Rating: NC-17…at some point

Setting: Season 4 implied, some slight alterations…does that make this AU? Hell, I don’t know but I’m sure we can all suspend our utter disbelief for now…

Summary: The third and final installment in what I like to call ‘The Texas Trilogy’…As Buffy and Spike continue to grow closer, the Initiative continue to look for the one Hostile who escaped their slimy clutches. *don’t ya just love my summaries, ;D*

Disclaimer: I had been at the ‘hospital’ for about 3 whole weeks before I ever heard anything from my fiancé, Joss. Even though I must’ve called him 30 times on the hour every hour, and left like a gazillion messages on his voice mail. He must be so busy writing new stories and situations for his characters on BTVS, *he owns them all you know*. Anyway, this is the sweet message my Jossie-bear left behind for me. "Desire, you fucking psycho, we’re not, I repeat, NOT engaged! If you don’t STOP calling me, I’m getting a restraining order! Don’t even THINK about showing up on my doorstep, I’ll have you shot on sight!" God, did you guys hear that?! The words, ‘stop’ and ‘think’, that means he can’t stop thinking about me!! *SIGH* We’re gonna be so happy….

Author’s Note: You can never say that I’m not dedicated! Here is the start to the third-installment of the Texas Trilogy…*see, I gave this group of stories a cool name and everything!* I hope you guy’s like. ;D I don’t actually have a title for this last part of the story…so any suggestions on one from you guys would be greatly appreciated!

**********

He knew.

She really didn’t know how he possibly could know, maybe the enormous guilt she was feeling was written all over her face, maybe she reeked of sex, or had the look of sex. She wasn’t sure, but the way Riley was looking at her right now, in this moment, caused a huge pit to grow in her stomach. The pit felt like it was twisting itself into a mess of tanglely knots, guilty tanglely knots.

Riley sighed, the sound of someone who was emotionally drained, someone who was on the breaking point. His soulful eyes locked with hers, pain and anguish mixed in with them.

"Where were you?" He asked, his voice slightly quivering. Where was she? In her bathroom, cheating on him with the evil, soulless demon for the second time. Guess he didn’t know after all.

"I was out." Lame, she knew, but it was the only thing she could think to say. He gave her another one of those sighs, god, she hated those, they made her feel like a child again, being reprimanded by her father.

"We had plans, Buffy…" Riley shook, trying so hard to suppress his anger at her.

"I’m sorry, I forgot, I didn’t mean…" Buffy muttered, her eyes slowly drifting towards her shoes. She couldn’t look him in the eyes any longer, if she did, he was bound to know what she had really been up to…

"I’d been calling you all evening, I was worried about you for Christ sakes!"

"Worried? Riley, I can take care of myself, you don’t have to worry…"

"Oh please, Buffy, you’re just a girl." He said flippantly, earning a cold, hardened stare from his girlfriend.

"Excuse me?" Buffy’s hands curled into fists, unconsciously at her side, she really wanted to hit him, and it was taking the strength of a thousand slayers to keep her from doing just that.

"Look, there’s a lot of dangerous things out there and I just worry, okay. I don’t want anything to hurt my girl." He wrapped his arms around her, drawing her in close to him.

Buffy felt awkward in the embrace. They’re first fight, yeah, that was the reason for her awkwardness, no, it was more than that, she felt smothered by him. She broke his grasp on her, standing back a little.

"I’m really sorry about screwing things up, I’ll make it up to you, okay?" She smiled patronizingly, and Riley nodded, leaning in for a kiss.

She could feel the sweat beads breaking out on her forehead as his lips came closer and closer to hers, and a new feeling, unmistakably like the vomit-ie taste she got after three swigs of Jack Daniels. Panicking, Buffy quickly gave him a peck on the cheek

Riley pulled away looking more than confused, but shrugged it off. "So, you got any plans for the rest of the night?"

"Unfortunately." She nodded. "They involve many hours burying my nose in my Art History book. The make-up work is just piling up, and I should really get started, there’s only so many excuses I can make." She smiled sheepishly.

"I understand. I’ll see you tomorrow?"

"Most definitely." Buffy forced a smile, god, she seemed to have to do that a lot tonight…

He gave her one last loving smile, before walking out of her room.

Buffy sighed loudly, a cool wave of relief washing over her. She grabbed a duffel bag from her closet and began stuffing clothes inside of it, she’ll worry about the wrinkles later. She hated to lie to Riley again and she knew she would have to field major questions when he found out, but she had to stay at her mom’s to keep an eye on Spike. No other purpose but keeping her mom safe, what happened in that bathroom today, will never happen again. She was totally and completely in…’like’ with Riley and wouldn’t do this to him. Nope, never, uh-uh, not again!

Slayer’s honor.

************

Buffy cried out as her back hit hard against her bedroom door. Spike’s lips were on hers once more, quelling any pain she felt. His tongue plundered her mouth in a fevered desperation, his hands doing exploring of their own, under her shirt, sweeping across her stomach, brushing upwards to her breast.

She had to stop this! This was wrong, very, very wrong…

"Oh!" She moaned against his mouth as his nimble fingers tugged at one of her hardened peaks. No! She shouldn’t do that, she shouldn’t be moaning! She should stop. She has Riley, a normal boyfriend who couldn’t be more in love with her, he’s everything she always wanted…

As if they had minds of their own, Buffy’s legs wrapped around Spike’s waist, her pelvis now thrusting against his, seeking friction. Spike tightened his hold on her, carrying them both to her bed.

Dammit! This is the last time she would let Spike talk her into unchaining him.

**********

Xander sighed loudly, placing his hands behind his head. He concentrated on the ceiling, trying to block out his persistent nagging thoughts.

Anya laid her head on his chest, lazily tracing her fingers on his stomach. "What are you thinking about?" She sighed happily.

"Riley."

Anya bolted upright, throwing a worried glance at her boyfriend, the boyfriend who had just spent the last hour giving her multiple orgasms. "Is there something you want to tell me, Xander?!"

"What? No, Anya!" He said, shaking his head, and shuddering a little at her assumption. "I meant, I’m worried about he and Buffy. Riley told me that they really haven’t been spending as much time together lately. I mean, I know Buff is busy keeping an eye on Spike but…

"Well, maybe she’s tired of him." Anya said in her usual blunt, straightforward way, earning a disapproving grunt from Xander.

"What? Riley’s a nice guy but let’s face it, he’s boring. Plus, he has no neck, which I find very disturbing."

"Okay, I’ll admit Riley’s not Joe-excitement…" Xander sighed, lazily running his fingers through her hair. "But he’s the type of guy Buffy needs. Someone nice and stable, and normal. Someone who won’t flip out and kill all her friends. I just don’t want to see her screw up a good thing."

TBC…

*********

Willow looked thoughtfully at her friend. Buffy didn’t seem to be here, oh she was here in the physical sense, sipping on her Mocha, smiling at the appropriate intervals, but mentally Buffy was other where.

"So…" Willow smiled, not her usual sweet smile, but the naughty Willow smile. "Giles and I are madly in-love, and we’re moving to England, and did I mention that I’m having his British love-child?"

"Uh-huh?" Buffy mumbled absently, slurping up the last of her Mocha. "Huh?!" She nearly shouted, her eyes growing wide as parts of what Will had actually said began to sink in. Did Will just say she was having Giles’ love child?!

Willow laughed, shaking her head. She could actually do the clever dumb joke thing when her friend was out of it. "I thought that might get your attention. So, how’s the weather where you are?"

"I’m sorry, Will." Buffy smiled sheepishly. "I guess I haven’t been the greatest of company…"

"Care to unload some of what’s on your mind? It is one of my duties as the best friend."

"I was…thinking…about secrets and stuff."

"Secrets?"

"Yeah." Buffy nodded. "You know, how sometimes secrets can be sexy…in a way…"

"Sexy? You do remember what happened because of my ‘sexy’ secret don’t you?"

"Well, yeah, but…" Buffy began, poking her straw down in her empty cup. "Still, even with all of that bad stuff, wasn’t it still…sexy?"

"Oh sure, when I saw Cordy lying impaled in a pile of rubble, I kept thinking ‘boy-howdy this sure is sexy’." Will said, rolling her eyes.

"Good point." Buffy sighed loudly.

"Buffy, you can tell me anything, you know that." Willow was giving her the concerned best friend face that she was so good at. Maybe she should tell her, it might actually help to unload all of the guilt and frustration she felt. Plus, Willow would understand, she wouldn’t freak out…she would do the best friend thing and be comforting, and that’s what Buffy needed right now. Comforty Willow…

"Something happened while I was in Texas…"

"Wha…" Willow began, but she didn’t need to go any further. Oh god, sexy secrets…that guilty face…sexy secrets…

"Buffy, you didn’t!" She shouted, she hadn’t meant to shout, she was just so surprised. It wasn’t like Buffy to cheat, she was the faithful type. Why did she have to shout like that?!

"I did…I mean…" Buffy stammered, but her friend cut her off before she could go any further.

"Oh, god Buffy! How-how could you, to Riley, I mean? Who was it? Some sexy, shifty-eyed cowboy with ripplie muscles, and butt-less chaps, and a ranch with horses and…

"Will!" She shouted, stifling the urge to pound her head against the table. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, what the hell happened to comforty Willow? "Could you slow down just a sec and let me explain?!"

Willow nodded solemnly, taking in a deep breath.

"I don’t really know or understand how it happened…we just, we were forced to spend a lot of time together, and it was only supposed to be a one time thing, a sort of in the moment fluke, and it was never going to happen again." Buffy rambled on in a crazed state, if she didn’t get this out now, she never would, and she needed to breathe, dear god, she had forgotten to breathe…

"But, he’s back in Sunnydale, and since he’s been here…it’s been happening again and again…and again." She buried her face in her hands, a wave of embarrassment sweeping over her. She should have never opened her mouth…

"Well…" Willow calmly nodded. This was okay, she could handle this, it’s not like Buffy’s all-alone in the cheater department. "Who is he?"

"Spike." Buffy said, the words muffled, echoing off of her hands.

Willow’s sudden laughter shook the Slayer out of her embarrassed shell.

"Oh, Buffy, you can’t be serious?!" The witch choked out in-between her frantic giggles. Her laughter slowly dying down when she noticed the all to familiar guilty look return to her friend’s face.

"Can you?"

**************

The door slammed loudly behind her, she was home, home sweet home. All Buffy wanted to do was crawl upstairs, avoid the houseguest chained in the bathtub as much as humanly possible and bury herself in her bed until mold started to grow on her. After finally calming Willow down, she was off to a pity dinner with Riley. She barely ate a thing, her stomach was so twisted in knots. She was ‘salad and water’ girl the entire night. Not only that, but for the first time, she and Riley were sorely lacking in the conversation department. Boy, he sure liked to talk about professor Walsh a lot…

Her stomach rumbled loudly, she was starving! The smell wafting out of the kitchen was beckoning her, sleep would have to wait…

Buffy heard her mom’s laughter fill the air as she walked into the kitchen. "Hey mom, what smells so great…" She stopped dead in her tracks as both Joyce and Spike turned to face her. Her mother, sat lazily at the bar, while Spike stood hovering over a pot on the stove, smirk firmly in place.

"Oh, hi Buffy. I didn’t hear you come in." Joyce smiled. "Are you hungry? Dinner’s almost ready."

Buffy purposefully walked across the kitchen, glaring at the blonde vampire as she did.

"Mom!" She hissed, whispering. "What the hell is he doing out of the chains?!"

"I can hear you, you know." Spike said smugly, turning his attention back on the pot of food. "Vampire, remember."

"Well…" Joyce began, frowning at her daughter’s look. "He said he needed to stretch his legs a bit."

Buffy groaned loudly, throwing her hands in the air. "Mom!"

"What? I felt sorry for him, all cooped up in that bathroom all day, alone. I didn’t think it would hurt, it’s just Spike." Joyce shrugged.

"Oh, right, it’s just Spike. Just an evil soulless killer, no big threat there." Buffy said, rolling her eyes.

"I would never do anything to hurt mum." Spike interjected, sweet as ever, earning a motherly look of adoration from Joyce.

"She’s not your ‘mum’! And, god, please don’t ever call her that again, it’s creepy!"

"Buffy, you could try being a little nicer to Spike. He did make dinner after all."

Buffy scoffed, walking towards him. "Spike made dinner? Gee, that’s the kind of irony that one doesn’t find in Alanis Morrisette songs."

Joyce shook her head, climbing out of her seat. She had to get out of here before her sweet, only child gave her another one of those ‘special’ headaches.

"I’m going to wash up, please, try not to kill each other while I’m gone."

"On my honor, mum" Spike said, mockingly holding his hand over his heart, earning a giggle from Joyce as she left the kitchen.

"Stop that!" Buffy shouted, swatting him in the arm.

"Ow! What the bloody hell was that for?!"

"She’s not your ‘mum’! She’s my mum…er…mom, plus you have no honor!" Buffy stared coldly at him, her arms instinctively crossing in front of her.

Spike smiled at her, the leering smile, closing in on some of the space between them. "What’s the matter, luv? Wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?" He smirked.

"You’re a pig."

"Mmm-hmm." He mumbled absently, reaching to turn off the stove. "Dinner’s ready, if you’re hungry."

"Like I’m going to eat anything you cooked…probably poisoned it." She huffed, looking down at her feet. "What did you make?"

He laughed, the real deep baritone laugh she loved, his eyes sparkled a bit when he did that…and Christ, she had to stop thinking about him like that!

"Spaghetti. Simple enough for the likes of you?"

"Ha, ha." She said, rolling her eyes. She watched as he dipped the wooden spoon into the pot, bringing up a spoonful of sauce with it.

"Here, have a taste." He said, extending the spoon towards her.

"I know what Ragu World Style tastes like, thank you very much." Buffy smiled.

"This is homemade, girl! None of that store bought crap, now come on, one taste won’t kill you."

Buffy’s eyes widened, giving him a look.

"I promise!" He roared, and she smiled a little, shrugging her shoulders. One taste couldn’t hurt, and she was starving…oh what the hell. She opened her mouth as he brought the spoon to her lips, lightly tasting the sauce.

"Mmm…oh my god, this is amazing!" Buffy said around the spoon, quickly eating the rest. Spike chuckled softly as he pulled the spoon away from her.

"When did you learn how to cook like this?!"

He shrugged his shoulders, dropping the spoon back into the pot. "Back in my human days. It was a bit of a hobby of mine." He smiled at her, laughing a little.

"What?" Buffy asked, suddenly feeling a bit self conscious.

"Pet, you’ve got a little…"He began, cleaning the tiny drop of sauce off of the corner of her mouth with his finger. He gingerly brought the finger to his lips, licking off the sauce. "Mmm…it is good." Spike said, smiling suggestively, his eyes focused on her lips as he leaned in for a kiss…

"Alright, I’m ready to eat!" Joyce smiled as she barged into the kitchen, effectively making both Spike and Buffy jump nearly ten feet.

TBC….

*********

Sleep, nappy-time, it all was a distant memory to her. All Buffy wanted to do now was kill things…maybe starting with her mother.

Joyce had scampered off to bed after two helpings of spaghetti, and when she wasn’t raving about what a wonderful cook he was, she was busy taking a stroll down painfully embarrassing memory lane, recalling every Buffy-childhood story she could remember. Any chance of Spike actually fearing her had gone straight out the window once he learned about the ‘accident’ she had in Kindergarten when she couldn’t unhook her brand-new jumper on time.

Yes, it had been a very long night, complete with a phone call from Xander insisting that she and Riley go bowling with he and Anya. She didn’t exactly feel like doing the double date thing, but Xand had been so demanding that they all go and have a bit of couple-ie fun, that she had to say yes.

As soon as she finished with these damn dishes, she was running upstairs, grabbing her stakes and heading out on patrol. God, she had never wanted to patrol so much in her life, even though it had been scaled back because of the sudden demon shortage, it would still feel good to hit a few cemeteries and kill something lurky. She felt sorry for anything less-than human that crossed her path tonight….

Buffy lifted the newly scrubbed dish out of the soapy water, and dropped it gingerly in the dishwasher. She could never understand the point of washing dishes before putting them in the dishwasher…what sadist thought that up? She sighed as she looked at her wet hands, maybe she should have worn gloves or something Donna Reed-ish like that, she had filmy dish-goo all over them, and great…a brand-new cramp in her shoulders to go with it.

With a loud groan, Buffy brought a soapy hand to her shoulder, trying to work out the tight bundle of nerves that had formed there. Her hand was tentatively brushed away, and replaced with two larger ones. The strong hands kneaded her shoulders, slowly easing away the tension. She sighed happily, quickly catching herself, marring her features with a scowl.

"Stop it." The words came out in a breathy, needy whisper, not exactly the strong, assertive tone she was looking for.

"Stop what, luv?" Spike asked, innocent as ever. He smiled; he could smell her growing arousal and had no intentions of stopping…

"I, I have a boyfriend…" Damn, she was going to have to stop with this breathy thing…

"Sing me a new one sometime." He chuckled softly, planting a chaste kiss on the back of her neck.

Buffy quivered under his touch, no, she shouldn’t do that! Riley, Riley was the only one she should be quivering under. She had to end this now! Any second…maybe in a minute…

"We can’t…we have to stop this."

"Again, stop what?"

"What we’re doing, what we’ve been doing…it’s wrong, you know it." Buffy said, her voice barely rising above a heady whisper.

"Mmm-hmm…" He mumbled, wrapping his arms around her waist, drawing her closer. "Not gonna keep me from you though…"

She smiled at that, involuntary reaction, and for a moment let herself get caught up in the feel of things. His strong arms around her, the light licks and nips he made at her earlobe…it was comfortable. When Riley did this, she felt smothered, they didn’t quite gel…but this…

"You’re supposed to hate me, remember, mortal enemy." She smiled.

"Oh, I do hate you, but…certain parts of you are not so bad." Spike laughed softly.

Exactly! She knew this was just a sex thing, probably just a substitute for Dru. Why the hell did that thought bother her so much…

"What parts?" Buffy asked, her voice wavering a bit. She knew she was nothing more than a good lay to Spike anyway, might as well drag it out in the open…still, it managed to sting a bit. Spike’s just Parker with blonde hair and a bigger dick.

"Hmm…the part of you that line-dances to bad country music. The part that can’t take one tiny drag off of a fag, the part that gets sick from a few swigs of Jack Daniels, the part that’s bloody awful at poker, the part that’s secretly a Passions fan, and the part that loves Monty Python."

Buffy could feel the huge lump coming back in her throat with a vengeance, oh god. She broke Spike’s hold on her, turning around to face him, his deep blue eyes shinning brightly, a smirk slightly etched on his face. She had to go, really she did. She had to patrol…

"I’ve got to go, you know, patrol." She nodded.

"Yeah."

Her nerves were already beginning to frazzle and she hadn’t even made it out of the door yet. She hated to do this to him, really she did, but she had no choice. After patrol, yeah, she’d take care of it then, it couldn’t wait…

Wonder if Riley will still be awake?

TBC…

********

It had taken her a little longer to actually walk out of the house than she would have liked. She wanted to be sure not to give Spike the satisfaction in watching her do the ‘funny’ walk out the door. Nope, definitely wasn’t going to let him know that she was worked up, of course it was hard with him standing there grinning at her the way he does, but she finally managed to calm down enough. And all it took was the good ol’ image of her mom and Giles on the hood of the police car.

In fact, that image sent any desire she had for sex, ever, flying out the window…well almost.

So she was here, in the Lowell house, 11:30 at night, with Riley’s lips on her neck. He trailed open mouth kisses down it, making her shudder, but not in the good way. Her brain was screaming at her to cooperate, this is right, this is what she should be doing, here with her boyfriend doing some heavy making out that would eventually lead to sex…

So why did this feel so horrible?

Riley’s kisses use to make her skin tingle, they use to make the entire world shut out. Her skin felt slimy, not a stitch of tingle and she could plainly hear a couple arguing outside in the hall. Kissing Riley may not be the bombastic turn on it was when they first started dating, but what was the alternative? Spike!

Buffy laughed bitterly, well inner Buffy laughed bitterly. At least Angel had a soul, had the ability to do good, to love. Spike did love Drusilla…

No! That doesn’t count, that was some sick and perverted twist on love, it wasn’t real.

Riley’s hand slipped under her shirt, and she moaned, as fake as something one heard on HBO…god, do you think he’d know if she were faking it?

Riley let out a loud grunt in response. Guess he wouldn’t know the diff, huh? Spike growls when she moans, low and visceral, completely sexy...

Dammit! She had to stop doing that, Spike wasn’t an option, or an afterthought. He was a mistake, a huge mistake! There’s nothing good or clean in him, he’s evil for god sakes, and she was going to tell him to leave as soon as her patrol was over. He could take his chains and go to Giles’ if he still felt those commandos were after him. Giles wouldn’t mind, it’s not like he had anything better to do, they could watch Passions together or something…

Yeah, like that was going to work on her…nothing more than a feeble attempt at trying to be romantic with her. Why the hell would he do that?!

"Riley?" She asked, trying to sound breathless…he’s gonna know she’s faking…

"Hmm…" He mumbled, his lips latching onto to her neck again.

"Do you…like Monty Python?"

"What?" He asked, sucking rather hard on her neck. Boy, she wished he wouldn’t do that, hickeys were way to hard to conceal, and it was way to hot for a turtleneck…

"Do you like Monty Python?" Buffy asked again.

"I don’t know, never met him."

Buffy rolled her eyes at that, she really hoped it was just a bad joke, but she knew it wasn’t…he was actually dead serious…

"What’s your favorite book?" She asked, and Riley stopped his assault on her skin and looked up at her, confusion written all over his face.

"My what?"

"Favorite book?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I don’t know, A River Runs Through it." Great, a book that put her to sleep…at least the Fountainhead made her laugh…

"Favorite poem?"

"Buffy, what is this?"

"Twenty sodding questions." She smiled, something about British curse words…they just didn’t carry the same weight with a dopey American accent.

"Okay…" Riley chuckled softly, looking at her as if she were insane. "Favorite poem…There once was a girl from Nantucket…" He laughed, kissing her.

That was it, she had to get out of here, she couldn’t do this…it wasn’t right.

"I’ve got to go." She said, pulling away from him. Buffy climbed off of the couch, where were her shoes…

"Go? Buffy you-you just got here.

"I know and I’m sorry…" Found one shoe, where the hell is the other one… "But it’s late…and I can’t…"

"You can’t what?" Riley asked, his voice quivering.

Score! Found the other one, Buffy quickly slipped her shoe on. "I have to go…"

"I’ll see you tomorrow, right? We’ve still got bowling with Xander and Anya…"

"Yeah, yeah. I’ll see you tomorrow." She forced a smile as she headed towards the door.

"I love you, Buffy." He said, his teeth clenching. Something’s wrong, he knew it.

Buffy’s smile got painfully wide, if she kept this up her face would crack and bleed. He was expecting her to say it back, dammit say something!

"Thank you." The words lamely fell from her lips as she bolted out the door.

Buffy leaned against the door, letting it support her as she panted loudly. ‘Thank you’?! That was the best she could do?! She couldn’t lie to him and say she loved him, but ‘thank you’! That was the worst thing she could have done.

This had to stop, she couldn’t take it any more! All of the guilt and frustration…Riley was to good of a guy to put up with a girlfriend who had to lie to him about her whereabouts, a girlfriend who cheated on him, a girlfriend who didn’t love him…

It wasn’t going to be easy but she had to do it…she had to end it with Riley.

TBC…

***********

"Are you sure you don’t mind doing this?"

"Yes, I don’t mind. You go and have your bowling fun, I’ll stay here and Spike-sit." Willow smiled, the comfort smile at her friend. She knew Buffy must be on the edge with everything going on, she really needed this, to get away from Spike and have some quality time with Riley…even if that quality time included Anya.

Buffy smiled back, relieved, but Will noticed a bit of tension behind that smile. The tension thickened at the sounds of chains banging against the bathtub and swear words covered in a colorful British accent.

"I don’t need a bloody babysitter! I’m not fucking five years old!"

Buffy sighed loudly, heading towards the door.

"Have a good time, make sure your shoes are clean." Willow called after her, smiling. She sighed a little as Buffy walked out of the door. Poor guilty Buffy, she had been sitting on edge all morning, she didn’t even give Riley a kiss after class today, just bolted for the door like there was no tomorrow. The red head shrugged, heading up the stairs towards the bathroom.

She hoped Buffy would be able to straighten out her problems with Riley. He was a nice guy, even though he was a little boring… and he kinda didn’t have a neck…but in a nice way.

************

Xander’s hands triumphantly shot up in the air as he did his dance of victory. "Strike! Oh yeah! Who’s da man, I’m da man, who’s da man, I’m da man!"

"Strike?" Anya asked, leaning over to Buffy. "Is that a good thing?"

Buffy shrugged, smiling. "Yeah, and apparently it makes you ‘da man’."

"Alright, An, you’re up!" Xander beamed, pulling his girlfriend up on her feet. Anya gave Buffy a helpless look as Xander lead over to the lane.

"It’s real simple, just do what I did." He smiled, placing a ball in Anya’s hands.

"Do what you did?"

"Exactly." Xander nodded. "Be the ball…remember that, say it with me…Be the ball…"

"Be the ball…" Anya repeated, Xander gave her a quick kiss before walking off and taking his seat. This was a pointless game! Back in her vengeance days, she use to zap men into alternate realities where they had to play this for all eternity…

Anya wriggled her toes inside of the tight, stinky rental shoes as she slid her fingers inside of the bowling ball. Be the ball…be the ball…Xander’s mantra repeated itself over and over again in her mind as she stepped up to the red line.

There must be an easier way to do this than Xander’s approach. He was rather skilled at it, hmm…maybe if she did it this way…

Anya crouched down low, the bowling ball between her legs, and after swinging it back and forth a couple of times she let it go. She watched proudly as the ball rolled slowly down the lane, veering off to the left before rolling right into the gutter.

She shouted with joy, straightening up, doing a repeat of Xander’s victory dance. "Who’s da man, I’m da man, who’s da man, I’m da man, who’s da man, I’m da man!"

Buffy and Xander looked on, both slightly shaking their heads.

"You should tell her…" Buffy smiled.

"I know…I just don’t have the heart. Let her have her moment." Xander sighed, putting his face in his hands.

*************

He didn’t like the way Red was looking at him, all jumpy and nervous. Usually smelling someone’s fear of him was great…and yeah okay, part of it still was, but, he felt a bit uncomfortable. She didn’t have to stand in the doorway like that, he wasn’t going to hurt her. For one, he was chained to the sodding bathtub…

"It’s okay to come in, Red, I won’t bite." Spike said, sending her a cheeky grin. Willow blushed slightly, giggling and allowed her feet to move her further into the bathroom.

"So…Spike, shove any bottles in peoples faces lately?" She asked, smiling. He chuckled a little, ah memories. He hadn’t had a decent spot of violence since he’d been back in Sunnydale, well…if you didn’t count killing that homeless guy…god, he missed the hunt.

"Can’t say I have." He smiled, nostalgia filling his eyes for a moment. "Come on now, don’t just stand there, pull up a toilet and have a seat."

Willow obligingly sat down on the toilet, facing him. An awkward silence fell between them. What the hell were they supposed to talk about? So, you read any good books lately…how’s the evil thing working for ya…heard your screwing my best friend, so how’s that turning out…

"So, you and Dru still together…" No, of course the couldn’t be! He’s screwing Buffy…stupid question, stupid, stupid…

"Nope. Dumped me for a Fungus demon." Spike said the words as if they meant nothing, weeks ago he was a pissing, crying mass of pathetic-ness and hurt, and now, not so much as a sting…

"Oh." Willow shrugged, nodding a bit. "I hate it when that happens."

*************

"What do you mean it’s not a strike!" Anya shouted angrily, she was really beginning to dislike Riley. He had interrupted her dance of victory, saying that it wasn’t a strike, but a gutter-ball or something and that she earned no points like Xander had. She glared at him, her tiny hands forming into fists…

"I mean it’s not a strike, Anya. It’s a gutter ball…"

"But I did everything Xander told me! I put my fingers in the finger holes, I chanted ‘be the ball…’, and I rolled it down the slippery wooden plank, and once it got to the end, I did my dance! I should get points just like Xander!"

"But Anya…" Riley said impatiently, what was with this girl?! He couldn’t understand why a guy like Xander would date such a freakshow. "Xander knocked down all of the pins, so he got a strike. You knocked down zero pins, your ball rolled into the gutter along the lane, making it a gutter-ball, giving you no points!"

Xander and Buffy gave each other simultaneous helpless looks. Buffy cleared her throat, speaking up. "Riley, it’s no big deal, really. Let it go."

"No, if Anya wants to play with the rest of us, she’s got to learn the rules…"

"The rules?! Well, the rules are, are stupid!" Anya shouted, throwing her hands in the air. "This whole thing is stupid! The only reason we’re here playing this pointless game is because Xander’s afraid Buffy’s going to up and leave your ass, and if she does I can’t say that I blame her! I’ve only been here with you for an hour and already I want to gouge my eyes out, I couldn’t imagine spending more time with you! Plus, you have no neck, which is just really creepy!

Anya sighed loudly, expelling the rest of her anger, and turned her attentions on Xander, who looked more pale than usual. "Is this that thing I do that you were commenting on?"

Xander nodded fiercely, swallowing the lump in his throat. God, he was going to be sick…

Riley looked dumbfounded, hurt, his heart felt like it had been ripped out of his chest. Anya couldn’t possibly be telling the truth, Buffy loved him…even though she hadn’t said it yet. She doesn’t want to break up with him, the crazy girl’s lying…

Riley turned his earnest eyes on his girlfriend, searching for some sign in her face that said Anya wasn’t telling the truth.

"So…" Buffy said standing, looking nearly as pale as Xander. "I think it’s my turn."

*************

"I’ve been working a lot on balancing the elements, but once I set Buffy’s bed spread on fire she kinda made me stop. Mostly I’m doing fun stuff, like glamour’s and such. I always wondered what I would look like as a blonde."

Willow smiled, boy, talking to Spike wasn’t half-bad. He knew a lot about many different subjects, so far they’d had conversations on art, history, philosophy, and he spoke like five languages, not including the demon ones he knew. She had been beyond impressed with his knowledge on witchcraft…

"I would never want to see you blonde, Red. I’d have to waste my time coming up with another nickname." He smiled, his stomach rumbling a bit. Damn he was hungry…

"Say Red, I’m feeling a bit peckish, and I think the Slayer’s all out of pig’s blood…"

"Oh, no prob, I’ll just call up Willy and have him deliver. If it’s not here in thirty minutes do ya think we’ll get it free?" She asked jokingly.

Spike shook his head. "Willy doesn’t deliver anymore, the ponce says it’s too dangerous."

"Okay then…" Willow said, stretching a bit, climbing to her feet. "I’ll just have to go and get it."

"No, no I couldn’t let you do that. You shouldn’t be around a place like Willy’s at night, lot’s of no good things hanging around there up to…no good. Tell you what, you unchain me and I’ll go with you, make sure you’re safe."

Willow had to bite her lip to keep from laughing at the absurdity of his statement. Spike wanted to make sure she was safe…yeah right! Like she was falling for that…

*************

"Buffy, do you wanna break up with me?!" Riley asked, his voice quivering, it seemed to be doing that a lot lately when it came to her.

Buffy felt sick, she hadn’t wanted to do this, okay she did want to do this, but not in this way! Not so public, in front of her friends, well in front of Xander. She wanted to be able to sit Riley down and tell him nice and gently, nice and gentle had been blown to hell and all thanks to Anya’s big fat mouth…

"Hey!" Xander shouted, trying hard to break the tension. "They’ve got really great chicken wings here, who wants? I’m buying!" This wasn’t the way things were supposed to go, they were supposed to be having fun, Buffy and Riley were supposed to be hanging all over each other in that sickening way they use to…why weren’t they doing that? Why did Buff look so pale?

"What kind of chicken wings?" Anya asked, earning a glare from her boyfriend.

"Answer me!" Riley shouted, shaking. God, he was shaking now. His whole body looked as if it were racked with anger and hurt, and disbelief. How could she do this to him?! Buffy felt like running for the door, but it seemed like it was miles away. The gates were open and there was no way she could go back, it was now or never…

"Yes." She said softly. "I wanna break up."

***************

Harmony stalked purposely towards Willy’s. She had checked this spot nightly, it had become apart of her routine. Her Spikey would hang out at Willy’s from time to time and every night she hoped against hope that she would find him there, sitting at a stool knocking back a few drinks. And once she was over her excitement and happiness at seeing him again, she would beat the bastard unconscious for disappearing on her the way he did.

She stopped dead in her tracks once she noticed it, the slightly awkward stance, the fire engine red hair…no, it couldn’t be…

"Willow?!" Harmony shouted, rushing towards the girl standing at the bar’s entrance.

"Harmony, hey." Willow smiled, the forceful smile. " I haven't seen you since…."

"Since graduation. Big snake huh?"

"Yeah." She nodded, searching for a topic. "So, how was your summer vacation?" Alright, lame, but what else was she going to talk to Harmony about…

"Well I was gonna go to France. But I didn't. I was dying to see the stores." Harmony smiled, good ol’ Willow. She was always so sweet, almost makes her feel kind of bad for picking on her for ten years…

"Yeah, and the museums."

"Yeah, I heard they have them. You know, just a rumor you pick up on the streets." Willow laughed and Harmony joined in with her. Willow really hadn’t changed a bit…her stomach rumbled, she hadn’t ate a thing all day…

"You were always so funny Willow. You haven't changed a bit." She smiled, she really was hungry…

"No, you neither." Willow shrugged, god she wished Spike would hurry up already so she could get out of this conversation.

"Oh, maybe a little." Harm smiled devilishly as she vamped out, grabbing a shocked Willow and sinking her fangs into her neck.

*******************

"Riley, I’m sorry! I, I never wanted to hurt you…"

"It’s a little too late for that don’t you think!" He spat angrily at her. Buffy hated this, he looked like he was about to cry and they were starting to attract a crowd…this isn’t the way she wanted to do this.

"You’re a nice, sweet guy, and I’m lucky to have someone like you who loves me, but I’m just not the right girl…"

"Not the right girl?! What the hell makes you think that?!" Riley shouted, his voice cracking a bit. This couldn’t be happening, he loved this girl with all his heart…

"Well…for starters, you thought Monty Python was a guy we go to school with." Buffy shrugged, smiling meekly. Bad excuse, bad, bad, bad excuse…

"Really?!" Xander spoke up, genuinely stunned. He quickly shook off his dumb comment, now was not the time to tease Riley about his lack of pop-culture knowledge. "I mean, Buffy, come on…you can’t really be serious here. You love Riley…"

"Xander!" She held her hand up, effectively shutting him up for now. "No I don’t, and this is none of your business, stay out of it."

Buffy slowly walked over to Riley, closing a bit of the distance between them. "That’s the problem, Riley, I don’t love you." She sighed. "And I think you deserve someone who does."

*************

Spike dropped the bag of blood once he heard Red scream. He shouldn’t care, actually he should’ve been glad that one of the slayerettes was probably getting worked over by something nasty out there, but once he heard that scream he couldn’t stop himself from running out of the door. Staying at the Slayer’s was doing something awful to him…turning him into a real nancy-boy.

He growled, pulling Harmony off of Willow and slammed her against the wall, pinning her there. Harm’s eyes widened once she recognized him.

"Blondie-bear?!"

*************

"Friends?!" Riley roared, he could feel tears stinging at the corners of his eyes. Dammit, he wasn’t going to cry in front of all of these people like a puss, he would wait until he was safely back in his dorm and then he would cry…

"You want to be friends, Buffy?! Unbelievable! Wait, there’s someone else isn’t there?! There has to be…why else would you break up with me, you’re in love with another guy!"

"No! No, Riley, there’s no other guy! We’re just not right for each other, don’t you get that?!"

All attention turned away from the arguing couple ending in front of everyone’s eyes, to the girl who was shouting and jumping up and down.

"Whoo-hoo!" Anya shouted, breaking into her victory dance. "That time I knocked all of the pins down, that’s a strike! Are you happy now Mr. Play-By-The-Rules?"

TBC….

***************

Spike dropped the bag of blood once he heard Red scream. He shouldn’t care, actually he should’ve been glad that one of the slayerettes was probably getting worked over by something nasty out there, but once he heard that scream he couldn’t stop himself from running out of the door. Staying at the Slayer’s was doing something awful to him…turning him into a real nancy-boy.

He growled, pulling Harmony off of Willow and slammed her against the wall, pinning her there. Harm’s eyes widened once she recognized him.

"Blondie-bear?!"

Spike winced at the sound of that ridiculous nickname, god he hated it! He should take her fucking head off just for calling him that…

"Harm." He nodded, holding her tightly against the wall.

A look mixed with pure joy, excitement, and anger washed over her face. Spike was here! He was really here, standing in front of her, it wasn’t a figment of her imagination! He was holding her…a little tightly, it kind of hurt…but he was still holding her!

"Oh, Spike! Where were you?! I was so worried when you didn’t come home and I missed you so much…and I was so angry with you for just disappearing on me like that, but I don’t care anymore, because you’re here and we can get back to where we were…"

Willow watched the sight, clutching a hand over the wound on her neck, feeling slightly, no, very dizzy all of a sudden. Blondie-Bear?!

"Where we were?" Spike chuckled.

"Yeah." Harmony beamed, god she was so happy to see him again. "I think our relationship can be much better this time…"

"Relationship?!" He spat. "Harm, get this through that thick, dim head of yours…we have no relationship!" Spike roared, pressing her harder against the wall, causing Harmony to wince in pain.

"Ow, Spike…" She whined, shutting her eyes. "You’re hurting me…"

"There is no you and me, and I’m not your sodding ‘Blondie-bear’!"

Why was he saying these things? Harmony loved him…kinda, and she had devoted herself completely to him! She had given him her ‘flower’…how could he say they didn’t have a relationship?!

"Why are you saying this?" She choked out, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to spill over. "Is, is it because of Willow? Because I tried to eat Willow?! Hey, I’m sorry…I’ll never do it again okay, is that good enough?! Please tell me it’s good enough!" Harmony pleaded, looking away from Spike for a moment and over at the pale Willow who was looking a little wobbly.

"Hey, Willow, I’m sorry for trying to eat you." She said with as much earnest as she could muster up. Willow smiled, weakly, nodding in Harmony’s direction.

"That’s okay Harmony, all’s forgiven." The redhead said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"It’s got nothing to do with Willow!" Spike growled.

"So, what, you’re breaking up with me?!" Harmony squealed, a few tears spilling from her eyes.

Spike sighed loudly, his patience wearing dangerously thin. "If that’s what it takes…" He sighed. "Yes, you stupid bint, I’m breaking up with you."

****************

"Friends?!" Riley roared, he could feel tears stinging at the corners of his eyes. Dammit, he wasn’t going to cry in front of all of these people like a puss, he would wait until he was safely back in his dorm and then he would cry…

"You want to be friends, Buffy?! Unbelievable! Wait, there’s someone else isn’t there?! There has to be…why else would you break up with me, you’re in love with another guy!"

"No! No, Riley, there’s no other guy! We’re just not right for each other, don’t you get that?!"

All attention turned away from the arguing couple ending in front of everyone’s eyes, to the girl who was shouting and jumping up and down.

"Whoo-hoo!" Anya shouted, breaking into her victory dance. "That time I knocked all of the pins down, that’s a strike! Are you happy now Mr. Play-By-The-Rules?"

"Anya!" Xander shouted, truly disappointed in her display tonight. He was going to have to have a few more words with her about courtesy…again.

"Buffy, I love you…and, and whatever I’ve done to make you feel this way, I’ll fix it…"

Great, he was going to start pleading with her now. No better way to make her feel even lower than she already did than by pleading…

"But, you didn’t do anything!" Buffy sighed. "Riley, I don’t feel what you feel. You deserve someone who’s going to love you back, with all of the intensity and passion that you love them, and I can’t be that person."

"Try harder…"Riley choked out, gritting his teeth, he could feel the tears starting to spill over. No! He didn’t want to do this, he didn’t want to cry, not in front of Buffy, didn’t want to give her the satisfaction…

"I can’t." She said simply, her head lowering a bit.

Riley left his eyes fixed on her for a moment, every muscle in his body tense. He couldn’t believe this, he couldn’t believe this was really happening. Buffy was really breaking up with him, she really didn’t love him the way he loved her. He breathed in deeply, tightening his fists before gathering up the strength to walk out of the door.

****************

She couldn’t believe this, she couldn’t believe Spike really didn’t love her. Harmony tore off, running blindly once her ex had released his grip on her. She stopped once Willy’s was out of sight, and ducked into one of the allies, supporting herself against the bricked wall as loud sobs racked through her body.

She had given Spike the best…couple of weeks of his life! He was a cold, heartless bastard and she hated him!

Harmony wasn’t going to rest until she made him pay for hurting her…

***************

Riley’s hand throbbed in pain, okay, so maybe punching his car’s windshield wasn’t the brightest of ideas. He watched the blood ooze around the tiny shards of glass in his knuckles. Buffy was supposed to be different! This was the first girl he ever loved, the others before her hadn’t mattered…but Buffy…

God! He felt like screaming and had to stifle the overwhelming urge to put his hand through the windshield again. He should hate Buffy for doing this to him, but he didn’t. He just wanted her back, he was going to find a way, any way, to get her back…

The beeper in his pocket went off loudly, cutting through the painful thoughts that were racing in his mind. He sighed loudly, pulling it out.

Shit! Not now…

*****************

Buffy sighed as she walked into the house. The ride back home had been nearly as painful as the display at the bowling ally. Xander said nothing to her the whole way to Revello, only gave her angry glances from time to time in the rear view mirror. And Anya, was Anya, nearly loosing her mind when a group of bunnies hopped in front of the car at a red light…

She had never been so drained in all her life, no patrol tonight, she wouldn’t be able to focus and things were slow lately anyway…all she wanted to do was crash. Where was a good apocalypse when you needed one?

Willow smiled a little meekly when she spotted her. "Hey, Buff. How was bowling?"

"Anya got a strike." Buffy said absently, noticing Willow’s slightly pale features and the huge white bandage on her neck. She rushed over to her friend, jerking her around to examine the wound.

"Will, what the hell happened?!"

"Ran into Harmony tonight. Vampire now." She smiled.

"What?! Are you okay…"

"I’m fine, don’t worry. Spike said she didn’t get a chance to take too much, so I should be okay…"

"Spike?" Buffy asked, her features darkening a little.

"Yeah, we went to Willy’s, that’s where I had the run in with Harmony…Buffy, you don’t look so good, did everything go alright…"

"Just peachy." Buffy said, cutting off Willow. "Where is he?"

"Spike? He’s upstairs…" Buffy bolted for the stairs, hurrying up them as fast as she could. That bastard…

"I’ll see you tomorrow!" Willow called after her, shrugging.

********************

Spike inhaled the smoke from his cigarette slowly, savoring the cool menthol taste and the slight burn it gave his nose. He smiled a bit, remembering Red asking him to please smoke in the bathroom because the smell made her light-headed. He liked that chit a lot, she was decent once she actually got talking to him. A tiny part of him felt bad for ever threatening to put a bottle through her face…it should have been that whelp Xander…

He growled when the cigarette was suddenly snatched from his lips. The Slayer glared at him, putting the butt out in the sink.

"Now, what the bloody hell did you do that…!" A strong right-cross stopped Spike from completing his sentence. He flew back against the bathroom wall, hitting it hard, putting a large crack into it.

"You could have gotten her killed!" Buffy screamed, rushing towards him angrily.

"I saved her!" He shouted, climbing back up on his feet, staggering a bit.

"You let Harmony suck on her like a popsicle!" Buffy glared, punching him again, busting his lip. Blood trickled down his mouth, and stained his teeth. Buffy ignored the goriness, ignored the sight of him spitting blood on the tile. She was going to finish her tirade…

"This is all your fault! Everything is your fault!"

"My fault?!" Spike screamed, his anger subsiding enough for him to chuckle once the realization hit him. "Oh, oh I see. This isn’t about Red…"

"You’re damn right it’s about ‘Red’, you son of a bitch!"

"No, no this is about your boyfriend. Things not going right between you kids lately?" He taunted cruelly, if she wanted to play games then he’d play, he could give it just as good as she could… "Feeling a little guilty? Buffy, why don’t you do us all a big favor and forget the ponce, you never had it so good as me anyway!"

This time he stopped her fist before it connected with his face, giving her an equally good punch as the first one she gave him, sending Buffy to the floor. Spike stood over her, grabbing her up by the collar of her shirt.

"What? Think I wouldn’t hit you back?! You don’t have me completely by the short-hairs, girl!" He spat, nastily, pulling her up roughly to her feet. Buffy had never hated him so much as she did in this moment. She wanted to wipe that smug grin off of his face, permanently. She grabbed his shirt, overpowering him, pushing him out of the bathroom, and slamming him against the wall. Spike winced as the pain shot through his back.

"You fucking prick! I was happy with Riley until you came along!" Buffy screamed, shaking with anger. It was all Spike’s fault, she would have never hurt Riley the way she did if it weren’t for this bastard.

Spike broke her tight grip on him, turning her around, slamming her up against the wall.

"Not my fault he doesn’t do it for you!" He growled, pressing the weight of his body into hers. "I want you…" Spike drawled, his voice dropping an octave. Buffy shivered at his tone, and the feel of his erection pressing against her.

"And you…want me."

She opened her mouth to protest, but Spike quickly stopped her. "You want me. Stop fighting it…"

"There’s nothing to fight! You were a mistake!" Buffy growled, that growl turing into a moan, when he grabbed her tiny hand and placed it on his hardened shaft.

"Stop fighting it." He whispered, bringing his lips on hers in a hungry desperation. Their tongues tangled in a fierce battle, both pouring all of their rage and lust into the other. This felt so different from all of their kisses before, it felt as if there was no pressure, no reason to hold back, like a tremendous weight had been lifted.

Spike tore his lips away from hers, staring into her face. Her eye, slightly swollen and blackened, her lips full, the look of being thoroughly kissed… ‘something beautiful borne out of something violent.’ , his own words running through his mind, as he kissed her soundly once more.

Buffy’s nimble fingers played along the zipper of his jeans, finally undoing it, and coaxing the hardened member out. They moaned simultaneously as her hand encircled his cock, slowly stroking the length of him.

Spike thrust into her tiny hand, he had to watch it, if he wasn’t careful he was going to embarrass himself greatly. He broke the kiss again, moving his lips to her neck, nibbling and sucking while his fingers worked at the fastenings to her pants.

She stopped her teasing, long enough to help him yank down her pants. No panties? He smiled at that, his Slayer was getting a little more daring. His fingers danced along the outside of her nether lips, before slowly entering her. Buffy dug her fingernails into his shoulders, as his long fingers stretched and filled her, leaving little creasant shaped marks in his smooth, marble skin. Her hips moved perfectly in time with his fingers, her breathing increasing sharply as he used his thumb to tease her clit.

Buffy came, convulsing into his hand, Spike’s name spilling over her lips. Her forehead rested against his as she came down off of her high, Spike planted feather like kisses on her lips, smiling.

The front door slammed loudly, the sound of footsteps echoed through the downstairs.

"Buffy, I’m home!" Joyce called out, the sound of her boots on the stairs growing increasingly closer.

TBC…

********************

Buffy shut the door, laughing hysterically. She could hear Spike snickering a little behind her. "I don’t see what’s so god damn funny! I’m sure your mother would have loved to catch me with her only daughter, naked and up against the wall."

Buffy snorted loudly and Spike couldn’t help but join in with her. They had gotten away with murder practically, and he wondered for a split second if Joyce still had that axe lying around…

"Buffy are you here?! Joyce called, she thought she had heard her daughter screaming Spike’s name, and from the looks of the bathroom, she was worried that the vampire would now be able to fit in her dust buster.

"Uh, yeah mom!" Buffy shouted, controlling her urge to double over in laughter. "I’m going to bed, okay!" Spike wrapped his arms around her, nuzzling her neck. "Damn right you are…" He whispered in her ear, making her shiver in his arms.

"Okay, I’ll see you in the morning!" Joyce called back, the sound of her footsteps heading towards her room, then suddenly stopping. "Buff! What the hell happened to my bathroom?! Did you kill Spike?!"

"Not yet!" Buffy called sweetly, Spike nibbled on her ear lobe, inciting a low moan from her. Once she heard her mother’s bedroom door close, she relaxed a little more in his arms, tracing his hands absently with her fingers.

"If you don’t stop that, we’ll never make it to the bed." She smiled.

"Beds are overrated."

"No…" Buffy giggled, breaking his hold on her. She took his hand, leading him over to the bed. "We’re going to do this right for once."

"What do you mean...?"

"I mean…no nerves, no regrets, no guilt, and you don’t leave when it’s over." She smiled, dropping his hand. Spike watched in complete fascination as she pulled her shirt over her head, leaving her standing before him in a lacy bra.

"What is this to you?" He asked, moving closer to her. Buffy smiled seductively, her pink tongue darting out to wet her lips, her fingers playfully tracing the muscles under his shirt.

"I don’t know, what’s this to you?"

He shrugged. "Don’t know. I try not to over think it." Spike smiled, bringing his lips to hers in a gentle, teasing kiss.

"I still hate you." Buffy giggled, giving him another kiss.

"Feeling’s mutual." Spike said against her lips, his fingers quickly undoing her pants, letting them fall to her ankles. "Still want to bathe in your blood and all that rot…"

**********************

"You don’t seem to get it, Will! She broke up with Riley!"

Willow sighed loudly for what seemed like the millionth time this morning. She had listened to Xander’s tirade over Buffy’s love life all the way to Giles’ and it hadn’t stopped. She loved Xander dearly, but if he didn’t shut up she was going to sic Harmony on him…

"I get it Xander. People break up all the time, what’s the big deal?"

"What’s the big deal?! The big deal is, he was the only decent, normal boyfriend she ever had, and she just let him go!" Xander shouted, and Will just sighed once more, slumping down into Giles’ cushy couch. Xander wasn’t this pissed when she and Oz broke up…that’s just wrong some how.

"Giles, tell Willow what a big deal this is!"

Giles removed his glasses, giving them a good cleaning before he resumed his search for his scotch. "I honestly couldn’t care less…"

"See! Even British-man here gets it." Xander let out an exasperated sigh, dropping down next to Willow.

"Xander, Buffy’s a big girl now, she can make whatever decision she feels is best for her. It’s not up to you."

"Remember the last relationship decision she made? It had us all terrified of a guy named ‘Angel’…in retrospect that’s just embarrassing."

Willow rolled her eyes, she still wasn’t feeling up to strength and Xander wasn’t making it any better.

Willow just didn’t get it, Buffy would never find another guy as good and devoted to her as Riley is…well, maybe him, but he was taken…for now. Xander shook his head, catching a glimpse of the big white bandage on the witch’s neck.

"What happened?" He asked, gesturing towards the wound. Willow smiled meekly. "Ran into Harmony." She deadpanned.

"Oh." Xander said, nodding. "She change much since graduation?"

"Only her appetite." Willow smiled.

Yes! Giles smiled happily, pulling out the bottle of scotch. He thought he’d never find it. "So, uh, Willow, any sign of our commandos lately?" He asked, pulling a glass out of the cupboard.

"I’ve been keeping my eyes open, but nothing so far."

"Has Buffy spotted anything? I haven’t heard from her in a few days now."

"No. She even scaled back her patrol because of the lack of action, I think most of her time has been spent on Spike duty." Willow said, blushing slightly at her statement…

"The things she must have to do to get that guy to talk…" Xander said, shaking his head, Willow blushed furiously, coughing loudly, climbing to her feet. "You alright, Will?"

"Water.." She coughed out.

"Speaking of Buffy, where is she? She should be here by now."

**********************

Buffy lazily traced her finger on his stomach, her head resting on his chest. She hadn’t had one ounce of sleep and she really didn’t care, for the first time she felt so comfortable and relaxed. She didn’t want to move period…and was more than sure her legs would buckle if she got out of bed.

"What are your pals gonna say about this?" Spike asked, running his fingers through her hair.

"I dunno." Buffy shrugged, placing light kisses on his cool skin. "Will already knows…"

"Red knows?!" He chuckled. "No wonder she blushed every time she said your name." Buffy laughed, sitting up and threw one leg over his waist, straddling him.

"I kinda like keeping us a secret, it’s fun. Plus, we don’t even know what this is, how could we to explain it to anyone else?"

"Well, what about mum, does she know?" Buffy playfully slapped his chest, laughing. "I told you not to call her that, it’s creepy! And no she doesn’t."

Spike sat up, pulling her closer, kissing her soundly. Buffy broke away from the kiss, her smile quickly fading.

"Oh shit!"

"What, luv?" Spike said, taking the opportunity to move his lips to her neck. "I was…I was…stop that!" She giggled, hitting him again. "I can’t concentrate."

"That’s the idea." He said in between kisses.

She was supposed to be doing something right now, something other than this, dammit, she knew she had to be somewhere…oh yeah. "Oh yeah, I’m supposed to be at Giles’."

"You have to bring the Watcher up at time like this?!"

"Well…it’s just a meeting about your commando guys, I guess it can wait…at least until I can walk again." She laughed.

"That, pet, is going to be a very long time from now…"

*******************

"I’m still not getting an answer." Xander said, dropping the phone back on the hook. He turned to face Willow and Giles, worried expressions emblazoned on each of their faces.

"It’s not like Buff to call a meeting and be a no show."

"For once, Xander, you’re right." Giles slipped his glasses back on. " I think we should check her house, she could be in trouble."

TBC….

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