Waking Up In Vegas

Chapter 15

Elena's P.O.V.

I couldn't sleep well last night. It's not that I was cold, it's not that I was too hot...I just think that it was him, the wrong guy..the wrong bed..the wrong embrace...the wrong house and not the scent of the one person that my mind can't help but remind me of.

So as I slip on a gray shirt over my head and watch as Jake smiles at me, wrapping his warm hand around my stomach and pulling me in for a kiss as he grins. I bite my tongue and kiss him back.

"Are you coming back here tonight, after work?" He asks as I nod and shrug my shoulders.

"Well, I don't really have anywhere else to go..Remember?" I tell him, watching as he throws up his hands with a laugh and responds. "Yes, I guess I'll be seeing you tonight then. Have a wonderful day at work, babe."

Babe...? Seriously...? It's not the way he says it..okay, scratch that, maybe it is. But, it sends a unsettling feeling down my spine that radiates off my body and I'm left feeling numb to him completely as I give my best fake smile and say "You too!" before Jake leans forward and leaves a quick kiss on my cheek. I watch closely when he leaves the room and I hear him whistling until he shuts the front door behind him.

He gave me his key last night, a spare and I shove it in my purse as I pick up my folders, filled with magazine clippings and ideas for Caroline's new image for our magazine cover. I step into his kitchen, just when my cell phone rings and I look down at the text message with a tightening in my stomach, it's just her..telling me to be ready in 20 minutes, she's coming to pick me up since I don't have my car at the moment.

XXXX

"So, do I need to ask how you're doing?" Caroline says, watching as I pull down at the hem of my shirt. She can tell that I'm distant, lost in my own head as she speaks a bit longer, asking the same question over again.

"I'm fine!" I snap out of nowhere. I can hear her exhale and then the sound of the blinker clicking loudly as she makes a left turn, getting on the freeway, making her way towards the office for a short car ride.

"Elena, you know. You can talk to me..I heard about what happened." She comments, lowering the volume on the radio station that's booming in the car as she gives me a knowing look and I feel the car jerk a bit when she gets off at the familiar exit.

"What do you know exactly? He told you?" I ask, irritation at the mention of him. I purposely find myself not wanting to use his name because I know that I won't be able to handle the sound of it against my ears, the syllables rolling off my tongue.

"No...Well, I heard stuff." She comments, turning towards the parking garage as I left out a laugh, shaking my head. "Of course you did! I'm sure everyone has already." I tell her, watching as Caroline rolls down her window, paying for a parking stamp as she turns back towards me.

"They kind of do Elena..It's not every day that a scandal this big hits." She says with a weary tone as she rolls her window back up and I throw a glare in her direction...a scandal? What the hell is she talking about? I want to ask her, I really do. But, just when I'm about to open my mouth. Caroline parks the car, shuts off the engine and steps out of her seat in a hurry. She waves me to tag along as I too follow her movements and remind myself that before the day is over, I need to ask her what the hell she means.

XXXX

Stefan's P.O.V.

It's self pity. I'm sure of it. I'm hung over and feeling like shit as I roll off of the couch in Damon's house with a thud. I hear as my brother exhales deeply, hovering over me with a smug smile on his face when he lets out a laugh.