"What a wicked game you played to make me feel this way

What a wicked thing to do to let me dream of you

What a wicked thing to say you never felt this way

What a wicked thing to do to make me dream of you"

~ Chris Isaak ~

Chapter 8 – Wicked Game

Xander's mouth was moving but Spike couldn't make out what he was saying with the track playing. He rolled his eyes and yanked the giant headphones off in irritation. Chris Isaak's pained belting about wanting to fall in love could now be heard faintly in the surrounding area.

Holding out a hand to stop Xander in mid-sentence, his eyebrows lowered in annoyance, "You know people who put headphones on are usually listening to music, right?"

"Ah… Right, yeah, that was kinda dumb of me. Sorry..." Xander laughed nervously as he sputtered on, "I'm really sorry about that, I just wanted to ask you about…"

Oz, who had been standing close behind, merely shook his head. He knew it was a bad idea to let Xander approach Spike here. Every visit to the record store was like a holy experience for him, and to have it rudely interrupted like that would be akin to poking a grizzly bear with a stick.

Spike narrowed his eyes at the brunet's suspicious behavior and held out his hand again to silence him. "Actually, now that I think about it, what are you doing here? Bloody hell! Don't tell me you followed me here, you git!"

His heated gaze shifted towards Oz, "There had better be a damn good reason as to why he's here. I don't mind if it's only you, mate, but this one seems to be following you around everywhere like a miserable little puppy dog these days."

"Hey!" Objected Xander indignantly. "That's so not true! You're just jealous that we've been enjoying each other's company and spending so much time together instead of with you."

Spike smirked at the choice of words. Out of respect for Oz, he bit his lower lip to keep from commenting further. The red head, on the other hand, hung his head and groaned in pain.

Realizing how that must've sounded to the two guys, he hastily added, "Okay, that came out a little wrong, but you know what I mean!"

"Let's just move over to the coffee shop next door, shall we?" Oz suggested. "Think you'll be interested in what Xander has to say."

Spike's eyes twinkled with glee, "Why? Is the poof going to announce his undying love for you? Boy, I reckon Red would rip his head completely off if he tried to steal you away from her."

Oz sent an annoyed look at Spike. Not caring if they followed, he wordlessly headed towards the exit.

Right after Xander managed to conclude his explanation and put the offer up to Spike, the blond burst into a loud guffaw. He laughed so hard that tears sprung to his eyes and the couple sitting at the next table turned to look at him in mild alarm.

When he'd finally calmed down, he wiped away his tears and grinned at Oz, who was sitting to his right, "Okay, I'll admit that you were right. It was interesting to hear what he had to say."

Oz took a sip of his tea and nodded, "Told ya."

"I thought you must've been joking, but the look on your face tells me otherwise." He grinned at Xander in astonishment, "Also have to admit that I didn't think you had it in you to plot such a scheme, Harris. Hell, you must be completely besotted with Dawn to come up with such a harebrained idea."

Spike took a few moments to mull the offer over. He sipped his black coffee slowly, enjoying the anxious look on the other man's face.

"Well?" Xander asked, after a minute of silence.

"I don't know, Xander. I mean, I'm still recovering from my encounter with Buffy." Spike pointed at the purplish bruise on his cheek, "And I had just met the girl! Imagine the damage she could put me through now that we know each other."

Xander pushed his hot chocolate aside and leaned forward towards Spike, "C'mon man, that was just a onetime accident. I'm sure she's a really nice person once you get to know her. She was tons of fun at The Bronze the other night, wasn't she?"

Spike shook his head and rolled his eyes. "God, you're a lousy salesman."

"What? But she's so…fun a-and… likeable!"

"Right, sure she is. And even if she was America's sweetheart, that still wouldn't mean this would work." Spike tilted one side of his head forward, "You're asking me to take her out on three dates in exchange for just one guitar. What if we go out on the first date, and discover that we absolutely hate each other? I'd be wasting my time and money, and probably regretting not doing something else a lot more…satisfying on my Saturday night."

"Okay, what about this then? I'll cover all the expenses for the first date with an extra fifty thrown in for your time even if she says no to a second date. If, however, things work out, you'll take her out for two more and then you'll get your guitar." Xander sighed and ran a hand over his face. This plan was starting to cost him a lot more money than he had expected. Even though she'd probably never find out, he hoped that Dawn would one day appreciate all his efforts.

The Brit arched one amused eyebrow, grinning sideways as he made his counter proposal, "How about you cover all expenses of the first date with an extra hundred in advance, regardless whether we go on anymore dates."

Spike leaned back in his chair and folded his arms, wearing a smug look that made Xander want to give him a black eye to match the existing bruise on his face. Unfortunately, wounding Spike would do nothing for his cause and all he could do was scowl in response.

"How can you stand this guy?" Exclaimed Xander to Oz. "He's a complete pain in the ass!"

Oz merely shook his head and folded his arms too, not wanting to take any sides.

"Hey, don't try to change the subject, Harris," Spike rebuked. "So do we have a deal or not?"

Xander thought back to earlier in the morning when he had seen Parker walking Dawn to one of her classes. He'd been carrying her books as they made their way along the hallway, walking side by side comfortably. Parker was telling her a joke or something witty, and Xander watched her lean against his shoulder a little, laughing like she hadn't a care in the world. He had felt a pang of envy then and at that moment decided that if anyone was going to make her that happy, it should be him and definitely not that arrogant, dim-witted jerk. He knew he had to gain the upper hand somehow.

"Alright, Captain Peroxide, this is how it's going to be. I'll cover all expenses of the first date with the first fifty in advance. The other fifty will be given only after your second date. If you succeed in taking her out on three dates, you get the guitar. Comprende?"

Spike gave it a quick thought and decided that this would be fairly easy to accomplish,"Alright, you got yourself a deal. Better be ready with the merry bushels of cash and that guitar, my friend."

"Don't worry about it. Just make sure you live up to your end of the bargain."

A wicked smirk spread across Spike's face, "Then let the games begin."

"Hello there, Goldilocks."

Buffy didn't need to look behind her to know who it was.

"Howdy, Spike." She turned a little to the side, just in time to see him settling down on the chair next to her, "Got to say, I'm surprised to see you here."

"You know, funny you should say that." He smiled, "I was actually on my way to this library when you bulldozed into me that day."

Buffy grimaced at the reminder, and studied the bruise on his face, relieved that it was looking a lot better now, "I hope you still managed to get the books you needed."

He gave a small shrug, "The librarian was extra helpful when she saw my face, so don't worry, it all worked out well in the end."

Buffy smiled a little, "Maybe I should try getting a black eye or something. Might make my search for reference books go a lot faster."

Spike chuckled, "Pet, trust me, whatever the assignment is, it ain't worth getting your face messed up for. Plus, it's a bloody hell lot more painful than it looks."

She broke into a giggle and he found himself smiling along with her.

"So what are you doing here, Buffy? I didn't figure you to be the bookish type," he asked casually, setting aside his own small pile of books on the table. He propped one elbow on top of them and rested the side of his head on his closed fist, watching her intently.

In actual fact, he'd seen her come in almost every day for at least an hour or two to work on her assignments. Given that she was alone and away from her other friends and distractions, Spike thought it was probably the ideal time and place for him to ask her out.

Buffy gestured with both hands at the laptop, scattered notes and open books in front of her. "As you can see, I'm enjoying my favorite past time," she remarked with sarcastic cheerfulness.

"You mean making a big cluttered mess on a large surface area?" he joked, giving her his sassiest grin.

She glared at him, her hazel green eyes narrowed into slits, "Har hardy har. That is so not funny, mister. This stupid paper is due in a little over a week and I've hardly written two sentences on it in the past two hours. I've absolutely no idea how I'm going to write the required fifteen pages in time. Suffice to say, this is probably going to take up my entire weekend, which, now that I think about it, really sucks big time."

Spike frowned, not liking that the chances of her going out with him would lessen thanks to this paper she had to do. He resolved to try and subtly use the situation to his advantage.

"Ever thought of maybe taking a break for a while before getting back into it? Some people say that if you come back to it after a break and your head's been clear, the work flows better. And you've got a week after all, plenty of time to get one measly paper done."

"You mean like a coffee break?" Because honestly, with the types of books she'd been reading for her research, caffeine sounded like a great idea.

"Well, I was thinking more like dinner this weekend, but sure pet, if that's what you want."

She glanced up at Spike, those sapphire blues boring into her. The nearness of him was extremely distracting and she was almost tempted to allow herself to be swept away by him until she realized that he'd mention something about dinner this weekend.

"Hold on, back up here, did I hear you correctly?" She asked incredulously.

Spike took a deep breath, so much for subtle.

"Yeah, you did. Truthfully I was hoping I could maybe ask you out on a date this weekend."

Buffy blinked in disbelief, still not convinced she was hearing him right.

"You mean like the kind with dinner and a movie?"

Spike gave a lopsided grin, "If that's what you want to do."

"Why?" Buffy asked, almost suspiciously.

"Why not? I think maybe we got off on the wrong foot, and I'd like to get to know you better. Nothin' wrong with that, I reckon."

She twisted the hem of her shirt nervously, not daring to look up, "I'm not sure, Spike. There are so many things that could and would go wrong, especially when it involves me."

"Sorry, but I'm not sure I followed you around that bend, luv."

Clearing her throat, she tried to convey her thoughts, "It's only that…I tend to…get into trouble a lot even when I'm not actually looking for any." And though she didn't mention it, there was also that thing about swearing that she would never allow herself to open up completely and get hurt again.

Spike chuckled, "I think that's what they call life, pet. It just happens sometimes."

"If you only knew the story of my life, I'm pretty sure you'd be running for the hills."

"It's not like my track record is spotless either." He gave her a commiserating smile.

Buffy smiled back, "That doesn't exactly make me feel any better, but thanks."

Not wanting to depress the girl, Spike decided to change the subject for a while to lighten the mood, "So what's your paper about? It wouldn't be something involving the bloody Bard, would it?"

"Huh?" Buffy frowned in confusion.

"Shakespeare, I mean." He snorted in derision, pointing at the picture of the poet and playwright on the page of one of her open books, "Can't help but notice that all these books you've got are about him."

"Oh. That bard," she muttered, "Yeah. I've no idea how I'm supposed to write fifteen pages entirely analyzing how Elizabethan England influenced his works."

He grinned, "Pet, that era's often thought to be the golden age in English history and he's basically the poster boy for the Elizabethan stage. I'm sure you can find some links."

Buffy's brows shot up in surprise, "Sounds like someone's a fan of ol' England and Shakespeare, huh?"

Spike's look of shock matched hers for a split second. He didn't like the thought of exposing his secret love for literature to anyone. His bad boy reputation had taken some work, and he wasn't about to risk losing it all because of some chit's homework assignment.

"What?" he sneered, "Pfft, no! Of course not! Only sappy poofs like reading nonsense like that! Do I look like the sort who'd want to read Romeo and Juliet or…or A Midsummer Night's Dream or…whatever the bloody crap it is that sappy poofs like to read?"

She wasn't fooled one bit, but decided to humor him, "Alright, then. Since you put it that way, I guess maybe you should leave me alone now so I can get back to my virtually non-existent analysis of Shakespeare and Elizabethan England."

Just then, Parker, who had been strolling past their table, back tracked his steps to stop in front of her, "Sorry, I overheard you saying Elizabethan England and couldn't help myself. Do you need help with that assignment, Buffy? I could lend you some of my notes or work with you on your paper if you'd like. I'm almost done with mine anyway."

Buffy noted the way he was not-so-subtly looking down her shirt and clutched the nearest book to her chest. She spoke in clipped tones, "Thanks, but no. I'm fine, Parker."

"Are you sure about that, Buffster?" Parker gave a friendly, seemingly warm smile, "I mean I understand if you're having troubles with this paper. It's a tough one, that's for sure."

Like Buffy, Spike noticed that there was definitely something off about this guy and found it impossible not chime in, "The lady doesn't need your help, mate. So thanks for the concern but you'd best bugger off now," he spoke in an even tone, but there was a hint of warning in his words.

He frowned at Spike and backed away, "Hey, I was only being helpful is all. No need for any hostility."

Once Parker was gone, Buffy turned and quirked a questioning eyebrow at Spike, "You know, you didn't have to do that."

A small smirk spread across his face and he looked into her eyes, "Yeah, but I wanted to. Didn't like the way that smarmy git was tryin' to get fresh with you."

If it were any other guy, she would've told him that it wasn't his place to decide things like that, but Buffy just smiled back at him, "Well, isn't someone being very thoughtful?"

"Admittedly, I was being chivalrous with motive." His smirk widened.

Buffy groaned in annoyance, "That makes you as bad as Parker, if not worse. What is it with guys like you and him? Everything has to be about something."

"Hey, watch it!" Spike growled in protest, "I'm nothing like that ponce, alright? I honestly didn't like the way he was looking at you. Anyone could tell he's a soddin' arsehole. But back to the subject at hand, yeah, I have a tiny motive, but it's with good intentions."

Buffy thought it was cute that he was suddenly looking a little embarrassed at the mention of his motive, "And that would be?"

"One date with you, pet. We can paint the town red and all that." He shrugged.

"Spike, I really don't think it's a good idea, especially with my track record and more importantly, this stupid paper due."

His crestfallen expression almost made her change her mind until she took a quick glance at her watch.

"Oh, crap!" She yelped. Jumping from her seat, Buffy started closing the books and packing her notes and laptop back into her bag.

"Oi, I thought we were havin' a conversation, Summers? Where are you going?"

"Sorry, but my next class starts in ten minutes and I'm going to be late if I don't leave now, what with the lecture hall being on the other side of this annoyingly ginormous campus."

"But..." He frowned at her, disappointment set in those blue eyes.

Buffy paused for a moment, drawn to that sexy pout he was giving her. She chided herself for behaving like a lovesick teenager and shook her head to snap out of it.

"Okay, look, I'll be at the Bronze tomorrow night with Willow and Oz. You can meet us there, and we can talk more if you'd like, but don't get any fancy ideas and think of it as a double date, okay?"

Spike scoffed as though he couldn't imagine such a thing ever happening to him, "Don't worry, Goldilocks. I don't do double dates but you can certainly expect to see me there."