One Month Later

Elena had never been to Damon's house until now. She didn't know why, but it was probably because she had never asked to come here, and Damon had never offered. For her, it was easier to go to her house, because then it wasn't her who had to up and leave early in the mornings, or drive over late in the evenings. But tonight, Damon had invited her to his house, and said he was going to cook for her. She didn't even know he could cook. They would usually eat out, or she would make something for the two of them. This was the first time she would be tasting something that Damon had made, and she was pretty excited about it.

"Your house is beautiful," Elena said, her gaze landing on everything. It was a modern three-bedroom, two-bathroom home, very spacious and masculine. Everything was black, grey or white, sometimes a splash of red here and there.

"Thank you," Damon said as they walked through it, hand in hand. They stopped in the kitchen, where he led her to the table and pulled a chair out for her. "Have a seat. Can I get you something to drink?"

"Do you have any—"

"Red wine?" he cut in, laughing. "I bought a bottle just for you."

"Thanks," Elena said, smiling at his thoughtfulness. She smoothed down her floral dress and asked, "So, what's on the menu tonight?"

"Hamburgers and fries, followed by chocolate cake," he stated, making Elena laugh.

"Really?" she asked, standing up and walking over to Damon, wrapping her arms around him from behind.

"Well, I thought to myself, what is her favourite dish? And it is really a no-brainer. So I'm going to make you the best burger in the world, followed by chocolate cake that I didn't make myself but went out of my way to buy from the best bakery in the city."

She placed a kiss on his spine, then let go of him. "You are so sweet, Damon. You didn't have to go through so much trouble." Although, not going to lie, she did appreciate it.

It felt nice for someone to go out of their way to make one feel special. There was nothing like it, Elena didn't think. Actions spoke louder than words, and his action told her that he cared about her in his own Damon way. It was the small things that count.

"I know, but I wanted to," Damon said, turning and kissing her mouth. "Now, I'm going to get you a glass of wine to drink while I sort out dinner."

He poured Elena a glass, and then lifted her onto his counter to drink it, supervising his cooking. Or grilling, at least. When Elena saw him pulling out some beetroot, she knew he really had been paying attention to the things she liked.

"Impressive," she muttered, bringing the glass to her lips and taking a sip. It was delicious.

Over the last month, Elena and Damon had spent several nights every week with each other, and they still had lunch together every day. She hadn't asked him about other women, and he hadn't asked her about other men. They had just been enjoying each other, not really worrying about anything else. Did it feel like a relationship to Elena? Yes. But she was not going to say that out loud, because she thought it was going to have Damon running for the hills. He told her that he and his ex-girlfriend Rose didn't have a good breakup, and they were together for four years. Elena was sure that it was whatever happened there that had him so scared of commitment, the reason why his walls were ten feet high.

She understood; it was a scary thing to be vulnerable, to give someone else the power to hurt you. It was scary to everyone though. Hearts got broken every day, but there were some loves that lasted forever, and that was what everyone was hoping for. Divorce rates were high, it seemed like everyone was just doing the casual sex thing right now. Having sex first and asking questions later.

Times had changed, and everyone was adapting. She was the same as well, a closet hopeless romantic, doing the casual sex thing. Sure, Damon treated her like a girlfriend, but she was not one. Did it really matter what she was if she was treated as such though? At the end of the day, it really was just a label.

Damn, she must have been hanging around with Damon way too long.

When he had finished, they both sat at his table and ate together.

"This is the best burger I have ever had," Elena told him after she swallowed the first bite. And it was—because Damon made it for her.

Damon smirked and popped a fry in his mouth. "It is cute that you care enough to lie and tell me that."

Elena rolled her eyes, smiling. "It is. And how come we have never come to your house before now?"

His eyes widened at the question, and she noticed he chewed and swallowed his bite a lot slower than needed be. "I don't usually bring women back here."

"What do you mean?" she asked, brow furrowing. "You usually just go to their houses and don't bring anyone back here?"

Damon nodded.

"Why?"

"I don't know," he said, looking a little sheepish. "It is my private space. I guess, I just usually don't bring anyone here."

"Then why did you bring me?" she pushed him a little. Did he realise he was making it sound like she was different to him? It was giving her hope, and she didn't need hope unless he really was considering changing his non-dating rules for her.

Damon cleared his throat. "I just felt like it was time, I don't know. We have been seeing each other for over a month now."

So now they were 'seeing each other'.

Interesting.

"Well, I'm glad you brought me here," Elena said, saving him for having to explain any more.

Damon exhaled in relief and continued to finish eating. She wondered what had happened to him to make him this way, so closed off. It was like he could shut his emotions off like a switch, which wasn't a good thing. It meant he could easily cut people out of his life without looking back—like her, for example. It meant that people were easily replaceable to him. The thought of him replacing her did hurt.

No, it killed.

It burnt.

After dinner, even though Elena was full, she made room for the chocolate cake.

"Damn," she whispered, then moaned. "You need to tell me where this bakery is."

"It is good, right?" Damon said, eyes darkening as she licked her fork.

"Good? It is amazing," she said, taking another bite. "How did you find this place?"

"My cousin owns it," he stated proudly, putting his own fork down and just watching me eat. "Sarah can make any dessert you want, she is so talented. Her husband Silas is a lawyer, and an ex MMA fighter. He helps her run the business."

"Sounds amazing," Elena said, impressed. "If all her desserts are as delicious as this cake, I see myself gaining a lot of weight in the future."

Damon flashed his teeth at her. "Don't worry, we will be working it off. Together."

"You haven't even been going to the gym recently, is that why? Getting enough exercise as it is?" she teased, finishing the last of the cake.

"Yes," he said, laughing. "I haven't had the time, really. I have been going a few times a week, but I used to go every day. Why, seeing the difference in my body?"

"I don't know," she replied, reaching out and touching his chest through his t-shirt. "Yeah, maybe it is getting a little soft."

He smirked, because they both knew the truth. His body couldn't possibly get in any better shape.

"I think you need to work out a little more," she continued. "May I suggest on top of me?"

Damon laughed and reached his finger to her mouth, rubbing some chocolate from the side of her lips. He then sucked it in his mouth.

"How about I show you my bedroom? Then we can devise a workout plan."

"I like this idea," Elena said, getting up and moving to his lap. She gave him a kiss and cupped his cheek with her hand. "Thank you for dinner."

"Thank you for pretending to like it."

"I did like it."

"You liked the cake."

"I liked everything," she said, kissing his strong jaw. "Just like I like everything about you."

"Elena," he growled in a low tone. "Better stop or we won't make it to my bedroom."

"That's okay," she whispered into his ear. "You don't have a roommate to worry about, so we can do it anywhere you like."

"And how do you know I don't have a roommate?" he asked, turning to bury his face in her neck.

Elena went still. "Do you?"

"No," he said, and she could feel him smile against her skin.

She rolled her eyes then lifted his head, cupping both cheeks in her hands, his nose almost touching hers. She kissed him softly before standing, taking his large hand into her smaller one. He stood, swooped her in his arms, and stormed up the staircase, turning right and opening the first door they came across. He turned on the light, revealing a spacious room with a massive black bed. He laid her down on the bed then kneeled before her, pulling off her sandals one by one. He lifted her dress, exposing her black lace panties, and slowly removed them too.

He then put his mouth on her, and Elena stared at the ceiling wondering how did she get so lucky.