Maraming salamat sa 'yo, Philippines! :)

So many amazing comments again. Sigh. I will miss all of you guys so much once this is complete! Today's special thanks go to Pem for the remarks on the paragraphs - I will go over everything again, thanks for pointing it out!

I should probably write the next story in my mother tongue, that might give me a more varied vocabulary to thank you all for always being so kind to me. Broken record: Reviewers/guest reviewers, readers, followers, favouriters... THANK YOU! :)

Hope you guys are ready for some less drama and some more Klaus/Caroline times! :)

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

CENTER POINT OF PARADISE

Caroline was comfortably huddled into the wide leather seat of the luxurious private plane. Klaus was seated next to her, buried in a thick volume of Edgar Allan Poe's short stories, his hand absently caressing hers. Caroline tried to desperately ignore the heat spreading all through her body at his innocent touch. She was very unnerved.

First, Klaus was steadfastly refusing to tell her where they were going. The minute they had left Tiffauges – after a mysterious fire had spectacularly burned the ruins to the ground and inexplicably also destroyed the dungeons beyond repair – Klaus had sent everyone back to Mystic Falls and told them they would follow in a couple of weeks. Then he had whisked her off to a destination unknown. The flight was very long, they had made several fuel stops, but that could mean practically anything. Whenever they landed somewhere, Klaus had lowered the shades to keep her from guessing where they were going.

Second, and far worse, he had not made love to her in over twenty-four hours, resisted all her attempts at seducing him, and that was unprecedented. They hadn't been able to keep their hands off each other ever since they had first touched and Caroline missed it! She was probably spoiled rotten to complain about not having had sex in little over one day – they could not spend every waking hour touching, could they? – but his body felt like it had become part of hers, and she was incomplete without it. She knew that this overwhelming need for him would probably settle into somewhat calmer waters at some point, but she thoroughly enjoyed their demented desire for each other and she wasn't ready to let go of the madness just yet.

Heaving a heavy sigh, she saw Klaus' lips twitch. Something told her he was yearning to touch her as much as she longed for him, but she couldn't fathom why he wouldn't give in. Another Edward Cullen moment? What the heck? Hey! You are Caroline Forbes! Since when have you ever given up so fast? With an inward smirk, she considered her options. Simply shed her clothes? Nah, she had tried that already, the morning before they had left the hotel. An armrest had crumbled under his hands at the sight of her naked body, but he had resisted. Beg him? He loved it when she did that but it would probably not be enough when he was so determined not to give in. After another couple of minutes, she came up with a plan. Getting up, she quickly excused herself to the lavatory. She was wearing a sapphire blue, knee-long pleated skirt with a pale grey silk blouse and blue high heels. Her underwear was the same colour as the skirt, semitransparent and embroidered with little blue roses. Caroline turned on the water to avoid any conspicuous sounds… that man heard literally everything… and swiftly removed her panties, hiding them behind two bottles of soap. With Klaus' tongue in mind, she closed her eyes and let her hand slide towards her sex. Klaus… I need your hands on me… I need you on me! After a few moments, her breathing grew heavier and she felt the moisture spreading between her legs. Okay, ready! She turned off the water and left the lavatory. His gaze was on her swaying hips when she walked towards her seat, and she saw him swallow. Good! Suffer! His eyes narrowed now, and she could tell the plan was working. She had counted on the fact that he could smell her arousal – and she saw the bulge in his pants grow. Trying not to let a gleam of triumph sneak into her eyes, she idly brushed past him and took her seat, painstakingly ignoring how his hands were gripping the armrests. He took a couple of deep breaths.

"It's not working, my love." Like hell it isn't!

Caroline gave him her most angelic smile. "Oh, don't worry, I won't bother you… but I hope you don't mind if I…?"

She let her hands glide up her legs very slowly, hitching up her skirt and gently pulling it north over her thighs. Hearing his breath quicken, she just ignored him and ran her hands further up until her skirt was no longer really hiding anything. Her legs parted slightly and he audibly gasped twice, but he still didn't budge. Okay, pighead.

Leaning back into her seat, Caroline ran her finger over her core, giving a quiet sigh at the sensation. God, how she ached for his touch! He was now panting next to her, his book forgotten, his eyes glued to her fingers pleasuring herself, just like they had been a couple of nights ago. Seems to become a bit of a habit, huh? Yeah, but a goood one! Very deliberately, she let her head drop back, closed her eyes and moaned, "Klaus… how can you not want me… when I want you like crazy?"

She heard him groan, and in the very next moment, two strong hands pushed her legs further apart. The next thing she knew was that she was whimpering as she felt his face between her thighs and his tongue on her clit, swishing, licking, suckling. He all but inhaled her, moaning and gasping between licks, letting two fingers slip inside her, curling, massaging her in all the right places. Caroline's legs began to quiver under his skilled ministrations, making her yearn for release. All of a sudden, he rose and pulled her with him. Within seconds, he had rid himself of his shirt and pants and pulled her blouse over her head, leaving her skirt on. Lowering them both onto the carpet, he guided her hand to his rigid cock.

"Does this tell you I don't want you?" he whispered hoarsely. Caroline shook her head, reveling in the feeling of his velvety length in her hand.

"Ride me," he demanded, his voice steely now. "Hard. Fast. Deep."

Caroline shuddered with desire at his rough command. She was about to lower herself onto him when he stopped her. "Uh-uh. Turn around." Another flash raced through her. Facing away from him, she rested her knees on both sides of his legs and slid onto his waiting cock. Oh! This is… wow! She began to move, quickly finding her rhythm, circling her hips and gradually increasing her speed. His hands were all over her, and she heard his guttural groans in sync with her every move. Resting her hands on his knees for support, she leaned forward and let her hips take him faster… faster… Then his hands came around her waist, slowing her movements, and he gently pulled her torso back onto him until his back rested on the floor, with hers sprawled over his chest, her head on his shoulder, her legs still bent to both sides of his body. Holding her to him with one arm, he let his other hand cover hers, and their interlaced fingers wandered towards her core. When they had reached her clit, he positioned his hand exactly on top of hers, making her fingers move like he was handling a puppet on strings. Their fingers stroked her clit, cupped her sex, ran over her folds – and she nearly came undone when he guided her fingers onto his cock, caressing the thick shaft while he was slowly moving in and out of her. It was an incredible sensation. She almost couldn't move in that position, but she could still circle her hips a little, feeling him inside her, touching every inch within her. Their joined hands were working her clit, and Klaus met her rolling hips with tiny movements of his own.

"You are the single most erotic woman I have ever encountered, my little devil," he murmured huskily at her ear. "I adore the way you give yourself over to what I do to you."

With that, his hips began to move underneath her in a totally different way. She couldn't even describe what he was doing, but it sent little shockwaves all through her body. Her orgasm was approaching very fast, what with his forbidden movements beneath her, their joined hands on her sex and his low moans in her ear. Damn guy's not sex on legs. He is the freaking God of Sex!

When she thought she was about to burst, his whisper burned through her.

"Now."

Oh my God. How does he... and she came in that very moment. Chanting his name with such an intensity that it made him all but melt into his own orgasm.

"What was that?" Caroline mumbled when some level of coherency had returned to her. Klaus chuckled at her ear.

"My retribution for your reducing me to a salivating mess when I was working so hard at resisting you. It is called 'The Union of the Scorpion', one of the positions taught by the Kamasutra. Something you rather enjoyed, if I am not entirely mistaken. Oh, and by the way, I am pleased to welcome you as the newest member to the Mile High Club, my love."

She giggled, then she lazily shook her head. "You did pick up a thing or two over the centuries, I have to give it to you."

He chuckled again. "I added some little twists of my own. And you are right… one does learn a few useful details over time." He was letting his hands stroke her entire upper body which was still resting on his chest, every once in a while pressing soft kisses to her temple and her neck. After a while, she felt him leave her and gave a small sound of disapproval. Gently lifting her off his chest, he gathered her into his arms and stood, only to sink into his seat and place her on his lap, wrapping his arms around her. Caroline melted against him, hiding a small grin at the fact that he had, once again, not softened in the least. Then she remembered.

"Why are you trying to resist me, Klaus?" she asked almost timidly. "Is it… too much? I mean, are you tiring of all the sex?" She knew her voice sounded a little needy, but she didn't really care.

Klaus turned her face to him. "Do you not remember what I told you, my darling? You will never be able to sate my hunger for you. Not in a hundred thousand years will I tire of making love to you. And that is a promise." Good. Because I will never get enough of you, either. He cleared his throat.

"Caroline, you are driving me completely insane. I could spend days on end in bed with you without ever feeling the need for anything besides your glorious body. And that is exactly what makes me wary. I don't want you to believe that all I care about is making love to you. I need you on levels I can't even begin to understand yet, and I am trying to find other ways to express this need to you, besides the obvious. I have never loved another woman before, as you well know, and I have no idea how these things truly work." He lowered his eyes for a moment before looking at her again. "I enjoy every minute I spend with you, whatever it is we are doing, even if we are just sitting next to each other, reading. I think this is what I actually wanted to tell you. Somewhat clumsily, I have to admit."

She smiled and took his face in her hands. Very gently, she kissed his eyes the way she had first done back in Tromsø. "Don't try so hard. It will all just come naturally. I am not really an expert on relationships either, but from my limited experience, I can say that the more one tries to consciously make an effort to suppress things, the less it works. I'm pretty sure there will be times where we will just spend hours talking, the way we did during my first weeks at your house. There will be times when we will fight, play, pout or be sad. We have to let things take their course, and if it is all about sex right now – then guess what, I love it! I I love it like crazy! I find it hard to think about anything other than your naked body against mine and I don't feel the least bit guilty about it. Klaus, I love you so much. All of you. And on top of everything else, I can't get enough of the way you make love to me, hold me, kiss me, look at me with that mad desire in your eyes. I know that the craving for sex in a new relationship eventually lessens a bit, but quite honestly? I sincerely hope not!"

His answering smile was breathtaking. "Have I told you yet today that you are perfect, Miss Forbes? Not to mention a wonderfully brazen little minx?"

Caroline put on a haughty face and tried to imitate his accent. "Which is what becomes of an innocent maiden when she is chosen by the God of Lust." Her giggle completely destroyed the line.

He laughed out loud. "Please do not let Kol hear you call me that. Not under any circumstances. None of us could live with the consequences of him trying to salvage his self-proclaimed reputation as the master of eroticism. Vassal of perversion is more like it, if you ask me."

"Why? What would he do? Oh, I remember Bekah mentioning something about his time in London…"

"Ugh," Klaus convulsed briefly. "I will tell you some other time, if you really care to know. But remember that once I tell you, I can never un-tell it!" They grinned at each other, then Klaus turned serious again.

"I mean it. You are perfect to me. For me. With me. Without me. And I give you my word – no more holding back from now on until you tell me you've had enough for a while." I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you.

"Ah… I actually liked the Kamasutra demonstration. Care to continue the lesson?"

A very lewd grin split Klaus' face. "Well, my… ah… innocent little maiden, it may not be out of the Kamasutra, but there is a position called 'The Dancer'…"

When they landed at their final destination, it seemed to be late afternoon, judging by the colour of what little light crept through the closed shades. Klaus still hadn't told her where they were, and Caroline had stopped asking at some point. He seemed so keen on surprising her that she simply didn't have the heart to spoil his fun.

The plane door opened and she immediately smelled the sea. Warm air began to flow into the cabin, and Caroline instinctively closed her eyes to breathe the mild air into her lungs. She had just showered a while ago – hurray for private planes – and felt surprisingly fresh and relaxed. Klaus talked to the pilots about accommodation arrangements and expenses, as they would be staying wherever they were now for as long as necessary to fly them back whenever they wanted to. A moment later, a stern-looking man in dress pants and a crisp white shirt appeared in the door, wordlessly handing an envelope to Klaus who nodded, slipped it into his pocket and said, "I am very pleased indeed. It was not an easy task to accomplish, and I shall bear that in mind." The man gave a small bow and left the plane without having uttered a single word. Weird. Better don't ask. Probably the key to the local hospital or something. Then Klaus returned to her, pulling something out of another pocket that looked suspiciously like a black silk scarf.

"What," Caroline scoffed, "a blindfold? Seriously, Klaus, get over your James Bond complex already!"

He chuckled. "Just a little further, my love. I give you my word that you won't regret it and that I will not blindfold you again for as long as we are here. Unless you ask me to, of course."

She ignored the quick rush of excitement at the thought and sighed. "This better be good!"

He just grinned and swiftly blindfolded her. Then he scooped her up in his arms and carried her out of the plane. She listened closely to the sounds surrounding her, but they were of people, cars and the sea. Very few people, even fewer cars. She heard a vehicle door open and was gently placed on a seat. An instant later, Klaus slumped into the driver's seat and started the car. The drive was very short, lasting no more than about fifteen minutes. When Klaus finally stopped the car, he flashed around it and pulled her up into his arms again. They walked for another ten minutes, with Klaus carrying her all the way. Caroline focused on the sounds and smells around her. It was very warm and she heard the sound of water. The air was incredibly clean and smelled salty. A light breeze rustled some trees but she could no longer hear any sounds of cars or people at all.

At last, Klaus stopped and was silent for a moment. She had the distinct feeling he was taking a very deep breath. Then he gently removed her shoes from her feet and put her down. Sand. Mmh. Warm sand. He brought her back against his chest, wrapped one arm around her and slowly removed the blindfold.

Before her was a fiery, red-golden sunset, spreading its surreal light over… a lagoon. The loveliest lagoon she could ever have imagined. Not even in her dreams had it ever been this heartbreakingly beautiful. The water was pristine, calm and clear, the sunset bathing it in a light so colourful it resembled a giant glittering swimming pool. The breeze caressed her hair and face, slightly ruffling her skirt, and the salty air smelled faintly like a flower she couldn't quite place. She wanted to close her eyes to take in the sounds of the sea but found herself unable to tear her gaze from the sight of water, light and colour. No painting or photograph could ever capture this kind of atmosphere, she thought fleetingly. Not even Klaus would be able to paint this. Had she seen a postcard of what was in front of her right now, she would have dismissed it as photoshopped. Like the moment she had seen the Northern Lights, she was completely humbled by how incredible the world was.

Feeling Klaus' arms around her, she heard his steady breathing at her ear. He didn't say a word, he just gave her this moment to herself. Caroline stared at the tropical scenery, the sunset, the faint hint of stars in the gradually darkening sky and she knew she had found the one place she would always come back to. It wasn't some insanely lovely island. It was the complicated man who held her close, making her dreams come true just like that, giving her himself, giving her everything. She hadn't thought it possible to love him any more than she already did, but at this very moment, she realized that he was not only her lover, her man, her protector, her friend. He was the center point of her own personal paradise.

She turned around to face him.

"Klaus…" she began, but he just put a finger on her lips and drew her close. With infinite tenderness, he kissed her, his tongue tracing her lips, making her sigh. For a very long time, they did nothing but feel each other's lips and tongues, very quietly sighing into their gentle kisses, never taking it any further. Neither of them felt any urgency now. Finally, Klaus pulled back and looked behind himself. There was a small leather bag on the ground which he grabbed now to pull a bottle and two glasses from it.

Caroline smiled and wondered how he had actually survived all those centuries before the invention of champagne. Then she frowned when she took a closer look at the dark green bottle with the elegant black label, delicately framed in purple. Krug. Clos d'Ambonnay. Klaus noticed her stare and cocked his head to one side, raising an eyebrow.

"You remember?"

"Yes," Caroline murmured. "The epitome of elegance, taste and luxury." She swallowed. "Four thousand dollars a bottle."

He gave her a wink. "I know I said you were to try the other vintages first, but after everything, I believe we do deserve some luxury, would you not agree, my love?"

Watching him deftly open the bottle, she gave him a sweet smile. "Four thousand dollar champagne? And you call that luxury? Oh please. But I suppose I can lower my standards for a while," she teased before adding solemnly, "Klaus, can I ask you something? And will you please tell me the full truth?"

"Of course. You know that."

"Where on Earth are we?"

Klaus laughed. It was the carefree, relaxed, spontaneous laughter she heard so rarely. "My apologies, love, for keeping you in the literal dark for so long. This is Aitutaki, one of the Southern Cook Islands and home to the single most beautiful lagoon on the planet. And do trust me, I have seen most of them, but this one is second to none."

Caroline gaped at him, openmouthed. "Cook Islands? As in, the middle of nowhere in the Pacific Ocean?"

"That's precisely it, my love. It would seem you are stuck on a not-quite-desert island in the South Pacific with the Big Bad Hybrid. But do not fret, we will neither run out of champagne nor blood in the foreseeable future."

She dropped into the soft, white sand, overwhelmed. The freaking Cook Islands? Unbelievable! Then again, something told her she would need to get used to 'unbelievable' with that unpredictable man of hers. She had only mentioned her dream about the lagoon once, and here he was, bringing her to what had to be one of the most beautiful places on the planet. Letting some sand run through her fingers, she looked at her surroundings more closely. The white beach was not very broad but lined with palm trees, and in the distance she could see what looked like little outlying islands. She couldn't wait to see it all in plain daylight and wondered what colour the water would be in the morning.

Klaus had poured the Krug and held out a glass to her. She got to her feet and took the flute, still marveling at the feeling of the soft white sand on her legs. They raised their glasses, and Caroline watched the way Klaus' eyes closed when he brought the flute to his lips. He took a sip, and his lips parted slightly, an expression of pure bliss on his face. She grinned. He was the most sensual man she had ever encountered – not only in bed, but with everything else as well. Food, drink, art, music, nature… he loved it all with a passion that was so contagious.

Caroline brought her glass to her lips and tasted the champagne. For the second time this day, she was rendered speechless. Where the 'normal' Krug had been incredible, this one came from somewhere in outer space, and there simply weren't any words known to her to describe it. She had the feeling thousands of little diamonds were dancing on her tongue, exploding one by one and leaving her with a fireworks of taste in her mouth. Klaus was observing her now, a knowing smile playing around his full lips. He took her hand and sat down in the sand, pulling her with him. They huddled together, sipping the Krug which Caroline grew addicted to more and more with each swig, and talked about everything and nothing. She adored the way Klaus was at total ease. The surroundings suited him like a glove, and she could picture him perfectly well in surfers' attire and flip flops.

When the bottle was finally empty and darkness had engulfed them almost completely, Klaus pointed towards the water. "How about a swim, sweetheart?" Caroline looked at her clothes.

"No bikini, I'm afraid," she muttered, watching him pull his shirt over his head. Will I ever stop drooling over his body? Ugh, probably not.

"Your point being…?" he asked teasingly, pulling a grin from her. She glanced around. There was not a soul in sight, and there hadn't been for the last hour. And even if – who cared? She got to her feet and started to unbutton her blouse when he suddenly stopped her.

"Wait," he whispered. "There is something… I would like to say to you first."

"You can't swim?"

With a small chuckle, he pulled on her hair. "Exactly. You will have to stay very close to me in the big scary ocean, my love." He went on in a more sober voice. "I really need to say this, so please hear me out before you say anything."

She nodded, puzzled at his stern tone. Were there more creepy enemies after them? More skeletons in his closet? No pun intended.

He took a deep breath. "Caroline. As I already pointed out on a number of occasions, I have never felt like this in my entire life, and for a thousand-year-old man, that is quite something to admit to. From the very first moment I met you, your light has been like a magnet, drawing me in again and again. I was totally defenseless against your allure. I still am, and I will always be. You made me face what I would never have confronted had it not been for you. You followed me and stayed by my side even when I was so certain you would run screaming. You returned to me when I told you to leave and save yourself." He paused, and the sheer intensity in his eyes made her knees go weak. "You carry my mark as I carry yours." Another brief pause. "And you accept all sides of me in a way I could never have hoped for."

And then he dropped to his knees.

I. Am. Going. To. Faint.

"Caroline Forbes, I love you with every fiber of my being. I promise to always, always put you first, and even though it may seem an unreasonable wish, please grant me the chance to spend the rest of eternity trying to give you at least a fraction of the happiness you have already given me." There was the briefest of pauses again. "Will you marry me?"

Caroline stared at the beautiful man at her feet, his anxious but shining eyes on her face. Caroline Mikaelson. I like the sound of it. No, correction. I love it. Then what are you waiting for? It's not like you'll ever want to look at another man again. It's not like you haven't secretly wished for this to happen.

"Yes," she whispered, a very big lump in her throat. "Yes, Niklaus."

A radiant smile blossomed on his face. He rose to his feet and dipped a hand into his pocket, his smile turning into a wide grin at her disbelief when she saw what he was holding. The ring carried two crossover diamonds in pear shape, one of them blue, the other one white, set diagonally on a band of what was either white gold or platinum. Even in the darkness, the stunning piece of jewelry was shining with such a fire it seemed to have a light of its own. It was something he would choose, Caroline thought. Something she would have chosen herself.

Very slowly, Klaus kissed her hand and slipped the ring on her finger in a gesture as old as time itself, his eyes never leaving hers. It was a perfect fit. Of course. Silent, happy tears began to streak down her cheeks, the intensity of the moment taking its toll on her. Klaus' hands sneaked into her hair and he leaned in to softly touch his lips to hers.

"My God, Klaus," she choked out, "this is… so…" Her words failed her and she just looked at him, hoping he would see what she wanted to say.

"You can always have another ring if this one is not to your liking," he said quietly, taking her hand and looking at his ring on her. That made her suddenly find her language again.

"Are you insane? Okay, moot point, but what makes you think there is a single woman in the universe who would not get a seizure at the mere sight of this ring? When and where did you manage to get it anyway?"

Klaus chuckled and pressed another kiss to her fingers. "Admittedly, I did have to pull a few strings to get it here in time. I had accidentally seen some pictures of it a few months ago while perusing through an auction catalogue of Bonham's on the look for something else, and the images never left my mind for some reason. So the minute I realized I was going to ask you to become my wife, I knew it would have to be that ring. I sent someone to buy it from its new owner and meet me with it once we arrived here. That was the man you saw earlier."

"When did you realize you wanted to marry me?" she asked quietly.

"The moment you forced me to tell Elijah about what had happened to me. You could have named any condition for me to fulfill in order to make you stay behind. But you chose the one that you believed would be best for both Elijah and me." He smiled. "That older brother of mine knew much earlier, of course."

"What do you mean?"

"When he and I had out little, ah, talk in Tromsø, the last thing he said to me before we returned to the hotel was that he would very much like a sister-in-law. He did render me speechless, admittedly," Klaus chuckled.

"So you were talking about me that day?"

"Among other things."

Caroline smiled. "He already called me 'sister' twice."

Klaus looked at her, warmth radiating from him in waves. "As I said – my brother always knows everything before the person in question realizes it. Remind me to ask him which Salvatore brother your friend Elena will end up with," he chuckled. She gave him a playful slap on the arm before her gaze dropped to her… engagement ring. Wondering if she would be able not to look at it for more than two minutes at a time, she shook her head.

"Seriously, Klaus. The plane, the ring, having it brought here… Jesus, that must have cost you something along the lines of a single family home!" Caroline still stared at the unbearably lovely gem on her finger.

"Your point being…?" he repeated with a chuckle.

She looked up at him tenderly and rolled her eyes. "My point being that apart from the fact that Elijah will probably stake you for diminishing the family funds like that, you wouldn't have had to go to such lengths. It is just…"

"Say 'too much', and you'll end up in the water fully clothed. Oh, and no worries about the family fortune. We have been there for a thousand years, and with Elijah's knack for everything financial, our wealth is such that I could spend centuries buying you a different ring every day and not even scratch the surface. You got yourself the richest man in history, baby," he snickered with a perfect imitation of a Southern accent.

Caroline knew it would be fruitless to argue with him, but she secretly vowed to herself to try and make him appreciate the small things in life a little more. Catching on his playful, happy mood, she put her hands on her hips and cocked her head to the side.

"I am a proper Southern girl, Sir, and I am deeply offended by your insinuation that you can lure me into your dark web of sin with the prospect of money," she retorted in an imperious tone.

Klaus gave her a wicked grin and lowered his voice to the husky whisper that always made her toes curl. Not to mention the damn British accent. "Well then, we will need to find something more… enticing to make you surrender to me, won't we, my Southern Belle?" His tongue touched her earlobe, running down her neck and back up. She gasped, and her hand sneaked into his hair, pressing him closer to her skin.

"Well, well," he muttered, "we seem to have found something after all." His lips moved to cover hers. Their soft kiss quickly turned passionate, with Caroline letting her hands explore his bare chest and his fingers swiftly undoing the buttons of her blouse. The silk slid off her body with a whisper, and she felt his hand glide over her back. In the blink of an eye, her bra was gone, and she wondered again how he managed to open the clasp without her even noticing. There was no more time to think when her skirt fell to the ground.

"You did not put them back on," he purred when she stood before him in all her naked glory. Caroline inclined her head.

"You would have ripped them to shreds anyway, wouldn't you?"

"Indeed." His eyes took in every inch of her, slowly, adoringly, the way they always did. She felt the heat pool between her legs and took a step towards him.

Without another word, he scooped her up and carried her into the warm, soft waters of the lagoon, loving her until the first rays of light appeared on the distant horizon.

Three days after Klaus' proposal, they were married on the very same beach. When Caroline had suggested they take the plunge right on Aitutaki, Klaus had been beyond overjoyed. However, he argued that she would probably want her mother and friends by her side on a day like that. His egoistical side had been ecstatic at her idea, but he found himself wanting to do the right thing by her. Again. Caroline had just shaken her head.

"We will have a little party when we get back home, but I want us to have this day, this one particular day, to ourselves. We'll have to face the world again soon enough, so let's just hide from everything and everyone for now."

She couldn't have given him a greater gift. The ceremony was simple and short, but it was all they needed. The moment Klaus had slipped the platinum wedding band on Caroline's finger and placed her hand over his heart, covering it with his, everything had suddenly fallen into place. Yes, she had told him she loved him. And she was bearing his eternal mark. But he hadn't had the slightest idea that this small, human ceremony would mean so infinitely much. He had wanted to marry her because it was another way to forge their bond, another way to reassure himself that she was his, but that small, buried human part of him simply needed to call her his wife. Not his partner, mate or whatever else. His wife.

They spent their wedding night in a sun chair on their private pool deck. Caroline was deeply hidden in Klaus' arms and they were mostly silent, only occasionally interrupting the quiet serenity with their whispers and sighed kisses. Neither of them moved so much as an inch until the sun finally rose, and neither of them wanted the night to ever end.

In the morning, when Caroline had just dismissed room service after breakfast had been set up, she turned around to find Klaus watching her.

"Are you hungry?" she asked with a smile.

"Ravenous."

Her clothes were gone the moment she hit the mattress, and her panting turned into moans mere seconds later when his tongue began to feast on her.

She spent the better part of the day moaning.

The days that followed brought Klaus a happiness he hadn't known was possible. They spent every waking minute together, exploring the diminutive island, swimming, diving, drinking, eating, talking and laughing. Klaus dared her to try out water skiing, spurring her on when she wanted to give up after a few futile attempts, promising her she would master it very quickly and fall head over heels for the sport. And he had been right. She continued to try under his guidance, reluctant at first, but at some point she got the hang of it. From that moment on, her progress had been impressive, and he was beyond delighted at her flushed face and her exuberant laugh when she mastered her first few sharp turns.

Their nights – and a considerable part of their days – were filled with endless lovemaking, and Klaus found it hard to remember that there was a world outside of Aitutaki. He caught her staring at her rings more than once, a dreamy expression in her eyes that made him smile every time. Then there was the moment when she sat opposite him at the small beach bar next to their hotel, watching him laugh out loud at some silly joke of hers. All of a sudden, she put down her wine glass and bit her lip.

"God, Klaus, I love you so damn much, it's almost unbearable. You know that I will never be able to let you go again, don't you?"

He closed his eyes. All those years. All those endless years with no other desire than to belong, to love, to be loved, to be wanted. To be worthy. To know that there was something, someone, on the face on the Earth who cared. And here she was, his beautiful baby vampire, letting him know in a hundred different ways every day that she was that someone. That she cared. That she found him worthy.

With a hoarse whisper, he replied, "Is that a promise?"

"Yes," she simply said, taking her wine glass and staring out at the sea. Without another word, he took the glass out of her hand and pulled her with him, flashing them back to their room.

"Well then," he said, taking her face in his hands, "with all that I have and all that I am, from this day forward, I shall be yours."

He saw her eyes moisten at the repetition of his wedding vow. And he knew it was the truth.

With all that he had and all that he was.