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“Good morning,” Buffy said sweetly as she entered the kitchen. Her smile didn’t even fade when she took in the powdered donut Dawn was having for breakfast or the sugary mess scattered over the countertop.



“Morning,” Dawn replied dropping what was left of her donut in the trash. She grabbed the dishcloth from the sink and began to clean up the traces of sugar she had left behind. The mess wasn’t all that horrible, but she was already in enough trouble. There was no reason to give her sister any more reason to yell at her. After they had come inside, Buffy had refused to say anything to her, giving her that disapproving glare of hers while they had prepared for bed. The air had been so thick, Dawn had found it hard to breathe, and almost brought up the topic of her evening’s excursion herself before she came to her senses. The last thing she needed was to blow up and reveal Spike’s secret in the heat of the moment, no matter how much she thought Buffy deserved to know the truth.



Buffy didn’t look overly angry this morning as she sat down on the far side of the counter watching her clean up. She was dressed—not that she didn’t get dressed in the morning. Being the Slayer, Buffy never had been much of a morning person, and since Spike’s departure, her morning attire usually consisted of sweats or pj’s. Today, she was wearing a black leather skirt falling to just below the knee, a full white blouse that showed peaks of skin through the slits running down the material of the arms, and a rather attractive pair of black boots that Dawn reminded herself she’d have to borrow later.



Dawn tossed the cloth back into the sink and leaned against the counter waiting for the lecture she knew was coming. Instead of launching into the ‘101 Reasons Sunnydale isn’t Safe” speech, Buffy continued to sit there with a small smile on her face as she absently fingered the tiny pink, heart-shaped pendant dangling from her throat on a delicate gold chain. It must have been new. Dawn had borrowed most of her sister’s jewelry at one time or another, and she didn’t remember seeing this little trinket in the Slayer’s collection.



“New necklace?” she asked figuring it was probably the safest topic at the moment.



“Yeah, just got it this morning,” Buffy replied reaching for the box of donuts in the center of the counter and pulling out a chocolate covered pastry.



“Did I miss something?” she asked. “Did they open an all night jewelry store?”



“Actually, I found it on my pillow this morning,” she admitted twisting the chain about her index finger.



“You found it on you pillow?’ the girl repeated. Her forehead creased in confusion. Had Spike been there last night? They hadn’t lifted his invitation over the summer, so he could come and go as he pleased. He had denied giving her the flowers, but who else would have given her the necklace? If it had been this new guy she’d been seeing, he would have just handed it to her. “Someone was in your room last night?”



“It was probably Ryan,” she told her sister, the dreamy smile not leaving her lips at the thought of someone sneaking around their house. “He’s so thoughtful with the flowers, now this…”



“And it doesn’t bother you that he broke into our house to give it to you?” Dawn pointed out.



“Ryan wouldn’t do anything like that!” Would he? He was a consultant, worked in an office—at least, she thought he worked in an office, he hadn’t really said. Consultants didn’t break into houses. “He probably just slipped it into my pocket, and it fell out on my pillow when I took off my jacket.”



Dawn ran her fingers through her long locks as she shot her sister a look of disbelief. You’d think as many times as she’d gotten burned, Buffy would be a little more cautious when it came to relationships. “And you didn’t notice? Slayer senses on vacation or something?”



“Well, I was a little sidetracked,” Buffy replied smiling at the memories of the previous night. “He could have done it while we were kissing or…”



“Okay,” she cut in, “no need for sharing. Got enough of a mental picture here, but come on Buffy, do you really think Ryan gave you that? You’ve only known him a couple of days. That looks awfully pricey.”



“Dawn, you act like you don’t like Ryan,” Buffy’s dreamy look faded into one of suspicion.



“Don’t like him?” the girl sighed. “I don’t even know him! The only time that you ever see him is in the cemetery. Doesn’t it bother you that he never comes to the house, hasn’t met your friends?”



Her sister did have a point. It was almost like they were sneaking around, and she already knew how well things turned out when your tried to hide things.



“Well, I think tonight is a good night.”



“What?” Dawn’s brow creased a little deeper.



“Ryan can have dinner with us,” she replied happily. “It’ll give you a chance to meet him. You’ll like him as much as I do once you get to know him. It’ll be great.”



“Yeah, great,” Dawn sighed. There was no point in arguing with her. Buffy was definitely smitten. Maybe she was wrong about the guy. It was possible that Ryan was just a normal guy who actually did like her older sister. Then again, with Buffy’s track record, maybe she should be prepared for the worst. “It’ll be great. Um, I have to go out.”



“Where?” A flicker of suspicion marred the Slayer’s happy expression.



“To the mall—with Janice,” she added a little too quickly. “I promised her I’d meet her there. I’ll be back in plenty of time for dinner, promise.”



“Okay,” Buffy muttered turning her attention back to her new pendant as the younger girl left the room. “Just stay out of the cemetery.”





****





“Come on, you have to go!” Dawn pleaded with the blond vampire parked in his usual spot in his ragged old chair in front of the television.



“I don’t have to go anywhere, Bit,” Spike told her not bothering to look up from his show. “Big sis doesn’t want me interrupting her little dinner party, and I don’t want her to know that I’m back in town.”



Dawn walked around the chair and planted herself between the stubborn vamp and the TV. A grumble of protest rose from the vampire’s chest as he was forced to face the teenager.



“I didn’t say you had to come in for cocoa,” she snapped, “but you need to be there. I can’t take Ryan on by myself, and Buffy’s too lovesick to help…”



“Niblet,” Spike sighed, “don’t you think you’re being a little paranoid? Maybe this Ryan is just a regular bloke…”



“Because Buffy always hooks up with Mr. Normal,” she reminded him, “and normal guys always hang out in cemeteries and break into their girlfriend’s house to leave presents in her bedroom.”



“He left her a present?”



“On her pillow,” Dawn reiterated. “Not that you would care. We’re having a potential psycho for dinner, but why should you care if we’re mutilated, tied up and sacrificed to some grotesque demon…”



“Bloody hell,” Spike cut her off. “I’ll go. I’ll only come in if there’s trouble, mind you.”





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