Angel's Kiss

Pour equal amounts of white crème de cacao, sloe gin, brandy, and cream into a café glass without mixing. An after-dinner drink sweet enough to rot your teeth.

On the highest floor of the Schnee Dust Corporation's headquarters, straight out from the elevators, is a soundproofed meeting room. The walls of the room are a dust-infused, force-resistant glass, protecting whoever is inside as well as giving them the ability to polarize the panes. When privacy is needed, the walls and the windows that look down onto Nicholas Plaza take on a mirror-like sheen, letting the people inside see out, but adding one more layer of security against corporate espionage. With a history like the SDC's, there are only too many companies who would kill to get their hands on inside secrets.

Unfortunately, while the view truly is spectacular, it's generally frowned upon to stare out the window during meetings like a bored schoolgirl, absently daydreaming while stuffed suits drone on and on about corporate policy.

Which was why Ruby had her back to the windows, biting her cheek to keep from yawning, as she sat in a comfortable office chair and did her best not to fidget. It was a losing battle; the board meeting had already gone on for over an hour and showed no signs of slowing down. She was bored out of her mind, and only the threat of embarrassing Weiss kept her seated rather than pacing aimless around the room. At least no one expected her to actually listen. She was just there as President Schnee's personal security, and after the last few months of her, Yang or Blake sitting in on these sorts of meetings, the rest of the board barely glanced in her direction when they walked in the room.

Still not sure if I like that or not, she thought, scanning her eyes over the hallway outside. Shoes clacked as someone's secretary walked purposefully down the hall, heading for one of the corner offices with a stack of papers under his arm. Seemed normal to her. She'd seen the man around, knew which executive he worked for. No threat there.

Glancing back at the board, she drummed her fingers once on the arm of her chair. On one hand, it was nice to not have to really deal with these people. She wouldn't even know where to begin. Just one of their bespoke suits cost more lien than she made in a year as a huntress. Even with her hair pinned back into some form of professional cut, she wasn't anything compared to the perfectly coiffed men and women sitting around the dark oak table—which Ruby was seventy percent sure had been cut from an endangered old-growth tree out in Mistral.

There is no way I belong anywhere near here, she admitted, catching herself before her leg could start bouncing. And everyone knows it. Even Weiss.

Moving slow, Ruby turned her eyes back to the white-haired woman seated at the head of the table. Weiss's back was to her, looking regal in the simple, white, and somehow throne-like chair she'd ordered placed in the boardroom. Her father's old studded-leather seat was long gone, probably in storage somewhere. Which was a blessing, honestly. Ruby never would have been able to see Weiss' legs from behind her father's chair. Definitely wouldn't have been able to trail her eyes down the long, sloping curves as Weiss crossed one behind the other. She certainly wouldn't have been able to see one small foot in a very substantial heel gently tapping the air.

She hates this as much as I do. Ruby bit the inside of her cheek again, stopping the smile before it could creep across her lips. The second they're out of earshot, the first thing she's gonna do is sigh, and then ask me to remind her why she hasn't tried to fire all her senior executives.

This time, she couldn't completely hide her smile. Not that anyone seemed to notice – they were all paying too much attention to the quarterly earnings report to give two shits about the dark-suited bodyguard in the back of the room. As far as they're concerned, I'm just another part of the furniture. Like the table, or the sideboard, or—

Even with the presentation going on, Ruby nearly leapt out of her seat at the nearly inaudible vibration against her leg. Heart hammering in her chest, she looked around the room. No one seemed to have noticed ... thankfully. Guess invisibility has its perks.

Slipping her scroll out of her pocket, she flicked it open, wondering if it was the update from Weiss' car service.

A name she didn't recognize flashed back at her instead. On its own, that wasn't surprising. She got a lot of messages these days. SDC security, Weiss' personal assistants, the car service, her office manager ... there seemed to be more and more names popping up in her inbox by the day. Then again, most of those weren't starred or labelled 'critical.' So who the heck is Li Yue?

Anywhere else, Ruby would have smacked herself. Right. Li Yue was Yang's cover name, and the one Weiss had used for her new scroll. Of course she'd slipped the number into Ruby's scroll. Made sense – on the off chance anyone got their scrolls, or hacked them, or who-knows-what, they'd see a message chain between Ruby and one of Weiss' executives, not Ruby and her sister.

Moving her finger over the screen, she tapped the message. If Yang was writing to her, she and Blake must have just landed. Which meant she might final get the answer she needed...

[Li: New scroll, who dis?]

Ruby fought and failed to keep from rolling her eyes. Ha ha, she typed. To be fair, she should have known Yang couldn't pass up the chance to pull that joke.

[Li: :) Landed. On our way to the meeting. Line's secure. You needed something?]

[Ruby: Advice.]

[Li: Shoot.]

[Ruby: Soooooooo, when you're]

She stopped, fingers hovering over the keyboard. There had to be ... nope. There was no good way to phrase this. No way to keep from humiliating herself the second she hit the send button. Sighing, she resigned herself to the embarrassment and hammered the delete key.

[Ruby: Um. It's personal advice.]

[Li: kay? Still here.]

[Ruby: Like personal. Per-son-al.]

[Li: Yeah, I get it. Spit it out, kid.]

Kid? That was ... right. She was talking to 'Yue'. Not 'Yang.' One of the Weiss' employees probably wouldn't call her 'sis.'

[Ruby: ... whadda you do when you ... when you wanna get ... someone in the mood?]

There was a long pause after that. To be honest, Ruby had kind of expected one. Setting her scroll against her leg, Ruby looked back up at the rest of the room. Just like before, no one was paying her any attention.

A few minutes later, her scroll twitched.

[Li: Find a first edition printing.]

[Ruby: Not what I meant.]

[Li: I know. I'm deflecting. With humor. I do that sometimes. You seriously want to talk to me about sexy times with ... Schnee?]

[Ruby: Look, I just ... she's really careful with me and I want her to relax. Right now, she's super careful. Like she's always worried she'll hurt me.]

[Li: Yeah, I'm pretty okay with everything you just said.]

[Ruby: You gonna help or not?]

Ruby could practically see Yang sighing as she leaned over her phone, one hand absently fluffing her hair.

[Li: Ruby, you know what I do. I tease when I want to get ... my girlfriend riled up, but what works for us won't do it for you two.]

[Ruby: Any suggestions? Please?]

[Li: ... fine. Sexy pictures.]

[Ruby: Come on. I need help here.]

[Li: I'm serious. Nuthin gross – last thing I want to think about. Cute outfits and stuff. Like 'Come home soon.' 'Skip your meeting.' 'Can't wait till we're alone.']

[Ruby: I'm at work. Like five feet from her.]

[Li: Even better. Take 'em ahead of time. Send 'em in a meeting and watch her try to keep a straight face.]

Glancing back up from her scroll, Ruby couldn't help staring at the back of Weiss' chair. What would Weiss' reaction be to something like that? She couldn't think of a time ... no. That wasn't true. She did had a distinct memory of a wide-eyed Weiss looking down at her in the dark, of desperate need shining in those light blue eyes before Weiss' lips latched onto her neck, fingers fumbling wildly at the buttons of her shirt ...

[Ruby: Anything else?] she typed, clenching her jaw to keep from blushing.

[Li: ... sexy underwear? I dunno. what's her thing?]

[Ruby: ?]

[Li: Like ... my girlfriend doesn't always admit it, but she's got a thing for my chest. You know that. And she's got a greeeeeat butt. So what's your favorite part of Weiss? PG, please. I'm out of brain bleach.]

Ruby bit her lip, and fought to keep from glancing over at Weiss again. Weiss didn't need the rest of the board catching her bodyguard staring at the company president like a present she couldn't wait to unwrap.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Weiss cross her legs again, one foot still tapping the air as if it would somehow hurry the meeting along. She had to admit, Weiss had amazing legs. She didn't know if it was the dancing her father had made her do when she was younger, or if it was the fighting style she used, but Weiss had ... how had she heard Qrow put it once? Weiss had gams to die for. Add in the tights and hose and her habit of wearing combat skirts in the field and pencil skirts at the office ...

This time, she was blushing as she looked down at her scroll.

[Ruby: ... legs, I guess? Plus, her face is so pretty and she has these high cheekbones]

[Ruby: Her jaw's nice too. And she likes dresses that show off her collarbones...]

[Li: Gross. Too mushy. So, what's she like about you?]

Fingers on the scroll, Ruby went completely still. That ... it wasn't like Weiss hadn't complimented her before. Said she looked pretty or beautiful. But ...

[Ruby: I ... I dunno.]

Ruby swore she could feel Yang rolling her eyes all the way from Vale.

[Li: Well, that's something to find out.]

Blinking, Ruby pressed the power button on her scroll and looked back up, scanning across the boardroom without really seeing anything. Folding her hands over her lap, she settled back in her chair, a frown creeping across her face.

Yang had a point. If there was one thing she'd learned in the last couple months, it was that any push in their relationship was gonna have to come from her. Even if it was just her trying to get Weiss to be more forward about everything.

Okay then, she thought, biting the corner of her lip and throwing a shopping list together in her mind. One more question to ask then.

What would Yang do?

When Weiss had heard Ruby calling from the bedroom, she had still been in the middle of looking through the last of the day's reports. Applied Sciences was still over-budget and under-performing, and it took her almost a minute after walking into the room to wonder why Ruby wasn't saying whatever it was she needed.

For a split second as she looked up, Weiss could have sworn her heart stopped.

It was a lucky thing that their bedroom floor was covered in a thick carpet. She wasn't entirely sure her scroll would have survived tumbling from her numb fingers as she stared at the sight that awaited her on the bed.

Ruby knelt on the sheet in a blood-red negligee, a practically see-through scrap of lacy fabric that barely came down past her hips. It looked like she'd taken a page out of Yang's book – the nightdress showed off a good expanse of cleavage, coming together at her bust before splitting into two trailing lines of silk that clung to her sides, leaving a long slash of her stomach bare. It helped that the cups were designed to push her breasts up and together, putting her even more on display for Weiss' rapt gaze.

"Hi." Ruby said, her cheeks red. Her hands toyed absently with the bedsheets, her hips shifting slightly as Weiss' eyes swept over her.

For almost a minute, Weiss just stared, completely and entirely speechless. Finally, the neurons in her brain started firing again, leaving her shaken and realizing that she was gaping at the younger woman like some slack-jawed idiot. Shaking her head, Weiss reached down for her scroll, before setting it on the dresser and closing the door behind her.

Ruby watched as Weiss carefully laid the scroll down, taking a second to make sure it sat right before moving over to the door and closing it with a purposefulness that made Ruby gulp.

This was so much harder than she'd thought it would be: sitting still, fighting to keep from looking down or just diving out of sight beneath the covers. Especially when Weiss turned back to face her. Those pale blue eyes lingered on her chest, her legs, the bare skin of her stomach, before finally Weiss forced them back up to her face. Just the expression on her face made Ruby tighten her fingers in the sheets. There was a hunger there, some dark and primal need Ruby hadn't seen in months, not since their first night together.

It was thrilling and intimidating and nerve-wracking all at once.

"So," Weiss said, her voice perfectly clear and precise. "This was the errand you needed to run."

Ruby couldn't help looking down. She hadn't been willing to wait after her chat with Yang, which had meant a quick shift in the guard schedules for headquarters, and a blanket ban on letting Ms. Schnee anywhere outside her very-well-secured office until Ruby was back. From what the security guys said, Ruby thought maybe Weiss hadn't noticed—she'd been cooped up in her office all day anyway—but apparently it was too much to hope for.

Biting her lip, Ruby forced herself to meet Weiss' eyes, then nodded her head towards the mattress. "Join me? Please?"

Weiss looked from her to the rumpled sheets, then deliberately reached up and slid her jacket from her shoulders. Folding it over a nearby chair, she smoothed the narrow lines of her skirt, then moved to sit beside Ruby. She perched on the edge, the tension in her muscles clear even beneath the sharp-pressed lines of her shirt. She looked on-edge. Rigid. Almost like it was taking every ounce of self-control to keep herself from moving.

Thank you, Yang, Ruby thought, smiling nervously at the white-haired woman before her. I owe you big time for suggesting this.

Moving slow, Ruby reached out and laid a hand on Weiss' shoulder. She was right. Ruby could feel the muscles bunching up beneath her palm, see the stiff lines of Weiss' shoulders and the ramrod plane of her spine. Pulling gently, Ruby tugged Weiss around until she was facing her fully, then sat back so she could look her girlfriend in the eye.

"Weiss, when we're been together, I've felt ... loved. A-and that's a really good feeling, and I love having that with you. A lot." Ruby reached out and took Weiss' hands in hers, thumbs running over the back of her fingers. "You're gentle and you're sweet, and I really, really love this."

"But?" Weiss asked, her jaw clenched, smart enough to hear it coming.

"It's ... I don't know. Sometimes ... especially when we're like this, I feel like this thing you're taking care of. Like a cup you're afraid you're gonna break. Not like someone you 'want'." Ruby smiled ruefully. "Not like I did that first time. I know you panicked about the whole thing afterwards, and me being nervous about the whole thing didn't help. But during ... you were really passionate, like you ... I dunno. Like you were drowning and kissing me was the only way you could breathe. And I liked feeling that. Like I was the only thing in the world to you."

Ruby swallowed and looked down at their hands. "That first time we slept together, I felt loved. Really loved. Like you were desperate to be with me, to make me happy. But since then, when we're together, it's like I'm being ... handled. I," Ruby felt her cheeks go red. No matter how many times she'd practiced this in her head, this was always the part she couldn't get right. "I wanna to be made love to, Weiss. Not feel like I'm a paper flower you'll crush if you squeeze too hard."

Before Weiss could stop her, Ruby moved up onto her knees, hands moving up to twine behind Weiss' neck as she straddled the white-haired huntress' lap. "I miss that. A lot. I know you're holding yourself back, and I don't want you to." She leaned in, pressing herself against Weiss' chest as she kissed her cheek. "I want to feel 'wanted' again."

"Ruby—" Weiss said, ending in a sigh as the younger woman pushed even more firmly against her chest.

"Please," Ruby said, staring straight into Weiss' eyes. Her gaze never wavered, despite the heat rushing up into her face. Her eyes stayed on Weiss, steady and waiting, begging for something the other woman hadn't given her since that night on the sisters' couch. "Please, Weiss. I wanna be kissed even when I'm not the one who asks for it. I want to be surprised ... a-and held, and I-I want it to be you holding me, and-"

She was still trying to think of something else for Weiss to do when two very familiar lips pressed up against her own. In an instant, all the tension in her body broke, and she crashed into the white-haired woman beneath her, toppling them both backwards onto the bed. She barely even noticed when somehow she ended up beneath her, Weiss' body pressing her down with a weight that was managed to be comforting and thrilling all at the same time.

"Like that?" Weiss murmured softly against her cheek.

It took Ruby a long while to pull her mind back together, at least enough to realize Weiss was actually waiting for an answer. That more kisses like that one weren't coming until she did.

"Just like that."

Weiss nodded, her breath as shaky as Ruby's. "Alright. On one condition."

"Anything," Ruby said breathlessly, desire tinting every syllable.

She let out a short gasp as two warm hands slid effortlessly beneath her nightdress to grip her sides, holding her close as Weiss pressed a quick, heated kiss against her lips.

"I don't want ... if I do anything you don't like," Weiss said, still pressed against her. "Anything."

"You won't."

"I mean it, Ruby." The flush faded from Weiss' face as she pulled back, far enough that Ruby could see her clearly. "Promise me. No pretending something's fine just to save my feelings."

Reaching up, Ruby wrapped her arms behind Weiss' neck again, hard muscles grown from years of hunting tensing as she pulled herself up until their noses brushed.

"I promise."

They kissed again, fire shooting down Ruby's veins to pool at the base of her stomach. Bound together, they fell back onto the bed, Weiss' fingers twining with hers before pinning her hands to the mattress.

"Now," Weiss said, lips pressed against the side of her neck. "How do I get this off you?"

Author's Note: Hey everyone. Sorry for the very long wait for a new chapter. I've got a bit of a backlog of reviews and comments, so I'll be trying to get to those in the next couple days.

As usual, please leave a review or comment if you can. (A) It makes my day and (B) it sometimes gives me idea about what you guys would like to see and any mistakes I might need to fix. If you have any questions, comments, critiques, or even just want to say 'hi,' PLEASE put it in a review (I try to eventually respond to almost any question) or in an ask on tumblr (you can find me as 'Redsuitwriter'). I also put sneak peeks for my stories on tumblr, so you can find extra content there.

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