Eyes of the Doppelganger – Chapter 21
I really hope you like this chapter. I had it all ready to go last night when my computer suddenly decided that it couldn't be bothered saving when I hit save. So I have had to re-do half of it again which has really annoyed me because I am sure there was better stuff in the first draft that I've now forgotten!
Also, be warned. There may be a wee, tiny, tad bit of smut in here. Just so you know.
I don't own anything but the plot. This is just for fun.
Damon had instantly collapsed onto his bed when he finally reached his room. He had stayed in so many places in so many parts of the world that there was really no more novelty for him, one hotel room was more or less the same as the next. The only reason he spared it any thought now was because of the expression that had graced Elena's face. It had been a mixture of wonder and disbelief and utter gratitude towards whatever twist of fate had landed her in such a place. He hadn't felt that sense of discovery and awe for over a hundred years but it had all come flooding back when he looked at Elena. She reminded his jaded eyes that there were still thousands of new experiences to be had, even for him.
He lay completely still on the bed, staring at the ceiling, unable to think of anything but Elena. He smiled wryly as he realised that some things never changed. She had been on his mind ever since the day he first laid eyes on her. He replayed every second of the previous night over and over in his head and, despite the fevered kisses being a particular highlight, the moment that he kept pausing on was the one in which her hands gently cradled his face as she breathed, 'I love you', for the first time. It was everything that he had ever wanted, everything he had ever hoped for. Slowly all the other memories dropped away and his head was filled with her voice. Her voice telling him that she loved him.
Finally, he wrenched himself off of the bed and made for the mini bar, grabbing a scotch and drinking it straight from the bottle. Not for the first time, he thought of going back to her room, but her pleading eyes had been hard enough to walk away from the first time. He raked his hands through his hair and was only seconds away from crumbling under the desire that was pulling him ceaselessly back towards her room. With a growl he struggled to push the thought from his mind and tossed the empty bottle angrily at the wastepaper basket. It missed and shattered against the wall in a shower of glass. He stared dully towards the broken shards, the smashing noise still ringing in his ears, when suddenly it was replaced by a different sound. Someone was knocking frantically at his door.
His head snapped up and, for a moment, he was torn with hope and apprehension. His heart rejoiced in the thought that it could be Elena on the other side but his head warned him that it could be someone altogether worse. He moved carefully towards the door and opened it a crack. Immediately he was met with Elena's wide bloodshot eyes. Her face was puffy and swollen from crying and her whole body trembled. At once his heart sank as he immediately sensed that whatever she had to tell him could not be good. It broke his heart to see her so upset and he cursed himself for being the constant cause of her misery.
He threw the door wide open and held up his hands in surrender.
'Elena', he breathed. 'Please don't cry, I'm sorry I ...' but before he could get another word out she had rushed him in a flash of vampire speed. He was thrown clear off his feet and flew through the air to land on his back on the couch, springs creaking beneath him. He was completely startled for a moment, his train of thought totally derailed. He could only watch in disbelief as she slammed the door behind her and locked it so quickly that he wouldn't have been able to see it through human eyes.
'There', she finally turned to him and he realised that despite the blotchy skin that was evidence of her recent tears, her eyes were not sad. They were blazing, alive with desire and passion and they were directed solely at him, penetrating him to his core. She had never looked at him like that before, like she wanted him; wanted him with every fibre of her being, untempered by guilt and relishing the burning need instead of fighting it. At once he understood the reason for her tear streaked face.
'You did it, you told him', he breathed in disbelief. She nodded vehemently, a hungry grin beginning to grow across her face.
'I did', she replied, then she grabbed the door handle and gave it an experimental twist. 'Now this door is locked', she confirmed when it remained shut fast. 'The only other person in town who knows we're here is probably not going to come looking for either of us for some time', she continued, her voice low and authoritative. Damon had never seen her like this, confident and unapologetic and it left him pulsing with excitement. 'So nobody, and I mean nobody is going to interrupt us this time, Damon. We've waited long enough, I don't want to wait any longer', she simmered, the sexy edge in her voice combining with the self-assured flick of her hair to drive Damon crazy. Encouraged by his look of incredulous lust she began to walk towards the couch, nearing his outstretched legs, which were still splayed over the arm where he had fallen. She reached for him slowly and deliberately, her eyes locking on his in a smouldering gaze. However, just as she was about to run her delicate fingers over his ankle, she felt a rush of air and her hand closed on nothing. The couch was empty.
She spun around in confusion and found Damon standing behind her, the door to the room held open to the outside corridor once more. Her face fell and a crippling humiliation began to pound in her ears as she looked at his stern face.
'Damon?' she asked, bewildered and hurt and when he saw her face fall, he couldn't keep the pretence up a moment longer. His serious expression melted into that smirk that made her stomach twist with glee. Like some kind of bizarre magician, he brought a hand out from behind his back and she saw something dangling on his finger which sent an overwhelming surge of relief through her. It was a 'do not disturb' sign.
'Just to be extra sure', he raised an eyebrow wickedly, then he swung it expertly onto the outer door handle and locked them in again in one fluid movement. A snort of laughter released the sudden panic that had built up in Elena and she gave him an exaggerated scowl as she advanced on him in a playful attack.
'Damon, I could kill you sometimes!' she roared, but she couldn't stop the grin that was fighting to spread across her face. She reached him and immediately thumped a tiny, ineffectual fist against his chest. 'I nearly had a heart att...', but that was as far as she got before Damon captured both fists in his hands and crossed her arms behind her, pulling her to him so that her back arched and her breasts were pushed forward against his chest. Then his mouth was on hers.
She could have broken his hold in a heartbeat but surrendering to him like this just made her whole body go up in flames and she ravenously returned his kiss, letting his tongue invade her mouth and savouring the taste. After a moment she couldn't bear another second of not touching him and she dragged her hands free of his grip and clutched his shoulders, pulling herself up to his height and meeting his kiss with even more force. She buried her fingers in his glorious hair and tugged his head towards her, never wanting to be further away from him than was absolutely necessary.
His hands slid down her back and pulled her flush against him then in a dizzy and thrilling spin, he turned them around so that she was pressed against the door and he jerked her up into the air so that she could wrap her legs around his waist. He thrust himself hard against her and they were both all too aware of the frustrating layers of clothing that separated the spots that were so desperate for attention. He pulled her away from the wall, taking all of her weight in his arms and she wrenched her mouth away from his to give a loud and breathy gasp. She stroked his face, her touch rough with lust and she looked deep into his eyes. Somehow this was the most erotic thing that she had done all night.
'I love you', he breathed, because he simply could not contain the words a second longer. Her hungry face softened slightly and she gave him a radiant smile, rubbing her nose gently against his.
'I love you too', she replied, holding his gaze to drink in the burst of joy that went off like fireworks in his eyes. Then she placed one more kiss on his lips before rearing back in his arms and tearing her shirt off, tossing it thoughtlessly to the floor. Damon felt himself grow even harder when he was suddenly faced with the smooth expanse of her skin. He walked them towards the couch and the next thing Elena knew she was falling through the air to land safely on her back on the plush cushions. With a sinful smirk Damon sat next to where she lay and propped one of her legs up on his shoulder. Teasingly slowly he undid the zip on the side of her boot and removed it, kissing her now bare ankle as he went. He then repeated the action on her other leg, drawing every movement out as long as he could and never breaking eye contact the entire time. Elena was beginning to think that she might explode from wanton anticipation and her whole body throbbed with excitement. Finally, he was finished and he let her legs drop back to the couch. He crawled achingly slowly over her body until he reached her middle where he placed hot kisses along her stomach, tasting every inch of the silky skin that ran along the waistband of her pants. When she began to moan with the intense pleasure, he stopped and gave her an infuriating grin that only made her want him more. He flicked open the button on her jeans and, in one animalistic movement, he ripped them from her body, leaving her in only her underwear, gasping and foggy with lust.
She reached for him, wanting to feel his weight on top of her and he obliged her, nuzzling her neck and kissing slowly down her chest. When he reached her breasts her bra seemed to miraculously ping away, then she realised that he had severed the material with his fangs and he gave her a filthy, unrepentant grin. He teased each breast in turn, using his tongue to manipulate her nipples in an exquisite torture. At last he continued his journey across her stomach and she felt him reaching the hot, aching spot that had been crying out for him for so long. He expertly peeled her panties away and slid them down her legs until she was no longer encumbered by them. The smell of her own arousal was overpowering and for a moment she felt embarrassed, but, from the entranced look in Damon's eyes as he leaned down towards her, she was sure that he didn't mind. In actual fact, Damon had never smelled anything so intoxicating. His head edged closer towards her bent knees and slowly his tongue danced up her thigh until he was so close that she was almost helpless with desire.
He flicked his tongue once over the exact spot where Elena craved him and she let out a desperate little whimper that made Damon shiver all over. He buried his head between her thighs and Elena steadily built towards a transcendent ecstasy like she had never felt before. Nothing had ever been like this before, not with anyone. Damon seemed to know exactly how she wanted to be touched and even the tiniest movement urged her further towards an earth shattering climax. When she finally exploded, clenching around him and screaming with wild abandon, Damon felt utterly jubilant. He drew back quickly to sit up again so that he could watch the last waves of her orgasm rippling across her face, her legs splayed and twitching over his lap. She looked utterly magnificent. He sensuously stroked the back of her calves while she lay gasping, her thoughts in total disarray. He kissed her knees gently and she groaned as her senses began to return.
Suddenly, breathing heavily, she forced herself up onto her elbows and turned her scorching eyes on Damon who still sat fully clothed next to her, his face playfully smug. Immediately she was upon him, straddling his lap and pressing him into the couch.
'Too many clothes', she hissed and in seconds she had torn his shirt open and was raking her hands up and down his chest, loving the strong, masculine feel of his muscles. He threw his head back and moaned, wishing that she would start on his pants soon because he was straining so hard against them that it was becoming painful. She pulled him up towards her and began to shower his face with sweet, loving kisses, tasting herself on his skin, while she yanked the shirt off his arms and threw it over her shoulder. Damon groaned and wriggled excitedly as her kisses dropped lower and he cried out in pleasure when she mischievously caught his nipple in her teeth. Then she edged back on his lap until she slid off completely, slowly descending to her knees on the floor between his legs, her body still propped up over his stomach. That was the point at which Damon truly began to lose control. She traced the lines of his stomach with her tongue and slid lower until she reached his belt and impishly ran her fingers around the edges as he had done with her.
'Elena', he gasped, 'You are going to be the death of me.' She grinned and rose up on her knees towards his face again, pressing her lips teasingly to his.
'Well you're already dead, so I guess there's nothing to worry about', she nipped at his lower lip and without waiting for his reaction, she yanked off his belt and tore his fly open in one flick of her arm. She sunk back onto her haunches on the floor and wrestled the jeans and black boxer shorts off his legs as one until, finally, he was naked.
He looked down at her, kneeling at his feet with a nervous yet naughty smile and he had to restrain himself from grabbing her and driving himself into her right there on the floor. She ran her hands slowly up his legs and over his hips, bypassing the hard, aching place that needed her. She considered her next action carefully for a second, she was not very experienced but Damon's utter captivation with her made her feel bold and confident and she desperately wanted to give him something wonderful. After only a brief hesitation, she held his eyes meaningfully and gave a devilish smile as she slowly lowered her head and took him into her mouth. Even though he had watched her descent as if in slow motion, he had somehow still not believed that she would actually wrap her tight, full lips around him and when she did his bran emptied entirely. All that was left was the maddening sensation of her tongue gliding up and down his length and swirling deliciously around the tip. He could not even form a coherent thought, it was all too incredible to be true. He lost himself in her as she continued her firm strokes up and down, her hand idly skimming his hip bones, until it was almost too much. With a herculean effort he fought his way back to lucidity. As much as he was enjoying this, he didn't want it to finish this way on their first time. He wanted to be able to hold her close and look into her eyes as they finally came together.
With this thought in his mind, he reached down and gently stroked her hair, encouraging her to lift her face to look at him. Before she had a chance to be upset, he grasped her shoulders and guided her urgently up towards him. She sprung from her knees and followed his lead, her skin slithering electrifyingly against his until she was straddling him again.
'I need you ...' he gasped brokenly, his voice languid and so sexy in her ear that she understood his actions were no critique of her technique. 'I need you all around me', he finished, feverishly kissing her neck and face before finally pulling back to look into her eyes. She was already thrumming with need again and eager to finally be one with Damon. His blue eyes seemed to sparkle as she sunk helplessly into them. They silently sought her permission and through the thick haze of lust that surrounded them, she managed to nod her head, a dazed smile on her face. Gently he seized her hips and raised her up slightly before she took the initiative and eased herself slowly down onto him. A guttural moan escaped each of them and their eyes locked. Damon looked amazed, heartbroken and shattered with bliss all at once and Elena's heart swelled with the most intense, pure love that she had ever experienced. After a second of shock where nothing existed but the cerulean world of his eyes, Damon's fingers tightened on her flesh and urged her into a slow, fulfilling rhythm.
Elena, rode him steadily, a relentless heat building between her legs and her whole body began to feel in synch with Damon. Their gasping breaths came as one and their little groans and mewls of pleasure began to echo one another. Gradually their pace increased, the desperate need within them growing as they slammed uncontrollably into each other. Damon's arm snaked firmly around her and he forced her recklessly down onto her back, falling on top of her and filling her up with a shatteringly gratifying force over and over again. He felt his desire coiling violently in his stomach and then suddenly his climax hit him in devastating waves as he drove her into the cushions with each wild, uncontrollable thrust. The sight of him crying out and beginning to shudder in ecstasy was enough to drive Elena over the edge and she too came apart around him with a growl of satisfaction, clasping his shoulders frantically.
They stayed joined for a moment, staring at each other and gasping for breath that they no longer needed. Damon looked as though all those years of hatred and despair had been wiped away. She thought warmly that it could have been his human face that lingered over her and she reached up to trace her fingertip along his perfect mouth. He jokingly bit at it and then a grunt of almost drunken laughter escaped him. He finally rolled off her and collapsed onto his back beside her on the couch. They were silent for a long time, hardly able to believe what had just happened but somehow, deep inside, both of them felt like a part of themselves that had been missing for as long as they could remember was finally complete.
At last Damon turned onto his side and threw an arm lazily across her stomach, drawing his finger in loose patterns up and down her arm. The smile he gave her was almost shy and Elena was utterly overcome with how much she loved him. Her hand reached up to comb through his now unruly hair and she basked in his loving gaze. Her chest heaved in a happy, languorous sigh.
'That was amazing', she finally whispered, gently stroking his cheek. Swiftly that devilish, exciting smirk spread across his face and he forced a pout, clicking his tongue reprovingly.
'Oh honey', he drawled sarcastically, shaking his head as if he was talking to a naive child. 'You thought that was it?' he raised an eyebrow deviously. She immediately began to giggle uncontrollably as he leapt to his feet and swept her up into his arms. 'That was just the appetiser', he grinned wickedly and with no further hesitation, he carried her off towards the bedroom.
When Damon awoke the next morning, he was exhausted, sore all over and suffused with a happiness that seemed to saturate every cell of his body. The notion flitted through his head that the previous night had all been a dream and he reached his arm across the bed to pull Elena to him, reassuring himself of her presence, but all his hand closed on was bedsheets. His eyes flew open and he realised that he was alone in the bed. He shot into a sitting position and looked around the room but Elena was nowhere to be seen. Worry grew in the pit of his stomach and he groped for his bag, finding some underwear and pulling them on. He hurriedly padded through to the living area and immediately he saw Elena sitting on the floor by the window, her back against the wall and her head leaning on the glass. She had wrapped a spare sheet around her and clutched it tightly about her shoulders. She looked up from beneath the sexy tangle of her hair and her face lit up, quelling any worry that was gnawing at him.
'Hey', he smiled, suddenly feeling silly for ever doubting her. 'What are you doing?' She shook her head, looking slightly embarrassed.
'Nothing', she replied sheepishly, 'I just ... I've never seen the Golden Gate Bridge before', she admitted turning back to the picture postcard view beyond the window. He felt a rush of tenderness but he was slowly becoming aware of that deathly pallor that had crept back into her cheeks and the lethargy in her voice.
'Do you want some blood?' he asked softly. She nodded wearily, relieved that he had offered before she had to ask. He quickly retrieved a bag from the cooler that he had safely stowed in the bottom of a wardrobe and poured two glasses. He stopped by the mini bar and rummaged inside looking for some more scotch, just in case. Elena watched him contentedly almost able to ignore the persistent burning at the back of her throat. There was a curious and deep-seated satisfaction in seeing him happy. She noticed how much more carefree his every action had suddenly become and her heart was brimming with affection. Suddenly he emerged from plundering the mini bar with a mischievous grin.
'Candy?' he asked, tossing a bag at her. She caught it effortlessly and returned his smile.
'Damon this probably costs about fifty dollars', she joked, shaking her head. Damon shrugged dismissively as he walked towards her and handed her one of the glasses of blood.
'I'm not above compelling someone for M&Ms, just eat them', he quipped. She giggled and took a long gulp from the glass. Immediately she began to feel better. Her headache was now so constant that she was starting to get used to it, but it was still a relief to feel it ease a little and the demands of her thirst being quenched to a low, manageable rumble. Damon sat down, leaning against the wall opposite her, their feet almost touching and he watched her as she stared out of the window.
'This is beautiful', she mused presently as the sun sparkled on the waters of the bay. Damon would never really have given it much thought probably but, when his attention was drawn to it by Elena's young eyes, he had to agree. 'I've never really been out of Mystic Falls before', she told him quietly. 'I never really gave any thought to how much of the world I was missing', she sighed. Damon smiled.
'You've got plenty of time to see it all, Elena. After this is all over we can go. We can go together, anywhere you want.' She finally tore her gaze away from the window and turned to him, delight painted across her face.
'Really?' she asked incredulously.
'Anywhere you want to go, just name it', he nodded emphatically. She grinned as the prospect worked its way temptingly through her mind.
'Paris?' she blurted out her first suggestion.
'Mais oui!' Damon agreed in a ridiculously exaggerated French accent. 'Excellent suggestion. As long as you don't mind the garlic!' he continued in a stage whisper. A giggle exploded uncontrollably out of her as she warmed to this new game.
'New York?' she exclaimed excitedly.
'You want to take a bite out of the big apple? No problem', Damon waved his arm dismissively, an expansive grin growing across his face. She laughed and her mind hastily began to dance around the globe.
'London?' she hissed, her eyes alight with mirth.
'Very stylish', Damon nodded. 'I can show you the real meaning of having royal blood', he wiggled his eyebrows villainously as she snorted with laughter. Then her face calmed and her features softened into an utterly winning smile.
'Venice', she made her last proposal, dropping her voice and trying hard to achieve the dark, velvety tone that he normally used. It was not lost on him and she was pleased with herself as she saw the hunger spark in his eyes.
'Ooh, sexy', he approved her choice, his voice like melted chocolate, then his face dissolved into a smirk. 'I doubt we'd make it out of the bedroom there', he added wickedly, 'not judging by last night.'
'Damon!' she giggled, hiding behind her fingers in embarrassment. He laughed at her reaction and opened his arms to her. She shook her head good-naturedly and scrambled across the floor to snuggle into his waiting embrace, twisting around so that she had her back against him and could still look out of the window. He wrapped his arms around her and settled his head on her shoulder, his lips brushing her ear. He held her tight and sighed contentedly.
'I mean it', he told her softly. 'I'll go anywhere as long as you're there. I want to show you the world, Elena. You'll love it, I promise', he murmured into her hair. Elena's happiness threatened to overflow and she craned her head around to kiss him softly and lazily. Damon stroked her hair and smiled down at her. 'Hey', he started suddenly, 'what do you say we start now and go out for some breakfast? I doubt my brother will be looking for us for a few hours yet?' Damon's suggestion suddenly sounded like a great idea. Now that she had taken some blood she was feeling much more robust and perhaps some clandestine pancakes with Damon were just what she needed.
'Sure', she agreed, kissing him quickly. 'I can't go like this though', she grinned, pulling the sheets tighter around her. Damon got up, pulling her to her feet and raked his eyes up and down her body, barely concealed beneath the thin sheets.
'Well, if I had my choice...' he began with a smirk, but she interrupted him with an exaggerated exclamation of outrage and swatted him away.
'I'm just going to go back to my room to change, I'll be quick', she promised, heading for the door and scooping up her ruined clothes from the night before.
'You'd better be', Damon growled, moving in on her and enfolding her in his arms, kissing her deeply. When at last she broke away her lips were adorably swollen and her eyes slightly dazed.
'Fifteen minutes', she assured him and after one more brief kiss she opened the door and glanced furtively up and down the corridor to make sure the coast was clear.
'Wait!' he called suddenly, grabbing the back of her sheet and propelling her back towards him.
'Damon!' she gasped in a hushed voice, clutching more tightly to the one thing separating her from nudity, but she was still giggling.
'Here, you had better take one of these', he told her and produced a key card to his room. She nodded, but before she could take it he planted it firmly in her cleavage with a devilish grin.
'Damon, I will ...' she started to threaten him playfully but he made an overblown gesture of putting his finger to his lips.
'You don't want to wake the hotel guests do you?' he teased and she continued to stifle her laughter as he tickled her and pretended to snatch her sheet away before she finally made her escape and scampered along the corridor. He watched as she reached her door and felt his heart swell to the point of bursting when she paused on the threshold and gave him one last soulful look before she disappeared inside.
Damon quickly drew back into his room and closed the door, thumping his fists on the back of it in a celebratory gesture that was impossible to restrain. He took a long stretch, arching his back decadently and let out a groan of the most wonderful exhaustion. He couldn't remember ever feeling so alive with happiness, not in life or death. For the first time in over a hundred years, he was actually looking forward to tomorrow. He was so unaccustomed to the emotion that he had to stop for a moment and let his mind boggle at the enormity of it. He made his way towards the bathroom, a smile sneaking across his face every time he thought of the previous night and reminded himself that it was all real. Last night had been incredible, hot and intense and draining in the very best way. As he turned on the shower he felt himself stirring again at the memory of her lithe, smooth body draped over his, her hair feathering his face and filling him with blissful contentment.
He made quick work of showering and by the time he had dressed and headed back towards the living area, Elena had already returned and was standing once again at the window. She turned to face him with a smile.
'Hi', she looked up shyly from under her lashes.
'That was quick', he grinned. 'If that's all the time you take to get ready then this just gets better and better', he raised an eyebrow. She laughed and held out her hand, inviting him to join her. It was not an invitation that needed to be extended twice. She looked ravishing. She was dressed all in black, just like him, and her tight top showed a generous amount of cleavage. Her face was clean and sweet and she had swept her hair to the side with a cute silver pin. 'You look pretty fancy for breakfast', he observed, eyeing her ravenously as he moved in behind her and secured his arms around her. He intuitively suspected that the outfit was all for him, she wanted to look nice for him and he felt ridiculously flattered.
'You don't like it?' she gave an overblown pout.
'Oh I like it', he assured her quickly, nuzzling into her throat, his lips brushing her shoulder. 'It's just that you might end up being breakfast instead of eating it', he breathed into her neck as he continued to leave sizzling, open mouthed kisses across her skin. She groaned happily and leaned into him.
'Damon', she finally sighed, 'we can't do this forever'. He sighed and pulled away, turning her around in his arms and clasping his hands behind her back.
'Why not?' he stuck out his bottom lip, resting his forehead against hers. She laughed and shook her head exasperatedly.
'Because we still have bigger problems', she told him ruefully. 'We still don't know why my mind keeps wandering off into Katherine's memories and we haven't even begun to talk about Klaus', she fretted, looking up at him. Damon suddenly frowned, taken aback and stepped away from her.
'Klaus?' he repeated, moving to the couch and sitting down, his eyes clouded. In actual fact he had been thinking about Klaus, a lot. Between the fire, the hospital and last night's episode they had not really had time to dwell on it but it had been the first thing his brain had started mulling over when the silence fell on that tortuous car journey. He knew that Stefan's thoughts would also be circling the same topic. Stefan knew Klaus to well to take the possibility of his survival lightly. But since Elena had never raised the subject again they had both come to a tacit, subconscious agreement to keep their concerns quiet. Neither of them had wanted to worry her any further.
'What if Katherine was right?' Elena continued anxiously. 'What if he's still around? We could all be in even more danger than we realise.'
'She's not and he's not', Damon turned to her cautiously, trying to sound reassuring. 'We took care of Klaus, remember? He's dead. You don't need to worry about him.' Damon was lying. He didn't want to ruin the buoyant contentment they had been floating on and he hated to see her brow crease in worry like this but the words tasted wrong on his tongue. Elena immediately cocked her head to one side admonishingly.
'Then why are you and Stefan still alive?' she hissed in a warning tone. 'I thought we said no more secrets Damon. I thought we were past all that, especially after last night.' He groaned and dropped his head back on the couch.
'I'm not keeping secrets, Elena, I promise', he exclaimed exasperatedly then he turned and motioned invitingly to her from where he sat. She watched him for a moment, her arms folded defensively across her chest then her face softened into weary acceptance and she approached him, taking his hand and letting him draw her down into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight, looking her squarely in the eye. 'I know as much about Klaus as you do', he admitted sincerely. 'Maybe he's alive and maybe he's dead but he hasn't made any move on us yet so I can only tell you that we're safe for now. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it', he reasoned, soothingly stroking her hair and then he took her face in his hands to ensure that he had her full attention. 'To be honest, I don't care either way', he continued. 'All I care about is getting that beautiful head of yours sorted out and being free of her. Then you and I can ... concentrate on being together.' His thumb brushed over her cheek as he struggled with the unfamiliarity of the words. Those large brown pools flickered from his lips up to his eyes. 'Isn't that what you want?' he asked softly. A smile slowly grew on her face and she nodded. He filled with relief and gladly pulled her close to kiss her again. She responded warmly and soon her lips travelled across his cheek bone and began to nibble gently at his ear lobe. He was just beginning to drown under her touch when suddenly her voice piped up again.
'But Damon, what if he's been watching us? What if he followed us here?' she whined anxiously. Damon exhaled vigorously, allowing his arms to drop from her, concern starting to creep up his spine.
'He didn't!' Damon assured her sharply.
'But how do you know?' she pressed, pulling back and gazing at him, her face twisted with worry, an expression that seemed to cause him physical pain.
'Because I checked, okay?' he blurted out heatedly. Elena looked taken aback and he felt guilty for getting riled, he just couldn't bear to see those beautiful eyes troubled. He gently took a hold of her shoulders and held her at arm's length. 'Look, I remembered everything that you said about Klaus and I was watching the road like a hawk the night we left', he reluctantly admitted. Elena's face relaxed with relief. 'I'm sure he wouldn't admit it but I know that Stefan's mind was working along the same lines and he was watching too. Believe me, between us we would have caught anyone trying to follow us from Mystic Falls', he assured her. He watched her for a moment, making sure this had sunk in. 'Now you're starting to scare me a little Elena. Why the sudden interest in Klaus? What is all this about?' he cajoled her uneasily. She stared at him for a moment, her eyes searching and then there was a brief flash of what could almost have been amusement in her face.
'You really don't know anything about it, do you?' she breathed, her voice now calm and steady. Damon sagged with relief.
'No', he agreed, tightening his hold on her again and pulling her close. 'But I'll tell you what I do know about ...' he trailed off, his voice rumbling against her ear as he began to run his finger teasingly around the neckline of her top, straying dangerously close to her breasts. She lifted her head and looked at him with lively eyes, a sense of indecision racing through her expression, then Damon saw a resolution in her face and she swooped forward to kiss him.
She wrapped her arms around his neck as the kiss deepened and Damon gratefully met her tongue with his own. He tipped her from his lap onto the couch, coming down on top of her and urgently grinding against her. She let out a little moan of pleasure and Damon felt a smile quirk at his lips. Until he heard another sound. It was the most blood chilling, heart stopping sound he could possibly have heard. It was his name and it had been spoken with horror. But the noise had not come from beneath him. He snapped his head up and looked towards the direction of the voice. There, standing by the door, was Elena. Elena in her familiar jeans and mauve sweater, her eyes wide with shock and devastation, the keycard he had given her still in her hand. He could never mistake that look, it was so human, still full of the vulnerability that had not yet been completely leached out of her since her transition. This was definitely Elena. His face was a picture of confusion and he began to shake his head wordlessly, then he heard the dark giggle from underneath him and understanding came crashing down. He flew from the couch at vampire speed to stand next to Elena, his body tensed defensively and his face apoplectic with rage. A sideways glance at her expression told him that she had just come to the same realisation.
'Katherine!' he hissed, his voice aflame with hatred.
Katherine sat up sat up slowly on the couch and leaned over the back of the seat, her arms stretching nonchalantly along the cushions. The resemblance really was incredible. Now that Elena was a vampire too there was literally no way to tell them apart.
'Oops, busted', she drawled deviously, then she turned her waspish, malevolent glare on Elena and purred, 'looks like I've got some shiny new memories too.'