*****

It was Friday night at six-thirty and Xander Harris was already sitting at the table he'd reserved at the Sunnydale Hilton. He had arrived only five minutes ago, after having spent the majority of the day preparing to see Giles. Having gone to the barber shop to have his hair cut, Xander paid for a shave as well. He was wearing his new black Armani suit that James had mentioned would look good on him. It was tailored, a fact that made Xander shake his head. He, Alexander LeVelle Harris, was wearing a tailored Armani suit that was probably worth more than what his dad made in two months.

Xander couldn't help but be nervous. He was going to be on a date with Giles. Giles and he were going to do date things. Sighing and running his hands through his hair, he tried to calm his excited nerves.

What would they talk about? Xander couldn't really tell the older man about his job and he didn't want the former Watcher to know where he lived. And other than that, there wasn't much to talk about. Giles already knew a lot about him. Maybe they'd talk about sports or good movies, but probably not. Neither one of them liked sports and Xander hadn't been to see a movie in months.

Looking up, Xander saw the maitre d walking towards the table with Giles following closely behind. Xander stood up, took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. He gave Giles a small smile when the older man had reached him.

"I trust everything is to your liking, Mr. Harris?" the maitre d asked.

"Yeah, Stan, it's great. Who's in the kitchen tonight?"

"Francisco, sir."

Xander smiled at Stan. "Good, he makes the best filet minion. Thanks."

After the maitre d left, Giles quirked an eyebrow at the boy, "Mr. Harris?"

Xander shrugged as he sat down. "Strange, huh? Me actually getting respect."

Giles smiled a bit uneasily. He wanted to tell Xander that he deserved respect, but he also wanted to challenge the fact that he never got it before. The former Watcher had always given him respect. Finally, Giles decided to not say anything about Xander's comment at all. "You look very well, Xander."

The boy smiled. "Thanks. You look good too and hey, you're tweed free which is always fun."

There was silence for a long minute before Giles started, "So, Xander, tell me about your jo. . ."

"How's Buffy and everyone?" Xander asked to stop Giles' question.

"Doing very well. Everyone's concerned for you."

Closing his eyes and letting out a calming breath, Xander asked, "Can we not do this?"

"Do what?" Giles asked when Xander opened his eyes.

"Get into the 'your friends still care about you; how are you doing; everyone's still here for you' part of the evening."

"Xander," Giles said in an almost fatherly tone.

"You know what?" Xander interrupted. "This was just a mistake and we should just leave and cut our losses."

Shaking his head, Giles' brow creased as he asked, "What losses? I don't understand."

"You can't hear the father tone in your voice? I mean, there are things that I just don't want to talk about and shouldn't have to talk about because this is a *date* and people don't. . ."

"All you had to say was that you didn't want to talk about some things, Xander. I'm perfectly fine with that, but I didn't think I was using a fatherly voice with you and if I was, I'm sorry."

This was hard. Xander rubbed his eyes with the tips of his fingers. "I'm doing okay, you know, Giles."

"You look well."

"I am," Xander said firmly. "I've got a great place to live and I'm working and taking care of myself."

"That's good," Giles said with a small, uneasy smile. After a moment of silence, Giles said softly, "You seem agitated at seeing me."

The boy stared at the table. "I'm just nervous. I wanted everything to go perfectly. I wanted. . ."

"Then let's start over." The former Watcher smiled sincerely as his eyes roamed over the boy's chest, taking in the elegant jacket and the fine tie. "You look very nice tonight, Xander," he said in a voice that was too loud to be a whisper but too soft not to be.

Sighing, Xander let himself smile. He knew he looked good and was quite aware of the fact that he had never in his life looked as good as he did at the moment. "Thank you, Giles."

"You can call me Rupert."

Xander chuckled a bit nervously. "No I can't."

"It's my name."

"No, your name is Giles."

The corners of the older man's mouth curved up into a smile. "I assure you, Xander, my name is Rupert. I have the certificate at home to prove it."

Rubbing his neck nervously, Xander said softly, "I don't want to call you Rupert." Giles watched as Xander's brow furrowed and the boy lowered his eyes. "You're not Rupert to me, Giles. You're Giles. Can't you just be Giles for me?"

Studying the boy, Giles wondered if he'd ever truly figure him out. "I thought you'd want to call me something less formal. I thought. . . Using first names usually implies an intimacy."

Looking up, Xander shrugged. "But Giles is like your first name to me. It's what I've always called you and I was going to be formal about it, I'd place a Mister in front of Giles, or just call you Librarian Guy or something impersonal like that."

Smiling, Giles said, "You can call me whatever you'd like. Whatever you feel comfortable with."

"Thanks G-Man," Xander said quickly with a smile.

"Except that." Giles' heart swelled when that earned him a small laugh from Xander. "You know, I've missed you," he commented quietly. "Everything at my apartment is so quiet and so still. It's like there's this place where you should be, but aren't and everything's just waiting for you to come back."

Touched by the sincere sentiment but needing to assert himself, Xander said, "I missed you too, but I'm doing good on my own. And I feel good on my own."

"That's good, Xander," Giles replied softly.

"I feel like I can do it, you know?"

"Do what?"

"Take care of myself and not be such a burden all the time."

"You were never a burden, Xander," Giles said firmly.

Xander smiled. "I just feel good, Giles." He took a breath to say more, but Robert, the head waiter, appeared and asked for their order. Xander asked for filet minion and Giles, Prime Rib.

When their salads had been delivered, Giles asked as Xander began chewing on a piece of lettuce, "What is your job like?"

Looking up in surprise, Xander chewed faster and then swallowed hard. "Customer service type stuff."

"And you work for a company?"

"Um," Xander said, his face losing some of its softness. "Not really, just a guy." Seeing that Giles was going to ask something else, Xander said quickly, "Look, Giles, I don't really want to talk about stuff like that. Can't we just sit here and eat and enjoy each other without getting into details?"

**

Walking through the hotel lobby, neither Giles nor Xander spoke. The rest of dinner had gone smoothly even though it was a bit awkward. They both knew that they would need some time to get settled. There were still too much between them to just up and start fresh.

As they left the restaurant, Xander smiled as the thought about the new waiter who brought the bill to the table. The feeling of pride that Xander experienced when he didn't let the tab go to Giles was indescribable. The waiter had looked from the boy to the man and after a moment's thought, started to slide the leather book containing the slip of paper towards Giles. Acting quickly, Xander's hand had snuck out and brought the bill to him. He'd glanced up and saw the look on Giles' face. Xander had pulled out two fifty dollar bills and slipped them just inside the cover and handed it back to the waiter. It had been possibly the most thrilling moment in Xander's young life.

Right before they passed the check in desk, Giles felt Xander take his hand and pull him off to the side. Pushing open a door that was marked 'Manager's Office', the boy dragged Giles through it. "Xander, I don't think we should be in here."

"Don't worry. I know the manager. Lee won't mind if we use his office for a few minutes."

Sighing, Giles asked, "How is it that you're on a first name basis with nearly everyone at this hotel?"

"It doesn't matter," Xander answered as he tightened his grip on Giles' hand. "I just wanted to be alone with you for a minute, away from people's eyes." Moving closer to the man, Xander gently kicked the door closed, even as he pressed his head into Giles' chest.

Giles let out a long breath, then moved his arms to encompass the boy. "Xander," he choked out as he felt emotion overtake him.

Looking up at the former Watcher, Xander whispered, "I want you to kiss me, Giles."

"Xander," he said again, his emotion coming through in his voice.

"Don't say anything, Giles, just kiss me." Moving his hands up to the older male's head, Xander gently titled it downward, then rose up on his tiptoes and brushed his lips against Giles'. The kiss was soft and gentle and it was full of sweet promises.

Unlike their last kiss, Giles let this one linger. He let Xander decide when to end it. There was, of course, the thought in the back of the man's mind that Xander was still very young and still very wounded, but this time, Giles did not let that thought interrupt the kiss. Not wanting Xander to be hurt by another early withdraw was only part of the reason Giles did not pull away. The other part of the reason was that Giles was enjoying the soft kiss far too much to even attempt to slow it down or stop it.

Xander let out a low moan then pulled away, licking his lips as they curved up into a smile. Letting his hands trail down to the librarian's chest, Xander looked up and whispered, "I have to go. Early day tomorrow, but I had a good time tonight. Especially the last ten minutes."

Wanting to keep him there, with him, Giles gripped Xander's hips and pulled him closer. "You can stay longer."

Letting out a small chuckle, Xander whispered, "I really can't. I have to go home now."

Giles' hands released the boy's hips, but slowly, letting Xander know that the act was done with reluctance. "Where is home, Xander?"

Backing away and licking his lips again, Xander smiled, "I'm not ready for you to know that yet."

"Xander," Giles started, only to be cut off by Xander.

"Giles," he said, mimicking the exact tone of Giles' voice. He watched as a smile spread over the older man's face. "I have to go, but I'll call and we'll do this again." Leaning up once more, Xander pressed his lips against Giles'. The kiss was short but held the promise of many future kisses.

The boy turned around and put his hand on the doorknob. He twisted it, but stopped before pulling the door open. "Please don't follow me home, Giles," he said without turning around.

"I wouldn't dream of. . ."

"Yes, you would," Xander said, his smile reflected in his voice. "I need you to trust me to know what I'm doing and trust me when I say that I can take care of myself now."

"I know you can," Giles replied in a breathy whispered. "I just want. . ."

"I know what you want, Giles, but I have to work things out for myself and then I can let you in completely." And with that, Xander opened the door and walked through it. Leaving the former Watcher standing in a darkened office and wanting desperately to chase the boy.

**

"Xander," James said with a slightly tight smile on his face. "How was your evening?"

Shifting in the leather chair, Xander nodded. "Pretty good. Thanks for giving me a Friday night off."

"Well, I may be a demon, but I do know the importance of date night."

Xander cleared his throat and threw his boss a small smile. "So what's on the agenda today? Is Basil still coming into town tomorrow? I've got the suite booked, but I'm not sure about the entertainment."

James smiled at the boy, but ignored him as he folded his hands and set them on the desk. "You went out last night, right?"

Xander's brow knitted together in confusion. "Uh, yeah."

"With the Slayer's Watcher."

The hesitation and uneasiness was present on Xander's face as shown by his widening eyes and the way he was nibbling on his bottom lip. "He's not her Watcher anymore."

Unimpressed with the technicalities of it all, James just raised an eyebrow. "He has a close relationship with the Slayer?" Xander nodded. Smiling and keeping his voice gentle, James said, "I don't like you going out with him." He took a breath and watched as the boy shifted in his chair again. "It makes me question your loyalties."

Shaking his head, Xander quickly said, "No, James, it's not like that."

Nodding good naturedly, James said, "Why don't you tell me what it's like then?"

"He's my. . ." Xander started. "Well, I'm not, you know, helping him or anything. I'm not. ..telling him anything about you. He's just my.. ."

"I know, Xander. I'm not accusing you of being, oh, a double agent or anything like that."

"Good," Xander said quickly. "'Cause I'm not."

Letting out a soft laugh, James said, "I'm just concerned that the Watcher's interest in you and your affection for him will one day lead him and his Slayer to information on me. I think I've made it perfectly clear the importance of my operations existing below the surface of their knowledge."

"Yes," Xander said with a nod. "You have."

"Tell me, Xander, what is going to happen when you can no longer avoid his questions about your current occupation?"

Xander blinked. "How do you know. . ."

"You're my employee, Xander. I know where you are at every moment of the day. I know most of what you say within the day and I know all about your past." Noticing the way the boy's leg was bouncing up and down in nervousness, James said, "That bothers you, I can see that. But you know things that can bring me and my operations to a stuttering halt and I can't have that, so I have to take out insurance." Xander still remained nervous and uneasy. "If it makes you feel any better, you're my favorite employee, Xander. And I'm not saying that you *have* to stop seeing the Watcher, I'm just saying that you have to be careful. I would hate to have to end our relationship because he and the Slayer got too close."

James studied the boy and sighed. "I've scared you, haven't I?" Xander just looked at him, biting his lip. "That's not what I wanted to do. My people skills are lacking. I just. . .I just wanted to let you know that you're a big factor in my life and likewise, I should be in yours."

"I'd never do anything to get you in trouble," Xander said sincerely. "I mean, you put a roof over my head and food in my. .."

"Xander," James smiled. "It's okay. I'm not mad that you went out with him, but I had to express my dislike and concern for the situation. You understand?" Xander nodded. "Good. Now, on to business. Basil is still coming into town, but he's decided to bring his cadre with him. Now, they're big time party demons, so they'll be buying a lot from us, but only if we make their stay as nice as possible, which is your job. These are guys who like sex, so you're going to need to Ms. Gerard and make sure most of her girls are available." James sighed, "And make sure to assure her that none of them will be harmed this time. I still feel just awful about the last time. Poor Davida, she was way too young to experience Zolartian."

Xander nodded, almost automatically. Getting out his small pad of paper and his pen, he quickly jotted down a few notes. It was just business as usual, he reminded himself, trying to push the uncomfortable feelings of the preceding conversation out of his mind.

James was the reason he was doing so much better. James had given him the confidence he'd been lacking for so much of his life. Xander would just have to trust that James was looking out for him.

~end~