Enjoy!

If I've been on your mind,

You hang on every word I say.

Lose yourself in time at the mention of my name.

Will I ever know how it feels to hold you close?

And have you tell me whichever road I choose, you'll go.

One and Only By Adele

Chapter 6

Elena sat in the bakery where she had met Stefan almost a week ago. She fidgeted relentlessly at the thought of talking to him. She had texted Stefan as soon as she woke up that morning and asked him to meet her. She needed to set things straight because avoiding him was doing more harm than good.

"Hey, sorry I'm late," Stefan said as he took a seat from her across the table, "I had a case I had to wrap up and then traffic-"

She waved away his apologies with a small smile, "Don't worry about it, I understand."

"How have you been? I haven't seen you lately," he said softly, his green eyes looking vulnerable, "I know you've been busy with the club…"

She sighed, running a hand through her chocolate locks, "Look, Stefan. I'm not really ready for the whole relationship thing. You're a great guy, believe me, but I've got to focus on my brother and work and I just don't have time to be a girlfriend."

Stefan pursed his lips, nodding curtly, "No, I get it. The 'it's not you, it's me' speech."

"I didn't mean it like that-"

"I get it, okay?" He stood up abruptly, a grimace twisting his usually handsome features, "I'm just not good enough."

Elena stood up, anger blazing in her eyes as she hissed, "You're not good enough? Goddamn, Stefan, you're a fucking lawyer. You've already graduated college and you have a job and an apartment." She took a deep breath and looked down before meeting his gaze once more, "You're successful and happy and just everything good, okay? I'm…I'm just a stripper in a club who's too complicated for your life. The 'it's not you, it's me' speech is more than applicable right now because it's not you, Stefan. I'm the problem and I'm sorry."

"Elena," his voice was pained as he took in the self-loathing that was radiating off of her small frame, "You are good enough. I wouldn't put the effort into knowing you if I wasn't prepared for the baggage."

Tears swam in her eyes as she grabbed her purse. She sighed, "Maybe if we would have met before I came to New York. Maybe then we would've had a chance."

"Is there a reason you're skulking at my bar before opening, Stef?" Damon asked as he approached the bar and a rather sad looking Stefan.

"She didn't want me," he hiccupped as he took another drink of the amber liquid in front of him, "Elena didn't want me."

Damon sighed and took a seat next to his brother, trying to keep his slight excitement at bay. Why would Elena get rid of Saint Stefan? He awkwardly patted him on the back and took a deep breath, "What happened, baby bro?"

Stefan turned his red-rimmed green eyes towards Damon and sniffled slightly, "She said she wasn't good enough. She practically said that I deserved someone better." He paused and took another swig of his drink, "God, Damon. You should have seen her. I've never seen anyone hate themselves as much as she did. You could tell that she was upset and disgusted and there was nothing I could do. And then she just walked out," Stefan wiggled his hand in a drunken walking away motion and sighed.

Damon's heart nearly broke at the thought of Elena hating herself. Sure, she was eighteen and working at a club, but he thought it was just for the extra money, not that she actually needed it. Most girls start stripping as a way to get back at their families or have extra pocket money, especially in New York. But the thought of Elena hating herself because this was the only job she could get made him disgusted at himself. He should've tried to help her.

"I want to help her," Stefan said as if he had read Damon's mind, "I don't want her to do things she doesn't want to do just because she has to. It's not fair to her."

"Life's not fair, Saint Stefan," Damon mumbled, his own eyes downcast as he was lost deep in thought. Neither of them could help someone who wasn't ready to be helped.

Days passed as Elena reflected on what she had said to Stefan. He hadn't been at the club or relatively near her since then. What she said had hurt him, but she needed to let him go. Once he met a girl who was in his league, he would forgive her, she was sure of it.

She was getting ready to pack up her things at the club when Damon approached her. Giving him a fake smile, she continued packing up her clothes, "Hi."

He smiled tightly in greeting and Elena couldn't help but notice that something was different. He was looking at her differently than before. Almost with pity.

"What? What's wrong?" She asked, almost afraid of the answer. Ever since her parents died, she had learned to expect the worst when people were quiet.

"What?" Damon asked before shaking his head and his bright smile made an appearance, "Nothing's wrong, beautiful. I was just wondering if you gave any more thought to our date yet."

"Oh!" She exclaimed, a shy smile creeping onto her face, "I-I actually haven't. Isn't that normally the guys job?"

"Normally," he shrugged, "I just don't want to overstep my boundaries with you."

She bit her lip and looked down. She couldn't believe how gentlemanly he was being after they almost went at it in the middle of a bar. She cleared her throat and looked up at him, "Pizza and a movie is always a safe bet. We can have it-"

"My apartment?" He suggested, cutting her off as he smirked, "It's close to here and that way we can do it after work if you would like."

"Your apartment?" She asked uneasily. When he nodded reassuringly, she relented, "All right. But no funny business," she reminded him sternly.

He chuckled, "No funny business. You have my word."

"Tomorrow? That way I don't have to worry about oversleeping on Saturday…"

"Tomorrow is perfect," he agreed, "I'll get the pizza, you get the movie and I'll wait for you after work."

She smiled, "Okay. I'll see you tomorrow, Damon."

"Be safe on your way home."

By the time her shift was over the following night, Elena's stomach was filled with butterflies. She hadn't seen Damon at all during her shift and she was worried that he was going to blow her off. She fidgeted nervously as she packed up her bag. Glancing at her phone, she saw that it was already almost two-thirty.

Groaning, she got up and grabbed her bag angrily. It was clear that Damon had stood her up.

"Going somewhere?" A velvet voice called from behind her.

All of her anger and disappointment seemed to dissipate as she turned to face him. A small smile graced her lips as she admitted, "I thought you stood me up."

He feigned hurt as he placed his hand over his heart, "I would never."

"Good," she bit her lip and looked away shyly, "Are you ready?"

He extended his hand to her and nodded, "Ready whenever you are, beautiful."

She took his hand and allowed him to lead her out of the club and to his car. The drive to his apartment was quick and the ride was quiet, but not uncomfortable. They sat in companionable silence, both with small smiles on their faces.

When he led her into his apartment, she nearly gasped out loud. He didn't own an apartment, he owned a penthouse. It was moderately decorated in black and navy and it screamed masculinity. She wandered over to the far wall, which seemed to be made entirely of glass. Peering out, she saw the New York skyline and her heart stopped.

"It's so beautiful," she murmured, the city lights lighting up the sky. She looked over at him, noticing that he was now next to her.

"It is," he replied, staring at her instead of the view.

She blushed and looked away, "Damon…"

"Elena," he mocked back, a smirk spreading across his face.

"I don't think I can do this," she admitted, turning to face him fully and fighting not to get lost in the ocean of his eyes, "I don't think I can be just friends with you."

Damon stilled. Was she really suggesting what he thought she was? Damon Salvatore didn't do relationships. Not since Katherine. His mind argued that he couldn't date a dancer again, but his heart was telling him that he was ready to do just about anything for this girl. Giving her a small smile, he reached out and cupped her cheek softly, "What do you want, Elena?"

"I-I think I want to explore this," she said quietly, "I think I want to explore what we could be. But, if you don't, I-"

He pulled her flush against his chest, pressing a soft, but passionate kiss to her lips. She only hesitated for a second before wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer. Whenever they kissed, it felt like time stood still. Like they were simply made for each other.

He finally allowed her to pull away, needing air himself. Resting his forehead against hers, he smiled as he whispered, "Does that answer your question?"

Elena giggled before looking around his home again. She sighed, "We should probably order pizza and watch that movie, right?"

"Who said anything about ordering pizza?"

"Where did you learn to cook like this?" Elena asked as she took another bite of the pizza Damon had made from scratch for them, "If I tried to make anything like this, I'd burn my entire apartment building down!"

Damon laughed, taking a sip of the wine he had bought for this particular occasion, "My mom loved cooking and Stefan never really picked up on it. He was more like my father; wanting things done for him. He didn't like doing the dirty work, just reaping the rewards. So, I spent a lot of time with my mom and she taught me everything I know. I even know how to sew a button," he mocked, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

She laughed, trying not to choke as she swallowed her mouthful of pizza, "I can't cook to save my life. I normally just stick with fruit and vegetables because I don't have to do anything but wash them."

"No wonder you're so skinny," he murmured, looking her over again, "If you're dating me, my food will end up fixing that."

Elena swallowed thickly, "I-is something wrong with my body?"

"What?" He looked alarmed momentarily as he took in her self-conscious face, "No! Of course not. I just mean you should be eating healthier and I can help with that. Elena, your body is perfect, obviously."

She blushed, looking down, "Thank you. But I still have to watch what I eat. I wouldn't want to lose my job because of weight gain."

"I wouldn't fire you for that," he denied, "That wouldn't make me a very good boss, now would it?"

"Damon…" she hesitated, biting her lower lip worriedly, "You are my boss. How is this supposed to work? I mean, if it ends badly we'll still have to deal with each other."

"And we'll deal with it like professionals," he smiled, taking her hand and rubbing the back of it reassuringly, "We're both adults. We can be civil if this relationship ends."

A smile lit up her face, "So, that's what this is? We're in a relationship?"

Damon shrugged, "Is that what you want?"

"Well, yeah," she said sheepishly, "I don't want you seeing other women and I'm pretty sure you don't want me seeing other men, so-"

"Damn straight I don't want you seeing other men," he said huskily, his voice taking on a sense of dominance, "We're exclusive. Let's just see how this goes."

Sighing, she set down her plate and curled into his side on the couch, "Let's just not go too public with this yet…I don't want people getting the wrong idea."

"People like Stefan?" He suggested casually, wrapping his arm around her shoulder and tucking her head under his chin.

"Well, yeah…" She agreed softly, "You just make me feel safe. I'm not sure why yet, but you do."

He quieted for a second and took in her words. This girl had only really been semi-alone with him twice yet she felt that she could trust him. What the hell had he done that was good to deserve this? Stefan was right when he said there was something about her. She was just so damn loveable and she was able to wrap everyone around her little finger.

"Don't worry, I'd never let anything hurt you," he said softly, nuzzling his nose against the crown of her head.

Elena sat in his arms, smiling softly. She'd never been intimate like this with anyone but Matt and that had never been such a good experience. Damon made her feel like she was flying, like she was more than what she really was. She was lucky and she was happy. She could only hope that things worked out the way she was praying that they would.

"I know," she whispered back as she felt him smile against her hair.

Be sure to leave a review!

~Grace