Chapter One
He stood at the corner of the marquee, the dim lighting casting a shadow over his boyish face, the lower half covered in scruffy stubble. His blue eyes took in the events unfolding before him with a critical eye. Men and women alike milled around, not a single person without a glass of the finest champagne, because God forbid a person be seen with an empty glass at an event organised by Caroline Forbes, he thought with a smirk.
She was a force to be reckoned with on a normal day, he could picture it quite clearly now. Blue-green eyes flashing with annoyance, a tight smile stretching across her lips, snapping orders at the waiting staff, while displaying a false sense of calm. She had perfected the art of executing a flawless event from start to finish, making her the best in the business, and constantly in demand.
Every so often he would be coerced into holding an event such as the one he was currently being forced to endure, and each time he spent as much time as he could without seeming improper, nursing a stiff drink, holed up in a corner, avoiding human interaction.
The only reason he had agreed to holding another one of these events was solely because he knew how much planning these events meant to her.
They had met under similar circumstances; however their surroundings couldn't have been more different.
It had been one of his first art shows, for which he'd scraped together the fee of hiring the small studio with Rebekah's help. Of course she had been willing to pay the full cost, but there was no way in hell he would have accepted that.
Rebekah had just gotten a modelling contract, so a lot of her new friends slash acquaintances had been invited, all with more money than they knew what to do with, and of course Elijah had invited the partners in his law firm and hey presto! Before he knew it Klaus had been a $100,000 dollars richer.
He smiled to himself, remembering moments from that night two years ago.
May 2010
He tugged at his collar, the starch in it irritating him to no end, silently thanking whichever deity existed up there that Rebekah hadn't put up too much of a fight when he refused to wear a tie. The shirt was bad enough. He couldn't remember the last time he had been forced to wear a smart shirt; he had even conceded to Rebekah' s insistence he wear the cufflinks he'd received from his mother on his 21st birthday.
Speaking of Rebekah, he wondered where she was. There was not a chance in hell she would have missed his big night, knowing, despite Klaus never uttering anything of the sort, how much he wanted and needed familial support that night of all nights.
It had been, while he had wondered around looking for Rebekah, occasionally stopping to chat to an interested patron, that he had spotted a golden head, staring studiously at one of his less popular pieces of work.
Surprised at the intense look of scrutiny on her face; her brows were furrowed, her bottom lip caught between her teeth, he had been unable to stop himself from approaching her.
He stood a respectable distance behind her, not wanting to jolt her from her thoughts, or even risk incurring Rebekah's wrath for scaring away a potential buyer.
As if she sensed him, she turned slightly towards him, giving him his first proper glance, and shot him a half smile.
"Nice snowflake,"
"Thank you."
He shot her a quizzical look, his eyes lingering on her face.
"I don't recall having the pleasure of meeting your acquaintance," he said, lips curved into his usual half-smile.
She had rolled her eyes, annoyance written clearly across her face, and what a delightful face it was.
Turquoise eyes set in a heart shaped face, rosy pink lips, upturning at the sides, framed by a halo of golden blonde curls; she looked positively angelic.
It had taken a short while but he had managed to piece the little information he had wrangled out of her, finding out she had been invited by Rebekah' s latest squeeze; Stefan Salvatore.
Pulled from his thoughts, he heard his name called.
"Nik!"
He found himself facing an impish smile, set in a face he was none too happy to see.
"Kol, what are you doing here?"
He knocked back the remaining drink in his flute, without a care for propriety.
He'd damn well paid for it, so he would be making sure he had his fair share.
"What kind of brother would I be if I didn't turn up to show my support?"
He sported his usual mischievous grin, his eyes hinting at the trouble that usually followed when Kol was around.
Pinching the bridge of his nose, Nik fixed his face into a pleading expression, unable to stomach the thought of yet another Mikelson spectacle.
"Kol, whatever it is, please not tonight,"
"Relax, brother, I'm just here to have fun."
Clinking his tumbler with Nik's now empty glass, he winked and strutted away.
Sighing, Nik shook his head, and headed over to the bar, memories of Kol's previous indiscretions running through his head.
If the past couple of days were anything to go by, he would be needing a steady stream of drinks to get him through the night.
True to form Caroline was having somewhat of a nervous breakdown.
Despite her spending countless hours going over every inch of the details, Caroline had had a bad feeling. A sixth sense you could say.
The caterers were running late.
It was not the end of the world you might argue, however since tensions were running high between herself and Nik, Caroline had hoped the success of the party would help ease them and hopefully put him in a better mood to talk.
Smoothing her dress over her stomach, she plastered a smile on her face, hiding any inner turmoil she felt.
Spotting her assistant, Emma, she walked over, her expensive heels clicking across the floor.
"Em," she started, flashing her pearly whites in a pained smile, tilting her head as if to share a secret.
"Phone that bloody company, and tell them that if they ever want the privilege of catering one of my events, they better be here in the next twenty minutes!"
As Emma scurried off, Caroline scanned the crowd, looking for her husband and sure enough she spotted him standing in the far corner, fully immersed in a conversation with his older brother, Elijah, and what looked to be a business associate of his.
Taking a moment to admire his profile, she smiled to herself.
He really was beautiful. His blue eyes shone, pouty lips twisted into a soft smile, sipping at a flute of champagne.
It was just a shame he was such an overprotective and jealous arse of a man, she thought with a scowl.
Sensing a presence behind her, Caroline turned, praying silently it was Emma, returning with good news.
'And this night keeps on getting better," thought Caroline, recognising the familiar dark hair framing a pretty olive skinned face.
"Tatia," said Caroline, setting her face into the most pleasant expression she could muster.
"I don't remember sending you an invite,"
"I'm actually here as a guest of Nik's. He mentioned you were throwing this little soiree, and it would have been terribly rude of me to turn down his invitation."
Wanting nothing more than to wipe the smug smirk off of Tatia's face but knowing that nothing could be done at the present moment, Caroline brushed off the implications of Tatia's statement, and smiled the fake smile she had perfected.
"Well then, please don't let me stop you from enjoying yourself,"
Caroline stalked off, reaching for a glass from a nearby waiter, hoping to calm her shaking hands.
Walking a sizable distance away from the marquee, she took a seat on one of the many benches dotted on the grounds of the home she shared with Nik. In one large gulp, she polished off the remainder of the drink, and heard a rumble in her stomach, reminding her of the lack of food she had consumed during the day.
"So this is where you're hiding,"
At the sound of Stefan's familiar voice, Caroline smiled her first genuine smile of the evening, her eyes tearing slightly.
"I'm not hiding, I'm taking a break," she retorted.
"Oh okay, so that's what they call drinking on your own, away from the guests, at a party thrown by none other than yourself."
His voice was teasing, yet the truth behind it coupled with the mix of emotions she currently felt, caused a tear to leak out.
"Hey, hey, hey," his voice soothed, his arm circling her shoulder.
Caroline brushed the tear away, leaning into his warm embrace.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, I'm fine...No really I am," she sniffed, reiterating her denial when she saw the look of disbelief written on his face.
In the moonlight the tears glistened in her eyes, evidence of a lingering sadness within.
"Is it Klaus?"
"No, Stefan, I'm fine...honestly it's just been a busy couple of days. And now the caterers are late, and I haven't eaten all day, but more importantly what am I going to serve? I don't think Nik's leftover spaghetti is going to cut it, I mean he's no miracle worker..."
Caroline trailed off, noting the amusement in Stefan's eyes.
"Nervous much?" He smirked.
Caroline smiled; an actual smile, not one of the fake grins she had been supporting all evening.
A comfortable silence fell between them, and they both sat there, listening to the sounds of the string quartet playing a short distance away.
Sighing, Caroline stood, knowing it just would not do for the hostess to disappear to what was now approaching a considerable amount of time.
Silently understanding, Stefan stood and offered his arm, in which Caroline placed her own and they made their way back to the party.
'Please, please don't let anything else go wrong tonight,' chanted a voice inside Caroline's head.
A/N: Please review!