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Chapter 13

„So what you are trying to tell us, is, that Elena's life is in danger only because some crazy vampire guy wants to do some ritual to lift a spell that is on him?" Stefan asked with a frown.

"Yeah. It would have been Katherine's life, but she decided to turn into a vampire and therefore her blood is no longer important for Klaus' ritual." Ashley sighed.

"Well that's bad." Damon said matter-of-factly. Stefan suddenly exploded.

"Thanks, brother, for this important enrolment. The life of my girlfriend is at risk and you just make your stupid jokes. Can you for once behave like an adult?" he was cut short when his phone rang. Damon wanted to say something to him, but Ashley put a hand on his forearm soothingly. Stefan stopped talking on the phone and lowered his head.

"What's up, your outburst already over?" Damon asked annoyed. Ashley slapped him on the arm.

"That was Elena. She's coming over now. I can't tell her the news. She will freak!"

"Then don't tell her." Damon said, without much interest.

"Well, I certainly don't know how it would even be possible to save her because Klaus is the first vampire ever, but-" Ashley said but Damon cut her short.

"We'll leave. I don't think miss-suddenly-has-to-reveal-everything here can hold anything back" Damon smirked at Ashley and took her by the elbow and tugged her out the front door where they bumped into Elena.

"Hey you tow. Where are you going? I was hoping to talk to you" she said and was looking from Damon to Ashley and back.

"Well, we have some errands to run, sorry. We'll be back!" Damon answered, smiled and pulled Ashley into his car before she could spill anything.

"She will be suspicious. I shouldn't even have told you two" Ashley said and buried her head in her hands. Damon put a hand on her shoulder and said, "Maybe you shouldn't have, but you did and now you can't take it back. Let's do the best out of it and search for a way to help Elena. Don't blame yourself for anything. Maybe it's an advantage for us that you were turned by Klaus. At least his blood is running in your veins and that means you've got to have some of his strength!" He patted her shoulder reassuringly and Ashley calmed down a little.

"You're right. Let's think about something else. Can you drive me home? I have to change clothes, seriously."

When they arrived at the Lockwood mansion, they saw that no one was home. Ashley opened the front door and stepped into the house, closely followed by Damon.

"Wow thank god I have been invited in once, otherwise I would have to wait for ages out there."

Ashley saw a little note on the table in the hallway and picked it up.

Dear Ashley,
I had to run for the mayor's office, I'll be back late.
Taylor is out with some friends, he won't be back either.
Food is in the fridge, see you in the morning.
Love, Carol

Damon read the note over Ashley's shoulder and when she put it down again, he slung his hands around her waist from behind.

"Nice, the whole house to ourselves" he said with a smirk and snuggled into her shoulder. Ashley turned around in his arms to face him.

"Damon, I really really have to go shower and change my clothes. I have them on since yesterday when I came to your place." She shoved him away and made her way upstairs. Damon followed her up into her room. When she rummaged around in her closet, he plunged down on her bed.

"What do you think are you doing?" Ashley put her arms on her hips and stared at Damon.

"Just enjoying myself while I am waiting for you." He picked up the remote control and started flipping through the channels of the television. Ashley just shook her head and went into the bathroom to shower.

When she returned, Damon wasn't on her bed anymore. She sighed and went downstairs to look for him.

She found him rummaging through an ancient cupboard that held all the booze.

"Hey, you. Where did you learn that you have to ask before you make yourself that comfortable?" Ashley laughed and Damon turned around to face her. She was wearing a white strapless summer dress, that made her body seem to be carved out of marble.

She smiled at Damon and suddenly he was there, pressing her against the wall and holding her arms back. He grinned at her hungrily and pressed his lips against hers. The kiss was demanding and fierce, and Ashley felt herself wanting more. She turned both of them around and suddenly she was on top and was holding Damon back against the wall.

He brought a hand up to her hair and grabbed them to swirl her around and up the stairs into her room. He threw her on the bed and when he closed the door with a band he jumped onto the mattress next to her. He grabbed her fiercely and pulled her on top of him. He struggled for a while to find where to open that dress but then he decided not to bother. With a ripping sound he tore it apart and dropped the leftovers on the floor.

He laid her next to her on the bed and saw her posing lascivious in her white lingerie, she was only wearing a strapless bra and panties. She threw a strand of her hair behind her shoulder and sat up only to push Damon on the covers. She ripped the shirt off him, just as he did before with her dress and suddenly he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her down on him, so she was lying on top of him.

Damon started kissing her again, more demanding than before and it was not long that the two of them were lying naked next to each other, panting and sweating. Damon put himself on top of her and fulfilled all her needs and maybe a little more. They switched positions often and after what seemed like eternity, they finished, breathing heavily. Damon put an arm around Ashley's shoulder and they just laid there, Damon stroking Ashley's naked belly and she was holding onto him, eyes closed, wanting to savour the memory as long as possible.

Suddenly the two of them were awakened from their world when the doorbell rang. Ashley put on a silk bathrobe and Damon dressed in his trousers, as nothing else was left and followed Ashley down the stairway.

She was already opening the door and the two of them saw a good looking guy in his thirties, more or less, standing there with a large backpack and a travelling bag. In the driveway, a big pick up was parked behind Damon's Porsche.

"Hi" said the man, "I am Mason Lockwood, the mayor's brother." Ashley's face fell. She knew that man but she couldn't say where she had met him.

"I am Ashley Walden. I am a distant cousin of Carol's and staying here until my house is finished." They shook hands and Mason looked expectantly at Damon.

"Damon Salvatore." He said shortly without an attempt to shake Mason's hand.

"Sorry that I, uhm, interrupted you in any way" Mason said while looking from Ashley's bathrobe and her tousled hair to Damon's bare chest and grinned stupidly, "but I am here to visit my brother and his family. It's been a along time."

"Sure, just come- feel yourself comfortable, Carol's not at home at the moment. Shall we help you with your baggage?" Ashley said and stepped aside with a sideward glance at Damon. If he was a vampire, he wouldn't be able to come in now.

Mason stepped over the threshold and looked around.
"Thank you, that's okay. And where is Richard? My brother." He added as if he had to explain that to the two of them.

"Well, let's sit down, do you want something to drink?" Ashley asked while she led him into the living room. Something strange was radiating from that man but she couldn't say. Damon followed them shortly and stood next to the fireplace and crossed his arms over his chest. He saw Mason's gaze as Ashley made herself comfortable on a futon and crossed her bare legs.

"So" he started when he was able to draw his gaze from Ashley's perfectly tanned legs to her face.

"You didn't tell me where Richard was?"

"Didn't they tried to contact you? Richard died a few months ago. I'm sorry." Mason's face fell, he was genuinely upset.

"Wow, I didn't know. How come Carol didn't contact me?" he asked.

"Well, maybe she tried but couldn't get hold of you?" Ashley said with a smile, to cheer him up.

Suddenly, the front door opened and they heard Carol coming in.

"Hey, Ashley, Damon, nice to see-" she stopped dead when she entered the living room. "Mason?" she added when she recognised the man on the couch.

He stood and stepped over to her.

"Carol. I just heard it." She hugged him and sighed.

"I am sorry that you had to hear it that way. We tried to call you but you're number wasn't accurate anymore. We tried to contact your landlord but he told us you had moved and- I am sorry." Now it was Mason's turn to hug her.

Ashley stood. "Hey guys, we'll be going, I am sure that you have a lot to talk about, so we'll let you have a little privacy." Carol nodded thankfully and smiled at her. Mason led her into the kitchen where they could hear them making tea and talking about Richard.

Ashley and Damon went upstairs where Ashley had to find a new dress and Damon picked up the remnants of their old clothes with a chuckle.

"Imagine he would have come ten minutes earlier. We wouldn't even have heard him" he smiled.

"Funny, Damon. Don't you think that will happen again here. It's neither your house nor mine. I can't believe we even did this." Ashley said while packing some things in a bag.

"What are you doing? Are you planning on staying at our place tonight?" Damon said with a smirk.

"Only if you behave and I can have my own room. Otherwise I'll ask Elena. I wonder how long my house will take to finish."

"You're really waiting for a house? I thought you only said that because of Mason" Damon asked with round eyes.

"Nope. I have bought a house but it had to be renovated that's why I am staying here. Did you think with my age I wanted to stay with my relatives just for fun?" Ashley told him while she turned around. "Can we go? Where is your shirt?" She asked him.

"You ripped it into pieces, remember?" Damon answered with a smirk when he led her out of the room and out of the house into his car. Ashley just rolled her eyes but had to smile when Damon wasn't looking.

When they reached the boarding house, they saw Elena's car standing in front of the house and that the light was on in the living room.

"Oh no, Elena. I totally forgot about the news" Ashley said with a groan.

"Yeah, I am pretty awesome at distraction." Damon laughed when he raced around to open the door for Ashley.

Ashley rolled her eyes and stepped into the boarding house. When they entered the living room, Stefan and Elena were watching TV. They turned around when they heard them coming in.

"Hey Ashley. Dam- why aren't you wearing a shirt?" Stefan asked with a frown.

Damon smirked at Ashley who just hit him on the chest.

"Don't be such an ass. It's torn. He was clumsy." Ashley stated and slumped down onto a futon next to the couch.

"Elena, how are you?" Ashley asked while Damon walked around them to pour himself a drink.

"I'm okay. Stefan told me everything. It's difficult but I'll make it. I'm pretty much better now, really" she said and smiled, so genuine, that Ashley believed her.

"By the way, what are you doing back here?" Stefan asked Ashley.

"Well, I was thinking about staying here because Richard Lockwood's long lost brother returned home and I didn't want to spoil any family reunion."

"Well, that's okay, we have a spare room anyway" Stefan smiled. Damon cleared his throat and Ashley sighed.

"Thank you, Stefan. I would love to have that room" with that words she stood up, picked up her bag and walked past Damon with a sexy grin on her lips.

The next morning Ashley was woken up by the smell of fresh coffee. It was Saturday and she smiled when she got up and walked down the stairs. She saw Stefan making the coffee and Elena sitting at the kitchen table, eating a bagel and reading the newspapers.

Suddenly, Damon was walking down the stairs and when he stepped into the kitchen he let out a low whistle, to signalise that he liked the pink shorts and the little shoulder strap tee Ashley was wearing.

Ashley rolled her eyes and grabbed a cup of coffee. She sat down next to Elena and started to read the part of the newspaper Elena had already had.

Damon and Stefan both looked at the girls, then at themselves and suddenly they cracked up laughing.

"What's so funny?" Ashley asked. Elena just looked confused.

"It's just that- ah- you look like- wow it looks like we're a family" Damon was able to choke out and still couldn't stop laughing. Ashley and Elena exchanged glances which certainly meant "boys!" and continued to read the papers.

After breakfast, well at least breakfast for Elena, Stefan and Elena planned on helping Caroline decorate Mystic Fall's park for the next celebration that was to be held on Sunday. Ashley wanted to go home and since her car was still at the Lockwood's, Damon offered to drive her.

When the four of them went to the door, Ashley was the one to open it. She stepped out and nearly bumped into a tall, slender figure in a tux, with neatly combed hair and a thin lip line. Ashley couldn't but gasp and her mouth fell. Damon, Stefan and Elena were confused.

The man smiled at them and then he turned to look at Ashley.

"Nice to see you again, Miss Ashlin" he said.

Ashley was able to whisper through her clenched teeth.

"Elijah"

Now what do you say? Sorry, that some parts are a little confusing I really had difficulties bringing this chapter from my brains to paper...but I hope you like it nevertheless. Tell me what you think!

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