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Chapter 16


“I’ll call you when it’s over, okay?”

“Okay,” Buffy said from the other end of the phone. It had been a week
since that first night of reconnecting. A week of nights spent making
love and waking up satisfied and happy. Now Spike was back in L.A. for the
premiere of his new movie. Initially, he’d wanted Buffy to attend with
him and then decided against it when he realized the paparazzi would start
stalking her house. It would happen eventually, but Spike felt it best to hold
off for a while.

“I’ve gotta go, I’m almost there, but I’ll talk to you soon, okay?”

“Okay.”

After they hung up, Buffy began making dinner. An hour later, she was
sitting at the island in the kitchen, reading a magazine, waiting for
her casserole to finish baking when she heard Caitlyn.

“Mommy, mommy! Uncle Spike’s on TV!”

Buffy ran into the living room and smiled at the man on the screen. He
was dressed in an expensive tux and waving to his adoring fans from his
position on the red carpet. Buffy turned up the volume to hear the reporter’s
commentary and felt the smile drop from her lips as she went to sit
next to her daughter.

“It seems that after a self-imposed hiatus, Spike Hawthorne is once
again mainstream news as it looks like he and co-star Drusilla Bennett are
getting hot and heavy both on and off the screen.”

Buffy watched in shock as a beautiful, tall brunette came into focus,
standing next to Spike, and he snaked an arm around her slender waist,
pulling her closer to his body. Buffy listened as the reporter kept talking.

“Ms. Bennett has always enjoyed a flirtation with her sexy co-star and
recently told me that she would love to take things to the next level,
if he was willing and able. It looks like they are.”

Buffy felt tears flood to her eyes as Spike whispered something softly in her ear, and the brunette laughed before turning and giving him a passionate kiss. Her stomach clenched, and Buffy took several deep breaths to calm her nerves.

“Mommy, why is he kissing that lady?”

“I don’t know, Caity, I think he’s just saying hello to a friend. Go
wash your hands for dinner.”

Buffy turned off the TV and headed for the kitchen as the phone rang.
Wiping away tears as she ran for it, Buffy snatched up the receiver.

“Hello.”

“Buffy, it’s Anya. We have a big problem. The guy that was supposed
to do the show at the gallery this weekend just called and said he can’t
leave New York until Friday night.”

“We have to set everything up by Saturday morning.”

“I know. He said he would send someone else with all the work, but all
his people are working on other things, and he refuses to ship it without
someone else accompanying.”

“Wonderful,” Buffy said sarcastically. “Let me call my mom and see
what I can work out. Can you work the rest of the week?”

“Sure.”

“Okay, I’ll get back to you.”

Buffy quickly hung up and fixed Caitlyn a plate for supper before grabbing the cordless and dialing her mother’s number. Explaining the situation as she ran through the house gathering clothes and bags, she arranged to drop Caitlyn off on her way to the airport. Quickly packing for herself and her daughter, Buffy called information and had them connect her to ticket sales. Booking a flight for eleven o’clock that night, she ran back
downstairs.

“Okay, Caity, you’re going to go visit Grandma while mommy goes to get
some
things for work.”

“Yay!”

“Go make sure mommy got everything, and then we need to leave.”

Buffy quickly cleaned the kitchen, made sure all the appliances were
turned off, and headed for the front door. Grabbing her cell phone, she
realized the battery was going to die and grabbed the charger for it.

‘Oh well,’ she thought. ‘Guess I won’t be talking to Spike after all.
I’m not sure I want to after that lovely show he put on with his co-star.’

Switching off the phone, Buffy threw it in her purse and grabbed her keys.
Making a quick run out to the car to load their luggage, Buffy went back in
the house.

“Come on, Caity,” she called as her daughter appeared at the top of the
stairs, clutching the teddy bear Spike had won for her at the fair.

“Who’s going to feed Goldie?”

Sighing, Buffy jogged up the stairs to get the goldfish. Coming back
down, she quickly ushered her daughter out to the car, careful not to spill
the water. She instructed Caitlyn to get in the car as she walked next door.
After making quick arrangements for her neighbor to feed the fish for
the remainder of the week, Buffy crossed the yard and hopped into the car.

“We all ready to go, baby?”

“Yep,” she said, still hanging on to the bear.


* * * * *

Buffy barely made it to the plane before take off. Now as she was
sitting in her cramped seat, sipping her coffee, she let her mind wander. The
kiss Spike had shared with his co-star had looked so adoring. She knew that
he cared for her, but what if Buffy was the other woman in the scenario?
The thought had never entered her mind since Spike stayed in Sunnydale for
so long, but now that she thought about it, it started to make more sense.
Her heart felt heavy as she ran the same situation through her mind until
she fell into a troubled sleep.


* * * * *


Buffy made her way through JFK airport after collecting her bags. She
didn’t feel one hundred percent safe at this late hour in a strange
city, but she didn’t dwell on it. After catching a cab, Buffy gave the
driver directions to the hotel her mother always stayed in. Joyce had been
kind enough to call and make a reservation for her while Buffy was making
the drive from Sunnydale to Los Angeles.

As the cab pulled up in front of the large hotel, Buffy stepped from
the car. Once she paid and gathered her luggage, she quickly made it
through the check-in process and was shown to her suite. It was a beautiful
room with a living room and kitchenette. A bedroom door was off to the left,
and straight ahead was a wall of windows, complete with a sliding door and
a huge balcony.

Buffy made her way out to the balcony and stood there, staring at the
city. She felt drained from her long night, and aside from her calm exterior,
she was an emotional wreck from seeing the man that she was falling in love
with kissing another woman. A woman Buffy felt inferior to in every way.

Buffy decided to head to her bedroom and not worry about it for the
rest of the night, even though that was easier said than done. Closing the
balcony door, she grabbed her purse and pulled out the cell phone and charger.
Once it was plugged in, Buffy decided she didn’t want it turned on. She had
enough to deal with tonight without listening to Spike’s excuses. She had
briefly told her mom what had happened, but it had been no help since
she had to run and catch her flight.

* * * * *

Spike was getting worried. He had been trying Buffy’s house and cell
for the past few hours, and there was no answer on either. Finally, he
dialed Joyce’s number and was relieved to at least hear her voice.

“Joyce, it’s Spike. Listen, I’m in town, and I told Buffy I’d call her
tonight, but I can’t get her on either phone.”

“That’s because she’s not there, Spike.”

“Well, where is she?”

“She had an emergency at work.”

“So I should try her at the gallery?”

“No, she’s not there.”

“Joyce, why won’t you tell me where she is?”

“Because, William, you hurt my baby girl.”

“And how on earth did I manage that from a different city?”

“Have you ever heard of this thing called a television? It transfers
all these pretty pictures from one place to another, and when something big
happens in the entertainment industry, it’s big news. Like for
instance, two co-stars making out in front of the cameras.”

“Bloody hell,” Spike muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Joyce,
tell me she didn’t see that.”

“Now, Spike, my daughter’s not stupid. She took what she saw at face
value, had a work emergency, and dropped Caitlyn off with me.”

“So she didn’t care?”

“Now, did I say that? No. What I said was, she took it at face value.”

“But you said Caitlyn’s with you, so she’s here.”

“Spike, I don’t think she wants you to know where she is right now,”
Joyce said with a heavy sigh.

“Joyce, please. What you saw…it-it wasn’t what it looked like. Please
tell me where she is so I can explain.”

“She’s in New York.”

“New York! What the bloody hell is she doing in New York?”

“I told you, she had a-“

“A work emergency, right,” he said, cutting her off.

“That’s right. Good night, Spike.”

Disconnecting the phone, Spike put his head in his hands. “You really
bollocksed this up, you wanker.”





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