__No More Substitutes__
By Escargoat



A soft whoosh of air left Buffy’s lips as she strolled through the hallway’s of Giles’ house. Her restless hands played with the hem of her shirt. Only one short week ago had she broken up with her latest beau, or, as Xander called him, souled vampire number three.

Rodney, a.k.a. “The Immortal,” had been a retired watcher that Buffy had set out to find after the destruction of Sunnydale. When she had finally caught up with him, she found out exactly why he had retired so suddenly.

He had instantly become smitten with her, and Buffy had in turn dated him. A few weeks into the relationship, Buffy realized that she’d had more chemistry with Parker than she did with Rodney, but she had not been willing to break up yet another relationship.

She had not been willing until she tried to make Rodney lunch. He had asked for tea. She made it. The problem was, she could not seem to make any other way than the way Giles made it. It was a stupid thing really. Why shouldn’t she make tea the way Giles did? She had learned to make tea from him after all.

But it really was not that simple. There were tons of things that she did in her relationship with Rodney that were things she would do if she were around Giles. She realized then that she was not using Rodney as a substitute for Angel or Spike, but as a substitute for Giles.

So, she dumped him. For once in her life, she decided not to hang on to a guy just because she was supposed to. That left her boyfriendless and rather lonely.

Then, a week after she dumped Rodney, she received a phone call. Surprise had been her first reaction when she heard Giles’ voice on the other end. Shock had been her second reaction when he asked her to come spend some time with him at his home in England.

Apparently, he thought she was working too hard and that she needed a break. He even arranged for Dawn to spend some time with Willow so that Buffy would be responsibility free.

It was driving her crazy.

It had literally been years since she had not had to do anything, except of course, when she was dead, but she was not about to include that in her ponderings. It made her realize that she was no longer the girl who could just sit by and go shopping. She was Buffy. No longer was she the only Chosen One, but she was still the Slayer. Her destiny was shared now, but she had chosen her destiny.

It was an epiphany that she would have shared with Giles if he had been around. Apparently, he could see that Buffy needed a vacation, but did not see the need to do so for himself.

Buffy nodded once to herself. Giles needed a break. She’d ask him out to lunch.

Quickly, she called a cab company to have them take her to Giles’ office.

Once she was at the office, she became slightly discouraged. There was a very long line of people waiting to see Giles. She silently pouted in the corner until she realized that little by little the conversations going on in the waiting room had ceased. She looked up from the floor she was inspecting to see several pairs of eyes focused on her. Reflexively she reached for her stake.

“Oh my God! You’re Buffy Summers!” A young woman squealed.

“I can’t believe it. The real Slayer, oh, it is such an honor. What brings you to our humble offices?” A middle aged man asked.

“I’m here to see Giles?” Buffy replied, somewhat stunned at the crowd of people milling around her.

“What would she want to see an old paper pusher like him for,” another woman asked under her breath.

During all the hubbub, the door to Giles’ office opened. “Thank you for your time Mr. Sanderson, if you’ll just step this way, I’m certain that you’ll…” Giles trailed off as he saw the throng of people congregating at one end of his reception room.

Curious, he walked over to the small mob only to see Buffy backed up against the wall with a dazed look on her face. Hiding his smile, Giles pushed his way through to her and grabbed her hand. “I need to speak with Ms. Summers if you don’t mind,” he addressed the crowd. A thankful Buffy followed him into his office.

When he closed the door, Buffy simply stared at it dazedly.

“What was that?” she finally asked.

Giles chuckled slightly. “That was why I suggested that you not come into town during your stay. You’re almost legendary. Didn’t you know?”

Buffy shook her head. “I’m just me. Nobody special. I kind of figured you’re the big important guy, being the head of the Council and all.”

“Ah, Buffy, how do you underestimate yourself so easily? Half of those people out there are Slayers. I wasn’t the one who made them that way, and I was not the one who redefined what a Slayer was. I’m just Giles to them. The same way I’m just Giles to you.”

Buffy smiled a sad smile and lightly touched his arm. “You’re not ‘just’ Giles. You’re Giles; I think there’s a difference.”

He smiled slightly and nodded. “Thank you, and if you do decide there isn’t a difference, don’t tell me. Now, what is it that you wished to speak with me about?”

“Lunch, I thought maybe I was here, you were here, there should be food involved.”

“You spent money on a cab just to come in and have lunch?”

“No, I spent money on a cab so that I could come in and have lunch with you,” Buffy corrected him.

“Ah, well then, I suppose that I must agree to your scheme, seems how it was concocted just for me,” Giles replied as he grabbed his coat.

Buffy frowned, “What if I had just come in to go shopping and decided to ask you, would you still have gone?”

“Of course, but then I would have mercilessly teased you about it. Come on then, we best make a dash for it if we don’t want to get bogged down by your fan club in the hallways.

* * * * *

Despite Giles’ claims to the contrary, Buffy had the sneaking suspicion that he was much more popular than he let on. At least, he seemed to be a lot more popular with the ladies. All throughout lunch he kept getting phone calls on his cell phone. Giggling feminine voice after feminine voice talked to him. Buffy sat in awe while her Watcher made five different dates. Two of which were on the same day.

Giles looked up from his latest call to see a slightly perturbed look on Buffy’s face.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Buffy replied shortly.

His cell phone rang again. As he reached to answer it, an almost imperceptible snort came from behind the water glass currently poised at Buffy’s lips.

“Ah, I suppose that I am not being the best of company right now,” Giles said as he allowed the phone to ring.

“It is generally considered rude, and believe me, I know rude. I’m right up there with Cordelia on the subject.”

“My apologies. I have been preoccupied as of late with Council business.”

Buffy shot him an incredulous look before grabbing her menu and pretending to be fascinated by what was in it.

Giles fiddled with his own menu for a bit before attempting to break the tension he seemed to have caused. “What’s wrong?” he asked quietly.

“I don’t like it when you treat me like I’m stupid, or unable to handle information,” Buffy replied from behind the shield of her menu. The tone in her voice was less the angry tone that Giles had expected and much more wounded.

Gently, he tipped the top of her menu down. Watery green eyes looked into his own for a second before she yanked the menu away from his grasp and put it between them again.

Guilt hit him instantly, but he was not sure what he should be guilty for, a small bit of rudeness would hardly push Buffy to tears. Before he could utter another sentence, the waitress appeared and took their order.

Having had her menu taken away, Buffy busied herself by playing with her napkin.

“Buffy?” he asked gently.

“Yeah.” She answered noncommittally.

“What’s the matter?”

“It’s nothing. Look, you know, this whole lunch thing? It was a mistake. Here’s some money, take my lunch back to your office with you. I’m sure with the way your schedule is shaping up, you’ll need the energy. I wouldn’t want to get in the way of your ‘Watcher’ duties.” Buffy said tightly as she swept away from the table.

Giles numbly watched her go. His first instinct had been to follow her, but he had not the foggiest idea what to say.

* * * * *

Later that evening, Buffy stared at the empty carton of ice cream that she held in her lap. A half finished spray can of whipped cream lay dejected on the table. Sad and depressing love songs played in the background as she scraped at the melted remnants with her spoon. She would have preferred drowning her sorrows with a good tear-jerking movie, but a search of Giles’ house had proven that he had not caved into societal pressure again, and therefore had no television that she could play a movie on.

Giles, meanwhile was driving his way back from the office. His Buffy translation skills were obviously out of whack, but he finally realized that Buffy’s earlier outburst must have been about the Immortal. So, he’d stopped and picked up ice cream and prepared himself to be a good watcher and comfort his hurting Buffy.

She had just finished disposing of her empty carton when her sensitive ears picked up the sound of Giles coming in the front door. She forced herself to shuffle out to greet him, conscious of her frumpy hair and baggy clothes. When she got to the entryway, she saw Giles. His hair was damp and his glasses slightly foggy. His dress shirt was slightly translucent from where the rain had managed to get through his overcoat.

Buffy was fairly certain it was one of the sexiest sights she’d seen in ages. A thousand thoughts collided in her brain all at once. They all coalesced into one basic premise: Rupert Giles was going to be hers, and she didn’t care how many twits she had to take down to win him over.

“Buffy?” Giles’ voice alerted her to fact that she had been staring.

“Oh, hi. It raining out?” she asked lamely.

“Yes, surprisingly. It hardly ever rains in England,” he answered hesitantly.

She laughed. He took this as a good sign and thrust his bag of peace offerings towards her.

She grabbed the proffered bag and poked her nose inside. “Ice cream?”

“Well, I, that is to say, I thought that perhaps you weren’t feeling too well after your recent romance? And, though I’m not Willow, I would be happy to provide a shoulder for you to cry on.”

Buffy’s stomach rebelled at the thought of ingesting more of the frozen confection, but the hopeful and clueless look on Giles’ face made her heart do little flip flops. So, she touched Giles’ bicep and gave it a little squeeze. “Thanks,” she said before shuffling off to the kitchen. After all, she could not pass up the chance of having his undivided attention, now could she?

* * * * *

Buffy rolled over and groaned when she heard Giles leave the next morning. She felt awful. She, in fact, felt worse than she had the night after the prehistoric beer. She had definitely ingested way too much ice cream. Disgusted with herself and just a tad sick, she shuffled to the bathroom.

Yawning, she stared at her reflection. She needed to go shopping. Her makeup was the same stuff she had been wearing since forever. If she was going to snare Giles, she needed an overhaul. The perfume should stay. He seemed to like it and would probably inquire about it changing. Clothes, she really needed those. Her last stint in Sunnydale had destroyed the majority of her wardrobe and the pieces she had purchased since then were mostly utilitarian for slaying and the other duties that Giles had bestowed upon her.

They were not exactly great for the man catching aspect of being a woman. Sure, she had worked on Rodney, but he wasn’t used to her charms. Giles had been with her forever, she would need something special to catch his eye, especially when he seemed to be sought after by so many eligible women.

Her figure was excellent, of course, but Giles was a bit of an old fashioned guy as far as beauty went. He liked curves. Olivia had been a walking curve, and while Jenny had been slim, she had definitely had a curvaceous rear.

Maybe that extra ice cream hadn’t been such a bad idea after all.

Which brought up cooking, Giles had seemed very pleased with her cooking skills that one Thanksgiving. If she cooked, that meant attention and the possibility that he would not have the opportunity to be going out so much with the scheming women he seemed to be making dates with.

Buffy nodded to herself. She had a mission. If she had averted the end of the world several times, she could take on Giles’ pack of floozies.

Five hours later, she was very thankful that Giles had put her on the payroll. She was also a bit manic in her joy. It had been ages since she’d had a shopping spree, and despite the fact that her legs were numb from walking, and she would probably be spending the next three years paying off her credit card bills; she couldn’t be happier.

* * * * *

An unsuspecting Rupert Giles strolled into his home after a hard day of straightening out insecure watchers and their rambunctious slayers. As he opened the door, a wafting aroma reached his nostrils. Curious, he walked into his kitchen to find Buffy pulling a cake out of his oven.

Her hair was pulled up in a French twist, and she had an apron tied around her waist.

“Been busy?” he asked as she set the pan down on the nearby trivet.

“Yeah, went shopping, came back, baked, no big. I would have made dinner, but I figured you’d already eaten.”

“Ah, yes, well, I wasn’t in the mood for fried chicken anyway,” Giles commented as he leaned over to inspect her cake.

“Giles, I’m not Colonel Sanders, I don’t make fried chicken.”

“Yes, but so many places do,” he remarked as he turned around to face her.

Buffy’s forehead creased in confusion. Then anger replaced her expression. “I made that cake.”

“Of course you did, I could smell it baking when I came in. What remains to be seen is if you bought the right kind of cake mix,” Giles said in a playful tone.

“First of all, cake mixes ARE really cooking because they involve stirring and baking and not burning. Secondly, I made that cake from scratch,” Buffy expertly transformed her angry scowl into a slightly pouting lip with matching watery eyes.

Guilt instantly hit Giles’ features when he realized that she had taken his gentle teasing as a serious jibe. “Oh, Buffy, surely you know that, what I mean to say, well, I was only teasing,” he trailed off as an actual teardrop rolled down Buffy’s cheek. “Don’t cry,” he said as he pulled out his handkerchief and dabbed away the tear, totally confused as to why Buffy was crying over something as silly as a cake.

Primal woman Buffy cheered at the befuddlement of the man before her. With a slight little hiccup, she looked dolefully up into Giles’ tender green eyes. When she saw his mouth practically form the little “aw,” she made her move. She spread her arms open slightly, and he fell straight into her trap.

Buffy hid her victorious smile in his shirt as he gently rubbed her back. Her first mission was a definite success.

* * * * *

Stealthily, Buffy crept into Giles’ office the next day. Having learned her lesson, she had on a non-descript outfit and hat so that she would not get trampled by the various ‘fans’ she seemed to have. She showed the secretary her ID, and sat down in a corner chair while she waited.

She did not have to wait soon. Giles’ door opened and he escorted a young brunette out of his office. The woman gave Giles a dazzling smile before she turned and walked away. Buffy eyed and dismissed her competition. The girl was good looking, but Giles had not paid any special attention to her. It was obviously a one sided flirtation from either a prospective watcher or a slayer. Either way, it did not matter.

The secretary signaled to Buffy that she could go in. As she slid through the door, she could hear the irritated mutterings of the people who were in line before her.

“Do have a seat,” Giles said without even looking up from his desk.

Buffy primly sat down.

“It says here that you come from Georgia?”

“Yes, sir,” Buffy said in her best southern accent.

Giles glanced up in shock. Upon seeing who it was, he shook his head. “The country, Buffy, not the state, it requires a completely different accent.”

She grinned her best dazzling smile at him and was pleased to see a small one in return.

“To what do I owe your visit?”

“I just thought I’d stop by and drop you off some cake for your lunch,” she replied sweetly as she pulled out a small container from her purse.

“Ah, well thank you,” he replied uncertainly.

“Well, I think I’d better be off, I wouldn’t want to keep all those people away from the big Watcher guy.” Buffy stood to leave and leaned over Giles’ desk to deposit the container next to him. That it gave him an ample view of her cleavage was just coincidence. At lest, that was what it was supposed to look like.

“See you later,” Buffy said her farewell.

Giles glanced up at her face. “I’ll see you later.”

Buffy let herself out of the office area and into the hallway where she did a short happy dance. He hadn’t had to look up from his desk. His eyes were definitely focused elsewhere.

* * * * *

Rupert Giles stared in confusion as Buffy quickly removed the plates from the dinner table. For the past two weeks, she had been acting strangely. It had slipped by his notice at first, but the truth really was unavoidable. He had not seen her in such sexually appealing clothing since she had been in high school. What was worse was that he noticed.

Obviously, his Buffy was going through some sort of personal discovery after her latest relationship failure. What was wrong, though, was the fact that he did not seem to be able to keep his wandering eyes off of the emerging curves that her new choice in wardrobe seemed to give her. The urge to reach out and play with her tousled locks of hair was becoming a terrible nuisance, and he was heartily ashamed that his mind tended to focus more on wanting to kiss her lips instead of listening to what was coming out of them.

He really did wonder what his true motivation had been when he invited Buffy to stay with him. Oh, he knew what it had been at the time. The idea had been to get his Slayer back.

One day he had been sitting in his office late at night. He had seen twenty new slayers that day, and they had all been very nice. In fact, all the new slayers had been very nice, mostly amicable, and generally well behaved. They respected him. They wanted his advice, and contrary man that he was, he only wanted Buffy. There might be hundreds of Slayers, but only one was truly his. It should have been obvious by the fact that he had never truly bonded with Faith, but it had not been until that moment that he knew.

In truth, he was desperate for her company. What had happened in Sunnydale was as much his fault as hers, he had reasoned. His leaving had changed the dynamic of their relationship. And if he had not implicitly trusted her to be motivated by good, why had he been surprised when she had returned the distrust?

But all the bad things that had happened between them did not negate the need to be with one another. And obviously Buffy had felt the same way because she had eagerly accepted the invitation.

At the time it was simple logic, now, it seemed too muddled to comprehend. In the past, he had certainly noticed that Buffy was a woman. All the curves that seemed so tempting in the present, he had probably touched at some point in their training. His eyes had certainly seen her legs in shorter skirts.

Perhaps it was just the fact that she had been treating him as an interesting man. Perhaps it was all just an ego problem. It was flattering to have a younger woman have dinner specially prepared for you every night. And the quick stops by his office just to see how he was were certainly just friendly gestures.

Or perhaps it was the fact that he had not had any “company” since before Tara died and Willow had her stint as the Big Bad.

“Giles? You still in there, or do I have to start doing the research thing to see where your brain went?” Buffy teased.

“Hmmm?” Giles responded idly.

“Desert, do you want some?’ Buffy said as she poked at her own with her fork. “It’s really good. Come on, try some,” she cajoled as she held out the end of her fork towards him.

“Ah, no thank you,” he stuttered.

“You’re not going to make me make airplane noises are you?”

“No, I’m just rather full,” Giles explained quickly.

Buffy shrugged. “Your loss,” she said a split second before her lips closed around her confection.

Giles quickly swallowed some water. He really needed to quit thinking about Buffy’s sensuality. In fact, he probably should quit thinking about Buffy entirely at the moment. The way her neckline plunged over her round and womanly breasts was doing something to his anatomy that he really did not want to be happening at the moment.

He needed to get out. Soon, quickly, with all haste.

The telephone rang. Buffy went to answer it. Soon her voice floated through the house, “Hey, Giles, Willow’s on the phone, you wanna talk to her?”

The only answer she got was the sound of the front door closing.

* * * * *

Wearily, Buffy slogged through the wet grass. As thunder pealed overhead, she rued the fact that she had ever fallen in love with an Englishman. Giles probably loved getting soaked to the bone in this ridiculous weather. If he didn’t, he certainly did not mind running away in it. With a sigh, she kept on trekking until she saw a glimpse of something Giles shaped.

Determinedly, she stomped over to where Giles was standing. Annoyed with him, she poked his arm with her index finger.

His eyes moved from where they were fixed on the clouds down to the angelic and perturbed face of his Slayer.

“Are you nuts? You didn’t even put a coat on! You’re soaked through, and you’ll probably catch a cold!” Buffy ranted as she rubbed her hands up and down his damp arms in a futile effort to warm him.

“Being cold actually doesn’t make one susceptible to an illness, Buffy. They’ve done studies to prove it. I’m actually more likely to catch a cold because I stay inside where other people are, breathing in their germs.”

She simply crossed her arms and glared at him in response. Her response had the unfortunate side effect of pushing her breasts just that much higher. Unable to hold back the tide of desire that he had been stemming for the past days, Giles shot out a hand and pulled Buffy by her waist against him.

A tension settled over them as they stood in the rain staring at each other. Buffy gazed glassy eyed at the water drops forming on the rims of Giles’ glasses while he relished the feel of her warm body pressed against his and their mingled breath panting against each other.

Without warning, he dipped his head and pushed his lips against hers. At her soft response, he pulled open her jacket and pressed his wet front against hers.

Buffy pushed back with a squeak of protest, but it did little good. Her white shirt, already dampened by her contact with Giles, became translucent without the jacket to protect her. The semi-transparent effect combined with the clingy nature of fabric nicely outlined her womanly assets to the eye of her beholder. The lacy bra that she wore did little to mitigate the weather as her nipples stood out in stark contrast to the rest of her curves as the wind combined with the rain.

A flash of lightening lit up the sky making Giles seem almost feral as he approached her. For a second, Buffy felt a surge of adrenaline not unlike what she felt when she went slaying, but the feeling was over in that same second, as his second kiss was even softer than his first. It ended quickly. Before Buffy could bemoan her loss of intimacy, Giles and his lips made a steady descent down her neck and bosom.

With a quick movement of his hand, he pushed aside both the shirt and the cup of her bra to expose her right breast. He eyed it with a bit of trepidation wondering whether it was merely the cold that made it respond as it had. Buffy shivered. The movement caused her breast to move slightly, and he made his decision.

With a quick movement, he bent his head and captured the tiny nub in his lips. Buffy cried out at the contrasting feel of cold rain and the hot mouth that was teasing her. With a firm hand, she pulled his head up from where it was.

He looked at her questioningly, wondering for a moment if he had completely misread what he assumed were obvious signs. The fears were erased the second that she smiled at him.

“If you think I’m going to have sex in the middle of a muddy field, you’re mistaken. Seems to me, Mr. Giles, that you have a nice, big, fluffy bed that needs to be snuggled in,” she said as she tucked herself back into her bra.

He choked off a sound of protest when she blithely undid his hard work, but managed to smile lasciviously none the less. “Do you really think that we’ll make it to the bed?”

“We’d better, otherwise you can fix your own damn lunch tomorrow,” she stated firmly as she began to sashay away from him.

A hand shot out and grabbed for Buffy’s wrist, but she saw it coming and neatly avoided the questing watcher. With a saucy grin over her shoulder, she began to run slowly, for a Slayer, back towards the house. He followed on her heels trying to capture her.

They were close to the house when Buffy whirled around to face her pursuer. Not being able to stop, Giles ran straight into her arms. After being kissed senseless, he leaned back to look at her. “Minx,” he stated approvingly.

“I like a man who pays me compliments,” Buffy purred in his ear.

“Then I intend to give you many,” he responded before once again plundering her mouth.

Unwilling to break their connection, they stumbled towards the door.

Unfortunately, kissing and walking at the same time did not lead to the best of coordination. It was because of this that Buffy tripped and fell backwards into a puddle. Giles managed to stagger and avoid her fate, leaving him with the opportunity to laugh at his lady love who was currently sitting in the middle of the water.

“You try getting cold rain water up your skirt and see if you like it,” she groused at him when he extended his hand in an offer to help her up.

“I’m sorry, Buffy. Truly I am, but you just looked so adorable sitting there. The Slayer foiled by a little pool of water. Surely, you see the humor.”

“You know I’d make you suffer the same fate, but you’re already wet and you don’t seem to mind it. Stupid England, does it ever stop raining here?”

“Now, you’re just being unreasonable. You know it doesn’t always rain, and perhaps now you know how I felt living in California. I thought I’d never see a rain cloud again at times.”

“But, but it ruined the mood,” Buffy pouted as she stomped into the house.

“What mood was that? I’m not any less interested than I was a few minutes ago.”

“Giles, I just had cold water slosh onto more delicate regions,” she whined.

He smiled at her with an understanding look. “Well, we’ll just have to dry them off now won’t we?”

“Ha ha, very funny Giles,” Buffy stopped speaking when he unceremoniously picked her up and draped her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. “Giles!” she protested. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Taking you to the bathroom where people normally drip water and dry off,” he explained as he hauled her towards said room.

“Giles, put me down, GILES,” she whined a little too much.

“Buffy, really, I think that we both know that if you truly wanted to be put down, you would have made me do it already.”

Perturbed, she slid her hand into his back pocket. “Please?” she asked in her most winsome voice.

She felt his stride falter slightly and his body shudder.

“Very well, but only because we’re at our destination.”

Happily on her feet again, she glanced around the bathroom. A small part of her brain noticed that she felt no fear of being in a sexual situation in such a place. The major parts of her brain, however, were more focused on the fact that Giles was quickly peeling off her clothing.

Not to be outdone, she began to tug in return at his fastenings. Interspersed with hungry kisses, they managed the difficult task of yanking off damp clothes.

Giles backed up a bit and unabashedly raked his eyes over her body. Rising to the challenge, Buffy mutely gawked back at him with her chin stubbornly set.

“I’m not in the mood anymore,” she said waspishly as she made a very feeble attempt to push past him.

Surprisingly, Giles moved to the side to seemingly allow her to pass. This worried her for a moment before she felt him step behind her and wrap a plush, terrycloth towel around her waist.

“Now, now, I promised to get you all dried off didn’t I?” he whispered seductively against her ear, “Surely, you don’t hold that much of a grudge.”

Buffy wriggled her wet backside against him, “What if I said I was terribly hurt?”

Giles began to move the towel across the front of her body. “Then I would have to say that you were lying, as you rarely use the word ‘terribly’.”

“Oh,” she replied. Whether it was an actual comment or just a lover’s reaction to having her breast stroked, Giles was not certain, but he was certain that he was ‘forgiven’ when she grabbed her own towel, turned and began to rub it against his chest.

Soon, they both sported a rosy glow from the gentle movements of the cloth against their skin. As Giles gently stroked the inside of her thigh, he released a pensive sound.

“What’s wrong?” Buffy asked, concerned.

“Well, it seems that I cannot keep my promise to you. There seems to be a spot that I just cannot get dry,” he said as he gently stroked that ‘spot.’

Buffy moaned and rocked herself gently against his hand. “I think I’ll forgive you if you make sure that I get to bed.”

He quickly dropped the towel and picked up Buffy, this time allowing her to wrap her legs around his waist. She giggled against his neck as he walked. “Isn’t this a lot of heavy lifting for you?”

“My back will be fine, I assure you,” he replied as he laid her carefully on top of his duvet.

Buffy propped herself up on her elbows to look at him. “It had better be. I’ve got serious plans for other parts of you that need your back.”

He crawled willingly on to the bed and kissed her quickly. “Promises, promises,” he teased as he began to nip his way down towards her breast.

“Oh… Giles,” she gasped as he reclaimed the nipple he had been forced to give up earlier.

“Hmmm?” He asked when he removed his mouth and looked up at her.

“I’m thinking we need to put a condom in close reach before we go any farther,” she panted as her brain warred between desire and logic.

He shook his head slightly to clear it and then nodded. “You’re probably right. Where do you have them?”

Buffy stared at him in shock. “Don’t you have them in your night stand?”

“No, I haven’t any at all,” he explained.

“How can you not have any? Giles! Did all those bumps to your head make you nutty? How can you have been bare backing all those women?”

“What women?”

“The ones that you’ve been dating,” she replied exasperated.

“Buffy, I haven’t had sex since before the Magic Bow was destroyed. Quite frankly, I’ve been too busy.”

“But, but, I heard you making all those dates…”

“Those ‘dates’ as you put it, were all meetings with slayers and watchers,” he paused and smiled at her, “Although, if you wish to continue to be jealous of them, I have enjoyed the extra attention it has apparently brought.”

“You mean I went through a makeover to win you over, and I didn’t need to?”

“I wouldn’t say that. If you hadn’t been flouncing around in those skirts, I might never have thought you were interested. In fact, I’m not sure I would have known I was interested.”

“That’s sweet and romantic and really not helping our problem.”

“No, I suppose it isn’t. Why did you in your seduction plans not consider purchasing protection?”

“Hey, I thought you were doing the Hefner thing again. Besides, the last boyfriend I had that was capable of reproduction was Riley, remember? It really isn’t something I’ve had to think about.”

“Well, I suppose that leaves us with five options then. We could forgo intercourse altogether.”

“NO, no way, not an option,” Buffy stated emphatically.

“I’m glad you think so. We could avoid any actual, ah, penetration,” he mentioned uncomfortably.

“Not really what I want, and I’m guessing that pained look on your face pretty much makes that a big no.”

“We could, well…”

“Giles, I’m pretty sure that we aren’t ready to be making little Gileses right now, cute and impossibly smart though they would be.”

“Right, then I suppose that we could find some sort of substitute.”

Buffy shook her head. “See the above statement. Something else doesn’t work as good as the real thing. Besides, I’ve given up on using substitutes. I finally got the British man I want, and I want to do this with the real stuff.”

Giles sighed, “I do hate the fact that you’re right.”

Buff smiled at him, “No, you hate the fact that you’re going to have to get dressed and go get the condoms.”

He simply leaned in and stole one more kiss before jumping off the bed and hastily pulling on his jogging suit. “I’ll be right back,” he said as he tugged on his shoes and ran out the door, grabbing his keys on the way out.

When Buffy heard the door slam, she popped quickly out of bed. The night had been unexpected. Her original plan for their first night had been complete with candles and lingerie. With any luck, Giles would be gone just long enough for that to still be the plan.

With nimble movements, Buffy pulled the sheets off of Giles’ bed. She then ran to her room and pulled out some bags. The silk sheets and duvet set she drug out had been purchased with the money her father sent her for her birthday. Hank would no doubt have a fit if he knew what his daughter had done with the guilt money that he had sent when he realized just how close Buffy had been when Sunnydale went down in that ‘fluke earthquake.’

Shaking her head, Buffy moved back to Giles’ bedroom with the bedding. The maroon colored silk had birds and tropical scenes woven into it. She had only wanted them because of what her mind’s eye told her about how Giles would look sprawled out on them. But they had been so expensive that Buffy had determined to leave them there. That was until he ‘spidey sense’ tingled when she walked by the shop owner. Turned out that he was a very nice, shyster of a demon who understood what a slayer was and how that worked in combination with a stake. He let her have the set for cost.

With a glance at the clock, Buffy finished making the bed and dashed off to the shower. She shampooed her hair in record time before dashing back out and blow drying it.

She wriggled into her ridiculous bustier and panties set, lit some candles, and flopped elegantly back onto the bed just as the front door opened. Her heart pounded as she heard Giles walk towards the room.

He swung open the door to his bedroom and stared at the vision before him. “You’ve gone and covered your chest again,” he chided as he shucked his jogging suit and moved towards his bed.

Buffy wiggled slightly and smiled at him, “That all you’ve got to say?”

“Well, the convenience store clerk must wonder what I plan to do with his entire stock of condoms, and other than that, I don’t think I’ve ever been more tempted to get into my bed.”

He climbed into the bed next to her and played gently with the ends of her hair. “You are so beautiful.”

“You’re looking pretty good yourself,” Buffy said as she pushed him onto his back and straddled his hips.

He ran his hands up her thighs and hooked his thumbs in the elastic of her thong. “Make love to me?” he asked softly.

Buffy kissed him softly in response to his uncharacteristic query. “I don’t plan on doing anything else.”

* * * * *

It was early morning, and Buffy Summers thought she just might break down and bawl. Ten minutes earlier, Rupert Giles had slid out from underneath the covers and left her alone. No goodbye kiss, no note left on the pillow, just a quick slip out the door. If she strained hard enough, she could hear the rumble of his voice. Apparently, she had been so good that he decided that the first thing he needed to do that morning was make a business phone call. He would be leaving for work soon. No doubt he would send her flowers or something else suitable. After all, he wasn’t a total jerk. He just obviously wasn’t in love with her the way she was with him.

And why should he be? She had not made it clear what she wanted last night. Just because she had assumed that he’d want to stay around and cuddle and talk and do coupley things did not mean that was what he wanted.

Resolutely, she closed her eyes tight and pretended to sleep when he came back into the bedroom. She was not about to burst into tears when he was getting ready for work. There would be time enough for that after he left.

It was to her great surprise then, that he walked over to the other side of the bed, pulled back the covers and slid in next to her. He spooned his body against her back and slid one arm around her waist. She felt his lips brush the shell of her ear a second before he spoke.

“You aren’t very good at pretending to be asleep, love. You’re body is much too tense.”

“I thought you were leaving,” Buffy replied without opening her eyes, lest it just be a dream she was having.

Giles chuckled softly. “I had to use the loo. You will find that as you age, your bladder protests more than it used to.”

“You made a call,” Buffy protested.

“Hmmm, well I couldn’t be absent today without telling my secretary now could I? I was merely leaving a message that I’d not be coming in.”

She turned around and snuggled into his chest. “You aren’t going in at all today?”

“It would be rather insensitive of me to do so after you spent all that time getting my attention. Or was this all just about sex?”

“No, doofus, it wasn’t just about sex. I mean, yeah, wow and all that, but I’m for the early morning snugglies too.”

“And after the ‘snugglies’?”

“Well, I was thinking breakfast and talking and some serious dating and maybe way in the future not using condoms anymore. What about you?”

“My plans are much the same only I prefer to insert a possible engagement and marriage in there somewhere before the procreation seeking act. I had also entertained the idea of sending you back to continue your education. I believe that you did well as a school counselor, and I rather think that new slayers might benefit from your experience. You were rather fond of psychology as I recall.”

“Plus, if I’m going to school, I’m in one place,” Buffy commented.

“Now that you mention it, there is a university nearby. If you learned to drive in England, you could commute from here. And as I have a large home, I’m certain that Dawn could come live here, should she wish to take her final year in England.”

“Why, Mr. Giles, are you asking me to move in with you?”

“W..well yes, I suppose that I am. Is this too sudden? I mean, we’ve only spent one night together and I shouldn’t wish to…”

“Giles,” Buffy cut him off, “I’m pretty sure that normal isn’t something either of us have in our relationships. Why don’t we just skip the whole waiting to move in thing and go straight to the part where I say ‘yes.’”

“Would you be amenable to celebrating that decision?” Giles asked softly.

“Sure what did you have in mind? Oh, forget I asked that question,” Buffy said as her eyes looked pointedly downwards.

A smile tugged at his lips. “How ‘bout a quick shag before breakfast?” he asked in his best lewd and uncultured tone.

Buffy kissed him lightly on the lips. “What happened to love making?”

“I thought that was what we were doing,” he responded as he began to kiss his way down her body.

“Good, ‘cause I’d hate to be in love with you and not have the same feelings going the other way.”

Giles head popped up from where it had descended under the covers. “I would never have even suggested the thought of marriage unless I loved you, Buffy Summers. Now perhaps I was not certain about how I loved you before, but I always knew that I did.”

“Really?”

Giles nodded. “Really.”

“Good, then you can make breakfast,” she stated firmly before she kissed him again.

Needless to say, breakfast was a long time coming.

* * *