Need

Kate sighed as she checked her watch for the millionth time. This was the night she had finally decided to tell him. For a few months now, she and Angel had been steadily going out. Not dating, per se, but spending quite a few evenings together. Those nights would usually end at her apartment, with her drinking coffee and him making small talk. Then a hug and possibly a chaste kiss, and he'd leave. And she couldn't take it anymore.

Pacing around the room, she wondered how she was going to say this, and how he'd react. She wasn't too good with words. But she knew she needed more than what she was getting right now. She was a bit worried that it was selfish, though she'd always sought not to deny herself any sensual pleasure. She was needy, and she was lonely, and it was time something was done about it. If Angel was not going to be comfortable with moving forward in this way, then she realized that they'd both have to move on separately. She would never push him, but she had to do what would be right for the both of them. They couldn't go on if each had different expectations. She jumped at the short knock on her door. This was it. Swiping her clammy palms against her dress, she answered the door.

Angel stood there in his usual attire, what she appropriately called 'brooding black' with his traditional duster over it. He smiled hesitatingly at her- they still hadn't lost that air of apprehension when they first saw each other. Then the smile faded as he noticed that she wasn't grabbing her jacket and moving out the door, as she usually did immediately after he showed up. At his quizzical look, she motioned for him to enter. "Angel, we need to talk," she said quietly, moving backwards as he stepped in.

"Kate, is there something wrong?" he asked worriedly, eyes frantically checking her over, moving to hold her shoulders and look her in the eye. She couldn't quite meet his gaze, and that worried him more. He shook her slightly. "Kate, are you okay?" he asked. Her gaze shot up, slightly lingering on his lips. She pulled away quickly. "No, not really," she said, turning her back and moving away- putting some distance between them. Taking a deep breath, she began speaking. "Angel, I can't do this anymore." Angel stilled. "Oh?" was all he could say.

She nodded sadly, then turned to face him. "Angel, I'm tired of waking up alone in bed. I'm tired of coming home, aching for you, with only a shower and cold bed waiting for me. I can't...take this anymore." She hesitated, then rushed on. "I don't want to pressure you, or force you into anything. But...this is something that I've come to realize I need. And...I can't do without it any longer." That said, she held her breath. Angel made his way over to her window, staring out at the night. Mulling it over. "I see," he said carefully. Oh, Lord, Kate thought. Here comes the mighty rejection. "Kate, you do know about the curse?" he said cautiously. Oh. "Yes, Angel, I know. Angel, I realize these circumstances wouldn't befit perfect happiness, for you or for me. And besides, I think we're both too jaded for perfect happiness, anyways," she said with a stilted laugh. "But this is something I feel I need, and I thought if you needed it too..." she said expectantly, moving to stand behind him.

He turned to face her, looking deeply into her eyes. "Oh, I need," he replied ardently, and that statement said alot. But not enough to satisfy her. "But do you need me?" Kate asked, emphasizing the last word. Angel nodded. "No pity. No regrets. No awkwardness. Or at least, no more than usual afterwards. Right?" she asked, her last worry. He smiled, moving to cup her shoulders once more. "No regrets. No unusual awkwardness. If you're lucky, maybe even no brooding." She smiled at that. Nervously taking his hand, she led him to her bedroom.

Standing before the bed, each nervously stared into the other's eyes, waiting for one to make the first move. Finally, Angel bent down and brushed his lips against Kate's, pulling her close to him. He deepened the kiss, lips rushing over Kate's faintly chapped ones, breaking them slightly. Licking the small droplets of blood, he felt her tongue slip into his mouth. Moaning, he pulled her taut against his body. Kate eagerly moved her tongue in his mouth, savoring the hint of brandy, and the heady taste of peppermint which she'd discovered he used when he was coming to visit her after feeding. She felt his hands clutching at her back, and felt incredibly pleased that she could illicit that sort of response from him.

Angel clawed at the zipper of her dress, reluctant to leave her mouth and the incredible things she was doing with her tongue. Finally wrangling the zipper down, he pulled the fabric away, allowing it to pool at her waist, caught between them. Pulling away slightly, he looked down to admire the view. His lips quirked slightly when he saw she was wearing a white cotton bra- sensible, just what he'd have expected. But he hadn't expected her to make it look so sexy, he thought as his mouth went dry. His fingers found the clasp in the back, and she moved her arms from around his neck to allow him to slide the straps down and off. Her breasts were fuller than he'd ever imagined, and his mouth opened in an airless pant. As Kate watched his eyes darken in lust, she felt her nipples grow tighter and felt wetness pool deep inside her. When Angel saw her heated expression, eyes darkening to a deep azure, he slammed his lips back onto hers. Groaning into the kiss, Kate tugged the coat from him, letting it swish to the floor. She attempted to get his shirt off, but he refused to reliquish her mouth. Deciding on a new plan of attack, she quickly unbuckled his belt, sending it flying behind her, then moved her arms back up to curl around his neck. Pulling away for much-need air, she panted. "Angel...clothes...off," she said, leaning in for small kisses in between the words.

Ripping away from her, he hurriedly grabbed his shirt and pulled it off, then toed off his shoes and yanked off his socks. Deciding to finish what he'd started, she let the dress slip to the floor. As Angel attempted to slide his pants and boxers down, he glanced up and stopped short. While Kate may have had on a prudent bra, her panties were anything but. A deep red, the lace barely covering anything. Angel felt his jaw drop, and his brain short circuit. A mix, that's what she was. Extremely cool and unflappable on the outside, extremely flammable and sexy on the inside. Angel made a quick move towards her, forgetting his pants around his ankles. Pitching forward, he hit her and both slammed into the bed with resounding 'oomphs.' Kate laughed at Angel's horrified expression. "Well, that reaction wasn't what I'd intended. But I did get you onto the bed," she said with a slight smirk. He grinned back. "Indeed you did," he said, then moved to kiss her lips again. Struggling a bit, they managed to get fully onto the bed, and Angel was able to finally pull the pants and boxers off.

Angel leaned over to shut off the lamp she'd left burning beside her bed. Her hand caught his. "Angel, keep the light on. I want to see you," she said frankly. Angel was a bit stunned. No woman had ever been confident enough to let him leave the light on- even Darla had preferred darkness. He unabashedly stared at Kate, watching her body react to him. He was terrified he'd wake up, and find this was all a dream. That the woman he'd wanted since he'd seen her delicate profile in the murky blue light of D'Oblique would vanish and he'd wake up alone in his empty bed. But as she continued to stare at him, arousal turning her eyes darker, he broke out of his stupor. Moving to one side of her, he leaned over and gazed into her eyes. "This is your night, Kate. Tell me what you want," he said, gently running his hand over her cheek to her ear. Her breathing increased at his words. Moving closer, he closed his lips over the scar on her neck, the one he'd left, and sucked gently. He felt her shudder hard, then moved his mouth to her ear. "Well?" he asked silkily, dipping his tongue into her ear. Moaning, she panted. "Fingers...please."

Angel moved back slight. "Fingers? Where? Maybe here?" he asked, lazily drawing his hand down from her shoulder to her breastbone, then moving back up to circle a nipple. He moved the rough pad of his thumb over the nipple, making her arch beneath him. "Or maybe here?" he asked again, moving it lower to trace her stomach. Then he leaned over and retraced his steps, this time with his lips, all the time tracing circles on her abs. As he sucked a nipple into his mouth, her hands let go of the sheets she had a death grip on, and grasped his head. "Oh," was all she could pant as she arched and moved beneath his mouth. She let out a moan of disappointment as he moved lower, but it soon turned into a moan of pleasure as he dipped his tongue into her belly button. He stopped suddenly. "Am I at the right spot?" he asked teasingly. She shook her head frantically, but he didn't move. Reaching a hand down, she guided his hand lower. "There," she said in a breathless whimper as his fingers slid over her.

"Like this?" he asked softly, slowly pushing one finger inside her folds, coating it with her wetness. "Yes," she moaned, arching frantically. "More," she begged, gasping when he added another finger. Moving his thumb to rub her clitoris, he began to thrust the fingers inside of her. He watched with wonder and lust as she bucked into his hand, head thrashing on the pillows. Angel felt himself grow harder at her beautiful and unabashed reactions. He kept it up until he felt her reaching her pinnacle, then slowed down. He didn't want her to come without him tasting her. Sliding down, he took in the scent of her. He could smell the scent of her gardenia perfume, mixing with the heady scent of her arousal. "God, you smell wonderful," he murmured before taking her clit in his mouth and slightly sucking on it. That pressure, combined with his fingers still thrusting, and his sensual words, pushed Kate over the edge. Mouth forming noncoherent words, she screamed her fulfillment as her vision grew faint.

Breathing heavily, she sank down into the pillows. Leaning her head to one side, she caught his spicy scent lingering on the pillow he'd been leaning on before. Taking in the smell of him, she felt her body cooling off. He pulled himself to her side again, lying beside her. She pulled him in for a long, slow kiss, trying to convey all the intense sensations shimmering through her.

Feeling his need, she gave herself some time for renewing her lust, the moved her hand down to cup his erection. She felt him arch into her touch as she cupped her hands, sliding them from the base to the tip. Sliding her thumb over the tip, she swiped a bit of pre-come and massaged it into him. Moving her hands back downwards, she cupped his balls carefully, massaging them gently. He broke away from their kiss, throwing his head back as his eyes rolled. She gave a purely feminine smile, then watched as he came down to ravish her breasts. Her hands fell away from him as he suckled first one, then the other. As he sucked on them, her body whirled with the pleasure of the dual sensations- her body's hot reactions mixed with the coolness of his mouth. Light and dark, she thought crazily. Fire and ice. That's what they were. His mouth and tongue were like melting ice cubes on her breasts, and she realized that she was quickly approaching climax again. Not wanting to go without him, she tugged on his hair, making him raise his head. "Together this time," she got out, face flushed and gasping for air.

He gave a knowing smile, then moved over her. She took her legs and slid them over his shoulders. "I'm more limber than you think," she said at his surprised look. He gave a lecherous grin in return, then slowly sheathed himself inside of her. Both moaned and arched at the feel. Angel's eyes nearly crossed as her heat engulfed him. It was like being burned, but in the very best way, he decided. Kate adjusted to the cold feel of him inside her- realizing that after this, no mortal could ever compare. He slowly slid out, then thrust back inside. But it wasn't enough. Before long, his thrusts were hard and fast, and Kate kept up, her hips arching against his. Concentrating, she slowly squeezed her inner muscles, clamping them around him. Angel's head shot up, eyes completely glazed, tinged with yellow, and his mouth hung slack. Angel's thrusts became harder and he swooped down to attack her mouth. Angel nearly went over the edge as her muscles clamped down on him, but managed to hold off. He moved one hand to clasp hers, and her other came up to rest on his shoulder. He slid his other hand down, and began to massage her clitoris. Mewling into his mouth, tongue tangling with his, Kate's muscles began to tighten. Angel left her mouth, and dazedly found the scar on her neck. Sucking desperately, he slammed into her. As Kate felt herself falling over the edge, she bit into his neck, muffling her scream. Angel howled at her bite, throwing his head back and spilling into her, shuddering. Her legs fell away from him, and he caught himself just in time from collapsing on top of her. He managed to throw himself over to her side, where he lay limply. He buried his face into her pillow, the scent and silky feel reminding him of her hair. Calming down, he turned to look over at her. She was still lying on her back, chest heaving a bit. Her face was sweaty and red, but had a very pleased and satisfied smile on her face.

Reaching over, Kate turned off the light. She was so tired- but in a good way. A very good way, she amended. She turned over, her back facing Angel. They both laid there for a while. She wondered if he was listening to her breathing, knowing he could hear her heart rate slowing down. Then she felt him shift over to face her back. "Kate, you don't regret this, do you?" he asked quietly. Kate inwardly sighed. She hated post-coital talk. She preferred to have conversations when her emotions weren't clouded by passion. But she knew Angel was the type who need some kind of reassurance. And as she thought about it, she wasn't regretful. Not at all. She turned over to face him. "No. Not regretful in the least. That was..." she hesitated, not knowing what to say. "What you needed?" he finished for her. She nodded. "More than. And I'm hoping that this isn't the only time. Maybe next time...." He drew in an uneeded breath. "Maybe?" he whispered hopefully.

She smiled inwardly as she heard the reassurance she had needed- that he had wanted this as much as she had. "Maybe," she replied with an enigmatic smile. "Maybe next time we should go on the actual date first," he said, eyes glittering mischeviously in the dark. She turned over. "Maybe," she said sleepily. "And maybe next time I'll bring out the cuffs." She grinned as she heard him gasp slightly. Then she felt him slide over, spooning her back into his stomach. Then he hesitated. "Am I too cold? Too close?" he asked. Yes, Kate thought wryly. But you're not too close to me physically, you're way too close to my heart. But there isn't time for that, now. She shook her head, drawing his arm over her shoulder. "You're a little cold, but I'm definitely not complaining," she murmured. Then she gave his hand a small reassuring kiss, before leaning into the pillow. She felt him brush a soft kiss on her shoulder before she drifted off into sleep. Finally free. Finally happy. And finally, not lonely.