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Chapter 20

Damon had never really been one for the holidays. In his 150 years of extended life as a vampire, he had never had much to celebrate while everyone else was feeling festive. He had no family other than Stefan, and they were usually at each other's throats. While the humans were trick-or-treating, carving turkeys and hanging mistletoe, Damon usually found solace in booze and women. Lots of booze and lots of women.

This year was different, though. With Caroline practically living in the boarding house, Damon had noticed a much more feminine and happy tone to the home. There was an autumn wreath on the front door. He spotted a few pumpkin-scented candles in the hallways. And of course, she was absolutely insisting on Thanksgiving dinner with all of their friends. Stefan, being the eternal pushover, thought it was a great idea.

On one hand, Damon thought the dinner was a terrible idea because it meant he would have to be face-to-face with Elena. He had tried to talk to her on several occasions but she avoided him. She'd only come by twice and that was to remove all her things from his home. He felt badly, of course. After all, she was the woman that he had been chasing for five years. There would always be some space in his heart for her, but he knew now that she would only ever be a friend. If that.

So while he wasn't looking forward to the awkwardness with Elena, Thanksgiving dinner did mean that Bonnie would be there. He felt completely lame at how his lips itched to smile just by thinking of her. They hadn't seen each other in person since the "I love you" text message exchange, but they did talk on the phone a few times and texted each other like giggly teenagers. He would never admit out loud how happy he was when he read those three words on his screen. He would also never admit that he had read it about five hundred times.

The excitement of seeing Bonnie outweighed the dread of seeing Elena, so to Stefan's and Caroline's surprise, he got into the full swing of helping with dinner. Although he didn't technically have to eat, he did know how to cook. It was practically a requirement for an Italian man. So he put on his apron and threw down some down-home macaroni and cheese that he'd learned from a witch about ten years earlier. Caroline had almost everything else catered, and Stefan secured a large amount of blood for their huge vampire contingency.

Guests started to arrive at 5, and Damon realized that Caroline had invited literally everyone who had ever been associated with their group. She made everyone promise that there would be no drama, only fun and happiness, as she'd said in her bubbly voice. Matt, Enzo and Ric arrived within minutes of each other, and Stefan and Damon showed them to the TV room where the football game was on. Tyler showed up a little later, followed by a forlorn-looking Elena. Damon had to admit that she looked good; her makeup was flawless and her hair was in loose curls the way he liked it. Their eyes caught and she mustered up a pathetic smile that made him feel guilty.

"I'm glad you came," he said, as he offered to take her coat. She was stiff and moved away.

"I got it," she said.

She only looked marginally happier when Caroline appeared from the kitchen, looking like Suzy Homemaker and bearing a huge grin.

"Elena!" she shrieked. "Oh my God, there are so many boys here. We really need to get some more girlfriends."

Elena smiled and brought her friend into a big hug, and Damon was happy that she had Caroline. As annoying as the Vampire Barbie could be at times, she kind of held everyone together. He supposed a group like theirs always needed someone like that.

He checked his watch and saw that it was nearing six o'clock and Bonnie still hadn't arrived. He was getting anxious, tapping his feet and pretending to be interested in the football game while all the other guys hooted and hollered. He kept one foot in the long hallway so he could see whenever Bonnie did come, and a wave of anticipation came over him when he caught the big wooden door opening slowly.

He watched with rapt attention as Bonnie stepped inside, calling out for Caroline. Her eyes fell on him, though, and her mouth formed into a slow smile. She came all the way inside and he looked her over. She wore a black sweater and jeans with some black heeled boots. The outfit itself was nothing special but on her, it looked amazing. The eyeliner around her eyes made the natural green color stand out, even from where he was. She raised her hand and did a little wave. He started to do the same but then Caroline and Elena burst through the kitchen and mauled her like they hadn't seen her in weeks.

The girls laughed and talked and Damon saw as Jeremy squeezed by them. He had to fight a scowl when he realized that Bonnie and Gilbert had come together. Give her time, he thought. She loves me.

"Hey, man, what's up?" Jeremy asked as he walked by. It took everything in him not to trip the little bastard.

"The guys are watching football, if you're interested," he said instead.

"Eh." Jeremy shrugged but joined the men anyway.

Damon took a moment to look at him and he wondered what the hell Bonnie ever saw in him. He was a pipsqueak, for one. His voice sounded like a breathy whisper instead of a deep manly tone like it should. His hair was always doing something weird and Damon knew from Bonnie's own mouth that Jeremy was no star in bed. He was fantasizing about all the ways that he could torture the brat when Bonnie came into his line of vision and she smiled.

"Hey," she said softly.

"Hey to you, too," he said. He leaned against the hallway wall and smirked, only because if he didn't smirk, he might grin like a moron. "I was wondering if you were going to show up."

"Yeah, sorry, Caroline told me to make the green bean casserole and I got a late start."

"Hmm," he said with a little nod.

She cocked her head to the side.

How are you? she asked so that only he could hear.

Good. Better, now that you're here.

She smiled and he thought he may have noticed a little blush in her brown cheeks.

Oh yeah?

Yeah. If my heart was still capable of beating, it would have stopped when you walked in.

Then, she really did blush. She grinned and had to look down and then she tucked some hair behind her ear...all the signs of being flustered. It made Damon grin. He checked both ways to make sure nobody was looking, then he took her hand and kissed the inside of her palm.

Ho potuto mangiare fino.

Please don't speak Italian to me. That's not fair.

You should know by now that I don't fight fair, Little Bird.

She gently removed her hand from his, but the look in her eyes told him that she didn't want to. She looked like she might push him against the wall and have her filthy way with him, but they were interrupted when Caroline appeared and cleared her throat.

"Uh, Bon?" she asked. "We could use your help in the kitchen."

Bonnie didn't move immediately. She stared at him like she was trying to figure out whether she should go with Caroline or stand there and drown in their sexual tension, but then she turned and went with her friend. Damon craned his neck and watched her disappear, then he licked his lips. He turned around when he felt a hand clasp his shoulder, and Stefan was giving him an amused look.

"Here's a tip, brother," Stefan said lowly. "Unless you want Elena to know that Bonnie is your new squeeze, maybe you should stop drooling over her."

"I'm not drooling," he said, although he did check his mouth just in case.

"You're kind of drooling. It's cute, but I'd rather not have a vampire throw-down today."

Damon pushed Stefan and they walked together to the room where all the other guys were. He absentmindedly watched the game, while his mind was on Bonnie. He had pulled that Italian out of left field but it definitely affected her so he was going to do it again. Repeatedly. He smiled at the thought.

Caroline finally called everyone to eat a little while later, and they all gathered around the huge, antique table. Damon managed to position himself next to Bonnie and he saw the little smile tugging at her lips. Everyone passed around the food and Damon watched with interest as Bonnie piled her plate high with turkey, mashed potatoes and an ungodly amount of his macaroni and cheese. Everybody was engaged in conversation about something or another and he wasn't sure that anyone else noticed the long, satisfied moan that escaped Bonnie's throat when she bit into the macaroni.

"Jeez, Bon, is it good?" Elena joked.

"Oh my God," she moaned again, "this tastes just like my grandmother's. Care, where did you get this?"

"Actually," Caroline said, her bright eyes flitting to Damon, "Damon made it."

Bonnie's head whipped to Damon, who was trying his best not to beat his chest like a caveman.

"You made this?" she asked softly.

"Yep."

"It's...delicious."

"Yeah, I gathered that." He stuck his fork in her plentiful supply of macaroni and took a bite. "Yummy." He winked at her and her eyes did that hungry thing again before she looked away.

Not. Fair.

Her thoughts infiltrated his mind and he couldn't have felt more smug if he tried. He was wooing the hell out of her. He wanted to reach across the table and give Stefan a high five, but his brother's little smirk worked well enough.

The rest of dinner flowed well. Damon repeatedly picked things off of Bonnie's plate and she pinched his thigh underneath the table. They avoided conversation with each other, mostly because he knew that she was probably afraid that if they spoke too much, they might give something away. When dinner ended, he helped carry the dishes into the kitchen.

"I guess I'll use vamp speed to clean all these up," Caroline said.

"I can do it, Care," Bonnie volunteered.

"What? No! You're a guest of honor. You don't do dishes."

"I always did them with Grams and my dad. I actually kind of like washing them by hand. Please?"

Caroline frowned but then nodded. "Okay, fine. But someone should at least dry them for you."

"I'll help," Damon volunteered. "I wasn't really into the football games anyway."

Caroline raised an eyebrow at Bonnie and they had some kind of silent communication, before Caroline smiled.

"Okay, fine. I'll see if Elena can help me set up for charades."

She left them alone in the kitchen and Bonnie started the water. She fished out a cleaning towel, as well as a drying towel and she handed that one to Damon. He tossed it over his shoulder and then hopped on the counter next to her, awaiting the first clean dishes to dry.

"So," he started, "the macaroni was pretty good, huh?"

Bonnie turned the retractable faucet head and sprayed him with water.

"Hey!" he said with a laugh.

"You know damn well that macaroni was incredible, and I don't appreciate you using my food weaknesses against me."

"Against you? Never. How was I to know that you'd like it so much?"

"Just a lucky guess, I suppose?"

"I suppose so."

She stuck her tongue out at him and he did the same. She snickered and then sprayed him again.

"Get over here and dry, please."

"Fine. But if you keep getting me wet, I"ll be forced to take my shirt off and who knows how you'll react to that."

"I'll try to contain myself," she said dryly.

He hip-checked her and she did the same to him. They were quiet for a few minutes, as she washed and he dried.

"This is nice," she said. "This whole get-together. I love the holidays."

"I don't love them, but you're right...this is nice."

"You know my favorite part?" she asked. He shook his head. "The smells. I love the way the holidays smell, you know? I love the crisp air outside and the warmth inside. I love the smell of a lot of food and pumpkins and candles. It just always makes me so happy, even when I'm feeling down." She looked at him from the corner of her eye and he saw the cute little shy smile on her face. "Do you think that's weird?"

"No, I don't think that's weird at all. Smell is the strongest sense we have. It can take you back to an exact moment, just like that," he said as he snapped his fingers.

Bonnie nodded and slowly washed one of the dishes.

"I love the way Grams smelled," she said softly.

Guilt crept into Damon's body as she looked ahead, appearing a bit sad.

"She had this particular perfume she used to wear," she continued. "I never knew the name of it but after she died, a found a bottle of it in her bedroom. There were only like three drops of it left, and I looked everywhere for it. I couldn't find it so I had to special order it. I still have a full bottle in my room. Every now and then, I'll take the cap off and smell it but I never use any. I guess I'm afraid that if I use it, they'll stop making it and I'll forget what she smelled like."

Silence hung heavily between them as she continued to wash and he dried. He had always felt badly about his role in Sheila's death. Even when he was consumed by his obsession with Katherine, somewhere deep in him he knew that Sheila's demise was on his head. He had never formally apologized to Bonnie, and he wasn't sure what an apology would do at this point. He wasn't the best with words and he thought that if he talked, he would only mess it up.

"I'll be right back," he said.

Bonnie looked confused but he ran off before she could ask where he was going. He hurried up to his room, opened a trunk that he kept underneath his bed, and pulled out a small box. He caressed the box lovingly and took it downstairs with him. When he was next to Bonnie again, he turned off the water and she looked at him. He showed her the box, then opened it and revealed a dingy but otherwise perfectly-maintained handkerchief.

"This was my mother's," he said, and Bonnie's eyebrows raised in surprise. "She died a little while after Stefan was born. I'm not even sure he remembers her, but I do. She used to carry this handkerchief with her everywhere she went. After she died, I took it and I used to smell it at night so I wouldn't cry about her being gone." He smiled sadly at the memory. "I've kept it this whole time, in this little box, because I didn't want it to stop smelling like her. So...I know how you feel."

Bonnie looked at the handkerchief, then at him, then she slowly returned to washing the dishes. Neither of them spoke for a while, and Damon was sure that their playful flirty night was ruined with all the talk of dead mothers and grandmothers. He closed his precious box and placed it on the counter as he resumed his drying duties. He tried to think of any topic that he could pick to lighten the mood, and Bonnie surprised him when she spoke first.

What do I smell like?

Damon noticed that she hadn't asked the question out loud, which gave him permission to be as naughty as he wanted. He saw the little glint in her eye and he knew the night was back on track. He tapped his chin while he pretended to think, even though the answer was on the tip of his tongue.

Passion, he responded.

Bonnie snorted. Passion is not a smell.

It is when you can smell a million more things than a human. I can smell nuances in things that you can't even imagine.

She rolled her eyes.

Ok, fine, what does passion smell like?

You.

She shook her head.

And here I thought you were capable of being romantic, with the Italian and the macaroni and the sweet story about your mom. Jeremy knows how to describe his feelings really well. I guess he gets the advantage in this round.

Damon narrowed his eyes at her and she smiled like she had no idea how she was baiting him.

That's how you want to play it? he asked.

She shrugged, attempting and failing to look innocent. He nodded, dried his hands on a towel and silently accepted her challenge. He took the couple of small steps to stand behind her, and as soon as his body was pressed against her, she froze.

"What..." she started, but he hushed her.

"Shh, shh, shh," he whispered in her ear. "You want to know what you smell like, I'm going to tell you. But I need a refresher first."

Before she could ask what that meant, he gathered her hair and moved it to the side, exposing her neck. He gently pressed his nose against her skin and dragged it from the base of her neck to her hairline, taking a huge inhale along the way. He groaned lowly and Bonnie shivered against him.

Your skin smells like the freshest-picked flowers after the morning rain.

He pulled her sweater to the side just enough to expose some of her collarbone, and he dragged his nose over that area.

Your blood smells like the sweetest fruit plucked at the height of the season.

He could hear her harsh breaths as he ghosted his lips over her skin and he placed his mouth against her ear.

And I just want to sink my teeth into you and pluck you all night.

Bonnie whimpered and the heady scent of her arousal attacked Damon and nearly brought him to his knees. Her head rested against his chest and she leaned to one side, giving him full access to bite her if he wanted to. He wasn't sure if she even knew the invitation she was giving him, but he couldn't control the descent of his fangs and the black and red veins that overcame him. He remembered Bonnie's inebriated confession that she wanted him to bite her and make her like it, and there was nothing he wanted to do more than that.

His hands fell to her hips and he gripped her close to him. He was sure that she could feel how this predicament was affecting the lower half of his body, but if it bothered her, he couldn't tell. In fact, she seemed to push up even closer to him and she didn't shy away when he nuzzled her neck. He could smell the overpowering scent of her blood and he heard it rushing through her veins like a waterfall. He opened his jaw, fully prepared to pierce her delicate skin, when someone behind them cleared his throat.

Both their heads snapped around and there stood Stefan, wearing an expression of amusement.

"We're about to play Charades," he announced, "if you two can pull yourselves away from...doing the dishes."

Bonnie moved away from Damon and looked a bit unsteady on her feet for a second before she took a deep breath and shook off the cobwebs. She started to walk away, but Damon caught her hand.

You might want to take a pit stop to the bathroom, he suggested. When she raised a questioning eyebrow, he said let's just say that with the way you smell right now, every vampire in that room would want to pluck your fruit.

Her cheeks reddened immediately but she nodded and scurried out. His eyes fell on his brother, who crossed his arms and shook his head.

"Wooing, Damon. Remember?"

"Yeah, yeah, i remember."

Then Stefan sniffed the air and nodded appreciatively. Damon's eyes narrowed and he pointed an accusatory finger.

"Sniff again and I'll tear your nose off."

Stefan held up his hands but grinned like the little devil he could be and left Damon to his own devices. Damon sighed and took a few minutes to calm down. When his pants went back to their normal size and he didn't feel like he would throw Bonnie over his shoulder like a Neanderthal and lock her in his bedroom for the next several days, he joined everyone else in the living room. He tried not to stare at Bonnie or break the arm that Jeremy rested on her shoulder. To his utter delight, Bonnie wiggled out of the embrace and mumbled something about not feeling well.

The kid's days were numbered.

When the night ended, Damon and Stefan played the dutiful hosts and saw everyone out. Bonnie hung around to the end and while Jeremy was starting the car, she waited in the foyer with Damon. She made sure they were alone before she tugged him close to her and wrapped him up in a hug. He returned the embrace and kissed the top of her head.

You don't have any competition, she said. I just want to let him down gently. Okay?

His grin was a mile wide.

Okay.

She stood on her tiptoes and buried her nose in his neck. She did the same thing to him that he had done to her earlier, when she dragged the tip of it all along his skin. He closed his eyes and reveled in the feeling, but his eyes shot open when her sharp little teeth bit him. Not enough to break the skin, but enough to sting.

"Ow!"

She smiled devilishly.

That was a warning. Next time, don't tease me.

And with that, she turned around and left. Damon stood in the doorway and watched her get into the passenger side of Jeremy's car. Once they were out of sight, he rested against the door and shook his head.

Bonnie Bennett was going to be the death of him.