Title: In My Veins

Author: ihearttvsnark

Chapters: 1/1

Fandom: The Vampire Diaries

Pairing: Rebekah Mikaelson and Damon Salvatore

Rating: R

Word Count: 6,177

Summary: Seven years after the Originals left Mystic Falls, Rebekah has a chance encounter with Damon that makes them both realize that some connections are impossible to ignore.

London, 2019

Rebekah was bored as she wandered through the bookstore, trying to find something new and interesting to read. It didn't help that the bookstore was one of those quaint, family owned places that had been passed down through generations. Most of their collections were dusty, first editions that tourists flocked to when they came to this section of London. She would probably be able to appreciate it if she hadn't read most of the classics when they had actually been released. That was the problem with being alive for over a thousand years. Old stuff continuously came back into fashion and she couldn't relish in how "new" it felt like everyone else could.

But she knew books weren't the real problem. Rebekah was bored with London. She was tired of the city, tired of the people and the food and the culture. She was actually tired of Europe. The whole continent seemed to be too old fashioned for her. Of course she didn't particularly like the modernism of Asia either and she definitely did not want to go back to either of the Americas.

Sighing, she moved into the next aisle and reached the section of the store that held the popular books, the ones that were constantly topping the best sellers' lists. Vampire books were all the rage again and she actually did like to read them just to see how wrong the authors got things. But then Nik would scoff at her and tell her that she was wasting her time when there was real literature just waiting to be read. Rebekah rolled her eyes and picked up a random book to read the back cover.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't my favorite sexy Original."

Her back stiffened and she dropped the book she was holding as she spun around to face Damon. He looked the same, obviously, right down to the leather jacket and cocky, knowing smirk that he was aiming in her direction as his blue eyes roamed over her. Rebekah simply raised an eyebrow, the bored expression on her face unchanging.

"Damon, I didn't know you could read."

He laughed. "That's hurtful, Blondie Beks. It's been what, five, six years?" Damon took a step closer to her. "Don't you have at least a small smile for me?" he asked.

"Seven years," Rebekah replied without giving him the smile he'd requested. It had been seven years since Nik had announced they were leaving town so he could run from the people who wanted to kill him and prove that he could live without his hybrids. She'd never regretted her decision to leave with him; she might have grown bored here and there, but she'd never once found herself missing Mystic Falls or any of the people in it. Those people had hated her and her family and she had no interest in catching up with any of them.

"Seven years," Damon repeated. He was still smirking as he shook his head at the realization that it had been that long. "Come on, it's just us," he reminded her. "You can tell me that you missed me a little bit."

"How's Stefan?" Rebekah asked. It was her turn to smirk when Damon's expression hardened for a moment. "Don't tell me the two of you are still hung up on your precious Elena," she said with more than a hint of disgust in her voice at the thought.

"Elena has moved on from both of us, but I'm sure you know that already." Damon raised an eyebrow. "Or maybe you don't," he said thoughtfully. "How fractured is the Mikaelson family these days?"

Her chest tightened at the verbal slap even though she knew she'd asked for it when she'd made the snide remark about Stefan. But Rebekah was not going to let him bait her. It was true that her family had had it rough over the years and lines had been drawn in the sand, but that was over now. Esther was gone and Rebekah and her brothers all had their own lives to live. "My family is stronger than ever, Damon," she told him matter-of-factly. "Give my regards to Stefan." Rebekah started to move around him and Damon reached out to grab her arm.

She had him pinned against the bookshelf in a matter of seconds, her arm across his chest, cutting off his air supply. Rebekah narrowed her eyes at him. "I told you once that it's never going to be a fair fight between us."

Damon held up his hands in surrender as he struggled to speak. "I wasn't trying to fight with you. I saw you through the window and came in to say hello. That's it," he insisted.

Rebekah wasn't sure she believed him, but she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt since there was nothing he could do to hurt her. She removed her hand, letting him slide down the bookshelf to his feet. She took a step back, crossing her arms over her chest as he placed his hands on his knees and took a second to pull himself together before he straightened up again. "Hello, Damon," she said.

He grinned. "Hello, Rebekah," Damon replied. "Was that so hard?" He brushed his hand over the front of his jacket to smooth it out and then met her gaze once more. "Now that we've gotten the pleasantries and the shoving me around out of the way, would you like to get some coffee and catch up?"

She didn't say anything for a moment as she tried to figure out what the catch was. Rebekah might always be in the body of a teenage girl, but she'd finally learned to get past the mindset of one. Damon had always had ulterior motives for being nice to her in the past. She didn't really see what his could be this time though and she was bored. "Fine," Rebekah agreed.

Ten minutes later, the two of them were sitting on opposite ends of a table in the outdoor café across the street from the bookstore. It was chilly outside and as always, it looked like it was going to rain at any moment, so there wasn't anyone else there except them. Rebekah took a sip of the coffee she had let him buy her and waited for him to pick up the conversation since he'd been the one who had seemed so eager to talk.

"You've changed," Damon commented. He sipped his own coffee as he watched her. "Has life on the run hardened you?" he asked.

Rebekah rolled her eyes at the mocking in his tone. "It's been years since we've been on the run and I'm not hard. I just see people for what they are now and I know you never had any real interest in me." She shrugged, brushing a piece of hair back from her face when the wind whipped it around. "What brings you to London?"

"Nothing specific," Damon replied. "I was in Greece for awhile and decided to get on a train and come here. I take it Klaus is here too," he said. She nodded, but didn't say anything, so Damon continued. "Stefan would be content to stay in Mystic Falls forever, but I got restless. You're looking a little restless too."

She shrugged again. "We've been here for awhile and I've been thinking about where to go next. It would never be Mystic Falls though. Or Boston, if that's what you're worried about," Rebekah added. She wouldn't be surprised if it was; if the whole reason Damon had decided to talk to her was to find out whether or not she still wanted to tear Elena's throat out.

Damon laughed. "You can relax," he said. "My days of protecting Elena are over. She's happy. Stefan's happy and I'm restless. Are you happy?" he asked.

The question surprised her, but not as much as it surprised her that she believed him when he said he wasn't worried about Elena. She knew bits and pieces of the story and how things had worked out between the brothers and their precious doppelganger, but she'd assumed Damon would be bitterer than he actually was. Or maybe he was just pretending that he was fine with it. She supposed it didn't really matter. "I'm happier than I was the last time you saw me," Rebekah replied.

His smile faded and he leaned forward, reaching across the table to place his hand over hers. "That doesn't really answer my question," Damon pointed out as he let his thumb brush over her wrist. "Are you happy, Rebekah?"

"What do you care, Damon?" Rebekah asked. She yanked her hand away, causing his to bang against the table. She didn't know what he was playing at and she didn't want to find out. "My life is not your concern. Thank you for the coffee." She left her cup on the table and got up, turning on her heel to walk away, but Damon sped into her path before she could.

"Do you know what you need?" Damon asked. His eyes locked with hers and he reached out, tucking the stray piece of hair behind her ear. "You need some excitement in your life. You need something reckless and dare I say sexy?" He flashed a smug grin.

She couldn't seem to bring herself to look away even though Rebekah knew she really should. She knew what he was suggesting and the smartest thing she could do, would be to tell him to go to hell and walk away. But she didn't. Maybe it was because she was bored or maybe she was curious or maybe it was that she remembered just how good it had been. Her reasoning really didn't matter because Rebekah knew she was not going to do the smart thing.

Damon felt himself stirring toward consciousness, but was far too comfortable to open his eyes yet. He shifted on the bed and reached out, only to feel nothing but cold sheets beneath his fingers. Rolling over onto his back, Damon opened his eyes just in time to see Rebekah pulling her shirt over her head. He watched as he lifted her long hair that had gotten tangled in the collar, letting it fall over her back before she smoothed her hand across the front of shirt.

"Were you going to leave a note?" he asked curiously as he shifted, placing one hand behind his head and letting the sheet fall to his waist. It wouldn't be the first time she'd snuck out on him while he'd been asleep or even the second. He'd lost track somewhere around the eighth.

"For what?" Rebekah countered, arching an eyebrow at him. She stepped into her heels and glanced around the hotel room, spotting her purse on the floor near the doorway and moved toward it.

"I don't know," Damon drawled as his eyes lingered on ass when she bent down to pick up her bag. "Maybe out of common courtesy or human decency?" he suggested.

Rebekah snorted as she turned back to face him. "There's nothing courteous or decent about you, Damon." She moved to the side of the bed, amusement on her face. "You act like you're offended, but you know how this works. We both got what we needed and now I'm leaving. I have to meet Nik," she said.

Damon hooked his arm around her waist before she could move away from the bed and pulled her down, her body sprawling across his and then he rolled over, pinning her beneath him. "It's been three months, Rebekah. When are you going to admit that there's something here?" he asked.

She blew her hair out of her face and looked at him for a moment before she easily reversed their positions, pushing Damon onto his back as she straddled his hips. "We've been over this," she reminded him. "The only thing between us is physical. That's it," she said firmly, irritation seeping into her voice.

He wasn't fazed by her reaction. She always shut him down when he tried to make her see what was happening. But Damon knew she was weakening even though she'd never admit it. "Come on, Beks," he said as he reached up and cupped her cheek. "If that was really the case, you would already be gone." Damon tugged her closer and covered her mouth with his. He lowered his head to her neck, trailing kisses there as he ran his fingers through her hair. "Stay," he urged.

Rebekah shook her head, but she still made no move to push him away. "What do you want from me, Damon?" she asked as she lifted his head from her neck so she could look into his eyes.

"I want you to come to Monte Carlo with me," Damon replied. His hand tightened in her hair as he held her gaze. "You, me, the French Riviera…" His voice trailed off and he could see that she was picturing it. "I know you're bored with London. You were bored when we ran into each other three months ago," he pointed out.

"You mean when you stalked me through the window," Rebekah corrected. She placed her hands against his bare chest, but she still didn't push him away. Instead, she drew random designs over his skin. "I can't leave Nik," she said.

"Klaus is a big boy," Damon replied. He knew she was just making excuses. "You still don't trust me, do you?" he asked, unable to keep the frustration out of his voice. "I've done everything you've asked me to Rebekah. What more do you want?" he asked.

"Nothing," Rebekah insisted. This time she did push him away and she was on her feet, moving from the bed in the blink of an eye. "This is not a relationship, Damon. This is two people who have physical needs that the other can take care of," she told him as she picked up her purse once again. "If that's not enough for you, I suggest you don't seek me out again. I need to go."

"This isn't over, Rebekah!" Damon shouted as she sped toward the door, slamming it behind her. He let out a loud curse and fell back against the pillows, not sure what it was going to take to get through her thick skull. Damon wasn't stupid; he knew why she didn't trust him and he couldn't blame her for that. But they were different people now and it was time for her to wake up and see just how good they could be together.

What he needed was a new plan. Lucky for him, he knew what made Rebekah tick, whether she wanted to admit it or not. Maybe the first few times they'd tumbled into bed together after their bookstore encounter had just been about sex and two people who were bored and restless. But things had changed and he wanted something more. Damon would bet everything he owned that she did too; she was just too scared to admit it. Sighing, he ran his hand over his face and tried to figure out what his next move was going to be.

Rebekah glanced down at her cell phone, scowling when she saw there were still no new messages. She was starting to think the bloody thing was broken. It had been almost three days since she'd left Damon at the hotel and he hadn't called or texted or anything. Usually, he bothered her incessantly; always asking when she was free and trying to convince her to meet him somewhere. She wondered if he had gone to France without her or if he'd found someone else to occupy his bed. She'd always known that would happen sooner or later.

The sound of a fork being tapped loudly against the side of a glass caught her attention. Rebekah looked up from her phone and saw her brother staring at her. "What?" she asked. "Do I have food in my hair or something?"

"That would require you to be eating and not just watching your phone," Klaus replied. "Whose call are you waiting for, Rebekah?"

"No one's," Rebekah said. She reached for her water glass, pointedly ignoring the look he was shooting her. She knew he wanted more of an explanation, but she wasn't going to give it to him. As far as she was concerned, Damon Salvatore was not worth her breath.

"You've been moping for days or biting my head off," Klaus pointed out. "Why don't you just tell me what's going on and I will fix it so we can all move on. What is the problem?" he asked impatiently.

"That would be me," Damon announced. He grinned at the shocked looks on both of their faces as he took the seat beside Rebekah and slid his arm over her shoulders. "Beks doesn't want to admit how much she misses me because then she'd have to admit that I matter to her."

"Damon," Klaus practically growled, his eyes narrowing as he stared the other vampire down across the table. "I suggest you take your hand off my sister before I come over there and do it for you."

"Klaus, it's a pleasure as always," Damon quipped before he shifted his gaze to Rebekah. "I take it you didn't tell big brother that we've been seeing each other for three months. That hurts," he told her.

"Three months?" Klaus repeated. He turned his gaze to his sister, who was shockingly quiet. "You've been dating Damon for three months and you didn't see a need to perhaps mention that, dear sister?"

"No," Rebekah said firmly, finally snapping out of her shock. She glared at Damon and pushed his hand away from her. "We are not dating. What are you doing here, Damon? I assumed you left for France."

"I'm not leaving without you," Damon replied. He gave her a cheerful smile and then turned his attention back to Klaus, who was still glaring at him. "Your sister is a wee bit stubborn and doesn't want to admit that she's crazy about me. But it's okay. I can be patient," he said.

Rebekah's mouth fell open as Klaus looked back and forth between the two of them, confused. "You drive me crazy Damon, because you're too pigheaded to see that there's nothing here. Go away," she hissed.

"You're lying to yourself and we both know it. Hell, I bet Klaus knows it too. Back me up," Damon told him.

"All I know is that if you don't leave my sister alone, I'm going to pull your heart out of your throat," Klaus replied matter-of-factly. "I recommend you get up and go back to whatever rock you crawled out from under so we can finish our lunch in peace."

"Stop it, Nik," Rebekah ordered. "I can handle this." She shifted in her seat to face Damon. "I don't want a relationship with you, Damon. I don't trust you and I don't really like you all that much either. Just leave me alone," she said.

Damon shook his head. "Sorry, but you don't get to call all the shots on this one. I can be as patient as you want me to be, Rebekah, but I'm not walking away from you or from us. If you want to play the game, I'll play the game. If it takes ten centuries to get through to you, I will wait." He leaned over and pressed a kiss to her lips and then he was up and out of his chair in a flash. "Klaus," he said before he sent one last pointed look at Rebekah and disappeared.

"What the hell was that?" Klaus demanded.

"It's just Damon being Damon," Rebekah muttered, even as her eyes drifted in the direction he'd gone. She couldn't believe he had said all of those things. It was one thing for him to try and convince her, but why would he say them in front of Nik? She didn't see what his angle was.

"He's right," Klaus realized as he watched his sister carefully. "I know you, Rebekah. You've been acting differently these past few months and you just kept saying it was because you're bored here. Damon Salvatore," he muttered, shaking his head. "There's no accounting for good taste."

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "Damon is not right about anything and none of this is your business, Nik." She wasn't in the mood for one of his lectures or his opinion on the matter. "He'll get bored eventually and go away. Let's finish eating so we can go home." She picked up her fork and stabbed at her salad with it.

Klaus shook his head, sending her a knowing look across the table. "That's not going to work on me. I know you too well. If he hurts you, I will make him suffer," he told her before he picked up his fork and turned his attention to his plate.

"He can't hurt me because he means nothing to me," Rebekah insisted. But once more her eyes drifted in the direction Damon had gone off in and she wondered if there was a small chance he could actually be telling the truth.

Damon ran his hands through Rebekah's hair, twirling the strands around his fingers as she rested against his chest. He knew she was awake, but she'd been unusually quiet that night. Of course the fact that she was still there was unusual too. Even after he'd interrupted her lunch with Klaus nearly two months earlier, Rebekah still acted like nothing was different between them. He considered just letting it go, but pretending was her thing, not his.

"What's going on in that beautiful head of yours?" Damon asked as he continued toying with her hair. "Do you want me to kiss it and make it better?" he teased, trying to coax her into talking to him.

Rebekah didn't say anything for a moment. Then she shifted back, pulling the sheet to her chest as she sat up, turning so she was facing him. She met his gaze and spoke quietly. "I want you to tell me what happened with Elena."

Damon blinked, surprise crossing his face. Aside from the day they'd had coffee; neither of them had mentioned anyone from Mystic Falls. He'd assumed she wanted to keep the past where it belonged, but maybe he'd been wrong. "What do you want to know? You must know how the story ended," he commented.

"I do," Rebekah said. "I know how Elena ended up in Boston, but I don't know what happened before that. When Nik and I left Mystic Falls, you and Stefan were still falling all over yourselves to protect her. But neither of you ended up with her; and you want me to believe that you're fine with that. What happened?' she asked.

He started to ask her if she really wanted to hear the story, but stopped himself when he saw the look on her face and suddenly everything made a lot more sense. Damon sat up as well, leaning back against the headboard as he kept his eyes on Rebekah. "Elena knew if she made a choice between the two of us, she might lose one of us and she also knew it might destroy Stefan and me. We both agreed that no matter what choice she made, we would abide by it and one of us would leave town."

Rebekah opened his mouth, but Damon shook his head, not wanting her to interrupt. "It was the only way that made sense to us. It had to be her decision and we couldn't interfere. But even after Klaus left, there was always a new threat lurking around the corner and neither of us could leave so she still didn't make a decision. Then Katherine showed up again and one day it just hit me. Elena might love me, but she was always going to love Stefan too and we were never going to escape the cycle."

"So you left town," Rebekah guessed. She'd heard that both brothers had drifted away from Mystic Falls about a year before Elena had finished school at the local university. She'd also heard that Stefan had returned not long after, so she had assumed Damon had been too angry or hurt to go back. She didn't really expect him to admit it though.

"I did, but not because I was heartbroken," Damon told her matter-of-factly. "I was hurt and disappointed, but not in my usual wreck my life and all those around my kind of way. I'm not saying I was a boy scout. I had some fun, did some bad things, but I knew I was never going to be the guy for Elena so I got over it."

"That was all it took," Rebekah said doubtfully. "You never had another urge to fight for Elena and make her see that she'd made the wrong choice?" It wasn't the part of him being over Elena that she had a hard time believing. She'd never seen what the big deal was about that dull girl so it wasn't difficult to imagine Damon eventually growing bored with chasing after her. But she still found it hard to accept that he wasn't more upset about the loss or looking for some way to get payback.

"What else was I going to do?" Damon asked. "I'd spent years at war with my brother over Katherine and look how that turned out. Then Elena came into our lives and it all started again, but the ending was the same. Neither of us got the girl. It doesn't matter though because Elena is happy and Stefan is happy and I am trying my damndest to be happy, but there's this hot blonde obstacle in my way."

Rebekah raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything as she considered his words. Everything inside of her wanted to believe him, but something was still holding her back. "That day you saw me at the bookstore. Was it really just a coincidence?" she asked.

"Yes," Damon insisted. He shifted closer to her, reaching out to cup her cheek. "I saw you through the window and I figured enough time had gone by that we could have a conversation without killing each other. It wasn't some grand scheme, Rebekah."

She chewed on her bottom lip as she watched him, searching his face for any sign that he was misleading her. She knew him well enough to recognize all of them and the look in his eyes was practically begging her to have faith in him. "After I went back to your room with you that day, did you intend to see me again?"

"No," Damon replied truthfully. "I wasn't planning on staying in London and when you took off while I was sleeping, I figured that was it. But then you showed up the next night and the night after that." He smiled at her as he let his fingers trail down her bare arm.

Her face flushed even as she gave him a stern look. "What made you stay?" she asked. "Was it the challenge or something else?"

"You," Damon told her simply. "It was you. You're not the same girl I knew in Mystic Falls and I'm not that guy anymore. We're different people, Rebekah, and we fit together in more ways than one," he pointed out, a smirk crossing his face before his expression became serious again. "I'm not here for revenge or out of boredom or any other scheme. I'm here because I want to be with you and I know you want to be with me too. Just admit it," he urged.

Rebekah shifted closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, not saying anything for a moment as she watched him watching her. "I want to go to France with you. But that doesn't mean that I'm admitting that I care about you in any way," she told him.

Damon laughed as he tugged her into his lap and kissed her hard. "One of these days, I'm going to get you to say it, Rebekah Mikaelson. You just wait," he said as his lips trailed along her neck while he pulled the sheet away from her.

She pressed her bare chest against his, tilting her head to the side to give him more access to her neck. "Keep dreaming, Damon," Rebekah replied, doing her best to bite back a smile as she threaded her fingers through his hair.

Monaco, 2023

"Honey, I'm home!" Damon announced in an exaggerated voice as he strolled into the apartment. He closed the door at his back, tossed his keys on the table and shrugged off his leather jacket, draping that over the back of the couch. The living room and kitchen were empty and the terrace doors were closed, so he headed down the hall toward the bedroom. He paused in the doorway, watching Rebekah as she sat in the center of the bed in a white silk robe, painting her toenails. "Beks, I'm home."

"I heard you the first time you bellowed," Rebekah replied, not looking up from her task. She knew Damon had something to brag about and the only way to keep his ego in check was to feign disinterest. "Did you pick up more blood bags?" she asked as she placed the cap back on the nail polish and stretched her legs out to let the polish dry. "We're out and I keep missing the mailman."

Damon raised an eyebrow. "Maybe that's because he's been avoiding you since the last time when you nearly drained him dry," he countered.

Rebekah finally turned to look at him, a pout on her face. "I told you that he was stealing my magazines. Besides, I compelled him to forget and unlike you, I make sure the compulsion takes," she pointed out.

"It was one time!" Damon huffed, his eyes narrowing. "I was in a hurry. How was I supposed to know that she would turn out to be our neighbor?" he asked. "You didn't like that apartment anyway. Now stop acting like you don't care about my news," he said.

She rolled her eyes and let out a huff of her own and then waved her hand, motioning for him to get on with it. "I'm waiting with bated breath, Damon. Tell me what great and wonderful thing you've done today," Rebekah replied.

Damon shook his head. "Nope, you've lost your right to know," he said as he moved further into the room and headed for the bathroom. "I'm going to take a shower and as punishment, you can't watch me undress," he told her. He was nearly at the door when he felt the nail polish bottle slam into the back of his head. He turned and in the blink of an eye, he was on the bed, his body pinning hers against the mattress. "That hurt."

"Baby," Rebekah chastised even as she reached up to rub the back of his head. "Tell me your news, Damon," she said as she leaned into him and trailed her lips across his jaw. "I have ways of getting you to talk," she reminded him.

He smirked as he let his hand slide down to the belt of her robe. "How naked are you under here?" Damon asked as he toyed with the knot. He didn't give her a chance to answer his question before he continued talking. "Do you remember that businessman who I beat at poker and took twenty grand from?"

Rebekah nodded. "The one who was too distracted looking at my ass to notice that you were cheating," she recalled as she slid her hands down to the hem of his shirt and started to tug it up so she could run her hands over his stomach. "Did you run into him at the tables again?"

Damon was momentarily distracted as his muscles tensed beneath her touch. "I did and I wasn't cheating that much." He rolled his eyes when she gave him a knowing look. "Fine, I was, but the guy was a dick and he had it coming." He raised his arms so she could pull his shirt the rest of the way off. "He asked me for a rematch today and this time, I took him for fifty grand," he said as a large smirk crossed his face.

"Fifty?" Rebekah repeated, impressed. "I believe that's a new record for you. No wonder you're in such a good mood." She continued her path down his neck, trailing kisses to his pulse point and then nipped at his skin gently with her fangs, smirking when he groaned and she felt his fingers gripping her hair as his other hand went back to the knot on her robe. "The answer to your earlier question is completely," she whispered as she bit him again, a little harder this time and then soothed her tongue over the spot.

"To answer your question, I did pick up the blood bags; they're in the freezer," Damon said. He undid the knot on her robe and parted the halves, his eyes darkening as they trailed over her. "Now where's my hello kiss?" he asked.

"Are you sure you're not the teenage girl?" Rebekah teased. But she tugged his head to hers and kissed him. Her lips moved over his slowly before she coaxed his mouth open and deepened the kiss, teasing his tongue with hers. She pulled back and met his gaze. "Thank you for picking up the blood," she said. "And I'm proud of you for taking that arrogant ass for even more of his money."

Damon grinned. "Was that so hard?" He kissed her again, settling himself between her legs as his hands started exploring her. He felt her hips pressing against his and he started to undo his pants just when her cell phone vibrated loudly against the nightstand. "Tell them to go away," he ordered. "Better yet, I'll do it." He reached for the phone and raised an eyebrow when he saw the name on the caller ID. "Elena?" he questioned.

Rebekah rolled her eyes as she took the phone. "She's been giving me updates on their trip." She ran her finger across the screen to read the latest message. "Nik is taking Caroline to dinner and she and Elijah are on their way back to the hotel." Rebekah typed a quick response and then turned off the phone and tossed it aside.

"I still can't believe Barbie went through with it. I owe Stefan five hundred bucks. Think he'll forget?" Damon asked as his hands went back to his belt.

"Stefan doesn't forget anything," Rebekah replied. She shifted beneath him so she could shrug off her robe and tossed it aside. "I'm sure he'll hear the news soon and he'll be calling to collect. It won't be long before Elena starts imagining wedding bells." She rolled her eyes and lay back against the pillows as she watched him undressing.

He raised an eyebrow as he pushed his pants and boxers off. "You know she has a bet with Klaus about us getting married. I think Stefan is in on that one too. Caroline too probably," Damon added, knowing how she hated to miss out on anything.

"Us getting married would require you asking," Rebekah pointed out. She reached for him and he came willingly, pressing his naked body against hers as he dipped his head to her neck while she threaded her fingers through his hair.

"It took me two years to get you to admit that you loved me," Damon reminded her as he gripped her thighs, encouraging her to wrap her legs around his waist. "I can only imagine the hoops you would make me jump through to get you to make it legal." He lifted his head to meet her gaze. "Am I wrong?" he asked.

"Only one way to find out," Rebekah replied. Her hips arched against his greedily as she felt him nudging her entrance. "I do love you, Damon, even if you are annoying and arrogant and a little mean," she added as she bucked against him again.

"You're meaner than I am," Damon pointed out, still not giving her what she wanted as he continued watching her. "I love you too, Beks. Even if you are stubborn and stuck up." He smirked at her and leaned down to kiss her. "Would you say 'yes' if I asked?" he whispered against her lips, his eyes on hers.

"I think you know the answer to that question," Rebekah replied. She kissed him again and dug her nails into his hips, smirking when he glared at her. "You forgot to add 'impatient' on your list of my less favorable qualities," she pointed out.

Damon laughed. "I'll make a new list tomorrow," he promised.