Hello there lovelies!

I'm so sorry for the delay but as I promised I bring you a new chapter. I really really like this one so I hope you like it as well and that it was worth the wait.

I want to thank Amber who is an awsome beta and it's taking time to correct this even if she's on vacations.

Please enjoy!

Love,

Sam

"It's not fair to show someone the sun and then banish him from it. Even the devil may cry when looks around hell and realizes that he's there alone."

Sherrilyn Kenyon

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"Okay! I think this might be the worst idea you've ever had" Elena hissed at her blonde best friend from the passenger side of the silver minivan.

Caroline rolled her eyes at her friend for what seemed like the tenth time that day, "Relax, we'll be fine!"

Elena huffed and crossed her arms in front of her chest while her eyes were fixated on the road, "I don't know how you convinced me to do this. Damon will kill us!"

The blonde chuckled, "You will bat those long pretty eyelashes at him and it will all be okay."

"Don't be so sure!" Elena muttered looking extremely put out and worried.

"Just look how excited she is!" Caroline said gesturing towards the back seat and Elena turned around to see the cheerful face of the five-year old Maytana whose eyes were wide apart, wondrously drinking in her environ through the car window.

Elena sighed and had to agree with Caroline, if Damon was going to be angry with her afterwards it was going to be worth it, just to see those green eyes twinkle with excitement.

Two weeks had passed by since Elena and Damon had shared that blissful day when they had pretended be someone else to escape the horrors that were besetting their lives, but like in life nothing was easy or permanent, two days after an untraceable box with a message from Klaus had arrived. Damon was losing his mind because the inability to track and get the Russian man aroused a feeling of impotency that he could not abide. He had ordered a complete lock down on the house and no one but him and his men were allowed to leave the house.

Before that event, Caroline had promised little Maytana that she would take her to see Aladdin in a Broadway production, the blonde even got the tickets but Damon had said that it was absolutely out of the question. That had been almost two weeks ago and since then there hadn't been any sign of Klaus lurking around them, and so the chipper blonde had decided to sneak out for a few hours during the day and take the little girl to Broadway.

Elena had no idea how, but she had found herself complicit in this scheme, so now she was accompanying the blonde in her defiant mission and expecting to deal with Damon's wrath once they arrived back home.

"Is Princess Jasmine going to be there?" Maytana asked excitedly as Elena took her in her arms, climbed out of the van and put her on the floor with her little hand tucked securely in hers.

"Yes she is!" Caroline said with a grin as they walked into the theater.

Elena's heart was beating a mile a minute with fear as they walked but she tried to stay rational and calm her errant thoughts, Klaus hadn't made an appearance in two weeks. What were the odds of him knowing exactly when they were going to sneak out? Besides Elena doubted that he would try to do something in broad daylight in the middle of Times Square. So she told herself there was no need to be afraid and to just enjoy the moment with the little girl.

Thirty minutes into the show, Elena knew that it was all going to be worth it, not only was Maytana almost quivering with excitement, Elena herself was bowled over and amazed as the fantasy world unfolded itself in front of her for the first time, and when 'A whole new world' started, tears leaked out of her eyes from the sheer beauty of the moment.

"It was the best ever!" Maytana shouted as they exited the theater, "I want be Princess Jasmine!"

Elena threw her head back and laughed joyously alongside Caroline, "You already are a princess, little girl!"

Giggling and discussing the show and their favourite moments and the songs, the three girls climbed back into the van and after picking up some pastries from one of Caroline's favorite bakeries, they were on their way back to the Salvatore mansion. They prepared themselves for the umbrage they were sure to receive from the Salvatore brothers who were waiting for them impatient as hell considering the number of phone calls they had made in the last couple of hours.

"I'm going to blame all of it on you," Elena told her friend while Maytana slept soundlessly in the backseat.

"Oh don't worry," The blonde chuckled, "I can take it."

A few minutes into the road leading home Elena saw her sister-in-law getting tense, "What is it?" she asked but Caroline only shook her head dismissively.

"Nothing!"

A frown appeared on Elena's forehead as she saw her friend taking a wrong turn, "Care, the way isn't over there," she pointed out.

"I know!" Caroline said calmly her eyes completely fixed on the road, the blonde made another turn that took her to a more populated area of the city.

"Caroline what is going on?" Elena asked, her heart beating wildly in her chest, because she was certain that her friend's behavior wasn't normal.

"I think we're being followed," the blonde muttered and Elena's eyes widened in response, "Don't freak out. Look behind, there's a black suburban. It's been behind us for a while now."

"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" Elena cursed, "I knew this was a bad idea!"

"No time to start making accusations," Caroline told her and for the first time Elena detected the nervous edge in her voice. "Dial Damon and put him on speaker."

Elena wasted no time and took her mobile out of her purse and immediately did what she was told. The phone rang exactly twice before Damon's angry voice started bellowing, "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

"Damon calm down," Caroline intervened. "We need help."

"What happened?" he said with a sudden shift in attitude, as soon as he heard the worry in his sister-in-law's voice.

"Someone's following us," Caroline said and Elena looked behind to see if the little girl in the backseat was still sleeping; she was and she hoped the girl would remain that way until they managed to get back to the house. She was still too young to be caught up in all of this.

"Where are you?" he asked in a clipped tone. The sound of doors slamming could be heard and Elena let out a sigh of relief at knowing Damon was going to come to get them.

"We're right in front of St. George's market," Caroline said. "I'm trying to stay on busy streets but that makes it impossible for me to get to the road towards the mansion."

"Head in direction of Boerum Hill," Damon instructed. "We're fifteen minutes away." Caroline nodded despite the fact that her brother-in-law couldn't see her and did as he instructed. "Try to lose them off St. Mark's avenue and then head in the direction north so you can get into the highway."

"Okay, got it!"

"Elena…" Damon whispered, his voice filled with worry and emotion "Turn on the locator on your phone so we can track you, Caroline you turn on the one in the car." Damon bit out and both girls felt dumb and embarrassed for what they had allowed to happen.

Caroline did as Damon told her and breathed a sigh of relief when she looked behind and saw that the suburban was no longer behind them. "I think we lost them." she talked into the phone.

"Good, we're a few minutes away now."

Caroline put her foot on the gas and tried to drive as fast as she could without risking an accident. Elena looked back to see Maytana and that's when she saw that the black SUV had reappeared and seemed to be headed towards them at full speed.

"They're right behind us," Elena's voice dripped with fear and she could hear Damon cursing in the distance.

"Speed up Caroline!" he said through clenched teeth. Elena glanced back to make sure the sleeping toddler was alright.

"How far are you Damon?" Elena's voice quivered as she spoke.

"Just a few minutes, baby girl."

It seemed as if everything around her was moving in slow motion, Elena glanced back and saw the exact moment the black SUV hit their vehicle. She felt the blow and heard Caroline's squeal as she lost control of the van and they went skidding off the ground.

Elena's head bumped against the window and she felt a trace of hot blood running down the length of her cheek but she didn't dwell on it. After checking to see if Caroline was okay, she unstrapped herself from the seat belt and turned around to pick up the little girl who although crying was luckily completely uninjured.

"We need to get out of the car," she heard Caroline's voice as she watched her reaching for a gun stashed in the glove compartment.

Three men dressed in all-black stepped out of the SUV that had just hit them but as they started to approach them the screeching sound of another car was heard and Elena and Caroline had to duck down inside the car as gunshots started to rain behind them.

Maytana cried more loudly so Elena held her to her chest while trying to to comfort and keep her calm. She watched Caroline stepping out of the vehicle and sighed when her friend told her everything was all right now. Elena followed her friend's example and climbed out of the car just in time to see the bodies of two of the men chasing them and the third one being dragged into the car by a raging Enzo.

"Are you two out of your fucking minds?!" Elena heard the fuming voice of her husband and directed her eyes towards his enraged form walking towards them. "Do you have an idea how stupid you were?!" Out of the corner of her eye she could see Caroline and Stefan in a heated argument but couldn't hear what they were saying because unlike his brother he was speaking in heated whispers.

"I'm sorry okay!" she cried as he stood in front of her, Maytana was still crying and her little hands were clutched around Elena's neck. Damon's eyes went to the little girl and practically ripped her out of Elena's arms into his, he kissed the side of the child's head and pressed her into his chest while his eyes looked at Elena with a mixture of anger and fear. "I could kill you myself Elena Salvatore!" he muttered before extending his arm and pulling her into his embrace as well. "Don't you ever do that to me again," he whispered against her skin as he prepped kisses all over her face. "You scared the shit out of me Elena."

Maytana was only whimpering now as Damon held them both in his arms. Elena wanted to smack herself when the significance of the Caroline and her reckless behavior hit her, the weight of guilt made her heart clench. Not only could both of them had died today but also Maytana who was still so young and innocent could have lost her life before it even started and Mrs. Flowers would have lost everything.

Damon took Elena and Caroline back to the mansion while Stefan stayed behind with Alaric to clean up the mess. They were in complete silence the entire time as the atmosphere in the car bristled with unspoken tension. Maytana was fast asleep in Elena's arms and she thanked God that nothing bad had happened to the little girl.

With tear stained eyes Elena handed over the sleeping girl to her grandmother who clutched her tightly to her chest while reassuring Elena that there was nothing to be sorry for, the younger woman wondered briefly just how much tragedy Mrs. Flowers had seen in her life to remain calm and not be too distressed about the event that had taken place a little while ago.

The silence was deafening as Elena and Damon headed towards their bedroom, silent tears streamed down her face as his body shook with barely contained anger. The moment the door of the room closed behind them all hell broke loose.

"What the fuck were you two thinking?" he shouted at her as he started pacing the length of the room. His blue eyes were blazing with fury as he stared at her and for the first time in a long while Elena felt afraid of him.

She looked down sniffing, "I'm sorry!"

His jaw clenched at seeing the tears silently trail down her face, "Sorry isn't good enough Elena!"

She raised her tear stained eyes and looked pleadingly at him, "Damon I'm…"

He raised a hand in the air and stopped his pacing to stare at her, "No, just stop. Don't try to sweet talk your way out of this. I gave a fucking order Elena and when I command something I expect to be followed," he lashed out and saw the minute her eyes changed from regretful to angry.

She moved away from the wall where she had been slumped against and stood right in front of him, "I'm not a fucking child Damon, you can't command me to do shit!"

He laughed sardonically, "Apparently you are, because your stupidity and childish attitude almost got you all killed!"

She clenched her jaw so hard her head started to ache, she couldn't believe he could be this mean to her minutes after she almost got killed "Well this isn't something I would have to worry about it if I wasn't married to you!" she saw him flinch at her words but was so blinded by her own anger that she didn't even care. "Everything that happened today was because the life you live is full of violence and blood!"

He closed his eyes as if it pained him to hear what she was saying, "Don't fucking push me Elena," his eyes were stormy when he opened them again and his voice low and dangerous as he spoke. "You're so damn naïve that you don't recognize the fact that you've been living this 'life' your whole existence. You just never realized it before"

Angry tears escaped from her eyes, "I hate you!"

"No you don't!" he told her harshly, "The stunt you two pulled today could have cost you your lives and Maytana's. I can't believe you were foolish enough to allow that," he spat out before turning around and heading towards the door but Elena moved fast enough to latch her hands onto his arm and force him to stop.

"Don't you fucking dare walk out that door, you stupid, arrogant asshole!" she bit out in his face.

He shook his arm away from her hand and raised an eye brow, "Excuse me?"

She huffed in exasperation, "You're the most disgusting son of a bitch I've ever had the misfortune to meet," her voice quivered and Damon's anger started to subdue. "I almost died today Damon, I just experienced one of the most traumatic experiences of my entire life and instead of comforting me like any normal husband would, you're here yelling at me!" she had started crying and Damon's hand itched with the desire to pull her into his arms and comfort her.

"Don't start with…"

"I was scared as fuck and you don't even care!" she shouted between sobs. "It's been a damn rough night, so stop yelling at me. I understand what I did was careless but I am the victim here Damon, you have no reason to be so hard on me!"

"I am so hard on you because I love you damn it!" he exploded.

Elena stared dumbstruck at him for a few seconds and her expression was reflected in his face as well, as if he couldn't believe the words that had left his mouth, "Damon…"

"You were scared as fuck?! I was fucking terrified Elena!" now that he had started Damon didn't think he was able to stop, "Do you have any idea of what I felt during those moments? Never in my life have I been so scared of something," his voice broke down at the end and Elena raised her hand to touch him but he flinched away from her.

"I…"

"I felt like I was going to die Elena!" he choked out as he moved backwards bumping into the bed. "You understand that? You managed to find a way into my heart and now there's no way of getting you out. I fought this for so long because how could I know what love is? I am a monster Elena; I've never been anything else… I thought I couldn't possible love but then you…" his eyes filled with tears that he refused to let escape, as he stared at her. "You walked into my life and now I…I must love you Elena because I don't know what this feeling is that I have inside me." He took a hand to his chest and rubbed the skin there as if that way he could make some sense of what he was feeling.

"You know I love you too Damon, you know that I too would die if something happened to you," she said as she moved towards him. "But it wasn't my fault."

"I know, I fucking know that Elena," he bit out as he let himself sink into the floor. "But I felt so out of control. I'm so angry at you for making me feel this way," he thumped a hand against his chest as he spoke, "for putting yourself at risk. I'm so fucking angry."

"I'm sorry!" she kneeled down in front of him and took his face between her hands, pressing kisses into any expanse of skin she could find. "I'm sorry for what we did Damon"

He shook his hand and took his hand to her waist, dragging her closer to his body, locking her in the safety of his embrace. "I'm sorry for being such an asshole to you Elena," he kissed the spot where her shoulder met her neck, "For dragging you into this messy world, for doing everything I did."

Elena sighed, "Damon it's okay. I'm sorry for what I did."

"No it's not. I don't deserve you," a wretched sob was torn out of his throat but his eyes remained dry of tears, "I never did!" They slumped back until she was sitting on the floor and he was curled on the floor with his head in her lap.

She caressed his hair softly as she whispered, "That's not true!"

"It is. Someone like me can't hold something as precious as you without breaking it or tarnishing it," his hand bunched the hem of her dress as she spoke; his knuckles were white from how hard he was gripping the fabric.

"Don't say that!" Elena said softly as she caressed him and felt him relaxing under her touch.

He was silent for a few seconds and she wondered if he had fallen asleep, when he spoke again his voice sounded raw and tired, "It's the truth. But I fucking need you too much to let you go."

"I don't want to be let go off," Elena said wholeheartedly.

No matter how hard she had resisted the union at the beginning now she couldn't for the life of her imagine her world without Damon in it, she had become addicted to him and knew that she would rather die than be parted from him.

"I'm so sorry Elena," he said against the fabric of her dress, "I'm so sorry!"

In that moment Damon finally understood what true love was, he realized that no matter what he had believed his entire life he was indeed capable of feeling it. He loved Elena and because he loved her he knew he had to let go of her. Because love was more than just wanting to be with the person you cared about, it's wanting that person to be safe, happy and loved even if it's not at your side.

For the first time Damon knew he couldn't be selfish, because being selfish meant destroying the one thing that mattered the most to him.

Damon Salvatore loved Elena Gilbert and because of that he was going to let her go.