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How to Treat Your
Lover
by Tami
Interlude
Interlude 2
Los Angeles, Hyperion Hotel, December 20th
It had been two weeks since Spike had invited himself to live with Cordelia. Two weeks in which Angel started walking up behind Cordelia to scent her hair or clothes whenever she came in to work. Lately, the thick scent of Spike surrounded her like a cloud. It sparked Angel’s imagination as to where Spike might be sleeping, but he didn’t dare ask Cordelia. And he hadn’t seen Spike since the younger vampire left him in the alley.
“Is leaving your dirty towels on the bathroom floor an evil vampire thing or is that just something special to Spike?” Cordelia asked as she walked around behind the reception desk.
Spike was naked at Cordy’s house? Angel’s brows furrowed in thought. He immediately stepped up behind her and sniffed her hair. The same strong odor of his boy infused the air around her. Was she sharing the shower with Spike? Or, worse yet, sharing . . . Angel sniffed Cordelia’s neck and sweater.
“Angel, we’ve talked about the personal space!” Cordelia said as she jerked away from him.
“You’re covered in his scent,” Angel stated as he tried to move closer.
She backtracked further away. “Yeah, that’s what happens when you share an apartment with an evil bloodsucking reject from the ’80s.”
Just then, Gunn, Wesley and someone else obscured by branches hauled a huge, pre-decorated Christmas Pine in the front doors that was nearly as tall as the lobby ceiling. Cordelia and Fred’s faces lit up with thousand-watt smiles when they saw what the boys were setting up.
“It’s about time we celebrated Christmas, vampires have such aversions to the holidays,” Cordelia commented.
“Just Halloween,” Angel corrected. “We don’t have a problem with Yuletide.”
“Yuletide? Boy, you are from the Old World aren’t you?” Cordelia scoffed as she and Fred moved closer to the Christmas tree.
“Never let it be said we gave up on Christmas. Remember one year, Drusilla and I ate a mall Santa. Dru wanted to know what Father Christmas tasted like. Figured he’d taste like winter and snow or something,” Spike’s voice was muffled behind the pine branches.
If Angel’s heart could beat, it would be pounding right now. The sound of his boy’s voice ringing in the lobby sent his blood racing. He gawked at Spike when the blonde came out from behind the tree, still holding on to it while Wesley and Gunn anchored it to the corner walls. Spike sported a headband with a wire hook and mistletoe at the end that hung over his head.
“Oh Spike, that’s adorable!” Fred squealed as she ran over to him and touched the decoration.
Spike raised a scarred brow at being referred to as ‘adorable’. As was tradition with mistletoe, Fred leaned closer and pecked Spike on the lips. Angel’s brows drew closer together in agitation if that were possible. He went over and snatched Spike away from Fred.
“Oi, pillock, watch the leather!” Spike cried.
“What are you doing?” Angel hissed angrily. “I haven’t seen you in two weeks, yet Cordy reeks of you and you come in with that?” He gestured at the mistletoe hanging over Spike’s head. “What are you trying to do? What the hell possessed you to move in with Cordy?”
Spike sneered at him. “If I didn’t know you so well, peaches, I’d say you were jealous.”
Angel scowled. “I’m not jealous. What do I have to be jealous of when you’re throwing yourself out to just anyone?”
“Fred and Cordy isn’t just anyone. Did something happen in the last two weeks to make you lose your common sense?” Spike asked.
“What’s your game, Spike?” Angel demanded.
“Game? The game is it’s Christmas and I brought you a tree. Why does there have to be an ulterior motive?”
“There has to be something. You’re doing this to play with me,” Angel declared.
“I’m not the one who pushed his mate away. I just stayed away, you ungrateful bastard. I thought bringing you a tree would be a peace offering. I’ll never do another bloody thing like this again. You have my word on that. You don’t want any part of the vampire you’re mated to, Angel? That’s fine. After Cordy’s birthday next month, I’m gone.”
“How do you know when Cordy’s birthday is?” Angel’s brows furrowed. He barely remembered her birthday and yet Spike knew.
“Duh, ponce, I asked her when it was in case I feel like gift-giving,” Spike hissed angrily.
“I can just imagine what you’d give her,” Angel challenged.
“What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean?” Spike asked irritably.
“Remember that time you gave Dru that lower intestine for a belt?” Angel raised a brow.
“It had a buckle!” Spike said defensively.
“You had it bronzed!” Angel said.
“Well yeah, otherwise her dress would get all bloody,” Spike pouted. “’S still better than your gifts, like the time you let Darla give you a Gypsy girl and you ended up with a soul. Or the time you had sex with Buffy, turned evil and killed Willow’s goldfish and then killed her Watcher’s girl.”
“I was evil then!” Angel said defensively.
“Newsflash: I’m evil! The only thing keeping me from killing is that bloody Sire-Claim you have on me and the fact that I’m not a maniacal heartless bastard.”
“No, it just turned you into a pain in the ass that’s living off Cordy’s good will,” Angel shot back.
“I carry my own thank you! And I help Cordy out. I patrol her neighborhood every night and play poker with Denis. Who, I might add, is cheating!” Spike said indignantly.
“Well, being a ghost does have its advantages,” Cordelia chimed in as she rearranged a few branches on the tree.
“How come I always get kicked out of the bathroom during your shower and he doesn’t?” Spike asked flippantly.
“Because he’s useful and you just stand there and draw rude pictures on the mirror when it fogs up,” Cordelia replied, oblivious to Angel’s angry expression.
“How do you know he’s not ogling you?” Spike asked.
“Because Denis is a gentleman unlike some people,” Cordelia replied casually.
“I – You – She—” Angel tripped over his tongue as he looked between Spike and Cordelia. “You saw her naked in the shower!?” he roared. “What the hell, Spike? What else have you been doing while you’re over there? Are you sleeping with her too!?”
“What?” was screeched in a female voice.
“What?” was snarled in a British accent.
“Spike and I have never slept together. He sleeps on the couch,” Cordelia explained.
“But, you said he--” Angel started to say.
“He only comes into the bathroom to keep me company and to draw crude pictures on the mirror to annoy me,” Cordelia cut in.
“You are a right ponce, you know that? Me and Cordy? I haven’t slept with her. Not that she isn’t worthy of a good tumble. I’ve only been in her bedroom once,” Spike said.
“Spike!” Angel growled as he clenched his fists at his sides.
“It’s really getting to you that other people might find me attractive, isn’t it?” Spike asked with a smirk. “If I knew I was this irresistible, I should have left you a year ago.”
“You have a high opinion of yourself if you think that,” Angel said annoyed.
“What’s a bloke supposed to think? I come with a peace offering and you think I’m sleeping around after you turned me out,” Spike said casually.
“I didn’t turn you out. I told you to go back to Sunnydale where you’d be out of my way. I did not tell you to move in with my secretary,” Angel snapped. Glaring at his mate, he reached up and knocked the mistletoe headband off Spike’s head. “And take that off, it looks ridiculous.”
Spike’s eyes shifted to their demon-yellow color just before he punched Angel in the face, sending the bigger vampire flying across the lobby. Wesley, Fred, Gunn and Cordelia stood by and watched it happen. They knew better than to get in the middle of am all-out brawl between the two vampires.
Angel picked himself up off the floor and glared at Spike. When he got close enough, Angel returned the favor with a right hook that caused Spike’s head to snap back. Spike rubbed his jaw and took another swing at his Sire. The rest of the group passively watched as the two vampires knocked each other to the floor and started scrambling for the upper hand. First Angel was on top, throwing punches. Then, Spike was on top, punching Angel.
“Fifty dollars they make up at the end of this,” Gunn said.
“I’ll take that bet,” Wesley replied.
“You guys are so immature,” Cordelia scoffed.
Angel and Spike still had a grip on each other’s throats as they rolled to their feet in a synchronized move. Spike punched Angel in the face again and Angel responded likewise.
“Tried to do something nice for you and being the selfish git that you are, you accuse me of something I didn’t do,” Spike sneered as he threw another punch.
“Well, if you weren’t such a prick tease we wouldn’t be in this position,” Angel shot back as he returned the punch.
“Stop. Hitting. Me.” Spike said, stressing each word with a punch.
“You. First.” Angel challenged.
“Now y’all are being ridiculous. Just make up already,” Fred said.
“That would mean that Angel would have to apologize and you don’t do that, do you?” Spike growled as he jerked back from Angel’s fist.
“Not when I’m the one that’s right,” Angel replied.
“You can’t even admit when you’re wrong? Now that’s sad,” Spike said as he returned a punch to the gut.
“I forgot why they were broken up in the first place,” Gunn whispered to Wesley.
“We broke up because Angel is a selfish sod who thinks he can live my life better than me,” Spike said as he glared at his Sire.
“I had to teach you how to be a vampire. Is it my fault you still have yet to grow up and mature,” Angel taunted.
Spike growled as he grabbed Angel by his shirt and threw him over his shoulder and into the wall behind him, cracking the wall.
“Another fifty that we still have the hotel in one piece,” Wesley whispered to Gunn.
“Well, Fred and I are going shopping for gifts,” Cordelia announced. “Let us know what happens when we get back.”
“We are?” Fred asked surprised when Cordelia dragged her out the door.
“The way Cordy shops, she’ll be buying gifts for herself and Fred with earmarks on who should be giving the gifts,” Gunn said when the girls left.
Back on the other side of the lobby, Angel grabbed Spike by the lapels of his duster and slammed him into the wall of the stairway leading up to the first floor of rooms.
“I can’t believe you hate me this much,” Angel said.
“I don’t hate you. I just know you to be a bloody selfish, self-centered bastard,” Spike replied.
“I’m trying to protect you, you ungrateful . . .” Angel said as Spike punched him again.
“Think we should tell them that they are fighting under mistletoe?” Wesley asked Gunn.
“Isn’t fighting considered foreplay to vampires?” Gunn asked.
“Uh, Angel?”
“Not now, Wes,” Angel choked as he tried to grab Spike’s wrist.
“Angel!”
“Later, Gunn,” Spike said as he and his Sire were at a standoff waiting to see who would make the next move.
“Do you guys realize where you are?” Gunn asked.
“Look up!” Wesley said louder.
There were twin growls before Spike and Angel looked up and saw that someone had hung mistletoe in the stairway. Cordelia and Fred had decorated the lobby the week before. All they were missing was the tree that Cordelia had conned Spike into buying as a peace offering. He should have known that wouldn’t have worked given their current situation.
“This is a joke,” Angel said as he glanced over at the opposite staircase that led up to the first floor of rooms and saw another mistletoe hanging above it.
“Well? Are you going to just stand there or follow through with tradition?” Spike dared his Sire.
“After all that and what we went through you want me to . . .” Angel started to say.
“It’s just a bloody kiss. It’s not like we’re going to shag right here,” Spike said annoyed.
Angel met Spike’s eyes and then his gaze shifted to watch Spike’s tongue slip out to run over his bottom lip in preparation for what was to come. Two weeks of thinking about Spike, wishing his boy was back with him and here he was, willing to call a truce in their feud for a kiss.
“You’re the most stubborn person I’ve ever known,” Spike growled.
He grabbed Angel by the shirt and hauled him closer into a kiss. Wesley and Gunn held their breaths as they watched the scene. Angel was as stiff as a board as Spike’s lips first touched his. When Spike teased his lower lip, his eyes slid closed and he moaned as the blonde slipped his tongue into his mouth. Wesley and Gunn released their collective breaths when Angel’s arms went around Spike, hugging him closer, deepening the kiss.
The two humans rolled their eyes and left the room when Angel walked Spike backwards towards the sofa and collapsed on it with him. Spike wrapped his arms around Angel’s neck as his body slid along the cushions to make room for Angel’s knee as it slipped between his legs and nudged against his sacs. The knee jerked up a little, jostling Spike’s hardened cock, causing him to groan.
Spike struggled internally over whether to hang on to Angel’s shoulders or reach between them to gain some relief. Angel’s thigh kept teasing his balls, fanning the fires of his arousal. Spike reached down between them and rubbed his mate’s jean-clad sacs, using his hand as a barrier against the near-painful friction.
“Spike,” Angel moaned, attacking Spike’s mouth with renewed passion. He thrust his tongue into Spike’s mouth, groaning at the taste of his boy after he’d been deprived for so long.
Spike’s eyes squeezed shut at the ragged sound of his name. He opened Angel’s jeans and circled his fingers around Angel’s erection. A thrill ran down his spine at Angel’s growl. Spike stroked him with one hand and used the other hand to hold Angel’s thigh still so that he could grind against it.
Angel laced his fingers in Spike’s hair, tugging the blonde head back as he moved lower to attack Spike’s neck with open-mouthed kisses and teasing nips with blunt teeth. He hoped that his actions showed how much he missed his boy, because he didn’t think he had the words right now to express it. Not when Spike was writhing under him, responding to his touch as if he missed him just as much. Not when Spike’s hands were on him, hot with the friction of stroking him. It felt so good that his eyes burned with unshed tears.
Time seemed to have stopped for them. The lobby dropped away. He couldn’t hear Wesley and Gunn anymore or if the girls had made it back yet. All that he knew was that Spike was with him, under him, responding to him completely. This truce was one hell of a Christmas present. More precious to him than the tree, because it meant Spike was here and they weren’t fighting . . . for the time being.
Spike maneuvered their positions with dexterity while maintaining his hold on Angel’s cock. Straddling his Sire’s hips, he stroked him faster. Angel worked quickly to remove Spike’s duster and clutched at the ever-present black t-shirt underneath, stretching the material when his boy’s ministrations caused his hips to jerk up. He yanked Spike’s shirt up out of the way and clutched Spike’s hips in a possessive grip.
“Fuck, Spike, jeans off,” Angel panted haltingly when he finally regained his voice.
Spike sat up enough to unfasten his jeans and Angel’s hands were there to pull them down. When his cock was finally released from its confines, Angel roughly jerked him down to him by a fistful of t-shirt and bucked against Spike, rubbing their cocks together. Spike let out a keening moan at witnessing the dominant side of his Sire. Then, he felt Angel’s hand let go of the shirt to slip inside of the back of his jeans and a couple of fingers gently work their way inside him.
“Angel,” Spike breathed.
“Missed you baby boy,” Angel mumbled as he sucked at the base of Spike’s neck. “Just trying to protect you . . .”
“From what?” Spike’s senses were full of his Sire, his scent and touch; he was surprised he was coherent enough to ask that.
“Holtz,” Angel said as he moved his fingers in and out of Spike faster as they bucked and gyrated against each other.
“Why?” Spike panted, growling when he added, “You know bloody well I can take care of myself.”
“Can’t let him take you away from me,” Angel responded as he continued to work both of them towards a release. “Missed you, want to be with you, but I have to let you go for now. Have to keep you safe.”
“Told you I’d leave after Cordy’s birthday,” Spike said as he shifted to mouth Angel’s neck and work himself on Angel’s fingers. “You got me for Christmas . . . until our next fight.”
“You for Christmas,” Angel moaned as he shifted their bodies so that Spike’s back was against the couch.
He doubled his efforts until Spike squeezed his cock, and threw his head back as strings of semen covered Angel’s hand. Spike stroked faster until Angel came and raised his hand to lick his Sire’s spending off his hand. He watched Angel mirror his action and then they claimed each other’s mouths in an urgent, passionate kiss, built from the mounting arousal and months of being apart.
**************************
Hyperion Hotel, Christmas Night
The last few days had been like a dream to Angel. Since that fight the day Spike brought the Christmas tree to him they had been sneaking kisses whenever they found themselves alone, whether they were in the hotel or on a case. They had found other things to do by the time Cordelia and Fred got back from their Christmas shopping. As far as he knew Gunn and Wesley hadn’t mentioned the make-out session to the girls. Spike still went home with Cordelia even though Angel had asked him to stay on several occasions. According to his mate, he didn’t want to jinx the truce by staying and have it fall apart.
Cordelia had mentioned that Spike went on a few shopping trips of his own, but didn’t know what he bought. That was fine with Angel, because he went on his own little shopping excursion. He was almost as giddy as Fred over the holiday season. She was more into the festivities whereas Angel was anxious to see how his gift would be received.
A long, scuffed dining table and chairs had taken the place of the round settee in the center of the lobby. The settee had been moved to another place in the hotel until later. Cordelia had planned a sit-down dinner to celebrate the holiday. The two couches were situated around the tree for the gifts to be opened later.
And, lest he forget, Spike would be here! Angel had been congenially whistling all day. It was starting to scare Wesley and Gunn who were of the mind that he had become too happy. He and Spike hadn’t argued . . . much . . . in the last few days either. When he saw Spike walk in the doors each night it took every ounce of willpower not to jump over the reception desk, tackle his boy to the ground and maul him on the lobby floor.
Cordelia and Fred had hijacked the kitchen and had barricaded themselves in there for the past three days cooking a dinner that was a mix of American and Old World cuisine. He checked on them once and was promptly evicted as not to ruin the surprise dinner. Angel hoped Cordelia cooked better than she made coffee.
“Someone want to help carry this stuff in?” Spike asked when he walked in the door with an armload of presents.
“Here let me get that,” Angel said, sprinting over to take the wrapped package off the top of the pile and out of Spike’s line of vision. “You didn’t have to buy all this, you know?”
“It’s Christmas, peaches. Everyone gets presents on Christmas,” Spike scoffed.
“I hate to think how you paid for all this,” Angel muttered to himself as he set the packages under the tree.
“Don’t worry, your money’s safe. I dipped into my own funds for this,” Spike assured him.
“Still, you didn’t have to--”
“Put a sock in it, ponce. Where is everyone?”
“Cordy and Fred are in the kitchen cooking dinner. Gunn and Wesley are out working on a case. They assured me that it was a small job and they’d be back before dinner,” Angel replied.
Spike looked around and smirked at Angel. “So no one’s around then?”
Angel noticed the husky timbre Spike’s voice had adopted. He slowly prowled closer to the blonde, watching his lips move. Angel licked his lips as Spike chewed on his bottom lip. He reached out and snagged one of Spike’s belt loops, tugging him closer.
“Uh huh,” he replied.
Spike saw the look in Angel’s eyes, wondering if the girls had turned the thermostat up in the hotel. He tried to back away from his Sire only to meet the arm of the couch. The next thing he knew, Angel pounced, knocking him back onto the couch and straddled his waist. Then, his Sire’s lips were fused to his in a searing kiss. He gasped and clawed at the broad shoulders when Angel started grinding against his groin.
Spike tried to crawl out from under Angel, but the bigger vampire followed him across the cushions. He leaned his head back against the opposite armrest, straining for space. Angel used the opportunity to attack his neck, mouthing his claim mark, teasing it with his tongue. Spike went from trying to shove against his chest to grabbing a fistful of hair. He pulled Angel’s head to the side a little and nuzzled into Angel’s neck, nipping at the skin with blunt teeth.
“God you guys!” Cordelia whined when she walked out of the kitchen with a dish of food to put on the table and saw the vampires making out on the couch. “Do I have to get a bucket of ice water for you two?”
Reluctantly, Angel pried himself away from Spike and tugged the other vampire to his feet. They helped carry in the dinnerware and other platters of food before they both disappeared to retrieve their glasses of blood. Gunn and Wesley had arrived in the middle of setting the table. They raised a brow at each other when the vampires disappeared together.
“I suppose we should start dinner without them?” Wesley suggested.
A few minutes later, the vampires joined the group at the table. Angel sat in one of the end chairs and kicked the chair closest to him out from under the table, silently indicating where Spike should be. Lorne joined them as the food was passed around the table. There was roast turkey, a vegetable platter, chocolate truffles, stuffing, mashed potatoes and brown gravy, champagne was served with dinner for the humans which Lorne drank, and cranberry sauce. For those who didn’t want the turkey, there was ham, and an apple pie or pumpkin pie for dessert. Spike heaped his plate full of food that he didn’t need to eat and Angel took a few bits here and there for appearance’s sake.
The team made conversation about Wesley and Gunn’s case and complementing Cordelia and Fred on their hard work putting the dinner together. The vampires answered when spoken to, but only gave one-syllable replies. They were otherwise occupied with each other. Angel watched Spike intensely as he ate, staring at him over the rim of the glass whenever he took a drink or just sat back and admired Spike. His body was on edge the entire time. All he wanted to do was rip the silverware out of Spike’s hands and devour him.
For his part, Spike seemed unaware of his affect on Angel. He ate calmly, chewing his food twenty times before swallowing, keeping half an ear to the discussion with the others. Every time he glanced up at Angel, the hungry looks the dark vampire gave him made his dick that much harder. His Sire looked like he wanted to throw him on the table and substitute him as the main course.
Spike stabbed his fork into a piece of the roast turkey, dipped it in blood and offered it to his Sire. Angel never took his eyes off Spike as he leaned closer and ate it off the utensil. Spike gasped at the predatory look in Angel’s eyes as he licked the fork clean before releasing it and stared at him while he slowly chewed on the morsel.
“Oh my God! That’s – a disgusting version of 9½ Weeks!” Cordelia cried as she looked over to see Spike feeding Angel.
The others looked at the couple to see Spike feed Angel another piece of bloody turkey.
“I think I lost my appetite,” Gunn said, choking his food down at the sight of blood.
“Aww, I think it’s romantic,” Fred commented with a smile as she watched the two vampires engrossed in each other.
“Yes, well, it is a bit unorthodox to use blood as a dipping sauce,” Wesley observed.
The group watched Angel take a turn at feeding Spike the same way a person slowed down to watch a car wreck. As a distraction, the girls shared their cooking secrets with the guys. Cordelia glanced over occasionally and when it looked like Angel was about to pounce over the table to chase the turkey down Spike’s throat, she decided now would be the best time for a change of scenery.
“Okay!” she nearly shouted as she stood up. “Who wants to open presents? I know I do!” She headed to the kitchen with her plate and a platter.
The others followed suit, taking their plates and a platter or dish into the kitchen. It was several minutes before Angel and Spike noticed their surrounding and cleared their places as well. Cordelia and Fred went over to the tree and sat on one of the couches with a slice of pie and their drinks. The men joined them. Angel and Spike sat with Cordelia and Gunn, Wesley and Lorne sat on the longer couch with Fred.
“Great, just what I need, you two making out beside me while I try to enjoy Christmas,” Cordelia commented when she saw her companions.
“We can control ourselves Cordy,” Angel said irritably.
“Not so far you haven’t,” she scoffed as she set her plate down and busied herself with distributing the gifts.
“So, are we just going around the room opening one present at a time, or youngest to oldest?” Fred asked.
“Was that a dig at our age?” Angel asked.
“No, that was a dig at your age,” Spike smirked.
“Thank you, Fredikins. We’ll be here all night while they argue over that,” Lorne said, drinking his champagne.
“If they’re going to do that, then I liked them better when they were making out over dinner. No arguments then,” Gunn replied.
“Shut up and open your present from Spike,” Cordelia said, tossing a wrapped package to him.
“Whoa,” Gunn exclaimed, catching it. “You got me something?”
Spike shrugged, “Not much really. Just something I thought you might like.”
Gunn shredded the wrapping paper and held it upright. It was two long wooden spears with brackets to mount to his truck.
“Hey, thanks!” Gunn smiled as he admired the craftsmanship.
“Wesley, this is yours from Spike.” Cordelia passed the heavy object to the former watcher.
Wesley looked surprised that the vampire had gotten him anything. Angel thought he looked ready to tear up like he used to do when he was easily overwhelmed. Wesley opened the package reverently and stared at three antique volumes of Leonardo Vairo’s books of Charms, Spells and Sorceries. They were books in which all the species and causes of spells were described and explained with the philosophers and theologians. It contained ways to fight the illusions of demons and refutation of the causes behind the power of witchcraft. The books were dated 1589.
“Oh Lord, Spike. This is really . . . you shouldn’t have,” Wesley said in awe as he paged through one of the books.
“Fred,” Cordelia handed over her present.
Fred opened hers and squealed. One was a book on problematic theorems and practical hypotheses of physics in the world today. The other book was a compilation classic authors and great literature.
Lorne got a martini mixer set. Cordelia got a new comforter for her bed and a flannel robe in case she decided to streak in front of Spike again. He chuckled when she opened that which earned him strange looks from the crew.
“Guess that leaves me,” Angel commented as Cordelia slid the heaviest package across the floor to him.
“It’s hard to find the perfect gift for the 248-year-old Sire who has everything.”
Angel gave him a skeptical look as he opened the package to reveal a shipping box. He looked at the address label. “Rome? You had it shipped from Rome? Which means – you were planning this gift even before we had that fight a few weeks ago. How did you know we’d call a truce?”
“Didn’t, did I? Figured after I imported those rugs for the mansion, when I saw this . . . it was just your thing.”
“Just open it, man,” Gunn urged anxious to see what it was.
Curiosity peaked; Angel carefully opened the box as if expecting a demon to jump out at him. Pushing the lid off completely, his breath caught at discovering what was inside. The others waited with baited breath to see what it was. Angel reverently caressed the blade before he grabbed the hilt and held up a 31-inch Roman Empire Sword with a 25-inch double-edged blade. The handle was made of antique bronze and hardwood grips. It weighed a good seven pounds and came with a custom-made black leather scabbard.
“Damn! Oh Gosh, Spike . . . that’s – Really extraordinary,” were the responses from the group.
Angel stared at the sword as if he had imagined it. His boy bought and imported an antique sword for him. He didn’t know whether he should use it or display it. His favorite broadsword was still his choice of weapon, but this . . . He never expected this.
“No need for thanks, peaches. Use it, display it . . . whatever you fancy,” Spike shrugged as if it was no big deal.
Gunn set his spears aside. “Let me see that.” He took the sword and wielded it a few times, twirling it around in striking blows. “With some steady power behind it, it could hold up in a demon fight.”
Angel nodded and took the weapon back, running his fingers over the design etched into the hilt. Cordelia took the opportunity to pass Spike his present from Angel.
“Got me something, did you peaches?” Spike commented as he opened the package.
“It’s nothing compared to this,” Angel said quietly as he replaced the sword in its box.
Spike glanced at him, shredding the paper on the small package. It was a velvet jewelry box. Before he could open it, Angel grabbed it, covering Spike’s hand.
“Before you open that . . . I planned to give this to you when we were still talking but then things came up between us and you had to leave. I wasn’t even sure when I’d give it you, but then with the truce . . .”
“Whatever it is can’t be that bad.” Spike tugged the box away from Angel and opened it. Inside on a velvet bed laid a white gold Irish ring. Spike held it up and studied the band. Etched inside the band was the Gaelic words ‘gra go deo’. In between each word there was a Celtic Saint Andrew knot.
“There’s an inscription inside the ring,” Angel said uncertainly.
Spike moved the ring until the light shone on the engraved words inside the ring. ‘Our destinies forever entwined’ he read to himself. He looked askance at Angel.
“Told you it was nothing,” Angel waved off.
Spike looked at the others and they stared back quizzically. They looked as if they didn’t have a clue what the ring meant. He slipped the ring on his thumb and pocketed the velvet box. After that, the rest of the presents were opened with ooh’s and ahh’s. There was conversation in between and many trips back to the kitchen for snacks and refills of drinks. Before anyone realized it, the clock went from 7 pm to midnight.
Gunn yawned attracting everyone’s attention. “Uh, sorry. Must be tired from all the food,” Cordelia looked at him and he rephrased his statement, “Great food.” She pursed her lips at him. “And the festivities. Think it’s about time I go home and sleep.”
“Yeah, go on. We’ll all be here tomorrow,” Angel acquiesced.
“Oh, calling it a night this soon? Before you know it, we’ll get to have social lives that don’t involve the slaying of demons,” Lorne snarked as he stood up with his half-empty glass.
“Speak for yourself,” Wesley said with a hint of excitement. “I’m going to be up the rest of the night with that neck massager Cordy got me, reading these books Spike got me.”
“Don’t forget those two Thighmasters,” Angel chuckled to which Wesley looked chagrined.
Spike gave his Sire a strange look, mouthing, “He owns a thigh-master?” When Angel held up two fingers in reminder, Spike broke out into giggles.
“Well, I’m going up to my room,” Fred said as she collected her gifts and stood up. Glancing at the others she said quickly, “Night all,” and rushed up the stairs.
Angel and Spike watched her leave. Angel turned to the others as they headed for the door, “Well, should we at least meet back here in a few hours and work some more?”
Wesley looked thoughtful for a moment, “Sounds lovely.”
“If we’re going to work tomorrow then I’m off to bed as well,” Lorne announced, picking up his gifts and heading up the stairs. “Night all.”
“Are you coming with me or staying?” Cordelia asked Spike while she stacked her presents.
Angel looked at Spike waiting for his answer. Spike had said that he got him for Christmas. Technically, it could go one of two ways: one Christmas was over for him and Spike was going home with Cordelia, or two, Spike was staying here and leaving tomorrow. Spike glanced at him and stood up. Angel’s heart sank when Spike picked up Cordelia’s gifts and followed her out of the hotel. He didn’t follow them. Instead, he slumped into the couch and stared at Spike’s gift to him.
**************************
Outside, Spike carried Cordelia’s gifts to her car and waited until she opened the trunk to deposit them inside.
“Are you going back inside to get yours?” she asked. Spike shook his head, stepping back and slamming the trunk closed. “You’re strange. You two spent all night groping each other and making out. You’re not going to stay?”
“I just acknowledged that I wasn’t going to get my stuff. Piece it together, princess.”
“But, you came out here, so I thought you were – oh,” Cordelia finally caught on and Spike smirked at her. “You were helping me, making him think that you had decided to leave – right?”
“Can’t have the ponce thinking I’m that predictable. This truce won’t last long, but I did tell him that I was staying for Christmas. Don’t know what will happen in the future. Don’t even know if we’ll make it through the first five minutes when I go back in there.”
“Isn’t that the point? Not knowing. If you know how it will end up, then why take the journey, right?” She hugged him. “He’s missed you as much as you have him. He’s just being really stubborn about it.”
“See you tomorrow, Cordy,” Spike said, pulling away. He walked over to the entrance gate and watched her get in her car, rev the engine and wave to him before she drove away.
**************************
Angel was placing his new sword and scabbard in the weapons cabinet when Spike walked in the front door. Spike watched his Sire from the stairs as he
put the sword in place reverently. Angel caught movement in his peripheral vision when he turned. He looked up, surprised to see Spike standing in the entryway.
“I thought you left with Cordy,” he said quietly. Feeling awkward, he stuck his hands in his jeans’ pockets. “Did you come back to get your stuff?”
“No.”
“Oh. Well, if you need a place to stay and give Cordy a night to herself or something, there are plenty of rooms,” Angel offered.
“You are such a dramatic ponce,” Spike said more to himself than to his Sire. Angel’s expression turned grim. “I came back . . . for a while anyway, until you get it into your head to send me back to Sunnydale.”
Angel watched as Spike walked down the stairs to stand in front of him. “I’m not sure what you want anymore. You won’t open the link between us. You refused to stay with me over the last week. Maybe you’re still mad at me, I don’t know. I don’t know where I stand anymore.”
“Now you know how I’ve felt all this time. It’s the reason I had to leave. I couldn’t live like that anymore. Things have to change between us somewhere,” Spike was silent for a moment. He raised a brow at his Sire. “So, I get to choose a bedroom?”
Angel’s brows furrowed in confusion. He nodded, wondering where Spike was going with this. He rejoiced inwardly that Spike stood in his lobby! He hadn’t left with Cordelia!
“What about your room with that shower we installed?” Spike asked, watching his Sire’s reaction as his suggestion sank in. “And your fat arse in it as well.” He smirked when Angel frowned. He snagged Angel’s shirt and walked backwards towards the stairs. “Christmas truce,” Spike reminded him, “may as well make the best of it.”
Angel followed Spike up the first flight of stairs with no problems. It was the second flight of stairs and watching Spike’s ass move in the tight jeans that caused the problem. Half way up the stairs, Angel grabbed Spike’s hips and spun him around. Spike tripped on the stairs and fell backward on the incline.
When he tried to get up, Angel’s mouth came down in a searing, desperate kiss that matched the heat of the earlier kisses. Spike pulled Angel down so that he had to rest a knee on a step for balance. He ripped his Sire’s shirt open and broke the kiss to explore his chest with lips and tongue as the elder vampire towered over him. Pulling Spike’s shirts up over his head, Angel laced his fingers in the blonde hair, directing Spike’s mouth wherever he wished.
“On your feet,” Angel commanded gruffly as he helped his boy up.
Spike followed through, grabbing his shirts and ascended the stairs, his eyes tracking Angel’s every step. When they hit the landing, they kissed as a long-denied passion consumed them. They pulled each other’s clothes off on the way to Angel’s room, kicking the door shut.
Angel fell on the bed with Spike, rolling to their sides. Angel ravished Spike with months of pent up emotion. Demanding a response from his mate, he pulled Spike’s leg up over his hip and reached down to stroke Spike’s erection. He shifted course and sucked on Spike’s neck when his boy rolled to his back to reach for the cleanser.
Liquid cleanser in hand, Spike pushed Angel onto his back and straddled him. He poured the liquid on their cocks and put the bottle back on the nightstand. He stroked their dicks together, watching Angel’s express turn to one of bliss before he leaned down to tease a nipple with his teeth. Angel dug his nails into Spike’s thighs as he arched and bucked up into Spike’s fist.
Spike rose up to his knees and guided his Sire into his body. Angel’s head snapped up to watch Spike sink down on him. He tried to reach for his boy’s hips, but Spike grabbed his wrists and pinned them to the pillow on either side of his head. Spike’s mouth was on Angel’s again as he started to move.
Breaking the kiss, Spike promised, “Someday we’re going to switch places and you’re going to know what this feels like.”
“Mm,” Angel barely acknowledged the words as Spike’s movements caused him to slide deeper into the receptive body. He growled when the only thing it accomplished was to drive him mad with desire. He couldn’t reach for Spike so he settled for thrusting up and straining for more.
“I said you get me for Christmas, not that you can touch me,” Spike chuckled.
Angel growled in frustration, the sound echoing in the room. Spike leaned down and licked Angel’s lips while he rocked back and forth. Angel opened his mouth, allowing entrance and sucked on the tongue. When Spike’s grip slackened, he rolled them over and thrust hard as he reasserted his dominance over the kiss. Spike broke free to snarl when Angel squeezed his cock in a tight grip and stroked the length.
“Fuck, Angel.”
“Not any time soon,” Angel replied, thrusting in a hard steady rhythm.
Spike tried to pull away from the acute feeling on his oversensitive body. Angel took it to mean a change in position and let him turn over on his stomach before thrusting in again. Spike growled at the intrusion and clawed at the sheets. Then, Angel lay over his back, laced their fingers together and thrust deep. He nuzzled Spike’s neck as his hips rocked back and forth instinctively. He released a hand to wrap his fingers around Spike’s cock, giving him the friction he needed.
Angel waited with baited breath for Spike to let him in. Sure, he was inside Spike’s body physically, but he wanted to slip inside Spike’s mind as well and the wall was still there. He missed the days when he could stimulate his boy’s mind as well as his body during their times together. To Angel, it was a sign that he had hurt Spike deeply and he refused to be vulnerable again.
“Angel, please,” Spike panted raggedly.
The voice brought him out of his reverie. He realized that he still had a tight grip on Spike’s erection. Angel began to stroke him again in time with his thrusts. “You want to cum, Spike? Hmm?” He groaned and nearly collapsed when Spike’s inner muscles contracted around him. Angel sped up his thrusts as Spike reached back and grasped his thigh, pulling him closer.
“If you want me to get any closer, then you’ll have to take down the wall,” Angel whispered.
“Angel,” Spike growled, shaking his head negatively. He wouldn’t do that. He couldn’t afford to be that trusting again. Look where it had gotten them. Angel could use it against him like that time in the shower. All they did was fight with the link open.
“Spike, just open it a little,” Angel nearly begged.
“I won’t let you control me that way,” Spike gritted out.
“Don’t want to control you, baby boy. Just want to heighten the senses so you can find release.”
Several long, excruciating minutes later, Spike gave up the internal struggle and let his guard down. Angel experimentally nudged his mind and sighed in relief when he slipped inside. He closed his eyes and started to thrust slowly as he projected his intense passion into Spike’s mind.
“Jesus, Angel,” Spike hissed. It felt like the floodgates burst open. His Sire’s strong arousal engulfed his senses and went straight to his groin. The force of it would have crippled him like it did that day in the shower if he hadn’t already been kneeling on the bed. He whimpered as it rolled through him. It was almost painful on his nerve endings.
“This is what it’s like without you,” Angel whispered hotly in his ear as he surged forward into his boy with hard, possessive thrusts. He growled when he felt Spike reach under them and massage their sacs together while he stroked his cock and moved inside him.
“Angelus!” Spike yelled hoarsely as the orgasm crashed through him. Angel tightened his grip and found his release inside his mate as Spike’s internal muscles tightened around him. Resting his forehead between Spike’s shoulder blades, Angel breathed heavily as he caressed Spike down from his orgasm.
**************************
Los Angeles, Hyperion Hotel, New Year’s Day
Everything had been going so well in Angel’s world for the last week. He and Spike were on speaking terms. They still argued and bickered, but there were no brawls with each other. Spike had even opened the link a little and allowed Angel to slip in every now and then.
On New Year’s Eve, the entire team went out to a bar on Sunset Boulevard and toasted the arrival of 2002. Angel and Spike bypassed vampire constitution, got up on the bar’s stage and drunkenly sang Auld Lang Syne with their arms wrapped around each other – much to the amusement of their friends, especially when Angel adopted his former Irish accent during the chorus.
Things were going smoothly until Cordelia and Fred started to put away the Christmas decorations. An air of apprehension settled over the hotel. The content atmosphere between the vampires changed to cool regard for each other. It resembled their attitude before Christmas.
“Do I feel a chill in the air?” Lorne asked in greeting as he came down the stairs.
Spike and Angel seemed to be miles apart from each other, figuratively and literally. Spike sat on the sofa reading the newest issue of Medieval Armor while Angel sat behind the reception desk going through a case file with a glower on his face.
Cordelia glanced at the two vampires who hadn’t spoken to each other all day as she addressed the demon, “It seems that there’s trouble in paradise. I haven’t seen Spike at my place all week. I started removing the decorations today and he asked if he could come home with me tonight.”
Lorne listened and looked at the stairways. “Where’s the mistletoe?”
“Took them down first, why?”
“They were enchanted by the Furies. The three darlings did me a favor. Call it a Christmas gift. They put a spell on the mistletoe where anyone that kissed under it would express they’re true feelings towards each other.”
Cordelia’s eyes narrowed at him. “So, you’re to blame for this!”
“Blame? What did I do?” Lorne asked innocently.
“Spike and Angel had a big fight and ended up kissing under the mistletoe,” Cordelia said.
“Oh,” Lorne replied, looking between the vampires. “So, that’s why they were trying to devour each other at Christmas dinner.”
“And now that the mistletoe’s gone they aren’t speaking to each other!” Cordelia hit Lorne hard on the arm.
Angel and Spike looked up at the smacking sound. They had heard every word. They looked at each other and Spike sneered at his Sire. Throwing the magazine aside, Spike got up and stalked towards the reception desk.
“I should have bloody well known that it wasn’t real! You were just out for a convenient shag, selfish prick!”
“Me!?” Angel looked shocked that he was to blame.
“You concocted that fight to get me under the mistletoe so that everything would be fine and you could get laid! You were the one that nearly pounced on me every time I turned around! You manipulated me into thinking I called the truce and initiated that shag!”
“I manipulated you? You were the one that was feeding me blood-dipped roast turkey! How the hell did you expect me to resist that? And then you were prancing around here waving your ass in my face like some tramp!”
Spike looked mortified. “I’m shocked – shocked – that you would complain! It’s not like you can shag anyone else. You have a tendency to misplace that fluffy soul and turn evil otherwise! You should have asked for a soddin’ anchor for Christmas! That way you can go back to Sunnydale, shag the Slayer and stop using me for a substitute!”
“I wasn’t using you, you insolent little –” Angel started to say. “I wanted you!”
“Ha! You wanted me! Like you wanted the Slayer? As some platinum, albeit dangerously sexy, substitute for Darla?” Spike challenged.
“Darla’s dead! I never wanted her! She chose me! As for Buffy, whatever I had with her is over,” Angel said angrily.
“Never wanted Darla, huh? You could have fooled me since you dreamt about her a lot last year. And the Slayer? It’ll never be over between you. Every time you two are within city limits of each other, it’s like a bloody sonar signal! Since she’s been back all you’ve done is push me away. Some of it may be about Holtz. Some of it may be that you’re making way for little Buff to come back. I don’t know. From my perspective, I’ve always been second best with you.” When Angel’s only reaction was a dark look, Spike threw his hands in the air. “You want me gone so badly? Fine, you ungrateful, ponce! Why would I ever stick around here? If you need me, I’ll be nowhere near you!”
Cordelia and Lorne watched Spike storm out of the hotel. The door slammed closed behind him, causing Cordelia to jump. She looked accusingly at Angel who had gone back to his case file as if nothing had happened.
“Well?” she prompted.
“Well what?” he asked casually.
“Are you going to go after him?” she gritted out.
Angel’s reply was to gather the papers in his case file, go to the manager’s office and slam the door closed, rattling the blinds on the window.
Cordelia glared daggers at Lorne before she hit him in the arm so hard that he shrank from her and rubbed the tender area. She stomped off on click-clacking heels to finish putting away the decorations.
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