Author’s Note: Okay guys, this is it, the last chapter. I want to thank everyone who read, and I want to do chores for those who fed me back. You’d think I could get it through my head by now, but I just can’t get over how cool it is that people like my stuff enough to read it and sometimes even leave comments. I appreciate it more than I can ever explain :)
I’d like to say thanks to two special people:
To my brand new editor…could anything be more unexpected? Your attention is flattering, your suggestions are right on the money, and your check is in the mail. Thank you. x
To Kelly…Your friendship, good cheer, and wonderful daughter are worth untold fortunes. “Oprah” or bust!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone! :)
Chapter Twenty-Two
Buffy stretched and yawned, then snuggled back into the bed comfortably. She was supposed to be getting up, but she didn’t want to. Faith had exhausted her the night before, and Buffy felt every inch the well-satisfied woman that she was. She couldn’t stop smiling as she thought of the things they’d done to each other.
She rolled over to Faith’s side of the bed and breathed in deep, wrapping her arms around her pillow. It smelled so good, and if Faith wasn’t going to be lazing around in bed when she was supposed to be, well then Buffy wasn’t above lavishing her affections on her lover’s pillow.
The warmth of the sunlight that was streaming in through the window just made it tougher for Buffy to rouse herself. She could have happily stayed where she was forever, inhaling her favorite fragrance as she waited for its source to return. Besides, she had no appointments or responsibilities, why should she get up?
Last night had been their anniversary, one year since they’d gotten back together, and the look on Faith’s face when she’d seen Buffy’s gift was a sight that was going to stick with Buffy until her dying day. It had taken a lot of planning, some embarrassing help from Willow, and then all that was left was for Faith to unwrap and enjoy her present.
Buffy had ordered her to be home on time, and Faith had promised that she would be. She’d looked disappointed when Buffy had turned down her offer of a night out at “Lakos”.
“But B, kinda our spot, and I thought…”
“It is our spot, but I want us to stay home tonight.”
“Yeah, but I had this whole thing planned and…”
Buffy thrust out her bottom lip, knowing Faith didn’t stand a chance if she pouted.
“Please, Faith? I want to spend a quiet evening together, just talking.”
Faith looked like she’d rather be dead, but she didn’t argue:
“Well, okay. But are you sure, B, ‘cause I had a really great…”
“I’m positive. Can you please be home early?”
Faith leaned down and gently sucked Buffy’s pouty lower lip into her mouth, turning the simple gesture into a hot and steamy kiss.
“I can be whatever whenever ya want. How’s four?”
Buffy smiled and as soon as the door closed, she was on the phone to Willow.
“Hey, Will, it’s me. Is everything…Great! Can you… An hour’s perfect. Thanks, Will!”
Willow came over and explained everything as she delivered the goods, her face as red as Buffy’s the entire time. When she left, Buffy spent the afternoon preparing: washing, waxing, shaving, moisturizing, and any other thing she could think of.
She took a last look around and was pleased to see that she had everything done. The drinks were chilled, the food was ready to heat up when they wanted it, and there was nothing left for her to do except prepare herself.
Faith was due home any second, and Buffy wasted no time. She used her teeth for the last one, then laid back and waited. It wasn’t two minutes before she heard the front door slam:
“B, I’m home!”
Buffy said nothing, biding her time because she knew exactly what Faith was doing. She was opening a beer, slugging half of it down in one sip, and grabbing a handful of whatever was handiest and shoving it into her mouth.
“Alright, take-out from ‘Wolfy’s’!”
Her speech was all muffled and distorted from the food she’d crammed into her mouth.
“Hey Blondie, got some flowers out here with your name on’em!”
She was approaching the bedroom door, grumbling under her breath:
“Fuckin’ tells me to be here, then not even fucking here herself. What’s that shit all ab…”
Faith opened the door and then stood completely still. She looked like she’d been frozen, her bottle of beer hanging dangerously loose in her hand.
Buffy said nothing, but the sight of her said everything there was to say. Faith’s eyes were all over her, and Buffy could feel herself reacting to the lustful stare.
“Wha…Uh…Buffy…What’s…?”
“What’s it look like, F?”
Faith had to clear her throat before she could answer:
“Like every fantasy I’ve had since I met you.”
“I see.”
Faith did nothing except continue to stand where she was, clearly dazed.
“So F, in these fantasies, do you usually just stand around?”
Faith blinked several times as if waking up and she approached the bed:
“No, usually get busy without much delay.”
“Well, then I’d say this is your golden opportunity.”
Faith crouched down next to the bed, placing her beer on the nearby nightstand:
“B, you don’t need…I know there’s some other shit involved and…”
“There’s nothing involved here except me and you.”
“B…”
“What? You’re so whipped now you don’t know what to do when you find a naked woman tied up in your bed?”
And there it was, that sexy, slightly scary gleam in Faith’s eyes as she stood up and delicately began fondling the restraints:
“So, guessing these are Slayer-proof?”
“Yep, no getting out of them until you say so. But you might want to tighten the right hand one, I had to use my teeth and…”
Faith yanked on it, making Buffy yelp in surprise as she tugged it almost too tight. She did the same with the other three ties, then sat down next to Buffy on the bed and began running her hand lightly up and down her body.
“You’re skin’s so soft and smooth...”
Buffy was already squirming.
“Mmm…that feels good.”
“Can promise it’s gonna get better. What’s the safe word?”
“Do I need one?”
“Probably.”
”How about ‘motorvate’?”
Faith laughed:
“You are such a little shit.”
“Ooh…Are you going make me pay?”
“No B, I’m gonna make you scream.”
And she had.
Fifteen minutes into it, Buffy was pleading. Five minutes after that, she was begging. By the time the half hour mark rolled around, Buffy was babbling as Faith sat next to her, fully clothed as she finished off her second beer.
“Faith, please…”
“What? Ya want some beer?”
She poured the cold liquid over Buffy’s breast, then followed behind it with her mouth. Buffy jerked hard on the restraints, and if Willow hadn’t magically strengthened them as well as the headboard, she would have been free.
“Whoa, easy there, B. Not like you’re goin’ anywhere.”
Faith stood and slowly began stripping off her clothes, caressing herself as she went.
“Mmm…bet you wish you could do this.”
“Faith…”
“Tell me what you want.”
“I want you to....”
Buffy’s voice broke off in a strangled groan of lust as Faith sat astride her leg:
“Sure, I wouldn’t mind. I’m kinda turned on.”
She remained out of reach but well within sight as she pleasured herself. She thrust against Buffy’s knee and it wasn’t long before she came…and Buffy right with her.
Faith took a minute to catch her breath, then began laughing as she sat up:
“B, did you just…”
“Yes.”
“How’s that possible? All I was touching was your knee.”
“I don’t know.”
“Well I say a response like that deserves a reward.”
Faith untied her legs, tossed them over her shoulders and soon had Buffy screaming uncontrollably. She finally stopped and slid up until she could reach the last two restraints.
She kissed Buffy and then untied her.
“What are you doing?”
“Was a wicked present, B. Always wanted you at my mercy, but turns out I need you touching me more than anything else.”
“Oh, well I can do that too.”
They made love on and off all night long, and when they weren’t having sex, they were eating and drinking as they lay together in bed.
Their latest round had left Buffy sprawled out with her head in Faith’s lap as Faith played with her hair.
Hey, B?”
“Uh-huh?”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, Faith.”
Faith untangled herself much to Buffy’s displeasure and walked over to their dresser. She came back with a jewelry box.
Buffy sat up eagerly:
“Is that for me?”
“No B, it’s for my other girl. Just thought maybe you could gimme an opinion.”
“Shut up!”
Buffy smacked her on the shoulder and took the box from her. She opened it to find the necklace and pendant she’d been lusting after for weeks.
“I love it, Faith. It’s beautiful!”
“Figured you would. Had’em write on it.”
Buffy turned it over and read out loud:
“B, gonna stick like glue. Love, F.”
Buffy teared up:
“God, I love you so much.”
Faith smiled and put the necklace on her.
“Looks good.”
“Does it?”
“Yeah, ‘specially the way it hangs between your tits.”
It had been a good night, maybe the best, and Buffy had no desire to get out of bed. Just five more minutes though and she was going to rise and shine, she had big plans to clean and run errands. She hugged Faith’s pillow close and buried her face in it. She was sleeping in less than a minute.
*************************************
Faith had already been yelled at by Giles, twice, and she was certain by the way he took off his glasses and squeezed the bridge of his nose that she was due again. A quick glance at Kennedy confirmed her assessment.
“Uh…sorry. Didn’t understand the question, G-man.”
“You didn’t?”
She smiled as charmingly as she could at him:
“No, all them fancy words, ya know?”
“So the question, ‘Did he tell you what time?’ has you baffled, does it?”
“…”
“Faith! Oh for God’s sake, would you please just go back to Buffy? We’ll muddle through without you somehow.”
“Yeah? Really, G-man?”
She was already on her feet, an excited grin on her face.
“Yes, ‘really’. Consider both of you off for the rest of the day and night.”
“Thanks!”
She left in a blur of Slayer speed, nearly running through his office door in her haste.
“How come I still have to work?”
“Please, Kennedy.”
“If I go all moony and stupid over Will, do I get to…”
He placed his glasses back on his face as he met her eyes:
“Sorry, it only works if you’re ‘mooning’ over Buffy. Now can we please get through this?”
“Fine, but I’m filing a complaint.”
****************************************
Faith knew what she was going to find even before she walked in. No way in hell was Buffy not sleeping again. She could make all the noise she wanted to about how she was going to clean and run errands on her day off, but Faith knew all that was going to get done was sleeping and lazing around.
The thought of Buffy naked and tangled in the sheets while she clutched a pillow in her arms had made it increasingly impossible for Faith to pay the least bit of attention to Giles. She kept seeing the sunlight shining on Buffy as she snuggled in their bed, the warm light making her look like a golden sex goddess, and she wanted to be there with her.
She was already stripping as she locked the front door behind her, and by the time she hit the bedroom she was naked. She slid in on Buffy’s side of the bed, a smile lighting her face as she saw that her girl was cuddling with her pillow. She wrapped an arm around Buffy and murmured in her ear:
“Real thing’s here now, baby.”
Buffy’s only response was to burrow deeper into the pillow.
“B…”
There was no response at all, and Faith had to laugh. She was going to have to compete with her own pillow for Buffy’s affections.
She pushed up against Buffy’s back, and that earned her a low moan and a tiny wriggle. She began planting light kisses on her shoulder and neck while she ran her hand up and down the arm that was wrapped firmly around the pillow. Faith capped it all off by swinging a leg over her and pushing her center up tight against Buffy’s ass.
Buffy edged back slightly, and when Faith began grinding slowly, she began swaying with her,
“B…”
Faith called to her again while still planting tiny kisses along her skin, finally reaching her way up to Buffy’s ear.
“Baby…”
She whispered that directly into her ear, and a shiver shot through Buffy’s entire body.
“Hmm?”
“Was thinkin’ maybe you should let go of that pillow.”
“Mmm…I love this pillow.”
Faith could hear the teasing smile in her voice.
“Yeah, why’s that?”
“It’s soft and squishy, and it smells like Faith.”
“I can be soft and squishy. Bet I can smell like Faith too.”
Buffy pushed back into her and began moving in a way that made them both crazy.
“Maybe, but I’m not taking any chances.”
Faith growled and tore the pillow out of Buffy’s arms, well half of it anyway. The other half remained clutched tightly to her chest, even as the feathers flew into the air and cascaded down all around them.
“Let go of the fucking pillow, B.”
“No. I’m in love with this pillow.”
Faith flipped her over onto her back and hovered ominously above:
“Not gonna repeat myself.”
“Neither am I.”
Faith leaned down to deliver a toe curling, earth shaking kiss, but Buffy still hung onto the remnants of the pillow.
“Listen you little shit, got three seconds to ditch your new lover.”
“I’m sorry, Faith, but this pillow and I are getting married, so…”
Faith sat on her, pinning Buffy’s arms with her knees as she began the tickling. Buffy screamed and laughed at the same time:
“No! Stop! Faith, stop!”
“Soon as you let go of the pillow.”
“Faith, stop! Motorvate! Motorvate!”
“No safe words today, Princess. Now drop it!”
Buffy had turned red. She was squirming and laughing as she tried valiantly not to loosen her grip, but she finally couldn’t take it anymore.
“Okay, fine!”
She tossed the pillow to the side and held up her hands in surrender:
“I give! Now stop!”
Faith kept going for a few seconds, then slid down until she was lying flush against Buffy. She kissed her hard, their tongues meeting and teasing until neither of them could take any more.
Buffy opened her legs and Faith fell down between them, pushing up against her at their most sensitive spot and making them both moan.
“Mmm…Faith.”
“Told ya I was better than a pillow.”
Buffy smiled and kissed her, nipping at her lower lip as she pulled back:
“What are you doing here?”
“Felt bad knowin’ how hard you were working on all the chores.”
“Hey! I was going to…later.”
Faith laughed and began rotating her hips slowly.
“Turns out I couldn’t concentrate, so Giles made me leave.”
“Something on your mind?”
“Yeah, how you were in my bed all naked and ready to be fucked.”
“Hmm…you seem awfully sure of yourself.”
Faith smirked:
“Well hell yeah, just look at me. I’m hot shit.”
Buffy flipped them quickly so that she was on top.
“Yes you are, but I’m afraid I have housework to do.”
She leaned down and kissed Faith on the nose, then got out of bed.
“Maybe later, F.”
She turned to walk away, but Faith quickly hauled her back down:
“No more getting outta bed without permission.”
Buffy looked at her innocently:
“But what about the housework?”
“Oh B, I am so gonna fuck you up.”
”Promise?”
“Slayer promise.”
******************************
An hour later and they were both relaxing in the bathtub with Buffy reclining against the rim and Faith reclining against Buffy. They were tired and happy and they were also sore, but the hot water was doing wonders with that. Faith had already fallen asleep with her head resting on Buffy’s shoulder, and Buffy smiled and closed her own eyes as she thought back over the past year.
It had been an incredibly difficult time, but it was all behind them now, and they were stronger than anyone could have ever predicted. The separation had forced them to put everything on the table, and that’s just what they had done. Nothing was off limits and they had talked everything out until there wasn’t one stone left unturned.
It was hard and it was painful, but they’d cried and screamed and fought their way through, always reaching out, always hanging on until they found the place where they could stand together again. It was tough and it hurt, but neither of them shied away.
To Buffy’s amazement, Faith never once backed away or made excuses. She stood there in front of Buffy and answered every question no matter how much it hurt her, and she accepted every bit of blame that was hers to take. She explained whatever she was asked to and she explained whatever else she needed to for herself.
Faith never retaliated when Buffy verbally lashed out, understanding that she needed to get it out because Faith herself had put it there. She looked Buffy in the eye whenever she let it loose, and Buffy let it loose often and at totally unpredictable times.
It took two months before Buffy let her move back in, and the smile on Faith’s face when she received the invitation told Buffy she’d made the right decision. They agreed they were not quite ready for sex so they chose to wait, believing that when the time was right they would know. That decision didn’t stop them from making out whenever the mood struck them, but it did keep them from going all the way, a situation that soon had them both tense and on edge.
It all came to a head one night while they were out on the world’s most tedious patrol. They’d been walking around for two hours, not one thing had happened, and Buffy was bored out of her mind. She began lagging a couple of paces behind, and all too quickly she became incredibly turned on by the way Faith’s ass was bouncing firmly in her skin tight pants.
The “no sex” edict was seeming stupider with every step they took, and Buffy decided enough was enough. She was going to make Faith the happiest…well the second happiest Slayer in the world. She caught up with her and entwined their hands, bumping Faith’s shoulder with her own:
“So F, wanna call it a night?”
Faith looked startled:
“Still early, B. ‘Sides, what the hell would we do with…”
Buffy kissed her, hoping to shut her up before she said the stupidest thing ever said in the history of the world. When they broke apart, Buffy let her hands run along the front of Faith’s shirt, pausing to play with her breasts.
“Oh, I don’t think we’ll have any trouble coming up with something interesting to do.”
Faith actually began stammering worse than Willow on her worst day:
“B…we…I mean…I said …Uh, you know…Giles…”
Buffy nuzzled into her exposed neck, causing Faith to jump and attempt a retreat which Buffy quickly cut off by wrapping her arms around her.
She tried to catch Faith’s eye, but that turned out to be a lot harder than it should have been.
“Hello? What are you doing?”
“Tryin’ to focus on my job, so if ya don’t mind…”
“But I do mind. Tonight’s totally dead, and I want to get a little touchy feely with my girlfriend, who by the way, is acting like I have a contagious disease.”
Faith wriggled out of Buffy’s grasp, her gaze intently surveying the surrounding area:
“Let’s just stay on target ‘stead of…”
Buffy rushed her, slamming her hard up against a nearby crypt wall. She pressed their bodies together and began moving in a way she knew Faith liked.
“B, would you c’mon?”
“Mmm…I would if you’d play with me.”
Faith squirmed around until she’d managed to ease out from between Buffy and the smooth stone wall.
“Hey, wanna head over to that old cemetery by the…”
Buffy’s hands were now on her hips and she was clearly angry:
“No, what I want is to make out with my girlfriend who is steadily resisting me. What’s going on?”
“Nothing’s going on. Look, correct me if I’m wrong…”
“You’re wrong, way wrong. Why don’t you want me to touch you?”
“B, this is stupid. Course I want you to touch me.”
But when Buffy moved towards her, Faith moved away.
“So what, you want me to chase you first?”
“Look, why don’t we just finish patrolling? Still got a coupla hours left and…”
“Why don’t you just take me and have your way with me instead?”
But Faith didn’t.
She continued to walk around acting like sex wasn’t something she enjoyed, like it wasn’t something they’d both been waiting months to do. They just wandered around doing absolutely nothing for two more hours, and by the time they got home, Buffy was furious.
They followed their normal routine, each heading to the kitchen to grab a snack. Buffy took only one bite of her non-fat yogurt before she threw it into the trashcan. Well ostensibly that’s what she meant to do, but what actually happened was that she hurled it with full Slayer strength against the wall.
The flimsy plastic container exploded on impact, spraying yogurt everywhere. She didn’t even spare Faith a glance as she stomped off to their bedroom. Faith grabbed a bunch of paper towels and wiped up the mess, then hit the light and headed after her.
Buffy had just finished putting on her pajamas, and if Faith hadn’t known how angry she was before, she knew it now. Even though they had yet to have sex they both slept naked, loving the feel of their warm skin sliding against each other as they cuddled. Apparently that wasn’t going to be happening tonight.
Buffy was now slamming things around and Faith stood staring at her from her own side of the bed.
“B?”
“…”
“B?”
“What?”
“Can we talk?”
Buffy glared at her:
“I don’t know, is that something you’ll let us do?”
Faith walked around the bed:
“Let’s sit down.”
Buffy just stood there looking at her:
“Are we allowed to sit on the bed or is that out of bounds now too?”
“Come here.”
Faith grabbed her, pulling Buffy down onto her lap as she sat on the edge of the bed. Buffy couldn’t have been any stiffer if she’d been a board.
“B, I’m sorry, okay? I know I’m acting weird.”
Buffy didn’t relent an inch:
“I’m thinking it’s not an act.”
“Just let me try to explain, okay?”
“Go ahead.”
Buffy was still mad, but at least her body was no longer completely rigid.
“Well, I don’t know how much sense this is gonna make.”
“Since when has that ever been a requirement between us? Just tell me what’s going on here.”
“I’m scared.”
Buffy pulled back so she could see her face:
“What?”
Faith was embarrassed and uncertain:
“I’m scared to fuck you.”
“Faith, what are you talking about? We’ve had sex millions of times, why would you suddenly be scared to…”
“B, can I get up?”
Faith looked almost panicked and Buffy understood she needed space.
“Sure.”
Buffy slid off of her quickly and let her stand. The instant Faith was on her feet, she began pacing rapidly back and forth. She looked so sexy, like a tiger that’d been penned up in a too small cage and was now looking to tear somebody to shreds. Buffy could feel her desire skyrocketing to a barely controllable level, and struggled to control herself.
“Okay then…so it’s like this…”
Buffy waited, but there was no follow-up.
“Faith, words would be good right now.”
Faith still said nothing and her pacing picked up speed.
“You know, the kind of words that come out of your mouth.”
“So how long’s it been, B?”
“How long has what been?”
“Since we got back together?”
Buffy looked puzzled, but she answered:
“Three months.”
Faith nodded:
“And four days.”
Buffy laughed:
“Yes, and four days.”
“So we’re doin’ good, right? I mean, I’d say we’re doin’…”
“Yes Faith, we’re doing very good. What’s this all about?”
Faith said nothing again for a minute, then made herself stand still and face Buffy:
“I wasn’t wrong, right? You wanted to, you know…Tonight was gonna be the night?”
“Well yes, I was hoping it would…”
And just like that, it all became clear what the problem was.
“God Faith, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have tried to start something like that. I just wasn’t thinking and I…”
Faith kneeled down in front of her:
“B, don’t apologize to me.”
“Well, I think I owe you one. I didn’t even consider that you might not want to and even if…”
“You don’t owe me any apologies, not after what I’ve done. And I do want to, course I do.”
Buffy pulled her up until they sat side by side:
“Then everything’s perfect because I want you too.”
“But I don’t wanna mess anything up. I mean, it’s been…we’ve been goin’ so good and…”
“Faith, I love you. Yes I’m still hurt, yes I’m still angry, and yes, we’ve got a lot of work to do, but I want to be with you.”
“Yeah but…”
“No more ‘buts’. I love you and I wanna show you how much. Do you want that too, or do you need to wait?”
The fear was easy to read in Faith’s eyes, but so was every other emotion she was feeling:
“I always want you, Buffy, I always will. It’s just that…”
“Then let me show you how I feel about you. Can I, Faith?”
Faith nodded and Buffy kissed her as she gently pushed her back onto the bed.
Buffy made love to her, soft and slow, and it lasted forever. At first Faith was uncomfortable and kept trying to sit up and take the lead:
“B, just let me…”
“Shhh…it’s okay. I already know you love me, just let me show you how I feel about you.”
And she had. She roamed all over Faith’s body, taking her time stroking and caressing, tenderly kissing and licking, using everything at her disposal to make Faith tremble and shake, until she finally exploded again and again.
“I love you, Faith. With everything in me, I love you and always will.”
Faith was gone, her voice hoarse and strained as she climaxed again, screaming out the only word she could:
