A/N: I'm so sorry this took so long for me to update, but I've been really busy at home and just didn't have the time to sit down and write. I also had a bit of trouble with this chapter - I couldn't work out which character I should let speak first. My friend Ciara however, told me that it would be cruel of me to make you wait, wondering how Damon had reacted to Katherine showing up, so he gets to go first, which unfortunately means we have to deal with Katherine (Ugh!). Oh, and just to let you know, there is no physical resemblance between Katherine and Elena in this fic.

A/N 2: I was told I made a British faux pas in the last chapter, as I referred to "Boxing Day", which apparently isn't celebrated in the US. Thank you to Scarlett2112 for pointing that out to me! For those interested, Boxing Day is a tradition upheld since the Victorian era, where wealthy people used to box up their leftovers and other small gifts the day after Christmas Day, and give them to the poor. Nowadays though, it's just a national holiday. As always, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please review!


Katherine sat on the leather sofa, in exactly the same spot Elena had been sitting, before Damon had leaned over and kissed her. The morning sun shining through the curtains fell upon her black curls that he used to think were so soft. Damon couldn't help but feel as though they looked rather dull and lifeless, next to Elena's lustrous long brown locks that he had been sliding his fingers through less than twelve hours ago. Her grey eyes looked pale and cold, next to the warmth of Elena's large chocolate brown ones.

Damon turned his head away from her, not wanting to look at the woman who had broken his heart sitting where the woman who had the ability to mend it should be right now. His gaze snagged on the other occupant of the couch, who was currently fast asleep, snoring gently. Millie wore a powder pink snowsuit, her dark hair sticking out in tufts around the hood. With her eyes closed, it was easy for Damon to forget the colour of her eyes; the green that marked her out as the daughter of his brother. He had spent every day since reading the letter Katherine had left for him wondering how he could have missed those green eyes, how he could have ever looked into those large orbs and not seen the signs that she wasn't his child. Looking at her now as she slept, he finally understood. Love for the small baby constricted his chest in painful bands, the need to hold her in his arms almost as strong as his need for Elena. The only thing currently stopping him from picking her up, tucking her under his chin and breathing in the familiar baby smell of her head was the knowledge that this was not his daughter. Even worse, this was his niece. The knowledge of this tore him up inside, the need to have this little baby back in his life at war with the strong desire to throw her mother out of the front door.

"Damon, aren't you going to say anything?"

Katherine's voice cut through him, and he closed his eyes briefly against the memories that flooded his mind at the sound, both good and bad. Mostly bad, he noted, but he didn't know at that moment whether that was because the pain of her betrayal was still so fresh, or because they didn't actually have all that many good memories together.

He sighed. "What do you want me to say, Katherine?"

"I don't know, maybe that you're happy to see us? Maybe that you're glad we're here?" Katherine's grey eyes filled with tears as she gazed at him, her hands clenched into fists in her lap.

"Why are you here? Shouldn't you be with... my brother, playing happy families with him for Christmas?" Damon couldn't stand the thought of saying his brother's name out loud.

"Why am I here?" Katherine attempted a little laugh, but it came out as more of a sob. "Because I realised that this was where I was supposed to be. I never should have left." Tears started to fall in earnest, dripping down her cheeks as she tried to keep her face composed. "Oh Damon, I'm so sorry! I don't know how I messed up so badly!" She buried her face in her hands and rocked forward.

Not yet ready to forgive her, but needing to hear the full story straight from her instead of in a letter, Damon sat down on the armchair across from her. "Tell me what happened," he said, taking a deep breath and trying to keep his voice steady. "Start at the beginning, and I mean the very beginning, when Millie was conceived." His gaze slid once again over to the tiny baby, who was now sleeping fitfully, the voices disturbing her rest.

"It was that weekend when you were down in Georgia, at that antique auction," Katherine hiccupped slightly, staring down at the floor between them. "You wouldn't let me come with you, you said I would have been bored and I should stay here."

As far as Damon remembered, she had seemed annoyed when he told her that he wouldn't have time for shopping, and seemed glad of the option of not having to come.

Katherine continued. "We hadn't been spending a lot of time together. You had been so focused on getting the restaurant and the store up and running during the day, and you were so tired at night, and I guess I just felt... neglected. I don't blame you!" She exclaimed, noticing the look of increasing incredulity on Damon's face. "I'm just... I'm trying to explain how I was feeling." She took a deep breath. "Stefan came round to see you, and he noticed that I was upset, so he invited himself in. We had a couple of bottles of wine, and one thing led to another... I know it was stupid and wrong, but when I woke up the next morning, I swore that I would be more understanding of how hard you work, for us! I promised myself that I would make it up to you, and never do anything to hurt you ever again!" Her eyes drifted down to the baby beside her, and she reached out a hand to stroke Millie's leg. "And then I found out I was pregnant." She looked at Damon. "I prayed so hard that the baby would be yours, but as soon as she was born, I just knew. I had to do the right thing, even though I knew it would hurt you, I had to tell Stefan. He had a right to know."

"So, Stefan came in on his white horse to rescue you did he?" Damon said, a bored tone in his voice.

Katherine huffed. "Hardly. He insisted on a DNA test to confirm it before he would do anything, even meet her." Katherine sighed. "When the results came through, he told me to pack up my stuff and come and live with him. I... I didn't know what else to do. I knew you wouldn't want me anymore once you found out the truth. I didn't have any other option."

"So why are you here now? A little visit for Christmas?" Damon said scathingly.

"No! I'm here because leaving was the biggest mistake I ever made!"

"You mean apart from sleeping with your fiance's brother." Damon raised an eyebrow at her. "What's the matter, happily ever after with my brother not quite what you expected?"

"It was awful, Damon. He never wanted to spend any time with her. We had a day nanny, and a night nanny, there was always someone else to take care of her. I don't think he ever even fed her once, and I know he never changed her. He treated me like some kind of possession, trotting me out for work functions, before putting me back in my box. It was like he didn't want anything to do with either of us." Katherine sniffed, wiping the tears from her face with the backs of her fingers, before leaning forward in her seat, capturing his gaze with her own. "I realised that Millie would have had a much better life with you as her father, and that I never should have left you. Please Damon," she pleaded, as Millie woke up next to her. She picked the baby up and held her close. "Please, for Millie, won't you give us another chance?"


Elena pulled her car into the parking lot of Salvatore's, trying to get her shaking hands under control. She couldn't do this. She couldn't work with Damon all day and pretend that what had happened between them the night before hadn't affected her. He would expect her to see it as it was – a one night stand. It was what he wanted, he didn't want a relationship. Even if she hadn't heard it straight from his own mouth, it was obvious from the way he acted. He steered clear of all the beautiful women that threw themselves at him in the restaurant. He could have a fun night with any one of them, but the reason why he didn't was because he didn't want the emotions that came with it. It was why he had never called back the girl who had sent him flowers. Elena sighed and leaned her head against the steering wheel. And now, she'd promised him that she wouldn't be like that, that a no strings attached night was exactly what she wanted too. She had thought she could do it, she really did, but this just proved that casual sex was not something she could do. She took a deep breath and got out of the car, walking quickly into the restaurant to get out of the cold. She'll just have to try and avoid him until she got over this crush. And take this as a lesson that casual sex was not a thing she should ever try again.

She was so busy giving herself a silent talking to, that she didn't notice that all of the staff members had gathered against the windows, looking out into the courtyard. She looked around her. Nothing had been done; the tables weren't set, the Christmas lights on the tree hadn't been lit, and even the floor hadn't been cleaned. She looked back through the front door, but couldn't work out for the life of her what they were all staring and whispering about. There was a strange car there, but that was about it. She walked over to the crowd by the windows, noticing Becky right at the centre, her fingers pulling the blinds apart as she stared up at Damon's apartment door.

"What's going on?" She asked, unable to stop herself from looking out as well.

Becky turned at the sound of her voice, and looked around at the rest of the staff. "Go!" She cried at them, making shooing movements with her hands. "He'll know we know if he comes in here and finds that nothing's been done!"

Dana moved away to start setting the tables, casting a regretful look at the windows. The rest followed her, moving into the kitchen and the staff room to get ready. Elena made a move to follow them, but Becky's hand shot out and grabbed her wrist.

"You were here late last night," she said, turning back to her previous stance of peering through the blinds. Elena's heart gave an unpleasant lurch. Surely none of them knew what had happened last night? "Did she arrive then?"

Oh, I 'arrived' all right. Several times, in fact. Elena felt a blush crawl up her neck, and she mentally gave herself a slap.

"Who?"

"OMG! I keep forgetting you haven't been here long!" Becky pulled her closer to the window and pointed through the blinds. "That is Katherine's car."

"What?" Elena pulled the blinds apart herself to get a better look at the Mercedes. It was parked right outside Damon's apartment, she now noticed. "What is she doing here? I don't understand." That was an understatement. Elena doubted she could work out how to walk right at this moment.

"Huh, you and me both." Becky huffed. "How could he be so stupid? Letting her back in there, what is he thinking? They've been in there ages!" Becky was beside herself, staring at the apartment door as though she could see through it. "Her car was here when I pulled up, and that was a couple of hours ago."

Elena thought she might pass out. Thank God she'd got out of there when she had. She had no idea what would have happened if Katherine had turned up while she was still there, but she was certain that it wouldn't have been fun.

Becky's fingers suddenly clenched tightly around Elena's wrist and she winced. "They're coming out!" Becky squeaked, backing away from the window so quickly she almost knocked Elena over. "Quick! Get everything ready! Look busy! I think they're coming in here!" She shouted to the rest of the staff, who immediately busied themselves with their tasks, all of them turned away from the door. Right, because that doesn't look suspicious.

"Becky, I need to go change." Elena pried her manager's fingers off her arm and nearly fled to the safety of the staff room. Oh God, she couldn't be here. She couldn't do this. How was she supposed to act like nothing had happened while he paraded his fixed relationship in front of her? She stayed in the staff room, trying her best not to have a panic attack, until Dana came to see where she was. She took a deep breath and walked out into the restaurant. She looked around cautiously, but couldn't see him anywhere. She breathed out a sigh of relief. Maybe they hadn't come in at all.

One look at Becky's face as she ran up to her told her she was wrong. The woman was practically bursting at the seams with her need to spill all the gossip.

"She's back! And she brought Millie!" Damon's almost-daughter, Elena mentally supplied to herself.

"Are they staying?" She couldn't stop herself from asking, but she did manage to speak in a casually interested voice. Or so she hoped.

"Looks like it," Becky said, rolling her eyes. "I couldn't ask too many questions, she was standing right next to him." She looked incredibly put out by this. "I'll corner him later, find out what's going on then."

"Is it really any of our business?" Elena asked. Becky had a penchant for gossip, but straight up asking Damon what was going on sounded a little too much, even for her.

"Of course it is!" Becky looked astounded that Elena could think otherwise. "If she's sticking around, we need to know!" She nodded her head with certainty. "We need to know if she's going to have anything to do with the businesses, don't we?"

Oh, God, that would be just perfect, wouldn't it? "Did she have much to do with it before?" Elena asked, not sure she really wanted to know the answer.

"Not really," Becky wrinkled her nose in distaste. "She just used to swan about like she owned the place, telling us all what to do."

Fantastic. Just what I need, being ordered about by the girlfriend of the man I slept with. Elena resisted the urge to curl into a ball and start rocking. She was aware that she was becoming close to hyperventilating.

"I should start seating the customers," she murmured to Becky, shooting a grateful look at the people who had just come through the door. She quickly left Becky, and threw herself into her work, hoping to forget everything else.

It worked for a while; the customers were all in good moods, the Christmas spirit apparently still in the air. It was towards the end of her shift, when she felt eyes on her back, and she turned around to see Damon standing beside the kitchen staring at her. Oh God, how was it possible for her entire body to react to his presence across a crowded room? She felt tingles travel up and down her spine, and her eyelids fluttered slightly as images of the night before flooded her mind.

"Excuse me, are those for us?" A voice came from behind her.

She whirled around, nearly dropping the plates of desserts she held in her hands. "Yes, I'm so sorry." She put the plates down and turned back to the kitchen, but to her relief she saw that he had gone.

She was helping the last of the guests into their coats when she saw Becky come out of the kitchen, and she had a sudden brain wave. What she needed was some space to get her head together, get over this stupid crush, so she could look her boss in the face without wanting to throw herself at him.

"Becky, I need a favour," she grabbed her friend and pulled her aside.

"Sure, what do you need?"

"Time off, if you can spare me." Elena crossed her fingers behind her back. They were coming up to New Year, and she knew that the restaurant would be packed.

"When?" Becky asked, then her eyes widened as she saw Elena's nervous expression. "You mean now?"

"Yeah," Elena bit her bottom lip. "It's just, my brother's back from college at the moment, and I really want to spend some time with him before he has to go back, you know?" It wasn't really an excuse. She fully intended on spending as much time as she could with Jeremy and Anna. When they made it out of the bedroom, that is.

Becky nodded her head in understanding, and Elena breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"Of course," she said, reaching out and squeezing Elena's arm. "I'd want to spend time with my brothers too, if I had the chance. I'll work something out. I can probably give you a week, would that be okay?"

Elena nodded. She would take as much time as she could get. "That would be fantastic, Becky. Thanks, I mean it." She gave her a quick hug. "And tell whoever you get to cover me that I'll owe them, okay?" She went to the staff room to change out of her uniform, glad that her plan had worked out. Not seeing Damon and Katherine for a week would give her time to get over it and move on. Or so she hoped.


As usual, Elena was one of the last to leave. She said good night to Becky as the other woman went around checking the lights were all turned off, and hurried out of the door, eager to get home and have a nice long cry in a nice hot bath.

"Elena," the velvety voice slid over her, sending tingles up and down her spine. How did he manage to do that? Did he take classes or something? Seduction 101: How to turn a girl into jell-o just by saying her name.

"Hey," she replied, busying herself with finding her car keys so that she wouldn't have to look at him.

"Listen... I know you've probably noticed that..."

"Katherine's back," Elena supplied for him, surprised that her voice came out steady.

"Um, yeah. She's brought Millie with her, too. I just... after last night..." Damon faltered again, and Elena realised he was trying to let her down gently.

"You wanted to make sure there was no weirdness between us." She finished for him again. "Damon, it's okay," she went on, before he could speak. "Last night was just a one-time thing, right? It didn't mean anything!" She laughed slightly, to cover the sound of her heart breaking a little bit. "I'm not going to say anything, you don't need to worry." She nodded at him.

"Right, if you're sure" Damon said, a look of slight disbelief on his face, and Elena cringed inwardly. Oh God, had he been thinking she had been harbouring some raging feelings for him? Had she been that obvious?

"Absolutely," Elena nodded again. "Is she staying?" She blurted out suddenly. "I mean, am I allowed to ask what's going on? Are you okay?"

Damon opened his mouth to speak, but at that moment his apartment door opened and Katherine rushed out. Elena gulped. Had the woman smelled her perfume on the sheets and about to accuse her of sleeping with her boss?

"Hi!" Katherine said as she approached them. "Listen, could you do us a favour?" She spoke directly to Elena, who was standing by her car, frozen in disbelief. "Could you watch over Millie for a while? Damon and I really need to spend some time together, and we could really do with a babysitter."

Elena's disbelief ratcheted up even higher, and for a moment she couldn't answer. "Sorry, I can't," she finally managed to get out, unlocking her car and opening the door. "I've got plans tonight." A plan involving a vat of alcohol and a dozen boxes of tissues.

"Really?" Katherine looked astounded, and Elena sighed. Did she really come across to everyone as someone with no social life? "Are you sure it isn't something you could cancel?"

This girl in unbelievable! "No, sorry, it really isn't." Elena gave the woman a cheery smile and slid into the car.

"It doesn't matter," Damon said as Katherine opened her mouth to speak again. "We're not going anywhere."

"Oh, but-"

"Katherine, think about it," Damon interrupted her. "I haven't seen Millie in months. Why would I want to leave her with anybody else?" He turned back to Elena. "So, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Oh, no, I've got the week off. I'm spending some time with my brother," she explained at his questioning look. She shut the door quickly and started the engine, giving them both a wave as she drove off, suddenly even more thankful she had had the idea of taking some time off. She definitely needed a time-out from her life for five minutes.


A/N: So, there we go! Isn't Katherine a cow? Don't worry, she'll be gone soon. At least I hope ;) I hope you enjoyed it, and please review!