It'd only been a week and a half since he'd met her. Since she'd interviewed him so professionally. Since he'd kept his cool and refrained from making any less than vocational move on her... for the most part.

Damon met an outrageous amount of people on a daily basis, and if he were to be honest, he didn't like many of them. But she was different, that Elena Gilbert. He kept thinking of her, but why?

He was sitting in a large, plush chair in the center of an office belonging to the company event planner. He fiddled with the stupid nick-nacks on his desk.

The event planner, a hefty dark haired man, twirled the telephone's cord around his index finger nodding, like the person on the other line could see his agreement.

Damon lifted a photo off of the mahogany desk. The man, his wife, and daughter stood happily, smiling for the camera. Annoyed that the man was ignoring him at the time he had scheduled, he tapped the picture viciously. "Not bad, Rob." He said, his finger trailing down the daughter's body. "She must be what, twenty?" He smirked. "Prime age, have her give me a call."

The man snatched the photo from Damon's grasp before finishing up on the phone and apologizing to whoever was on the other end of the line. "Must you be such a pig?" He rolled his eyes. "Now what do you want, Damon? I have a lot to do today."

"I know. Which is why I'm here." Damon said proudly. "I need you to add two people to the guest list for tomorrow night."

"Damon, it may be a private party, but it's still going to be a work event, you can't bring two girls." Rob shook his head.

"Nope, not what I meant." Damon countered. "I need one girl added, a her plus one."

"For what?" He was suspicious. "You realize Katherine's going to be there, and you bringing a date after your last scandal is going to cause quite the commotion." Robert reminded him before pulling up the guest list on his computer.

"Please, Rob?" He pleaded. "Plus, she won't be my date. I'd just like to see her again."

"If I allow it will you get out of my hair?" He asked, clearly annoyed at Damon's presence.

"Yup. Immediately upon adding Elena Gilbert to that list."

Robert's eyes shot up to Damon's. "Elena Gilbert? The journalist that interviewed you a few weeks ago?"

"Um, yup." Damon was now nervous. How did he know about that? He planned parties, not interviews.

"There's a lot of talk about her lately amongst the company, her writing mostly, but your interview has brought her into the limelight." He said, inputting her name into the computer, and signaling that she was entitled to a plus one. "Do you know what the best way to contact her is?"

"No sir." Damon answered. "I'd say send an invitation to her house, the old fashion way."

"Alright, Damon. I'll have someone get me her information."

"Make sure it gets to her." Damon pressed as he stood up. "Take it to her personally if you have to."

"She must be one hell of an interviewer." Robert breathed, unaware that Damon could still hear him.

"She is." He assured her. "Thanks Rob." Damon extended his arm and shook the man's hand before excusing himself.

An hour later Damon was walking into his oversized penthouse. His tile floors and leather furniture were sparkling. The maid had obviously just been through. It was still morning, but he walked to his kitchen with shoes still on, the damp soles of his dark sneakers squeaking on the floor. His day off was about him, right? So why not drink?

The amber liquid he poured cascaded from the bottle and into his glass.

"Hey."

The voice startled him, and his bottle dropped, crashing against the granite counter top. "Dammit Stefan!" He breathed, turning to face his brother. "What are you doing here? Don't you have your own house?"

Stefan smiled and grabbed a towel from a nearby drawer, tossing it to his older sibling. "I do, but sense when are you so jumpy?" Damon was usually calm, cool, and collected.

Stefan lifted an eyebrow in anticipation of Damon's response.

"I'm just nervous, uh, big event tomorrow." His response was truthful, and his brother knew that, but he also knew Damon better than to believe that his nervousness was strictly the event in general.

"Who'd you invite?" He asked, dropping down on a bar stool across from Damon.

"Nobody." He said, jerking his head toward the elevator as it dinged, signaling someone was coming. "I'm going solo."

"No you're not." Katherine smiled, her heels sounding an annoying rhythm on the dark floors as she made her way over to the two Salvatores.

She draped a long arm over Damon's shoulders. "What happened here? You know what, never mind. Rumor has it, you're taking me." Her grin was evil. Damon wanted nothing more than to toss her out.

"Hence, rumor." He widened his eyes, almost looking to Stefan for some help but deciding against it.

"Please?" Katherine pleaded, her thick eyelashes fluttering.

"Why should I?" He asked, allowing his blue eyes to travel south of her face.

"I could give you a dozen reasons." She purred, seductively toying with the hem of her dress. "Or, Stefan here could take me." She switched her focus to the younger of the two.

Stefan just raised his eyebrows again, not sure what to say, and began picking up shattered glass.

"Fine." Damon mumbled, not willing to accept that she seemed to want his brother as much as she wanted him.

"What's that?" Katherine smiled, trailing her fingers down Damon's chest.

"I'll take you to the party, Katherine." Damon announced, catching her hand in his teasingly at first, and then giving it back to her. "But next time? Call before you show up uninvited."

"Yes sir." She grinned, planting a kiss on the corner of his lips, just far enough over so that he could consider it on the cheek – not lips. She didn't want to push her luck. "Bye boys."

They both watched silently as she strutted back to the elevator.

"Pretty solid relationship you've got there, Brother." Stefan smirked, tossing away the last of the broken bottle.

"Shut up." Damon sneered, wiping up the last bits of spilled bourbon before tossing the sopping towel at his brother, smacking his white t-shirt and leaving a stain.

"Really mature." Stefan scoffed, pulling his shirt out to take a better look.

Damon ignored him, pouring himself a drink from a new bottle, and gulping back the alcohol before continuing his interrupted conversation. "What are you doing here?" He asked.

"It's our day off, thought we could do some brotherly bonding." Stefan smirked. His brother wasn't one for bonding, but like everyone else, Stefan heard some rumors, and he wanted to get to the bottom of them.