CHAPTER 19 - A Little Reassurance

It was much later than usual when Elizabeth woke up, she could tell from the way the sunlight streamed through the crack in the curtains. Not that she minded, it'd actually done her good, she'd obviously slept much more deeply and relaxingly than normal.

Stretching her pleasantly aching body, she arched her back luxuriously then froze, her eyes snapping open when the previous night's events suddenly came flooding back in a rush.

William had said he loved her…and she'd said she loved him. She felt her face flush slightly when she recalled how they'd then shown each other exactly how much, her body tingling and warming in reaction at the remembered passion.

A coy smile formed on her lips and she turned her head, eager to look at the man who'd so unexpectedly come into her life and completely turned it upside down. She blinked, the smile slowly fading from her mouth as disappointment flooded her system when she saw that the space next to her was empty.

Had it all been a dream? A really fantastic, explicit dream? From the slight soreness of her body, she seriously doubted it.

Sitting up slowly, she glanced around the room as if William would magically appear out of thin air. This wasn't right, was it? After their admissions of love and the tenderness they'd shared, shouldn't he have woken her up with those body melting kisses of his…or at the very least, still be in the bed next to her asleep?

Maybe he’d just gone to the bathroom, she decided, looking hopefully at her bedroom door. He’d be back in a few seconds and everything would be alright again. Realising that if he had just left then the space next to her should still be warm, she reached out under the covers and felt her heart trip when she felt how cool they were.

Obviously, William had been gone a while.

"Oh God," she suddenly muttered, feeling her throat tighten ominously as the part of her that couldn't forget Parker's duplicity rose to the fore and planted a tiny seed of niggling doubt that incited cold fingers of dread to creep up her spine.

Had it all been a lie after all?

Had all his words and actions been some hurtful game?

Had he merely proclaimed he loved her purely to bed her again?

She shook her head in negation, determinedly battling her internal demons of insecurity. No! He was sincere, she was positive…she was!

Almost.

The handle to her door rattled and her head jerked up in time to see William enter the room balancing a tray of steaming drinks and toast in one hand while pushing the door shut with the other.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," he greeted with a grin as he walked over and put the tray down on the bedside cabinet. "About time you woke up, although I have to admit I’m a little disappointed that I don’t get to wake you up in my own way," he revealed with a chuckle as he bent down and picked up the lamp that was still laying on the floor.

Switching it off, he then placed it on the cabinet next to the tray and turned around, getting his first good look at her since he'd walked in. Tensing, the smile immediately left his face as he took in her taut, pale features and felt a wave of nausea roll over him as it struck him that she looked as though she was apparently having regrets.

As soon as the thought entered his mind, William forcibly pushed it away. He'd already made too many assumptions when it came to Elizabeth and if he wanted this to work out as much as he did then he was going to have to learn to talk about things more…they both were.

"Buffy?" he queried guardedly. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Elizabeth mumbled with a sniff before looking down at the bedspread and blinking rapidly in order to stay the tears of relief that threatened to flow.

God, she was an idiot. Once again, she'd allowed all her fears to overcloud what she knew to be true and had worked herself into a right state over naught. She knew her lack of self-confidence was low, but she hadn't quite realised just how bad it was until that moment. True, their relationship was still new…very new…but to imagine the worst without even speaking to him…she really, really needed to work on that.

"Tears don't usually mean nothing," William pointed out softly as he sat down on the edge of the bed next to her. Gently, he placed a finger under her chin and lifted her face so he could get a good look at her. "Are you sorry about…last night?" he asked apprehensively.

"No," Elizabeth assured him with a watery smile. "No, not at all. I-it's just me being stupid, that's all."

"Stupid, how?" he asked with a slight frown as he removed his hand from her face.

Looking away, Elizabeth sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "I guess I just kind of…panicked when I woke up and…and you weren't there," she admitted hesitantly.

William stared at her downbent head and felt his heart contract. It didn't take a genius to work out what she was implying and he quickly quelled his initial reaction of irritation that after everything they'd shared, she'd believe that he'd behave like that.

Instead, muttering her name, he reached out and pulled her into his warm embrace, hoping to reassure her and soothe her unfounded fears. When he'd first woken up and seen her sleeping so peacefully next to him, he'd simply lain and stared at her for ages, convincing himself that this was real and that Elizabeth actually loved him.

With his newfound feelings of love, he’d discovered a new kind of caring and knowing that it was his lovemaking that had worn her out he’d decided to get up and surprise her with breakfast in bed. He'd never even considered how she'd feel if she woke up and found him gone, but now that he knew, he gave himself a mental kick upside the head for causing her such distress.

"I'm sorry, love," he said contritely, turning his head to place a gentle kiss on her temple. "I should've been here when you woke up…I just didn't think…"

"No, no, it's okay," she replied, pulling back a little to look at him, the tears no longer evident in her eyes. "Really. It's not you, it's me. I…I just…I mean, I guess it's still all sinking in."

William smiled and nodded his head. "I know how you feel," he commented with feeling, his warm gaze never leaving hers. Lifting his hand, he gently smoothed her hair back from her face and then cupped her cheek, his thumb lightly caressing her soft skin. “I am sorry, Buffy,” he told her again, his sincerity clear. She opened her mouth to say something but he shook his head, stopping her. “I know I made a mistake this morning, and God knows, I’ll probably make a few more as time goes on because I’m not perfect but you can be damn sure that what happened this morning will never happen again.”

Hearing the promise in his voice and seeing the sentiment echoed in his eyes, Elizabeth could only nod. “I know,” she said huskily.

“Good,” he said in a relieved tone before leaning in and brushing a gentle kiss across her lips.

She smiled and let out a long sigh. “I’ve got to learn not to keep thinking the worst, but it’s hard.”

“We’ve both got our insecurities but that’s natural considering our pasts, Love,” William said insightfully. “Hell, I think we’ve both come a long way just since yesterday, but I’m sure there’ll be a few more bumps in the road yet…that’s life. But we’ll pull through them…together.”

She nodded, his words oddly reassuring even though they predicted uncertain times ahead because it showed that he intended to be with her for a good long while.

Determined to lighten the mood, she leaned forward and gave him a brief kiss on the lips then pulled back and looked over at the tray of food expectantly. “Right then…breakfast.”

Following her lead in changing the subject, William glanced over at the tray then looked back at her and said teasingly, "When I woke up this morning, I still couldn’t believe you’d said you loved me and so I thought I'd hedge my bets and bribe you with breakfast in bed."

Elizabeth looked up at him from beneath her lashes, her lips quirking slightly. "That's the way to a man's heart, not a woman's," she pointed out dryly.

William’s eyebrows rose and his smile widened at her response. “So it is,” he agreed as he reached out and picked up the plate of toast. “Well then, since this isn’t going to get me anywhere with you, I’d better have it then, eh?”

He picked up half a slice and opened his mouth to take a bite only to have both the bread and the plate snatched from his hands at the last minute.

“Hey, that’s mine!” Elizabeth exclaimed before taking a bite of the toast. William watched her devour the food in record time with obvious amusement. “What?” Elizabeth queried self-consciously when she’d finished. “I was hungry.”

“Looks like," William agreed dryly as he took her plate and put it back on the tray. "Not surprising considering how little you ate yesterday."

"I was worried," she defended herself mildly as her bottom lip jutted out slightly.

William's gaze locked on her mouth then, unable to stop himself, he leaned in and captured her pouty lip between his teeth giving it a gentle nip.

Elizabeth responded, parting her lips, encouraging him to deepen the kiss as she ran her hands up the front of his chest and under his robe. William leaned into her touch, his own hands coming to rest on her waist.

The kiss was long and unhurried, an act of two people who were simply in love.

When they broke apart Elizabeth gave him a regretful smile. “I guess I should get up and see to Dawn and Connor,” she said on a sigh.

“They’ve gone out,” William informed her as he leaned forward to nuzzle at her neck. “I saw them this morning when I was downstairs making the toast. She said that they’d be out until around lunchtime.”

“She did?” Elizabeth queried on a gasp as his hand slowly slid up her body to gently cup her breast. Her head dropped back and eyes fell shut as William expertly brought her body alight. “So…we’re alone then?”

“Completely,” William clarified before pushing her abruptly back onto the bed and dipping his head to capture her lips.

This time the kiss was demanding and urgent as he sought to arouse and inflame. Elizabeth tugged on his robe and William stopped his devastating onslaught for the briefest of moments to roughly shrug off the offending item and throw it on the floor before jerking back the covers and joining her in bed.

Elizabeth's nightgown soon followed the way of William's robe and they both sighed in pleasure as their bodies finally met, skin to heated skin. Lips barely parting for more than a few seconds at any one time, they made love slowly, hands exploring each other's now familiar contours, kneading and stroking, their touch both urgent and tender in a mixture of reassurance and desire.

And then, when he eventually sank into her warm, welcoming heat, he began a steady rhythm of long, measured strokes demanding a response she was unable to resist. Moving together as one, their bodies strained and ground against each other trying to give and receive as much pleasure as possible before succumbing to their mutual need for fulfilment, words of love tumbling from their lips.

As their breathing calmed down, William gave her a lingering kiss then gently pulled out of her and moved down slightly, laying his head down comfortably on her chest with a contented sigh. "I think I'm just going to stay here all day," he mumbled lazily as he nuzzled against her damp skin.

Elizabeth looked down at the top of his head and smiled as she lifted a hand to run her fingers through his mussed up hair. It struck her that they hadn't been using any kind of protection and for once in her sensible life, she found that she didn't care about the possible repercussions of her actions. Whatever happened, she was certain that William would be there for her…for them. True, he hadn't mentioned marriage…far to early to be thinking about that…well, for him anyway…but for her, she knew this was it; that there'd never be another.

"Mmmm, definitely staying here all day," he declared, snuggling into her further, enjoying her gentle touch.

Elizabeth let out a little giggle and suddenly felt freer than she had in years. Here she was, laying in bed in the middle of the morning with her lover in her arms…

She sighed and let those two words roll around in her brain for a moment, relishing the sound of them. Her lover. It was amazing how quickly she'd become accustomed to those words in relation to William, particularly after all of her self-righteous determination to remain unmoved…not that that had ever really worked.

He'd battled against her defences again and again and she now wondered why she ever fought against it so hard…especially when his tongue was gently running along the underside of her breast like that…

Drawing in a sharp breath at the sensation, she about to say something about him being insatiable when she was silenced by the muffled sound of the front door opening and shutting. The voices of Dawn and Connor could be dimly heard as they entered the house and William lifted his head to look at her ruefully.

“So much for being out until lunchtime,” he commented on a sigh. "Oh well, as much I'd love to stay here, we should really be getting up anyway…you've got a lot of shopping to do." Rolling off her, he threw back the cover then sat on the edge of the bed and leaned down to pick up his robe.

"For what?" she queried curiously as he stood up and slipped into his robe.

Tying his belt securely about his waist, William glanced over his shoulder at her then, in a tone that told her he thought it was obvious, said, "For your wedding dress of course."

Elizabeth stared at him, stunned. "My what?" she asked faintly, not sure if she heard him right.

Looking away, William felt a little of his nerve falter and briefly wondered if he was pushing too fast. They'd only just admitted their feelings. Just because he knew that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Elizabeth, it didn't mean that she did too. Hell, she probably hadn't even thought about it.

"William?" Elizabeth pressed when he remained silent. Maybe she hadn't heard right after all, she thought, feeling her stomach drop in disappointment.

Drawing in a deep breath, William turned to face her and summoned a confident smile. "I said we need to get you a wedding dress…I believe we did say we'd marry in June, didn't we?" Tilting his head, his gaze softened as he added huskily, "And I do intend to carry that out, Elizabeth…if you'll have me, of course?"

Wide-eyed, Elizabeth continued to stare at him as his words slowly began to sink in. "Oh my God," she breathed before her whole face lit up in delight. With a small shriek, she threw back the covers then launched herself from the bed into his waiting arms.

Wrapping her arms tight around his neck and legs banding around his waist, she kissed him hard. "Yes, yes, yes," she said joyfully between kisses, causing William to let out a delighted laugh.

"God I love you!" he announced, suddenly sobering and looking at her intently.

"Wanna show me again just how much?" Elizabeth urged on a whisper as she wriggled against him causing the towelling fabric of the robe to rub roughly against his burgeoning erection.

His answer was a slow smile as he took a couple of steps forward then let himself fall onto the bed, pinning her beneath him. They'd go out for her dress later.

xxxxxxx

That night, Elizabeth got into bed and let out a long sigh. It had been quite a day all in all. When she and William had finally gotten up and gone downstairs, they'd been met by Dawn and Connor who were both sporting identical knowing smiles.

Naturally, Elizabeth had been a little embarrassed but once William had announced their 'proper' engagement, all of her discomfit had melted away in the light of her sister's and fiancé's obvious delight.

At some point amid the congratulations, Giles had come home. Once over his surprise at seeing his youngest niece and her fiancé, he was then informed of his eldest niece's engagement. He'd accepted this news with a pleased smile then hugged Elizabeth and given her a kiss on the cheek and shaken William's hand firmly, telling the young man that it was 'about time'. William had appeared surprised at the older man's perception but had agreed with him whole-heartedly nonetheless.

The sound of the door opening and closing snapped her out of her recollection and caused a smile to bloom on her lips. The bed dipped slightly next to her and she turned her head to watch William settle under the covers, his arm snaking out to grab her about the waist and draw her closer to him.

"What were you thinking about?" he asked softly.

"Today," she replied.

He picked up her left hand. "Are you sure you like the ring? Because if not we can go back tomorrow and get the diamond…" he began, only to stop when Elizabeth gently extricated herself from his grip and touched a finger to his lips.

"It's perfect," she assured him, looking at the simple elegance of the emerald and white gold ring that now adorned her engagement finger. "Exactly what I wanted."

William's concerned face visibly relaxed into a smile and he pursed his lips to place a light kiss on her finger. "Good."

"So, what are you doing here?" Elizabeth suddenly asked, removing her hand. "I thought we agreed that as it was Uncle Rupert's house…"

"Rupert and I had a little chat and he's very understanding," William told her with a grin. "Plus he's staying over at his friend's house again tonight. Apparently, she's decided to stay on here for another few days so I don't expect we'll be seeing much of him for the next week."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "She?! You mean…?"

William nodded and her face suddenly crumpled into one of horror. "Ugh, I could've lived a good few years without having to know that much detail about my uncle’s personal life," she commented with a shudder.

William chuckled and snuggled in closer. "Well, I'm not complaining," he said, leaning in to nuzzle gently at her neck. "Means we get to spend these nights together."

Elizabeth sighed. "No complaints here either," she murmured, marvelling at how her body immediately responded to his even lightest touch.

Turning onto her side, she began indulging in the pleasure of tasting the strong, warm male body so temptingly close to her own and rediscovering the magic of that one, very special night they had shared, secure in the knowledge that their love for each other would be forever.

To Be Concluded in the Epilogue - Still in Love

FEEDBACK WELCOME

BACK TO INDEX

EPILOGUE