Buffy gulped as she stood with her head craned up towards Spike. He flashed her a smirk before moving to place the suitcase up on the shelf for her. There was nothing said as he stared down at her hair flowing down her back. Buffy tried not to meet his gaze, so took up searching for something interesting about her bare feet.
She felt him lean closer to her, resting his arm against one of the shelves just above her head. Stupid closet space, Buffy cursed.
“Are you fancying your room pet?” he asked, hooking a finger under her chin to make her look him in the eye.
With a shaky nod Buffy spoke, “It’s very nice.” Yeah you don’t sound scared of him at all.
“Good. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to greet you when you first arrived. It’s just business was a buggering pain in the arse.” Spike moved in closer to stand right up against her and Buffy had to look straight up at him. He moved in to kiss her but Buffy quickly put a halt to that by ducking her head.
“Spike I’m still upset with what you did to me at the club.” Her voice wavered but it was still firm.
Giving her a curious stare, Spike got a mischievous glint in his eyes when he remembered what had happened between them. “Why is that pet?”
“Because...well...you took advantage of me.”
Spike chuckled before finally moving away and walking out of the closet. “As I remember pet, you didn’t stop me,” he said over his shoulder.
Buffy’s eyes widened and sparkled with a touch of anger. Stomping her foot she walked after him. “You said you’d wait!”
“No I said I’d wait till we slept together. Big difference pet.”
His words just seemed to make her angrier. “You are an asshole.” She poked him with her finger in the chest. “Yes, an asshole. That’s what you are.” Good going Summers, you sure sound tough. Buffy shook her taunting voice in her head away. “You...you knew very well that you did take advantage of me.” She tried not to be affected by the fact that with almost every sentence she spoke he was stepping closer to her. “You were just-“ She never finished her statement because he suddenly pulled her to him and kissed her passionately. Being so caught off guard Buffy allowed him to guide her backwards until they both fell on top of her bed with Spike hovering above her, hands braced on either side of her head.
Spike smiled internally to himself when she kissed him back with the same amount of intensity as he did. Her arms tightened around his neck and unconsciously she rubbed her leg against his crotch, eliciting a moan against her cherry flavored lips.
Realizing what had just happened with a jolt, Buffy shoved Spike off her and darted from the bed, just barely dodging that arm of his that tried to stop her.
“You can’t just kiss me to make it all better Spike! I’m not some five year-old with a cut,” Buffy yelled at him. She was getting so frustrated with the way he was handling things. Just kissing her at random moments while she was talking. To Buffy, it seemed like he was only doing that to shut her up and it was really starting to piss her off. Truth be told, she knew she was angrier with herself for kissing him back but never would she let Spike know that.
“Sure is bloody acting like one,” Spike muttered under his breath, but it was loud enough for both to hear. Dead silence filled the room and Spike instantly regretted his words at the hurt look on her face. Before he could stop her, she walked towards the bathroom, intent on putting some form of distance between them. Even if that form of distance was a thick, wooden, locked, bathroom door. “Buffy,” Spike called after her but she did not stop. The sound of the bathroom door slamming in his face echoed throughout the bedroom, followed by the sound of the lock clicking into place. “Buffy...pet,” Spike coaxed through the door. Smart move, mate. Way to bollix all of it up first thing. He definitely did not plan this. Maybe a little teasing banter between them but certainly not something that could drive her to lock herself in the bathroom. Just another moment where Spike had placed his foot in his mouth. “Luv, please open the door.”
“I’m not your luv!” He heard her yell.
“Please pet. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.”
“Well then why’d you say it?” Buffy challenged. Quietly she moved around the bathroom touching up her make-up. She was not truly mad at Spike; she just wanted him to think that she was. It was about time he finally apologized for something. And, Buffy was willing to let him sweat it out in order to get a proper apology.
“Because I’m a ponce. Are you happy? I admitted it. I am sorry. Please kitten I do not want to do this through a door.”
“Well...you should have thought about that before saying that mean comment. Hell you would not even be apologizing if you hadn’t.” Buffy tried to hold in a mischievous fit of giggles that were threatening to burst out.
“Pet just open the damn door.”
Buffy’s defiant reply of course came. “No! Not by the hair of my chinny chin-chin.”
“Then I’ll huff and I’ll puff until I bloody kick this door down.”
Surprisingly it was getting more playful now. Nothing was said for a minute as Buffy contemplated whether he would or would not really kick the door down.
“You wouldn’t.”
“Try me.” His voice had just as much challenging venom as any of her defiant remarks to him. Spike didn’t know it yet, but the woman always seemed to be able to get him angry in under five minutes, more so than any other asshole bastard that Spike did business with.
“Ow.” She heard her complain followed by a clattering noise of things dropping in what sounded like the sink. His heart seemed to freeze, fearing she was hurt.
“Buffy Summers you have to open the bloody door now!”
“No,” Buffy yelled back. “I just poked my eye with my eyeliner.”
Spike was practically scratching at the door. “Let me look at it.”
“Spike I’m fine. God!” Nothing else was heard on the other side of the bathroom. Finally, the sound of the lock unlocking reverberated in the stiffening silence. Before Buffy could open the door herself, Spike turned the handle and pushed it open so fast Buffy barely had a chance to dodge out of the way. She stood there with one eye half closed with tears of pain running down from the eye, wearing her summer dress, barefooted. Spike eyed the eyeliner stick in the sink with a few other make-up items. “Really I’m fine. I just have to flush my eye out.”
Without saying anything, Spike stepped closer to her, placing his hands on her hips. Buffy struggled, thinking he was trying to kiss her again until she found herself being lifted off the ground and placed to sit on the bathroom counter. He grabbed a wad of toilet paper and placed it under the faucet to dampen it. First he wiped away her tears with his thumb. Gently he placed the wet tissues on her hurt eye and began to wash away the black of her eye make-up. His hands holding her head felt soft and gentle on her skin as he brushed away any water that dripped down her cheek. Buffy watched as he tended to her eye and she noticed the caring look in his eyes as he focused intently on it. She gasped at how gentle he was now seeming compared to before. He continued to run damp cloth on the underside of her eye, being careful not to poke her in the process.
“I’m still upset with you,” Buffy warned.
“I know.” Spike still kept washing away the black.
Buffy sighed. “How are we ever going to get along if we can’t even be in the same room without fighting?”
“We were doing well until you stopped our bloody kisses kitten.”
Buffy let out another frustrated growl. “The whole point of that argument is because you keep kissing me like you can.”
If Spike was able to hold onto his own frustration, it certainly wasn’t going to happen now. He slammed his hand down on the counter of the bathroom sink, enough to startle Buffy and make her jump. “God damn it! How many times do I have to tell you Buffy! You. Are. Mine. As my mistress I can kiss you whenever I bloody damn well please.” Buffy found both his hands placed on either side of her waist, trapping her. “You better be glad I’m even treating you right. Hell pet you could be finding that I could treat you like any other of the whores from the numerous prostitute rings I own.”
Buffy gulped down the lump that was caught in her throat. Again, she had pushed him too far and Buffy now found herself regretting her words and the need to defy him. His eyes were cold, staring icily at her and his jaw was clenching tightly. Why oh why do I have to always open my mouth.
Buffy honestly hadn’t meant to piss him off but she was getting tired of him constantly just interrupting and kissing her. However, Spike was right. She was his and he had every right to kiss her, hell do even more if he wanted. She could hate the situation as much as she wanted but it wouldn’t change anything at all. She would still be Spike’s but with the way this was going, she’d have a pissed off Spike on her hands. Best to just cooperate as best as you can.
Seeing the fear in her eyes, Spike eased away and tried to control his anger. “I understand that you hate my bloody guts. However, you have to understand that you were part of mafia family before you were even born. Yes, it is horrible to put you through this pet but there is nothing else that could come about. Your father would do this deal with Finn and O’Connor if I were the bad guy. And there pet, in those hands you’d really be screwed. Now I suggest you decide whether you want to be willing or fighting.” He leaned down to kiss her on the forehead and walked out of the bathroom, leaving her sitting on the counter feeling confused at his ever-changing moods that she always seemed to encounter.
Spike sat on the edge of the couch with elbows resting on his knees and his hands holding his chin up. He had been sitting that way since he had left Buffy in the bathroom to think over everything ten minutes ago. Since then he hadn’t heard a peep out of her or any kind of movement in the bathroom. He ran his hands through his hair and let out a sigh. Things had really screwed up and he didn’t even have the chance to give her a proper welcoming.
The woman who he had left in the bathroom just seemed to trigger every emotion in Spike and it was damn infuriating. Here he was, trying to ease her into a new situation and she just kept rejecting him at every possible chance. Faith had been right, she was tight legged. It would probably take a bloody miracle for her to even allow him to touch her and at first Spike was willing to wait. However, after three days had gone by and what had played out between them just now... Spike was becoming impatient.
Three years ago, Spike had waited just like this. Waiting for the woman he loved and was devoted to, to express the same feelings he had for her to him. Waiting for her to tell him that she loved him. It never came and instead she had metaphorically twisted a knife in Spike’s heart and gut, leaving him colder, broken hearted, and frustrated. Since then Spike had never let a woman get close to him again. Used the prostitutes that he practically owned to satisfy the itch that he couldn’t scratch. In truth it wasn’t that he couldn’t trust them. No, it was because he couldn’t trust himself. It was known to everyone that William Spike Giles was love’s bitch and he would always treat the woman that he cared for right and proper. And sadly it was the best way to try and hurt him. If he allowed a woman to get close to him again, he could be stabbed in the back, yet again.
So why now? Why was he allowing himself to try and woo Buffy Summers, trying just what he had been doing three years ago again? Setting himself up to fail and end up broken hearted? Spike couldn’t risk trying to get his head all caught up in this romance love rot especially if there was a chance that two other gangs were planning to take his family down. You know why, you git. Spike told himself as he buried his face into the palms of his hands. Because every time you look at her, you know she’s worth it.
“Spike...” Slowly Spike looked up from his hands to stare at her. Her hair was now tied in a loose ponytail that grazed her shoulders. She stood with her hands behind her back and her head bent down looking at her bare feet. Yes, she was definitely worth it.
“What!” Spike wanted to punch himself at how harsh his voice had come out and how she had jumped out of fear. She is fragile. He had already scared her from her constant sharp remarks and constant broken record of no’s. “I’m sorry pet. I didn’t mean to make it sound so harsh.”
She simply nodded. “I just wanted to say ....it’s just...you were right. I hate the situation I am in and you were right that it could be worse. I’m sorry.”
Spike felt floored. Was she actually apologizing? Sure, he had expected her to come out here with just a cold defiant look and also expected her to go on with her day. Nevertheless, never in his wildest dreams did he think she would apologize. A part of him felt like bragging that he had won this battle but another side wanted to kick his own ass for making her act this way. She didn’t have that look of independence and cold stare that just seemed to excite him. Instead she looked lonely and scared. Spike got up and walked across the room to pull her close to him. Surprisingly she went willingly and actually laid her head against his chest.
“Pet, it’s okay. I got angry when I shouldn’t have. You have to understand that things can’t change now. I promise I won’t try and treat you like a possession but you have to also try and not bring out that anger in me. Right?” He looked down at her, raising her chin to look up at him as well. She nodded hesitantly and he knew she was questioning herself on whether or not she could actually do that. “Okay. Go put your shoes on, I’m going to show you around the house.”
“Alright, hold on.” She pulled out of his arms and went to the closet. Spike waited a couple minutes before she came back out with her shoes now adorning her feet.
Buffy and Spike stepped off the small elevator on the third floor. It looked similar to the fourth floor with just more doors. The ride on the elevator had been silent, leaving Buffy feeling uncomfortable and thinking Spike was still upset with her. He kept clenching his jaw the whole time and she remembered he did that when he was angry. Buffy knew she would never understand Spike Giles where his quick, volatile moods were concerned.
“Ok pet, this here is my office. It’s the first door on the left. Most likely you’ll find me in there a lot.” Spike placed his hand on the small of her back and led her down the hall. “The rest of the rooms are my men's room. Some, like one of my guys Xander lives here along with his wife.”
Buffy nodded, staring at the variety of different, closed doors. “Do they have to pay rent? Or something?”
“No... they live here for free along with meals. Hell they have it made. Free meals and board along with a weekly wage. Though this is only for my top men. The ones you’ll be likely to see every day.” He saw the worry on her face grew. Buffy felt uneasy at the thought of meeting his men. Would they be nice to her or simply treat her as their boss’ whore. “Don’t worry Buffy. I run a tight ship here. No one is going to have a chance to treat you like that. And if anyone does please tell me.” Buffy sighed, relieved that he had read her mind and nodded her head. His eyes held a gentle, tender look in them as they bore down into hers and Buffy had to look away in order to keep herself composed.
Quietly she followed him down the staircase onto the second floor which was much more busy with people than the third and fourth. Spike pointed to a hallway to his left. “This is where the servant rooms are. At the end of the hallway you’ll find another staircase that leads down to the kitchen.” Spike walked towards the opposite hall on his right. “There, mostly a bunch of my men’s offices. Like Wesley, Gunn, Xander, Andrew and a few others. Now follow me.” Buffy did as she was told and followed Spike down the long hallway with the different doors that Buffy guessed to be the men’s offices. Various pieces of paintings hung on the walls. All that could be heard were their footsteps against the marble floor that echoed throughout the hall. Spike stopped at a door suddenly, causing Buffy to bump into him, and startling her from her assessment of her surroundings. “Buffy, I want you to understand that you are never to be in this room. Not unless I bring you in here. Not even my men should bring you here. Understand?”
Buffy squeaked out a yes. “What’s in there?” she asked as her curiosity took the better of her.
“Nothing that concerns your pretty little head about, kitten. The less you know, the better.” Spike suddenly took hold of her hand in his, surprising Buffy and began to lead her back towards the staircase. Another long moment of silence went between them as they descended onto the ground floor of the house.
For another ten minutes Buffy followed Spike as he showed her the kitchen, the front living room, and another study until they came upon a set of French glass doors that had curtains on the other side, shielding the view from the side where Buffy and Spike stood.
“What is this room?” Buffy pointed to the closed doors.
Spike smiled and moved to open the door. “I have a feeling you’re going to really like this room.” Buffy gave him a look, her brows coming up to knit together in a confusing manner, but didn’t question any further as he opened the doors and stepped aside to allow her to walk in first. Hesitantly Buffy walked into the room but once she did she stopped and gasped. Oh my goodness... Buffy thought as she took in her surroundings. Her very large surroundings.
It was a library that was absolutely humungous. Three times as large if not more than her father’s at the Summers Mansion. It was a large circular room with tall glass windows that went up all the way to the ceiling on one side, bringing in a large amount of light during the day. The rest of the walls were covered with shelves. And the shelves themselves were filled to the brim with books alone. Buffy looked up to find that the whole room ascended up as high as the entire house that was made up of four stories. Around the wall, there were three other balconies that looked like they came from each floor of the house and its walls too were covered with shelves. Buffy had never seen so many books except in a public library and she found herself speechless. In the center of the room was an assortment of couches and chairs, complete with a fire place against one wall.
“Whoa...” It was all Buffy could find herself to say. She heard Spike chuckle and felt him come to stand behind her, looking around the place himself.
“Yeah I know. What can I say pet, I love to read and this place is filled with people who sometimes might enjoy a book or two once in a while. Do you like it?” Spike asked, whispering into her ear.
Buffy nodded her head. “It’s...huge!”
“Well I am known for liking big things. Suits me well.” Buffy turned to see a smug smile on his face and he waggled his eyebrows at her in a suggestive manner. Buffy turned away, feeling a large blush creeping up from her neck.
“Pig,” Buffy shot out.
Spike wrapped his arms around her from behind and chuckled yet again into her ear. “Oink oink, pet.” Buffy felt her anger began to flare at his innuendo but she kept a lid on it. “Now. Each floor has a door that leads to this room. You can go to any except for the second. That one is just filled with records on accounts that would bore you to tears. Though trust me pet I’ll be very suspicious if I or anyone finds that you have been snooping through them.” His voice took hold of the same serious tone he had used to talk to her about the room he didn’t want her to go near. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity that was starting to overwhelm her but Buffy hid it well. “Now each floor has different things. This one is basic fiction. Consists of all types. The third is more towards history with a wide range of biographies, and the fourth contains very old, rare books.”
“Will I be able to come here whenever I like?” Buffy asked, now looking back at Spike. She absolutely loved reading. In her father’s library she had read almost every book twice. It was the next best thing she loved to do if she wasn’t occupied with ballet.
“Yes. As much as you like.” Spike felt his heart swell at her smile that broke out as her excitement of exploring the large house library became apparent.
Maybe this place isn‘t so bad after all. She thought as she took one last look at the library before following Spike back out into the hall.
They continued walking down the hall towards the back of the house and Buffy noticed she heard loud clanking and buzzing sounds that sounded as if there was construction going on. “Are you having something built?” Buffy asked, trying to pinpoint where the sounds were coming from exactly.
“Yes,” Spike replied simply and Buffy looked at him, silently waiting for him to elaborate much more on what he was actually having built.
“Well?” Buffy finally asked, feeling impatient.
“You’ll see in a week and a half pet.” Out of the corner of her eye Buffy could see the smirk return as they continued to tour the house, leaving Buffy rather confused on what he meant.
A/N: Like it? I just wanted to say...think of the library as the library from the Disney’s Beauty and the Beast....that big....okay maybe a little smaller but you get the idea. Before you all ask me if the woman from his past, three years ago is Drusilla...no it’s not. Drusilla is playing Spike’s sister in this. It’s not a big spoiler but you’re likely to find out anyway. And no, Buffy is not giving into Spike and fully obeying him. More will be explained in the next chapter on what she had thought during her time in the bathroom alone after Spike had left. But trust me there will be more fighting between the lovable blondes in the future.
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