"Good," Willow smiled and picked her noodles up again, "Now, you wanna talk about what's been stressing you?"
Tara smiled and nodded, settling back into her seat.
"Just work stuff. But my caseload's eased off a bit; Alice took over on a few. And there was some wedding stuff, but it's all good. I got my dress a couple of weeks ago."
Willow giggled as she remembered the email she received detailing the shopping trip.
"Brian told me. Something about the assistant thinking he was your fiancé?"
Tara laughed as well, remembering the incident
"Yea. Don't worry; I corrected her, told her I was all about the ladies. Well, lady. And, oh! I think I found a rabbi! I just talked to him on the phone, but I'm meeting him on Wednesday. He wanted to meet the two of us but I explained you were away at the moment. He said it's okay as long as he sees you before the actual wedding. He does a lot of independent weddings, especially interfaith ones, plus he doesn't cost too much. And I have some possibilities for venues, that's what Becky was dropping in earlier. Oh and one of Brian's friends is a DJ, so he's going to do the music. I was feeling a little…out of control for a while but almost everything is starting to work out now, so I'm okay. Your visit couldn't have come at a better time, though. I really needed to see your face."
Willow nodded, impressed.
"Wow, you've really been busy."
"Well, so have you," Tara replied with a loving smile, "How's everything going down in Quantico?"
"Very cool, actually," Willow said a fond smile, "I met loads of different people, actual FBI agents and other like, professional type-people who work there, different analysts and stuff. We learn how to like integrate all our jobs together. Then there's a lot of policy and boring stuff like that. But I'm really looking forward to starting on the job. I think it's gonna be really exciting."
Tara smiled; delighted her fiancée was having a good time.
"And Buffy?"
Tara had heard all about Buffy on their phone calls and thought it was great that Willow got on so well with her roommate, had somebody who understood what she was going through.
"Buffy's good. She told me to hit you with a pillow from her."
Tara laughed, she'd been told about the impromptu pillow fight that had broken out when Willow and Buffy had first met.
"Well, hit her back when you see her tomorrow."
"I will," Willow grinned, "Actually, I wanted to ask you…you think it'd be okay if I invited her to the wedding? Her and Angel, her boyfriend? I know I've only known her five weeks, but we're really close. If it makes the numbers all weird or is gonna stress you out, then don't worry, it was just an idea, I totally-"
Tara cut the redhead off by putting a hand on her knee and squeezing.
"Of course you can invite her. I want to meet her, especially if you're gonna stay friends. Besides, adding another two isn't gonna make a difference to the preparations."
Willow scrunched her nose up in delight as she twirled some noodles on her chopsticks and popped them in her mouth.
"Awesome. You're the best. She might not even be able to make it but I thought I should at least ask. She's been really good to me. I feel like we're gonna be friends for life, even if we get posted on opposite ends of the country. You know when you just know something like that?"
"Completely," Tara smiled with a small nod of her head, knowing she'd felt the same when she'd first met Willow and although had been hoping they'd be more than friends, knew she'd be part of the redhead's life forever, "I'm so happy you made a new friend. You know, I'm really getting excited. Only six weeks now."
"Me too," Willow replied, putting her now-empty food container back on the table and getting a giddy grin on her face, "I mean, back at the academy, I'm pretty swamped most of the time but there's these moments where I just forget about everything and all I see is you in this white dress – your dress is white isn't it?"
"Yes," Tara said, she was refusing to let the redhead see the dress, just like Willow was keeping hers at Becky's to be away from prying eyes, but she figured giving away the colour wouldn't matter, "Is yours?"
"Kind of off-white. Anyway, all I see is you and me, standing in our white dresses and we're smiling. Just really, really happy."
"Sounds like a premonition."
"Oh yea, I'm a regular witch," Willow replied, laughing, "But I think you might be right on that one. I can't wait to marry you."
"The feeling's mutual, love. I'm counting the days."
The couple shared a sweet smile for a moment until Willow's lips turned into more of a grin and she pulled Tara to her.
"Wanna go for round six?"
"Oh…my…god."
"Oh, right there, right there!"
"Just a little harder…"
"So close…"
"Don't stop, don't stop…!"
"I'm…I'm…"
"Oh, baby…"
"Willow!"
"Tara!"
Willow rolled off the blonde; a huge, dreamy grin plastered on her face and was surprised when she noticed rays of sunshine coming in under the curtains.
"When did morning happen?" she asked, glancing over at her fiancée.
"When the moon went down," Tara replied with a half smile, her face glowing, turning on her side and running a hand down the redhead's side, "You sure do know how to make a girl lose track of time."
Willow was about to respond that it was very much a mutual effort when she glimpsed at the clock on the blonde's nightstand and sighed.
"Jeez, tell me about it. I have to leave in like an hour. I can't believe we stayed up all night."
"I can," Tara grinned and moved her hand down, drumming her fingers on the redhead's naked stomach, "It was wonderful."
Willow could only laugh and nod at that.
"Can't deny that. I actually thought I might pass out from pleasure a few times."
"Oh you did."
Willow turned her head to meet Tara's gaze with a confused look.
"Huh?"
"Last night…or this morning…the hours just kind of knit together, but anyway, you were totally unconscious for like a minute after you…"
Tara cocked her head to the side with a smile to indicate what she meant. Willow rubbed the blonde's arm and grinned.
"Oh really? Wait…wait…I remember…I remember you having a really smug smile…plastered all over your face…kinda like the one there right now."
Tara giggled as Willow rolled on top of her and starting placing kisses all over her face, her laughter getting louder as the redhead's hands began tickling her.
"I'll wipe that smile off your face," Willow continued in a teasing tone, giggling as well, "You give?"
"Never," Tara replied through the laughter, trying in vain to flip them so she'd have the control. When it became apparent that wasn't going to work, she changed her tactics, "Not…that…I'm…admitting…defeat…but…"
"Just say you give and I'll stop…"
"How about I say I love you?"
Willow's fingers stilled and she locked eyes with her fiancée, looking at her with pure unadulterated love.
"Give me a kiss and we're even."
"Knew that would work," Tara muttered before leaning upwards and meeting the smaller girl's lips in a slow, sweet kiss.
They pulled back after a couple of minutes and Willow rested her head in the crook of Tara's neck, snuggling into the warm body beneath her as the blonde wrapped her arms around her.
"I really need to have a shower before I leave," she spoke up after another few minutes had passed, "Can't go back to Quantico smelling like I've done naughty things to you all night. No matter how much fun they were."
Tara sighed and tightened her hold.
"Just one more minute. Please?"
"Of course," Willow whispered softly before the room lapsed into silence once again, both enjoying being in the quiet presence of one another.
Five minutes passed before the redhead raised herself slightly and Tara nodded, acknowledging the fact she had to get ready and Willow gently extracted herself from their cosy embrace with a quick kiss, going into the bathroom and starting the shower.
The blonde watched her leave before turning back into the bed and grabbing Willow's pillow, smiling when she noticed it smelled of the redhead once again, the scent of her fiancée having faded in the five weeks she'd been away. She put the pillow back with a final deep inhale, looking forward to cuddling up to it that night in place of her girl's actual presence before getting out of bed and wrapping her robe around her body.
Willow came out of the bathroom just as she was leaving the bedroom, wrapped in just a short towel, beads of water still falling down her body. Tara couldn't help roaming her eyes down her fiancée's body, her shapely legs in particular making her mouth go dry.
"You're just trying to tease me with that hot, wet body aren't you?"
Willow grinned and did a twirl.
"Maybe. But you like to be teased."
Tara dropped her head and placed a kiss on the redhead's exposed shoulder and couldn't help dropping her hand and squeezing her butt through the towel.
"Tara! Hands!"
"You like my hands," Tara murmured, moving her lips up to the smaller girl's neck and pulling the towel off completely, cupping both of Willow's butt cheeks in her hands, "You like them a lot."
"Oh baby..." Willow replied with a small moan as Tara kissed that place beneath her ear that drove her wild, "Baby you know I want to...but I can't miss my flight."
Tara sighed into the redhead's neck and placed a final soft kiss against her pulsepoint before pulling back.
"Okay, okay. I'll go make you some coffee. I think we have one of those travel mug thingies somewhere."
Willow nodded and picked her towel back up, seeing Tara cast a final, longing glance at her naked body and feeling all warm inside that her fiancée still had an overwhelming desire for her even when they'd just spent at least 20 of the past 24 hours completely consumed with one another.
"Thanks, baby," she said as she walked back into the bedroom, "We cut it kinda close. I need to leave in like ten minutes or I'll miss my flight."
"I know," Tara said loudly so Willow would hear as she walked into the kitchen, "There should be plenty of cabs at the rank around the corner. Not much traffic either."
A few minutes passed as the blonde went about making coffee before the smaller girl emerged again, fully dressed this time just as Tara was pouring dark liquid into a large stainless steel mug. She walked back into the living room and handed it to Willow, who took it and picked up her overnight bag, which was still in the same place she had dropped it upon arriving.
"So I guess this is goodbye…again."
"Yea," Tara replied, biting on the skin of her nail, "I guess so. I'm really glad you came home for a visit."
"Me too," Willow said and smiled at her fiancée, "C'mere and give me a hug."
Tara wrapped her arms around the redhead and held on tight, determined not to let go until she absolutely had to.
"I love you, darling. And I'll miss you."
Willow sighed and took every out of comfort and love that was being offered from the embrace as she brought her lips to Tara's ear and whispered in it with all the feeling she had.
"I love you too. But remember, it's only four more weeks. Four more weeks and we never have to be apart again."