Waking Up In Vegas

Chapter 20

Elena's P.O.V.

I don't know how long we stay out there, my feet are cold. But my arms are warm around his waistline. Stefan smiles at me as he exhales into the cold air. "Did you really love Jake?" Stefan asks suddenly, my head lifts up from his shoulder as I lock my eyes with him.

Why is he bringing this up now? I don't want to talk about Jake..He was just a distraction, a piece of this puzzle that lead me to him. So as his question lingers around us, he's quiet as he grabs my hand and smiles at me, holding me close to him when he watches me shake my head.

"No...I mean, I thought I did. But, Stefan...I didn't..Part of me didn't, because whenever I would look at him, I'd see you..I've known for a long time that it's been you, that's mattered to me, that has changed everything that I want in life...Stefan, I'm falling in love with you, and this trip..I know it's not over yet. But, these last few days with just us...I've never felt more alive." I tell him, watching as he stops walking, he's got a grin on his face when he turns towards me, his cold hands stilling on my cheeks as he leans into me, kissing my lips. I hold onto him, grip onto his shoulders as Stefan deepens the kiss and I feel his hands run through my hair, a wide sneer on his face when he pulls back.

"Come with me." Stefan says, pulling me against him as we walk the now empty streets of the city. It's perfect, me and him. The way we are with each other, how simple it is. And in that moment, his arms wrapping around me, us walking back to our separate hotel rooms. I don't want this to end, I never want to be without him...I don't and I refuse to be.

"Stefan, where are we going?" I ask with a laugh, the smile that's forming on my face is starting to hurt my cheeks. But, I don't even care anymore, because I couldn't think of a better reason to smile. We're in the city of love, two people who have been so broken for so long, finally found each other amongst the chaos of what are lives have become, back home in LA.

"You'll see...We didn't have our dessert." Stefan comments, tightening his grip onto my hand as we continue to walk, quickening our pace when I turn to look at him. His green eyes are full of determination, full of something that I can't really place. But, his face is relaxed, no stress at all as he glances at me and tilts his head to the side, touching my cheek with his finger tips for just a moment.

"You're beautiful, Elena..Don't ever have anyone tell you differently." Stefan says as I smile at him, this goofy grin showing off my white teeth as he laughs.

"I don't really take compliments very well." I tell him, watching as he leads us down a street that's full of people, lights shining off the building as I realize that we're finally back at the hotel, our hotel and this night, this perfect and memorable night is about to end.

"I can tell, you're blushing. But, I like it..it's cute." Stefan tells me, leading me through the double doors of the hotel lobby. The warmth of the building hitting my face as Stefan smiles again, leaning into me and kissing my cheeks softly.

"Dessert in your hotel room?" I ask him, watching as he nods at me.

"Yeah, why not...we're not done with our little getting to know each other game. So, I figured why not continue it in my room..or continue whatever you want." He tells me as we both watch the elevator doors open and he wraps his arms around me as we enter the elevator and make our way back to his room.

XXXX

Stefan's P.O.V.

I watch her, staring down at her feet nervously as she lets out a small laugh. "How did you know that I loved that Ed Sheeran song from earlier..when we danced?" She asks, resting her head against my back, Elena's arms are wrapped around me when I finally get the door open and she giggles a bit when we walk into the hotel room. Candles scattered on almost every table surface, music playing low when she closes the door behind us and looks up at me, her eyes almost filling with tears.