By the time Elena and Elijah walked into the Mikaelson mansion, heads started to turn and conversations dropped off, then started again with renewed force, and she heard her name being repeated.
"Are you nervous?" Elijah asked.
"No, not really," she said, biting back a queasy smile. She had expected the curious gazes when she had accepted Esther's invitation to come tonight. She ended her engagement with Elijah six months ago and now she turned up to his parents' wedding anniversary. Who wouldn't be curious?
"Let's go to my mother. She will be thrilled to see you here." Elijah clasped her elbow as he led her towards Esther.
As she walked towards Ester, she could see faces of the group around her. Finn, the oldest son of the Mikaelson was standing beside her. Elena was just a few feet away when Ester's husband, Mikael Mikaelson was standing on Ester's other side, looked up and saw her. He said something to Ester and Esther turned toward her with her beautiful smile.
"Elena, I'm so glad you can make it tonight," Esther said. "I haven't seen you for such a long time. I really miss you."
"It's good to see you again, Esther." Elena smiled politely at the beautiful blonde. Esther's over friendliness made her uncomfortable, especially after she had ended the engagement with Elijah.
"Welcome, Elena." Mikael extended his hand. "I hope you will enjoy tonight's party."
Elena shook Mikael's hand as she murmured a greeting.
"Where's Rebekah?" Elijah added quickly as he noticed Elena's unease.
"She was still around just now," Finn scanned around the room to look for his sister. "Maybe she has gone to the washroom."
"Why don't we go to the bar and get you a drink?" Elijah turned his gaze to Elena.
Elena smiled and nodded as he held her arm and led her to the bar.
"Great party, Rebekah," Damon smirked. "Your family certainly knows how to throw a party."
Grinning, Rebekah looped her arm around his waist, pulling him close to her side. "I was hoping you would come."
"Why, to relieve your monotony?" he said, surveying the party that was getting into full swing at seven o'clock at night. 'Where's Alexander? I thought you don't go anywhere without him these days."
"You are still a jerk, aren't you?" she teased. "Alexander is in New York for a conference. He will be back early next week."
When she started to move away, Damon held her back and tightened his grip on her shoulders. "Don't abandon me," he joked. "I don't want to get too much attention from the female guests. Stay by my side for the rest of the night."
Rebekah chuckled. "The Damon I know should be thrilled if he gets all the attention from the women."
"Things change." He smiled as he sipped the champagne in his glass. 'People change, Rebekah."
She blinked. "I must have too much to drink or there must be a problem with my hearing. Damon Salvatore has changed?"
"Don't be so surprised. You have changed in recent years, haven't you?" He said it carelessly, easily, casually. As if it was an incontrovertible fact.
Rebekah's eyes widened as she stared at Damon. "So the rumours are true then?"
"What rumours?"
"You left Salvatore Corporate to go to Mystic Falls because of Elena Gilbert."
"I just took a little vacation, that's all. I didn't leave Salvatore Corporate."
Rebekah stared at him in astonishment. "Good grief, you are serious, aren't you?"
His expression didn't change. "I don't play games."
She could hardly speak. "I have known you my whole life, Damon. You walked out on Salvatore Corporate because you lost your head over Elena Gilbert. Who would believe that?"
Damon frowned. "You make it sound like Salvatore Corporate is my wife and Elena the other woman."
She searched his face. "Have you told her yet?" she asked softly.
Damon arched his eyebrows.
"Have you told her you love her?"
His mouth opened again but this time no words emerged.
"I see. You two haven't had that conversation yet," she said, her voice had suddenly softened. "Why don't you let her know how you feel about her?"
There was a brief pause.
"Unfortunately things aren't that simple," he muttered.
"Are you worried about the family feud?"
"I don't give a damn about the family feud," Damon hissed. "That was almost a century ago."
"Then what are you waiting for?" Rebekah exclaimed. "Go and tell her you love her. Sweep her off her feet."
"What makes you the relationship expert?" Damon asked defensively.
"I'm not an expert but I'm a woman. A woman wants to know how her man feels about her," she informed him heatedly. "I'm trying to help you, dammit."
He sighed. "Sorry, I'm too harsh on you." He has always liked Rebekah. He could never be angry at her.
"It's alright," Rebekah said with a shrug. "Why don't we grab another drink?"
"No. I'm good." Damon really needed some time alone to get his thoughts together. If he was going to confront Elena, he needed time to think.
"You sure?" Rebekah asked dubiously.
"I'm sure. My glass is still full." He lifted his glass to her in a salute.
Rebekah flashed a smile to him. "I will see you later, okay?"
Damon smiled as he watched Rebekah walked away. There were some of the most beautiful women in the world at this party. Taking another sip of his champagne, Damon studied them, but none of them had stirred any interest in him. Except one with particularly dreamy brown doe eyes, a romantic mouth, and long dark brown hair in a black lace overlay dress with a matching black cardigan. Mesmerized, he stood there, watching her incredible smile, and then he froze…It was Elena.
Elena was standing fifteen feet away from him, her hand holding a glass of wine and the man beside her was Elijah. What was she doing here? His jaw clenched and his fists tightened. She lied to him. She said she was going to spend the weekend with Caroline. His insides went up in flames. Seeing Elena with Elijah gnawed painfully at a spot deep in his chest. His heart and mind were flooded with jealousy at the sight of them together. How dare she lie to him? He tossed the champagne down and marched towards her.
"I was trying to figure out what my secretary wrote…" Elijah's voice trailed off as he noticed Damon approached them.
Elena shifted her gaze from Elijah to a man standing in front of them. She caught her breath. It was Damon. His face was contorted with rage.
"Welcome, Damon. I hope you are enjoying the party as much as I do," Elijah extended a hand.
As they gripped hands, Elena felt the tension in the air and she observed the brief flexing of the muscles along Damon's hard jaw as he murmured a greeting.
"Elijah." A blonde man with grey hair tapped Elijah's arm. "Sorry to interrupt. Mikael wants to speak to you before dinner starts."
"Sure." Elijah gave Elena a smile and dropped a little pat on Elena's waist. "I'd better go. I will see you later." Then he shifted his gaze to Damon. "Enjoy the night, Damon."
Elena glanced at Damon. He was practically bristling with rage. Her expression must have been a dead giveaway of her guilt because she had lied to him.
"Damon, listen, I…"
"I have heard enough. Let's get you out of here before I make a scene." He grabbed her upper arm in a vicelike grip.
"Let go of me," she snarled, trying to pull her arm free. "Will you stop with the righteous indignation and listen?"
"Not a chance." His jaw flexed with rage. "You are not staying here."
He practically dragged her out of the mansion. She stumbled to keep pace with his long, angry strides. "Let go of me!" Elena yelled frantically as she wriggled, but he had a tight hold, and she knew he would die before letting her go. "Damon!"
When he reached his car, he leaned down and said, "You lied to me, Elena. Dammit. Why?" He shook her slightly.
"You are hurting my arm. Will you please let me go?"
He released her immediately, and she rubbed her arm, trying to restore circulation. "Esther invited me to the party tonight. I know you will be angry and that's the reason why I didn't tell you."
"You are damn right I'm angry!" he roared. "You are never going to see Elijah again. Never!"
Elena gaped at him. "You are nothing but a big bully." Her brown eyes hardened as she said, "Elijah is my friend and I don't give a damn whether you like him or not. This is my life. You can't control my life."
"You are right, Elena," he said menacingly. "I can't control your life." He took one step closer to her. "But there's one thing I can control."
"W-what?" she asked tremulously, instinctively afraid of the predatory gleam in his azure eyes.
"This," he said, reaching for her and drawing her to him.
"No…" she protested as his mouth claimed hers in a demanding, furious embrace that almost immediately made her capitulate. She breathed in the now familiar, masculine scent of him. His tongue speared through her lips, commanded her compliance.
Don't give in. He's being a bully. Don't give in.
Her treacherous body weakened against his chest, her longing suddenly stronger than her will to resist. She speared her hands into his hair, fisted it and pulled his mouth harder against hers. Their mouths fused together, he ravaged her with every thrust of tongue. He pushed; she pushed right back. Elena's yearning grew, and she moaned into his mouth, wanting so much more than she could possibly get. She wanted him so badly.
They broke the kiss, both of them breathing heavily. "Let go, Damon," she told him firmly and pushed against his shoulders. "Let go."
She tried to wriggle out of his embrace but his arms held her immobile against his hard, unyielding body. She swore she heard him whispered the word "never" softly.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" she nearly screamed, furious with herself for still being so uncontrollably attracted to him when he acted like such a jerk. "I hate you! Let me go!"
"I'm an asshole," he answered morosely, his azure eyes glacial and dark. "Hate me if it makes you feel better, but I'm not letting you leave here until I get what I want."
Bastard!
Gleaning every ounce of depleting strength, she pushed him away from him and struck hard at his face. Instantly she was seized, his fingers digging into the fabric of her black cardigan and bruising her arms. Refusing to struggle and give him the satisfaction of overpowering her physically, Elena stood silent and unyielding, meeting the icy glitter of his blue eyes.
"I guess this means you've decided to despise me?" he mocked. "But it doesn't matter."
For a brief moment, Elena thought she spotted an injured, sad look in his otherwise cold eyes…but in an instant, it was gone.
Abruptly Damon pushed her from him. Dragging a deep breath, she threw back her head to look at him, taut-jawed and grim lipped. Could he see the brightness of her eyes? She wondered. Did he know it was caused by hot tears?
"Do you realise how crazy this is, Elena?" He shoved a hand through his hair. He was as tight as she had ever seen him. "No women had ever made me lost control like this! Never! I'm damned if I know how you got under my skin in such a short time, but you have!" A groan of despair came from his throat. "You are right; I can't control you. I'm being controlled by you."
They stare at each other. The atmosphere crackled with emotion and expectation. And then they both moved forward fast, their mouths crashing together, their tongues duelling urgently. Damon moaned, releasing his grip of her body and fisting her hair in his hands as he tackled her mouth with as much force as she was his. This was a possessive kiss. He was reinforcing his claim to her, trying to make her see how strongly he felt about her, how the thought of Elijah and her together could make him crazy mad.
She felt drunk with his kisses and she could hardly breathe but she didn't want to stop kissing him. His hips thrust against hers, pushing her into the side of his car. He left her mouth and buried his lips in her neck. "I want you, Elena." He said in a gruff voice. "I want you so badly."
"Then take me," she murmured seductively in his ear. "Make me yours," Elena added as she began to nibble on the corded muscles in his neck.
Elena walked into the hotel suite and turned on a lamp, but when Damon reached out for her hand, she came wordlessly into his arms, kissing him with a silent desperation that matched his own, holding him to her, crushing her soft mouth to his, her hands rushing over him. Damon clutched her tighter to him, his lips ravaging hers, his hands hungrily memorizing her beloved form.
"Oh God, I've missed you so much!" he whispered against her lips and picked her up, cradling her in his arms and carried her into the bedroom. He stripped his clothing away and then pressed down into her, connecting their lips once more.
He broke contact with her only long enough to remove her cardigan and dress. He threw them, not caring where they landed. He was finally stretched out against her fully, skin to skin. He knew his body was so on fire that he was most likely burning her. He couldn't stop touching her.
He finally stopped kissing her, only to trail his lips down the smooth column of her throat. He licked along the pulse point, feeling his own skip a beat, as he realized how quickly hers was pounding. When he slid effortlessly in and burying himself deep inside her in one quick motion, she cried out, as he filled her up with his full length.
He paused for a moment, so he could try and control himself. He wouldn't be able to give her pleasure if he didn't get himself under control. She wiggled her hips in need and he couldn't take anymore. He started thrusting hard, in and out of her, while holding her hips tightly in his hands.
Their tongues continued to mimic their lovemaking, tangling and thrusting into one another's mouths, as they both groaned out their intense pleasure. He began thrusting into her harder and faster, as he felt the exquisite pleasure shooting through his body. He felt her own body tensing, as she reached higher, towards her release.
She gasped out loud and her mouth opened wide, releasing him. She threw her head back into the bed and cried out as her body started convulsing around him. She gripped him tightly, deep within her womb and he almost lost consciousness as he felt his release shoot deep inside of her tight body. It felt like lightening shooting through him, as his erection continued to pump within her core.
Sprawled across the bed, a blanket half-heartedly draped across her hips, Elena felt gloriously limp and empty. Still faintly dazzled by the wonder of the experience, she turned her head to look at the man who had shared it with her. He was watching her, the glint in his eyes holding both a trace of satisfaction and amusement. She rolled on to her side and arched close to him, feeling like a purring cat as she trailed her fingertip down his chest.
"Why did you break up with Elijah?" Damon placed his finger under her chin and lifted it until she was looking at him.
"I told you, it didn't work out," she reminded him.
"Did you sleep with him?"
"What?"
"Did you sleep with him?"
His words shocked her and she felt her temper rising. "That's none of your business." She moved to get up, but he used her motion to pull her fully atop him, so that they were belly to belly and her legs were lying between his.
"Tell me. Did you sleep with him?" he said in a thickened voice.
She took a deep breath, glanced up at him, then shook her head.
"Why?" He looked hard at her. "Care to explain?"
She held his gaze for a heartbeat or two as she murmured softly, "You." The declaration was a low rumble of intense feeling wrapped up in a single word.
Damon' eyes widened. She watched him, a half-smile forming and then deepening the creases in his lean cheeks. "Elena," he said against her lips, then claimed them in another long, drugging kiss.
x x x
"SMALL TOWN GIRL SEDUCED BILLIONAIRE BACHELOR"
Elena flipped the newspaper over on the bed, her stomach sinking to her feet as she realized the media had caught up with them. "I hate the media," she commented vehemently, unable to keep the slight tremor from her voice. Both of them made a sensational front page story for the Richmond Sunday daily. There were pictures of Elena in Damon's embrace, another of Elena and Damon kissing passionately, and Elena and Damon going into the hotel. It had also brought up the ancient love triangle between Katherine Pierce, Joseph Salvatore and Jonathan Gilbert.
"You still look good on the paper." Damon came through the bedroom door with two cups of coffee in his hands, handing one to her before picking up the paper, glancing at it and dropping it into the trash can beside the bed before he sat down on the edge of the bed.
"This one is worse. Look at what they wrote!" Elena gritted out as she flung the newspaper on the floor. "They even involved Elijah! They made me look like a whore!"
"You're upset," he concluded.
"Me?" she said sarcastically, pointing to her chest. "Me, upset? Of course I'm. Why on earth won't I be upset? I'm being painted as the small town girl who seduces a billionaire, just like my great grandmother who married my great grandfather for money. By the way, they said I dump Elijah because he isn't rich enough."
Damon bit back a wayward smile at her harassed tone. She saw it. "Don't you dare laugh," she warned indignantly. "This is your entire fault."
"My fault? What did I do?" he asked in a laughter-tinged voice, dragging her into his arms.
She pulled herself away from him. "One month ago I was leading a nice life. A quiet life. The moment you appeared in Mystic Falls, everything just went crazy!"
He took her by the shoulders, still chuckling as he told her adamantly. "Hey, don't let it upset you, sweetheart. I'll give a statement, they'll be hot on our trail for a while, and then they'll find something more interesting to write about. They always do."
She stared at him, her face froze. "What did you say?"
"I said I will give a statement…"
"No!" Elena's voice rose. "What are you going to tell them about us? That we are having an affair? Or we are just enjoying having sex together? This is crazy! You are crazy…"
His mouth closed on hers before she could finish the sentence. He kissed her with a long slow warmth that gradually took possession of both of them. Eventually he dragged his mouth from hers. "We are not having an affair. I want you, Elena. I have wanted you the day I saw you at the Founder's Party. Hell, no. I had wanted you ten year ago when we spent the night together in the hotel."
Elena went perfectly still. "What?" she whispered. "You have been wanting me for the last ten years? Are you serious?"
He looked at her. "Dead serious."
"But why?" Her voice raising again. "Because I'm a Gilbert?"
Damon's jaw tightened. "I don't give a damn whether you are a Gilbert or not. I haven't been able to get you out of my system since we spent the night together ten years ago. I love you, Elena."
To his horror, he saw the glint of moisture in her eyes. Her lips parted, trembled ever so slightly.
"Don't look at me like that," he pleaded, pulling her into his arms. "Please, don't cry. I'm sorry I said it," he whispered, kissing her in helpless desperation because he thought she didn't want to hear how he felt. "It sucks if you don't feel the same way about me but it's okay. I hate to see you cry."
"I don't feel the same way about you?" she repeated fiercely, her shoulders shaking with teary laughter. "I don't feel the same way about you?" she wept brokenly. "You want to know how I feel? I'll tell you how I feel. I love you, Damon Salvatore. I want to be with you."
She snuggled against him. "I love you, Damon."
He raised her chin on the edge of his hand. "After that night in the hotel I knew that I would never be able to forget you."
"I told myself the same thing about you."
He smiled against her lips. "It never occurred to me that you might be virgin."
"Did you think I was a liberated, promiscuous swinger trailing a string of forsaken lovers behind me?"
"No, of course not. I just thought that surely someone as beautiful as you would have been…especially you were going out with Tyler at that time." He grinned. "But I was delighted to learn you weren't."
"I love you, Damon," she whispered before blending her mouth with his.
In Mikaelson mansion, Elijah sat in his bedroom, the Richmond Sunday Daily in his hand. He didn't realise he could still feel jealousy. But it didn't surprise him. With Elena, it had always been different. She excited him the way no other woman had. He wanted Elena – more than he had ever wanted any other woman.
"You okay?"
Elijah looked up to find Rebekah standing at his door. He wondered how long she had been standing there.
"What makes you think I'm not okay?" he mocked as she walked into the room.
"You still care about her. You are still in love with her, aren't you?" Rebekah asked quietly, almost too quietly.
Elijah got to his feet. "She and I broke up, remember?"
"You need to move on, Elijah. Elena is with Damon now."
"Damon is not the man for her," he announced.
"That's not for you to decide."
"Right now her eyes may be filled with him. But it won't last. She will come back to me…in time."
Rebekah frowned. "Don't lie to yourself, Elijah. She ended the engagement. Whether Damon is in her life or not, you know Elena will not choose you."
"Mind your own business, Rebekah." He struggled to keep his voice down and his temper under in check. "Stay out of this."
A knock at the door stopped Rebekah from saying further. Elijah turned and saw Finn at the doorway.
"Sorry to interrupt. Elijah, we need to talk." Finn's glance ran to Rebekah.
"I will leave you two alone." She looked at Elijah. "Think about what I said just now."
Finn spoke after Rebekah left the room. "We have serious problems, Elijah."
"What's Salvatore up to?"
"The ten individually owned properties near Dunham Lake are now reconsidering our offer because Salvatore Corporate has approached them. We are still trying to locate the owner of the eleventh."
"Elena still refuses to sell the Lakehouse." Elijah's jaw tightened.
"There is a problem with the Lakehouse, Elijah." Finn drew in a shaky breath before continuing. "The Gilberts don't own the Lakehouse."
Elijah stiffened. He had a feeling he wouldn't like what he was hearing next.
"The owner of the Lakehouse was Joseph Salvatore."
