Dedication: For Kelly’s help and patience.
Chapter 88
Angel’s body hummed with contentment as he stared down at Cordy’s sleeping form. It was the perfect opportunity to capture her on paper. But then he would have to leave her and that wasn’t something he planned to do anytime soon.
He appeased his thought of the perfect sketch by memorializing her contours with his touch. He then palmed his hand over of the small of her back. Finally, she was his, he thought, curling his fingers around her waist.
Cordy murmured as his fingers began to draw patterns along her skin. He watched as she scrunched up her nose and rubbed at her face. Angel lightly massaged along her back and side as he waited for the cloud of sleep to fade from her eyes.
“What? Where?” She blinked and rubbed her face again. “Angel?” Her still hazy eyes met his in question. “Oh. So not a dream, huh?”
He brushed the hair from her face. “And what have you been dreaming, Cordy?”
She glanced quickly around the room and then turned back to him.
“What?” he asked, leaning back to give her some space while he twirled her long hair around his fingers.
Cordelia chewed on her bottom lip. “No, ‘sorry, this was a mistake’?”
Angel sat up, pulling Cordelia with him. “I’m over two hundred years old,” he said, feigning confusion. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes — have a lot to be sorry for.”
Her eyes narrowed.
He pretended to get it. “Oh, you mean, this.” He waved at their naked bodies. “ Uh, no. ‘This’ isn’t anyway near that list.” Angel sighed at her continuing doubtful gaze. “Cordy, I wish you would just trust me.”
He placed his finger over her mouth to stop any denial. “What else am I suppose to think? We made love. I’m here, but you’re scared and on the verge of running away. I guess the real question is— Are you sorry?”
He heard Cordelia’s heart skip. Her gaze stayed on the mattress for more than a second before she finally raised it to him with an unwavering grin. “My dream was just the standard.” She shrugged as she reached for him. “You know — flying, falling, and having wild monkey sex.”
“That’s some dream. Care to relive it?”
“Well, since you woke me up…”
Angel stopped the rest of her retort with a kiss and pulled her under him.
Chapter 89
Cordelia curbed her need to shake the pins and needles out of her arm. Rather, she squeezed her eyes tighter and attempted to string even two coherent thoughts together.
She silenced her groan at the impossibility. Okay, so there was no doubt that making love to Angel, once again, wasn’t a dream. Not only did her skin still tingle at the memory, her body ached wonderfully in places that it hadn’t ever before.
She forced herself to remain still, not wanting to wake Angel and have him claim that she was running away from him again. She really did want to think it was as simple as Angel made it, that he had moved on from Buffy and now wanted her. It was just that there was something niggling about the change in their relationship.
Damn. She couldn’t think in his arms.
“Where are you going?” Angel leaned over her, stilling her planned escape.
In an instant, anger flared in every part of Cordelia’s body. Would he ever give her a moment to think without overwhelming her? She turned to him and the sudden anger faded. His gaze was completely innocent. “Bathroom.” She darted off the bed.
***
Cordy stood at the sink, splashing water on her face. She needed to stop her doubts. Angel obviously didn’t have any and making him think he had to constantly defend himself without reason would be a sure-fire way of losing him. Cordelia froze as she realized that she was worried about losing him. Her groan was barely audible. She had fallen for Angel.
Oh, God. What was she going to do? She whined inwardly as she chewed on her thumbnail. She stared at her reflection as images of sitting with Angel, talking and teasing, and those of making love with him flashed in her mind.
Enjoy herself? She questioned hesitantly as her hand rubbed at the fluttering in her tummy. Just because her life sucked didn’t mean it always had to, right?
Cordelia winced as another image flashed in her mind, the one in which she freaked like a madwoman. Angel had been trying to be gentle and a considerate lover and she accused him of trying to kill her. Her eyes widened in a horrible thought – what if it wasn’t remaining Buffy-doubts he sensed? What if he thought she was scared about him being vampire?
But wouldn’t the fact that she made love to him twice afterwards be enough to cure any of those types of doubts?
She turned to leave the bathroom. “Crap,” she gritted through her teeth as she saw her watch on the sink. “Crap, crap,” she grunted in a whispered mantra. Reassuring Angel would have to wait.
She yelped as she hopped into the shower before it had a chance to get hot.
“Cordy, what’s wrong?” Angel pushed into the bathroom.
Cordelia covered herself with her hands. “Why are you in here?” She realized the silliness of her actions, but her hands wouldn’t move.
“Why are *you* here?” Angel yanked the shower curtain back.
“Shower.” Cordelia turned to yank at the nozzle that claimed ‘H’.
“Why?” Angel remained positioned beside the bathtub.
“Why?” Cordelia repeated and then sputtered as water ran down her throat. “School.” She coughed and then pointed to her watch. “If I hurry I won’t be that late.”
“School?”
Cordelia moved out of the stream of water and narrowed her eyes at Angel, her hands now placed firmly on her hips. She almost didn’t believe it, he sounded like he had never heard of the word. “Uh, yeah, school.” Cordelia said slowly, wondering if Angel had really been awake when she left the bed.
“Right, school.” Angel nodded as he stepped into the bathtub and reached for Cordelia.
Cordelia slapped his hands away. “You here won’t make me get to school quicker.”
“Sure it will.” Angel pushed back her hands and reached around her waist, “Two is always quicker than one.” He plucked the bath scrunchy off the showerhead. He stared at its duck face and then looked at Cordy. “Cute.”
“Give me that.” Cordelia snatched the duck.
“Nope.” Angel took it back. “I like it.”
Her sharp retort turned into a sigh as Angel squeezed soapy water from the duck onto her chest. “Angel, I have to go to school.”
“Do you really?” he chuckled.
Her frown deepened. She had heard the wavering in her voice, but Angel wasn’t supposed to. “Angel.” She tried to make her voice sterner.
“I think you just wanted to jump ahead.”
“Huh?” Cordelia stood back, tilting her head under the spray of water.
“Wild monkey sex in the shower– is chapter four. You seem to be anxious to skip most of chapter two and all of three,” Angel leaned in, bringing her back under the water as he kissed her.
Cordy knew her knees melted, because that is the only reason she could think of that caused her to grasp at Angel’s shoulders. She broke the kiss on a chuckle. “You’re not going to let me go to school, are you?”
“Mmm,” he murmured, kissing her again and then stopping. “If you want.” He straightened and moved to leave the shower.
”Jerk.” Cordelia mumbled, pulling him back until he was up against her chest. “Chapter four, huh?” She circled her arms around his neck then made an exaggerated expression of thought. “If I say yes now, does that mean I’ll miss out on the rest of chapter two and all of three?
“No,” he chuckled. “It just means you’ll have detention with hands-on homework.”
“Oh, well, that might be okay.” Cordelia sighed and then moved to snatch the duck from Angel’s hand. “This is mine.”
“No.” Angel was quicker.
Cordelia laughed leaning completely into his chest, trusting that he would keep her from slipping. “Angel, exactly how many chapters are there?”
“I haven’t decided yet,” Angel said, turning her until her back was pressed up against his chest.
“Angel,” she whined, wanting to feel his lips back on hers.
Angel chuckled as he ignored her plea and draped her hair over one shoulder. Her disappointment was soon forgotten as his lips started to suckle along her neck. The fist that that still held her hair pulled slightly urging her to give him more access.
“Can I tell you a secret, Cordelia?” Angel whispered as his tongue traced along the delicate curves of her ear.
“Mmm hmm,” Cordelia barely acknowledged, closing her eyes at the dual sensations of his lips on her skin and the warm spray of water on her body. She gasped as he bit her ear lope to get her attention.
“Do you want to hear it?”
Cordelia turned her head so she could see his face, wondering what secret his low tone held and why he had to choose that exact moment to tell her.
He stared at her for a moment causing her to tense at his silence, and then he smiled slowly.
She relaxed back in his embrace at the promise of his smile. “Well?” she asked in anticipation.
“This.” Her brow rose at the bath scrunchy he held. Cordelia frowned in question and waited for more of an explanation.
“Do you know what this does to me?” he spoke softly, as he leaned in.
“Lucky does something to you?”
Chapter 90
Angel he held up the bath scrunchy. “You named this thing?”
“Yeah,” she batted Lucky down. “What’s wrong with that?” She spread her stance and angled her fists to her hips.
Angel’s eyes traveled up and down her dripping wet body. He wanted to laugh but decided it would spoil the beauty before him. He did chuckle however, unable to completely ignore the appropriateness of the duck’s name.
“Nothing,” he whispered, pulling her closer. “It’s a very good name,” he nuzzled into her neck. “In fact, it fits in with my secret.”
“Huh?”
Angel smiled down at her upturned expression. “In the morning, I hear you in the shower and I imagine you with this.” He paused, holding her gaze as the hand that held the duck caressed her breast. “I always thought my imagination was good,” his eyes drifted along the curves of her body, “but I was wrong. The reality is so much better.” He paused again, dropping his lips back on her neck.
“That’s your secret?” she murmured, dipping her head. “That you had shower fantasies?” Angel took advantage of the exposed skin. He kissed and nipped along the column of her neck. “Did you happen to give me a real kiss in those fantasies or did you just nibble?”
Angel leaned up at the whine in her voice. “I happen to like nibbling you. But yes, eventually, after I took Lucky and did this,” He whispered, caressing the soapy scrunchy down her body until the netty material settled over the crown of her heat. “I wanted to be Lucky.”
Cordelia turned in his arms. “Get rid of the duck and you can be really lucky.” She mumbled, reaching down to knock the bath scrunchy away.
Angel’s hands slid up to her shoulders. “Does that mean you aren’t going to school today?”
“Shut up and kiss me.”
Angel held her at arms length. “Without the duck?”
“Angel.”
He chuckled at her whine. “I think we should explore the rest of chapters two and three first.”
“Angel.”
He ignored the stamp of her foot and picked her up. “In bed.”
Chapter 91
Angel dropped Cordelia on the bed, pulling off the towel that he had wrapped around her. He leaned down to kiss her only to have her jerk her head away.
“Chapter two and three be damned. It’s my fantasy now.”
Angel’s growl vibrated in his chest as Cordelia kissed him. He rolled them over, allowing Cordelia the dominant position. He wasn’t disappointed as Cordelia’s thorough exploration of his mouth continued to her hands. Angel’s skin prickled with desire at her caresses. Watching her flushed enthusiasm, he concentrated on the sensations she was creating.
Angel reached up to pull her under him, but Cordy shooed his hands away with a flick of a wrist and a quick kiss. “I want to.” She spread her hands on his chest, moving her palms along the expanse of his skin.
Angel’s muscles tightened and twitched as Cordelia’s tongue moistened his nipple. He groaned at the flickering pleasure. He fought not to drag her under him.
He was ready to yell curses as she leaned up, her hips leaving the cradle of his and she rested her weight on her heels.
“Can dish it out but just can’t take it, huh?” Cordelia cocked her head as she brushed his stomach, smiling as the muscles under her fingers jumped.
“Cordy.” Angel’s warning was low in his throat.
“Scary growl.” Cordelia giggled. “Does it mean this?” Cordy’s hand circled around the hardness of Angel’s penis adjusting her body so that its tip brushed against her center. “Or does it mean this?” she lowered her hips.
Angel bit back his loud growl of frustration and tightened his grasp on her hips. “Cordy.”
“What?” she pushed down taking in all of him. “This?”
“Yes,” Angel growled as her tight heat encompassed him. His groan begged for her to move. Angel closed his eyes as Cordelia started to create the friction he needed.
Angel savored every inch of the meeting of their bodies. His ears rang with her guttural gasp when she found the perfect angle. She was everything he needed, soft and strong, innocent and wanton. It was the confirmation that he could never let her go.
He took over then, his repeated thrusts zeroed in on the angle that caused her gasps. He flipped, ensuring his control over Cordelia.
Angel’s eyes closed at the pain Cordelia’s nails caused on his back. He pushed past her sucked in breath and contracting muscles to bury further into her warmth. Her fingernails dug deeper as she called out his name.
Angel’s lips attacked her jugular, suckling at the flesh to bring the blood to the surface. His blunt teeth clasped on the skin as he forced back his instinct to change.
His thrusts became frenzied. He moved faster to calm the fire that met each of his movements and tightened his balls. Cordelia’s name pushed out from his chest into a shout as he collapsed over her body. Her soft caresses kept him still as he gulped in their mingled scents.
***
Angel stared down at Cordelia. This time rather than concentrating on her beauty he smiled at the growling sounds coming from her stomach. He leaned down kissing her awake.
“Whahh?” she grumbled, waving him away.
“Oh, so you don’t want breakfast?” He leaned up to sit on the edge of the bed.
“Breakfast?” She peered around the room. “Is it still morning?”
Angel chuckled. “Lunch?”
“Maybe.” Cordelia shrugged, and then grimaced as she heard her stomach growl. “Okay, yeah. Hey,” she yelped in surprise as Darcy landed on her chest and meowed in her face. “Oh, baby, did we forget about you? Angel,” Cordelia shot a look at Angel.
“Don’t worry.” Angel pushed her back down on the bed. “Stay here, I’ll be back. Come on, Darcy, time for lunch.” He plucked the kitten off of Cordelia and headed out of the bedroom.
***
Cordelia wrapped her arms around the pillow as she curled on the bed to try to keep Angel’s retreating body in her line of sight.
“Damn,” she whispered, as Angel disappeared. If he had been wearing only low-riding sweat pants when she first met him she would’ve bypassed flirting and jumped him. She giggled at the image of her flying over the Bronze’s high tables and bringing him to the ground.
She rolled on her back, still holding the pillow, and reveled in the tingling feelings that encompassed her. Her feeling of well-being dimmed as she remembered her worry that Angel might doubt her ability to accept him as a vampire.
He’d be an idiot if he did after last night and this morning. Still she’d better make sure, she thought, as she got out of the bed.
TBC…