Subversive

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the good characters. Damn it.

I set aside the tome and glanced at the clock. Nearly seven. All I wanted to do was go hit the gym, perhaps get some dinner, then go home and crash. I knew Spike was supposed to meet me later, but he had neglected to tell me when exactly. Regardless, I was certain that my work in the office was nearly done. Angel wasn’t that cruel of a taskmaster.

As I gathered my stack of books, I saw Fred heading my way, absorbed in a Starbucks and a clipboard, as usual. “Fred!”

The willowy girl looked up and smiled as she came to stop beside me. “Oh, Eva. You’re still here? I thought Angel sent you home ages ago.”

“No. He was wanting me to finish up some notes for tomorrow that he said couldn’t wait. I figure now I’m just going to deliver what I have and attempt to leave. I don’t think he’s got anything too big on his plate right now, does he?”

Fred shook her head. “No more than usual. He’s a little under pressure right now, but that’s nothing new. You just learn to take his irritation in the spirit for which it’s intended and realize that hey, at least he won’t eat you if he’s not happy.”

I snorted. “Yeah, that’s true. No demon-hunting tonight, huh?”

“Not tonight. Hey, Wesley, Gunn, Harmony and I are going out to dinner. Do you want to come?”

I raised an eyebrow. “Harmony?”

Fred shrugged, too nice and polite to show her displeasure. “Yeah, I know, it’s a little strange, but she was desperate for company. Want to come save me?”

“Oh, I would, Fred, but I’ve got to hit the gym and then I’ve got plans. Thank you, though. I really appreciate the offer.”

She smiled, smoothing back her hair. “That’s all right. Maybe next time, okay. Have a good night.”

“Thanks, you too. Have fun.”

She rolled her eyes a little, then softened the movement with her smile. “It should be… interesting.”

I moved quickly towards Angel’s office and knocked twice. “Come in.”

Stepping into the relative darkness I spotted Angel at his desk, bent over some papers. “Hi, Angel. I brought you the books and the notes you wanted. I poured through everything I had, and those notes are here.” I placed a separate stack of papers off to the side.

Angel looked up and smiled a rare Angel smile. He was incredibly good-looking; I’d always thought so. Shit, I would have to be more than dead not to see it. His short dark hair was nearly always spiked, his brown eyes so soulful and filled with unspoken words it was like looking into a vacuum sometimes. His broad shoulders and powerful build were just another temptation. He looked great in anything he wore. Before Spike I had often thought about secret rendezvous with Angel. What the hell, right? Never gonna happen.

“Oh, hey, Eva,” he greeted, standing up. “You can just put those over here.”

I strode over to the desk, my heels soundless on the soft carpeting. As I set the stack down, three books toppled off and fell to the floor. “Oh, damn,” I muttered.

As I bent down, Angel said, “No, don’t worry about it, Eva. I’ll get them.”

Gathering them up, I replied, “I’m your secretary, Angel. I’m supposed to clean up the messes, remember?” I stood up and set the books back down, safely on the desk. As I turned I found Angel standing barely a foot from me. I jumped. “Jesus! I hate it when you do that.”

“Sorry,” he said, a small half-smile tilting his lips. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I just wanted to see how you’re doing.”

My eyebrows flew up. His dark eyes were focused on me, a slightly penetrating gaze that sent a small shiver along my spine. It wasn’t anything personal; it was just the way he was. “Oh. I’m good. I like it here, like the people… I like you, you’re a good boss.” I chuckled a little nervously, unsure as to why I felt nervous. Suddenly I felt very exposed, as if he were reading all my dirty little secrets and was having an internal laugh.

Angel grinned a little wider. “Well, thanks. I try to be fair. I like you too. You’re a great secretary. It’s nice to know that we can hire some normal people around here.”

“Well, I don’t know how normal I am.”

“Trust me. You’ve seen the people that work here. You definitely fall in the more grounded of the group. I’m rather impressed you’ve stuck around. A lot of other people can’t quite make it for fear of the senior partners.”

I nodded solemnly, remembering the frightening things I had heard of the mysterious partners. It seemed no one had really met them, at least no one who wasn’t deeply in debt to some demon or other, which incurred some rather interesting questions about what exactly the partners were. “I figure you can use all the help you can get around here, right?”

He nodded, a tension in his body that was obvious as he looked at me a little harder. There was something almost unconsciously seductive about his gaze, and it made me squirm. He always seemed just a little uncomfortable with the idea that he was sexy. Or so I was told. I thought it was just all part of who he was and always had been.

“We can definitely use your help,” he said quietly. “There’s always more than enough work to go around.” He cleared his throat. “So your birthday is coming up, is that right?”

Startled by the abrupt subject change, I nodded. “Uh, yeah. Next week Friday. Why?”

“Oh, I just figured I’d try and get you out of here early. You didn’t ask for it off, so I thought I’d give you some time anyway.”

I smiled. “Well, thank you, Angel. That’s really nice of you. I don’t need it. I don’t have any plans.”

“Really? I thought you’d be going out with friends or with your family or with your boyfriend.”

I blushed a little, the thought of Spike entering my mind and I clutched at the scarf around my neck a little tighter. We hadn’t discussed my birthday, and we were not acknowledging ourselves as any sort of couple, last I knew. “I don’t have a boyfriend, actually. And everyone else is busy. I already checked.”

Angel leaned against the desk, crossing his arms over his broad chest. “That’s a shame. Well in that case, is there anything special you’d like for your birthday?”

His words struck a cord with me. They were very specific words, but I was trying to figure out if it was just me or if he was playing at something. His eyes were focused on me completely, a small smile playing at his lips. Very gorgeous lips.

Shit!

Why the hell was I looking at his lips?

Why the hell was he smiling at me like that?

A fierce blush crept into my cheeks. I had to fight back the temptation to giggle like a little girl and shuffle my feet, or say something silly like “Golly” or “Gee, whiz.” I would not lose my cool in front of Angel, no matter how my heart was beating a little quicker.

Deciding to take the simplistic route, I smiled and said, “That’s very thoughtful of you, Angel. You really don’t have to get me anything.”

“I want to. If you can’t go out with someone you care about on your birthday, then you should at least be spoiled a little. Come on. I’m your boss. Don’t make me order you to tell me.”

Clever repartee sounded off in my head and I ignored it. Swallowing hard I replied, “Fine. If you really want to get me something, I could use a new purse or a nice gift card works.”

Angel smiled again, folding his arms a little tighter across his chest. “Okay. Good thoughts, easily done. I was thinking of something a little more…personal. If that’s all right with you,” he added.

“More personal.” I frowned. “How so?”

He shrugged ever so slightly in that graceful vampiric way and took a step closer towards me. My heart jumped in my chest as I found myself looking up at him from a much more intimate perspective than I was used to. “Have dinner with me. Just us.”

I blinked, uncertain that I had heard him correctly. I stood there dimly, feeling stupid and unsure. It had to be a nice boss and employee business dinner. Of course, that’s all it was. It wasn’t as if the universe would turn on its head and there could be two incredibly hot men interested in me. I was more likely to grow horns than to have that happen. And around Wolfram and Hart, the horns thing wasn't as unusual as it sounded.

“What?”

“Come on. You don’t have any plans for your birthday, you just said so. Why don’t you let me take you out? I just want to make sure that you have a good birthday. You’ve seemed kind of out of it lately and I want to help. No one should be alone on their birthday. I promise I won’t make you wear any silly hats.”

Oh, great. Pity. That was just what I needed. I felt my heart sink ever so slightly. I liked the fantasy that he found me attractive much more than a pity dinner.

Sighing inwardly I decided, what the hell. The world wouldn’t end if I had dinner with my boss. “Sure,” I surrendered, all the while cursing pity and hiding it behind a small smile. “Why not? I’m sure I could use a nice dinner companion.”

“Great.” That charming smile eased over his face, instantly filling me with a wistful joy. Damn. He opened his mouth to say something else, but stopped. His gaze fell to my neck and he frowned ever so slightly. I felt my breath catch as he sniffed, eyes focused on my neck. He leaned forward and pulled at the scarf around my throat. “Eva?”

I immediately reached for the scarf, but it was too late. I sighed. “Angel, just don’t.”

He leaned in closely, his eyes dark as he stared at my neck. “You’ve been bitten.” His voice was hard, nearly accusatory. “Who did this to you?”

“Angel, it’s no big deal, trust me, all right?”

“Were you attacked?” He stared at me, a fierce determination in his face as he touched the marks. “This was recent. There’s all sorts of swelling to it.”

I stepped back, trying to get out of his reach.

Instead, Angel grabbed my arm just a little too tightly, holding me firmly in place. “Eva, what happened? Who did this?”

Swallowing hard I shirked under his tone. My stomach was a knot of discomfort. “Angel, really, it’s no big deal. I wasn’t attacked.”

“Really.” He raised an eyebrow, staring at me incredulously. “A vampire bites you and you don’t think it’s a big deal. I’m surprised he didn’t kill you. Not many vampires will leave a human alive. Do you know who did this to you?”

I squirmed, tentatively pulling against his grasp. I wasn’t going anywhere and I was going to have bruises. “Yes.”

Angel leaned in closer. “You should have come to me,” he said. “You haven’t been around many vampires, you don’t know what they’re like. They’re savage animals, Eva. You can’t trust them.”

“So I can’t trust you?”

He paused, a line of confusion marring his brow. “On some level, no. I have good control, Eva. But even someone like me can lose control and become just as vicious as the average street thug. You have no idea what I was like when I first became a vampire, Eva. No idea.”

I tried pulling against his grasp again, to no avail. I searched his face. There was a darkness there that spoke volumes about his own inner turmoil and a past that he had never alluded to before. I wondered a great deal about what he had been like, especially if he was bringing it up now. His fingers were pressing tighter into my skin and I winced.

“Angel…”

He tilted my neck and peered closely at the wounds. “This wasn’t an attack,” he said slowly. “It’s too clean, there’s no tearing.” I heard him sniff deeply. “Wait a minute.” Something seemed to be clicking in his head and I felt my heart race. “I know that scent.”

He slowly leaned back and looked at me, something terrible swimming behind his eyes. I wanted to cower under his stare, to hide, anything to get out of the line of his gaze. “Did Spike do this to you?” he asked in a low voice.

I knew I couldn’t fool him. I slowly nodded.

Angel stared at me for what felt like full minute. He almost didn’t seem to know how to react. Then he exploded, releasing me so suddenly that I nearly fell to the floor. “Spike!” he yelled, running through his doors. “I’ll kill him!”

My jaw dropped and I impulsively rubbed my arm. It was tender as all hell. “Oh, God,” I muttered. “Shit, shit, shit!” I tore off after him.

I ran down the hallway, wondering where the hell Angel had gotten to, or where the hell Spike was, for that matter. I knew that as soon as I found one I would find the other. I didn’t have the speed that they had. Several employees were talking animatedly amongst themselves as I tore down the hallway.

“Anybody see where Angel went?” I yelled, skidding to a slow run.

A small, squat little man with horns on his head nodded excitedly. “Yeah, he’s up on the next floor. Conference room, I think. That’s where it looked like he was going.”

“Thank you!”

“You probably don’t want to go up there!” he called after me. “Angel looked like he’s in a big hurry!”

I stumbled up the stairs, my heart pounding as I lost my breath, then my footing and fell to my knees. Cursing noisily, I leapt up and staggered down the hall, looking every which way and trying to catch my breath. Then I heard a loud roar to my left. As I turned my heel caught and snapped, sending me down to my knees once again.

“God damn it!”

Fuming, I tore off my shoe and hobbled into the conference room. As I fell through the door I froze in mid step.

Angel had Spike by the neck against the wall. Both vampires had shifted into demon form, teeth bared and eyes glaring at one another with enough heat that I should have caught fire. It looked as if Angel was about to throw Spike through the table.

“Bugger off, Angel! What the hell’s gotten into you? It’s none of your business!”

“Not my business?” Angel snarled. “You drank from one of my employees and you have the nerve to tell me you did nothing wrong?! I should know better than to expect anything less from a sniveling little coward like you.”

“Coward?” Now Spike sounded furious. “You best take that back, mate, or there’ll be more blood in this place of yours.”

Angel slammed him against the wall. “You know exactly what you are, Spike. You’re a liar and a murderer, and I can’t believe I let you stay here when I should have just staked you.”

“Angel!” I exclaimed, racing forward. “Put him down!”

Angel looked at me, his face contorted with rage. “Get out of here, Eva. This is something I’m going to settle with Spike once and for all.”

“No! Stop it!”

“He drank off of you and you want me to spare him? He tried to cover it up by saying that the two of you are seeing each other!”

“Yes! We are! Please put him down, Angel.”

Angel froze, looking from one of us to the other. “What?” He sounded incredulous. “What are you talking about?”

“Tell him, Eva,” Spike said, seemingly content to remain where he was now that I was there to defend him.

I nodded. “Yes. We’ve been seeing each other for a few weeks now. He didn’t attack me, Angel. He didn’t do anything to me that I didn’t ask for him to do. I asked for him to bite me.”

“What?”

Angel suddenly released Spike, letting him slide to the floor as he tried to wrap his mind around the words that I spoke.

Spike shook himself off, straightening his duster out as he shot Angel a bloodthirsty look. “Bloody hell, Angel. Always looking to make me the villain, aren’t you.” He bared his fangs and managed a low growl.

“I don’t have to try there, Spike. You are a villain.” Angel looked between us. “I don’t understand. What the hell is this, some sick joke?” Slowly his face shifted back to normal, revealing all the confusion that made him frown deeply.

“Not that bloody hard to figure out, mate, if you just open your ears,” Spike said, his own face shifting back to normal at last as well. He leaned against the wall, arms folded across his chest as he regained his composure. “She came over to my place, we shagged, and now we’re seeing each other. See? So simple even you should be able to understand it.”

Angel looked disgusted and I nearly held my head in my hands. “Thanks, Spike. Such a succinct and tactful way of putting it.”

He shrugged. “What? It’s the truth, isn’t it?”

“Be that as it may…”

Angel just shook his head, still looking slightly nauseated at the idea of us sleeping together. . “No…. You and Spike?”

Spike sniffed. “You know, I’m not exactly yesterday’s garbage, you know. Thanks for the cheers.”

“Yes. Why is that so hard to believe?”

For a moment, Angel was silent as he paced slowly. I could practically feel the waves of irritation and even anger radiating off of him. He almost seemed to be thinking in a whole other world. “I don’t know,” he said at last. “Well, for one thing I never thought you would go for someone like him. I mean he’s… Spike.” He gestured madly.

“Jesus!” Spike exclaimed in exasperation.

I raised an eyebrow. “There’s nothing wrong with Spike. I think he’s quite lovely.”

Spike nodded. “Thanks, love. At least someone here appreciates me.”

Angel faced me fully, eyes boring into me like spears. “Do you have any idea what he’s done, who he was? He’s killed more people than I even want to think about. Have you even bothered to tell her about that, William?” he asked pointedly.

I startled. I had never heard Spike’s real name. What was stranger, was that I had never thought to ask.

Spike merely returned the stare. “I’m sure I was right up there with you, Liam,” he shot back pointedly. “I wasn’t the only one thirsting for blood, remember. You didn’t always have this soul bit holding you back, so you can’t make that excuse.”

Angel seemed torn between lunging forward to rip Spike apart and staring guiltily at the floor. It surprised me to learn this. I couldn’t picture Angel and Spike going on killing sprees together. I suppose it never really crossed my mind. Never mind the fact that they were both very strong, very intense vampires. It made sense that neither one of them had been good all their lives.

“William?” I asked tentatively.

It was Angel who responded. “William the Bloody. But he hasn’t been that for a long time. He took on the moniker when he started torturing people with railroad spikes. Thought it sounded better because he didn’t want anyone to remember the only reason he was called William the Bloody was because he wrote bad poetry.”

I frowned, caught between a laugh and a guffaw. “Really. Poetry.”

Spike rolled his eyes. “I thought I told you not to mention that to anyone.”

“What’s the matter, Spike? Can’t handle a little reminiscing?”

Drawing himself up, Spike stared steely-eyed at Angel. “All right. If it’s a trip down memory bloody lane that you want, I believe I can follow you. How about we talk about the time that you slaughtered an entire village of gypsies because you didn’t like the music they played? Or how about the time you hunted down and stalked a girl, tormented her because she had the sight, drove her mad, then turned her into a vampire the day she took her vows as a nun?”

I stared. I couldn’t help it. Angel was closing himself back in for a moment, but in an instant he was on the offensive in retaliation. “I know what I did to Drusilla! And I’m reminded of it every day. Not that you should complain, she did sire you, after all. I never heard you complain about the way she helped twist you. And if it’s dirty deeds we want to compare, let’s just go over your list of accomplishments, shall we?”

“All right, all right, all right!”

I held up my hands and stepped farther into the room, staring at both of them. “Okay, I’ve got it. You both had some major issues and did some horrible things. Call me crazy, but I don’t think we’ve covered the worst parts of it yet, and I’m okay with that for now! Can you both just shut up about it for now?”

The two vampires exchanged a glance, silently coming to a truce, at least for now. Both looked sullen and I could see the pouting even though neither would admit to it. They were both much too proud to admit to pouting.

“Look, Angel. Spike and I have fun together. We enjoy being together. At this point, I don’t give a shit about who did what to whom. And besides, you made me break my shoe!” I held up my broken show angrily, suddenly frustrated by the whole ordeal. “I ran my ass over here to try and get between you too because you jumped the gun and overreacted just a bit!”

Angel winced. “Sorry. I’ll buy you a new pair.”

Shaking my head, I said, “That’d be nice. See? That’s my birthday present. Look. Angel. I asked Spike to bite me, okay? I know you won’t ever understand why, so I’m not going to try and explain it. The point is, however, that I asked for it. Spike has never hurt me.”

“Yeah, well, just wait for it,” Angel retorted. “The Spike I know doesn’t change. He’ll wait for the opportunity, use you to his advantage, and then he’ll dump you whenever it’s convenient for him.”

“Hey,” Spike interrupted. “I have bloody well changed and you know it. Would I have a soul and not have changed? Unlike you, Mr. Brooding, I chose to get a soul. I didn’t get cursed with it.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

This seemed to charge Spike up again. Before he could take any further action I stepped in, placing a hand on his chest and looking up at him. He met my eyes, his lips pursed and body tense. I turned to face Angel. “Look, I don’t know what exactly your guys’ pasts are and how you two know each other. But the fact is, Spike is a good guy. I know you rely on him no matter how much you try to deny it. I like who he is.”

Angel shook his head, looking from me to Spike and back again. “Why her?” he demanded. “Why did you choose her?”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “What’s it matter to you, Angel? You’ve no say over her. What are you, daddy now?”

“No. I’m trying to look out for the best interests of my employees.”

“Sounds more like you’re trying to keep something all to yourself, again. Well guess what, mate? I’m just following the advice you gave me. All the world’s open for the taking, and I finally found something worth looking at. I’m taking what I want.” He wrapped an arm around my shoulders possessively. “And I don’t plan on giving her back just yet.”

Angel glared. “Don’t try to use my words from two hundred years ago, Spike. That was a long time ago. Things were different then.”

I couldn’t quite figure them out. The vibes between them was so hostile. I thought them working together was a challenge, but this was damn near homicidal. Is it homicide to kill the undead? A strange and misplaced thought, but it happened nonetheless.

Before the slicing and dicing could begin, I interrupted. “Angel, what is this?” I asked. “Why are you so upset by this?”

He finally looked at me. “I’m your friend. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“Angel, I’ve got a damn good chance of being hurt by anyone, be it human, vampire or demon. I think in the grand scheme of things it hardly matters which.” I touched Spike’s arm, touching the solidity and security of his embrace. “I do appreciate the concern, really. But trust me, I’m fine. I will be fine. I’m not worried about my safety. If you want to worry, fine, but I’m asking you to stop the theatrics. Please.”

He seemed to consider what I said, but his jaw was set in a very stubborn way. I recognized that look. He didn’t like what he was being told but at the same time he knew that he had no choice but to accept it. For now, at least. He glanced between us, nodded once, and then he disappeared before I could register that he had left. Damn vampiric speed. The door slammed shut.

I startled, staring after him. “What the hell was that all about?”

Spike shrugged, holding me tightly. “Oh, who bloody knows? That boy’s got more issues than a news stand.” He sighed deeply, leaning his head against mine for a moment. “Now he knows about us. Oh, well. I don’t much care. Let him know. It was almost worth it just to see his face. I haven’t seen that boy so wounded since he heard Buffy had a new man.”

I kept staring after Angel. His reaction seemed so over the top and I didn’t understand it. That, and the fact that they both seemed intent on airing each other’s dirty laundry. Now I knew that they both had very checkered pasts. Maybe it was something I should look into.

“Baby?”

Turning around, I faced Spike. I slid my hands up his chest as I released a breath I didn’t know I had been holding. I liked the way he felt, the sharp contrasts between the leather of his coat, the cotton of his shirt, and the silky softness of his skin. I knew in some ways he was very bad for me, but in the overall scheme I didn’t care. He felt too good to get rid of, rather like a drug, I would imagine. He was a drug to me. After having tasted it I couldn’t get enough.

“Yeah, I’m fine. You all right?”

He nodded, casting a final glance towards the door before offering a rather curt grin. “Of course. Not much hurts me, love. I’ve put up with far worse from him over the years. And he was just starting to get interesting there, too.”

I stood on my toes and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. Sighing heavily, I sighed. “I know not much hurts you, or at least not much by the way of the norm. It sometimes slips my mind that he could have thrown you through the wall and you’d be fine overall. I just…” I shook my head.

“Oh, don’t worry ‘bout me, love,” Spike said, standing straight. “I’m the big, bad vampire, remember? Takes a lot more than nancy boy to take a bloke like me down. Gods know I’ve lived through much worse.” He grinned and swung an arm around my shoulders, leading me out of the room.

“Hang on.” I stooped down to remove my other shoe, instantly making me four inches shorter but satisfying my preoccupation with staggering on one foot. “No point in walking in one shoe.”

He grinned again as we resumed walking. “And what are your plans for this fine evening?”

“Heading to the gym. I need to get in my time before they close, and then I figured we could meet up later.”

Spike squeezed my arm as we stepped into the elevator. As the doors slid shut, his smile became more mischievous. “Feel the need to take out some aggression, do you? Hey, I understand. Just imagine it’s Angel and I’m sure you’ll be all toned up in no time.”

I rolled my eyes. “I don’t have anything against Angel. I think he may be momentarily insane, but other than that I like him.”

He observed me with a strange look. “Do you, now? Well, after a good couple hundred years of putting up with his incessant whining and pity me act, trust me, love, you’d have built up quite a bit of a dislike, too.”

The doors slid shut and we began our descent. I stared up at the mirrored ceiling, marveling how Spike had no reflection. We weren’t often around mirrors, so it was always a bit of a surprise to learn again and again that vampires were different. As I kept staring, I noticed also that my shirt was learning to move up by itself.

Giggling, I looked at Spike who was smiling mischievously as he ran a hand up my torso, taking my shirt up to expose my stomach. I eyed him coyly, raising an eyebrow. “Now, Spike, it’s not nice to tease.”

His eyes met mine with all their dark intensity. “I never said I was nice, love,” he replied, fingers dawdling over my flesh. He inched closer to me until his body was nearly in line with mine. His eyes dropped to my neck. “That mark looks fairly bad, love,” he said. “Let’s see if I can’t make it feel a bit better, eh?”

I swallowed hard as he leaned down and licked a long line over my skin before pressing his lips over the bite marks. A sting, and then warmth spread through me and I shuddered. “Mmm,” he murmured against my ear. “Still tasty.”

I sighed, tilting my head back to give him better access. He had an uncanny ability to make me relax in any given situation, but especially when he was performing just such acts of indecency on me. “You’re right, that is better.” My heart was racing, especially when he pressed his body against mine. I could feel how much he was enjoying what he was doing, and it was sending warm tingles all through my body.

“My, my, my, Spike, you are feeling feisty this evening.”

Very slowly he continued kissing my flesh. “I can’t help it. Must be something in the air. Or the fact that I love the way you react to me.”

Chortling low and sexy, I leaned into him, reaching up to touch his hair and tugging gently. “You make it impossible not to react,” I replied, gasping as he nuzzled my neck and his hand slid up to my breast.

This time he chuckled and pulled me hard against his body, forcing me to throw my head back as he moved to the other side, laying firm and promising kisses everywhere he could. His free hand slid from my hair to my thigh, pulling my leg up around his waist until I felt his cock pressing urgently against me. I swallowed hard, pulling his hair harder and earning a brief moan of arousal from him.

The elevator began slowing down. At first all I wanted to do was ignore it, to see if he and I could get away with our little foray in the company elevator. I just wanted to concentrate on him and on what he was doing to me. At last, common sense prevailed and I struggled to pull myself out of my reverie.

“Spike,” I murmured, slightly urgently. “Come on, the doors are about to open.”

“So? Let the buggers get a free show.” He continued to kiss me.

I chortled and struggled to disengage myself from his embrace. He finally acquiesced, though with a devilish smile still playing on his lips. “Oh, come on, love. You know I’m just joking.”

As the doors opened to reveal the insinuated lawyers waiting transport, I gave him a falsely stern look. “You just want to see how much you can embarrass me.”

“Nonsense. If I really wanted to do that, it would hardly be an effort.” Leaning in close to my ear, he whispered, “And don’t for a second think this is over, love. I plan to continue what we started.”