Sunday in the Park with Giles
With the low candlelight playing off Rupert's glasses, he smiles at you over the chessboard. You smile back and reach for your queen. His hand grasps yours. "You sure you want to do that?"
You arch an eyebrow at him. "I know what I'm doing."
"It doesn't look like it from here."
"Okay Prince of Chess, how about a little bet?"
"Meaning?"
"Um, let's see. If I win, you have to buy an outfit that I pick out and wear it to a place of my choosing." You grin mischievously.
"I see you already have something in mind?" he grins.
"Maybe."
"What do I get if I win?"
"Well what do you want?"
"Hmm. Same thing as you."
"Sure why not? I always thought I'd look good in a high Victorian collar."
"Actually I was thinking more Victoria's Secret."
You blush and return your gaze to the board.
The next day finds Rupert Giles staring longingly into the window of Victoria's Secret at the Sunnydale Galleria. You lace your fingers with his and begin to pull him away. He sighs and when you look up at him, he pouts. You smile and practically drag him into Miller's Outpost.
Surprised he hasn't left skid marks at the door, you lead him to the pairs of folded jeans on the far wall. You pick out a pair of nicely pre-faded blue jeans and hand them to the less than enthusiastic librarian. You move along the racks, occasionally stopping to look at shirts you know he wouldn't be caught dead in, just to watch him squirm. Finally you find just what you've been looking for, a white tank top. You lay it on top of the jeans in his arms and try not to giggle as he practically blushes.
"You've uh, given this a lot of thought haven't you."
"Only for a few months, yes. We have one more thing to get, come on."
Rupert drags his feet behind you, like a little boy following his Mom around a shoe store. You snag a light blue denim, button-up overshirt. You march him to the dressing rooms and point inside. "I'll be right here so don't even think about making a run for it." Head bowed in martyrdom, Rupert slinks off through the doors.
You sit just outside the entrance and five minutes later, he emerges. The jeans hug his every curve and you smile approvingly. As your gaze drifts up his body, you see he has the denim overshirt buttoned clear to the neck and tucked in. "Oh no you don't." You stand and begin to tug the shirt out from his pants. You unbutton the front and slip it off revealing Rupert's toned arms which he crosses over his chest. His chest hair peeks over the top of the tank. You clear your throat and quickly turn your mind to different matters. "And the glasses." Rupert begins to protest. "You're not going to be doing any reading where I'm taking you. Now if you don't try to welsh, you get the overshirt back but no buttoning it up for anything short of a monsoon, deal?"
Rupert sighs, "Yes."
You remove the sales tags from his clothing and bring them to the counter. The sales clerk removes the plastic ink tags from Rupert and begins the transaction. He hands you his credit card and leaves you to pay while he excuses himself to the bathroom saying he'll meet you at the car. You pay for the outfit and carefully fold Rupert's old clothes into the bag the clerk has given you. When you get to the car Rupert is there waiting.
You drive for 20 minutes and then pull into a somewhat crowded parking lot. "Could you get the blanket in the back?"
Rupert suddenly looks nervous. "Blanket? Why?"
You smile, "Just get the blanket."
As you walk up the path, you begin to hear music. "Are...are we at the park?" Rupert asks.
"Mm-hmm," you answer.
You climb the small hill to see the crowd that has gathered for the Sunnydale Symphonic Orchestra's free Concert in the Park.
You and Rupert descend on the sea of lawn chairs and walk around the perimeter. In the distance Xander waves to you while Buffy, Willow and Cordy's jaws are all hanging open at the Watcher's new look. Buffy regains her sense after a moment and mouths "nice work" to you as she leads the others away to give you privacy.
You finally settle on a spot about 20 yards away from the crowd, close enough to enjoy the music but still feel alone together. Rupert spreads the blanket and sits down. He holds his hand up to you. You take it and kneel beside him. He reclines, resting his back against a tree trunk and leans you back until your head is pillowed on his lap. As you look up, you see the sky, the leaves of the tree, and Rupert smiling down at you. A gentle breeze plays on your skin and Rupert's fingers work their way into your hair, stroking, massaging. You close your eyes and there is nothing in the world but the music and the feel of Rupert surrounding you.
You wake in the late afternoon, not having realized you'd fallen asleep. Rupert has pulled you up and you've been sleeping against his chest. His denim overshirt lays over the top of you both. You look up and he is awake and grinning at you.
"How long have I been asleep?" You look around and notice the park has emptied and the band is gone.
"Oh a couple hours."
"I'm sorry."
"No. It's been a lovely day. Beautiful weather, beautiful music, a beautiful girl in my arms, I'm going to have to lose bets more often." He kisses your forehead as you smile. "We should go though. It'll be getting dark soon. But first." He pulls a small pink bag out from behind his back.
"What's this?"
"While you were paying for all of this, I stopped into Victoria's Secret anyway." You peek in the bag and see something black and lacy. When you look up again, your skin is the same shade as the bag you hold.
"Hey, I *won* the bet remember?"
Rupert presses his lips to yours. It is a long, slow, tender kiss but smolderingly passionate. When he pulls back a little, you are panting for breath and your heart is racing. "I can make it worth your while." And you know that he will as he kisses you again....
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| The character of Rupert Giles and the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer were created by Joss Whedon and are © Fox. No infringement is intended and no profits are being made. |