~*~
"No! That's not fair! You definitely cheated!"
"Come again? How can I cheat when you've been watching me the entire
time?"
The redhead threw down her pile of cards with mock anger. "Don't lie to
me, Stefan Salvatore. I can read your mind, in case you forgot."
Stefan laughed. Their game had apparently came to an abrupt end. But it
hadn't been so good, anyway, with only two people. There was a noise as someone
entered the room and Stefan looked up to see Elena, grinning.
"Playing strip poker, *again*, Stefan? I thought I told you to include me
next time!"
Bonnie giggled and Stefan smirked, beginning to collect the cards and put
them into a neat pile in the center of the glass coffee table. Elena knelt
beside him on the floor and he wrapped an arm around her, drawing her close with
a light kiss to the top of her head as she let it fall to his shoulder. To
Bonnie, they looked at peace and content. She envied them a great deal.
"How's Matt?" Elena suddenly asked, blue eyes resting on her friend
across the table.
There was the awkward silence from Bonnie, and the previously
light-hearted mood disintegrated. Elena lightly bit her lip, wondering if she had
somehow crossed her bounds.
"Matt's...good." But the words sounded false and hollow to her ears.
It didn't get past Elena who replied, "You two broke up, huh?"
A nod. "He's a good guy, and I'll always love him for the time we had
together, but he just wasn't for me. And I think he knew that deep down."
"I'm sorry, Bonnie." An apologetic smile from the blonde, and Bonnie
watched as Stefan toyed with a strand of Elena's hair.
"It's alright. I'm only 28, there's still fish in the sea."
Stefan nodded his agreement and Elena cleared her throat before another
silence could fall over them once again. She turned to look to her husband.
"I'm going to feed, do you want to come?"
"I'm fine, I fed earlier today."
"You sure?"
Stefan could see the concern in his wife's eyes but he nodded. "Really."
Bonnie, who had been otherwise quiet and lost in thought, suddenly said,
"Oh, don't not go because of me. I'm a grown woman, I don't need to be babysat
or entertained."
She watched as a smile formed on Stefan's lips and something flipped in
her stomach and she had to tear her eyes away, blinking. She hoped beyond hope
neither had caught that.
"I know, but I'm fine, honestly. Elena, you go on without me."
Elena placed a kiss on his lips and stood, dusting off her pants. "I
won't be long."
With that, she grabbed her coat from the closet, slipping it on and
tossing her keys into her pocket. Opening the door, she paused, and with amusement
passing over her comely features she said, "And remember, no strip poker until
I get back."
Bonnie felt herself smiling at her friend, though beneath the friendly
exterior, she was fighting back the urge to blush. Stefan lifted a hand with a
smirk and watched as she shut the door quietly behind her.
When he glanced back to Bonnie, she looked sheepish, and she sat back
against one of the couches with an "Anyway..." that sounded far too happy to be
sincere to Stefan's ears. One brow lifted and he stood, shrugging off any odd
feeling he felt.
"I'm going to take a shower. If you need anything, just holler, but I'll
only be a few minutes. There's food in the fridge. Elena went shopping this
morning while you slept."
She nodded with a genuine smile this time. "Alright, thanks."
Rising as well, she sat herself down on the black leather couch, eyes
roaming the living room area of the apartment. For the first time she really
studied it. There was an entertainment system in one corner that had probably cost
them a fortune, the floor was marble with a deep, rich red and gold area rug
beneath the glass and oak coffee table. A beautiful and elaborately carved
stone fireplace was in front of her on the opposite wall, which at the moment had
a roaring fire blazing; above it a large oval mirror rested against the crème
colored wall. Tall windows were on one side to her left from which hung heavy
velvet drapes of the same deep red color of the rug and there was another
matching sofa directly across from where she sat and an arm chair to her right.
The room itself was spacious and opulently decorated. Simply beautiful. Elena
and Stefan did nothing to hide their luxury lifestyle.
Stefan seemed to notice her gaze and smiled. "It's lovely, no?"
"Yes, very. You two must be very happy here."
He let out a deep breath, nodding. "Yes, we are. The decorating is mostly
Elena's job, but I helped with some."
"Well, it came out wonderful. I should have you two do mine." She laughed
shortly, shifting her brown eyes to him.
Green eyes were warm and the firelight was reflected in them. Bonnie
found herself staring into them, wanting to reach out and touch him...
*Snap out of it, Bonnie McCullough!* She scolded herself, tearing her
eyes away and desperately hoping Stefan regarded the blush on her pale cheeks as
being due to the warmth of the room.
Was she turning into Elena? She certainly was thinking awful thoughts...!
She had been shocked at Elena's tale of what had happened 3 years ago, but
knew if death couldn't tear those two apart, a night of betrayal wouldn't have
done much long-term damage.
He cleared his throat suddenly. "Yes, well...As I said, I'll be in the
shower. Help yourself to anything you like." He disappeared a moment later,
Bonnie's eyes on his back as he retreated.
* "Anything" would be too much to ask at the moment...* Bonnie ran a hand
through her curls and took a deep, shaky breath. What was wrong with her?
This was Stefan. *Elena's Stefan*. He was off limits beyond a shadow of doubt.
She had to control herself.
Her mind was wandering into strange places lately...
***
In the darkness of an alleyway, one would see the outline of a woman
pressed to that of a man. As Elena stepped back and ran a tongue over her lips,
she looked at the man before her. He groaned and pressed a hand to his temple,
seemingly disorientated.
"Go," she replied, voice throaty but still sensual.
"Uh...Alright...?" The man shook his head, looking around as though he
had no idea how he had gotten there or who she was. Good. He shouldn't.
Elena watched as he walked off, muttering about the strangeness of this
city and how his grandmother had been right about full moons...
She chuckled to herself and thrust her hands into her coat pocket, a
breeze lifting her hair off the back of her neck. The only sound was the soft
click of heels on concrete as she began to slowly walk back to her part of the
city. Blue hues raised to the star studded sky and she smiled. Life was good to
her.
She walked head on into something hard..."Oof!" Elena jumped back
mumbling apologies. "I'm sorry, I wasn't wat--" Her words got choked off by a gasp. A
hand went to her throat, eyes widening.
"We seem to be doing this a lot lately, no?"
His voice was just as she remembered it had been that night 3 years ago,
sexy, faintly accented, and all the more confident. Elena tried to open her
mouth, found it frozen, could feel her heart pounding in her throat. Why did he
always do this to her? Cause her knees to feel weak, heart to beat rapidly,
palms to sweat...And ultimately cause an ache deep inside her she knew could
only be quenched if she allowed herself to...
*No!* She mentally shook herself. Straightening herself, back rigid,
lifting her chin to meet his gaze squarely, she arched one eyebrow.
" *Come va? * Back so soon?" Her voice rang out quiet, steely.
He was clearly taken aback, but took it with the grace only Damon
could find. Black eyes glinted and his lips twisted into a smirk that made him all
the more captivating -- That is to say if you liked the dark and dangerous
type.
"You looke ravishing, as always... *Dov'e il tuo marito? Sempre solo.* "
She took a deep, audible breath and placed one hand on her hip, gaze not
wavering. "At home. I came to feed by myself tonight. He was content."
Elena could tell he didn't really care, he simply wanted to make her
uncomforatable.
"I know you're not here to make small talk, Damon. Now cut the crap and
tell me what you want."
"What I want, *la mia cara?* " He smiled devilishly. "What I want... I've
already had a taste of."
Elena made a noise; something akin to annoyance. "I'm not letting you get
to me this time, Damon. I mean it. Your charms won't get me into your bed
again. Just because I made that *mistake* once, doesn't mean I'll come crawling
to you like a bitch in heat a second time, the minute you show up..." She spat
waspishly.
Damon had the good grace to look mildly ruffled by that. But it quickly
faded and if she hadn't taught herself to read him well, she would have missed
it altogether.
"You can relax yourself, Elena. That's not why I'm here."
"Oh, really? I'm sorry if I find that hard to believe."
He looked aggravated and his black eyes flashed menacingly. "You know
better than to push me, Elena."
She glared, blue eyes becoming icy.
"Besides, you should also know I don't lie about unimportant matters."
Elena's arms lifted to fold beneath her chest and she regarded him
carefully. "Then why are you here?"
He didn't answer. Instead, she had merely blinked and he had crossed the
space that separated them and was before her. She inhaled sharply. One long
finger reached out to run along her cheekbone and she found her breathing had
increased pace.
"What are you doing?"
/Reminiscing.../ The voice in her head was intimate. He bent his head
low, and she thought he was going to kiss her. But he moved suddenly as he began
circling her, softly inhaling the scent of her. /I've almost forgotten how you
taste.../
Elena took a breath and was angry to find it shaky. "Don't think you can
take the liberty to remind yourself."
Damon was now behind her, and he rested his hands lightly on her
shoulders, breath cool against her ear as he whispered, "No, but I bet I know who
does...every night."
She tensed beneath his touch and whirled around furiously. "Don't --"
His lips silenced her words. And for a moment she felt herself giving in,
but then she whipped away, taking a few unsteady steps back. Damon looked
vaguely amused.
"I thought," Elena said brusquely, "you said that wasn't why you were
here."
His laughter rippled through her, sounding as inviting, as engaging, as
ever. She had to fight hard to keep the biting edge to her voice. "Well?"
"I suppose I did lie, then."
Her cheeks flushed with anger and she moved to slap him. His hand caught
hers before she could even come close. "Such a quick temper, my dear."
"Damn you, Damon, " she spat, "I won't let you do this to me again!"
He seemed about to laugh again, at her anger or simply at her, and that
only spurred on rage. Her breath came in gasps, chest heaving beneath her tight
sweater,
Her hand fell to her side as he released it. His finding her or the
situation humorous was brief and his face turned serious and sinister. Damon's
voice was once again low, self-assured. "We'll see about that."
With that, he vanished, leaving Elena feeling shocked and angry in the
middle of the sidewalk.
~*~
"No! That's not fair! You definitely cheated!"
"Come again? How can I cheat when you've been watching me the entire
time?"
The redhead threw down her pile of cards with mock anger. "Don't lie to
me, Stefan Salvatore. I can read your mind, in case you forgot."
Stefan laughed. Their game had apparently came to an abrupt end. But it
hadn't been so good, anyway, with only two people. There was a noise as someone
entered the room and Stefan looked up to see Elena, grinning.
"Playing strip poker, *again*, Stefan? I thought I told you to include me
next time!"
Bonnie giggled and Stefan smirked, beginning to collect the cards and put
them into a neat pile in the center of the glass coffee table. Elena knelt
beside him on the floor and he wrapped an arm around her, drawing her close with
a light kiss to the top of her head as she let it fall to his shoulder. To
Bonnie, they looked at peace and content. She envied them a great deal.
"How's Matt?" Elena suddenly asked, blue eyes resting on her friend
across the table.
There was the awkward silence from Bonnie, and the previously
light-hearted mood disintegrated. Elena lightly bit her lip, wondering if she had
somehow crossed her bounds.
"Matt's...good." But the words sounded false and hollow to her ears.
It didn't get past Elena who replied, "You two broke up, huh?"
A nod. "He's a good guy, and I'll always love him for the time we had
together, but he just wasn't for me. And I think he knew that deep down."
"I'm sorry, Bonnie." An apologetic smile from the blonde, and Bonnie
watched as Stefan toyed with a strand of Elena's hair.
"It's alright. I'm only 28, there's still fish in the sea."
Stefan nodded his agreement and Elena cleared her throat before another
silence could fall over them once again. She turned to look to her husband.
"I'm going to feed, do you want to come?"
"I'm fine, I fed earlier today."
"You sure?"
Stefan could see the concern in his wife's eyes but he nodded. "Really."
Bonnie, who had been otherwise quiet and lost in thought, suddenly said,
"Oh, don't not go because of me. I'm a grown woman, I don't need to be babysat
or entertained."
She watched as a smile formed on Stefan's lips and something flipped in
her stomach and she had to tear her eyes away, blinking. She hoped beyond hope
neither had caught that.
"I know, but I'm fine, honestly. Elena, you go on without me."
Elena placed a kiss on his lips and stood, dusting off her pants. "I
won't be long."
With that, she grabbed her coat from the closet, slipping it on and
tossing her keys into her pocket. Opening the door, she paused, and with amusement
passing over her comely features she said, "And remember, no strip poker until
I get back."
Bonnie felt herself smiling at her friend, though beneath the friendly
exterior, she was fighting back the urge to blush. Stefan lifted a hand with a
smirk and watched as she shut the door quietly behind her.
When he glanced back to Bonnie, she looked sheepish, and she sat back
against one of the couches with an "Anyway..." that sounded far too happy to be
sincere to Stefan's ears. One brow lifted and he stood, shrugging off any odd
feeling he felt.
"I'm going to take a shower. If you need anything, just holler, but I'll
only be a few minutes. There's food in the fridge. Elena went shopping this
morning while you slept."
She nodded with a genuine smile this time. "Alright, thanks."
Rising as well, she sat herself down on the black leather couch, eyes
roaming the living room area of the apartment. For the first time she really
studied it. There was an entertainment system in one corner that had probably cost
them a fortune, the floor was marble with a deep, rich red and gold area rug
beneath the glass and oak coffee table. A beautiful and elaborately carved
stone fireplace was in front of her on the opposite wall, which at the moment had
a roaring fire blazing; above it a large oval mirror rested against the crème
colored wall. Tall windows were on one side to her left from which hung heavy
velvet drapes of the same deep red color of the rug and there was another
matching sofa directly across from where she sat and an arm chair to her right.
The room itself was spacious and opulently decorated. Simply beautiful. Elena
and Stefan did nothing to hide their luxury lifestyle.
Stefan seemed to notice her gaze and smiled. "It's lovely, no?"
"Yes, very. You two must be very happy here."
He let out a deep breath, nodding. "Yes, we are. The decorating is mostly
Elena's job, but I helped with some."
"Well, it came out wonderful. I should have you two do mine." She laughed
shortly, shifting her brown eyes to him.
Green eyes were warm and the firelight was reflected in them. Bonnie
found herself staring into them, wanting to reach out and touch him...
*Snap out of it, Bonnie McCullough!* She scolded herself, tearing her
eyes away and desperately hoping Stefan regarded the blush on her pale cheeks as
being due to the warmth of the room.
Was she turning into Elena? She certainly was thinking awful thoughts...!
She had been shocked at Elena's tale of what had happened 3 years ago, but
knew if death couldn't tear those two apart, a night of betrayal wouldn't have
done much long-term damage.
He cleared his throat suddenly. "Yes, well...As I said, I'll be in the
shower. Help yourself to anything you like." He disappeared a moment later,
Bonnie's eyes on his back as he retreated.
* "Anything" would be too much to ask at the moment...* Bonnie ran a hand
through her curls and took a deep, shaky breath. What was wrong with her?
This was Stefan. *Elena's Stefan*. He was off limits beyond a shadow of doubt.
She had to control herself.
Her mind was wandering into strange places lately...
***
In the darkness of an alleyway, one would see the outline of a woman
pressed to that of a man. As Elena stepped back and ran a tongue over her lips,
she looked at the man before her. He groaned and pressed a hand to his temple,
seemingly disorientated.
"Go," she replied, voice throaty but still sensual.
"Uh...Alright...?" The man shook his head, looking around as though he
had no idea how he had gotten there or who she was. Good. He shouldn't.
Elena watched as he walked off, muttering about the strangeness of this
city and how his grandmother had been right about full moons...
She chuckled to herself and thrust her hands into her coat pocket, a
breeze lifting her hair off the back of her neck. The only sound was the soft
click of heels on concrete as she began to slowly walk back to her part of the
city. Blue hues raised to the star studded sky and she smiled. Life was good to
her.
She walked head on into something hard..."Oof!" Elena jumped back
mumbling apologies. "I'm sorry, I wasn't wat--" Her words got choked off by a gasp. A
hand went to her throat, eyes widening.
"We seem to be doing this a lot lately, no?"
His voice was just as she remembered it had been that night 3 years ago,
sexy, faintly accented, and all the more confident. Elena tried to open her
mouth, found it frozen, could feel her heart pounding in her throat. Why did he
always do this to her? Cause her knees to feel weak, heart to beat rapidly,
palms to sweat...And ultimately cause an ache deep inside her she knew could
only be quenched if she allowed herself to...
*No!* She mentally shook herself. Straightening herself, back rigid,
lifting her chin to meet his gaze squarely, she arched one eyebrow.
" *Come va? * Back so soon?" Her voice rang out quiet, steely.
He was clearly taken aback, but took it with the grace only Damon
could find. Black eyes glinted and his lips twisted into a smirk that made him all
the more captivating -- That is to say if you liked the dark and dangerous
type.
"You looke ravishing, as always... *Dov'e il tuo marito? Sempre solo.* "
She took a deep, audible breath and placed one hand on her hip, gaze not
wavering. "At home. I came to feed by myself tonight. He was content."
Elena could tell he didn't really care, he simply wanted to make her
uncomforatable.
"I know you're not here to make small talk, Damon. Now cut the crap and
tell me what you want."
"What I want, *la mia cara?* " He smiled devilishly. "What I want... I've
already had a taste of."
Elena made a noise; something akin to annoyance. "I'm not letting you get
to me this time, Damon. I mean it. Your charms won't get me into your bed
again. Just because I made that *mistake* once, doesn't mean I'll come crawling
to you like a bitch in heat a second time, the minute you show up..." She spat
waspishly.
Damon had the good grace to look mildly ruffled by that. But it quickly
faded and if she hadn't taught herself to read him well, she would have missed
it altogether.
"You can relax yourself, Elena. That's not why I'm here."
"Oh, really? I'm sorry if I find that hard to believe."
He looked aggravated and his black eyes flashed menacingly. "You know
better than to push me, Elena."
She glared, blue eyes becoming icy.
"Besides, you should also know I don't lie about unimportant matters."
Elena's arms lifted to fold beneath her chest and she regarded him
carefully. "Then why are you here?"
He didn't answer. Instead, she had merely blinked and he had crossed the
space that separated them and was before her. She inhaled sharply. One long
finger reached out to run along her cheekbone and she found her breathing had
increased pace.
"What are you doing?"
/Reminiscing.../ The voice in her head was intimate. He bent his head
low, and she thought he was going to kiss her. But he moved suddenly as he began
circling her, softly inhaling the scent of her. /I've almost forgotten how you
taste.../
Elena took a breath and was angry to find it shaky. "Don't think you can
take the liberty to remind yourself."
Damon was now behind her, and he rested his hands lightly on her
shoulders, breath cool against her ear as he whispered, "No, but I bet I know who
does...every night."
She tensed beneath his touch and whirled around furiously. "Don't --"
His lips silenced her words. And for a moment she felt herself giving in,
but then she whipped away, taking a few unsteady steps back. Damon looked
vaguely amused.
"I thought," Elena said brusquely, "you said that wasn't why you were
here."
His laughter rippled through her, sounding as inviting, as engaging, as
ever. She had to fight hard to keep the biting edge to her voice. "Well?"
"I suppose I did lie, then."
Her cheeks flushed with anger and she moved to slap him. His hand caught
hers before she could even come close. "Such a quick temper, my dear."
"Damn you, Damon, " she spat, "I won't let you do this to me again!"
He seemed about to laugh again, at her anger or simply at her, and that
only spurred on rage. Her breath came in gasps, chest heaving beneath her tight
sweater,
Her hand fell to her side as he released it. His finding her or the
situation humorous was brief and his face turned serious and sinister. Damon's
voice was once again low, self-assured. "We'll see about that."
With that, he vanished, leaving Elena feeling shocked and angry in the
middle of the sidewalk.
~*~