Part twenty six.....



~~~~~~~~~~
"I love how your eyes close
Whenever you kiss me
And when I'm away from you
I love how you miss me..."
~~~~~~~~~~


All of a sudden, she was feeling much lighter
of heart. The tension and worry that she'd been
dealing with ever sine Anya had dropped her bomb-
shell was fading away into nothing, and she now
remembered what this evening was really all about.

A certain sense of mischief began directing her actions,
and she pulled out of William's arms and rose to her
feet, giving the glider a hard push that caused him to
topple backwards into the cushions.

His look of surprise made her giggle. "We should get
back inside," she told him, struggling for a straight face.

She turned and headed back towards the entry doors,
hearing a quietly muttered "Bloody HELL, we should"
coming from behind her.

Before she made it another five feet, a strong arm slid
around her waist as William pulled her close, turning her
to face him. Lapis blue eyes gazed into hers with a
tender amusement and warmth that made her heart beat
faster.

When his mouth came down on hers, she met it with
open and innocent passion, and all the love she felt.

Her pulse skipped one beat after another, and the only
clear thought she could retain was, **Yes. This is how it's
supposed to feel when the boy is right, when you're kissing
the one person you were meant to be with, when no one else
can make you feel quite the same way..**

William's hands tightened on her waist, then slipped up
behind her until she could feel their heat on the bare
skin of her back. They pulled apart only to take a breath
before coming back together.

"I love you," he whispered, his lips brushing fleetingly
across her cheek.

Buffy dropped her head back, giving him access to
more of her face and throat.

Through the wild rush of her blood pounding in her ears,
she heard the music coming from inside, soft and slow,
and deeply romantic. She clung to his arms as his
mouth found her's again.

It was a delicious free fall, with their bodies pressed
intimately close in a heightened state of sensual
awareness.

William suddenly pulled out of their kiss. He took her
hands and placed them on his shoulders, then returned
his own arms to their resting place about her waist.

"Dance with me?"


~~~~~~~~~~
"I love the way you always treat me tenderly
But, darling, most of all
I love how you love me..."
~~~~~~~~~~


The moonlight, the scent of the roses, the music...Buffy
couldn't imagine a scene more perfect.

Until he asked her to dance with him.

William always asked. Their first night at the Bronze,
on the patio during her birthday party, earlier this
evening when they'd first walked through the doors.

He never assumed, never took it for granted, even though
he was more than entitled to do so, given their feelings
for each other.

His hands held her lightly, every touch a caress that
made her skin tingle as he moved her along the pathway
through the garden. The music was clear, carried along
on the soft spring air.

Even though she had left childhood and childlike things
behind, she still retained enough of a sense of it to feel
that this was magic, pure and simple.

Every romantic fairytale she'd ever read in a book, or
watched on a movie screen, contributed to her appreciation
of the moment.

Moving closer, she pressed her cheek against his jacket
front, directly over the steady drum beat of his heart.

"Buffy?"

"Hmmm?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too, William."

He skimmed a kiss across the top of her head.

"Can I ask you something?"

Buffy nodded, her eyes drifting shut. "Yes."

"Do you think about the future very often?"

She did....frequently constructing elaborate flights
of fancy as she inked the words 'Mr and Mrs. William
Darlington' on the inside cover of every book she owned,
surrounding the words with clumsily shaped hearts and
tiny flowers.

'Sometimes," she confessed.

William tightened his arms around her. "When you do...am
I a part of it?"

There was nothing tentative or uncertain about his question,
he merely wanted to hear her say it.

So she pulled back just a bit, and looked up into those
amazingly blue eyes. "Yes. You're in every part of it."

Smiling, he drew her close again. "And....will you marry
me someday?"



~~~~~~~~~~
"I love how your heart beats
Whenever I hold you
I love how you think of me
Without being told to..."
~~~~~~~~~~


Of all the things in the world she might have expected
to hear him say, that was the most surprising, the one
she'd never have imagined.

Picturing this moment, dreaming about it, planning for
it, even doodling in her notebook about it....was nothing
compared to the reality of it.

He stepped back from her, holding her hands in a light
clasp. "Say something."

Buffy felt as though she'd stepped into a puddle of
glue. Her feet refused to move, no matter how strongly
she ordered them to.

There was only one thing TO say.

"Yes."

His smile became broader. "You promise?"

"I promise."

With a loud "YES" , he bent over and scooped her up
in his arms, then spun her around in a circle several times
until she asked him to stop.

Placing her back on her feet, he kept a tight grip around
her waist. She was a little shaky, but it was a delightful
sensation that she didn't particularly want to lose.

"So...what sort of a ring would you like?" William asked,
as casually as if he were offering her a choice between
tea and coffee. "Someday, I mean."

"Um....I don't know. I never really thought about it."

That much was true. As often as she'd imagined herself
happily married to this boy, she'd never considered
the small details involved.

"Well, you might want to start thinking about it," he
teased.

But all Buffy could think about at the moment was
how beautiful he was, especially when he smiled the
way he was smiling now.

"Are you thinking about it?" he asked after a moment.

"About what?"

"The sort of engagement ring you want. If you place
your order now, I'll throw in a matching wedding band."

"Oh. No, I was thinking....it's just that...did you know
that you're kind of beautiful? For a boy, I mean."

The question surprised him, she could tell.

"I can't say I've ever thought about it."

She believed it. He wasn't the type to dwell on
a subject like that. "Haven't you ever looked in a
mirror?"

"Sure. Almost every day, at some point."

"And what do you see in it?" she asked.

He hesitated for a long moment, then shrugged. "The
usual. Two eyes, a nose and a mouth, pretty much
where they should be."

Buffy shook her head. "Boy, remind me never to look in
that mirror," she said, shaking her head. "Not if that's
what it does to YOU!"


~~~~~~~~~~
"I love the way your touch is always heavenly
But, darlin', most of all
I love how you love me...."
~~~~~~~~~~



William's hands moved up her sides, stopping at
the swell of her breasts and pulling her closer.

Immediately, her sensitivity there...her desire to
have him touch her properly...nearly overwhelmed
her.

She pushed herself against him and his hands
tightened, pressing inwards as their mouths searched
for and found each other.

Starting off slow, the kiss rapidly built in intensity,
bringing heat and pressure into their love play.

Buffy parted her lips when she felt his tongue
probing. He slipped into her mouth with practiced
ease, touching her in all the ways she liked best.

Tongues entwined, breathing ragged, they strained
together with softly whimpered sounds of pleasure
in their throats.

William moved his hands behind her back, rubbing
her in slow circles, then gliding down to hold her
hips firmly against his.

Their lips met and parted, then met again.

Buffy opened her eyes and was surprised to see
that his were open as well, that he was looking at
her, studying her face.

She couldn't control her smile. "You're peeking,"
she said against his mouth.

"Well, I AM seventeen after all," he said without
missing a beat.

"Not THAT kind of peaking!" she laughed, giving his
shoulder a light push.

"My mistake."

Diving back into the kiss, he wrapped his arms around
her and lifted her right off her feet, then walked over to
a darkened niche in the building, hiding them from anyone
who might venture outside for "fresh air".

He placed her back on her feet, leaning his body
against hers. "So, tell me something."

"Like what?"

"This 'friend' of yours...the one who's ready for the
having of sex?"

"What about her?"

"Anyone I know?"

She looked at him in pretend shock. "Nosy!"

"Come on....tell me."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Why do you want to know?" she evaded.

"I don't know...I just do."

"When did you become a gossip?"

"The minute you let that cat out of its bag."

"Forget it."

He rolled his eyes. "Fine. I'll get it out of you,
though."

The unspoken part of that sentence gave her a
pleasing shiver.


~~~~~~~~~~
"I love how you hug me
Love how you squeeze me, tease me, please me
Love how you love me..."
~~~~~~~~~~


"I thought only girls gossiped."

"Well, now you know better."

Leaning into him, she said, "Torture me however you
want. I'm still not talking."

William released a deep sigh, then bent his head
and nipped at her ear. "Tell," he insisted.

"Uh-uh!"

He tilted her head up and kissed her throat. "Tell."

"Nope."

His lips traveled over her cheek, breath hot on her
skin. "Tell."

It felt so good that she almost gave in.

"Nnnnnnno. I don't think so."

"If you love me, you'll tell me," he said, giving her
bottom a firm squeeze that forced her tightly against
him.

"Nice try."

Pulling back, he gave her an intent look. "I'll kiss
it out of you," he warned.

"Take your best shot," she replied smartly.

At that point, the whole silly encounter came to
an abrupt end.

From around the side of the building, they heard
loud voices, voices they both recognized.

"Get away from me, Xander!" Anya was shouting. "I
mean it! I don't want to EVER see you again."

"Anya....come on....wait up!"

"Go to hell!"

Buffy and William moved along the wall, peeking
around the side in time to see Anya shove Xander
away from her so hard that he skidded in the damp
grass and landed on his rear.

"Anya!," he called plaintively, struggling back up to
his feet. "I'm sorry! Can't we just...you know...go
back and try again?"

Whirling around on one heel, Anya stomped off,
Xander trailing after her and pleading for her to
wait.

The quarrelers disappeared back into the country
club. William stared after them, then shook his
head. "Umm...never mind."

"Boy that cat wasn't LET out of its bag," Buffy added
with a sigh. "It was DRAGGED out."


~~~~~~~~~~
"I love how you love me..."
~~~~~~~~~~



TBC....