It was in fact, not only once.

Something had possessed Klaus and I, and it was like we couldn't keep our hands off one another. I was crazy for it, I knew, but it also felt so good to be touched.

There was a method to my madness, I just had to keep convincing myself that it wasn't real, that he and I were only doing that to vent frustrations.

I laid in Klaus' bed, a place I found myself more often than not. He was asleep, entirely unaware that I wasn't. He seemed so much softer, with his face relaxed the way it was. Hardly the psychopath that'd murdered hundreds of thousands of people.

Every day, I checked the boundary, hoping that it would falter, or maybe that I'd finally earned enough of his trust to be able to leave. Whatever the spell was, it took my abilities with it.

Which meant I was practically human again, something I hadn't experienced since... the incident that triggered my wolf. But every damn day, Klaus would swoop in and I'd find myself in some kind of precarious position where he'd kiss and touch me until my head was spinning.

It was like he knew what I was thinking and it was fucking infuriating.

Carefully, I removed his arm from around my waist, and made my way to the attached bathroom, turning on the tap for the bath. Being in Klaus' room felt far more intimate than anything we'd ever done. I twisted my hair up, securing it with a hair tie.

He'd clearly spent time on the design, picking out gorgeous pieces of art, that actually matched the decor, it looked like a gallery of some sort. I wonder who he killed to get the artwork.

I got into the bath, sinking down until my chin was just above the surface and nearly groaned. The past few months soothed by bubbles and expensive salts.

"Enjoying yourself?" Klaus leaned against the doorframe.

Of course he couldn't stay asleep. The man woke up at every little noise.

"Considering I had you inside of me last night, I say I deserved it."

He hummed, pushing off the frame and sauntering toward me. Klaus crouched down, resting his forearms on the edge of the porcelain tub. He lazily drew circles in the suds.

"You want to get in, don't you."

"Absolutely not." His chin lifted defiantly. "I'm more of a shower man, myself."

"Mhm, of course." It was odd, how we'd settled into an easy rapport with one another.

Play the role, Maverick.

Just a little longer. I've already got a few months under my belt.

"I could be convinced, given the right circumstance."

I moved closer. "And what could convince the great Klaus Mikaelson?"

He brushed his lips against mine, as if waiting for permission. Instead, I pushed back, a smirk on my face. "Ah, ah. I'm still sore from last night."

"Oh?" Klaus' fingers brushed against the side of my neck, where I knew a rather prominent bite mark sat.

If we were mates, and the circumstances were different, he'd have a matching mark on his neck too.

But that would never happen. Not in a million years.

"Turn that pesky boundary spell off."

He tutted. "Can't do that."

"Then where are you going with this, hm? Gonna keep me bound to this house forever?"

"Don't tempt me, love."

"What if I swore to come back?"

"Would you?" His brow rose.

Would I? "Yes. I've just been stuck here for months and I'd like to see the sun."

Klaus' chin lifted. "There are perfectly good windows."

"You plan to be fuck buddies the rest of our immortal lives?" I just needed him to agree and then I could wait until the dust settles, until he trusted me not to run, and then I'd be free. "Because I wouldn't mind that, so long as I have the choice to come back."

His jaw worked. "If I were to let you go, you would be at the mercy of that little group of yours. They'd question you, want to know the inner workings of my plans."

Like I had the answer to that. The only things I'd learned was how fucking kinky he is.

"And you're making excuses when there's no plausible reason. Why not test me?"

"You have no reason to stay." His eyes bore into mine, as if daring me to disagree.

"Maybe. But I have a feeling you have a scheme running around in that head of yours and you're itching to see if whatever it is, worked." If nothing else, this was all just an experiment. I moved until I was close to him again, faces inches apart. "I'll even let you do that thing that you love, and I don't have to go outside alone, you can supervise."

He grabbed my neck in a bruising grip, dragging my lips to his sharply. "Oh sweetheart, by the time we're finished, you won't be able to walk, much less tour the town."

A heat burned in my gut. "Don't believe you." I managed to get out.

Instead of answering he climbed in the tub with me and settled between my legs.