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Within Temptation- Chapter Nine

"Tell me you love me." She whispered against his ear, watching him turn his face towards her, his lips curling into a slight smile.

"Katherine, I love you..Only you." Elijah said, wrapping her into his embrace, watching the strings on her robe loosen as she turned her legs towards him, her arms wrapped around his neck when she buried her face into the curve of it, kissing the soft skin.

"I'm going to leave him, Elijah. Stefan and I...We're- We're not what we used to be and it's time I end it. I hate acting like I love him. When, deep down I know the truth..I don't. I haven't loved my husband for awhile." Katherine commented, watching Elijah shake his head, like he was the one that was unsure of her decision.

"Katherine...it's not the time yet. You know that." Elijah told her, watching Katherine scrunch her nose at him, a displeased look falling onto her darkened features.

"Then, when is? when I'm pregnant with my first child and in a loveless marriage? Will that be the time that you come in and swoop me off my feet? It's our time, Elijah. It's now or never. I'm going to a lawyer in a few days and then I'm telling him about the affair. You should do the same with Rose, before the press get's a hold of this..all of it." Katherine advised him, running her finger tips through his thick dark brown hair as she leaned in and kissed his lips. Elijah held her closer, his hands running up and down her legs as she giggled.

"I will, I promise. In a few short days, everyone will know the truth.." He told her, his hands slowly working their way down Katherine's body as she let out a laugh and locked her eyes onto him. "I love you, Katherine. Only you." Elijah replied, leaving a sweet kiss on her lips.

His words of that night, two days before Katherine disappeared were just memories now, her words sending him into a tailspin of emotions. He wished that he didn't have to go behind his best friend's back, sleeping with his wife and causing a yet to be discovered rift between them. Although, Elijah knew that once Stefan found out about the things he was doing with Katherine and to his own wife behind his back, there would be hell to pay and most likely, their friendship would be over. However, he struggled with it internally, telling Stefan- his best friend since college, the truth.

"Come on." He told her, extending out his hand as he held it tightly, leading them down the now empty corridor of the hotel where he had reserved them a room.

"Stefan..What are we doing here?" Elena asked him, confusion on her face as they walked through the hallway to the hotel suite, watching him let go of her hand as he smiled and opened the door.

"You know how I said we could be alone? Well, this is it. Katherine, I've been planning this for a few days now and I wanted it to be special, your home coming. So, come on." He told her, opening the hotel door wide open and hearing Elena let out a small gasp. It was amazing, the room that had candles in almost every corner of the room, red and white flower petals on the floor and when she looked closely, she could see that there was a bottle of champagne being iced in a small bucket near the small mini bar. He truly did love her, she thought.

"Stefan...you did all of this? When did you have time to do all of this?" She asked with a laugh, taking a step further into the room. Elena noticed that the king sized bed with it's perfectly white crisp covers, looked out towards a balcony that overlooked the city that she loved so much. The city that Elena had once begged on the streets, a life that she had realized that she never wanted to be in again until she had gotten a glimpse of what her life could be like, in the eyes of another.

"I had some help picking out your dress for tonight and then I swung by here to make reservations. I did this all for you. Katherine, I love you and I've been so lost without you here. I guess, I wanted tonight to be special, to be our night... together." He told her, closing the door behind him and locking it as he turned back towards Elena, shrugging off his jacket and smiling at her.

Elena swallowed the lump in her throat, the truth on the tip of her tongue as she watched him take a step towards her, his warm and soft hands slipping off the shoulder strap of her yellow dress yet again.

"Stefan..Shouldn't we get back to the party? I mean, don't you think they'll wonder where we are?" Elena asked, her breathing picking up as she leaned her back towards the bed, feeling his hot breath on her skin, his lips leaving moistened kisses against her shoulder as he suddenly turned them around, pushing Elena back on to the bed, her eyes widening with every move he made towards her, his green eyes filled with lust, with a hunger that was insatiable.

Elena breathed in a sharp breath as she watched Stefan lift up her foot into his hands, his fingers tracing outlines on her skin, every so often leaving a kiss where his hand had been. He stopped though, examining her ankle and noticing the small dark ink just above her foot. She could feel him, leaning down to kiss her skin again when he looked up at her. Her jaw locked, eyes closed, leaning her head back on to the comforter in the room. Elena let out a nervous laugh, opening her eyes to see him stopping, tracing his hand against her leg.

"When did you get this?" He pointed out, looking down at her in confusion, both of his hands still holding her foot as he gave her a confused look.

"I thought you weren't that big into tattoo's Katherine? Didn't you say once that you'd never do it." He commented, letting go of her foot and sitting on the edge of the bed, his back turned towards her, his face lowered as he focused down on his shiny black dress shoes, a small smile on forming across his lips when he turned back to her, watching Elena get up from the bed, sitting on her feet as she crawled over to him, resting her hand on to his shoulder.

"I got it a long time ago. I guess you just never noticed. It's just a little heart. It's not that big of a deal." She countered, hearing Stefan let out a laugh, turning to face her again, his hands stroking the out lining of her face.

" Ha, I guess, I'm just surprised that you have one. It's cute though. Sometimes I forget how much we've all changed since you've been gone. But, I just...I feel like you and I have the most that's why I wanted us here tonight, not with all those people. Katherine, I'm leaving for a few weeks to Europe for a business trip and I wish more than anything that I could take you with me. However, we both know that I can't. So, I was hoping that tonight could make up for how much I'm going to miss you when I'm gone." He told her, watching her eyes narrow on him, a grin creeping on to her face.

Elena was relieved that he hadn't made a big deal out of her tattoo. The true story behind it was that it was part of her spiraling rebellion against her foster parents before they had kicked her out of the house and a few months before she had aged out of the foster care system. She could see it though, the suspicion in his green eyes about her, like he was noticing the differences that she had tried too hard to keep under wraps. Although, somewhere in her heart, she'd known all along how wrong this was, how taking over her sister's life was about to all come to a full circle when and if Katherine was ever found and how Elena would have to give him up, the one person in this world full of riches, full of secrets that she felt the closest too. The one person, she loved.

"I love you." She said, locking her eyes on to him and mumbling out the words under her breath, watching Stefan look up at her, his eyes intensely boring into what she felt was her own heart. Stefan sat up, out stretching his hands towards her as he watched Elena nervously take a hold of them.

"I want to show you something." He told her. Elena followed him out to the balcony of the hotel room, the night lights of the city shining brightly.

"Stefan, this is beautiful." She told him, feeling his hand pull her towards him, leaning in to kiss the top of her head as he smiled, holding her in his arms and watching the city move at what seemed like a quickened speed below them, memorized by how fast everyone was so hurried down below.

"Yeah. It is. They're all moving so fast though, not enjoying life." He told her, watching Elena lift her head up off of his shoulder as she looked up at him, yawning.

"I like taking things slow. I like enjoying beautiful things." He whispered softly, turning Elena in his arms to face him, seeing her try to open her mouth to speak. But, she was quickly stopped by the warm feeling of his hands on her face, his lips just inches away from her own.

"What kind of beautiful things?" Elena stammered out of her throat, locking her eyes on to him as she too leaned forward, licking her lips.

" It's simple really. Beautiful things, like you." He told her, running his hands through Elena's now slightly flattened hair as he captured her lips against his own, savoring the taste of her tongue against his, a prideful grin when he backed away to look at her, noticing the smile that was forming across her face as he said. "I love you, too."

"I don't want you to leave me." Elena said, looking down at her own shaking hands when she saw Stefan grab a hold of them, squeezing them tightly and leaning in to her as he whispered against her ear. "I don't want to go either. But, I'm going to make sure that tonight, you and I have a night that we'll never forget, it'll keep you from missing me too much while I'm away."

It all happened so fast, his arms around her, his foot nearly slamming the balcony doors shut as he pushed them back in to the room, Stefan's lips never once leaving Elena's as he kissed her breathlessly and began to work his hands around to her backside, unzipping her dress.

She didn't stop him, she didn't want too as she felt his warm fingertips glide against her skin, leaving a shiver going down her spine. Elena felt herself being lower back on to the bed, her legs wrapped around his waistline, pulling him closer when she began working her hands towards his shirt, unbuttoning the buttons, frantically. Elena leaned into him, kissing his stomach as she stopped for a moment, hearing Stefan's breathing become staggered, watching him lean down to her, lifting up her chin with his fingertips, pushing Elena back on to the bed further and hovering over her, shrugging off his shirt and, feeling her hands glide across his chest as he lowered himself above her, leaning in and kissing her lips softly, running his hands through her hair when she closed her eyes at his touch and arched her back to him.

"You're beautiful. And, I really have no idea how I got so lucky with you..Katherine." He whispered against her ear, causing Elena to place her finger on to his lips, her gaze securing on to him when he watched her eyes begin to fill with unshed tears.

"Oh, don't cry. Please..don't start crying." He told her, kissing her cheeks. Elena wrapped her arms around him tightly. She didn't want to let him go, she didn't want to give him up. Although, she knew that it was the right thing to do, after all of the lies, the of her pretending to be Katherine was inevitable.

"I'm just going to miss you, so much." She said softly, sniffling. Stefan glanced down at her, his thumbs wiping away the blackened mascara tears that were falling on to the white colored bed spread as he smiled sweetly. "I'll be back before you know it. It's just a few weeks and then you and I can spend as much time together as we want. I know that I work a lot. But, I want that to change. I want to be the best husband I can to you. I love you so much." He admitted, hearing Elena's shaky breath speak, an almost sorrowful tone in her voice as she said. "I know. Stefan..." Her voice broke, feeling his hands slipping into her hair, as she closed her eyes and heard him reply with a soft "What?"

"I know you'll be gone just for a few weeks. But, I want to remember you like this...with me." She stammered out, hearing Stefan laugh, leaning down to kiss her again, his hands gliding against her soft thighs. "Okay." He whispered, pulling her into his arms and kissing her with a rough and longing passion, silencing both of their thoughts and causing Elena to never want to leave his embrace.

Their clothing became scattered all on the floor, the bed sheets tangled against their bodies, Elena's voice faltering throughout the room as Stefan kissed thighs, trailing his lips up and down her body, his hands touching every inch of skin that he could feel underneath them.

She couldn't speak, the only thing she was focused in on was him, the way his hands touched her, gliding up and down her body. Elena opened her eyes leaning into him, leaning forward just to touch him, caressing his chest and relishing in the softness of him against her hand. Stefan's muscular arms holding himself up as he leaned down, pushing a few strands of her sweaty and wet hair away from her neck.

"You're amazing. I never want this to end." She whispered against him, pulling him down as she felt his arms lift her up to him, smirking when he replied in a breathy tone. "We still have a few more hours before I leave..We have a lot of time, sweetheart. You don't need to worry."

If only it was true, that she could live her life with him when he returned, even after she told him who she really was. However, Elena knew that after tonight, she'd never be able to be with him in this way again, so intimately and vulnerable in his arms. Her heart broke at the thought of telling him and for the fact that time was slipping, because she knew that time was the one thing playing against her and soon it would all be over.

"Make love to me, Stefan..Make love to me until the sun rises because I don't want to forget this, I don't ever want to forget this feeling of loving you." Elena told him, watching him give her a perplexed look for a moment, shaking his head with a small laugh escaping past his lips. She could feel his body relax, their hands intertwining when he bent down towards her again, one of his hands pulling her leg to rest against his shoulder as he kissed her flesh, working his way down her body when he grinned, watching Elena's fists bunching up the sheets between her fingers.

"You won't. I promise that starting now, I'm going to be a better husband to you and I'm going to make sure that you never forget this feeling." He commented, pulling Elena to him as continued working his way across her body, fulfilling her one request of being his for the night.

She fell asleep in his arms for what felt like hours. By the time they had awoke, it was already the early morning. Although, the sun hadn't even started to shine yet. She could hear the soft sound of him sleeping near her almost causing her to not want to get up and leave his side. But, it was time. Elena thought to herself as she slide out from his grasp, pulling one of his shirts over her naked body. Elena quickly grabbed her purse from the night before and stepped out on to the balcony, sitting down at the small table and inhaling the smells of the city, including the smell of him that she had grown to love so much.

Her hands began to shake as she pulled out a small piece of paper that was folded up, taking out a pen too. She briefly looked down at the city lights, a bone chilling wind gusting her way. Elena shivered, pulling his suit jacket that she had grabbed along with his shirt against her body tighter. She inhaled deeply, closing her eyes and allowing the tears to escape on to her cheeks when she finally mustered up the courage to write down what she had been wanting to tell him for weeks now.

Dear Stefan,

I don't know how to tell you this..I'm honestly still trying to figure things out myself and come to terms with it all. But, I think it's time you know the truth. I'm not who you think I am...I'm not your wife. My name isn't Katherine Salvatore and truthfully, I only learned about her the other night. My real name is Elena Gilbert and everything I've told you up until tonight has been a lie. Although, one thing remains true and it's this- I love you and I don't want to give you up. However, now I have to. For both of our sakes, I have to give you back. I wish I could get the chance to explain myself, I wish more than anything that I can one day tell you all of this to your face. But, until that day comes. I'm writing you this letter and I don't want you to open it until you're already on the plane. Because, when you come back..I'll be gone and all that will remain for me is the memories of tonight and how amazing you are. I wish we would have met under different circumstances, maybe you would have loved me just as much as I'm starting to love you.

I'm sorry for everything I did to hurt you. And I hope one day you can forgive me.

With all my love,

Elena.

Her falling tears stained the paper as she folded it back up and wrote his name, and then right underneath it she wrote, Please don't open this until you're in Europe. Elena inhaled deeply, shoving the paper into her purse and wiping away her tears as she exhaled and made her way back into the room, sliding herself back into the bed, beside him and feeling him pull her closer as he woke up for a moment to kiss her shoulder, murmuring how much he loved her before he fell asleep again. Never once knowing how this would be the last time he held her in his arms, the woman that had been pretending to be someone else, someone who he thought he loved. All the while, Elena's own heart broke inside because she knew that once the bright sun rose and the morning came. He'd be gone and that all of this would be all over. However, the thing that killed her inside the most was the fact that they'd go back to being what they should have been all along, two strangers living in two completely different worlds.

A/N: Oh...Elena! Anyone else kind of feeling bad for the poor girl. She loves him! :( Anyways, the next update (CH.10) will be taking us BACK TO THE START of the story (to the prologue)! :) I bet you guys are all curious as to what Stefan's going to say once he finds out she's not Katherine!

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-Until Next Time!-