Here's part two of my B/G Christmas story. A little bit late, I guess, but it's still technically the holidays… right? Hope you guys will enjoy it.

Warning: I think this chapter drank a bottle of Riesling. Or the author did while writing it, at any rate. ;)

Title: Silent Night 2/2
Author: mischiefmagnet
Rating: M. This chapter quite heavily so...
Pairing: Buffy/Giles
Summary: Sequel to Unguarded, but can be read as a stand alone. Giles has arrived in Sunnydale with the Potentials just in time for Christmas. Things are tense between Slayer and Watcher. Will the spark between them light up or fizzle out? A B/G Christmas story.
Spoilers: Set right around the time of Season 7 'Bring On the Night', so at least up until then.
Disclaimer: Carries over from part 1.

Silent Night: Chapter 2

Buffy winced at the familiar bite of the antiseptic as Giles carefully tended to the cut on her eyebrow. Slayer healing would take care of her injuries practically overnight, disinfected or not, but he had insisted. Her thoughts were swirling around in her head so fast that she could hardly focus on the light pressure of his hands or his concerned face, intent upon the task, mere inches away from her own. It brought back memories of the time when she had tended his cuts and bruises in this same bathroom, just a few short months ago.

It might as well have been years since that night. Now, Annabelle was dead, the Turok-han was still on the loose, and Spike remained in the clutches of The First. So far Buffy had succeeded in getting her ass kicked twice, with absolutely nothing to show for it. Even Giles, who had claimed that she had 'all his faith', was obviously beginning to doubt her. The Slayer's throat constricted as she recalled the dispassionate tone in his voice when he spoke to the others about the possibility of internal bleeding, how unconcerned he had sounded when he told them that he didn't think she would die.

She remembered, with minty fresh clarity, the last time she had felt exactly this way. Everything about this moment reminded her. The gentle attention with which he treated her wounds, her confusion and anger regarding his behavior, the uncontrollable churning of her stomach… slap her into a pair of denim overalls and it might as well be her eighteenth birthday all over again.

Now just as much as back then, she was caught between needing his comfort and hating his actions. As his deft fingers brushed across her bruised and jaggedly split lip, the shudder she experienced reminded her that there were elements involved now that made things even more complicated than they had been after the Cruciamentum. She was willing to admit that some of what she had been feeling then made a whole hell of a lot more sense now, if looked at from a certain angle. Was it possible that she felt this way about Giles even in high school? Buffy giggled briefly at her own shortsightedness. Unfortunately, smiling made her cuts hurt and it came over looking like a cringe.

The contortions of her face caused Giles to pause in his work, and he regarded her with a sort of confused trepidation. His eyebrows were knit together so cutely, Buffy was finding it hard to be mad at him. She swayed slightly atop the closed toilet seat, and his arm reached out instinctively to steady her. Allowing her body to pitch forward slightly, she gripped one of his shoulders and took comfort in his solidity. He was kneeling in front of her on the bathroom floor, first-aid kit open next to him. There was a fear in his eyes, unobscured even behind his glasses, that did not correspond with the harsh words she had heard him speak earlier.

"So what's the prognosis, Doctor Giles?"

He frowned slightly, releasing his steadying grip on her arm. "I beg your pardon?"

"Am I gonna die or not? Inquiring minds want to know."

The frown deepened and he removed his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Buffy, you and I both know that it would take much more than this to kill you. Why would you even ask such a question?"

Narrowing her eyes, Buffy reached out and pulled his hand away from his face so that she could see him. "Why don't you tell me? You're the one that let the others think my life was hanging in the balance. Was that supposed to boost my confidence?"

Giles sighed, turning the hand she had grabbed so that his palm slid against hers. "I'm sorry Buffy, I just… it's dangerous for them to think of you as invincible. They won't grow stronger if they rely on you for everything."

"You're the one who told them I was our only hope against The First."

Slumping down in front of her, Giles looked at their joined hands, his thoughts obviously traveling to another plane. She couldn't remember the last time her Watcher had looked so totally defeated. "I know. I shouldn't have put so much pressure on you. It was inexcusable. I thought it better for them to have some hope, rather than none at all. Perhaps I was wrong." He looked like he was ready to cry, and Buffy finally understood that Giles was terrified. In fact, he was just as scared as she was. "Buffy, I didn't know what else to do. I still don't."

"Shhh, it's okay." she whispered. Both her hands reached out to frame his face, tilting it upward so that she could look into his eyes. "There is still hope, but you were right. They need to work for it. We can't just let things happen anymore. And if it's up to me to make them happen instead, I'm fine with that. But… Giles, I can't do this alone. I need your faith and your support. I need…"

He had moved closer to her as she spoke, unfolding to the maximum height allowed by his kneeling position. Buffy whimpered as she felt his hands stroking up her legs, starting at her knees and coming to rest on top of her thighs. His thumbs traced distracted circles, which she felt through the velour material of her pants. Her hands were still caressing his face, trembling, and she noticed a certain wild vulnerability in his eyes which spoke of deeply hidden anguish.

One hand slid to her hip, squeezing absently. His other tangled into her hair, grasping behind her ear and drawing her forward. Buffy's breath came in short gasps as his turbulent green eyes told their story. "I can't stand the thought of losing you, Buffy. I-"

Suddenly, her lips were pressed against his. She shut her eyes, winding her arms around his neck to draw him closer. She met with no resistance from Giles, who simply leaned in further and moved the hand that had rested on her hip so that his arm was wrapped snugly around her waist. Their mouths caressed gently at first, awakening with the memory of touch. Tilting her head to the side, Buffy tried to taste more of him, pushing her tongue through the seam of his lips to stroke the inside of his mouth.

Giles was by no means a detached participant. A low growl escaped his throat, vibrating into their kiss as he slid his tongue along the back of her top row of teeth and stroked it against the roof of her mouth. Their chests were pressed together, Buffy's legs spreading further apart, wanting him even closer. Their hands began to wander, teasing patches of exposed skin and moving over the shape of each other's bodies through the barrier of their clothes.

Buffy could tell that Giles was using extraordinary restraint to keep the kiss gentle, trying not to harm her busted lip. She forced her mouth harder against his, ignoring the almost pleasurable sting of pain, wanting to give him everything she could. He responded by twining his tongue heatedly with hers and stroking his fingers down the line of her neck, searching for the zipper of her velour tracksuit.

They broke the kiss, looking into each other's eyes as he began to unzip her top. She reached around to cradle his head, pressing her lips against the side of his face as he moved his kisses along her neck and collarbone. "Mmm. Giles…" Buffy gasped, pressing her hips forward and wrapping her legs around his torso.

As he teased her newly exposed sternum with his teeth and tongue, an insistent knock came at the bathroom door.

It was Dawn. "Are you guys done in there yet? I know Buffy's face is pretty torn up, but this is the only bathroom in the house. Nature, you know? It's kinda calling!"

And with that, Giles was on his feet, looking abashed, while Buffy re-zipped her top and picked the first aid kit up off the floor. She cleared her throat. "Just a second, Dawnie!"

As Giles reached out for the doorknob, Buffy stopped him with a hand on his arm. The Watcher jumped slightly and turned his head toward her. She handed him his glasses, noticing how his hand shook as they made the exchange. "Th-thank you," he ground out. They shared a long and searching look, during which Buffy could see her Watcher rebuilding the walls behind his eyes. She sighed, following him out of the bathroom and studying his tall and sturdy form as it traveled down the hallway at speed.

Dawn had noticed Giles' hasty departure, and gave Buffy a questioning look. "What's his problem?"

Shrugging, Buffy took a few steps toward her bedroom, regarding Dawn out of the corner of her eye. "He has a lot on his mind. He'll be okay."

The Slayer sighed as her sister shut the bathroom door. "…I hope," she added under her breath. Buffy looked down the hall at the point where Giles had disappeared from view, still feeling the aftershocks of what had just happened between them. Why did everything have to be so… difficult? What had ever happened to 'I got a thing, maybe you have a thing'… She shut the door to her bedroom and flopped down onto her bed, face first.

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For a long time, he laid on the couch and he thought. Hands propped behind his head and legs scrunched at the knee so that he would fit onto the rather inadequately short piece of furniture, he permitted his mind to absently scrutinize his actions, his feelings, and the position they were in. God, he loved her. So much that it hurt to be in the same room and not touch her, to deny himself the comfort of the simple physical contact that she was so obviously willing to give.

What she needed, however, was his strength. She needed his faith and his support, she had said so herself. And if he didn't keep hold of himself he wouldn't be able to give her any of those things, because she would see how shattered he actually was inside and how fragile his control over the situation really had become.

Tomorrow was Christmas Eve, not that it mattered. The First was unlikely to take a holiday, and they would have to keep fighting just like it was any other day. As Giles drifted to sleep, he reasoned that if he had just one Christmas wish, perhaps he would travel back in time to that night months ago when he held her in his arms with no fears and no regrets. She was everything to him, but to keep her alive and himself sane, he would put his feelings on the shelf. And maybe, just maybe, if they made it through this fight, there would be a chance for them after all.

He sighed, feeling the ghost of her fingers tracing across his lips, his whole body in a tumult just thinking about her slender form wrapping itself lasciviously around him. Rupert Giles smiled, an expression so brief that it could have been missed by even the sharpest eye. His imagination and his libido were obviously in league against him, but nobody had said this would be easy…

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Two more Potential Slayers arrived on the morning of Christmas Eve. Chloe and Vi had sensed each other out somewhere between the Sunnydale bus depot and Buffy's house- now otherwise known as Slayer Central- and had arrived together, slightly spooked but without incident. This meant another shuffle of sleeping arrangements, in which Buffy lost the privacy of her bedroom and Giles lost his couch after merely one night of constricted but comparatively blissful slumber.

Buffy sighed, pulling on her boots in the fading afternoon light. Classy, but not too high-heeled to run in. Her skirt was functional as well, form fitting, but with a diagonal cut that would allow for any necessary ass-kicking that might take place. With a wry expression, the Slayer contemplated the sad fact that such things needed to be taken into consideration while getting ready for… a Christmas party. School had let out for the holiday yesterday, but Principal Wood had insisted that the only appropriate time for a real faculty holiday celebration was Christmas Eve itself.

Checking herself over in the mirror and giving her reflection a non-committal shrug, Buffy grabbed a leather jacket from the closet and headed downstairs. She was hoping to make a short appearance at the party and then maybe take a quick patrol just to see if anything was going on- the past two days had been altogether too quiet, notwithstanding her fight with the Turok-han. At the bottom of the stairs, she met Giles. The carefully hidden flash of his eyes told Buffy that he, at least, approved of her outfit.

"You… errr…" The Watcher cleared his throat and leveled his gaze, "You look lovely, Buffy."

Her lips quirked into a smile. She could see that he was confused by her attire. A tiny, mean little part of her wished she could turn his bewilderment to her advantage and make him so jealous. After their spontaneous encounter in the bathroom, however, the tension between them was already thick enough without adding extra… layers. "Thanks. Unfortunately I have to go to a Christmas party for work. I might patrol after that, so don't wait up."

Giles raised an eyebrow, removing his glasses and leaning one hand against the doorframe separating the foyer from the living room. "Well seeing as I've no place to sleep but the floor, I doubt that will be a concern. I'll see you when you get in."

It was something that she realized she liked- the idea of him waiting up for her, being there when she got home. There would probably even be tea. Taking a few steps in his direction, Buffy looked around to make sure there weren't any nosy onlookers. Satisfied, she raised herself on tiptoe and feathered a chaste kiss onto his lips. Giles stayed perfectly still as she drew away. He looked like a beguiling combination of a deer in the headlights and a tiger ready to pounce. Part of Buffy wished that he would just let himself go, lay a claim to her for everyone to see, take her right here by the staircase where anyone could walk in on them. If he did that, though, she would probably never make it to the Christmas party.

Instead of kissing him again, which was what she would have liked to do, she smiled, holding his eyes with her changeable blue-green gaze. "Thanks."

He rewarded her with a small grin, replacing his glasses on his face and crossing his arms over his chest. "Be careful."

"You know I will."

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It was well past midnight when Buffy arrived home. The Christmas party had been sparsely attended, due to the fact that many of the teachers were out of town for the holiday. Unfortunately this made it even harder to get away, because the lack of attendees meant her presence would be more easily missed. She had slipped away around nine and started a very exhaustive patrol. It wasn't so much because of the activity out in the night; more because of all the thoughts swirling through her head. Walking the streets and graveyards in the dark hours had always helped her sort through the mess, at least between stakings.

The house was dark when she entered, and she could see a baby-Slayer-shaped lump slumbering on the couch. She thought about heading upstairs to change into something more comfortable, but she could hear a familiar set of noises beckoning from the kitchen. A certain kind of shuffling, the sound of a burner flaring to life. Giles was making tea. Buffy crept silently down the hallway, not wanting to disturb any sleeping Potentials or snoozing Andrews. Sure enough, she found her Watcher in the kitchen fiddling with the tea things.

"Buffy, hello," he said in a low voice. He was measuring leaves into the tea ball with characteristic accuracy, glancing up at her as she deposited herself on a stool at the breakfast bar. "Everything alright?"

"Quiet as a mouse." Buffy frowned slightly. "Don't you think that's a bit strange? Nothing going on in any part of town." She removed her leather jacket, tossing it onto the stool beside her. "I'm getting kinda worried about Spike."

Giles' jaw tightened at the mention of the blond vampire. "I am sure you needn't worry. The First must know that you intend to rescue Spike. It would be foolish to dispose of such a… valuable bargaining chip."

The tea ball was slammed into the teapot with unnecessary violence, chain rattling. Giles placed both of his hands on the countertop, taking some pains to rein in his emotions. He regarded Buffy, briefly, and she found herself surprised by how close to the surface his hostility was. "Giles, we need Spike's help. He's an ally, nothing more, nothing less."

"Oh, and what has he ever done for us? For you? Forgive me if I fail to understand what assistance you think he can provide." He huffed over to the stove, picking up the boiling kettle and pouring the hot water into the teapot.

Buffy sat stunned, caught off guard by the Englishman's vehement antagonism regarding Spike. "Giles, what is this really about?"

Placing the lid on the kettle so the tea could steep, Giles deflated slightly. Sinking onto a stool at the edge of the kitchen island, he pushed up the sleeve of his dark button-down shirt and glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "I'm sorry, Buffy. It's really none of my business, is it?" He removed his glasses, propping an elbow on the countertop and rubbing his temples. "I just hope you won't let your feelings for Spike impair your judgement."

Oh. So that was it.

"My feelings? Giles, please. That is so over. Not that there really was much of anything to begin with. Besides…" She rose and moved closer to him, sitting on the edge of the stool next to his. "… I want it to be your business."

He didn't seem to know quite how to respond to her statement. His mouth opened and closed, and he ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "Buffy, I… we can't do this. You know that."

"No, I don't know. And if you feel the same way I feel, I definitely don't understand." She reached across the divide to trace her fingers over the top of his hand. "Why won't you just let it happen? Don't you think we deserve this?"

Jumping out of his seat, he looked around the room distractedly. After a few moments of panic, he found an anchor, something to focus on. "The tea should be ready by now. Would you care for some?"

Buffy nodded after a pause, letting his evasion of the issue slide for the moment. She owed him at least the benefit of enough time to compose himself. She watched as he fixed her tea exactly how she liked it, with two sugars and just a splash of milk. He took the two cups and saucers and brought them back over to their seats. Standing next to his stool, he reached over to hand Buffy her teacup. As she reached out to take it from him, the tips of their fingers brushed against each other. At the same moment, their eyes met.

It was the straw that broke the camel's back. The teacup and saucer plummeted to the floor beside them, smashing into jagged but unregarded pieces. Before the cup even hit the linoleum, Buffy and Giles were kissing deeply, mouths colliding with something akin to electromagnetic force. His arms went around her, yanking her into a standing position and depositing himself onto the stool so that their heights were nearly even. She pressed her body against his, insinuating her smaller form between his legs as they continued to kiss with sensual and demanding force.

The only word that came to Buffy's lust-addled mind at this turn of events was '*yes*'. This was right. This was perfect. This was exactly what she wanted. A happy little moan escaped her throat as one of Giles' hands wound up into her hair and the other descended, caressing down the length of her spine and coming to rest on her backside. She squirmed against the hand, encouraging, and was rewarded with a light squeeze.

Giles gasped as their lips parted, green eyes searching hers. She pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth in response, never breaking eye contact. He shuddered, brushing the hair away from the side of her face with one large hand as she sucked his bottom lip into her mouth and gave it a nibble. Their kisses were like a drug; the more of each other they took, the more they needed to stay satisfied. Within moments their mouths were molded tightly once again, tongues feverishly entangled.

They stayed this way for several minutes, kisses moving over lips, jaws, earlobes, and even eyebrows. Buffy had both arms wrapped around Giles' neck, taking it in turn to caress his back and shoulders through the material of his shirt. His hands were also busy; one pushing aside the edge of her blouse so that he could kiss the juncture of her neck and shoulder, the other gliding up to the small of her back and pulling her harder against him.

Buffy could feel the incontrovertible evidence of his desire, and she ground herself deliberately against the hardness in his pants. "Jesus, Buffy," he gasped out, letting his head fall back in bliss. She took the opportunity to drag her tongue up his neck and over his pulse point, pausing to bite the sensitive flesh. His hips rocked against hers in response, and she found herself smiling, feeling joy in the act of giving him such pleasure. While he was distracted, she moved her small hands to the front of his shirt and started to unbutton.

When Giles realized what she was up to, he made an alarmed sound in his throat and stilled her inquisitive hands. "That… we can't, love, not here…"

Raising an eyebrow and pressing her center against his arousal once again, Buffy begged to differ. "Giles, this is the only room in the house without a mini Slayer sleeping in it."

He sputtered as she leaned over, taking his earlobe between her lips and scraping her teeth against the delicate skin. "But…" he released an involuntary groan of abandon in the middle of the sentence, which drained much of the credibility from his protest. "…somebody might-"

"This is still my house, isn't it? If I want to make love in my kitchen, I dare anyone to try and stop me."

The argument ended there. Disarmed by her profession that she wished to make love to him, Giles allowed her hands to resume their quest to reveal more skin. He kissed her tenderly, slowly fitting the shape of his lips into perfect harmony with hers as his hand trailed down her leg and his fingers cleverly found their way beneath her skirt.

The two were so enraptured, so completely caught up in their moment of agonizing passion, that they failed to see a dark head peeking around the corner. The figure seemed to realize that its presence was likely unwanted, so after a few shocked moments of observation the visitor moved silently away…

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A shellshocked Kennedy returned, trancelike, to the bedroom she was currently sharing with Willow. What she had seen in the kitchen had been far, far outside of what she had considered to be the realm of possibility. Silently, she made her way to the bed, climbing in and sitting indian style. She barely noticed the inquisitive witchy gaze that was greeting her.

"Hey, where's the cheese and crackers?" Willow wasn't exactly jazzed about having to share her room with a Potential Slayer, but the slumber party atmosphere did have certain advantages, such as sending someone else to go fetch the midnight snack.

Kennedy was still in a slightly amused daze. "What? Oh…" The dark haired girl snickered. "I guess we weren't the only ones who were hungry."

Willow tilted her head sideways. "What do you mean?"

"There was someone down there. Snacking. On each other."

"Vampires? There were vampires in the kitchen?" Willow jumped up from her nest of blankets on the bedroom floor, panicking and looking frantically around for the nearest bottle of holy water.

She became confused when the only answer she got from Kennedy was a series of manic giggles. Once the laughter subsided and Willow reseated herself, Kennedy spoke again. "No, silly! No vampires. Now come on, Willow. I thought us roomies were supposed to share all the best gossip. So why didn't you tell me about Buffy and Giles?" Kennedy snuggled down into the bed sideways, peering down at the witch with the eager expression of a high schooler who thinks they're about to hear something really juicy.

"About… what? What about Buffy and Giles?"

"You know! Like, how long have they been going at it hot and heavy?"

Willow's jaw dropped. "They… how long have they… we are talking about Buffy, right? Buffy and Giles?"

"Yes. Buffy. And Giles," Kennedy parroted. "They're down there right now devouring each other in the kitchen. I mean, I've heard about Watchers and Slayers getting together before, but *wow*!"

Willow was paralyzed with shock. "I… I…" Feeling slightly faint, she allowed her head to fall back onto her pillow. Pressing a hand to her forehead, she tried to wrap her considerably mighty brain around the concept. Buffy… and Giles? "Oh Goddess… Tara, you were right!"

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Buffy trembled with anticipation at the feeling of Giles' hand sliding up the outside of her thigh. She tilted her leg just slightly sideways, causing her skirt to ride up even further. His right hand, meanwhile, had found its way up the back of her blouse and was stroking the skin there. Leaning into the warmth which radiated from his newly exposed torso, Buffy bent her head sideways and placed a hot open-mouthed kiss on Giles' chest just above his nipple. She could see the bud of flesh tightening in response, so she slid her lips over and teased it with her teeth. Giles released a choked groan, his fingers on the skin of her back digging into her flesh.

She had almost forgotten about his hand up her skirt in her moments of fascination with his bare chest, but it reasserted its presence in a big way when Buffy felt Giles' thumb pressing against her clit through the silky material of her panties. She whimpered, lips pressing loosely against his. He rubbed the thumb in slow circles, and she threw her head back, hands clutching at his open shirtfront for support. He rewarded her response by pushing the silky undergarment aside and sliding one long finger into her waiting warmth.

"Yes…" She pushed her hips against his hand, wanting more of the delicious sensations. Buffy's hands scrambled away from the collar of his shirt, which they had been grasping like a lifeline, and flew to his belt buckle.

He gently grasped her hands and pushed them away. "Not yet," he whispered. He rose to his feet. Buffy made a small noise of protest, until she felt herself being lifted from the floor and set onto the kitchen counter. Her skirt was bunched almost up to her hips by the time she was seated, a fact she understood as a deliberate act on Giles' part.

His hands were braced on the kitchen counter on either side of her as he bestowed a very erotic series of kisses on her mouth. A short one, a long and languorous one with lots of teeth and tongue, a feather soft touch of the lips that was barely there… Giles kept her so intrigued with the endless variety of his kisses that Buffy wasn't even aware that her blouse was totally undone, as well as the clasp of her bra. She laughed as she shrugged the garments away. "Sneaky," she breathed.

"Are you complaining?" His large hands covered her breasts, giving them a warm and stimulating massage. His slightly callused thumbs teased her nipples, and complaints were the furthest thing from her mind. Replacing his hands with his mouth as his fingers slid down her torso, Giles didn't give her a chance to reply. He pushed her skirt up even further so that it was bunched around her waist.

Making his way down her body with unhurried kisses, the Watcher allowed his hand to slide back inside of Buffy's panties, intoxicated by the slick wet heat he found there. Hooking his fingers into the waistband of her underwear, he gently pulled them off. Taking care not to catch them on the heels of her boots, he looked around thoughtfully for a moment with the panties in his hand. Not wanting to leave them forgotten on the kitchen table, he placed the silky underwear into the pocket of his trousers.

"Saving them for later?" Buffy asked in a joking tone.

Giles kissed her gently, burning her with his gaze. "Not bloody likely. I want to give you everything right now." He resumed his path of kisses, starting between her breasts, descending to her navel, edging ever closer to his goal as he bent down before her. "I don't intend to save anything for later."

It took all of her willpower not to cry out when his mouth reached her burning core. His lips pressed insistently, tongue gliding a path up along her opening and sweeping up to tease her clitoris. Her body was throbbing with need for him, and she grabbed wildly at his shoulders as he buried his face between her legs. After a few moments, he added his clever fingers to the mix, pushing two digits in and drawing them back out while he did amazing things to her pulsing bundle of nerves with his lips and teeth and tongue. Being a quick study by nature, Giles soon found the exact way that he needed to rub his tongue against her clit, the perfect angle to thrust with his fingers to drive her absolutely crazy. In short order she was gasping and writhing in response to his efforts, painfully close to orgasm.

When Buffy was sure she couldn't take it anymore, she pulled Giles up and away from her center. Trapping his body between her legs she kissed him ardently, tasting herself in his mouth and fumbling with the fastenings on his belt. He assisted her, himself painfully aroused and not willing to wait much longer. Soon, his trousers and boxer shorts were pushed away, and Buffy's boot heels were digging into his backside to force him closer.

The kitchen counter happened to be at a very advantageous height. Both Buffy and Giles released shuddering breaths when his hardness met with her sensitized core. Buffy reached one small hand down to stroke him, wasting little time in leading the tip of his cock to her entrance.

It was absolute ecstasy when he slid inside her, burying himself to the hilt. The angle was steep, and their bodies were fused tightly together. Her legs were around his waist, inching higher up his torso to draw him deeper. Buffy's arms were around his neck, breasts pressed against his chest. They regarded each other for a long moment, nose to nose, conveying the force of their feelings without words. She broke the holding pattern first, rolling her hips deliberately against his. Soon they were locked in a tantalizing rhythm, with Giles driving in and out of her and Buffy using the kitchen counter as leverage to increase the unbearably sensuous pressure.

Their breathing became erratic, hands grasping at each other in a bid to pull their bodies even closer. "Giles…" Buffy could feel herself preparing for an explosive release, her channel gripping Giles' member as he fucked her deliciously. As her orgasm arrived, a loud moan began to wind its way up into her throat, and she didn't think she would be able to stop it. In the nick of time, she felt Giles' hand fly up to stifle her scream of pleasure.

The unintended sensuality of his hand across her mouth served to enhance and prolong her orgasm, and she was still feeling more than just aftershocks when he followed moments later. Removing his hand from her mouth, he kissed her savagely as he pumped his seed into her. Her body had risen completely off of the counter, hips grinding against his to feel as much of his pulsing cock inside of her as humanly possible. The invincibility of orgasm passed suddenly, and Giles' legs gave out. Their entwined bodies fell to the kitchen floor, thankfully avoiding the broken tea cup, landing in a satisfied tangle of limbs.

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For several minutes there was no sound made other than heavy, sated breathing. Buffy's head was pillowed on Giles' chest, and his hand traced indefinable patterns on the skin of her back. The Slayer made a pleased little noise as Giles' legs shifted slightly beneath her, causing his thigh to brush against her overstimulated center.

"Well, that was definitely worth the wait. Best Christmas present I've ever gotten." Buffy raised her head to look at Giles, tracing his features gently with her fingertips.

The Watcher sighed happily, tightening his arms around her. "Mmm. Indeed." His goofy grin morphed into a slightly pained expression as he looked into her face, "Buffy, I-"

His train of thought was derailed by a finger softly pressed against his lips. "Oh no you don't. I can just imagine all the serious stuff that wants to come out of that gorgeous mouth. It can wait. Right now, we're just going to be happy for five minutes. It's Christmas, after all. Got it?"

He nodded, willing to admit that there was a certain wisdom in her suggestion. In moments like these, they could be together like they wanted to be, no matter what else was happening in their twisted and unpredictable lives. And if they survived the next big threat, perhaps all their moments could be like this one.

Kissing her softly, with all the love he could summon, Giles marveled at the woman in his arms, dazzled by the adoration in her eyes and the glow of their lovemaking. "Merry Christmas, Buffy."

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That's the end! Happy New Year, everybody! Feedback will be rewarded with the pop of a Champagne bottle. Don't hesitate to leave *lots* of reviews- I like cheap Champagne, so it's no strain on my wallet! ;)