Love In Vein: Book Three - Chapter 16

Buffy shut the door quietly and locked it again. She breathed a long sigh of relief and then looked over at the vampire sleeping in her bed. Giles hadn’t mentioned Spike in all the time they were researching, but she knew that he still wasn’t happy about her decision to keep him with her and to keep him unchained. He had dropped not so subtle hints about it all day.

Walking into the bathroom, she deposited the bags of shopping and then went back into the bedroom. She paused at the bottom of the bed, letting a small smile tease her lips as she looked at Spike.

He looked so innocent when sleeping, so very un-vampire like.

The sun had set almost forty minutes ago. She’d made her excuses and ended the long day of research that Giles had submitted her to. They were still none the wiser about the angels and everything that was happening, and she had decided that she needed time away from the doom and gloom.

Time with Spike.

Moving around the bed to the side that he was sleeping on, she crouched down and stroked his cheek, smiling at him all the while.

“Wake up, baby.” Buffy cooed at him and he wrinkled his nose up and pulled a face at her. She knew he was awake, she could sense it. Clearly, sleep had eluded him during the day and he wanted to stay in bed.

Buffy had other plans.

Whipping the covers off him, she ignored his threatening growl and grabbed hold of his hand, tugging him out of bed.

He growled for a few seconds more and then came willingly. Buffy smiled triumphantly.

Leading him into the bathroom, she made him stand next to the shower while she got everything ready. She turned the water on and tested it to make sure that it wasn’t too hot. Turning to face Spike, she found him watching her intently, his eyes following her every move while his expression remained almost childlike. She smiled and stepped towards him.

Running her hands up over his chest to his shoulders, she hooked them around the back of his head and brought his lips down for a kiss. She closed her eyes as he kissed her, his tongue seeking entrance. Her lips parted instinctively, letting her own tongue play against his and revelling in the feeling of his kiss.

She’d really missed this.

Holding onto him for a few moments longer, she reluctantly released him and bit her lip when she caught sight of the passion she’d stirred in his eyes.

He caught hold of her waist and purred into her neck as he nuzzled it.

“I know…hungry…later.” Buffy gently pushed him off her and slipped her hand into his, walking him over to the shower. She looked at the water and then at Spike, getting the feeling he wasn’t going to be washing himself.

Making him step under the water, she ignored the growl he shot in her direction. She hesitated for a moment before stripping down to her underwear. She could feel him watching her, could feel his desire as it crushed all his other emotions, and wasn’t surprised when she looked up and found him staring at her, his eyes narrowed hungrily on her body.

She looked down at his crotch and then rolled her eyes as he made a move to grab her.

She evaded him.

He growled again.

“You’ll have to wait for that, too.” She told him and couldn’t miss the disappointed look on his face.

Stepping into the shower, she smiled as he immediately turned to face her, his hands coming to rest on her hips. She let him rain kisses down on her neck for a few seconds before reminding herself that they weren’t here to make out. Peeling him off her, she grabbed the sponge and the shower gel and began to scrub the dirt off him.

She had to admit he was being patient.

He stood still the whole time she soaped his chest, working to clear it of the grime that covered him. Unable to resist the temptation in front of her, she put the sponge back on the rack and ran her palms over his soapy chest, enjoying the feeling of it as her fingers slipped over it.

It would be so easy for her to get lost in what she was doing, so easy to just let him do what she knew he wanted to do. Raising her eyes up to meet his, she pouted her lips out slightly as she found his eyes full of fiery passion and desire.

She jumped slightly as he pressed his hand against her chest, his eyes dropping to rest on it as his lips parted.

“Mine.” He said in a low voice that made her knees weaken.

“Always.” She whispered back at him and then reminded herself that she was supposed to be cleaning him up.

Grabbing the sponge again, she took hold of his hand and pressed a little kiss to it before starting to scrub him again. She slowly worked her way around his body, cleaning him bit by bit until there was only a few parts left of him to attend to.

Grabbing the shampoo, she smiled to herself as she placed a dollop of it on his head and lathered it with her fingers. She felt like she was massaging his scalp for him as she worked to get his hair clean, listening to the contented purr that he was emitting and watching his face as he closed his eyes in pleasure.

Rinsing his hair off, she slicked it back and smiled as she realised that he was starting to look more like he used to.

More like her Spike.

She tiptoed and pressed a kiss to the tip of his nose, and then let her eyes widen as he caught hold of her backside and ground his hips against hers.

“Naughty.” She chastised him and then realised that there was only one part of him left to clean.

She looked down at his crotch and then at her sponge. Shrugging, she dropped the sponge back onto the rack and then squirted shower gel into her hand.

He’d been patient and relatively good.

He deserved a little reward.


Stepping out of the shower, Buffy immediately sought out her bathrobe to cover her now complete nakedness. Spike had always had a tendency to get his own way, and today was certainly no exception. She idly squeezed her thighs together to make the most of the lingering feeling in her abdomen and smiled as she wrapped her white towel robe around herself.

Grabbing the other one off the side, she offered it to Spike and blushed slightly as he looked at her, his eyes still full of fire even after their moment of passion in the shower.

She knew she probably shouldn’t have let him have his way, at least not while he still wasn’t wholly with her, but she just couldn’t resist him.

He was very persuasive when he wanted to be.

Waiting for him to slip the bathrobe on, she sorted through the other things she’d bought in town and pulled out everything she needed to accomplish the next part of her plan.

Hair bleach, clippers and some kind of waxy stuff. She’d spent nearly thirty minutes deliberating about what kind of hair product he used to keep it held back like that. Now that his hair was growing out, she could see just how wavy it was and she wondered if anything short of industrial strength wax would keep it slicked back.

Arranging everything on the vanity unit, she smiled as two hands snaked around her waist and tugged her backwards against a hard body.

“Hey, baby.” She murmured as he pressed his cheek to hers and held her flush against him.

Raising her eyes, she looked in the mirror in front of her and smiled at his lack of reflection.

“Let’s get you all neatened up.” She turned in his embrace and bit back a giggle when she saw him in the robe.

Sitting him down on the chair she’d brought in from the bedroom, she emptied the box of bleach and read the instructions, desperately trying not to let the way that Spike was slowly working his way into her bathrobe distract her.

Slapping his roaming hand away, she shot him a warning look and he sat back in his chair, matching the look that she was giving him.

Buffy slipped the rubber gloves on and squirted some of the bleach mixture out onto her hand. Gradually working it into his hair, she let him entertain himself with sneaking his way into her bathrobe and concentrated on what she was doing. Once all his hair was covered, she stepped back and smiled at her work.

Spike smiled at his.

Buffy rolled her eyes at the fact he’d completely undone her bathrobe.

Reading the packet again, she tried to figure out how she was going to keep Spike entertained for twenty minutes without him being able to move or play with her.

Good old-fashioned conversation.

That’s if he would talk tonight.

Bringing in another chair from the bedroom, she placed it opposite his and smiled as he smiled at her. She sat down and rearranged her bathrobe so it was covering her.

Clearing her throat, she tried to think about what she could say.

All she’d done since last speaking to him was research.

“No more info on the angels yet.” She said in a quiet tone, her heart hoping that he’d join in the conversation rather than just staring at her.

“Angels…with broken wings. I’ve seen them…” Spike smiled at her and she got the feeling he was trying to show her what a good boy he was.

“I know, via my visions, right?”

He didn’t say anything so she took it as a yes.

“We don’t know how to beat them.”

“Burn them.” Spike said and she frowned at him.

“No, beat them…but close enough.”

“Devils are branded.” Spike offered and Buffy’s confusion intensified.

“Branded?”

“Marked…with ink and quill…with blackness.”

Buffy felt more confused than ever. Devils were branded with ink? She really wished Spike was more coherent. For all she knew, he could be telling her a mish-mash of things that were just swimming about in his head or he could be being serious.

“Buffy?”

The sound of her name on his lips made her look up and she found clear eyes watching her, an expression of shock in them as though he was confused about something, as though he hadn’t expected her to be there.

“Yes, Spike?”

“Don’t let them take me.” He furrowed his brows into a scared look and Buffy’s heart ached when she saw tears shining in his eyes.

Reaching out to him, she gently cupped his cheek and furrowed her brows too, almost reflecting his expression.

“I won’t…not going to let anyone take you from me ever again.”

“Never?”

“Never.” She promised him.

“Never is a long time…a long time, just like forever. We’re forever. Nothing can change that…the claim is stronger, the bond between us eternal. It can’t be broken, not ever, Buffy…”

“It’s what makes us stronger.” She finished his speech, recognising it as the one he’d said to her shortly after he’d countered her claim and placed a stronger one between them. She’d memorised every word and look that night, not wanting to forget how touched she was by the things he’d said.

Spike smiled.

“It’s more than a connection, Buffy, it’s a bond, one that lasts forever.”

Buffy whispered. “Forever can be a long time.”

“A long time.” Spike repeated and narrowed his eyes on hers. “I meant it…all of it.”

“I know you did.” She let her hand fall to rest on his and smiled as his fingers interlaced with hers.

Looking at their joined hands made the worry she’d been feeling earlier in the day about the angels and the visions melt away. The whole world melted away when he touched her.

She let her thumb brush lightly against his and stared at their hands for a few seconds before realising it was probably time to rinse his hair off.

Standing up, she smiled when he stood too, obviously knowing what came next and letting her lead him over to the shower. She watched him as he stripped off the bathrobe and then turned the shower on again. Taking down the showerhead, she began to rinse out the bleach, her fingers running through his hair as she gradually revealed his new blond locks to her eyes.

She smiled as she finally shut the shower off and he ran his fingers through his hair, squeezing the excess water out.

Now all that was left to do was neaten his hair up and give him his new clothes. She handed him his bathrobe and waited for him to slip into it.

Sitting him down in the chair again, she dumped a towel on his head and began to rub his hair dry, or at least as dry as she could get it. Spike looked less than amused when she revealed the frizzy mess she’d made of his hair and she almost felt like telling him not to pout like a baby.

She’d fix it.

She wrinkled her nose as she picked up the clippers and stared at them. Couldn’t be too hard, could it? It was the only option they had. It wasn’t like he could nip out to the barber in the blistering heat of day.

Come to think of it, how the hell had he cut his hair in the past?

She shrugged off the question and flicked the switch on the clippers, ignoring the somewhat petrified look that Spike gave them.

She could do this.

Half an hour later and she was fairly pleased with the result. She’d managed to do the whole grading thing and had even trimmed the top quite well with scissors. She grinned while she looked him over, watching him as he groomed his hair and worked the waxy stuff she’d bought into it.

Stepping back, she sighed as he looked at her. He looked so much like he used to, and all it had taken was a good four-hour session in the bathroom.

Hopefully now he’d get back to how he used to be.

Taking hold of his hand, she led him into the bedroom and sat him down on the end of the bed. She grabbed the bags of clothes she’d bought for him and placed them down on the bed beside him.

“I got things that were similar to what you used to have. I hope they’re okay.” She pulled an awkward face as he started rifling through the bags and pulling out the clothes.

She’d played it safe by going for a few pairs of black jeans, some black combat trousers, a dozen or so black t-shirts and a couple of black shirts. She was slightly disappointed that she hadn’t been able to find him a good red shirt like he used to have but what she had would do.

Spike slipped into the new clothes and smiled at her when he was done. He cocked his head to one side as he saw the tears in her eyes and then sighed at the same time she did.

“Thanks.” He mumbled, remembering how hard it used to be to say or hear that word.

Buffy toyed with the belt of her bathrobe and shrugged. “No biggie. I have your duster…Giles kept it and he gave it to me when I arrived.”

He smiled again.

Stepping towards her, he brushed the backs of his fingers against her cheek and narrowed his eyes tenderly as she ducked her head, a blush colouring her cheeks.

“Still not used to that?”

“What?” She asked, curious about what he meant.

“Seeing all that love directed at you and you alone.” He smiled and met her eyes as she raised them.

Buffy looked deep into the bright pools of blue staring at her and searched them, trying to see if he looked any different now that he had a soul.

They looked exactly the same, full of love and devotion, the depth of which was immeasurable.

“I really missed you.” She breathed before wrapping her arms tight around him and squeezing him so much that she feared she’d break him.

“Missed you too, sweetheart.” Spike pressed a kiss to her neck and held her tightly, not wanting to let her go.

He knew he’d have to. He wouldn’t be able to stay long and could almost feel the sun as it approached the horizon.

He’d try and stay, try and resist the lure of sleep in order to be with her, but he knew it wouldn’t last.

He’d be gone again soon, but each time he went, it seemed to get a little easier to come back. It was so easy when he saw how much she needed him, how much she loved him, and how much she wanted to help him learn to live with the things he’d done.

The soul inside him burnt like an inferno of pain whenever he thought about what he’d done, but at the same time she was healing it with the strength of her emotions. He could feel them inside him as if they were his own and they made his feelings for her stronger.

She loved him with such an intensity, and he loved her back with one that was stronger by a hundred-fold.

She gave him such sweet forgiveness, and he could feel it inside him, making everything melt away until he was learning to let go of the past.

She gave him such sweet, deep forgiveness that he hoped she always would.

Because he was going to need it.

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