I apologize for the long wait, but I thank you for the support and messages. I'm happy that you enjoyed the last chapter with Bamon finally giving into the attraction between them. However, what does happen now? We shall see.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

The week went by in a blur. Bonnie was busy working the account for Tyler's brokerage firm (they both came through on their networking) and she was thrown into meeting after meeting establishing the public relations relationship between the two companies. Tyler was away on a business trip and she was grateful. Having to deal with a flirting Tyler in the midst of her entanglement with Marcel and Damon was exactly what she didn't need.

She and Damon had spoken over the phone a few times and through text. It was weird. They spoke about everything, work, the changes that would be taking place at Revel, Sandy and everything but what happened the previous Saturday.

Tonight would be the first time they laid eyes on each other since that day at Damon's place. Stefan and Damon were hosting a private party at Revel to have one last night of booze and music before they shuttered for a few weeks. Marcel would be arriving the next afternoon and she hadn't really planned anything as of yet, but she would find some way to entertain him.

She liked Marcel. He was really nice and was definitely a good guy and sometimes that was all a girl needed. He didn't live in Mystic Falls, so it was easy to be whatever she was with him. Much easier than being a friend to Damon at this very moment.

"Bonnie, I hear the Salvatore account is coming along," Jonah entered Bonnie's cubicle, leaning against her desk.

Beaming Bonnie answered him, "I'm excited about the rebranding; from what I hear—the campaign that we started earlier this week is doing very well. People are definitely anticipating the reopening," Bonnie gushed. It was her first big project and she was proud of what she'd done.

Jonah grinned down at her like a proud father, "So I hear. I knew that you were one of our best ever since you came on as an intern. You keep this up Bonnie and you will be on the fast track to becoming one our top associates."

"Thank you Jonah, that's what I'm going for," Bonnie smiled.

Jonah nodded before giving Bonnie another smile and leaving her cubicle. Bonnie pumped her fist in the air, "Yesss," she whispered turning back to her computer.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

Stefan carried in a case of champagne while Damon stood at the bar typing away on his laptop, "I can't believe that I've signed away so much of our money today," he shook his head in disbelief.

"You sound like our father when you say things like that," Stefan mused plopping down the case of champagne.

"Giuseppe was a few things, but he knew how to make money and keep it. I'm just trying to keep it," Damon continued looking over the numbers on the screen, "but I believe, with the renovations and the rebranding annnddd the new place, we will be good for awhile."

Stefan shook his head. His brother was never satisfied and content with having the most popular bar/lounge in town—he always believed the bottom would fall out, "So is Bonnie coming tonight? She never quite gave me an answer."

Damon didn't take his eyes off the laptop, "She's been really busy this week with a new account, but I believe she is."

"But we can't do tonight without her. I've heard people talking about the campaign that her agency started this week."

Damon glanced up, "Well…hopefully she comes."

Stefan looked at Damon for a few moments sizing his brother's demeanor up. There was something unsaid going on that he couldn't place, "What happened?"

"What are you talking about?" Damon asked not looking up from the laptop screen.

"The way you wouldn't look at me when I asked about Bonnie."

Damon stared at his brother widening his eyes, "I'm looking at you right now, what do you want me to say about Bonnie?"

"I want to know what happened, did you make her mad or something?"

Sighing, Damon matched his brother's gaze, "Stefan, Bonnie will be here tonight."

Raising and eyebrow, Stefan prodded further, "Did something happen after the gala?"

"No, nothing happened after the gala. I gave her a kiss on the cheek and that was it."

Stefan eyed his brother suspiciously. Damon was keeping something from him and he was going to find out, "Is that all that happened?"

Damon was silent.

"Damon, what happened between you and Bonnie?" Stefan questioned.

Damon ignored him until the top of the laptop came slamming down on his hands, "What in the hell did you do?" Stefan asked.

Damon took a deep breath, "The day after the gala, I didn't show up to the coffee shop."

"Oook why? I know that is something you two do, so why didn't you show up?"

"Because like I said, I kissed her on the cheek after the gala but before that…she kissed me and instead of pushing things further, I kissed her on the cheek and said goodnight."

Stefan shook his head, "So that's why you didn't go to the coffee shop. That means that you two are feuding because…"

"Well she was mad that I didn't come to the coffee shop and she showed up at my house to let me know just how angry she was."

"Ok and let me guess, you turned into 'Asshole Damon' and now she's even more pissed at you," Stefan snapped, "you know Damon, Bonnie is helping us and we can't afford for you to…"

"That's not what happened!" Damon interrupted. For once, he wished his little brother didn't feel the need to lecture him, "it's the opposite of what happened."

"Ok…so what happened?" Stefan asked.

"There were some words, I told her how much our friendship means to me and how she's a good person and things went a little far," Damon's eyes shifted.

"Went a little far how?" Stefan pressed.

Damon shrugged causing Stefan's mouth to drop grabbing his brother's arm and making Damon meet his eyes, "You didn't…"

"It's not what you think, Bonnie…she was…ok, I did and I don't regret it and neither does she."

Stefan shook his head in disbelief. He had a suspicion about his brother and his best friend, but they were so adamant about being platonic that he almost believed that they would keep it up. This unsettled him and he didn't particularly like it, not for Damon and not for Bonnie, "So what are you? Dating now?"

"No."

Bugging out his eyes Stefan stood there staring back at his brother, "Sooo you're still friends."

"With an asterisk."

"Of course," Stefan sarcastically replied.

"She doesn't want a relationship, I'm not ready for one. We both agreed that it was something that we needed to get out of our system and now we're good."

"Soo it was a one-time thing?"

"Yup."

Stefan nodded, "I see. So when this guy in Detroit somehow convinces Bonnie to be his girlfriend, how will you feel about that?"

Damon glanced over at Stefan, "Stefan, I want whatever makes Bonnie happy and if that's a relationship with that nice dude from Detroit—so be it."

"I think you're lying to yourself, but whatever makes you happy Brother. But don't fuck up our relationship with Bonnie," Stefan warned him.

"Thanks for the faith in me. But like I said, we had a talk and it was a one-time thing," Damon declared.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

Bonnie slid into the dark purple mini-skirt that she chose to wear to the Revel Going on Vacation party. She paired it with a black bandeau and slipped on some spiky heels to finish off the look. After pulling her hair in a slick ponytail, she took a look in the mirror. At first, she was going to wear some skin tight pants and the black bandeau, but a part of her wanted to show off her legs and maybe mess with Damon just a little. She chuckled to herself. Sure, they agreed to keep things platonic between them after the hiccup, but she could afford to have a little fun. Besides, Marcel was due to arrive the next day and she needed to spend her time with him.

"After the party, I have to go to the hospital. I'm on call until 2 tomorrow," Elena entered Bonnie's room brushing her hair.

Bonnie nodded. She hadn't said anything to Elena about what happened with Damon. Her mind hadn't worked out exactly what happened or what it meant, so telling anyone else other than Bianca just didn't feel right.

"Ok, I can get a ride home from the lounge," Bonnie put her lipstick on.

Elena stared back at her with a goofy smile, "Well, you look very nice."

"It is a party and it's a closed party, so I want to have some fun."

Elena nodding, put her hair up into a messy bun, "Marcel comes tomorrow right?"

"He does," Bonnie slipped on a black blazer.

"So is he staying here?"

Bonnie shook her head, "A hotel room. I offered our spare room, but he said he would get a hotel room."

"I could have stayed at Matt's for a couple of days," Elena offered.

"No, it's fine."

Elena folded her arms, "Bonnie, do you even like Marcel?"

Bonnie looked in the mirror for a few moments, "I don't know him. We had a good time and he's a nice guy, we talk and we have good conversations. I'm just…I don't know; he says he doesn't want a relationship but I'm not convinced."

"Well are you sure you don't want a relationship and he's just not the guy you want it with?"

"Yes, I enjoy my freedom."

Elena nodded, "I know you say that, but I just think you don't want to get into a relationship and have a repeat of what happened with you and Enzo. I get it. It was college and after college, you two were inseparable for years and now, you want to see what else is out there."

Bonnie shrugged non-committedly as Elena went on, "But I think you don't want to give Marcel a real chance because you're scared that you may actually like him and want to be in a relationship with him."

Bonnie opened her mouth to protest, but Elena got a call on her cell leaving the room and Bonnie with her thoughts. Maybe there was a miniscule of truth with what Elena said, but one thing was not true—the possibility of a relationship with Marcel didn't scare her.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

The music and the happy laughter of the guests flowed throughout Revel. Damon made his way around greeting some of the staff and their friends. The previous night was the last night that the lounge was open to the public for 6 weeks and tonight was only about friends personally invited to partake in the alcohol, music and tapas. In some ways, the staff of Revel were family and they would all spread out for 6 weeks until the renovations were done. Damon planned to spend time checking on his bar up in New York that he had left to his General Manager, Jesse. Since leaving New York almost a year ago, he did very little with his first creation, Bliss Bar. Jesse was fantastic at what he did and when the financials came to Damon every month, they all checked out. When he decided to leave Jesse to handle the day to day operations, he gifted him with 30% of the bar and that gave him an incentive to make it work. Damon planned to spend a week or two in New York working in Bliss Bar and giving Jesse some time off.

While listening to Anna's sister tell him all about her new job as a photographer in town, his eyes casually drifted over to the front door opening for Elena and Bonnie. It was the first time he laid eyes on her since the previous Saturday and he drank her in. She was dressed in a skirt that gave a view of every curve on her body. He sipped his drink as she made eye contact with him and tilted her head giving him a nod of acknowledgment. The feeling of temptation that bubbled up inside of him was new as he grinned back at her.

She's your friend, he reminded himself staring at her. He watched as Stefan met her and Elena at the door, giving them both kisses on the cheek and causing them both to smile widely at him. Suddenly Damon felt a disgusting, putrid taste in his mouth watching Stefan entertain Bonnie and Elena with an animated story gesticulating his hands wildly causing them to laugh hysterically. Damon recognized the feeling that bubbled up inside him and he hadn't felt it in years. He was jealous. Without a rational thought, he felt his body moving towards Stefan, Bonnie and Elena standing near the bar. He splashed a welcoming smile across his face while approaching them, as Alaric slid two martinis over to Bonnie and Elena. Bonnie caught his eye and she lifted her martini glass up as he gave her a smirk. She winked before turning back to Alaric who was doing some bar tricks with the various bottles of alcohol surrounding him.

Damon moved through the people until Stefan stood in front of him, "You know, those daggers that you were throwing with your eyes a couple of minutes ago definitely seemed a little more than just a friend observing another friend talking to another man."

"Stefan go back to flirting with Elena making her feel good…let her keep teasing your dick and don't worry about me and Bonnie," Damon snapped.

Stefan laughed, "You're lying about what Bonnie means to you, but keep lying to yourself and to her," Stefan patted Damon on the shoulder before walking away to speak to some of the other guests.

Damon moved towards Bonnie and Elena at the bar joining them, "Good Evening Ladies," he drawled.

Bonnie turned along with Elena, "Hi," she smiled.

"Are you enjoying yourselves?"

"Of course, Alaric is entertaining us with his bartending skills," Bonnie laughed as Alaric refilled their glasses.

"Yes…nice. Bonnie, can I speak with you in my office? I received a very long bill from your firm and I want to discuss it with you," Damon gave her a look.

Elena and Alaric exchanged looks as Bonnie finished her drink, "A bill?"

"Yes, I think you need to come take a look with me," Damon raised an eyebrow at her.

Bonnie turned to Elena, "He probably wants a discount or something," she slid off of the bar stool and started towards the stairs of the lounge towards Damon's office.

Damon followed her up the stairs watching her hips sway as they reached the top of the stairs and headed down the hallway towards his office. Stepping inside, Bonnie walked over to his desk and stopped turning to him, "So what did we have to talk about right now?" she asked arms crossed.

"How do you expect me…" Damon took long strides towards her after locking the door, "to stand in the same room as you…" his hand reached out caressing her cheek, "watching you in that skirt…" his eyes traveled from her face down to the valley between her breasts and then back up to her face, "and not want to kiss you or fuck you right here on this desk."

"Umm, because we promised each other that last week was just a fluke, that we got it out of our system and it was a one-time thing," Bonnie whispered watching Damon's eyes as they went from their usual crystal blue to an almost stormy blue.

"Uh, huh," he stated staring at her lips as he slowly backed her closer to the desk.

"And we agreed that we would never go down that road again," Bonnie stated as Damon placed his hands on both sides of her waist and lifted her up onto his desk.

"Uh, huh," he whispered titling his head to tenderly place a kiss on her neck.

Bonnie exhaled deeply, "Damon," she whispered, "we can't…remember…"

"Uh, huh," he mumbled switching sides as his hand slowly trailed up her skirt.

Bonnie felt the heat pool in between her legs as his fingers slowly brushed against her panties before sliding them to the side and allowing his fingers to enter her slick center. She gasped at his touch, "Damon…wait…wait…there's a party downstairs," she protested weakly.

"I know and frankly, being down there and seeing you—this is all I can think about. It's all I've thought about this week," he focused on the woman in front of him staring into her green eyes, "we are friends, but Bonnie…last week…I can't get it out of my mind."

Bonnie bit her lip, "What can we do?"

Damon smiled, "Put two asterisks next to us being friends?"

Bonnie laughed, "Of course you would come up with that," she wrapped her arm around his neck, "but you have to be quiet this time."

"Yes, because I'm the loud one," he whispered before sliding her panties down and onto the floor, while unbuckling his pants.

Bonnie felt the excitement bubble up inside of her, but it was only moments later when she felt something else inside of her eliciting a gasp causing Damon to place his hand gingerly over her mouth, "We have guests downstairs," he whispered in her ear before leaning her back onto the desk.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

"We're doing this horribly," Bonnie announced as she shimmied into her panties back on while Damon exited the small bathroom in his office following her.

"What do you mean? I think we did that wonderfully and only in…" Damon glanced down at his watch, "20 minutes. That's unheard of for me."

"So humble," Bonnie mumbled, "but I mean we're doing this horribly because we agreed that what happened last Saturday was a one-time thing and now, it's a two-time thing and I just don't things to get complicated between us," she bit her lip watching as he buttoned up his shirt jacket. It was starting to feel like she was having an out of body experience. She went to barely kissing Damon to having to cross her legs when he was near her. This wasn't what they were supposed to be. They were friends and that included being friends who didn't have sex.

"You think sex will complicate things?" Damon asked knowing that their relationship had become one of the most complicated entanglements he had ever had. He understood that he and Bonnie were friends, but on another level, he wanted her badly. Her smile, her laugh, her body, her gorgeous face—it all made him desire her immensely.

Bonnie bit her lip, "I guess it won't, if we don't let it. We're adults and we're really good friends, this is just casual sex," she shrugged, "we are both unattached, but we both like…"

"Banging each other," Damon supplied.

Bonnie smiled, "Right."

Damon buckled his belt and continued, "So what will your nice guy Marcel think about our little arrangement?" he asked.

Whatever smile that Damon had put on Bonnie's face was wiped away at the mention of Marcel, "I'm not Marcel's girlfriend."

"Yes, but…Bonnie, no man who truly likes you and wants a future with you wants to know that you have another guy in your life who you're having sex with. Especially when he is closer to you proximity wise than said man."

Damon's words hit her like a one-two punch to the stomach. She wasn't expecting for his words to have the effect on her that they did. She was momentarily wounded and then she recovered, "Perhaps said male won't be as offended if he is satisfied physically and emotionally in his relationship with said woman," she snapped before heading towards the door, flinging it open to Stefan poised to knock.

"Are you two…" Stefan looked between Damon and Bonnie trying to read their faces, which read that something less than pleasurable had just occurred, "done reading that bill?"

"Absolutely," Bonnie brushed passed him and down the stairs.

"Don't say shit," Damon bumped him on the way out of the office following Bonnie down the hallway and immediately he stopped on the top of the stairs gazing down at Bonnie at the bottom of the stairs. She was frozen in place being hugged by someone who made Damon's mouth go dry...it was Marcel.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

Bonnie's heart momentarily paused when she headed down those stairs and was met with Marcel standing at the bottom of them with a wide smile. So many thoughts went through her head-one being that this is definitely not what she expected—especially after what happened with Damon moments before. She stood as he hugged her tightly, "I know you weren't expecting me today, but I was able to get an early flight and thought I would surprise you," he grinned, "Bianca told me where you probably were."

Making a mental note to kill Bianca, Bonnie smiled widely at him, "So she did."

"Well..." Damon moved to the side of them with a grin on his face. He looked from Bonnie to Marcel and if there was a way to sink into the floor, she would have done it right there. She could see both Damon and Marcel sizing each other with her in the middle. Damon's smile lingered on his face and Marcel appeared to be evaluating his thoughts on Bonnie and Damon's friendship.

"Marcel, this is my friend Damon—he owns Revel, you remember him from last time, right?" Bonnie introduced the two men.

"Nice to meet you Marcel," Damon stuck out his hand to shake Marcel's hand, which he did firmly with his eyes trained on Marcel's.

"This is a nice place, I really enjoyed myself the last time I was here," Marcel held onto Damon's hand.

"Well I hope you enjoy yourself tonight," Damon turned to Bonnie slightly and then back to Marcel, "the booze and food are on the house. If you will excuse me, I have to go meet a few more guests."

"Of course," Marcel commented as Damon headed over to Stefan and a few of the waitresses. Bonnie watched him walk away and her uncomfortableness did not subside.

"Hey, I hope you're not upset because I decided to surprise you," Marcel remarked gently touching her hand to get her attention back.

"Umm...no, its fine. I'm just surprised that's all," she responded hoping that she sounded even a little bit convincing.

Marcel looked over at Damon and then at Bonnie, "Did I disturb something between you two?" Gesturing between himself and Bonnie.

Turning her full attention to Marcel, she answered, "Is there something else you want to ask me?"

Marcel shook his head, "No, just that question...did I disturb something between you two?"

"Nope," Bonnie answered, "want a drink, because I really need one," she stated pulling him over to the bar away from Damon.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

"So you can let it out now," Stefan poured bourbon into a glass on the other side of the bar. The guests had left at least an hour ago and the Salvatore brothers were the only ones left. Damon had been uncharacteristically quiet for hours and Stefan could sense his annoyance.

"Let what out?" Damon asked downing his drink and setting down his empty glass for a refill.

Stefan sighed refilling the glass, "You and Bonnie. I know that you two aren't dating, but you are doing something," Stefan narrowed his eyes, "and I'm not sure what happened in your office, but I know it didn't go exactly well or at least part of it didn't. Soo, you can tell me how pissed you are that Marcel showed up tonight."

Mulling over Stefan's words, he swished the brown liquid in his glass around. When he first laid eyes on Marcel, a feeling of anger and jealously bubbled up inside of him. He had grown, he knew that for a fact because years ago—he would have made all types of comments alluding to the interlude in his office with Bonnie to Marcel; he needed to know that he could try all he wanted but Bonnie had belonged to him minutes before. However, those thoughts didn't ring true to him. Bonnie was much more than a conquest or a trophy to be fought over. She was his best friend** and although their relationship had taken a turn, he still respected her greatly and he would never treat her that way or make her feel that way. She was better than that and deserved so much more. He would rather slit his wrists than betray her in that way.

"Yeah, I was a little jealous," Damon confessed.

"A little?" Stefan raised an eyebrow doubting his brooding brother, "you kept your distance from Bonnie all night after he showed up and after that, you would steal glances at them looking as if you wanted to rip his head off."

"Ok, I was jealous. Bonnie and I are close and yes, sometimes I don't like sharing her," Damon threw up his hands.

Stefan drank his beer shaking his head, "Why are you doing this Damon? Bonnie obviously is attracted to you, you two are good friends and you appear to be good for each other—you have fun and I've never seen you so off your game before when a woman comes around, so why are you keeping this friendship up in its current state? If you want to be together, be together."

Damon studied his glass for a few moments before speaking, "Katherine, Corrine, Sabine, Andie...all of those relationships ended in disaster. I'm a disaster. You're a disaster," he pointed at his brother, "It's in our blood. We don't love people correctly. There's a reason why we can never stay friends with any of our ex-girlfriends Stefan, we wreck relationships...either on purpose or not. If we're not wrecking relationships, we are picking people who we should never be with in the first place, you...Rebekah, Amber, Deanna...it never ends with us. Maybe its the Giuseppe in us. The only reason why he was able to keep our mother is because she's a freaking saint with a lot of patience," Damon put his drink down.

"So you don't want to try anything with Bonnie because you are living under the belief that if you take that leap with her, you would fuck it up?"

"Bingo."

"But you say all the time Bonnie is different."

"She is, she is different. I feel a connection with her."

"Then what's the problem?" Stefan asked.

"I'm the problem!" Damon exploded, "do you know that if I take that chance with Bonnie and I mean a real chance and I fuck it up, I lose her. All of her. Our friendship, our connection, everything and I'm not willing to risk that."

"So you two are going to continue to sleep together and just ignore what's simmering?"

"No, the physical part is done," Damon sipped his drink, "we agreed tonight and then Marcel showed up, that's kind of a sign ain't it?"

Stefan said nothing.

"Yeah, I feel the same way. It's all for the best. Bonnie is a good person; she deserves the happiness that a guy like Marcel can give her. He's straight laced and put together. I bet he would never cheat on a woman or complicate things. He's a nice guy," Damon stated with finality, not sure if he was convincing Stefan or himself.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

After dropping Marcel off at his hotel in an Uber, where he managed to give her a quick kiss on the lips, Bonnie headed home. Her mind was in a blender. The night began with her on Damon's desk with one of the most passionate encounters she'd ever had. His kisses were able to immediately get her in a mood where she would do things that she never think about doing with another man. This was different for her, but she needed to put some distance between she and Damon. They needed to take a step back and reevaluate their friendship and what they wanted from it. What they NEEDED was not to have each other's bodies. It was a good thing that Damon was going to New York for a couple of days. It was important that they take that time to decompress from each other and she actually put some attention into seeing exactly what Marcel had to offer.

She stripped off of her clothes and plopped down in her bed. She fell back onto her pillows and breathed out. Even though her mind was in a blender, it never stopped allowing the moment with Damon in her office to bubble to the top. "I am in so much trouble," she whispered.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

The next morning, Bonnie touched the door of A Cup of Life and began to open it, when another hand touched hers, "Are you going to open the door?" Damon asked.

She narrowed her eyes into slits, opening the door and hitting him with it. Hearing him cry out in pain for a moment brought a smile to her face as Sandy ran in and plopped herself on the floor below their usual table. "It's your turn to buy our drinks," Bonnie snapped taking a seat at the table with Sandy at her feet.

Damon shook his head, "Of course," he mumbled walking up to the counter to order the two coffee drinks.

"Sooo…you decided to come this week? Looks like your dog is fine," Barry glanced over at Sandy, "and looks like Bonnie is not."

Damon looked over his shoulder at Bonnie, sitting at the table with her leg and arms crossed, "Really hadn't noticed," Damon smirked, "what do you have for us today?"

"Caffe Macchiatos," Barry pushed over two cups to Damon, "and I will have a bowl of water over for Sandy."

"Thanks," Damon stated carrying over the cups and sitting one down in front of Bonnie and taking his seat across from her.

They sat there for 3 agonizing minutes without words until Barry sat Sandy's bowl down on the floor and stared between the two of his favorite customers. Pulling up a chair, he sat down and moved his eyes from Bonnie to Damon, "Ok, what the hell is going on here?" Barry asked exasperated, "normally you two would be sitting here sickeningly teasing each other and laughing—now you're both sitting here throwing eye daggers at each other, especially when you are allowing the two perfect Caffe Macchiatos that I made you go to waste."

Barry looked between the two friends and then it dawned on him, the eye avoidance, the mouths set into straight lines. Things were different between them and his years of being a barrister told him everything he needed to know, "Ooooh," he pointed at both of them, "you two got to know each other in the Angelina and Brad way, didn't you?"

Bonnie and Damon looked at each other and then at Barry, "Nooo…no way," Damon shook his head.

"Me and him…no…definitely not," Bonnie shook her finger at Barry.

"Tuh, I'm not stupid," Barry stood up from his seat, "you two ain't fooling me," he moved back over to the counter and began washing the cups.

"This is stupid," Bonnie sighed.

"Why are you angry with me?" Damon asked.

"Because…" she began and then the hesitation came and he looked back at her waiting for her to continue—but she couldn't. She knew why his words bothered her, but she would never share that. Not with him. Not right now, "because I was just being emotional. It's fine. Forget it. I'm sorry for blowing up last night," she flagged the air.

His eyes pierced right through her. So much so that it made her uncomfortable. She shifted in her seat, as he leaned closer to her so he could whisper, "Bonnie, you are my friend. You are one of the most important people to me and I don't want to lose our friendship. I will do anything to keep our friendship in tact," he spoke lowly as a group of people entered the shop distracting Barry, "and as much as I enjoy what we've had over the last couple of days, I don't want to lose us because of that. Maybe we should take a couple of step backs and return back to just friends…no asterisk and mean it."

He watched her eyes as he said those words and the steely gaze never disappeared. He didn't want their physical connection to end. He hadn't felt a connection like the one he had with Bonnie since maybe his early 20's, but he would sacrifice it all just to maintain their friendship. She meant just that much to him.

Bonnie felt a lump in her throat that she hadn't expected. The sex was incredible between them. Just his touch could set her on fire and looking into this eyes as they joined together was one of her favorite past times over the next couple of days, but she wanted their friendship. She cherished their friendship and at this point in their lives, she knew that their friendship may not survive a physical relationship between them at this time.

"I think that would be the best thing," she found herself saying, hoping that she was actually convincing in her tone and her words.

"I mean, I know it will be soo hard for you to keep your hands off of me—but I have faith in you Bon," Damon rolled his eyes exaggeratedly.

In that moment, Bonnie saw her friend again and not the man who had her screaming in the middle of his living room, gripping onto him in his office and biting her lip as he went down on her in the best possible way, "That's what I like most about you, you're so humble," she threw a napkin at him.

"Soo…I'm going to New York tonight for 2 weeks."

"I remember you mentioned that you were thinking about it while the renovations were going on, but I didn't know you would be gone for so long."

"The general manager of my bar up there is going on vacation and I told him I would take over for him," Damon explained, "and I haven't been there in months, since I moved back to Mystic Falls actually. I need to make sure the place is the same as I left it."

Bonnie focused on her drink, "And what about Sabine?" she asked.

Damon gripped his cup, "I won't talk to her."

"You sure?" Bonnie raised an eyebrow, "from what you tell me, she has her way of wiggling her way into your world. The last time you saw her, she managed to find her way into your bed."

"I closed the door on that long ago…"

"2 months ago?" Bonnie asked.

"Bon, come on."

"Just be careful, for some reason I don't think she's a 'take no for an answer' type of woman considering that she's not above acting as if she's going to die for you to come save her."

"I know that and I have it under control," Damon stated through gritted teeth, "what about Marcel, do you know how you're entertaining him this weekend?" he asked with a little more aggression that he actually intended.

Bonnie gave him a look and then smiled slyly, "I have some things in mind," she didn't mean to sound coy, but its exactly how it came out and she didn't feel the need to apologize for it.

"Well I'm sure whatever you two do, it will be nice," Damon countered

"It will be," Bonnie smiled sipping her coffee as if they had just thrown down a gauntlet.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDB

"So it's grand opening and grand closing with Damon, huh?" Bianca asked.

"We just decided that things were getting complicated, so we needed to uncomplicate them fast. We got the sex out of the way and now things are back to normal," Bonnie looked through her closet for clothes to wear that evening for dinner with Marcel.

"Back to normal huh?"

"Yes, we snipe at each other in between telling each other how things are normal," Bonnie plopped down on her bed staring at herself in the mirror, "I made a mistake, B."

"With Damon?" Bianca asked.

"Yes. We shouldn't have crossed the line."

"But it was just sex, right?"

"Yes, of course it was," Bonnie answered quickly, "I was just saying that it's just weird now. That's all."

"My sister and all of her overthinking, you and Damon are the best of friends now. It's ok and I'm sure you two will be able to move past this and go back to being the best friends forever that you were meant to be."

Bonnie ran her hand through her hair, "Yeahhhh," she sighed, "Marcel will be here soon. He's meeting me at the townhouse."

"Ok…have fun, but keep both feet on the floor. We have to be able to identify the baby daddy…but then again, we would be able to tell as soon as he or she popped out…wouldn't we?"

"Goodbye Bianca," Bonnie ended the call with a chuckle.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

Damon stepped into the luxury apartment that he rented for the next two weeks that he would be in New York. Sandy immediately barreled into the apartment and planted herself by the window staring out at the city lights. He stood beside her gazing out of the window. His thoughts were firmly on what happened in the coffee shop with Bonnie that morning. The previous night at the club—bringing her up to his office, that was a move that went off of pure instinct. It was wrong and hopefully, he and Bonnie could work things out and get back to where they were before the orgasms, kissing and thrusting. A smile crossed his lips at the memory of Bonnie on his desk.

"Well Sandy, we have two weeks to get the past couple of days out of our system. Get ready for a little taste of the city life," he kneeled down rubbing Sandy as she closed her eyes and reveled in his touch.

Damon fished his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed Jesse, "Hey, I'm in town. I will be there in about an hour."

"Cool Boss, see you then," Jesse answered before Damon ended the call.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

Damon could hear the music drifting from outside of the bar as soon as he handed his car keys to the valet outside. At first the distracted valet barely looked at him when he barked out the need for the $35.00 for valet parking. "Peter, how would you like that $35.00?" Damon asked.

He watched as the young college student jumped and went at attention as if Damon was his drill sergeant, "Mr. Salvatore, I wasn't expecting you tonight," Peter stammered.

"I'm sure, well I will be here for the next two weeks—so try to be on your best behavior," Damon winked before handing Peter his rental keys and stepping out of the car. Lining the block were people waiting to get into the bar. The bouncer smiled at him as he opened the door, "Nice to see you Damon," Michael, the big burly ex-wrestler shook his hand.

"Good to see you too Mike," Damon stepped inside. He took a few seconds to look around at the people standing at the bar, drinking, laughing having animated conversations. There were a few people on the dance floor dancing to some of the latest hits. Some of which he had never heard before, but people seemed to enjoy them. When he first opened this bar, he just wanted to do something totally different than the real estate game that his father always drilled into their heads. Giuseppe had given him the seed money, half expecting it to fail, but it didn't. It became one of the most popular bars on the upper east side. During happy hour, the wall street bankers came in to have their Manhattans and Dirty Martinis and at night, the young professionals gathered to bitch about their bosses and their significant others.

"So as you can see, I didn't let your place go under."

Damon grinned turning to tall light brown skinned man standing next to him. "Jesse," he stuck his hand out for a hearty shake, "I see that its just the way I like it."

"Absent all the owner groupies," Jesse looked over.

Damon chuckled. He remembered his life in New York. It was wild in the beginning. A different woman every week, staying out all night and sleeping all day. He was every stereotype that the movies depicted of a young bar owner with too much money and good looks, "But I am sure you have your own."

Jesse gave him a sly smile before shrugging, "But thank you for coming up here. I've wanted to take this European trip for awhile and while Logan may be a good assistant manager, I think you will make sure the place is still standing when I come back."

"Of course," Damon stated fist bumping Jesse.

"So let me buy you a drink, you will need it if you're watching this place over the next two weeks," Jesse leading Damon the stairs.

"Make sure it's the good stuff, top shelf only," Damon followed him.

"The boss would expect nothing less," Jesse moved throughout the crowd.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

Bonnie opened the door to her townhouse to Marcel, "Hi, I just had to check an email before we head out. I have some items that are supposed to be released from our creative department that I have to approve," she walked over to her laptop and sat down on the couch as Marcel observed the pictures surrounding the living room, "College huh?" he pointed to a picture of she and Elena standing in their dorm room freshman year of college. Bonnie closed her laptop and then walked over to where he stood, "Yes, freshman year. I walked into my dorm room in the town of Mystic Falls and met Elena. I can't say that we were the best of friends at first, but things changed as time went on. She's one of my best friends now."

"I see and you just stayed here after school?"

"Yup, I had an internship with Jones and Martin."

"Ahh," Marcel looked down at her, before wrapping his arm around her shoulder and bending his head down kissing her. The way he captured her lips in the kiss was tender and sweet. As he deepened the kiss, Bonnie broke away with a giggle, "That was unexpected."

"Well I've wanted to do it since I saw you last night. You just seemed a little distracted," Marcel took her hand.

"Well tonight we're going to dinner and there are no other distractions," she stated leading him towards the door.

An hour later, they found themselves at a small Italian restaurant around the corner from the townhouse, Bonnie sat across from Marcel as he ordered the wine and she admired his looks. He had almond shaped eyes that were welcoming, but also mysterious at the same time, "So...I guess, I should tell you something before we start eating our meals," Marcel glanced at her from across the table.

Bonnie braced herself sipping her water.

"I wasn't completely honest about my reason for coming here, I did want to come and visit you. Get to know you here in Mystic Falls, but I also have to confess that I'm here for an interview with the Richmond Renegades," he admitted.

Bonnie sat across from him blinking for a few seconds. She was rendered speechless.

"Now, before you want to run away from me screaming—this has been in the works for a couple of months, before Bianca tried to make a love match for us. It's only been a few weeks that we've been seriously talking about me coming to work for the organization."

Bonnie nodded slowly, "So you may be moving closer," she concluded.

"Maybe if it works out over the next couple of days," he answered with a hint of hopefulness.

Bonnie smiled as the waiter placed their wine bottle along with glasses filled with Merlot. She sipped, contemplating her next question, "Marcel, let's be honest...what do you want from me here?"

His eyes focused on her, "I want to get to know you better Bonnie and whether or not I take this job is independent of those feelings—I think being closer to you is a way to do it. I know that you are not willing to rush into a relationship, but I think proximity will help us."

She opened her mouth to answer and then realized that she didn't have an answer—well not one that she was ready to give.

"But since we are being honest, let me ask you a question and while it may be none of my business and you can tell me that, what kind of friends are you and Damon?" he asked.

The question was one that lingered in the air for a few moments. She wasn't sure how to answer the question, "What do you mean?"

"Is he an ex-boyfriend?" Marcel asked to be clearer.

"No, he's not an ex-boyfriend."

Marcel nodded, "Any feelings at all there?"

Bonnie stared across the table, "Are you trying to ask me if we have ever had sex?"

Marcel's eyes went wide and he immediately held up his hands, "Look, we all have pasts. I get that and I'm not trying to pry. I just want to know if he's my competition or not."

Bonnie shook her head, "He's not," she stated with finality.

BDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBDBD

"So you have a friend and you two crossed that line and now you're taking three steps back?" Jesse asked sitting next Damon at the bar as the the night begin to whine down.

"Yeah," Damon looked down into his glass.

"That's not like you Salvatore, you don't usually let them get away from you."

"Well she's different. We truly are friends," Damon answered.

"I see," Jesse nodded.

"But I'm taking a break from relationships right now."

Jesse chuckled, "Is that right?"

"Absolutely."

"Well ending up in a coma will do that to ya," Jesse sipped his beer.

Damon chuckled, "Yeah, it kind of does."

"By the way, I haven't seen Mrs. Reynolds lately—guess that will change over the next couple of weeks."

Damon shook his head, "Not happening."

"I always wonder what was up with that. You and her were always weird to me, you know."

Damon would never forget the night that Jesse came back to Bliss after hours and found Damon and Sabine in very telling positions. Ever since that night and until recently, Jesse was the only one to know about that relationship and he kept quiet about it, except to mock Damon about his relationship with Sabine, "Yeah, well that was a weird time. It's nothing something that I will repeat. She doesn't know that I'm here and I don't plan on telling her. I'm here to run Bliss, visit some old haunts and just take a breather from Mystic Falls."

"Well it's nice to have you back," Jesse held up his bottle.

"Thank you," Damon clinked his glass.

Well a lot happened in this chapter. Bamon decided to take some steps back from the physical aspects of their relationship and Marcel is in the process of making a REAL move towards having a relationship with Bonnie. Damon's insecurities are valid and Bonnie, she's just lying to herself. LOL!

Please show your love/like.