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CHAPTER 7: One too many rejection

She ran into the hotel suite, fuming. The naturally dark skin of her face was tinged with pink and her dark eyes were smoldering with anger. Crossing the living room part of the suite, she walked into the bedroom and slammed the door behind her.

“Carlita, calm yourself. Why are you in such a state of fury? You knew who we were to deal with before coming here. Things like that are to be expected coming from him.”

There was some Italian swearing in the bedroom before the door opened again. She stood there, her long black hair wild around her face, her strong jaw clenched making her features look even more masculine than usual. Tension radiated from the tall woman.

Feeling the danger, he took a few steps back. “Why are you so upset, Carli?”

“DON’T call me that. I remember telling you before. And I have every reason to be upset. This… This--THING, has no right mocking me.”

“God forbid…” He whispered under his breath.

“What did you just say? Maybe you should watch your mouth too, Benjamin. You being the boss’s nephew won’t stop me from losing my temper with you. Remember what happened when I lost my temper with that man in Rome?”

Ben put his hands up in surrender. “Please, let’s try to remember why we are here. This isn’t helping.”

Carlita took a deep breath and finally admitted in her thick Italian accent: “You’re right.” She sat on the couch, disdainfully throwing on the floor the pillow and blanket Benjamin had used to sleep. She crossed her legs elegantly and smoothed down her skirt to cover her knees. “Now that we have proof, we can do what we have to do.”

“What… what do you mean, proof? We don’t have any proof.” The short man ran his fingers through his shaggy brown hair repeatedly, which was a nervous habit of his. He went to sit on the armchair facing the couch and patted the front pocket of his shirt for his pack of cigarettes before finally remembering that he’d quit smoking a month ago.

*Bloody bad time to quit smoking.* He thought bitterly.

Carlita huffed, looking at him the way she’d look at any being of inferior intelligence. “Why of course we have proof. I would think what we saw tonight is proof enough that they ARE a couple. There is no doubt in my mind, caro.”

He shook his head, obviously not convinced. “That wasn’t proof. Have you seen them kissing, or holding hands? This is the most romantic resort on the island, couples who stay here aren’t usually shy about displaying affection in public. If they were indeed a couple, I think it would be more obvious.”

Benjamin crossed his legs and started bouncing his foot. Carlita stared at the moving foot with narrowed eyes, obviously annoyed. Without needing to be told, Ben uncrossed his legs and put both his feet back on the floor. Only a few days of dealing with the Italian woman taught him that she was easy to annoy and if she was hard to get along with when she was in a good mood, there were no words to explain how bad it was when she was angry with him.

“He sang a song and looked her in the eyes.” Ben continued while looking at anything but her. “It’s hardly a proof that she returns the feeling, if feeling there is. We must make sure before proceeding with the plan. The outcome of this is too radical to allow us to act on pure instinct.”

The Italian’s volatile temper seemed dangerously close to flaring again. “You are annoying me, Benjamin. A lot of people might be afraid of your uncle, but rest assured that I am not. Try to remember that you are not here because of your competence, you are here because your uncle needed a way to get you away from London before he lost patience and strangled you himself.”

The young Brit stood up, obviously having enough. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe I’m not the most qualified person to handle such a situation. But I’m intelligent enough to realize that if we do something as irreversible as killing them without tangible proof, there will be repercussions. Would you perhaps want me to call London and inform my dear uncle of how exactly you are handling this? He might not like me very much, and he might hate Buffy Summers even more, but I’m not sure he would approve of what’s going on here.”

“Darling Benjamin, so sweet and innocent. I do think you have been highly misinformed about your uncle’s intentions. He never verbalized it, but I know the man well enough not to entertain any delusions about what he really wants.”

“And what, pray tell, would that be?”

“To get rid of her.”

“You are wrong. He wants her dead because of what he suspects she does, but if we provide him with proof that he’s wrong, he’ll call the whole thing off, I’m sure of it.”

She smiled coldly. “Very well. If you really do believe that, I’ll give you until tomorrow night to get proof that it is happening again… or not, like you seem to be thinking. If you can’t convince me that they are not a couple, I will do what I’ve been sent here to do. Do we have an agreement?”

Benjamin sat back down on the armchair, his shoulder slumped as if under a heavy burden. “Yes, I believe we do. Any ideas on how exactly I could prove this?”

Carlita burst into laughter, the rich sound echoing in the suite. “My poor darrrling,” She said, rolling her r exaggeratedly. “This, I’m afraid, is your problem. Personally…”

She stood up and stretched her arms above her head.

“…I’m going to bed. Buena notte, caro. And good luck.”

He narrowed his eyes at her retreating back and waited until she closed the door before relaxing. “Bloody stupid Italian trash.”

He looked up, his gray eyes wide with panic, and held his breath for a few seconds listening for any sound coming from the bedroom. The bleedin’ witch had supernatural hearing, he was sure of it. He slumped in the armchair when nothing happened.

“Bitch.”

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“You look stunning, pet. You have plans? Secret meeting on the beach with some handsome bloke?”

Spike was sitting in the armchair in the shadowy corner of the room, watching as Buffy applied the finishing touches to her makeup. He had an open book on his lap but hadn’t touched it since she’d walked out of the bathroom wearing a revealing red halter dress. The fabric was airy, the skirt just short enough, and the neckline plunging. To Spike, she looked like a goddess. Hard to focus on a book when she was applying lipstick in front of the mirror, bathed in the late afternoon light.

Buffy turned to face him, smiling brightly. “I’m gonna go have a drink by the pool before dinner. You can meet me there after sun sets. What do you think?”

“Sunset is in an hour and a half…”

“So?”

“So you’re going to sit all by yourself at a bar for an hour and a half, looking like that?”

“Still don’t see your point.”

“All the stupid wankers in the place are going to be drooling like slobbering idiots and…”

“Spike, don’t start. We’ve had a good day. I’ve managed to both spend some quality time with you, AND go out shopping and enjoy Maui just like you wanted. We’re NOT gonna start arguing now, OK?”

“I wasn’t arguing I just…”

“I’m not going hunting for a potential one night stand, I’m going to have a drink and enjoy the sunset. That’s all.”

Spike had the decency to look ashamed. “Sorry luv, didn’t mean to sound all protective like that.”

*You can be all protective and jealous after you finally kiss me for the first time, you stupid man. But until then…* Buffy thought, slightly aggravated, but smiling nonetheless.

“I’ll see you in a little while, Spike.”

“Sure, pet. I’ll even make an effort to dress up just for you.”

“Aww, but I like the way our looks clash. It makes me look even more classy and glamorous in comparison.”

“Ha ha, charming. There I am showering you with compliments, winning stupid Karaoke contests for you, and what do I get in return? Insults.”

“I don’t insult, I tease. There’s a difference. And it’s not that I don’t compliment you, I just keep my compliments for myself because you so don’t need an ego boost.” She blew him a kiss and grabbed her purse. “See you later, oh my Karaoke champion.”

And just like that, she was gone.

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Buffy took a seat at the bar by the pool and ordered a Mai Tai. She didn’t notice the short man with shaggy hair staring intently at her on the other side of the pool.

He stood up and slowly, almost hesitantly, made his way around the pool. When he reached her side, he just stood there awkwardly as if trying to think of a good opening line, until she finally noticed him.

Buffy gave the man a questioning look. “Can I… help you with something?”

This seemed to snap him out of his trance. “I, huh, saw that you were sitting all by yourself and thought that maybe, well… Maybe you’d like some company.”

Buffy smiled politely. “Thanks but I’m fine.” She turned around, hoping he’d give up, but she wasn’t that lucky.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t introduce myself, which was quite rude of me. My name is Benjamin. You can call me Ben.”

“Yeah, OK. I’m Buffy. Nice meeting you Ben. But really, I’d like to be alone if you don’t mind.”

“It’s just,” He started, taking a seat next to her, “I’m alone too and it’d be nice to have someone to talk to.”

This time, Buffy got really annoyed with the man who apparently, didn‘t seem to take a clue. “Oh, so you’re alone now. I see. Funny how I keep seeing you with that tall, rude, Italian girlfriend of yours. What is it, you two have an open relationship or something? Or is it that Spike was right and you really are swingers. Cause I gotta tell you, that’s just sick.”

Ben’s eyes widened in horror at the implication. “What? Me and..? Oh dear lord, no! Carlita and I are not by any means romantically involved. She is merely an old friend of the family I‘m traveling with. As a matter of fact, I‘m single.”

“And as a matter of fact, it doesn’t matter because I’m still not interested. I was serious when I said I want to be alone.”

“Oh, I see. Is it because you‘re involved with someone? Is that man I’ve seen you with your boyfriend?”

“Actually, I am. And you’d better leave my girl alone, mate. I believe she already told you to bugger off.”

Buffy turned around to see Spike standing there, looking all king of the castle. The sun had gone down enough behind the buildings to allow him to venture outside. As he promised, he had dressed up for her. He was wearing a crisp white shirt with the buttons half undone, the sleeves rolled up, and black slacks. He looked absolutely scrumptious, but it didn’t stop Buffy from being a little annoyed at the display of testosterone. She was a big girl, she could deal with that guy, she didn’t need Spike coming to her rescue.

He took her hand and pulled her off the stool. Neither of them noticed how pale the other British guy had turned.

“Come on, pet. Let’s go dance.”

He led her to where a few people were slow dancing right by the pool. One of the hotel’s employees was lighting up torches to cast away the approaching darkness.

Spike pulled her into his arms and started moving to the music. After a few moments, she finally spoke.

“What the hell was that all about?”

“What?”

“The pissing contest at the bar?”

“That wasn’t a pissing contest, that was me saving you from that nancy boy.”

Buffy pushed away from him just enough too look him in the eyes. “Since when do I need to be saved, Spike?”

He frowned in confusion. “What the bleedin’ hell are you on about?”

To be fair, Buffy wasn’t so sure either why it bothered her so much that Spike intervened the way he did. But she pushed the thought to the back of her head to analyze later. Right now, the conversation was taking a turn for the worst.

Spike continued what he was saying. “I was coming toward you, saw that you were trying to get rid of that guy, and I helped. I don’t see why you’re getting your knickers in a twist like that.”

“My knickers are not twisted. But I have no problem rejecting a guy myself, I don’t need help.”

She knew she’d said something wrong just by the way his body tensed and his cheeks hollowed. It took a couple of seconds before he opened his mouth to reply, but when he did, his voice was cold.

“You’re right, Slayer. I almost forgot how good you are at rejecting men. I should know that first hand now, don‘t you think?”

Her face drained of color, and she took a step back. They stared at each other in silence. She opened her mouth to say something, but suddenly changed her mind and bolted.

That stunned Spike out of his anger. “But.. What?.. Fucking HELL! AGAIN?!” He threw his arms in the air in exasperation. “Buffy! Hey, I‘m the one who‘s supposed to be mad now, not you, you stupid bint!” He yelled, not caring if people were looking. “Buffy?”

But she was long gone.

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Benjamin was sitting at the table in the hotel room, the phone in front of him. Carlita was standing by the window, looking at him with a smug look on her face.

“Seriously Ben. It was so obvious that saying ‘I told you so’ wouldn’t even bring me any satisfaction.”

He didn’t answer.

“Why do you even care?” She opened her eyes wide in fake shock. “Oh, don’t tell me you like her? That would be too pathetic for words. It’s not even romantic, it’s just ridiculous.”

Ben got angry. “It doesn’t matter if I like her or not, Carlita. She’s still a human being. Is your heart so dead that you don’t feel anything at the idea of killing a young woman who’s been through so much already?”

Carlita’s eyes got darker. She came to stand next to him, and slammed her hand on the table making Ben jump. “Every choice we make in life has consequences. When she chose to be with him, she also accepted the consequences. You and I are just the ones who make it happen.”

“Couldn’t we just warn her? It seems unfair that she doesn’t even know the consequences of that choice she made. Maybe she‘d leave him if she knew.”

“Now don’t try to weasel your way out of this, Benjamin. We have a job to do and we’ll do it, end of the story. Now, are you going to call London, or do you want me to do it?”

He nodded slowly, his expression somber. “I’ll do it.”

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