Part 5
“I didn’t think this could get more humiliating…I was wrong.”
“Angel-”
“No, don’t say it Cordelia.”
“I-”
“I mean it, if you tell me how this happens to all guys at one time or another I’ll…Could you stop looking at me like that?”
“Like what?”
“Like this is all very amusing to you.”
“You’ve gotta admit this is kinda funny.”
“How? How is this funny? In what way is this funny?”
“Obviously not funny ha ha, more like I can’t believe this is happening, or apparently not happening, funny.”
“That makes me feel so much better. Why doesn’t the earth open up and swallow you when you want it to?” Angel muttered and threw an arm over his face to hide his embarrassment. This was mortifying. Of all the things…why did this have to happen? Why did this have to happen to him? Was this another part of his penance for a hundred years without a soul? Wasn’t the crippling guilt enough?
“This has never happened before. Never.” The vampire grumbled as he rubbed his hands over his face.
“Are you saying it’s my fault you can’t….?” Cordelia wiggled her eyebrows and gestured to his crotch.
“I didn’t say that.”
“You implied it.” The brunette narrowed her eyes at him.
“There was no implying!” He exclaimed throwing his hands up in the air with exasperation.
“Oh there was implyage Mister, loud and clear.” She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Cordy-” Angel sighed and sat up, making sure that he was covered by the bed sheet, not that he had anything to hide. Hell, that was the problem.
“I happen to be quite the hottie, it’s not my fault only women with an obsession with peroxide light your fire-”
“It has nothing to do with you not being a blonde, you’re a very beautiful and desirable woman Cordelia, I’ve seen men trip over themselves when you walk by. You’re stunning…you’re, as Doyle once said, a stiff’ner.”
“He said that?” The corner of Cordelia’s mouth tugged up into a small smile as she remembered their fallen friend.
“Yeah.” Angel nodded, his current mortification forgotten as he watched a river of emotions wash over Cordelia’s face, sadness and affection, guilt and happiness lit up her hazel eyes in the same moment.
“And yet behold the lack of stiffness.” Cordelia brought them back to the point in question much to Angel’s dismay.
“I know.” He sighed. Why was Cordelia insisting on talking about this, why couldn’t they just sit in an awkward silence like every other couple on the planet did?
“OK. So, I’m gorgeous but you’re not attracted to me, that’s fine. You had no trouble yesterday, what makes today different?” Cordelia said diplomatically as she pulled her knees up to her chin, no longer bothered about the fact that she was clad in only her underwear.
“I didn’t say I wasn’t attracted to you.” The vampire frowned.
“But the-” Cordelia’s eyebrows wiggled suggestively at him again. “-would suggest you aren’t.”
“It could also suggest that I’ve just been in a fight and beaten with a crowbar.” Angel said dryly, the fading bruise on his side still aching from the earlier fight.
“That’s true.” Cordelia nodded thoughtfully.
“But then again there was a time when Darla and I were practically pulled apart by an angry mob and afterwards we-”
“Ugh, please, no Darla reminiscing.” The young woman quickly put a stop to what ever Angel was about to say. She really didn’t want to know.
“Sorry.” The vampire grimaced. Why did he bring up Darla? Was Buffy going to be the next topic of conversation? Then Dru? The Furies? Hell, Spike? What was he thinking? The blood in his body certainly hadn’t headed south so that couldn’t be an excuse. It was the fight, Angel silently reasoned with himself, this is all because of the fight. Maybe he’d hit his head? Or, and this was more likely, maybe he was just a dumbass.
Silence quickly swallowed the room like a stifling vacuum, at least they could depend on that to show it’s ugly head. Cordelia had expected the evening to mirror the day before, awkward hands, nervous laughter, eyes unable to meet in the aftermath. But there was no aftermath to speak of as there hadn’t actually been a before-math. It had felt too clinical, kiss here, touch there, insert tab A and save the Seer’s life. Half an hour of passionate-less fumbling from both the friends made it abundantly clear this was going nowhere fast.
“Maybe you’re just tired.” Cordelia wondered out loud.
“Oh God, the ‘maybe you’re just tired’ speech. Can we not talk about this anymore? Please?” Angel begged her desperately.
“Fine.” She huffed, if he didn’t want to talk about it then she wasn’t the kind of person that would force him to. Ok, she was totally the kind of person…but about this? Not so much.
“How are you feeling?” Angel asked her as he watched Cordelia rubbing her forehead.
“Like I’ve had the worst of man and demon kind squeezed into my brain while a large troupe of baseball wielding rhinos do the cancan in my head to the tune of ‘Don’t rain on my parade’.” Cordelia muttered dryly.
“I’m sorry.” Angel frowned.
“Coulda been worse, coulda been Manilow.” She shrugged.
“No, I mean I’m sorry about this all being so….” The vampire trailed off awkwardly not sure of how to say it.
“Uninspiring?”
“Yeah.”
“It takes two to do the horizontal tango Angel, I wasn’t exactly very involved.” Cordelia said truthfully, she was a passionate woman, just like Angel was a passionate man, but there was no desire or lust involved here, just a job they had to do to stop Cordelia’s head from imploding. That didn’t inspire a great deal of passion.
“You’re attracted to me?” Cordelia remembered what he’d said earlier.
“What?” Angel said with confusion.
“You said you were attracted to me.” A smug smile slid across the brunette’s face.
“I’m not blind Cordy.” The vampire said as his appreciative gaze flicked over her.
“Well you’re kinda easy on the eyes too.” Cordelia stole a glance at his broad shoulders and strong arms. She felt a warm flush prickling at her skin as Angel’s stare halted momentarily on her lace covered breasts.
Oh god, I’m checking out my best friend, Angel and Cordelia thought at the same time. The vampire jerked his eyes away from his seer’s breasts and focused on the wall on the opposite side of the room while Cordelia suddenly found her nails very interesting.
“This just got to a whole new level of weird didn’t it?” Cordelia said quietly as she hugged her knees to her chest.
“It really did.” Angel nodded unable to tear his gaze away from the wall.
“It’s going to get awkward now isn’t it?”
“I expect so.”
“Well dammit, I won’t let it. I can’t do that again, I can’t spend another day not talking to you because you’ve seen me naked and vice versa, add in your current…er…problem and we may never talk again. So I say we just forget what didn’t just happen and have another go at it, more involvement from me this time.” Cordelia announced with determination as she scooted closer to Angel’s side of the bed, concentrating on the pain in her head rather than what she was about to do to her best friend.
“Cordy, what are you doing?” Angel eyed Cordelia suspiciously as her hand disappeared underneath the bed sheet, trying not to notice how the lace of her bra brushed against his arm.
“Getting involved.” The brunette said confidently as she settled her hand on the hard muscle of his thigh.
“You shouldn’t-”
“Do you have a better idea to make Mr Perky…perky?” She raised a questioning eyebrow at him.
“This isn’t about me.” The vampire frowned as her hand began to run slowly up and down his thigh, her fingers trying to massage away the tension that seemed to permeate every millimetre of his body.
“Angel-”
“Cordy.” He captured her wrist and halted her hands journey before it could go any further. “This is about you, saving you. Not jerking me off.”
“No, this is about both of us. If it were just about me then the vision I had would have been different. It’s you and me doing this Angel, not just me laying on my back and letting you do all the work.” Cordelia said honestly, her eyes fixed unflinchingly to his even though her stomach was doing flips. She snaked her wrist out of his grasp and laced her fingers through his, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze. The day before Cordelia had barely touched him as they’d had sex, she had been too nervous and scared too do more than rest her hand on Angel’s arm. That wasn’t what the vision had shown her. That wasn’t how this was supposed to go.
“Let me do this.” The young woman asked him softly as she slipped her hand away from his and settled it back onto his thigh, pleased when she felt his muscles twitch beneath her fingertips.
“Cordy-”
“Shhh.” Cordelia murmured quietly as she began to run trails of heat across his skin, Angel knew that once the young woman had convinced herself of something there was little anyone could do to change her mind.
This was more intimate than anything they had done the day before. That had been sex, straight up, no frills sex that did the job it was meant to do. But this…this was different, Cordelia touching him like a lover wasn’t mean to be part of the plan. When his seer gracefully swung a leg over him and straddled his lap Angel realised the plan was headed straight out the window.
“I don’t think this is a good idea.” Angel insisted as his hands settled on her hips.
“OK, what part of shhh didn’t you understand?” She cocked an eyebrow at him with annoyance, she couldn’t do this if he was going to keep on interrupting her.
“I mean it Cordelia.” The vampire growled gruffly.
“Oh good, the serious voice.” The young woman sighed and placed her hands on his chest. “Listen to me Angel, we’ve already had sex, we’ve seen each other naked, you’ve had your fingers…well, you know. I think we can safely say the line has been well and truly crossed. This isn’t going to make any difference.” She reasoned with a carefree shrug. “Now be quiet and think sexy thoughts. Non blonde sexy thoughts mind you.” Cordelia narrowed her eyes at him. Angel wasn’t convinced by her reasoning, there was a difference between what they’d done yesterday and this. But his best friend was in pain, he could see it in her eyes, in the way she clenched her jaw as though to stifle the screams she could still hear in her head. Cordelia was in pain and he’d do anything to make the hurt stop.
The young woman swallowed audibly and look down. Yep, there it was.
She had two ways she could go about this, slow and teasing or straight to business. Cordelia chose option B.
“Cordy!” Angel squeaked as her small hand suddenly wrapped around him.
“You squeaked.” She chuckled.
“It was kinda unexpected.” The vampire muttered with embarrassment.
“But apparently not unwelcome.” Cordelia’s lips twisted with amusement as she stole a glance down at his manhood, it appeared to be enjoying the attention.
“I…er….” Angel struggled for anything to say that wasn’t my penis is in Cordelia’s hand.
“Relax Angel, this is the reaction we’re looking for.” The young woman said, a little shocked by her matter of fact tone. Sex for Cordelia had always been about love, desire, sharing a part of your self with the special person in your life. Not that she had much experience exactly, but she wasn’t the kind of girl that took sex lightly. It was a big deal. And yet here she was running her hands lightly over her best friend’s hardening manhood as though she did this sort of thing all the time.
Cordelia’s hand halted it’s movement. She didn’t do this all the time. She didn’t…she didn’t do this.
“Cordy?” Angel asked her softly, her sudden apprehension written clearly across her face.
“I…nothing.” She shrugged, a self deprecating smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
“I don’t want you to do anything you’re not comfortable with.” He tucked her hair behind her ear, his thumb lingering for a moment on the soft rise of her cheek bone.
“I’m comfortable.” Cordelia insisted weakly. Angel looked at her disbelivingly. “OK, not completely comfortable.” She relented slightly. The vampire cocked an eyebrow at her.
“Fine, I’m seriously weirded out and on the cusp shouting oh my god I’m holding my best friend’s lamb javelin in my hand! Now quit with the third degree already.” Cordelia scowled, her hand gave him an annoyed squeeze that threatened to make Angel’s eyes to cross with pleasure.
“Lamb javelin? Who’dya hear that from, Lorne or Gunn?” Angel managed to say, Cordelia’s hand was warm and soft, something he hadn’t felt in so long. All he wanted to do was close his eyes and enjoy the feeling but he couldn’t, not when his best friend was so uncomfortable.
“Lorne. Wanna hear what he called-”
“I’m pretty sure I don’t.”
“It’s really funny-”
“I really don’t.”
“You’re no fun.” Cordelia pouted theatrically, the sudden nerves that had welled up inside her dissipating gradually. If she tried really hard she could almost pretend that they were having a normal conversation and she wasn’t giving her best friend a hand job so that they could have sex to stop the visions she received from the PTB from killing her.
She couldn’t help but laugh at that.
“What’s so funny?” Angel frowned at her sudden mirth, his ego ready to take another battering.
“This…us…vision sex….” Cordelia snorted. “It’s so ridiculous.”
“And here I was thinking all best friends did this.” Angel glanced down at where her hand has resumed it’s tentative exploration over him. He felt a surge of arousal at the sight.
“No..well, maybe Gunn and Wes.” She tilted her head thoughtfully.
“Huh?” The vampire blinked in confusion.
“I’ll tell ya later.” She winked knowingly at him and Angel had the feeling he wasn’t being told about something, as usual.
“Your hands are on my breasts.” Cordelia realised as a thumb brushed confidently over the lace of her bra.
“I was wondering when you’d notice that.” Angel said dryly.
“I’m noticing. How long have they been there?” The young woman muttered quietly as she looked down at his large hands covering her breasts. She wasn’t sure how it was that she hadn’t noticed Angel touching her, she guessed it was because she’d been too caught up in her minor freak out.
“For a while. I can take them off your breasts if you want.” He asked her hesitantly, his hands had just gravitated towards her chest of there own volition around about the time Cordelia had started to touch him with more confidence and they refused to listen to his brain. It was a man thing.
“No…no, it’s OK. They’ve been there before, it’s nothing new.” Cordelia said diplomatically, a cool shiver running up her spine when his thumbs connected with her nipples. “Plus, it feels kinda nice.” She felt a warm flush creeping over her skin that wasn’t entirely unwelcome.
“I thought we’d discussed you not using that word.” The vampire scowled at her grumpily, his fingertips dancing over the lace in arousing circles.
“My bad.” The brunette said, her voice suddenly thick with the situation. They both realised it was time to get serious about this, the awkwardness appeared to be lesser than the day before but they were both still hesitant. But being hesitant wasn’t going to do the job here. With a deep breath Cordelia ran her fingers over his length, inquisitively exploring the places that would make Angel slam his eyes shut and groan deep in his chest.
“Is this OK?” She asked quietly, the atmosphere in the room suddenly thick with what they were doing. .
“Uh huh.” Angel nodded dumbly, it felt good, maybe too good. He could feel desire tingling in the small of his back and the thought that it was Cordelia that was doing this to him excited and confused him at the same time. This was Cordelia, his best friend, the woman that insisted on putting cinnamon in his blood and made very bad coffee, the girl that had barged her way into his life and had become someone he would be lost without…but all that was quickly being forgotten as she touched him so intimately, his demon whispering in his ear to throw her on her back and bury himself into the tight warmth it remembered from the day before.
“You sure? I haven’t really done this very much.” Cordelia asked him, her voice edged with a vulnerability that guilted the soul and spurred on the demon. Angel silently told his demon to shut the hell up.
“Cordy, really, it’s good….” He ground out huskily.
“OK. How about this?” Cordelia’s free hand left it’s home of his chest and snaked down to join its twin. The vampire’s eyes slipped shut with pleasure as she covered him completely, her hands working in a rhythm that she was learning as she went along. “I’ll take that as a yes.” She said under her breath at his reaction. He felt heavy in her hands, but not in a bad way. Cool and strangely soft for something that had grown so hard, that she had made so hard. That thought was a little too much for the young woman so she ignored it and concentrated on her ministrations. Cordelia traced a nail delicately along the length on him, she bit her lip as a deep growl rumbled through the vampire’s chest. Hopefully that was a good sound. She did it again to make sure. Yep, good sound, or at least it appeared to be by the way he bucked into her hand.
All thoughts left her brain when Angel opened his eyes and captured her in his gaze. Cordelia swallowed. The way he was looking at her…he’d neverlooked at her like that before, like he wanted to throw her down and make her scream his name over and over again until she passed out. This was how he looked at her in her vision, dark swirling pools of desire swimming in his eyes that threatened to drown her. Cordelia swallowed again and shifted nervously in his lap.
“Angel?” She whispered, scared to break the spell but desperate to do so at the same time.
“Cor…you might wanna stop…” Angel tried not to growl again, it felt so good, too good, Cordelia shouldn’t be making him feel this good, it wasn’t about him, why didn’t she understand that? Too good, a warm gentle touch that he’d been denied for so long. The vampire squeeze his eyes shut for a moment and the spell was broken, his eyes nothing but friendship and she was both relieved and disappointed.
“You want me to stop?”
“No..yes…anymore and this’ll be over before it starts.” He stilled her hands, he needed to remember this was Cordelia. His best friend.
“Oh.” Cordelia shrugged and untangled her hands from his, placing them out of harms way on his chest. Angel forced himself to bite back the groan that threatened to spill from his lips at the loss of her touch. “Now what?”
“I thought you were in charge tonight.” The vampire said as he tried to regain some control over himself.
“What gave you that idea?”
“I dunno, it could have been the straddling.” His lips twisted with amusement.
“Oh, yeah.” Cordelia’s cheeks blushed pink. “Well I think that’s as far as my confidence goes at the minute.”
“Well…maybe now I can try and regain some of my ego that’s been so carelessly walked over the last couple days.” Angel brushed his thumbs once more over the now hard nubs of her nipples, watching as she unconsciously sucked her bottom lip into her mouth, the amber skin of the tops of her breasts mottled pink with either embarrassment or desire. Angel hoped it was desire.
“You really aren’t going to let that go are you?” Cordelia said thickly, her hair falling over her shoulder as she leant towards his touch.
“Not any time soon.” His hands left the seductive swell of her chest and slid down her ribs, tickling fingers making her squirm. Cordelia was so soft and warm, nothing like Darla, his Sire was all cold angles and brittle words, his best friend felt like sunshine in his hands.
“Honestly, you men and your egos. Anyone would think you-oh!” The rest of Cordelia’s sentence was lost as Angel pressed his thumb over her clit through the lace of her panties. Her hips rocked towards the sensation so he did it again. It was the vampire’s turn to smirk this time.
“Try not to get too big headed, it’s a natural reaction, just like Mr Perky saying hello.” Cordelia breathed heavily as small fission’s of electricity sparked in her belly, her eyes slipping shut as her hands anchored themselves to his shoulders.
“I hope that nickname isn’t gonna stick.”
“Shut up and keep doing that.” Cordelia muttered as the tingling heat between her legs turned molten.
“This?” Angel pressed the pad of his thumb roughly over her making his best friends hips jerk towards him. Cordelia’s hair fell completely over her face, hiding the flush of arousal that coloured her cheeks from Angel. The vampire could taste her arousal in the air, the same arousal he had scented when he had returned from the fight and had found her waiting for him on his bed like a lover. But they weren’t lovers and he very much doubted that it was him she had been dreaming about, that bothered Angel more than he was willing to admit.
He pushed it to the back of his brain and concentrated on the now, on the soft warmth beneath his thumb and the gentle murmurs that slipped from her lips. Angel leant forward and kissed the slope of her collar bone, his free hand deftly unhooking the back of her bra with a snap. Cordelia tensed and Angel feared he’d done the wrong thing. The former Queen C of Sunnydale High tilted her head to the left, flicked her hair out of her face and looked at Angel. He swallowed and kept perfectly still, he had a horrible feeling she was going to slap him.
You can imagine how surprised he was when his best friend let the lace fall from her shoulders as she leant forward and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. Her full lips walked a tentative path along the line of his jaw and to the place on his neck that only Darla knew about where his neck met his shoulder that made his chest vibrate with a groan before he could silence it.
“I found a sensitive spot.” She whispered huskily, her words edged with amusement.
“That makes two of us.” Angel snaked his thumb beneath the edge of her panties and over the swollen flesh of her clitoris.
“Well…duh…kinda…obvious….” Cordelia found herself grinding into his hand, her desire building to a level where she didn’t care about being embarrassed about the fact that it was Angel making her feel like this. She closed her eyes and buried her face into the crook of Angel’s neck, her hips rocking in time with his hand, a small whimper of surprise echoing in the back of her throat as she felt a finger sliding into her tight warmth.
“Ahhh….” She breathed heavily when the vampire angled the finger inside her, hitting a spot that caused light to dance behind her eyelids.
“How’s that for a sensitive spot?” The vampire asked smugly, determined that there wouldn’t be a repeat performance of yesterday’s nice.
“S’good.” Cordelia panted, her body wanting more. “I….”
“Yeah?” He cupped her naked breast, hot flesh searing the palm of his hand.
“Can we….?” She cleared her throat, why was it she’d been able to jerk her best friend off but when it came to talking about what she wanted she was as succinct as Fred on a very bad day.
“If you think you’re ready?” Angel read her mind.
“I think so.”
“Did you want to….” He gestured with his eyes about their position as his hands were full.
“Me on top?” Cordelia hadn’t thought about that.
“It’s up to you Cordy.” Angel said diplomatically.
“I don’t think…that would be more weirdness than I think I can handle right now.” She scrunched up her nose and shook her head in the negative.
“OK.” He nodded and before Cordelia could even give it a second thought she found herself on her back staring up at Angel.
“Smooth move.” Cordelia said impressed.
“It’s a vampire thing.” He shrugged. “Ready?”
“Wait a second.” Cordelia slid a hand under her back and snagged the uncomfortable lump of material that she was laying on, her bra, and deposited it down the side of the bed. She wriggled to get comfortable. “OK, I’m good.”
“Take your time.” Angel muttered under his breath as he snagged his fingers through the top of her panties.
“I heard that.” Cordelia lifted her hips off the bed to help him rid the garment.
“That’s ‘cos I said it out loud.” Angel unsuccessfully fought back a grin as he gripped her thighs and gestured for her to wrap her legs around his back.
“Don’t use my words against me.” She narrowed her eyes at the vampire and playfully pinched his arm.
“You’re a spiteful woman Cordelia Chase.” Angel angled her hips and covered her body with his.
“And you’re a dumbass vampire Angel ‘I’m so old I can’t remember my last name’.” She looped her arms around his neck and pressed the heels of her feet into the small of his back.
They both let out a low groan as his hardness slid slowly into her body, Angel being extra careful not to hurt her like he had the day before. Cordelia bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut as he filled her, hard and unyielding yet achingly gentle. Angel felt a shudder spiral from his toes to the top of his head when he was sheathed fully inside her slick depths, the urge to thrust sharply crackling through his nerves. Cordelia let out a breath she’d felt like she’d been holding ever since the vision had struck earlier that evening.
“So if we bicker it doesn’t leave room for that uncomfortable penetration silence, remember that for next time” Cordelia panted, Angel chuckled into her shoulder and moved his hips experimentally.
“You OK?” He breathed into her neck.
“Uh huh.” She urged him on, trying to tell him with her body what she wanted. Angel began to move inside her, tentative strokes that turned into more decisive thrusts when Cordelia began to meet his rhythm. It wasn’t as jerky as the last time, it far from perfect…but better. They didn’t look at each other though, Cordelia held his head where he’d buried it into the dip of her neck, her nails grazing through his spiky hair as short puffs of air escaped from her lips.
Angel clenched his jaw as he felt Cordelia’s blood beat seductively so close to him, sticky red life pumping through her veins, sweet like honey, thick with her arousal, one small bite and he could fill his mouth with everything that she was, roll it over his tongue like an expensive wine, lick it off his lips and sate the demon for just a little while, it would be so easy….
The vampire jerked his head away from the temptation, his eyes shadowed with a hundred years of guilt.
“Angel…what’s wrong?” Cordelia panted, her hands sliding from the anchor of his neck and onto his shoulders.
“Nothing.” He shook his head unconvincingly, Cordelia’s yeah right got lost in her throat as Angel once more moved inside her with earnest, his hand snaking a path down the valley between her breasts, circling a finger lazily around her navel and then through the soft curls that shielded her sex. Cordelia sucked in a sharp breath and bucked her hips when his thumb grazed roughly over her clit, he did it again and again, watching her as her mouth dropped open in a silent ‘o’ of pleasure. Her back arched sharply, her thighs squeezing the vampires sides to an almost painful degree as an unexpected orgasm coiled outwards from her belly and set fire to all the nerves in her body at once.
It was beautiful, Angel realised. Her face free of the pain that infected so many aspects of their lives, shining with her youth, her passion, her life. Cordelia Chase lost in an orgasm was one of the most beautiful things he’d ever seen, red lips panting, chocolate hair splayed across his pillows, shadows and light dancing over her amber skin…the sight before Angel licked hard desire through his spine and made his hips crash into her roughly. Cordelia forced her eyes open and Angel found himself lost in her hazel depths as his release tore through him with a growl that he couldn’t hide
***
“I hope it isn’t the end of the world again.” Angel muttered as he stared up at the ceiling, his gaze averted from where Cordelia was dressing on the other side of the bed.
“It could well be but Wesley getting stressed about it isn’t going to help the situation.” Cordelia told him over her shoulder as she fastened the hook of her bra. “I told him to take it easy for a few days, back away from the books and all that jazz.”
“That’s probably wise.” He folded his arms under his head and sneaked a glance at the bright tattoo on the small of her back.
“Of course.” She shot him a dazzling smile, arching her eyebrow when she saw that he wasn’t being a gentleman and not watching her dress. “Enjoying the view?”
“Sorry.” Angel cleared his throat and went back to staring at the ceiling.
“If you ask me Wesley’s general melancholy and harried appearance is because all is not well in Gunn land.” Cordelia said knowingly as she slipped her dress on over her head and sat down on the edge of the bed to put on her shoes.
“Huh?”
“Angel, you are aware that those two are together aren’t you?”
“Who two?” Angel sat up, clueless and intrigued.
“Wes and Gunn.” She announced slowly as though she were explaining it to a small child.
“Really?” He raised his eyebrows in disbelief.
“Really.” Cordelia nodded, dragging a hand through her bed muzzled hair.
“Since when?”
“For a while I think.” She shrugged.
“Why didn’t anyone tell me?” Angel asked feeling out of the loop as usual.
“Because we’re not meant to know.”
“Then how do you know?”
“Because I pay attention to things going on around me, unlike some people.” Cordelia picked up her bag from the floor, delighting in the fact that when she bent over her head didn’t feel like it was going to implode.
“I pay attention.” The vampire muttered petulantly as he swung his legs over the side of the bed to put some clothes on.
“Sure you do.” The brunette nodded patronisingly, her tone thick with sarcasm. Angel didn’t notice.
“Wes and Gunn huh? Well, that’s…unexpected.”
“Not really, the way those two banter and bicker…it was kinda obvious.” Cordelia turned her back as her best friend pulled on his pants and a sweater. “I just hope they make each other happy, god knows someone deserves some happiness around here.”
“Cordy-” Angel frowned at her melancholy tone.
“I should get going.” Cordelia turned back around to face him, not at all surprised that he was standing right behind her even though she hadn’t heard him move.
“You don’t have to leave straight away.” Angel felt the need to reach out and touch her but even after what they’d just done the vampire was hesitant, Cordelia took the initiative for the second time that night and laced her fingers though his, giving his hand a affectionate squeeze.
“If I’m not home soon Dennis will worry.” Cordelia said honestly.
“Do you want a ride home?” Angel asked.
“No, that’s OK, I’ve got my car.” The brunette’s hand slipped from his and Angel was surprised at the gap he felt at its departure. Cordelia smiled at him and it made Angel feel a little better, but it still didn’t quell the general unease that he felt brewing inside him.
“Drive carefully.” Angel dug his hands into his pockets.
“Don’t I always?”
“Do you want me to answer that honestly?”
“Of course not.” Cordelia grinned at him, feeling light from the lack of a vision hangover that would have usually tormented her for days.
“Then yes, you always drive carefully.” The vampire nodded.
“Smartass.” She thumped his shoulder playfully then took Angel by surprise as she enveloped him in a hug. “Thanks.” Cordelia whispered and pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek. Before Angel could think of a response that wasn’t you’re welcome she was out of his arms and waving him goodbye as she slipped out of his room, her heels clicking a staccato rhythm down the corridor until they faded into the distance. Angel dug his hands into his pockets once more and looked around his suddenly empty room, the silence that came with Cordelia’s absence drummed loudly in his sensitive ears and filled every corner of the night.
The Hotel was suffocating without her.