I didn't honestly think you would bring me here" Elena said as she looked out the window of their rented SUV. For the most part, all she saw was white as far as she could see. They hadn't really had all that much snow in Virginia that year, so she was definitely getting a taste of it while she was in Alaska.
Stefan turned his head towards her and smiled at her. With one hand on the steering wheel, he grabbed her hand with his free hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "You know I'll always give you everything you want" he told her.
While Elena's heart did melt in her chest, she also laughed. "You're going to regret that one day" she told him, looking back out the window. She had big plans to renovate his – their – house and she was pretty sure he wasn't going to like it. Still, comments like those made her wonder if this was real or if she was going to wake up and find out that it was all just a dream. Marrying him. Loving him. It didn't seem real.
"Never" Stefan said, turning back to the road. Little did she know, she would have a brand new car waiting at home for her when they returned. It was about time. He had even brought Lily along to get a girl's opinion, since a girl would be driving it. While Stefan was concerned about safety and dependability, Lily was concerned about the color of the car, the sound system, and of course, the number of coffee cup holders. Lily always used up all of them whenever she was in anyone's car, placing in them bottles, hair clips, or, he cringed at the thought, her gum. Or anything else she needed to find a spot for. Thankfully after four and a half hours of searching, Lily talked him into one.
A comfortable silence passed over Stefan and Elena for a little while. "Are we almost there?" Elena asked. She was eager to get to wherever it was that Stefan was whisking her away to.
"Almost" Stefan said, looking around.
Elena crossed her arms and grinned. "You're lost" she told him.
Stefan got defensive. "I am not" he told her. Elena laughed at him and he was pretty sure she was the only one who could do that. He would never let anyone else get away with it. "It's just right over that hill" he informed her, really having no idea if it was or not.
"You're lucky you're cute" Elena told him. She didn't like getting lost with just anyone.
Stefan turned and looked over at her with the biggest smile ever. "I am pretty cute, aren't I" he said, clearly enjoying the attention she was giving him.
"Don't let it get to your head, Stefan" she told him. He reached his hand over to her and attempted to poke her side. "Hey!" she laughed, grabbing his hand. "Watch the road" she warned. "You're already lost enough" she smirked.
Stefan made sure to watch the road but went back after her, grabbing whatever he could. Elena laughed and curled into a ball to avoid his tickling hand at all costs. "Are you going to stop saying I'm lost?" he asked.
Elena was near tears from laughing so much. "No" she told him and fell into a fit of giggles as he tickled her even more. This was torture and she loved every minute of it. Every bad thing she had experienced in a relationship before was lost in her mind and the only suffering she felt right now was the immense fear that she was going to pee her pants.
Stefan took pity on her and let up finally. "Only because I don't want you to pee in here" he smirked. She swatted at his hand and sat up, her eyes still watering and her face still bright red.
"You're horrible" she told him, fixing her shirt and wiping at her eyes.
"That's not what you said last night" he reminded with a sly grin.
Elena thought about rolling her eyes and scolding him for that comment. But then she realized that was what he expected her to do. "You're right. You were pretty amazing last night" she agreed, turning to look at him. Stefan's grin fell as he looked at her. That wasn't the reaction he had expected. She was playing with him. That had to be it.
Her hand slipped onto his leg, resting just above his knee.
He looked at where her hand was resting and swallowed hard. "Uh huh" he said, attempting to agree but also realizing that his brain was turning to mush and he had no idea what he was agreeing to anymore.
Elena leaned over as far as she could, resting her chin on his shoulder so she could whisper in his ear. "Do you know what I want you to do to me tonight?" she asked, nipping lightly on the bottom of his ear.
Stefan hit the brakes on the SUV and it came sliding to a stop seconds later. "Dear God yes!" he said, forgetting all about the fact that she was playing him. He didn't care what she was doing as long as it was going in this direction.
Elena smiled. She loved that she could have this effect on him. It was nice to have that feeling that she could have control in a relationship, though, she knew very well that he could spin things on her quite easily and she would lose her control quite quickly. Elena bit down on the bottom of his ear again playfully as she moved her hand further up his leg. Stefan honestly thought he was going to black out. "I want you to ..." she trailed off in a whisper as her hand skipped up and went under his shirt. "Make me ..." she continued to whisper as she slowly tortured him.
"What?" he barely got out. He would do anything she asked and then more.
Elena smiled, loving his reactions to everything she was doing. "Cuddle with me until I fall asleep" she said, moving away from him and back into her own seat.
Stefan continued to stare straight ahead, in complete disbelief that she had turned him on like that, only to pull away when he needed her most. Elena laughed at how serious he looked, like his whole world had come crashing down on him. "That's ground for divorce" he told her, stepping on the gas and proceeding forward once again without even looking at her.
"Don't pout" she said, grabbing his hand. "That was for almost making me pee my pants earlier" she reminded him. "Torture for torture."
"Two very different kinds of torture" he grumbled.
"Stefan?" Elena asked.
"What?" he continued to grumble.
"I love you" she told him, a smile still on her face. She had gotten him good.
"You're lucky I love you too" he told her, eyeing her finally with an evil glare that soon turned in to a smile because let's face it, he loved her too damn much to be mad at her for longer than 30 seconds.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
The very large cabin Stefan had gotten for them was unlike anything Elena had ever seen. Although he was still not happy with her earlier game, watching her facial expressions turn from excitement to pure happiness was well worth the trouble he went to getting this place for the weekend. "This okay?" he asked her, dropping their bags just inside the front door.
Elena turned around and ran to him from across the living area, throwing her arms around his neck and jumping into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. Stefan wrapped his arms around her, holding her in place. "Perfect" she smiled, leaning in and kissing him eagerly.
Stefan kissed her back, but slowed their kisses down, wanting to savor every moment. Coming to Alaska was perfect because there would be no one to disturb them. No little girl with long brown curls running into the room. No crazy ex fiancés with snarky comments. No siblings or best friends to take away even one minute that he knew he was going to spend with her. But Elena was becoming impatient with his attempt to slow things down. "Don't you want to see the rest of the cabin?" he mumbled in between their kisses.
Elena smiled against his lips. "Later" she breathed out, grabbing his shirt and pulling it up.
To hell with going slow. They ended up on the couch and somewhere between her sweater coming off and his pants being kicked down, they ended up on the floor. It was incredibly ungraceful and definitely not romantic, but it gave them a challenge and had them both laughing by the end of it.
Stefan draped a blanket over them, propping himself up on his elbow as he and Elena lay in front of the fire. Every now and then he would place a lazy kiss along her shoulder, but for the most part, they were both too tired to move after a day of traveling and an evening of ... well, whatever it was called that they had just done. He figured that they should attempt to make dinner though. "Think you can make it to the kitchen?" he whispered lazily into her ear.
Elena sighed, her eyes closed as she contemplated sleep. "Maybe if you carry me" she told him.
Stefan smiled and kissed her hair. "You stay here. I'll get dinner started" he told her, slipping carefully away from her. Elena murmured something as he was putting his clothes back on, but he could tell that she was practically asleep.
Elena woke up just as dinner was ready. She too put her clothes back on, blushing as she looked around the room and seeing what a mess it was. Throw pillows were on the floor and things were knocked over on tables. "You're up" Stefan smiled, walking in with two plates.
"Thank you" she said, grabbing her plate from where she sat on the floor. Stefan took a seat across from her on the floor. He stared at her for a moment as she neatly cut her food. She looked up to find him watching her. "What?" she asked.
He couldn't help but smile. Her hair was a mess and her clothes were wrinkled. Her eyes were still sleepy, but she had a glow to her that he never wanted to fade. For a girl who had been through so much, she looked completely content being right there with him. "Nothing" he said, deciding to keep his thoughts to himself.
Dinner was casual and so was the conversation. He needed it to be, for his own sanity. When they had finished, Elena offered to take the plates to the kitchen for them.
When she returned, she froze completely still at the sight of him down on one knee, holding a small open box with a ring inside. Her eyes showed her confusion, but his eyes were confident. "Elena Gilbert" he said, feeling his heart beat a million times faster than normal. He didn't know why he was so nervous. "Will you marry me, for real?" he asked her.
Her hand went up to cover her mouth as a swarm of emotions slammed into her all at once. Excitement. Happiness. More excitement. Only good things. As she took a few steps closer and got a better look at the ring, she thought she might pass out. It was beyond beautiful. Her eyes were glistening with tears as she nodded her head quickly. "Yes" she finally got out, proud of herself for not choking up during her answer.
Stefan sighed with relief as he took the ring out of the box, slid the ring already on her finger off, and placed the new one on it. Elena admired the ring for a moment before pulling him into a deep kiss. When they broke apart, she was looking at the ring again. "Do you like it" he asked.
She nodded. Of course she did. "I love it, Stefan" she told him. "But this is too much" she said, shaking her head. She couldn't keep it.
Stefan smiled, tilting her chin up slightly with his finger. He knew he would meet some resistance with her over the ring because that's the kind of girl she was. She valued your time and your love more than any materialistic thing. His eyes looked deep into hers for a moment. "It was my grandmother's" he told her.
Another wave of emotions slammed into her as she stepped away from him and shook her head once again. "No, you can't give this to me" she told him. "Lily should have this" she said, attempting to take to off. "It belongs in your family" she told him.
Stefan grabbed her hand and stopped her. He pulled her close again so he could look in her eyes. "You are my family now" he reminded her. "You are a part of this family just as much as Lily is" he added, kissing her lips gently. "Besides, Lily already has a ring promised to her from our aunt" he added.
Elena's eyes seemed to brighten just a little. "Are you sure?" she asked.
"The only thing I have been more sure about" he said, kissing her again softly. "Is wanting to spend the rest of my life with you" he added. He kissed her again. "So yes, I am sure" he told her, pulling her even closer to him.
Elena smiled as she leaned her forehead against his and looked into his eyes. "I love you" she said, finally letting her tears fall. Happy tears, of course.
"I love you too" he told her, wiping away some of the tears that fell down her cheeks. He pulled her into a proper hug, wanting to just hold her for a while. To have her body against his and to have his arms wrapped around her. "I love you too" he repeated in a whisper against her ear.
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
Later that night, Elena was sound asleep with her head against his chest and her hand resting on his stomach. He looked at the new ring on her finger as he slowly ran his hand up and down her back, careful not to wake her.
He had never planned on giving Katherine his grandmother's ring. His grandmother had told him to give the ring to the girl he planned to spend the rest of his life with. Maybe deep down, he knew it wouldn't last with Katherine.
But Elena was different. She was someone you always wanted to be around, even when you didn't want to be around anyone. He wasn't about to let her get away again. He silently vowed to himself that he would do whatever it took to make it work with her. He also knew that Elena would do the same.
Her hand moved slightly, grabbing a handful of his shirt. "You're still awake" she said sleepily, looking up through her eyelashes at him.
"I'm not all that tired" he told her. It was hard to fall asleep when his other option was watching her.
Elena tangled her legs in between his and readjusted her head on his chest. "I got an interesting phone call from Zach the other day" she said, figuring they could talk now since they were both awake.
"Oh yeah?" he asked. He was pretty sure he knew what it was about, but he would play stupid for the time being.
"You wouldn't know anything about him offering me a job, would you?" she asked suspiciously, turning her head to look at him again.
"I might have mentioned something to him about you wanting a job" he said, continuing to run his hand along her back.
"You didn't have to do that" Elena told him.
Stefan sighed. "I just feel guilty that you had to quit your job in LA" he told her. "I know how excited you were to put your degree to use."
Elena moved over the top of Stefan so she could look into his eyes. "I didn't have to quit" Elena corrected him. "I did it because I wanted to" she reminded. "And I turned Zach down. I want to find a job on my own."
"Fair enough" Stefan replied.
"But it was very sweet of you to look out for me like that" she added, giving him a small smile. "I'll find a new job. It just might take me a little bit to find something I really like." That would be the hard part, being so patient. Especially when Elena had spent the past few years having to rely on herself to pay rent and buy groceries and all those other things. It was different now though, having someone who could take care of her. Though, she didn't feel right about it. Although her salary would never come close to the kind of money he had, at least she could say that she was doing something she loved.
Stefan ran both of his hands along her back now, memorizing the dips and curves of her muscles. "There's no hurry" he said, kissing her forehead. "I just want you to find something you love" he added, putting a little more pressure where he touched.
Elena sighed as she laid her head against his shoulder. "That feels really good" she said, closing her eyes.
So he continued, enjoying the feel of her heartbeat against his. "I was thinking" he said, looking down at her briefly. "That we should set a date for the real wedding" he said.
She popped her head up, a bit surprised that he would be so into the wedding planning. "How about August" she said, thinking that it would give her plenty of time to plan for a wedding that she really wanted. Simple and elegant.
"August is perfect" he told her, kissing her lips. "Should I book a place when we get back?" he asked.
Elena shook her head. "Let's keep it simple this time" she told him. "We can have the ceremony in our backyard" she said. It was already beautiful back there and if they brought in a few flowers, it would be just the right amount of elegance that she was looking for.
"Guests?" he asked, liking the idea of having the wedding right in their own backyard.
"Just close family and friends" she smiled.
"I'm liking the sound of this already" he said, moving one of his hands to her hair so he could twirl small strands around his finger.
"It's going to be perfect" she said, leaning in and kissing him.
"Mmm, agreed" he said, holding her close as they resumed kissing. He was actually looking forward to this wedding. He typically hated them and only went when it was required. This one was going to be different though. He wasn't going to dread any of it. He was going to embrace it, knowing this time, that it was for real.