Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Joss owns it all damn him!
For those of you interested - the book this was based on was a silhoutte romance, you probably won't be able to find it on the shelf at a bookstore, but the library should have it, or you can order it. Or get it off e-bay maybe. But I highly recommend it and all the Nora Robert's books in the Macgregor series. They all feature a meddling grandfather who sets up all his single kids and eventually grandkids with the loves of their lives, no matter how hard they fight it! Get to know the whole Macgregor clan, they are awesome!
***
Chapter 7 - Family
Buffy spent most of the afternoon in her room; the one-sided conversation she had overhead running through her mind. So - Will liked Showgirls, huh? It figured. He probably had his pick too. It wasn't as if Vegas wasn't over flowing with beautiful busty women he could seduce.
She looked down at her own body categorizing the flaws she saw there; small breasts, skinny figure. She certainly didn't have an hourglass appearance. She stared at herself in the mirror. She did have nice hair though, she smiled softly, especially after Henry had gotten through with her.
After several hours of brooding she finally decided to get out. So what if Will didn't want her? This was the start of her new life, dammit! And she wasn't going to let one rejection ruin it for her. Going through her suitcase she found one of the few 'nice' things she'd brought with her. It wasn't as sexy as the cocktail dress she'd worn to dinner the other night, but it would do.
Buffy twirled in front of the mirror. She loved this skirt. It was slips of overlapping silk so that the hem was an uneven line of triangles at the bottom. It was cut so that when she twirled the skirt rose up and flapped around her. To go on top she had on a glittering halter just this side of gold. The shade of the halter made the red highlights in her hair stand out even more. Satisfied, Buffy took a deep breath grabbed her small gold clutch purse and headed out the door.
***
Spike was scowling at the monitors when Joyce walked into the room. She stepped close to look over his shoulder and see what had him in such a foul mood.
"Crazy bint." Spike mumbled. "She's playing all wrong. Playing one coin at a time, holding a pair of twos and discarding a king and jack? What does she think she's doing out there alone?"
Spike jumped when he felt the hand land on his shoulder. "Bloody hell!" He turned around ready to curse out the intruder.
"Mum!" Spike's cheeks flooded with color. His mum was the only woman still able to make him blush with embarrassment. "How long have you been standing there?" He asked, hugging her at the same time.
"Just a few minutes." She answered hugging him back. "What's got you so upset this time? Card counter?" She peered over his shoulder once more.
"'S nothing." He shrugged it off, though she noticed he kept one eye on the screens. "You're early, is da with you?"
"Yes, well Dru was getting a bit tired of our visit, I think." Joyce's eyes were smiling brightly. "So we cut it short. Your da stopped in Los Angeles to talk with Xander about some contract or other he's setting up. They should both be here sometime tomorrow afternoon."
"Xan's coming too?" Spike smiled widely. It had been almost a year since the last time he'd seen his old friend.
"Yes, he said he had some business with the new winner - Buffy was it?" Joyce watched the expressions flit across her son's face.
At the mention of her name, Spike turned back to the monitors. "Right, Buffy. Buffy Summers. There she is now." He pointed out her black and white image on the screen.
'Fetching', Joyce thought as she watched the young woman sitting at the video poker machine. "She doesn't seem to know what she's doing, does she?" Joyce laughed. "She's the one who took you for 2 million?"
Spike scowled and turned back to his mother. "She's lucky. That's all you need in this town."
"Hmm.well it seems as if she could use a few lessons as well. Oh good! There's someone come to help her." Joyce pointed out.
Spike spun around again. The frown marring his face deepened. Joyce watched her son with interest. She'd never seen Will's attention so focused before. And she'd definitely never seen it focused on a single woman. Before she could query him, he pushed past her with a mumbled, "I've got to go."
'Curiouser and curiouser', Joyce thought as she followed her son out the door.
***
Buffy had wandered the casino floor trying to find something that didn't look too complicated. She watched a woman play for a few minutes before finding an empty machine herself. It didn't look too hard. Just poker, and since there were no other players she wouldn't get as nervous.
She read all the rules on the front of the machine before pulling out a crisp twenty dollar bill and inserting it in the slot. She watched as her credits increased until they topped out at 80. She hit the 'bet' button once and then pressed 'deal'.
She had a pair of twos, a king, a jack, and an eight. She pressed the 'hold' buttons under the twos and then hit 'deal again. She frowned when she saw that she had lost. Shrugging her shoulders she played another hand.
Now after having played for about half an hour she was up to 82 credits. This time she had a pair of tens, a jack, a queen, and a seven. She hit the 'hold' buttons for the tens but before she could hit 'deal' she felt a movement to her right. A handsome young man slid into the seat next to her, giving her a wide smile.
"Hello. You look like you might be able to use some help." He winked. "My name's Riley." He held out his hand to her.
Shaking his hand she gave him a friendly smile. "Hi, I'm Buffy. Is it that obvious? That I don't know how to play, I mean." Her smile turned sheepish.
"Nah. You're doing okay, just thought you might like a pointer or two." He leaned in close to her, their shoulders brushing as he pointed to her cards. "You don't want to keep the tens. At least not both of them. You want to keep the Jack, Queen, and ten of hearts." He pointed to each in turn, causing their bodies to rub up against each other.
Buffy stared at the cards he indicated. "But why? Shouldn't I keep the pair I have, what if I get another ten?"
"Well, sure a triple would be nice. But what you're really going for is the jackpot. And to get that you need a royal flush. You already got three of the five cards you need to make it. Why not go for it?" He shrugged at her, showing a line of straight teeth with his grin. "But, you won't get the jackpot even if you got the flush now because you need to play 3 credits to win that."
"Oh." Buffy processed the information, even as she did as instructed. She ended up winning one credit with a pair of Jacks and she clapped her hands. "Well at least I didn't lose!" She threw her thousand watt smile at him.
They played a couple more hands, Riley instructing her on which cards to hold for each. She was bouncing in her seat, having just one with a full house, eights over threes, when Riley reached over and took one of her hands in his.
"Great job Buffy!" He pulled her hand forward and kissed the palm. "What do you say I buy you a drink and we can continue your lessons in the bar?"
Before she could answer she felt the pressure of a firm grip on her shoulder. Looking up she saw Will's angry glower. "The lady's with me."
She turned back to Riley, who was quickly pulling his hand away from hers. "Hey man." He put his hands up in the universal sign for surrender. "Sorry. I didn't know she was taken." Then he was up and walking away without even saying goodbye to her.
Buffy stood, anger infusing her whole body. "What do you think you're doing?" Who was he to come barging in like that?
Spike was gritting his teeth, trying to calm the rage coursing through his veins. He was surprised at the intensity of his feelings, but didn't have time to question them now. "I told you not to come down here alone."
"You're not my father, or my boyfriend. You can't tell me what to do. It's none of your business!"
"My place. My business!" He answered, nostrils flaring. "There's good reason for you not to wander around down here by yourself. Not ten minutes and you're already getting hit on!"
"He wasn't hitting on me!" Buffy countered. "He was just helping me. I've never played before - "
"You really are naïve aren't you?" He asked quietly, anger slowly dissipating.
Buffy's face flared with humiliation. "Even if he was hitting on me, what's it to you? Why do you care?"
"Why do I care?" Buffy backed up a step at the tone of his voice. Before she could get any further he had her back pinned to the video machine, his mouth descending towards hers. Buffy's eyes closed in anticipation, her face tilted up.
"So this is Buffy Summers the lucky winner." Joyce stated quietly. She'd watched the proceedings without interference, but decided it was time to make her presence known.
Buffy and Spike jumped apart, both their faces scarlet. "Mum!" At Will's startled exclamation, Buffy turned to study the woman watching them. So this was Will's mom?
"Aren't you going to introduce us Will?" Joyce asked.
Buffy watched with amusement as Will stuttered out the introductions. "Mum this is Buffy Summers. Buffy this is my Mum, Joyce Giles." He pointed to each in turn.
Embarrassed beyond belief to have been caught in a compromising position with her son, Buffy found she couldn't look Joyce in the face. Instead she studied the carpet in front of her feet and said a quiet, "Nice to meet you Mrs. Giles."
Buffy was surprised when a slender finger came up just below her chin, lifting her face until she was eye to eye with Will's mom. "Call me Joyce." Buffy felt an instant affinity to the woman before her.
"Thank you - Joyce." Buffy gave her a tentative smile. When Joyce returned it, Buffy's smiled blossomed into its normal irresistible state. "I was playing video poker." She pointed to the machine proudly.
Joyce chuckled. "Yes, I caught that. If you'd like some lessons, I'd be happy to teach you." Joyce grabbed hold of Buffy's elbow, leading her toward the lounge. "Why don't we have a seat and chat. I want to hear your whole story. So far I've only gotten bits and pieces."
Spike sighed and shook his head as he watched the two ladies head for the lounge arm in arm.
For those of you interested - the book this was based on was a silhoutte romance, you probably won't be able to find it on the shelf at a bookstore, but the library should have it, or you can order it. Or get it off e-bay maybe. But I highly recommend it and all the Nora Robert's books in the Macgregor series. They all feature a meddling grandfather who sets up all his single kids and eventually grandkids with the loves of their lives, no matter how hard they fight it! Get to know the whole Macgregor clan, they are awesome!
***
Chapter 7 - Family
Buffy spent most of the afternoon in her room; the one-sided conversation she had overhead running through her mind. So - Will liked Showgirls, huh? It figured. He probably had his pick too. It wasn't as if Vegas wasn't over flowing with beautiful busty women he could seduce.
She looked down at her own body categorizing the flaws she saw there; small breasts, skinny figure. She certainly didn't have an hourglass appearance. She stared at herself in the mirror. She did have nice hair though, she smiled softly, especially after Henry had gotten through with her.
After several hours of brooding she finally decided to get out. So what if Will didn't want her? This was the start of her new life, dammit! And she wasn't going to let one rejection ruin it for her. Going through her suitcase she found one of the few 'nice' things she'd brought with her. It wasn't as sexy as the cocktail dress she'd worn to dinner the other night, but it would do.
Buffy twirled in front of the mirror. She loved this skirt. It was slips of overlapping silk so that the hem was an uneven line of triangles at the bottom. It was cut so that when she twirled the skirt rose up and flapped around her. To go on top she had on a glittering halter just this side of gold. The shade of the halter made the red highlights in her hair stand out even more. Satisfied, Buffy took a deep breath grabbed her small gold clutch purse and headed out the door.
***
Spike was scowling at the monitors when Joyce walked into the room. She stepped close to look over his shoulder and see what had him in such a foul mood.
"Crazy bint." Spike mumbled. "She's playing all wrong. Playing one coin at a time, holding a pair of twos and discarding a king and jack? What does she think she's doing out there alone?"
Spike jumped when he felt the hand land on his shoulder. "Bloody hell!" He turned around ready to curse out the intruder.
"Mum!" Spike's cheeks flooded with color. His mum was the only woman still able to make him blush with embarrassment. "How long have you been standing there?" He asked, hugging her at the same time.
"Just a few minutes." She answered hugging him back. "What's got you so upset this time? Card counter?" She peered over his shoulder once more.
"'S nothing." He shrugged it off, though she noticed he kept one eye on the screens. "You're early, is da with you?"
"Yes, well Dru was getting a bit tired of our visit, I think." Joyce's eyes were smiling brightly. "So we cut it short. Your da stopped in Los Angeles to talk with Xander about some contract or other he's setting up. They should both be here sometime tomorrow afternoon."
"Xan's coming too?" Spike smiled widely. It had been almost a year since the last time he'd seen his old friend.
"Yes, he said he had some business with the new winner - Buffy was it?" Joyce watched the expressions flit across her son's face.
At the mention of her name, Spike turned back to the monitors. "Right, Buffy. Buffy Summers. There she is now." He pointed out her black and white image on the screen.
'Fetching', Joyce thought as she watched the young woman sitting at the video poker machine. "She doesn't seem to know what she's doing, does she?" Joyce laughed. "She's the one who took you for 2 million?"
Spike scowled and turned back to his mother. "She's lucky. That's all you need in this town."
"Hmm.well it seems as if she could use a few lessons as well. Oh good! There's someone come to help her." Joyce pointed out.
Spike spun around again. The frown marring his face deepened. Joyce watched her son with interest. She'd never seen Will's attention so focused before. And she'd definitely never seen it focused on a single woman. Before she could query him, he pushed past her with a mumbled, "I've got to go."
'Curiouser and curiouser', Joyce thought as she followed her son out the door.
***
Buffy had wandered the casino floor trying to find something that didn't look too complicated. She watched a woman play for a few minutes before finding an empty machine herself. It didn't look too hard. Just poker, and since there were no other players she wouldn't get as nervous.
She read all the rules on the front of the machine before pulling out a crisp twenty dollar bill and inserting it in the slot. She watched as her credits increased until they topped out at 80. She hit the 'bet' button once and then pressed 'deal'.
She had a pair of twos, a king, a jack, and an eight. She pressed the 'hold' buttons under the twos and then hit 'deal again. She frowned when she saw that she had lost. Shrugging her shoulders she played another hand.
Now after having played for about half an hour she was up to 82 credits. This time she had a pair of tens, a jack, a queen, and a seven. She hit the 'hold' buttons for the tens but before she could hit 'deal' she felt a movement to her right. A handsome young man slid into the seat next to her, giving her a wide smile.
"Hello. You look like you might be able to use some help." He winked. "My name's Riley." He held out his hand to her.
Shaking his hand she gave him a friendly smile. "Hi, I'm Buffy. Is it that obvious? That I don't know how to play, I mean." Her smile turned sheepish.
"Nah. You're doing okay, just thought you might like a pointer or two." He leaned in close to her, their shoulders brushing as he pointed to her cards. "You don't want to keep the tens. At least not both of them. You want to keep the Jack, Queen, and ten of hearts." He pointed to each in turn, causing their bodies to rub up against each other.
Buffy stared at the cards he indicated. "But why? Shouldn't I keep the pair I have, what if I get another ten?"
"Well, sure a triple would be nice. But what you're really going for is the jackpot. And to get that you need a royal flush. You already got three of the five cards you need to make it. Why not go for it?" He shrugged at her, showing a line of straight teeth with his grin. "But, you won't get the jackpot even if you got the flush now because you need to play 3 credits to win that."
"Oh." Buffy processed the information, even as she did as instructed. She ended up winning one credit with a pair of Jacks and she clapped her hands. "Well at least I didn't lose!" She threw her thousand watt smile at him.
They played a couple more hands, Riley instructing her on which cards to hold for each. She was bouncing in her seat, having just one with a full house, eights over threes, when Riley reached over and took one of her hands in his.
"Great job Buffy!" He pulled her hand forward and kissed the palm. "What do you say I buy you a drink and we can continue your lessons in the bar?"
Before she could answer she felt the pressure of a firm grip on her shoulder. Looking up she saw Will's angry glower. "The lady's with me."
She turned back to Riley, who was quickly pulling his hand away from hers. "Hey man." He put his hands up in the universal sign for surrender. "Sorry. I didn't know she was taken." Then he was up and walking away without even saying goodbye to her.
Buffy stood, anger infusing her whole body. "What do you think you're doing?" Who was he to come barging in like that?
Spike was gritting his teeth, trying to calm the rage coursing through his veins. He was surprised at the intensity of his feelings, but didn't have time to question them now. "I told you not to come down here alone."
"You're not my father, or my boyfriend. You can't tell me what to do. It's none of your business!"
"My place. My business!" He answered, nostrils flaring. "There's good reason for you not to wander around down here by yourself. Not ten minutes and you're already getting hit on!"
"He wasn't hitting on me!" Buffy countered. "He was just helping me. I've never played before - "
"You really are naïve aren't you?" He asked quietly, anger slowly dissipating.
Buffy's face flared with humiliation. "Even if he was hitting on me, what's it to you? Why do you care?"
"Why do I care?" Buffy backed up a step at the tone of his voice. Before she could get any further he had her back pinned to the video machine, his mouth descending towards hers. Buffy's eyes closed in anticipation, her face tilted up.
"So this is Buffy Summers the lucky winner." Joyce stated quietly. She'd watched the proceedings without interference, but decided it was time to make her presence known.
Buffy and Spike jumped apart, both their faces scarlet. "Mum!" At Will's startled exclamation, Buffy turned to study the woman watching them. So this was Will's mom?
"Aren't you going to introduce us Will?" Joyce asked.
Buffy watched with amusement as Will stuttered out the introductions. "Mum this is Buffy Summers. Buffy this is my Mum, Joyce Giles." He pointed to each in turn.
Embarrassed beyond belief to have been caught in a compromising position with her son, Buffy found she couldn't look Joyce in the face. Instead she studied the carpet in front of her feet and said a quiet, "Nice to meet you Mrs. Giles."
Buffy was surprised when a slender finger came up just below her chin, lifting her face until she was eye to eye with Will's mom. "Call me Joyce." Buffy felt an instant affinity to the woman before her.
"Thank you - Joyce." Buffy gave her a tentative smile. When Joyce returned it, Buffy's smiled blossomed into its normal irresistible state. "I was playing video poker." She pointed to the machine proudly.
Joyce chuckled. "Yes, I caught that. If you'd like some lessons, I'd be happy to teach you." Joyce grabbed hold of Buffy's elbow, leading her toward the lounge. "Why don't we have a seat and chat. I want to hear your whole story. So far I've only gotten bits and pieces."
Spike sighed and shook his head as he watched the two ladies head for the lounge arm in arm.