Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing.

Note: Previously, in "When You Least Expect It," Klaus surprises Caroline with a visit, during which they have a steamy interlude following a romantic dinner he cooks for them.

Hey, everyone! I know I haven't updated in a while (the last time being May 5), but inspiration hasn't been easy to come by and my real life has been hectic. Since I have a moment now, I'm going to attempt an update. No spoilers, just keep reading.

Mystic Falls Country Club – Several Weeks Later…

"Mom, you look absolutely beautiful. Victor isn't going to know what to do with himself when he sees you."

Caroline smiled at her mother as she watched Liz admire herself in the mirror. The gown she had bought was simple yet elegant. During the weeks leading up to the wedding, Liz had told her daughter that she didn't want anything too over the top, since she was more mature now than she was when she married Bill, and Caroline had agreed. After all, she wanted to everything to go smoothly, especially for her mother and soon-to-be stepfather.

The older blonde smiled as well. "Which is exactly why I bought this dress. I want to get a very positive reaction from him." She sighed. "And I have you to thank for making this day possible for us, Caroline. I doubt anyone else would have been able to do as good a job as you did."

"No need to thank me, Mom," said Caroline. "Knowing that you're going to marry your true love is all the thanks I need."

Liz then turned toward her daughter. "By the way, I got the opportunity to meet that handsome doctor you're dating."

Caroline felt her cheeks start to burn, but ignored it as she replied, "Really? What did you think?"

"I was very impressed," said Liz. "Klaus is a perfect gentleman, the kind of man I would want for my daughter." She took her daughter's hands in hers. "He's a keeper, Caroline, and I know that you two will be as happy as Victor and I are."

Caroline smiled and was about to reply when Sydney O'Brien, Victor's eldest daughter, came in. "Oh, Liz, you look absolutely fantastic! Kind of makes me look forward to my own wedding." She rolled her eyes. "That is, if Kevin gets a damn clue and buys me a ring."

She was referring to her long-time boyfriend, Kevin Fletcher, who worked as a foreman at her father's company following his father's retirement several years ago. They started living together recently, and Sydney was hoping he'd pop the question by now.

Caroline found herself empathizing with Sydney, having gone through the same thing with Tyler before the rape. I hope Kevin gets with the program and proposes before he loses a good thing. I may not know Sydney very well, but she's a wonderful young woman and doesn't deserve this bullshit he's putting her through.

"Sydney," she finally. "I know this isn't my place to be giving you relationship advice, but I think you should sit Kevin down and have a chat with him. You know, tell him that although you love him very much, you don't like where things are headed, and unless he starts changing soon, you should consider seeing other people."

Once she finished talking, Caroline studied Sydney's face, hoping that she didn't offend her by what she said. However, her fears were unfounded when her future stepsister said, "You're right, Caroline. I should give Kevin some tough love. I shouldn't let him drag his feet like this."

"Hey, what are sisters for?" said Caroline. "If you ever want advice, feel free to call me."

Later…

The reception was in full swing as Caroline and Klaus stood by the refreshment table, drinking some champagne. The ceremony, which had been conducted by a Justice of the Peace, had been very beautiful, and Caroline had gotten emotional during the vow exchange.

Klaus noticed that she was quiet and spoke first. "Penny for your thoughts, love?"

Caroline didn't look at him as she replied, "I'm just thinking, mostly about the last several weeks. Up until Victor came back into the picture, it was just me and my mom. The two Forbes women against the world, and there was a time where I thought my mom would never smile. Hell, there was a time where I thought I'd never smile, and I was the one who was trying to be brave throughout the whole thing."

"Do you still speak to your father?"

"Yeah, he calls me from time to time," said Caroline. "Granted, we're not really that close, but I don't hate him for what happened. At the end of the day, he's still my father, for better or worse." She shook her head. "Listen to me, talking about my parents' divorce on the happiest day of my mom's life."

"I'm not judging you, Caroline," said Klaus. "No sense keeping these things bottled up inside."

Caroline laughed as he told her that. She remembered her mother telling her that she thought Klaus was perfect for her daughter. Honestly, what did she ever do to deserve something like him? The answer to that should be obvious. I took a chance and allowed him to love me, and that was the best move I ever made.

She had stopped laughing long enough to hear the DJ saying, "Ladies and gentlemen, announcing for the very first time, Mr. and Mrs. Victor O'Brien."

Caroline placed her glass down and clapped, tears flowing down her cheeks. Her mother looked beautiful, and she couldn't have been happier on the arm of the man she loved. She then watched as the DJ then started to play "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars, the song that Liz and Victor had chosen for their first dance.

Klaus saw that she was crying and gently took her hand, squeezing it. He admired the love that she had for her mother and although he somewhat envied her, he reminded himself that Esther was incapable of such a thing, her recent actions were evidence enough of that. Speaking of which, he hoped that the private investigator Elijah hired was able to find something. As much as he appreciated that Caroline was helping him, on the same token, he didn't want Esther to hurt her. However, before he could say anything to that effect, he saw Victor and Liz approaching them as soon as the song ended.

"Well, you must be the famous Klaus Mikaelson. Liz was telling me that she had spoken with you earlier."

Victor's remark brought a smile to Klaus' face. "And you must be Victor O'Brien, the man who has brought happiness back to Sheriff Forbes' life. Caroline told me about you and I'm glad to finally put a face to the name."

"I'm equally as glad to see that my stepdaughter has someone like you in her life," said Victor. "She deserves someone who will make her smile, and judging by the sparkle I see in her eyes, you have definitely done just that. Liz and I want nothing but the best for her."

"You have my word that I will never hurt Caroline," said Klaus. "I believe that a woman should be treated with dignity and respect."

Victor smiled. "And that's all we ask." He then heard the music for the father-daughter dance. "I know that this is supposed to be just for me and Sydney, but if Caroline is willing, I can make this dance for all three for us."

Caroline smiled as well. "I'd love to."

Victor returned his stepdaughter's smile and took her hand, leading her out to the dance floor, where Sydney was waiting. No sooner did they leave than Klaus heard his cell phone ring. He took it out of his jacket pocket and looked at the ID screen, seeing Elijah's name. Why would he be calling? He had told his brother that he was going to be with Caroline all day. Excusing himself from Liz, he retreated into the country club and answered his brother's call.

"I can't talk now, Elijah. I'm at Caroline's mother's wedding."

"I apologize for calling at an inopportune time, Niklaus," his brother replied. "I received a call from Detective Kenner, the one I hired to investigate Mother's lover. He told me of his findings and I wanted to share such findings with you."

"As much as I'd like to hear what he found out, this is really not the time," said Klaus. "Perhaps we could meet with Detective Kenner and discuss this at a more convenient time."

Elijah nodded on his end, even though Klaus couldn't see him. "Very well, I shall call him and arrange a meeting. Give Caroline my regards."

Klaus nodded as well and ended the call, shutting the phone off before placing it back into his pocket and walking out of the building in time to see Caroline leaving the dance floor. As they got closer, she noticed that he was agitated and her earlier smile faded. What could have happened to cause his agitation?

"Klaus, are you okay?"

Her question brought him out of his reverie. He wanted to tell her it was nothing, but decided not to, knowing that she'd keep asking him until he finally told her what was bothering him. "Elijah called."

Caroline nodded. "What did he say?"

"He said that the private investigator he hired to investigate Ansel Bradbury found something and he wanted to share his findings with me," said Klaus. "I told him that as much as I would've liked to hear what he had to say, this wasn't the right time and to arrange a meeting with Detective Kenner at a more convenient time."

"I think I'd like to hear what he has to say as well. When Elijah arranges the meeting, I'm going with you." She saw that he was about to protest. "Don't try to discourage me. You asked me to stand by you, and that's exactly what I'm going to do. Unless I go to this meeting with you, we don't go at all."

Klaus felt his jaw go slack at her words and quickly closed it. He'd say this for Caroline, she was quite stubborn, a trait that he'd no doubt appreciate over time. Since he couldn't argue his way out of it, he had no choice but to allow her to go with him.

"Very well, Caroline, you can go with me," he said finally. "Somehow, I think your being there will make everything not seem so bad. Plus, it'll keep me from punching Detective Kenner in the face."

Note: Better later than never, huh? Yeah, this chapter was kicking my ass, hence the delay in the update. I tried several different angels, none of which seemed to work. Anyway, I think I managed to find one that worked. Stay tuned for more!

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