Elena's P.O.V.

"I love you, and I won't let you hurt me Damon."

I watched over Damon as he lay semi-conscious in his bed. Stefan had been gone for a few days now, he lost it after I told him I wanted Damon and that I new he wanted Katherine. But Damon's werewolf bite had been steadily getting worse and he was starting to slip in and out of his memories in a blood frenzy like Rose had. Tears rolled down my cheeks as he muttered my name in his sleep, and I wondered how much longer he would last if Bonnie and Jer couldn't find the cure. How long, I though, how long had I been torturing him, using his feelings for me against him while pretending I had none in return. The truth was always just under the surface...I Elena Gilbert was in love with Damon Salvatore. The sweet, caring Damon that only I seemed to see.

Damon stirred in his sleep. His face was waxy and beads of sweat covered his brow. I hopped off the bed and went to get a damp towel to cool his fever. As I returned and began to wipe his forehead his hand sped up to grab my wrist and stopped me. Damon opened his eyes slightly, tears rolled down my face as the eyes that used to be so bright looked up at me cloudy and bloodshot. I could see from the look in his eyes that he needed blood, but I couldn't stand to leave him alone lately. Not since I let myself be in love with him. His eyelids fluttered closed.

"Oh, Damon, please be alright. You have to be alright. I need you!" I whispered the words and I bent to kiss his lips before walking across the room to find something, anything sharp. It didn't take long, before I found a letter opener that would suffice. As I walked back over to the bed I winced as I dug the point of the letter opener into my palm and cut across until there was a small pool of blood. I sat Damon up and held my now cupped hand to his mouth. Damon moaned lightly in his sleep as my warm blood filled his mouth, his hands reached up to take mine in his own and he continued to drink. He caressed my arm and he drank, it was much more sensual than any of the times I had shared my blood with Stefan. I blushed as I noticed that even in his delirious state Damon must have thought so too, as he was erect.

Suddenly Damon's eyes shot open, they were still clouded but were filled with hunger. For my body or my blood I didn't know. His breath came faster, and he growled deep within his chest. "Elena, you have to leave, I couldn't stand to hurt you, and I don't have much control left."

"I love you, and I won't let you hurt me Damon." I whispered.

"You don't understand" Damon spat out, "I could kill you."

"But you won't." I replied, as I leaned into him.

Damon pushed me at vampire-speed up against the wall on the opposite side of the room.

I sucked in a deep breath and looked him straight in the eyes.

"I love you Damon." I barely breathed the words before he was kissing me.

It was the most passionate kiss I'd ever experienced.

Damon stripped my shirt from me and the feel of his heated flesh against mine sent shivers up my spine. The shivers turned to heat as he pressed feather-light kisses down my neck and along my shoulder blades. Bolts of pleasure ran through me as he lightly nipped at my shoulder. At the sound of my hitched breath Damon tore the remaining barriers between us away. He looked into my eyes one last time, as if making sure I wanted this. All I could do is nod before he had thrusted into me. The tingles that sent shocks throughout my body increased as Damon lightly bit through the skin on my neck and sucked, I was delirious when I finally climaxed, from both pleasure and blood loss. I clung to Damon as we slumped to the floor. Right before darkness took over; I whispered I love you to Damon as he carried me in his arms back to his bed. And that's all I remember.

Damon's P.O.V.

When I came to Bonnie had got was standing over me waiting to see if the cure had worked. My mind swam, and at first I thought I had only dreamed that I had been with Elena until I saw her lying unmoving next to me. I panicked seeing her like that but Bonnie stopped me from doing anything rash using her powers. She explained Elena had been unconscious from blood loss and her body was recovering. Now it's been 3 days since I had slept with Elena, 2 since Bonnie had found the cure and brought it back to me, with the help of Katherine of all people, and I was waiting, quite impatiently for Elena to get better, Bonnie finally allowed me to give her some of my blood to help heal her. But I was still nervous that it was taking so long for her to wake. I could still taste her blood on my tongue and it was driving me insane. Why had she stayed? Why had she let me when I gave her the chance to leave...? Did she really mean it when she had said she loved me?...Questions were swimming through my head. I heard a movement upstairs and sped to see what it was. Elena was stirring. I walked over to her and softly rolled her over to face me. "Elena? Can you hear me?"

He voice was croaky and muffled when she answered yet I heard her clearly, "Damon? Is that you? What happened?"

Relief flooded through me and guilt kicked in, I'm so sorry Elena! I should have stopped myself; I shouldn't have taken any..."

She cut me off "Damon, shhh, Damon what's wrong?"

"I...I took too much of your blood, you've been unconscious for 3 days..." I told her

Her eyes widened, "Damon, I offered you my blood; I remember that much...but you're better? How?"

"Bonnie found the cure, with some help from Katherine before she took off." I explained

She looked confused. "Katherine?"

"I guess she had a little bit of humanity left in her." I joked, "But seriously Elena, I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you."

"Damon, I love you. I know you'd never hurt me on purpose just as you know it's always me that puts myself in these positions. I can't stand to see the people I love suffer."

Now it was my turn to look surprised, she'd said it again, and this time I know I wasn't imagining it.

"You love me?" I questioned

She blushed, forgetting what she had let slip. "Yeah...I do." She mumbled

"But Stefan..."

"Stefan and I broke up while you were suffering from the werewolf bite, I told him that somewhere along the line I fell for you, and that you dying made me realise I couldn't live without you..." She explained, "It wasn't long after that he took off, nobody has seen his since."

"Oh..." was all I could manage.

"Damon?" She asked

"Yeah" I replied

"I want to be with you...not Stefan...It will always be you Damon"

My dead heart thudded as she replayed Katherine's words...but it wasn't Stefan this time, this time it was me that would get what I wanted, what I had been waiting for unknowingly my whole life...

"I love you Elena, you're what I've always wanted and if you don't mind I'd like to spend however long I have left of my life trying to make you happy...will you let me?"

Elena's P.O.V.

My heart was racing...I'm sure he could hear it but he didn't say anything. He'd just asked me for a commitment and unlike with Stefan I felt almost ready to take it. Damon and I had always been right for each other, both of us were just too stubborn to let the other one completely in, and it took me almost losing him to make me see that we belonged together. I smiled nervously at Damon..He was waiting for my answer

"Damon...You don't have to try to make me happy, you do without trying. You always have. You always understood me."

The look on his face tells me I just made his day. So I lean in and go to kiss his cheek when he captures my face and gently leans in to kiss my mouth.

I sigh contentedly, as he pulls me into his arms. But the moment is ruined by the sound of my stomach grumbling. Apparently, not being able to eat for three days makes you hungry. We both laugh at the sound.

"Let's go feed the beast." Damon jokes as he pulls me out of bed.

"Hey, that's mean," I mock hurt by his words, but he grabs me by the waist and makes me giggle.

"Let's go out somewhere, we'll have lunch okay" he says

"As long as I'm with you I don't care where we go." I tell him

He smiles at me, in that way that makes me want to kiss him, before he grabs my hand and we walk out together.