Tarnished Armor

Buffy led the way into the Magic Box, as Giles had decided to call his shop. Lindsey had barely set foot inside the building before Buffy had yelled out, "Giles," in a piercing tone. Lindsey couldn't help wincing at the urgency behind the word.

A middle-aged man wearing jeans and a flannel over his t-shirt stepped out from behind a bookshelf. Lindsey assumed that this was Giles.

"I'm right here, Buffy. There's no need to shout," Giles automatically said. It was obvious that he'd said these words to Buffy many times before. When his eyes caught sight of the newcomer, Giles said, "Oh, I'm sorry, but we're not open for business yet." He gestured to the work being done on the shop around them.

"Oh, he's not a customer," Willow quickly said. "This is Lindsey. He helped me get away from a vamp last night. Giles, Lindsey. Lindsey, meet my friend Giles."

Giles looked a little surprised when Willow said Lindsey had helped her with a vampire, but he recovered quickly. Holding out his hand to shake, Giles said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lindsey. Thank you for assisting Willow. She is very dear to us and we would hate for anything to happen to her."

"It's nice meeting you too, Sir. And it was my pleasure to help Willow," Lindsey said, flashing a grin in Willow's direction, causing her to blush.

"I suppose you have some questions about Willow's attacker…" Giles guessed. "Is that why the girls brought you here?"

Before Lindsey could say anything, Buffy jumped into the conversation. "Oh no, he already knows all about vamps and other things that go bump in the night. Don't you, Lindsey?" Buffy said, glaring at the lawyer.

Giles'eyes grew colder as he reevaluated this stranger, trying to determine if he was a threat to them.

"Buffy," Willow admonished her friend, "stop it."

"What? I'm only telling Giles the truth."

"But it's not your truth to tell," Willow insisted.

"It's okay, Willow," Lindsey said, placing his hand on her arm. He tried to ignore the warmth he felt at touching her. "It's part of why we came here, isn't it?"

"I know," Willow said, placing her hand over his, "but she's still being rude bringing it up like that. I wanted Giles to like you before bringing up your past."

"Maybe he'll like me anyway," Lindsey said, his confident grin making her knees weak. "You seem to still like me, after all."

"Yes, perhaps I will still like him," Giles said, interrupting the moment. "Or at least I might if I knew what was going on."

Three voices spoke at the same time, each wanting to clarify the situation best. Buffy said, "He's evil," as Willow said, "He's from LA," and Lindsey said, "I worked for Wolfram & Hart."

Giles took in all three answers and turned to Lindsey. "You were a lawyer for Wolfram & Hart? In Los Angeles?"

"And he's evil," Buffy added, in case Giles hadn't heard her the first time.

"I heard you, Buffy," he said, still scrutinizing Lindsey. "Is she right?" he asked the man before him. "Are you evil?"

"Do you really think that I'd admit it if I was?" Lindsey defensively snapped. He felt like he was being evaluated by his potential girlfriend's father. Which, given what he'd observed so far, was probably the case. Calming down, he apologized. "I left Wolfram & Hart because I couldn't handle working there any more."

Willow squeezed his hand encouragingly.

"And you chose Sunnydale to start over?" Giles asked, doubt shadowing his voice.

"I didn't set out to move to Sunnydale, no. I didn't know where I was heading when I left LA. I was just going to pass through here, until I met Willow."

Willow blushed and gave Lindsey a shy smile. She'd had a feeling that Lindsey was attracted to her too, but was surprised to hear him pretty much admit it.

When Buffy saw that it looked like Giles was going to believe Lindsey, she triumphantly said, "He tried to kill Angel. Lots of times."

Giles raised an enquiring eyebrow as Lindsey scowled. Unfortunately, for Buffy, her words had the opposite effect than she'd been hoping.

"I'm sure that he had it coming," Giles said, much to Lindsey's surprise.

"Giles," Buffy whined. "Didn't you hear me? I said he tried to *kill* Angel."

"Who tried to kill Angel?" Xander asked as he entered the shop. "And more importantly, please tell me they succeeded."

Lindsey turned to the new voice, surprised to hear the venom in the voice of someone so young. Whoever this boy was, he obviously hated Angel, maybe even as much as he did.

"Xander, this is Lindsey," Willow said by way of introduction. "Lindsey, this is my other best friend, Xander."

Xander looked Lindsey over, appraising the man Willow seemed to already know, trying to decide if he'd be good enough for her.

"You're the one who tried to kill Angel?" he asked, his voice flat, giving nothing away.

"Um, yes?" Lindsey answered, thrown by the boy's tone.

Xander grinned. "Well then, you're very much welcome here."

Xander ignored Buffy indignantly crying out his name in order to whisper in Willow's ear, "I approve," causing her to blush and nod her head in acknowledgement.

Lindsey was a bit floored by the different reactions he was getting from this group of people. Xander seemed like a good guy, and one he could definitely see himself becoming friends with, especially over a shared hatred of Angel. Giles he was still a little unsure about. While he seemed to be very concerned about his knowledge of vampires and the evil of the world, he also seemed to be open to giving him a chance to prove himself, which is what Lindsey needed right now. Buffy, on the other hand, was prepared to hate him simply because he had tried to kill her ex half a dozen times or so. As the slayer, it wouldn't be smart to piss her off too much. But Willow…

Willow was quickly becoming someone he wanted to stick around for. She was open-minded and forgiving, and seemed interested in him, too. Even after learning about his past, she still wanted him to meet her friends and was trying to help him find a job. She was definitely someone he wanted to get to know much better.

"Doesn't anyone here care that this man has tried to kill my ex-boyfriend?" Buffy practically shouted, having gotten fed up with the apparent lack of concern for Angel's safety.

"Not really," Xander answered.

"Buffy," Giles said, trying to placate his Slayer. "Perhaps if Lindsey had succeeded in staking Angel, we would be a bit more hesitant to get to know him. However, as he has only attempted to kill Angel, obviously unsuccessfully, I don't see why we should hold that against him. As the…" He paused, realizing he was about to reveal that Buffy was the Slayer, "You can hardly fault him for wanting to kill a vampire."

"It's okay, Giles," Willow said, having caught his near-slip. "Lindsey figured out that Buffy's the Slayer."

The coldness was back as Giles asked, "He what?"

"It wasn't all that hard to suss out," Lindsey said. "I've…met Faith before, so I've felt the energy that comes off of a Slayer. It didn't take long to put together Willow's knowledge of how to kill a vampire with a roommate being a blonde named Buffy living in Sunnydale. The fact that Buffy's ex is Angel just cemented the fact, since I'm very familiar with his history."

"Buffy gives off energy?" Xander asked. "What are you, radioactive?" he teased his friend.

"Not that kind of energy, Xan," Buffy said with a roll of her eyes.

"No," Giles warily agreed. "It's one not normally felt among the general population. Mainly only magick-users and creatures of evil are aware of it. Which are you?"

"Neither really," Lindsey said. "I have no Talent to speak of. I may have worked for a firm that represented evil; but I don't believe that I, myself, am evil. Let's just call it an…awareness. I've been working alongside demons and truly evil lawyers for so long now that I've had to strengthen my perceptions to be aware of those who might wish to do me harm." He didn't feel comfortable mentioning the fact that he had an evil hand, although he did unconsciously rub the faint scar.

"So what is it that you plan to do here in Sunnydale if you are not, as you claim to be, planning on carrying out nefarious plans," Giles asked.

"Actually," Willow nervously started, "I thought that maybe Lindsey could, um, work here?"

Giles turned surprised eyes on Willow. "Y-you expect me to hire a man who admits to having worked with evil for I don't know how many years, and expose him to books and other implements of power?"

"Uh, yes?" Willow uncertainly replied. When she was met with Giles' disbelieving stare, she said, "Look, Lindsey said that he wants to start over, turn his life around, start doing good. What better place to do that than here, helping us?"

"How do we know that this isn't all just some elaborate plot to get close to the Slayer?" Buffy asked. "He could have set that vamp on you last night, just so that he could play hero and get you trust him. He might be using you to get to me."

"God, Buffy, why does everything have to be about you?" Willow exclaimed. "Do you really think he'd admit to having worked for Wolfram & Hart if was trying to infiltrate us?"

"If he was trying to earn your trust with the whole redemption angle, then yes," Buffy answered. "Angel's told us about him before, remember? They've come to blows many times since he moved to LA. You know how tight-lipped Angel can be about what's going on in his life. He wouldn't have bothered mentioning Lindsey if he hadn't been a continuous thorn in his side. And now we're supposed to just believe him when he says he wants to start doing good? I don't think so."

"He really said that about me?" Lindsey asked, sounding a little proud. "I was a continuous thorn in his side?"

"Not now, Lindsey," Willow said in a loud whisper.

"Oh, right. Sorry, just means that I was doing my job right," Lindsey said. Turning to Buffy, he said, "I know that it may look suspicious, but I really don't mean any harm to you and yours. If it's really going to be that big of a problem, me stayin'in town, then I'll keep going. Like I said, I hadn't planned on stayin'here." He turned his eyes back to Willow, who he was pleased to note looked sad at the idea of him leaving. "But if it were up to me, I'd stay here. I'd like to try to make up for some of what I did at my former place of employment, and the Hellmouth seems like a good place to do that. Besides, there's a few other things here that I'd like to have a chance to explore."

Willow's fingers itched to reach out and hold his hand, but she resisted the urge, barely.

"I think you should hire him," Xander said to Giles, allowing Willow and Lindsey their moment. "That way, if he's up to no good like Buffy thinks, at least we can keep an eye on him. But if he's on the level, which I think he is, and I'm pretty confident Willow thinks so too, then it's a win-win situation."

Giles removed his glasses and began to clean them with the edge of his flannel shirt. "Perhaps you're right."

"Lindsey," Giles said, drawing the man's attention away from Willow. "How are you with a hammer?"

"Fine, I guess."

Giles nodded. "Be here around 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. We'll see how you do preparing the shop to open; then we'll see about the rest."

"Thank you, Giles," Willow gushed.

"Yes, thank you Mr. Giles," Lindsey said, somewhat surprised by the offer, temporary as it might be.

"You may want to hold onto your thanks for now. This is just a temporary invitation. And please, call me Giles," he said.

"Of course," Lindsey agreed.

"Oh, now that that's settled, what did you want to see me about, Giles?" Willow asked, having nearly forgotten that he'd asked her come down.

"What? Oh, um, right. I was hoping that you would be able to do a protection spell for the shop when you have some time. We may not be open for business yet, but as we get closer to opening, I rather think that we should ward against anything happening to it to prevent it from opening."

"Of course. No problem. I should have all the necessary supplies in my room. I can do it tomorrow if you'd like," Willow offered.

"That would be wonderful. Thank you."

"Is that all?" she asked, hoping the answer would be yes.

"Yes, that was it," Giles said. "I do have some other business to discuss with Buffy, though."

"Gotcha. I think I'm gonna take off then," Willow said to the group.

"You don't want to hang out for a bit?" Buffy asked, not wanting Willow to leave with Lindsey.

"I was kind of hoping to show Lindsey around a bit," Willow said. Realizing that he might not want to spend more time with any of them, she quickly said to him, "Unless you don't want to, that is."

"I'd love to have a Sunnydale native show me around," Lindsey said, thrilled by the idea of spending some one-on-one time with Willow.

"Good," Willow said with a sigh of relief. "We'll see you later," she called to everyone as they left.

The sound of two male good-byes and a female "be careful" followed them out the door.

Chapter 4

As they left the Magic Box, Lindsey spied the Espresso Pump across the street and offered to buy Willow a coffee. Part of him wanted to roll his eyes at the notion, not having asked anyone on a coffee date since college, but at the same time, hoping she'd say yes.

"I'd love a coffee," Willow beamed. "Only make mine a decaf latte. I'm not supposed to have caffeine."

"Why not?" Lindsey politely asked.

"It makes me hyper," Willow admitted. "I become a total spazz and believe me, that's something you don't want to see."

"I don't know," Lindsey slowly said, looking Willow over. "I think 'spazz' would be cute on you."

"Please," Willow sarcastically brushed him off.

"Why don't you grab us a table and I'll get the drinks," Lindsey suggested.

"Oh, sure. Just let me give you some money," Willow said, opening her purse.

"It's on me," Lindsey offered. Before Willow could object, he added, "I insist. After all, you're taking time out of your day to show me around. It's the least I can do."

"Fine," Willow relented. "But just this once."

Lindsey smiled as she went in search of a free table. 'Just this once' implied that they'd be doing this again, and that was definitely something to smile about.

"So what do you know about the open mic nights they have here?" Lindsey asked as he set their drinks on the table Willow was sitting at.

"Not much," Willow admitted. "I've never actually been to one. I guess it's what you'd expect, people singing. I usually hang out at the Bronze at night, and there's either a band or a DJ there."

"The Bronze? Is that a club?" Lindsey asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

"Yep, the only game in town. Plus, you don't have to be twenty-one to get in."

"Are you?" Lindsey hesitantly asked. "Twenty-one?"

Willow giggled. "On my next birthday."

"Damn," Lindsey swore under his breath. He'd had a feeling she was young. He comforted himself with the thought that at least she was over eighteen. "Guess it's a good thing I didn't ask you out for drinks then," he joked.

"Would you have?" Willow shyly asked. "'Cause drinks sounds an awful lot like a date."

"Would you have said 'yes'if I did?" he asked in return.

"You won't know if you don't ask," Willow teasingly said. She was flirting with him, she knew it, but she really hoped that he'd just hurry up and ask her out already.

Lindsey met her eyes and seriously asked her, "Willow, do you want to go out with me?"

Willow gasped at the intensity in his eyes. She found herself nodding her answer before she found her voice. "Yes."

Lindsey's grin lit up his face at her answer. He didn't know why he'd been so nervous. He supposed it was that innate fear of rejection, even though he hadn't been rejected often in his life. Until lately…until Darla. His face darkened at thoughts of the blonde vampire that had broken his heart.

Sensing Lindsey's change in mood, Willow sipped at her drink before asking, "So your girlfriend didn't mind when you decided to pick up and leave LA?"

"What?" Lindsey asked, coming back to the present. "No, no girlfriend. My life didn't leave me much time for a social life. Besides, do you think I'd be asking you out if I had a girl waiting for me back in LA?"

Willow shrugged. "I don't know. I just assumed you would have had someone."

"I could say the same thing about you," Lindsey countered.

"Well, I did. Until I didn't. Then I didn't want to have anyone else, ya know?"

"And do you now? Want to have someone?" Lindsey pressed.

"Yeah, I think I do," Willow said, briefly meeting Lindsey's eyes before lowering her lashes as she blushed.

When they finished their coffees, Willow walked Lindsey around downtown Sunnydale, before heading back towards campus. They passed the library that Willow had had him drop her off at the night before and stopped before a residence hall.

"…and this is where I live," Willow said, concluding their tour.

"Really?" Lindsey asked in disbelief. "I thought you didn't want me knowing where you lived."

"Well, if we're going out on a date, I thought you should probably know where to pick me up," Willow said, staring at the ground. "Do…do you want to come up?"

Lindsey blinked in surprise, floored by the invitation. "Are you sure?"

Finally meeting his eyes, Willow stared into them for a minute, as if she were trying to decide if she truly was sure that she was comfortable inviting this virtual stranger up to her room. Taking note of his honest surprise at the invitation, she smiled and nodded her head.

"Yep, I'm sure." She held out her hand for him to take, which he eagerly did. "Come on in, Lindsey. I invite you." They both laughed at the spoken invitation, easing the tension that had been building.

Pausing outside her door, Lindsey saw Willow take a deep breath, as if steeling herself for admitting him into her life. The small action warmed him.

She unlocked the door and entered, pulling him along. "Well, this is it."

Willow let out a small sigh of relief that Buffy wasn't back yet. She didn't want to have to deal with Buffy's certain disapproval of Willow bringing Lindsey home with her.

Lindsey stood just inside the room, taking in the two sides. He was temporarily taken back to his own college days, remembering some of the horrid roommates that he'd had to put up with since he couldn't afford a single room.

"You're lucky that you're rooming with your best friend," he commented.

"Tell me about it. I started out with someone else last year who did nothing but host parties in our room. But when Buffy's roommate suddenly…dropped out, I was able to move in with her. It's great because she doesn't have to hide her Slayer stuff from me and I don't have to hide my witchy stuff from her."

"Yeah, I could see how that would be convenient." Lindsey watched with some amusement as Willow nervously played with some of her belongings on the far side of the room. "So does Xander live in this dorm too?" he asked.

"No, he just got an apartment. He also isn't in school. He's a construction worker," Willow said, finally taking a seat on the edge of her bed.

Lindsey stepped closer to the bed and cautiously sat on the opposite side. He noted Willow's eyes nervously fill with uncertainty as he sat, but his only other choices seemed to be sitting at the desk or on Buffy's bed, and he didn't want to disturb anything of hers.

"I'm not going to try anything, promise," Lindsey said, his voice pitched to try to comfort her. He was surprised by how quickly the nervousness in Willow's eyes changed to disappointment. This girl was a wealth of contradictions, but at least they seemed to be going in his favor.

"I know. I know that I probably shouldn't, but I trust you," Willow admitted, scooting closer to the middle of the bed, and Lindsey.

"I know that I haven't done anything to earn that trust, so thank you," Lindsey sincerely said.

Lindsey slid his hand across the small space separating them to rest on top of Willow's, giving it a small squeeze of thanks. Being as close as they were, Lindsey didn't miss Willow's gasp of surprise when their skin touched. There was no denying that she felt the same shock of pleasure that he had.

As their eyes met, Lindsey closed the remaining distance between them and leaned forward to meet Willow's lips in a tentative kiss. Shocks of pleasure spread like wildfire from his lips throughout his body, awakening every nerve and pleasure center inside him. He saw the awe that must have been written all over his face mirrored on Willow's face when they separated moments later.

"What was that?" Willow asked in a quiet voice, her fingers brushing against her tingling lips. "I've never…How did you do that?"

"I honestly don't know," Lindsey admitted, sounding as lost as she was. He ran a hand through his hair, thoroughly confused by what had just happened.

"Maybe it was a fluke," Willow suggested, but doubting the words as she said them. She'd fluked before and it hadn't been anywhere near as electric as this brief kiss with Lindsey.

Smirking, Lindsey suggested, "Maybe we should try again; just to be sure."

"An excellent idea, Counselor," Willow agreed, already leaning back in.

This kiss was just as electrifying as the first, if not more so. This time they gave in to the kiss, lips pressed firmly against each other's rather than just barely brushing. Lindsey's arms circled Willow's waist as hers slid around his neck.

This kiss seemed to last an eternity…until Buffy walked through the door.

"Get your hands off her!" she nearly screamed, slamming the door closed behind her.

Willow and Lindsey instantly separated, each panting harshly and trying hard to glare at the intrusion, but having a difficult time focusing.

Being the first to recover, Willow tried to stand, although her legs seemed to be made out of jelly at the moment. "Buffy, I didn't hear you come in."

"I can see how your hearing would be impaired with Lindsey's tongue down your throat," Buffy hissed. She drummed the fingers on one of her hips impatiently, waiting for an answer.

Lindsey and Willow exchanged an amused look at Buffy's accusation before sobering.

"Look, this is my room too, and if I want to make out with someone in it, that's my business," Willow said, her chin lifted defiantly. "It's not like I haven't walked in on you and Riley kissing on your bed before."

"But that's different. Riley's my boyfriend. You barely even know Lindsey. And, oh yeah, my boyfriend isn't Evil!" Buffy retorted.

"Well neither is mine," Willow countered.

The girls stood there glaring at each other, and Lindsey tried to get over the shock of Willow implying that he was her boyfriend. He knew that she was just riled up over Buffy's accusations and didn't mean it, but hearing her defend him like that made him want to throw Buffy out of the room and not let Willow out of bed for a week.

Willing his body under control, Lindsey stood to face Buffy. "Look, all we were doing was kissin', nothing more. There's nothing to get all worked up about."

"You stay out of this, you evil lawyer you," Buffy demanded.

Turning back to Willow, he apologetically said, "Look, maybe I should just go."

Willow immediately softened her stance. "No, you don't have to."

They both ignored Buffy's, "Yes, he does."

Glancing between the two girls again, he said, "I think I'd better. Besides, the sooner I go, the sooner I can pick you up for our date."

Willow smiled at that thought. "Well, when you put it that way…Pick me up here at 7?"

"On the dot," Lindsey agreed. Ignoring Buffy's glare, he walked around the bed to give Willow a quick kiss before leaving.

Buffy didn't relax until she heard the door click closed behind him.

"Don't even start," Willow cautioned her roommate. "I don't want to hear it."

"I didn't even say anything," Buffy protested.

"I know what you're going to say, so you can save it. I like him and I trust him. And for some reason he seems to like me, too. I haven't wanted to be with anyone since Oz left and you are not going to deny me this chance to be happy," Willow calmly stated.

"But Willow," Buffy couldn't help pleading. "You know how Angel feels about him. Lindsey's even admitted to being evil. How can you open yourself up to be hurt by him?"

"You don't know that he's going to hurt me," Willow insisted. "There's something there between us, and I want to see what it is. It's a risk I'm willing to take. And if you don't like it, then too bad."

Willow grabbed a spell book out of her trunk and a pad of paper and stormed out of the room, leaving Buffy to fume in her wake.

Chapter 5

When Lindsey got back to his room, he immediately went to his bedside table and pulled out the phonebook he knew would be inside the drawer. He skimmed through the restaurant section until he found the Italian place Willow had pointed out to him as her favorite on their tour of downtown that afternoon. He called and was able to secure a reservation for two for that evening.

Stretching out on the bed, Lindsey did a mental review of the day. To say it had gone better than expected was an understatement. Willow was just as charming as she'd been the night before, only more so. He was surprised that he'd gotten on as well as he had with her friends, too. Well, aside from the Slayer. He could tell that he'd have to work to get Buffy to trust him. Normally he wouldn't be bothered, but he could tell that Buffy's opinion mattered to Willow. But he didn't think he'd have any problems befriending Xander and Giles.

Inevitably, his thoughts returned to Willow. The chemistry between them was undeniable. And that kiss had been…incredible.

In college, and especially after going to work for Wolfram & Hart, Lindsey had dated some beautiful and successful women. None of their carefully created beauty could compare to the simple elegance that shone from Willow. Maybe she was why everything had gone so wrong at Wolfram & Hart. He needed to be away from there so that she could come into his life.

"Get a grip, McDonald," Lindsey groused to himself as he ran a hand over his face. "You didn't believe in fate before; there's no reason to start doing so now that a pretty girl has caught your attention."

'But Willow is not just another pretty girl,'a small voice in the back of his head insisted.

"Great, now I'm hearing voices," Lindsey mumbled, pushing himself off of the bed. "Too bad it's right."

He stripped as he made his way to the bathroom and a nice hot shower. As Willow's face floated through his mind, he thought that maybe he should make it a cold one. Tonight was just going to be their first date, after all. She was a young woman, so seemingly innocent despite what she knew about the realities of the night. Just because the women in LA were easy, didn't mean that Willow would be, no matter how much his body wished that she would be.

Clean and dressed in khakis and a light blue button-down shirt, Lindsey carefully lifted his guitar out of its case. He lovingly ran his fingers over the wood and strings before strumming a few chords. Part of him wished he could be playing in front of Lorne tonight to see if this thing with Willow was as good as it seemed. He thought about taking Willow to that open mic night he'd seen and playing for her, but he wasn't quite ready to open himself up like that. Maybe on their next date, he thought with a smile.

Lindsey lost himself in the comfort of his guitar, the music calming and bolstering him. He had missed this, more than anything else, when Angel had taken his hand. From before he could remember, music had been his safe place, his escape. Something he could do that would make all the bad things in his life dim and disappear, at least for a while. Nothing bad could touch him when he was cradling a guitar on his lap, fingers dancing over the strings, his eyes closed.

Whenever his conscience reared its head during his time with Wolfram & Hart, he could pull out his guitar and play his distress away. Sometimes he'd go to Caritas to play for Lorne if playing for himself wasn't getting the job done. But he'd always been able to get the project finished afterwards.

Until Angel had taken that away from him.

Maybe that was why he had lost himself in Darla. He'd known it was futile, falling for the former vampire cum vampire. She had been so consumed with her thoughts of Angel that she couldn't spare him a glance.

He'd never admit it aloud, but she'd been right about one thing. It wasn't really her he wanted to screw. He wanted to make Angel pay. He wanted Darla to want him because he was everything that Angel wasn't; which was why she would never want him. Lindsey had a soul, but wanted to be evil; at least he'd thought he did. Angel was a vampire with a soul who wanted to be good; something that wasn't in his nature.

In the end, Darla left them all unsatisfied. None of them got what they wanted and they were all left to pick up the pieces. Alone.

Only now Lindsey wasn't alone. He didn't know how he was so certain that Willow would stay by his side through this new phase of his life, but he was. She was his light at the end of the very long, dark tunnel his life had become.

And if he didn't leave soon, he'd be late to pick her up.

Lindsey was relived when Willow was the one who responded to the knock on her door. He wasn't in the mood to deal with Buffy and her insistence that he was going to hurt Willow.

"Hey," Willow said, holding the door open to admit him to her room, a faint blush on her cheeks as she remembered what had happened in there just a few hours ago.

"Hey," Lindsey echoed, kissing Willow on the cheek as he stepped past her into the room. He did a quick scan of the room, relaxing when Buffy was nowhere in sight.

"Where's Buffy?" he asked.

Willow scowled. "Out. Luckily she was gone when I got back, so I have no idea where she is."

Taking Willow in his arms, Lindsey tilted her face up so he could look in her eyes. "Did she give you a tough time after I left?"

"She tried to," Willow admitted, her arms naturally encircling Lindsey's waist. "We yelled, and then I stormed out. She was gone when I came back to get ready for our date."

Lindsey took a step back so that he could run his eyes over Willow's body, without having to take his hands off of her. "You look beautiful," he sincerely told her.

"You're looking pretty great yourself," Willow said, her hands caressing him.

Reluctantly, Lindsey stepped out of Willow's embrace, knowing that if he didn't now, they wouldn't be leaving this room – or remain clothed for very long.

Clearing his throat, Lindsey said, "We should get going, or we're going to be late for our reservation."

"Reservation?" Willow eagerly said, a slight bounce in her step as she grabbed her purse. "We're going somewhere that requires a reservation?"

Taking her hand as she locked the door behind them, Lindsey said, "I don't know if they require one, but I made a reservation, just in case."

"Where are we going?" Willow asked.

"You'll see when we get there," Lindsey teased, his eyes sparkling at Willow's mock-pout.

As expected, Willow was thrilled that Lindsey had remembered which restaurant she'd pointed out as her favorite. The conversation over dinner was just as easy as it had been all day. At the end of the meal, Lindsey admitted that he could see why it was Willow's favorite, and promised to take her there again.

It was only 9 o'clock when they finished their meal, so Lindsey proposed getting a cup of coffee, decaf, and Willow eagerly accepted.

"Do you mind going back to the Espresso Pump?" Lindsey asked, hoping she'd say no. He really did want to check out the open mic night tonight so that he could decide if he wanted to play in the next one.

"There really isn't anywhere else to go, except the Bronze, and I'm not really in a clubbing mood," Willow said.

The place was pretty crowded when they arrived, much to Willow's surprise. They could hear someone singing, and she figured they were all there to see him, as it was definitely a male voice – a somewhat familiar one at that.

"Oh. My. Goddess." Willow froze on the spot when she saw a very familiar face sitting on the stage, when they got close enough.

"Is that Giles?" Lindsey asked, leaning down to whisper in Willow's ear.

Willow did a remarkable impression of a fish, while trying to wrap her mind around the fact that Giles, Watcher-father-figure-mentor-shopkeeper Giles was sitting on a stage, in public, playing the guitar and singing. Singing really well.

Eventually, she managed a nod in response to Lindsey's question.

While Willow did her impression of a statue, Lindsey looked around the small café in hopes of a table being free. As if reading his thoughts, the couple at the table next to them stood to leave and Lindsey quickly sat down as soon as a chair was vacated. Seeing Willow still gaping at the stage, he pulled her back until she was seated across from him.

The jolt of her bottom hitting the wooden chair shocked Willow back to awareness.

"That's Giles," she fiercely whispered to Lindsey.

Trying to hide his mirth, Lindsey said, "I thought so. I take it you didn't know he was playing here tonight?"

"No. Not tonight, or any other night. I didn't know he even still played the guitar," Willow said, turning in her seat to try to see Giles again.

Feeling a little ignored, Lindsey rested his hand over Willow's, purposely drawing her attention back to him. "He must have had his reasons for not telling you," he said.

Returning her attention to her date, Willow said. "I get that. It's important to have something that's just yours, something that makes you happy." Willow turned her hand over so that she could clasp the hand that Lindsey still had resting on hers.

When the set ended, Willow joined the crowd in enthusiastically clapping. She was excited that Giles was headed in their direction when he stepped off the stage. He seemed a little embarrassed as he approached their table.

"Willow, Lindsey, I didn't know you'd be here," he said by way of greeting.

"Giles, you were wonderful up there," Willow gushed. "Why didn't you tell us you were singing in public?"

"I'll just go grab us those drinks," Lindsey said, excusing himself from what appeared to be an awkward situation. "It's good to see you, Giles. Can I get you anything?"

"No, nothing, thank you," Giles replied. When Lindsey stood to go order coffees for himself and Willow, Giles took his seat. "A-are you here on a date?"

"Actually, yes, we are," Willow said. "For some reason, Lindsey really wanted to check out the open mic night, even though he didn't say so. He asked about it when we were here this afternoon, though. Is this your first time singing here?"

"Um, no," Giles admitted, cleaning his glasses so that he didn't have to see the pity in Willow's eyes he knew would be there. "I try to play every other week or so," he added.

"That is just so cool," Willow gushed. "I knew you'd been in a band when you were younger, but I had no idea you kept it up."

Giles coughed slightly at her phrasing. Yet another thing he'd never tell the children was that his playing here had done wonders for his social life.

"A-are…do you plan on telling the others?" Giles nervously asked.

Willow shrugged. "Not if you don't want me to. I don't know why you haven't told us yet, though."

"Thank you, Willow. If any of you were to have found me out, I'm glad that it was you. Can you just imagine what Buffy or Xander would have said or done if it had been them who had seen me playing?"

Willow giggled. "Yeah, I see your point. You're really good though, Giles. You have nothing to be ashamed of."

"She's right," Lindsey said, returning with two steaming coffees. "You have an amazing voice."

Giles stood to give Lindsey back his seat. "Thank you, Lindsey. Although I'm sure I'm just average."

Sneaking a sideways look at Willow, Lindsey decided to go ahead and ask Giles the question he'd been wondering all afternoon. "How does one go about getting stage time here?"

"Do you play?" Giles asked in surprise.

"From time to time," Lindsey admitted. "I used to play more, but then I wasn't able to for a while. I just started playing again."

"Play? What do you play?" Willow asked, feeling left out.

"The guitar," Lindsey said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh," Willow said, momentary pain over Oz's departure washing over her.

"I-is that a bad thing?" Lindsey asked, confused as to why it would be okay for Giles to play the guitar but not him.

Sparing Willow having to answer, Giles quietly informed Lindsey, "Willow's previous boyfriend played the guitar for a popular local band, before he left her."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know," Lindsey said to Willow, squeezing her hand.

Willow took a deep breath and shook off bad thoughts about cheating ex-boyfriends.

"I'm okay. Really. Lots of guys play the guitar. So, uh, how long have you been playing?"

"For as long as I can remember…and we really don't need to talk about this," Lindsey said.

"No, it's all good. Maybe sometime I can hear you play?" Willow hopefully suggested.

Lindsey grinned. "Yeah, I think that can be arranged. That's actually why I was so interested in coming here tonight. I was thinking of playing at one of these open mic nights."

"That'd be cool," Willow said. "If you do, I'll be in the front row."

"You'd better be," Lindsey said, eyes locking with Willow's.

Giles took this as his cue to leave. "I think that I've intruded on your evening for long enough. There's a sign-up sheet at the register if you want to get on stage next time. I will see you both at the shop tomorrow."

Willow spared a quick glance in Giles'direction. "Bye, Giles. See ya tomorrow."

"Good night," was all Lindsey said, never taking his eyes off of Willow.

Returning her full attention to Lindsey, Willow blushed as she said, "Maybe I could get a private performance."

Lindsey raised an eyebrow, knowing he'd love to play just for Willow, alone in his hotel room.

"I think that could be arranged," he practically purred.

Willow swallowed hard at the lust in Lindsey's eyes. Her body flushed in reaction. "N-now?" she breathlessly asked.

"Let's get out of here," Lindsey agreed.

Chapter 6

Lindsey tried not to speed as he drove himself and Willow to his hotel. While they didn't speak, the air crackled with the sexual tension he knew was between them. A quick look at Willow confirmed that she was feeling it too, if her slightly flushed skin and rapid breathing were anything to go by.

A part of him wished that he could read her thoughts right now. She didn't give the impression of someone who went to hotel rooms with men they'd only met the day before. Granted, looks could be deceiving, but the innocent vibe she gave off was contrary to her actions thus far.

He nearly slammed on the brakes as his thoughts stuttered at the word 'innocent'. What if she truly was an innocent? Just because she was in college didn't mean that she wasn't a virgin. What if she was? Was he reading too much into their remarkable chemistry and she really did just want to hear him sing? God, he hoped not.

Following that train of thought, Lindsey frantically tried to remember if he had any condoms buried in his duffel bag. He had a moment of panic that he didn't. After all, it wasn't like he'd planned on hooking up with anyone when he'd left LA. Maybe he should find a drug store on the way to the hotel, just in case.

"Turn right," Willow prompted.

Turning his attention back to the road, Lindsey realized that while he was lost in his thoughts, he had nearly passed their destination.

"Thanks," he mumbled. "Got a little caught up in my thoughts."

"It's okay," Willow assured him. "Me too. You're also not so familiar with the town."

"True," he agreed. Sliding into a parking spot, Lindsey put the car in park and turned off the ignition. 'Too late now,'Lindsey thought, hoping he'd be covered if things went the way he hoped they would.

He exited the truck and moved around to get Willow's door for her. She took his hand as she exited and held on to it as they entered the building.

Willow's breath was deep and even, as if she were trying to control her breathing so that she didn't hyperventilate. The entire ride over she had been asking herself what she was doing, going to a hotel with a guy she barely knew. She told herself that it was just to hear him play, but even she didn't buy that. She wanted Lindsey like she'd never wanted any man before. If he wanted her too, then she wasn't going to deny herself the pleasure she just knew he could give her.

As the elevator doors closed and it began its ascent, Willow squeezed Lindsey's hand, silently assuring him that all was good and this was what she wanted.

Lindsey led her the short distance down the corridor to his room. Luckily the keycard worked on the first try and he ushered Willow into the room. She stood in the entrance as he moved around, turning on lights.

The room itself was nondescript. There was a small bathroom to the right of the entrance, a plain desk next to the dresser/entertainment center, which were across from the queen sized bed.

Willow bit back a hysterical laugh, wondering if she had made the right decision about coming up here.

Noting Willow's sudden tension, Lindsey asked her, "Would you like something to drink? I think there are some sodas in the mini-fridge in the corner. Or there's always water."

Willow shook her head. "No, thank you. Just realizing that I'm in a hotel room with a guy I barely know. You know?"

"Yeah, I know," Lindsey grinned. "If you want, I can just take you home. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

Apparently he'd said the right thing, as the tension drained out of Willow and she crossed the small space to him. Lindsey eagerly took her into the circle of his arms.

"I'm not uncomfortable, not now." Willow looked up and met his eyes, the lust suddenly back full force.

Lindsey dipped his head and did what he'd wanted to do since he'd seen her gaping at Giles at the coffee bar; he kissed her. Any remaining doubts about where the evening was headed flew out the window as the fire between them was instantly stoked back to life.

When Lindsey's hands slid down her back and slid under her shirt, Willow abruptly pulled back. "Singing," she blurted out. "We came up here for you to sing."

Lindsey stared at her for a minute as her words tried to penetrate the lustful haze he'd been reveling in. "You still want me to sing?"

Taking a nervous step backwards, Willow nodded. "Uh, yep. Yes. I-I think I'd like that." The backs of her legs ran into the bed, causing her to abruptly sit. Her eyes widened as she realized where she was now sitting and she jumped up.

Lindsey laughed at her antics and relented. "Take it easy, I'll sing. Why don't you sit at the desk and I'll grab my guitar."

Willow was blushing as she crossed over to the desk and pulled out the chair. It wasn't nearly as comfortable as the bed, but she didn't want to give any more mixed signals.

Having no such qualms, Lindsey sat on the bed near Willow with his guitar in his lap. After taking a moment to tune it, he began to sing:

Lindsey kept his eyes locked with Willow's, only occasionally needing to check his fingering. This was one song he had played both for himself and in public so often that he knew it almost as well as if he'd written it himself. He felt it particularly reflected what had been going through his mind lately.

Willow was mesmerized by Lindsey's voice. No wonder he wanted to check out the open mic night. He was really good. Better even than Giles. Way better than Oz; after all, Oz could only play, he admittedly wasn't much of a singer other than for backup.

'Please, please, be my light in the darkness,'Lindsey thought to himself. In the short time that he'd known her, that's what Willow had become to him. A bright ray of light, of hope, in the darkness that he'd surrounded himself in.

Willow's breath caught at the intensity in Lindsey's eyes as he sang those last two lines. He obviously identified with them, with the entire song. Willow felt as if she was learning about the true Lindsey McDonald through these lyrics; how he felt about himself and the choices he'd made.

As the last chord faded, Lindsey's eyes searched Willow's face and he was blown away by the look of awe and admiration he saw. He watched her as she slowly reached out and laid her hand over his heart, which was beating faster with every second that passed.

He carefully set the guitar on the floor as Willow slid out of her chair and into his lap. Her hand still resting over his heart, she whispered, "Until then, your heart can rest in mine," before she kissed him.

The kiss was their most intense one yet. The electricity that they had been feeling all along only intensified as they gave themselves up to a passion they didn't understand, nor cared to question. All they knew was that it felt impossibly right.

Willow's free hand slid up his chest to tangle in Lindsey's hair as she chased his tongue back into his mouth. Her body pressed tightly to his as Lindsey's hands roamed over her back and over her ass, squeezing and massaging, pulling her ever closer.

Lindsey moaned deep in his throat as he slowly leaned backwards until he was flat on his back, his arms securely wrapped around Willow so that they were pressed together from chest to groin. She rocked against him and he could feel himself begin to harden beneath her.

It was all moving so quickly. Reluctantly, Lindsey forced their mouths apart so that he could pant out, "We…don't…have to do this." The fact that Willow had merely moved her kisses to his neck did nothing to help Lindsey concentrate.

"Want to," Willow managed to confirm between tastes of his skin.

Lindsey grasped her shoulders and lifted her until he could meet her passion-glazed eyes. "Are you sure?" he pressed.

"I'm sure," Willow said without hesitation. "Look, I know we just met and all, but I'm a big girl, and I want this. I want you. Okay?"

The grin that spread across Lindsey's face would have been answer enough, but he felt compelled to say, "More than okay. C'mere."

This time when their lips locked and their hands began to move, they no longer simply caressed. Lindsey's hands immediately found the hem of Willow's shirt and pulled it up, breaking the kiss only long enough to pull it over her head.

Willow's fingers began working the buttons of his shirt as he moved to kiss down her neck and collarbone, kissing along the edge of her white lace bra. She had just pulled the rest of the shirt free from his pants and was trying to push it off him when he reached behind her to unclasp her bra. The fact that he was lying on his back made her task that much more difficult.

"You get your shirt, I'll get the bra," she suggested in frustration at their cross-actions, sitting back up.

"Deal," Lindsey said, quickly releasing her and struggling to get his shirt off with the cuffs still buttoned, while watching as Willow reached behind her to release her bra and shrug out of it.

"Beautiful," he muttered, finally ridding himself of his shirt to capture Willow's breasts with his hands.

She sighed at the feel of his hands on her bare flesh. The sigh quickly became a moan when his mouth replaced one of his hands. Her hands eagerly sought to return the favor, exploring the bare chest before her.

When Lindsey felt Willow's fingers brush against his stomach as she reached to open his belt, he was reminded of what they were doing and once again paused in his attentions.

His hand stilled hers as he met her eyes. The apology was clear as day as he said, "I-I don't think that I have…anything. It's not like I planned this."

Willow lowered her eyes as she blushed and released her hold on him. At first, Lindsey thought that she was going to move off of him, but to his surprise, and delight, she slipped her right hand behind her and into her back jeans pocket. Shyly, she pulled out a small square packet and held it up for him to see.

At his look of wonder, she simply said, "Let's just say that I had a feeling we'd end up here."

After giving her a quick, hard kiss, Lindsey said, "You'll hear no complaints out of me."

The next thing Willow knew, she was lying on her back and Lindsey was working on freeing her from her evening-saving jeans. She couldn't help giggling at his excited movements and helped him along once the button and zipper were opened.

She scooted up the bed to rest against the pillows as Lindsey frantically worked to shed the remainder of his own clothing. When he was finally naked, and looked up the bed to the picture Willow created lying flushed and naked on the bed, he gasped at the vision of beauty before him. When he met her eyes, he could see her hunger in them from giving him the same appreciative once-over he'd just given her. He crawled up the bed and over Willow's body, kissing and licking his way as he went.

His right hand moved along her body, over her breast, skimming her belly, over her hip bone and down between her thighs. One finger parted her lips to slide inside her. He groaned into their kiss upon finding her wet and ready for him. He was relieved that she was as ready for him as he was for her. While he wouldn't have minded a longer foreplay session, all he wanted at that moment was to be buried deep inside her.

Groping around on the bed for the packet that Willow had dropped when he'd flipped her over, Lindsey broke away from her long enough to retrieve it and sheathe himself before positioning himself between her legs.

"You sure?" he asked one last time, his eyes pleading with her to say yes, despite his words.

"Make love to me, Lindsey," Willow earnestly said, sliding one leg over his hip.

That was all the encouragement he needed. Lindsey pressed forward and slowly but steadily rocked his way inside of her.

Willow bit his bottom lip when he was fully buried deep inside her before resting her forehead in the crook of his neck.

"You okay?" he panted, worried that he was hurting her.

"I'm fine," she muttered against his flesh. She took a deep breath before adding, "It's just been a while."

"You should have said something," Lindsey said, now wishing he'd better prepared her.

"I'm fine," Willow insisted, pulling back to meet his eyes again. She grinned up at him. "Just go slowly."

"Slow I can do," he agreed, with a smile of his own. He recaptured her lips as he put words into action.

It didn't take long for Willow to catch his rhythm and begin to move with Lindsey. Once she had fully adjusted to having him inside her, Willow encouraged him to pick up the pace.

Lindsey's lips once again moved back down to taste Willow's chest and breasts.

With her mouth now free, she began to babble in between panting breaths. "Need this…Need you…Need more…Need…Lindsey!"

Lindsey's hand that had been on Willow's hip had slid down so that his thumb could rub her clit while she was talking. He'd known that he was close, her words only driving him closer to the edge. He may have been a bit hasty getting inside her, but there was no way that he was going to leave her unsatisfied.

His thrusts became more forceful and erratic as his thumb slid around her clit. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he felt his balls tighten. "Can't…hold back…much longer," he muttered.

"Don't," Willow insisted. "I'm…I'm…" Whatever else she was going to say was lost as she keened loudly, her fingernails digging into Lindsey's back as she fell over the edge.

Lindsey's body stilled over hers as he thrust hard into her one last time, finding release seconds after Willow, before collapsing on top of her.

They lay together, their harsh, panting breaths the only sounds between them. As soon as he had the energy to move, Lindsey carefully moved off of Willow to remove the condom and lie beside her. She gave a satisfied groan as she rolled onto her side to curl into him.

"Mmm, that was fantastic," Willow purred, running her fingers over his chest. She stretched up to kiss him.

"You're wrong," he said when they parted. Before the frown could fully form on her face, he said, "That was better than fantastic."

Willow lazily grinned at him before yawning and snuggling into him again.

"Do you want me to take you home?" he reluctantly asked, making no move to get up.

"Do you want me to go?" she countered.

"No," he said, pulling her closer to him. "I just didn't know if you needed to be back before Buffy got home."

"I don't answer to Buffy," Willow stated. "And I don't want to go home. I want to stay right here, in your arms, all night."

"Good, because that's what I want too," Lindsey said, kissing the top of Willow's head. He sat up enough to maneuver them under the covers.

"Too bad we can't do that again until I have a chance to run to the store tomorrow," Lindsey quietly lamented to himself when he thought Willow had dozed off.

"Check other pocket," she mumbled, nearly asleep.

Lindsey fell asleep with a big grin on his face.

Chapter 7

Lindsey slowly drifted from sleep to awake. He had a smile on his face and his body was spooned tightly behind a warm female body. He opened his eyes and confirmed what his heart already knew…Willow.

The arm he had wrapped around her waist tightened as he rubbed his cheek against her shoulder, like a cat making itself comfortable.

"Tickles," Willow mumbled, swatting at her shoulder; her still-asleep mind allowing her to comment on his morning stubble.

Instead of answering verbally, Lindsey peppered the razed area with soft kisses.

"Mmm," Willow moaned in appreciation as she rolled over to face Lindsey. "Mornin'," she said as she raised a hand to his face.

Lindsey kissed her palm. "Good morning, beautiful. How'd you sleep?"

"You mean once we finally passed out?" she asked with a grin. "Wonderfully. You?"

"I can honestly say that that was the best night's sleep I've had in a long time." Lindsey's hand ran over Willow's back and buttocks, simply enjoying her sleep-warmed flesh. "Last night was…"

"Incredible," Willow purred, pressing her body into his.

"I'd have to agree with you on that one," Lindsey said.

Closing the short distance between them, Lindsey gave Willow a brief 'good morning'kiss. Before he could fully retreat, Willow pulled his face back to hers and gave him a very thorough, very passionate kiss.

"Now that's the way to start the day," Lindsey commented when they finally parted for air.

Willow giggled, a little surprised by her actions so far this morning. This just wasn't like her to be so forward in bed, especially with a man she barely knew. Deciding to continue with this theme of doing what felt right, Willow reached between their bodies and lightly took Lindsey's erection in hand.

Lindsey gasped at the feeling of Willow's fingers surrounding his cock. "Christ, Willow," he exclaimed, rolling onto his back.

"Too bad we didn't save one of the condoms for this morning," Willow pouted, lightly stroking him.

"Yeah, too bad," he readily agreed. The first thing he was going to do when they left this hotel room was find a place to buy a pack of condoms, maybe more than one, just to be safe.

"You don't…you probably shouldn't…you don't have to do this," he eventually managed to say. He was finding speaking difficult with all the blood in his body rushing to meet wherever Willow was touching him.

"Do what?" Willow innocently asked. "This?" She scooted down the bed and licked his cock from base to tip before taking it into her mouth.

Lindsey's hips bucked at the sensation of suddenly being surrounded by Willow's mouth. His fingers weaved their way into her hair and he held on for dear life as Willow proceeded to give him an exquisite blow job.

When he felt himself nearing completion, he managed to find his voice long enough to warn her. Willow pulled back, which earned her a groan from Lindsey, as she resumed rapidly pumping his cock with her hands. It didn't take long for him to come, his release landing on his stomach.

After quickly kissing him, Willow rolled out of bed and retrieved a washcloth from the bathroom, which she ran under the hot water tap. She carefully wiped his torso clean while he recovered.

"Come here," Lindsey demanded when Willow was preparing to return the washcloth to the bathroom.

Instead, she tossed it through the open door and crawled back into bed and pressed herself against Lindsey's side. "Here. I. Am."

Lindsey slid his hand into her hair and pulled her to him, taking her mouth in a fiery kiss. His tongue immediately slipped past her lips to tangle with hers, his hunger for her never waning.

Slowly, he rolled them so that Willow was now on her back and he was partially lying on top of her. She never seemed to notice as he moved his kisses away from her mouth and down to her chest, paying homage to her breasts, as he continued to taste his way down her body. She shivered in delight when she felt his moist breath against her pussy.

Repeating what he'd so recently said to her, Willow whispered, "You don't have to."

Lindsey looked up her body to meet her eyes. The lust she saw in them, for her, caused Willow to whimper as she unconsciously lifted her hips in invitation.

Lindsey gave her a wicked grin before diving in to taste her. His tongue darted between her lips, taking a slow pass along the length of her slit. He moved back down and pressed his tongue inside her. He groaned in delight at the wetness that welcomed him. Before long, he turned his attention to her clit, replacing his tongue with two fingers inside her.

Playing Willow's body like his favorite guitar, Lindsey soon had Willow panting and begging him for more. When her climax struck, Lindsey had to move his free hand to hold one of her thighs as they tried to squeeze his head off – or at least keep it locked in place. He didn't let that stop him from drawing her orgasm out as long as possible though, only easing back when she weakly pulled him away by his hair.

He discreetly wiped his mouth on the sheet as he crawled back up the bed to kiss a blissed-out Willow.

"Now that…was amazing," Willow panted. She turned her head to look into Lindsey's eyes. "I'm so glad that I met you."

"I'll take that orgasm as a compliment," Lindsey said.

Willow blushed. "That's not why. At least, that's not the only reason why," she amended. "I just mean that I haven't felt this…comfortable with myself, or anyone else, in a long time, and I owe that to you."

"Isn't it a bit soon for declarations like that?" Lindsey asked, secretly echoing her statement.

Willow looked thoughtful for a moment, as if taking stock of her mind and body. Finally, she grinned up at him. "Nope, I think it's the perfect amount of time."

Catching a glance at the clock, Lindsey regretfully said, "Speaking of time; we should probably get up. Mr. Giles wanted me to come by around 10 to help out."

"Aw, do we have to?" Willow asked, wrapping her body around Lindsey's to try to keep him in place.

"You're welcome to stay naked in my bed all day," Lindsey said, running a hand down her side. "But I'd like to stay on Mr. Giles'good side and prove that I can be of use to him; and I can't do that if I stay in bed with you, as much as I'd like to."

Pouting slightly, Willow sat up, releasing Lindsey, who slipped out of bed. "Sure, be all logical." Then she giggled. "And it's just Giles. Nobody calls him Mister," she said as she rolled out of bed and followed Lindsey into the bathroom.

Lindsey spit out his mouthful of toothpaste before saying, "I was raised to be polite and address my elders formally. Maybe once I know him better I'll drop the Mister. Okay?" Lindsey asked, turning on the shower and adjusting the temperature.

"Fine by me. Just don't be surprised if everyone giggles when you call him Mr. Giles," Willow said, laughter still in her voice.

"If you keep that up I'm not going to save any hot water for you," Lindsey threatened as he closed the shower curtain behind him.

"Who said I was gonna wait?" Willow asked, pulling the curtain back and climbing into the shower with him.

Lindsey jumped as the cool air from outside the shower hit him. "Geez, Willow, give a guy some warning."

Trying not to laugh, Willow said, "Hey, at least I didn't flush the toilet first."

"Now that would have just been mean," Lindsey said, pulling her under the spray of water.

"Which is why I didn't do it," she agreed, leaning into him.

Turning them around, Lindsey tipped Willow's head back to get her hair wet, then leaned down to kiss her neck. "Let me wash your hair?" he whispered in her ear.

A contented "Mmm" was his answer.

Grinning, Lindsey picked up the little bottle of hotel shampoo and poured some into the palm of his hand. He rubbed his palms together to get them both soapy, then ran them through Willow's hair.

Willow took a step forward and rested her forehead on his chest for balance. "That feels soooo good," she mumbled against his skin as Lindsey worked up a good lather, massaging her scalp at the same time.

"Tilt your head back," he requested, then rinsed the shampoo from her sudsy hair when she did, being careful to keep it out of her eyes.

Once Willow was shampoo-free, Lindsey made quick work out of washing the rest of her body. If his hands spend a little extra time on her breasts or between her thighs, Willow didn't complain.

Turning them around, Willow gave Lindsey the same careful washing she'd just received, teasing and cleaning at the same time.

Lindsey felt his cock stir as Willow pressed her body against his back as her hands alternately slid over his rousing flesh. "You're killing me here," he groaned, his head falling back.

Willow giggled. "Sorry, I couldn't help myself." She slid her hands back over his hips and finally pulled away from his body, allowing him to rinse off.

He turned off the cooling water and they stepped out of the shower. Willow grabbed two towels, handing one to Lindsey. The dried themselves and each other off before returning to the bedroom and dressing; Lindsey in jeans and a t-shirt, Willow in the clothes she'd worn the day before.

Looking down at herself she said, "I think we should stop by my dorm before going to meet Giles. After all, he saw what I was wearing last night."

"You don't want him knowing you spent the night with me?" Lindsey pouted, the gleam in his eyes showing he was teasing her.

Willow blushed as she said, "It's really not any of his business. But Giles doesn't really like when we talk about our love lives too much. He gets all British and nervous and starts cleaning his glasses and stuttering."

"We wouldn't want that." Making sure they had everything, Lindsey escorted Willow out the door.

Once they were in Lindsey's truck, he asked, "Do you want to grab some breakfast before we head over?"

"Let's stop by the dorm first and see if we have time. I, um, don't know if Buffy's gonna be there, and if she is, she's probably going to want to yell at me for staying out all night."

"Do you want me to come up with you? Or will that make it worse?" Lindsey asked.

Willow reached over to squeeze his hand. "No, come up. If Buffy's going to get on my case, I want her to see that you're going to be a part of my life. Besides, if you don't come up, she might use that as a way to show that you're using me, or something."

Willow breathed a sigh of relief when she slowly opened the door to her room and found it to be empty. In fact, it looked like Buffy hadn't slept in her bed either.

"She's not here," Willow said, just to affirm that it was true.

"Thank goodness for small favors," Lindsey said.

"You can say that again," Willow said, heading for her closet.

Lindsey barely refrained from saying it again. Instead, he crossed to Willow's bed and sat leaning against the headboard, his legs stretched out in front of him.

Willow emerged from her closet with a long skirt and t-shirt. She set them on the foot of the bed and moved to the dresser to find clean undergarments. When she had everything she needed she stared at Lindsey, who had been watching her.

"What?" he asked when she continued to stare at him.

"Are you going to just sit there and watch me change?" she asked.

"That was the plan, yes," Lindsey smirked. "It's not like I haven't already seen you naked."

"I know, but that was different," Willow said, blushing faintly.

"How was it different?"

The blush deepened. "Because at first it was because we were, you know, and then today we were showering, and stuff."

Lindsey couldn't help laughing at how bashful Willow was all of the sudden. "All right. Fine. Maybe I haven't earned casual clothing change viewing privileges yet." He closed his eyes. "Is this better?"

"Thank you," Willow said, a smile in her voice.

Figuring that Willow would have turned her back to him, even with his eyes closed, Lindsey allowed himself to peek, a small smile curving his lips. When he saw Willow start to turn back around he quickly closed them again.

He heard some more rustling and soon Willow announced, "Okay, you can open your eyes."

Lindsey's eyes immediately popped open and he grinned at the fully dressed Willow standing next to him.

"You look beautiful," he said.

"You don't have to say that," Willow protested. "This is nothing special."

"Maybe the clothes aren't, but you are," Lindsey said.

"Please." Willow brushed the compliment off. "So, you ready to go?"

"Not quite yet," Lindsey said, standing up. He wrapped his arms around Willow and captured her lips in a soft kiss. Willow moaned quietly at how wonderful it felt to be kissed by Lindsey and wrapped her arms around him.

She wasn't sure how long they stood there kissing, but when she glanced at the clock she saw that it was 9:50.

"Damn, we're going to be late," she exclaimed, pulling out of Lindsey's arms. She hurried to the wooden chest at the foot of her bed and began pulling out various herbs and powders and books. She dumped out the contents of her bag and then refilled it with the items on the floor.

"Okay, I'm ready," she announced.

"What is all of that?" Lindsey asked as they got back in his truck.

"Giles asked me to do a protection spell, remember?"

"You really know how to do that?"

"Of course. I'm a kick-ass Wicca," Willow proudly stated. "Or at least I will be with some more practice. But Giles has been helping me a lot since he got fired. It's like he's my Watcher too."

"Which would explain his interest in opening a magic shop," Lindsey concluded.

"Yeah. He was the librarian at our high school as a cover for being Buffy's Watcher, but then he was fired and we blew up the school. This seemed like a good career move for him. And it'll give us a place to hang out and do research that's not his apartment. I think he was getting tired of a bunch of teenagers invading his personal space."

"Isn't there already a magic shop in Sunnydale?" Lindsey asked. "I'd think that with all of the supernatural activity that they would be a dime a dozen."

"Strangely, there's just the one. It just changes owners on a regular basis," Willow told him.

"Changes owners?" Lindsey skeptically repeated. "As in they keep dying?"

"Um, yes. I don't think many of them knew what really went on in this town. They were just glad that people bought what they were selling. I really liked the last two owners, but they both got attacked by vamps. That's the down side to having a business that's open at night."

"Isn't Mr. Giles worried about meeting the same fate?"

Willow shrugged. "Not more than any other day. We've been fighting evil for a long time now. We all know the risks. What makes him owning the shop different is that it's also going to be the new training space for the Slayer. We're hoping that will keep some of the baddies away."

Lindsey parked near the shop and he and Willow grabbed coffees and muffins at the Espresso Pump before heading in. They were still talking as they entered, not noticing who else was present.

Lindsey stood stock still as he was greeted by a voice he hoped never to hear again.

"How's the hand?"

Chapter 8

"How's the hand?"

Willow felt, rather than saw, the tension that filled Lindsey. She looked at him, then to the person who had spoken.

Taking a tentative step forward she asked, "Angel, what are you doing here?"

"Willow, get away from him," Angel harshly told her, his eyes never leaving Lindsey.

Willow stepped back, taking Lindsey's hand in hers. "No. What are you doing here?"

Willow caught movement and saw Buffy step forward next to Angel, a look of … not regret, but a silent apology nonetheless.

"Oh, Buffy, what have you done?" Willow asked quietly.

"I'm sorry, Will, but I did what I had to do," Buffy said, taking a step towards her best friend.

"What you had to do?" Willow slowly repeated. "What exactly is it that you thought that you had to do?"

Ignoring the stare-off between the two men, Buffy entreated to Willow's good sense. "I did what I thought was best for you. What you'd do for me. I had to prove to you that Lindsey is evil. I could see that you weren't going to take my word for it, but I thought you might listen to Angel, seeing as how they're enemies and all."

Willow was dumbfounded. She could hardly believe what she was hearing, let alone seeing. Her eyes roamed around the shop. For the first time she noticed that Giles and Xander were milling around the back, pretending to work, but obviously trying to stay out of the way.

Catching Xander's eye, she asked, "Did you know about this?"

Xander shuffled nervously to the front of the shop. "Yes and no. I didn't want any part of this. You have to believe me, Will. I liked Lindsey when we met," Xander said.

"You would," Angel dryly commented.

"A little warning might have been nice," Willow said.

Xander came closer and quietly said, "I tried calling you last night but you weren't home. Haven't you checked your messages?" He glanced quickly at Lindsey, then asked even quieter, "Have you been home since last night?"

Blushing to the roots of her hair, Willow answered, "I have been home, but I didn't have time to check the machine."

Realization dawned and Willow returned her attention to Buffy. "Is that why your bed wasn't slept in? You went to LA to get Angel?"

"I didn't think he'd come if I just called him," Buffy admitted.

"You drove to LA?" Willow asked, her disbelief evident in her voice.

"I tried to get Xander to drive me, but he refused," Buffy sulked.

"I told you I wasn't getting in the middle of this," he reminded Buffy. Thinking of Anya, he added, "Who Willow dates is none of our business. You've dated the evil undead before, I don't see why Willow can't date the not-so-evil not-undead."

"Because I have a soul," Angel ground out. "Why do I have to keep reminding you of that important detail? I didn't have a soul when I killed people. He did."

"I never killed anybody," Lindsey said, speaking for the first time.

"No, you just gave the orders. Worse yet, you did everything in your power to make sure that the monsters who did kill for fun got away with it."

"I was just doing my job," Lindsey snapped.

Turning to Xander, Angel said, "Did he tell you how we met? He was representing a powerful vampire who lured single girls with dreams of being famous to his home where he could kill them. He killed the girl I was trying to protect. When I went after him, he was about to kill Cordelia."

That bombshell had the desired effect. Xander looked back and forth between Lindsey and Angel. Lindsey looked slightly sick, whereas Angel looked smug. Then he looked at Buffy, who just looked uncomfortable. Finally, he turned his attention to Willow, who looked about how he felt. Granted, Cordelia had meant a lot more to him than she ever would to Willow.

Lindsey leaned down to whisper in Willow's ear. "Why did he bring up that detail about Cordelia?"

"She's Xander's ex," Willow whispered back.

Xander's face was blank as he stepped before Lindsey. "Is that true?" he asked.

"It's true," Lindsey admitted. "I even helped him track Ms. Chase down from a video tape of a party. I was very good at serving my clients."

Without warning, Xander swung back and punched Lindsey squarely in the jaw, causing him to fall backwards.

"Xander," Willow cried, kneeling down to cradle Lindsey's face to check the damage.

"Do you swear that you're done with it?" Xander demanded.

"I swear," Lindsey ground out. "I know that I can never make up for the things that I did at that place, but I had to walk away before I truly did lose my soul."

"If you so much as look at a baddie with understanding I'll stake you myself," Xander said.

"Um, Xan, he's human," Willow reminded him.

"I know," Xander said, coldly. Then he extended his hand to the man on the floor and helped him to stand.

"Excuse me," Buffy said, storming up to the others. "What just happened here? Xander, you were supposed to be on my side. You've never forgiven Angel for the bad things he's done."

"As Willow said, Lindsey's human. Humans make mistakes and can try to make their lives better when they see the errors of their ways. Deadboy is, and will always be, a vampire. There's no forgiveness or understanding."

"That doesn't even make sense!" Buffy protested. Spinning around she pleaded, "Angel, do something."

"What is it that you expect me to do?" he asked. "Do you want me to lay out every little detail that I know about what he did at Wolfram and Hart? Does it look to you like anything that I say will make a difference about how Willow feels about him? I told you that this wouldn't work."

"He's right, Buffy. I'm sure that I'll learn terrible things about Lindsey's past, over time, but that doesn't matter to me. What matters is who he is now, and who he wants to be in the future," Willow told her friend.

"Besides, I think we're too late," Angel said, glaring at Lindsey.

"What are you talking about?" Buffy asked.

She looked back to Willow and Lindsey, noticing how close they stood together, how Willow hadn't stopped touching him. Her eyes widened as she realized what Angel was implying.

"You slept with him?" Buffy screeched. "On the first date?"

Willow winced at the volume Buffy used, and at the accusatory tone. "That's none of your business," she bristled.

"Oh, God," Buffy groaned. "Don't you see, he's already corrupting you!"

"He didn't force me to do anything that I didn't want to do," Willow said, more confidently, memories of that morning making her smile.

"Willow, you'd never have sex on the first date," Buffy said, doubt creeping into her voice.

Smirking, Willow said, "I brought the condoms."

The sound of a hammer dropping and a muffled, "Good Lord," from the back of the shop caused Willow to blush. A glance at Xander's dazed, slack-jawed expression also reminded her that this wasn't the best place to have this conversation.

Lindsey released Willow's hand and slipped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer. He knew that that wasn't something she had planned on sharing with everyone, especially not all at once.

"I-I think that's enough of this for today," Giles said, intervening. "As it appears that I will be stuck with Angel for the day, I'll understand if you would like to wait until tomorrow to begin work."

"Thank you, Mr. Giles," Lindsey said. "I'm sorry to have put you in this position."

"It's just Giles. I know that it's not your fault. Buffy can be a bit stubborn at times," he said, apologetically.

"Hey!" Buffy said. "I can hear you, you know."

"Ah, yes, now you can hear me. Why is it that your ears were not working properly when we all tried to tell you to leave bloody well enough alone? If being with Lindsey is a mistake, Willow will discover that on her own. It serves no one's best interest for you to try to drive them apart," Giles told her, his frustration with her actions evident in his voice. Turning back to Willow and Lindsey he added, "Not that I believe that this is a mistake."

"I knew what you meant, Giles," Willow assured him. "Do you mind if I do the spell tomorrow too? I think I'd like to show Lindsey around some more today, since you're giving him the day off."

"Of course," Giles said. "Enjoy yourselves."

"Not too much," Angel added.

As Willow and Lindsey turned to leave, Buffy approached them. "Willow…"

"Not now, Buffy," Willow said, not turning around. "We'll deal with us later. I can't be around you right now."

"I was only trying to help," Buffy said.

"I know," Willow sadly acknowledged, pulling Lindsey out the door.

Chapter 9

The End

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