Hello everyone! Here we are with part 2 :) Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, followed and faved I really appreciate all the support! :D Also quick disclaimer, I've never been to NOLA so all of this is just from my internet research but I definitely have to say I really want to visit one day. It seems like a fun and great city. :)
No beta so please forgive any errors I didn't catch.
"Just try one, love."
Caroline crinkled her nose in disgust as she looked at the plate of oysters he held in his hand, looking up at him when she heard him chuckle. They had stopped at this small restaurant that he insisted, had the some of the best oysters in New Orleans and while she had been reluctant, she had decided to follow him in anyway, curious to see this popular dish but not actually sold on the idea of trying it.
"They look worst than they taste," he said amusedly, watching her as she eyed the oysters like some slimy insect that needed to be done away with quickly.
"Well that's not setting the bar very high," she countered sarcastically. "Remind me why I have to try these again?"
"It's part of the New Orleans experience," he explained with barely concealed laughter. "It tastes a lot better with this sauce," he added as he poured some on one and brought up to his mouth while Caroline looked on with a slight grimace.
"Come on, just one Caroline," he insisted with a dimpled grin. "I dare you."
She playfully narrowed her eyes at him, trying not to get distracted by his mesmerizing blue eyes that matched his form-fitting Henley he was wearing that day.
Never one to back down from a challenge, she sucked in a breath and picked up the sauce he had used and poured some over one of the oysters and then picked it up and watched him do the same with another.
He lifted his in the air and tilted his head in her direction with his lips curled into a smirk.
"Cheers, sweetheart."
She rolled her eyes, her lips curling up in amusement as well before she brought it up to her lips and imitated his movements and tilted her head back and threw it back, automatically closing her eyes and trying not to gag at the texture now slipping down her throat. It was his hearty laugh that had her snapping her eyes open again, making her realize she had closed them in the first place.
"What's the verdict?" he asked, his eyes twinkling with amusement.
"I'll stick to beignets," she answered with a slight grimace before taking a drink of her iced tea. "So what's next on the agenda?" she asked, the excitement obvious on her face and in her voice and he found himself smiling and internally congratulating himself for having a successful day so far.
They had spent the last couple of hours walking around the St. Louis Cathedral where she had taken in the beautiful sights and listen to him talk about some of the history and she found herself mesmerized by the place, the history, and his impressive knowledge of it all.
While he could have just been trying to show off with all his knowledge, it was obvious to her that he was equally fascinated with the rich history behind this city and these places. She could see it in the way his eyes lit up and he seemed to come more alive and damn if it didn't make him that much sexier to her.
Down girl!
After touring the cathedral, they headed off to Jackson Square where they had grabbed some delicious beignets and walked around some more and enjoyed the various artwork out on display, the music coming from some of the street musicians, and the "human statues" and she had even convinced, ehm forced, him to take one picture with her and one of the human statues, but her favorite was watching some of the artists at work bringing their masterpieces to life.
"Do you still paint?" she asked curiously as they walked down a crowded street on their way to their next destination.
"Uh yeah," he answered almost sheepishly. "Not as much I used to though."
"Not enough time?"
"No proper muse I suppose," he shrugged. "You can only do so many paintings of the same places or people."
He didn't tell her that he found himself oddly wanting to paint some of the places they had visited today because for some reason, experiencing some of these places with her made them feel new to him all over again.
"Did you ever sell any of your stuff or put it out on display like these artists?" she asked curiously.
He laughed and shook his head.
"No, my work isn't anything that would be noticed," he replied, almost embarrassed which was very unlike him, something they both knew.
She turned to look at him with an arched eyebrow and scoffed in disbelief.
"Seriously?" she asked. "I saw some of your work that was still up on display in the art department's 'Wall of Fame' or whatever, and it was really good so don't give me any of that."
He couldn't stop himself from smiling, pleased that not only had she noticed his work but had remembered it as well. He also mentally noted he had laughed and smiled more in the last few hours he had been around Caroline than he had in weeks combined. He couldn't help it, there was just something about her that brought out this side of him and made him even more intrigued and want to be around her.
"Well as long as I have your seal of approval on my work," he teased with a smirk.
"Smart ass," she replied with a smirk and eye roll. "So where exactly are we going?"
"You'll see," he responded with a smug grin.
"Seriously?" she scoffed playfully.
"What?" he asked innocently, his grin widening when he saw her narrow her eyes at him.
"Just tell me where we're going," she insisted.
"You're not very patient are you?" he chuckled.
"I like to know where I'm going," she argued, arching an eyebrow when he just laughed.
"Think of it as a surprise sweetheart," he said teasingly, a smirk forming on his face as he saw the scowl that formed on her face.
Yup, she certainly still hated surprises.
"The last time I was surprised I was almost arrested for nearly castrating one of my best friends," she said without thinking.
He arched an eyebrow and turned to look at her with intrigue and barely concealed amusement.
"Do tell," he said, audible laughter in his voice.
"I'd rather not," she muttered suddenly embarrassed as she remembered the story. "Let's just say Enzo will not be in a rush to surprise me anytime soon or ever."
"Enzo?" he repeated, the name sounding familiar to him.
"He's one of my best friends that I met at Whitmore, when oddly enough we were arrested together," she replied sheepishly.
"Oh come on sweetheart you can't tell me these things and then not give me the story behind it," he complained.
"It's not an exciting story," she laughed. "There was a party with some underage drinking and the cops showed up. I tried making my great escape which didn't work out too well since I couldn't even walk straight, Enzo saw me and helped me up when I ended up tripping on one of the steps," she said with a slight head shake. "Anyway, that's how we got caught and taken down to the station where my mom showed up ready to kill me. And yeah, Enzo and I have been friends ever since."
"Seems like quite the start to a friendship," he commented with a smirk.
She laughed and nodded her head.
"Yeah, I definitely didn't expect to end the night the way I did, but I'm glad everything worked out the way it did," she shrugged. "Enzo's definitely one of the most stable people in my life right now so I think it was worth it."
He silently listened, feeling an odd sense of envy toward this stranger he had never met for reasons that escaped him.
"So where are we going?" she tried again.
He sighed and shook his head amusedly.
"How do you feel about cemeteries?"
This made her stop dead in her tracks and turn to look at him with raised eyebrows.
"Cemeteries?" she repeated.
"Ever heard of the Cities of the Dead?" he asked with a grin as he watched her reaction.
"Seriously?"
"I told you New Orleans is the most unique city in the country," he responded with a smug smirk, extending his hand out to her. "So what do you say, love?"
She looked at him skeptically for a few moments and tried not to react to the way he called her 'love' in that sexy accent of his, before her lips broke into a small smirk that mirrored his own.
Stefan took in a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose as he glanced at the contract he had been going over for the last two hours. The meeting had lasted almost just as long but he thought that he would be free for the day after that and go meet up with wherever Caroline and Klaus were, but Alaric had other plans.
He was really pushing for various project proposals to be in and approved before the end of the month, meaning Stefan would be putting in more hours in the office than he would have liked or planned to. As it was, he would have to come in for the rest of the week. He ran his hand down his face in frustration. How was she going to take this news?
"Hey," he heard a familiar voice come from behind him and he felt his lips automatically curl up into a smile.
"Hey," he responded, turning to Elena who was leaning against the edge of his desk and looking down at him curiously.
"I couldn't help but notice that you've been pouring over these documents and worked straight through lunch," she said with a smile. "I also couldn't help but notice that I did the same thing."
"Oh?" he said with a grin as he looked up at her. "We should probably do something about that shouldn't we?"
"I was thinking going down to the café on the corner?"
"Sure," he nodded with a smile. "Let me just check in with Klaus and Caroline first."
"I'm still surprised you willingly left Klaus alone with your sister, especially after seeing her in person," she giggled as he moved to get his phone from where he had it plugged in.
"Meaning what?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Nothing bad," she assured him with a laugh. "It's just, your sister is gorgeous and from what you tell me about Klaus, Klaus is drawn is to gorgeous and gorgeous is drawn to him."
He looked almost baffled for a moment before quickly shaking his head.
"I would agree with you but this is different," he replied with a slight shrug. "Klaus is my best friend, they've known each other since we were still basically kids. He wouldn't cross that line with her."
"But who's to say she won't cross that line with him?" she teased, immediately regretting it when she saw the serious look he got on his face. "I'm only joking Stefan. I don't know your sister obviously, but from what it sounds like, you guys all have a pretty amazing history together so I wouldn't be surprised if she sees him like a brother too."
He took her hand and sighed, lingering on one of the last things she said.
"You know that was one of the reasons I flew her up here," he told her with a grin.
"To see Klaus as another brother?" she asked in confusion.
"No," he laughed. "For her to get to know you, and you her. I wanted her to meet the incredible woman who's brought me down to my knees with a just a smile."
She smiled at him and leaned in to give him a quick kiss.
"You sure know how to charm a lady Mr. Salvatore," she giggled. "Now come on. I'm starving."
He took her hand and followed after the amazing woman in front of him wishing desperately that she and Caroline could spend more time together. He loved Caroline and had always valued her opinion on the women he seriously dated which is why he really wanted her to get to know this woman he wanted to make a permanent part of his life.
He thought back on the ring he had already bought and would anxiously glance at almost every night since he had bought it a couple of weeks ago. He couldn't wait to present it to the woman in front of him, to finally see it on her but he knew he could never ask without getting his sister's genuine approval. Unfortunately for him, he didn't see that exactly happening if they remained strangers.
He tried to push back these thoughts and pulled out his phone to message Caroline and see how she was doing. Hopefully she was enjoying herself and hopefully they would all be able to spend more time together soon. He didn't bring her here to spend the entire time with Klaus after all.
Klaus walked in silence as he listened to Caroline list several facts about Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo Queen of New Orleans. She had been so intrigued with her story she had bought a small book about her that even contained some local folklore. Much of what she was telling him he already knew but he listened attentively anyway, a small smile gracing his face the entire time. He loved seeing her so excited about something because he had to admit it was truly a sight to behold and there was a part of him that was disturbed by how drawn he was to this woman.
Since last night, he had gone to bed thinking about different encounters with Caroline throughout the years but not many of them felt very memorable. There was the incident with her necklace and a couple other memories but aside from that, some of the things that really stood out in his mind was that she had always been a sassy one and that she was less than subtle in checking him out whenever she saw him. He chuckled at the reminder, but when he had laid eyes on her that morning dressed in those dark tight jeans that hugged her curves perfectly and that silk red top she had paired with a black sweater, he swallowed hard and realized now the roles may have switched and he may now be the one to not be so subtle.
The sound of his phone ringing distracted him from his thoughts and he pulled it out to see it was a call from the bar.
"Sorry, love, I have to take this," he said as he stepped aside to answer the call.
A few minutes later, he walked back to her side with a slight frown on his face.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
"Duty calls I'm afraid," he replied with a hint of annoyance.
She fought back a frown threatening to settle on her own face at the thought that they would have to be cutting the day short. She had truthfully been enjoying herself with him way more than she expected.
"Mind if we make a quick detour?" he asked. "It shouldn't take very long and then we can continue on our tour since your boring brother is still caught up in the office."
Despite the disappointment she felt that Stefan had called to say he would be taking longer than they had all anticipated, she smiled at the realization that her day with Klaus didn't have to end just yet.
"Lead the way," she responded with a smile.
Sometime later, she followed him down a crowded street and into a bar that had a perfect balance of a modern and vintage feel to it and just as she was about to ask them why they were there, one of the guys behind the counter greeted Klaus.
"Perfect timing boss," the guy said.
Boss?
"I think your sister is about to drive Mindy to commit murder back there," he joked as he rearranged some of the bottle behind the counter.
She heard Klaus sigh before he turned back to her.
"I have to take care of this. Why don't you have a seat and Dean here will get you whatever you want," he said, pulling out an empty barstool for her. "I won't be long."
"It's fine honestly. Take your time," she assured him as she took a seat. "I'll just be here getting hydrated."
He chuckled and told Dean to attend to her before walking to the back offices where he could hear his sister's angry shouts from a few doors down.
Fantastic.
Meanwhile out in the front, Caroline ordered a drink from the rather cute bartender before pulling out her phone to call Stefan, disappointed when it went to voicemail. She hung up just as the bartender came up with her drink.
"Here you go, on the house," he said with a smile that she returned. "So you must be a new friend of Klaus'?"
"Something like that," she laughed, quickly elaborating when she realized how that might be interpreted. "He's my brother's best friend so we kind of go back."
"Oh you're Stefan's sister?" he asked in surprise. "I didn't even realize he had a sister. You must not be from around here."
She tried not to wince at his words and forced a smile instead as she nodded her head.
"Yeah, I'm just visiting for a few weeks," she replied, taking another generous sip of her drink.
"Very cool. I like your brother actually. Yeah, he comes here every now and then with his girlfriend the pretty chick, I can't think of her name at the moment," he rambled.
"Elena," she offered. "So Stefan likes to hang around the bar huh?" she asked with a small laugh, thinking how not much had changed in that aspect then.
"Yeah, he'll come hang out with his girl or the guys, especially on game days," Dean answered. "He hasn't come in since before the holidays though. I remember the last time he was in here though, Marcel and all of them were giving him shit because he was nervous and all, talking about getting his girl a ring. Did he end up doing it?"
She suddenly felt as if somebody had hit her in the stomach with a bag of bricks and she tried to form any coherent thought or any thought other than "WHAT?" and a few expletives.
He turned to look at her expectantly and she quickly tried to compose herself.
"Uh, I have no idea," she tried to smile. "He hasn't mentioned anything to me."
He hasn't mentioned anything to me at all.
"Hey Dean, how's about you quit flirting with the customers and get back to work?" came another voice from behind her.
Caroline turned to see a tall, dark and pretty hot guy with a killer smile, stop by the counter a few feet away from her.
"Sorry if he's bothering you miss, he goes away if you just flick him on the nose," he joked.
She laughed and shook her head slightly at the same time that Dean answered.
"Rude," Dean laughed as he moved to wipe the counter. "I was just following the boss' orders and attending to his guest."
The guy turned to look at her with obvious curiosity now and she had to keep from rolling her eyes.
"Oh, you're a friend of Klaus'?" he asked. "I'm Marcel, his business partner and friend, most days anyway."
She laughed again and shook the hand he was extending out to her.
"I'm Caroline," she replied and noticed the realization dawn on him.
"You're Stefan's sister?" he asked almost in surprise.
"Yeah, Klaus is doing me a favor and showing me around since Stefan's caught at the office," she replied with a light laugh. "So you're a friend of Stefan's too?"
"Yeah," he laughed. "Sorry I didn't expect to be meeting you here so soon, I would've made myself more presentable," he joked as he slid into the stool next to her. "So Klaus is showing you around huh?"
She nodded, her lips automatically breaking into a smile as she thought back on her day so far.
"How are you liking The Big Easy so far?" he asked. "My man better be doing this city justice."
She laughed and nodded her head.
"As much as I hate to admit it and risk increasing his big ego, he's done a pretty damn good job so far," she replied with a grin.
"Good, good that's what I wanna hear," he chuckled. "Where has he taken you?"
She started recounting the places they had gone and some of the foods he had her try, and he listened attentively the entire time, interjecting a comment here or there, laughing at the fact that she got him to take a picture with one of the human statues.
"Did he take you on a carriage tour down the French Quarter?" Dean asked as he wiped down some of the glasses.
She shook her head and Marcel laughed and shook his head too.
"Nah man this is Klaus we're talking about," Marcel said.
Caroline looked at him questioningly and Marcel chuckled.
"Oh it's nothing bad, Klaus just doesn't do anything that might be considered intimate or something," he said simply.
"Marcellus, shouldn't you be running some numbers somewhere instead of bothering my guest?" Klaus asked with a smirk but she could hear a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"Says the guy who took the day off," Marcel shot back jokingly. "All right I know where I'm not wanted. Caroline, it's been a pleasure and I hope to see you around here again soon. You can spill any dirty secrets you have on these two so I can continue giving them hell for you when you're gone."
She laughed and nodded her head in agreement, surprised when he took her hand and brought it up to his lips. She didn't miss the way that Klaus clenched his jaw at the little gesture.
"You doing alright, love?" he asked as soon as Marcel was gone.
"Yeah," she answered with a small smile, trying to process some of the information she had gathered since he left her out here.
"Any word from Stefan?" he asked.
"He messaged to say he was still at the office," she answered with a slight frown.
He studied her silently for a few moments before stepping back a little.
"Come with me, there's something I want to show you," he said with a small glint in his eye.
She tilted her head and looked at him questioningly.
"Another surprise?"
"Something like that," he replied with a smirk. "Did I disappoint you with the last one?"
She sighed, reluctantly conceding he had a point and motioned for him to lead the way and he led her up a couple flight of stairs leading them to the top of the building where she got a great view of the busy street below and some of the city and she found herself smiling at the sight, wishing she had a good camera to take a picture of this amazing view to add to her already enormous collection of pictures she took that day alone.
"Wow," she gasped as she walked to the edge and leaned against the rail, admiring the city below.
He chuckled as he came to stand next to her.
"You're currently standing in one of my favorite places in the entire city," he told her. "The view from here is the very reason I bought this bar."
"I can definitely see why," she said, her gaze still fixed on the city. "I have to admit, you were right to feel confident about your city."
He laughed and leaned against the rail and turned to face her.
"And how am I doing?" he asked with a grin. "As tour guide?" he added when he saw her look up at him and arch an eyebrow.
"You're perfect," she responded with a small smile, rolling her eyes playfully when she saw his all too smug smile. "And now you're going to be beyond annoying about it aren't you?"
"I wouldn't say that," he responded with a smirk. "I couldn't be even if I wanted to."
"That is entirely subjective and extremely debatable," she playfully argued. "You're definitely on the right track right now."
He scoffed and brought up a hand to his heart, feigning offense.
"You wound me, sweetheart. And here I thought we were becoming good friends," he said with mocked seriousness.
She rolled her eyes, unable to fight back a smile.
"I didn't take you to be so dramatic," she joked.
"I believe that title far suits my dear sister best though I suppose the rest of the family does have a small penchant for it, especially when we get a little moody," he admitted with a hint of a smirk.
"Yeah, I remember Rebekah's penchant for it all too well," she responded sarcastically, turning to glare at him when she heard him laugh.
"Yes, I also recall the stories all too well," he said, referring to the high school rivalry that had lasted between them all four years. "I'm afraid Rebekah has retained her penchant for dramatics even today," he added with an eye roll as he recalled why he had to get down to the bar in the first place.
She chuckled at his comment but remained with her gaze fixed on the city, the sound of a jazz group that started playing down the street capturing her attention.
They both listened to them play for a few minutes, a smile on her lips as she thought about how much she was loving this place when her thoughts drifted back to her brother and what she had learned.
"Is he happy?" she asked quietly.
He turned to look at her with a questioning look so she repeated herself.
"Stefan, is he happy?"
"He is. As far as I'm aware anyway."
"Your bartender mentioned something about him getting Elena a ring?" she asked in that same quiet voice, noticing him stiffen for a moment, serving as confirmation for her.
"You didn't know?"
"Nope," she replied, popping the 'p' for emphasis. "Then again, there's a lot I don't know about him now I guess."
He must have seen something on her face because she saw his gaze soften and he placed a hand over hers.
"He does miss you, you know?" he said in a low voice, almost as if he could read her mind. "He doesn't have to say it. I can see it whenever he sees me with Rebekah or whenever he would talk to you. I know he misses you more than he shows."
This softer side of him took her aback. She was used to his confident and often arrogant side that she didn't know how to respond right away, giving him a small but appreciative smile instead.
She didn't have to think of what to say however, when his phone started going off, making him clench his jaw in annoyance as he pulled the small device out of his pocket. He checked the caller ID and let out a sigh.
"Duty calls?" she asked with a light laugh.
"Unfortunately," he sighed again as he answered before it went to voicemail. "What is it Mindy?"
Caroline turned her attention back to the band still playing while he took the call and after a few moments, he hung up and turned to her again.
"I'm sorry about this, love, I have to take care of a few more things before we head out."
"Don't worry about it, I get it," she assured him with a smile.
"We'll be out of here soon I promise," he repeated as he walked her back to empty booth and quickly moved to get her a menu. "Order anything you want. I'll be back soon."
She hadn't been sitting out there long before Dean brought her a drink and a basket of fries and it only a short while after that, Marcel came over to keep her company again.
After she got a call from Stefan saying he wouldn't be able to meet up with them until dinner, and dropping the news that he would be working for the rest of the week, she felt a little frustrated to say the least. There was so much she wanted to talk to him about, especially now, but he felt as out of reach as he did when she was back in Mystic Falls.
Trying not to dwell on it, she tried to distract herself and ended up splitting the fries with Marcel while the two had some drinks and chatted about New Orleans, Stefan, Klaus, and the other Mikaelson siblings. She learned a few things about Marcel as well, like how he came to be friends with Klaus when Klaus first moved to New Orleans and how the two ended up opening this bar together before expanding and buying a few others around New Orleans but this seemed to be their main and preferred one. Somehow this conversation turned into Marcel mixing some of his very own creations for her that she all too happily tried.
Klaus was in his office filling out some of the inventory forms with Mindy when he heard a knock on the door and looked up to see Dean walking in with some deposit slips.
"How's Caroline doing?" he asked as he took the deposit slips.
"I think she's definitely enjoying herself," Dean chuckled. "She and Marcel are out watching the jazz band playing across the street. Last I heard before they walked out was that she wanted to dance."
Klaus raised his eyebrows, and stood up to see this for himself. When he walked out, he saw a few other people gathered and watching the lively band playing but he seemed to only see Caroline after he immediately spotted her as Marcel twirled her around and she laughed.
He wasn't exactly sure how long he stood there before she noticed him standing there, a bright smile immediately breaking out on her face that he returned. His eyes widened slightly in surprise when she quickly ran over to him and grabbed his hand and led him to the other side of the crowd where they had a view of one of the couples with the band doing the Charleston.
"Dance with me," was all he heard before she dragged him to a small clearing where a few other couples were dancing too.
Marcel looked on from the side amusedly but Klaus didn't pay much attention to him after Caroline turned around to face him, placing one hand on his shoulder while keeping their other hands entwined.
"I don't really know what I'm doing but I don't really care," she admitted with a laugh.
He laughed and looked down at her, noticing the slight flush on her cheeks as well as a slightly dazed look in her eyes.
"Are you drunk Caroline Forbes?" he asked with a slight frown.
"Nope, definitely not drunk…maybe a little tipsy though," she admitted with a laugh. "Just tipsy enough to not care that I'm totally making a fool of myself."
"I assure you, you're not," he chuckled as he wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her closer as he spun around with her, smiling when she laughed and held on to him tighter.
He felt entranced as he watched her smile light up her whole face, almost fascinated with how happy and carefree a person could be and by God did he have to really fight back the urge to kiss her. What the hell was going on with him?
When the song ended, she pulled back and started clapping along with everyone else and he almost felt like shaking his head to shake himself out of the slight daze he felt like he was stuck in.
"Stefan called and has reservations for dinner tonight," he said turning to her after the clapping had died down. "Perhaps we should get you back so you can rest for a bit before the dinner and have time to get ready."
"Okay, I just have to get my stuff. I left it back there with Dean."
He nodded his head and followed after her. While she was getting her sweater and purse from Dean, Klaus hung back waiting for her, his gaze fixed on her still when he felt Marcel slightly elbow him.
"You're not sweet on Stefan's sister are you?" he asked amusedly.
"What makes you say that?" Klaus scoffed.
Marcel laughed and shrugged.
"One just picks up on things I guess. You should ask her to Rebekah's ball this weekend."
Klaus turned to look at him incredulously at the same time that Caroline joined them again.
"I'm ready," she announced cheerfully.
"Right," he nodded before turning back to Marcel. "Tell Mindy I'll be back tomorrow to finish those inventory forms. She can go ahead and place the orders for the stuff we already covered."
"All right," Marcel nodded, waving to Caroline before turning back to him. "And you think about what I told you. Carpe diem my friend."
Klaus rolled his eyes and turned back to Caroline, putting his hand on the small of her back as he led her out of the bar.
"So where exactly did Stefan and make reservations?" she asked as they walked inside the apartment.
"You'll see," he replied with a smirk.
"Seriously? Again with the surprises?" she asked, arching an eyebrow. "I'll have you know, you've met your limit for surprises sir."
"Is that so?" he asked amusedly. "I didn't realize there was a limit, then again I'm not sure that would make a difference. I never have been much for the rules you see."
"Oh look at you," she said with a playful eye roll. "I'm Klaus Mikaelson and I don't follow the rules. I'm sarcastic and like to play the role of the mysterious, tortured artist, and sexy bad boy."
"Come again?" he said with a smirk that turned into a full out smile. "What was that last part?"
"What?"
"Before bad boy? What was it you said?" he pressed, his smile widening further especially when he noticed the way she suddenly got all flustered.
"I don't know," she shrugged, rolling her eyes when he just laughed. "I'm going to go relax and then get ready for this 'surprise' dinner," she said stiffly as she turned to walk down the hall to her temporary room.
"Caroline?" he said, the laughter audible in his voice.
"What?" she asked reluctantly as she turned to face him.
"I believe your room is this way," he said with a smug grin as he pointed behind him.
"I knew that," she responded, making him chuckle as she walked past him muttering something under her breath.
He looked after her for a moment, watching as she walked into her room before making his way into his own room, catching up on some emails before he took a quick shower and got ready. He and Caroline would be meeting Stefan and Elena at the restaurant but they still had well over an hour before they were supposed to be there.
He was heading to check on Caroline when he saw her in the living room studying one of his paintings that he had hung up there after Rebekah's persistence.
She turned toward when she heard his footsteps and felt her mouth go dry when she took him in. He was wearing fitted black slacks and a black button-up dress shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his forearms. She could see his necklaces peeking out from underneath the collar and she felt this sudden urge to wrap her hands around them and pull him down to devour those taunting berry lips with her own.
"Caroline?" he asked with a smirk.
"What?" she asked, feeling a little embarrassed as she realized she may have been openly staring at him, again.
He walked over to stand next to her, admiring the way she looked in her navy blue dress that reached her just above the knee and those black heels she had paired it with. Her hair was down in loose curls and he noticed she was wearing some eye make-up that really brought out her eyes.
"I asked how you were feeling? Are you tired?" he repeated, amusement evident in his voice.
"Fine, I'm fine. That shower felt amazing so yeah, fine," she answered with a nervous smile. "Is this yours?" she asked quickly, turning back to his painting.
"It is," he said, nodding his head and averting her gaze almost nervously.
"It's really good," she told him earnestly with a smile. "Is this also here in New Orleans?"
He smiled and nodded his head, looking down at his phone to check the time.
"How do you feel about one more small adventure before dinner?" he asked with a dimpled grin.
She looked up at him with obvious intrigue, a smile playing on her lips.
"Okay."
He felt his smile widen as he moved back for her to go ahead of him. After she grabbed her purse, she was putting on her coat when he quickly came over to help her, taking her by surprise but she smiled at the gesture.
"By the way, you should know you look stunning," he said in a low voice from behind her.
She turned to look at him with a shy smile, softly gasping when she felt his fingers brush against the column of her neck as he moved some of her hair caught underneath the coat.
He looked down at her with a dimpled grin before holding his arm out to her.
"Shall we?"
She took his arm almost reluctantly as she felt her heart hammering in her chest at his close proximity, his smile…just him.
"By the way, thanks for today," she said with a small smile. "It was pretty perfect."
He responded with that dimpled smile that could make her knees go weak.
"It's not over yet, love."
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