AN: Wow! Uploading so soon, I can't believe it. I just thought that I should give you something to read now and not when I come back from my trip. So yeah, enjoy this chapter and review, review, review!

PS: I have little over 200 reviews and I want to thank each and every one of you who reviewed my story for doing so. It makes a writer feel a thousand times better when reading opinions about their work.

Not really sure how to feel about it

Something in the way you move

Makes me feel like I can't live without you

It takes me all the way

I want you to stay

"Happy birthday, beautiful!"

Elena moaned and turned on her side as she heard Damon's soft voice next to her. Did he mention something about birthday? No! He couldn't have known that it was her birthday today. She was going to murder Caroline. Her friend knew that she didn't like people to know her birthday and yet she told Damon. Elena opened her eyes lazily and when she spotted the light of the sun burning in front of her eyes, she draped her arm over her face and pulled the sheets up, covering her whole body. Just as quickly as she covered her face, Damon grabbed the edge of the sheet and pulled them away from her body. Finally, with a groan, she sat up and looked at him. She just couldn't not smile when she saw him grinning at her like an idiot and holding an envelope in his hand.

"Oh no, no gifts please!" She raised her hand as a warning and he rolled his eyes. "I'm so going to kill Caroline for telling you." Damon chuckled amusedly and he leaned down, kissing her left cheek, then her right one, then her forehead, the tip of her nose and she couldn't stop giggling. Finally, he brought his lips to hers and she hated herself for her morning breath when he was already clean and dressed up. His tongue teased her lips to gain entrance to explore her mouth and she couldn't stop parting them enough to allow him to do as he pleased.

"What, it's the first good things she does. You should be grateful that I stopped her from throwing you a party. She still wants my balls because I have other plans for your birthday." He said, panting from their heated kiss.

"What do you mean, other plans?" Elena narrowed her eyes, eyeing him suspiciously, having trouble breathing herself.

"If you open it, you'll see." He said and handed her the envelope. She took it from him and without waiting, she opened it and stared at the plane tickets inside.

"Where are we going?"

"That's for me to know and for you to dot-dot-dot. Pack your bags. I sure packed mine."

"I need to know where we are going if you want me to pack my bags." Elena scoffed but only received a smirk from Damon.

"You're not going to need much clothes; you won't need them." He winked and she immediately understood his allusion. "Grab some bikinis, though." Elena jumped from the bed and pulled one of her bags from Damon's enormous closet. Between Caroline's party and Damon's plan, she would choose the second one all the time.

"You know, I'm really wondering how can Caroline think about a birthday party when she is getting married in a week. That girl is hyperactive, I swear!" She said as she found some bikinis and shoved them in her bag. She was seriously intrigued by the secret location of their trip.

"She gets points for ingeniuity though. She helped me decide where to go."

"I'm so glad you guys are warming up to each other." Elena smiled as she walked to the bed where the bag was and put an armful of clothes inside.

"Yeah...that's not going to happen." He smirked devilishly and she sat next to him on the edge of the bed.

"Oh, come on, I know you love her." Elena raised an eyebrow as she placed a hand on his knee. "You're so going to babysit her kids."

"Yeah, like something could be born from that Loch Ness Monster!" He laughed, clearly overly amused by his joke. Elena frowned and slapped his arm.

"Careful, Mr. Salvatore, you might go away alone on this trip of yours." She warned and he was taken by surprise by her words; he surely didn't expect that. Elena sat up and finding a flowery thin dress, she walked into Damon's big bathroom.

Looking into the mirror, for the first time in days, she didn't see the black circles under her eyes anymore. She smiled and got rid of her-or better, his-Led Zeppelin t-shirt she was wearing. Lazily, she grabbed a bra to match her panties and slipped it on. With a grin, she grabbed her toothbrush and squirted some toothpaste over it, slipping it into her mouth.

A few moments later, Damon knocked on the door. "Come in," she mumbled while brushing her teeth duteously. Elena heard the door open and she rinsed her teeth, and when her eyes met his in the mirror, she saw the lust present in them and her heart started to beat faster. How she wanted to tell him that she loved him, that she would do anything for him. That if he asked her to cross seas and jump off a building she would do it just to see him happy. But she couldn't. She couldn't put her heart at much more risk, knowing that he didn't feel the same for her.

Damon took the step needed to reach her and his hands settled on her hips, shaking her slightly as he did so. Soon enough, his mouth grazed her neck and he started doing amazing things to it and she simply leaned her head to her side to offer him a better access to her exposed long neck. God, how did he manage to get her to feel so many things at once with just kissing her neck? Her chest was heavily rising and falling as Damon playfully tugged at her earlobe, making her squirm under his touch. And just as easy as he stepped forward towards her, he stepped back, leaving her reeling and wanting more. She turned to face him and frowned.

"We don't have time. The flight is at 10:30."

"Okay, so what's the time now?" She asked, trying to compose herself.

"9:15." He shrugged like it wasn't a big deal for him. Well, for her it was. He couldn't just start to do that to her and then leave her like that, it wasn't fair and he knew it. He was probably doing it on purpose. That was why he was going to regret it later. She smirked amused at her thought. "Something funny?"

"No, not at all, Mr. Salvatore. Just enjoying my day."

"How old are you, anyway? Thirty?" He wriggled his eyebrows and she scowled, rolling her eyes. His jokes weren't always the most inspired.

"23. And it would've been gross if you would've been screwing an older chick." She winked playfully as she grabbed her dress and pulled it on, tying a bow at her waist. Her hair was a general mess, she noticed as she glanced into the mirror again. Annoyed with it, she ran a brush through it and arranged her curls.

"Not if she looked like you." Damon mumbled and she smirked, turning to face him once again.

"Like me, how?" Elena asked, her interest suddenly piqued.

"Perfect." Damon breathed out and she felt her legs weakening hearing this, but she didn't want to give herself away.

"Flattery will get you nowhere."

"It wasn't flattery. Just the truth." He approached her and puttting his hand around her waist, he pulled her towards himself, their bodies crushing together. "You're beautiful." Damon whispered into her ear and she felt her face warmed and turned crimson at his words. Nobody ever told her that. Oh, he could be so sweet, when he wanted to. It was mainly the reason why she fell in love with him.

"George is waiting downstairs." Damon announced and once more he stepped aside, but this time it was because they really had to hurry. Elena frowned.

"Who's George?"

"My driver." Damon shrugged nonchalantly as he pulled the bags outside and locked the penthouse behind.

"But you drive your car yourself. Well, you actually drive more cars, but one in particular."

"Yes, but I still have a driver. He does other things for me as well but right now, someone has to get the car back home. I don't like to leave it at the airport." Damon said and as soon as they arrived at the reception, the red headed girl saluted them nicely. Elena smiled at her and followed Damon outside.

It was a beautiful May Friday and the sun was shining brightly, throwing its golden arrows towards them. She loved it. She loved bathing in the sun and just enjoying this weather, the clear sky. She loved everything about New York! It was her dream town after all.

Damon put the bags in the trunk and Elena got into the back of the car. The chauffeur, George, turned to take a peek at her and she smiled nicely, like she always did.

"Hello, George. I'm Elena." She said and extended her hand to him and they shook.

"It's nice to meet you, Miss Elena." The young man said and she burst out laughing right when Damon got into the car.

"You're laughing at me, again?" He raised an eyebrow, questioning.

"Oh, no, baby. George here just called me 'Miss Elena'. George, I'm not that old. Please call me Elena." She chuckled, still amused.

"But, miss, I cannot do that. You're 's girlfriend."

"George, if she wants you to call her by her name, just go with it." Damon announced, shaking his head and George didn't say anything else.

Thirty minutes later, they managed to arrive at the JFK airport and just in time to get on their flight. Elena took her seat by the window and Damon had no other option than to leave it like that. It has been such a long time since she flew that she didn't even remember what a new plane looked like. She looked around and noticed there wasn't much difference. Still just a machine that got you from point A to point B.

"Do you want something to drink?" Damon asked and she shook her head slightly, before resting it on his shoulder. His arm draped around her and she curled closer to him, enjoying this; them.

"We're going to Santa Monica, right?" Elena asked as she let out a long yawn. She was still tired and she might just use him as her own makeshift pillow during the flight.

"Why would you think that?"

"Because we're on a flight to Los Angeles and you told me to get bikinis. It was just a suspicion, but confirmed now. I've always wanted to go there." She smiled and pressed a kiss on his cheek.

"And it looked like Blondie knew that."

"She knows everything about me. I told you that we've known each other since we were in diapers. That girl is the sister I never had." Damon didn't say anything else.

As the plane took off, Elena felt her stomach turning round and round and her blood going up, to her head, making her eyes play tricks on her. She straightened herself and grabbed Damon's hand, clutching it tightly.

"Elena, are you okay?" He asked, worried.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little bit nauseous. It happened a lot when I was a kid too." She mumbled and tried to tell herself that it was all fine. A few minutes later, she hurried to unbuckle her seatbelt and ran to the bathroom. Elena hovered over the toilet and threw up all that she had eaten on the way to the airport; a bagel and a coffee.

She stood up, feeling way better now and turned on the water. She looked into the small mirror above the sink and saw the paleness of her face and gently wiped it with some cold water. When she opened the door to return to her place, she found Damon waiting for her.

"Elena?" He grabbed her hand and they returned to their seats.

"I'm fine. Flying always made me sick. I forgot about it."

"I worried about you." Damon sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. She inwardly hugged herself with joy; he worried about her. What could be better than this? But then, all friends worried for each other.

"You did?" She asked, totally in awe of what he has just told her.

"Of course. I don't know what I'd do without you." Damon said and she just couldn't do anything else, but bring her lips to his and kiss him, pouring all her love into the kiss, hoping that he would realize how much he means to her. Elena leaned her head on his shoulder and let herself enjoy the massage he was offering to her scalp. She didn't know when, but she fell asleep in his embrace.

"Please buckle up your seatbelt, we're going to land in five minutes!" The flight attendant announced and Elena was woken up by the loud noises in the speakers.

"We're almost there." Damon said and kissed her forehead, trying to sweeten up her second nap time interruption.

An hour later, the taxi stopped in front of an enormous hotel in Santa Monica. Damon opened the door for her and Elena smiled at him as she helped him grab the bags from the trunk.

"Give it to me." He said.

"Excuse me?" Elena asked, her eyebrows rising in surprise.

"Your bag, I mean." He laughed amused. "You have a dirty mind, Elena Gilbert."

"I think that's sexually transmissible."

"Very funny, Elena, very funny." Damon rolled his eyes in a mocking way and she shook her head before following him inside. They stopped at the front desk and she just couldn't not notice the way the receptionist was glaring at Damon; she was practically eating him up with her eyes. Elena scowled at her; he was hers, no sharing included.

"Mr. Salvatore?" The platinum blonde asked and he nodded his head. She stooped and searched for the key and after a minute she handed it to him, her hand lingering a little longer, but he seemed oblivious to it. Elena was inwardly smirking because of it.

"Here we are." Damon said as he opened the door and they strolled inside. Elena put her bag on the bed and she sank into the soft mattress, yawning as she did so.

"Oh no, you're not going to sleep again." Damon pointed his finger at her, warning her.

"But I'm so tired. Let's sleep." She pouted childishly.

"Come on, 'Lena, we didn't fly all the way here to sleep. We could've done that in New York too. Put your bikini on, we're going to the beach." Damon announced and her eyes snapped open wide hearing his suggestion. She was all in! If there was one thing Elena loved more that spending time in New York, was spending time at the beach. She stood up immediately and after searching in her bag, she made her way to the bathroom.

Five minutes later, she returned, wearing a pair of short ripped jeans and a loose white top, above her beige bikini. She noticed Damon was wearing a pair of white flax pants and a grey t-shirt. She found it hard to breathe, looking at him as he walked around the room, sipping lazily from a glass of bourbon. She cleared her throat and drew his attention towards her.

"You look...breathtaking." Damon said and she felt her face turning crimson at his words. Why was he being so nice and gentle to her if he didn't feel something more for her? It was something that she couldn't understand, though she wanted to. "Ready?"

She nodded shortly and taking his hand, they left their hotel room and walked hand in hand to the beach that was just two steps away from the hotel. Elena giggled happily as she felt the sand filling her denim ballet flats. Elena bent over and took off her shoes and carried them in her free hand. This way she was able to enjoy the sand, the way it tickled her foot and she would be able to tell that she was indeed here, with Damon.

"This is nice." Damon said and she looked up at him, the wind making her hair fly in all the directions, but it seemed like she didn't mind it.

"What is nice?"

"Hearing you giggle, smile. I remember that you were so sad after I met you. It was a pain in the ass to see you like that."

"Really?" She asked in a whispered voice. She had no idea that when he was talking to her about how people always got hurt, when they shared all those stories, he actually was feeling out of place.

"Yes, because it made me feel bad, knowing I couldn't do something to make you smile." He shrugged, appearing sad.

"But you did make me smile. I'm with you now and I'm smiling. Isn't that what you want?" She asked as she stopped in front of him, trying to settle her hair in place and look at him carefully, wishing for him to show an emotion that could give him away. Wishing that he would say he loved her, because she couldn't bear the thought that he wasn't happy right now.

"Of course it is." He pulled a smile on his lips and she tugged at his hand, when an idea suddenly rose in her head.

"I'll race you to that cliff over there." She pointed her finger to show him the exact place and actually it wasn't that far away. Nothing her legs couldn't do.

"This is a challenge I cannot say no to." Damon smirked and flashed her his dazzling look. She flushed and felt her insides clenching deliciously but tried to ignore it as best as she could. She could not lose this race. "On your count."

Elena glanced up at him and started to count slowly. "3...2...1...Go!" And as soon as she said the word, she sped towards the cliff, putting all her power in her legs to get there before him. Although she didn't turn her head to look if he was near, because she was scared she might lose time, she had a feeling that he was closer that he should've been. And just as she was about to do the victory dance when she was near the cliff, Damon appeared out of nowhere and putting his arm around her waist, he lifted her up and spun her around, before planting a ravenous kiss on her lips.

She opened her eyes wide as he pulled away and that moment she couldn't care less about the lame race. She dipped her fingers into his unruly black hair and tugged at it, pulling his face closer to her as he held her tight against his chest. In a swift movement, Damon put her down and he laid down on the warm sand. Unexpectedly, he tugged at her hand and she fell on top of him, nuzzling her nose into his neck and noticing that his body wash was still fresh on him even after all this time.

Her lips started to place feather-like kissing along his jawline and she couldn't not notice his stubble that started to grow. Soon, his mouth was on hers, kissing her passionately, with fervor, like there was no tomorrow. His tongue struggled against hers for dominance and their dance was something she has grown so accustomed to these last months, something that she loved so much. Her hands pushed and pulled at his shirt and sooner rather than later, his torso was revealed to her.

Her arms easily rose above her head, giving him the assistance he needed to rid her of the unneeded material that hid her skin from him, and moments later, her top soon followed, leaving her breasts bare before him. At that moment, she didn't even care if someone saw them but she relaxed and reveled into his touch, knowing that there was no one on the beach at the time, especially on that hidden stretch they were on. In a matter of seconds, Damon managed to push her beneath him so now he was on top of her, his hands gently skimming over her soft skin and she couldn't help but let out a moan every now and then.

His lips moved to her neck, burning a trail over her hot skin, distracting her from tugging at his dark hair. Her fingers left his locks and found their way to the waistline of his pants, fidgeting with the button as she desperately tried to get it open. His own fingers trailed down her stomach and she felt her muscles clench beneath his touch. With little effort, he removed her of her short jeans, pushing them down her legs and out of his way. Soon enough, he started a course of kisses from her neck coming down south. His wandering lips paused at her belly button. He dipped his tongue inside and Elena responded with a breathless giggle.

He raised his head and the satisfied smirk on his face made her even more aroused and she panted as she wanted to feel him, closer, too close, inside her, everywhere. He was her drug, her addiction, the only thing she needed for things to be right in her own universe. A moment later, she took a mouthful of air that she knew for sure she needed and she gave another try at his waistline, this time successful in getting his pants down, and away from her sight. He wouldn't be needing them too soon.

And just as she prepared herself for what was coming next, Damon started to torture her with a round of his shenanigans. He started to kiss her legs, lazily stopping at her thighs and next to the tip of her bikini, but he didn't touch it, not even a bit. Instead, he continued with his tormenting idea of kissing each and every inch of her skin, down to her little toe and then starting on her other leg, lazily going up and again stopping on the inside of her thighs, mirroring what he's done just a minute ago on the right side of her body.

When she was going to tell him to stop tormenting her, Damon grabbed the edge of her bikini and pulled them down, exposing her totally while he was still wearing his boxers. This wasn't fair at all, but who was she to judge? Elena's hands went helplessly to his head, curling into his soft, dark locks and holding on for dear life as he slid a finger inside her and began to move it in and out of her faster and harder.

"Please, I need you inside of me." She breathed, pulling him closer to kiss him. Damon deepened the kiss, thrusting his tongue into her mouth and taking back the control without ever changing their physical positions. Elena whimpered and allowed him to dominate her mouth. And right on cue, he sank into her at a deliciously slow pace. Elena closed her eyes, relishing the fullness, the exquisite feeling of his possession, instinctively tilting her pelvis up to meet him, to join with him, groaning loudly. He eased back and very slowly filled her again.

She clung to him as he started trusting, her nails digging into his shoulder blades as he sped up the rhythm and she couldn't be more grateful for it. His forehead pressed softly against hers, his eyes locked on her brown orbs, refusing to move away. Her fingers moved from his back and took hold of his face, holding it softly within her grasp. Her world shattered into a million pieces as she fell over the edge and dragged him with her, their bodies sweaty and sandy.

"I love you." Her whispered voice broke through the sound of their strained breathing, unequal and fragile. Her brown eyes bore into his blue ones as she spoke the words, her hand searching for his, squeezing it tightly as a reassurance. His eyes softened, a smile tugging on his lips, he leaned forward and kissed her slowly, tasting her properly. These things happened a lot these days, since she moved in with him. He would kiss her, slow, gently, not necessarily wanting more, or he would simply find her around the house and wrap his hands around her waist, kissing the back of her neck.

And as much as she wanted to hear those words back, she wouldn't push him. She would be patient and she would wait until the proper day for him to say that would come. And Elena knew that when that day came, she would be the happiest woman alive, because he would love her and she would finally have something hers and only for her, something she needed for such a long time and had so much trouble finding.