We lay hand in hand, head to head, eye to eye

The stars staring down, as if they were in envy

The moon radiating light upon us, as if it we were a showcase

The passion which was united, a passion of true love

Passion which wrote upon paper, can never portray my passion for you

True passion is like a song, A never ending list of cords and notes

An innovation of a creative mind, written from the soul and heart

A never ending canvas of joys and memories

True passion can never die, it can never fade away, for it lies deep down

You are my true passion, my true calling, my true love

Chapter 21

He remembered. He remembered how awful his days had been without her. Times when he had rubbed his chest with a hand, asking himself why was it every time he thought of her, he experienced this damnable pain in his chest, like a giant vise squeezing the breath from him? The way he had kept smashing one capable hand into the palm of the other. Something was happening to him, something he didn't like, something over which he had no control. And then he had finally realised it.

He was in love.

And damn did it feel good and hurt at the same time. He was in love with Caroline Forbes, his former secretary and his childhood friend. This feeling had hit him so hard. He loved her, he really really loved her. With his heart, his soul and everything he got. He had been trying to put the pieces of his life together, to sort them in a semblance of order. Now his life was upside down again when she stormed into it. If he had a thousand willing, beautiful women falling at his feet, Klaus would have looked right through them as if they'd been carved from glass. When he loved a woman, no others existed. Caroline existed for him. He had thought he had lost her, but she was with him now, in his arms and he craved nothing more than a taste of her.

His heart lifted, his spirits soared. There was still hope, still that chance to win her back. To make her declare her love for him. To hear her say she had forgiven him. He still wanted her, still loved her! Alone, away from everyone, he had her and he intended to show her just how much he had missed her.

"I missed you," he whispered huskily, his hand touching everywhere he could find. She was shaking her head. Her heart escalated; her senses filled with his nearness. His hand came to her face and her eyes lowered as cool fingertips brushed along her hairline. She turned her face into the warmth of his hand. A lone tear slipped down her cheek. His thumb tenderly caught it, banishing the sweet drop in a gentle caress across her cheek. "Caroline, tell me."

She looked up to see the concerned in his gaze. It startled her and then she wondered why. There seemed to be no limits to everything about him. It was him who hated and made her life terrible. It was him who made her heart leap and pound with a strange fluttering excitement and fear the moment she saw him. It was him who she had missed so much. It was him she thought about while she was kissing her boyfriend. It was him who appeared each night in the secret place of her dreams, who carried her so far that she was forced to question her feelings. She was so damn tired of pretending. Not anymore. But everything was so messed up. Klaus was with her, but he was so far away.

"Tell me," he continued, cupping her chin in the palm of his large hand. "What's wrong? Did I hurt you? I'm sorry, Caroline." The way he seemed panicked, his pleading made her want the ground to open up, so that it would wallow her. She could not speak. She shook her head, her lashes lowered as if to hide her emotions. He would not have her retreat, though. "Please."

Her blue eyes found his. "What did you do to me?" Klaus cocked an eyebrow, not understanding what she was talking about. She was glaring accusingly at him. "You did something, didn't you, Klaus? Is that why I couldn't stop thinking about you?" His eyes widened at her admission. Tears gone, she gave him a full force glare, jabbing his chest with her finger. "You should be so glad that you've succeeded in taking over my mind. I can't- can't take you off my mind. I have a boyfriend! I shouldn't- I refuse to think about you. Tell me if you hadn't done something to me, then why does my heart pound when you're near? Why do I miss you every time you're not here, hmm? Why don't I like Enzo's kisses anymore? Why do I crave yours, goddamit!"

He gripped her shoulders, his eyes wild with passion and intense love for her. "Don't you get it?" he threw her a question. "You feel for me just as much as I feel for you. I haven't done a thing to you, Caroline. This is all you. Your heart belongs to me as much as mine belongs to you."

She closed her eyes again, trying to shut him out, but she slid her arms around his neck, pulling him closer, fully on her, body to body. His heartbeat was steady, unmoved. Things were tumbling out of control. Her body was trembling and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Her eyes opened.

"Are you insane!" she asked, because clearly he was. "We can't be together, Klaus. You can't say things like that to me as if its possible for us to be together."

Klaus glared at her. "Why do you think that? After everything, you're still going to deny?" he asked, as he started to get mad. Truly, it was impossible trying to stay calm and collected when all he wanted was to unleash his fury on her, to show her how much he wanted her. Bloody loved her.

"I'm not trying to deny anything. You're engaged for fucks sake! How could you think of being with me?" she asked, devastatingly. How could he not understand that it wasn't possible? They both had someone in their lives, and they both had made a promise to their significant.

"I'd happily call off this engagement for you, Caroline," he said with determination. Klaus was ready to throw away everything for her. He didn't care how Mikael was going to react. He would probably disown him. That was something that doesn't bother him. Mikael wasn't going to continue making decisions for him, not anymore.

"And Genevive? Do you think I'd be happy knowing that I had broken her engagement?" Caroline whispered, her voice soft and steady. "And what about Enzo? How do you think he's going to feel?"

He was looking down at her, his blue eyes cool and assessing, and he wasn't even breathing deeply. "I honestly don't care about them. I only care about what I want, and right now, that is you."

"How can you be so selfish?" she asked, hating the small tremor in her voice.

Klaus forced himself to speak with carefully measured calm. "I was raised to be a selfish bastard, it's not a shocking news."

"Klaus, we're talking about ruining two lives here! I can't do that."

"So you choose their happiness over ours?" Klaus declared hotly, thrusting his torso forward with an emphatic, angry movement. "You're going to sacrifice our love? Do you understand what you're saying?" He couldn't believe she would even think like that. Did Caroline think he was stupid enough to let go of her?

"Unlike you, I know not to hurt someone," she fired back, hurting him even more. Memories of what he had done to her, the pain he had inflicted upon her flashed through his eyes. His whole body shook with rage. It was a long moment before he regained some measure of control over himself.

"Listen to me, you don't get to decide for us. I'm not going to lose you for anyone! Not for Genevive, my father, Enzo or even you."

Caroline could scarcely breathe as she whispered, "Klaus, please."

"What is it? Do you not," he hesitated, afraid of what her answer might be. "Do you not feel for me, Caroline?" She opened her mouth and closed it. Klaus face fell immediately. "Okay, fine. If that's what you want, Caroline. I won't call off my engagement with Genevieve, and I won't pursue you again." Instinctively he stepped back, and fear rushed inside her at his words.

"No!" Caroline found herself pulling him back before he could distance himself from her. Klaus held her uncertain gaze. There were dark turbulent shadows in the depths of her eyes. "I hate you! I hate her and I hate this bloody engagement. I thought you said you wouldn't leave me! Are you going to back out from your promise, you asshole!"

He was pulling her against his chest, wrapping his arms tightly around her and inhaling her sweet scent. "Never," he breathed. "Never, love. I'm in love with you. It's true in the beginning I agreed to marry Genevive. Before I met you, I didn't know what love was. I don't think I could ever love her."

Klaus looked into her eyes, trying to let her see the sincerity in them. A spark of some hidden emotion leapt in her eyes. The pulse beating softly at the base of her throat picked up speed. "I choose you. Don't push me away." Caroline turned away, unconsciously squaring her shoulders. He had said something wrong, but he wasn't exactly certain what it was. She started to turn her head away, but he caught her chin. "I've never felt like this before. With other women and Genevive, it was different. With you... the truth is, I can't do what you want."

"Just say what it is you are thinking."

He raked a hand through his hair. "I'm thinking that the reason for this engagement is no longer important. What matters is that I love you. I thought—hoped—that perhaps, given time, we might be able to make things work between us… that is, if you wanted them to."

Caroline's head came up. Her eyes, more uncertain than he had ever seen them, searched every inch of his face. "After all that has happened, Klaus, it is hard for me to believe you won't change your mind."

He reached for her, caught her wrist, and she felt the warmth of his touch flow into her. There was strength in his hands, yet they felt undeniably gentle. "That would never happen."

She knew a tightening around her heart, a swelling of hope tempered by an edge of fear. They had only gotten used to each other. Now he was offering to forget the past, to build the kind of future she had never once dreamed. Did he really mean it? Did she dare to trust him, have faith in him? "I want to believe you… it's just that…"

Klaus squeezed her hand, his features suddenly grim. "I know." She tried to read his expression, saw the tension in the muscles pulled taut across the bones in his cheeks. She desired him, she realized, as she had almost from the moment she had met him. And from the smoky, half-veiled look in his incredible blue eyes, he desired her too.

And yet…She couldn't help wondering, was this man the real Klaus Mikaleson?

He struggled without success to temper the soaring effect she had on his senses. He knew only from the small, irregular breaths that teased the skin on his chest. Each inhalation brought the sweet taste of her perfume and he closed his eyes, breathing deeply and trying to steer his thoughts from the mounting heat between them. The desire in his darkly intelligent eyes charged the air around them, like the air before a lightning storm. She swallowed, abruptly conscious of the rising tempo of her overworked heart and pulse, and even more when he said, "I want you, Caroline." His fingers combed through her hair, tracing a line around her ear and neck. Shivers rushed from the spots. "With each and every breath I take, I want you." He leaned over and gently kissed her lips once, withdrawing a bit, but keeping his own dangerously close.

She felt a tremor of fear, her thoughts begging the question for the millionth time: Was this right?

"Don't, Caroline," was all he said, all he had to say. "I'm going to kiss you." He let his lips gently caress the spot on her neck where the shivers raced.

Tiny spark like shivers rushed from the spot where his lips teased her, and her racing heart sped blood through her veins. Her small fist curled against his shoulder, she felt but a hairsbreadth from panic. "Klaus, we shouldn't..."

He laid a finger over her lips. "Enough of this. I don't want to hear of it ever again. I will lay your every last doubt to rest." He caught her curled fist and gently pried her fingers open before stroking her anxious fingertips with his parted lips. "What do you feel when I kiss you?" She started to shake her head but he stopped her. "We have this moment, Caroline. This one moment now. Kiss me, Caroline. Kiss me now and let the world fall away. Just this once, let me kiss you. Let me love you. Just this once."

His splayed fingers held her head still and he watched the sadness disappear beneath her closed lids as his mouth came over hers. A kiss made of these promises, promises of things that could never be. She felt and remembered, felt and remembered the sensual promise of his lips. Promises manifesting in an enticing taste of warmth, a gathering heat deep inside herself, like a small ball of flame, waiting for his touch.

Her lips became soft and pliant, as if to shyly greet the sweeping pleasure of it, and without realizing it, she answered the question. He deepened the kiss more to reward her. His arm cradled her head like a child's, which was absolutely necessary to steady the spinning sensations of his kiss. He broke the kiss, allowing her to draw quick gasps of air as she felt the melting heat of his lips on her cheek. "Your mouth is a sweeter intoxication than every promise made of heaven."

With an effort, he tried to slow the pace demanded of his desire, a thing that, until Caroline, had always been as natural for him as breathing. Until Caroline.

Desire softened the delicate lines of her face where he ran his fingers. Gasping for breath and her head spinning, she produced his name and uttered it like a secret wish spoken to the first shining star in the night. "Klaus. . ."

He answered by returning his lips to hers again, more insistently now. His free hand had slipped to her dress, sliding from her breast to her waist, testing its narrow curve before riding the sensuous flare of her hips back to the soft, voluptuous mound of her breast. He felt the wild beat of her heart before testing its softness in the whole of his hand, sliding back and forth, his thumb teasing the tender peak to a tiny hard knot of fire beneath the thin cloth of her dress.

A small involuntary whimper escaped her as his large warm hand slipped from her dress and his warm, firm lips broke his kiss to find her neck. "So soft." Shivers rushed, gathered, exploded and she cried softly, her next breath pressing her fullness into the enticing warmth of his hand, which he expertly used to advantage. Then his lips gently kneaded hers, his warm breath sending sparks like fire through her before he was kissing her again. The kiss answering her desire, stroking it, soothing it, only to spark its flames to greater heights. Unlike before, he was so gentle now. There was no threat or cruelty between them.

Her blue eyes opened to him, darkening with newly awakened passions. He closed his eyes for a moment, desperate to find some measure of control. The magnitude of his struggle surprised him, for while she called to all the gentleness he owned and then some, his desire felt like an unbridled, unrestrained force and dangerous.

A quivering restlessness pulsated through her, so powerful and urgent she could hardly think. The blood pounding in her head drove away the lingering remnant of any last doubt. "Klaus." And her hands curled around his neck as she brought her trembling lips to his mouth and she was kissing him, wanting him...He pressed into her more and the kiss was without end. The molding of his mouth on hers and the sweep and taste of his tongue felt like a savage, primitive power descending on her mind, body, soul, claiming all as his own. A sea of bright, shimmering colors exploded in her mind, shimmering into the heat sweeping through her. She twisted intimately against his warmth. The small writhing body made him bury his face between the gentle swell of her breasts as he released a husky groan. He set his mouth to hers, it fueld the thick, hot pleasure spilling into her, drowning any last thought beneath the roar of her blood pounding in her ears. He was saying her name, whispering, stopping only to caress her lips as his hand brushed over her side, discovering and exploring her most sensitive spots and she braced, dizzy with anticipation as his hand stopped beneath her breast. He skillfully let it build until the tension made her twist and she uttered a soft cry as if for help, answered at last with his gentle massage of the voluptuous rise.

The pounding of her heart pulsated through her. He lifted partially up and she felt his gaze on her, as warm as a caress. A changed tempo of his hand made her gasp, a gasp he caught in his mouth. His mouth rocked over hers with beguiling eroticism. He took her hands in one of his and held them back to the wall before he heightened the hot spinning sensations in her breasts by taking her mouth again. She melted helplessly beneath the driving agony of the kiss, a kiss that did not stop as his free hand drifted over her side and down her flank and up again where his palm traveled in a slow, hot circle over one breast, then the other, letting the pleasure slowly penetrate her dazed senses.

He was kissing her again. The kiss had nothing to do with gentleness and everything to do with the unleashed force of his desire, encompassing the last of her uncertainty and its resistance. Gone. Doubts and guilt. All she knew was the spinning carousel of hot sensations, the start of a dream too beautiful to be true.

An avalanche of desire roared through Klaus, the demand of it growing, devouring as his free hand slipped beneath her dress at her waist, sliding over the sculpted softness of her hips and thighs, then back again and over and over in ever-deepening strokes as his lips drifted to her arched neck, over her shoulders until, drawing breath hard and fast, she felt them on her breast. The pleasure of it seized the whole of her body. She twisted maddeningly beneath him, but he hardly seemed to notice her struggle. A whimper grew in her throat as his lips played there. She was flushed and breathless, her consciousness fragmented to every sensation erupting through her body. She was lost. A loud, shrill sound crashed into her mind. She stiffened, her consciousness collecting, riveting on the footsteps.

Caroline opened her mouth, But he was quick to cover her mouth with his hand, pressing her body into the wall, shielding from sight in case someone noticed them. When they couldn't hear the footsteps anymore, Klaus dropped his hand, and she heaved a sigh of relief.

"Gone," he whispered with a lopsided grin. Just then, her cheeks flushed at what they had just done. She quickly adjusted her dress and tried to flattened her hair.

"I must look so terrible right now," she complained with a groan.

"Actually, love, you look ravished." He chucked when she glared at him.

"Oh, shut up. I don't want to go out looking like I had just been ravished, as you eloquently put it. What would Enzo think? Oh, God," she moaned. The grin on Klaus face was quickly wiped away. His eyes flashed with an intense jealousy. "Dont start. You already know he's my boyfriend-"

"Ex boyfriend," he corrected.

Caroline crossed her arms. "I don't remember breaking up with him."

Klaus glared at her. "Well, you can't continue being with him now, can you, Caroline? If my memory serves me right, it was my name you were screaming a minute ago." Her jaw dropped, and he noticed the faint blush on her cheeks.

"You..you..you-"

"Devilishly, handsome man?" he asked with a cheeky grin.

"You wish!"

"Funny," he started with a smirk, recalling something. "I just thought of something. Do you, Caroline, by any chance remember that inspiring letter of yours?"

She looked annoyed. "Letter? What letter?"

Klaus cocked an eyebrow. "You know the one that was addressed to me?"

one second. Two seconds. Three seconds.

"OH MY GOD!" Her eyes widened in realisation and her hands flew to her mouth. Caroline's cheeks burned with shame and embarrassment. This was the confrontation she had never imagined would ever happened. She looked away from his gaze. She would have welcomed any distraction right now. It was a long time ago. She had completely forgotten what the contents were, but she imagined it was worse than anything. That was because she remembered exactly what went on her mind when she lost that letter.

He saw it.

He read it.

He actually read that letter.

She tried to escape but he wasn't letting her. He trapped her, so that there was nowhere to run, nowhere to avoid that gaze.

"What was going through your mind when you wrote it, Caroline?"

Trying not to freak out, she answered quietly. "I was angry. Honestly, I didn't mean anything. I swear! It was stupid and-" she was starting to panic and her words were rushing out in hysterics.

"Calm down, love. I'm not mad," he assured her with a killer smile. "It was actually funny. You have a wild imagination, Caroline, and you were quite mean."

She looked dumbfounded. "You're not? It is?"

Klaus chuckled. "Yeah."

"Okay, who are you and what have you done with Klaus Mikaelson?" she demanded, looking suspicious. "I expected a hurricane, a storm. I expected the building to shake with your anger. Dammit, I expected an earthquake!"

"Aren't you dramatic."

Glaring daggers at him, she tried to let it sink in. "So you're really not mad? Like not even a bit?"

He sighed and caressed her cheek, lovingly. "I deserved everything, Caroline. Though it doesn't make up for what I did to you, I'm willing to look past my anger, because I have realised that it doesn't make me happy. You make me happy. You can say all horrible things directly to me, and I wouldn't mind."

"Really?" she teased with a hopeful look.

"No. It would definitely hurt me."

She giggled. "Well, damn. I should get back. They must be wondering where I am and if I got lost."

He smiled and gave her a quick peck on the lips. "I'd escort you back, love."

If anyone could see her right now, they would be wondering what had happened. She had left the ballroom with a gloomy face, and she had returned with a bright smile on her face. Caroline rejoined the group of people. No one questioned her about her whereabouts and she was glad. Enzo could see the change in her and he was happy about that. Whatever the reason was, he was happy it happened. It brought a joy to his girlfriend's face and it was all that mattered to him.

Every once in a while, her eyes would catch Klaus' and they would share a secret smile. At one point, he boldly winked at her and she had to blush and look down, feeling like a school girl. Everyone seemed to be talking to him, especially the ladies who wouldn't keep their eyes off him. Caroline was suprised and a bit glad that Genevive wasn't in his arms. She seemed to be occupied with her friends.

She felt cold, exposed, standing alone. Right now she was watching Enzo dance with Hayley and she didn't feel jealous at all. Glancing up toward the big round clock, she realised that only three minutes left before midnight. Her eyes sought out Klaus who was now talking to his fiancee. He's going to kiss her now, isn't he? The moment the clock struck 12, he is going to kiss her. After all, he had the right to. Caroline heart sank and her gaze found Enzo who smiled at her. She smiled back at him, weakly.

When only one minute left, Enzo began to approach her. But before he could reach her, all lights went out and it was suddenly dark. Then she heard the sound of the clock and fireworks outside. But she had her own personal fireworks when Enzo's lips covered hers. His soft lips molded to hers, fitting together so perfectly there was no space, no break in the seal between them. He ran his tongue along the seam of her lips, tasting her. Her lips parted and he drank more deeply of her. His tongue sought hers with feverish desperation. He had his arm around her waist, keeping her close, claiming her.

Her eyes were shut.

Her lips parted wider, and she sucked the breath from his body. Then she refilled him with her own. She kissed him fiercely, as if it were the last thing she'd ever do. And then he pulled away, and she tried to catch her breath.

"Happy New Year, love," he whispered into her ear.

Her eyes flew open at the same time the light turned on. But he wasn't standing there anymore, and her eyes glanced towards Enzo who was approaching her with an apologetic look on his face.

"Klaus," she breathed out.

Klaus.

:)

TBC