen you would have expected her to be enjoying her last final moments of high school at a party specifically engineered to be a run up to the senior prom, but given the choice she would have preferred to stay at home and listen to the boy next door revving his motorcycle.

Which he was doing right that second.

Her fists clenched as she heard the ever-increasing loudness of the engine roaring as he purposefully revved it just below her window.

Since he moved in last summer, he’d become the number one most annoying boy on the planet and she knew he did everything with intent.

He was trying to piss her off.

She swore on her life.

“Come on, Buffy. Why the long face?” Willow asked her friend as she walked back into the room and found her staring out of the window at the driveway below.

“Huh?” Buffy looked like she hadn’t heard anything the red head had said to her and moved back to the mirror, pulling her eyes away from the world outside her window as the boy next door drove out of his driveway. “I’m fine, really…just this weeks been hell and I wish we didn’t have to go to this dance…do we have to go?”

“Yes.” Willow replied with force and Buffy pouted slightly as she looked herself over in the mirror again. “I didn’t spend two hours getting us ready for you to pull out at the last second because you’re nervous.”

“I’m not nervous.” Buffy frowned at her reflection and poked a piece of hair back into place. “Really…I’m not…last week this dance would have been the best thing on earth, now I’m starting to think I’d rather be studying.”

“You don’t mean that.” Willow smiled as she helped Buffy pin her hair in place. They had spent almost an hour curling her smooth blonde hair into intricate curls and pinning it up so it was a mass of tumbling locks on the back of her head. She felt envious that her friends hair was long enough to tie it back in such a pretty fashion, her own red hair was barely shoulder length and she’d settled for trying to pin it back in some fashion.

Only it didn’t want to be pinned back.

Every time she moved, another piece sprang loose and irked her.

Buffy looked down at the beautiful deep red dress she had chosen from the shop. She’d felt astounded that her mother hadn’t argued with her over the high price tag, she had simply told her that she looked very beautiful in it.

Buffy smiled.

The satin material of the dress shimmered as she moved slightly, the bodice accentuating her curves and the long skirt trailing around her ankles. She’d bought long, blood red satin gloves to match her dress and had small fabric roses in her hair.

Applying her lip-gloss for the twentieth time in ten minutes, she repeatedly told herself that she was going to have a good time tonight no matter what.

So what if the party was being hosted at the O’Connor mansion.

So what if she had just broken the heart of their only son.

She had every right to go to the party along with everyone else.

Buffy whined.

This night was not going to go well.

“Buffy?”

She turned to see her mother standing by the door.

“My…you two look stunning…all grown up at last.” Joyce stepped into the room and gave them both wide, loving smiles as she looked at them.

“Thanks, mom.” Buffy hugged her gently. “We won’t be late…you’re sure that you’re okay about picking us up when we call?”

“I have ice cream and movies to keep me company…when you’re ready, just let me know and I’ll come and get you both.” Joyce turned her smile on Willow and missed Buffy’s look of longing as she thought about how nice it would be to just curl up with ice cream and movies.

The clock in the hall chimed eight and Buffy felt her nerves push their way up into her throat until she could feel her heart beating there.

“Time to go.” Willow caught hold of her arm and led her from the room.

Buffy heaved a sigh as she stared up at the mansion in front of her, it was too late now to back out of the whole thing and before she knew it she was walking into the brightly lit hall with Willow firmly holding her arm.

The entrance room was highly decorated with red roses and gold hearts adorning the staircases and pedestals. Lush red velvet ropes had been placed across the restricted areas and her eyes darted about to take in the areas that were accessible to the students. Looking up as she entered the main room of the house, she saw the candelabras that had always been empty in her past visits to the house, brimming with candles whose flames flickered and danced in time with the quiet background music.

She brought her eyes back down to earth and let them roam over the milling mass of students in front of her as she descended the small flight of steps with her friend.

“This is so cool.” Willow grinned enthusiastically as she waved at their friends where they were gathered by one of the tall windows that flanked the long room and started leading Buffy towards them.

Buffy’s heart hammered nervously against her chest as she desperately tried to ignore the whispers that had filled the room as soon as she had entered it. She could sense that all eyes were on her and it made her stomach twist upon itself as she pulled a face that clearly expressed her discomfort.

“You okay?” Willow whispered out the corner of her mouth as she felt her friend’s hand shaking in hers.

“I can’t do this.” Buffy hissed back at her and as she was about to turn around to leave her eyes fell on Angel.

She tried to hide the pang of hurt she felt on seeing him so happy as he laughed with his friends. It had only been a few days since she’d broken up with him and he’d been devastated at the time--now he was acting as though nothing had happened as he chatted animatedly to the girls surrounding him.

Buffy frowned as her friend, Cordelia, sidled up close to Angel and ran her hand over his shoulder. As Angel turned to face Cordelia, he smiled wide and placed his hand over hers.

Willow dragged Buffy into the crowd and Angel was lost from view as they tried to weave their way through the fellow students towards their friends.

“You can do this, Buffy…you dumped him, remember? He’s kinda entitled to rebound.” Willow reminded her as they finally broke free of the crowd.

“Come on, Buffster, you did the right thing, that guy was always going to be cheating on you with someone…” Xander punched her playfully on the arm and she forced a smile to placate him.

“And I mean…with Harmony of all people?” Willow continued Xander’s conversation as Buffy looked around the room.

“I suppose…” Buffy said half-heartedly as the band began to warm up and her eyes continued to roam around the room.

She wasn’t sure what she was looking for until she found it.

There, standing in the corner in his own little world was the guy from next door.

She couldn’t believe he had actually come to the party when he hated the whole school.

Only he didn’t look like she remembered him. Suddenly he seemed so different, so much more human.

As the people that were partially blocking her view of him moved, the band began to play and she found her eyes widening on seeing him fully for the first time that night.

He was dressed all in black like she had been expecting, but there was no sign of his trademark t-shirt and jeans. Buffy didn’t know what she’d thought he was going to be wearing but seeing him in a black suit, with a black shirt and tie took her breath away. He looked amazing, his platinum locks no longer preened back, but tousled and his eyes seemed even bluer than she remembered.

She watched him run his long fingers through his hair and found her fingers rubbing against each other as she wondered what it felt like to do that.

As he raised his head and looked in her direction, she stared at him with wide eyes like a rabbit caught in headlights. She couldn’t look away no matter how much she tried to convince herself to do so, she was captured by his almost tender expression as he cocked his head to one side and smiled slightly.

“Buffy?” Xander said near her shoulder and she swung her head around to face him as the spell was broken.

“Huh?” Buffy raised her brows and let her mouth hang open as she looked at her friend.

“You want a drink?” He asked her again and frowned in the direction she’d been looking as he tried to see what had her so enthralled.

“Sure.” Buffy beamed at him and then, turning her head back, she found that Spike was gone.

She sighed as a sinking feeling welled up inside her.

Willow put her arm around her and leant her cheek against her shoulder. “It’s not that bad…he was going to dance with her at some point.”

Buffy realised she was missing something and looked over at the dance floor.

There, surrounded by other couples, was her ex-boyfriend and her ex-best friend dancing together. They were so close as they moved to the slow music that she couldn’t tell where Angel ended and Cordelia began.

“Let her have him.” Buffy muttered and then found her eyes absently roving again as she tried to figure out where Spike had disappeared to.

“Looking for someone?” Anya asked as she appeared behind them and Buffy jumped.

“Christ, Anya…” Buffy pressed her hand to her chest as she turned to face the slim blonde. “Wow…you look good…has Xander seen you?”

“No…you think he’ll like?” Anya twirled and showed off her very little black dress.

“He’ll like, he’ll like.” Buffy and Willow nodded in agreement and then Buffy found her eyes arrested by Spike as he walked past them.

He was so close that she could smell his aftershave as he passed and it set something off in her.

Something she’d never thought she’d have when it came to him.

Want.

Desire.

And the courage to seize the moment.

“Was that?” Anya looked shocked as she let her eyes trail after him.

“Spike…” Buffy said as she watched him disappearing into the crowd again.

“I can’t wait any longer, I’m going to go see Xander.” Anya grinned as she bounced slightly on her heels.

“He went to get drinks.” Willow pointed in the direction of the makeshift bar and watched her walk away before turning her attention back to her best friend. “You sure you’re okay?”

She noticed Buffy was staring at the far end of the room and tiptoed so she could see what had her so fixated.

All she could see was Spike, leaning against the back wall and playing with his Zippo.

Her eyes widened as she realised that was who Buffy was looking at.

“I’m going to ask him to dance.” Buffy said with determination and the little red head almost squeaked.

“No…no…you are not asking him to dance…Buffy, prom queens don’t dance with the school bad boy…” Willow kept hold of her friends arm as she tried to move away.

“Since when did you care about prom queen?” Buffy looked confused.

“I don’t…just…I don’t want to see you hurt…that’s Spike Thornton, he’s not going to dance with you…he hates you remember? It’s the age old tradition, school bad boy hates head cheerleader…”

“He’s my next door neighbour, is there a law that says next door neighbours can’t dance together?” She realised that she sounded too desperate to find a reason that they would be allowed to dance and decided that it shouldn’t matter who he was or who she was--if she wanted to dance with him, she was perfectly entitled to.

The rest of the world be damned.

She’d already had a horrible week, how much worse could it get in the space of a few hours?

“Besides…I’m sure he’s here with Drusilla.”

Buffy shot her a dark look and then quickly masked it with a smile.

“He isn’t here with Dru…I heard he dumped her three weeks ago and that’s why she hasn’t been in school. She’s been seeing Devon ever since Spike kicked her sorry ass to the curb.” Buffy grinned mischievously as Willow looked stunned that she’d not heard it earlier. “So you see…as one single person to another, I feel I’m perfectly entitled to ask him to dance.”

“But Buffy…” Willow said in a hushed tone and trailed off as Buffy looked over her head.

“Look! There’s Oz.” Buffy pointed towards the entrance to the dance hall.

Willow spun on her heel and tiptoed as she tried to see over the people crowding around her. “Buffy…I can’t see Oz…are you sure…”

She turned to see her friend disappearing into the crowd in the direction of Spike.

“Oh…” Willow cringed as she saw Buffy approaching him. “I can’t watch.”

Spike flicked his Zippo open again and stared at the flame. As he looked down at his lighter a pair of feet came into view and he cocked his head to one side before raising his eyes. Stood in front of him was a vision in blood red, her slim figure encased in a tight bodice that gave her a modest cleavage. His eyes strayed there for a moment before he found the courage to look into her eyes.

“Um…hi.” Buffy held her hand up in an awkward greeting.

Spike looked around and realised that he was the only person within five metres of her, meaning he was the only one she could possibly be speaking to.

He had planned to say ‘hello, cutie’, it had been on the tip of his tongue as he stared at her, but then the pain in his fingers finally registered and he grimaced.

“Shit.” Spike growled as he dropped the burning hot lighter to the floor.

Buffy bent down quickly to retrieve it for him, feeling partially responsible for him injuring himself.

“Sorry…” She mumbled as she straightened up and held it out to him.

Spike took it quickly and slipped it back into his pocket before letting his eyes come back to rest on hers.

She looked amazing.

Her eyes surrounded by dark make-up that made the green in them stand out and her lips painted with a shiny red gloss that drew him to them.

“Pep squad’s over there, pet.” Spike cursed himself as he said the words in a bitter tone and saw her smile fade.

“Oh…” Buffy suddenly wished that the earth would swallow her whole as she stood in front of him, her hands toying with each other as she searched for something to say. She grumbled. “I should’ve listened to Willow.”

“What’s that?” Spike frowned as he tried to make out what she’d muttered but she just blinked at him.

“Nothing…”

“So…are you here to bitch at me about my bike or my music, which one is offending those…” He found his hand reaching out of its own accord and a lone finger swept around the curve of her ear. “…Sublime delicate little ears of yours today?”

Buffy felt lost for a moment as she tried to memorise the warm feeling his touch had caused. As it faded away, she realised that her idea of asking him to dance was a stupid one and that Willow had almost been right.

Only it wasn’t that head cheerleaders didn’t dance with the school bad boy.

It was that he wouldn’t dance with them.

Good girls always wanted bad boys.

Bad boys didn’t want them.

“I just…you know what…forget it…it’s nothing.” Buffy spat at him and went to move away but his hand caught hold of her wrist and held her firm.

“Ah ah ah…” Spike chastised her as she tried to break free of him. He struggled for control over his mouth and was pleasantly surprised when he finally won and bit back his harsh, defensive comments. “You made the effort to come over here, love, piqued my interest, like…I think that you’re obliged to tell me now.”

“Fine.” Buffy snatched her arm from his grasp and rubbed her wrist as she stared at him defiantly. “I just…I saw you standing here and I…I wanted to know…if you wanted to dance…it’s stupid…forget it.”

Spike stared slack jawed as she stormed out of the nearby doors that led onto the garden. For a few moments, he didn’t know what to do. He’d imagined every possible reason for her coming over to see him in front of the whole school year and her wanting to dance with him hadn’t come up.

If it had then he probably would’ve acted more civilly towards her.

Buffy heaved a long sigh as she stared up at the stars and listened to the gravel scrunching under her feet. In the distance, she could hear the party continuing without her and she wondered what her friends were up to. There was no way she could head back in yet, she needed time to blow off steam and to regain control over her seemingly fragile emotions.

Raising a hand up, she pressed the pad of her gloved finger to just below her eye and frowned as she saw the tear drop soaking into it when she pulled it away.

She didn’t know how he’d managed to upset her so much, it wasn’t like he’d flatly refused to dance with her or taunted her as badly as he usually did. She just felt so fragile tonight and for some reason she’d expected him to see it in her eyes and be gentle with her.

She hadn’t been this upset when she’d dumped Angel.

“Buffy?” A quiet, accented voice drifted to her ears and she turned slightly so she could look at him.

She couldn’t miss the concern in his expression as he stepped towards her, he looked sorry beyond words and she felt the tears pushing for freedom as she stared at him.

“Why?” Spike asked her and tried to ignore the way his whole body trembled on seeing her bathed so beautifully in the moonlight.

“Because I want to.” Buffy replied softly.

“I thought you hated me?” Spike queried and she frowned.

“Right now, I’m starting to think I do.”

“You don’t mean that…do you?” He narrowed his eyes gently on her.

She shook her head.

“Dance with me and your reputation will be shot. No more head cheerleader.” He took another step towards her and felt the gravel crunch under his feet.

“Maybe I don’t want guys staring at my ass when I dance.”

“No more great lunk head as your boy.” He ventured another step towards her and almost smiled as she spoke her words defiantly.

“Maybe I already dumped his pathetic backside.”

He arched a brow and looked back at the house before taking another step towards her.

“Maybe I thought you were better than all that.” Buffy turned away from him and stifled her desire to cry as she waited for him to laugh at her like he’d done so many times before.

“Buffy?” Spike whispered in a hushed, intimate tone.

“Can’t you just go? I think I need to be alone…” She tried to catch the tears with her gloves as they threatened to tumble down on her cheeks.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” Spike took another step towards her so he was stood just a foot from her. He could smell her sweet perfume in the air and imagined reaching out and wrapping his arms around her in an attempt to comfort her. “Mum told me I had to act the gentleman tonight.”

“Good luck with that.” Buffy muttered as she sniffed back her tears. She wished she could gain control over her feelings, but the closer he got to her the more she wanted to be in his arms, and the more she was scared he was going to leave.

“Buffy Summers…” Spike started and she turned her head slightly to look over her shoulder at him. “…Would you dance with me?”

Buffy swallowed noisily as she hesitantly considered his offer. He had come after her when she’d run away and now he wanted to dance with her, suddenly she felt as though she was in a movie. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry over how ridiculous this night was.

Turning slowly, she came face to face with him and tentatively held her hand out before pulling it back slightly.

“What’s your real name?” She raised her brows inquiringly at him and he smiled wide.

“Promise you won’t tell anyone?” He watched her motion a cross over her heart and felt his own accelerate as his eyes fell on her cleavage again. He raised his eyes to meet hers and closed the gap between them, taking hold of her hand and wrapping his arm around her waist. “It’s William.”

“William.” Buffy mused as she looked up into his eyes and then let her gaze roam over his face. He looked divine in the moonlight and as he began to dance with her to the waltz playing in the house, she let herself get lost in his eyes.

They seemed darker in the dim light, full of allure and all she could do was let him move her around in circles as his body moved closer to hers. She felt like a puppet, being controlled by him, unable or unwilling to make her own moves, so she let him guide her as their eyes remained locked.

Spike smiled as she twirled and then came back to him, he’d never seen anything so graceful as she was when she danced and he couldn’t tear his eyes away from hers. He felt like she was speaking words straight into his head with each slight change in expression and as she smiled he felt his heart flutter against his ribcage.

Buffy almost tripped over her feet as she caught sight of half the football squad watching them from the house.

Catching hold of her, Spike held her steady as she stared over his shoulder. He glanced towards the house and clenched his jaw as he saw Angel walking towards them, flanked by his teammates, Riley and Graham.

“Great.” Spike almost growled as he eased Buffy up onto her feet and then flashed her a reassuring smile as she looked nervous. “No worries, love, I know the drill.”

Buffy looked confused.

“What drill?” She saw him point towards Angel and she frowned in his direction.

“Girl decides to dance with outcast, head jock reclaims girl, little moment of straying over and outcast goes back to where he belongs…” Spike watched Angel descending the steps towards them.

Buffy felt panicked as she saw him approaching and Spike’s words of self-deprecation weren’t helping her retain emotional balance.

“Spike…William…I really did dump him…I really did want to dance with you…how about head cheerleader discovers crush on outcast and decides to act on it--no matter what the repercussions.”

“What?” Spike glanced at her with an incredulous look. “You seriously dumped him…no second thoughts…because I’m buggered if he’s interrupting my dance if you’re not attached.”

Buffy giggled at how formal he sounded and shook her head in a resounding ‘no’. “I’m no way taking him back.”

“Spike!” Angel charged towards him, rolling his sleeves up and showing his intent to fight if necessary.

Spike didn’t give him the chance.

The second he was within striking distance, he punched him hard across the jaw with a left hook.

Buffy watched in amazement as Angel fell to the floor and was quickly surrounded by Graham and Riley as they tried to help him up.

Moving to stand over her ex, she gave him a thin-lipped angry look and searched for words to express how annoyed at him she was.

When she couldn’t find any she just kicked him as hard as she could and turned sharply to face Spike.

“Take me home.” Buffy pleaded him and didn’t wait for his answer before she started back towards the house.

Spike took his jacket off as he caught up with her by the car park and grabbed hold of her wrist to stop her from walking. As she turned to face him, he could see the tears shimmering in her eyes and he sighed as he wrapped the jacket around her shoulders.

“Don’t want you getting cold now…” Spike smoothed the lapels of his jacket and drew it closer around her. Raising his hand up he wiped the tears from her cheeks with his thumb. “He’s not worth tears, love…”

Buffy sniffled and nodded slightly as she closed her eyes.

“Come on…let’s get out of here.” Spike caught hold of her hand and gave it a tight squeeze.

She stared down at their joined hands as he walked them towards his motorbike. Inside, she felt oddly warm from seeing his large hand engulfing hers and she still couldn’t quite believed that he had punched Angel in order to defend her.

Her whole body blushed over that thought.

No wonder girls like bad boys.

Hitching her dress up as they reached his bike, she noticed Spike’s eyes took to roaming up the length of her legs and she couldn’t miss the sharp intake of breath as she pulled the dress up just a little further than was necessary for her to get onto the back of his bike.

Spike tugged his eyes away from her thighs and got onto his bike. Taking hold of her hand, he held her steady as she climbed on behind him and gave her a moment to put his jacket on properly before revving the engine into life.

“Hold on, baby.” Spike grinned at her and then felt his ability to breathe disappear as her hands locked firmly around her waist. “Ready?”

“Ready.” Buffy closed her eyes and held onto him tightly as her cheek came to rest against his back.

“Don’t let go.” Spike ordered her and then wheel span as they pulled away down the long drive of the mansion.

Buffy kept her eyes closed firmly as she held onto Spike. She could feel his stomach brushing against her hands as he breathed steadily and could hear his heartbeat in her ear as she continued to press her cheek into his back. When they had been driving for a few minutes, she realised that he wasn’t taking her home and looked up.

In the distance, she could see the ocean, the white light of the moon danced across each pale crest of the waves as they crashed onto the shore.

Snuggling closer to Spike, she smiled to herself as she felt one of his hands wrap around hers and his thumb stroked her gently.

Buffy looked up again as she felt a sharp bump and her eyes widened as she saw sand surrounding them.

“Are you insane?” She shouted above the noise of the engine but only received a pat on the hand as a reply.

As the motorbike came to a halt at the edge of the soft sand and Spike switched the engine off, Buffy slid down from the back of the bike.

Spike grinned at her as he swung his leg around and dismounted. He raised his brows and pursed his lips as he looked up at the sky above them and Buffy followed his gaze.

She’d never seen anything so breathtaking in all her life.

Above them were more stars than she’d ever seen, even the brightness of the full moon was unable to drown them out and she felt shivers running up her spine as she watched them twinkling at her.

“It’s beautiful.” Buffy breathed as she felt Spike walking around her.

As he came to a halt in front of her, she dropped her eyes to rest on him and bit her lip as she saw his outstretched hand.

“I believe we were dancing, love.”

Buffy nodded dumbly and slipped her hand into his. As he moved to lead her down onto the harder sand, she stopped abruptly.

“Wait…” She slipped her heeled shoes off and gasped slightly as her feet were exposed to the cold sand.

Removing his jacket, she placed it over the seat of his bike before turning back to face him with a smile on her lips.

Spike returned the smile and walked with her a few feet before stopping and tugging her into his arms.

Buffy’s heart skipped a beat as she found her body pressed up against his and her was again lost in his blue eyes.

“Dance with me.” Spike purred as he moved his body so close to hers there wasn’t room for air between them.

“There’s no music.” Buffy replied and cursed herself for stating the obvious. As his smile widened she remembered what she’d told herself earlier that night and decided she was ready to seize any moment life threw at her tonight. Music or no music, she was going to dance.

“We don’t need music…though if you want, I’ll sing to you.”

She giggled quietly before realising he was being serious.

“Really?” Buffy looked incredulous as she blinked into his eyes. “You’d really do that…for me?”

Spike nodded and began moving in slow circles with her on the sand as he held her firmly against him.

“Or…I could just tell you how beautiful you are…” He whispered and swore he saw her blush.

Feeling encouraged, Spike let his thumb brush gently against hers as they slowly danced, moving around in a gentle pattern as she stared into his eyes.

“…You are you know…more beautiful than the heavens above us right now, more tempestuous than the ocean behind us and more serene than the full moon.” Spike swallowed as she smiled awkwardly and lowered her eyes to the floor. Letting go of her waist, he placed his fingers under her chin and raised her eyes back up to his. “Look at me, love.”

Buffy found his expression was soft as she looked into his eyes and she wondered just when she’d fallen for him. Since last summer when he had moved in next door, she’d been convinced that he was below her notice.

Had she tried to convince herself so vehemently purely because she felt the connection between them back then as keenly as she felt it now?

“Since I first saw you…you’ve captivated me…I’ve watched you so often…know every one of your nuances, from the way your nose wrinkles when you’re confused to that delightfully childish pout you use to get out of almost anything…” Spike listened to a wave crash onto the shore as he looked deep into her eyes and saw from them that she was smiling at him.

“You know…you’re not half as bad as you pretend to be.” Buffy said casually as she twirled around and then came back to him.

“You’re not half as prissy as you pretend to be…” Spike trailed off as she bumped into him and he stopped dead.

Buffy felt her breathing hitch in her throat as his gaze moved to rest on her lips and she subconsciously wetted them.

He watched her small tongue trail over her lips and let his own part as he cocked his head to one side.

“What are you waiting for?” Buffy whispered as her knees began to feel weak from anticipation.

Spike wrapped his arms around her waist and sighed out through his nose as he lowered his head towards hers.

Buffy stopped breathing as his lips brushed against hers, barely grazing her skin as he tentatively kissed her. She closed her eyes and hooked her arms around his neck as she moved her mouth against his and kissed him slowly, languidly as they remained still on the shore.

Her whole body warmed through and she let her tongue run gently along his lower lip before it touched his and a sweep of tingles ran through her. Lips buzzing for more, she brought her tongue out again to meet his and when he moaned quietly on contact, she ached in response.

He knit his brows tight and kept his eyes firmly shut as her small tongue ran over his teeth, teasing along the length of his tongue before he tackled it. Buffy melted in his embrace as she allowed his tongue to play against hers in her mouth.

As another wave crashed loudly against the shore, Spike broke the kiss and breathed heavily as he watched Buffy doing the same. He smiled shyly at her and she grinned.

A breeze blew in off the ocean and Buffy felt goosebumps sweep across her body as it passed over her. She rubbed her hands against her arms and gave Spike an appreciative smile as he took hold of his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders again.

“What do we do now?” Buffy felt foolish for asking him but she wanted to know what he had in mind for the rest of the night and silently she hoped he wasn’t planning to take her home anytime soon.

Spike pressed kisses along her jaw and down her neck as he pulled her towards the bike and slowly turned her around so her back was against him as she leaned into his embrace. “Now we watch the moon setting and the sun rising…and then maybe we’ll go home.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Buffy smiled and leaned her cheek against his as he held her tightly.

Watching the ocean, she snuggled up closer to Spike and smiled over the possessive way he held onto her while kissing her neck, as though now he had her he was never going to let her go.

She craned her neck as she looked over her shoulder at him and cupped his cheek.

“Happy valentines, Spike.” She whispered.

“Happy valentines, baby.” Spike smiled and dipped his head to capture her lips in a kiss that never ended.

The End