Author: Nika
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimers: I don't own them, I won't make money off them, I'll leave that to Joss Whedon and the rest of the gang. They've been sanitized for your protection. I'll put them back when I'm done.

I crawled back up her body and held her still trembling form. She clung to me for dear life breathing heavily in my ear. I was aroused from hearing her call out my name in ecstasy and her hot breath on my skin was making the tension in body climb at a supernatural speed. I gazed at her flushed face, she was biting her bottom lip again and her eyes were closed. I could feel her body heaving up and down, next to mine, trying to recover oxygen and her heart pounding at a fast beat, just like mine.

She opened her eyes and I subconsciously licked my lips. Her pupils were slightly dilated and she was looking at me with a hungry gaze that mirrored my own. Her breathing steadied and she pulled away raking her eyes up and down my naked form. Suddenly she embraced me and captured my mouth in a searing kiss. Our tongues slid against one another in swirling, deep motions. We hadn’t nearly had enough of each other, if anything we were only beginning. She left my mouth and attached her lips to my neck. It’s like she knew my body and how to get it to react. My neck is one of my most sensitive spots and her sucking and nibbling on my pulse point was driving mad with desire. I wanted to regain control and tried to get on top again, but she surprised me by showing incredible strength. She kept me pinned down with her body and went as far as to take my arms and hold them with her’s over my head. She looked at me intensely "Stay... It's my turn. I want to make you feel good. I need you, I need to have you so badly," she said in a husky voice while placing soft kisses on my throat and sliding to and fro on my leg.

I don't think I could've refused even if I had wanted to. And of course I wasn't crazy, I didn't want to. I let her feed off my body and I enjoyed every bite she took. I could feel her getting wet again while she slid on my thigh muscle, I nearly came just from the delicious sensation. She shifted her weight and placed her leg on my eager center. "Oh God yessss!" I uttered breathlessly, pressing up on her thigh to ease some of my need. She tilted her head down and devoured my breasts with her mouth one by one, while steadily rocking our bodies to and fro. I could feel my juices coating her leg more and more as our joint movements became faster. She teased the nipple on my right breast with her tongue and teeth and fondled the left with her palm and fingers. I was melting into her touch. Both our bodies were covered in a heavy sheen of sweat, we were swelling and thrashing together. Her hips rolled into circles, meeting my upward movements, pulling me in, slicing me up with pleasure. My breathing was labored and I was close, achingly close to the edge of a powerful climax.

She wasn't through with me though. Just as I was on the brink, she lifted herself away from my body. I groaned in near agony. She smiled at me, a half smirk that held a promise. I was trembling from anticipation as she made her way down my body. I moaned when the tips of her breasts grazed my heated flesh. She knew that I had enjoyed that and made her way up and down again a couple of times just to tease me with her hardened nipples. I arched my back at every passing. "Oh... Mhhhmm..." was all I could get out.

"I want you to come for me Willow," she said while kissing my stomach, slowly making her way to where I needed her the most. "I've dreamed of tasting you... mmmhhhmm... you smell sooo good."

She opened my legs wider and inhaled my scent before parting my outer lips with her fingers and softly she took her tongue out and just barely touched me with its humid tip. My head rolled back and I groaned deeply. "Aahm... Tara..." I gasped for air, "Tara..."

My hips quivered when she started running the length of her tongue up and down my opening again and again. I could feel my legs starting to shake and the inside of my belly began to hum and burn. "You taste delicious," she said before taking my clit in between her lips. She circled it with her tongue before sucking on it with abandon. I shut my eyes tight and let the electrical current overtake my body. My spine started tingling and a shock wave traveled from the tip of my toes to the top of my head. An explosion of colors flashed behind my eyes and I felt myself flooding Tara's mouth. "Taaara..." I cried out her name in my release just as she had cried out mine in hers.

Then for a while there was just silence. Not the dead kind of silence that tears you up inside. The good kind, that you want to get lost in forever. The kind that you breathe in and share without discomfort or remorse with the person laying next to you. The kind of silence that you can only share when you're in love.

Those are the kind of moments that you want to live in. Those are the kind of moments that get you through the bad ones or take you apart when you realize they may never come back. Right now that night and the others like it haunt me.

At least I have an idea of what it is that I'm looking for. I was so clueless. How could've I been so blind?

Red let the thoughts of the recent past run through her mind as she carefully entered her house. She turned the knob as quietly as she could with one hand while holding her revolver with the other. She didn't need any more surprises on this dark night.

The P.I. checked every room carefully making sure she was alone before holstering her piece. She took out a set of keys from her pocket and entered her uncle's old bedroom.

She went to the closet and started her search. "O.k. Johnny... let's see if you've got the answers."

While she was searching for the final pieces of the puzzle Red couldn't help but replay in her mind the series of events that had led her back to the room that she was currently taking apart piece by piece.

After they had made love many times in the darkened hotel room they embraced each other tightly and succumbed to sleep. The morning came quickly and started filtering bright light into the room casting a warm glow over the two slumbering lovers.

Tara shifted lightly in Red's arms causing the P.I. to stir in her sleep and awaken. She was disoriented for a few seconds. She took a careful look at her surroundings before settling her eyes on the blonde beauty in her arms. The detective had no choice but to smile. She was suddenly aware of the bright light coming in through the window. It was already morning and she needed to know the time. She carefully disengaged herself from her sleeping companion. Tara mumbled a small complaint at the loss of her lover. Red stilled her movements and looked expectantly at the blonde who emitted a tiny whimper and rolled to her side without waking. Red smiled again and slowly she left the bed to look for her pocket watch. Fortunately it was still early. It was only seven o'clock. There was still time to get things ready. She had been worried that it was close to the time when Tara's brother had said he would return. She had to shower, change and plan a strategy with the gang before the meeting with the Maclays took place.

She circled the bed and gazed down at lovingly at the blonde. She looked angelic, there was a light orange glow shining off her bare shoulders from the sunrays kissing her skin. Her lips were sticking out in an adorable pout and her blonde hair gleamed in the morning light. Red’s heart was soaring. The thought of leaving this woman behind made her stomach clench and her hand shook a little as she extended it to softly caress the blonde’s cheek. She knew she had to leave and recover her composure for both their sakes. The P.I. kneeled next to the bed and placed a feather light kiss on the other woman's forehead. Tara sighed contentedly and smiled still in deep slumber.

Red stood up and dressed as quietly as she could. She searched the dresser drawer for a paper and pencil and wrote a note placing it on the pillow next to the blonde before exiting the room. She stepped out slowly and carefully checked the corridor, she looked around and ducked into the service elevator anticipating that it would be best to leave by the back door. A front desk -man was often too easily bought and even more often too nosy for their own damn good. It seemed to the P.I. that the less risks they took from now on, the better. The Maclay men certainly seemed to be capable of being devious and dangerous, but what about the Maclay women? That was the real question in the back of the detective's mind. It was a question her heart chose to ignore.

I clued everyone in on the situation. In the beginning I got a few eyebrows in the air, a couple of disbelieving looks and even a few lines of the 'kissing in a tree' song, courtesy of Anya of course. I gave them a 'look' to let them know I meant business and from then on they behaved and gave me their full attention. For the moment we would keep it simple. We didn't have enough information for anything else our first step was to get it any way we could.

Xander was going to tail Donnie from the moment he left the office, Anya was going to lift his prints so Giles could run them through the records and in the given case that Tara left the office with her brother Buffy was to serve as back up on the chase, in case they split up. I hated the feeling of having to mistrust Tara so much. I wanted desperately to believe in her, but at the same time I couldn't shake the feeling that she was still holding something back. If it was just me in the wringer I probably wouldn't even think twice about helping her, even with a blind fold on the whole time, but I wasn't working alone. I had to think about my team. Every time we took a case it involved us all, we either shared the glory or took an equal share of lumps. This looked like a lumpy kind of case.

While the gang kept their eyes peeled and their ears open I was making a few calls. If there were jewels involved in this kooky case there were a couple of names that came to mind. In this game and in this town the rules changed often, but the players almost always remained the same. None of the people on the list were forthcoming with information. That was to be expected. I should have known better. There’s a kind of business that you can only do face to face. You’ve got to be there to see them twitch. I’ve always been pretty good at reading body language hardly anyone has ever gotten away with lying to me.

It helps that the gang and I have reputation for being tough as nails. Usually I never had to do more than issue a colorful threat to get a wise guy to spill the beans. Course there was the occasional dimwit that didn’t take me seriously or used the 'B' word to my face. They normally wound up taking the next bus out of town after meeting the business end of my knuckles and shoes.

I had to hit the street. If any one of them knew something I would find out later. With the anxious mood I was in I almost felt sorry for the chump who tried to pull a number on me that day. Pity I couldn't include Tara's bother in that sentiment. I had to play it 'cool as cucumber' with him, tsk-tsk a real shame. I wouldn't mind introducing him to the dark side of my temper. I've been told it's not pretty.

I looked at my watch again it was only 9 o'clock and was already getting jumpy. I had done all I could without leaving my office and I couldn't risk going out and having them come in early. Without anything to do my mind started wondering.

I couldn't get Tara Maclay out of my head. I had reluctantly taken a shower because I really wished I could have kept her scent lingering on me all day. Of course that would have made it even harder to concentrate on work. I replayed our first meeting and the night at the hotel over and over in my mind, behind closed lids. As time passed I could practically see her, taste her even smell her regardless of the shower I had.

I relived every touch, she was crawling under my skin, moving inside of me like my body was her home. I ran my hands over the surface of the desk as I remembered the mixed look of surprise and pleasure that she got on her face when I cleared it and hauled her up to kiss her and bare her skin. An involuntary shiver ran up my spine and I had to shake my head to try and clear the tingling sensation washing over me. I had to get a hold of myself or my usual 'poker' face was going to crumble as soon as she walked through the door and that just wouldn't do. I started giving myself a little pep talk to shake the images out of my mind. Sure they were pleasant, but distracting as all hell and I had to be on my game.

"Come on Red get it together!" The P.I cranked her neck a couple times and rubbed her temples as she tried to regain focus.

She spoke to herself in an effort to control her emotions. "You can do it. Just remember to breathe." She took a couple of deep breaths just for practice. "O.k, now think un-sexy thoughts... like... frogs and frog legs... mmmhhh... Tara legs, long and smooth and... darn it! Uhm... ponies... Tara on horseback, riding with the wind in her hair and... ugh! Ahh... sister Mary Frances, whose habit always smelled like something inhuman, yuck! O.k... that's working, uhm... the wart on her left cheek and her pulling on my ear, taking me to the rectory, because... because... she caught me kissing Katy Connor and two seconds before she would have caught me with my hand up her skirt, he-he, I bet Tara would look great in one of those old Montessori uniforms, ARGH! Here I go again. This isn't working. I can't stop thinking about her and since when in God's name do I babble?" Red nearly screamed out the last phrase completely exasperated with herself. "I gotta get a grip," she said putting her head in her hands. In mid sentence Anya decided to walk in.

"You know boss they say that people who talk to themselves have money in the bank. Is that true?" The quirky secretary asked with a smirk on her lips and gleam in her eyes.

Red chose to ignore the comment. "Are they here already?" she asked a bit too anxiously.

Anya shook her head. "Easy there boss. I've never seen you so jumpy. I come bearing coffee. I figured you might need some by now. Though it looks like a nice, soothing tea might have been a better choice."

It bothered Red to no end that she was rattled enough that people would notice. She steeled up her resolve and worked on putting up her 'poker' face. She squared her jaw and gave Anya an easy smile, almost a grin. "Coffee is fine. Thank you Anya, just buzz me when they get here. Oh and..."

Anya smiled and finished the sentence. "First tell them that you're busy on a call so you'll have time to get ready. I know the drill."

Red sat back comfortably and tipped up her coffee cup. "You're the best."

"Bet you say that to all the girls," Anya said winking before closing the door behind her.

The secretary's visit had offered the P.I. a very needed distraction and she finally felt more at ease. She took out a pen and paper and started to jot down a 'to do' list after the Maclays left her office.

At ten on the dot the desk buzzer rang. Red took a small moment to really compose her self. The gumshoe was as ready as she would ever be. She spoke into the buzzer in cool and firm voice. "Anya please, have them come in and hold all my calls."

The door opened, Donald and Tara Maclay entered Willow Rosemberg’s office ready to present her with a case. The detective sat back in her chair and thought 'Let the games begin.'

She didn't know that the games had started even before she was ever born.