Hello, again! So, this chapter is almost entirely DE centered, but more about their friendship. Since I want their relationship to go deeper than an ordinary affair, I had to write this. It also explains a lot about their lives before they met each other, i hope you like it :)

Elena opened her eyes and looked sleepily around her. Stefan was next to her, his back was facing her. She closed her eyes, remembering about her little experience last night. She tried to think about something else, but her brain just wouldn't listen. She didn't mean to picture him, at all. It just happened, and this was the thing that was scaring her the most, it was spontaneous, of all of the images she could have imagined – from her husband, to a sexy actor she had seen on TV – her brain picked Damon Salvatore. She had known him for such a short time, but he had still managed to get to her, without even trying. She had never felt this way about anyone else, she hadn't had a lot of partners, but still, the blue-eyed man was making her feel things she had never felt before. She had never, in her life, wanted somebody as badly as she wanted him, she had come to the conclusion, after his little speech last night, that all she could think about, when he was in the room, was ripping his clothes off. She shook her head, trying to make the thoughts go away, and reached for her phone on the night stand. She turned it on and saw the time. 10:13. She hadn't heard her alarm.

"Shit. Shit. Shit." She stared swearing and jumped out of bed. Her whole world spun around before her, because of the sudden movement, but she didn't stop, she threw her underwear on the floor and rushed to the bathroom. She took the quickest shower in her life, then moved to the wardrobe, without even bothering to wrap a towel around her naked body. She started searching for clothes, wondering what to wear. Usually it wasn't taking her a lot of time to choose, but this time, even though she knew she was late, she went through all of her clothes, before stopping on a skin-tight dark blue dress. She knew why it had taken her so long to decide and she didn't even bother to deny it this time. She wanted to look good, and this time it wasn't for the sake of the business - it was for Damon. Although he hadn't said it last night, she knew what he meant – they should stay away from each other, but then again, they were working together, and he had accepted her invitation for a coffee, so what was the harm in looking nice. A little voice in her head was telling her she was getting herself in trouble, but she ignored it. She put her hair in a neat ponytail, applied a little make up, and started looking for shoes. Stefan moved in the bed, and opened his eyes, just as Elena's eyes fixed on elegant, black sandals on high heels.

"Hey, what's the rush, where are you…" He stopped and took a good look at his wife. "You look very nice." He commented.

"Yes, I have a big meeting, at 12, and I have to prepare some documents before that, but I am terribly late. So really, I can't talk right now. I am leaving, okay? Love you." She said, not waiting for his answer, and she stormed out of the house.

When she arrived at her building, she took the elevator and got straight into her office, looking for the files. She looked at her clock. 11:40. Shit. She heard a knock on the door and lifted her head to see who it was. Her secretary, Anna, was standing at the door.

"Mrs. Gilbert, the men from Tokyo are here." She informed her, looking as Elena got her file and gave her a look of utter surprise.

"Already? Weren't they supposed to be here around 12?"

"Well, it is around 12." Anna said calmly, moving towards her boss. "Now give these to me, and calm down. You're here, you have all the papers - you'll rock this meeting, as you always do."

Elena smiled at her, she liked her very much, she was young, even younger than herself, and she was always in a good mood and ready to cheer her up. On top of that she was quite good at her job.

Her phone vibrated in her arm, and she looked at the screen to see who it was. One new message from Damon. She opened it:

"The window moved. I am free right now. Meet you downstairs?"

Elena smiled at her phone like an idiot and texted him a reply:

"Sorry, I can't. I'm going in a meeting. See you later :)"

"Stefan?" Anna asked, looking at the goofy smile on Elena's face.

"Um, no, it's not Stefan." Elena said, looking away, slightly embarrassed. "Let's get into that meeting now, shall we?"

Damon saw Elena's reply and rolled his eyes. He wanted to see her, right now. He knew that, because he was always getting what he wanted he had become pretty impatient, and this was definitely not one of his brightest qualities. He waited there, for around half an hour, and decided he was bored. He went into the building and asked about Elena's meeting, he had no problems finding the room, and when he got there, he looked through the glass door, and saw Elena explaining some kind of charts and talking about numbers to a group of people. He was actually pretty fascinated by her. She was like a tiger in there, while she was talking, he could see the look of approval on her listeners faces. She didn't stammered once, her speech was going smoothly, and whatever they were talking about, seemed to be working in Elena's favour. He saw the fire in her beautiful doe eyes, while she was pointing at some diagrams. There was so much passion in that woman, so much emotion that she was hiding. He smirked as he watched the people around the table got up, and shook her hand one by one. Elena's gorgeous smile was always on her face, as she was saying goodbye to them. When they had all left, Damon got in that room and gave her a flashing smile.

"Well, I couldn't understand a word of what you said to them, but I could tell they were pretty impressed." He told her, moving closer to her.

"God, you startled me." She jumped when she heard his voice, memories of last night rushing into her head. "How did you even get here?"

"Well, an FBI badge can get you pretty much everywhere." His half-smile was driving her crazy.

"Damon!" She exclaimed.

"I'm just kidding; your staff was polite enough to tell me." He replied, amused by her expression.

"Do you really think they liked me?" She said, a look of insecurity appearing in her eyes.

"I bet my ass they did. I can recognize people's behaviour, and I can tell you these guys are a done deal. And besides, who wouldn't like you?" He told her, looking her in her eyes. Elena smiled at him, and blushed a little, but she didn't break eye contact.

"So, I was thinking we could go to this café around the corner?" She suggested.

"Has anyone told you you are a workaholic?" He said, with a big grin on his face. "You can't even have a nice cup of coffee, without thinking about work. Even your café is two feet away from your work building."

"Well…" Elena started, she was usually getting mad when people were saying that to her, but she just couldn't be mad at that beautiful smile and those amazing blue eyes. "I like to be around, in case an emergency pops out."

"Well, there will be no emergencies popping out today. You're taking the day off." He ordered.

"No, I'm not." Elena responded, looking stubbornly at him.

"Yes, you are. Now don't make me repeat myself and let's go, I can tell you could use a descent cup of coffee." He had intended his voice to sound more serious than it actually did.

They both looked at each other for some time, each of them too stubborn to let this go. Finally, Elena decided she could use the day off, let out an irritated growl and said:

"Fine you win. Let me just text Caroline." She said, in an irritated voice, taking her phone out.

"You should know from now… I always win." He smirked and she just gave him a roll of her eyes, and replied, while texting Caroline:

"You're so full of yourself, do you know that?"

"Yes, actually, I do. Quite the number of people has told me that." He said matter-of-factly and smiled cockily. She couldn't help herself and smiled back at him.

Elena sent a text to Caroline, saying:

"Something came up. Could you cover for me today?"

"Sure, but what's going on?"

"Nothing that's worth mentioning, I just have some stuff to do I had completely forgotten about. I owe you one."

"Okay, let's go." The brunette said, getting her purse, as Damon opened the door for her.

They went downstairs and Damon led her to his car. It was a black Lamborghini, it looked like a bit of a sport car to Elena, but it still had a shred of elegance. He opened the door for her and she got in, enjoying the leather seat. Damon sat on the driver's seat, fastening his belt.

„Buckle up." He told her and then said with a smirk. „I hope you don't mind the high speed."

Elena was kind of terrified, but she just nodded, knowing he wouldn't change his mind. He started the car and drove in an insane speed. Elena thought that since he was working in the FBI, he would be more careful about these kind of stuff, but as she turned around to look at him, she saw the huge smile on his face, as he was watching the road through his sunglasses. Seeing him so happy made her relax a little bit, and she sat back in her seat, letting the wind blow in her face, through the open windows. After a while she felt the amazing adrenalin rush that was filling her whole body, from the high speed. She laughed loudly, the smile was not getting off her face, she was feeling free as a bird. Damon just gave her an amused look and said:

„It's amazing, isn't it? The feeling?"

„Ooh, yes!" Elena gave him an flashing smile, and he couldn't help but feel a little proud of himself. She was happy, at least, at that particular moment, he could say she was having the time of her life. When he hit the breaks, he couldn't miss the disappointment that flashed through her eyes for a second. They got out of the car and Elena looked around her.

„Where are we?" She asked, her eyes curiously wandering all over the place.

„Some place, where you can actually drink a descent cup of coffee." He grinned at her, not taking his sunglasses off. He looked even more irresistible that way. Elena swallowed and shook her head, looking up to see the sign.

„Starbucks? Really Damon?" She laughed, she had expected something fancy and exquisite, but Starbucks?

„Hey, if you're looking for a good cup of coffee, this is the place to go." He said, motioning for her to sit on one of the tables. „How much do you want to bet, I can guess which one of these you'll love?" He asked, looking devilishly at her.

"You're on. I am basically addicted to caffeine, but I am very picky about my coffees, so good luck with that." She replied playfully. He couldn't get it right, there was no way.

"Okay then." He smirked at her, and got up. Shortly after he came back, carrying two coffees. "Clean black coffee for me, and for the lady... a little surprise." He grinned and gave her her drink. She just laughed, sure she wouldn't like it. She was never much into that stuff, but the moment she took a sip, her eyes widened in surprise, it was the best freaking thing she had drunk in a long time. It was some kind of mix between chocolate and coffee, but there was something more to it, that Elena just couldn't guess. She was used to getting a regular coffee, from the café down the street, she had actually been to Starbucks just a couple of times, but she had never tasted this.

"Oh my god, Damon, this is so good." She said, while taking another sip. "What is it?

"I told you, I know what you want." He smirked at her again, knowing he was playing in a dangerous territory. "As for what it is, I will just keep it my secret."

"So," he said after a while. "What's the thing about you and your fear of high speed?"

Elena looked at him wide-eyed. How did he know this?

"I saw the look on your eyes, when I asked you if you minded the high speed, you looked like you were about to faint." He clarified, seeing her expression.

"Oh." Elena said, taking a big sip of her heavenly drink, before she answered. "My father died in a car crash, I wasn't with him, though, but from what I know, he had been driving too fast, hurrying for a meeting, and he crashed into a truck." She said, tears filling her eyes at the memory.

"I am so sorry, Elena, if you had told me, I could have…" he started, but Elena cut him off.

"No it's okay I really enjoyed that, which is probably not a very good thing." She said a little confused.

"And your mom?" Damon asked carefully.

"She passed away as well, when I was 13." She replied, holding back her tears. She decided to change the subject and asked him:

"What about your parents? What's the deal with Giuseppe and your mom?" her question was direct, and she hoped she hadn't offended him.

Damon wondered for a moment about what he should tell her, but since he wanted her to take her mind off her personal drama, he started:

"Giuseppe and Lucy, that's my mom's name, met while they were in college. You know how college years are, all wild, and it had all started as a one-night stand. But with time, things got more complicated between them, their relationship evolved. After a while my mom got pregnant, and Giuseppe got so scared that he literally ran in the other direction. From what I gathered, he was quite the player so there was no surprise that when he got back a month later, well… he came back with a new woman by his side, one that his parents actually approved of. I doubt he ever even loved my mom, I think it was just another college relationship for him. And so, he left my mom, but he was always sending her money, I don't know how we could have managed without those money, and from time to time he was visiting me. He hadn't missed a birthday, he would always call. But that was all, we had a good, polite relationship, before he died." He told her, looking at her to see her reaction. For his great surprise, the tears were still in her eyes, now even more visible than before.

"And what about Stefan and your mom?" She asked.

"Stefan and I are not close, I think you can see that. We've seen each other a couple of times, last time was like 10 years ago. He was around 14 then, I think he still hadn't met you. I didn't even know he was married. I've gotten no invitation to his wedding, not even a call.

As for my mom - she's one exceptional woman. She is amazing, really, she is." He smiled warmly. "She raised me all by herself, and she hadn't complained once. Even though, as I told you, we didn't have a lot of money, she had never refused me anything. I was the reason she dropped out of college, but she hadn't said a word about it, she kept saying how I was the best thing that could have happened to her. And she is always so kind and understanding, I actually think you would like her." He told her, now looking to see tears streaming down her cheeks. "Elena, did I do something wrong? What's going on?" A worried look appeared on his face.

"I just.. . I just know how it is to… to…" her sentence got muffled into her cries. "I was also pregnant in college." She told him, not quite sure why, through her tears.

"Yes, you told me, do you want to tell what happened, exactly, if you don't feel like talking about it, it's okay, I will understand. " He assured her, taking her hand from across the table and squeezing it slightly.

She felt the feeling of security this small gesture gave her. She squeezed his hand back, took a deep breath, and said:

"Me and Stefan, like I told you, we are dating since high school. And in high school things were perfect, he is a nice guy, too nice, sometimes, but we had a great time together. He was the guy every teenage girl is dreaming of having as her boyfriend. But as we were growing up, and went to college, I started thinking if that is what I really wanted. Don't get me wrong, Stefan is a great guy, he's amazing, supportive, kind, but he can be… boring. I've always pictured my life full of adventures, or at least a little risk or danger in it, I've always wanted a man who can surprise me, a man who can understand who I really am, not the image I had in high school. I was actually thinking about breaking things off in college, but then I got pregnant. It was one time we had unprotected sex, one time, but I guess it had been enough. So, after we talked about it for a long time, we came to the decision that we should get married. It wasn't romantic, there was no getting down on one knee - we just decided it over dinner one night, thinking it was the right thing to do, since I was sure I wanted to keep the baby. I've been thinking that he did it, he proposed me, just to live up to his family's expectations. After your father had… well, you, they didn't want another "family shame", as they called it, so we got married two months after.

My pregnancy was going like in a book, and I was happy, for the first time in a while, I had grown to love the little human inside of me, I was waiting to see him so passionately, it was the thing that was really keeping me going. I couldn't wait to hold him in my arms. I was in my second trimester, in my sixth month, to be exact, when one night I woke up from a severe bleeding. By the time we went to the hospital it was too late. I had a miscarriage, and I was classified as an "emergency", they took me into a OR right away, since I was too far in my pregnancy, and performed the necessary abortion, while I was under anaesthesia. It's probably the most horrible night in my entire existence." She finished her long speech, and looked at Damon, who was watching her in amazement. This woman had been through so much, and she was still managing to stay strong. He was admiring her, and this was a huge thing for him, since the only other woman he admired was his mother. "I am sorry, I am probably boring you with all my talking." She blushed.

"No, not at all." Damon said, not letting her hand. She could say by the sincerity in his tone that he meant it. "Why didn't you and Stefan had another child?" He asked.

"Well, we decided to stay together and try again. I figured that a marriage based on freindship and respect would be a good one, that it would be enough, but I am not so sure anymore. I need the attraction, I need the spark, the... " She stopped, realizing she had said too much. „The other thing is... After the miscarriage, the doctor said that since it was my first time, and I had lost it, there is an 80% chance I would never have children. We tried, but…" When she said this she broke down, took her face in her hands,got up from the table, pulling her hand away from his, and headed to the bathroom. Damon stood up in a flash and grabbed her by the arm.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't run hiding in the bathroom, there is nothing to be ashamed of, something horrible happened to you, it's understandable you're feeling like a wreck." He tried to calm her down.

"It's been a year Damon, a year, what's wrong with me? How much time do I need to get past this?" She said through her sobs, looking at him with more and more tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Wounds like that don't heal easily, there's nothing wrong with you, I assure you." He smiled at her, and all of her emotions got the best of her. She moved closer to him, and wrapped her hands around his waist, snuggling her face in his chest. It was all she needed to hear, she was so sick of people telling her she needed to move forward with her life, it's not like she hadn't tried, she had done everything in her power, but the pain just wouldn't go away. Damon was a little startled at first, but then he hugged her back, wrapping his arms protectively around her, and caressing her hair gently.

"Thank you" That was everything she was able to say right now. He just nodded and gave her a weak smile. He knew how wrong of him was to enjoy having her in his arms, but he couldn't help it. It felt right, holding her like that.

Both their phones rang and broke the intimate moment between them. They both looked down, and seconds later, fear took over Elena's face.

"There has been another murder."

So, that was for now, the next chapters have a lot of DE in them, and I think you'll like what I have in mind! Please review :)