Chapter 9
“Stop.”
There was another forceful tug on her hair and Buffy let out a growl. “Ow! Stop it!”
“Bah!”
“Bah?” She turned her head, hissing when the little fist never released her hair. With her eyes still closed, Buffy inhaled the clean scent of baby lotion as she opened the tiny, surprisingly powerful fingers.
“Argl!”
“Oh, I don’t think so, missy. You go argl someone else.”
“Gleb?”
“Yesterday, you didn’t say a word. Now,” Buffy opened her eyes and moved Joy’s fists to her sides, “now, you’re all full of backtalk and hair pulling.”
“Bah!”
“Sorry, I don’t speak garble-ty gook,” she said, rubbing her eyes. She sat up and groaned as her head throbbed.
“Geef argl!”
Buffy looked down and grabbed a tissue from the nightstand. “Don’t drool on the pillows. That’s gross,” she explained, dabbing Joy’s mouth. “I don’t drool on your pillows, do I? No, I didn’t think so. Okay, baby, I’ve gotta pee. Can I trust you to stay put for a minute?”
Joy giggled and Buffy took that as a yes. She ran into the bathroom, scared that her bladder might burst.
“God, no wonder he didn’t stick around.” As she looked in the mirror, she pulled at her bloodshot eyes, and tried to smooth her messy hair. “Least he wasn’t tempted to touch me…”
Saying her own whispered ‘bah,’ Buffy returned to Joy and scooped her into her arms.
“Aren’t you kinda cute today?” she said, admiring her daughter’s white wooly outfit. “You look just like a bunny—hey, you do know it’s Christmas, right? If you’re expecting a visit from the Easter Bunny tonight, you’re going to be very disappointed.”
“She’s not a bunny, she’s a lamb.”
“Bunny? Lamb? What’s the difference?”
“Lambs have smaller ears,” William answered, slipping a matching wooly cap—with ears—onto Joy’s head. “How’d you sleep?”
“Good, I think. Where’d you run off to?”
“What do you mean?”
“I woke up and you were gone. Joy was with me and you weren’t. Where’d you go?”
“I was with the twins,” he replied as if the answer were obvious. “I didn’t think you’d mind, and Joy usually stays with you when I’m with Jamie and Sarah. Want me to take Jo now?”
“No,” she mumbled stubbornly, holding the baby closer.
“Buffy—I don’t see why you’re upset.”
“I’m not upset. Did I say I was upset?”
“It doesn’t take much to figure it out. It’s the hangover, yes?”
“I have a headache.”
“Why don’t you get back to bed then? I can bring you some medicine, some coffee and a cup of ice--.”
“I don’t like coffee.”
“Yes, you do.”
“Um, no, I’ve never liked it.”
“Trust me, pet, you like it.”
“I don’t know…hey, why ice?” He seemed not to understand, giving her a blank look, so she continued. “Why would you bring me a cup of ice? If it’s for my coffee,” she snorted, “don’t bother.”
“I knew you shouldn’t have had the whole bottle.”
“You’re avoiding my question.”
“I am.”
“Why?”
“Because I shouldn’t have brought it up in the first place.”
Buffy narrowed her eyes, curious and annoyed that he was withholding answers from her. “William, when did you leave?”
“This morning?”
“Unless you left right after I fell asleep last night—you didn’t do that, did you?”
“No,” he answered slowly. “I got up around five.”
“Five? That is like in the middle of the night!”
“Not when the first showing of Sesame Street is at six.”
“God, can’t you record it?”
“We’ve tried. It’s like they’ve got a sixth sense. Big Bird’s on and they must watch.”
“You didn’t leave because I look hideous?”
“What?”
“Oh, don’t. Don’t try to spare me or anything. You won’t hurt my feelings. I didn’t shower yesterday and I drank too much. My eyes—God, they’re all red and with stupid bags under them. I’m sure that I smell bad--.”
“You don’t smell bad--.”
“Yes, I do, and I don’t blame you for being so eager to leave. I feel as disgusting as I look,” she said, not glancing at him, but keeping all her attention on Joy. She turned her against her chest and caressed her shoulders. “But some people still like me.”
“Buffy…”
“What?”
“This is why you’re mad?”
“I have a headache.”
“You think—fuck, never mind, nothing should surprise me anymore.”
“You shouldn’t swear so much. Kids can pick up the words and--.”
“Tell me about it. Jamie’s first word was ‘horseshit’.”
“Oh my God!” she cried, fighting the urge to protectively cover Joy’s ears with her hands. “That’s horrible! Please tell me that you’re kidding!”
“I am. Give me my baby before you burst her little eardrums.”
“That’s not funny. I was going to kick your ass, William!”
“What makes you think it would’ve been my fault?” he asked, his smirk never fading as he set Joy on the floor between them. She pulled herself up on wobbly legs and held on to the back of William’s knee. “You can be a regular potty mouth yourself, sunshine.”
“You’re a jerk.”
“Now that was Jamie’s second word.”
“And his first?”
“‘Daddy’ of course.”
“Oh, really? So his first word was really horseshit?”
“Oooo! Your words, they sting!”
“Yeah, that was pretty good, huh?”
“Very clever.” He chuckled, and Buffy laughed with him. She kept her eyes on his mouth, drawn to his smile. “I should wash your mouth out with soap, woman.”
“No way! You swear more than I do!”
“Who said it would have anything to do with swearing? You didn’t brush your teeth yesterday either.”
She opened her mouth to gasp and burst into giggles. “Shut up, you big brute! Don’t make me laugh, it makes my head hurt more!”
“You poor thing,” he purred. Before Buffy knew what was happening, he leaned forward to kiss her lips. Her giggles vanished, and she squeaked in surprise.
“Don’t kiss me back, and I’ll apologize. I’ll leave. I’ll lick my wounds and we’ll pretend this never happened.”
“I…I don’t want to crush my baby,” she responded lamely, nothing better to say coming to mind.
“I wouldn’t dream of crushing your baby. Come here…please?”
Buffy inched closer and felt tiny fingers dig into the sensitive skin behind her knee. “She’s, ah, got quite a grip.”
“She wants us together.”
“I can feel that. She’s not gonna rough me up if I refuse, right?”
“No. No, she won’t,”
He continued with a grin, but Buffy could tell that he was already trying to stomach his defeat. “Uh,” she said, pausing to chew her lower lip, “do you really want to kiss me?”
“I can’t imagine a time when I haven’t wanted to kiss you.”
“Oh, God,” she mumbled, heart pounding. With a weak nervous laugh, she self-consciously tugged on the hem of her nightgown. “William, you’re really good at making a girl feel special, uncomfortably special… but special.”
“Buffy--.”
“I just don’t think I can rush into this. I’ve rushed into relationships in the past and they didn’t turn out even slightly well. I know that you love me, b-but there’s more at stake here, so much more. You’re not just some guy that I want—uh, that I find attractive. We have kids. It’s bad enough to think I could hurt you, but add them into it all? God, I don’t think I can--.”
“Buffy, you won’t hurt me.”
“You can’t say that--.”
“Yes, I can. You will not hurt me.”
“William…but I don’t love you.”
His eye twitched. “So what?”
“So what?”
“Yes, that’s what I said. You don’t love me, so what? You think people only kiss those whom they love? Please! People snog bloody strangers and do a hell of a lot more than that to blokes that they only know on a first-name basis—hey, let’s take you and Finn for example. How’d you two lovebirds meet?”
“Let’s not,” she said, gathering that he knew exactly how she and Riley met—over drinks and cocktails, on a night that ended with them in bed and with Buffy certain that her new lover’s name was Roger. “Riley has nothing to do with this.”
“No, he doesn’t and that’s entirely my point. We’re talking about us here, Summers. Not Riley and not even the kids, just you and me.”
“Is this the part where you start talking about my high horse again?”
“It depends. Are you going to stand there, look me in the eye and tell me that you don’t want me?”
She blinked, shocked by his bluntness.
“Even if you did,” he continued, “I know you’d be lying. You want me and not just for my friendship.”
“Y-you don’t know that.”
“Yes, I do--.”
“Stop being so smug! God, William, right now kissing you is the last thing I want do!”
“Well, guess you’d better prove it to me, ‘cause I’m not buying it.” He kissed her lightly and brought her closer. “Don’t kiss me back,” he repeated carefully, “and I will apologize, Buffy.”
She opened her mouth and moaned, finding her lips captured for a third time. Having no desire to push him away, Buffy held on tight, and responded wholeheartedly to his hungry, demanding kiss.
***
[Reviews - 393]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | 
Chapter or Story
Has been viewed 4666 times
- Text Size +
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | Chapter or Story - Text Size +
Author's Chapter Notes:
Tell me what you think. ;) I really want to know. Enjoy and another chapter will be here for you Sunday night/early Monday morning.