Kiss My Eyes, and Lay Me to Sleep
By: Star Catcher
Rating: PG
Pairing: W/T
Disclaimer: Willow and Tara belong to Mutant Enemy and Joss Whedon. I do not own them, nor make profit from them. Also, the title is from Prelude 12/21 by A Fire Inside.
Summary: One very special morning…but not quite the way most mornings go.
Sunlight streamed through the partially opened window of the spacious loft. The streaks of light reached the bed, in the center of the room. There, two women – one blonde, one redhead – lay fast asleep, snuggled under red, silk sheets.
One of the figures, the blonde named Tara, stretched and shifted, still deep in slumber. Her face contorted into a small, impish grin, undoubtedly dreaming of the redhead, Willow, next to her. Willow, though, was not coping as well as her partner.
Giving up hope of sleep, she blinked once, unsteadily. She then blinked twice, her shining green eyes measuring the amount of sunlight coming in. Deeming it a fitful time to wake up, she slowly eased herself into a sitting position, careful not to wake Tara up.
Willow twisted her head to the side to adore her girlfriend.. Tara was at peace. Or, at least, she seemed to be. Sleep was well to her. The few wrinkles and laugh lines she had collected in her 27 years of life just melted away. Her lips became more full, and redder. Her sandy, blonde hair tussled, but all the more beautiful and healthy. Her skin seemed to glow with the haze of last night's activities. Her naked figure resembled that of an angel, or a goddess. And Willow found her simply captivating.
Finding her staring a little stalkerish, Willow tore her eyes away from her beloved and fixed them onto the digital clock that lay on the nightstand. 10:29. Good. She had time. Tara wouldn't be getting up any time soon; she never got up before 12 PM after a night of intense love making. And intense was an understatement.
Willow lifted herself from the bed one foot at a time, yawning a bit before hoisting herself up and tip-toeing to the closed door. Though, she picked up a pair of panties, jeans, and t-shirt to cover her nude body, first. Swinging the door open urgently and soundlessly, she slipped on her slippers waiting just outside the door. She smiled at the stray clothes strewn across various parts of the loft. Panties lying on the couch, a skirt in the kitchen sink, a bra dangling from a hanging pot. She giggled; they must have been very horny last night, to not even disperse of their clothes in one place.
Willow went about collecting their clothes, and threw them in the hamper. She then went on to making breakfast. Bending over to open the fridge door, she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and took out two eggs and the rest of the pack of bacon they had from the topmost drawer of the fridge.
She never stopped appreciating how lucky she was to have such an amazing girlfriend, one who loved her, took care of her, and wanted her. Tara was sweet, cared for everyone, charmed all, put others before her, was great at video games, and loved to read. Her perfect match.
She had met Tara a little over a year ago, at a book shop, one she had been working at, at the time. Tara had been a customer looking for a specific book; Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters. That was a dead away clue that she swung her way, and they hit it off immediately. After a few more run-ins at the bookstore, and finally Willow had managed to ask Tara on a date. The rest, as they say, was history.
The first time they had made love was about five months ago, around the time they had decided to move in together and said their first 'I Love You's'. And now, at the risk of being too speedy, Willow was ready to propose to Tara. She knew she wanted to marry this girl – woman..; wanted to spend the rest of eternity with her. Wanted to wake up in her arms, kiss her, and make love to her. Just be with her.
Willow got back to making her love's breakfast. She flipped the eggs and scrambled them, leaving little trace of juices. Then, she switched her attention the frying pan nearby, laying the nicely pre-cut slices onto the rapidly heating platform.
She sighed, and picked a fresh rose from a vase lying on the breakfast table lying in the middle of the expansive kitchen. Willow drew the rose up to her nose, taking in the luscious smell. The rose was by far her favorite flower – and Tara's too – being the romantics they were. Its smell was so florescent and soft, that it was her second favorite smell in the world. The first being Tara's natural scent, of course. Including her arousal.
She delicately laid the scrambled eggs and burnt bacon onto a golden trimmed plate, served only on special occasions. She then gently put the rose diagonally across the food. Willow grabbed a cup from the wooden cupboards and poured some milk into it. She picked up the ensemble and strategically set them upon a tray. Willow eyed a nearby rose and decided to knick a few petals and to create a heart surrounding the plate and cup with them.
She glanced at the clock. 11:30. Already? Time really did go by fast when you were whipped. Willow smiled, her tongue poking out through her teeth. Whipped, she was. And always would be.
Willow carried the tray with both hands just across the hall to the bedroom door and stopped to push the door slowly backwards using her upper body. Once the door was partially open enough for her and the tray to slip through, she went in. As she laid the tray onto the dresser nearest the door, she stopped to admire her soon-to-be fiancé.
Tara hadn't really changed her position much. She was lying in a fetal position but with a pillow curled against her back, most likely filling in for Willow's warmer body. Her blonde hair was still strewn across her face, partially covering her face. Her neck and bar shoulders were exposed to the world, and Willow couldn't help herself so she lent down and placed a kiss against Tara's pulse point. Tara seemed to feel that and her cheeks took on a pink-ish hue.
Willow smirked just a little bit when Tara's body seemed to unconsciously follow the extra body heat and made a soft, disappointing noise at the back of her throat upon not encountering it. Willow, to accede her love's wishes, placed another butterfly kiss upon her fore-head. Next were her cheeks, and then was her nose. And last, but certainly not least, were Tara's beautifully accented lips.
At first, it was just a small smooch, a peck, really. She placed another one, and yet another one. Each a little longer than the last. She then held it there for 15 seconds and felt the lips under her quirk upwards. Willow opened her eyes and met icy blue ones staring lovingly back at her. She then sat up, Tara blinking every few seconds to adjust to the new feeling of wakefulness. Then the blonde groaned.
"What time is it?" she asked, her voice cracking and not wanting to get up just yet. Willow grinned, her little impish grin at waking Tara up a little earlier than usual.
"Just about 11:45, my love," Willow's voiced sounding husky, the little kisses heightening her senses more than usual, along with her nervousness of proposing. Tara balled up her hands and rubbed her eyes, a stray eyelash falling upon her silky, porcelain cheek. Willow smiled and with a gentle finger, not wanting to poke Tara's eye out, she picked the eyelash up.
"Make a wish, darling," Tara half-smiled at her, "But –uh- don't say it out loud, 'k? 'Cause, y'know, it might not come true if you do." Tara giggled; it was so like Willow to care about things like these.
"Hmm, let's see. What can I wish for that hasn't already come true?" Tara pretended to think very closely about her wish. When Willow opened her mouth, about to remind Tara about not saying it out loud, Tara cut her off sweetly.
"I know, love. I'm not going to say it out loud," Tara smiled again, and Willow blushed. She didn't want to seem too predictable. Just then, Tara got the most serious look on her face, and softly blew on the eyelash that quickly disappeared from Willow's finger.
Willow looked at her adoringly, brushing the side of Tara's jaw with her forefinger, and Tara leaned into her touch. She made a little content noise, and turned her head to the side and kissed Willow's finger. Willow choked up. She wanted to say so many things, so many sweet and wonderful things to overcompensate for the amount of love she felt in her heart for this beautiful woman. But, she couldn't. So, she did the next best thing, she leaned down and kissed her beloved sweetly on the lips.
The kiss wasn't chaste, or short, by far. It was sweet and passionate. Willow felt her world turn upside down with just the simple feel of her love's lips on hers, so it felt even more wonderful – and hotter – when Tara started moving her lips, a bit roughly, under hers. As the kissing got a little more heated Willow drew Tara's bottom lip into her mouth and started sucking on it, something she knew drove Tara wild every time. She also felt Tara sucking on her upper lip, and felt that hot and wet sensation gathering up between her thighs.
Before starting something she couldn't finish, Willow drew back. Tara accompanied her up, resting her weight on her arms, in search of those intoxicating lips. Willow chuckled. Sometimes Tara was just too cute for words.
Realizing that no more smooches were coming her way, Tara opened her eyes and pouted. This caused Willow to laugh even harder and louder.
"No more smooches?" Tara asked desperately. Willow tried to calm down her laughter just a tad to answer Tara's question.
"No, sweetie. But later, I promise. Right now, I think you're breakfast is getting cold," Tara looked around trying to find said breakfast and her eyes landed upon the small, forgotten tray lying on the nightstand. Her look of utmost adoration was directed at Willow as she saw the rose and rose petals stationed on the plate and tray.
"Thank you seems so inadequate now. What's the special occasion?" the question caught Willow off guard for a minute and blushed so much it matched the exact shade of her hair.
"Well, uh-um ….We'll talk about that later," Tara quirked an eyebrow, expecting her question to have been rhetorical.
"There's something to talk about?"
"Later. Now, eat," Willow handed her the tray. Tara relented, as she always this when Willow used her resolve-face, or now, her resolve-voice. She also wasn't the type to push anything too far. And, she felt Willow didn't need any pushing, in fact pushing could bring her over the edge as she felt Willow was right next to her. It didn't help that she kept wringing her hands or tucking strands of her hair behind her ear.
But, Tara ate the delicious breakfast like a dutiful girlfriend and decided not to question until she finished. Willow occupied herself by internally whispering herself reassurances, and brushing her hand through strands of Tara's hair.
When Tara finished her last bite, she lovingly took the rose from the plate and held it against her heart as she lay back against the headboard. Her naked body showing off for the rest of the world to see. Willow took the tray from Tara's lap and rest it once again on the nightstand. She took a couple of deep breaths and turned back to Tara, her left hand unconsciously checking her left-hand pocket for the box tucked in there. She had pre-arranged this the night before, so she had intentionally left the box in that particular pair of jeans. She was just lucky Tara hadn't noticed, or hadn't questioned her about it.
When Willow's eyes met Tara's in the haze of her nervousness, she knew she didn't need to worry about anything. In Tara's eyes shone love, acceptance, and happiness. And that's what she wanted for her girl. Happiness. That's all she ever wished to grant her Tara. And she knew that that was all Tara wished to receive from her.
So, with one last deep breath, she sat on the bed. Close to Tara, but not enough to invade her personal space. Tara seemed patient, but looks were deceiving as she was drumming her fingers on one of her thighs, very curious as to see where this conversation was going. Or if it was going to be started.
"Tara, my love, we've been together a long time, right?" Tara nodded.
"1 year, 2 months, 3 days, and 15 hours. Why?" Tara counted off the numbers with her right hand.
"Well, uh. Gah! I don't know how to say this," Willow shook her head impatiently, bringing her hands up to rub her temples. Tara reached out and caressed her upper arm, silently offering her support. Willow shot her a small Willow-grin.
"Tara, I love you. I know that line's overused, and its magic's probably worn off by now. Heck, I say it every day, so you must be bored of it already, but it's true. I love you, Tara," Willow gave her an undying, familiar look of devotion and love. Similar to the one she gave Tara when she first met her. "And, I know you love me, too. Or at least I hope."
"I love you," Tara cut her off, forcefully. She loved Willow with all her heart, body, and soul. And she wouldn't have Willow doubt that for one second.
"I love you with my mind, body, spirit, and soul. I love you more than I can comprehend, more than you will ever know. I'd lay my life for you. You're happiness is the most important thing in the world to me. Your smile is my sun in the morning. Your heart is my shelter. When I'm with you, nothing else can touch me. You are my anchor. And, if you let me, I want to continue making you smile for the rest of my life. Uh, if you let me that is," Willow grinned, fumbling for just a moment, her hand getting trapped in the fabric of the jeans. When she finally got it out, and opened the small, black box, it revealed a hand-cut, 17 karat diamond.
Tara was still speechless. Willow's words, along with the beautiful ring had rendered her incapable of speech, and thought. Her first thoughts, though, when she could think again (about 15 seconds later) were 'How dare she get there before me!'. But, soon, her compassionate nature kicked in and she gave Willow a trademark lopsided smile.
"No."
At that word Willow's smile dropped, along with her heart. She had been so sure, so certain, that Tara would say yes, that she hadn't thought of the possibility of denial.
"Not unless you marry me first," while Willow had had her head down and away from view, Tara had reached into a drawer on her nightstand and pulled out a small box of her own. Inside was a diamond that resembled Willow's, but had an intricate design on the ring part of it. Willow opened and closed her mouth like a gaping fish.
She possibly couldn't comprehend what had just happened, but she flung herself at Tara, anyways. Their lips fused to together like magnets, their bodies fitting together like two pieces of a puzzle. Both of them grinning like idiots, but couldn't bring themselves to detach from one another.
When they did, though, pry themselves apart, they slid the rings onto their beloved's finger, and kissed the palm of the other's hand. They then lay together for the rest of the day. Not making love, or the physical kind at least, but snuggling together and whispering words of promise for the future. A future together. United. One. A future where nothing could stand in their way. Just, a future.
--------------------------The End-------------------------------------------------------