Title: Complications
Author: Alysia
Rating: There will be smut towards the end of the story. You have been warned.
Category: Post Episode set after 'American Gothic.'
Summary: Elena, still without her humanity, has a conversation with Elijah that changes the course of her life.
AN: So, this will ignore everything that happened after season 4. And while I may mention characters from TO, they will have no presence in my story.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters familiar to TVD.

Marching up to the Original before her, Elena Gilbert offered him her most severe evil glare. "I have a bone to pick with you."

Perhaps if he was not who he was, the glare would have caused the desired (to her) reaction. However, one did not manage to survive a millennia without defeating opponents; ones whom had been much more terrifying than the slip of a girl before him. "Elena," he greeted jovially. "What can I do for you?" Coming face to face with her for the first time since her transition, he'd been shocked by the lack of her humanity. He'd made a half-hearted attempt to appeal to the woman he'd grown to admire from afar, which did little to affect her. He knew that unless he went out of his way to force it back, they would be stuck with the version before him.

She replied with a thin smile. "I'm more focused on what you didn't do for me."

He raised his eyebrows in question but remained silent.

"You left me," she accused.

He frowned in response. "I apologize," he replied with false sincerity. "I must have missed the defining moment that determined your belief that I somehow have the same affection for you that your Salvatore brothers do."

She nearly sputtered in indignation. "Katherine snapped my neck and you left me there as though I was some…stranger!" How could he have done that to her when minutes previous to that, he'd been reciting the note he'd written for her when he left Mystic Falls.

"Again, allow me to apologize for making it look as though I cared about you." He hadn't been so firm with her since the first few weeks following their introduction, but he found himself slipping easily into it.

"Hmmm," she replied, a small smirk kissed her lips. "Don't you?" She asked. "Haven't you always?" Elena took a step closer to him. "Always and forever. Isn't that what you said? Pretty defining words to casually toss around, don't you think?"

Silently, he acknowledged the truth of her words. He hadn't exactly been cavalier about his feelings about the girl before him, but he thought that he'd hidden them somewhat better. Or maybe she'd just chosen to ignore him since she already had two guys vying for her? "And yet, you constantly throw any extended offers back in my face," he reminded her casually. "As for the other day, what would you have had me do? Parade around town, carrying a dead woman in my arms?" Because that wouldn't have attracted any unwanted attention…

"You left me with her!" She cried indignantly, unwilling to move on then. "She could have permanently killed me."

Katherine may have snapped her neck, but Elijah knew that she would never have gone that far. Despite everything that Katherine was, she wouldn't have done that. "And you really care about that?"

Her eyes widened over his response. He almost seemed genuinely confused over her reaction. "Duh!"

He replied with a calculating gaze, "I thought your emotions were off? Shouldn't that include fear?"

"That doesn't mean I'm ready to die," Elena supplied. Seeing as he had no care for her plight against Katherine, she moved on. "And to top it off, I had to deal with Stefan and Damon's lectures," she sneered. Technically, they would have been guilt trips…if she cared about what they had to say.

"You killed my brother," he replied in a firm voice. "Again, why should I have been concerned for your wellbeing?"

"Technically, Jeremy killed him."

"And technically, you played a large role in not only Kol's death, but Finn's as well." He'd heard all about it from his sister. Once upon a time, he'd defend Elena, hell…he hadn't believed it when he first heard it. But that time had long since passed. The young woman she once was, was no more; and that had nothing to do with the shell of the woman before him. Lack of humanity aside, he knew that the woman he once cared for was long gone.

"And I lost my own," she hissed back. "Don't you dare stand there and act as if your brothers were innocent." Perhaps if her emotions were 'on,' she'd feel remorse…at least for Finn's demise; but not for Kol. "Kol compelled Damon to kill my brother. Of course I wasn't going to just sit back and do nothing." Her life was hell during that time. It wasn't enough that her brother bore the mark of a hunter, and had the desire to kill her…or that she was afraid to let her guard down around him because she didn't know if she could resist the temptation of his blood. No, Kol had to add to that. "It was no less that what you would have done for your family if threatened." They'd united against their own brother when Finn sided with Esther against them; and they'd do the same against anyone else deemed a threat.

"That's a lie, Elena, and you know it!" If there was one thing he hated more than disrespectful vampires that didn't know their places, it was liars. "It was all about completing the mark and finding the cure."

She instantly shook her head. "No. It was about my brother and the pain in the ass reactions he had because of the mark. It was never about the cure…at least not for me," she finished in a soft voice, informing him of her intentions.

The tone of her voice pulled at his attention. She had no reason to lie to him, not in this state. However, he found himself unable to give her the benefit of the doubt. She'd been deceived by that face in the past; he'd been deceived by her. "Weren't you against becoming a vampire? Didn't you struggle when you were first turned?" It sounded like the perfect motive for wanting the cure.

"No, I didn't want to become a vampire," she admitted. Elijah knew that. He'd attempted to help save her on multiple occasions. "But we can't change the past, can we?"

"That's a very blasé attitude," he observed.

"My friends wanted the cure for me," Elena continued on. "Damon and Stefan wanted the cure for me. Stefan couldn't stand the fact that his little toy was broken," her voice took on a bitter tone as she thought back to that afternoon at school. "He hated the fact that I could survive without him. And Damon," she added with a weary sigh, "well, dear old 'daddy' couldn't stand the disgrace I'd become."

If her words weren't so serious in nature, he was sure he would have found humor in them. "I'm sorry, did you just call Damon your daddy?" Huh…that brought about a new twist in the bedroom… He nearly blanched over the revelation.

"Yup," she answered. "He is my sire."

How had he not known that little tidbit? More importantly, how had that happened?

She continued, unaware of his thoughts. "And he was very unhappy with the way I turned out. I couldn't keep blood down." Really, what sort of vampire had trouble keeping down the blood they ingested?

He was growing concerned by the facts she was divulging. Damon was her sire? Elena, whom had always take so well to the vampires in her life, struggled as one? Why hadn't she been able to hold down blood? It didn't make sense. In all the years that he'd wandered Earth, he'd never come across such a thing. Damon should have been able to use the sire bond and help her. "And your sire couldn't use your bond to make it so?"

"Who do you think was responsible for the inability in the first place?" It had taken a while, but they'd finally determined it. "But now that I'm free of my emotions, I'm free of that bond as well. I rather enjoy the taste of blood and for the first time I'm finally able to explore the different ways of tasting it without worrying if it would be tossed back up."

He studied her form. His eyes, attempting to read more through her body language. He had to admit, vampirism suited her. She encompassed a beauty about her that, despite the sexual prowess Katherine naturally possessed, her predecessor didn't own.

"So far, I've discovered that lust and blood make a very tasty combination."

So she'd fed during sex? He couldn't say he was surprised. Most vampires tried the two at an early stage. However, he was still finding it difficult that Elena was saying such things.

She easily discerned the ticking in his cheek. Knowing that her words were getting to him, she continued on. "Next, I want to find someone to share my meal with. Stefan and Damon are obviously out of the running on that," she finished with a patented sigh. "I imagine it's a rather erotic experience."

"It…can be," he admitted after a pause.

Elena perked up over hearing his words. She knew he wasn't as proper as he tried to exude all the time. "What about it, Elijah?" She asked, her voice took on a suggestive tone. "Want to be my first?"

He froze, not expecting the invitation. And then before he could help himself, various thoughts flashed through his mind. He envisioned the two of them, wrapped up in one another as they fed from a faceless human before he took her to bed and claimed her with a vengeance. He quickly shook them away, returning to the present. "And have to deal with the fall out when your emotions return?" He asked, not willing to betray the tempting thoughts that'd assaulted his mind. "No, thank you."

She made a show of pouting. "I knew you wouldn't take me up on it," Elena moved around him. "Oh well, I guess I can shelve it for another time."

Elijah spun around to face her. "No," he denied matter-of-factly. "You won't. Because after today, you'll never desire that."

"Excuse me?"

"Your emotions, Elena," Elijah spoke. "You're going to turn them on."

"Oh, no, I won't," she argued easily. Had he not listened to a thing she'd said?

"You will because you won't have a choice." He was stronger than her. He always would be. "I'm going to compel you to turn them on."

She shook her head and backed away from him. "No. Please, Elijah. You can't do that to me. For the first time in what feels like forever, I'm free." From the day that Stefan saved her life, she'd felt like she belonged to something else. She'd lost herself somewhere through the years that'd passed, but no longer. "You can't take that from me."

"I can, and I will." If he didn't do it, who would? So far her Salvatore brothers had done a bang up job taking care of her the way they should have. They'd never been able to protect her, if she had been his… He mentally shook the thoughts away. She wasn't his, and he doubted she ever would be.

Her mind grasped for a solution that would benefit the both of them. "No, I'll…I know you're leaving town. I can go with you." When he didn't say anything, she felt encouraged to continue on. "Leave me like this, and I'll do anything you want." She knew she made a lousy Katherine. Damon hadn't said anything of the sort, but she knew it was always in his thoughts. And maybe she would make a mediocre version to Elijah. She said as much to him. "But maybe you could close your eyes?" She suggested.

Had those words actually passed her lips? Who was this? Where was the Elena that he'd tried to protect? That version of Elena would never have belittled herself in such a way. "It's very sweet that you're willing to whore yourself to me, but if I wanted Katherine, I'd go to Katherine," he said with as much false sincerity as he was capable of. He was more convinced than ever that forcing back her humanity was the only option. One day, she would appreciate it.

"No you won't, not after hearing about what she did to me," she observed wisely. He was not stupid, not by any means. But he was very much a man, a man that could be led by his penis. He may have diluted himself into believing that Katherine had changed in the time that they'd been apart, but he knew better now. And he wouldn't give up his belief in principles for her.

"Perhaps," he allowed, "but this farce has gone on long enough. Don't you think?" Elijah asked. "You aren't this person, Elena."

"You think you know me?" She didn't even know who she was, how was he supposed to know who she was?

"Oh, but I do." He'd had her pegged since their second meeting. And she was someone that he'd come to admire. "You put your friends before yourself, you are loyal to them to a fault; often times rushing into stupid decisions for them or because of them. And while I've often found it tiresome, it is an admirable trait."

"And where did that get me?" She asked then. "The two people that I thought I could count on, abandoned me. My parents and brother are dead…" Elena shook her head. "I was a slave to my life, and now I'm not."

"You were a slave because you allowed yourself to be," Elijah denied. "Bad things happen to people all of the time, they are forced deal with it…and so should you." He up to her and grasped her upper arms in his hand.

Immediately, she began to struggle in his hold. "Let go of me!"

It took but a moment for their eyes to lock, and the second they did; Elijah made his move. "You will desist from moving, Elena." He watched as her pupils dilated slightly as she began to fall under his compulsion. Even under his thrall, he detected the panic in her body.

"Please, don't do this, I beg you," she whispered, though her fighting ceased.

"I'm sorry, Elena," the older vampire apologized in a gentle tone. Despite everything they'd done to one another, he truly didn't wish harm against her. However, if her grief over Jeremy's death was great enough to warrant the decision to turn her emotions off; he was about to inflict an immeasurable amount of pain. "Turn your emotions back on," he commanded in a solid voice. His grip on her remained resilient and for the briefest moment, he worried that it didn't work.

At once, her emotions crashed down over her. Grief, just as intense as the night Jeremy died, wrapped around her heart and squeezed unrelentingly. Memories of the days she'd remained emotionless taunted her and she was forced to think on the deaths she'd caused.

He observed her with bated breath as the first tear traveled down the length of her cheek, and then another, and then another. He watched as she gave into the anguish that plagued her. Her body went slack and he found that his own followed her down as she fell to the ground. He wasn't sure what possessed him to console her, but leaving her was the farthest thought from his mind.

"I must be the worst sister in the world," Elena muttered, kneeling at the grave before her. "I know I should have visited you sooner, but I couldn't handle it. The thought that I'm able to possibly walk the Earth forever while you lay cold beneath my feet…I still struggle," she sighed. Setting the bouquet of flowers down at the headstone, she began to wipe the top of it. "I've found that the pain never goes away, the sting lessens, but it's always there."

"You know," someone said interrupting her solitude, "I didn't believe it when I heard it."

Closing her eyes, she attempted to rein in her emotions. "Damon," she greeted with a distant politeness, as she turned around to face her sire. She hadn't returned to Mystic Falls in three years.

He hesitated, as if trying to decide what he wanted to say. "Where have you been? We searched for you…I searched for you," he grilled, approaching her in quick steps. How had she managed to disappear for as long as she had?

"I needed to get away. I couldn't come back after Willoughby."

He shook his head. "Jesus, Elena, it's like you dropped off the face of the earth. How did you manage that?"

"Elijah," she answered.

He snorted. "Don't tell me that you've been in New Orleans all this time." She wouldn't have left them for Elijah and Klaus. There was no way… They would have known, wouldn't they?

"Of course I haven't," she replied easily. If that had been the case, they would have dragged her back to Mystic Falls kicking and screaming. "But I haven't been far from it," Elena admitted after a beat.

"And I see that your emotions are back on…"

"How very astute of you, Mr. Salvatore."

Elena watched Damon stiffen in response to Elijah's voice before sneering at the Original. It appeared that no matter how much time passed, he was still holding on to the past. "I didn't expect to see you here," she voice softly as an arm wrapped around her waist.

"I had planned on giving you time to yourself to grieve, but I knew how difficult this would be for you," he replied in a soft voice. Realistically, he knew that Damon could easily hear their conversation, but he'd at least attempt to keep it personal. "Damon," he greeted in a calm voice.

She rested an arm over the one that he had secured around her waist, thankful for his forethought.

Damon's jaw ticked, his hackles immediately rising in the presence of the man before him. However, it was his actions with Elena that truly irked him. "Don't tell me that the two of you are together now."

"You say that as if you don't like the idea," Elijah replied, avoiding the question completely.

"Elena, tell me you aren't stupid enough to get involved with him," Damon said, focusing his attention on her. "You do realize that he's fucked two women that wear the exact same face as you."

"I like how you conveniently forget that you had a past with Katherine," she shot back, not liking his attitude. Breaking away from the Original, she marched closer to him. "For your information, no, we aren't together. Nor have we ever been. That being said, if that should change in the future, please tell me how that is any of your business."

"After everything that his family has done to you…"

"I know what they've done, Damon. Just as he's aware of what I've done in retaliation." She had no secrets from Elijah, nor he from her. And for Damon to think that he had the ability to come between that...

"Are you ready to leave, Elena?" Elijah asked, not giving Damon a chance to speak.

She nodded once. There would be no peace for her now that Damon knew of her presence. It would only be a matter of time before the others knew about not only her arrival, but her traveling companion. "I am."

"So, it's like that, is it?" Damon demanded. "You're going to slink off into the shadows again? Run back to wherever the hell it is you've been?"

"Pretty much," she admitted frankly. "I didn't come back to see you, Damon. And if I had any idea that you were going to approach me here, I probably wouldn't have come." She wasn't running from her past, she'd found peace in reconciling with it; but she wasn't deluded enough to return to it. She would never place herself that situation again. The perpetual pushing and pulling, the constant fights…never again.

"So, you've taken to hiding under his curtails?" Damon snorted. "That must be the result of being a kept woman."

Her body grew taught with anger. "How dare you."

"That is what he's done, isn't it? He provides for you, set you up in a location that only he knows about." Damon was sure of it, because if Klaus or Rebekah had known about Elena's presence being so close to them, they would have heard by then. "He keeps you completely separate from his family and friends, turning to you when it's convenient for him."

"How I live my life is no concern of yours," she denied hotly, angry over his insinuations. She wouldn't dare lower herself to argue with him or correct his assumptions.

"It's probably a good thing you're leaving then. Something tells me I would despise the person you've become."

Hearing the knock on the door to her lavish hotel room, Elena sighed, removing herself from the bed and its occupant. With one last look at the woman perched on the bed, she moved to the front of the suite. Dressed in only a scantily clad night dress and a silk robe, she opened the door for her guest.

Standing at the door, still dressed in his suit, Elijah was pleasantly surprised by the sight before him. He quirked an eyebrow, but said nothing as he swept past her into the room. "Entertaining?" He asked, sensing the additional heartbeat. He'd also detected the faint scent of arousal, though he didn't comment on it.

Elena shrugged. "I was hungry." As soon as they'd departed from the cemetery in Mystic Falls, they'd left Mystic Falls altogether. It was only when they reached the next town that Elijah finally stopped. During the hour that it took for their drive, neither had spoken a word. As soon as they'd arrived, they'd checked in to their rooms, suites really, and Elena departed from him. She made her way to a nearby dance club for some dancing and late night snack, taking her dance partner with her.

His eyes moved to the bedroom and he took notice of a pair of very shapely, very feminine legs. Once again, he quirked an eyebrow.

"Don't look at me like that, Elijah," she ordered softly. "I am not doing anything wrong, and she'll enjoy this as much as me." She hadn't taken a life since her time in Willoughby. However, it was not uncommon for her to use lust as she fed from her partners, she found that it added a little something extra.

"I didn't say a word," he denied, and he hadn't. He was simply more amused over her choice of partner. While it was true that he'd been the one to set her up in her new life, he didn't spend much time with her. And though they contacted one another through letters and phone, it didn't afford him much of a chance to see how she lived day to day. "I never would have taken you to choose a woman over a man, that's all."

"I wasn't feeling particularly friendly towards men tonight." She didn't discriminate against one sex or another. However, she found women easier to deal with at times.

"Are you okay?" He asked, moving on from the subject.

She wrinkled her nose. "If I'm expected to bare my soul, I'll need some blood." The blood would help sooth her and it would make the conversation slightly easier to have. Without a backwards glance, she made her way to the bedroom, sashaying her hips along the way. She was very aware of Elijah, and she knew he was watching her. In the years that he'd known her as a vampire, he'd never seen her feed. He would watch her, if for nothing more than out of curiosity.

Elena claimed a seat next to the woman. "My name is Elena." Leaning over, she trailed a finger up the woman's arm and across her breast bone.

"I…I'm Jamie," the red head muttered, her eyes closing. "I should…probably tell you…I've never done this before. I've never been with a woman."

"Believe me, Jamie, I'm going to make you feel wonderful." With that last promise, she placed a kiss on the column of Jamie's neck. She nuzzled the sensitive skin, forcing the red head's head to the side.

"Who is that?" Jamie asked breathlessly.

Elena smiled against her neck. "That's my friend Elijah." As soon as she finished answering, she reattached her mouth onto her neck, kissing and nipping it.

"Att…attractive friend…" she muttered. "I'm Jamie. Elijah, would you like to be my friend too?"

Smirking, Elena renewed her attention. Using her free hand, she framed the back of Jamie's head, making sure to keep it in place. She didn't dare turn to Elijah's direction, afraid of what she'd see reflected in his gaze.

"I thank you for the offer, Jamie," he replied in a silky voice. "But I much prefer the show from here." Crossing his arms, he leaned against the door frame. He'd seen much in his long life and experienced much through trial and error. However, he didn't think he'd ever not appreciate the sight of two women finding pleasure together. The heady scent of Jamie's arousal permeated the space and he was easily able to detect Elena's slight scent as well. She was very appreciative of Jamie's reaction under her ministrations.

Paying special attention to Jamie's neck, Elena's left hand traveled underneath her blouse to the woman's breast. With the slightest touch she began rubbing the skin, kneading it. She knew she was slowly driving the woman insane with want, her fragrant arousal building with each well placed touch. It was so thick that she could almost taste it.

"Harder…"

Her fingers easily found Jamie's nipple and she squeezed it, twisting the peak enough to make Jamie cry out. She alternated between lightly petting the skin beneath her hand and flicking her nipple for added sensation. She continued to draw out her orgasm, bringing Jamie to the brink of one before lessening her ministrations.

"Oh God! More!" Her cries became louder and she began moaning and writhing.

No longer able to keep her hunger at bay, Elena opened her mouth once again as she twisted Jamie's nipple with ferocity. Her orgasm tore through her, and it was then that Elena began to drink. Swallowing in long pulls of blood, she continued to twist and squeeze her nipple.

When she sensed Jamie's orgasm coming to an end, Elena removed her mouth from her neck. With one last lick over the incision, she pulled back and watched Jamie come back to herself.

"Wow, that was…"

Elena locked eyes with her and started her compulsion. "Thank you, Jamie. I enjoyed my time with you, as you did with me. However, you're going to go home and chalk tonight up as nothing more than satisfying your curiosity." She walked the human to the front door of her suite, refusing to look at Elijah as she passed him. She opened the door for her, turning to Jamie.

"Thank you for tonight, Elena. I really enjoyed my time with you…but I don't think it's something that I'll ever do again," Jamie said before leaving.

Softly closing the door, Elena took a deep breath before turning around. She knew Elijah would be standing right behind her. She didn't need advanced hearing to know that, her body instantly reacted to the nearness of him. Jamie wasn't the first woman that she'd fed on; and while she often played with her female partners to induce an orgasm from them, she'd never been truly intimate with a woman. More often than not, she left those encounters with her body humming in arousal. Her body was ready for release, and she was intensely aware of Elijah.

As soon as she turned to him, he wasted no time in pushing her against the door. His hands immediately found the tie of her robe and he untied it, all the while never breaking eye contact with her.

"What are you doing?" She asked in a small voice. Elijah had never looked at her in such a way, it left her breathless and so incredibly aroused.

His gaze traveled to the small, satin night dress she wore. He fisted the bunch of material gathered at the cleavage of her dress and ripped it apart. "I'm going to fuck you." Stepping closer to her, he used his body to trap her against the door. With one arm braced against the wall, he used his other to unbuckle his pants and reach for his rapidly growing penis.

"This might complicate things," she whispered, as she spread her legs to accommodate him.

"What's life without a few complications?" He returned. He captured her lips, plunging his tongue in her mouth as he began to rub the tip of his penis against her nether lips. He'd known that she was aroused, but he didn't expect for her to be so wet. He groaned into her mouth, and it didn't take long for his cock to grow fully erect. He lead himself into her entrance.

Without warning, he surged up into her. She tore her mouth away from his and keened into the room.

With both hands anchored against the wall, he continued to thrust up into her willing heat. He felt a tingle down his spine, his orgasm was creeping to the surface and he wanted nothing more than to lose himself in her. Her silken walls felt so good, so hot, so tight around his shaft; but it wasn't enough. He wasn't deep enough. He wanted the head of his cock to hit her dead womb. He wanted her to scream in wild abandon.

Her mouth found his neck and she kissed her way up to his ear. Nibbling on his lobe she panted into his ear. "I love the feel of you inside me. So hard…so big…" He thrust particularly deep then and her words were lost into a mewling sound of pleasure.

Remaining connected to her, his hands moved to her thighs and he pulled them around his legs before settling them around her waist.

She groaned in slight pain as her shoulder blades fell roughly against the door, but she didn't dare make a peep of protest. His actions became swift and he began to piston in and out of her. The sound of his flesh slapping against hers caused a tingling in her belly. He continued to breathe deeply, but most remained quiet as he fucked her.

"Yes! I'm…'Lijah…I'm…right there!" He couldn't remember ever being hit so deeply before. She knew with absolute certainty that she would experience a pleasant ache between her legs the following morning. Yet despite his harsh thrusts, he still wasn't deep enough.

His cock curved against her pussy and he both felt her body change and heard her cries of pleasure increase. "That's it, Elena. I can feel you growing wetter by the second."

She could vaguely make out his words, but her mind and body focused only the sensations he was causing.

"I'm going to make you come so hard that your juices will leak down my balls…and then…I'm going to come so deep inside you…"

He couldn't even finish his words as Elena's orgasm tore through her. Her body grew taught as her walls began to flutter and then tighten around him. He felt her gush around him. Three thrusts later, he met her orgasm to orgasm. Bracing her waist, he pulled her onto him and thrust as deeply as he could, filling her with his dead seed.

Her shuddering subsided before his and as he continued to tremble against her, Elena wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed his temple.

He melted into her embrace. Wrapping his arms around her back, he kissed the crook of her neck and immersed himself in her scent. Never disconnecting his body from hers, he walked her to the bedroom and tenderly laid her against the bed.

His penis was still rock hard and she felt him thrust into her, ready to continue on. Giggling, she raised her legs and used her feet to push his pants and underwear down his legs. "Maybe this time we can do this sans your clothes?" She moved her hands to his necktie and loosened it before tossing it across the room. Leaning up, she captured his mouth as she set about unbuttoning his dress shirt.

He fell into the kiss, taking his time to enjoy it. Now that the pent-up frustration had been worked out, he had the opportunity to worship her body the way she deserved. Her hands wound around his bare back and he sloppily removed his jacket and dress shirt. Kissing his way down her neck and breast bone, he sucked a nipple into his mouth.

Time was lost to them as they lost themselves in one another.

"Are you ready?" Elijah asked as Elena cast one last glance around the suite.

Would it have been wrong for her to say 'no' and then propose they stay there longer? That morning when they woke up, her body was blissfully sore. In all honesty, because of the slight ache, she'd discovered muscles that didn't even know were there. There'd been no awkwardness between them, but neither had made mention of the events that had taken place.

"I guess," she shrugged, exhaling a long sigh.

"If you'd like, I can arrange to stay longer," he offered as if able to read her mind. "But you do realize that we can't stay here forever. We have lives to return to."

"I know," and she did. But that didn't mean she had to like it. "I know that you're needed back in New Orleans."

"But…" he continued, sensing that she had more to say.

"Where does that leave me?" And then a thought struck her.

Damon had been right, though the timing had been off. She was nothing more than Elijah's mistress! They'd crossed a line and they wouldn't be able to go back. And he'd return to New Orleans, to his family, to Klaus' little empire…to Hayley. And she'd go back to…no one. Elijah would live his life and continue whatever flirtation he had with Hayley and then once a month he'd visit Elena, and it would probably lead to great sex…and then he'd return to his life.

"Wherever you want it to," he replied after a moment of contemplation. "You can return to your life…or…"

She felt hope swell in her chest. "Or…" She supplied when he stopped talking.

"Or you could come with me to New Orleans…" It wasn't the first time he'd considered the thought, however, they hadn't been on such uneven ground when it had last crossed his mind. "It won't be easy," he warned. People wouldn't take too kindly to her appearance. There was a chance she could be used against him. "And my brother will probably have plenty to say, but I'll be there."

She didn't even need to think about it, all she'd needed was an invitation. "What was it you said last night? 'What's life without a few complications?' Did you mean it? Because my moving there, our being together will complicate a few things."

He nodded, pulling her closer to his body. "I meant it," Elijah murmured, capturing her lips.

She eagerly responded to him and murmured against his lips. "New Orleans, here I come…"

The End