Thank you guys so much for the overwhelming response to this story. This was initially something I was only playing around with out of boredom and writers block, so it means so much to me that you all are enjoying it. I love all the reviews/follows/faves/ as I love to hear your feed-back and it motivates me. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, because I have a whole lot of fun writing this. Xoxo
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It was the Friday night after a very stressful and tension filled work week and Elena sat stiff on her bed as Rebekah finished applying the finishing touches on her makeup.
"There." Rebekah smiled in triumph. She pondered with feigned seriousness. "I don't know why I'm doing this… I've probably ruined any chance I had of being noticed tonight when the guys get a glance at you."
Elena shook her head refusing to believe a word coming out of Rebekah's mouth despite the hot blush burning her cheeks. They'd been out enough times to know that it was actually the other way around. It was her who hid around in the shadows while the men drooled over her friend.
Picking up the hand held mirror she nearly gasped at the girl staring back at her. Her eyes never looked so bright, her lashes seemed to go for miles, and the shimmery pink lip gloss made her lips look fuller than she'd ever seen them.
Tapping her foot against the plush carpet Rebekah waited impatiently for her feedback. "Well?"
"Wow, I love it."
"So where is this new place?" Elena inquired watching as her friend grabbed an army of curling irons, combs and bobbing pins.
There was a glint of something reflecting from Rebekah's eyes, and Elena couldn't decide if it was excitement or mischief, probably a mixture of both.
"It's this upscale lounge that a friend told me about, I thought we'd go some place nice for a change." The blonde explained enthusiastically. "Supposedly a lot of hot rich guys hang out there. "
"Is that why we're getting all dolled up?" Elena laughed, suddenly understanding why her friend insisted they go to this club. Hot guys always got Rebekah's attention, add rich to that equation and well… it all made sense. She suddenly understood why they were traveling half way across town to some club neither of them had ever been to.
"What about Matt?" Elena asked. Rebekah did have a new boy toy, so her friend wasn't lacking in the hot guy department, so it actually didn't make much sense after all.
Feigning nonchalance the blonde shrugged her shoulders. "What about him?"
"I don't know, it might have something to do with me hearing you two last night." Once more she tried to force the vivid sounds of her roommate's last sexcapade with her latest beau out of her head. Considering how badly her own sex life was lacking, it wasn't an easy feat. She felt like a total creeper whenever she got turned on by the endless moaning and grunting sounds coming from the room below hers. In those moments she'd press her thighs tightly together, trying desperately to relieve the aching between them that continued to deprive her of precious hours of sleep.
"You heard that?" Instead of being bashful or coy, Rebekah let out a shameless laugh. "Sorry, I'll try to keep it down next time."
Elena shook her head doubtfully. "Please." She nearly begged. "Some of us do need to sleep, you know."
"It's just so good." Rebekah spoke, and Elena could tell she was recalling the previous night. "And I've had some really good sex, so that's saying something."
"…Oh" Elena's voice was small and awkward. Rebekah was always eager to share the colorful details of her many sexcapades while Elena squirmed uncomfortably at every word. It was all just so graphic and a little too crude for her sensitive ears and her friend seemed to be into some really wild things that she would never even dream of trying.
Her limited sexual experiences paled in comparison and so there was really not much to share. She could only recall a few passionless encounters with her previous two boyfriends, one of which she dated her first year of college. There were no stories of steamy one night stands, or kinky role playing, or toe curling orgasms just phlegmatic memories that never lasted more than a few moments, of which most times she failed to achieve the euphoric bliss that she desperately craved.
"He does this thing with his tongue…" Elena's eyes were glued to her friend's face, as Rebekah's eyes rolled to the back of her head as the memory of her and Matt in bed replayed itself in her mind. "It's the best feeling ever..." Rebekah sighed in conclusion as if she'd managed to satisfy herself with just the memory of their sexual encounter.
Noticing Elena's silence Rebekah immediately became suspicious. "Don't tell me Sam was the last guy you slept with."
The pitying look Rebekah gave her made Elena want to crawl in a hole and never come out. "So what if he was." She said in defense.
With a look of pure disbelief Rebekah replied, "That forever ago, no wonder you're always so wound up, you need to get laid."
"I don't need sex." Elena lied. "And besides I've been busy with work and school, I've barely had time to think straight, let alone think about sleeping with someone."
"Sex doesn't require thinking Lena, it's not one of your fancy math equations, you're horny, he's horny and you have sex. Bam! Problem Solved."
"I'm not gonna sleep with some total stranger!" Elena shrieked in disapproval pulling away, almost causing her friend to lose her grip on the curling iron hovered just above her head.
"He doesn't have to be a stranger," Rebekah replied rolling her eyes dramatically. "He can be a friend."
Scoffing Elena shook her head "I don't have any guy friends, not that I'd actually take your advice if I did."
"What about Damon?" A suggestive smiled played on Rebekah's face. "Last I heard you were stripping down for him and eating chocolate cake off his body."
Her cheeks burned red hot at her friend's completely exaggerated and fabricated version of the events. A warm gush of liquid surged right through her core as she thought back on some of the events of that week. She'd never ever lusted after a man in her life, and refused to acknowledge that her sudden sleepless nights had more to do with Damon than any of Rebekah's late night rendezvous. The way he looked at her alone sent electric shocks through every nerve ending of her body, and every night when she closed her eyes, all she saw was his piercing blue orbs staring back, taunting her with something she knew was completely forbidden.
Surely she'd made all that stuff up in her head right? There was no way Damon was flirting with her, in fact he couldn't have made it any clearer after his complete dismissal of the elevator incident.
Suddenly she was filled with rage, as thought back at his harsh words. They shouldn't have affected her so much, he was an ass after all, but she couldn't help it. Her utter disdain and annoyance aside, she spent most of her first week gawking at how physically flawless he was, and yet to him she may as well be any other faceless woman at the office.
"Are you suggesting I sleep with my boss?"
"Oh please. Don't tell me you've never thought about it?" Rebekah teased.
"Absolutely not!" Elena protested.
"Whatever you say Lena, I think you have the hots for him." The blonde sing-songed in that annoying way she did whenever she knew she was right. "You've talked about him every day this week."
"Because he's an ass." Elena shot back. She spent a week being taunted by every single look he gave her, feeling completely naked under his intrusive stare; somehow he managed to seduce her with just his eyes. Elena never even knew such a thing was possible.
She became a different girl around him, finding herself doing things that she'd later question. She swore at the time it seemed imperative that she take that bite of chocolate cake, he dared her, suddenly she couldn't back down; just like she couldn't stop the satisfying moan that slipped from her lips or the way her eyes dilated from the sheer lust of watching him watch her.
It was like the elevator all over again. Just how many of these "incidents" was she going to allow between them? There were no more excuses, she took her job very seriously and she couldn't let him distract her anymore.
"He turns you on and you want to jump his bones." Rebekah added erupting in laughter as Elena gave her an icy glare.
"Ugh can we talk about anything other than him? "
After carefully curling the last few strands of Elena's chestnut hair, Rebekah stepped back to assess her hard work. "Fine let's talk about how hot you look in this dress and how the guys won't be able to keep their hands off you."
Right on cue Elena's cheeks turned a crimson red. Standing in front of the full length mirror she admired her friend's handy work. With her hair perfectly curled flawless make up and a skin fitting red dress that dipped low into her cleavage and hugged every one of her curves, she looked like a completely different person.
"You're sure I look okay?" She asked, unsure.
Rebekah gave her a playful wink "You look so good I might have to rethink my life choices."
Rebekah was spot on about the venue.
The place was crawling with hot guys and Elena even took notice of some of the women. It was as if she'd fallen into one of those fashion magazines and was suddenly surrounded by beautiful models. A place like that didn't just allow anyone inside. The line of desperate party-goers circling the entire block was proof, but Rebekah's beau managed to come through, allowing them to skip ahead to the front of the line and talking the bouncer into letting them in.
That atmosphere inside was perfect, so different from the wild parties they usually went to. The music was loud enough to enjoy but not blaring through the speakers that they had to shout at each other. The lighting was tasteful, there were no obnoxious flashing strobe lights but it wasn't too dark where guys could get too creepy and inappropriate.
Elena immediately took a seat in one of the comfortable chairs earning her a disapproving look from her blonde friend.
"I didn't spend my time making you glamorous so you can sit here and hide Lena." Yanking her out of her seat Rebekah dragged her over to the bar where the blonde flirted her way into some free drinks.
The two girls downed a few shots of vodka and Elena was starting to loosen up a bit. Her nerves were no longer tingling with anxiety. She was relaxed and having a good time, well for a moment anyway until she overheard Rebekah whispering to the guy who sat on the stool beside them.
"Hi, have you met my friend Elena?" She heard the blonde giggled drunkenly. "She's a hottie isn't she?"
The dark haired guy smiled looking over Rebekah's shoulder to where Elena sat mortified. He gave her a small smile before replying "I'd love to meet her."
"Great!" Rebekah shouted enthusiastically. "Look Lena, he thinks you're a hottie."
Elena was sure they'd be kicked out any moment if Rebekah's outbursts continued. It wasn't the kind of place that allowed sloppy drunks and her friend was one shot of vodka away from being completely wasted.
"I'll leave you two." She smiled before staggering away from the bar.
It didn't take long for Elena to make the connection. Tyler Lockwood, brother of Mason Lockwood and part owner of Lockwood Architects, Damon and Alaric's biggest rivals. Not that Tyler bothered to be modest about it, he'd pretty much bragged about how important and wealthy he was before Elena even got a word out.
"How about we get out of here, just you and I?" He gave her a look that surely might have worked on any other girl there, but Elena knew that line was code for 'let's have sex.' Tyler was quite handsome, he had dark hair, gorgeous brown eyes and a nice smile, but she'd known him all of twenty minutes and she couldn't accept what he was offering. Plus she could tell just like Rebekah, Tyler had one too many to drink. His speech was starting to slur, and he kept leaning forward. She couldn't decide if he was trying to kiss her, or if he simple wasn't able to sit up straight.
"Actually, I came here with my friend and I don't want to leave her alone." She smiled politely, happy that she'd found the perfect excuse. It was both reasonable and true; she wouldn't leave Rebekah alone, drunk in a place that was crawling with men itching to get laid.
"That's a pathetic excuse." Tyler looked offended; clearly he wasn't used to being rejected.
Elena was confused, it's not like she'd been rude to him. "It's the truth."
His laugh was laced with contempt. "Save the act, look around sweetie; you're hardly the best thing here."
Elena tried hard to blink back the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes. She couldn't figure out what she did wrong, she politely turn down his offer and he was treating her like she spat in his face.
"I can get any woman in this place, I don't have to deal with a stuck up bitch like you."
With that the tears flowed freely down her cheeks. She brought her hand up to wipe them away just as quickly as they spilled. This was the most humiliating night of her life. Why did Rebekah have to introduce her to such a jerk?
"When you're done bullying the ladies some of us would like to have a drink at the bar" She heard a smooth voice utter behind Tyler.
Tyler turned around and the disdain on his features multiplied times a thousand. Elena could tell whoever it was; Tyler must have hated them more than her.
The mysterious guy had to be none other than her boss; she realized it when Tyler stepped off the stool. Of course. She thought bitterly. Her puffy red eyes met his blue ones briefly before she immediately forced them away. She couldn't understand what she saw in them, he seemed even angrier than Tyler was. How long had he been standing there? Did he hear all the horrible things Tyler said to her? The entire situation was beyond embarrassing.
"Maybe I'm not done." Tyler stood up and got right in Damon's face.
"You want to try that again?" Damon gave him a menacing glare, and stepped closer until they were almost touching.
God, could this night get any worse?
"Is there a problem?" She heard a familiar voice that almost immediately put her at ease. She could make out Alaric's light brown hair and his soft features as he approached the confrontation taking place in front of her.
"Yeah, is there a problem?" Another voice echoed his sentiments, and in came Mason Lockwood sporting an angry expression.
"You might want to teach your brother here how to talk to a lady, maybe he wouldn't strike out so often." Damon insulted.
Elena could barely remember the events that occurred after that. Everything happened so fast, and before she knew it blows were being exchanged and she was being forced to recall the events to the police officer who stood in front of her.
Suddenly she wished she had stayed home instead.
Elena never remembered dreaded a Monday morning so much. She'd been wracked with guilt the entire weekend as she replayed the events of Friday night over and over again in her head. How did things get out of hand so fast? One minute she was having a conversation with a hot guy and the next her boss gets into an all out bar brawl with said guy.
After speaking to Alaric that Saturday morning she learned that Damon had been released from the holding cell where he spent the remainder of the night. She couldn't decide whether to check on him or not. What if he was angry with her? Maybe he'd think it was her fault. What would she say to him? Should she have apologized? Would he even speak to her? Her mind was racing a thousand miles per second until she actually convinced herself that her internship would be revoked.
She took her time walking into the elevator, in no rush for the confrontation that was sure to ensue as soon as she entered Damon's office. That weekend she perfected every single assignment he'd given her in hopes that it would convince him not to fire her.
"You're ten minutes late, Elena." She heard his sharp voice before she officially stepped into his office. She stifled a gasp as she saw the three stitches above his right eye. Though, even that couldn't detract from the beauty that never ceased to radiate from those cerulean eyes.
"You should see his face." He said smugly when he noticed her staring at the stitches above his eye.
"…I'm sorry… the traffic… was terrible this morning." She stuttered trying to come up with any explanation other than 'I've been too scared to face you, so I was stalling.'
"I don't plan on being here all day, what do you have for me?" His voice was stern again, getting right to business as if the other night was simply a figment of her imagination. No, it was real and the stitches were proof of that.
Pulling out her notes she placed them carefully on his desk and slowly took her seat in front of him.
"I'm sorry about the other night." She stated hesitantly. "I didn't mean for it—"
"It had nothing to do with you." He cut her off before she could finish. "Don't worry about it." He said uninterestedly.
Elena should have been relieved that he wasn't blaming her but instead she felt even more frustrated, annoyed, confused you name it. She knew even before taking the internship that there was a rivalry between the two firms, but a full on brawl is something she would have never expected. The way Tyler looked at Damon, and the look of complete contempt that Damon returned had to be about more than business, it seemed far too personal.
"So, what was it about?" The words spilled from her lips before she could stop them. Her curiosity had been peaked and she suddenly realized that she knew nothing about Damon other than the fact that he was a womanizing ass.
"Well that's a bit personal don't you think?" He gave her a smirk looking up from his work and crossing his arms over his chest. Elena almost regretted asking him.
"I just doesn't make any sense is all I'm saying."
"Not everything will, Elena." The way he looked at her made her want to disappear. She was instantly reminded that he probably saw her crying after Tyler hurled all those insults at her, and she suddenly felt more vulnerable and completely exposed.
"I'll tell you, only if I get to ask you a personal question," he challenged. And of course she couldn't back down; because she could never back down from any challenge he posed not when those blue eyes taunted her in that daring way they did. Not to mention after being traumatized by the violence that broke out in front of her, at the very least she deserved to know the truth.
Elena listened intently as Damon told her about the time he dated Mason's current girlfriend and all the drama that resulted between he and the Lockwoods because of it. She couldn't hide her shock at the idea of Damon being in a serious relationship. He just didn't seem like the type.
Apparently there was more than he preferred not to get into, and she respectfully nodded respecting his privacy.
"Now my turn." He smiled that devilishly handsome smile of his and her heart jumped at the sight before plummeting under the realization that she actually agreed to let him ask her a personal question.
"What's your favorite sexual position Elena?"
Her eyes bulged and practically rolled out of their sockets at his intrusive question. "Disgusting." She muttered under her breath shaking her head at his crudeness.
"What?" He asked feigning innocence. "No answer?"
"You're a pig." She glared at him, and in the moment she didn't even care that he was her boss. He as an asshole first and foremost, a jerk second and not to mention a complete idiot! She couldn't believe she spent the entire weekend feeling sorry for him, he was no better than Tyler Lockwood.
"Hey you said I could ask you a personal question, I figured I'd go with a harmless one." He tried to reason, but that permanent stupid smirk on his face just made her want to slap him. Hard.
"You call that harmless?" She practically shouted in disbelief. "I'm pretty sure it's borderline sexual harassment!"
"Relax Elena,"
Relax? Did he seriously tell her to relax? She hated how seemingly calm he was while her own breathing was labored and her heart hammered wildly in her chest. God, she never had the urge to punch someone so much.
"I consider it harmless," he sauntered over to where she sat on the other side of the desk "Especially compared to what I really want to ask you."
He was standing over her now and she suddenly felt like prey. She wanted nothing more than to knee him in the groin. God she was so tempted… Oh great now her mind wouldn't let her stop thinking about how close she was to his… man parts. Awesome she thought bitterly.
Wait did he just say there was something else he wanted to ask her? Did she even want to know? What could possibly be worse than him being an inappropriate and invasive ass?
"And what do you really want to ask me?" She stood up to face him, refusing to back down. There was less than an inch of space between them now and she could feel the heat radiating off their bodies.
She willed her body not to react but it was pointless, she was attracted to him maybe more so than she despised him. But her body would always betray her; she could feel her nipples harden becoming unbearably sensitive underneath the fabric of her blouse. Her heart rate had yet to slow down since he pissed her off, but continued to race for an entirely different reason. She only hoped she did a good enough job of hiding the way he affected her, but the knowing smirk on his face told her otherwise.
"What's his name?" The question was simple and to the point.
"What are you talking about?" She was starting to wonder if he suffered from a concussion, nothing he was saying made any sense to her.
But he just continued to smirk at her, lifting his hand to twirl one of her chestnut curls playfully around his finger.
She swallowed hard, trying to ignore the way her body seemed to tingle in anticipation of his touch.
"Who's name?" She asked, her voice sounding a lot more weak and needy than she wanted.
"The guy who screwed you over." Brushing her curls away from the side of her face, he whispered right into ear.
The velvety sound of his voice reverberated in her ears as his lips brushed the outer shell. Elena shivered involuntarily at his proximity.
"What?" Her confusion only increased, and the web of lust that was slowly building around them only served to further perplex her. She couldn't think straight, she could only hear the smooth sound of his voice on loop in her ear, and the faint electrifying sensations of his hands brushing her face and hair.
"You're a smart, beautiful, but you don't have a shred of confidence." He put it bluntly. "Sounds like a man's doing. So what's his name?"
His words were like a bucket of ice cold water snapping her out of the lustful haze. She finally understood where he was getting at and if there was ever a moment when she wanted to vanish that might have been it. Instead she stared at him blankly and denied his claims.
"Why'd you let him talk to you like that?" He challenged.
She knew exactly who he was referring to. Just like she suspected he'd heard the entire exchange between her and Tyler.
"What was I supposed to say?" She asked. "He was a jerk."
"Gee, I don't know stand up for yourself maybe? "
His sarcasm really wasn't helping her at all. She was already mortified that he'd overheard Tyler's rude comments, but now it felt like he was rubbing salt in her wounds.
"I don't care what he says, he's a jerk and he means nothing to me." She lied. It had taken her an entire day to get over Tyler's verbal assault and the last thing she wanted to do was break into tears again.
"I think you do care." Damon shot back. "And I think you believe every word he said."
"Well you're wrong."
"Am I?" He shook his head, giving her a sad smile.
"Yeah you are." Her voice sounded tiny like it always did whenever she was unsure.
"I'm not wrong Elena, you believe him." He argued. "But Tyler, he's wrong and he knows it. He never would have wasted his time talking to you in the first place if he didn't realize you were the prettiest woman in the room."
"Elena, Alaric wants to see you." Andie barged in to announce.
"Wanna try knocking next time Andie?" Damon asked in annoyance.
"Sorry didn't know I was interrupting something." The blonde looked suspiciously at the proximity between them before shutting the door behind her.
Damon finally stepped away from her, and Elena let out a breath she hardly knew she was holding. She vaguely recalled Damon telling her she was beautiful, maybe even twice, but her emotions were all over the place, and the words she tried to burry after that Friday night kept replaying in her head. She was pissed all over again at Tyler callous words, sad because Damon was right and some stupid insecure part of her really did believe him, not to mention the miniscule part of her was flattered that Damon genuinely seemed to think she was beautiful.
If only she could go back in time and answer the stupid sex question instead.
Thanks for reading… Hope you enjoyed. Don't forget to leave me a review and let me know what you think.