Hey dolls! I'm so sorry I've been long gone, but I've been busy and as usual, I kept rewriting the chapter and changing scenes/the plot. Anyway, I hope you guys are still interested. Please share your thoughts, comments, and suggestions in a review or PM. I would especially love to hear your suggestions, cause I get a little stuck from time to time and I like to bounce around ideas.

Enjoy! :)

CHAPTER 5

When Caroline walked into her office the next morning she found a red gift bag sitting atop her desk. She furrowed her eyebrows, wondering what it was and whom it was from. She set her bag down as she sat down in her chair and opened the gift bag. In it, she found a bottle of bourbon with a note card, which she opened.

A bottle of bourbon – for your generosity of leaving me the bottle last night.
And yes, I used one of my 'minions' to fetch the bottle and deliver this.

Yours truly,
Enzo

She couldn't help but smile, while she put the note away in her drawer. She's received many different kinds of gifts over the years from her clients, but never bourbon.

She turned on her computer and searched for Lorenzo St. John's office number. She had to go through a series of operated voices and several people to get to him, but when she finally did, she was greeted with a friendly tone.

"I'm beginning to think you're stalking me." He teased.

"As if!" She immediately replied, and then reminded herself to remain professional. "You're the one who knew my address. I don't remember ever exchanging business cards."

She heard him suppress an amused laugh on his end, before replying, "I had it delivered to your business address, Miss Forbes. Business information is generally public information." He stated the last part as a matter-of-factly. "And may I ask how you got this number and also, how you managed to work your way through all of my interns and volunteers? I hear they flush most of my phone calls. In fact, I probably only speak to someone over the phone maybe twice a day."

"First of all, your office is public information as well. Second, neither interns nor volunteers scare me. And third, please call me Caroline."

"Ah, then please, call me Enzo."

She smiled, wondering why it was so easy to talk to him. She couldn't remember the last time she spoke so casually with someone she's just met. Sure, she's chatted with many politicians and other important figures, but all professionally. With him it seemed more friendly, than formal.

"Well, Enzo," She paused, noticing how foreign his nickname rolled off her lips, "I'd like to thank you for the bottle of bourbon, but I shouldn't accept."

"And why shouldn't you?" He quickly asked.

"For many reasons, really."

"We're not children, Caroline. Just because we may belong to different political parties doesn't mean we can't be civil to one another. Segregation is what started many wars."

"I'm not saying that," she replied, defensively. "I work for and serve the President of the United States. It would be wrong for me to accept gifts from his opponent and if people caught wind of this gift, it may be interpreted wrongly."

"I don't care what people think, Caroline." He stated with an assertive tone that didn't come off as pompous, but rather confident. "Are we talking about the general public's perception or a specific someone?"

She wanted to say it was the general public's perception that mattered, but truth be told she cared more about Klaus' perception of the gift. If Klaus discovered she received a gift from his opponent, she wasn't sure how he'd react, but she knew it would be a mix of rage and possibly envy.

"I'll have one of my associates return the gift. Goodbye, Mr. St John."

The phone went silent before Enzo had a chance to react. He certainly didn't intend to offend her, but he didn't understand why she was returning the gift. It wasn't as if it was some fruitcake that absolutely no one wanted. It was a bottle of bourbon, which he guessed she liked, considering their encounter last night.

Maybe he shouldn't have asked that last question, but he was curious. Was she really that worried about the President's opinion of a simple gift?

He set the phone back down in its place and leaned back in his chair. He wasn't sure what it was about Caroline that amused him – not in a condescending manner, but rather in a way that made him interested in getting to know her. It's been so long since he's had that feeling with any woman. He'd forgotten how it made him feel inside.

"It's time to go to the neighbor state." Damon said, as he entered Enzo's office without a knock on the door.

Katherine walked into Caroline's office later that day, uninvited as usual. She sat down on the chair, kicking her heels up and prompted them onto Caroline's desk. When she spotted the gift bag, she reached for it and peeked inside.

"Who gave you a bottle of bourbon?" The curious Kat asked.

Caroline turned off her computer, before replying, "Enzo."

"Who's Enzo?"

Caroline realized suddenly that she probably shouldn't have said whom it was from, let alone use his nickname.

"Lorenzo St. John." She muttered under her breath, softly, but of course the curious brunette heard it and took her heels of the desk to inch forward on her seat.

"Why is Lorenzo St. John sending you gifts?"

Caroline explained that she ran into him last night at the store, but made it a point to say that she didn't want to accept the gift and ordered Katherine to return the gift to him.

"He gave you a gift after meeting him for the first time at the store? Doesn't that strike you as strange?"

"Well… that wasn't the first time we met. I mean we did meet yesterday for the first time, but we met earlier that day…"

Then a light bulb lit up as Katherine pieced together all the information. "That's why you were blushing when I saw you back stage!" Katherine exclaimed, wagging a judgmental finger at her blonde boss. "What exactly happened between the two of you?"

"Nothing." Caroline answered, using her calm voice. "Nothing happened. We met and it was…" She was at a loss for words, unable to describe it to Katherine, or to herself. She tried to come up with something, but decided there were no words to describe how she felt when she met him. But despite whatever they had going on between them, she knew it needed to stop.

Katherine saw the starry eyed look in her blonde boss's eyes. It was the same eyes she's seen when Caroline was with Klaus. But there was something different. With Klaus, Katherine noticed a shadow of doubt, hesitation, and – sometimes – shame. But now, Katherine saw Caroline smile for the first time in a long time. And it wasn't the typical smile she displayed for her clients or for the public. It was the smile that reached her eyes, complimented with a light pink hue on her cheeks and starry eyes full of hope and excitement.

Caroline reached for a piece of paper and attempted to hide her writing from Katherine, but knew the curious Kat didn't understand the meaning of privacy.

Dear Enzo,
Thank you for the bottle of bourbon, but I cannot accept.
I'm sorry for the abrupt hang-up, but I hope you understand.

Yours truly,
Caroline

P.S. I'm having one of my 'minions' deliver this.

Caroline folded the note and deposited it into the bad, while instructing Katherine to deliver it.

"I am not a minion." Katherine said, glaring at Caroline. "Besides, why can't you return the gift?"

"I have a meeting with the President." She informed her. "Please, be nice and well-mannered." She begged.

"Can't make any promises!" Katherine said, as she took off with gift.

The Oval Office. Caroline has spent more than her fair share sitting in the Oval Office, maybe even more than Madame First Lady Haley Marshall Mikaelson. It shouldn't come as a surprise, since Haley never used the law degree she earned from Brown. She only entered the Oval Office to retrieve her husband and drag him to some meeting, dinner, or whatever event she had planned.

Caroline, on the other hand, was treated almost like the President's right hand man. Even Elijah became quite irritable when Klaus beckoned for Caroline's advice over his.

And then there were also other times when he needed her for other needs…

But today, Cami called her in for a meeting with the President to discuss his presidential picks. The President's choice definitely fueled a lot of debate. There will be many to strongly oppose the candidates he chooses, so every factor must be taken into consideration.

There was a slight hesitation in Caroline's steps as she headed down the west wing, toward the Oval Office. Cami told her Klaus was inside and gave her permission to proceed. She took a deep breath before reaching for the door handle and pushing the door open.

Her nerves relaxed when she entered the Oval Office to find he wasn't alone. Finn and Elijah were busy hovering over Klaus' shoulder, as Klaus sat down at his desk going through potential candidates. Kol and Rebekah sat on opposite sides of the two couches, facing each other. They were the only two to acknowledge Caroline and greet her. Hugs were exchanged, before they all settled on the couch.

"That man is too easily influenced." Klaus said, referring to a candidate on his rooster.

"All the more reason to choose him. It'll be easier for us to use him to our advantage." Elijah explained.

Klaus looked up from his desk and saw Caroline adjusting on the couch. A slow sly smirk formed on his face, when her eyes met his.

"What do you think, Caroline?"

She wasn't sure who they were talking about, but she overheard bits and pieces when she entered. "Well… you may find it easy to manipulate him to your advantage, but the same could be said by anyone else. You need someone with a backbone. Someone who actually believes in your values and doesn't easily sway to any opinion. Having such an impressionable person would only hurt your chances going forward when he decides to go with the flow of any other person he lends his ear to."

Klaus flashed a satisfied half-smile for her honest opinion, but Elijah and Finn didn't feel the same way. Instead, they shot her a quick glower of indignation and then exchanged a knowing look that only Caroline noticed.

Kol and Rebekah tried – but failed – to hold down teasing snickers. Elijah and Finn always hated the way Klaus seemed to easily listen to Caroline, instead of his own two older wiser brothers. She never meant to step on their toes, but Klaus always invited her to the table taking Elijah and Finn's seat.

Finn clicked his tongue, while checking his watch. "Elijah, we should get going. Sage is expecting us for dinner."

"Why wasn't I invited?" Kol asked, pretending to be offended for not being invited to the party.

"Sage isn't very fond of you." Finn replied.

It was a courtesy, rather than the bare truth. Sage and Finn have been together for years, but she wasn't fond of Kol. She couldn't tolerate Kol nor Klaus.

"And Sage invited Elijah to dinner to introduce him to one of her friends." Finn explained further.

"Ah, a blind date!" Kol exclaimed, while snapping his fingers. "Good luck, brother! Don't embarrass yourself."

Elijah rolled his eyes. He hated discussing his love life, especially with Kol and Rebekah. He was the second eldest of his siblings and he had yet to wed.

"At least he has a date! And what of you?" Rebekah asked.

"You're all a nuisance." Klaus spoke up. "Give Caroline and I the room."

With his command, all of his siblings got up and left the room. Caroline remained standing after saying her goodbyes. Rebekah was the last one out and gave Caroline an encouraging wink, before closing the door.

"Have you narrowed down your picks?" She asked, breaking the silence.

"I don't want to talk about the campaign, Caroline." He said, while rising from his desk to walk over to her.

With every step, she felt her heart beat almost a half-second quicker.

"So what do you wanna talk about?" She asked, when he stopped to stand at arm's length away from her.

"Can you just be here with me?"

It had somehow become their thing over time – being here, embracing the moment, as if the world stopped and they had nothing but time and each other.

A part of her knew she shouldn't, but her heart yearned for this moment.

She took in a deep breath and exhaled as she lifted her eyes to meet his. She'd forgotten how the tint of yellow in his emerald eyes seemed to make his gaze and features softer. Almost unnoticeably, he had managed to inch closer to her with every breath. And with every breath, she felt it all coming back. With every breath, her heart felt heavier. All the feelings that she had tucked away into the deepest corners of her heart had managed to resurfaced, as if his mere presence had somehow summoned it.

It was moments like these, when he wasn't the President and she wasn't his campaign manager. He wasn't married and she wasn't his mistress. They were just Klaus and Caroline – living in the moment.

He closed the distance between them, until his forehead rested against hers.

"You're here." He whispered, so softly not wanting to shatter their moment. He said it as if to tell himself that she wasn't some figment of his imagination. She was actually here, standing in front of him.

He needed to feel her, actually touch the softness and warmth her body offered. He closed his eyes, letting the touch of her satisfy his aching desire.

Klaus leaned into her, inching closer to her lips. And as his lips pressed against hers, she felt a lustful desire course through her body, responding to him calling for her. She melted into his arms, almost feeling pushed down by his overwhelming dominance over her as he drew her closer to him. She felt like he was inhaling her, as if she was his last breath of air. Feeling dizzy and weak, she struggled to prevent herself from getting lost in him. And as much as she wanted to fight against him, a part of her wanted this. It was like her body was ready and willing to submit to him.

He pulled away from her slightly to whisper, "I've missed you so much, Caroline," before he resumed to kissing her.

It took her a moment until his words pulled her back to reality. And just like that, her senses came back, clearing her head. She was stronger than this. She didn't walk away from him all those years ago, rebuilding herself, just so he could bring her back down. She pulled away from him, whilst pushing him roughly away from her.

"No." She said firmly.

Her sudden resistance made him freeze in shock and confusion. He was sure that she wanted him in the same way he wanted her. He felt it in the way she kissed him, so he didn't understand why she was suddenly pushing him away.

"No." She repeated. "You don't get to do that." She said, shaking her head. "Not anymore."

"Caroline, you know how I feel –"

"But it was never enough!" She interrupted, raising her voice at him. She took a deep breath to calm herself, but the tears were already starting to prick her eyes. "I was never enough."

It was the bitter truth that she learned the hard way many years ago. No matter what he felt for her, it was never enough.

"You walked away." He reminded her, with a poignant tone.

She expected him to say this. She knew he would use this against her. It was true – she walked away. She made the decision to walk away from him. She should have been prepared for this, but the tears came running down and she couldn't hold them back anymore.

"And you did nothing." She said, emphasizing the last word.

Despite it being her choice to walk away years ago, he had done nothing about it. He didn't chase after her. She didn't necessarily want him to pull her back in, but at the same time, she wanted him to feel a little remorse with her sudden abandonment. She walked away with a heavy heart and tears staining her cheeks, while he went on to continue being the President of the United States. The scandal rumors ceased to exist and they both went on to live their own separate lives, as if they had never crossed paths in the first place. What did she expect? He was the fucking President, for Christ sake! He couldn't show his affections, at least not publicly. But he didn't try contacting her on that burner phone he used explicitly for her. He didn't reach her through other channels of communications, like Rebekah or Kol. He did nothing. She needed to tell herself that. She needed to remind herself that he did nothing. He continued to live as if she was nothing to him and she was forced to do the same.

The air in the Oval Office had thickened and she was finding it a little hard to breath. Not wanting to say anything else to him, she grabbed her purse and left him.

Just like that – he just stood there as she walked away.

Katherine sat patiently in the Democratic office, waiting for Enzo to return from his guest appearance in Virginia. Luckily, they were on their return by the time she arrived, but she already waited for more than half-an-hour.

When the doors opened, she rose from her seat and put on her best appearance to finally – and officially – meet Lorenzo St. John, but her flirtatious smile changed to an annoyed eye-roll when her eyes landed on Damon Salvatore, trailing in behind Enzo.

"Katherine." Damon said, smirking at her. "The intern must have misdirected you. My office is down the hall."

She failed at withholding her disgust toward Damon when she loudly scoffed. "I'm here to see St. John."

Enzo felt a little out of place until Katherine said his name. He asked Damon to leave the room so he could speak to Katherine.

"It's nice to meet you."

Katherine shook his hand. "Katherine Piece. I work for CFA – Caroline Forbes & Associates. I'm here to drop off something."

She pulled up the gift bag from the floor and set it on his desk. He peeked inside and saw the bourbon with a note, but decided to read the note later in private.

He frowned and said, "I see Caroline didn't like the gift."

"Don't be offended. Caroline doesn't do well with gifts. She usually returns the gifts she receives from our clients."

The information made him feel slightly better. "I get the feeling there's more to it that than." He commented.

Katherine was quick to pick up on his subtle reference to the President.

"If I were you, I'd be more careful. The President is very possessive of his belongings, like his presidency." And Caroline, she added in her head. She despised the man and praised Caroline for walking away from a powerful man, like Klaus. But she couldn't deny his lingering hold on her, even after all the time they've spent apart. He still tugged on her heartstrings to this day.

After Katherine left, Enzo was left to ponder over her warning.

Caroline walked into the corner coffee shop on her way to work the next day. She ordered her usual Columbian medium blend with a tablespoon of butter mixed in. Many people thought it was odd, but she always liked the taste of butter in her coffee as oppose to cream and sugar. When the barista called out her order, she walked over to fetch her drink, but saw someone snatch it before she reached the table.

She traced the culprit's hand up to his arm and rolled her eyes when she realized it was Lorenzo St. John, who didn't notice her. She walked over to him and tapped him on the shoulder. When he turned around, he flashed his charming smile as his eyes met hers.

She wore a very peeved scowl that complemented her arms crossed over her chest.

"First of all, quit stalking me. Second, don't steal my coffee!"

She reached to snatch the coffee from his hand, but he retracted it backward, holding it out far from her to reach. When she realized she couldn't take it from him without looking like an idiot in public, she resumed to crossing her arms over her chest. She wasn't about to look like a child in front of the many people sitting and standing in the coffee shop.

"Hmm. You sure have quite the ego." He teased. "First of all," he said, trying to impersonate her, "I'm not following you, Caroline. I've been coming to this coffee shop since I moved to D.C. and I've never seen you in here."

"I've been busy!" She felt the need to defend herself to him. One of her associates usually picked up coffee for the office, so she didn't bother going in herself.

"Second, this is my coffee."

"You're telling me you drink a Columbian medium blend and you take it a tablespoon of butter?" She found it hard to believe he took his coffee in the same way. She squinted in eyes at him in disbelief.

Instead of telling her, he rotated the coffee cup and showed her the area that marked the cup with his name on it, along with the coffee information on how he ordered it: Columbian medium blend with a tablespoon of butter.

"Well then, where's mine?" She asked, trying not to sound embarrassed for accusing him, but she already felt her cheeks warm after being slightly humiliated.

The barista called out her order with her name, seconds later. Enzo chuckled, reached for the drink, and said, "I believe this is yours."

She took the drink from his hands and did her best to thank him politely. As she turned to leave in embarrassment, he tapped her shoulder.

"Do you want to walk together?" He asked, being hopeful.

He remembered Katherine's warning yesterday, but it wasn't as if he planned on meeting Caroline today. It just happened and he refused to pass up the opportunity of getting to know this woman people called the fixer.

"I don't think we should." She replied.

He could have guessed that she would have rejected him, but he thought he'd ask anyway. Being the well-mannered man he was raised to be, he nodded and gestured for her to proceed before him. He tried to contain his snickers as he followed after her.

She didn't notice it at first, but by the time she reached the first stoplight, she noticed Enzo trailing a few steps behind her.

"Seriously?" She said, putting a hand on her hip when she halted at the crosswalk.

"What?" He replied, innocently, still wearing that charming smile.

She glowered at him. "Do I need to put a restraining order on you?"

"I'm not sure when's the last time you looked at a map, but I'm headed in the same direction. Your office is only a few blocks away from mine. That's why I asked if you wanted to walk with me… since we're going the same way. Otherwise, I can play the awkward game of following you." He added the last part jokingly.

"Politics aside – I'm not interested in dating right now." She said, bluntly.

He laughed at her statement, which only made her more annoyed. She crossed her arms and asked him what was so funny.

"I asked if you wanted to walk together from the coffee shop. I'm not sure what all your other dates are like, but if I take a woman out on a date there will be dinner involved, and maybe dancing."

Caroline blushed in embarrassment for assuming, again. To be fair, she felt like he was flirting with her since they've met. Not only did he keep flashing that charming smile at her, but he also gave her a gift the next day they met. It was like he was giving her mixed signals – like he was playing hard to get, but not really. The whole thing annoyed Caroline, while at the same time nervous of all this unfamiliarity.

"We may have different political views, but I'm sure we can be civil to each other."

"Fine." She agreed. The light turned for them to walk and they proceeded to cross. "Why do you go to Skybucks? There's a closer coffee shop to your building, isn't there." She asked, deciding to start a conversation with him. She already felt awkward enough, she didn't need silence to make it worse.

"There is, but that Skybucks location makes my coffee the way I like it."

"Why do you take your coffee with butter?" She asked, curiously.

"My grandmother takes her coffee with butter. I picked up the habit from her."

Caroline smiled at his reasoning. "So does mine."

"Two drinks my grandmother raised me on: coffee with butter and some homemade sweet tea."

She smiled, thinking the same of her childhood. "My grandmother made a great pitcher of homemade sweet tea. I grew up in Virginia, and my grammy tried to maintain that Southern upbringing while I was child. Sweet tea was like water!"

"I knew there was a reason I liked you." He joked to which she laughed. Underneath all the D.C. political clothing she wore, Caroline was a Southern girl. He didn't understand why he became so interested in her, but he guessed – after her revelation – that they clicked so quickly because she was from the South too. "Which part of Virginia?"

"It's a small town. You wouldn't know it. Not many people do." She wasn't ashamed of where she came from. In fact, she liked being the girl who came from a small town.

"Try me." He encouraged.

"Mystic Falls."

"Would you believe me if I said I have been there?"

"No." Many people have never even heard of the place, let alone visit.

He chuckled. "I've been to the Mystic Grill. A few buddies and I stopped over there while on a road trip."

"No, you didn't…" She said, in disbelief. "Did you really visit Mystic Falls?"

"We just passing through and one of my buddies wanted a drink. It was a very pretty knit place. It had a safe haven feeling."

She smiled at his compliment, feeling proud of where she came from and started to miss it.

"Do you visit often?" He asked.

Her smile faded when she shook her head. "No. I'm too busy."

It was a half-lie. She was busy, but also her parents didn't welcome her home after the scandal broke out with her being the President's mistress. They declared her as an embarrassment to the family, ignoring the fact that she's one of the most successful accomplished women in D.C.

"Do you like whiskey?" She asked, steering the conversation away from her.

He chuckled. "I wouldn't be from the South if I didn't like whiskey. I just drink bourbon because I can't find a decent shot of whiskey in town. Don't tell me you don't drink whiskey."

"I do, too!" She replied. "I just got used to drinking bourbon since it seems to be all anyone drinks around here." And she always shared bourbon with Klaus – it was their thing. She buried the thought away, as she took a sip of her coffee. And then she remembered. "Besides, I have a moonshine stash at home." She grinned.

He laughed, not knowing if she was serious. "Well, then maybe I should stay on your good graces so that you can be so kind as to share."

"With your track record, you've got a lot of work to do!" She teased and giggled. It felt strange, giggling with a man, as if she was a high school teenager. But it felt so good to feel at ease and relaxed for once. "Well this is me." She said, stopping right in front of her building.

He bowed slightly, in a mocking manner, which elicited another giggle from her. "Have a good day, Miss Forbes."

She smiled and nodded at him.

He stood on the sidewalk, watching her make her way to the front doors of her building. Before she walked in, he called out to her and said, "Maybe we can do this again?"

She turned around to grin back at him and said, "Maybe."

"Good morning, Caroline." Bonnie greeted her boss when she walked in.

"Good morning, Bonnie." Caroline returned, with a noticeable cheery tone that Stefan and Katherine hadn't heard in a while.

"Looks like someone is in a good mood." Stefan commented, referring to her grin.

Caroline felt a little embarrassed for not checking herself before leaving the elevator and also for still wearing a grin on her face. She really didn't understand why Enzo managed to make her feel this way.

"I'd be happy too, if a handsome guy got me coffee and walked me to work." Katherine said.

"You were spying on us?"

Katherine shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal. "I just looked out the window and saw you two walking together."

"Well, we just ran into each other at the coffee shop and we were heading the same way." She knew she didn't need to explain this to them, but she did so anyway. "It doesn't matter. I'm finding a new location tomorrow."

"But you like that Skybucks location." Katherine reminded her.

"It's actually the only place that makes your coffee the way you like it," Bonnie said, just like Enzo said earlier. "I've tried to look for other locations when I pick up coffee, but I have yet to find one."

"Then I guess I'll be making my coffee at home."

Katherine and Stefan cackled with loud laughter, knowing that Caroline was the worse homemade coffee maker they'd ever met. She managed to burn coffee every single time she made a pot; hence the reason they no longer own a coffee maker in the office.

"Did Enzo creep you out or something?" Stefan asked, trying to get to the bottom of Caroline's sudden decision to turn away from Skybucks coffee.

"No. He's very friendly and that's the problem." She answered. "He and I can't be friends."

"Enzo's not a bad guy, Care." Stefan told her. "I still find it hard to believe he's my brother's best friend and yet they are the complete opposite of each other."

"It's not about that." Caroline said, under her breath.

The office phone rang and Bonnie answered. She nodded and wrote down the information she was told over the phone. When she hung up, she gave Caroline a piece of paper with information on it.

"The President wants to see you." Bonnie said.

"Speak of the devil." Katherine muttered.

"I'm busy." Caroline lied. "Please call Camille and tell her to reschedule."

Caroline wasn't ready to face Klaus after what happened the last time they spoke. She needed some time away from him just to rebuild that wall that he so easily destroyed within seconds of being alone with him. She needed to be strong – for her sake. Otherwise, she knew she'd end up drowning.

Caroline believed that Klaus really let her have some time alone, until Rebekah showed up at her door later that night.

"What did he tell you?" Caroline asked, while Rebekah settled down on her couch.

"Not much. Just that you were upset." She replied.

"And he sent you to check up on me?" Caroline asked, rolling her eyes at Klaus' controlling antics, again.

Rebekah shook her head. "He didn't send me Caroline. I just missed you."

Caroline frowned, feeling guilty for accusing Rebekah of working for her brother. She gave her blonde friend a tight hug, appreciating her visit.

When they released their hug, Rebekah sensed Caroline didn't want to talk about Klaus, so she decided to think of something else to talk about. She looked around the room, noticing how she's changed the furniture and decorations.

"I like what you've done with the place." Rebekah complimented. "But why did you take down all the pictures?" There used to be pictures of them two, Kol, Klaus, and many others. Now there were landscape photographs replacing them.

"I needed a change of scenery." She said. Taking down those photos helped her move on. She no longer saw the photographs that captured old memories of a time before the scandal nearly destroyed them. She didn't need to walk around her home and be reminded of her previous life.

Caroline reached for her friend's hand. "I'm sorry I lost contact with you, but I –"

"I understand, Caroline. So does Kol. We're not mad at all. You did what you had to do." Rebekah squeezed Caroline's hand as a sign of comfort. "Admittedly, we were sad, but not nearly as much as Nik." The blonde Mikaelson bit her bottom lip for saying the last part. She wasn't supposed to say anything, but she was accustomed to having no filter when talking to Caroline, since they were best friends. Her eyes widened in worry. "Oh bloody hell, do not tell Nik I told you that. He'll have my head!"

Caroline wasn't sure whether she should take it as the truth. Rebekah had no reason to lie to her.

"I'm sure Klaus got over it quickly." Caroline said, trying to sound indifferent. She wanted to fetch for more information, but she didn't want to sound so eager, especially with Rebekah.

"Are you kidding?!" Rebekah replied. "Nik made the White House a living hell. His temper was shorter than ever. He kicked Haley out temporarily, until she was needed for publicity's sake."

"Oh." Caroline didn't know what else to say.

"He and Kol got into so many arguments. I lost track! He threatened to replace me. Me! His baby sister!" Rebekah grew frustrated just retelling Caroline what had happened while she was gone. "He was such a tyrannical bastard!"

Caroline had no idea all of that went on. Even if she had paid attention to him over the news, she was sure Elijah and Finn were there to keep everything under wraps, to prevent the public from knowing such information. Such information would destroy his presidency.

"He seemed fine when I started on the campaign." Caroline said, remembering how casual he had been when they met each other again for the first time in a long time.

"He's been happier since you came back. A lot more civil."

"But I'm not planning to stay." Caroline said, needing to remind her and herself. She couldn't stay.

"Don't you miss working in the West Wing?" Rebekah asked.

"Of course I do." Caroline admitted. Working there was a dream. Not many people could say they worked there, but it was an opportunity that Caroline had to walk away from. "But I can't stay."

Rebekah nodded, not wanting to pressure her friend after already losing contact with her once. "I should get going. I have an early day tomorrow."

Caroline walked Rebekah to the door and hugged her one last time.

"He needs you more than you know." Rebekah whispered, before letting her go.

Klaus had planned to skip the conference prep session today, but Cami told him Caroline had checked-in to the building earlier that day. He wanted to see her, again. He wanted to explain himself, but she was busying herself at every possible thing. It was a tactic she used in the past to avoid him. She avoided him by assigning her associates to him. He played by her rules, letting her walk around him, instead of toward him. He waited until they took a quick break to head over to her.

"I'm surprised you came." He said.

She'd been dodging his phone calls and meetings for the past few days. He wasn't sure she'd return, but here she was standing before him.

"I have a campaign to run." She replied, not bothering to look up at him from her clipboard.

She had to return. She signed up to be his campaign leader and she was going to get Klaus another term. She wasn't going to quit just because of some unrequited old feelings. Whatever feelings they may have had for each other was in the past and it needed to stay in the past.

Caroline went head in assigning tasks to various people and teams around the room. She bounced from group to group to stay updated and make sure they remained focus. They were all behind on work since Caroline took a few days off, but she was more determined to get him another term and then – hopefully – walk away from this. It wasn't horrible, working for the President. It was horrible working for him, while having to pretend that they were never a thing of the past. It was hard to look at him and not be reminded of the past – not just the bad things that happened, but all of the good, all of the special moments they shared.

Klaus saw that she didn't want to be bothered. He returned to his station, allowing her some space.

The day went by quickly. Everyone was starting to disband their setup and Caroline was sitting at a table, looking over some papers. Klaus saw it as an opportunity to talk to her, before he had to leave. She managed to avoid him the entire day. She left it up to Stefan and Katherine to critique him, while she helped other groups.

He came from behind her and as she let out a big sigh while reading her papers, she swept her long blonde hair to fall in front of her right shoulder. With the left side of her neck exposed, he smelt a whiff of her perfume.

"Lavender vanilla." He said, louder than a whisper, remembering that scent.

"Hmm?" Caroline heard someone behind her, so she turned around in her seat and saw Klaus standing several feet away from her chair.

"Lavender vanilla." He repeated, with a smile. "You get it at that boutique near Georgetown University."

"How did you…" She found herself at a loss for words.

"I had Cami hunt down the boutique." He laughed sheepishly, feeling a little embarrassed with his confession.

"Why on earth did you do that?"

"I missed smelling lavender vanilla when you left."

She may have been giving herself false hope, but she was sure that there was a hint of sadness in his voice.

Feeling a little awkward, he cleared his throat and released a sigh. "You're right. I did nothing." He agreed to her declaration the other day. "I wanted to do something, but I couldn't."

She nodded. "I know." You are the President of the United States.

"I know I did nothing, but I want you to know that I want you to stay."

He was never great at expressing his feelings, and whenever he opened the door slightly, he shut it immediately before he let her all the way in. He did that with everyone, not just her. But she was the only one that made him want to open his door.

She didn't have time to say anything before Elijah fetched him to drag him to his next meeting.

"Good work today, Caroline." Elijah commended. "We'll see you soon."

She nodded and watched them walk away. She was thankful for the security guards that walked behind him to shield her lingering eyes at his departure.

"You ready to go?" Stefan asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

His question snapped her out of her daze. She looked to Stefan and saw Camille coming toward them. Camille delivered a set of documents to Caroline and was about to take off, but Caroline wanted to know.

"Cami, can I ask you something?"

"Yes, what is it?"

Caroline bit her lip for a second, debating if she should ask, but she really wanted to know the truth.

"Did he… umm… Did Klaus really send you to search for that boutique in Georgetown?"

It barely took Cami a second to understand what Caroline was asking. She smiled and said, "Mr. President was…" She stopped to lean forward and whispered softly, "He was devastated when you left, Ms. Forbes. But please don't say I said that?" She begged, while withdrawing backward.

"Don't worry about it, Cami. Thank you."

Stefan waited to ask what that was about after Cami left them, but Caroline dismissed the subject quickly. She was still processing the information herself.

Caroline felt a tug at her heartstrings when she left the White House. She had no idea Klaus had searched for her lavender vanilla perfume. She didn't even know he knew the name of her scent. Maybe… just maybe… he missed her just as much as she did.

END OF CHAPTER 5

Will Klaus win Caroline's heart, again?

Will Caroline manage to avoid Enzo?

Stay tuned to find out!

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xx, Britannia