It took four days for Damon to call Bonnie. Honestly, the radio silence made her feel uneasy. Bonnie would have almost preferred to deal with her husband while he was seething with anger. She knew how to handle a man while he was in the throes of what amounted to a temper tantrum. However, as the days rolled on, Bonnie began to worry that Damon was planning a devastating counter-strike. The girl knew that his disinterest in her was the only reason that she had been able to pull off such a stunning power move. As she told Katherine, her husband ignored what he did not find interesting. It was safe to assume that she had his full attention now and that was dangerous.

People had the tendency to underestimate Damon. She wasn't sure if it was his relative youth, his good looks, or his checkered past with drugs and alcohol. However, those people were either ignorant or just shortsighted. Damon was a predator that used people's perceptions of him as camouflage. Even Giuseppe had underestimated his eldest son. The older man did not realize that Damon was a force to reckon with until it was too late. Damon had successfully gained the support of the American faction of their organization right under Giuseppe's nose. Bonnie suspected that her father-in-law's attack was in part because the older man knew that he was living on borrowed time. Giuseppe's story was only ever going to end one way. Bonnie had only hastened that ending by manipulating Damon.

Bonnie had never made the mistake of underestimating her husband. Stefan was perhaps the one person on Earth that knew Damon better than she did. Bonnie had been observing the future mob boss since she was a little girl. It was shocking how easily men in their line of work ignored women and girls. However, their dismissive attitudes had benefitted Bonnie greatly over the years. Sheila had encouraged her granddaughter to study the men around her as if they were little more than animals in the wild. Information was the best counter for the inherent advantages men held over women. Information was how she had brought Damon to his knees without striking a single blow. Yet she had not used all of her ammo on the first shot. Bonnie still had a few tricks up her sleeve in anticipation of Damon's response.

His opening salvo had arrived earlier that morning. Damon had called shortly after 8 o'clock to ask if he and Bonnie could meet for lunch. He offered to pick up something for them to eat on his way over to Abby's house. Bonnie was surprised by the cordial offer but she wasn't willing to lower her guard just yet. Damon was a snake. She loved that quality in her husband but it also meant that she needed to be cautious around him. Bonnie agreed to have lunch with Damon around 1 o'clock. He had even inquired about any dietary restrictions she might have in light of her high blood pressure. Bonnie liked that he was concerned about her health. Nevertheless, his gesture did not sway her. Damon's concern for her well-being had come too little and far too late.

While she waited for Damon to arrive, Bonnie curled up on the couch and read a book on pregnancy. She was incredibly anxious about carrying twins. She feared her body wasn't equipped to handle the stress. Her recent diagnosis of hypertension only compounded her fears and anxieties. Bonnie had made the mistake of researching possible complications on the internet. She literally had a nightmare about preeclampsia last night. The young mother hoped that educating herself with the information in the books would alleviate some of her worries. Abby also suggested compiling a list of questions to pose to her doctor on the next visit.

Bonnie was genuinely enjoying her stay at Abby's house. Her mother was doting on her the way that Sheila once had. The obvious care and concern warmed Bonnie greatly. She didn't know if her mother would return to type with time. However, for now she planned to enjoy Abby's maternal side. Bonnie placed her book on the coffee table and picked up a plate containing several fruit-filled pastries. She didn't know what had possessed Abby to bake last night but she was happy to enjoy the results. Bonnie hadn't enjoyed hamentashen since she was a little girl.

Abby walked into the living room dressed to kill. She was wearing a red off the shoulder dress and a pair of thigh high leather boots. Abby placed a plate covered with aluminum foil on the console table. "I just got off the phone with Lucy. She should be here in about twenty minutes. Damon had better be on his best behavior if he doesn't want Lucy on his ass. She's been waiting for an opportunity to curse him out."

Bonnie laughed because Lucy had wanted to go off on Damon for weeks. Lucy had only held her tongue to keep the peace in Bonnie's marriage. Her eyes widened when she looked up and saw her mother. "Wow. You look amazing, Mama. Where are you going again?"

She laughed softly as she put on a pair of gold hoop earrings. "Thank you, baby girl. I am going to lunch but you can call if you need me to come home."

Bonnie studied her mother's appearance. That definitely wasn't an outfit meant for lunch with a friend or a business associate. She said, "I'll be fine, Mama. I don't actually expect Damon to do anything stupid but Lucy and Tyler will be here if he gets out of line."

Tyler was camped out in the family room while he talked to Mason on the phone. Damon's decision to change the timetable for killing Giuseppe had thrown a wrench into their plans. John Gilbert had to die before Giuseppe did to ensure that he did not spill Bonnie's secrets. Moreover, Bonnie wasn't willing to risk the possibility of John trying to take the Salvatore organization for himself. Damon was an asshole but the organization belonged to Bonnie's future son and no one would get in the way of that. She planned to do whatever necessary to make ensure that Damon was the boss of the family—for now.

Abby stopped in front of the mirror positioned over the console table. She inspected the pin straight jet-black ponytail that hung down her back. Her hairstylist had stopped by that morning to give her a new look. Abby was always playing with different styles, colors, lengths, and textures when it came to her hair. "That's not what I meant. I know that you can handle Damon. I just meant that if you were upset or if you need to talk that I will come home."

"Oh, okay," she replied. "Who are you having lunch with anyway?"

The older woman stopped fussing with her hair and turned to look at her daughter. Abby smirked as she said, "I am meeting Rudy."

Bonnie was definitely intrigued now. "Does Ric know that you are meeting with him?"

Abby chuckled as she picked up the covered plate and walked over to the couch. She dropped a kiss on Bonnie's forehead. "My business isn't Alaric's business unless I want it to be. And right now, I don't want it to be. Besides, I am still waiting for the results from his STD test."

The girl wrinkled her nose in distaste. "Do you really think that he cheated on you while he was in Tenerife?"

"Damon isn't the only Salvatore that has a penchant for coke and whores. I can just imagine what Alaric got up to in Tenerife and Milazzo. I am sure he used all the recent stress as a way to justify his infidelity."

"Can I ask you something?" Bonnie asked.

"You can ask me anything," Abby replied. She sat on the arm of the couch to be closer to Bonnie. "What's on your mind?"

"How can you stand to be around my dad after what he did to you? Have you forgiven him?"

Bonnie truly wondered if she would ever be able to forgive Damon. Right now, she couldn't imagine a point where her heart would soften towards him. However, Rudy had done much worse to Abby and somehow her mother was willing to be in the same room with him.

The older woman laughed heartily. "I don't believe in forgiveness. However, I believe in using the tools available to me. You have wolves coming at you from all sides. I intend to do my part to protect you. If protecting you means making a deal with the devil…then that is what I will do."

"Mom, I never meant to put you in this position. You don't have to do this for me. I have people looking out for me…you know that."

Abby cupped Bonnie's cheek and said, "I am the one that put you in this position. My bad decisions led you to this point. I should have been there for you but I wasn't. Now you are trying to contend with Damon and Niklaus at the same time. Dickie and the boys can handle Damon and the Salvatore organization. However, Niklaus is all mines. That pervert had the nerve to approach you in public."

"He was apologizing, Mama," she tried to explain. Bonnie recognized that dangerous glint in her mother's eye. Her grams used to get the same look.

She nodded. "I am sure that he was but I know his type, Bonnie. Niklaus is trying to be charming right now but he will change tactics when you don't return his affections. That man spent five years in prison obsessing over you. He won't simply get over it now. I understand why killing him is out of the question but there are other ways to make him a non-factor."

Bonnie had similar concerns about Niklaus. She knew from experience how quickly he could go from charming to violent. Bonnie had been waiting for the other shoe to drop since that afternoon at the dance studio. She asked, "What do you have in mind?"

"You know what your father does for a living, right?" she asked. Bonnie knew far too much to be in the dark about something so crucial.

The green-eyed girl nodded. She had found out about Rudy's profession as a teenager. She wasn't exactly shocked to learn that her father was a major player in the drug trafficking business. It would have been strange for Sheila Bennett's only daughter to marry a law-abiding citizen.

Abby said, "Niklaus has spent his entire life trying to prove that he is worthy. That deep seeded desire isn't going to disappear now just because Mikael is dead. He is going to be looking for a splashy way to mark his reentry to the business. He might even be stupid enough to take possession of an obscene amount of drugs. Even if he proves to be smarter than I think he is…it wouldn't be too difficult to plant the drugs in a place where he can't deny ownership. I called your daddy here to help me make that happen. He has some expendable connections in Norcal."

She had to admire the simplicity of her mother's plan. Niklaus was brash and known for making ill-advised decisions. This certainly wouldn't be his first foray into selling drugs. Using a supplier that could be killed without consequence was even better. However, Bonnie was concerned about one aspect of this plan. She swallowed thickly and asked, "Did you tell him about what Niklaus did to me?"

Abby shook her head. "No. I kept your secret and I will continue to do so. I merely told Rudy that you were in serious trouble and needed our help. He will surely push for more details but I know how to handle your father. Let me worry about him."

Bonnie relaxed a little and nodded. "Thank you."

"I love you, baby girl. I am not going to tell you how to handle your trauma. Everyone handles it differently. However, holding all of that pain inside of you isn't good. I hope that you will at least confide in Tyler now that he knows the truth."

She smiled a little and shook her head. "It's all in the past, Mama."

Abby smiled sadly and brushed a hand over her daughter's back. "I think we both know that isn't true. You buried all that pain as deep as you could but it all came bubbling to the surface once Niklaus was released from prison. Tyler wants to help you…let him. That boy loves you."

Bonnie opened her mouth to object.

Abby laughed softly as she stood up. "Don't waste your time denying it. I have seen the way the two of you look at each other."

She bit her lip. "What do you think about that?"

"I think that Tyler is a good boy. He is your best friend. He loves you. He is also a Loiacono. Uncle Johnny would be in favor of a Benedetto/Loiacono union."

Bonnie chuckled quietly. She wasn't ready to think about marrying anyone else. She was still married to Damon and would be for quite some time. "You should go to lunch. You wouldn't want to be late."

Abby smirked and said, "Rudy will wait for me. I am bringing dessert."

The girl's eyes went as wide as saucers. "I didn't need to know that!"

She chuckled, "I was talking about the hamentashen. Your daddy was always a sucker for my baking."

Bonnie bit her lip for a moment and asked, "Can you tell him that I said hi?"

"I will. I hope that you have a good lunch with Damon," Abby said as she headed for the door.

"I hope that you have a good lunch with Dad, too." Bonnie thought about it for a moment and then called out, "But not too good!"

Tyler walked into the room as he heard the front door close. "Where is she going?"

"She's having lunch with my dad."

He looked at her with a dubious expression.

She laughed, "I'll fill you in later. How did your conversation with Mason go?"

He plopped down beside Bonnie on the couch and groaned.

She popped the last pastry into her mouth and lifted an eyebrow at Tyler. "How bad is it?"

"We have a time and place for when we can take out John. I don't like it and neither will you. He has planned a birthday celebration for himself at nightclub this upcoming weekend. The only problem is that the party will be at one of Klaus' nightclubs."

"Shit," Bonnie muttered. "Killing John there is a risk. If anyone in the Salvatore organization suspects his death is anything but natural, we could trigger a war with the Mikaelsons. Damon might hate John but he would feel compelled to retaliate to save face."

He said, "Well, we might have a work around to make sure that doesn't happen. Do you remember hearing about those college students that died after taking that tainted synthetic party drug?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Something like 30 students were hospitalized and about twelve of them eventually died."

"Matt knows one of the dealers. The dumbass is just sitting on his stash because it is too hot to sell right now. The plan is for Matt to kill the dealer and steal the tainted drugs. Everyone knows how much John loves doing party drugs when he is out at the clubs. No one will bat an eyelash if he dies from taking tainted drugs."

Bonnie hummed in agreement. "And no one will look too closely at the death of a low-level dealer peddling killer drugs to college students. You are right that I don't like this going down at Klaus' club but we don't have another choice. At this point, we have to take the angle that is available to us. Frankly, we're doing a freaking public service getting the rest of those drugs off the street."

Tyler laughed and kissed her cheek. "Yes, you are quite the upstanding citizen."

Bonnie felt butterflies in her stomach after the brief peck on the cheek. Her fingers sought out the Saint Christopher's medal that still hung around her neck. "We're going to need Lucy for this plan to work. I don't want any collateral damage with this. John is the only one that dies this weekend."

He nodded. "I am sure that we can get Lucy on board with that."

Bonnie heard a car door close from the driveway. "That might be her now."

Tyler stood up and said, "I'll go see who it is."

"Thanks."

He returned a few seconds later. "It's Damon."

Bonnie nodded and sat up straight on the couch. She hadn't bothered dressing up for him. Bonnie was wearing a pair of purple velour shorts, a matching zip up jacket, and a tank top. Her dark hair had been pulled into a messy top knot. "Let him in…"

"I'll head into the family room once I do. Just yell if you need me," he replied. Tyler walked to the door and opened it.

Damon was just about to knock when the door opened. He tensed at seeing Tyler standing there. He was glad that Bonnie was still accepting protection despite their separation. However, having Tyler there felt a little like letting the fox protect the hen house.

Tyler said, "Hey, Damon. Bonnie is waiting for you in the living room."

The older man nodded and walked into the house. He had forgone his normal tailored suit. Instead, he was dressed in dark denim jeans and an expensive blue cashmere sweater. Damon carried two take out bags into the living room. "Hey."

"Hi," she replied.

Damon set the bags on the coffee table and sat down on the couch with Bonnie. "How are you feeling…health wise?"

"I'm okay. The anti-nausea medicine is working. I have been able to keep down my food and that is good news. I am hoping that I will have gained a pound or two when I go to my next doctor's appointment. Dr. Huerta thinks he might be able to determine the twins' gender by then."

Normally, Damon would be overjoyed at the prospect of learning the babies' genders. However, it was just a reminder that the clock on his marriage would begin counting down if one of the babies was a boy.

"When is your next appointment? I would really like to go with you…if that is okay with you."

Bonnie blinked in surprise but nodded in agreement. "That would be fine with me. My appointment is next Wednesday at 9 o'clock."

He nodded. "I'll be there." Damon noticed the plate on the table. He chuckled and asked, "Did you already eat lunch?"

She laughed a little and said, "It was just a little snack. My mom baked hamentashen last night. I couldn't resist eating a few."

"Hamentashen?" he asked.

"Oh, they're little fruit-filled pastries. Normally, they are made during Purim but I guess my mom was just in the mood to bake last night. She made Jamie's favorite cake, too."

Damon had been raised Roman Catholic. However, he knew the names of some Jewish holidays. "Did Abby convert to Judaism?"

Bonnie knew that she couldn't tell him about Abby's lunch date with Rudy. Damon would surely report to his uncle. She lied, "No, she made the hamentashen as a peace offering for my dad. I am going to take them over to his hotel later today."

Damon realized how little he knew about his father-in-law as an actual person. His knowledge was limited to Rudy's reputation in the criminal underworld and what little information Ric could provide. However, all of his uncle's information was tainted by his extreme hatred for the man.

"Your dad is in town?" Damon feigned surprise as he unpacked their lunches.

She nodded. "He's going to stick around for a couple of weeks on vacation."

Damon mentally cursed. However, he had a plan and he would stick to it. "That's nice. I know that you haven't seen him in a few years."

"Since our wedding," she replied. Bonnie accepted the takeout containers and plastic cutlery from Damon. She inspected the salads and grinned at the obscene amount of grilled chicken on top. "Thank you."

"I made sure that your salads were made to your exact specifications," he said.

She looked a little embarrassed. "I'm sorry about that. I just really don't like hardboiled eggs on my salad. I also can't have bacon or ham because of the hypertension. Adjusting my diet has been…difficult. It has been great staying here. Mom has practice making healthy meals because of Alaric. Somehow she makes sure the food doesn't taste like cardboard."

Damon settled back on the couch and took a bite out of his club sandwich. He had cut back on his drinking the last few days so he had an actual appetite. He said, "I am glad that Abby has been so helpful."

Bonnie nodded as she poured dressing onto her first salad. She whispered a quick prayer and made the sign of the cross before she started eating. Bonnie was glad that she had the foresight to ask for two salads. She was going to demolish this one in no time. Bonnie had been ravenous since the anti-nausea medication began working. She waited on Damon to start talking since he was the one that asked to meet.

Silence filled the two-story living room for several minutes as husband and wife ate. Damon was in no rush to start this awkward conversation with Bonnie. He finished half of his sandwich before deciding to speak. Damon said, "I am sorry for not calling you sooner, bunny. I needed some time…"

"I understand that. I'm sure that you felt as if all this came out of the blue," she acknowledged.

He nodded. "Yes, you could say that. I just want to let you know that I am sorry for hurting you, Bonnie. I didn't think that you knew about Katherine until recently. I know that doesn't make what I was doing better but I would have never flaunted my infidelity in your face that way. You didn't deserve that or for her to taunt you about the affair."

Bonnie tensed because his apology was bullshit. Damon had gone to Tenerife after finding out that she had known about Katherine for years. Bonnie had even shown him the disgusting messages and pictures that the older woman had sent to taunt her.

"I'm not really interested in apologies, Damon. All of that is in the past and I just want to figure out how to move forward. I want this transition to be mature and healthy for Sarah's sake. She deserves that from us."

"I know that an apology won't fix us. Honestly, I don't know what would fix our relationship at this point. However, I felt as if I needed to apologize to you…whether you feel like accepting it or not." He looked into Bonnie's green eyes for a moment. He had missed her these last few days. Damon hated being this close to his wife and unable to touch her. He continued, "You are right. We need to make this easy for Sarah."

She hadn't expected Damon to be so levelheaded about this. Bonnie had figured that he would show up spoiling for a fight. However, she refused to allow Damon to throw her off track.

"I think it is best if Sarah and I move into the beach house. She is your daughter biologically and I would never consider trying to take her away from you. You are just really busy with other things in your life. I think it would be best if Sarah stays with me three weeks out of the month. You can have her at the manor one week and as many weekends as you would like. If you have more time to spend with Sarah then I am certainly willing to cede some of my time. I know how much you love her and she adores you."

Damon had been expecting this but hearing the words still made his chest tighten. He kept reminding himself that this wasn't permanent—yet. He could still win her back. "I think that is reasonable. I will probably get Sarah on all the weekends if my schedule permits."

"That's fine with me. I will still drop her off every morning at the manor for school. I think homeschooling Sarah is the best thing for her. Besides, I don't want to disrupt everything in her life. She loves having school lessons with her cousins. Oh, she is also taking ballet lessons every Tuesday afternoon. It is okay if you can't take her during your week. Bella and Nico are in the same class. I am sure that you can ask Caroline to take her. My mom is working with them on Wednesdays, too."

He nodded. "I'll make it work."

"I also think that we need to choose a time to talk with Sarah about the changes that will be happening. She hasn't asked very many questions while we have been staying here. She is having too much fun playing with Cooper. Jamie has even been letting her play some of his video games." She cleared her throat and said, "I think we also need to explain the situation with Nadia in a way that a five-year-old can understand."

Damon placed his food on the coffee table. He had definitely lost his appetite. He was bothered by how casually Bonnie spoke of the dissolution of their marriage. However, he figured that she had much longer to get used to the idea.

"I actually got some advice on how to handle talking to Sarah about both situations. I, um, I saw this counselor the other day. Zach set me up with someone that he worked with in the past. Dr. Correa suggested bringing Sarah to her office so that she could help us explain everything."

Bonnie's jaw literally dropped. She stared at her husband as if he had suddenly grown a second head. She tried to picture the scenario in her head but couldn't. "You went to see a counselor and it wasn't even court ordered?"

Damon hated that Bonnie was so surprised by his actions. Did she truly believe that he wouldn't try to fight for her? He nodded. "I am not going to sit here and make excuses for how I have treated you. At best, I am an inconsiderate asshole. At worst, I emotionally abused one of the few people I would never try to hurt intentionally. You said that you needed space to get better and I think that I do, too. I have some things I need to work through and I need professional help to do that."

Bonnie shook her head in disbelief. "That is surprisingly mature of you, Damon."

"Well, I can honestly say that I would have never done this if not for you. I never realized how my actions made you feel. I guess I never really paid attention. A couple weeks ago, Stefan told me that you were depressed and I didn't believe him. I thought that he was being dramatic. Now I have realized that he just paid more attention to you than I did. Is the depression a recent development?"

The conversation made Bonnie feel off balance. She guessed it was Damon's turn to ambush her. However, instead of venomous barbs crafted to cause maximum pain, he spoke honestly of his failures as a husband. She shook her head. "I was depressed most of the time. I muddled through because Sarah needed me and I had to keep up appearances outside the house. It was a hard act to keep up but it was what I was raised to do. I just kept looking for ways to be better for you."

As if Damon didn't already feel like an asshole. "You are amazing Bonnie. You are everything I could have asked for in a wife. I am the one with the problem."

She shook her head. "It's not just you. There is something broken in me, Damon. The way I twisted myself into knots to please you is sick. You don't even know half the things that I did. I decided to see a counselor, too."

"Then tell me," he said in a voice thick with emotion. "Please…"

She shook her head. "I'm not at a place where I feel comfortable sharing the deepest darkest parts of myself with you. I don't know that I will ever get to a place where that is possible."

Damon reached out to take Bonnie's hand but stopped short when he noticed that she was no longer wearing her wedding band and engagement ring. In a bitter voice, he said, "That was quick."

Bonnie was confused by the comment. However, she followed his gaze down to her hand. She pulled a necklace out of her tank top to show him the rings. "My fingers are swollen in part because of the hypertension. Part of it is just normal swelling that comes with being pregnant. I promised that I would continue pretending to be your wife in public and I meant it."

He really took a moment to look at her swollen fingers. Damon shook his head in surprise. "Bunny…"

She heard the sincerity of the concern in his voice. "I'm okay. My blood pressure is coming down nicely. I hired a private physician to monitor my condition more closely than Dr. Huerta can. Cole's nurse practitioner drops by every day to check my blood pressure and glucose levels."

"Do you need me to do anything? Pay for anything?"

She smiled faintly. "I can more than afford to pay for whatever I need."

"I know that, Bunny. I just feel as if I should be doing something," he said in exasperation. He felt useless.

"I will let you know if I need anything," she promised.

The doorbell rang.

"I should get that. It is probably Lucy." Bonnie was glad for the reprieve. She hadn't been prepared for Damon to come in being reasonable. Where the hell did he get off pretending to be a sensible adult? She checked to make sure it was Lucy before opening the door.

Lucy's arms were weighed down by a dozen shopping bags. She kissed Bonnie's cheek. "I am sorry that I am late. Something came up at the last moment. I see jackass is here."

Bonnie closed the door and said, "Damon can hear you from the living room."

Lucy flashed a simpering smile and said, "I know. Don't care."

"What is all of this?" Bonnie asked.

"I did a little Christmas shopping."

She eyed the bags with a grin and asked, "Did you get anything for me?"

"I bought your gifts a couple weeks ago. These are for the cousins."

"Oh! I didn't even think about that," Bonnie said. Her eyebrows pulled together in concern. "Looks like I will be doing some shopping in the next couple of days."

"We can go together. I still need to pick up a few things. Well, I am going to let you get back to your lunch. Where's Ty?"

"He's in the family room."

Lucy nodded and disappeared down the hall.

Bonnie returned to her place on the couch. "Sorry about that…"

"The interruption or Lucy calling me a jackass?" he asked in amusement.

"Both?" she suggested. "She's just being a protective older cousin."

Damon thought back to Bonnie's accusation that the manor had turned into a prison for her. "I get it. I am glad that you have her here. I know you haven't had very much contact with your family since we've been married."

She nodded and went back to eating her lunch. "It's been nice reconnecting. I can't wait to see my cousins over the holiday. My mom is planning a Christmas Eve party so that we can all get together before going to Midnight Mass."

"Do you know why your cousins are coming stateside for Christmas?"

Damon couldn't help himself. He needed to know how much Bonnie knew about what was happening. He didn't want to believe that his sweet bunny would betray him. However, something had been nagging at him since Big John offered his assistance.

Bonnie studied him closely for a moment. She had known this question would come up at some point. She had been considering her options for quite some time. Bonnie had come to the decision that she was tired of pretending to be something she was not. It was time to pull back the curtain a little for Damon.

She said, "Well, Cesare was going to be in town for Christmas because Lexi wanted to see her family. The rest are joining the trip to make some living arrangements. Uncle Johnny wants them out here to help you with the business."

He nodded but the words sounded like a half-truth to his ears. It was surprising what Damon could pick up when he actually paid attention to his wife. "Is Big John the only one that wanted them here?"

The green-eyed girl was quiet for a long moment. "No. I wanted them here, too. I understand if that makes you angry. We haven't been on the same page in a long time, Damon. I just needed to make sure that there was someone protecting my interests."

Damon's entire body tensed and he ground his teeth in frustration. "You shouldn't have done that, Bonnie. I will always make sure that you and our children are taken care of but involving other people in our marital issues is way out of line."

"I didn't involve other people. I involved my family. Also, this has nothing to do with our marriage, Damon. The smuggling operation is and always will be business—my business." Bonnie tapped a hand against her chest for emphasis.

He stared at his wife for a beat. He refused to say something that would start a fight. They had been getting along well enough until now. He decided to appeal to Bonnie's sense of duty. Perhaps she could call off Big John if she understood the predicament Damon was in now. "Do you know how this makes me look? Do you understand how weak this makes me look to my own people? To my enemies? They will smell blood in the water."

Bonnie was unmoved. She said, "I know this might come as a surprise, but you weren't really my concern. I needed to do what was best for my family."

"I am your family, Bonnie. We're married," he insisted. "This is not what is best for us. This is not what is best for the organization."

"I am a Benedetto. You are a Salvatore. We are family by marriage…a very dysfunctional marriage. When the chips were down, I put my faith in my blood. Blood means everything and you know this. My cousins will help run the smuggling operation until I am ready to take over."

Damon barked out a harsh laugh. Bonnie taking over the smuggling business was the most absurd thing he had ever heard. "You can't be serious. When have you ever had an interest in the operation? What do you even know about the business?"

She looked at him dispassionately. "Big John has never had a hand in the North American side of my family's business, Damon. All those reports you have given him over the years mean nothing to him. That is why he has always passed them along to me. I know all the routes, merchandise, bribes, buyers, and sellers like the back of my hand. Grams made sure that I knew every detail of the operation before she died. She was worried that Giuseppe would try to screw me out of my cut."

Once again, Damon felt as if Bonnie had pulled the rug out from under him. He found himself wondering whom he had been sleeping beside for the last four years. His sweet bunny was supposed to be naïve to the details of their business. However, he continued to learn that Bonnie had hidden depths that he couldn't begin to understand. His initial impulse was to become angry and start a fight with her. He didn't like feeling as if Bonnie was pulling his strings.

He took a breath to calm himself. He bitterly replied, "It looks as if I wasn't the only person being dishonest in our marriage. Who are you?"

Bonnie studied his face carefully. She saw Damon's internal struggle. He was fighting against his instincts. Bonnie knew that he was close to losing control but she wasn't scared. Bonnie had three knives strategically placed around the couch. She would have him bleeding before Lucy and Tyler ever made it into the room.

The women in her family had always been fond of knives. Guns had their uses but true power came from burying a sharp blade into an unsuspecting man's soft flesh. The gush of warm blood on their hands was the reward for a job well done. Sheila had schooled Bonnie on that method because she was a woman. Fighting a man head to head was most assuredly a losing prospect. The key was to lull the victim into a false sense of security before striking.

"I tried to be what you wanted, Damon. You liked the fact that I was relatively silent and uncomplicated. You liked me being a warm body for you to slide into on occasion. You wanted someone to be a mother to your children and to look pretty on your arm. You never made an effort to learn anything about me. You didn't even know that my father was Jewish. How is that something that you don't know about your wife of four years? I played the part that you wanted because I hoped that you would love me. Well, you don't love me…not in any way that works for me. I no longer have an incentive to pretend for your benefit. This is who I am. You can like it or not. I don't care. I have to find a way to live my life where I can look myself in the mirror every morning."

He snapped, "You don't get to tell me how I feel about you, Bonnie! I never asked you to be anyone else! You chose this farce!"

"You are right. I don't know what goes on in that head of yours because you have never let me in! I can only draw conclusions from how you make me feel."

"I think it is safe to say that you never let me in either!"

"You never tried to get to know me, Damon. If you had shown even a modicum of interest, I would have told you everything. I had hoped for a partner when we were married. I wanted someone that I could tell all of the terrible shit that keeps me up at night. I wanted someone that would understand the things that make me so ashamed that I can't dare utter the words aloud. Instead, I got a man that made me feel worthless and let his father isolate me from everyone else that might have given a damn about me. You have no idea how broken I was before you ever married me. Being with you has made it all so much worse. Some days I can't think of a single thing that I like about myself. I damn near starved myself just to get your attention. I have been dying slowly in front of you for years and you never noticed. Why would I share anything with someone who didn't make me feel valued, respected, or wanted?"

Damon struggled to make sense of the veiled words Bonnie spoke. He didn't have context but he could hear the genuine pain and shame leaking out of her like a sieve. He could not fathom what she could possibly be holding inside that hurt her in such a way. Bonnie confused Damon. These last few days had been like looking at his wife's reflection through a broken fun house mirror. Each shard showed him some distorted image that was part of a larger tableau. She had been fierce when she broke the news of their separation at the Manor. Yet in this moment she looked every bit of a broken little girl that he wanted to protect from whatever ghosts were obviously haunting her. However, she was also shrewd enough to take the smuggling business right from under his nose. None of these three shards meshed with what he had believed about his wife just a week ago.

However, his mind kept going back to one statement. "What do you mean you starved yourself?"

Bonnie blinked back her tears. "It's the reason that I was underweight at the start of my pregnancy...the reason that I am still underweight. I skipped meals and practically lived in the manor's gym so that I could be thinner. I thought you weren't attracted to me because I was too fat. I went back to eating a normal diet and I stopped exercising altogether once I learned that I was pregnant. I was desperate to put on enough weight to make sure my babies would be healthy. I am still underweight because of the weeks of morning sickness where I couldn't hold anything down. The stress of being with you certainly didn't help my morning sickness."

Suddenly, Damon felt sick to his stomach. The sting of betrayal seemingly forgotten as he stared at the woman he loved. He moved closer and pulled Bonnie into his arms. He whispered against her hair, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, bunny. I didn't know…"

Bonnie shook her head and pushed him away. "I know that you didn't and that's the problem. I don't want your apologies or your comfort. I just want you to leave me alone now. I think we've said all that needs to be said for today."

"Bunny…" he whispered in a broken voice.

Lucy stepped into the room. She had obviously been eavesdropping on their conversation. She quietly said, "It's time for you to go, Damon."

He glared at Lucy but his attention was quickly drawn to the sharp sob that left Bonnie. He watched helplessly as she rushed out of the room presumably to get away from him. Damon swallowed thickly and slowly stood up. "I'll show myself out."