Hello, Hello!:) Well, dear readers, I am proud to say that I wrote this chapter in one day and am very pleased with it. I think I did it justice in anyway :) now I need some feedback from you. ;) This has 11 chapters so we're almost done and don't worry, there'll be a happy ending. ;) Next update hopefully by Friday!:) Leave me some reviews, please!:)
Disclaimer: They don't belong to me, but I love them more than is healthy!:p
Chapter 8:
When C.C. had left the house Niles had instantly crawled back into bed. He felt too shaken to stand upright, had originally only left the bed, because he had felt physically sickened by the nearness to her while she arranged a date with another man. Now, however, he felt too weak to even function. He felt betrayed… no, betrayed wasn't even the word. C.C. had done nothing but honour their arrangement, sex and no attachment. But still…her behavior before…her vulnerability, the fact that she had spent the night, alone…it didn't add up. Unless she was toying with him, knew of his feelings and was enjoying it to make a fool out of him. But even in his hurt state Niles couldn't make himself believe that. The sensation of loss was too powerful and overwhelming and was occupying him completely, so much so that it took a knock of his employer on the door to remind him that he had duties to fulfill.
Come lunch break he found himself in the kitchen, hunched over a jar of chocolate sauce, half-heartedly dunking a banana into it, without really knowing how he'd got there. Stuffing the remnants of the chocolate covered fruit into his mouth, he trudged back to the fridge to retrieve that last slice of cheesecake he had hidden behind the milk carton. He searched and searched frantically, calling his best friend's name softly, but as his search yielded no results, her erupted into a full blown: "Miss Fine!"
The brunette who had been sitting with her friend Lily on the sofa, merely gave a resigned "Oy" and tracked into the kitchen to discover what had caused the butler's latest mood swing.
"Where's that emergency cheese cake slice?" he demanded to know.
"You remember last Saturday when Mr. Sheffield asked me for my plans only to use me as a babysitter so he could go out? That's where the slice is."
"You know, you're not the only one in this house with problems." Niles snapped, still disgruntled.
"Well, I can see that," Fran replied, unfazed and wiped a bit of lingering chocolate sauce from the corner of his mouth "what's going on?"
"Nothing," he grumbled and took a seat at the table.
"I know it's about the affair you've been having. We always moan about our love life together, but ever since I told ya that I think it's not a good idea, you've been avoiding me, now dish, Mister!"
He sighed and his shoulders slumped miserably. "We slept together and she made a date with another man straight after, while she was lying next to me."
"Oh Niles," Fran sighed and immediately wrapped the defeated butler up in a warm embrace.
"That's despicable," a second voice said and Niles turned his head slightly to find Lily standing by the kitchen door.
He raised a questioning eyebrow and silently hoped that she hadn't heard the whole conversation.
"That a woman would treat you like this," Lily explained further "I know I may be overstepping a line here, but the woman is clearly not worth your time then. "
Fran released him, a sudden smile on her face and excused herself with the comment that she'd forgotten something important in her room that she had wanted to show Lily. Niles frowned at her hasty exit but returned his attention to her friend, when he felt a soft hand on his own.
"Seriously, Niles, you shouldn't settle for a woman who clearly has no respect for you, who thinks you're exchangeable."
"Am I not? I mean, I'm only a butler, I'm middle aged, certainly not half as well built as the rest of the male population out there." he argued.
"Hey," she squeezed his hand gently "self-pity is a turn-off, don't go there."
At this even he in his miserable condition had to chuckle a bit.
"So I'm not exchangeable?" he asked, with a small smile.
"No-one is," Lily replied warmly "well, perhaps that woman."
He frowned but then told himself that there was no need to feel protective over C.C., after all, Lily did not even know her.
"You like her a lot, don't you?" she asked carefully, maybe even a little sadly.
"I do… I did…I'm not sure…" he ran a hand through his hair.
"I have a suggestion," Lily interrupted with a coy smile "how about I take you out to dinner tonight? Just two friends hanging out, forgetting about our worries a little. What do you say?"
"I'm not sure," he pulled a face "I don't know if going out is right. Maybe I should just stay here and-"
"Drown your sorrows in cheesecake? No, come on. Don't give her the satisfaction of having hurt you so easily. Just get out of the house for a bit, if only to distract yourself."
Her words did appeal to him in the end and so he found himself hours later alone in the corner of a quiet jazz bar, sipping on a Whiskey. Lily was nowhere in sight and he was beginning to regret his decision, as it all looked like he'd not only been replaced but also stood up on the same day, and there was only so much humiliation he could take. Slowly he sipped on his drink, felt the satisfying trail the amber liquid burnt down his throat and to his stomach. He had just ordered a second drink, when a soft hand touched his shoulder.
"I'm terribly sorry I'm so late," Lily apologized, as she slid into the seat next to him "my boss didn't let me go until he was absolutely sure that everything was done."
She rolled her eyes and he chuckled.
"I was beginning to think you wouldn't come," he explained with an embarrassed smile.
"I thought so," she nodded and nudged him "that's why I hurried here. Your self-esteem needs no more hits today, I'll make sure of that." And when she winked at him, his heart skipped a beat.
They stayed out much longer than he had anticipated, drank but not enough to be intoxicated and they danced, carefully at first but slowly closer, changing with the softer tunes that the jazz musicians played. And then they shared a cab home, stopped at his place where she walked him to the door.
"Aren't you glad now I had this idea?" she grinned.
He stood with his back against the front door, one hand already on the handle and grinned back.
"Yes, I must confess I had a rather good time."
She chuckled. "Now don't flatter me too much."
"British control, it's difficult to lose that." he explained sheepishly and fidgeted almost nervously.
"And what does one have to do to make a Brit lose control?" Lily asked and carefully inched closer.
"Now that's not easy," he laughed again, realized only too late where they were headed.
"I can be persistent," she smiled and leaned in "if something is worth it."
"I am," he breathed, because by this time she was so close he could smell her perfume.
"I know," she whispered back and softly captured his lips.
It was uncomfortable at first, because it was unfamiliar and not at all like C.C., but he adjusted by banning her from his thoughts.
"Would you maybe be interested in repeating this?" she asked shyly and he chuckled.
"Right now?" and he leaned in again but she cupped his face.
"Tempting, but maybe we should save some for later." she said and merely pecked his lips.
"How about tomorrow?"
"Perfect," she nodded and pulled him closer for another kiss.
The two of them were so wrapped up in their own kind of happiness that they didn't notice that they'd never been alone to begin with, for hiding around the corner of the house was none other than C.C. Babcock, clutching her aching heart. She couldn't quite fathom what made her lean against the cold stone wall, suppressing a hurt she couldn't handle and tears pooling in her eyes, but she knew that it had something to do with the scene she'd just witnessed. She stood perfectly still like this, barely breathing, for quite some time, until she finally came to a decision.
Niles had already been half-asleep and so it was the second knock on his door that caught his attention. Muttering something and rubbing his eyes, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and trudged to the door. Expecting his employer or the nosy nanny when he opened it, he stood paralyzed for a second when his eyes fell on the blonde.
"What?" he managed, but she merely shook her head in an almost sad way.
He tried to speak again, but this time she put a finger on his lips and took a step forward and into his room. She silently closed the door behind them and he desperately waited for her to speak but she didn't. She simply looked into his eyes for a while and then slowly began to undress before him. Her eyes were slightly red and her lashes wet, proof that she'd been crying, but all questions of what had got into her dissolved into nothingness when he became mesmerized by the movement of her fingers, teasingly undoing one button after another on her blouse. Soon she was done and carelessly let the item fall to the floor where it was joined by her heels and business pants. Only in her underwear in front of him, he had trouble thinking, let alone breathing and was only capable of looking on as she stripped off the final two items too.
"C.C.," he swallowed but she just shook her head again.
He had never seen her more vulnerable, not even the night before. It was as if she had taken down her defenses for him and was showing him her true self. Hesitantly she stepped closer and ran a hand over his bare chest. He smiled and closed his eyes and allowed her to continue at her own pace. She nipped on his neck, carefully then more firmly and with growing confidence, and then moved to his shoulder. He stopped her then and cupped her face, trying to find an explanation in her eyes. But all he could see was deep hurt and something he didn't dare hope for. She seemed to realize the same and stopped his thinking by kissing him tenderly. He returned the kiss in the same fashion and wrapped an arm around her naked frame to pull her closer. She sighed deeply and parted her lips to welcome him. Not wasting any more time he slipped his tongue into her mouth where it teasingly found hers. C.C.'s sighs soon turned into quiet whimpers and so he wrapped his other arm around her too and walked with her back to the bed. He broke their kiss gently and watched her as she lay down on her back, while he slipped out of his pajama bottoms and boxers. Their love-making was slow and tender, their bodies so close that they were touching almost everywhere and the air was filled with their quiet sighs and whispers. She breathed his name when she came and pressed her face against his shoulder, where his sweat mingled with her tears. Afterwards he pulled her tight against him, holding her as close as he possibly could. None of them said a word, but both of them knew.
