Charmed, I'm Sure

"Wouldn't that be something?"

Alyssa put her hand up to her mouth and stood up, her shadow falling across his face. Danek opened his eyes and stood up, somewhat embarrassed. "Oh, uh, hi, sorry, I uh..."

"It's okay, I'm sorry, I didn't want to interrupt. That was incredibly beautiful. I didn't know you could play." Alyssa rolled her eyes and gave a sheepish laugh. "Actually, I didn't really know anything about you at all."

Danek put the guitar down gently and put his hands into his back pockets uneasily. "Yes. I... it's a long story. Alyssa, listen, about last night, I don't normally... that wasn't like me at all." She smiled slowly, a mischievous light in her dark orbs.

"That makes two of us. I'm not really one for one night stands." Danek gave a weak smile and shrugged, feigning non-concern.

"Do you have anything to do today?" Alyssa blushed and looked down at her toes, feeling like a schoolgirl again.

"No, I uh, not until tomorrow. I've got a signing and a movie discussion at 3 o'clock." He nodded and shrugged again, and Alyssa found herself biting her lip to stop her smile.

"Well, uh, why don't you um... that is to say, can you uh..." Alyssa stepped closer to him and put one hand on his chest, looking up into his downcast eyes.

"Can I?" His features darkened, and he tilted his head.

"Can you stay?" Her smile widened, and she bit her bottom lip again, her features very soft and inviting.

"Sure," she said softly. "I can do that."

Danek smiled and nodded, then held out his hand to her. She took it and he led her inside. "Well then, uh, can I make you some breakfast? It won't be anything fancy I'm afraid." She smiled again, widely and genuinely.

"That's okay. If I could just steal something to wear?" He nodded again as they moved inside.

"Of course. My wardrobe is to the left, top of the stairs. Feel free to grab anything. I'll be up in a few minutes with something to eat." She smiled again, and covered her mouth, almost embarrassed at how wide and foolish her smile was. She hurried up the stairs as Danek began to move around the kitchen, slicing some fruit and cheese. He cut some pieces of bread and boiled the kettle.

He noticed the cold cup of tea on the bench, forgotten last night, and pulled a fresh tea bag of the Raspberry Lavender tea out. He poured two glasses of Orange juice and set them on a tray with the food and moved up the stairs. Alyssa was sitting by the fire, wearing one of his business shirts, tied together at the waist, and a pair of his black silk boxers. To him, it was only underwear, but on her, they were intoxicating.

Alyssa smiled as he lowered the tray down and picked up the tea, sipping it slowly and then blowing on it to cool it. They ate in companionable silence until they finished, and Danek took the tray away. Alyssa patted the ground in front of her when he returned, and he sat in front of her as she set her tea down and leant back into the beanbag she'd found in the corner.

She ran her hands over his shoulders, tracing the angry red marks of her fingernails over his skin. "I'm sorry," she whispered, a little taken aback by the violence of their encounter. At least, her violence towards him. Alyssa marvelled at the fact that, somewhat guiltily, she had not a mark on her. "I uh, I didn't mean that."

Danek stayed silent for a moment, then smiled to himself. "Yes, well, seeing as I am the wounded victim, I should think that you are very sorry indeed." She smiled to herself and slapped him on the chest, running her hands over his bare shoulders.

"Asshole, you probably deserved it," she said, her fingertips trailing lightly to his ribs. Danek let out a loud gasping laugh and wriggled out of her reach, and then settled back in as her hands came over his shoulders and moved over his chest.

"You know, um, I wanted to ask you last night, before you attacked me, um, about your tattoos?" Danek closed his eyes and scoffed at that.

"Who attacked whom?" Alyssa gave a soft laugh and began to massage his shoulders. Danek picked up one of her hand and brought it to his lips, and Alyssa's face softened instantly. "Which one do you want to know about?"

He could feel her body pressed up against his, and tried to ignore his cock beginning to thicken at the feel and scent of her so close and intimate. Her free hand spread over his shoulders, and moved back around to his chin, then tilted it back, pushing his head back until she could kiss him, Spider-man Style.

"Hmm, that's nice," she smiled. "Start with the back one." She leant back and picked up her teacup as Danek took a breath.

"It's my tattooed spiritual-coat-of-arms." She gave another "hmm?" and her hand began to roam through his close shorn hair. "The bear represents parts of what is supposed to be my spirit. Your Native American Indians believe that the Bear is a representative of strength, loyalty, fierce protection of the family and love."

Alyssa's fingers trailed over the design and then moved to another, of a dragon and tapped it twice. Danek's lip curled as he smiled. "That one is a little more prosaic, I'm afraid. I've always loved Dragons, western ones in particular, plus I was born under the sign of the Dragon, so..." She nodded and leant down to kiss his shoulder, then her fingers moved to the back of his neck.

"And this one?" she asked, her fingertips tracing the sharp curves of the symbols in Japanese on the left shoulder blade.

"It means Ronin." Her fingers traced to the other side, and before she could ask, he identified the other one. "Soul." Her fingers moved into his neck and began to massage, and Danek closed his eyes.

"Ronin soul, huh? Sounds pretty intense, what does it mean?"

"Ronin is a the term for a wandering, masterless samurai, in ancient Japan. My grandmother used to tell me that I had a Ronin's soul. I never stayed in the same place for more than a year, and just kept moving around, doing whatever I wanted. My grandmother was a history teacher in Johannesburg. She was quite taken with the histories of Feudal Japan."

Alyssa was silent for a moment, and Danek opened his eyes. "She and my grandfather died six or so years ago. They passed away within three weeks of one another. My sister used to say that true love meant one not being able to live without the other. So I guess my grandparents were deeply in true love." Alyssa leant down close and hugged him, filling his nostrils with her scent.

"You know, that's probably one of the sweetest things I've ever heard." Danek smiled to himself and rolled over in her arms, laying on her stomach and setting his chin on their hands. Her eyes were wide and loving, and something twisted inside of him at knowing that she had to leave later.

"This one, on my right arm is Greek. It says "molon lebe" or "come and take them". It's a direct quote from King Leonidis of Sparta, when he faced the Persian Army. The one on my left arm is also Greek, and says "With my shield or on it." The Spartan way of life is one I have long found intriguing."

Alyssa looked at the two bands and smiled, biting her bottom lip as she stared down her chest at him. She wormed her hands out from under his and ran her fingers through his hair again. "And yours?" She looked up at the ceiling and laid her head back into the beanbag. She didn't speak for a second, gathering her thoughts, until Danek eased himself up her body and kissed her softly.

Alyssa smiled widely and then moved into his arms again and screwed up her face. "Sorry. This has never happened to me before. It's weird, but nobody ever wants to hang around, even when I was with guys for ages, nobody ever wanted to... do this... you know?" Danek nodded as Alyssa snuggled into his arms and breathed deeply.

"Tell me more about yourself, Danek. And I'll tell you anything you want about me. But you first. What was that song you played? In the garden?" Danek nodded sagely.

"Uh-huh. Next time you might not be getting hugged, so your powers of persuasion may not be so intense." She bit her lip again and kissed his neck, and Danek laughed as her fingertips tickled at his ribs. "Ok, ok. You get 13 points about me. That's all." Alyssa leant back a little bit, her features confused.

"What? It's not unlucky, it's a baker's dozen." Alyssa laughed absurdly.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Danek shrugged and then grinned.

"Well, you've got great buns..." She laughed fully then, and Danek found himself smiling as he kissed her. After a while, she put her hand on his chest.

"You don't get out of it that easily, boy-o. I want to know." He nodded and sat up to throw some more wood on the fire. "And no more kissing, either, because you're too distracting." Danek smiled and leant back down to her, grabbing her head and kissing her passionately. Alyssa's arms snaked around his shoulders and neck and pulled him down to her.

Alyssa moaned softly as Danek tenderly kissed at her, tasting the succulence of her lips and savouring the taste of her mouth. Alyssa smiled as she moved her head back out of the way. "Oh, you're evil, Dan. So evil." Danek breathed a laugh against the side of her face as she arched up against him and shivered as his breath tickled her ear, and a sudden flush went up her cheeks.

"Sorry, Lyss, I thought that that was reverse psychology. Back to the original original though, the song's called One Thing, by a band called Finger Eleven." She nodded against his head, feeling the slight scratch of his growing beard against her soft cheek.

"Uh-huh." Her eyes widened as she mock-glared at him and then kissed his neck again as they nestled down into the beanbag, Alyssa curled into the crook of his body as he pulled her up towards him. His fingers eased the buttons apart on his shirt, then his hands spread across her skin and felt her pulse quickening beneath her tanned marble smoothness.

She was curled slightly into the beanbag, and Danek eased his boxers down a little bit as Alyssa pushed his tracksuit pants down over his bum. She gave a little grin and slapped him lightly on one cheek, and her eyes were alight with laughter as he pinched her lightly back on her hip. Danek reached down and pulled himself out of his tracksuit, then leant forwards and slipped his fingertips into Alyssa's wet heat.

She moaned softly, biting her lip as he began to rub her entrance, dragging his fingertips over her lips and clit then moving them back down again. Alyssa's eyes drifted slowly closed until his hand stopped. Danek pushed forwards slowly, using his hand to guide his cock up into her slowly. Alyssa's eyes fluttered open and closed, her mouth curving up into a smile.

It was much slower this time than their previous encounter. Alyssa lay curled up on the beanbag as Danek moved inside of her. Her hands rested around his neck, moving only to his shoulders and feeling his pulse. There was something languid and wonderful about it, and even Danek found himself smiling in wonder.

There was no urgency to it, just both of them taking pleasure in the others movements. Danek couldn't stop the grin across his face as he leant down to kiss Alyssa, slowing down and stopping as he got caught up in the kiss. Alyssa's hands spread and moved around to hold his back, holding him down against her as they kissed. Her eyes were closed, and a small smile of wonder was on her face.

Danek began to move inside her again, feeling her soft heat clenching onto him as his hips began to speed up. It felt so strange, to not have that animal hunger holding them, but his speed increased as he felt the sensations intensifying around his cock. Alyssa's scent in his nostrils and the sheer pleasure on her perfect features were enough to drive him over the edge.

He came with a moaned gasp, his breath heavy as he tried to keep moving inside of her, until she followed him. Her thighs slid up and around him as he moved into her further, moving his hips against her and feeling her breath beat against his shoulders and cheek.

Her arms moved around his neck and she opened her mouth and gave a low moan as she shuddered against him and they both sagged back into the beanbag. Neither of them moved until Danek arched back and looked at her perfect face. Alyssa quirked an eyebrow at him as she opened one eye, her smile wide. "You're evil."

"I know." They lay in silence for a long time, listening to one another other breathe. The fire popped and Alyssa dreamily rolled back into Danek's arm. She traced designs on his chest with her fingernail, and Danek stared at her as she slowly eased her head up and propped herself up on his chest, setting her chin into her fist.

"I'm from Johanessburg. My grandparents raised my sister and I. My mother and father were killed when a storm brought a tree down across our house, destroying their bedroom. You think that something like that would kill you, almost, emotionally I mean. My sister and I had each other, and we had our grandparents, so that was enough."

"You deal with it, at school. The other kids didn't know really want to have much to do with you, because that means that you're associated with the freaks with no parents. So neither of us were distracted by friends during school. We paid attention, and left school educated. I went into business straight away, buying my grandfather's company with my inheritance. Two years later, I bought my first house."

"My middle name is Anthony. I've never been married. I was in the navy for two years. I don't have any pets, and I've got enough money that I don't have to worry about the bills, at least for the moment. I own three restaurants and six bars. I make sure I know how to do each and every job in my restaurants, because that means that I'm capable of understanding it."

"And you're sleeping with me." Danek smiled at that and shrugged in her arms. "So what else?"

"I like dogs, not cats. Favourite Take-out is Chinese. Favourite colour is Blue. Favourite holiday destination is Australia. Anything else? You've about info'd me all out, I'm afraid." Alyssa shrugged and smiled at him again as she settled into his arms.

"Just one. How'd you come to end up here?" Danek leant back slowly, running his fingers idly through her curls.

"I was content in Johannesburg. I was well off, if not rich. My sister had two beautiful baby girls and a husband I considered a good friend. They went holidaying in London. There was a car wreck, and they were... They passed on." Alyssa's face caved, and she looked down at his chest, then lowered herself further, pressing herself across his chest in a hug.

"I'm sorry."

"You could not have known. I came here to mourn my family's passing, and have not left. I have come to terms with them being gone. I just miss them, now. I spend my time trying to relax and forget, when only you can come to terms. And that is my story. You know everything about me that there is to know."

Alyssa sniffed and kissed his skin as she slid up further towards his face. She cradled his head in both hands and kissed him tenderly, then laid her head on his chest and stayed there.

"My middle name is Jayne. I was born in December, in Brooklyn New York. My brother's name is Cory. He was born in '82. We've both wanted to act since we could toddle. When I got the part on Who's The Boss, we moved out to Hollywood. LA was scary at first. It's a machine, here, a monster that eats young people and old people alike alive."

"I've got four dogs; Ripley, Stella, Hugo and Lucy. I've got a menagerie of horses and birds. I'm dyslexic. The best memory I have is when I worked with Sir John Gielgud, who told me how to handle it as an actor. I just write down my lines, and it helps so much. I can understand them so much easier when I've written them."

A small smile crept on her face as Danek traced his finger down the side of her cheek and then ran his fingertips over her lips. "Dodgers rule. Baseball is my favourite sport. I've been married once, divorced once, and have more ink than a bible."

"On my right wrist, my seventh and newest one, is an ouroboros—a snake biting its tail. It's a symbol of rebirth. I got it after my divorce and after spending some time in South Africa. On my left wrist is the Buddhist symbol of Om. It reminds me of my ex-husband. The rosary beads on my back are part of my rosary collection. Growing up Catholic, it's a symbol of that part of my life."

"I have an angel on one ankle and a vine of flowers on the other because angels and flowers are cool. I have a fairy on my hip as a token of my youth. That was my first one. It was a Peter Pan, eternal-child thing. And I have a sacred heart on my lower back, a symbol of passion and commitment to life. Every time I get a tattoo, my parents say they'll disown me. I had to get them airbrushed for Charmed. Witches don't have tattoos, I guess."

Danek frowned and gave a low laugh. "You've been to South Africa?" She nodded.

"I went there as part of becoming a National Ambassador for UNICEF. I thought that perhaps I owed something to the people who couldn't do it themselves. Now I know it's just because it was the right thing to do. You know, I never knew how much Americans were hated outside of our own country. Now I do. It's hard, when there's this part of your mind that wants these people to know who you are, that you're trying to help."

"My country has many things about which I am ashamed," Danek said lowly. "It is a simple thing to calculate how much you could change the world with how much money. Getting the money is a different thing all together. I live in luxury here, because giving away all my possessions to those people you so rightly wish to save would only end in more death."

"It all means nothing while there remains the dark truth of opportunity. Money's intentions do not change it from still being money, and all the money in the world cannot change the black of a politician's soul." Alyssa sighed and shook her head, her eyes searching for and finding his.

"No. I don't believe that, and neither should you. We're doing good. We can change the circumstances that these poor people live in. We can. We have to believe that." Danek nodded slowly, more to placate her than agree. Alyssa knew what he was doing, but didn't press him. She had seen first-hand the poverty, he had seen it's cause.

Alyssa's watch beeped, and her phone rang somewhere. She rolled her eyes and leant up on top of his chest. "Change of subject. What are you doing tonight?" She began searching for her clothes and Danek smiled.

"Nothing important. Have dinner with me." Alyssa grinned as she pulled a jumper from his wardrobe and slipped it over her dress. She looked around and grabbed her discarded panties and slid them on with a wriggle.

"Yours or mine?" Danek sat up and began to gather up her things.

"Why don't we go out?" Alyssa stopped as her phone began to ring again, and stared at him.

"But uh, what about Rose, I mean, if you were secretive with her..." Danek stepped up inside her arms and picked her up easily. He kissed her soundly, lowering her slowly down to the floor again. Alyssa sighed as he let her go, and her eyes flared up with suppressed laughter. "Told you you were evil. So?"

"I am no exhibitionist. But I do not enjoy hiding my feelings. A restaurant. Your choice." She grinned, her features soft as she stretched up on tiptoes to kiss him again.

********

"And in other E! news tonight, former Charmed star Alyssa Milano defies critics who said that there's no life after television for her. She's got a new movie coming out called The Blue Hour. E! news caught up with her and asked her about THAT fight at the big Charmed party a couple months back."

"Although details are hush-hush-sketchy, sources say that the lovely Alyssa and former co-star Rose McGowan engaged in something of a spat over the bartender. Must have been too much tini in the libations. Over to you, Jules."