Damon hesitated. "Liz said they found the guy responsible for the accident. She also thinks he was involved in the poisoning."

Unconsciously, Elena's hand came up to touch her stomach. She began rubbing it in small soothing circles. A chill ran down her spine. "That should be good news. Yet the look on your face tells me I shouldn't feel relieved."

The last thing he wanted to do was upset her, but he wasn't about to lie to her either. "The guy was murdered, probably by whoever hired him. Which means the threat doesn't end with him. Whoever is behind these attacks likely killed him to shut him up, to make sure his sloppy work couldn't be traced back to them. That means the threat can still come from anywhere. And the further along you get, the more desperate their attempts will be."

She knew she was safe at least for the moment, but eventually they would have to go back to Mystic Falls. Jeremy was there. It was her home. She couldn't just leave indefinitely, yet Mystic Falls had brought her such heartache and loss. The death of her parents seemed to trigger events that sent her life spiraling out of control. Stefan had always blamed himself for drawing the danger to town, but in truth, danger had been looming from the moment she was born.

The attacks started at age 2 when Mikael came to kill her. Had it not been for Abby's desiccation spell, Elena wouldn't have lived long enough to meet either of the Salvatores. Yet Stefan felt responsible for stirring the trouble, all because of his desire to know her. He said it was his lingering presence that first drew Damon back to Mystic Falls, and thus opened the Pandora's Box of secrets regarding the vampires. Additionally, Stefan claimed it was Damon's obsession with freeing Katherine that led her to Elena. Unbeknownst to the brothers, Katherine had lurked in the background since their transition, following them wherever they went. But Elena never blamed either of the Salvatores. It was inevitable that she would be discovered with or without them. The difference was without their love and protection, she would never have survived. The brothers' presence may have alerted Katherine to Elena's whereabouts, but it was Katherine who brought the real danger to Elena's doorstep. Katherine planned to use Elena as collateral to finally gain her freedom from Klaus. From the moment Klaus arrived in town, Elena's life had been in mortal danger. Under his reign of terror, Elena saw the demise of most of her family, and had been condemned to a life of involuntary servitude to Klaus and the Original family. At their hands, she had literally died, not once but twice, during their familial tug of war.

Now it was the humans who had it in for her. Mystic Falls had a long history of zealots, dating back well before the Salvatore's time. For centuries, the founders sought to purge the supernatural dangers that plagued their town. Ric's disclosure had directed their attention towards the vampires, but Elena's status had seemingly remained a secret. Or so she thought. That is, until she became pregnant. She had no idea how much the council knew, but it was apparent that they would stop at nothing to see her and her child dead. It was ironic really. In their blind quest to purge all supernatural beings, they would end up destroying the very one that could finally bring peace to their town. Peace. That was something she doubted they would ever truly have. Even after the Originals were destroyed and the vampires were gone, it wouldn't change the ever looming presence of danger in their lives. She would still be a doppelganger and her son, a genetic anomaly. The only difference would be that Damon would no longer be able to protect them. Once this threat was vanquished, something else would simply take its place. It was one thing for her life to be in danger, but she never wanted that for her child. It was the reason she hadn't planned on having children.

Suddenly feeling emotional, she was on the verge of tears. Her voice quivered as she spoke. "He'll never be safe, will he? Someone will always be after him, and they won't stop until he's dead." She didn't need to see the somber look on Damon's face to know she was right. Still she looked at him, hoping somehow she wasn't.

Damon cupped her face lovingly with both hands, lifting her chin to meet his gaze. He looked deep into her eyes, not to compel her, but to soothe her. "I am not going to let that happen."

"But how...," her protest had barely left her lips when he cut her off.

"Ut, ut, ut. We're on our honeymoon, remember? No drama," he teased. When the worry in her eyes hadn't eased, his playfulness shifted to a soft, pleading tone. "We deserve this time together Elena. Let's leave the drama up to the sheriff for now. Ok?" His thumb caressed her cheek and then ran along her lips. One hand slid to rest at the nape of her neck, while the other ran down to the small of her back. Gently, he pulled her in closer for a tender kiss. When their lips parted, Damon searched her eyes once more. He raised his eyebrows in an unspoken question to see if she agreed.

She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to choke back her tears. Almost imperceptibly, she nodded in agreement. He was right of course. Nothing could be done at the moment. Worrying about something she had no control over would only cause more stress to the baby and ruin this precious time they had away together. Elena swallowed hard and buried her fears. She ran her hands along Damon's bare chest where his shirt was partially unbuttoned. She smirked and looked up at him flirtatiously. "Well then Mr. Salvatore, if we're to enjoy our honeymoon then we need to get you out of those clothes immediately."

An enticing smile spread across Damon's lips. He purred out, "Now that's more like it. Care to help me?" The feel of her hands caressing his bare chest sent desirous tingles throughout his entire body. His hands lightly ran circles along her hips as he pressed himself into her. Despite the gap between them due to her swollen stomach, his hardness was inescapable. Teasingly, she unbuttoned the rest of his shirt then ran her fingers again up his chest. Her nails scraped down his back, as she rolled his shirt off of his shoulders and dropped it to the floor. His head tilted back, and he let out a long moan at the feel of the pleasurable pain. He seized her lips once more with the zest of a man who was dying of thirst. Their tongues fondled each others', stoking their lust. Damon guided her by her hips backwards towards the bed. They smiled and moaned naughtily between kisses as their need for each other grew deeper. Elena sat down, when the back of her knees hit the edge of the bed. This put her directly at eye level to his obvious bulge. Her hands found their way to the button of his jeans where she made short work of freeing his pulsating beast. Elena's eyes widened when she unzipped his jeans, discovering he wasn't wearing underwear. She raised her eyebrows, giving him a curious look.

A crooked smile flashed across his lips. He shrugged. "I was in hurry this morning. Besides," he said in a silky voice, "I didn't plan on wearing them long anyway." He leaned down to give her a kiss. The kiss stifled their wicked hmmm hmmm laughs.

When their lips parted, Elena glanced down devilishly at his beast. She bit her lower lip. She felt him grow even harder when she wrapped her fingers around the shaft. She shot him a wanton look. Their eyes remained fixed on each others', while she swirled her tongue along the head, tasting the saltiness of his excitement. The feeling was exhilarating. The sight of her taking him this way fed his desire. His hands ran lightly along the side of her hair. He brushed it aside and gathered it to hold out of the way. Damon continued to watch, as she manipulated her mouth up and down his member. Watching her wasn't meant as a form of degradation. On the contrary, she was in the power position over his pleasure, and he was at her mercy. The way she seemed to enjoy returning his stare as she teased him was definite proof of that.

After a few moments, he released her hair, gently pulling himself away from her grasp. His hands found the edge of his jeans. "Why don't you get comfortable while I get rid of these?" He pushed his jeans down to his ankles and unzipped his boots. He pulled them off, one by one, with the leg his jeans and discarded everything to the side.

Elena had scooted herself back on the bed and watched him undress. Anticipation and desire were flooding her thighs with wetness. The scent of her arousal was intoxicating to Damon. He picked up the cup of whipped cream from the tray and joined her on the bed. Dipping his finger in the cream, he lightly ran it along her lips. She licked the cream from her lips with a slow, enticing swipe of her tongue. The next scoop of cream he dangled above her mouth. He wiggled his finger to drop the cream inside, tempting her to catch it on her tongue. Twice she attempted to lick his finger, but he pulled it just out of her reach in a taunt. The third time, she lunged her head up and seized his finger in her mouth. His eyes watched her intently, as she sucked the cream from his finger.

When she finished, he trailed his fingers down her chin and along her cleavage. The black negligee she wore was sheer enough to see her taut nipples, protruding underneath the fabric. He ran his finger tips in a circle along their peaks then leaned his mouth down and rolled one between his teeth. Elena's back arched slightly at the sensation. He untied the black satin bow in the center, releasing her breasts from the material. With his finger, he lightly swirled some cream around each nipple. The cool feel of the cream made her shiver with excitement. Damon set the cup on the nightstand. He turned back and licked his lips at the tantalizing sight before him. Lying on his side, he ran his hand down her body to massage the insides of her thighs. With firm long strokes, he licked and sucked the cream from her breasts. Elena clutched at the back of his hair desirously. He repositioned himself over her with his knees between her legs. The bulk of his weight rested on his hands to avoid placing pressure on her stomach. His lips trailed gentle kisses over the top of her lingerie, down her stomach, until he reached just below her navel. Taking the material between his teeth, he playfully attempted to pull the teddy up. Elena's hand immediately shot down to stop him.

He frowned. "Really, Elena?"

She shook her head, no. "You know how blah I feel right now?"

Rolling his eyes, Damon let out a sigh in frustration. They'd been over this at least a dozen times. Recently Elena had started feeling self conscious about her figure and had refused to let him see her naked. She knew how much he loved her, but at the moment she felt less than sexy. And it didn't help that anywhere they went women's heads turned when Damon walked into a room. He was painfully loyal but at times an unconscious flirt. Despite how many times he tried to reassure her, it didn't make a difference. Once she had her mind set on something, it was difficult to change her opinion. So this time he opted for a new approach. Teasingly, he said, "Well then, I guess that means you don't want to feel my tongue on you."

Elena glared at him. With a slight huff, she pulled up her teddy barely enough to expose her pelvis.

This time it was Damon who glared at her. He pushed the material further up to the middle of her stomach then immediately started kissing along her groin to distract her. Within seconds, Elena forgot all about being self conscious. She was lost in the delight of his kisses as he worked his way towards his target. The soft warmth of his tongue, sliding along her slit, made her unconsciously moan his name. His long, steady strokes gradually increased in their rapidity. To draw out her pleasure, he slowed his licks whenever she came close to peaking. Knowing what would ultimately send her over the edge, Damon wrapped his lips around her clit and began to gently suck. Elena clutched at the sheets and shuddered in bliss as she climaxed. He continued to suckle on her swollen nub, letting her fully ride out the rush.

When he felt the tension in her body start to ease, he released her from his grasp and slowed his tongue motions to gentle caresses. He repositioned himself up on his haunches, still resting between her thighs. His eyes trailed up and down her body, pleased by the result of his efforts. Elena's lingerie was disheveled. She was panting heavily, and her face was flushed. Her hand rested against her forehead, attempting to collect herself after the intense pleasure. With feather like pressure, Damon ran his finger tips back and forth along her inner thighs. She was more than ready for him, and he was just as desperate to be inside her. He pulled her by the hips towards him so he could rub himself along her wetness. He reveled in the heat that radiated from her when his beast glided between her lips. Elena's eyes were hooded with lust, enjoying the feel of him against her, as she waited for him to plunge inside. He teased at her entry with the head before pressing himself deeper and deeper into her. Elena let out a satisfied whimper once he was completely immersed. Damon narrowed his eyes and smiled wickedly. He basked in the silky wetness that enveloped him as he steadily glided within her. Holding on to her hips, he thrust into her slowly, deeply. His excitement steadily climbed with each thrust. Damon's eyes closed briefly as he tried to hold out longer to savor the feeling.

After a time, Elena could tell by his body language that he was on the brink of no return. She tightened herself around his beast, sending him into oblivion. His grip on her hips tightened and his body tensed at the moment of his release. Once he was spent, his movements stilled. Both of them were breathing heavily, looking completely sated. Damon held himself inside her a few moments. He positioned himself over her once more, bearing his weight on his hands, and leaned in for a sweet kiss. Her hands reached up to hold his face between them.

He whispered, "Now wasn't that better than wasting time worrying?"

"Worrying about what?" Her attempt to feign amnesia was playfully over exaggerated.

"Hmph, exactly!" With a smirk on his face, he leaned in to give her another soft kiss. He rolled over to lie next to her, resting his head on his arm. His fingers combed through her hair, lightly playing with the strands. Both content and a bit sleepy, they nestled close to each until they fell back asleep. They had no place they had to be except curled up in each others' embrace.

Klaus was sitting in the great room of his mansion, rummaging through Esther's grimoires. He had them open and scattered about the coffee table. When he had visited Elena a few days ago, all of her injuries were healed, no doubt by Damon. Yet his offer to heal her had been rejected because of the risk. Klaus' heightened animal instincts warned him something was amiss, and he was determined to find out what was going on. He was losing his patience with the lengthy grimoires in his quest for answers. His mother, Esther, had created the spell that required the blood of the doppelganger to complete his hybrids' transitions. Since the doppelganger was born only every 500 years, it was imperative that no harm came to her bloodline. He had wasted hours searching in vain for any hint of danger or special circumstances that could hinder this process, anything to make sense of Bonnie's insistence. Either his mother intentionally omitted the information or Bonnie was lying. He suspected the latter. In frustration, Klaus threw one of the grimoires across the room. It whipped past Rebekah just as she walked in.

Rebekah's head snapped to the side, as she watched the book fly past her. She turned back to address Klaus. "Well, I see you're starting the day off in a fine mood." She glanced at the floor, frowning when she saw the grimoires. "What are you doing with mother's grimoires?"

Clearly annoyed, he spat out, "I was bored. Thought I'd do some light reading. What does it look like I'm doing?"

Rebekah folded her arms across her chest and pouted at his sarcasm. "At the moment, it looks like you're throwing a temper tantrum."

Klaus sighed heavily, trying to regain control over his anger. "I'm trying to find out more about the doppelganger curse. I thought maybe mother's grimoires could enlighten me on a few things. As usual, she was a total disappointment."

"Problems with your dear sweet Elena?" Rebekah took pleasure in harassing Klaus. She resented the fact that Klaus put more care and concern into his hybrids than he did in his own family. Rebekah made her way over to the bar to grab a drink. "I thought you were thrilled that her bastard child was perpetuating the cycle. What has she done this time, abort it?" She took a sip from the glass she had poured.

"On the contrary, it's what has been done to protect it that has made me suspicious. Something is not right with this situation."

"What makes you think that?" Rebekah walked over to the chair across from Klaus and sat down. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. Her glass was cradled between her hands.

Klaus rubbed his forehead as he began to explain. "I was there when Bonnie's car was struck. I attempted to heal Elena, but Bonnie adamantly insisted I didn't. She said it could be dangerous to the baby because Elena is a doppelganger." He stood up and began to pace. "Yet Elena has received my blood plenty of times before without incident. And I know for a fact that vampire blood has never caused harm to an expectant mother." He paused a moment, waving his hand in a prompting manner. "Remember that servant of ours in the late 1800's? The one with all the miscarriages? What was her name?"

"Lillian."

Klaus tilted his head towards the ceiling. "Ah that's right, Lillian." He began to pace again. "And how many times did she miscarry? Four, five times was it?"

"Five. The last time she was pregnant, I gave her my blood daily to see that her child would live." Rebekah had always had a soft spot for children, perhaps because she had been robbed of having her own when her mother turned her.

"And it worked. I remember the lad. He grew up to be quite strong."

Rebekah scanned over the grimoires that were strewn about the table. "Is that why you're looking through mother's grimoires, to see if Bonnie was telling the truth? And what did you find?"

He paused from his pacing and shot her a look. "Nothing. Not one mention." He shook his finger, as he voiced his concern to her. "There is something about this baby that she is trying to hide from me. And I will find out what that something is."

Rebekah rolled her eyes. She slumped upright against the back of the chair. "Again with the conspiracy theories. Come on Nik aren't you being paranoid?"

"Given how many times they've tried to kill me, I would say I'm being quite rational."

"And why exactly does any of this matter? She was probably just being careful," Rebekah said nonchalantly.

"It matters because after the accident Damon proceeded to give Elena his blood despite the potential dangers. Now why would he do such a thing?"

"Because he's Damon. He is annoyingly protective of Elena. It's one of his few redeeming qualities." Suddenly she smirked, recalling a private memory. "Well that and his many talents in the sack," she mumbled into her glass, before taking another drink. Rebekah looked up to see Klaus had stopped dead in front of her. He glared down at her. She shook her head, clearing her thoughts. "I'm sorry. What were you about to say?"

Irritated, he replied, "I was about to say that's precisely my point. Damon is very protective of Elena. He may be reckless, but he would never do anything to put Elena or her child's life in danger."

Rebekah considered this a moment. "Then maybe he already knew nothing would happen. Perhaps he'd given it to her before."

Klaus cocked his head to the side curiously. "And that is exactly why I'm suspicious."

Bonnie was in her bedroom putting on the finishing touches, as she got dressed for her date with Jeremy. Things had been tentative between them ever since Elena had caught Jeremy kissing Ana's ghost. He had tried to make amends, but it took time for her to get past the hurt and insecurity. It wasn't really until after Elena and Matt's near fatal drowning that they slowly started working their way back to each other. Life was too short to stay apart over a stupid mistake. They started out slowly with rebuilding their friendship, and now they were back to dating.

When Bonnie had placed the spell on Damon, allowing him to impregnate Elena, she had worried how it would affect her relationship with Jeremy. The last thing she wanted was to ruin the trust they'd just spent months strengthening. It was a relief when Jeremy said he didn't hate her. Of course he was livid when he first found out, not just that she cast the spell but had done so without Elena's consent. Jeremy knew Elena had, tentatively at least, decided not to have children thus ending the Petrova curse with her. Bonnie taking it upon herself to override that decision felt like a betrayal. But Jeremy's anger didn't last long. He told Bonnie he knew her well enough to know that her actions weren't done out of malice. As always, she was doing her best to find a way for all of them to live a normal life, including Elena. Besides, he knew even if Bonnie had asked her, Elena would have gone through with the plan anyway. Elena had a martyr complex. She was always willing to sacrifice herself for the safety of the people she loved. The same was true for Damon. Although Jeremy hated to admit it, he understood why Damon had been chosen to be the father. Even if they hated him, everyone knew Damon would die before he let anything happen to Elena.

The sound of the doorbell ringing startled Bonnie. She glanced at her cell phone on the dresser. Jeremy wasn't supposed to pick her up for another 15 minutes. He's early. It was a good thing she was almost ready anyway. She grabbed her phone and tossed it in her purse on her way out of the room. The doorbell rang twice more consecutively before she could reach the door. Excitedly, she flung the door open, expecting to see Jeremy standing there. The smile on her face dropped when she saw Klaus standing in front of her instead. "Klaus. What are you doing here?"

"Well it's a pleasure to see you too." Klaus put on a fake smile.

Her stance slumped in disappointment. She crossed her arms over her chest. Clearly annoyed, she said, "What are you doing here?"

"I want to know what you're hiding." He stared at her intensely, dead seriousness in his voice.

"Excuse me?" Bonnie's eyes widened at the accusation.

"Elena. You stopped me from feeding her my blood the other day. I want to know why?"

"I...I told you," she stuttered. "Elena's a doppelganger. We have no idea how the blood would affect the baby."

"And why in that moment did it suddenly occur to you that this could be an issue?"

Bonnie shrugged. "Elena has been through a lot. I don't think she would be able to handle it if she lost her baby. I just didn't want to take any chances."

"Really? Then perhaps you can explain to me why Damon had no problem taking a chance in feeding her his blood?" Klaus' voice was heavily laced with sarcasm.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't seen Elena since she was released from the hospital." Bonnie did her best to make her ignorance sound convincing. Truthfully, she knew that Damon had given his blood to Elena after the accident, without hesitation. They both knew, from the previous attempt on her life, that Elena and the baby would be fine. In fact, Bonnie had checked the spell she used on Damon multiple times just to make sure. As far as she could tell, the only vampire blood she could be certain wouldn't harm the baby was Damon's. She had deduced that it was the equivalent of a human receiving a blood transfusion. If a human is given the wrong blood type, it would be fatal. In this case though, it wasn't the type of blood, but the source that mattered.

"You can stop with the lies, Bonnie. I stopped by to check on Elena. I saw her, completely healed from her injuries. It's obvious she received vampire blood." He clasped his hands behind his back, rocking up then down on the balls of his feet. A menacing smile spread across his face as he baited her. "Now we all know how impulsive Damon can be in his quest to protect Elena, so surely you would have warned him about the potential danger of healing her. And yet he took that risk even though her injuries weren't life threatening. Why would he do such a reckless thing to the woman he loves?"

Bonnie knew Klaus couldn't enter without an invitation, and even if he could, he was no match for her witchcraft. And there was no one else at home for him to threaten either. Bonnie didn't respond. She remained stoic.

Klaus knew how good the Bennett witches were at keeping secrets. He'd dealt with their bloodline repeatedly over the centuries. Again he flashed one of his typical perilous smiles. "Alright then, allow me. Damon had no qualms about healing her because he already knew there was no danger to it. My guess is he'd given it to her before, only under much more dire circumstances. But you already knew that, didn't you?" He purred his words out, toying with her like a cat playing with a mouse.

Bonnie tried to keep her tone as matter of fact as she could. "If you're referring to the poisoning, yes, I knew Damon gave her his blood. He said she was bleeding heavily. He thought she was dying. Out of desperation, he took the risk in feeding her. He managed to get enough down to save the baby, but she still spent a whole week in the hospital recovering. They were lucky."

His eyes narrowed incredulously. "And that brings us back to my original question. Why. Did. You. Lie. To me?"

Bonnie swallowed hard, trying not to show her fear. "Look I didn't lie to you. I said I didn't know what effect your blood would have on the baby."

Klaus shook his finger at her. "No, you said you didn't know what affect it, as in vampireblood, would have on her. You did not specify my blood."

"I had a concussion and you're going to harass me about semantics? Seriously?"

"Let's skip the part where you fake being insulted to divert my attention away from the topic. Just answer the question."

Through gritted teeth, she said, "I told you the truth. The doppelganger was a result of the curse created against you. It stands to reason there could be danger if your blood is fed to the next unborn generation. I was protecting Elena's baby. You should be thanking me. I did you a favor." Her eyes glanced over his shoulder a moment and then back. She raised her chin indignantly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm on my way out."

Klaus turned to see Jeremy walking up the porch step behind him.

Jeremy looked at Klaus then Bonnie. "What's going on here?"

Bonnie said, "Nothing Jeremy. He was just leaving."

"Actually, Bonnie and I were just having a little chat about the importance of semantics. The wrong word can make you question ones credibility." Klaus glanced sideways at Bonnie, smiling.

Jeremy looked at Bonnie. "What the hell is he talking about?"

"It's not important. Let's just go." Bonnie pushed past Klaus, closing the door behind her.

As they turned to leave, Klaus grabbed Jeremy by the arm, stopping him. He asked, "By the way, when I stopped by I noticed your sister and Damon were packing. I don't suppose you know where they were going?"

"No. And even if I did, I certainly wouldn't tell you." Jeremy's words dripped with disdain. He jerked his arm away. Klaus had tormented everyone he loved. He wasn't about to tell him anything about Elena. At seventeen, he had more bravery than most men 3 times his age. With all the danger around him, he had had to grow up quickly. He wasn't afraid to die. He had died more than once already. Besides he had the Gilbert ring to protect him.

Klaus looked down at Jeremy's hand and pointed at it. "Careful, that ring only protects you if it's on your finger. I could rip your finger off and snap your neck in a heartbeat, and then your girlfriend Bonnie here will be going to your funeral instead of on a date."

Bonnie stepped between them before things spiraled out of control. "Elena was stressed from all the recent attacks. She and Damon took a trip to get away for a while. They thought it would be safer if no one knew where they were going."

"And when shall our lovebirds return?"

"In a week or so. Now if you'll excuse me, Jeremy and I are late." Bonnie indicated with her eyes for Klaus to move out of the way.

Klaus stepped aside, motioning his hand out for them to walk past. "By all means."

Jeremy took her hand, leading her to the car. His eyes watched Klaus as he helped Bonnie get in. Klaus mockingly waved goodbye to them. Jeremy walked quickly around the front of the car and got in.

Bonnie looked over at him with a concerned expression. "That was close. We need to warn Damon."