Title: Frustration
Author: Rari

(notes and disclaimer with part one)

Frustration: Part 3

Giles hadn't settled on anyone yet. He had his eye on two lovely ladies and he had made first contact with both of them but he wasn't ready to go in for the kill yet. It had taken him a while to unwind. It taken him a while to even believe he was capable of capturing the interest of a woman.

He let out a sigh of relief. He'd almost let it go on too long. If he hadn't broken free tonight it might have become true. Everything Buffy and the rest of them had been saying about him for far too long. As much as he hated feeling indebted to Ethan for anything he was grateful he had shown up tonight. For all the aggravation Ethan caused, one thing was always true; Giles came out the other end a little wiser about himself. There was no hope of hiding when Ethan was around. He understood the underside of human nature too well, and he knew Giles better than anyone ever had or probably ever would.

So, Ethan had shown up and Giles had finally admitted to the aggravation he'd been feeling about Buffy's treatment of him and her refusal to see him as a man. And when he had first gotten here to this club he'd had to face the damage that had been done to his self-esteem, his self-assurance, and his easy way with woman he'd always taken for granted. It was all almost non-existent. Being here tonight, Giles felt that he had rescued himself just in the nick of time.

Granted, there were extenuating circumstances around his lack of female companionship. He did have his Watcher duties, and one Hellmouth catastrophe after another. But, while that might interfere with him having a relationship, there was no reason he couldn't at least have sex. At least feel like a man every now and then. Not like some castrated one foot in the grave simpering shop proprietor. Giles ran a hand through his hair and looked around.

Thank goodness some woman had mentioned this place to him at the shop. It had been couched in an invitation to join her but Giles had felt several sets of eyes on him so he had deflected the invitation rather than put up with the teasing. But, he had remembered the name of the club. There was no way he would have gone to the Bronze, or any place in Sunnydale for that matter. He didn't want to take the chance of running into someone he knew. There was no way he could perform under that kind of pressure. Not this first time out.

So he'd spent the last hour circulating. Being careful not to drink much, letting the effects of the scotch he'd poured down his throat at home to wear off. He'd made eye contact with a few women just to test the waters and he'd been relieved when he'd gotten a full look back as opposed to them running away in horror. He'd gotten braver and asked a few to dance, and they'd all agreed. A couple of them had offered to buy him a drink. One had already propositioned him. He had gently turned her down. Conquests that were too easy never really interested him. He liked it when it was a bit of a game. He especially liked it when he found a woman who liked the game too, who understood the rules.

The two he was circling around played it well. He could tell. The perfect amount of putting out and holding back. It was an art that Giles had often compared to fishing. It required an expert fisherman and fisherwoman. The perfect reeling in of the line, and then letting it back out, the divine play of slowly pulling each other closer and closer until you were caught in each other's nets. Nets that were easily cut away the next morning. Not like the net he found himself in now, in his life, living life with Buffy, as her Watcher. That net was impervious and it had become painfully tight lately with no maneuvering room.

Giles put Buffy from his mind and moved back to the bar, a few feet away from one of his choices. She was a stunning brunette. She reminded him a little of Cordelia. For all of her bitchy ways, Cordelia had often taken his breath away with her beauty. Not that he'd have ever touched her or even been tempted to. But he could look, and he had. He was surrounded by attractive women. That was part of the problem.

Willow, Tara, Anya, even Dawn, who was breathtakingly beautiful for someone so young. And Joyce, she was stunning too. Giles had thought about going to see her tonight, just for a moment. He didn't think she'd be too hard to convince to go for a repeat performance. That had been pretty great sex, even if it had been extraordinarily awkward afterwards. And complicated. That was why he'd almost immediately dismissed the idea.

And then there was Buffy. Buffy, gorgeous, lissome, amazingly flexible and strong, and who paraded half naked around him inches from his body. And who would have him in a rocking chair like some old grandfather with an afghan tucked around him, and a cat on his lap as well. As many layers between Buffy and his crotch as possible. Anything to make her not have to think that he had a cock that might get hard every now and then. Giles blew out a breath and reined in his frustration.

He started a little when he felt a hand on his arm. He looked down and then followed the hand up to find the brunette. Giles smiled at her. She pulled her hand away. "Penny for your thoughts?"

Giles shook his head. "You don't want them, trust me."

She looked at the glass he was holding. "I was waiting for that glass to break."

Giles released the tight hold he had on his glass. He let out a silent half laugh. "I appreciate you rescuing me." He let his gaze drop to her breasts and then he looked back up at her face, letting some appreciation show on his face. He saw the merest hint of a smile on her face. Giles was about to ask her to dance when he saw Ethan and Buffy enter the club.

Giles closed his eyes. "Damn it." When he opened them the brunette was looking at him with a startled expression on her face. Giles shook his head. "I'm sorry. Some unwelcome company just walked in the door." He trailed his finger down her forearm. "If you're in the mood for more rescuing I'll be in serious need of it after the conversation I'm about to have."

She smiled. "I might be in the mood for that. Then again, I might get bored waiting."

Giles grinned. The thrill of the chase. "I'll try not to keep you waiting too long." Turning away from Giles in such a way that one of her breasts brushed against his fingers, she sat back down at her seat a few feet down.

Giles was willing to get reeled in right then. His fingers burned and ached for a richer touch. But then he recalled Buffy and Ethan. Gritting his teeth he headed their way.

Buffy had been watching him at the bar. With a brunette. She gasped when she saw the maneuver the woman pulled. "What a slut." She elbowed Ethan. "Did you see that?"

Ethan grinned. "Yes I did. Seems she's a bit interested in your sexless Watcher who only wants you." Ethan glanced at Buffy and grinned. She had tried. She had put on some extra makeup and a dress that was quite short and displayed a lot of cleavage. The window dressing might capture Giles' eyes, but she wouldn't be able to hold his attention.

"She's a ho."

"Buffy, there is a far cry from being a ho as you so charmingly phrase it, to using one's body to entice another. You're much too black and white on the subject. As far as you can see, you're either a good girl or you're a hooker. There's no in between for you." His voice dropped down to a whisper as Giles approached. "And that's why you'll lose."

Giles stood in front of them. "What the hell are you two doing here? Wasn't making me miserable in my own home enough for the two of you tonight? You have to follow me around and do it everywhere?"

Ethan was unconcerned by his tone. "Rupert. Buffy and I just made the most interesting bet."

"Ethan, go away. Leave Sunnydale." He turned to Buffy. "Go home."

Buffy sneered. "Why? So you can make a fool of yourself with that ho up at the bar?"

Buffy found herself taking an involuntary step backward at the look in Giles' eyes. "Buffy." His voice was dangerous. "Go home."

Ethan shook his head. "Can't do that. I have a bet to win." He blew some powder at Buffy's face and spoke an incantation. He was actually playing fair this time. All that would happen is Giles would forget who Buffy was. Ethan had no doubt that he was going to win this bet. Buffy and Giles both coughed.

Giles shook his head as if he was confused. Then he looked at Ethan again. "Go away, I mean it." He looked at the blonde standing next to him. "And take your playmate with you."

Buffy made a huffing noise. "I am so not with him."

Giles grinned and looked at Ethan. "I see you haven't lost your touch."

"Ripper, I want you to meet Buffy."

Giles schooled his face not to smile but he couldn't keep the amusement off his face. "Buffy." He looked down at the floor just for a second to see if it would help him not laugh. She didn't look the sort who would be entertained at someone finding her name amusing. Giles looked up. He'd been right. She was already pouting. "Nice to meet you. So, explain to me why you're with and yet not with my old friend Ethan."

Buffy's eyes widened as she realized that Giles didn't know who she was. She found it disconcerting, and yet, in a way, exhilarating. Ethan was so going to eat crow tonight. She sent Giles her most sultry look, the one that worked on Riley every time. "We just walked in together. I'm not here with anyone."

Giles had to fight back a laugh. This poor child. Where did she learn her moves? His eyes ran over her. She was attractive and nicely put together, there was no doubt about that. And willing, or willing to pretend she was willing.

Buffy preened under his attention and sent a victorious look Ethan's way. He wanted her. It was written all over him. Look at how he was looking at her. She took another step closer. "Do you want to dance?"

Giles pursed his lips and turned his head to the side. He was tempted but when he remembered what he had waiting for him up at the bar he let it go. He was relatively certain that with this one it would be all tease and no play. And even if it did get that far, she'd lie back on the bed and expect him to do all the work. He smiled gently at her. "Thanks but I've left a friend up at the bar." Glaring at Ethan he scowled. "Stay out of my way." With that he turned his back on them and headed back to the bar.

The brunette was pretending to ignore him and Giles decided if his next move should be to go pay significant attention to her, or let her stew for a moment. He looked for the other woman he was interested in and saw that she was dancing. Walking up to the bar he lightly grabbed the brunette and spun her around on the stool. "Miss me?" He caressed her upper arm with his thumb.

"I barely noticed you were gone."

Giles grinned. "Dance with me? I promise you you'll notice me after that."

"Pretty sure of yourself, aren't you?" She wasn't sure she liked that.

"No, I'm just sure of how right it will feel to be dancing with you."

She was off her stool in a second. That she liked. Tucking her arm in his she allowed him to escort her to the dance floor.

Buffy watched the whole thing with her mouth open. Nothing about her world made any sense any more. Ethan watched her as he chuckled softly to himself. If he'd known it would be this much fun just to come to Sunnydale and not pick on Giles he would have moved here ages ago. He put his hand under Buffy's elbow and led her to a table in the corner. A table that had a clear view of both the dance floor and the bar. He didn't want her to miss a thing.

Ethan ordered her a coke and him a drink. When they came and after the waiter had walked away, he gave his drink to her. She took a sip and coughed. After the warmth of it had slid down her throat she turned to him. "He didn't want me."

"Oh he wanted you. Just not enough."

"Not enough? What do you mean?"

"Not enough to put up with your school girl ways. He liked the package but not the lack of promises."

"I was promising."

Ethan snorted. "You were teasing. Cock teasing. With nothing behind it. He could tell."

"Well, I'm not going to sleep with him." She shuddered.

"And he could tell."

"So this is hardly a fair bet if I'm being compared to women who are skanky ho's when what he wants is to get…you know." She looked like she had a bad taste in her mouth.

Ethan grinned. "He still wouldn't choose you."

"He would too." She took another sip. "This isn't a fair bet. The dice are loaded for the other team." She scowled at the sight of Giles and the brunette dancing on the dance floor. They were entirely too close.

Ethan took a sip of the coke and made a face. He stole his drink back. "I could level the playing field. Make it more fair."

Buffy stared at him with suspicion. "By doing what?"

"I could make you want him."

"You could make me want Giles?" She looked at him as if he had grown a set of horns. "I am not sleeping with him."

"You won't. He won't choose you. Even if he thinks you'll put out, he still won't choose you. You're not his type."

Buffy shook her head. "You are so wrong. Let me try one more time. I know if I get him alone he'll be interested."

Ethan held out his hand, directing her away. "Go for it."

Buffy stood uncertainly. She was nowhere near as confident as she had been earlier. But she refused to admit defeat. She made it to the hallway by the restrooms and waited. He'd have to pee sooner or later.

Buffy was slumped against the wall when he finally made an appearance. She stood up and smoothed down her dress moving to get in his way. He wasn't paying attention and bumped into her. He put out a hand to steady her. "Pardon me. Oh, Bunny, it's you."

"Buffy. It's Buffy."

"Right, Buffy." He gave her a smile and started to head by her.

She grabbed him with a surprisingly strong grip and stopped him. She pressed him against the wall and ran her hands up his chest. "Do you feel like dancing now?" Buffy purred the words out.

Giles' eyebrows rose. "What are you doing?"

Buffy pouted a little but then smiled. "I like you." Trying not to feel dirty she moved close enough that her breasts were touching his chest.

Giles gently pushed her away. "I'm not sure what you like, but I don't think it's me. I'm not what you should be looking for tonight."

"What do you mean? I do like you."

Giles shook his head. "You like winning, I think. Did Ethan put you up to this? He knows you're not my type." Giles looked at her, wondering what was going on.

Buffy moved in close again. Feeling like she was going to have to go home and take a hot shower for about two hours she let her hand brush against the zipper on his jeans. Her eyes widened. He was hard. She smiled at him. "Seems like you like me too." She could sense victory in her grasp.

Giles' eyes narrowed in annoyance. He pulled her in close until she was flush against his body. "Do you think that's all it takes? A hard cock and you've won? I think you like to play with fire when you have no idea how hot it can get." He lowered his head and kissed her. The kiss took Buffy by surprise. She braced herself to put up with it, just until she'd won. But Buffy had never been kissed like this. It was as if Giles was having sex with her, just with his lips. It was carnal, and breathtakingly sensual, a sexual onslaught that she felt through her entire body. As it started to sweep her away she tried to keep up but she got lost so quickly.

With no warning Giles let her go. "Go home. Find yourself a nice preacher's son. Someone who'll put you up on a pedestal and only make love to you when you allow him to." He left her there and entered the men's restroom.

Buffy sagged against the wall so she wouldn't fall. Her knees felt like jelly. Her thoughts were reeling. She couldn't believe Giles could kiss like that, she couldn't believe he could make her feel like that, and more than anything else she couldn't believe he didn't want her. Well he wanted her, but just like Ethan said, he didn't want her enough. Buffy started to tear up.

Giles found her like that when he left the restroom. Leaning against the wall, tears falling down her cheeks. He let out an exasperated breath. "For the love of…" He grabbed her elbow and led her back out into the main room. He searched for Ethan and when he found him he dragged Buffy over to him and sat her down.

When she found herself sitting she looked up at Giles, her eyes miserable. "Why don't you want me?"

Giles' heart clenched at the sight of her. "Don't take it personally. You're a beautiful woman. You're just not my type." He handed her his handkerchief. "I'm not your type either. I promise you."

Buffy shook her head and grabbed his hand. "But I am your type. You belong to me. You're my…" At a look from Ethan she stopped the sentence midway, the word Watcher unsounded.

"I'm your what?" He looked down at the drinks and he glared at Ethan. "Is she drunk? Have you been trying to get her drunk? She's not your type either Ethan, a little too female for your tastes. What are you up to?" He pulled his hand out of Buffy's grasp. He had to pull very hard. He sent her an odd look.

Ethan put his hands up. "I haven't done a thing Buffy hasn't asked me to. I swear. And she only had two sips."

Giles looked at Buffy and she nodded in agreement. "Fine. Then would you both please do me a favor and leave me alone? Is that too much to ask?" With that he strode away. When he realized that both the women he was interested in were dancing he cursed. Sitting at the bar he ordered a drink.

Ethan looked at Buffy. She looked a mess. Her mascara was running down her cheeks along with her tears. "Willing to admit you've lost yet?" He gestured towards the handkerchief she clasped in her hand. "Clean your face up. You look like a disaster."

Buffy wiped her face and was horrified to see the mascara marks. She dug in her purse frantically for a mirror. Looking at herself her lips trembled. She began to wipe the makeup away. Before she was done she just laid her head down on her arms. "Why doesn't he want me?" She had never felt this rejected. Never. Even the morning after with Angel hadn't hurt this much. Something inside of her had counted on Giles, counted on him in a way that made her strong and now, like a puff of smoke, it was gone.

"Come on now, Buffy. You can't really blame him. He probably hasn't gotten laid in months, probably since Olivia left. Of course he'd want someone a little more experienced who could fully participate in the kind of sex he likes. Not some school girl dressed like a…ho." Ethan grinned.

Buffy looked confused. "I thought sex was just sex. What type of sex does Giles like?" She was moderately appalled to find herself somewhat intrigued at the thought of having sex with Giles. After that kiss. If he made love like he kissed she'd combust. There'd just be charred cinders left behind.

Ethan moved closer to her. "Have you ever performed oral sex on a man? Sucked his balls? Have you ever had a man cum in your mouth or on your breasts or in your face? Have you ever had anal sex or masturbated while a man watched you?" At the shocked look on her face he pressed on, elated at her expression. "Have you ever had oral sex Buffy? Had a man taste you as you came in his mouth? Have you ever tasted what your cum tastes like?"

Buffy stammered out a reply. "I've done some…some…of that." She hadn't, not really, but Ethan didn't need to know that.

Ethan laughed. "Oh, yes, I can tell you're a real animal. You can't even say the words. Well, here's some more for you. Have you ever played with toys? Something silly like a feather duster, or something a little more exciting like vibrators and dildos? Ever had someone eat food off of you?" Buffy's face was contorted as she listened to Ethan. She couldn't even summon the strength to get him to shut up. So he kept on. "Have you watched dirty movies with someone and tried out everything you've seen? Have you worn outfits and…"

She jumped on that one as if it was a life preserver. "I've worn outfits."

"What kind of outfits?"

"You know, lingerie kinds of outfits."

"That's not the sort of outfits I'm talking about."

Buffy's eyes were huge on her face. She felt overwhelmed and inexperienced. "Giles does all that?"

Ethan laughed again. Never had he imagined he'd be given this opportunity to tread the Slayer into the dirt like this and with the truth no less. Twisted to serve his purposes, but the truth nonetheless. "God, Buffy, will you grow up? Anyone with a good sex life does all of that. Not all at once and not necessarily with every partner. But variety is the spice of life. Giles wants a partner willing to try, willing to experiment, someone who isn't afraid of their own sexuality or of his." He prodded her arm with his finger. "And you, little girl, despite the fact that you visually appeal to him, can't give him that and he knows it."

"He kissed me." Buffy hadn't meant to tell Ethan that but the words came out before she could stop them.

Ethan remembered those days. He sighed. "Turned you inside out, did he?"

Buffy nodded. Paired emotions of misery and desire swept through her. Her eyes filled with tears again. "Then he walked away."

"And what did you do?"

"Tried not to fall down." She was too shaken to dissemble.

Ethan barked out a laugh. "See, what he wants is a woman who's going to make it hard for him to stay standing. Someone who'll kiss him to within an inch of his life."

Buffy's lips tightened. "So, make me into someone who can kiss him like that."

"Why should I do that?"

"Then the bet would be fair."

"No, if I make you into someone you're not, there's nothing fair about that. The bet was that he would want you. You were the one who was so sure that if he were allowed to think about sex while he was around you that he wouldn't be able to keep his hands off of you. If I have to make you into the kind of women he wants to make him want you it just proves my point that you're not the kind of woman he wants."

Buffy couldn't remember feeling this defeated. Her shoulders were slumped and her heart felt like it was breaking. She looked up at the bar and saw that Giles was back with the brunette. He was whispering something in her ear and she was laughing. They were standing way too close to each other. A painful shaft of jealousy thrust into her heart. She stood. "Fine, you win. Let's go."

Ethan grinned and stood as well. He saw the look in her eyes as she looked at Giles. He was pretty sure that kiss had shaken a few feelings loose in Buffy. "Don't let it bother you so much, Buffy. After all, you said you had no intention of sleeping with him, so it's not like you lost anything but the bet." Ethan smiled knowingly at the flash of misery in her eyes. The fallout from this would keep Ethan amused for weeks.

She spoke in a small voice as they passed by Giles. He didn't even notice her. "Will he remember me again?"

"As soon as we leave the bar he'll remember who you are."

"Will he remember anything that happened here?" Buffy didn't think she could stand the humiliation.

Ethan shook his head. "No. I mean he'll remember it but he won't think it was you. He'll just think some blond hit on him. He won't remember it was you unless you tell him."

Buffy just nodded and followed Ethan out of the bar.

End of Part 3