A/N: I finally updated guys! Just a warning in advance; the end of this chapter is VERY smutty. Not to mention, it's my first attempt at real smut so if it sucks, I'm sorry… But I hope you all like it! You can thank DamonsBourbon for my inspiration; she convinced me to keep writing!- Charlie'sLostVampire
Elena gaped, open mouthed, at the huge cathedral that towered before her. With its enormous bell tower and slightly startling gargoyles, the place had a somewhat fairy tale like quality to it. Then again, that could just be the Disney talking; because, in all honesty, in the red sunlight from the setting sun, the shadows being cast off the monster like statues above was… well, scary.
"Are we going inside?" Elena asked, suddenly not wanting to be near the stone beasts. She knew it was foolish; she was here with a vampire, because a hybrid had given them a villa, and yet still she found inanimate, stone creatures intimidating?
Damon grinned. "Actually, I had a better idea," he said with a chuckle. Elena raised an eyebrow. "What," she inquired, "are we just going to stand here and look at it?"
He grinned deviously at her. "Now, Elena; you'd think you would know by now that subtlety isn't my style."
She frowned, slightly confused. "What do you mean…?"
Her question trailed off into a startled squeak when he suddenly scooped her up and leapt into the air with vampiric talent, landing on one of the high balconies of the church. She gasped when she realized how high up they were and clutched tightly to his neck, burying her face in his shirt. Damon laughed and hopped down onto the inside of the balcony, setting her down on her feet on the cold stone. She stumbled a bit and fell forward, tossing her arms around his neck yet again. He caught her around the waist, their noses touching, wide eyes locked. "Careful," he mumbled, grinning slightly. Elena blushed and pulled back, pulling at her hair in embarrassment. "Sorry," she muttered, "I guess I was… off balance."
He chuckled. "Understandable; some people can't handle jumping like that." He winked, "Not to mention my charm made you weak in the knees."
She rolled her eyes at his inability to be serious, swatting his arm. He laughed and took her hand. "Come on, Esmeralda," he winked, "let me show you my bell tower."
"Oh, please," Elena grinned, "you're far too sexy to be Quasimodo."
He grinned and took her hand, leading her into the church and over to a tall spiral stone staircase. She giggled. "Are you sure we're supposed to be up here this late?"
Damon grinned. "I'm positive that we aren't," he said with a wink, pulling her up the nearly endless set of stairs. They finally emerged on a very open top floor with glassless windows that overlooked the city. There were numerous gargoyles laid out across the stone floor, and even more out on the ledge. Elena gulped a bit, looking away from one particularly menacing face with sharp, pointed horns and fangs that reached down to the winged beast's clawed elbows.
Damon noticed her sudden shift in emotion and he frowned. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Elena said quickly, blushing. "It's nothing…"
He raised a skeptical eyebrow, leading her across the open floor plan to the row of windows. Elena's eyes widened at the sight; the sky was ablaze with a brilliant sunset, turning it deep red as the sun sank below the horizon. "It's… beautiful," she whispered in awe. Damon grinned as he stood behind her and brushed her hair over one shoulder, placing a soft kiss to her neck. "Not as beautiful as you…" he whispered against her skin and she shivered, grinning. "Coming from anyone else, that would have been cheesy," she giggled. He grinned and laid his head on her shoulder, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind. "I'm not capable of being cheesy," he said with a grin and she giggled again.
"Come on," he said suddenly, releasing her and walking over to one of the larger windows. Elena followed him, frowning. "What?" she asked, and her eyes widened when Damon stepped up onto the ledge and jumped down, landing on the thin strip of stone below the windows; the hard paved ground 228 feet below. "Are you crazy?" she squeaked when he peaked back inside at her. He grinned. "I'm a vampire, Elena; even if I fall, nothing will happen to me." He offered her his hand, smiling at her. "Come on; live a little!"
"If living a little means I'm going to die, I think I'm fine here!" she said, her voice still containing a nervous squeak. He sighed and shook his head. "I won't let you fall, 'Lena," he grinned. "Stake my heart and hope to die."
She rolled her eyes, but took a few steps forward. She trusted Damon, didn't she? She knew he would never, ever let her fall. But still; it was so high!
He smiled and took her hand. "There's a good princess," he said, helping her step onto the window ledge. She allowed herself a grin, "If I remember correctly, Esmeralda was a gypsy girl, not a princess."
He smirked devilishly. "Fine by me; I wouldn't mind seeing you dressed as a gypsy girl." He winked and helped her step down onto the thin ledge he stood on, and she diverted her eyes, refusing to look down. He smiled. "Come on, angel; it's just a little further."
She shook her head frantically, "If you think I'm moving a muscle on here, you're crazier than I thought you were."
Damon sighed. "Fine; you leave me no choice…"
"What…?" she had begun to ask when he suddenly swept her off her feet and into his arms. She gasped and bit back a shriek. "You psycho!" she cried, burying her face in his shirt so she wouldn't see just how high they really were. Damon chuckled and she felt him moving with cat like balance along the ledge. She kept her eyes shut until he finally stopped and sat her on her feet. She refused to open her eyes or let go of her firm hold on the fabric of his shirt; if she did either, she would surely fall faster than he could catch her.
"Open your eyes, princess," Damon purred in her ear and she slowly, very hesitantly opened one eye. Her other opened soon after as she marveled in awe at the beauty before her. In the nearly gone last rays of the sunlight, the sky now turning purple, stood numerous less frightening gargoyles, many with roses growing around them and in their fanged mouths. It was like looking into the face of hell and finding beauty; finding kindness in a fearsome monster. Her eyes involuntarily turned to the vampire who had a firm grip on her waist as he smiled down at her. "Beautiful, isn't it?" he asked her softly and she slowly nodded. Like finding kindness in a fearsome monster, she thought, a small grin pulling at her lips. Well, she certainly knew all about that. Perhaps the gargoyles weren't really so awful, but merely misinterpreted like vampires were. Perhaps they were meant to be a thing of beauty, but the stories had gotten turned around against them over the millenniums. Her smile widened. "It's amazing," she said, looking out at the city, the Eiffel Tower shining across the city, lights beginning to appear. He smiled and bent down, giving her a short, soft kiss. "We should be getting back," he whispered in her ear. "It's getting late."
She nodded and he picked her up, earning another terrified screech when he simply walked off the edge, plummeting to the ground below, landing gracefully; silently. "God you're crazy…" she whimpered, trying to catch her rapid breath. Damon chuckled as he placed a kiss to her temple. "Baby, you haven't seen anything yet…"
… . … . … . … . …
Elena sighed as they walked back into the enormous house. She promptly walked to the kitchen, pulling chocolate ice cream out of the fridge; she was starving, and wanted something filled with sugar. Damon grinned and snagged the container away. "Hey!" she complained. He chuckled. "You won't need that," he said, grinning. Elena frowned in confusion. "Why not?"
"Because," Damon said, his grin widening, "we're going swimming."
Elena's eyes widened; she had forgotten entirely about the pool. How the hell had she forgotten about the pool…?
She grinned. "Perfect idea," she said with a wink and he nodded as he lounged against a counter. "I thought so."
She giggled. "I'll go get changed; meet me at the pool in ten minutes?"
Damon winked and nodded, grinning. Elena then quickly rushed up the staircase and down the hall, entering their bedroom and shutting the door behind her. She chewed her lip and walked over to her suitcase, opening it and pulling out two different bathing suits. She knew that she was going to have to make a serious decision within the next ten minutes, and it wasn't just which bathing suit to wear. As she tried to decide between her regular black bikini and her new, rather skimpy red one, she knew she had to decide… was she ready to take her relationship was Damon to the next level?
She knew he loved her, and that he would never, ever leave her like Stefan had. But… was her heart as willing to trust as her mind was? She fingered the silky red material in her hands as she sat on the bed, thinking. Surely Damon's sudden eagerness to try the pool out wasn't just to go swimming. She knew he had other motives from the way he had been grinning when he brought it up.
But was she ready?
Elena ran her fingers through her hair, at war with herself. Part of her wanted, as it had for a very long time, for Damon to simply whisk through the door and slam her into the wall, peppering every inch of her body with his seductive kisses… Just thinking about it caused Elena to shiver with longing. But another part of her didn't feel ready for that finality of commitment. She couldn't just let Damon take her like that; not like she had let Stefan. She had given him everything she had, and he had broken her heart…
Leaving Damon to pick up the pieces. Repeatedly; for five years. More than five years, in all honesty…
Suddenly, Elena felt very stupid. Of course she wanted Damon; she knew he would never betray her like that. He cared about her, sometimes a bit too much, and had nearly killed Stefan just for trying to kiss her. Even the slightest idea of Damon leaving her simply because the sex wasn't satisfactory was ridiculous.
Tossing the black bathing suit aside, she entered the bathroom to prepare. Tonight, Damon wouldn't be the one with the power in the seduction area.
Tonight, Elena Gilbert was taking charge.
… . … . … . …
Damon lounged lazily on the edge of the pool which was glowing a brilliant blue from the pool lights in the dark yard. He was trailing his fingers around in the water, clad in only his swim trunks, waiting for Elena to return.
An involuntary smirk surfaced at the thought of her name; Elena. He wasn't sure how tonight would play out; Elena still seemed to need time to build a firm trust in him. He had made a silent promise to himself years ago now that he would never move in on Elena like that; she would have to make the first move, and he would need to feel confident that it was a move she truly wanted to make. If all she wanted to do was swim, as he had suggested, he would go along with it. But, if she wanted more…
He grinned slyly; he would give her a night she would not soon forget.
His ears perked up when he heard the distinct sound of her feet coming down the stairs inside. Grinning devilishly, he sped away to hide behind the pool shed. He heard her open the French doors and walk outside. "Damon? You didn't find a pretty French girl and desert me, did you?"
He grinned and sped out and jumped into the pool with an all mighty splash that he was certain had frightened her. He surfaced, laughing. "Here I am, ma chérie…" his words trailed off when he pushed his wet black hair out of his eyes, though, and the blue orbs he possessed widened in stunned shock. "Elena…" he muttered, looking her over.
She stood with her hands on her hips, grinning at him with a raised eyebrow. "You like?" she asked, turning in a slow circle to give him every possible view of her blood red string bikini. An involuntary growl of desire sounded in the back of Damon's throat as he looked her over hungrily. "Oh, I like…" he muttered, grinning. The bathing suit left very little to the imagination, and Damon was extremely fine with that. He noticed, once he looked away from the bathing suit, that she had redone her makeup, a bit thicker in the lashes with just a touch of red lip gloss, and her hair was more fluffed than she usually kept it. "Care to join me?" he grinned and she smirked. "I don't want to ruin my hair," she said with a playful pout. "Help me in so I don't have to go under water?"
He smirked and swam over to the edge, grabbing her waist and pulling her in. She squealed when the cold water came in contact with her flesh, and Damon grinned. "A little chilly, Miss Gilbert?"
She grinned suddenly, her arms wrapped around his neck. "Nothing I'm sure you can't cure…"
"Mm…" Damon grinned when she leaned closer and he took her lips in his, tightening his grip on her small waist. He pulled away after a few minutes to let her breath and grinned, tracing her cheek bone with his index finger. "Why the sudden need to get so dolled up?" he asked with a smirk. She grinned. "To impress you, of course."
Damon chuckled. "You could wear a paper bag and still impress me." His eyes suddenly lit up with mischief, "Actually, that's not a bad idea…"
She grinned and moved close to his ear. "Maybe next time…" she purred, her lips closing over his earlobe as she gently nibbled on it. Damon's grip tightened even more and he turned his head, taking her lips in his again hungrily. Elena responded quickly, deepening the kiss and wrapping her legs around his waist under the water. She gasped when she suddenly found her back pressed against the edge of the pool with Damon placing kiss after kiss down her throat, a hand on the back of her neck keeping her close to him, the other supporting her legs. She bit back a moan when he trailed the hand on her neck down her spine as he moved his lips back up to hers. She suddenly found the water around them unbearably hot and pulled away briefly, gasping. "The pool isn't the place to do this…" she said and Damon was out of the water in a flash, taking her with him. Seconds later she found herself being whisked up the staircase and down the hall, the door to their room flying open, and her back suddenly coming in contact with the soft fabric of their sheets. Damon was kissing her again; searing, passionate kissing. Kissing her like he hadn't done yet; kissing her in a way that made her pull him back every time he attempted to pull away.
He finally pulled away and gazed down into her brown eyes. "Do you trust me?" he asked, breathing heavily.
She frowned, a bit confused. "What…?"
"Do you trust that I'll never leave you?" he said, his hand cupping her cheek, and his gaze intense. She nodded. "Of course I do," she replied. Damon bent down a gave her another tension building kiss and then pulled back, kissing his way along her jaw line and up to her ear, placing a tender kiss to the soft spot beneath. "How far do you want me to go?" he whispered to her and she suppressed a moan at just the thought of what he was implying. It was what she wanted, wasn't it? What she had been planning for? The reason she wore the provocative bathing suit in the first place?
"Do your worst," she said in return and he smirked, continuing his trail of kisses once again. Elena gasped a bit this time, however, as Damon's kisses extended beyond her neck. He gave her another kiss and ran his finger down the soft skin in the center of her chest, wrapping an arm around her waist and beginning to move his kisses downward even more, along her chest and down her stomach. Elena sighed shakily as his kisses continued, lower, lower, lower…
"God, Damon…" she moaned as he repeatedly kissed just below her belly button. He smirked as he sensed her heightening desire for him to take her. He grinned and began to kiss his way up her body again, causing her to shift upward instinctively, and he took her lips in his once more, pulling at the thin strings at the back of her bathing suit. "How much do you like this?" he asked her, rubbing the fabric beneath his fingers. "It can be replaced," she said quickly, wishing he would hurry. His agonizingly slow flirtation was killing her. He grinned. "Perfect."
Elena gasped as she felt him rip away the top and toss the shredded remains across the room. She felt her cheeks flush bright red and he smirked, his hand trailing down her side and coming to a stop on her hip where the string to her bottom was. With an almost evil grin, he tore that away as well.
After that, it was mere seconds before Elena cried out in ecstasy, clutching Damon's shoulders tightly as he thrust within her, silencing her cry with a hungry kiss. She moaned, moving her hips in synchronization with his. He moved his lips to kiss her throat, and suddenly found his fangs extending. Even in her clear high on passion, Elena noticed the feeling of cool teeth brushing her skin. "Do it," she said, gasping when he thrust a bit harder. "Bite me!"
Damon took her invitation, sinking his fangs into her soft neck and gently drawing the blood from the double puncture wound, thrusting slowly, causing Elena to moan deliciously with pleasure. "Damon…" she got out in a husky tone, stroking his hair as he drank from her. "Oh, God!" she gasped when he thrust again, even harder, pulling away from her neck. She found herself looking up at his face, his eyes brilliant red and his lips smeared with her blood, fangs still extended. She pulled his lips back down to hers, slipping her tongue in his mouth and touching the pointed fangs. They cut the sensitive skin and she felt blood begin to ooze out. Damon moaned as the taste filled his mouth and deepened the kiss, quickening his thrusts. Elena gasped and pulled away slightly, licking her lips, her eyes burning with passion. Damon immediately pulled her back for another more heated kiss as he picked up his pace even more, sensing the drawing near of her climax. When it finally happened he pulled away from her lips, his arms giving out as she screamed his name, her nails digging into the back of his head as they knotted in his hair. Damon gave a shaky sigh, burying his face in her hair as she breathed heavily. "God…" she muttered, her grip relaxing slightly. Damon drew out of her and moved his head from its spot in her shoulder to look at her. He caressed her cheek bone, suddenly a bit nervous. "Too much?" he asked. Elena's eyes darkened with desire as she shook her head. "Not enough," she said and Damon grinned, kissing her yet again. This was going to be a long night…
Yes, no, maybe so? Remember to review, lovelies! 3