A/N Thank you so much for your lovely feedback! It makes this author smile a lot!

Elijah was angry with himself. He had let his mask slip at the Ball to a woman he should not even be thinking about. Yet, her glossy brunette curls and experienced eyes were so adult. So very sophisticated in comparison to Tatia's childish doe eyes. He could not stop the comparisons raging in his head. Katherine was more approachable and seductive. But, he could not think like that. He had killed Tatia. He could not hurt Katherine too. She had her own demons, though she hid them well. A gambling ex-lover was certainly bad especially knowing what he did of her daughter, Nadia. She had been left without a father. Katherine's defiance in the face of adversity and easy manner towards her problems endeared her to him. She had, to put it colloquially, 'sucked it up' and masked her feelings. They were so very alike and yet so unalike too. They both hid their problems, and yet she did so with an openness whereas he was reserved. She was almost brash in her confident manner and he so very polite and cutting. He would not allow himself to love again. That would be his punishment for killing his darling Tatia.

"How can you say that, Tatia?" Elijah protested angrily. "I have and always will be faithful to you, my love"

Tatia was upset. She and Elijah were planning to marry the following weekend but she had seen him hugging a young brunette girl."I saw you with that brunette hussy, Elijah."

"Who,Tatia?" He grew tired of her complaints. She had been ranting for nearly an hour and he had yet to determine the root of the matter. "When?"

"The other day. I saw you hug her. There was that black guy too" Tatia exclaimed furiously. She had seen Elijah meet up with a black guy who his sister was dating and a young brunette girl of about 16.

Elijah chuckled. He was no longer angry, merely amused. "That hussy, my love, is Niklaus' goddaughter. Her name is Davina. Her parents died when she was young and Marcel adopted her when he was only 18 himself and she was 8 years old because her parents looked out for him. She is like a niece to me, my Tatia" He explained as he pulled her in and kissed her forehead. "Honestly, you get so very jealous dearest. I still remember how you reacted when I kissed Rebekah on the cheek"

Tatia pouted prettily. "It's only out of love, Elijah"

"I know, darling" He caressed her cheek. "How about we drive up to the lake for a couple of days? We can have some alone time" He suggested. Her face lit up with glee. They were busy people. He a doctor and she headed up a charity.

Elijah snapped out of the memory. That was the last time they were together. On the drive up, they crashed into a barrier and fell miles down into the forest. She was killed on impact. All because he wanted to go on a romantic drive. It was his fault. She died because of him. And he would have to live with that. He could not love anyone else. It would be a betrayal of Tatia. Bang! A little girl with a gap toothed smile looked at him apologetically.

"I'm sorry. Mommy always tells me to slow down" She offered up as an apology.

Elijah surveyed the little girl with a pretend scary smile. Then, he laughed. "It's no problem sweetheart. Who's your mommy?" Then, just as he asked he saw Katherine scooping up the little girl, half angry and half worried. Of course, this little brunette girl with her curls was Katherine's daughter. Nadia.

"I am so sorry Elijah" Katherine apologised whilst scolding Nadia. "She has a habit of doing that." She was clutching two shopping bags and held Nadia.

He gently eased the bags away from her. "It is no problem Katerina. I will aid you" His nickname for her again slipped out. And again she did not notice. He thanked God that she did not see the effect she had on him.

Caroline was oddly reflective that day. She thought about what Klaus had told her. He had an ex-wife. He would have had a baby. She had an ex-husband. His ex-wife verbally abused him. God knows, Damon abused her. They were both broken. And maybe, just maybe, they could be fixed. But, Damon's note still niggled in the back of her mind. He had not yet come and it had been two weeks so she wondered what sadistic plan he had. But, she put it out of her mind. She was going on a date with Klaus. A proper one. And it was all thanks to Elijah, Kat and Bonnie, her therapist and friend. They had made her feel secure and safe. Klaus had made her feel protected. She felt like she was slowly moving past Damon. She only hoped Klaus was working through his issues too. Now what dress? Black? Blue? Red?

Then, she settled on a relatively simple cornflower blue sundress with gold wedges. It was pretty but hopefully not too much. She had no idea where he was taking them so she didn't want to under or overdress. She hoped it was a low key affair. She had enough of formal events to last a lifetime. Ding! Dong! He was here. She grabbed her gold clutch and made her way downstairs. She opened the door. He was handsome. Dressed in a simple blue shirt and black jeans he looked so hot. And he was smiling. That meant she caught a glance of his elusive dimples.

"You look stunning, love" Klaus Mikaelson said in a tone of admiration. And he meant it. Those long legs were on display for him tonight. He let out a slight growl. "Gorgeous as always, sweetheart"

She smiled at the compliment. It had been a long time since she had felt like this. Loved and adored. "You don't look too bad yourself. In fact you actually look pretty good" She said while scanning his body. That shirt clung to his abs and she felt herself go weak at the mere sight of them.

"For you sweetheart of course. Now let's get going" He took her arm like a gentleman and escorted her to his car.

"Where? I really want to know" She demanded as she sat in his car. It was just like him. The interior was black, tastefully designed with a clean, woody smell pervading the air.

Klaus chuckled. "You'll know soon, love" He teased with his trademark smirk. He put the radio on.

"You like Taylor Swift? Seriously?" She was impressed. Most guys ran a mile away and he liked her. She was mindblown.

"My brother Kol got me into her. I particularly like "Bad Blood. Lots of strong women like you, love" He was amused by her reaction. But, he was happy that she was smiling. It lit up her whole face with a radiance and purity.

A/N Thank you for reading! Let me know if you like it! Kaira x