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"I a hole she’d left in her defenses Instead of taking advantage, he ignored the opening and ood to see Elena enjoying herself for a ht Maybe soet over Stefan It was a betrayal of his little brother, but he couldn’t help the flush of hope the thought gave him After all, Daet it," Elena said encouragingly, taking another one of his pieces "Checkers isn’t hard, I proe of her lips

"Indeed," Damon said He could hear the waitress at the counter behind him, smell the warm salt of Elena’s fries Lunch was ready He leaned forward and ju me"

Elena blinked at the board, and Damon let a smile spread over his face "You must be a wonderful teacher," he told her

Elena’s cheeks were prettily flushed, and she glanced up at hiether Her arloriously aware of the heat co off her silky skin

"You’re a quick learner," she couely noted a few figures at the edge of the parking lot, looking toward them, and checked absently--human, harot into their car and drove away He’d been right: human

"My life’s been long enough--" he began, and then a heavy body sla the breath out of hi with the synthetic vaainst the asphalt of the parking lot A heavy, dark-skinned, és, snarled down at hiainst his skin

"Damon!" Elena shouted

The va at Damon’s throat, and Damon yanked away The vampire’s body arm, as warm as a hu rotten Dae to snap his neck But his weight was tooat it

The bite burned like fire, and Daet free

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught more movee of strength, Daer va lot He needed to get up before the other two got to Elena Maybe they couldn’t kill her, not with their bite, but they could take her, and Jack knew Elena’s secret It was unlikely that she’d be able to raise her Guardian Powers against theet, and she had no time to coax her Power to the surface

He and the artificial vaainst each other The other varitted, Daainst the pave the expression of shock on his face

He snapped the other valazed over That would keep hiracefully to his feet

As he turned, he heard a heavy thuht-haired va fro at Elena

Before the fallen recovered, Da steps over and snapped her neck quickly "That’ll knock her out longer than the stake," he told Elena, and bent to snap the neck of the third vaet out of here while we can," Elena said She bent to tug her stake, with an audible huff of effort, from the tall vampire’s chest Efficiently, she wiped it on a tissue and tucked the stake back into her purse

"Nicely done," Dahtened, and there was nothing but adrenaline-fueled exciteh their bond "You don’t need too , do you, Guardian?" Elena smirked at him, and he felt her spark of pride

Then her face fell The pride shifted to shock, then fear "You’re hurt," she said

"Oh," Da up to touch the bite The blood was still trickling down his neck, hot and painful He’d forgotten for a ht"

"No," Elena said "Coainst the side of the car and pulled open the neck of her shirt, brushing back her hair froly

He could see the delicate veins beneath her skin, and his breath caught Elena would be so soft, he knew, her neck like warm satin beneath his lips and teeth And her blood was rich and sweet

"Hurry," she said urgently "They’ll be waking up soon"

Daed his eyes away fro his lips

When he’d fed from her before, she’d turned away from him She hadn’t wanted him to see inside her mind, hadn’t wanted hiht them

He didn’t just want her blood When he drank from Elena, he didn’t want it to be about food

"No thank you, princess," he said "I’m fine"

"Don’t be chivalrous, Damon," Elena said, irritated "You need this"