Author's Chapter Notes:
I'm very interested in what you think of this chapter. I hope you enjoy it.
Part III

Spike was mindlessly flipping through television channels when the fresh, seductive scents left over from Buffy’s bath filled his nostrils. Inhaling deeply, he turned his head just in time to see her emerge from the bathroom in a short pink robe. Though Spike was determined to give Buffy all the time and space that she needed after breaking up with Angel, he couldn’t control his wandering eyes. He hungrily swept up and down her body, studying each inch of her exposed skin.

“I’m not going to dry my hair,” she announced, plopping on the other full bed amongst the pile of suitcases. “I’m not in the mood and I’d like to go in the pool later. I bought this new bikini, and it has the cutest pattern.” As she spoke, Buffy squeezed a thick cream into her palms and smoothed it over her arms, legs, and feet. “I want to wear it at least once before we go home. It’s white and--.”

“White?”

“Yeah, and it has these colorful little stars… It is so cute. I know you’ll love it.”

“I’m sure…but white? Won’t it be transparent once it gets wet? Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“God, Will. Could you sound any more like my mother?”

“Joyce has always seemed like an awfully smart lady to me. Buffy, you’re not exactly a natural blonde--.”

“Whoa, and how would you know that?”

“I’ve seen your dark roots. On your head,” he added, rolling his eyes. “You know very well that I haven’t seen them anywhere else. I don’t think anyone has been that lucky,” he joked.

“Yeah, well, I don’t understand how seeing me naked could make anyone lucky. It sure as hell didn’t do Angel any good.”

“What? Sorry, but I must’ve misunderstood. For a second I thought you were saying that Angel’s seen you without any clothes on, and that’s ridiculous, right?”

“Will, let’s talk about something else,” she answered briskly. “You’ll go in the pool with me, won’t you? You can protect me as I parade around in my see-through bikini. You can stand in the shallow end, or—oh, we can go in the hot tub! I love hot tubs. I don’t think it would be possible for even you to drown in one of those. Of course we’ll have to pick you up a suit from somewhere… I wonder how long that mall stays open. Gosh, it’s already four and it’s a Sunday. Maybe I should get dressed, what do you think?”

“I think—,” he paused, growing more and more suspicious of Buffy’s anxious behavior. “Have you had sex with him?”

She froze, and her eyes grew wide. “Oh my God, Will. That’s…that’s not very polite.”

“Just answer the question.”

“No.”

“No? No, you haven’t, or--.”

“William, don’t do this. All it will do is start a fight, and that’s the last thing I want. It’s not worth it,” she whispered, looking as uncomfortable as Spike felt. “I hate to say this, but what I have or haven’t done with Angel is really none of your business.”

Spike blinked, instantly drawing his own conclusions. Silently, he clicked off the TV and placed the remote on the nightstand. He clutched the edge of the bed, trying to collect his cool as his heart ached and his stomach felt sick. He ignored Buffy as she sympathetically called his name. His body became rigid once the mattress sagged and she sat next to him.

“I never wanted you to get hurt…”

“You’ve always wanted me close, Buffy, but never that close. We were together for three years. You always told me you wanted to wait. You should’ve mentioned that you wanted to wait until after we broke up to have sex.”

“William--.”

“Did you lie to me?” he croaked, struggling to keep his voice even. “Did you have no intention of sleeping with me? Were you just stringing me along until you found someone that you really wanted?”

“You can’t believe a word of that. You can’t—hey, hey, look at me.” Tenderly cupping his face, she tried to turn his head. When he refused to cooperate, she hid her hands in her lap. ”Don’t be like this, please Spike.”

“Just go get dressed. You won’t see me hitchhiking my way down the interstate, but I’d rather be alone right now.”

“Spike, Angel and I, we--.”

“Oh please, spare me the bloody details, unless you’d like to be reintroduced to my lunch.”

“Are you feeling sick?” Warily, she touched the back of her palm to his forehead. ”God, you’re burning up. Is there something that I can do for you? If you have an upset stomach, I-I have some medicine--.”

“I don’t need any medicine. I’m fine.”

“What did you eat today? I can’t remember anything too weird, but you should rest. Just for a minute. You’ve been up for a long time. Your face is as white as a sheet.”

“Buffy…” He groaned as she nudged him back, gently forcing him against the bed pillows. “This isn’t necessary. I’m not sick. It’s just the jealousy, alright? It’s killing me. Even with Angel in the picture, I—damn it, pet, I’ve always thought we’d be together for our first time.”

“I’ve always thought so too…”

“Guess we were both proved wrong then.”

“It just…happened…”

“I’m sure.”

“Things fell apart. Everything was crazy. Angel was there for me. He was so supportive and--.”

“Right,” Spike mumbled, turning his head to stare blankly at the corner of the hotel room. “I’m sure you couldn’t resist.”

“Actually, I--.”

“Buffy, please.”

“Oh. You don’t want to hear about…sorry,” she muttered, biting her lower lip. “I’m sorry.”

“You moved on, I should’ve taken the hint.”

“But--.”

“It’s alright. I understand. Sure, my feelings are smarting a bit, but the painful, gut-wrenching jealousy should ease up at sometime or another.”

Buffy opened her mouth, and closed it, deciding not to speak. She climbed over Spike’s legs as gracefully as possible and settled close to his side. Touching his forehead, she checked his temperature again before giving him a kiss. Her lips lingered on his mouth until Spike gave in to temptation and allowed the kiss to deepen. He ached to surrender wholly to the gesture, but held back as Angel continued to invade his thoughts.

“Don’t be jealous,” Buffy pleaded softly. “I love you.”

“I love you too, but I’m beginning to think that it doesn’t matter. I could tell you that I love you until I’m blue in the face and it wouldn’t do me any good.”

“What? What do you mean by that?” She stared at him, her mouth curved in a deep frown. “William, I broke up with Angel for a reason.”

“Yes, and it was entirely my fault, but I’m going to make that up to you. I’ve already called him, he didn’t pick up, but I left him a message. I explained everything, and I’m sure that you and your boyfriend will be reunited in no time.”

“Spike, I…thank you,” she mumbled after a pause. “That must’ve been a difficult call for you to make.”

“I got through it.”

They sat in an awkward silence until Buffy cleared her throat. “I should go get dressed.”

“Buffy?” Spike called before she could disappear into the bathroom. “Don’t beat yourself up over a few meaningless kisses, alright? There’s a difference between kissing someone out of lust, and then out of, well, pity--.”

“Meaningless?”

“I know you were just trying to make me feel better, and…I appreciate that.”

“William, I kissed you, because I wanted to, because I—do I really have to explain myself?”

“A few hours ago, you were in tears over losing Angel. You made it very clear that you wanted to patch things up with him. And,” he continued, standing on his feet, “I think the sooner that happens, the better it’ll be for all of us. In fact, I’m going to head down to the lobby now, and I’ll try to get a hold of him again. You can have the room to yourself while you change, and I’ll meet you downstairs when you’re ready, alright?”

“Spike…are we okay? Are you—you aren’t trying to avoid me, are you?”

“We’re fine,” he answered, forcing a smile. “Like I said earlier, I’d just like to be alone for a minute or two. But we’re fine, pet, I mean it.” To prove his point, he walked over to pull Buffy against his chest in a hug. “We’re great. See?”

“Well, if you say so,” she sighed, squeezing him tight. “I’ll be down in ten minutes, fifteen at the most.”
***

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Forty minutes later, after driving to the mall and finding it closed, Spike entered Wal-Mart with Buffy trailing at his heels.

“Will, I could’ve moved a lot faster. I could’ve--.”

“Hey, it’s not a big deal. Besides, when you think about it, it makes more sense to come here anyway. Thank you,” he said, receiving a shopping cart from the greeter near the entrance of the super center. “Alright, pet, where should we head to first?”

“Do you want to stick together? I mean, if you still want to be alone, we can shop separately, on separate sides of the store.”

“Now, Buffy--.”

“Or not,” she added with a shrug. “We can start with clothes and work our way from there. I’m not sure what all you need to buy.”

“Well, I haven’t put that much thought into it really, but I can’t imagine needing a hell of a lot for just the drive home. I’m not high-maintenance like some people.”

“Ha, aren’t you funny. So,” Buffy continued once they reached the men’s clothing department, “I’m guessing that I should just skim all the racks for black, right? It’s not like you wear actual colors anymore.”

“You can never go wrong with black.”

“You wore a plaid shirt to our first date. Of course, that was before you wanted to be called Spike, but I remember thinking that you looked unbelievably attractive.”

“Oh, is that right?”

“Yeah,” she said, pushing a white t-shirt against his chest. “See, this? You’d look really hot in this.”

“But it’s too small.”

“I know.”

Spike raised one brow, and watched as Buffy thumbed through a line of swimming trunks.

“You don’t really need to buy these, you know,” she said, dropping a dark colored pair into the cart. “You don’t swim, so it’d be a waste of money--.”

“I could always use a new suit.”

“You don’t have to buy something just to make me happy.”

“Please. Like I’d do that.” Trying to look as casual as possible, he tossed the white t-shirt into the cart.

“So, you’re getting the shirt that I picked out because…? Will, you’re going to have to help me out here.”

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with a little change. Especially now, I need all the potential hotness that I can get.”

“Why do you say that?”

“I’ve never been too fond of the dating scene…”

“The dating what now?”

“I should at least try, shouldn’t I? The first break up-make up solidifies things. If—well, when you and Angel get back together, and with the college coming up—you know what I mean, right?”

“You want to look hot for all the sexed up, I’m-away-from-my-parents-for-the-first-time-therefore-I-instantly-become-a-hussy college girls?”

“So, you’re looking forward to them as well?”

“No,” Buffy mumbled in response to his teasing. “But what goes around, comes around, I guess.”

“Buffy, what--.”

“Nothing. Do you need jeans? You could always wear the ones that you have on twice. A shirt from here, I can handle, but jeans? That’s traveling a little too close to lame territory for me. Don’t you need a toothbrush? Let’s head this way,” she said, turning on her heel.

With a silent nod, Spike followed her through the store.
***

“Are you sure you want to eat here?”

“Positive,” Buffy answered, walking through the door that Spike held open. She placed their shopping bags on top of her suitcases before sitting on the other bed in the hotel room.

“We didn’t drive by anyplace that looked good?”

“I can’t have anymore fast food, or I’ll bust.”

“Who said anything about fast food? We saw a lot of nice restaurants. What kind of food are you in the mood for?”

“The kind that you order from a telephone and it shows up fifteen minutes later, delivered right to that door.”

“I wanted to take you somewhere nice--.”

“This hotel is nice, why should the food here be any different? Come here,” she said, patting the spot next to her. “Look at the menu, we can split something. Would you mind if we did that?”

“Not at all. I’ve been eating for two all day.”

“Hey, I get full easily and I hate to waste food. Since we’re on the road and all, it’s not like I can get a doggie bag.”

“Yeah, who needs a doggie when you can shove everything down my throat…”

“Spike—William, that made absolutely no sense,” she laughed, playfully knocking into his side. “I’d like something green and leafy, how about you?”

“Order whatever you want, I’m not too hard to please.” He sat quietly as she placed their order. Once she put down the receiver, he noticed that her eyes went directly to her cell phone. “It’s rude when people fail to return your calls, isn’t it?”

“It’s frustrating. I’m starting to wonder if I should be worried, but he’s never been good with cell phones. He hates them, he leaves them in random places, and a lot of the times, he can’t even figure out how to check his voicemail.”

“Sounds like your Angel is quite the brainy type, hmmm?”

“At least with you, I’d know to be worried. If you were in Angel’s shoes, you would’ve called me on the phone seconds after I hung up. You’d be upset, you’d demand an explanation, you’d try to change my mind—God, you’d do something to make me feel as if you cared if I were in your life or not.

“Not everyone can be like me, I’m a one of a kind, you know.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” she answered, grinning softly. “I just want the closure. I have to talk to him before I can move on.”

“Move on?”

“After a very insightful bubble bath and our…conversation, I’ve decided that you won’t be the only one reentering the single scene.”

“You want to be single? What about Angel? Why-why didn’t you say something about this earlier?”

“You wouldn’t have believed me. You seemed so hell-bent to get me back with Angel, I didn’t want to disappoint you.”

“But you—you don’t want him now?”

“I told you that I broke up with him for a reason.”

“What does that mean? What was your reason? It wasn’t me?”

“William, I can’t stop thinking about you. I know Angel’s not like you, and I’ve tried to convince myself that that’s okay, that it’s a good thing, but I can’t stop comparing you two. And I’m not sure if I’m doing it because you’re just my first boyfriend, or if we’re destined to be together, but--.”

“Can I place my vote on the latter of the two?”

“But,” she continued, her close-lipped smile growing, “I know that it’s not fair to Angel and that it makes me a horrible girlfriend. Angel doesn’t deserve a girlfriend like me.”

“But why be single? If you feel that way about me…”

“I wasn’t sure if you were still interested. The way you acted after finding out about me and Angel…the way you talked about college girls… I was thinking that maybe since I’ve slept with somebody else that maybe I wasn’t as appealing to you anymore.”

“Buffy--.”

“You said that when I kissed you it was meaningless. You said the way that we felt about each other didn’t matter. I thought it was safe to assume that since I--.”

“You’re wrong.”

“But I hurt you.”

“I’ll get over it—consider me over it.”

“Like it could be that easy--.”

“Why can’t it be? I’m in love with you, Buffy. Sure I’m a jealous bastard, but I’m not completely stupid. If I had you back, baby…hell, I wouldn’t give a damn about what you did with Angel.”

“You’re lying.”

“Well, I’d try, alright? I’d make a bloody good attempt. And if you dated someone else, I bet you’d do the same thing; you’d compare him to me.”

“Because we’re meant to be together…”

“Pet, if you can’t stop thinking about me--.”

“I miss you.”

“You don’t have to be missing me, kitten.”

“But wouldn’t it be wrong? I’ve been single for just a few hours.”

“I love you.”

“I know.” Their lips barely touched, but Buffy pulled back once Spike placed his hand over hers.

“Buffy? Is something wrong?”

“Did you hear something?”

Spike just shook his head, unable to hear anything over the pounding of his own nervous heart.

“There it is again, I knew I heard a knock. I bet it’s our food.”

“Oh, you’re right. I’ll get it. Bloody bastards,” Spike grumbled while unlocking the door. “Bloody bastards and their bloody bad timing, I ought to—Joyce? W-what are you doing here?”

“Spike?” Buffy called. “You have enough for the tip, right? If not, I have a few—mom?”

“Buffy Anne Summers, you are in so much trouble. I want you out of that hotel room this instant.”

“Mom, I can--.”

“Now, young lady.”

Buffy stepped out from behind Spike with her head held as high as possible. “I told you that I didn’t want to go to camp. I told that I--.”

“Are you okay?” Joyce asked, pulling her in for a tight embrace. “I was on my way to surprise you, but you weren’t at camp. Before I could completely panic, William called me, and he--.”

“He did what?”

“I can’t believe you left the camp with your father’s money, Buffy.”

“I—mom, it’s all back on the card. I haven’t spent much. Spike’s going to pay for our room.”

“H-how’d you find us?” Spike asked, once the women broke apart. “I told you that I was bringing her home, but I never told you where we were.”

“You used a phone from the hotel. I read off the number from my caller id and called it back for the address.”

“Oh…shit.”

“When did he call you?”

“When you were in the bath,” he answered with a sympathetic grin. “I knew you wouldn’t remember with all mess that’s going on, so I called and forgot to tell you.”

“Is there anyone that you haven’t called today?”

“I didn’t want her to worry…”

“It was the right thing to do,” Joyce said. She smiled at Spike and stepped forward to hug him as well. “It almost makes me think twice before punishing you two.”

“What?”

“Just because you’re both eighteen—or close to it, Buffy—that doesn’t mean you can get away with murder. You’re still under my roof until you move into the dorms. And William, I’m not your mother, but I’m sure we can negotiate a punishment that will be suitable for everyone.”

“Wait, we negotiate punishments now?” Buffy asked. “I think I like this adulthood thing--.”

“I wouldn’t say that so soon, young lady.”
***

“Well, that was…surprisingly painless.”

“Yeah, thanks to you.” Buffy smiled and Spike smiled back as they ate their dinner. “Can I steal your croutons? Would you mind?”

“Has my minding ever stopped you before?”

“Jerk,” Buffy teased, briefly sticking out her tongue before picking at his plate. Under the table, her bare feet snuck up the edges of his pant leg. “I thought it’d be more like the time she caught us in my room, do you remember that? Now, that was terrible.”

“Do I remember? Buffy, I didn’t kiss you within twenty feet of your house for a fucking year after that.”

“I was just fifteen; we had the door locked.”

“She didn’t even see what we were doing.”

“Thank God,” Buffy laughed. “Right after that she rehashed the entire birds and the bees deal. She was convinced that I’d be pregnant before I turned sixteen.”

“Little did she know, right?”

Her eyes narrowed and she lightly kicked his leg. “Are we really going to bring this up? Again?”

“You started it.”

“I can’t believe you thought for even a second that could stop wanting you. I’ve always wanted you.”

“Really now? I’ve never noticed.”

“Spike, you can’t be serious.”

“We dated for three years, pet--.”

“Yeah, and during those three years, I wanted you.”

“But you never did anything about it.”

Buffy sat quietly for a moment. “I guess not.”

“You could do something about it now, you know,” Spike suggested carefully.

“Could I? And how could I do that? It’s not like we could just go at it right now on this table, my mom is going to come back at any minute.”

“You could kiss me.”

“Could I?” Buffy repeated with an amused shimmer in her eye. “I don’t know; you kind of smell like salad dressing.”

“Kiss me, Buffy.”

“Okay...” she whispered. Their lips meet and neither of them tried to keep the kiss soft. It deepened in no time and desperate moans filled Spike’s ears. Like a woman who had been denied water for days, she drank him in with passionate kiss after passionate kiss. And Spike kept up with her every step of the way.

“Buffy,” he gasped. “Come here.”

In flash, she was across the small table and in his lap. “I wanted to sleep with you,” she relieved between kisses. “I wanted to marry you.”

“Buffy…you what?”

“Excuse me?” Their heads spun around to find Joyce in the doorway. “What did you just say?”

“N-nothing,” Buffy replied, slipping guiltily out of Spike’s chair. “Mom, it didn’t take you long to get another hotel room…”

“No.” Joyce cleared her throat and placed her purse on the foot of the bed. “I could only get a room on the first floor. It’s right next to the pool.”

“Really? Spike and I were planning on going down there tonight--.”

“Don’t you think that you and Spike have spent enough time together today?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I think Spike should take the room downstairs.”

“But--.”

“We’ll share this one. It’d be for the best, don’t you think? How about you, William, don’t you want a room all to yourself?”

“I…I guess…”

“Mom--.”

“Because you can survive a few hours without him, Buffy. He will be here in the morning.”

“This isn’t fair. You can’t keep him from me--.”

“Pet,” Spike interrupted softly. “It’s alright.”

“But you bought a swimming suit—mom, he--.”

“There are plenty of pools in Sunnydale. You can swim together at the community pool once we get home.”

“Can I…can’t I at least walk him to his room?”

“I think it’d be better if he just went. You’ve already kissed him goodnight…and then some.”

Buffy stared at her mom and then looked back at Spike, who could only shrug. “Well, don’t forget your shopping bags.” She walked him to the door and kissed his cheek before he stepped into the hallway. “I’ll see you as soon as I can,” she whispered. “Have your suit ready.”
***

To be continued…





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