Prologue

I never thought much of other people; they were simply pawns for me to move around and play with as I wished. Blame whatever you like for my distinct lack of empathy: my mother always off with her latest husband, my father's tragic death involving an allergic reaction to peanut oil being smeared all over him by his sixteen year old Puerto Rican pool boy (the scandal which followed nearly drove Mother into hiding), or the fact that I am seventeen and for as long as I can remember I have ran around New York with more money than I could spend in ten lifetimes. But even New York gets boring after a while, or it could just be life in general that lacked excitement, so I began looking for it in other places. I have done it all, ran with the bulls in Spain, base jumped, swam with great white sharks, and had sex with every insipid debutant that the city had to offer, but still those adventures and conquests did nothing to alleviate the tedium. I needed a real challenge. Then I met Buffy Summers … and isn't it always about a girl.


******

Quick Author Note
Celestria and Co Author RainnyDay and Beta Rapunzel .

This fic was written awhile back, and I haven't talk to my co author...in a long time... Anyways.. We wrote the first five chapters together.

Disclaimer:Unfortunately, Cruel Intentions belongs to Columbia Tristar and Buffy the Vampire Slayer belongs to 20th Century Fox and ME. We are only borrowing ideas and characters for our own

Chapter One



Spike Harrington and his stepbrother Angelus Bradbury sat on the marble fountain in the main quad of Manchester Preparatory Academy, drinking espressos. They were both dressed the standard school uniform, black slacks and long-sleeved white shirts with black tie. Their navy blazers lay carelessly on the ledge, as did their books. The stepbrothers were cooling assessing their fellow classmates as they walked passed and gave off an aura of detachment. The girls walking by in the recently raised hem lined, plaid skirts did not proportionately raise their interest in the girls, as it did with their fellow male classmates. In fact, Spike and Angelus were all too familiar with what lay underneath the school uniforms of many of the girls walking by to get excited by two inches of leg.



Eventually Spike broke the contented silence. "Looks like I don't have to worry about my English class," Spike smirked taking a sip of his espresso.



"That explains your atypically good mood and that extra bounce in your step, dear stepbrother," the brunette boy laughed.



"I'll have you know, Angelus, I did not spend last night alone and that is why I don't have to lift a finger in my English class," Spike said with a smug expression on his face.



Angelus grinned wryly. "Hmm, what could have changed your fate? I'm guessing Professor Kendall's poor innocent little Harmony warmed your bed. Am I right?"



"As always, Angelus, you know me all too well, but she wasn't innocent and definitely wasn't a virgin." He laughed. "A little to into S&M for my taste, plus she wasn't the smartest bird in the cage. 'Oh Spike maybe later we could have dinner or just hang out,' " he said in a mocking voice. "And everything she did last night would just kill her mother, and it almost did. You should have seen her face when I showed her the pictures." A conceited smile played about his lips as he thought about the shocked women seeing her little girl trussed up like a dominatrix.



Hearing about his step brother's triumph turned Angelus' thought to the thorn in his side. "Dammit this new headmaster has been a pain in my ass. He came up to me and said 'Mr. Bradbury, I don't care who your parents are, I'm going to keep an eye on you and your stepbrother. I've heard you've been accepted to Harvard. It would be a shame if they found out you weren't the type of student they thought you were,'" he said angrily.



"How amusing, he said the same thing to me in a more threatening tone. That man is seriously deluded if he thinks a few words will have any effect on my behavior, or the admissions board at Harvard. I hear that construction of the Bradbury Athletic Center is nearly finished." Spike snickered.



"Have you met his daughter, quite possible the prissiest bitch this school has to offer. She gets all A's and she even does volunteer work in her free time." Angelus shuttered for comic effect, Spike simply smirked. "I hear she's a virgin, despite the best efforts of Parker Abrams, who, if memory serves, just dumped the chit because she wouldn't put out. And there she is," Angelus said pointing to the group of girls sitting behind a table with a sign in front that said VOULUNTEER FOR THE NYC CANCER CENTER in large block letters.



"Ah yes, quite charming with her hair done up in braids," snickered Spike.



"Despite her reputation as being a prude, general consensus is that she is eye-catching."



"You're not wrong, she is quite attractive, in a virginal, Middle America kind of way," Spike said eyeing the blond girl.



"Spike, I have a challenge for you, just to make things a little interesting around here. I bet you can't seduce and deflower the headmaster's daughter, then film you two having a good screw and use the tape to get us some leverage with her dad. She means the world to him and I believe he would be willing to do anything to keep that tape from seeing the light of day."



"At last a real challenge. What should we set as stakes?"



"If you win our little wager, I will give you my three story penthouse over looking Central Park, I know how much you loved it, but if you lose I get your mint condition, mahogany speed boat."



"My Cris-Craft?" Spike seemed to ponder this as he loved that vintage boat more than his own mother.



"What do you say William, is it a bet?" Angelus outstretched his hand.



After a moment's contemplation, Spike shook his step brother's hand and said, "You are on."



* * *



"Buffy, I think Spike Harrington and Angelus Bradbury are checking you out. I mean they've been staring over here for the past ten minutes," Cordelia whispered into her friend's ear.



Buffy just rolled her eyes. "Please Cordelia, it's Spike. He's like a lion looking for a piece of meat," she said turning her gaze to the brothers then back to Cordelia. "I don't know about you, but I'm trying to get people to volunteer for the cancer center."



"Hey then Buffy, you better watch out because said lion is prowling your way. Let's pretend to be busy," Willow said looking down at the paper work.



The object of their discussion sauntered over to the volunteering table. "Hi I'm Spike," he smiled disarmingly.



"I know who you are Spike Harrington; I think everyone knows you; even if I didn't, the stunt you pulled in the girl's locker room made you the talk of the school," Buffy said coolly and smiling condescendingly.



"Allegedly pulled. There was no proof." His azure eyes framed by sooty lashed told another story. "Besides luv, I'll have you know that you can't always believe what you hear." He winked at her and she rolled her eyes while her traitorous friends giggled.



"As you can see, we are busy here. So if you wouldn't mind…" Buffy smiled even more coldly than before.



"You have the most beautiful smile, you know that don't you. I mean you look like angel," he said, the charm oozing out of every pore. "Anyways, I heard about you and Parker. What could he have been thinking? Oh well, his loss is my gain," he smirked. "So, what do you say Buffy? Have dinner with me and promise I'll treat you like a queen," he said picking up her hand and kissing the back of it.



"Well Mr. Harrington as tempting as that is I can't. I'm having dinner with my dad tonight. But don't worry, I'm sure you won't have any problem finding someone to keep your bed warm," she replied, making Willow and Cordelia laugh. "Anyways, I have to book. I have a study group to go to. Bye girls." She smiled at her friends and walked off towards the main hall without giving Spike a second glance.



"Right then, luv. I'll catch you later. Don't worry. I know I'll be seeing you around," he called as she walked off. He groaned inwardly, but turned to Buffy's friends, and smiled so charmingly that they forget to breath. He left them with a simple, "Ladies," and then walked back to the fountain.



"I just have to say Buffy is so freakin' lucky," the brunette said looking at Spike's perfect retreating bottom.



"You have got to be joking, Cordy. Spike Harrington is a hard-core womanizer, ask any girl on campus and you'll see what I'm talking about," Willow explained.



"Whatever, but he still is a hunk of salty goodness," Cordelia asserted laughingly.



* * *



"What happened, she turn you down already?" Angelus couldn't remember the last time he had laughed so hard.



Spike couldn't believe that she just blew him off. "Oh come off it. Angelus. It's still early in the game and I haven't even begun to play," he smirked.



"Whatever you say, dear brother, whatever you say."

LATER THAT WEEK: THE LIBRARY

Buffy was sitting in the library working on her report for her honors English class on the use of symbolism in Tess of the D'Ubervilles, when she got the feeling that Spike was nearby. Actually, it was less of a feeling and more of a smelling. His cologne was very distinctive. She laughed inwardly and thought to herself, 'What is up with this guy? I clearly said 'no' to him the last time we met.'

"Don't tell me you're trying to hide from me, because trust me, I have been at this school longer than you and there is no place on the grounds that you can hide," came a familiar British accented voice from behind her.

Buffy smiled to herself then altered her smile to a straight face and turned around to look her psuedo-stalker in the eye. "I'm guessing I didn't try hard enough. I thought this was the one place you weren't likely to be, but obviously I was wrong," she stated with a sigh. "So Spike, what brings you to the library? I heard you weren't much of a studier."

"I haven't even been here but a moment and I have already pissed you off," Spike laughed.

Buffy sighed once more and held her temper. "Spike if you don't mind I'm really trying to do my homework and your presence doesn't help."

"Do I make you nervous?" Spike asked with a slight leer.

"No, but unlike you I have to work my butt off to keep my grades up and I don't have times for these little games," she replied.

"I'll have you know I work diligently to maintain my perfect 4.0 average." He smiled thinking about how he helped his average along. In reality he didn't need to resort to bribery, he was very intelligent. His problem was that he was bored and got a kick out of seeing what he could get away with. Buffy's next comment brought him out of his reverie.

"Wow, screwing the math professor on her desk doesn't seem very hard to me," she said giving him a piercing look. When he didn't say anything she rolled her eyes and turned back to her studies.

"Don't be jealous, pet," he cajoled, "she had nothing on you." Spike smirked, and sat down in the empty chair next to her. "Besides, that wasn't true, never happened," he explained. "Why don't you get to know me before you judge me? Because I'm guessing you made up your mind about me before you even talked to me," he said, reaching his hand out to push a piece of her hair behind her ear. "Come out with me and at least get acquainted with me; the real me and not what you hear people say."

"I'm guessing you don't hear 'no' very often, do you?" Buffy inquired sarcastically.

Spike just smiled his most winning smile, his blue eyes twinkling. Buffy found herself lost in his gaze for a moment, but quickly recovered her senses.

"I can't, okay? Now please just leave me alone, I need to study," she said, a little more loudly than she meant to, and forced herself to look back at her books.

"Is there a problem, Ms. Summers?" the librarian asked.

"Nope, Spike was just on his way out, weren't you, Spike," she said turning to him. It wasn't a question.

Spike stood up, his eyes still on the maddening young girl in front of him. "That's right, I was just leaving," he said, then leaned down to whisper in her ear. "This isn't over." He straightened up, turned and left the room abruptly, leaving Buffy to repress a shiver from the sensation of his breath on her neck.

* * *

A FEW DAYS LATER: THE HEADMASTER'S OFFICE

Buffy thought Spike had finally given up on her. She was equal parts relieved and disappointed. Despite herself, she had found their heated discussions stimulating, and though she was loath to admit it, she could see why so many girls had fallen prey to his charms. She was in the middle of geometry class, one of her least favorite classes, when she received a message from her father requesting her to come to his office at once. Buffy gladly left geometry and entered her father's office and notice that his secretary wasn't at her desk outside his door. She opened the door and walked in.

"Daddy, I got your message. What did you want to see me about?" Buffy asked as she entered her dad's large office. All she saw was the back of his big black leather chair. "Hello?"

Slowly the chair turned around, and there sat Spike with his hands clasped together, looking very much like the proverbial cat that ate the canary. "Sorry Buffy, but your dad couldn't make it. He and the rest of the administration are in a meeting all day."

Buffy was silent with disbelief for a moment. Finally she got out, "How did you- never mind, I don't want to know. So I'm guessing you went to this extreme to ask me out again?" Obviously Spike had gotten tired trying to find two seconds in a row that Buffy wasn't surrounded by her friends or in class. Secretly she was impressed with this little stunt to get a moment alone to talk with her, but she would never let him know.

"Got it in one, luv. I am finally able to get some alone time with you. I never realized how hard it was to get you by yourself."

"You realize you could get in trouble, right?" she asked, giving him a sidelong look.

"You're worth it."

She repressed the urge to roll her eyes. "So now that you have me alone, what do you to want, and make it fast," she commanded crossing her arms over her chest.

"I'm tired of this little game between you and me. I want to spend time with you and learn more about you and I want you to learn more about me, so will you please come with me on a date, just dinner and a show."

"You are never going to give up, are you?" she asked, laughing mirthlessly. She decided being angry wasn't worth the effort and admitted defeat gracefully. For whatever his reasons, he seemed adamant on them dating.

"Buffy, I've never given up on anything in my whole life," he stated looking so confident and sexy that Buffy nearly had to reassess her viewpoint on his attractiveness.

"Fine, dinner. When?"

"Saturday good for you?"

Buffy had just spent the last hour getting ready. She had to quell the urge to spend more time on her appearance, but it wasn't too difficult once she remembered whom she was going on a date with. She still had the desire, though, to do the knockout thing, both figuratively and literally, and really, it was a toss up, which would win out.

She checked the clock and saw she still had a few minutes before her undesired suitor arrived. She gazed critically at her reflection in the mirror. Buffy hoped she was dressed appropriately. Spike's instructions of, 'dress nicely,' weren't very specific. Her sleeveless, black wool-crepe dress had a mid-calf ballerina skirt and reminded her of Audrey Hepburn. A pair of black sling backs completed the look. Her hair was simply curled so that it framed her face and she wore a pair of emerald earrings that had once belonged to her mother. A final glance in the mirror deemed her fit for anyone or anything.

As she waited, a few fears began to plague her mind. What if Spike didn't come? What if he was playing some elaborate joke on her? Buffy took a calming breath and reassured herself that Spike had gone to too much trouble to ask her out only to stand her up. Just then she heard the front door bell. She smiled and double-checked her lipstick.

As she made her way downstairs, Buffy was grateful that her dad was out to dinner with a colleague. That certainly made the fib that she was actually out on a date with Riley Finn, the well-respected captain of the wrestling team, much easier to tell. By the time she reached the foyer, Marta, the housekeeper, had already let Spike in. He was causally lounging on the divan in the front sitting room wearing a charcoal Prada suit and a red silk shirt.

He looked like he had stepped of the pages of a magazine with his designer clothing and perfectly tousled hair. He was so good looking she nearly forgot to breathe. Ok, she was going to have to give serious consideration on reassessing her opinion that he was not very attractive. Buffy cleared her throat softly and greeted him.

When Spike saw her, it was as if time had stopped. He couldn't believe how even more beautiful she looked when she wasn't wearing her conservative school uniform. For a moment, he gave serious thought to forgetting about the opera and their reservations and slinging her over his shoulder and showing her what naughty things he could do with his tongue, but the moment passed and while he was certain she would be very happy with the outcome, it would be near impossible to convince her of it in one night.

"You look beautiful, luv," he said, gently bringing her right hand to his mouth and kissing it.

Against her will, she felt her cheeks flush. "I'm impressed, Spike, you clean up pretty nice," she said with a teasing smile.

"I have a wonderful night planned. I know how much you love the arts so I arranged for us to see Aida." He smiled and she smiled back, although she had no idea what Aida was about. 'Well, maybe this won't be as difficult as I believed,' he thought as he opened the passenger door for Buffy on his black BMW convertible. Spike hopped in the car, gave Buffy a rakish grin, and sped off towards the Met.

* * *

Spike and Buffy had just arrived at La Cuillère and the valet had seen to the car. Buffy had been strangely silent since they left the Met. Spike tried another attempt at conversation. "Wasn't that wonderful, Buffy? I mean the set alone must have cost a fortune. I think that was one of the best productions I have seen in a while, don't you think?" he asked.

"I have no words," she said quietly. Fortunately she was rescued from having to elaborate further by the Maitre d'.

"Good evening Mr. Harrington. How lovely to have you dine with us again. Allow me to show you to your table," the Maitre d' drawled politely in his heavy French accent.

Spike and Buffy followed the Maitre d' towards the windows. The secluded table offered a charming view of Central Park. "Your waiter shall be with you in a moment. May I offer you something to drink?"

Spike glanced at the proffered wine list. "Château Lafitte 1989."

"I'll have a glass of water, please. Thank you." She smiled then gave Spike a little smirk.

"As you wish," the Maitre d' said as he gave a slight bow and set off for the wine sommelier.

"Spike, wine? You're not even old enough to drink," she commented, frowning.

"Don't worry, luv, I won't be drinking that much. I've been drinking wine since I was ten and I turned out fine. Besides," he continued, his eyes full of mischief, "dinner without wine is like life without song." The comment was corny, but he looked so adorable when he said it, that Buffy couldn't help but smile her first genuine smile of the evening.

The sommelier then arrived with the wine and poured a glass for both Buffy and Spike. The waiter followed shortly with their menus and engaged in a short conversation with Spike in French. Much to Buffy's dismay, the menu was also in French and gave a soft groan. Spike noticed her reaction and gently lowered her leather bound menu. "Don't worry about it, Buffy. I'll order you something you'll like."

He looked so considerate when he said that that she had a hard time placing this version of Spike with the smug, arrogant version she had previously encountered.

The waiter seemed to know exactly when Spike had decided on what to order. Spike gave the orders in flawless French and returned his attentions to Buffy once the waiter had jotted everything down.

"Out of curiosity, what did you order for me?"

"It's a surprise, pet. What fun would life be if there were no surprises?" He winked at her impishly.

Against her will, Buffy felt herself flush again. She wished she had more experience with boys, but she had gone to an all girls' school until her dad had received the headmaster's position at Manchester Prep. Her lack of experience certainly hadn't helped her relationship with Parker. He had wanted to go much further than she was ready for. He couldn't understand that she wanted to be in love before she made love with him. Finally he had gotten tired of waiting and broke up with her. Buffy had even started thinking that she had made a mistake, that she should have given in to him, but her friends reassured her that she had made the right decision. Unfortunately for her, the rest of the school seemed to know about Buffy's decision as well, thanks to Parker. This train of thought led her to think of Spike. Why had someone who was widely known to be the high school equivalent to Casanova ask her out?

"You do know why Parker and I broke up, don't you?"

Spike seemed nonplussed by the abrupt question. "Yes, I know what happened with you and Parker."

"And?"

"And he was a fool." His piecing blue gaze never wavered and in that moment some of her resistance chipped away.

The waiter arrived with bread and a small pot interrupting the intense moment.

Spike set about spreading some of the contents of the pot on a piece of bread and offered it to Buffy.

"What is it?" She was all for trying new things, but she wanted to know what she was about to put in her mouth.

He gave her a warm smile. "It's French bread and lavender honey. It's a delicacy, the best honey you have ever tasted. Here-"

Buffy allowed Spike to feed her a piece of bread smeared in honey. Her eyes widened. "It's so good," she said around the bread reaching for another piece.

Spike laughed at her eagerness.

Lobster bisque soon followed, which was also delicious. While they ate, Buffy and Spike chatted about school and how much they were looking forward to the upcoming Easter Break.

When their meal arrived, Buffy looked at her entrée, her expression something akin to horror. "Um Spike, what did you order for me?"

"Foie gras, why?" Spike glanced up at Buffy and noticed that she had turned a delicate shade of green. "Is everything all right, pet?" he asked concernedly.

"I had a bad experience once with pâté," was all she could manage to get out. She covered her lips up with her napkin.

"I'm sorry, I should have asked you if it was something you would like before I ordered. I'll take care of this." He signaled to the waiter who immediately returned to his side. "Is filet mignon ok with you?"

She nodded mutely and Spike instructed the waiter to take away the offensive goose liver and return with the more palatable steak. Once the waiter had left, Spike said, "Buffy, I am really very sorry about that. I ordered it for you because it is one of my mother's favorites. Are you going to be ok?"

After a moment, Buffy found her voice. "Yeah, I think I will be fine, but I am going to go out on the terrace for some fresh air."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

"No, I won't be long." Buffy hurriedly left the table.

His cell phone started to ring.

"Hello."

"Screw her yet?" Angelus voice asked.

"I'm working on it."

"Loser."

"Later, Peaches." He hung up and Spike gave a little chuckle.

Buffy returned shortly looking much better, and grinned appreciatively at the delicious looking piece of red meat she found waiting for her. "This looks much better, thanks."

"Are you sure you're alright? We can leave if you want." Spike stood, and moved to hold Buffy's chair out for her, and watched her slide into her seat gracefully.

"No, the fresh air did me a world of good. I'm practically a new person," Buffy replied perkily, despite the fluttering she felt in her stomach due to Spike's close proximity.

The dinner went on without another hitch and all too soon it was getting close to Buffy's curfew.

As Spike was diving Buffy home, he kept glancing at her surreptitiously. The date had its ups and downs, but Spike felt certain he had impressed her; box seats at the Met, and a dinner that cost more that what a family of four would spend on groceries for a month. "So did you have a good time?" he asked, confident in what her answer would be.

Buffy turned and faced him. "Spike can you be honest with me? Did you even like the opera? I mean the singing and the costumes were amazing, but I don't know Italian and it was hard to follow the plot. Oh, and dinner, Spike really. I would have had just as much fun getting hotdogs from a vendor and sitting on a bench in Central Park," she offered, not unkindly. "You really didn't have to go to all this trouble. I'm just like every other sixteen year old, I like to have fun."

Spike looked dumbfounded for a moment and then let out an honest laugh. "Well, I guess I screwed up then. I thought this was sort of thing you would like. I just wanted us to get to know each other better. Forgive me?" He took his eyes of the road for a second and gave her the most soulful look she had ever received. Before she could even catch her breath, he had looked away.

Buffy was silent while she contemplated Spike's fate. "There is more to the both of us, I suspect, than meets the eye. I suppose I'll give you another chance on our next date." She smiled and looked straight ahead.

"Glad you see it that way, pet. You just saved me from trying to come up with another crazy stunt to get you to go out with me again."

"Just one condition, no more fancy places, Spike. Just you and me having fun, because I'm getting this feeling you haven't had that for a while." She looked over at him, but Spike didn't respond.

They had just pulled into the drive of Buffy's house. "I'll make it up to you. Our next date will be incredible," Spike promised. He made to get out of the car and walk Buffy to the door, but she stopped him.

"Spike, we won't be having anymore dates if my dad finds out. I can walk myself to the door."

Spike acquiesced.

"Well, it has certainly been interesting. See you at school."

"Ta, luv."

Spike groaned aloud once she was inside the house. That hadn't gone as he had planned. He didn't even get to first base with her tonight. At this rate he would be graduated and going to Harvard before she would let him under her skirts. He was really going to have to step up the soulful charm if he wanted to get this done before graduation.

* * *

The Bradbury Residence: Madison Ave

Spike entered his house and walked up the stairs, noticing Angelus' light was still on. He knocked on the door and entered to find Angelus reading a book.

Looking up from Les Liaisons Dangereuses Angelus commented leeringly, "So I guess you didn't nail her, since it's only eleven-thirty."

"Angelus, if it wasn't a challenge, it wouldn't be any fun. Plus, I laid in some good groundwork tonight. She's starting to buy that there really is a soulful, vulnerable man underneath my hard persona. Before you know it, she will be in my bed, screaming my name, much to the horror of her daddy dearest." Spike laughed mirthlessly. "Then after that I will be in my new penthouse screwing the finest women New York has to offer with a panoramic view of the city as my backdrop." He smiled at that thought.

"Not yet you won't, Spike. I have to see her on tape before I give you the

keys. By the way, your website is getting a lot of hits. Did the poor girl

even know you were taking pictures of her?" Angelus asked looking over at his laptop, which displayed a page entitled "Miss America Bares it All."

Spike cocked his head to the side and spoke with mock innocence. "Hmm, I don't think the judges will like that. I bet by the end of the week Cecily will be stripped of her crown." Throwing off the façade, he shrugged. "Oh well, nothing less than what the bitch deserved."

Angelus chuckled as he stood and moved to usher Spike out of his room. "I agree with you there, but anyways, I have company coming over and your presence hasn't been requested for this session. Goodnight, Spike."

Spike nodded and turned to step into the hallway. "Sweet dreams, Angelus. Don't make her scream too loud." He laughed, giving Angelus a little wink and closed the door.