Burning Imprints Chapters 27 & 28

[menomegirl]

Chapter 27



Insane Rambling



Angel broke the kiss off, aware of Spike's continued presence. Lindsey moaned at the loss, and tried to recapture the kiss. Angel grinned at his efforts. And the random thought again flashed through his mind-Lindsey had a bit of the exhibitionist in him. In fact, Spike's presence didn't seem to faze Lindsey at all, the young man seemed to have accepted Spike as effortlessly as he had Drusilla, with no fear toward him at all. Whatever questions Angel had about Lindsey's attraction for their bloodline had pretty much been dispelled when he'd boldly defended Spike to him twice today. That was fine with Angel, as long as the attraction for Spike remained platonic.

Lindsey softly growled at Angel's refusal to resume the kiss. Spike chuckled behind him, and the young man swiftly turned to say something, but noticed the bleeding puncture wounds on the vampire's neck. "Shit, Spike, are you okay?" He asked.

"It's nothing, pet. I've had worse," Spike answered.

Lindsey reached out and touched the bite. "Doesn't look like nothin' to me," he muttered.

Angel half-expected what happened next, from the look that came over Lindsey's face. He found it quite amusing in light of the explosive Lindsey fit the young man had just had. Vampire attraction went both ways, and after all, he'd already been exposed to Lindsey acting on his instincts. But Spike hadn't, and the younger vampire was
stunned when Lindsey bent his head to lick at Spike's wounds.

It took all of thirty seconds for Angel to become upset at the erotic sight of Lindsey, however unconsciously, macking on Spike, tasting his blood the way he had Angel's. He couldn't stand it, and he gently touched Lindsey's back, growling softly into his ear, "Lindsey, get your tongue the hell off Spike."

The sound of Angel's voice cut through the haze in Lindsey's brain, caught him mid-lick, and when he realized what he was doing, he freaked out. He let go of Spike, backed up so fast, he nearly knocked Angel off his feet, and he uttered an resounding "Ewwwww!"

Spike got an indignant look on his face, and Lindsey's voice was thick with his accent as he nearly screamed, "Fuck, I can't fuckin' believe I just fuckin' did that! I just chewed your ass out for doin' it, then I go and do it, too?!? Christ on a fuckin' crutch!"

And that was more than Angel could take. He cracked up laughing, so hard he started crying. He just couldn't help it, the look of utter disgust on Lindsey's face was too funny, in light of all the blood play the two of them had engaged in.

Lindsey glared at him. "It ain't that fuckin' funny, Angel."

"Yeah, it is," Angel choked out.

Lindsey turned to look at Spike for help convincing Angel it wasn't funny, but the other vampire had slid to the floor, laughing silently, tears streaming down his face. "Arrg!" Lindsey yelled. "You two are jackasses! I'm goin' to my truck to get some things....brush my fuckin' teeth a hundred times....find a fuckin' anti-vampire attraction spell-" Then he stormed out of the office, muttering to himself.

In the wake of his leave-taking, they heard Harmony squeal, "Oooh, you are a wet dream!"

To which Lindsey growled, "If you sniff on me, I'll stake you! God, is the whole fucking building full of vamps?"

Followed by Harmony saying to herself, "Mmm, nice butt."

Angel and Spike howled with laughter.



*********************



Charles Gunn walked into his office more than ready to call it a day, and it was only mid-afternoon. Normally he was good for a few more hours, but today he found himself constantly replaying the scene in Wesley's office earlier, and it was wearing him out. Angel had claimed Lindsey and in a permanent way. It looked as if Lindsey was here to stay. Big question now was: Where did that leave him? Pondering that question and heading straight for his desk, he didn't even notice the young woman waiting for him until he almost set his briefcase in her lap.

"Eve. What are you doing here?" Gunn asked, slightly irritated."And how long you been here?"

"Not very. Just sat down, actually. I came to see how things are going. You doing okay with your brain-boost?" Eve asked.

"Cut the crap, Eve. What do you want?" Gunn asked, leaning back against his desk.

Eve leaned forward in her chair, "Okay, fine. I came to see what you think of Lindsey's return? Think the Senior Partners can count on him? Can trust him?"

"Couldn't tell you. Angel says Lindsey came back here to be with him and wants nothing to do with the firm…and that seems to be true so far. He hasn't been at any meetings or drinking the coffee - so I ain't too worried. Besides, I thought the Senior Partners already said that they want him gone."

Eve smiled inwardly at the feel of the file pressed up against her spine. "Sure you're not worried, Charles? Lindsey was the firm's golden boy back in his time. They had great plans for him until Angel came along - and even then, they always seemed to overlook his indiscretions. If it came down to him without a boost or you with a boost, my money would be on him."

"Then that would be a waste, wouldn't it?" Gunn got up and turned to walk around his desk to his chair. He didn't want Eve to see how much her words had pissed him off. "Because like I just said - Lindsey doesn't want anything to do with this place, except to be with Angel." Gunn schooled his features and turned to sit in his chair.

"Yeah. To be with Angel," Eve paused, willing her anger over those words away. "What do you make of that? Personally, I think it's rather…odd, don't you? I mean, Lindsey spent most of his time here at Wolfram & Hart trying like hell to kill Angel, against the wishes of the Senior Partners, I might add. And now they're lovers, bound for eternity. Angel's still the center of Lindsey's universe." Eve wanted to know Gunn's real take on the whole Angel/Lindsey thing, she just wasn't sure how to go about getting the information without tipping her hand.

Gunn didn't even what to go there, not with questions of his own to work through. "Eve, I have work to do, so could you please state your business and get the HELL OUT!"

"Look, Charles. I know that you're not happy with this new turn of events. With Angel and Lindsey growing closer every day, hell every hour, then it's only a matter of time before Angel starts pulling Lindsey back in by taking his advice on cases that you should be handling. Your job is about to be on the line and I'm betting that doesn't set too well with you - especially when it's Lindsey taking your place."

Eve knew she had his attention now and scooted up closer to the desk. "Guess what? The Senior Partners aren't happy, either. But right now - their hands are tied. Thanks to Angel and Lindsey's actions last night, Lindsey's safe - from them anyway. But if something were to say…happen away from here.....then.......too bad for him, right?"


Gunn looked at Eve, exasperation written all over his face. "Eve, doll, you forgot something. If Lindsey gets killed, then doesn't Angel die, too?"


"And that's bad…why? We still have Spike." Eve stood up and turned to leave. Stopping just inside the doorway, she turned back to look at the lawyer. "All I'm saying is that you've just become expendable. What do you plan to do about it?"


Turning on her heel, Eve left Gunn with the same question that he'd been asking himself for the better part of the day. She had a smile on her face, because none of them had any idea that Lindsey had once been told he was expendable himself, by Nathan Reed, who delivered the news to the young lawyer in a such a cold manner that it left no doubt in Lindsey's mind it was true. She now believed Charles Gunn was going to be easier to manipulate than Lindsey McDonald had turned out to be.


****************************


The two vampires had laughed for a few more minutes, then Angel wiped the tears from his eyes, walking to the window. Spike having finally managed to pull himself back together, looked over at Angel, who stood at the window, smiling softly to himself.

"Do you see him?" Spike asked as he picked himself up off the floor and walked over to stand beside the other man.

"No. But I feel him, so he's not far." Angel answered, eyes still searching.

"Yeah, I miss that. That feeling you get in your gut when you're close to your mate. It was warm, comforting……" Spike trailed off seemingly lost in his own thoughts.

Angel, feeling Lindsey and knowing that he was okay, turned to look at his grandchilde. "I didn't know it would feel this way, Spike. Why didn't you warn me?"

"Tried to three months ago, Peaches. You weren't interested in
listening," Spike said.

"Being without Dru....what does it feel like for you now?" He asked softly.

Spike shrugged, "Not too bad, if you don't mind living with the feeling of nothingness laying heavily against your heart. Feels like a part of me is missing and it's all I can do to keep myself from going crazy and roaming the world over to find it again." He sighed, "You just feel lost, mate."

"Do you know where Dru is?" Angel asked.

"Yeah, but she doesn't want me. She didn't want me when I was chipped, doubt very seriously that she'd want me with a soul.
Especially since I signed up for it, no gypsy curse to blame it on." Spike shrugged, shaking off the melancholy thoughts that were threatening to plague him, "Nope. Better off leaving her to someone else to figure out her insane ramblings."

Spike stepped closer to the window and looked down at the people rushing to get home. "Still feel him?" Spike asked.

"Yeah. He feels like he's maybe three blocks away." Angel said as he turned and headed back to his desk. "He doesn't want to live here."

"Well, yeah. Can't say as I blame him. The Big Uglies upstairs don't want him here, how's a bloke to feel comfortable knowing that he's an unwelcome guest?" Spike replied. It never ceased to amaze him how dense Angel could be sometimes.

"He knows that I would never let them hurt him. And after last night – I don't think they would even try. Hell, he's probably safer here now than he was when he worked here." Angel said rubbing his hands over his face.

"Is that why you did it? To keep him safe……to protect him?" Spike asked, as he walked over and stood in front of the desk.

"Did what? Claim him? Mark him as my mate? Hell, no. I knew that was going to happen the first time he came to me for help."

"So……you marked him as your mate? Not Angelus?" Spike looked down at the floor for a second, letting that little confession sink in, then looked back up at his Grandsire.

Angel had a wicked little grin on his face. "Depends on which bite mark you're asking about, Spikey."

"Bloody hell! How long has this been going on-and is Lindsey aware of it?" Spike exclaimed, surprise and shock both in his face.

"Now, Spike.....you of all people, know how close the demon lives under the surface. Why would you even ask that?" Angel replied.

"Because I remembered what it was Drusilla told me in Sunnydale, mate. She only said Lindsey's name one time. After that, she kept calling him her brother. She said her brother had found her, brought her to LA, and even let her stay with him, before the night Darla was turned. You know how confusing she can sound, mate. I'd assumed she was talking about a vampire she knew," Spike said.

"Well, that would tend to explain....somewhat....Lindsey's statement that Dru didn't Smell him up," Angel said, smiling over Lindsey's words.

"Angel, that's not all Dru said," Spike earnestly said.

The older vampire grinned. "What else did she say? That Lindsey and I hated each other?"

"Didn't you, mate? I mean, Lindsey did try to kill you and all," Spike replied, sardonically.

"Yeah, well, but that was quite awhile ago, so what she said back then can't still mean anything. I mean, really, Spike......you said it yourself. She's insane."

"Insane she may be, but even Angelus knows better than to ignore her ramblings, pet....regardless of when they were rambled," Spike replied. "As for what else she said.....well, I hate to break it to you, but Dru said that her brother was in love with Darla, but that his heart forever belonged to his Sire. And we both know that can only mean one thing."

"No!" Angel said. "Drusilla is crazy, you know that. It's not true. I wouldn't do that. Not to Lindsey. He doesn't want that, Spike."

"What he wants, and what she said was going to be are two different things, Angel," Spike stated. "Isn't it better to know now?"

"I like Lindsey the way he is, Spike. I won't turn him," Angel said.

"What I'm thinking is......what if it's not you who does it, Peaches? If Angelus has been coming out to play with Lindsey all this time, the boy wouldn't know the difference unless the bastard wanted him to, and judging by what just happened between the two of them, I'd bloody well say Angelus loves him, and I've gotta say....that's one scary fucking thought, Angel," Spike said.







Chapter 28



Ramifications



Lindsey stepped out of the building into the late afternoon sunlight. He could smell night coming, a hot, sultry scent, a little
sleazy, a little wild, a little decadent....reminding him of unfulfilled desires, and dreams that were dead. Los Angeles personified. He wondered if that smell had always been there, and he
had just been too busy to notice it, or if it was some sort of odd side effect of sharing blood with a vampire.

As it was.......he could feel Angel now, where in proximity the vampire was in relation
to where he himself was. He half expected Angel to appear beside him any minute now, but shook his head as he caught sight of his shadow
on the sidewalk in front of him.

He took off walking to his truck, which was parked about three blocks away. Lindsey had walked about halfway, his thoughts on what
had just happened in Angel's office, not really noticing what was going on around him, when he began to feel something different. The
farther he walked, the more intense the feeling became. It took him a few minutes to suss out what was causing it, a few minutes more of denial, and it wasn't until he reached his truck that he accepted that what he had read in his month-long research was the undeniable truth.

Lindsey leaned against the cab of his truck, just let the feeling wash over him, let himself experience it fully, let the truth sink
in as deep as it would go. He had known this was possible, but hadn't believed it would overcome him this damn quickly.

He felt bereft, as if something infinitely precious had been ripped away from him. The cause was unequivocal, very traumatic, and totally demoralized him. Lindsey felt like his internal connection to Angel had been cut. He was adrift in a sea of despair, and he had only walked three blocks away from where Angel was. He wanted to just sit down and weep for the loss, and he had only one thought in his mind:

My God, what would it feel like if Angel died?


*****************************************


Spike watched as a myriad of emotions played out on Angel's face, the dominant emotion being fear. Spike pulled back and let that
register before pushing on. "Angel, you still have control of your demon, right? You can stop him?"

"It's not control I'm worried about, Spike, it's will power. The thought of being able to keep Lindsey by my side for eternity is
strong and it's always in my mind," Angel paused, a funny feeling like butterflies in his stomach overcoming him. He tried to shake it off. "But if I do that, Lindsey would lose his humanity, Spike. And he doesn't want that. Neither do I."

"You're not answering my question, Angel. What about Angelus?" Spike said. "I was there in SunnyD, Peaches. I remember every fucking detail, from him screwing Drusilla to having a raging hard on to hurt the slayer as bad as he could. He was nearly as insane as Dru
herself-and why would you let him out to hurt Lindsey, Angel?"

A sense of desolation stirred through him, and Angel said, "The thing with Angelus is kind of complicated, Spike. Okay? I don't understand it myself-all right? It's like.....not long after I met Lindsey-something brought us together, Angelus and I and through
the whole Darla debacle-it was like....Angelus was by my side, on
my side. When I was sure I hated Lindsey after Darla's death, he didn't. I think he saw more clearly than I did what motivated
Lindsey's actions at that time, and not only saw but understood."

Spike snorted. "I know you're not planning on telling me Angelus had some kind of whacked out epiphany, Angel. Cause I ain't buying that load of horseshit."

Angel looked at Spike. "You did. Why would you think he couldn't?"

"Because I was more human than you ever were, you asshole!," Spike
said. "And I didn't have a soul shoved up my ass like you did. I fought to earn mine, something I can assure you, that bastard would
never do, not in a million years."

Angel thought about that, but couldn't decide if Spike was right or wrong. All he knew was, Angelus had killed the Beast, for very
obscure reasons. And Angelus hated Wolfram and Hart, something only he was aware of. But before he could say anything, he was swamped with emotion he knew wasn't his: he could feel Lindsey's despair as if were his own. He quietly said, "Spike, could you feel Dru's emotions?"

"No, I couldn't," Spike stated. "Maybe if I had, I'd have understood her better. Or went completely crackers myself. Why?"

"I'm feeling Lindsey's and he feels so lost all of a sudden,"
Angel replied. He scrunched his forehead until wrinkles appeared, while he just let himself feel it, shuddering as the loneliness
coming from Lindsey washed over him.

"Must be a side-effect of binding yourself to a human, when you have a soul," Spike mused. "He must have lost his connection to you. His being human means that he won't have the heightened sense that you do, so he won't have to go too far to lost that feeling."

"What would it feel like for Lindsey, if I died?" Angel asked.

"Well, from the things I've heard, Lindsey would become extremely suicidal, not wanting to live if you were gone," Spike answered.
Thinking about Dru, who was clearly still alive, he added in a slightly bitter tone, "If he's still in love with you, that is. This is why I told you not to do it, Peaches. We don't know what's going
to happen now."

Angel said, "Spike, I want you to go to Wesley. Tell him everything we've discussed. But only tell Wes. No one else. Maybe he can find some information on all of this."

Spike considered what Angel had been saying. "All right," he said. Then he leaned over the desk, looked Angel dead in the eyes, and told him: "You'd better not die, you soddin' poof. Cause if your sorry ass does, I'm gonna do everything in my power to be sure
Gingersnap doesn't. You'd better think about that, pet. Long and hard. He may be yours, but that doesn't mean I'm blind. If you die,
I'll take great pleasure in Lindsey's body. I promise you that."

Angel scowled as his grandchilde left the office. He considered staking Spike. Torturing him. Making the snarky bastard bleed having
the nerve to even say that. He sighed. Finally, he got up and walked to the elevator, wanting a little peace to think before Lindsey
returned.


***********************************************



Lindsey stepped off the elevator into the penthouse, a thousand thoughts milling around in his mind. He'd been frantic in his desire
to reach the vampire for a few minutes, but the closer he'd come to Angel, the calmer he'd become, until the desolation he'd felt at the
separation had subsided, leaving in it's wake a whisper of things to come......and Lindsey was more aware than ever of the virtual
labyrinth his life had become. He let the duffel bag fall to the floor, and gently placed his guitar case beside it.

A warmth slowly spread through his body, and he felt Angel's presence. Then hands slid around his waist as the vampire gently
hugged him from behind. Lindsey closed his eyes, leaned back into Angel and let himself be taken over by his emotions. "Are you
alright, Linds?" Angel whispered into his ear. "Can you handle it, lover?"

"I'll be fine, now that I know. I'll get used to it, I suppose." Lindsey softly said. "Angel, why didn't you warn me what it would feel like?"

"I didn't know myself, Lindsey. Was it that bad for you?" Angel said, placing soft kisses against Lindsey's neck, enjoying the gasp
that came with every little press of his lips on his lover's skin. He moved his hands under Lindsey's t-shirt, smiled at the low moan
that escaped as he gently teased the young man with a soft touch.

"Uh huh," Lindsey eloquently responded, all rational thought apparently gone."Angel," he softly moaned.

"I'll make it better," Angel said, as he continued to arouse Lindsey, his fingernails lightly raking over his nipples, and
Lindsey hissed at the sensation, arching into the touch. He was suddenly painfully hard, and his body was inflamed with need.

Lindsey knew his skin was sensitive to touch, but this was above and beyond sensitive. He felt as if every nerve in his entire body had just come alive at the vampire's hands. He'd never felt the burn
of anticipation quite this badly before. His whole world narrowed down to those talented hands playing with him.

The sound of the vampire breathing in his ear told Lindsey that Angel was as excited as he was. Only Angel wasn't just breathing, he
was making that purring sound again, and Lindsey realized that the vampire was smelling his scent, and for some odd reason, that
knowledge sent a wave of heat coursing through his entire body. "Yes, Angel," Lindsey moaned. "Yes....oh god, yes."

"Mmm, Lindsey," Angel said. "You smell so damn good. I wish you could smell yourself the way I do." Another wave of heat slammed
through him. "Oh, fuck me," Lindsey muttered. Angel chuckled, and lightly tugged on his earlobe with blunt teeth, provoking Lindsey into another soft moan. "God, the sounds you make, Lindsey. It's so
damn erotic, it's a fucking crime." Angel whispered, moving one hand gently down, lightly soothing the skin over Lindsey's stomach, toying with the soft trail of hair, teasing Lindsey into a verbal response.

"Touch me, Angel....please," Lindsey whispered. He was trembling now, and his legs threatened to give out when Angel slipped a hand into his jeans to grasp his hot, throbbing erection. Lindsey thrust forward instinctively, and the moan that came this time was from somewhere deep, deep inside him. The hold around his torso tightened, and Angel whispered, "I've got you, Linds. I won't let
go."

Then Lindsey's legs did give out when that hand started slowly stroking him, the pleasure was so intense. Lindsey's voice was raspy as he said, "Shit, Angel....oh god...OH, FUCK" He screamed as
Angel lowered his head and sucked gently on the bite he'd put there night before, and Lindsey came so hard and so fast, he nearly
blacked out.

The stroking became gentler, but didn't stop as the young man tried to calm down. His heart beating at a rapid pace, still panting
furiously, Lindsey whispered, "What the fuck", then groaned as the vampire licked the bite mark. "You once told me you could play at it as hard as I could, Lindsey," Angel softly said. "Is that still
true, do you think you can handle it?"

"Yes, I can," Lindsey whispered. "As long as you're with me. Don't die on me, Angel. I couldn't live if you were gone."

Angel sighed.God, he hated having to tell Lindsey this. Removing his hand, he turned Lindsey to face him, then kissed his forehead.
Looking him in the eyes, Angel softly said, "I don't want you to die, either, Linds."

Angel's meaning burst through the haze in Lindsey's brain and he was torn two ways. The humanity in him screamed No, I don't want that, not me, not me, not me. Isn't my soul damned enough already?, while
the true heart of him, the part that had fallen in love with a vampire, knowing full well what that meant, asked him, How would Angel feel if you died, Lindsey? He looked into Angel's brown eyes, and saw the answer in them.

Angel watched Lindsey's eyes as a calm acceptance of his eventual fate at the hands of his lover entered them. It hurt his heart to see that look in them. It felt like he was killing a part of Lindsey he loved so much-the part that had fought against him so hard in the past. He wasn't even aware of the silent tears he was crying until Lindsey reached up to pull his head down, and he kissed them away.

"Don't," Lindsey said, gently kissing Angel. "When the time comes, I won't fail you, I promise. I'll be there. I'll be there for you. Forever, Angel."

Angel gathered Lindsey to him, deepening the kiss, and inside, he finally began to believe in the true depth of Lindsey McDonald's love for him. Lindsey leaned into him, and Angel softly moaned as the added pressure teased the erection he'd been ignoring all this time. Lindsey moaned softly as well. He moved from Angel's lips to his ear, where he whispered, "Take me to bed, Angel. I need to be with you."

He raised his head then to look at Lindsey, and yes, he was blushing. Angel smiled a little at the tenderness in those words coming from a man who said fuck like it was nothing. "You want me to make love to you, Lindsey?"

The blush deepened, his teeth worried his bottom lip, but Lindsey didn't look away. "Yes," he answered. "I've wanted you to all day, Angel."

"Yes, you have, Linds," Angel said, tugging the t-shirt off of Lindsey. He let his gaze wander over that hard body, and he started softly breathing again, backing Lindsey toward the bed. "I could smell the want coming off you every time you were near me." Fingers deftly undid the belt buckle, slid down to touch the wet spot. "Do you know what it does to me to have you react so strongly to me, Lindsey?"

Lindsey stopped moving backwards. "No, I don't. You aren't very expressive verbally, Angel. I know you want me, but...."

"It's more than that, Lindsey," Angel interrupted. "God, so much more. If I'd only wanted sex from you, I could've had you years ago. It wouldn't have taken much to get past all that anger to seduce you, but you'd have hated the both of us afterwards. I let you walk away from me, Linds. I let you go. And you came back. You came back to me." Angel paused, leaning down to press his lips into Lindsey's, teasing his lower lip with the tip of his tongue, until Lindsey let him in, shivering and softly moaning at the erotic sensation of Angel's tongue entangling with his own.

Angel pulled back to look into those dark, passionate blue eyes, so filled with need for him, that it humbled the vampire. He drew in a deep, unneeded breath, fear and hope surging through him as he said something he'd never thought to say to another again. "I can't lose you again. It would kill me. And not because of what we did last night. I didn't claim you as my mate to protect you from Angelus, the senior partners or the Powers That Be. I did it because I love you, Lindsey, heart and soul, and to hell with the rest of it."

Lindsey stood frozen in shock while Angel's words permeated his lust filled brain. Looking up into Angel's eyes and seeing the words echoed there, Lindsey launched himself into his lover's arms, toppling them onto the bed where he proceeded to return the sentiment with his mouth.


Angel groaned.