"Weekend Getaway" - Part 1 NC17
Yippi!!! It's seems I'm done with the drama - this was so much more fun to write
Summary:The gang takes a much needed break from the horrors of Sunnydale. . .
Timeline: This is AU; Buffy is 20 and in college.
Prologue
Giles rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time as Xander started singing off-key in the backseat. As expected, Willow immediately started whining. “He’s doing it again. Can’t you guys tell him to stop!?”
Wearily, both Buffy and Giles responded in tired voices. “Xander, stop the singing.”
Xander sat up with the most innocent smile from the back seat. “What? I’m just singing softly along with my disc-man. What’s the big deal?”
Giles ground his teeth together. He responded as calmly as he could. “Because you are just doing it to aggravate Willow, that’s why. And frankly, it is bothering us as well, so knock it off!”
Xander grumbled slightly before he answered. “Oh, alright.”
A few minutes passed in blissful silence, but Giles knew it would be too good to last. The whole trip had been like this. Their two-hour ride from Sunnydale had been a non-stop trial in patience, beginning five miles outside the city limits. He had pictured a pleasurable ride to the coast, where they had rented a beach house for a long weekend. Instead he felt like he was the chauffeur of a school bus full of devils’ spawn on the way to hell.
There had been endless requests for bathroom breaks and various other needless pit stops. Xander had almost made a vein pop in Giles’ head from his constant fiddling with the radio.
Thankfully, Buffy had come to his rescue. She made Xander trade places with her, and mercifully lowered the volume. However, as soon as Xander moved into the backseat with Willow, another kind of hell was released.
It seemed like both Xander and Willow had been reduced to acting like a couple of seven-year-olds. They spent the entire ride trying to annoy the hell out of each other. And the rest of the group, as well. Buffy and Tara had tried to calm them down, but it had been futile.
Buffy explained to Giles that this was normal Willow and Xander car behaviour. Every now and then they would regress, particularly at times like this, when it was something that they’d both missed out on when they were kids. Had Giles not had a splitting headache from their petty fighting he would have found that information touching.
He watched in the rear view mirror as Xander stretched his arm along the back of the seat, inching his way to Willow’s ear. Willow testily told him to move or lose the arm, but Xander just gave her a ‘who me?’ look.
As soon as Willow looked away he flicked her neck, and Willow immediately started yelling. “Xander, stop it or I’ll-!”
Before Giles had the chance to open his mouth, Buffy turned from the front seat and snapped. “Cut it out!!”
Xander immediately protested. “I didn’t do anything! The car jumped and my hand, that was leisurely resting on the back of the seat, jarred into Willow. It was an accident.”
At this point, Giles had had enough. "NOBODY TOUCH EACH OTHER! NOBODY SING! NO NOOKIES OR WET WILLIES! JUST SIT STILL AND BE QUIET!!!!"
The car went dead silent, and Willow and Xander huddled up like scorned children, sending wounded looks at the fun-stealing villains in the front seat.
There was a short silence until Anya said matter-of-factly. “I think you mean noogies, Giles. nookie is sex.”
“Yes, thank you, Anya.” Giles ground out between clenched teeth as he heard several unsuccessfully muffled giggles.
He released the death grip he had on the steering wheel and glanced quickly at Buffy. Her head was turned away, and he could clearly see she was trying to prevent herself from laughing. He, too, had to smother a laugh. He turned his head away abruptly so she would not meet his eyes and went back to focusing on the road.
Fifteen minutes later Willow’s excited voice shattered the silence of the car. “We’re here! We’re here!” Giles flinched from the strength of her voice and blew out a breath of relief as the van came to a standstill outside the beach house.
He shared a relieved smile with Buffy, who rolled her eyes in return as Willow and Xander scuffed each other back and forth to be the first one out the door of the van. Anya and Tara followed more amicably, while both Buffy and Giles remained motionless, revelling in the silence of the car.
Buffy’s smile disappeared when she saw Giles close his eyes and pinch the bridge of his nose. She placed a hand on his knee and asked, in a worried voice, “Giles, are you ok? You got a headache?”
Giles dropped his hand to hers and squeezed her hand, while leaning his head back as he looked at her with an exasperated glare.
“Bloody hell! Headache does not begin to describe the pain. Those were the two longest hours of my life. Promise me you won’t make me drive them home?”
Buffy giggled as she heard the whiny plea and gave him a sympathetic smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll make Xander drive. That way we will have him and Willow separated. That should help.”
Giles’ mood lightened immediately and he patted her hand affectionately. “Good, good, I always knew you were a smart girl.”
With a final smile, he removed the keys from the ignition, opened the door, and stepped out as he spoke over is shoulder. “Let’s retrieve the bags and find the others. Who knows what damage they’ve accomplished by now?”
The door shut, and Buffy watched his retreating form with a thoughtful expression. She wondered how he would react if he knew how she felt about him. Would he still touch her that way? Carefree touches, she knew, meant nothing to him. But they meant the world to her. Would it be awkward between them, or would he be flattered, and then let her down gently? She shuddered at the idea, and decided that there was no way was she ever going to let him know that she had fallen in love with him.
She jumped as Giles appeared by the passenger side and opened her door.
“Coming?”
Snapping out of her thoughts, she nodded and jumped down from her seat. She picked up a bag and followed him towards the beach house.
As soon as they had all settled in, they gathered for lunch, and the events of the car ride became a distant memory. When lunch was finished, they all settled down on the porch to get some sun.
Chapter 1
Giles gulped and burrowed further into his book as Buffy passed in front of him, clad only in a bikini and sarong. This was the third time in the last fifteen minutes that she had made the trip past him to retrieve something from inside, and he found it harder and harder not to look.
He thought he was used to Buffy’s lack of clothing. He had somehow managed to restrict his thoughts when they worked out. Not only out of respect for her; it would have made training unbearable and useless if he could not be professional about it. Particularly because he had no plans on acting on his feelings for her. He had become pretty damn good at hiding all of his feelings, if he could say so himself.
But, being at the beach house was a different matter. The warm breeze and smell of the sea reminded him of lazy summer vacations. The usual restraints on his thoughts had snapped as soon as she stepped out on the porch, looking like a beach goddess.
With a sigh, he tried to focus on the words in front of him while he prayed that Buffy would sit down and stay down when she returned. Or better yet, he hoped she’d stay inside the remainder of the day.
Lost in thought, he jumped when his book was suddenly nabbed out of his hands. He found himself incapable of speech when he saw Buffy standing right in front of him, studying the front cover. Her body was so close to his. He willed his hands to stay still.
As he watched her studying the front cover of the book, he knew he was in trouble. In the midst of his despair to find something to distract his thoughts from her, he’d forgotten about the deal he made with Buffy a few days ago.
“Giles!” Buffy exclaimed. “We said NO research books!”
“Actually,” he attempted cautiously, “I distinctly remember YOU saying no research books were allowed. I didn’t actually agree.” Just as he expected, she glared down at him with a look that could kill.
“No. . . ” she drawled. “I said the condition for this trip was that no research books were allowed, and after some grumbling you said fine. That sounds like agreeing to me, don’t you agree Anya?”
Anya, who had been reading Cosmopolitan, nodded her head intently. She tilted her head to read something on the page in front of her, then continued. “I was there Giles, she’s right.”
As Buffy settled down in her lounge chair, Giles whined. “But then I have nothing to read. How am I going to pass time?”
Anya immediately threw the Cosmopolitan at him. “Here. There’s a very interesting article on how to give women orgasms.”
Completely oblivious to Giles’ ”deer-caught-in-headlights” look, she moved to the empty chair next to him, picked up the magazine, and flipped through the pages to locate the article, explaining, “Like you probably know, orgasm doesn't always come easily for women. We are more complicated than men - which is in no way meant to put men down. On the contrary, men have a gift of being able to focus, and in bed, it's a real bonus.”
Xander, who meant to intervene, snapped his mouth shut and leaned closer with an interested expression. Willow, Tara and Buffy all froze. They were completely unable to prevent this train wreck of a conversation from happening.
Anya continued to leaf through the magazine. “Women, on the other hand, are able to, and usually do, think about several things at once. We use both lobes more when thinking and problem solving. Men usually don’t and this may be one of the reasons men are better able to focus.”
Buffy looked at Giles, who hadn’t said a word. His face was blushed, and it was as if he couldn’t believe what was happening. Buffy held back a laugh and decided to sit back and watch.
Anya finally found the page and read out loud. “Throughout history, women have been required to do many things at once--hold an infant, cook a meal, watch out for a three year old, and talk to girlfriends and grandmothers. It was part of survival. Whereas the man, as the hunter, had to be pretty focused. He could not admire the flowers along the path to finding dinner. The survival of his family, and the tribe, depended on his ability to bring home the protein.”
By now Giles’ hand was pinching the bridge of his nose again, while Tara and Willow had their heads burrowed in their hands in mortification. Xander was listening intently.
“These attributes go to bed with us, too. While a man is able to focus on sex, the woman is thinking of many things at once - can the kids hear, does he love me, he's touching my fat, are my breasts large enough, do I smell good, is my hair or makeup mussed, am I sexy enough, when is this orgasm going to arrive? Most women will verify that, at least occasionally, this is what goes on in their heads in the middle of having sex. It's not that she's not interested, it's just a habit from her daily life.”
As Giles’ hand clamped down on the page, Anya was forced to stop reading and looked up at him. “Oh yeah, it’s probably best if you read it yourself. Anyway, this article is all about how men can improve their techniques in order to give their women orgasms by using their ability to focus.”
Buffy held her breath in anticipation as she waited for Giles’ response. Even Willow and Tara removed their hands from their face and looked expectantly towards Giles. Stutter central ahead!
His response shocked them all. He ground out between clenched teeth. “I have enough confidence in myself to do without, thank you very much.”
Giles realised that the others had all been listening and looked around with a blush. He hadn’t really meant to say that out loud, but for once he felt like shutting Anya up.
Willow, Tara and Xander all looked at him with stunned expressions. While Buffy was smiling at him with a rather surprised expression. Stunned, and something else he couldn’t put his finger on. As he tried to search a little deeper, he was distracted by Anya’s hand on his arm.
“But that’s great Giles. I always suspected you knew what you were doing in bed. Still waters run deep you know. Can you maybe teach Xander some of these skills you have?”
Buffy, who’d been watching Giles while sultry imagery ran through her thoughts, decided it was time to rescue Giles, as his jaw dropped.
“Wow,” she exclaimed in a loud voice. “I’m burning up! It’s time for a swim. Giles? Wanna come?” Giles’ eyes snapped to hers, and as she ran her words though her mind she blushed furiously. “Swimming, I mean!”
Willow started to laugh hysterically, and Buffy hung her head in mortification. Xander gulped audibly, and Tara started giggling.
Giles shook his head as if he couldn’t believe the entire conversation and rose abruptly. He grabbed his towel off his chair and headed down the porch stairs from the porch towards the beach without a word.
Buffy looked at the others with a warning look, silently telling them to not say a word, and rushed after him.
***
She caught up with him half way down to the beach. His hands were jammed into his swim trunks, the towel draped around his neck, and his eyes were downcast. She didn’t know what to say so she walked silently beside him, casting worried glances at his face.
When she saw his mouth started to twitch, she struggled to keep herself from laughing out loud. Giles glanced at her and their eyes met, both eyes threatening to spill with laughter.
“Bloody priceless I tell you,” he said in a dry voice. Buffy started to laugh and Giles rolled his eyes with good humour.
“Oh my god, Giles,” she choked out between laughs. “I am SO sorry. Sometimes I think I shouldn’t be allowed to speak.”
Giles chuckled. “At this moment, I have to say I agree.”
She punched his arm playfully and ran ahead of him. “Come on, last person in the water has to do tonight’s dishes.”
Giles chased her down and ran into her as she suddenly stopped as they reached the beach. Both tumbled down into the sand, and when they stopped rolling, Giles found himself nestled between her legs, his chest pressed to hers, and his mouth mere millimetres from hers. Both were breathing heavily, and he felt her hot breath against his lips.
He scrambled to get off her before he did something he would regret and gave her his hand to help her up.
“What ever possessed you to stop?” he asked as his heart hammered inside his chest.
Buffy brushed off sand from her clothes, avoiding his eyes. “It’s just so beautiful down here, and it took my breath away. I forgot you were right behind me.”
Giles grinned and kicked off his beach sandals. “This bodes badly for your Slayer reputation.”
Buffy stuck her tongue out at him and dropped her sarong. “I’ll pretend my Watcher did not say that.” Fast as lightening she took off towards the surf.
Giles’ eyes followed her, mouth gaping. God she was truly stunning, and he ached to feel her skin under his hands. With a light shake of his head, he decided to get into the water before she noticed what she did to him.
Chapter 2
Buffy yawned and glanced at the clock next to the couch. It was 3 am, and she hadn’t been able to sleep a wink.
Xander and Anya, along with Willow and Tara, occupied the two bedrooms on the second floor. Giles was asleep in the guestroom on the first floor, while Buffy slept on the pullout couch in the living room. The living room that was situated directly underneath the lovers’ bedrooms. The couch was too short for Giles, and after much arguing he had agreed to let her take it. Now, she regretted being so persistent about it.
As another giggle and then a thump drifted though the floor, Buffy blew out an exasperated breath and punched her pillow. Jesus! How long were they going to keep it going? It had been going on for hours, and it was driving her insane. The fact that she didn’t have anyone to keep her up half the night had probably noting to do with her bad mood. No, not at all.
She heard another groan, and this time she chucked the pillow across the room as she sat up. That was it! She had to find somewhere else to sleep.
The beach house wasn’t that big, and she really didn’t feel like sleeping in the bathtub, so with a determined mind she walked down the hall towards Giles’ bedroom. She quietly opened the door, and saw Giles, seemingly deep asleep, on the right side of the bed. His head was buried in the pillow, and she was amazed he could even breathe.
She tiptoed lightly to the other side of the bed and crawled in.
“Giles?” she whispered. He didn’t move and she tried again. “Giles? I’m just gonna sleep here okay? There’s too much noise coming from upstairs and I can’t sleep in the living room.”
He didn’t even move. She lay down next to him and tried his name again a little louder. “Giles?”
She was scared out of her wits when he suddenly wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close to his body. He buried his nose in her neck. She was speechless.
“Mmmm?” he answered, half asleep. He tangled his legs with hers and started placing hot open-mouthed kisses on her neck. She eeped loudly at the unexpected gesture, and his whole body froze.
“Buffy?” he strangled out and lifted his head from her neck, squinting at her with unfocused eyes.
“Hi!” she answered breathlessly.
Apparently not realising that he was lying tangled with her, he continued to stare. “What are you doing here?”
Buffy blushed. “The others are making so much noise upstairs and it’s directly over the living room and I couldn’t sleep.”
Giles brow furrowed. “What do you mean nois-?“ He abruptly stopped and avoided her eyes. “Oh . . . noise.”
Suddenly realising his position he pulled away abruptly and almost fell of the bed. Buffy grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back. Right smack into her. Both scrambled to get away from each other, and Buffy giggled nervously.
“Sorry, Giles. I tried to wake you, to let you know I was here, but you refused to wake up.”
Giles noticed she left out how she came to be in his arms, but considering his dreams, he had a pretty good idea what he’d done. He was mortified, but she didn’t seem angry. He thought apologizing would only make matters worse.
“Ah . . . sorry about that. I’m usually a light sleeper, but, sometimes I . . . ah . . .” He didn’t know what to say and just stopped. Buffy scooted a little bit closer and his breath caught.
“Can I sleep here?” she asked in a timid voice.
“Yes, yes, of course.” He answered. He lay down on his side, facing her. “I understand, not a problem.” He closed his eyes and tried to distract himself from the heat of her body and the smell of her shampoo.
Neither said a word for some time, but he could tell she wasn’t asleep. His body tensed when he felt her shift. Her hand touched his arm, and his heartbeat increased.
“Giles? Can I? Ah . . . is it ok if . . ?”
He opened his eyes and found her face close to his. “Can you what?” he asked breathlessly.
She lifted his arm and snuggled into his chest. “Can you just hold me? It’s been so long since someone has held me.”
Her voice was shaking, and fear clutched her stomach as she waited for his response. The need to be touched by him was overwhelming, and she was unable to resist. It took a few seconds before he responded, but then his arms closed around her.
“Of course, Buffy.” He murmured into her hair.
He felt her breath wash against his bare chest in relief, and he started to run his hand through her hair, thanking every god he could think of for this moment of utter bliss. He willed his body to not react, and just held her tightly as she slipped into sleep. He was fairly uncertain that he’d get any sleep at all tonight.
****
When morning came Buffy woke at the sounds of their friends’ happy chatter outside the door. She cuddled closer to the warmth surrounding her, until she realised it was Giles’ arms that were proving the heat.
She studied his sleeping face, and felt an overwhelming urge to press her lips to his. Before she did anything that she’d regret she started to pull away. Giles protested in his sleep and tightened his arms. She gasped, realising he was probably dreaming.
She decided to wake him before he did something he’d regret, no matter how much she whished for it to happen. One of her hands ran down his chest, marvelling in the feel of his skin, and then she pinched his side and began to tickle him.
Giles woke with a yelp. He grabbed the offending hand, opened his eyes and found Buffy looking at him with an impish smile. He growled and rolled her onto her back and straddled her, pinning her hands under his knees, as he returned the favour with both of his hands.
She laughed loudly and used her strength to tip him off. Both clung to each other as they rolled around on the bed, and in no time Buffy had him on his back while he pressed her close so she couldn’t get to his sides. Once again they found their mouths close, and both were breathing heavily as they stared into each other’s eyes. Without thinking she leaned down to merge her mouth with his. But she heard Xander’s voice through the door and pulled away just as her lips were about to connect with his.
“Giles? What is going on in there?”
Buffy jumped out of bed and opened the door. Xander peered into the room with a questioning look. Buffy put on what she hoped was a bland expression.
“Nothing. I tried waking Giles up, but he’s such a sound sleeper that I needed to go in. It took some time, but it looks like he’s up now.”
Giles had to hold back a grin as he thought about the truth of that statement. A few seconds more, and he was pretty sure he would be more than just up. It had looked like Buffy had been moving in to kiss him, but as he studied her face as she stood in the doorway, he figured he was wrong. She looked at him like nothing had just happened, and he quenched his disappointment.
Xander gave them both a searching look, and then shrugged his shoulders. “Ok, I just came to let you guys know it’s breakfast in half an hour, so I figured you should get ready.”
Buffy nodded and with a last glance at Giles she headed for the bathroom.
****
Half an hour later breakfast was ready. Buffy went inside to search for Giles. She heard the shower running, and knocked on the bathroom door. When she got no answer, she opened the door a crack and yelled into the room that was thick with steam. “Giles! Breakfast is ready!”
Giles jumped in the shower and clung to the shower rod to keep himself upright. “Buffy!” he yelled in an angry voice. “Can you give me some privacy?!”
Buffy’s face fell due at his annoyed voice, slammed the door in anger and stalked out of the house.
Giles swore loudly and grabbed his towel. He draped it around his waist before hurrying after her. Ignoring the startled looks from the others seated at the breakfast table, he ran outside and caught up with Buffy on the lawn.
He grabbed her shoulder, spun her around and pulled her into his chest.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he whispered against her ear. After a few seconds he felt her arms circle his waist.
Both were oblivious to the stares from the breakfast table.
“Look at G-man”, Xander said in surprise. “Who knew he was capable of PDAs? Especially half naked. Will wonders never cease?”
Giles tightened his arms as his hands rubbed Buffy’s back soothingly.
“I didn’t mean to yell at you, Buffy. I was startled that’s all. I don’t usually get interrupted while taking a shower.” He smiled against her hair. He felt Buffy giggle against his chest, and he lifted his head to look at her. He let a hand stroke her cheek.
“I am truly sorry, dear. I just seem to be incapable of relaxing here. Not really used to being on vacation. I took that frustration out on you.”
She nodded understandingly. “I know what you mean. I can’t really seem to relax either.” She decided not to mention the fact that *he* was the reason for that. Waking up in his arms, and then having a potential kiss interrupted had left her in a crappy mood, and she realised she had overreacted.
“I overreacted, too, Giles. Don’t worry.” She gave him a quick squeeze.
“Why don’t the two of us take the day off together, head down to the beach and try to relax?” Giles nodded and stroked her cheek once again.
“I would love to,” he murmured. Buffy smiled and both headed back to the house.
***
An hour later they found themselves on an almost deserted beach. The sun was blazing down on them both, and they wasted no time shedding their clothes, leaving them only in their swimming suits. As they headed towards the water, Buffy tried to trip Giles, but he skilfully avoided her advances. He grabbed her around the waist, threw her over his shoulder, and sprinted towards the shore.
“Giles!” Buffy giggled, and he chuckled as he threw her into the surf. She shrieked and came up looking like a drowned cat. He doubled over laughing, and she immediately swiped his feet under him. He went tumbling into the water.
When he came back up, a full-blown water fight ensued, until a large wave caught Buffy off guard and slammed her into him. His arms tightened around her while he struggled to maintain his balance. When he was stable he found himself with an arm full of Buffy, her body flush against his. The air grew thick between them, and both stared into each others’ eyes.
“Who would have thought, huh? The Slayer and the Watcher almost brought to their knees by a wave.” Buffy said in a mere whisper. Giles’ eyes shifted from her eyes to her mouth, as he responded.
“Yes, who would have thought?” He took one searching look into her eyes, and then whispered in a gruff voice. “Tell me I’m not imagining things.”
Buffy took a deep breath. She circled his waist with her legs and pressed closer.
“You’re not imagining things,” she replied, then pressed her lips to his.
Chapter 3
It started out innocent, easy and playful. Their lips touched carefully, learning the shapes of their mouths. Her lips were warm and soft, and Giles let his fingers tangle into her hair so he could hold her head while he savoured her taste. He suspected even heaven couldn’t taste better. Their bathing suits were the only remaining barrier between them. For now it was enough to feel her lips against his, her palms on his back, her legs snug around his waist.
His lips travelled from her lips over her cheek, below her ear, and down her neck, and then traced the same path back to her mouth. When he brushed his tongue against her lips she opened eagerly.
Buffy loved the taste of him, and moaned into his mouth as she clung to him. Unable to resist, she lightly bit his lower lip before capturing it between her own. He growled in response, and his hands moved down to her rear as he pressed her closer. His tongue plunged deeply into her mouth while his hands were busy caressing the skin that filled them.
She was killing him. All that silky skin brushing against him. And her mouth. He let his tongue brush sensually against hers, and he started to feel intoxicated and struggled to breathe. She tasted deliciously exotic, and he tightened his hold as their tongues continued to meet over and over again.
His kisses were slow and rhythmic, and Buffy tightened her legs around his waist and pressed herself closer to the proof of his desire. She started to rub against him, but the movement was a poor substitute for what she really craved. Buffy’s movements made Giles moan. He tore his mouth away from hers while breathing heavily. He hugged her close and ran a shaky hand over her hair.
“I can’t control myself much longer, Buffy.” He murmured in a voice filled with desire.
Buffy hugged him close. “Sorry, I lost my head there for a second.”
Giles chuckled, and answered. “A few more seconds there and you would have lost a whole lot more.” That made her giggle, and both felt some of the suffocating sexual tension between them ease.
Both looked at each other with new awareness.
“Surprised?” Buffy asked.
“About what just happened between us?” he asked. At her anxious nod he held her tight and waded out of the water. “Slightly.” At her worried look he continued. “What I mean is that I have acknowledged, to myself, that I’m attracted to you, but I had no idea you felt the same way.”
He lowered them both onto his towel on the sand and cuddled her close. Buffy circled his waist and pressed her nose to his.
“I had no idea either.” She said, “I mean, I’ve known I was attracted to you for a long while… but I had no idea you thought about me that way, too.”
In response, Giles kissed her again. A long and warm kiss, filled with promises of passion and tenderness. When he released her lips they were both breathing heavily. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face.
“Well, at least that’s settled. But for now I think we should take this slowly. Is that alright with you?”
Buffy contemplated his words with a playful grin, and Giles chuckled in response. He tickled her side, and she tried unsuccessfully to stop his hands.
“Ok, ok! You can have your way!” she yelled breathlessly. His hand rested on her waist and he pressed closer.
“Oh, I will have my way” he growled playfully. “Sooner than later, I assure you.”
Buffy laughed in delight and captured his mouth once more. Their hands traveled exposed skin while their lips and tongues brushed against each other, and Buffy wondered how long sooner was than later. Several long minutes later they released each other’s lips, but remained close.
Buffy let her hand travel across his brow, down his cheek and then down his chest. She gave him an impish smile and kissed his nose.
“Mr. Giles, you look a little pink. I think some lotion would be in order.” Giles’ eyes darkened with desire.
“Oh, you say so, do you?” Buffy nodded. “So what do you think I should do about it?” he asked, knowing full well what she would suggest. Buffy sat up and dug into her bag. She pulled out a small bottle.
She gave him a cheeky smile. “The only remedy is sun tan lotion. Want me to help put it on all those hard to reach places?” Giles let his hand travel over her thigh, and grinned at her.
“I actually feel a little tired. Didn’t get much sleep last night for some reason. Why don’t I leave all of my body in your capable hands?”
Buffy’s jaw dropped. She hadn’t expected him to be such a tease. She giggled, and leaned down to give him a short, but sweet, kiss.
“You’re on. Close your eyes.” He gave her a questioning look and his brow slightly frowned in worry as he contemplated what evil thoughts were going on in her mind. She giggled again and patted his chest affectionately. “Don’t worry, no torture alright? You’ve got my word.”
She seemed sincere, and he smiled and closed his eyes. He heard her squirt some lotion into her hands and rub them together. He jumped a little when he felt her fingers touch his face but she soothed him.
“Don’t worry, your face might burn, too. I’m just applying a little lotion there as well.”
He relaxed immediately and revelled in her touch as she proceeded to run her fingers lightly over his face. He almost hummed in pleasure from her gentle fingers. He realised he could quickly get addicted to the feel of her hands on him. She continued with both his arms, and then moved onto his legs. He was almost asleep when he felt her move again, and he groaned in pleasure when she started rubbing lotion onto his chest. She giggled lightly, and he grabbed her hand when it started to move dangerously low on his stomach.
“Don’t need any lotion there, love,” he rasped. He opened his eyes and met Buffy’s playful grin.
“Sure?” she asked.
Giles growled and nodded. “For now I am. Why don’t you do my back?”
He rolled over, and she took her sweet time applying the lotion there as well. By the time she was done, he wasn’t sure if it would be terribly wise to turn over. She leaned over his shoulder and placed a kiss on his cheek.
“Are you done?” he murmured. Buffy nodded against is cheek, sending a tingling sensation travelling down his spine.
“Yes, I am. Now, will you do me?”
Giles groaned. “Talk about a loaded question.” He rolled onto his side and engulfed her body in his arms.
“Whatever do you mean ‘loaded question’?” she laughed. “I lotioned you up, it’s only fair you return the favour.” Giles slipped one of his legs between hers and smirked.
“How about I just hold you in my arms and run my hands all over your body? Then the lotion should rub off on you. You’ll be quite ‘lotioned up’ as you call it.”
Buffy looked at him with baffled eyes.
“What’s the matter?” he asked, immediately worried. She merely shook her head.
“Who are you? What did you do to my Watcher?” At Giles’ questioning look she continued. “I mean, why have you never shown this side of you before? Who is this playful, outrageously sexy guy bursting with corny lines?”
Giles smiled and let is fingers travel up and down her back. “Buffy, for years I did what was expected of me. The council set those expectations. I had to hide this side of me. But I’m still very much the man you’ve always known. You know, considering how difficult it was to get you to act like a proper Slayer, it would have been disastrous to let you know that this side of me existed.”
Buffy whacked him playfully and rubbed her nose against his. “Oh, I don’t know. With an incentive like this you probably could have asked me to do anything.”
Giles let his lips brush against hers.
“Is that so?” he murmured. She nodded and nipped his lower lip.
“Oh most definitely.”
Both grinned against each other’s mouths and let them merge. Their kiss quickly turned deep and passionate, and Giles rolled half on top of her. He revelled in the feel of her curves and let his hands travel across her skin. Before it got out of hand, they both let each other go, and remained close within each others’ arms.
“We should head up before the guys come looking for us,” Buffy said as she played with his chest hair. Giles nodded and placed a sweet kiss on her lips.
“It’s going to be hard for me to keep my hands off you for the remainder of the day, but I suggest keeping this to ourselves for just a little while longer. I think the image of me running around dripping wet in only a towel was enough of a shock for the others.”
Buffy giggled. “I agree, but not for long ok?”
Giles smiled, relieved that this seemed to be more than a vacation romance for her. “I agree.”
They shared one more heated kiss before they regretfully got up and collected their things. Hand in hand they made their way up the trail to the beach house.
****
“Night guys!”
“Night Xander!” Buffy answered as Xander got up from the table and headed upstairs. He was the last to follow the others off to bed after dinner, and now only she and Giles remained, sitting across from each other at the table.
When the two returned from the beach, they’d acted as if nothing unusual had happened between them. Buffy knew they’d agreed not to tell the others, but she had at least expected some stealthy touches. Instead, Giles had kept eye contact and communication to a bare minimum the whole evening, and she wondered what had happened to the man she had acquainted herself with down at the beach.
She looked away from Xander as he disappeared up the stairs, and her eyes landed on the man seated opposite her. He was casually leaned back into his chair, twirling them stem of his wineglass between his long fingers, as he watched her with a sexy smile. She jumped when she felt his foot run over the arch of her foot. Ah, there he was. Her breath caught, and his smile turned into a mischievous grin.
“Missed me?” he asked.
Chapter 4
Buffy laughed in delight, and retuned the caress with her own foot. “Yes, actually. For a second I was worried you were just a mirage. It was pretty hot down at the beach.” Giles’s grin widened.
“Yes,” he grinned, “very hot.” Buffy playfully rolled her eyes.
“You are definitely back.”
She pouted when he removed his foot, but it disappeared as he got up languidly and sat down in the chair next to her. He placed his wineglass on the table, and then picked up her hand and laced her fingers with his own. He lifted her hand to his lips and placed a kiss on the back.
After a moment, he held her hand against his cheek. “Did you think I had second thoughts?” Buffy blushed and looked down at her fingernails.
“No, not second thoughts . . . I just . . . oh, I don’t know.” She looked back up at him to find all traces of playfulness gone from his face. He looked at her with an encouraging expression.
She smiled, a little embarrassed, but kept eye contact. “It’s just that I expected some sneaky touches and looks, that’s all. I’ve never been in the kind of relationship were you hide your relationship from your friends.”
At his raised eyebrows, she rolled her eyes. Right, Angel. “Ok, but that wasn’t fun. What I mean is the thrill of knowing something that no one else knows for a little while. It’s exciting, and I just . . . oh . . . I don’t know. Never mind.” She blew out a frustrated breath. Apparently she made no sense and she felt ridiculous.
Giles grinned and started to lean in close to her with a mischievous look in his eyes. She watched mesmerized as he got closer, and lowered his lips to her neck. He placed open mouth kisses on her skin, and her head rolled to the side to give him better access as her eyes closed. He nibbled slightly on her pulse, and then raised his head so he could look at her.
"Buffy, I understand what you're trying to say, but I don't think I'll be able to play that game. I've had enough of having to hide my reaction to every touch. Now that you're mine I don't want to touch you without the whole world knowing. If I tried to touch you covertly, I am afraid that everything I want to do to you would be written all over my face for anyone to see."
Buffy smiled, and leaned in to brush her lips against his, but they were interrupted as they heard someone coming down the stairs from the second floor. It was too late to spring apart, but they let go of each others’ hands and moved slightly apart.
Buffy reached blindly behind her for some magazines, grabbed the first thing she touched, placed it in front of them at the table and opened it on a random page. She silently begged the magazine was the right side up.
It was Xander coming down in his pyjamas. He stopped short as he saw the two of them sitting next to each other by the table, looking at him expectedly.
“Hi. Still up?” Xander asked curiously. Buffy and Giles nodded vigorously, and Xander looked at them with questioning eyes. “What are you guys doing?” Giles silently groaned as Buffy started to babble hysterically.
“Nothing! Nothing at all. A big heap of nothing! Well . . . I don’t mean nothing, because obviously people can’t really do nothing. Such a thing doesn’t really exist. I’ve always wondered about that when you ask people and they say nothing. I mean, how can you do nothing? Even sitting down and staring at the wall is something. But not much, that’s what I meant to say. Yep, a big heap of not much, is what I meant.”
She looked quickly down at the table and grabbed the magazine like a lifeline. She raised it into the air. “We’re reading! Yes, that’s what we’re doing, we’re reading.”
Xander looked at them with big eyes. “Okay.” After a few seconds he continued. “So what are you guys reading? Together, I mean?” Buffy flipped the front cover towards her so she could read the title and went beat red.
“Cosmopolitan.” Giles grabbed his wineglass and drained it in one gulp. Xander just keep looking at them with big eyes, and then just shook his head.
“Never mind, forget I ever asked. I came down to get a glass a water.” After a beat he continued. “Now I don’t want any. ‘Night.”
He turned around before they had a chance to say anything and walked rapidly upstairs. The silence of the living room he left behind was suffocating, and Buffy threw the magazine to the floor so quickly as if it was burning her hand.
She couldn’t make herself look at Giles. He didn’t say a word and she was growing more and more concerned. Suddenly she heard him move and she finally looked at him.
His elbows were leaning on his knees and his head was resting in his hands. His back was shaking, and she realised he was laughing. Within seconds she was laughing as well, and he finally lifted his head and looked at her with tears in his eyes.
“God, you are one of a kind.” He managed to say, in between laughs. She was unable to stop laughing, and only nodded her head regretfully.
He grabbed a hold of her and lifted her onto his lap as she tried to stop. She circled his shoulders with her arms and kept giggling against his neck as he spoke. “I don’t understand why you insist on this sneaking around, because frankly my dear, you are clearly incapable of it.”
Buffy had finally managed to stop laughing, and looked up at him.
“Not another word about it, I promise.”
Giles nodded and then did what he had longed to do since they had retuned from the beach. He kissed her.
Buffy closed her eyes in delight as she felt his lips against hers. He kissed her passionately. His lips were demanding and filled with heat. The feel of his tongue against hers made sparks of pleasure spread all through her body -- all the way to her fingertips. Still keeping contact with his mouth she moved around so she could straddle him, and he moaned when she brought herself flush against his lap.
The need to be with him was overwhelming and her hands dug into his shoulders. He pulled her closer, and let his tongue delve deep inside her mouth, making sure to taste all of her. She moaned and started to undulate her pelvis against his. Giles moaned loudly into her mouth and his hands clamped down on her hips to keep her still.
He let go of her mouth. Both were breathing heavily and their eyes burned with desire.
“I thinks it’s bedtime don’t you think?” Giles rasped.
For a second she was about to protest. He couldn’t mean that they were stopping now and he was going to leave her all turned on to sleep on the couch, could he? But, then she saw the wicked look in his eyes, and she nodded happily.
“I think you are right.” He rose from the chair with her still attached and headed for his bedroom. “For a second I thought you were banishing me to the couch” she murmured against his neck. He tangled a hand in her hair and gently pulled her head back.
“I told you I would have my way with you sooner, rather than later.” Then he took possession of her mouth as he stepped into his bedroom and closed the door behind them.
Continued here
Nominated for Best Romance Fic, Best Humour Fic & Best Het Pairing at the Bodice Ripper Awards
Nominated for Best Comedy/Fluff & Best Romance at the Shades of Grey Awards
Nominated for Best Commedy & Best Fluff & Best Romance at the SunnyD Awards
Summary:The gang takes a much needed break from the horrors of Sunnydale. . .
Timeline: This is AU; Buffy is 20 and in college.
Prologue
Giles rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time as Xander started singing off-key in the backseat. As expected, Willow immediately started whining. “He’s doing it again. Can’t you guys tell him to stop!?”
Wearily, both Buffy and Giles responded in tired voices. “Xander, stop the singing.”
Xander sat up with the most innocent smile from the back seat. “What? I’m just singing softly along with my disc-man. What’s the big deal?”
Giles ground his teeth together. He responded as calmly as he could. “Because you are just doing it to aggravate Willow, that’s why. And frankly, it is bothering us as well, so knock it off!”
Xander grumbled slightly before he answered. “Oh, alright.”
A few minutes passed in blissful silence, but Giles knew it would be too good to last. The whole trip had been like this. Their two-hour ride from Sunnydale had been a non-stop trial in patience, beginning five miles outside the city limits. He had pictured a pleasurable ride to the coast, where they had rented a beach house for a long weekend. Instead he felt like he was the chauffeur of a school bus full of devils’ spawn on the way to hell.
There had been endless requests for bathroom breaks and various other needless pit stops. Xander had almost made a vein pop in Giles’ head from his constant fiddling with the radio.
Thankfully, Buffy had come to his rescue. She made Xander trade places with her, and mercifully lowered the volume. However, as soon as Xander moved into the backseat with Willow, another kind of hell was released.
It seemed like both Xander and Willow had been reduced to acting like a couple of seven-year-olds. They spent the entire ride trying to annoy the hell out of each other. And the rest of the group, as well. Buffy and Tara had tried to calm them down, but it had been futile.
Buffy explained to Giles that this was normal Willow and Xander car behaviour. Every now and then they would regress, particularly at times like this, when it was something that they’d both missed out on when they were kids. Had Giles not had a splitting headache from their petty fighting he would have found that information touching.
He watched in the rear view mirror as Xander stretched his arm along the back of the seat, inching his way to Willow’s ear. Willow testily told him to move or lose the arm, but Xander just gave her a ‘who me?’ look.
As soon as Willow looked away he flicked her neck, and Willow immediately started yelling. “Xander, stop it or I’ll-!”
Before Giles had the chance to open his mouth, Buffy turned from the front seat and snapped. “Cut it out!!”
Xander immediately protested. “I didn’t do anything! The car jumped and my hand, that was leisurely resting on the back of the seat, jarred into Willow. It was an accident.”
At this point, Giles had had enough. "NOBODY TOUCH EACH OTHER! NOBODY SING! NO NOOKIES OR WET WILLIES! JUST SIT STILL AND BE QUIET!!!!"
The car went dead silent, and Willow and Xander huddled up like scorned children, sending wounded looks at the fun-stealing villains in the front seat.
There was a short silence until Anya said matter-of-factly. “I think you mean noogies, Giles. nookie is sex.”
“Yes, thank you, Anya.” Giles ground out between clenched teeth as he heard several unsuccessfully muffled giggles.
He released the death grip he had on the steering wheel and glanced quickly at Buffy. Her head was turned away, and he could clearly see she was trying to prevent herself from laughing. He, too, had to smother a laugh. He turned his head away abruptly so she would not meet his eyes and went back to focusing on the road.
Fifteen minutes later Willow’s excited voice shattered the silence of the car. “We’re here! We’re here!” Giles flinched from the strength of her voice and blew out a breath of relief as the van came to a standstill outside the beach house.
He shared a relieved smile with Buffy, who rolled her eyes in return as Willow and Xander scuffed each other back and forth to be the first one out the door of the van. Anya and Tara followed more amicably, while both Buffy and Giles remained motionless, revelling in the silence of the car.
Buffy’s smile disappeared when she saw Giles close his eyes and pinch the bridge of his nose. She placed a hand on his knee and asked, in a worried voice, “Giles, are you ok? You got a headache?”
Giles dropped his hand to hers and squeezed her hand, while leaning his head back as he looked at her with an exasperated glare.
“Bloody hell! Headache does not begin to describe the pain. Those were the two longest hours of my life. Promise me you won’t make me drive them home?”
Buffy giggled as she heard the whiny plea and gave him a sympathetic smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll make Xander drive. That way we will have him and Willow separated. That should help.”
Giles’ mood lightened immediately and he patted her hand affectionately. “Good, good, I always knew you were a smart girl.”
With a final smile, he removed the keys from the ignition, opened the door, and stepped out as he spoke over is shoulder. “Let’s retrieve the bags and find the others. Who knows what damage they’ve accomplished by now?”
The door shut, and Buffy watched his retreating form with a thoughtful expression. She wondered how he would react if he knew how she felt about him. Would he still touch her that way? Carefree touches, she knew, meant nothing to him. But they meant the world to her. Would it be awkward between them, or would he be flattered, and then let her down gently? She shuddered at the idea, and decided that there was no way was she ever going to let him know that she had fallen in love with him.
She jumped as Giles appeared by the passenger side and opened her door.
“Coming?”
Snapping out of her thoughts, she nodded and jumped down from her seat. She picked up a bag and followed him towards the beach house.
As soon as they had all settled in, they gathered for lunch, and the events of the car ride became a distant memory. When lunch was finished, they all settled down on the porch to get some sun.
Chapter 1
Giles gulped and burrowed further into his book as Buffy passed in front of him, clad only in a bikini and sarong. This was the third time in the last fifteen minutes that she had made the trip past him to retrieve something from inside, and he found it harder and harder not to look.
He thought he was used to Buffy’s lack of clothing. He had somehow managed to restrict his thoughts when they worked out. Not only out of respect for her; it would have made training unbearable and useless if he could not be professional about it. Particularly because he had no plans on acting on his feelings for her. He had become pretty damn good at hiding all of his feelings, if he could say so himself.
But, being at the beach house was a different matter. The warm breeze and smell of the sea reminded him of lazy summer vacations. The usual restraints on his thoughts had snapped as soon as she stepped out on the porch, looking like a beach goddess.
With a sigh, he tried to focus on the words in front of him while he prayed that Buffy would sit down and stay down when she returned. Or better yet, he hoped she’d stay inside the remainder of the day.
Lost in thought, he jumped when his book was suddenly nabbed out of his hands. He found himself incapable of speech when he saw Buffy standing right in front of him, studying the front cover. Her body was so close to his. He willed his hands to stay still.
As he watched her studying the front cover of the book, he knew he was in trouble. In the midst of his despair to find something to distract his thoughts from her, he’d forgotten about the deal he made with Buffy a few days ago.
“Giles!” Buffy exclaimed. “We said NO research books!”
“Actually,” he attempted cautiously, “I distinctly remember YOU saying no research books were allowed. I didn’t actually agree.” Just as he expected, she glared down at him with a look that could kill.
“No. . . ” she drawled. “I said the condition for this trip was that no research books were allowed, and after some grumbling you said fine. That sounds like agreeing to me, don’t you agree Anya?”
Anya, who had been reading Cosmopolitan, nodded her head intently. She tilted her head to read something on the page in front of her, then continued. “I was there Giles, she’s right.”
As Buffy settled down in her lounge chair, Giles whined. “But then I have nothing to read. How am I going to pass time?”
Anya immediately threw the Cosmopolitan at him. “Here. There’s a very interesting article on how to give women orgasms.”
Completely oblivious to Giles’ ”deer-caught-in-headlights” look, she moved to the empty chair next to him, picked up the magazine, and flipped through the pages to locate the article, explaining, “Like you probably know, orgasm doesn't always come easily for women. We are more complicated than men - which is in no way meant to put men down. On the contrary, men have a gift of being able to focus, and in bed, it's a real bonus.”
Xander, who meant to intervene, snapped his mouth shut and leaned closer with an interested expression. Willow, Tara and Buffy all froze. They were completely unable to prevent this train wreck of a conversation from happening.
Anya continued to leaf through the magazine. “Women, on the other hand, are able to, and usually do, think about several things at once. We use both lobes more when thinking and problem solving. Men usually don’t and this may be one of the reasons men are better able to focus.”
Buffy looked at Giles, who hadn’t said a word. His face was blushed, and it was as if he couldn’t believe what was happening. Buffy held back a laugh and decided to sit back and watch.
Anya finally found the page and read out loud. “Throughout history, women have been required to do many things at once--hold an infant, cook a meal, watch out for a three year old, and talk to girlfriends and grandmothers. It was part of survival. Whereas the man, as the hunter, had to be pretty focused. He could not admire the flowers along the path to finding dinner. The survival of his family, and the tribe, depended on his ability to bring home the protein.”
By now Giles’ hand was pinching the bridge of his nose again, while Tara and Willow had their heads burrowed in their hands in mortification. Xander was listening intently.
“These attributes go to bed with us, too. While a man is able to focus on sex, the woman is thinking of many things at once - can the kids hear, does he love me, he's touching my fat, are my breasts large enough, do I smell good, is my hair or makeup mussed, am I sexy enough, when is this orgasm going to arrive? Most women will verify that, at least occasionally, this is what goes on in their heads in the middle of having sex. It's not that she's not interested, it's just a habit from her daily life.”
As Giles’ hand clamped down on the page, Anya was forced to stop reading and looked up at him. “Oh yeah, it’s probably best if you read it yourself. Anyway, this article is all about how men can improve their techniques in order to give their women orgasms by using their ability to focus.”
Buffy held her breath in anticipation as she waited for Giles’ response. Even Willow and Tara removed their hands from their face and looked expectantly towards Giles. Stutter central ahead!
His response shocked them all. He ground out between clenched teeth. “I have enough confidence in myself to do without, thank you very much.”
Giles realised that the others had all been listening and looked around with a blush. He hadn’t really meant to say that out loud, but for once he felt like shutting Anya up.
Willow, Tara and Xander all looked at him with stunned expressions. While Buffy was smiling at him with a rather surprised expression. Stunned, and something else he couldn’t put his finger on. As he tried to search a little deeper, he was distracted by Anya’s hand on his arm.
“But that’s great Giles. I always suspected you knew what you were doing in bed. Still waters run deep you know. Can you maybe teach Xander some of these skills you have?”
Buffy, who’d been watching Giles while sultry imagery ran through her thoughts, decided it was time to rescue Giles, as his jaw dropped.
“Wow,” she exclaimed in a loud voice. “I’m burning up! It’s time for a swim. Giles? Wanna come?” Giles’ eyes snapped to hers, and as she ran her words though her mind she blushed furiously. “Swimming, I mean!”
Willow started to laugh hysterically, and Buffy hung her head in mortification. Xander gulped audibly, and Tara started giggling.
Giles shook his head as if he couldn’t believe the entire conversation and rose abruptly. He grabbed his towel off his chair and headed down the porch stairs from the porch towards the beach without a word.
Buffy looked at the others with a warning look, silently telling them to not say a word, and rushed after him.
***
She caught up with him half way down to the beach. His hands were jammed into his swim trunks, the towel draped around his neck, and his eyes were downcast. She didn’t know what to say so she walked silently beside him, casting worried glances at his face.
When she saw his mouth started to twitch, she struggled to keep herself from laughing out loud. Giles glanced at her and their eyes met, both eyes threatening to spill with laughter.
“Bloody priceless I tell you,” he said in a dry voice. Buffy started to laugh and Giles rolled his eyes with good humour.
“Oh my god, Giles,” she choked out between laughs. “I am SO sorry. Sometimes I think I shouldn’t be allowed to speak.”
Giles chuckled. “At this moment, I have to say I agree.”
She punched his arm playfully and ran ahead of him. “Come on, last person in the water has to do tonight’s dishes.”
Giles chased her down and ran into her as she suddenly stopped as they reached the beach. Both tumbled down into the sand, and when they stopped rolling, Giles found himself nestled between her legs, his chest pressed to hers, and his mouth mere millimetres from hers. Both were breathing heavily, and he felt her hot breath against his lips.
He scrambled to get off her before he did something he would regret and gave her his hand to help her up.
“What ever possessed you to stop?” he asked as his heart hammered inside his chest.
Buffy brushed off sand from her clothes, avoiding his eyes. “It’s just so beautiful down here, and it took my breath away. I forgot you were right behind me.”
Giles grinned and kicked off his beach sandals. “This bodes badly for your Slayer reputation.”
Buffy stuck her tongue out at him and dropped her sarong. “I’ll pretend my Watcher did not say that.” Fast as lightening she took off towards the surf.
Giles’ eyes followed her, mouth gaping. God she was truly stunning, and he ached to feel her skin under his hands. With a light shake of his head, he decided to get into the water before she noticed what she did to him.
Chapter 2
Buffy yawned and glanced at the clock next to the couch. It was 3 am, and she hadn’t been able to sleep a wink.
Xander and Anya, along with Willow and Tara, occupied the two bedrooms on the second floor. Giles was asleep in the guestroom on the first floor, while Buffy slept on the pullout couch in the living room. The living room that was situated directly underneath the lovers’ bedrooms. The couch was too short for Giles, and after much arguing he had agreed to let her take it. Now, she regretted being so persistent about it.
As another giggle and then a thump drifted though the floor, Buffy blew out an exasperated breath and punched her pillow. Jesus! How long were they going to keep it going? It had been going on for hours, and it was driving her insane. The fact that she didn’t have anyone to keep her up half the night had probably noting to do with her bad mood. No, not at all.
She heard another groan, and this time she chucked the pillow across the room as she sat up. That was it! She had to find somewhere else to sleep.
The beach house wasn’t that big, and she really didn’t feel like sleeping in the bathtub, so with a determined mind she walked down the hall towards Giles’ bedroom. She quietly opened the door, and saw Giles, seemingly deep asleep, on the right side of the bed. His head was buried in the pillow, and she was amazed he could even breathe.
She tiptoed lightly to the other side of the bed and crawled in.
“Giles?” she whispered. He didn’t move and she tried again. “Giles? I’m just gonna sleep here okay? There’s too much noise coming from upstairs and I can’t sleep in the living room.”
He didn’t even move. She lay down next to him and tried his name again a little louder. “Giles?”
She was scared out of her wits when he suddenly wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close to his body. He buried his nose in her neck. She was speechless.
“Mmmm?” he answered, half asleep. He tangled his legs with hers and started placing hot open-mouthed kisses on her neck. She eeped loudly at the unexpected gesture, and his whole body froze.
“Buffy?” he strangled out and lifted his head from her neck, squinting at her with unfocused eyes.
“Hi!” she answered breathlessly.
Apparently not realising that he was lying tangled with her, he continued to stare. “What are you doing here?”
Buffy blushed. “The others are making so much noise upstairs and it’s directly over the living room and I couldn’t sleep.”
Giles brow furrowed. “What do you mean nois-?“ He abruptly stopped and avoided her eyes. “Oh . . . noise.”
Suddenly realising his position he pulled away abruptly and almost fell of the bed. Buffy grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back. Right smack into her. Both scrambled to get away from each other, and Buffy giggled nervously.
“Sorry, Giles. I tried to wake you, to let you know I was here, but you refused to wake up.”
Giles noticed she left out how she came to be in his arms, but considering his dreams, he had a pretty good idea what he’d done. He was mortified, but she didn’t seem angry. He thought apologizing would only make matters worse.
“Ah . . . sorry about that. I’m usually a light sleeper, but, sometimes I . . . ah . . .” He didn’t know what to say and just stopped. Buffy scooted a little bit closer and his breath caught.
“Can I sleep here?” she asked in a timid voice.
“Yes, yes, of course.” He answered. He lay down on his side, facing her. “I understand, not a problem.” He closed his eyes and tried to distract himself from the heat of her body and the smell of her shampoo.
Neither said a word for some time, but he could tell she wasn’t asleep. His body tensed when he felt her shift. Her hand touched his arm, and his heartbeat increased.
“Giles? Can I? Ah . . . is it ok if . . ?”
He opened his eyes and found her face close to his. “Can you what?” he asked breathlessly.
She lifted his arm and snuggled into his chest. “Can you just hold me? It’s been so long since someone has held me.”
Her voice was shaking, and fear clutched her stomach as she waited for his response. The need to be touched by him was overwhelming, and she was unable to resist. It took a few seconds before he responded, but then his arms closed around her.
“Of course, Buffy.” He murmured into her hair.
He felt her breath wash against his bare chest in relief, and he started to run his hand through her hair, thanking every god he could think of for this moment of utter bliss. He willed his body to not react, and just held her tightly as she slipped into sleep. He was fairly uncertain that he’d get any sleep at all tonight.
****
When morning came Buffy woke at the sounds of their friends’ happy chatter outside the door. She cuddled closer to the warmth surrounding her, until she realised it was Giles’ arms that were proving the heat.
She studied his sleeping face, and felt an overwhelming urge to press her lips to his. Before she did anything that she’d regret she started to pull away. Giles protested in his sleep and tightened his arms. She gasped, realising he was probably dreaming.
She decided to wake him before he did something he’d regret, no matter how much she whished for it to happen. One of her hands ran down his chest, marvelling in the feel of his skin, and then she pinched his side and began to tickle him.
Giles woke with a yelp. He grabbed the offending hand, opened his eyes and found Buffy looking at him with an impish smile. He growled and rolled her onto her back and straddled her, pinning her hands under his knees, as he returned the favour with both of his hands.
She laughed loudly and used her strength to tip him off. Both clung to each other as they rolled around on the bed, and in no time Buffy had him on his back while he pressed her close so she couldn’t get to his sides. Once again they found their mouths close, and both were breathing heavily as they stared into each other’s eyes. Without thinking she leaned down to merge her mouth with his. But she heard Xander’s voice through the door and pulled away just as her lips were about to connect with his.
“Giles? What is going on in there?”
Buffy jumped out of bed and opened the door. Xander peered into the room with a questioning look. Buffy put on what she hoped was a bland expression.
“Nothing. I tried waking Giles up, but he’s such a sound sleeper that I needed to go in. It took some time, but it looks like he’s up now.”
Giles had to hold back a grin as he thought about the truth of that statement. A few seconds more, and he was pretty sure he would be more than just up. It had looked like Buffy had been moving in to kiss him, but as he studied her face as she stood in the doorway, he figured he was wrong. She looked at him like nothing had just happened, and he quenched his disappointment.
Xander gave them both a searching look, and then shrugged his shoulders. “Ok, I just came to let you guys know it’s breakfast in half an hour, so I figured you should get ready.”
Buffy nodded and with a last glance at Giles she headed for the bathroom.
****
Half an hour later breakfast was ready. Buffy went inside to search for Giles. She heard the shower running, and knocked on the bathroom door. When she got no answer, she opened the door a crack and yelled into the room that was thick with steam. “Giles! Breakfast is ready!”
Giles jumped in the shower and clung to the shower rod to keep himself upright. “Buffy!” he yelled in an angry voice. “Can you give me some privacy?!”
Buffy’s face fell due at his annoyed voice, slammed the door in anger and stalked out of the house.
Giles swore loudly and grabbed his towel. He draped it around his waist before hurrying after her. Ignoring the startled looks from the others seated at the breakfast table, he ran outside and caught up with Buffy on the lawn.
He grabbed her shoulder, spun her around and pulled her into his chest.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” he whispered against her ear. After a few seconds he felt her arms circle his waist.
Both were oblivious to the stares from the breakfast table.
“Look at G-man”, Xander said in surprise. “Who knew he was capable of PDAs? Especially half naked. Will wonders never cease?”
Giles tightened his arms as his hands rubbed Buffy’s back soothingly.
“I didn’t mean to yell at you, Buffy. I was startled that’s all. I don’t usually get interrupted while taking a shower.” He smiled against her hair. He felt Buffy giggle against his chest, and he lifted his head to look at her. He let a hand stroke her cheek.
“I am truly sorry, dear. I just seem to be incapable of relaxing here. Not really used to being on vacation. I took that frustration out on you.”
She nodded understandingly. “I know what you mean. I can’t really seem to relax either.” She decided not to mention the fact that *he* was the reason for that. Waking up in his arms, and then having a potential kiss interrupted had left her in a crappy mood, and she realised she had overreacted.
“I overreacted, too, Giles. Don’t worry.” She gave him a quick squeeze.
“Why don’t the two of us take the day off together, head down to the beach and try to relax?” Giles nodded and stroked her cheek once again.
“I would love to,” he murmured. Buffy smiled and both headed back to the house.
***
An hour later they found themselves on an almost deserted beach. The sun was blazing down on them both, and they wasted no time shedding their clothes, leaving them only in their swimming suits. As they headed towards the water, Buffy tried to trip Giles, but he skilfully avoided her advances. He grabbed her around the waist, threw her over his shoulder, and sprinted towards the shore.
“Giles!” Buffy giggled, and he chuckled as he threw her into the surf. She shrieked and came up looking like a drowned cat. He doubled over laughing, and she immediately swiped his feet under him. He went tumbling into the water.
When he came back up, a full-blown water fight ensued, until a large wave caught Buffy off guard and slammed her into him. His arms tightened around her while he struggled to maintain his balance. When he was stable he found himself with an arm full of Buffy, her body flush against his. The air grew thick between them, and both stared into each others’ eyes.
“Who would have thought, huh? The Slayer and the Watcher almost brought to their knees by a wave.” Buffy said in a mere whisper. Giles’ eyes shifted from her eyes to her mouth, as he responded.
“Yes, who would have thought?” He took one searching look into her eyes, and then whispered in a gruff voice. “Tell me I’m not imagining things.”
Buffy took a deep breath. She circled his waist with her legs and pressed closer.
“You’re not imagining things,” she replied, then pressed her lips to his.
Chapter 3
It started out innocent, easy and playful. Their lips touched carefully, learning the shapes of their mouths. Her lips were warm and soft, and Giles let his fingers tangle into her hair so he could hold her head while he savoured her taste. He suspected even heaven couldn’t taste better. Their bathing suits were the only remaining barrier between them. For now it was enough to feel her lips against his, her palms on his back, her legs snug around his waist.
His lips travelled from her lips over her cheek, below her ear, and down her neck, and then traced the same path back to her mouth. When he brushed his tongue against her lips she opened eagerly.
Buffy loved the taste of him, and moaned into his mouth as she clung to him. Unable to resist, she lightly bit his lower lip before capturing it between her own. He growled in response, and his hands moved down to her rear as he pressed her closer. His tongue plunged deeply into her mouth while his hands were busy caressing the skin that filled them.
She was killing him. All that silky skin brushing against him. And her mouth. He let his tongue brush sensually against hers, and he started to feel intoxicated and struggled to breathe. She tasted deliciously exotic, and he tightened his hold as their tongues continued to meet over and over again.
His kisses were slow and rhythmic, and Buffy tightened her legs around his waist and pressed herself closer to the proof of his desire. She started to rub against him, but the movement was a poor substitute for what she really craved. Buffy’s movements made Giles moan. He tore his mouth away from hers while breathing heavily. He hugged her close and ran a shaky hand over her hair.
“I can’t control myself much longer, Buffy.” He murmured in a voice filled with desire.
Buffy hugged him close. “Sorry, I lost my head there for a second.”
Giles chuckled, and answered. “A few more seconds there and you would have lost a whole lot more.” That made her giggle, and both felt some of the suffocating sexual tension between them ease.
Both looked at each other with new awareness.
“Surprised?” Buffy asked.
“About what just happened between us?” he asked. At her anxious nod he held her tight and waded out of the water. “Slightly.” At her worried look he continued. “What I mean is that I have acknowledged, to myself, that I’m attracted to you, but I had no idea you felt the same way.”
He lowered them both onto his towel on the sand and cuddled her close. Buffy circled his waist and pressed her nose to his.
“I had no idea either.” She said, “I mean, I’ve known I was attracted to you for a long while… but I had no idea you thought about me that way, too.”
In response, Giles kissed her again. A long and warm kiss, filled with promises of passion and tenderness. When he released her lips they were both breathing heavily. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face.
“Well, at least that’s settled. But for now I think we should take this slowly. Is that alright with you?”
Buffy contemplated his words with a playful grin, and Giles chuckled in response. He tickled her side, and she tried unsuccessfully to stop his hands.
“Ok, ok! You can have your way!” she yelled breathlessly. His hand rested on her waist and he pressed closer.
“Oh, I will have my way” he growled playfully. “Sooner than later, I assure you.”
Buffy laughed in delight and captured his mouth once more. Their hands traveled exposed skin while their lips and tongues brushed against each other, and Buffy wondered how long sooner was than later. Several long minutes later they released each other’s lips, but remained close.
Buffy let her hand travel across his brow, down his cheek and then down his chest. She gave him an impish smile and kissed his nose.
“Mr. Giles, you look a little pink. I think some lotion would be in order.” Giles’ eyes darkened with desire.
“Oh, you say so, do you?” Buffy nodded. “So what do you think I should do about it?” he asked, knowing full well what she would suggest. Buffy sat up and dug into her bag. She pulled out a small bottle.
She gave him a cheeky smile. “The only remedy is sun tan lotion. Want me to help put it on all those hard to reach places?” Giles let his hand travel over her thigh, and grinned at her.
“I actually feel a little tired. Didn’t get much sleep last night for some reason. Why don’t I leave all of my body in your capable hands?”
Buffy’s jaw dropped. She hadn’t expected him to be such a tease. She giggled, and leaned down to give him a short, but sweet, kiss.
“You’re on. Close your eyes.” He gave her a questioning look and his brow slightly frowned in worry as he contemplated what evil thoughts were going on in her mind. She giggled again and patted his chest affectionately. “Don’t worry, no torture alright? You’ve got my word.”
She seemed sincere, and he smiled and closed his eyes. He heard her squirt some lotion into her hands and rub them together. He jumped a little when he felt her fingers touch his face but she soothed him.
“Don’t worry, your face might burn, too. I’m just applying a little lotion there as well.”
He relaxed immediately and revelled in her touch as she proceeded to run her fingers lightly over his face. He almost hummed in pleasure from her gentle fingers. He realised he could quickly get addicted to the feel of her hands on him. She continued with both his arms, and then moved onto his legs. He was almost asleep when he felt her move again, and he groaned in pleasure when she started rubbing lotion onto his chest. She giggled lightly, and he grabbed her hand when it started to move dangerously low on his stomach.
“Don’t need any lotion there, love,” he rasped. He opened his eyes and met Buffy’s playful grin.
“Sure?” she asked.
Giles growled and nodded. “For now I am. Why don’t you do my back?”
He rolled over, and she took her sweet time applying the lotion there as well. By the time she was done, he wasn’t sure if it would be terribly wise to turn over. She leaned over his shoulder and placed a kiss on his cheek.
“Are you done?” he murmured. Buffy nodded against is cheek, sending a tingling sensation travelling down his spine.
“Yes, I am. Now, will you do me?”
Giles groaned. “Talk about a loaded question.” He rolled onto his side and engulfed her body in his arms.
“Whatever do you mean ‘loaded question’?” she laughed. “I lotioned you up, it’s only fair you return the favour.” Giles slipped one of his legs between hers and smirked.
“How about I just hold you in my arms and run my hands all over your body? Then the lotion should rub off on you. You’ll be quite ‘lotioned up’ as you call it.”
Buffy looked at him with baffled eyes.
“What’s the matter?” he asked, immediately worried. She merely shook her head.
“Who are you? What did you do to my Watcher?” At Giles’ questioning look she continued. “I mean, why have you never shown this side of you before? Who is this playful, outrageously sexy guy bursting with corny lines?”
Giles smiled and let is fingers travel up and down her back. “Buffy, for years I did what was expected of me. The council set those expectations. I had to hide this side of me. But I’m still very much the man you’ve always known. You know, considering how difficult it was to get you to act like a proper Slayer, it would have been disastrous to let you know that this side of me existed.”
Buffy whacked him playfully and rubbed her nose against his. “Oh, I don’t know. With an incentive like this you probably could have asked me to do anything.”
Giles let his lips brush against hers.
“Is that so?” he murmured. She nodded and nipped his lower lip.
“Oh most definitely.”
Both grinned against each other’s mouths and let them merge. Their kiss quickly turned deep and passionate, and Giles rolled half on top of her. He revelled in the feel of her curves and let his hands travel across her skin. Before it got out of hand, they both let each other go, and remained close within each others’ arms.
“We should head up before the guys come looking for us,” Buffy said as she played with his chest hair. Giles nodded and placed a sweet kiss on her lips.
“It’s going to be hard for me to keep my hands off you for the remainder of the day, but I suggest keeping this to ourselves for just a little while longer. I think the image of me running around dripping wet in only a towel was enough of a shock for the others.”
Buffy giggled. “I agree, but not for long ok?”
Giles smiled, relieved that this seemed to be more than a vacation romance for her. “I agree.”
They shared one more heated kiss before they regretfully got up and collected their things. Hand in hand they made their way up the trail to the beach house.
****
“Night guys!”
“Night Xander!” Buffy answered as Xander got up from the table and headed upstairs. He was the last to follow the others off to bed after dinner, and now only she and Giles remained, sitting across from each other at the table.
When the two returned from the beach, they’d acted as if nothing unusual had happened between them. Buffy knew they’d agreed not to tell the others, but she had at least expected some stealthy touches. Instead, Giles had kept eye contact and communication to a bare minimum the whole evening, and she wondered what had happened to the man she had acquainted herself with down at the beach.
She looked away from Xander as he disappeared up the stairs, and her eyes landed on the man seated opposite her. He was casually leaned back into his chair, twirling them stem of his wineglass between his long fingers, as he watched her with a sexy smile. She jumped when she felt his foot run over the arch of her foot. Ah, there he was. Her breath caught, and his smile turned into a mischievous grin.
“Missed me?” he asked.
Chapter 4
Buffy laughed in delight, and retuned the caress with her own foot. “Yes, actually. For a second I was worried you were just a mirage. It was pretty hot down at the beach.” Giles’s grin widened.
“Yes,” he grinned, “very hot.” Buffy playfully rolled her eyes.
“You are definitely back.”
She pouted when he removed his foot, but it disappeared as he got up languidly and sat down in the chair next to her. He placed his wineglass on the table, and then picked up her hand and laced her fingers with his own. He lifted her hand to his lips and placed a kiss on the back.
After a moment, he held her hand against his cheek. “Did you think I had second thoughts?” Buffy blushed and looked down at her fingernails.
“No, not second thoughts . . . I just . . . oh, I don’t know.” She looked back up at him to find all traces of playfulness gone from his face. He looked at her with an encouraging expression.
She smiled, a little embarrassed, but kept eye contact. “It’s just that I expected some sneaky touches and looks, that’s all. I’ve never been in the kind of relationship were you hide your relationship from your friends.”
At his raised eyebrows, she rolled her eyes. Right, Angel. “Ok, but that wasn’t fun. What I mean is the thrill of knowing something that no one else knows for a little while. It’s exciting, and I just . . . oh . . . I don’t know. Never mind.” She blew out a frustrated breath. Apparently she made no sense and she felt ridiculous.
Giles grinned and started to lean in close to her with a mischievous look in his eyes. She watched mesmerized as he got closer, and lowered his lips to her neck. He placed open mouth kisses on her skin, and her head rolled to the side to give him better access as her eyes closed. He nibbled slightly on her pulse, and then raised his head so he could look at her.
"Buffy, I understand what you're trying to say, but I don't think I'll be able to play that game. I've had enough of having to hide my reaction to every touch. Now that you're mine I don't want to touch you without the whole world knowing. If I tried to touch you covertly, I am afraid that everything I want to do to you would be written all over my face for anyone to see."
Buffy smiled, and leaned in to brush her lips against his, but they were interrupted as they heard someone coming down the stairs from the second floor. It was too late to spring apart, but they let go of each others’ hands and moved slightly apart.
Buffy reached blindly behind her for some magazines, grabbed the first thing she touched, placed it in front of them at the table and opened it on a random page. She silently begged the magazine was the right side up.
It was Xander coming down in his pyjamas. He stopped short as he saw the two of them sitting next to each other by the table, looking at him expectedly.
“Hi. Still up?” Xander asked curiously. Buffy and Giles nodded vigorously, and Xander looked at them with questioning eyes. “What are you guys doing?” Giles silently groaned as Buffy started to babble hysterically.
“Nothing! Nothing at all. A big heap of nothing! Well . . . I don’t mean nothing, because obviously people can’t really do nothing. Such a thing doesn’t really exist. I’ve always wondered about that when you ask people and they say nothing. I mean, how can you do nothing? Even sitting down and staring at the wall is something. But not much, that’s what I meant to say. Yep, a big heap of not much, is what I meant.”
She looked quickly down at the table and grabbed the magazine like a lifeline. She raised it into the air. “We’re reading! Yes, that’s what we’re doing, we’re reading.”
Xander looked at them with big eyes. “Okay.” After a few seconds he continued. “So what are you guys reading? Together, I mean?” Buffy flipped the front cover towards her so she could read the title and went beat red.
“Cosmopolitan.” Giles grabbed his wineglass and drained it in one gulp. Xander just keep looking at them with big eyes, and then just shook his head.
“Never mind, forget I ever asked. I came down to get a glass a water.” After a beat he continued. “Now I don’t want any. ‘Night.”
He turned around before they had a chance to say anything and walked rapidly upstairs. The silence of the living room he left behind was suffocating, and Buffy threw the magazine to the floor so quickly as if it was burning her hand.
She couldn’t make herself look at Giles. He didn’t say a word and she was growing more and more concerned. Suddenly she heard him move and she finally looked at him.
His elbows were leaning on his knees and his head was resting in his hands. His back was shaking, and she realised he was laughing. Within seconds she was laughing as well, and he finally lifted his head and looked at her with tears in his eyes.
“God, you are one of a kind.” He managed to say, in between laughs. She was unable to stop laughing, and only nodded her head regretfully.
He grabbed a hold of her and lifted her onto his lap as she tried to stop. She circled his shoulders with her arms and kept giggling against his neck as he spoke. “I don’t understand why you insist on this sneaking around, because frankly my dear, you are clearly incapable of it.”
Buffy had finally managed to stop laughing, and looked up at him.
“Not another word about it, I promise.”
Giles nodded and then did what he had longed to do since they had retuned from the beach. He kissed her.
Buffy closed her eyes in delight as she felt his lips against hers. He kissed her passionately. His lips were demanding and filled with heat. The feel of his tongue against hers made sparks of pleasure spread all through her body -- all the way to her fingertips. Still keeping contact with his mouth she moved around so she could straddle him, and he moaned when she brought herself flush against his lap.
The need to be with him was overwhelming and her hands dug into his shoulders. He pulled her closer, and let his tongue delve deep inside her mouth, making sure to taste all of her. She moaned and started to undulate her pelvis against his. Giles moaned loudly into her mouth and his hands clamped down on her hips to keep her still.
He let go of her mouth. Both were breathing heavily and their eyes burned with desire.
“I thinks it’s bedtime don’t you think?” Giles rasped.
For a second she was about to protest. He couldn’t mean that they were stopping now and he was going to leave her all turned on to sleep on the couch, could he? But, then she saw the wicked look in his eyes, and she nodded happily.
“I think you are right.” He rose from the chair with her still attached and headed for his bedroom. “For a second I thought you were banishing me to the couch” she murmured against his neck. He tangled a hand in her hair and gently pulled her head back.
“I told you I would have my way with you sooner, rather than later.” Then he took possession of her mouth as he stepped into his bedroom and closed the door behind them.
Continued here
Nominated for Best Romance Fic, Best Humour Fic & Best Het Pairing at the Bodice Ripper Awards
Nominated for Best Comedy/Fluff & Best Romance at the Shades of Grey Awards
Nominated for Best Commedy & Best Fluff & Best Romance at the SunnyD Awards