Chapter 14
The Los Angeles Criminal Lab
was located in a separate facility from the police stations. It had departments
to handle all different types of investigative research from handwriting
analysis to the one that they needed. The Serology/DNA unit handled the
identification of bodily fluids, such as blood, saliva, and semen through
genetic markers.
Spike explained the
procedure to Buffy in the car on the way over. They would take a new sample
from her to compare to whatever was found on the underpants. It all sounded
complicated to her when he got into the technical details. She tried to follow
him but ended up responding to his explanation with nods and an occasional
‘uh-huh’. He smiled when he realized what she was doing, gave a shrug and told
her it didn’t really matter. It was the end result they were after anyway.
They were given visitor’s
badges at the front desk before they took the elevator to the third floor.
Buffy crossed her arms as she slipped into the back of the car. Spike leaned on
the wall next to her. She found her eyes going back and forth between the other
two. Kate and Spike were in the middle of a discussion about a case that they
had handled a year or so back.
Buffy started to compare
herself to the officer that shared so much of Spike’s interests. They had so
many things in common; having conversations that made her head spin. There were
so many things she didn’t understand about his job. It made her wonder how she
could maintain his interest permanently. She sighed as the elevator stopped.
Spike waited for her to precede him out into the hall. He did the same for Kate
so she didn’t take it personally. It was just him being a gentleman or so she
told herself.
Spike led them down a
sterile looking hallway to a door that was marked with the name of the lab on
it. He didn’t knock, just opened it and looked around for someone.
“Hey, there, Freddie,” Spike
said, with a huge grin on his face.
Buffy started to relax that
at least it wasn’t another female to compete with but then she saw the pretty
brunette coming their way. She stepped back as Spike opened his arms and kissed
the woman on the cheek. It hurt. The look they exchanged seemed friendly,
almost too friendly and it made her jealous.
“Fred, this is Buffy,” Spike
said. “Buffy, Fred.”
“Hello,” Fred said. “It’s
good to meet you.”
The woman’s eyes were welcoming
but Buffy also knew she was being checked out. Buffy straightened up but she
suddenly felt unattractive. Her hands smoothed down the edges of her army
jacket before falling to play with the hem of Spike’s t-shirt that she was
wearing. Suddenly she wondered why Spike wanted to touch her at all. She looked
boyish next to the femininity that was Kate and Fred. But she also knew that she
didn’t want anyone else but Spike to look at her. She wished she was alone or
at least back at his apartment. There she was safe and Spike was hers.
“You ready, Buffy?” Fred
asked, breaking through her reverie.
Buffy looked up as she
realized that she had missed out on the conversation the other three had been
engaging in. Her eyes met Spike’s. His eyebrow was raised with his head tilted
and she knew he was trying to read what was going on with her. She quickly
looked away. Always intuitive to her moods, this was one time she didn’t want
him to figure out what was going on with her. She wasn’t sure herself why she
was suddenly feeling insecure with him.
“Yeah, I’m ready,” Buffy
mumbled with a quick nod of her head.
She followed Fred along with
Spike and Kate to a small work station at the back of the lab.
“Go ahead and sit on the
stool,” Fred instructed, as she reached into a drawer to pull out a few items.
“Okay, this doesn’t hurt at all,” she said with a smile when she turned back to
Buffy. “I just need you to open your mouth.”
A hand rested on her
shoulder, Buffy glanced behind her to see Spike there. He gave her a small
squeeze and smiled at her with a reassurance that banished some of her doubts.
She smiled back at him before doing as Fred told her. The brunette scrubbed a
small cotton swab against the inside of her cheek then dropped it into a
baggie.
“That’s it, Buffy,” Fred
said, writing something on a label she attached to the plastic bag. She held
her hand out to Kate. “If I can have the underwear, I can get started on this.
We have quite a caseload, so can I give you a call later? I promise I’ll have
it for you today but I’ve got some priority cases that I need to take care of.”
“Yeah, that’s fine,” Spike
said. “You still have my number?”
“Yes, I do,” Fred said.
The smile the scientist gave
Spike confirmed all of Buffy’s suspicions that they had been or were lovers.
Not waiting to see or hear anymore, she turned to leave the lab. Her cheeks
burned with embarrassment. Why did she ever think that someone like Spike could
love her? He liked beautiful, poised women who were smart and understood him.
Even Ling was involved with the running of her family’s restaurant. They were
all better than she was. She was just a
kid with a high school diploma, and an ugly past that made her afraid of her
own womanhood. There was no way she could please a man like Spike. She had been
stupid to even daydream about it.
“You okay?” Kate asked when
they stepped into the hallway and the door swung shut behind them.
She stared at the door for a
second. Spike was still on the other side saying good-bye to Fred. She hadn’t
even bothered. Maybe he would think it was rude of her but she just wanted to
curl up somewhere and hide. How was it only an hour or so ago she had been so
confident in Spike’s feelings for her and now she didn’t think they existed at
all? Maybe she was just a novelty. Something new for him to enjoy until he got
bored or until the week was up.
“I’m fine,” Buffy said,
straightening up. She didn’t need him. It was like she had said at the beach.
She had to be able to do it on her own and she would. All she needed was to
finish this out then she would be gone.
And alone again…
“I wouldn’t worry about
Fred,” Kate said, continuing down the hall with Buffy trailing right along.
“She and Spike were never serious.”
”It’s none of my business.”
“Yes, it is,” Kate said,
smiling at her but then she sobered. “Look, Buffy, you’re right. They did have
a relationship but it was pretty casual. Neither of them was in it for the long
term.”
“Did…did you and Spike
ever…?” Buffy asked, unable to stop the question. She needed to know. She was
still unhappy about Spike being with Fred in spite of what Kate said. Now she
just wanted to know how deeply she had to be worried.
“No,” Kate said with a laugh.
“I adore Spike but no, I never dated him.”
“He wanted to date you
though, didn’t he?”
The two women were waiting
by the elevator. They faced each other as Buffy waited for an answer. It was
one Kate that didn’t have to verbalize. It was evident by the guilt that
flashed across Kate’s face.
“Yeah, he asked me out a few
times,” Kate said. “We’ve hung out together at parties but we never connected.
I’m a serious girl and he’s not…or he wasn’t until he met you.”
“Maybe he still doesn’t want
to be serious,” Buffy said, pulling her jacket tighter
around her as she remembered the deadline Spike had given her.
“Buffy, I’ve known Spike since
our days at the Academy. Yeah, he’s a man. A very attractive man who has a past
with women in it, but you’re different. I’ve never seen him with anyone the way
he is with you. You should see the way the two of you look at each other.”
“Thanks,” Buffy said,
grasping onto the small strand of hope that had been offered.
The door opened to the lab
and Spike stepped out into the hallway. Buffy watched him as he swaggered down
the hallway. He was confident, handsome, and wore a smile of satisfaction on
his face. Fred had made him happy
somehow. It was hard to imagine that only earlier that morning he had worn that
smile when he kissed her good morning. That he had held her tight all night
making her feel special. Like she was the only one, but it was obvious that she
wasn’t.
Spike stopped beside her.
One hand rested on her lower back as he reached for the button for the elevator
with the other. He didn’t say anything though. His touch was almost impersonal
and it only added to Buffy’s irritation toward him. All he needed was a little
time with another woman and he wasn’t treating her like he did before. She
stomped into the car ahead of the two of them. She ignored them. Kate was
great. She tried to cover Buffy’s mood by asking how long it was going to take
Fred.
Only long enough to get him back in bed, Buffy thought with venom. Images of Spike making
love to the other woman filled her head. It made her nauseous. She needed air.
Getting outside the building was becoming a priority. And as soon as the car
stopped she made a beeline across the lobby, anything to get away from him.
~~~~~~~
“What the soddin’ hell is
wrong with her?” Spike asked, as Buffy barreled past him toward the door. He
stared after her in amazement. Something had been wrong with her since they had
gotten here. He just didn’t know what. She wasn’t having a panic attack. She
was acting like she was angry.
“Fred,” Kate said with a
smile.
“Fred? What did she do to
Buffy? She was her usual sweet self.”
Kate shook her head still
wearing that smile. “Buffy picked up on the vibes between you and Miss Texas
Sugar. She’s jealous.”
“Jealous of me and Fred?” Spike
asked, in disbelief. “Why? Buffy and me…oh, bloody hell.” He wiped at his face
as the knowledge of Buffy’s feelings flooded him. They were getting in deep but
there were a thousand reasons not to. Reasons that should be seriously thought
through, but neither of them was taking the time to do so. They kept pretending
that it didn’t mean anything. That everything would end in a few days. It
wouldn’t though, at least not for him.
“Oh, please don’t tell me
you believe that you and Buffy are a casual relationship?” Kate asked. “Because
if you do then I’m afraid I’m going to have to call you some not very nice
names.”
“Standing up for my girl,
are you?” Spike asked with a grin.
“Hell, yes, I am,” Kate said
sternly. “You break that little girl’s heart and I’m going to kick your ass.”
Spike turned to look through
the glass doors to where Buffy was standing just outside the door. It seemed it
was too late for both of them at this point. They were going under with only
each other to hold onto. He noticed her doing the little dance she did when she
was nervous and he turned to go to her.
“I’m going to do everything
I can not to,” Spike muttered as he made his way toward Buffy.
Kate laughed behind him. He
glared at her as he held the door for her. She sailed through with a big grin
for him.
“Hey, what do you say we get
out of here,” Kate said, slipping her hand into Buffy’s.
Amazingly Buffy allowed it
as they made their way to his car. When they got there, Buffy slipped into the
backseat and he was certain it was just to vex him. He decided to let her
tantrum play itself out. He wasn’t the kind of man to give into emotional
blackmail. It always led to things he didn’t want but by the time they had
dropped Kate back off at the station, Spike was going crazy from Buffy’s
silence.
“Do you want to move up
front?” Spike asked when Kate had walked away.
“I’m fine,” Buffy said. “The
apartment’s not far.”
The tires squealed as he hit
the gas pedal too hard. He didn’t want to admit that he was angry with her. And
he didn’t want to accept the blame. He just wanted things to go back to the way
they were that morning. Buffy’s sleepy smile when she woke up in his arms, the
kisses that became heated so fast and the soft sounds filling his ear when she
came.
Getting an idea of how to
return a smile to her face, he turned into a shopping center not far from his place.
He pulled into a space then turned around to look at her.
“Are you staying here or
going in with me?”
Buffy looked around, her
eyes narrowing when she saw the ice cream parlor. “I’ll stay here.”
“Suit yourself,” Spike said,
as nonchalantly as possible. “They make the best banana splits in town.”
He had taken only a few
steps before he heard Buffy climbing out of the car. He stopped until she
caught up with him. Her hand reached for his but he put his arm around her
shoulder to pull her close to his side. She didn’t resist. Inside the small
shop, he sat her at a booth in the corner before going up to order. He asked
for a treat that was made for two people. It had everything on it. Buffy was
almost drooling when he put it on the table between them. She pulled it away
from him.
“Go get your own,” Buffy
said, slapping at his hand when he reached for a bite.
“It’s made for two.”
“And you owe me,” Buffy said,
slipping a spoonful of ice cream, hot fudge and whipped topping into her mouth.
There was a blissful look on her face as she savored the flavors.
“It’s good, isn’t it?” Spike
said, softly. He should have gotten it to go. His jeans were becoming too tight
as he watched her eat. How could one small woman make eating ice cream into
something so erotic? He got up and slid into the seat next to her.
“Go away,” Buffy said,
sliding away from him. She pulled the treat with her.
He followed, brushing her hair
away from her neck, so that he could whisper in her ear.
“For the rest of my life,
ice cream will always remind me of you. How sweet, beautiful and oh, so good
you are,” he kissed the side of her neck. She turned to look at him and he knew
he was forgiven. He still couldn’t give her the words she needed but he was
willing to give her as much truth as he could. She held up a spoonful of ice
cream for him and he took it without breaking eye contact with her. Delighted,
he smiled when it was her that came to taste the ice cream on him.
to be continued…
