Author Note: I'm sorry that I've taken a while to update, but I had...dare I say it... *whispers* writer's block *shudders*. I said it. And I had an exam that took me FOREVER to revise for :(

Thanks Animaddie for reviewing each chapter religiously and thanks GeeGee47 for putting up with my TVD/Damon obsession day in day out. And thanks to everyone who reads, reviews and faves etc (I just thanked those 2 personally cos I know them personally :P)

I love you guys so much so please show me the love and REVIEW! xx

Disclaimer: sadly I don't own Damon or anything else you recognise

Chapter 4

The grand Salvatore gardens were deserted, despite being elaborately decorated. Glass lanterns emitting a golden glow hung from large trees around the grounds, and the stillness of the air made it even more beautiful than it had been when we had arrived.

Damon kept striding forward – he'd obviously seen this splendour many times in the last few years. I trotted a little to keep up with him, all the while wondering where we were going. At the edge of the pathway, he took a sharp left, heading towards a stable-like building.

Once we had disappeared behind the red brick stable, Damon's hand reached down into mine, and his pace slowed to a gentle stroll. He led me into a pasture surrounded by cypress trees, where a light breeze whistled through their leaves, blowing a couple into my perfectly fashioned hair. I carelessly raked my fingers through my tresses to brush the leaves out. Damon's midnight eyes flickered to me as a leaf fell on his shoulder. "Sorry," I mumbled, flicking it off absentmindedly.

"No problem, Miss Alicia," came the almost whispered reply. Feeling my cheeks heat up, I quickly started repositioning my hair, but his hand caught mine and firmly pulled it away from my head. "What are you doing that for?" he asked, a crease forming on his brow.

"Just making it look nicer..." I trailed off faintly. I looked to him for a reaction, but his only response was, "Stay there, stand perfectly still." My breath caught in my throat and I didn't breathe while he swiftly moved behind me. I could feel his fingers softly probing my scalp for hair pins, and he gently removed the remaining few that held my mane in place. He returned to my line of sight and tugged a few strands in front of my shoulders, a look of concentration on his beautiful face as he arranged my hair to his satisfaction. "There," he said proudly, taking a look at his handiwork. I rolled my eyes in mock exasperation and held out my arm to him saying, "Shall we?"

"We shall," he confirmed, flashing the brightest smile I'd seen in my life, and a row of impeccably straight teeth. But instead of linking his arm through mine, he grabbed my hand and sprinted, dragging me with him. However, my stupid heels couldn't cope with running across a spongy field, so I tottered over and landed on my front. Grumbling to myself, I yanked the shoes off my aching feet and hauled myself up to begin chasing after Damon, ever the cheetah-like runner.

I could hear him laughing in the distance. His chuckle was like music to my ears and I couldn't hate him for laughing at my misfortune.

My heavy skirts rustled as I dashed across the field, and I was so intent on catching up with him that I hadn't seen him stop and wait for me, so I collided with him and we fell to the floor. I landed on top of him and instantly attempted to remove myself from this blush-worthy situation. But my weighty bodice and kirtle prevented me from moving away. "Well this isn't awkward in the slightest, my lady," he laughed devilishly.

"Mmm..." I was concentrating too hard on getting up to think of a reply. Chortling quietly to himself, he raised his right hand and tenderly traced his fingers down my cheek. The explosions I felt inside my head caught me off guard and I fell off his stomach, heart racing. "Allie?" he asked concernedly.

"Mmm?"

"You okay?"

"Mm hmm," I was unable to speak coherently – let alone think coherently!

"Sure?" he double checked. I nodded vaguely.

"Then you won't mind me doing this, will you?" he pushed himself off the ground and leaned over me, his silky charcoal hair falling in my face. I looked up into the black eyes staring intently at me, and my heart began to beat erratically. He stroked my cheek once more, his eyes never leaving mine, and then he twisted his finger around the lock of hair that lay next to my face. Oh God! He was so close, I could taste his sweet breath on my face, and I could think of nothing else other than the beautiful man in front of me.

But a moment later, he was lying by my side again, and when I glanced over at him, I saw a smile playing on his lips. We lay in silence for a while, and all I could think of was the moment we shared, and the proximity of our bodies. I felt the heat radiating off him, and wondered if I emitted the same kind of invisible glow.

"We must be breaking every social rule there is, don't you think?" he questioned flirtatiously.

"I think so. And I had to study them for five whole years!"

"But I never had much regard for rules..." he smiled.

"I remember... Stefan was always the good boy." Memories of a carefree childhood flooded back to me, and a fairly big part of me wished I could relive them.

"Still is. Who's the one marrying a girl he barely knows just because Father wants him to? Stefan, not me."

"I feel so sorry for him, but I don't know how we can make it any better..." I trailed off, deep in thought.

"We?" He sounded quite amused.

"Come on Damon, I know you care about your baby brother."

"Yeah, I do, I s'pose," he grumbled in mock annoyance.

"Well, there you go," I said, a little triumphantly. He rolled his eyes, and waggled his eyebrows. I think that's become our 'thing'.

"We seem to do that a lot, don't we?" Damon chuckled.

"I was just thinking that!" I said, maybe too excitedly.

"I was going to say 'great minds think alike' but on second thoughts..." he said impishly.

"Hey!" I hit him on the arm playfully. He smirked at me then sat up. Grass covered the back of his black suit and I leant forward to brush it off. "Are you up for another walk?" he enquired.

"Yeah. Where?"

"We'll see," he teased. After standing up, he offered me his hand, and I took it, beaming up at him.

Minutes later, we reached a woody clearing, the greenest I'd seen in my life. Dewy droplets hung from every leaf, and I could almost taste the moisture in the air. The grass was damp under my bare feet, and when I curled my toes, I could feel the soil moving.

It was extremely dark, not just because it was night time, but because the trees were planted thickly, blocking out the light from the twinkly stars.

I blinked several times to try and see through the darkness, and once my eyelids were incredibly tired, I could make out Damon's grinning face. "What?" I grumbled, scowling in embarrassment.

"You looked. So. Funny. Blinking. So. Much!" he could barely get his words out through the laughter.

"It wasn't that funny. You don't have to laugh so much!" I protested weakly, attempting to play the damsel in distress card.

"Yeah, I do," he smirked, wiggling his eyebrows. I pouted. "Aww, princess, don't be sad. I wasn't really laughing at you." I looked up, eyes wide.

"Well I was." I glared at him again.

"But do you really believe I'm that mean?" His voice softened and his eyes smouldered, and I melted.

"I know I'm the most lusted after man in Florence, but do you honestly have to stand and stare at me for this long?" he teased.

"Oh yeah? Well according to 'La Quotidiano Posta' I'm the most talked about girl in... in... around here. So there." I countered with mock haughtiness.

Shaking his head slightly, he tugged me to a secluded corner of the clearing and sat down, leaning against a mossy tree. I followed suit, except instead of leaning on a tree, I snuggled up next to him and rested my head on his shoulder. He put his arm around me and pulled me closer.

"It's so beautiful here," I murmured, entwining my hand with his.

"Mmm," he replied, tilting his head to lie on top of mine.

I closed my eyes and took in the perfect moment. All I could hear was Damon's deep breathing, and I felt so warm and comfortable in his arms. I could stay here forever, I thought, and realised it was true. I did want to stay here for eternity.

"I didn't know your father owned so much land. Beautiful land," I said quietly.

"He doesn't. Well he does, but not this place," Damon replied, equally softly.

"How did you find it then?"

"How else do you think I survived all these years if I didn't have a little getaway?" he smiled.

"Oh. Does Stefan or anyone else know about this place?"

"No. Why? Wanting any competition?" he teased, and I could feel him laugh slightly.

"I was just wondering," I muttered, and I'm sure my cheeks were very pink. But it was dark, so hopefully he couldn't tell.

"Well it's been only you," Damon returned, "Only you..." He whispered the last 'only you' barely audibly, as more of a thought.

"Damon?"

"Mmm?"

"What you reckon the time is?"

"Around twelve, princess." He stroked my cheek with his free hand which made me melt into him even more. I squeezed my eyes shut to refocus my thoughts and when I realised my mother would most probably be looking for me, my heart sank, and I sat up sharply.

"Princess?" Damon asked, sounding concerned.

"I've got to... I should probably... my mother... I..." I didn't know what to say as I scrambled up, brushing the water droplets off my emerald dress. Damon hastily stood up and looked me directly in the eyes. His gaze was intense and enthralling; I couldn't look away if I tried.

"I understand, Allie. Just give me one more minute of your time," he said evenly.

"O...kay..." I was just entranced by his piercing stare.

He took an almost hesitant step towards me and lightly brushed his lips against mine.

My head burst with explosions and I felt so light-headed I stumbled backwards. Luckily, my knight in a jet black tuxedo caught me just before I hit the ground. He scooped me up and carried me back to the Salvatore mansion in his arms – silently. Despite the fact that neither of us said anything the whole way, there was an unspoken connection that was so strong that I felt like I was going to pass out.

When we were behind the red brick stable again, he gently dropped me onto my feet and linked his arm through mine to escort me back to the celebration. Just before we reached the gilded entrance, I paused and turned to look at him. I tried to speak but couldn't find the words to express myself, so I gave up opening and closing my mouth like a fish and just grinned at him stupidly. I could tell he was laughing as he was smiling, even though he made no sound at all. I think I must have blushed because his finger traced my cheek – but he's been doing that a lot tonight so maybe I wasn't as red as I thought I was.

"Alicia DiGrazio! Where have you been?" The screech of my mother ruined the perfect moment, but I'd had a nightful of perfect moments so I guess I didn't matter that much...

"Damon was just giving me a tour of the grounds, Mother," I muttered in answer, hoping she wouldn't probe further.

"But don't you remember it from when you were here last?"

"I...umm...couldn't remember it very well. And it's a beautiful night." She seemed to believe it because she scowled and changed the subject. "Well we'd better be off now. Come, Alicia," she commanded to me after nodding slightly at Damon.

"Good night, Mrs DiGrazio, thank you for joining us for this wonderful celebration." I don't think my mother heard the sarcasm in his voice – but I did, and I grinned again when he murmured, "And it was a beautiful night, indeed."

But Mother whisked me off into the carriage before I could say a proper goodbye. I kept watching him watch me till we turned the corner and I could no longer see my Prince Charming.

Author Note: thank you soo much for reading this it really means a lot to me! This was my first ever attempt of writing a romantic scene so some feedback would REALLY be appreciated. I don't know when my next update will be, but it will hopefully be soon coz most of my school stuff is out of the way now :)

Love Beth xx