“Your little boy is so adorable.”
Spike Reynolds smiled, giving the woman a nod. “Thanks, he takes after his mother.”
She took the hint and walked away.
His smile faded at her retreating back. Every time Spike brought his son to the park to play, he would constantly get hit on by numerous women. There was just something about a single father that had them wanting to be near him, but Spike wasn’t interested. It had only been two years since his wife passed, and while some may think it was more than enough time for him to move on, Spike just wasn’t ready. The smile was back on his face when his son, Jacob, ran over to him. “Hey, mate; are you having a good time?”
The little boy nodded. “Can I invite someone over from school tomorrow?” he asked excitedly.
“Sure, I don’t see why not. Is he a friend in your class?”
Jacob shook his head. “Not a he, Daddy.”
Spike smiled, taking his son by the hand and leading him over to his car. “Ah, I see, yeah, you can invite her over for dinner. If her mother doesn’t mind, of course.” Jacob was only six-years-old, and had just started kindergarten three months ago, but it was cute that he already had himself a little crush. Spike remembered what he was like at that age, there was this little cutie pie that always had his eye, he remembered chasing her around and tugging on her pig tails, which is what boys would do when they liked a girl, or so he was told. Spike wondered if the apple didn’t fall far from the tree after all.
* * * * *
“No, Daddy, the plates should be pink. Girls like pink.”
Spike chuckled to himself. “Sorry, buddy, all we have is blue. I’m sure she won’t mind. If we have her over again, I’ll be sure to get pink plates next time.”
Jacob seemed to accept his answer as he headed back into the living room.
Spike was finding it hard not to grin at his son’s antics, realizing just how hard he was trying to impress this girl. She must be something special.
The doorbell rang, and Jacob immediately ran over to it.
“Jake, ask who it is first!” Spike called to him, shaking his head as he joined them in the doorway, his jaw dropping at the sight of what he thought would be a young girl, instead finding a woman standing there, a very gorgeous woman.
The brunette gave him a warm smile. “Hi, you must be Mr. Reynolds. Jacob is always talking about you in class,” she said, holding out her hand.
Once Spike came back to reality, he took her small hand in his, giving it a gentle shake. “Um, yeah, and who might you be?”
She looked surprised by the question. “I’m Buffy Summers, Jacob’s teacher; didn’t you know I was coming over for tutoring? Jake told me that he was having some problems in Math.”
Spike glanced down at his son to see the look of guilt on his face. “No, I believe he forgot to mention that little detail. That’s a bit odd, since Math is one of his best subjects. Please, come in, I’m terribly sorry about this.”
Buffy smiled as she entered the house. “That’s quite all right; I should have known something was going on. He was doing so well in Math until recently; I wondered why he would need help.”
“Oh, I have a theory, but since you’re here, you might as well stay for dinner. I cooked for three.”
She shook her head. “I really wouldn’t want to impose.”
He waved his hand in the air. “It’s no imposition; you would be doing me a favor. We’re always stuck with way too many leftovers.”
“Well, in that case I would love to.”
Spike led her into the kitchen, pulling out a chair for her. “Would you just give me a second with my son first?”
Buffy only nodded.
Spike took his son out of the room, giving him a look once they were out of earshot. “Okay, mate, explain yourself.”
Jake gazed down at the floor, then back up at his father. “I just don’t want you to be sad anymore, Daddy.”
That was the last thing Spike was expecting. “Hey, what makes you think I’m sad?”
He shrugged. “’Cause you’re alone, all my friends have a Mommy and a Daddy, but not me. I want a Mommy, too. Ms. Summers is really nice; you don’t have to be alone anymore.”
Spike wrapped his arms around Jacob, giving the boy a kiss on the forehead. “It was nice of you to think of me, but I’m fine on my own right now. Yes, she does seem really nice, but it’s not right for you to ambush us like this. She’ll stay for one meal, anything that happens beyond that, it’s our call, you got it?”
Jacob nodded, rubbing his eyes.
“All right, I take it since you’re suddenly a matchmaker; you won’t be eating with us.”
“I’m not hungry,” he responded.
Spike nodded as well. “Of course you’re not, okay, then you go upstairs and do your homework.”
Jacob did just that, not arguing for a change.
Spike took a deep breath, making his way back into the kitchen.
Buffy turned and graced him with a stunning smile, tucking a lock of dark hair behind her ear.
His breath caught in his throat. Bloody hell, she was beautiful.
It was going to be a long night.
* * * * *
“Jake is so popular in class, all of the girls love him. He’s going to be quite the heartbreaker when he gets older.”
Spike grinned. “Like father, like son.” He shut his eyes, opening them a second later. “Sorry, I don’t mean to sound like a pompous arse or anything. It’s just been a while since I’ve done this.”
“Don’t worry; I can see how much you love your son. He idolizes you, I could tell by how much he goes on about you that he was hoping something might happen between us. The truth is that I just got out of a really bad relationship, and I wasn’t looking for anything right now. Of course, the more time I spend with you, the more I forget about that.” She buried her head in her hands, a blush tinting her cheeks. “I really just said that out loud, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, but no worries, I won’t tell anyone. I understand completely. My wife has been gone for two years now, but a part of me still feels like it’s too soon to move on,” he explained.
She tilted her head to the side. “And what does the other part feel?”
“The other part wants to forget the fact he has a son studying upstairs and take you right on this table.”
Buffy laughed. “I think I like that part, but you do have a son upstairs, so it wouldn’t be right.”
He agreed. “I wasn’t actually serious; I would at least wait until the third date.”
“That’s always good to know.”
Spike reached out and took her hand in his. “I do want to see where this can go, though. There’s just something about you that calls to me, and I know how that sounds, but it’s true. You just might need to be patient with me.”
She squeezed his hand. “Well, you’re in luck; patience is something I’m really good at.”
He led her over to the front door once they both finished eating, letting her hand go after a moment. “So, you up for that second date?”
Buffy nodded, pecking him lightly on the cheek. “You can count on it,” she said with a wink, then walked away from the house.
Spike let out a sigh and closed the door, resting his head against it, only to see the face of his grinning son staring back at him.
“Am I getting a new Mommy?”
He laughed, shaking his head and picking his son up, causing the boy to giggle. “We only just met. Give it time, you little trouble maker. Now, off to bed with you.”
For the second time that night, Jacob agreed without argument.
Spike gazed down at his hand, slipping off his wedding ring. It looked like he was finally ready to move on.
The End
Author's Chapter Notes:
This is just a oneshot that I thought of, something short and sweet. There’s not much to it, just some fluff to take a break from all the angst out there. Thanks as always to dusty273 for the read through, and buffy_the_vamp6 for my lovely banner=)