Gold Star

The next two weeks were full of excitement, frustration, and research. Willow was able to get out of regular slayer research by telling Giles that she was helping Ms. Calendar with a special project, which wasn't exactly a lie. She was helping her with a 'special project', but it was for Angel, not computer class.

Jenny's Uncle Enyos was called back out of town just a couple of days after his arrival. Before he left, he turned over all of the information regarding the curse to his niece with hopes that she would be able to find a way to make the curse permanent. Unfortunately it was all in ancient Romany.

Willow and Jenny (which she insisted Willow call her when it was just them) set about creating a computer program to translate the Rumanian liturgy to English based on a random sampling of the text. It was slow work, but the women devoted every spare moment to modifying the program.

What time that Willow had that wasn't spent in school or working with Jenny, she spent with Angel. By an unspoken agreement, they had decided to forestall any more 'lessons' until they knew they were close to finding a solution. Neither one of them were willing to risk losing Angel's soul by getting too happy.

When they were apart, Angel rationalized that the simple knowledge that he could lose his soul should be enough to keep him from becoming too happy. Then again, whenever he was around Willow rational thought had a way of eluding him, and he'd instantly fall into euphoria. Her simple presence in the room was enough to bring him peace. And when they touched… his skin would burn, the weights on his shoulders would lift, and he could almost pretend that he was a man. Yes, he could understand why Enyos had come to warn him – he was desperately close to being perfectly content, perfectly happy.

Tonight was no different from the last several. Willow and Jenny had been finding steady progress, but there were still a few kinks to work out before the translations would make any sense.

Per usual, Angel was waiting for her about a block away from the school. He always waited for her when she was going to be out after dark. As much as a part of her wanted to insist that she'd been walking around Sunnydale in the dark for years by herself, she couldn't fault him for his chivalrous act. Besides, it was that much more time she was able to spend with him, she told herself.

They took their time walking to the Rosenberg home. To the casual observer, they looked like any other couple – walking hand in hand down the quiet streets. Tonight they cut through the park, one of many routes they could have taken. Willow stopped and blushed when they neared the swings, remembering the last time Angel had walked her home this way. It felt like a lifetime ago, not less than a month.

"…so I told Willy he could take his 'new policy' and…" Angel paused in his story when he felt Willow stop walking. "Willow?"

"Hmm?" she acknowledged, staring wistfully at the swing set.

Angel looked away from the redhead to follow her line of sight. A smile crept over his face as he realized where they were. He took a step behind Willow and wrapped his arms around her. He leaned down to whisper in her ear, "Feeling nostalgic?"

"Maybe a little," she admitted. "I can't believe it was only a few weeks ago that you first kissed me."

"I know," he agreed. "I can't believe how much has happened since then. So much has changed in both of our lives."

"Not to mention how much could have changed," the redhead added, turning in his arms to face him. She placed her hand over where his heart no longer beat. "I can't even begin to image what would happen if you were to lose your soul."

"Believe me, you don't want to," Angel insisted, caressing Willow's cheek. "Angelus would have destroyed you and anyone you cared about."

"Well, let's not let that happen, okay?"

"Okay," Angel chuckled, lowering his head for a quick kiss.

They continued on their way to Willow's home where Angel kissed her goodbye from the sidewalk. Now that Willow's parents were back in town, he couldn't accompany her to the door. He waited until she was safely inside before dashing around to the back of the house and onto the balcony. Willow had taken to leaving the balcony doors unlocked for him, and tonight was no exception.

Angel waited outside as Willow exchanged pleasantries with her parents downstairs. He wanted to be able to see her reaction before revealing his presence. He didn't have to wait long.

Willow opened her bedroom door with every intention of dropping onto her bed and not moving again until morning. After all of the work she had been doing, she was completely exhausted. Her shoulders were tense from sitting in front of a computer for hours upon end. Since she had been spending so much time in the computer lab, she hadn't gone patrolling in weeks, where she'd normally be able to relieve some of the stiffness.

Before she even had a chance to turn on the lights, a soft gasp escaped her lips as she looked around her room. Soft candlelight illuminated her normally overly bright bedroom (stupid high-wattage light bulbs). On her bed lay a bouquet of roses with petals the color of her hair.

"Angel?" she softly called out, knowing that he couldn't be far.

Silently he stepped into the room, closing the door behind him.

"What's all this?" she asked, her voice filled with emotion.

"A night of relaxation," Angel told her. "I think you've earned it."

"Relaxation?" Willow hadn't moved from her door, still in awe of the sight before her.

Angel swiftly crossed the room to take her hand in his, guiding her into the room. As she neared the bed, Willow noticed the other objects lying next to the roses – a towel and a bottle of massage oil.

She looked up into her vampire's waiting face, "You're going to give me a massage?"

"If the lady allows," Angel replied, moving the roses to her dresser.

Willow's breath caught at the thought of Angel's hands on her bare skin. A pleasurable shiver ran down her spine as a slow grin spread across her face. "She does," she breathed.

Angel was pleased beyond measure that she had agreed. As torturous as it would be to touch her bare flesh and remain in control of his desires, it was a risk he wanted to take, for Willow. He could see how tense she was from working so hard to help him – help them. It was time to give her a reward.

"What's the towel for?" Willow innocently asked.

Angel smiled. "It's to cover you. I assumed that you'd be more comfortable being covered by more than just your, um, underwear."

Willow's eyes widened briefly, then she blushed as she nodded. "Thank you." She pulled off her sweater, then noticed that Angel was watching her. "Um, do you mind… I mean I know you've seen me topless… but, um, could you please, uh, turn around."

Realizing that he was staring, Angel spun on his heels, facing the wall as he apologized, "Of course, I'm sorry." Angel willed himself to think of anything other than the fact that the girl he was falling in love with was standing only a few feet away, disrobing, for him. He closed his eyes as he listened to each article of clothing being removed.

From behind him he heard Willow shyly ask, "Should I leave my bra on?"

Angel gulped. "If you don't mind, could you take it off?"

"Okay," came her quiet response.

He heard her climb onto the bed and struggle to cover herself with the towel. "Are you decent?" he lightly asked.

"As much as a mostly naked girl on her bed can be," was Willow's teasing response.

Taking an unnecessary breath to steady himself, Angel turned around, a wicked smile growing as he looked upon Willow. She was lying on her stomach, the towel covering her from shoulder blades to just past her bottom. Her hands were under her head, acting as a pillow, and she was facing him, a shy smile gracing her face and anticipation lighting her eyes.

"You're a vision," he told her as he moved to sit next to her on the bed, rolling up his sleeves. Willow's blush deepened; it hadn't left her face from when she first realized that she'd be practically naked under Angel's touch and eyes. She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear so that she could see him better.

"I feel silly," she admitted. From the color of her skin, the rapid beating of her heart, and the slight scent of her arousal, Angel knew that 'silly' was far from describing what she was feeling.

"There's nothing to feel silly about," he assured her. "Just lie there and let me help you to relax."

"Yeah, right, relax," she said doubtfully under her breath, but not quietly enough for Angel not to hear.

Pretending not to hear her, Angel brushed her luscious hair off to the side, not wanting it to get in the oil. As it lay on the bed a thought occurred to him. "Do you have one of those hair elastics?"

"Oh, yeah." Willow started to turn and sit up, then remembered her nakedness and lay back down. She pointed to her dresser. "There should be some on the dresser."

Angel quickly collected one, along with her hairbrush. He returned to the bed and started to brush her hair, gathering it together in his hand as he did so. After several passes of his hands through her tresses, to gather it all together of course, he banded her hair into a high ponytail, which he was able to rest above her head.

"Are you ready?" he huskily asked, his lips grazing her ear.

"Uh-huh," Willow consented.

Angel pressed a kiss to her neck before sitting back up. He ran a finger along the edge of the towel. "I'm going to have to lower this in order to have access to your back," he informed her. After Willow nodded, he carefully lifted the towel and folded it down so that her entire back was revealed to him. He gently ran his fingers up her spine, from base to neck. He felt her shudder of pleasure.

Angel retrieved the bottle of massage oil from the bedside table, where Willow had moved it. He poured a liberal amount onto his hands, warming it as best as someone with room temperature hands could, before placing them on her shoulders. Carefully he began to knead the tension out of her tired muscles. He worked each knot until it relented under the pressure and relaxed. He worked each vertebrae of her neck until her head virtually lolled around. A couple of times he'd had to pause his actions at the pleasurable sounds Willow was unconsciously emitting – small moans and gasps of pleasure.

Once he felt that her neck and shoulders were properly loose, Angel moved to straddle her legs in order to work on the rest of her back. Beginning at her neck, he gently ran his hands down her spine and then off to the sides. He trailed his hands up her sides, grazing the sides of her breasts. He thrilled at Willow's sharp intake of breath, which turned into a sigh as she slowly exhaled.

His hands began a wandering path, roaming over her back in a random pattern. Always gently stroking her skin, releasing any hidden tension. Occasionally he'd stray from her back to massage her arms, delicately relieving the tension from typing.

Angel could hear Willow's breathing even out as he finished. Afraid that she was falling asleep he leaned over to softly ask, "You still with me?"

"Um-hmm," she muttered, too relaxed to form actual words.

"Feel better?"

"Yeah," she managed to say. Willow slowly opened her eyes, and turned her head a bit to look up at Angel. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he replied, leaning closer to kiss her. Willow kissed him back, finally waking back up in order to savor the kiss. When she tried to sit up, Angel pressed a hand to her shoulder, keeping her in place. Breaking the kiss he rasped, "Not yet."

He briefly kissed her again before trailing kisses up her cheek and down her exposed neck. He spent several minutes honoring her neck, as well a vampire should. He slowly worked his way to the nape of her neck, gently nipping at the skin with blunt teeth. His cool lips warmed as Angel pressed soft kisses down her spine, occasionally darting his tongue out to taste her skin. Willow arched her back as Angel ran his tongue from the base of her spine all the way back up to her neck, moaning his name. Angel took advantage of her new position to slip his hands beneath her body to capture her breasts as he continued to taste her back.

Unable to stand not touching him any longer, Willow rolled onto her back, pulling Angel into a passionate kiss. She pressed her bare chest against his silk-covered one, the friction causing her nipples to pebble. Her tongue sought entrance to his mouth, desperate for a taste of him after he'd spent so much time tasting her. Her hands never stilled as the roamed over his upper body – running through his hair, holding him close, running over his back. She felt an urgency she couldn't explain, a hunger she didn't understand.

As she clutched tighter to him, Angel forced himself to pull back, their position suddenly feeling dangerous. He sat back on his heels, scooting towards her knees, needing the physical distance. "Willow, wait," he panted.

Breathing harshly herself, she asked, "Why?"

"I can't," he tried to explain, which was proving difficult given the lust-induced fog in his brain. "The curse."

"But then why…" she trailed off, gesturing to the bed.

"This isn't what I'd intended," he apologized. "It was only supposed to be a relaxing massage."

"I'm not so relaxed anymore," she practically purred, inching her way closer to him. "I don't understand it. It's like a knot in my belly," she pouted.

Angel closed his eyes as the scent of her arousal washed over him, stronger than ever before. Brown eyes, tinged with gold, opened to meet green. He knew he shouldn't, but he couldn't stop himself from offering, "Want me to make it better?" in a voice reminding him of Angelus.

Suddenly nervous, Willow slowly nodded her head. She knew that whatever this tension was, Angel could make it better. Then why did she suddenly feel like prey?

"Lie back," Angel told her, watching as she complied.

Her heart was pounding in her chest in anticipation. Her eyes followed Angel's hands as they lowered to her waist. The towel had been cast aside earlier in her need to be closer to Angel. Angel slipped his fingers under the top of her panties and quietly asked her to lift up. Eyes locked, Willow silently raised her hips, allowing Angel to completely bare her to his eyes.

Angel moved so that he was now kneeling between her legs. He ran his hands up her legs, allowing her to get used to his touch on her lower body. When he neared the juncture of her thighs he made sure to keep his hands on the tops of her legs in order to run them over her hips. They continued up over her belly to her breasts. Back on somewhat familiar ground, Willow sighed.

Angel lowered his head to capture a breast with his mouth. He suckled her flesh, enjoying every sigh of contentment, every dig of her fingers in his hair, every whiff of her arousal. After spending an equal amount of attention on her other breast, he cautiously moved down her body. Little nips and kisses over her fluttering muscles. His tongue paused to dip into her belly button.

When he reached her auburn curls, he paused and looked back up to find Willow watching him. His eyes silently asked permission to continue on his southward path. The subtle lifting of her hips was his answer.

Once again his hands trailed up her legs, this time when they reached her apex, he trailed his thumbs over her outer lips to meet just above her slit. He rubbed small, soothing circles through her curls, both relaxing and arousing her at the same time. When Willow relaxed her hips, Angel moved his thumbs back down to open her to his hungry eyes.

He inhaled the overwhelming scent of her arousal, a low purr rumbling through his chest that she reacted so strongly to his touch. He was dimly aware that Willow was holding her breath as he dipped his head to taste her. Ever so slowly he slid his tongue from her core to her clit, gently flicking it before pulling back to repeat the process.

With the first lap of his tongue Willow let out a long, moaning "A-A-A-An-n-n-gel."

Willow couldn't believe this was happening. She was lying on her bed, completely naked, while a vampire was lapping at her like a giant cat. She could have sworn that he was even purring. 'How did this happen?' she asked herself. Then Angel concentrated his efforts on her hardened nub and she no longer cared so long as he didn't stop.

Angel was in heaven. 'No, not heaven,' he reminded himself, 'because then I'd lose my soul.' This was the next best thing though, he decided. He knew she'd taste sweeter than any blood. And he wasn't disappointed. Her wanton moans made the experience that much sweeter. Ignoring his now painful erection, he focused his attention on Willow's clit, massaging it with the flat of his tongue or flicking it with the tip.

His smile was hidden from the redhead as she buried her hands in his hair, holding him in place, encouraging his actions. Angel took this as a positive sign and cautiously slid a finger inside her.

Willow's breath caught at the intrusion. She was so lost in the delightful sensations his tongue was creating that she hadn't even felt him move his hand. But now... it was all she could focus on. She was panting as Angel removed his finger only to repeat the process. Willow's virgin body couldn't take any more of the pleasurable sensations and sent her spiraling into orgasm, a shocked "Oh" escaping her lips.

Angel lapped up her release, the closest thing to ambrosia he could imagine ever tasting. As he felt Willow relaxing again, he subtly wiped his face with the discarded towel and kissed his way back up her body. Willow lazily kissed him when he reached her mouth, not having the energy to truly show her thanks.

Angel eased his body next to Willow's and pulled her into his embrace. "Are you alright?" he softly asked, removing the elastic as he freed her hair.

"Uh-huh," she sighed, snuggling closer to him. "That was just so... wow. I've never felt anything like that before."

She looked up to see Angel smiling down at her, pride clearly written across his face. "Never?" he teased.

"Never," she confirmed. Willow leaned up to kiss him again, this time conveying the love and gratitude she was feeling.

As the flush began to leave her body, Willow involuntarily shivered, but was prepared to ignore it so that she could continue kissing Angel. However, Angel was not willing to allow Willow the slightest bit if discomfort and broke the kiss to reach down and cover their bodies with a blanket.

Willow snuggled into him again, molding her body to his. "This is nice," she mumbled sleepily. "Can we stay like this for a while?"

Once again running his fingers through her hair, Angel was in no mood to object. "For a while," he consented. "I'll slip out before sunrise."

"'Kay," Willow agreed, already mostly asleep. "Love you."

Angel blinked, not entirely certain that he'd heard her correctly. He wanted to wake her to ask her to repeat herself, but he knew how tired she was, how hard she had been working herself lately, that he allowed her to sleep. He allowed himself the hope that he'd heard what he thought he had. Willow loved him.

Very quietly he said to the sleeping girl, "I love you too."

Against his chest, Willow's smile grew.