Title: Taking A Trip
Author: Helen
Posted: 12-03-2003
Email: helen_taft@msn.com
Rating: NC17
Category:
Content: C/A
Summary:
Spoilers:
Disclaimer: The characters in the Angelverse were created by Joss Whedon & David Greenwalt. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.
Distribution:
Notes: OK this is another older one than EBST and as fluffy as I can make it. Which for me is only midly fluffy (sigh) one day I'm gonna write pure fluff (groan). This is response to a challenge from Angellicious here’s the details:
Season 3, pre Connor, Cordy gets a vision of some big uglies in Reno, NV. You can do the fighting and that story any which way you would like. BUT...during their time there, Cordy and Angel end up getting really drunk one night and confess feelings, and end up going to an all night chapel and getting hitched. Wake up the next day realizing what they've done and having to deal with that, they can stay married at the end or not, up to you and what you do with the story. NC17.
Feedback: Yeah feed me!
Thanks/Dedication:Part 1
ANGEL’S BEDROOM – THE HYPERION
Cordy came bursting into his room after only briefest of knocks, “C’mon, Angel ‘wakey wakey’, rise and shine” she said in a gleeful sing song voice.
He came awake instantly, eyes opening - alert and with his body tense, ready to face any danger, except of course for Cordelia Chase who plonked herself down next to his arm and bounced lightly up and down so that he couldn’t pretend to still be asleep.
He looked at her with an expression of wary surprise and embarrassment in his brown eyes, which thankfully she didn’t notice. He turned so that he lay mostly on his front, to hide the fact that he had a morning erection and a head still full of hazy dreams about the very woman sitting on his bed and smiling down at him.
“What is it”? He asked her, not bothering to upbraid her about just coming in, she was his best friend and the most important person in the world at least to him – true it was dangerous to disturb sleeping vampires but he knew that even semi-conscious he would never hurt her.
“I have a photo shoot in Reno”, she told him grinning triumphantly and playfully preening, tossing her dark hair and inspecting her nails, all the while with a delighted twinkle in her hazel eyes. She was positively glowing with successful happiness.
“You do”? He asked, his handsome face a picture of confusion, “when did that happen”?
“Found out this morning and couldn’t wait any longer to tell you”, she told him leaning down to plant a kiss on his cheek, “I’m so happy I’ve been hugging everyone and I didn’t want you to miss out” she finished cheekily.
His cheek tingled where she’d pressed her lips and he just about managed not to ask for another one, she’s just my friend and yes I love her – but as a friend, he told himself, repeating it like a mantra to stop his suddenly overactive imaginative from going wild.
“Thanks” he told her, “I’ll take a quick shower and join you downstairs and you can tell me all about it” he told her with a smile.
“OK see you in a minute I’ll put on a pot of coffee or are you hungry”? She asked him when she was halfway to the door.
It always amazed him how utterly matter of fact she was about that, “Erm hungry I think”, the door closed behind her and he groaned and turned onto his back to stare up at the ceiling, willing the ache in his loins to go away.
LOBBY – THE HYPERION
He came down the stairs within half an hour, his steps light and quick - looking forward to joining the gang in the lobby, where all the people he considered his family were gathered around Cordelia.
Cordy was sitting on one of the circular red velvet chairs with Wes and Gunn leaning against the counter, listening to her fantastic news for about the hundredth time and not minding the repetition; even Fred was down and looking pleased as punch for the other woman.
“… day after tomorrow and yeah, it’s for a brochure about Reno and what a great place it is to visit blah blah blah, my agent knew a guy who knew a guy and they saw some pictures of me and wham I have a job”, she was still grinning broadly.
Angel stopped dead in his tracks just a few feet away from them and Fred, looking up saw his expression and her smile faltered and faded at his dark frown; she looked nervously back at Cordy, uh oh - Angel didn’t notice, too intent on Cordelia.
“Is that normal”?, he asked the frown still in place, “to get a modeling job through a guy who knows a guy”?
“Well yeah sure – sometimes”, replied Cordy a little taken aback at his change of mood, she stood up and went over to the counter picking up a mug of blood she’d prepared and bringing it over to him, a question in her eyes as they searched his.
He took it from her automatically but didn’t take his worried gaze off her, “Who are you going with”? He didn’t like the sound of this, but didn’t want to say so yet. He was hoping that she’d tell him something – anything that would make it sound – safer!
“It’s just me and one photographer, small and intimate”, she realized her gaffe when his eyes narrowed to slits and slashing brows lowered like thunder clouds.
“Well I didn’t mean intimate as in… well ya know”, she laughed to dispel the tension and when that didn’t work, glared back at him “Don’t spoil this for me, Angel”, she warned.
Wesley, Gunn and Fred watched helplessly as the room suddenly felt as if it was charged with a million volts of electricity. Angel crossed his arms over his wide chest and then took a step backward, turning to face a reluctant Wesley who really didn’t want to get involved.
As leader of the team now, he was more than happy to direct everyone when it came to cases and workload but damn he hated getting in between these two when they clashed, which thankfully these days wasn’t often.
But now he had both of them staring at him, expecting him to intercede. If he sided with Angel against Cordelia, she would pick on him mercilessly but if he sided with Cordelia then he knew he’d have one very enraged vampire on his hands – now let me see which is worse? Talk about a no-win situation.
He opened his mouth to say something to that effect when Angel beat him to it, “You don’t need me for anything right now – right, Wes”?
“Er no, we’re quiet at the moment”, he waited to see where Angel was going with this.
Angel turned back to face Cordelia who was all but tapping her foot, hands on denim clad hips; a stance that highlighted her perfect figure in the tight hugging print top and low slung jeans. “I’m going with you” he told her a hint of steel in his voice.
Ready for an all out battle Cordy was surprised enough to relax a fraction, mostly the surprise was due to the fact that it’d been quite a while since he had used that tone with her. Nowadays he tended to ask nicely and if that didn’t work then use persuasion but not this time. That was a definite ‘take it or leave it’ statement.
She looked into his eyes and he looked back, the silence stretched and the other three held their breath. Cordy felt a weird quivering in her belly, the brown of his eyes usually so dark and impenetrable where strangely heated and she dropped her own for a moment before looking back up and lifting her chin.
“OK, Angel but I think you’re wasting your time”, she warned him softly her expression stern as if to say -’Don’t say you weren’t warned’.
She decided not to argue with him over it - wild horses wouldn’t drag it out of her but ‘the being alone with a stranger’ part of the deal had unnerved her a little when she’d first found out; which she’d ignored thinking she was just being paranoid.
“I don’t mind”, he told her relaxing completely now and putting his hands in his pockets; a sure sign that he was now back in an amiable frame of mind.
He looked at the others and cleared his throat, aware that he’d revealed a lot about his feelings for Cordelia with that display of possessiveness. He darted a look at Cordy, expecting to see anger or at the very least annoyance at his high-handedness but she just looked thoughtful.
“Alone with Angel for two days” ? She questioned herself and waited for aggravation or annoyance or even just plain indifference to make itself felt, but instead she became aware of a sneaky pleasure at the thought.
“Unless it’s a late start for the shoot, we’ll need to leave this evening to travel after dusk”, Angel told her and she widened her eyes in horror at what needed to be done before she could be ready to go.
“But I need to pack and stuff”, she turned to Wesley with pleading eyes, who just rolled his eyes and then nodded at her, telling her to go and do what she needed to do, sardonically thinking that he’d get no work from her today anyway.
ROAD TRIP
That night Angel picked her up at her apartment and didn’t even grunt at the amount of luggage she wanted to take for such a short trip. Cordy was too excited at the prospect of getting away for a few days and doing some work that didn’t involve visions or demons that she forgot the tension of earlier in the day.
She opened the door of her apartment wide and gave him a wide and brilliant smile, “Hi, Angel”.
“Hey yourself, so are you ready to go”? Wonder of wonders she was, he bit back a smile at how anxious she was to get away before anything came up to delay the trip.
Soon enough she settled herself in the seat next to him and wiggled a little to get comfortable in the short pale pink skirt she was wearing, she’d matched it with a gauzy sleeveless cream blouse and she look gorgeous if not exactly dressed for a long drive. He looked down at his own ‘black on black’ attire and gave thanks that he’d thought to pack a suit – just in case.
He eyed the rising hem of the skirt and cleared his throat, again, looking carefully at her face as he asked, “Are you going to be comfortable, it’s quite a way”?
She lifted a leg and examined the brown limb with the strappy high-heeled shoe on her foot, excitement still shining out of her radiant face, “Oh yeah and I’m really gonna turn up in Reno wearing jeans”, she rolled her eyes but softened the effect with that big smile of hers, it melted him every time.
“OK you’re the boss” he told her returning the smile and starting the engine to drive off, attributing the buzz in his veins to the recent blood he’d had and not the idea of having Cordelia all to himself for days at a time.
Cordelia had fallen asleep after the first few hours and dozed with her head nestled into his shoulder, he didn’t mind and he drove with the other hand so as not to jostle her awake which would surely result in her moving away with muttered apologies. But now they were nearly there and he knew she’d want to be awake and alert.
He switched hands and gently ruffled her dark hair, using his shoulder to gently nudge her at the same time. “Cordy we’re nearly there, wake up”, a dozen endearments nearly tripped off his tongue but he bit them back, uncomfortable with how she’d take it.
She grumbled a little and her hand came to rest at the top of his thigh, squeezing the muscle there like a cat flexing its paw, he immediately felt himself respond and grabbed the hand to squeeze gently back and keep it occupied.
Finally she sat up and blinked to look blearily out of the windshield and around them, a multitude of lights winked at them in the near distance and she straightened abruptly and gave him a sheepish smile. He freed her hand and she immediately dug into her purse for a brush and lipstick.
“I’m so sorry, Angel I wasn’t much company was I”? She asked her voice soft with sleep and apologetic at the same time as she brushed her hair with a casual effortlessness that was so feminine and graceful that he had to look away, such a common place action but these days even those could cause him acute discomfort.
“It’s OK, its long drive”, he flicked her a smile, and “At least you didn’t drool”.
“Hey I do not drool”, she said indignantly and checked her mouth in the compact mirror before she applied fresh lipstick with expert strokes.
ARRIVING IN RENO
Finished with her appearance she looked around her with bright eyes, looking as fresh as if she’d slept all night in a comfy bed. Within half an hour she had directed him to the motel they were staying in with only one or two wrong turns.
It was a bright and cheery place and the individual units looked clean and presentable from the outside, “This trip is gonna be great” , thought Cordy, pleased with the world at the large in that moment and glad she wasn’t alone and had someone to share it with.
They went into reception room together to gather the keys to their rooms and it was then that the impulsively planned trip started to unravel.
“What do you mean – only one room was booked”, asked Cordy in a shocked voice to the receptionist, her face red with the effort to hold back the scathing words that were just dying to rush out in a torrent of abuse.
“I’m sorry Ma’am but it’s true we only have one room booked in the name of Angel Investigations”. The receptionist looked alarmed at the glower she was receiving from the enraged woman and was doubly glad of the three foot glass topped counter that separated her from the customers.
Angel stood with his back to the counter leaning against it and trying not to put his head in his hands. He was only partially successful in hiding his horror at the thought of them sharing a room, which only made Cordy madder – why this was she had no idea.
“Fine, whatever” she all but snarled at the hapless woman, “Since you people can’t even get something as simple as a reservation right, is there any hope you can locate another motel close by with a spare room”?
Angel let Cordy do the intimidating, she was much better at it than him in circumstances like these, he watched as the woman, middle aged and bespectacled, searched a computer and started clacking away at the keyboard.
He avoided looking at Cordy directly and watched her reflection in the glass door, Thank god the woman behind the counter hadn’t noticed he didn’t have one, he shuffled further to the side just in case and then had to jump back when Cordy suddenly clutched her head and started to buckle at the knees.
He caught her in both arms and turned so that his back was to the counter, shielding Cordy from view as she twitched and shook from the force of the vision, he murmured soothing words to her, ignoring the exclamations from behind him.
When the vision was finished she sank against him trembling before trying to straighten, he pulled her back in his arms to keep her from being seen by the receptionist who was staring at them both in confusion and alarm.
“Forget about another room for now, can we have the key to the one you do have”? He asked firmly, half turning to the counter again, “My friend needs to rest”. He denied the need for a doctor and asked again for the key, which he was given quickly when he gave out one of ‘those’ looks.
He led Cordy back outside and swore when he realized they were at the far end of the complex, he swung her up with a strong arm about her back and another hooked under her knees, carrying her with swift strides down the pathway to the single story simple unit they’d been allocated.
MOTEL ROOM
He let her down gently outside the door but still supported her as he used the key to open it; ushering her in and shouldering it shut behind them. Cordy walked on unsteady legs to sit down on one of the two single beds.
Angel crouched down in front of her, his knees enveloping hers and he clasped one of her hands in a comforting gesture. “What did you see”? He asked the usual question in quiet tone, gazing at her bent head, concern evident on his handsome face.
She sniffled a little and he got up to go to the tiny bathroom and pull some tissue from the dispenser there, he came back and handed it to a grateful Cordelia. He resumed his position and gave into the urge to lean forward and gently kiss the crown of her still ducked head.
“There’s a golf course, called Lake Ridge, it’s closed now but something big and nasty has come up out of the ground, literally clawed it’s way out, I saw the hole and it’s pretty huge”. She stopped and took a deep breath, frowning as she tried to recall more detail and wincing at the same time at the sharp clawing pains in her own head.
“That’s OK, Cordy just relax and let the details come back to you”. He didn’t make the mistake of saying ‘that’s good’, he’d done that once and his ears had rung for an hour from the verbal tongue lashing he’d got from her – he knew not to tweak her when she was suffering from vision aftermath.
“I think there was only one of it but it felt……” She stopped and searched for the words that could describe what she had felt from the thing in her vision. “Smart” and that was the scariest bit of all.
“Dangerous”? Asked Angel wanting to make sure, just cos something looked scary didn’t mean it was and vice versa he thought - thinking of himself as Angelus.
“Oh yeah I think so, yup it has big plans that much I could tell”, she stopped talking and rubbed her head, hard, “dammit why can’t I see better”, frustration made her voice high and edgy.
Angel pulled her hands away from her head and sat next to her tugging her into a tight hug and resting his head on top of her silky hair. “Cordy stop OK you’ll hurt yourself, just give it a minute – then you’ll remember more; that’s how it always works”.
She knew he was right and relaxed against him breathing deeply and letting the comfort of the embrace sink into her bones.
Just as she was hit by another vision and convulsed right then and there in his arms, it was such a shock that he nearly let them both hit the floor on their asses. But he managed to fall back on the bed and took her writhing body with him.
Damn it was a long one, she was still twisting about and actually hit herself hard enough to bruise her cheek, so he rolled her underneath him and used his weight to keep her thrashing to within safe limits.
Cordy gradually realized that this second vision had faded, the awful images, smells and screams receding so that she could hear the soothing sound of Angel’s voice as he tried to help her through it and felt the soft bed beneath her and the hard body over hers.
What!, she jerked her eyes open and looked into his face hovering anxiously over hers, he didn’t seem to notice how startled she was for second and then he did and was gone in that instant, leaving her feeling …. Bereft?
He didn’t go far just next to her, “Are you OK”? He asked a little uncomfortably.
“No I’m not” she said with less irritation than might have been expected, it was just that her head hurt too much to think beyond taking the next lungful of air. “We need to get going Angel our big ugly creature from the black hole has a sudden craving for a family dinner”.
SUBURBIA
Once away from the main area the bright lights faded and petered out and family houses gradually became the norm, the streets were well lit in this area and Cordy thought it would be a nice place to live if you weren’t on some evil things snack list.
They pulled up outside a house and she nodded when Angel looked at her questioningly, “This is it, the house from my vision”.
“At least we got a clearer message and something concrete to go on” offered Angel as he got out of the car and popped open the trunk, perusing the deadly contents with a practiced eye.
“Yeah, gotta love those visions” replied Cordy tonelessly and walked around the front of the car to the sidewalk. Angel gave her another worried glance over the cars length almost wishing she’d snap at him, anger would at least be better than the automatic pilot she seemed to be in now.
“Look, Cor why don’t you stay in the car”. He suggested snagging her unresisting arm and wishing she’d look at him. He was worried about her; she’d not even changed her clothes saying they didn’t have the time as she’d walked out of the motel room.
She shook her head and pulled her arm free, to walk up the drive beside the family saloon parked there. “I’m fine, Angel stop worrying about me, we have more important things to worry about”.
Stop worrying about her; that would be the day, he thought to himself, worrying about Cordy was becoming a new occupation for him these days.
“OK” he sighed and stepped in front of her his mind running through his options, limited as they were on how to enter the house and hoping it wasn’t as simple as walking over the threshold because that would mean they were too late.
So he knocked loudly, hating to have to disturb them, the door was partly glass and he was tall enough to be able to see inside, the toys scattered around the edges, not untidy just – homey. crap, there was kids in there. He knocked again anxiety making him desperate.
He heard footsteps and saw a pair of legs appear, coming down the stairs, slippers on and robe being belted. It was a man - must be husband and father? Angel took a step back so not to appear to be crowding the door and trying hard not to think about other occasions; earlier in his vampire days when such strategies had been employed for the opposite reason of saving their lives.
The door was opened and the man glared at them angrily, eyes wide with mingled anger and fear. “Do you know what time it is, it’s after midnight”? He asked them in a quiet and yet hissing whisper.
“Who the hell are you anyway and …… what the hell is that noise”? Crashing sounds came from the rear of the house and Angel tensed his hand around the axe in his hand, hidden behind his back.
“Please let me in, Sir – your family is in grave danger”. The man turned to look back at him; brows snapping down and mouth tightening in anger at being woken up by a madman.
“Look Mister, we’re here to help save you, your wife and your kids so let us in or face the consequences”, snapped Cordelia her hands clenched into fists, “If you don’t believe us go and take a look at what’s trying to smash it’s way into your house”.
She looked so furiously certain that the man hesitated and then hearing another tremendous crash of broken glass and timber, opened the door in silent and shocked invitation. It wasn’t enough for Angel but it was for Cordy who stepped inside.
“Cordy” Said Angel sharply, “Dammit, don’t you move further into that house”, he looked at the man, angry enough to not care about frightening him anymore as he said in his most menacing voice. “Invite me in NOW”.
“OK” the man stammered and then yelped when he saw something massive and grotesque in the mirror beside the door, it was coming from the kitchen. He turned and ran for the stairs intent on collecting his family; who were gathering in a frightened huddle at the top of them.
“Get them out of the house” Angel told Cordy as he rushed inside, a blurring streak of vampire speed. He caught the monstrosity before it got more than a few feet into the hallway and punched what he guessed was the head as hard as he could to make it stagger back and further away from the vulnerable family.
Cordy didn’t bother with words, they would be frozen with fear and shock so she grabbed both Mom and Dad by an arm and dragged them down, instinct would make then bring their two small children with them. It worked, even as she could hear the fight at the other end of the house, she had the family outside and on the lawn.
“Do you have your car keys”, she asked the man who looked at her with wide frightened blue eyes – it took him a moment for the question to register and then mutely he shook his head. He gulped and said “There on the hall table, in a brass pot”.
Cordy nodded “OK that’s good I’ll go get them you get away from the house”. She didn’t wait to see if they did as they were told but re-entered the house, the fight had moved into the adjoining living room but she wasted no time in fetching the keys which were exactly where the guy had said and going back outside.
She gave them to the husband and told him to get himself and his family far away and not come back until morning, it was a measure of their fright that they just nodded and complied without argument or question.
The curtains were only partially closed in the living room so she went to them and looked inside to see that the thing had the upper hand at the moment and she had to force herself not to go inside and try and help. But experience had taught her that in situations like this – she caused more harm than good by distracting Angel and giving him something else to try and protect instead of just worrying about himself.
The thing towered over Angel, it must be at least two foot taller and twice as wide, it had a whipping tail with spikes coming out of the end, horns rose sharply from its massive head and traveled all along its back.
It looked like some modern equivalent of a dinosaur only smaller – thank god, but then there were the claws, the same ones she’d seen in her vision and now they were trying to rip Angel open from chest to navel and getting too damn close.
“Crap, this is frickin stupid and I am so not just gonna stand here waiting to get eaten”, angrily she stormed into the house and picking up the nearest heavy object, a bronze figurine which was reassuringly heavy.
She waltzed into the room and raising it high over her head, brought it down in a cracking blow on its head. Dazed it staggered back, allowing Angel to push it far enough away from him to kick it full in the face with one foot and then twist around and bring the other up in a powerful arc, knocking it to the side.
Cordy spotted the axe a few feet away and dived for it, her hand grasped the heavy cold handle and she flung it towards Angel who swiped it up with his right and twisting his body around again brought it round, up and then down on its neck. Their was a terrific snap and a dark colored fluid sprayed the wall from the death wound, it was a death blow and within moments it lay twitching on the carpet as more dark sticky stuff flooded the carpet around it.
“We need to get rid of the body” said Angel, bent double from the exertion of the fight, “if we leave it here there will be questions asked”.
“There’s a wooded area just behind the house” Cordy told him, knowing this from the earlier vision, “we can bury it”.
Angel shook his head after a few seconds of mulling it over, “No some dog will dig it up, it needs to be burnt but I’ll use the wood for that, you go back to the motel and get some rest. I’ll walk back when I’m done”.
It was over an hour later before he got back to the motel room and quietly let himself inside, dreading what they were going to do about the sleeping arrangements as the reception desk was shut now. He could go out looking for a room he supposed but damn he was tired and just wanted to lie down.
The room was dark and he could smell her scent in the room, but not strong enough for her to be there, the bed was empty and showed no sign of her having lain there. He whipped around back to the door and flipped on the light.
He stood there and stared at the empty room, unable to believe that Cordy was missing, the car was outside so she had come back here, but was here no longer. There were no signs of a struggle and he damn well knew that if something had tried to take his Cordy she would have given it hell.
No this was something else, she’d left under her own steam and gone – god knows where. He opened the door to the outside and slammed it hard behind him, nearly cracking the doorframe with the force of his anger.
Once outside he took in deep lungfuls of air, letting the nuances of each scent filter through his keen supernatural senses, ignoring the fumes from cars, food and strange bodies, searching for hers. His face tightened and nostrils flared when he caught it, he opened his eyes and set out to follow on foot as she had.
“When I get my hands on that woman …..” He couldn’t help the snarl and snapped his teeth together to stem the angry words which would only increase his temper. He needed to find her and then he’d worry about what to do with her. His hands itched as he imagined grabbing her and giving her a good shake for worrying him and then tying her to the bed to make sure she didn’t do it again, he clenched them as if to retain the feeling.
ON THE TOWN
Cordelia walked along the brightly lit road, a brown paper bag clutched tightly in one hand and a miniature bottle of vodka in the other, it was small and dinky and after gulping down two and squinting with distaste, she quite liked it now though. It made her feel happy which was strange because the last time she’d gotten drunk she’d been as bad tempered as a viper, must ‘member to say away from tequila.
“I’m a bad, bad girl”, she told the lamp-post as she passed it, startling the couple standing beside it and she giggled at her own joke and the expression on their faces but carried on walking. Despite the fact that she was well on the way to being drunk she walked a totally steady line, not even wobbling in the spiky heels.
Hazily she remembered driving back to the motel and pulling of the clothes to get changed into something fresh; determined that she would get a few hours of enjoyment between visions if it killed her. Not that she’d been in a party mood right then – but damn she was getting there now.
“Poor Angel, stuck with burning corpses I’ll probably get back before he does, burning bodies takes a lot of effort and time”. She haughtily informed herself, sounding grandiose and knowledgeable - at least to her anyway.
“Wanna bet” growled a dark ominous voice behind her and before she knew it she was caught in a tight hold. Both arms were pinned to her sides by hard strong hands and she felt herself being up until her feet left the floor and then hauled between two buildings; one of them was a nightclub and the other a pizza house.
The bouncers of the nightclub looked on but decided not to intervene as Angel dropped, turned and then pushed Cordelia until her back was to the side wall of the pizza house and placed a taut imprisoning arm on either side of her shoulders.
“Oops”, she hiccuped and giggled at the same time, “Hi, Angel guess what”, she asked in a conspiratal whisper as she leaned towards him, not even noticing his tight angry expression and thunderous eyes.
Unwillingly Angel got distracted by that lush and smiling mouth and the sparkling hazel eyes only inches away from his own. The perfume that was essentially her teasing him now that he was so close. Even so he kept his arms in place blocking any escape, he was in no mood to have to chase her down again and he still had no idea what had caused this one; yet.
“What” he growled not in the least appeased by her sunny mood, in fact he could feel his own spiral down at the evidence that she’d worried him for no other reason than to go out and get drunk.
“I’m feeling better now” she announced and grinned at him, the hand holding the bottle wiggled in his grasp as she tried to show off her cache of booze.
He reached down and snagged the bag roughly from her hand and looked inside, Cordy leaned her back against the wall and watched his face, Aww vampy looks cross, she chuckled in her throat but even drunk had the sense not to say it out loud.
Angel looked at her and frowning and still using only one hand opened the bag to look inside. His eyes rolled when he saw the little bottles all chinking together, she’d even put the empties back in the bag.
“Jesus, Cordelia you need a keeper – or a leash”. He shook his head and looked back into her hazel depths, his still half covered by frowning brows; his lips tight and yet still full at the same time she thought, wanting to trace them; until his words sank into her vodka soaked brain.
“Hey that’s mean” she told him angrily trying to snatch back the bag which he simply held out of her reach. She pouted at him and brushed her body along his deliberately, immediately distracting him.
He froze for a second at the jolting contact of her all along the front of his body, the top of her silky head brushing his jaw. Then pain exploded in his foot as she stamped a dainty heel on it, grabbed the bag and ducked under his arm, running back down to the street, hysterical with laughter.
He vamped out for an instant before it melted away to leave one very enraged human face. He followed her, growling when the doormen of the club tried to stop him; his expression making them think again, the club wasn’t busy – let this guy get his girl and leave and they’d have no trouble- easy.
Cordelia waited for him inside, knowing that he would be there soon and still flushed with the success of managing to outwit him, her hazy brain unable to grasp just how angry he was and that she’d just made it a hundred times worse.
TBC