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Darkest Temptations
Chapter Three: The First Day
Caroline Mikaelson
After we finished reviewing our new IDs we made arrangements to track down the nearest megastore to begin the necessary shopping for each of the new homes. While both Elena and April returned to their new houses to lock up I returned to my own, making my way towards the sitting room in search of Klaus to share our plans. I stopped in my tracks however when I found the sitting room empty, I crossed my arms and made my way towards the front window and looked out to find him still on the phone.
It seemed strange to me that he already owned a new phone, considering how adamant he had been over the rest of us ditching our own so we weren't tracked. Besides who was he even talking to? We weren't allowed to reach out to anyone from our past after we performed the spell, that was what all four of us had agreed to. Whoever it was, he seemed to want it kept secret from the rest of us. I felt like such an idiot, for a moment I actually believed he was being a gentleman and a grown up about this arrangement, but he was just the same Klaus he was before. Clearly the open road hadn't had the same impact on him that it did for me and the girls.
I watched him closely then as he ended the call and returned the phone to his pocket before he made his way to the trunk of the station wagon.
What are you up to now? I wondered before finally making my way to the front door.
I stood in the doorway for a moment watching him as he began to unload the trunk, one bag after the other, not the slightest bit phased by their size or weight.
"That's Aprils." I called to him as I made my way down the driveway towards him.
Klaus lifted his head to look my way after setting her bag down at his side, his lips curled up on one side before he sent me an effortless wink.
"Thank you for doing all of this." I said stopping in front of him then.
"It's just a few bags love."
"That's not what I meant."
Klaus met my eyes for the briefest of moments before merely nodding his head in response.
I bit my lower lip uncomfortably before rocking back and forth on the balls of my feet.
"I figured when we were finally alone you'd have a million questions for me." I confessed
Again Klaus said nothing and just continued on with the luggage. I checked over my shoulder looking to Elena and April's houses before I turned back to face him once more.
"We just dropped this on you and didn't really give you a chance to really think things through so-"
"Are you asking if I have any regrets about our arrangement?" Klaus asked interrupting me before I could finish.
"I wouldn't blame you if you did. I don't think any of us would."
He closed the trunk door then and I looked at our driveway now covered in our luggage not knowing how we managed to store it all in one car. When Klaus stepped towards me I finally locked eyes with him, he immediately brought his hand up to my forehead brushing back my bangs with his finger tips as he held my gaze.
"Ask me again" He encouraged his voice slightly more gentle then before.
Don't think about Tyler right now! Don't ruin this moment!
"I don't know how we're supposed to do this." I confessed to him without thought.
He brought his hand down to beneath my chin, softly, achingly tracing the right side of my jaw line back and forth, watching the affect his touch had on me and my breathing.
"Do you want this? Do you want us?" I finally asked the question that been racing around my mind for the past two thousand miles.
"Are you wearing perfume?" Klaus asked me making me exhale and smile.
He dropped his hand and took a closer step towards me instead, so close that we almost touched.
"Is this crazy?" I asked not knowing if I wanted him to answer me or not.
"I don't care if it is." He answered without the slightest hesitation to his tone.
I felt the weight drop from my shoulders then, this is what I had needed all along, this precise moment. I needed to know what was in his heart, that I wasn't out of my mind for suggesting this be our new lives. He didn't need to tell me anything else, at least not for now, I just needed to be assured that he didn't care what others might think of our joined marriage.
"Thank you." I said as he stepped away from me then.
I looked up to meet his eyes and quickly used my hand to shield my eyes from the glare of the sun causing him to laugh, he quickly retrieved his sunglasses then and carefully slipped them on over my eyes as I tried to keep it together over his sudden affection nature.
"This isn't going to be easy is it?" I asked as I turned to look out at the street.
"I've faced worse." Klaus clarified.
"But if they suspect-"
"If they do I'll take care of it."
I looked back at him then.
"I refuse to let anyone take this away from us." He vowed.
"Even if we're not all a hundred percent sure exactly what this is yet?" I asked before biting my lip.
Klaus nodded in response.
"I just figured all our next steps would come so naturally when we got here."
I heard a door open and close behind us then and glanced over my shoulder to find both Elena and April making their way towards us then.
"Do you all feel this way?" Klaus asked me so quietly then that Elena was sure not hear it.
When I looked his way again his eyes were fixed on them.
"I don't know" I replied honestly.
Klaus never said a word to me after that, instead he became to assist with getting our luggage into the right houses despite all of our objections that we were capable of helping him. He insisted we take his car instead of the station wagon to the store which was probably a good idea as it was almost out of gas anyway. When I attempted to climb into the backseat April was quick to block me, I watched as she climbed in with Elena on her other side before she turned to me smiling and eagerly pointing to the front passenger seat beside Klaus who had already started the engine and set the AC on full. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at her unnecessary joy over the idea of Klaus and I sitting side by side in the front, it was as if she didn't know this car ride was going to be awkward enough already without seating assignments.
Klaus had the car's navigation set up by the time I buckled myself in, although I didn't look his way I felt his eyes on me. He brought his hand around the back of my headrest as he reversed out of the driveway, causing me to hold my breath until both his hands returned to the steering wheel.
"I can't believe we're actually here." April commented as she studied our new street.
I glanced in Elena's direction then when I heard her window slide down finding her just as surprised and leaning off the arm rest as she watched it descend.
She looked forward at Klaus in realization then as I watched his hand fall away from the control switch, he must have been watching her from his rear view mirror. Despite the power of the AC it was really hot inside the car, my back was sticking to my seat already.
"Thank you" Elena thanked him although it was unclear if he actually heard her or not.
"Any purchases today will be paid through my own personal account. The money you have right now is for household expenses and personal use." Klaus clarified then.
"You're insane" I said under my breath
"What was that?" Klaus asked
I shook my head and focused my attention outside the window at all the vacant houses on the street.
Klaus would need to spend time with each of us at the store. He would be living in all three houses, he wasn't a guest, he had a say in how each of his homes were furnished. Even though the idea of shopping for items such as pillow cases and dishwashers with Klaus Mikaelson was so unbelievable awkward and bordering on cringey it had to be done. I just worried he'd grow bored within a few minutes and leave everything to us while he disappeared for another mysterious phone call.
Who did he call back at the house anyway?
Somehow the silence that followed quickly after was not at all uncomfortable, it was rather reassuring, at least for me, that we did not find the need to talk and fill the silence with unnecessary small talk. It gave me a small insight of how life would be in that moment, not the conversation of course but the reality that it would always be us together. The circumstances that brought us together would be nothing but a memory with time, but what would always remain constant was us together. This brief moment in time brought me a solace that I hadn't felt since the moment I started the car that night in Mystic Falls.
The town for which we now lived was filled with all manner of companies, there was a cinema, many restaurants, one Thai place in particular that I couldn't wait to try out, there were four different gyms, one large supermarket, two megastores, bookstores, butchers, a harbour with plenty of fishermen going about their morning, a row of market stalls selling art, handmade soaps, organic vegetables and pastries, there were a group of old men singing in the town square like a barbershop quartet right by the square fountain. The town was breathtaking, the lamp posts were free of any advertisements, the flowers around the square were maintained and blooming with life and all manner of colours, but what I loved most was the people, they were just going about their day completely unaware of what we were.
Why do I feel like I might cry right now?
"This is amazing" April commented.
I smiled as I watched Klaus look up at his rear view mirror then, he didn't smile or respond, but just seeing him do this was enough. The Klaus I knew would have rolled his eyes or shook his head in annoyance, even if that is what he did want to do in that moment he didn't show it. This was our first day, our first few hours actually and already I could see the small changes he was making to begin our new life's together.
But I'm still cringing a bit. I'm only human...well sort of.
When we arrived at the megastore Klaus found a parking space right by the front and we made our way inside while he locked the car. Thankfully the store had a same day delivery grantee with a handheld scanner function too, so shopping carts were unnecessary for us. We took a scanner each and while Elena and April disappeared into separate aisle I waited by the front door for Klaus who was quick at my heels. After briefly explaining the set up we made our to the nearest aisle, taking in the sitting room display rooms before us now one after the other.
"So this isn't the least bit awkward" I commented then not wanting to pretend now that we were alone again.
"Which part?"
"Us shopping for furniture together."
"You're not the least bit bothered about spending my money then?"
I smiled before answering him "Unlike your other guests the night of the ball I got a tour of that mansion you called a house. From all the art, the marble floors and ten bedrooms and bathrooms I'm guessing money isn't exactly an issue for you."
"Money shall never be of concern."
"I imagine you've got plenty of others things to keep you distracted."
"Such as?"
I stopped in my tracks causing him to turn around and face me fully, a coy smile upon his lips daring me to smile back at him.
"Are we really going to pretend this entire day isn't making you cringe already?"
He just continued to smile, he was playing his cards close to the chest for once.
"We're shopping, you and me. And if you don't have something to say or feel about that then, we're just too different to work."
Klaus laughed then before biting his lower lip ever so slightly, before ultimately taking a small step towards me.
"It's just so freaking awkward." I confessed before he could say anything.
I sighed and shook my head at him and his smile.
"Say something" I pleaded.
"What do you want me to say love?"
"Everything. I just want to know what you think of this whole thing, I want to know what you spoke to Elena about back at the house and I want to know what that phone call was all about."
Crap...
"I see." Klaus said before he pursed his lips at my childish behaviour and blurting.
I rolled my eyes at myself then "I just meant, I don't want to start this whole thing with secrets."
"What are you worried that I'm hiding?"
That the only reason you agreed to this was for sex with the three of us. A million dollars is nothing to you if it's something you truly want.
"I never know what to expect when it comes to you."
"Perhaps I'll surprise you sweetheart." He said before making his way around me.
I smiled ever so slightly despite my fears and began following him.
An hour later and despite our somewhat mixed tastes we had agreed upon a few of the larger items needed for the house such as the sofas for both sitting rooms, a fridge freezer, the dining room table and chairs, bookcases, a studio piano Klaus insisted upon for the larger sitting room and new tiles for the downstairs bathroom.
I'd seen Elena and April throughout the store both of them so engrossed that they did not notice us going by them to my relief. I didn't want the shopping to be a group activity of sorts, what we were doing right now in the grand scheme of things was a very intimate thing, we were building our new lives, this shouldn't be treated like a shopping spree with a music montage, this was real life and we had to treat it as such.
"You should probably go and spend time with Elena and April now."
Klaus retrieved his phone from his pocket then to check the time before looking around the store.
"I thought today was meant to your day love?"
"It is. As weird as it is to call it that, it is, but it's still the first day and this is important."
He merely nodded in response and took off before I could say another word, I watched him walk off as I clasped the scanner between both hands. I suppose this would finally give me the opportunity to get all the little things that made a house a home, such as towels, a good coffee maker and flowers for the windows.
When I was finally alone I immediately made my way towards the bed department and selected their best king sized mattress, I had wanted to get this item sorted from the second we arrived in the store. If Klaus and I were going to share a bed then we're need plenty of space until I, well until we both felt more familiar with one another. For now I was a sea of guilt and crippling stomach cramps over the idea of sleeping in the same bed with Klaus when I knew Tyler was back home searching for me, fearing the possibility that I might already be dead. When I thought about what I had done to him it made me want to die, but it wasn't just him it was all of our friends, the idea of their pain was enough to stop me dead in my tracks.
There was nothing I could do to change it now, even if I wanted to, it wasn't just about my life anymore, it was about all of us.
Deep down we all wanted to be here, we wanted to be with each other.
Klaus wouldn't have married us if he didn't want to sleep with us, that was the reality that even Elena had slowly accepted that night. He knew in the future that each of us wanted to discuss the possibility of having babies and never the less he had agreed to it. We all knew the spell was keeping us from being discovered but it wasn't what was keeping us together. There was already a mutual respect and dare I say a shared attraction, I knew how I felt about Klaus, and he knew how he felt about me but it wasn't just about us. He also liked April and Elena, perhaps not as much as he liked me for he hadn't spent half the time with them, but he clearly trusted them, the spell had proven that if nothing else.
But all of that was a long way off, for today it was about lawn ornaments and seat cushions, not nurseries and car seats.
All the furniture for each of the rooms was made of American elm, it just had a warm feeling about it and would pair well with all the Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations to come.
Was I seriously thinking about the holidays right now?
...what was so wrong about that?
When Tyler came to mind again, I immediately turned my attention to the task at hand instead. Ok, for the master bedroom, we'd need nightstands, a chest of drawers, shelves, lamps for both nightstands, wall art, ornaments, photo frames, new door handles, light switch covers, dimmer settings, curtains, curtain rails, blinds, bedding, coat hangers, and shoe racks.
I was on my way to look at things for the sitting room when I saw Elena and Klaus just ahead of me side by side. I immediately proceeded to push my hair behind my ear to listen to their conversation when I stopped myself. It was a terrible habit that I did too often for my own good. Doing this to her meant it was alright for her to do it back to me which wasn't the case. The two of them doing this together was difficult enough without me ease dropping on them. If anything it was down right disgusting of me.
Don't get jealous...they don't even look at each other when they talk.
They were looking at the light displays, Klaus held the scanner up to the barcode of one in particular that I thought would look great in their hallway which looked a bit dark in the photographs.
Oh my god I didn't even go over to her place or April's before we left!
I watched them together for another minute or so, they kept distance between them so there were no bumping elbows along the way. They weren't looking at each other much but at least they were talking and selecting a few items for their house.
And I thought Klaus and I shopping together was cringey.
For the larger sitting room I picked out two beige Lawson couches and for the smaller sitting room just off the kitchen I selected a dark orange textured Lawson couch with two matching arm chairs. Klaus and I had agreed on paint and wallpaper for each of the rooms, we wanted warm tones so we selected maroon and warm browns for each of the rooms. I scanned a large screen TV for the corner of the larger sitting room, a side table, a coffee table, artificial flowers, cushions, throws, an area rug, a copper fire shield for around the fire in the smaller sitting room, ornaments, a mirror, photo frames, curtains, blinds, tissue box holders, vases, light shades, bulbs, a nest of tables and a humidifier.
The bathrooms turned out to be the easiest rooms of all to shop for and took me less than ten minutes tops to get down.
Afterwards I immediately went in search of a few essential items for the basement. Scanning to the ever growing list a total of seven large steel shelves and containers that would hold all our future bulk items. I even went as far as to scan two additional large chest freezers to be stored down there with them. I didn't mind the idea of the girls using my place for storage.
By the time I finally made it to the kitchen items it was already two in the afternoon. We'd have to head back to the houses soon as the delivery guys would be arriving just after four. I scanned a dishwasher, blender, food processor, mixer, toaster, microwave, stove, utensils, pots and pans, plates, bowls, cups, glasses, a dish rack, dish cloths and a fruit bowl.
When I rounded the next corner I stopped finding Klaus and April together by the sofa display models. I was seconds away from disappearing from their sight before they clocked me when I stopped myself. We'd been shopping for a few hours now and I'd been more than generous with the amount of time I'd spent alone instead of shopping with Klaus for the new house. It was time for me to get a grip and make it clear that it was still my day.
God it's so cringey calling it that...
Klaus had both his hands in his pocket and was smiling at April who slummed down into an overly padded armchair that looked like it might just swallow her whole. Her hair fell around her face from the impact but it didn't stop her from laughing at herself. He held out his hand for hers then when she took without hesitation, letting it go just as quickly after he brought her back up to her feet.
I made my way towards them then with both their backs to me at the time, Klaus however glanced in my direction, nothing ever got past him.
"Hey" I called to April who turned my way then also.
"Hey!"
Still as cheerful as ever then...
"How's it going?" I asked her noting the scanner clasped in her right hand.
"Uh I've got a couch and a microwave so far."
It's been five hours...
"That-that's all?"
"Pretty much. Why do you have more than that?"
Suddenly all I could focus on was the worry in her eyes.
Don't be a bitch to her just because you've got it together and she doesn't!
"I've got a few things on my list. But that's just me. I haven't seen Elena, maybe she hasn't seen anything she likes."
"She's over at the garden furniture section." Klaus clarified before I could ask the obvious.
I brushed my hair back over my shoulder before looking his way.
"So you have talked to her?" I asked
"I'll go and track her down. We should leave soon." April offered and quickly disappeared round the nearest corner leaving us alone.
"Problem love?" Klaus challenged me, his arrogant smirk right on schedule.
"No problem. I just figured you'd head back my way after checking in with them is all."
"I've kept an eye on you."
"Surrrrreeee" I groaned
"If I was lying how would I know the base colour of the bed frame you selected, or the silver set-"
He stopped to move towards me "I am rather curious about the satin bed sheets and scented candles you picked out."
"So what are you stalking me now or all of your wives?"
"Careful" He warned me as he edged closer
"Or what?"
I watched him look over my shoulder then causing me to immediately glance in the same direction finding Elena and April returning. He wanted me to know they were coming, he didn't want them to hear us.
We almost dropped to the floor after Klaus was presented with the total amount for all three of our scanners, more so by his initial reaction to it, he never so much as battered an eyelid, he merely pulled out a black credit card of some sort and paid.
"How much did you guys buy?" April asked as soon as the three of us stepped out of the store together.
Klaus was inside signing all the paperwork for the delivery, we had to make sure all the furniture went to the correct house.
"I'm not going to lie I probably bought the most" I confessed.
"I just got the essentials, and I guess a few other things too." Elena explained before tucking her hair behind her shoulders.
"It's still hot" I complained
"If it's this hot tomorrow I'm sunbathing all day" April said leaning her back against the front of Klaus's range rover.
"That's wishful thinking" I laughed.
"What do you mean?"
"We've got days upon days of decorating and furniture constructing ahead of us." I explained
"Wait, you got wallpaper and stuff already?" She asked leaning up off the frame
"Didn't you?" Elena asked her
"No. Oh my god" April groaned dipping her chin to her chest.
"What have you been doing all this time?" Elena asked her
"I was just walking about enjoying the air conditioning. I didn't have any help."
"What do you mean Klaus was with you" I told her
"Yeahhhhhhh for like five minutes"
"But I saw him with you too." Elena said
"He was but then he left to take a call."
"Another one?" Elena asked
"Did he mention who it was?" I asked her
"No."
"And you didn't think to ask him?"
"I, well, I mean, why would I? It's his phone"
We were all startled then at the sound of the car being disarmed, Klaus joined us then glancing at me before climbing inside.
"Mark that as the first shiver he ever gave me" April said as we headed for the doors.
"Again he can hear you" I reminded her.
I hadn't even buckled my seatbelt then when directly behind me April asked.
"So uhhhh, how legendary is that hearing thing of yours? Being a, uh, hybrid"
Klaus glanced at her in the mirror before starting the engine.
"As legendary as the rest of my body love."
Oh come on...
April was so embarrassed she never said a single word on the way back to the houses. I on the other hand took in the sight of our new town, covered beneath a sky of warm oranges and blushing pinks. The sight brought me such unexpected peace and tranquillity. I even thought at one point or another I could see Klaus looking my way and smiling. I'd been so rigid up until now, but now I could just float.
When he pulled into the driveway I immediately retrieved my new keys from my front pocket in desperate need of the bathroom. I never waited for the others, instead made my way towards the house closing the door behind me. When I finished I returned to the sitting room and began to hunt for my phone for the time, before remembering I didn't have one.
"That needs to be fixed." I huffed making my way to the front window.
I looked out towards the driveway finding them behind Klaus's car, unlike before he had reversed into the driveway this time, I didn't understand why until now.
I watched then as Klaus closed the trunk of his car after retrieving his luggage with Elena and April by his side. It was then he turned to Elena, leaned in towards her and without the slightest hesitation he placed a small peck upon her lips. Unlike Klaus she hadn't closed her eyes, at least not until their eyelashes slightly touched and it was more instinct then affection. He pulled away quickly enough, the kiss not enough to cause her to make a scene out of it or to storm away, but her shock was undeniable, never the less he managed to hold her gaze before turning his back to her fully to face April.
And just like before he leaned in and placed a kiss upon her lips, April had smiled as he did this but he did not. He gave her a wink before he turned to collect his luggage, slinging it up over his shoulder before making his way towards my house.
Jealous, I'm freaking jealous I admit it. Damn it.
The reality was that despite it being a little too soon for such affections, it was merely Klaus saying goodnight to his wives. Tomorrow night I would find myself in their position. For April, the guy she was now married to was about to spend the first night of their new life's together in the same house of the one girl she knew he had feelings for. And for Elena, Klaus was making his intention clear that these small signs of affection were going to be a daily occurrence, we weren't stupid teenagers anymore, we were all married and this was our new lives together.
Besides his kisses hadn't lingered, it was a gentle peck and nothing more.
Klaus brought all our luggage upstairs himself and I had gone through my own to retrieve a change of clothes and my body wash. I know I showered this morning but after being in the heat all day I just needed to freshen up. After using one of my pj tops to towel dry my hair I got changed into a pair of grey shorts and an oversized white t-shirt. I'd never dressed this way around Klaus before and the thought of doing so was truly cringe worthy, but this was my house too and I was going to be comfortable in it, especially on my very first night.
I made my way downstairs and immediately headed into the kitchen to find Klaus already there and emptying out a plastic bag. I gasped at the sight of food containers being placed onto the kitchen island one after the other.
"When did you get this?"
"I placed the order before leaving the store this evening. I don't require supernatural senses to hear growling stomachs" He explained before taking in the sight of me changed and freshly showered.
He bought us food...he actually bought us food.
"I have serious feelings for you right now" I joked making him smile as he emptied out the rest of the bag.
There was a knock at the door then surprising us both.
"It's the furniture delivery" Klaus assured me before wiping his hands on the backs of his jeans.
He was right, they were a half hour early then we were expecting them. Klaus went to work immediately, directing which box and furniture went where while I tucked into the food and kept out of everyone's way by the front window.
There were five delivery trucks total stretching the length of all three of the houses. I was so glad in that moment not to have neighbours just yet. I stood by the window watching the furniture being taken out of each truck one by one as I tucked into my Thai chilly noodles, barefoot and very happy.
I watched as a group of the guys worked together to lift a teal section couch out of one of the trucks then.
"April's," I guessed aloud
Then two trucks up from that one there was another group of them carrying a large cream sofa with two matching arm chairs.
"Elena's" I said before eating another forkful.
An hour later and all three of us had found our way to April's pool, the lights were on inside of it giving it a neon blue glow as we sat around it's edges with our legs submerged in the luke warm water.
Elena and April had also changed into their pjs, each of us wearing shorts that night due to the heat. April had her hair clipped up in a clasp at the back of her head while Elena had brought hers into a tight ponytail.
April had brought her new radio out with us and the classic song of these arms of mine was playing softly in the background as we talked amongst ourselves, our stomachs now full of Thai food.
I lifted my eyes up from watching the water below to look their way, I sent them both a smile when their eyes met mine.
Finally no words were needed, we'd said them all.
Klaus Mikaelson
I walked around the mattress laying flat on the floor of the master bedroom with a small table lamp right beside it giving the room of boxes and luggage a gentle glow. I stopped at the bedroom window to retrieve my phone to read my latest text. The girls were outside by April's pool.
Can you meet me tomorrow?
How the hell was I going to manage that?
Tyler Lockwood
"It's exactly like Elena's place, every single room reeks of disinfectant." Stefan confirmed as we made our way around Caroline's house that night.
Something had happened to her, something beyond her control and I wasn't going to rest until I found out exactly what that was.
"Damon swore he smelt blood somewhere" Stefan admitted then.
"Caroline would have put up a good fight, she wouldn't have let him take her without breaking a few of his bones in the process."
"You really think he's responsible for this?"
"I know he is. He's taken her from me. And now he's a dead man."
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