A/N: Thank you for wonderful reviews. I am glad you all liked it.

Hopefully you will like this chapter too.

To the guest who had been missing the ending of last few chapters, I have been meaning to address you for the past few chapter but forget it :(. I am so sorry that you miss the ending. I dont know what is happening. I dont want to shorten this chapter but for you I will post second half of the chapter as a separate additional chapter after this one so that you can enjoy the ending of this chapter. I hope you enjoy it.

The moment he reached his room, he ran his fingers through his hair wondering what he had said to her- about getting married to Jackson. Will he be okay with seeing her with another man? He went to change his clothes with heavy heart not trying to think of her in arms of another arm for he knew that if she gets married to someone else, she will eventually fall in love with him because she knows what marriage is and how to accommodate herself in a new life just like she did with him while she was still in love with Elijah. He fell on the bed, feeling confused and angry at his conflicting thoughts. The last thought in his mind before he drifted off to sleep was the effort she was putting in cracking a window in his hardening heart so much so that she had asked Jackson and Ansel to present her case. He shook his head in angry thinking how can she think that she can make him change his mind so easily? Is that how she felt when he was trying to convince her? Was she too this angry at him when he was trying to convince her?

She was unable to sleep that night wondering how to reach out to Klaus. If his words were any indication where their relationship was going then it was not a hopeful future, she realized. He was so angry at her. Why did she file for divorce. She cursed herself again. He was going to take her back before she messed things up further for both of them. What if he does not open up to her. She has only eighty eight days left. Oh lord she cannot live without him. Not again! she muttered into her pillow as she fluffed her pillow and cried herself to sleep.

As Hope laid in the bed, Kaleb asked "now tell me how was it?"

She turned towards him and smiled rather shyly, like she had ben feeling since their time together "it was good. Papa came as we were leaving and got to talk with grandpa."

He looked at her face, red cheeks and got really hard but he said to himself "patience" and said to her "oh that is great. You and he should visit your father a lot. That is the only way that can break the ice between them. Um.. how are things between him and aunt Hayley?"

"Mama said not to worry but…"

He touched her cheek causing her body to shiver and said "it will take time."

She said feeling flustered by his touch and his body so near to him, the feeling in her legs which she now knew what to call them, annoying her "papa said we can go to BedFord to meet grandpa's brother. But he wanted me to ask you…" ending with a chuckle. "I told him you wouldnt stop me, but I will ask you."

He said "no, I wouldnt but I am glad you asked me."

He turned on his back when she asked timidly "Kaleb?"

"Hmm" he said without looking towards her.

"Is is normal for wives to want to…" but stopped talking as he slowly turned towards her.

Seeing her flushed face, he opened his mouth but she turned away from him saying "we should sleep. It is very… late" as she turned off the oil-lamp.

When she leaned back in her bed, he said softy as he pulled her towards him "yes, it is normal for both man and woman to feel same way. I feel the same way" as he shifted and his hardness touched her "but Hope, you are too young…" when she snapped "I am not. I am your wife."

He smiled, removed the hair strands from her forehead and said gently "Let me finish. You are too young and I dont want you to get pregnant with our child right now."

"Oh," and felt glad that he couldn't see her burning cheeks.

"So can we never do it again?" she asked shyly.

He smiled and said "no, we can but we have to be careful."

"What do you mean?"

He said "we have to use protection."

"oh, how?"

When he was done explaining her about barrier she asked almost at once "is it possible that I am already pregnant? We didnt use it .. last time" taking herself by surprise that she didnt hesitate asking such a thing.

"yes it is. I was not careful."

"It is okay if I am" she said as a thrill went through her body as she recalled Rebekah's baby but Kaleb said "if you are then I am very happy but if you are not then I dont want you to carry our child right now. You told me once that you wanted to get training in the nursing profession. Now is your chance to learn from his culture so that when we go back you can start something if you want to."

"Oh that will be wonderful Kaleb" as she hugged him and then almost at once moved back when she accidentally touched him. "Oh, sorry" she blushed. He laughed and pulled her towards him saying "dont worry, my love. We should sleep. I have to go to hospital in the morning."

She sighed with relief and satisfaction as her hand went to his chest and she closed her eyes.

Next morning when she came downstairs he was reading his paper as usual. When he didnt leave the dining room, she felt relieved. They continued to eat breakfast quietly and then she said "Klaus there are two things I want to tell you."

When he looked towards her she said "first, I never asked Jackson or father to talk to you. And second, I know you are hurt but I expect better from you. You should be a role model for our daughter. Dont treat your father like that. He is old and he has made a mistake. Everyone has done that. It was not easy on anyone" her voice reduced to a whisper.

When he didnt answer she continued with a sigh "Hope will come today and we will go together to meet Amber. Do I need to know something else too except for her husband?"

"She has a son fifteen years old" he said without looking towards her.

"oh, what is his name?" she asked excitedly.

"why did you name her Hope?" he asked

Her heart sank as she remembered that night, her calling for him but he deserved to know, know what he had missed so she said "oh, I dont know….." her voice trailed off as the vivid image of her looking at a few minutes old Hope lying in that small cradle as she thought about Klaus and wished he was there with her, flashed right before her eyes.

When he continued to look towards her she said softly "it was not really a happy time for me too Klaus. I was depressed. I thought you cheated on me. I was having this child that we both dreamed about and you were not there. I thought you were going to be father to someone else's child, child of people who betrayed both of us. It was a depressing time for me. I had no family around me. The person I love…." she paused for a moment, looked down and continued "loved was not with me. Even before she was born, she was the only reason I could get out of bed every day. She was the only light I could see at that moment. I saw some hope in her and hence…" She smiled sadly and said "I did win the wager."

"James" as he recalled what Jackson had told him about the night Hope was born. After a moment of quiet "I guess with everything that happened between us, I should feel grateful to you that in that anger and resentment towards me you didn't let our daughter hate her father."

Her throat chocked up as a lump rose in it, to cover up for it, she took a big sip causing herself to burn. When she didnt say anything he picked up the paper and started to read it.

"Klaus…" he looked up.

"You asked me what sort of marriage Hope and Kaleb have the other day."

When he put the paper down without saying anything, she continued "she is very happy with him."

He continued to look towards her and then it dawned on him what she was saying and asked as he leaned forwards "do you mean...?" but was unable to finish the sentence for some reason.

When she nodded slowly, he felt like killing Kaleb for taking his daughter's innocence, the muscles in his jaw twitched which she must have noticed because she immediately said "I didn't tell you to upset you and there is nothing to be upset about. This was going to happen eventually. They are married. It is good that they have gotten over that part of their marriage. You should know better than …."

"Don't compare our situation to theirs. Ours was really marriage of convenience" he snapped.

She suddenly laughed and said "I think theirs started that way too Klaus. She wanted to come here and Jackson wanted Kaleb to get married or betrothed before he came here. And she is truly my daughter. Like me she proposed to Kaleb or should I say put the idea in his mind. I think part of me knew that it was a business deal between them but I thought that, perhaps like us, they will eventually fall in love because at the end of the day, they both really care about each other."

Klaus looked toward her but she was not looking at her as she picked up the bread and started to butter it. He got up and left leaving her miserable as she realized that she had touched a topic that he didnt want to talk about.

Later in the afternoon while in the study, he heard voices coming from the saloon. Recognizing one of them to be Hope's, he walked out of his study towards the room but stopped just outside it as he heard Hayley say "you should go. Kaleb must be waiting for you."

Hope looked at her mother, her heart breaking for her, the aftereffect of the meeting with her aunt showing on her mother's face. She asked softly "Are you alright? I dont want to leave you alone in this distraught state."

Hayley said soothingly "I am fine, my love. I have your father. I am not alone."

"Will you tell him what happened?" she asked "I mean about aunt Amber being so upset with you."

"Yes I will" Hayley said smiling at her daughter when her heart was breaking.

"You never really were a good liar." Hope said and he couldn't help but smile as he leaned against the wall and continued to listen to them.

"She is hurt my love, she will come around. We could never stay too angry at each other for long. You should go."

Klaus stepped back as he heard Hope say "good night and please don't think about it for too long. I know it is futile to tell you not to think at all."

Hayley laughed softly.

"Oh mama" Hope hugged her fiercely as tears fell down from her mother's eyes. His heart broke for her when he heard her say "I lost so much Hope. Lost everyone."

"No, you have not. You still have people who love you. I love you, Kaleb, grandpa, everyone in our family even papa. He is angry right now but he loves you just like you have loved him all these years despite the fact that you were angry with him."

Klaus couldn't bear to hear any more. His sixteen year old daughter was not a child as he had expected her to be. He went back to the study having an idea what must have happened at Amber's house as he recalled her bottled up anger from the past seventeen years ago.

Hayley went straight to her room after Hope left and had a good cry for half an hour and when she couldnt anymore, she washed her face and came downstairs with no traces of her ever crying so bitterly. She looked at him as he stepped out of the study and asked "oh, you are home early."

He looked at her constraint smile and said "I only go to court on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. If must be, then I go in other days."

Hayley nodded as she realized with sinking heart that he was home but didnt want to go with her. She said "have you had tea?"

He wondered if he should ask about Amber but then decided against it and shaking his head went back in the study.

She, with sinking heart went to the saloon where twenty minutes later, she was sipping tea while sending his to the study, thinking about horrible reunion with Amber- her anger and resentment making her drown into the sea of guilt and regret again. Her telling, in front of Hope, about Klaus's suffering all these years was not something she was expecting. Finding out how Klaus had been there for her sister and her parents till the last day of their lives, was another blow to her and making her feel that she will never be able to look into his eyes ever again. She recalled what she had told him in the morning about being a role model for Hope and realizing that she herself was not there for her parents and he could have thrown that at her face she felt even more guilty. She picked up a book from the side table and started to read it but five minutes into it and she got up angrily and left the room. She stood in the middle of the foyer and looked around and then for some reason went towards his study. The door was closed, she pushed it open without knocking and went inside. Without saying a word she went to sit on an empty chair and started to read the book feeling somewhat less lonely.

He looked at her reading the book, feeling annoyed at invading his privacy, calm and confusing his mind by her presence, clouding his judgement but didnt comment on it and only looked up when the footman informed them of dinner.

When he half-heartedly, told her about Kol, Davina and Camille going back to BedFord along with their kids, she just grunted.

For the next few days that was their routine. He left for courts in the morning and she stayed home, now starting to feel at home, familiarizing herself with the routine and the help, starting to contribute in the household against all opposition by the help. It came as a shock and a slight embarrassment to her that most of his help who had been with him for a long time knew about her. When she saw someone carrying his clothes to his room, she felt a pang, a loss at what once she was doing now was being done by some. She wondered if he will ever let her do it again. Will they be at a point in their relationship when they will get that intimacy in their relationship? Hope visited every morning and when he were not home, they both would go visit Amber, who was starting to warm up to her or sometimes visit Rebekah and Freya where Hope enjoyed more because of her cousins. And when Klaus was home they stayed home, spending time as family and she felt relieved that he would sit with them. She got to meet Andrew, his secretary on the days when he was home whom she immediately took a liking to. When he informed her that Lord Niklaus had made an arrangement for her expenses, she felt hopeful. In the afternoon, after coming back from courts and changing into something relaxing they would go to Freya and Rebekah's which she found out from Rebekah that it was their routine for the past seventeen years. In the beginning she felt brokenhearted when he didnt invite her to go with him or even tell her about his routine and felt glad that Rebekah had already told her about their tea gatherings but then she took an initiative and started to go with him and felt relieved that he didnt comment on it.

Klaus noticed the change in his life. His life was already going smooth but there were tiny touches that made the difference and reminded him of his bedroom in BedFord- those two months they had spend together. The quiet evenings had changed to somewhat quiet evenings during which she tried to talk to him and he knew it was discouraging her by giving her monologue replies but he realized that he was beyond that. To his dismay, those evenings even though not exactly like them but they had started reminding him of the time when they used to sit quietly in their room, enjoying each other's company in BedFord, the memories he was trying to forget. He wanted her to stop showing interest in his affairs, making sure he was getting his tea if he had not asked for it, stop trying to communicate with him but when even with hint of showing his disdain she continued to do so, there was nothing he could do. Getting frustrated and angry at her for trying to break the wall he was trying to build around him, he started to avoid her but there was so much he could do as he realized that she had gotten a knack of invading his privacy. The only place she had not dared to go was his room so he started to spend more time in it, started to retire early but one day when he was taking off his coat from the hanger he noticed a long hair on it and he knew that she had been here too. He rang the bell for the footman. When he entered, he asked angrily "who was handling my clothes?"

The footman said a bit scared of his anger "lady Mikaelson did it herself, my lord."

Feeling annoyed he said "you can go."

Later that evening when he said to her "don't do my personal stuff Hayley" he regretted the moment the words were out as she stared at him with widened eyes and then quietly got up and went upstairs and that night he ate dinner alone regretting him telling her that.

7th September, 1819:

Saturday:

A week later she came down and saw him reading from a paper with a smile on his lips. He looked up smiling when she asked "what is it?"

The smile wavered a bit but then he said "Patience and Arnold, they are getting married in October. 1st October. Good, Hope can meet father during that visit."

"Oh that is a wonderful news" She said as she rang the bell for the footman to bring the breakfast.

When she looked back towards him, he said "one of my colleague has invited us on a ball tonight."

"what time?" she asked as she sat down fearing her legs wouldnt be able to hold her any longer in his presence; they were talking, he was talking to her, she felt delirious with hope.

"nine."

She nodded not knowing what to say and then just to continue the conversation she asked "is he married? I should know the name of his wife at least."

"Lady Penny Stanton."

She looked up and asked in shock "Benjamin Stanton?"

He said "yes" as she started to write down something on the paper.

"oh."

He looked up and caught her lost in thoughts.

Klaus spend the morning with Hope in their usual place near the lake. Listening to her, looking at him with that open smile as she talked and interrupted his painting and then finally taking the brush from his hand and taking over, he kept replaying in his mind about what she has said to him about not being a failure, and his relationship with his daughter, his father's disappointment and her own heartbreak were proof of that and wondered if she was right. His mind went to the ball in frustration having an idea why Stanton had invited him; besides being his poker buddy, he was the judge presiding over their divorce case and he suspected that the judge wanted to see if they were making any progress. When he reached home, she was nowhere in sight making her feeling relieved. He spend the afternoon in his study with Andrew getting over some of his pending paper work and cases.

In the evening when she entered the ball room with her hand on Klaus's hand which to her surprise he had offered, her eyes widened at the lavishness that greeted her gaze. She had an idea that this appearance was for the sake of the judge but even that couldn't damper her mode and hope. Her mind kept wandering, like it had been since morning, that if he knew the judge then is it possible that he had asked the judge to refuse their marriage but then why is he behaving that way. Is it simply to punish her? But he has clearly told her that he does not want to reconcile. What is going on? She thought in frustration but kept the smile on her lips. To her dismay, he excused himself almost immediately after introducing her to the host and went to mingle with the guest. She felt too lonely after a while as she looked around at the gathering of happy merry men and women, laughing and dancing. When someone asked her if she wanted to dance, she refused politely saying that she dose not dance. Ten minutes late when she saw him talking and smiling with a beautiful woman dressed in the most gorgeous red dress she had ever seen, her heart sank and her hope that he might be behind the judge's order faded. As she watched the woman put her hand on his shoulder and she looked away.

Klaus laughed and said "yes, we should do that. I will let you know about my schedule and then we can go watch it."

"Excuse me, my lord" a voice called him. He turned towards Benjamin Stanton and said "my lady, I beg of your leave" bowed slightly and walked with him to the card rooms.

The ride back home was really quiet. She tried not to think about that woman and her hand on his shoulder but it was not working so she started to repeat in her mind, reminding her of the biggest mistake she had already made. She will not make it again, she told herself. He will never cheat on you. Hasn't experience taught you that? She asked herself.

Klaus was having difficulty keeping his eyes off of her dressed in a satin royal blue dress with discreet pearl jewelry, her hair beautifully styled in a bun but he kept looking out anywhere but her, like he had been doing in the ball too. The moment they reached home, he went to his room and fell on the bed after changing his clothes cursing his heart which was getting weaker with each passing day. He told himself just seventy six more days! And his heart sank for some reason.

During the next few weeks, she noticed that even though he had started to respond to her more than just monologues but not more than necessary and was as closed up as ever and Hayley's panic was rising. One month had gone by since the judge's order and they were nowhere near to any reconciliation. They were two strangers living in the same house. Jackson Hope and Kaleb were regular visitors. She managed to hide her unhappy state of mind, the dejected feeling, the sense of hopelessness with each passing day, from Hope but not from Jackson who, like he had been for the past seventeen years was again there for her, encouraging her, reassuring her again and again that he was fine when she asked crying if she had broken his heart too but her distraught was increasing at the lack of progress they were making so much so that the wedding slipped her mind only to be reminded by Hope when she came to visit her two days before it. She realized that she hardly had time to buy a dress for the wedding but later that day before Rebekah left for BedFord with her family and Freya's she came to her house, on her niece informing her of the situation and with her help, she ended up getting a tea pink dress with white laces falling over the edge of the full sleeves, lace trimmings as an apron over light pink inlay, the edging embroidery with green and while flowers.

Later that night at dinner, when he told her that they were to leave for BedFord next day, she suddenly lost it, a wave of furry started from the pit of her stomach and shot through her whole body, her restraints broke, the tension she had been feeling made her go blind with anger and she stood up and said angrily "you have changed!"

"How so? he asked coldly

She said "you were never this cold Klaus. I know I have made a mistake, a huge mistake, but I am trying to make up for it. But you are not giving me a chance. I know you are hurt and I understand that but you waited for me for seventeen years and now suddenly you want to give up? What do you want? My begging for forgiveness. I can do that but what will that achieve? Will it bring back those seventeen years? Or will you start trusting me again. It was not all my fault you know. If you had told me about that kiss the first thing in the morning before leaving the house, I wouldn't have reacted that way. I didn't trust you but you didn't either. How do I know if you really were going to tell me or not? You chose not to tell me and went off to do whatever else was necessary when you should have known how important it would be for me if I knew about it. How important it would be for my to hear from my husband's mouth that he didnt cheat on me. Why?" her voice broke and the tears fell from her eyes.

She paused for a moment and then continued "I know you are punishing me Klaus for what I have made you feel but you are wrong. You are not a failure but if you really think that you can be happy with someone else then … then I…" she was unable to finish her sentence as her heart sank at the possibility of seeing him in someone else's arms and dashed out of the room without waiting for a reply or see his reaction and he just sat there feeling angry, regretful and resentful at what she had said.

That night both of them didnt sleep so when they woke up they were both tired and sensed that tiredness oozing out of the other's body when they met at the breakfast. Hayley felt relieved that they had to travel in the afternoon and in Kaleb, Hope and Jackson's presence he will act normal with her, as normal as he could.

Klaus could feel the tension oozing out of her and meeting Jackson's gaze, he knew he knew something was wrong between them too. Having Kaleb, Hope and Jackson provided the buffer that he realized he needed to pass this five hours of train ride to BedFord but his mind was buzzing with what she had said last night. Her sentences kept on replaying in his mind and confusing him, making him regret some steps he could have taken but for some reason had not.

When the carriage stopped outside the manor and she got out she felt very nostalgic, the place she loved so much, she was back there. The footman took their bags in. The manor looked so different with so many people walking around, she assumed getting the manor ready for the ceremony tomorrow. The reunion with Mikael was short but too overwhelming as he welcomed her into the family which she was not expecting. In a few minutes, she noticed that the nature of relationship between Mikael and Klaus had somehow changed, became friendlier which was not the case seventeen years go. Seeing him interacting with the younger generation in relatively calmer tone also was a welcome sight. Something changed him, she realized but what? she kept on wondering. The way he met Hope was too overwhelming for her. Seeing Ansel with Mikael told her that they had managed to break the wall between them. She noticed Ansel looking towards Klaus but he left the room without another word.

After a very noisy dinner while everyone else retreated to the family room, Hayley excused herself as she was feeling very tired and decided to retire hoping someone will settle Hope and Kaleb down as she looked at her daughter who was acting as if she has been living in this house from the beginning. She walked to Ansel before leaving and whispered "will you make sure Jackson is comfortable?"

He said "yes, my child" with a smile as his hand touched her cheek not knowing a pair of blue eyes were looking at him with a pang.

Climbing the staircase, looking at the paintings done by him, passing through the corridors, grazing her fingers grazed the walls, memories kept flooding through her mind and sometimes tears fell while sometimes smile appeared. The room was same as seventeen years ago yet different. Some new fixtures, oil lamps, white and gold bedspread with matching curtains showed slight differences. Feeling nostalgic she looked around for a moment, touched everything to familiarize herself again and then went to the bathroom to freshen herself taking in the upgrade in there too.

When he entered his room when the clock struck nine, he saw her bags on the floor and her standing near the fireplace, looking at a painting hanging over the fireplace he had done two years ago. She turned towards him and said "I didn't know what were our sleeping arrangement going to be? If you want I can move in the next room."

She pointed towards the adjoining door.

Klaus shook his head saying "no need to make a big deal out of it. I will sleep on the floor. It is just for two nights. Besides Davina has put Hope and Kaleb in that room."

"Oh" she said but felt like crying at his detached attitude. She went to change her clothes in the semi-familiar changing room. New gadgets have been installed, she noticed as she started to hang her clothes in the closet. After splashing water on her face she put on her shift and robe and came back to the room and saw him lying on the carpet with eye closed. She went to sit on her side of the bed, sat there and then slowly opened the drawer and the first thing she saw was Romeo and Juliet. She picked it up, the paper had gone stiff. Her things were in the same condition as she had left them, she realized. Her gaze again went to him lying near the fireplace. She felt the first tear graze her cheek and then she took of her robe, put it at the foot of the bed and laid under the duvet. Stifling her sobs, she buried her face in the blanket and closed her eyes.

Klaus opened his eyes and looked toward her as he heard the sound of cries and then he continued to stare at the ceiling as the sound subsided and he knew she was sleep. He got up slowly, went to her and saw her clutching Romeo and Juliet and his heart shattered. He fixed her blanket and with heavy heart went out of the room.

Hope dismissed the young girl who was there to help her settle down and wen tot the changing room to put her and Kaleb's belonging at appropriate places. Ten minutes later she walked out and looked around at the elegant room again, drenched in white and green and twirled. Kaleb pulled Hope close to her as she said "oh, this is so wonderful. This place. I don't know how mama could leave it all behind her. This is exactly like what she had told us Kaleb."

He kissed her softly on her lips and said "she was hurt. If you are hurt, would any materialistic thing stop you?"

She shook her head as she kissed him back, now very comfortable with expressing her feelings to him. She whispered "help me get out of this" as she touched her dresses.

He shook his head, smiling at what she was implying but his fingers went behind her dress and starting pulling the strings, leaned in and whispered against her ear "we have to wait till we get back home."

"why?" she asked not realizing her voice had an edge of annoyance.

He leaned back and while looking into her eyes, touched her cheek and she said "oh" as realization dawn on her causing. His fingers continued to take off her dress and soon it was pooling at her feet. He turned her around started unstringing her corset. When he was done and she took a deep breath, he whispered "I will be back after changing."

"you will pay for this" she muttered teasingly, amazed at how she was so comfortable with him on such a topic and he laughed softly. "I cannot wait for to be paid but we have to wait, my love" and went to change while she sighed but with a smile went to lie on the bed.

Next morning when she woke up, he was not in the room. The door opened and Lily entered the room. Hayley eyes widened and brimmed with tears as her gaze went to the woman who devoted each minute of her time during her two months stay in the manor. Her mind registered her getting aged too like the rest of them but she just smiled at her saying "my lady, good morning. Do you wish to have breakfast in bed?"

She felt too overwhelmed to say anything but with effort she said "good morning Lily. How are you?"

Lily smiled as she picked up her robe and handed it to her "how would I be, my lady? The same. I must express my joy at seeing you again."

Her vision got blurry and she looked away "yes, I will have breakfast in the room."

After the breakfast, she took a relaxing bath in the tub while Lily remained there even though she told her to leave, wondering where Klaus was and will he continue to treat her like that in front of his family, what will they think. She changed her clothes, a causal blue dress, and left the room feeling like a stranger but felt grateful when Rebekah caught her up at the head of stairs and asked her to join them in Patience room as they got the girl ready for the ceremony to be held in a couple of hours. She noticed the manor bursting with servants hurrying from one place to another. As she entered the room, she noticed Hope already there.

Hope looked towards her mother as she entered, dashed to her and hugged her saying "oh, mama this is wonderful. Come look Patience's dress. It is beautiful. Isn't it?" making her regret at what she had unwittingly taken from her daughter.

She walked towards Patience, still not ready and walked around her to look at her dress admiring it, listening to Davina telling her about the wedding night and what was to be expected of her and Hayley was taken back to the time when she had the similar discussion with Hope before her marriage. Her gaze met Hope and they smiled at each other. She startled when the door opened and Camille entered. Her inside went cold seeing her there. Camille smiled at her and walked to Patience and said "oh, my dear, you look so beautiful."

Davina asked "have you asked him?"

She turned to Davina and said "Mikael had asked Ansel to stand for Elijah and Klaus agreed to it."

"Oh. That is great too" she turned to Hayley as she fixed Patiences gown "Camille and I were thinking if Klaus would stand for Elijah considering he had been there for the boy since he was born but this is good too."

When Camille asked "Hayley what are you wearing?" she didnt feel like answering to her but said "are you asking about color?"

"yes" she laughed but Hayley could sense the nervousness in her tone. "I cannot believe that Arnold is getting married. Wasn't he just born?"

Davina laughed "feels like it" as she touched Patience's cheek. "Your father would have been really proud of you."

"He is" she replied softly. And Hayley knew Patience knew about Josh.

Davina nodded and then gulping she stepped back handing pins to Hayley to take over.

Before she knew it couple of hours went by during which they were served breakfast and tea in Patience room.

Near eleven she decided to go change when Hope said "mama can you help me with my gown?" she nodded and followed her.

After helping Hope in her dark pink and dull gold gorgeous dress and leaving Lily to do her hair, she went to her room. She stood near her bed looking down at the dress which suddenly started to look very formal for the occasion, her mind constantly on Klaus where he was; she had not seen him since last night. With a sigh and cursing Rebekah for persuading her to buy this dress, she started to get dressed, only to be startled when Lily came to help her.

When Kaleb entered the room around noon to get ready for the ceremony, his heart skipped a beat as his gaze went to Hope. He slowly closed the door while his eyes remained fixed on her, his back resting against the door, the stomach muscles tightening, his control slipping.

Hope smiled and swayed as she realized the affect she was having on him. When he started walking towards her, she said "oh no, You will have to wait, dear sir. One more day."

He laughed and felt relieved as the knot in his stomach loosened. She walked past him whispering "your torture starts from today" gave him her most mischievous smile and continued towards the door. Stopped at it and said "we are to leave in an hour. I am going to check on Patience."

"Oh God Hope" he muttered as the door closed and he decided to take a quick bath to calm his desires for at least one more day.

Klaus walked in the manor dejectedly, feeling burdened by his feelings. As he reflected on his morning, he realized that he had failed; even the distraction of Kol, Alexander, George, Kaleb and Arnold had not successfully been able to make him stop thinking about her, about what she had said to him in London. So many memories had came flooding to him, after being here after six months and with her under the same roof. When he entered his room, the room was empty and he felt relieved. Feeling tired, mentally and physically, he went to take a bath. Seeing her clothes and feminine touches in the changing room and the main room, made the pit in his stomach bigger and regret at what they had lost deepen. He put on the brown and beige suit James had laid for him and left the room hoping that Arnold and Patience dont see any mishaps in their marriage, hoping once again that Elijah was here to see his son getting married.

Around two in the afternoon, he was looking towards Patience and Arnold saying their vows and then Arnold picked up her hand and slipped the ring into her finger as he said his vows. From the corner of his eyes, he caught a movement and his attention went to her hand clasped over one another and he noticed her rubbing her ringless finger. He stared at her ringless finger 'it took her ten year to take off that ring' 'I took off the ring when you cheated on me' Who was telling the truth? A part of him knew the answer but he refused to believe it and shook his head and then out of blue he wanted to stop all this. The desire to have the life they once had woke up in him very strongly. The promises they had once made to each other, he felt like fulfilling them again. His gaze went to Ansel standing next to Arnold, to Hope and Kaleb sitting next to each other. As he watched them, they looked at each other and smiled as if sharing something secret only know to just two of them and a smile appeared on his own lips. Life was perfect so why was he trying to make it miserable? Does he really believe that he can find someone whom he can be as happy with as he once had been with Hayley? They still can have the future they once had. With a small sigh, aching heart, he moved his hand and covered her hands with his but kept his eyes on the couple as they continued saying their vows after the vicar.

Hayley felt a lump in her throat as she felt the once too familiar feeling on her hand and gulped to stop the tears from falling. She didnt dare look at him but the gentle pressure and possessive hold on her hand was enough to show her some hope for the future.

Two hours later, in the Mikaelson manor's great hall:

Klaus was looking at Arnold and Patience dancing when he heard her say "papa."

He turned towards her with a smile but before he could say anything she asked "will you dance with me?"

His gaze automatically went to Hayley standing at the far end of the room where he knew she had been standing for the past fifteen minutes and nodded with a smile.

When Kol let go of her hand and said "now, I will go find my wife. She has been crying since the ceremony which is really ridiculous. Patience will be living in the same house" kissed her cheek and bowed, she smiled "well mothers are allowed to. It is never the same even if they live in the same house. I pray that they are always happy with each other. Arnold seemed to really care about her."

He said smiling at her "yes, I wish for them to have a marriage that I once admired very much which also motivated me to go after someone with whom I could have that type of relationship."

She didn't need to know who he was talking about as he recalled his feelings towards her and Klaus's wedding.

When she just smiled sadly, he stepped back and left.

Her attention shifted to Hope and Kaleb dancing, never ever seeing them dancing before and a smile appeared on her lips. She startled when she heard him say "I thought all your dances were mine."

"They are but occasionally I try not to break heart of someone I love dearly" she said, her heart racing as she handed him her hand thinking about how her heart has skipped a beat when a few moments ago she had seen him dancing with their daughter.

He continued to look into her misty eyes and then at her hand.

As she, with heavy heat, started to retreat it seeing his reluctance, he gently held it and she almost cried with relief and stepped towards him at feeling a slight tug at her hand which only she could feel.

Hope whispered "oh Kaleb they are dancing."

Kaleb slightly turned towards the direction she was looking and smiled and said "yes. Are you happy now?"

"Oh, yes" she whispered excitedly, looked up at his face and flushed at the look he was giving her, the look she has come to realize so well in the past one month. He smiled and said "Patience and Arnold look happy."

"Yes they do. Don't they?"

She felt perfect fit in his arms, satisfied at last, afraid at the same time, lost all courage to look into his eyes, feeling guilty at what she had one, what she had made all her family through. When he whispered "lets go outside" as he squeezed her hand, she finally looked towards him and said in the matching tone "someone will miss us."

"No one will miss us." he assured her. "And even if they do, I am sure they will be happy."

He led her out of the hall without a backward glance and ten minutes later, they were in the garden under their favorite tree, the sun starting to go down making the hills look beautiful. He turned towards her and said "you win Hayley. As always. You managed to break my restraints."

She didnt trust herself to say anything afraid of jinxing the moment, his decision so she kept quiet. He continued "I want to start over but before that I want to ask you one thing."

Her heart sank at the prospect of what he was going to ask. He asked "when did you finally believe that I hadnt cheated on you?"

A sigh escaped her mouth not expecting him to ask this. She said "the first time when you came to the house, I started to have doubts but when you came to tell me that you have agreed to the divorce, I became sure. I think even before that I was getting sure but I was afraid that if I said it out-loud, I would realize what a mistake I have made. Oh Klaus what did I do?"

He said gently "nothing that cannot be fixed Hayley but it is a relief to know that you started to trust me because of me before Camille told you."

"You know?" she gasped.

"yes, Rebekah told me" he said.

"Yes, I am glad that I trusted you before she told me the truth. I was so scared when you showed your lack of interest in reconciling in front of the judge. I was so happy when the judge refused to give us the divorce. That night I promised myself that I will destroy this wall you had started to build around you, piece by piece, dismantle it brick by brick, stone by stone"

He looked at her face and then a smile started to appear on his lips, the smile that she loved too much, took her hand to his lips and said "hmm, that is really romantic, my love. Where have I heard it before?"

Her breathing hitched at being called that after such a long time, the emotions behind those words reflecting on his face and

"must you always…" but was unable to finish her sentence as she started to cry.

Klaus arm went around her as he pulled her into a fierce embrace and whispered "must you always give me a chance, my lady."

She whispered in-between her sobs "Oh Klaus. I missed you so much. What will happen now?"

He said "you have no idea how much have I missed you and we will make up for the loss time, my love. We will. I promise you."

As soon as the corset was off her body, she took a deep breath as her body could breath, her chest free at last from that tight embrace. She took off her shift and put on her while lace, thin strapped satin nightie. She was running her hand on her stomach to relieve the tightness she had been enduring for the past four hours as she had unintentionally tied the corset too tight today, when suddenly an arm went around her chest and a hard body touched her back. She smiled as she felt the hardness against her body and then his hand sneaked in her nightie and fingers inched to her breast and cupped it causing her to arch her back against him as a moan escaped her lips. His other hand removed her hair that she had let loose just before changing her clothes, revealing her neck and his lips moved on it sucking at her weak point and then got wrapped around her torso pulling her towards him. He softly whispered in her ear as his teeth bit her earlobe "oh my love, Will you give yourself to me?"

She smiled "I am yours, always, my love."

He gently squeeze her breast causing her to moan loudly as he pushed himself in her.

"Oh, please" she tried to turn towards him but he kept her in the position for a few more seconds pressing his body against her, kissing her neck, squeezing her breast, making her squirm and moan and then he scooped her up, carried her to the bed and laid her down. Looking at her, he started to take off this shirt and then his trouser. She laid there with her arms on either side of her pillow, feeling satisfied at seeing the appreciation of her body in his eyes as she herself appreciated his body. He laid next to her and pulled the sheet over them and then slid her strap from her shoulder until her breast popped out. He continued to look towards her and then leaned in and his lips covered her nipple and she screamed softly and pulled at his hair as his tongue sucked at it, massaged it. His hand moved from her thigh to her core lifting her nightdress. He looked up into her dark eyes and then did the same treatment to the other nipple as her fingers dug into his hair and she moaned and relaxed at the pleasure he was giving her. He gathered her shift on her stomach and started to position himself when she said "no."

He looked up at her in surprise but she pushed him back on the bed and straddled on him causing him to chuckle, her nightdress bunched up at her hips revealing her shapely thighs. Smiling, she took off her nightdress enjoying as his gaze travelled on her body and how they got all hazy and dark with desire. She bend her head and moved on his body, planting small kisses on his chest, her finger tracing his taunt muscles, once again so familiar yet the pang of the loss was still there. So much lost time. She kissed his stomach at the slightly raised skin, the remnants of that horrible night and put her cheek on it trying not to cry.

He felt something weird and grabbed her arms and made her look up at him, noticed the tears in her eyes and pulled her towards him, kissed her hard and rolled them over. Keeping his eyes on her misty eyes and the sad smile, he slipped into her and started thrusting in her. Her eyes fluttered and she said "oh Klaus, I love you so much."

He continued to thrust in her and kissing her face.

He muttered "I love you too Hayley" as he felt his release just after she had her orgasm.

He didnt want to get up from her, didnt want to lose that touch, the touch that was the only thing that sometimes made him sure that it was not a dream, so instead of getting off of her, he just slid half way off of her as his legs continued to wrap around her legs. He whispered "tell me if I am too heavy" as he buried his face into the nook of her shoulder and neck after fixing the sheet over them.

She shook her head, his body weight so welcoming to her. More than a month has passed since Patience's wedding, since the night they had first time rekindled their romance after seventeen years and still it seemed liked a dream to her. Every time she would close her eyes, she was scared that it will all turn out to be a dream. The only confirmation of that it was not a dream, was his body touching hers, making it look real, that healed wound which her fingers were tracing even now. She said "Klaus" as she felt soft warm breathing against her neck.

He said "hmm" without opening his eyes. She grabbed his hand which was causally resting on her breast, brought it to her lips and kissed the finger tips making him open his eyes and look up at her. Hayley keeping her eyes on him, took his hand to her stomach and put it there.

He felt a slight pressure on his hand, the palm of his hand pressing into her stomach.

Confusion turned into realization as she watched, his mouth slightly opened and he lifted himself on his elbow, throwing the sheet aside causing her to smile broadly. His gaze flickered from her stomach to her face and seeing the smile on her face made his heart race and confirmed his suspicion. He leaned in and kissed her lips passionately taking her breath away and then he bend his head down to her stomach and kissed it - a very soft and gentle kiss- sending waves of pleasure through her body. He looked up, met her eyes, wide with surprise and he said "oh Lord! Hayley, are you jesting with me?"

"of course not" she laughed and then gasped as his lips went to her lips again and after quickly planting another kiss on her lips, he moved them back to her stomach and was kissing it again and again saying "oh I am so happy. This time I will be there Hayley. I will be there" her guilt intensified but he just stayed there, his cheek rest on her bare stomach and that is how they went to sleep.

Nine months later:

"Kaleb, I want to have baby" she said moving her finger ideally on his bare chest as his fingers caressed her bare shoulder.

"I know but I want us to wait. You are still too young. When we go back to America"

She huffed but he said laughing "we will Hope. I promise we will but not right now. You just had a baby brother. Live your dream through him" ending with tease as she groaned and he kissed her hair and closed his eyes with a smile on his lips.

She shifted on the bed trying to find a comfortable spot as pain shot through her body and said "father would have been so happy to see him."

He looked up at her tired face and said as the pain of the loss hit him really hard "yes he would have been. I wish I had more time with him. But I am glad that we got to spend final few months of his life even if it was just seven months with each other and it is all because of Hope. She really proved to be a hope in our lives. I dont think we would have met if it were not for her. I doubt you would have ever come back to England"

When she didnt say anything he said smiling "all in the past Hayley. I didnt mean to upset you. We have our whole lives ahead of us and I wanted to tell you something. Something I have been thinking for a while but yesterday I made a decision but then you decided to get busy with this" he smiled looking down at his son.

"What?" she asked smiling tiredly as she leaned into the mountain of pillows Rebekah had set behind her before she had left. Klaus walked to her and sat next to her.

He looked at his son and said "we should move to America when Hope, Kaleb and Jackson go back."

When she didnt say anything he looked towards her and saw her looking at him with open mouth.

Hayley couldnt believe what he was saying. She said "Klaus your life is here."

"Our daughter is in America. I will not miss her life."

"Oh Klaus, … but your siblings."

"I love them and will continue to visit them but where my daughter lives, I will live there. I have already lost my father, both of them. I am not going to lose her and I am most certainly not willing to see her once a year."

"Klaus this is life changing. Are you sure you want that?"

Sensing a suppressed happiness in her tone, he asked "tell me, my love, did you want that?"

"I did" she confessed.

"why didnt you say so?"

"How could I ask you to uproot your life for…" She said feeling flustered

"for our daughter!" he commented in confusion unable to understand that she was not understanding how could he make this decision.

She looked at his overwhelming face feeling too overwhelmed to say anything.

"There is nothing I wouldn't do for you, Hope, Kaleb and Ansel" he continued and then looked down at his few hours old son sleeping in his arms and gently caressed his cheek causing him to startle bringing a smile on his own lips. He leaned in and kissed Hayley on her lips saying "I love you Hayley."

"I love you too Klaus" she said, her eyes drooping as a full day of effort of bringing their son started to take toll on her. "It was long but finally we are where we dreamt to go."

"What, my love?"

"Our journey to fulfilling our dreams" she murmured and her eyes closed.

He smiled, touched her cheek, put the baby in the cradle and went to change his clothes too.

When he came back, he stood near the bed looking at her sleeping peacefully. He fixed her duvet admiring her strength while bringing their child into this world and then seeing her lying almost in the middle of the bed, buried in pillows and duvet, he went to sit on the sofa chair in the room and put his feet on he footrest. Looking at her, smiling, he closed his eyes thinking of the past nine months; their first time together on the night of Patience and Arnold's wedding, their open declaration of love to each other for the first time, Mikael unexpected death on the second day of the wedding, him feeling heartbroken and having strong feeling that as if if he was waiting to be reunited with his brother and properly welcoming Hayley back into the family, Ansel taking over as head of Mikaelson family but deciding to move to London to be near his son, him managing to cultivate relationship with his father which to his dismay only last for seven month because of his unexpected death at catching severe pneumonia, seeing Camille finally settling down with Marcus was a relief too not only for himself but for everyone who were shocked to find out that she had been in love with the man for sixteen years, Jackson somehow ending up becoming his very close friend, Kaleb managing to occupy a big part of his heart after Hope and Hayley. Hope! He smiled even thinking about her. She was the true light in their lives, brought so much hope to them.

The End.

Another story has ended. I hope you liked this chapter and the ending. Yes there were two time jump but really there was nothing I could show in those time jumps that your wonderful mind cannot imagine for themselves. Also as for their reconciliation, there was really nothing extraordinary Hayley could do to make him change his mind, other than rekindle what they once had which he was willing to give away. I wanted to keep it simple and not too dramatic and I think I managed that. :) For me personally the part where he held her hand during the ceremony was fav part and then he "asked" her to dance. Writing about Hope and Kaleb was my second fav part, in fact more than Klayley lol.

On another note: This is my last fan fiction as of now. Maybe inspiration will strike again lol, am not sure of it though. I do have an idea but right now I am not too motivated. Thank you all my reader for reading all my stories and following it and encouraging me by leaving such wonderful comments. Writing for Klayely was an adventurous time period of my life and believe me that was my first writing attempt. I mean my first writing attempt was "the second chapter of the originals" (english not being my first language) and I am glad that I continued. I have learned so much during this time about writing, stories, how to put ideas on the paper… well in this case screen and for that your reviews helped a lot. Now I am nostalgic leaving this world. Maybe it will be temporary. Maybe permanent but even if I come back, it will be at most for one story. I hope I will get to read some wonderful stories by some of you in future and those who are writing will continue to do so. Thank you once again.