Still can't believe this story has come so far when it was only ever intended to be two interconnected one-shots.

Anyway, thank you for reading thus far and for your comments - guess that's what has kept it going. I think this might be one of my favourite chapters so I hope you enjoy it at least half as much as I do.

Part 7: New Year's Eve 2.0 (At Last)

Enzo and Bonnie stood in the kitchen of the cabin working together to try and follow a recipe for bread rolls to accompany their New Year's Eve meal. It was their second New Year's Eve together. Their first as a couple. Enzo took the lead, measuring out the ingredients while Bonnie read out the quantities. While he didn't expect her to be all glammed up while they were cooking, Enzo thought she looked more like a student, than a young woman making preparations for an intimate meal with her significant other. Dressed in a grey cropped sweatshirt and black three-quarter length leggings, with her hair up in a messy bun, he still found her more alluring than he felt was appropriate. He wore his usual attire consisting of a black t-shirt and black jeans.

"You're using too much water," Bonnie advised him as he added the liquid to the dry ingredients.

"Ok, Gordon Ramsey," he said taunting her and ignoring her advice as he attempted to bring the overly moist ingredients together into a sticky mess with his hands.

"Move over," Bonnie said nudging him out of the way, then adding more flour to correct his mistake.

Bossy! He thought to himself. But you love it. "You're not kneading it properly, love," he said teasing her.

He stood behind her, pushing his hands into the dough with hers and leaning down to rest his chin on her shoulder.

"What do you think this is the movie 'Ghost' or something?" Bonnie asked him with sarcastic humour.

"You're the one whose kneading skills aren't up to scratch. I actually want dinner to be edible," he taunted.

"Whatever you say smart ass," Bonnie told him before patting his cheek with a flour covered hand.

"So we're playing that game," Enzo said before dipping both of his hands in the bag of flour and rubbing them all over her bare belly.

"Hey!" Bonnie yelled.

She grabbed a handful of flour from the bag then turned around and pulled at the collar of his t-shirt pouring it down onto his bare chest. Bonnie laughed until Enzo reached for more flour and put it inside the back of her sweatshirt. She yelped as he laughed at her, but she wasn't giving up so easily. She turned around to grab two massive handfuls of flour and smirked at him before throwing it straight onto his hair. His gasp and momentary look of horror had her in a fit of laughter before he reached for the whole bag of flour. This time she ran. Enzo chased her around the kitchen counter pulling the waistband of her leggings and dropping most of the bag down into the back of them. They were both in a fit of laughter by this point. Enzo threw the bag of flour onto the counter and wrapped his arms around Bonnie from behind while she tried to escape.

"Give up?" he asked her still smiling playfully.

"Yeah…" she said still laughing and now a little worn out by their antics.

He let her go and she turned around to face him. "We better finish the bread and clean up," she told him a little calmer now.

"Yes boss," he said patting her cheek with a still floury hand.

She tsked at him and slapped him on the arm as they went back to preparing their meal.

#

The bread rolls were ready to go in the oven, the salad was in the refrigerator and the steak was marinating. After cleaning up the floury mess and showering together Enzo was putting on his pants, shirt and tie while Bonnie sat wrapped in a towel in front of the mirror in their bedroom doing her hair and make-up.

"Are you gonna be long? Should I put the steak and the bread in the oven yet?" he asked Bonnie.

"Maybe wait about 15/20 minutes, I just wanna call Caroline while I'm finishing up," she told him.

"Ok," he said, kissing her bare shoulder. He picked up his suit jacket leaving Bonnie to finish getting ready.

Bonnie created a new number using the burner app on her cell-phone and called Caroline, putting the speaker on so that she could talk and do her make-up.

"Bonnie, Happy New Year!" Caroline greeted her.

"Hey Care, it's not midnight yet, but Happy New Year!" Bonnie responded.

"Girls, say Happy New Year to Aunt Bonnie," Caroline instructed the twins.

"Happy New Year!" the toddlers said to her in unison.

"Happy New Year girls!" Bonnie replied.

"Ok, go play," Bonnie heard Caroline tell them.

"So what are you up to tonight?" Bonnie asked Caroline.

"Ric and I are gonna go to a little party at a neighbour's house across the street, leave the girls with a sitter. To be honest we could take it or leave it, but, what the hell? Might as well make the most of it. Not like we get to socialise all that much. We'll probably only stay for a little while," Caroline informed her.

Bonnie had perfected her winged eyeliner over subtle bronze eye-shadow. She began to apply black mascara.

"How are things with you two?" Bonnie asked.

"Good," Caroline answered without any real emotion.

"Ohhkaay…" Bonnie responded.

"What do you want me to say?" Caroline chuckled. "The girls are doing great, we're all… content. That's all that matters."

"Ok," Bonnie said. She knew that Caroline was far from over Stefan, but she had to do what she had to do. A girl couldn't put her life on hold for a man. Bonnie began to apply a little bronzer to her cheeks and a gold highlighter.

Changing the subject Caroline said, "Let's talk about you and Enzo. What are you two up to tonight?"

"Dinner with just the two of us at home," Bonnie informed her putting on some red lipstick.

"You two…" Caroline said sounding envious of the romance.

"I know," Bonnie said coyly.

"Still can't believe it sometimes. I mean you both really suit each other… but before he got you in that cabin…never could have seen this coming," Caroline explained.

"I feel that way every day," Bonnie told her.

"So he actually got time off from…" she began.

"No 'A' words today Care. Enzo and I made a deal. We wanna put that mess to the back of our minds," she said meaning Alex and the Armory. She put in her silver leaf shaped earrings.

"Good idea," Caroline agreed.

Bonnie paused before saying in a serious tone, "We need to meet up soon."

"What's happening?" Caroline queried concerned.

"I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have to do that thing you and Enzo don't want me to do soon. So… if the shit hits the fan and you know who tracks me down I'd like to know that we spent some time together," Bonnie explained referring to the impending visit to Virginia St. John's psychiatric hospital.

"Ok," Caroline answered in an understanding but sombre tone.

She and Bonnie had only seen each other in person once since she'd moved to Dallas, Texas. They met up in St. Louis, Missouri over a year ago to be on the safe side. Bonnie was always paranoid that somehow Alex would find out where Caroline lived and watch her home or something to see if Bonnie ever visited her friend. It was easy for Caroline to get a flight from Dallas to St. Louis, but it was a 3 day road trip for Bonnie and Enzo to travel there and back and spend time with Caroline.

Bonnie sighed. Trying to stay positive, in a perkier tone she told Caroline, "I better let you go. Have fun with Ric at your party and kiss the girls for me."

"Will do. Have some extra fun with Enzo for me, if you know what I mean," Caroline told her.

Bonnie laughed. "We definitely will."

Caroline joined in the laughter. "Ok, bye Bon."

"Bye, Care."

After ending the call Bonnie unclipped the longish side swept bangs she had left out on one side of her face and put a purple and white tipped lily into the side of the curly updo near the back of her head. She put on her dress and shoes then sprayed on her usual perfume before making her way out to Enzo.

#

As Bonnie entered the room Enzo was just about to close the oven door after putting the steak and bread in. When he looked up and saw her he stopped in his tracks. She was breath-taking. Figuratively speaking. Her black dress was a long, subtle mermaid shape with a thigh high split. It had long sleeves which were a sheer black material that also partially covered her chest as it was sewn to a sweetheart neckline. The dress clung to her curves perfectly and the strappy, black heels she wore complimented the glamorous style beautifully, along with her make-up and the flower in her hair. Enzo thought the old-school glamour really suited her as she approached him.

He remembered that he was in the process of closing the oven door, which he did, then walked over to meet Bonnie by the dining table. They had decorated the room the way it had been a year ago as a throwback to their first New Year's Eve together.

"You look really beautiful," he told her as they stood in front of each other.

He put his hand on her back and felt bare skin. He took her hand to turn her around and saw that the dress was backless and the back was cut very low down.

"Whoa," He said with a sigh.

"Is that a good 'whoa'?" she asked him.

"What do you think?" he said turning her back around to face him, giving her a sincere smile and a light peck on the mouth to avoid messing up her lipstick.

"You look amazing too," she told him, always impressed by the way he cleaned up in a suit and tie. He always looked like he belonged in a classy black and white movie when he dressed like this, something which Bonnie found extremely appealing. His charcoal grey suit, light olive shirt and dark olive tie complimented his dark features. He looked classy and handsome, but still had a slight 'bad boy' edge about him.

He smiled at Bonnie as a 'thank you' then said, "Now that the complimenting each other portion of the evening is over shall we get on with opening the champagne?"

"Of course," she replied.

He pulled out her seat for her then poured them both a glass of champagne and sat down with her while the food finished cooking. In keeping with the throwback theme jazz and blues records played in the background, including songs by artists such as Sarah Vaughan, Nat King Cole and of course Billie Holiday.

Once the food was cooked and served up Enzo resumed the flow of conversation.

"Two decent New Year's Eves in a row…I must have finally repented for my sins," he joked.

"When was the last time you had a memorable New Year's Eve?" Bonnie asked him curious.

"Well… My most memorable New Year's Eve was the one where Damon left me to burn alive in an Augustine cell," he answered.

Bonnie stopped cutting her steak and looked at him. "I'm sorry," She told him, saddened again by his traumatic experience.

"It's history," he said putting a piece of steak into his mouth. Bonnie continued to look at him. "Really," he said taking a sip of champagne. "And that was an 'A' word, which we're banned from talking about tonight."

Bonnie put down her fork and took a gulp of her champagne too. It never ceased to amaze her how Enzo could maintain such a sense of humour despite experiencing so much trauma in his existence.

"What's your most memorable New Year's Eve?" he asked trying to distract her.

"I don't know," she said pausing thoughtfully as she took a mouthful of salad. "My Dad used to have a New Year's Eve tradition. It started a few years after my Mom left. I think I was about 5. He'd do a toast at midnight and let me drink out of a champagne glass like he did. When I was little he'd give me apple juice in the glass, then when I got older it was non-alcoholic wine." Enzo listened intently as she continued. "He'd toast by saying, this year will be better. It was always like he was sending out a wish to the universe that my Mom never left or that she'd come back so that we could be the family we were supposed to be. You know, share our lives together," Bonnie said wistfully while Enzo nodded still listening. "Even if I was asleep at midnight he'd wake me up for the toast. Then, when I was about 15 the tradition stopped. Like he just gave up, lost hope." She took another sip of champagne.

"Do you look like your Mum?" Enzo asked.

"I look more like my Mom than my Dad," she answered.

"Maybe he saw her in you. You were growing up and one day you'd leave him too. Not in the same way as your Mum… but you know what I mean."

Bonnie nodded.

"Sometimes people disconnect with the people they love for self-preservation," he added thinking of how much time he'd spent resisting his feelings for Bonnie.

Bonnie ate quietly contemplating Enzo's words.

He bit into a piece of bread roll before asking, "Do you remember much about your Mum?"

"I was so young when she left. I don't remember much," Bonnie looked away trying to bring up a memory. "I think we used to play in the garden a lot… with flowers… and a swing…" She thought some more. "I really don't remember much about them together… apart from climbing into their bed one night cause I was scared. When they woke up the next day and saw me in between them they tickled the crap outta me."

They shared a smile.

"How did they meet?" Enzo questioned.

"I think it was in college in some politics class. I still have no idea how they ended up together. My Mom was always a free spirit, kinda hippy-ish and my Dad was very serious and focused. Opposites attract I guess," she told him.

"If your Mum is anything like you I can see the appeal," he complimented her.

She gave him a shy smile. "I know they loved each other at one point. Just still can't understand how she could leave and never come back. My Dad became obsessed with work when she left. Grams told me that he really tried to overcompensate for her leaving at first by buying me presents, taking me on trips, but for years I kept asking for my Mom… and eventually it got to him. He couldn't replace her. He was dealing with his own pain and he could never accept us being witches. He drifted away from me emotionally," she still felt the pain of that certain amount of emotional rejection from her Dad.

Enzo looked at Bonnie sympathetically. "Do you think he would have learned to accept you being witches if she'd stayed?"

"I don't know. He loved me, but everything between us was so impersonal a lot of the time. He'd ask about school and my general well-being. But I couldn't talk to him, not about anything deep. Grams was the only one I could really talk to and he didn't even want me to spend too much time with her because of magic. He just refused to understand it."

They both ate quietly for a little while contemplating their conversation.

"I love my parents, but there'll always be a little anger at the back of my mind when it comes to them. They always talked about protecting me and doing the best thing for me… but they weren't really there for me," Bonnie said sadly. "My Mom should have come home. Instead she chose to raise someone else's child. She didn't even try to make contact with me. There's no excuse for that."

"I know," Enzo agreed knowing exactly where she was coming from and hurting for her.

"The problem with Abby Bennett is that as much as she is actually a loving and caring person, she always needs her freedom. She even abandoned Jamie when she turned into a vampire. It's like she struggles to commit long-term. Guess she felt like she didn't know who she was anymore with her family. She told me that she had a chance at a new life after entombing Mikael, Klaus's father. She said her magic got weaker when she left, maybe because she felt guilty for abandoning me."

"Maybe she was too ashamed to come back after staying away for the first few years and it was easier for her to stay away. It could've been easier for her to take on the responsibility of someone else's child because it's not really her responsibility. If she couldn't commit to looking after him there wouldn't be any judgement. Less guilt for her to deal with," Enzo suggested.

Bonnie thought he had a point, though it didn't make her feel any less rejected. "She's always been really connected to nature and having a sense 'balance'. I guess she felt like she couldn't find that balance with me and my Dad."

"Do you think you'll see her again?"

"I don't know. We made plans when I was in college… but they never happened, even now my Dad's gone." Bonnie drank some more champagne. "Who knows where that woman's head is at? That's why I always focused on my friends. They were there more than my parents. I just tried to move forward and give up being disappointed with them," Bonnie said with a shrug.

They finished the remaining food on their plates and had another glass of champagne. To lighten the mood Enzo did the same thing he did a year ago to put a smile on Bonnie's face. He stood up and walked over to her.

"May I have this dance?" he asked putting his hand out towards her.

"Really? Again?" she replied with the biggest smile.

He gave her a small nod in response. She took his hand and stood up. They took a formal dancing position and moved smoothly to the music, giving each other a knowing smile. The sense of flirtation and excitement was still there, just like the first time they did this, but everything was amplified. 'At Last' by Etta James began to play and the lyrics were not lost on Bonnie and Enzo. When their emotions became a little too intense and the tension increased Bonnie tried to calm things down with some humour.

"What, no dip?" she asked Enzo with one raised eyebrow.

He obliged her with a dramatic dip which caused them both to laugh out loud. He brought her back up from the dip and they both looked at each other with an expectant smile.

"Don't tell me? You gotta go now?" she said mocking his excuse to try and escape from his feelings a year ago.

With the hand that was already holding hers Enzo linked their fingers. "Not a chance," he answered. "Nothing could make me leave you tonight."

He pulled her to him more tightly with the arm that was around her waist and unlinked their fingers, bringing that hand up to cup the back of her head. She put both her hands on his chest and he kissed her in the way that he'd wanted to kiss her one year ago when they were in the same position. Something about the moment made him fall for her just a little bit more as he poured his heart and his immortal soul into the kiss.

When they finally broke this kiss they were both dazed as the song continued to play. It really was like a spell had been cast to get them together. What they had was so pure, so deep and so real. It was something bigger than they could have ever imagined.

"Whoa…" Bonnie said breathlessly while Enzo laughed lightly, as they looked at each other in awe of their feelings.

Keeping one hand around her waist Enzo began to circle Bonnie slowly with a sneaky grin on his face, looking into her eyes as she turned her head to follow his movements.

"What are you up to?" she asked as he paused at her side and used his free hand to brush her bangs out of her face.

"What do you mean love?" he replied.

"You and 'the smirk'," she said as he continued to move around her until he was behind her and put both his hands on her shoulders.

He placed a line of kisses down from her neck to her shoulder, sliding the dress off her shoulder slightly to make contact with her bare skin before putting it back in place. He repeated the action on the other side of her body.

"I'm doing what I probably should have done last year," he answered, sliding his hands down her arms while he spoke with his mouth right next to her ear. He wrapped one arm around her middle while he stroked the bare skin of her back with the knuckles of his other hand.

"Thought you said you weren't sure it would be right at the time," she responded breathlessly, thanks to the subtle way he was touching her.

"Yeah, but I didn't say that I didn't want to," he told her.

He was teasing her, but since she teased him all the time he was trying to even up the score. He moved to stand in front of her again, taking each of her hands in his, kissing her slowly and deeply on the mouth. He broke the kiss, looking down at her with hooded eyes.

"I just love it when you're wearing my lipstick," she taunted as her red lipstick was smeared across his mouth from their kisses.

He smirked at her. Then, with her hand in his he led her to the bedroom. Why does she always have to try and have the last bloody word? He thought to himself, as he took her to have some of that extra fun she and Caroline had been talking about.

#

Once he had worn her out in the bedroom Enzo left Bonnie to rest for a little while as he cleared the dining table away. He moved the couch back in front of the fireplace, but left the coffee table out of the way to give them plenty of space to enjoy dessert on the floor in front of the fire. He put some cushions on the floor and put the champagne, which was in an ice bucket, on the floor along with two glasses.

'Dessert' would consist of a variety of winter fruits and a separate cherry sauce. In the kitchen Enzo arranged red grapes, sliced pears, passionfruit and peeled, sliced kiwi fruit on a platter. He poured the cherry sauce (not home-made) into a pouring bowl and added it to the platter.

Bonnie entered the room in the same short, blue, silky butterfly-patterned robe she wore when Enzo returned to the cabin after their 'first time'. She had tidied up her hair putting the lily back into place and replaced the red lipstick with a clear gloss since the lipstick would definitely end up getting kissed off again anyway. Enzo told her to take a seat on the cushions by the fire and she watched him bring over the fruit platter in only a pair of black boxer shorts. He then poured them a glass of champagne sitting beside her on the cushions opposite the fireplace near the couch.

"So now the movie theme has changed from 'Ghost' to '9 and a Half Weeks'," Bonnie said, referring to the film's famous erotic food scene.

Enzo laughed. Although the film was released years before she was born, with her Dad being away so much Bonnie kept herself company, watching a lot of movies over the years, old and new, even if many of them were not age appropriate.

"Only if you want it to," he retorted.

She narrowed her eyes, smiling at him then pursing her lips. He put the platter in between them and they began to nibble on the grapes while sipping champagne. Bonnie was looking forward to getting a little creative with the fruit, but first she wanted to deal with some other matters.

"So… I gave you a little history lesson on Bonnie Bennett tonight…" she began. "I know you don't like talking about your childhood but maybe you could tell me some things I don't know about you," she suggested.

He was quiet for so long she thought he was going to refuse to answer. Then, he surprised her.

"What do you want to know?" he said.

"Whatever you can remember. First memories…" she said.

"They're not good ones," he said looking at her with a tense look on his face.

"I know," she said reassuringly, putting her hand on his thigh softly.

He looked down at her hand then downed his glass of champagne and poured himself another, topping hers up too.

"The workhouse…" he began. "As I told you, my family left me there when I was 4. I don't remember them… I always imagine a woman with dark hair…maybe my mother."

Bonnie gave him her undivided attention as he continued, looking towards the fire rather than at her.

"All the children were kept together unless they were babies, then they stayed with their mothers'. All the women were kept together and all the men were kept together. Everyone had a uniform as if they wanted to remove our identity." He paused. "There were lots of sick people with diseases like scabies. A lot of people had their heads shaved because of lice… I slept in a cramped dormitory on a bag of straw with dozens of other children. It was always really cold and dirty."

He looked at Bonnie and she returned a sympathetic gaze.

"The food was disgusting…tasteless. They gave us the same meals everyday…barely enough to keep our stomachs from rumbling for more than a few hours. Sometimes when the hunger became too much people used to fight over the bones we were supposed to be crushing to make fertiliser. There was no meat left on them, maybe just some bone marrow inside if you were lucky." Enzo took another gulp of champagne while Bonnie rubbed his thigh to try and sooth him. He looked at her again.

"We spent most of our time working. From about 6 in the morning until 8 at night. They gave us a day's rest on Sundays…. As a boy I was sometimes sent to work in a factory or into the coal mines. They were supposed to give us a basic education but by the time I left that place I could barely write my own name," he revealed.

"Really?" This surprised Bonnie, as Enzo was so intelligent and worldly.

"Yeah. The "teachers" had no credentials. They were untrained and never stayed for long because it was such a horrible environment and the pay wasn't worth it. I didn't get a proper education until I was turned into a vampire." He looked away again. "They treated us like animals. I remember one boy; about 9 years old…dropped the "F" bomb and was beaten so badly he couldn't work for a week. They starved him for two days as well, so that didn't help."

Bonnie shook her head in disbelief. "Did they beat you?"

He nodded soberly. "Part of the daily routine of being in the workhouse. I was luckier than some of the others though, I never took a severe beating."

She felt angry for about his suffering. And this was only part of it. "So you literally have no idea why your family could have left you there?" she queried.

"No," he told her. "Still no answers there," he said referring to the lack of information from his so called cousin. "Children usually ended up in a workhouse because their parents were dead, poor or insane. Or because they were illegitimate." He turned to Bonnie and put his hand over hers where it still rested on his thigh. "Actually the insanity theory is a possibility," he mocked. "With Virginia in a psych ward, my own unstable moments and Alex's sometimes questionable sanity…"

Bonnie smiled at him and he smiled back. "Sorry, I forgot… no 'A' words tonight," he joked.

"Maybe they did have a genuine reason for leaving you there," Bonnie suggested. "With your connection to… the other 'A' word…" she continued meaning the Armory, "Maybe they needed to keep you safe. They might have wanted to come back for you but something happened and they couldn't."

He wanted to believe her theory. "Protecting a 4 year old child by leaving them in some hell hole…?" he said disbelieving.

"I know it sounds far-fetched, but we both know that when it comes to the supernatural world a lot of shit is far-fetched," she told him.

"True…" he responded.

"So you left the workhouse when you were 14?" she probed, remembering what he'd said when he opened up to her a little about his life years ago.

"Left is an understatement," he said with a sardonic chuckle. "The workhouse got overcrowded, so they decided to 'relieve' a lot of the healthy, young men of their duties… and I was one of them," he explained.

"What did you do?" she asked.

Enzo refilled their glasses with more champagne and drank half the glass before resuming his story.

"I had to steal or beg to survive. I stole food, clothes…things to sell…it was all a little bit 'Oliver Twist'." He paused thoughtfully. "I stopped begging when I was 17 though. Some stuck up middle-class men tricked me into going into a tavern with them by feeding me and getting me drunk. Then… they took me out onto the streets at night and beat me up for fun."

Bonnie had to force herself not to let out some tears at that revelation. She stroked the side of his face to comfort him. He put his hand over hers, giving it a squeeze, then dropped it back down to continue talking.

"I was homeless so I slept in the day… usually in a graveyard or just on a bench, sitting up. People would be less likely to interfere with you if you were sitting up," he explained. "At night I was always on the move trying to get warm." He paused. "When times were really desperate…"

"How could they get more desperate?" Bonnie interrupted him.

He smiled at her. "Trust me they could…and when they did I had to collect leeches for bloodletting…"

Bonnie's forehead creased with shock.

"The pay was ridiculously bad and it was usually something women did for money. But I had to survive," he continued.

And you have, she thought.

"Anyway, eventually I got irregular work in factories and sometimes on the docks. I just about managed to keep a roof over my head staying at various overcrowded apartments. I managed to save up to travel from Southampton to New York, but I was sick so they refused to let me travel. That's when Lily saved me. She said she understood what it felt like to be put out like discarded trash and she 'turned' me," he finished.

Lily may have had her faults but Bonnie was grateful that she had saved Enzo and now she fully understood why he admired the woman so much.

Bonnie stretched her legs out in front of her and took a few sips of champagne before asking, "So where does the line cook come into things?"

Enzo chuckled softly. "When I first ended up on the streets I used to collect scraps to eat off the street at the back of a restaurant. One day the line cook caught me and I guess he took pity on this scrawny under-nourished child who probably looked about 9 years old rather than 14. Every evening after that he gave me leftovers wrapped up in newspaper."

"How did you know he was Italian?" Bonnie queried.

"He told me. When I heard his accent I asked him where he was from and he said Italy. Not that I knew anything about the place at the time thanks to the wonderful education I received at the workhouse," he said sarcastically. "I thought he looked like me. Not that I got to see my own face that often back then, so maybe I imagined that part, but he had dark features. In my mind I concocted some story that my mother was a maid or something who got pregnant after having an affair with the line cook. I imagined that she couldn't take care of me and he didn't know about me but he felt an unknown paternal bond towards me because of it. I actually got to a point where I really believed the story."

"You needed something to hold on to," Bonnie told him.

"Yeah. Well after a few months the man disappeared from the restaurant and I had to find other ways to survive."

"Do you have any positive memories?" Bonnie asked him.

"Music," he answered. "It was always a comfort. Wherever I heard it I stopped and listened. From a church… a tavern…some rich family's social gathering…or coming from the window of someone having lessons. It was soothing," he told her. "There was a shop in London that fascinated me. They made stringed instruments in the late 1800s. Cellos, violins, the 'romantic' guitar. After I was 'turned' I taught myself how to play the guitar."

Bonnie sighed, taking in everything he'd told her. "You have seriously been through a lot… and I guess that's barely half of it. You and Ric would have a lot to talk about with all that history."

"I'm sure we would. But, that's enough for today's history lesson on Enzo St. John." He felt relieved that he'd told Bonnie so much, but also a little emotionally drained. He'd never revealed so much of his past in such detail to anyone. He'd never forget his past but he wanted to focus on his future. And at present things were better than they had ever been.

#

Enzo put the platter of fruit behind him and turned to face Bonnie. He lifted her legs up and put them across his lap then offered her some grapes. He teased her a little before allowing her to take the fruit into her mouth.

"Can't you ever be serious?" she said laughing. "Thought we were supposed to be creating an erotic re-enactment of '9 and a Half Weeks' here."

He chuckled softly and when he offered her another grape she snatched it from his hand and teased him in the same way he had teased her before popping it into his mouth.

"Ok, enough playing," he said a little more seriously.

He offered her another grape. This time she held it between her teeth then moved towards him so he could bite into half of it. He smiled then bit off his half of the grape, kissing her in the process.

"Better… Much more adult," she said giving him a sultry look.

Enzo used one hand to stroke her thigh, using his free hand to get some sliced kiwi fruit. He brought the fruit to Bonnie's lips, painting them with the juice before licking it off her mouth then pulling away and putting the kiwi into her mouth. They were both getting a little flustered.

Bonnie lifted herself off of the cushions on the floor and straddled him. She reached over to the platter, taking a slice of pear and dipping it into the cherry sauce. She held it above his mouth so that he had to tilt his head back slightly. As he opened his mouth she allowed the sauce to drip onto his tongue. Before he had a chance to swallow it she gave him a tongue twisting kiss, ensuring that she got to taste the cherry sauce too. She bit off half of the pear, putting the other half into his mouth and gave him a self-satisfied smile as she saw the effects of her seduction evident in his slightly dazed expression.

Not allowing her to get the upper hand Enzo dipped her backwards and got her to lay down on the cushions on the floor. He opened up the robe to reveal a pair of black satin bikini briefs. Leaving the robe only partially open to keep her bare breasts covered, he lifted one of her legs bending it at the knee slightly with her foot flat on the floor. He picked up the pouring bowl and poured a trail of cherry sauce from the top of her knee up to the area in between her collar bones. Bonnie laughed at the cool sensation of the pureed fruit on her skin. The sauce had dripped down from her knee to her ankle. So, Enzo began there, licking the sauce off her skin all the way up her leg, over her belly and further upwards until he got to her mouth and kissed her as if he hadn't eaten dinner tonight.

Bonnie looked at him with fire in her eyes and he mirrored her gaze. He picked up the sauce again and poured a pool of it into her belly button.

"Oh my God…Enzo!" she exclaimed.

"What?" he chuckled as she joined him.

He watched her, still grinning as he picked up a piece of kiwi fruit, dipped it into the sauce in her navel and popped the whole thing into his mouth.

"I can't believe you just did that," she said completely amused.

He dipped some pear into the sauce and ate that too before lapping up the remaining sauce from her navel. She giggled at the sensation.

"Don't know what's going on with you but you've made that sauce taste even better, love," he told her.

She just sighed and shook her head at him with a grin. He picked up some of the halved passionfruit. Holding it above her mouth he squeezed it allowing it to drip inside. When he was satisfied she had a mouthful he kissed her thoroughly, ensuring that he got to taste as much of the passionfruit as she did. They both chuckled. The food play was kind of a turn on, but more than that it was entertaining.

Enzo got Bonnie to turn over and lay on her stomach. He took off the robe and slid his hands up from her ankles to her back and then her shoulders. He gave them a squeeze and kissed the skin on her shoulder blades as he now straddled her. Taking more sauce he poured a line up her spine to her neck. He licked the sauce off her skin nipping her shoulders with his teeth once it was gone. He stroked her back with his fingers and she sighed, completely content.

"So how does this New Year's Eve compare to last year?" he asked.

"Well, on a scale of 1 to 10 it's a 20," she replied, her voice slightly muffled by the cushions she was resting her face on.

He looked at the clock across the room. "It's after midnight," he informed her.

"Really?" she said lifting herself up.

He lifted himself off her so that they were now both up on their knees facing each other. She curved her hands around his neck as he put his arms around her waist, pulling her flush against him.

"Happy New Year," he told her.

"Happy New Year," she replied before they kissed, thankful that this time he was still with her to hear her say the words to him.