A/N: Sorry for the lack of updates this week. School has kept me pretty busy. Thank you once again for the reviews! I appreciate them. I hope you enjoy this update. As always, read and review please!

Damon finished rolling up his sleeves as he turned the corner of the staircase, ready to go back up to his room and grab his wallet. He had a busy day ahead of him. Lots of shameless flirting with the women in town. The important ones, that is. First on his list? Elena Gilbert. He didn't like the way they had left things last time she was over, looking for Stefan. Something was off about her that day. Normally, she was all giddy around him.

As Damon was about to head up the stairs, a knock on his front door stopped him. He checked the time. It was far too early for anyone to be delivering something. Stefan had gone out for a run. Maybe the idiot had locked himself out. Damon sighed and went to answer it. He swung the heavy wood door open and froze.

"God you're hot" she said with a motivated smile that turned into a mastermind smirk.

Damon halfway thought about slamming the door in her face, just like she had slammed her car door on his fingers the last time he saw her while he was trying to stop her from leaving. Like an idiot, he had still gone running after her, begging her to stay anyway after she had attempted to cheat on him. "What the hell do you want?" he asked, glancing past her to see her red corvette sitting in his driveway.

"What, no hello?" she pouted. She walked forward, a knowing smile playing on her lips as she stopped in front of him, close enough for him to kiss her if he wanted to.

"You're not wanted here, Katherine" Damon said neutrally, standing his ground. He would not give in to her anymore. Not now. Not ever again.

Katherine brought her hand up and seductively ran her finger down the front of that perfectly ironed button down of his. "Come on Damon, don't be like that" she said, running her hand down until she found his belt. "We used to be good together" she said seductively.

Damon quickly removed her hand from him before she could go any further. "Used to" he stated. "Then you tried to screw my little brother and when he turned you down, you took off" he reminded her. Damon grabbed her by her shoulders and gently, yet forcibly, pushed her backwards and back out onto the porch. "I mean it Katherine. You're not wanted here."

Katherine scowled at him. Before she could get another word in, he shut the door in her face. "Crazy bitch" he muttered, walking back to the staircase. He tried not to remember how foolishly in love he was with her. How he had thought she was the one. How much money he spent on her to try and keep her happy. And then she had tried to seduce Stefan, on his 17th birthday. Thankfully, Stefan had turned her down before it had gone too far. But it had reminded Damon of something he had struggled with ever since he was a child. Everyone loved Stefan more.

Damon slapped a book off of a nearby table as he went into his room. Well, maybe not everyone loved Stefan more. After all, Katherine loved herself more than anyone. Damon sat on his bed and leaned back, suddenly not feeling up to being out and about with a bunch of women today. Not after that little run in with Katherine.

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Stefan stopped his medium paced jog when he reached the end of his driveway, deciding he would use the walk back to the boarding house as a nice cool down. He wiped away the sweat that had gathered on his forehead. Although football season was another two months away, he figured staying in shape couldn't hurt. Especially when he had a certain someone to impress. Summer meant a lot of days at the lake and lounging around without a shirt on. The morning runs and afternoon crunches would do him some good.

As Stefan rounded a corner in his driveway, he came into clear view of a little red corvette and a tall, long-legged brunette leaning against it. He stopped. Katherine. She looked up when she heard footsteps on the gravel. A huge grin appeared. "Hello, Stefan" she said, dropping her eyes to those oh so toned legs of his and slowly wandering her eyes up to his beautiful green eyes. "God you're hot" she said, more to herself than to him. She was never one to be shy when she liked what she saw.

Stefan wiped at his forehead again. "What are you doing here?" he asked cautiously. The last time he had seen her, she had him flat against his back, ready to have her way with him.

"You know you missed me" she smiled, slowly walking towards him, swinging her hips in that mesmerizing way she knew had everyone's attention. "I missed you" she said slowly, placing her hand on his firmly sculpted chest. If Damon wasn't going to give her the attention she wanted, Stefan surely would. Katherine leaned in towards him, resting her mouth close to his ear. "Why don't you invite me in and I'll show you" she whispered seductively.

Stefan grabbed her hand that had begun to wander up under his shirt. Katherine giggled, honestly believing that he was playing along with her game. She loved games. When she looked up at him, he was smiling at her. "I'll tell you what" he said, his voice low and slightly suggestive. Just how she liked it. "I'm going to go inside …" he began. She waited for the part where he invited her in with him. "And you can get the hell off my property and enjoy a life of loneliness and misery" he said.

Katherine's grin disappeared and a look of anger replaced it. "You're the one that's going to be lonely" she retorted. She could have any guy, anytime, anywhere.

Stefan chuckled lightly. "You see, that's where you're wrong, Katherine" he said, eyeing her. "I'm spoken for. And the best part? She's not a manipulative whore" he finished.

Katherine was seething with rage. Not because Stefan had called her a whore. But because he was seeing someone else. That was not acceptable. Stefan, enjoying seeing her so worked up, stepped around her and headed for the house. But she wasn't done just yet. "I came back for you" she called after him.

Stefan turned around and shrugged. "One problem Katherine. I don't want you" he told her. "Get the hell out of Mystic Falls. You're not wanted here" he said, turning and walking away again.

This time, Katherine let him go. But she was not done with him yet. Or that little twit that he was dating. Katherine would find out who she was and make her sorry that she ever laid eyes on Stefan Salvatore.

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Stefan grabbed his water bottle from the fridge and took a big drink before heading upstairs for a shower. He glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost nine in the morning. Elena would definitely still be asleep. Elena. The thought of even her name brought a smile to his face and made him forget about Katherine who was probably still standing outside.

Stefan walked back into the parlor, kicking his shoes off. "Where is she?" Damon asked, walking into the room with an agenda, Stefan assumed.

"Where's who?" Stefan asked, playing dumb. He inwardly smirked at the grimace on Damon's face.

"Katherine. I'm sure you saw her" Damon replied, taking a seat in his chair.

"Oh, Katherine. Right. Yeah, I invited her in Damon. She's upstairs waiting for me now" Stefan said sarcastically. Damon tapped his fingers on the armrest of his chair, clearly not amused with Stefan's answer. "Where the hell do you think she is?" he asked. "I left the bitch outside where she belongs" Stefan added.

"You didn't come strolling home until early morning. You were with her, weren't you" Damon guessed. He should have known.

Stefan groaned. "You have got to be kidding me Damon. Are we really going there again?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, we're going there again, Stefan" Damon mocked in the best impression of Stefan that he could manage. "I just can't believe you would hook up with her after what she put us through last year. You're letting her come between us. For what? For her to cheat on you and ruin your life too?" he asked.

Stefan slammed his water bottle down, clearly agitated. It was too early to deal with his neurotic brother. "First off, I didn't hook up with her. Not last year, and certainly not last night" he stated. Damon didn't believe him about last night though and Stefan could tell. "Second, Katherine is not the problem, Damon. The issues we have? Our hatred towards one another? It started way before Katherine even came into the picture" he said defensively. Damon looked away from his brother and out the window. "I'm sick of this shit, Damon. I've tried to get along with you and it just doesn't work. But you don't get to blame other people. You only have yourself to blame" Stefan finished, walking past his brother who looked like he had zoned out. "And not that it is any of your business, but I was with Elena last night" Stefan said, heading for the staircase.

Damon listened for the footsteps to disappear. Once they had, he tipped his head back and closed his eyes. He needed a drink.

XXXXXXXXX

A hot shower had done nothing to calm Stefan down after his heated exchange with Damon. The guy just couldn't move forward and Stefan couldn't keep living in the past. So Stefan decided to head into town and get coffee. Stefan was so focused on his thoughts that he didn't even hear Tyler calling after him. "Hey!" Tyler said, grabbing his shoulder. Stefan whipped around and glared. Tyler was the absolute last person he wanted to run into right now. "Whoa, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed" Tyler commented.

"It's been a rough morning" was all Stefan said. "I'm running late" he added, hoping Tyler would take the hint. Stefan began walking once again.

"For Elena?" Tyler asked, a large grin forming. Stefan stopped immediately and turned around. "I saw you too getting all cozy last night. I must say, I am impressed. You work fast" Tyler added.

Stefan walked back towards Tyler quickly. "The bet is off" Stefan stated.

Tyler scoffed. "What do you mean the bet is off?" Tyler asked in disbelief.

"Exactly what I just said" Stefan answered. "It was a stupid bet and I don't want any part of it anymore" he added. "Elena has been through too much …" Stefan began to explain.

"So?" Tyler scoffed again. He could care less if her mom and dad just died. He was going to get his entertainment from watching Stefan fail miserably. No way was Stefan backing out now. "Come on, Stefan. How long have we known each other? Almost our whole lives. Don't be like this" Tyler said, trying in one last ditch effort to change Stefan's mind.

Stefan's fist clenched. He had always known that Tyler was incapable of thinking about others, but this had gone too far. "I said the bet is off" Stefan said firmly. "And as far as I am concerned, our friendship is over" Stefan finished, walking around Tyler and heading back to his truck, suddenly no longer wanting coffee. Tyler stood there, astounded by what Stefan had just said. No one blew off a Lockwood like that.

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Elena rolled over in her bed, smiling as the sun shone through her window. Memories of last night floated into her mind and all she could think about was how much she wanted to see Stefan. There's a thought she never thought would cross her mind. She questioned how she went from being terrified of having a relationship with him to kissing him all night long.

Then she blushed when she thought about his hand resting on her waist, holding her close. But it was a nice feeling to know that someone wanted to kiss her and hold her close. It was a nice feeling knowing that someone could make her smile. Elena sighed before tossing the covers off of her and getting out of bed. She quickly brushed her teeth and fixed her hair. Her bedroom door was cracked open slightly and downstairs, she could hear her aunt talking to someone, inviting him or her in. Elena ran to her bedroom window and smiled when she saw Stefan's truck pulled up along the curb.

Elena pulled a Mystic Falls High sweatshirt on and changed out of her pajama bottoms and into a pair of track pants. She looked at herself in the mirror, scrutinizing her appearance. Well. If Stefan wanted to date her, he'd have to get used to the fact that she wasn't a morning person. There was no way in hell she'd come down the stairs before noon on her vacation all dressed up and ready to go.

Elena heard her aunt laugh and it made her smile. Jenna hadn't done much laughing either. Giving herself one last once over, Elena headed for downstairs. When she got there, Stefan was in the kitchen with Jenna, sitting at the island counter with a cup of coffee. "Hey, you're up" Jenna smiled. "I told Stefan you probably wouldn't be up until around noon."

Elena grinned. How well her aunt knew her. "Not today. I decided to get up early and start the day at … ten" she said, glancing at the clock.

Jenna just shook her head. "I used to be just like you. And then I had to grow up and go to graduate school" she explained. "Anyway, I'm going out back to work on my thesis" she said, grabbing her coffee cup and a large stack of papers.

Elena turned around to get a coffee cup down. When she turned back around to get the coffee, Stefan was already standing close to her, grabbing her face gently and pulling her into another one of those mesmerizing kisses. When he pulled back, ever so slightly, she couldn't help but smile. "Good morning" he whispered. He had been wanting so say that since she walked into the kitchen.

"Morning" she replied back, tugging on his t-shirt so that he would kiss her again. Which he did. This time, however, he kissed her a lot slower and for much longer. And she had no complaints. When she finally pulled away, she watched as he moved a lose piece of hair out of her face. "What are you doing today?" she asked.

Stefan shrugged. "Whatever you're doing" he told her. He had planned on spending all day with her and hoped she had planned on spending all day with him.

"I'm doing absolutely nothing" Elena stated. She moved around him and grabbed the creamer from the fridge to add to her coffee.

"Well, then, Miss Gilbert. Can I interest you in breakfast at The Grill?" he asked. Elena pretended to think hard about his offer, clearly weighing out her options. Then her uncontrollable smile gave her away.

"I can be ready in half an hour" she told him, taking her cup of coffee with her upstairs.

Stefan shook his head at her playfulness. It was a nice change of pace for him. He settled back down into his seat, his thoughts of Elena being interrupted by Jenna. "You are the only one who has been able to make her smile like that" Jenna mentioned, leaning against the entryway. Stefan turned around to look at her, surprised to hear her there. "She's happy." Stefan smiled. He was happy too. "Make sure she stays that way, okay?" Jenna asked, though it was more like statement. Jenna went back outside and Stefan was left to his thoughts again. He never wanted her to be unhappy again.

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Katherine sat on a bench across the street from The Grill, a scowl present on her face as she watched Stefan get out of his truck with a girl. They sat outside to eat. Katherine would give Stefan credit. The girl was pretty. But Katherine had come back to Mystic Falls with one goal in mind. To get Stefan to fall in love with her.

Now, all Katherine had to do was figure out who this girl was and how to get her to break up with Stefan. "Easy" she said to herself, crossing one leg over the other and leaning forward. Katherine looked to her left and saw an elder couple walking their dog. She looked to her right and saw kids running around playing tag. This town was boring.

As she continued to stare at Stefan, a young dark haired guy came walking by, talking on his phone. Katherine smiled. He looked useful. "Hey!" she called out to him. The guy stopped walking and looked at her. He looked her over briefly before telling the person on the other end of his phone that he had to go. Katherine smiled again. God those small town boys were easy. "I don't believe we've met. I'm Katherine" she said politely.

The guy smiled, liking what he saw. "I'm Tyler. Tyler Lockwood" he said, introducing himself.

Katherine smiled wider. He was a rich one, too. "Can I ask you something Tyler?" she asked sweetly.

Tyler shrugged. "Yeah, I guess" he replied.

Katherine nodded towards Stefan. "Who is that girl sitting at the table with Stefan?" she asked casually.

Tyler turned to where Katherine was looking and groaned. Katherine picked up on this immediately. He recalled his run-in with Stefan earlier that morning. "That's Elena Gilbert" he answered.

"You don't sound too fond of Stefan" Katherine pointed out.

"Yeah, well, the guy's an asshole. He totally backed out on a bet we made almost a month ago" Tyler informed her. "He used to be a lot more fun and laid back. I don't know what happened to him" he added.

Katherine's attention picked up when he mentioned a bet. "A bet?" she asked. "What kind of a bet?"

Tyler hesitated for a moment. No one else knew about the bet except Stefan. "Just a bet we made between the two of us" he replied lamely.

Katherine cursed under her breath. Was she going to have to sleep with him to get the answer? "Were you pretty sure you'd win the bet and that's why you're mad he backed out?" Katherine asked subtly.

This got Tyler revved up. "I know I would have won! There's no way he could have gotten Elena to sleep with him by the end of summer. She'd probably sleep with me before she slept with Stefan" he said without even thinking. He was just so sure though.

Katherine smiled once more. "I bet you would have won too" she said, all the while thinking about how easy that was to get such valuable information out of him. Tyler smiled at her. "Does Elena know about the bet?" she questioned further.

"God no. She'd freak" Tyler answered. This was exactly what Katherine wanted to hear. "She'd probably never speak to him again" he added.

Katherine nodded her understanding. "How about you take me back to your place and I'll try and take your mind off of this bet" she suggested. Sure, she didn't need to sleep with him seeing as how she got all the information she needed. But hell, why not have a little fun before the real fun began?

"I think that could be arranged" Tyler said, his breath catching in his throat. Katherine stood and Tyler was able to see her gorgeous long legs as her dress fell just above her knees. She followed him to his car all the while keeping her eye of Stefan. Somehow, she was pretty sure she would be with Stefan sooner rather than later.

A/N: Uh oh, she's back! And on a mission …