Chapter 2

The next morning Stefan watches a sleeping Bonnie from the doorway. In his hands are a bag filled with donuts from her favorite bakery and a cup holder with two cups of coffee. When he'd woken up about an hour ago, he decided to go out and get breakfast for them, knowing Bonnie would be hungry after last night.

They spent hours going at it; making love on the bed, on the floor, in the shower, and against the wall before they collapsed onto bed and around five am. Now six hours later she's still asleep, clearly recovering from their long night together. He's debating whether or not to wake her up when she begins to stir.

"Good morning." He says once Bonnie sits up and her gaze meets his.

"Morning." She smiles softly at him, letting out a long yawn. "What's that?" She gestures toward the bag he's holding.

"Donuts." He places the bag on the bed. "I thought you'd be hungry after last night" He grins smugly adding, "And this morning."

"Normally I would call you out for being so smug, but you're right I'm really hungry." She says as she pulls out a chocolate donut.

He silently hands Bonnie her cup of coffee and smiles when she lets out a muffled thank you.

"Don't fill up on those donuts because I have some plans for us today and I have a feeling you'll be grateful for the room."

"Why? Where are we going?" Bonnie asks after taking a sip of coffee.

"It's a surprise, but make sure to dress casual." He takes a drink from his cup of coffee, his eyes feasting on Bonnie's exposed skin. To distract himself he decides to focus on something else. "So…we got distracted last night and we didn't really get a chance to talk about the blind date that we agreed to next week." He takes a seat on the edge of the bed. "You know we're going to have to tell everyone about us eventually."

"You're right." She agrees and sets her half eaten donut down. "As much as fun as it is to sneak around with you, I hate not being able to acknowledge you in public.

"Same. I would love to be able to take your hand like this." He wraps his large hand around her much smaller one and strokes it with his thumb and index finger. "Or do this." He leans in and starts to nip at her neck. "And I definitely wish I could do this." He pulls back and takes her lip in a passionate kiss.

"Hmmh," Bonnie moans when he pulls back, still feeling the rush of his lips on hers. Once she comes back to reality she remembers the reason they decided to keep their relationship a secret in the first place.

Stefan sees the conflicted look on her face and slides closer to her. "Talk to me," he utters softly.

"It's just…I know that when we go public that we're going to have to deal with everyone's opinion. I hated having everyone in my business when I was seeing Kol and Marcel and those were just flings. It will be even worse when it comes to you." She remembers all too well being accused of hooking up with both men to make Damon jealous. The accusations mostly came from Elena, but she could tell that Damon and the others thought the same way. Even Caroline, who had been encouraging her to move on, had wondered if she was still pining for the eldest Salvatore.

"That is definitely going to suck." Stefan agrees, not at all looking forward to being accused of using Bonnie to get back at Caroline and to a lesser extent Elena. It doesn't matter how long it's been since he and Elena ended things, there are still some people in their inner circle that assume he still has feelings for her. It had been for those reasons he and Bonnie both agreed that to keep things between them. "But at least we'll have an ally in Caroline." He adds thinking of Caroline's plan to set them up.

"You're right, even before the blind date she was the only reaction I wasn't worried about." Bonnie grins. "I mean sure she'll start planning our wedding the moment she knows, but at least we can be sure that she'll actually be happy for us. I can't really say the same for anyone else."

"So we're keeping us a secret until after the blind date?" He asks as he finishes up the last of his coffee.

"Yeah," Bonnie nods and picks up her donut once again. "and then we'll tell Caroline before we decide to tell anyone else."

"Now that we're in agreement," He takes off his shirt and tosses it on the floor. "I'm gonna take a shower while you finish your breakfast."

"Okay." She manages to say between bites. "You better save me some water." As she says this her gaze goes to his newly exposed torso. When he drops his pants and she sees his penis dangling between his legs, she licks her lips. God she loves his body.

"I'm pretty sure you won't have to worry about me using all the hot water because now I need to take a cold shower." He playfully glowers at her before turning on his heel and walking into the bathroom.

Bonnie smiles at his expense, outright laughing as she hears the sound of him growling as the shower start. She loves that she can turn him on with just a look.

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Caroline frowns as her companion quietly for her dress. This was supposed to be fun. They were supposed to be having fun finding dresses for the party she and Klaus are throwing in a couple of weeks. Yet all day Caroline has sensed that something was off and it's seriously ruining her mood. "I thought we agreed that today was supposed to be fun." She glares as her friend takes her newly purchased dress and starts to leave the store. "This is not fun." She snaps as she follows after her.

"I can't help it."Elena Gilbert hisses as the two walk through the mall. "Since I'm not home, Damon's going to go out of his way to call her and of course she'll jump at the chance to be near him. I bet they're together right now."

"Don't you think this 'feud' you have with Bonnie has gone on long enough?" Caroline asks just before the two make their way into another store.

"You said you were staying out of it."

"I was, but I'm tired of having to choose between two of my favorite people all the time. Especially when said two people were as close as sisters."

"Then why aren't you talking to Bonnie about this?"

"Because Bonnie's not the one with the problem," She gives Elena a pointed look.

"It's not like Bonnie has tried very hard to fix things between us." Elena says as she looks through a rack of dresses.

"Why should she when you've made it perfectly that you want nothing to do with her?" Caroline picks up a green dress and frowns when she sees the ugly ruffles on it. "You can only be rejected so many times before you decide it's not worth it." She looks away long enough to return the dress to the rack.

"You're acting like I don't have a good reason to be mad." Elena accuses. "The person I considered my best friend betrayed me and went after my boyfriend the moment I was gone."

"Elena, you were dead for over a year before anything happened between them. Did you really expect Damon to never move on?"

"I knew he would move on, but I was expecting one night stands not him basically replacing me with another woman." She pauses. "I still don't understand how she could go from hating him to having a relationship with him."

"You remember how close they got when they were trapped together for those four months?" Caroline glances at the brunette vampire, continuing when she nods. "Well when you died they got even closer. Damon was a wreck and Bonnie was the only person that could really get through to him. He helped in return when Abby was killed and Bonnie fell apart. Between their previous connection and everything that came after is it any surprise that things turned romantic?"

Elena can concede that they were good friends to each other, but she's still not ready to ignore the betrayal that she's feeling so she ignores Caroline's words. "Do you have any idea what it was like for me to find out that while I was fighting and trying to get brought back to life that she was having a life with the man that I love?" She had been beyond hurt when Damon revealed that he and Bonnie had been seeing each other.

"Do you have any idea what was like for Bonnie?" Caroline counters. "One minute she was in a new relationship with a guy that she had fallen for and the next his ex comes back from the dead and her relationship abruptly ends. And not only that...she also loses her best friend, the same best friend that was like a sister to her."

"Oh please," Elena scoffs angrily. "Bonnie probably wishes that I hadn't come back so she could have Damon to herself."

"You can't possibly think Bonnie would be that petty or cruel. That she wouldn't be happy that two important people in her life got a second chance despite the pain she was feeling? This is same person that sacrificed herself so Damon could come back to you." Caroline looks at her incredulously. She shouldn't be surprised by Elena's words since they aren't that much different from what she's said for the last two years, but she is. How could the close friendship she had once been jealous of turn into the fractured mess it is now?

"I appreciate what she did, but it doesn't change the fact that she still wants him and I can't be friends with her knowing that she wants my fiancé. It's bad enough they're still friends." She hates that Damon is still in contact with Bonnie, but she knows if she pushes the issue with Damon that it would only end in a fight.

"Even if hell froze over and Bonnie went after Damon, nothing would happen unless he allowed it to. So is it Damon that you don't trust? Because that's a whole different set of problems."

"I trust Damon," She shakes her head. "I know that he wouldn't cross that line, but I can't be sure of Bonnie. Not anymore. She swooped in and took advantage of him while he was obviously grieving. Anyone that could do that is not someone I want to call my friend."

Seeing that the conversation is going nowhere, Caroline decides to drop it. For now. "So… what do you think about this for the party?" She picks up a yellow cocktail dress with a white beaded waist and holds it against her body.

-----------------------------------------------------------

The place is quiet, too quiet, Damon Salvatore muses as he moves about his large office. Elena is out with Caroline at the moment which leaves him alone and bored. Most would assume that his boredom is due to his fiancée being away from home, but the truth is he's missing another woman. He finishes draining his glass of bourbon and picks up the picture that is sitting on the shelf in front of him. He stares intently at the picture of Bonnie Bennett, his best friend… his ex-girlfriend. It was taken back when she was in college if the short bob is any indication. She was beautiful then and she is just as beautiful now.

Immediately Damon thinks about the last time they were together before Elena returned. He and Bonnie had between together for a few weeks after finally admitting that things between them were more than platonic. That particular day, they'd been having a dinner party with Caroline and Stefan at the boardinghouse and had managed to escape for awhile to have a quickie. It's been years since that day, but he still remembers it very vividly…

(flashback)

Damon holds Bonnie tightly in his arms as he thrusts in and out of over and over again. The table he has her propped on shakes slightly at the force of their rhythm. He grunts as her breasts press against his chest and her legs wrap tightly around his hips.

"Come on, Bon Bon," he growls lewdly as he continues thrusting roughly into her. They only have a limited amount of time before the blonde will come looking for them so he needs to get her off as soon as possible. When he slips a finger between them and strokes her clit, a gush of moisture soaks his fingers indicating that it won't take much more her to go over the edge.

"Damon!"

He hears her moan and he lets out a growl of his own when she spasms around him. Needing more from her, he spreads her legs open wider and starts penetrating her faster and harder with even strokes until she explodes hard and fast around him. As she works through her orgasm he tenderly presses his lips to hers. He moans into her mouth when she grabs his face between her hands and begins plundering his mouth.

Damon continues his thrusting, moving in and out of her at an uncontrollable rhythm. His balls tighten with excitement and seconds later he too erupts, spilling everything he has inside her.

Once they come back to reality, his eyes meet hers and warmth goes through him as he thinks about what just happened between them. He is just about to suggest that they skip the rest of the dinner and head to his bedroom when there's a knock on the door and he hears Caroline's voice on the other end telling them they need to come out immediately.

"Is the dinner party really that serious, Blondie?"Damon glares at the door, not appreciating the interruption.

"This isn't about the dinner party. This is about something else. Something very important and I knew it would better if I came instead of letting you walk into it." Caroline says, her voice sounding more serious than has in a while.

Bonnie and Damon share a worried glance and separate, Damon pulling his pants back up while Bonnie pushes her fixes the straps to her dress and pushes the skirt back down. Once they are both fixed up appropriately, they open the door and frown when they see the conflicted look on Caroline's face.

"What's wrong?" Bonnie asks as soon as the three begin walking toward the dining room.

Caroline hesitates for a second before sighing, "Bonnie, I –"

Whatever Caroline was about to say is interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Damon!" An apparently not so dead Elena Gilbert stands in front of them with a large smile.

"Elena?" Damon gapes at the formally dead brunette. "How did this happen?"

"It doesn't matter. All that matters is that I'm alive and we can pick up where we left off." She smiles just before rushing over to hug him.

Damon returns the hug, but his gaze goes to Bonnie who is watching the reunion with an unreadable look on her face.

(flashback end)

Damon frowns as he comes out of the memory. They had been so happy, so relaxed that night and it all came crashing down with Elena's unexpected return. He'd been conflicted on whether or not to continue the relationship he had with Elena before she died or give the new relationship with Bonnie a chance. Ultimately, he and Bonnie agreed that it would be best to end things so he could give his relationship with Elena another chance.

Of course that didn't mean that his feelings for her went away. He loves Elena and getting her back is a gift that he will always cherish, but he and Bonnie spent the year before her return bonding and falling in love. So even though he and Elena jumped back into their relationship, he still spent countless nights going over those few weeks he had with Bonnie. He thought about all the times they hung out together and talked, the times where he held her in his arms, the moments where they kissed… each time he made love to her.

Fuck he could wax poetically all day about being balls deep inside Bonnie, having her ride his face, having her lips wrapped around his cock. It was the best sex he's ever had and even now he gets hard whenever he thinks about their brief time together.

Despite how good the sex was, what he has missed the most is just being with her. He would even settle for them being the way they were when they were trapped together for those four months. They still talk on a regular basis and he would still consider her his best friend, but it's not the way it used to be. Something that bothers him a lot. He supposes he should be grateful that Bonnie's talking to him at all since there was a time after things ended between them that she couldn't stand to be in the same room as him. And don't get him wrong he is grateful, but that doesn't stop him from missing her, from needing to hear her voice or seeing her beautiful face.

He can't deprive himself from the woman that has come to mean a lot to him. Which is why Damon quickly finds his phone and dials Bonnie's number.

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The surprise place Stefan had hinted at turns out to be a carnival in Richmond and Bonnie and Stefan waste no time getting immersed in the experience. They start by taking pictures in the photo booth before heading to a funnel cake stand.

Five minutes later, a grinning Bonnie breaks off a piece of the funnel cake she's holding and lifts the sugary treat to Stefan's mouth. He takes what she's offering, making a point of sucking the powdered sugar off her fingers in the process. He savors the taste of the fried dough and sugar along with his favorite taste…Bonnie. "That's good." He smiles at her.

"It is," Bonnie agrees with a delighted groan as she shoves another piece into her mouth. "I can't believe it's been so long since I had one of these."

"I was talking about you actually, but yeah the funnel cake is good too." He winks at her.

"Behave," She says when she sees the arousal in his eyes.

Stefan only shrugs and wraps his arm around her shoulder before leading her through the carnival.

"You know when you said to dress casual, a carnival is the last place I expected." She glances around at the large crowd of people moving about. "So why'd you choose here?"

"You took me to one after my breakup with Caroline remember?"

"Yeah I do." She smiles as the memory fills her brain.

(flashback)

18 months ago

Stefan glances uncertainly at the crowd of people moving about the large carnival. When he agreed to go out with Bonnie this had been the last place he expected to be taken. They weren't exactly a thing when he was human and despite how they popular they were in the early 1900's the ripper wasn't exactly interested in something so wholesome. That's not to say that he's never been to one. Lexi managed to drag him to a couple when he was back on the wagon, but the crowd had him on edge and he'd been too afraid to relax. He hadn't had much fun as a result and he doubts that will change now.

"I'm not sure if this is such a good idea. You know I'm not always the best around crowds."

"You've been working on your blood intake for a while now. But if it makes you feel any better know that I will snap you back into shape if you get out of line." She gives him a threatening look so he knows she's serious.

That actually does make him feel better, but he still has some reservations. "I don't know─"

"Come on, Stefan," She interrupts his protest. "When's the last time you just let loose and had some fun." She sees him open his mouth to respond and she adds, "And by fun I don't mean getting drunk or going all Ripper."

"When's the last time you relaxed and had fun?" He tosses back at her. "From where I'm standing you keep throwing yourself into your work."

"You have a point," She admits easily. "Even more reason for us to do this." She smiles as she glances around the large carnival. "You don't want me to be all alone today do you?" She pokes out her lip.

"Fine," Stefan relents unable to resist her pleading gaze. His stomach flutters slightly when he receives a bright smile as a reward. He's always liked Bonnie's smile.

He has a lot of fun much to his surprise. They laugh as they bump each other in the bumper cards, they smile as the go on the tilt-a-whirl and many of the of rides.

Later they take a break from the rides to eat some pizza, he and Bonnie decide to visit the game booths to allow some time for the food to settle. They make brief stops to several booths, including the Wac-A-Mole, and skee-ball games. They are getting ready to head to the strongman game when someone calls out to them.

"Win a prize for your lovely lady?" The man working the shooting gallery suggests when he has their attention.

Their eyes widen at the implication that they are a couple, but neither refutes it. Instead Stefan digs into his pocket and pulls out some money to pay for the game. He picks up the gun and when the targets appear is easily able to hit each one.

"I see you were motivated to win the best of the best." The carnival worker smiles at Stefan as he hands him a jumbo sized black and white husky dog. He glances at Bonnie who is standing a few feet away."I can't say I blame you."

Stefan turns to Bonnie and hands her the dog that is almost as big as she is. "To thank you for today," He smiles when she looks at him in surprise. "I know it's not enough to repay you, but-"

"Thank you, but you don't have to repay me." She smiles down at the dog in her possession. "I took you out because we're friends and I wanted to cheer you up. Nothing more."

"So where to now?" Stefan asks when she looks up at him again.

"Actually I need you to hold this." She presses the dog against his chest and hands the worker some money before picking up the gun.

Stefan watches proudly as she easily hits the center of each bullseye. By the time she's finished she's managed to win the biggest prize, a stuffed lion that is bigger than Bonnie and almost as big as he is. He is surprised when instead of keeping it for herself she hands it to him.

"For me?" His eyes widen in surprise

"For you." Bonnie confirms. "You looked like you could use a friend." She shrugs nonchalantly. "And he kind of reminds me of you." She grins as she plays with the lion's mane. "He's fierce, but deep down he's a softie."

"Thank you," He smiles as he holds the lion against him.

"You're welcome," She returns his smile as she takes back her stuffed husky dog.

To most Stefan would look silly carrying around a large stuffed lion, but the fact that Bonnie took the time to win it for him just to make him feel better makes him feel very good.

(flashback end)

"Do you know I still have that lion?" Stefan asks as they both come out of that particular memory.

"You do?" she looks at him in surprise. She had half expected him to give it away.

"I do." He nods. "That night meant a lot to me so when I heard about this carnival I knew I wanted to take you."

"I'm glad." She smiles warmly. That day meant a lot to her as well. Enough that she even keeps the stuffed dog he won for her in her closet. The large dog takes up a good portion of it, but the smile that appears every time she lays eyes on her makes having less space worth it.

"You finished?" He glances at her mostly empty plate. She nods and Stefan takes the paper plate from her and tosses it into the trash.

"Where are we going?" She asks when he grabs her hand starts moving through the large crowd.

"To the game area…I was thinking we could do the shooting gallery and the Wac-a-mole." He replies before adding in a lower voice. "And then maybe a little later we find somewhere private to do a little blood sharing." His eyes are lit up with lust and hunger.

When they first started dating, drinking from Bonnie had been far away dream, but when she revealed that it was a secret fantasy of hers, it quickly became a thing for him to have his fangs in her wrist or her neck or her thigh. He's lost count of how many times they've been out in public and he's eaten her out before sinking his fangs into her thigh. He always walks away from the encounters hard as concrete, but he can't complain because it makes joining together later when they are finally alone even more intense. He definitely has no problems trying it at the carnival where his feelings for her started to change.

Bonnie smiles at him knowingly, obviously picking up on his meaning. "As much as I like you drinking from me, I don't need you vamping out in such a public place. So I'm gonna have to pass."

Stefan frowns at her, slightly offended. "Hey I can control myself."

"Since when, Ripper?" Bonnie gives him a disbelieving look. She's seen firsthand how tenuous his control can be.

"You know that I've gotten better with time." Stefan protests. "Now I'm perfectly capable of controlling myself under any circumstances.

"Really?" She sees him nod. "So if I tried to break your control I wouldn't be able to do it?"

"You could try, but don't count on anything happening." He gives her a cocky look before speeding them to a dark and mostly abandoned corner of the carnival. "Give it your best shot." He smirks as he stands in front of her.

"Okay," Bonnie steels her face into neutral expression before closing the distance between them and moving her head to his neck.

Stefan freezes as he feels the warmth from Bonnie's breath against his neck. He lets out a long breath as butterflies flutter in his stomach and the blood in his body rushes straight to his groin. What is it about Bonnie that all she has to do is breathe on him and he feels a rush of love and lust? He doesn't know, but he sure as hell enjoys it. Still despite the rush of feelings hitting him, he keeps his control. Giving his girlfriend a cocky look, "See I told you I could keep control."

A burst of pride hits Bonnie because she has him right where she wants him. Leaning in closer, she smiles when he begins to pant the moment her lips make contact with his neck. Her smile widens when she pulls back just a second later and looks into Stefan's eyes.

"So do you finally see that my control has gotten a lot better?"

"What I see are the eyes of the Ripper." She smirks smugly as she glances at his demonic eyes. "Looks like I can break your control like that…" She snaps her fingers to make her point. "…Mr. Salvatore."

Stefan frowns when he realizes that she's right. "You cheated." He accuses playfully.

"Did I?" She raises an amused eyebrow. "Because If I remember correctly you said you could keep yourself in control under any circumstance…well that's obviously not true." The fact that she can make him lose control with just the feel of her lips has her feeling very proud.

"Fine, I'll concede that you're the one thing that can still make me lose control these days." He grins sheepishly before leaning in to kiss her. He's sure he has a goofy smile on his face when he pulls away. "But only if you concede that I can make you just as crazy." To prove his point presses a kiss to the spot of her neck that he knows will set her off.

Bonnie's eyes flutter as his eyes meet hers, but she manages to suppress the urge to moan."You definitely make me crazy."She admits easily much to Stefan's surprise. He assumed she would put up more of a fight first. "I love that you can just look at or touch me the right way and it sets me on fire."

He's stopped from responding when Bonnie's phone rings, breaking up the moment.

Bonnie frowns, annoyed by the interruption and quickly fishes her phone out of jeans. She blinks in surprise at the apparent caller. "Damon? What it is?" She glances at Stefan who has stepped back about ten feet in attempt to give her some privacy.

"Nice to hear from you too, Bon Bon," Damon sarcastically returns her greeting. Despite her curt way of answering the phone, he's unable to stop the wide grin from appearing on his face. It's been about a week since he heard her voice and he doesn't even bother pretending he hasn't missed it.

"Sorry," Bonnie says in voice that makes it clear she's not at all sorry. This is how they are, how they have always been. Even when they were dating they were snippy with each other so it only makes sense that they would be that way now. "So why are you calling me on a Saturday afternoon? If I remember correctly you are usually focused on fixing your car."

"Not this week. Anyway I was wondering if you wanted to do something. Elena's out with Caroline so you won't have to deal with her." He adds remembering the tension the last time the former friends were in a room together.

"Nice to know, but I can't hang out. I already have plans."

Damon frowns at the decline. It's not the first time she's declined an invitation to go out. It happened a lot during the first five months after their break up which he understood, but they eventually got their friendship back on track. But something has changed in the last nine months. Oh they still see each other, but lately the amount of time they spent together has decreased. "Look I know things are different between us since everything went down, but I thought we were friends."

"We are friends." Bonnie protests with a frown.

"Then why are you avoiding me? Because this is starting to remind of what happened when Elena first came back."

Bonnie is suddenly taken back to a conversation they had two years ago.

(flashback)

The moment Bonnie opens her door and sees Damon standing there with a regretful look on his face instead of his usual smirk, she knows whatever he has will break her heart.

"You and Elena are getting back together aren't you?"

"We are…look I really am so─," Damon tries to explain.

"You don't need to explain." She cuts him off even as tears glisten in her eyes. "You and Elena were together when she died. It makes sense that you'd want to make up for lost time. I get that I really do and I if you had chosen me I'd only wonder if I was a consolation so I'm setting you free with my blessing." She looks away to wipe her tears before returning her gaze to him. "But I think it's best that we don't see each other for a while."

Just the thought of not seeing Bonnie sends pain and sadness throughout his body. He doesn't think he can do it. "Look I know it's a lot to ask, but I don't want to lose your friendship. You mean the world to me" He grabs her chin and looks deeply into her eyes.

Her body burns at the feel of his fingers on her. "I don't want to lose our friendship either…" She smiles weakly before growing serious and moving away from. "But I need some time away from you. To get over this, to get over you. You have to give me that." There is no way she'd be able to handle seeing a Damon who is happy with Elena right now. She wants them both to be happy, but it doesn't erase the pain she's feeling.

"Fine," Damon agrees though the idea of not seeing Bonnie on a daily basis doesn't sit well with him. The only thing that comforts him is the hope that it's a temporary thing.

(flashback end)

"Bonnie?" She blinks out of out the memory when she hears her name being called. "Did you hear what I said?"

"Yeah I heard you and I agree that we haven't hung out in a while, but I'm not avoiding you. I've just been really busy lately." She doesn't add that most of her time has been spent with Stefan. "I'm actually not even in town right now so us hanging out isn't even possible." She glances at Stefan who is watching her with a thoughtful look on his face. "I really need to get back to what I was doing."

"I'll let you go, but I need you to give me something that proves you're not avoiding me." Part of him wants to demand her to drop the plans she's in the midst of, but he knows that would only piss her off and make him seem like a jealous boyfriend. He lost the right to react like a jealous boyfriend a long time ago.

"I'm busy most of this week," She explains, her mind going to the blind date she has next Friday and the dates she has with Stefan. "But we'll hang out soon I promise." She tries to reassure him.

"I'm gonna hold you to those words," Damon says with a slight growl. It's not exactly the outcome he'd been hoping for when he called her, but it's better than nothing. "Goodbye, Bon."

"Bye, Damon." Bonnie smiles and hangs up the phone. Her gaze moves to her boyfriend who is standing ten feet away. "Stefan, can I ask you a something?"

"You know you can ask me anything." He says as he steps closer to her.

"Does it bother you that I have a past with Damon? That we still hang out from time to time?" Bonnie asks as they start to walk side by side, passing other carnival goers along the way.

"What made you ask that?" Stefan stops walking to look at her in surprise. When he first realized he was falling for Bonnie he had been afraid that the fact she had a past with Damon would bother him, but it hadn't. He doesn't really think about it all that much, which is why it's a little surprising for Bonnie to bring it up.

"I saw the look on your face while I was on the phone and it occurred to me that we've never really talked about it. So I thought we should."

"I mean it's a little weird that we have another woman in common, but I've accepted the fact that we apparently have the same amazing taste in women." He flashes her a charming grin and she is unable to resist returning it with one of her own. "Besides, I'm still friends with Caroline so I'd be a hypocrite if I condemned your friendship with Damon."

"But…?" She draws out the word.

"There is no but." He reassures her by pulling her into his arms. "I think the main reason it doesn't bother me is because I look at it as a stepping stone that led to our relationship. If you and Damon hadn't gotten together, you wouldn't be the woman I love." He smiles and strokes her cheek with his thumb. "I guess what I'm saying is that I cherish what we have now and I wouldn't want to change how it happened. I just know that you haven't hung out with him as much lately and I don't want you to feel like you have to hold back on your friendship with Damon. If you want to spend more time with him, I won't be upset. I trust you." He cups her face with both of his hands. "Okay?"

"Okay." She nods letting out a soft moan when he briefly presses his lips to hers.

He pulls back and shifts so they are walking side by side again. "So where to now?" He glances down at her with a soft smile.

"I think I want to go on the Ferris wheel." She glances at the large ride across the carnival grounds.

"Ferris wheel it is then." Stefan nods before linking their hands together and heading towards that side of the park.

————————————————————

Another chapter finished yaaaay

Anyways I started a p.a.t.r.e.o.n, if you like my work you can go there and support me. I might do some exclusive things for my patreons I don't have any ideas as of now but I'm sure I'll come up with something.

.p a t r e o n.com/Daoistlord3041