Trial and Error (The Fun Gilbert Book 6)

Prologue

3rd Person P.O.V.

Mystic Falls- 1862

Damon Salvatore and his brother Stefan were heading back from town the first time they saw her. They had left the house in an effort to stay away from their drunken, abusive father but they knew that things would be worse if they weren't back before dark. They didn't hear the carriage at first but soon they heard the clopping of the horses' hooves and turn to watch it stop in front of Jonathan Gilbert's home. Jonathan's wife had passed a few years ago, even sooner than the Salvatores' mother had. He hadn't been out very much since her death so both boys were surprised that someone would be visiting him.

They watched as the carriage door was opened and out stepped the most beautiful girl they had ever seen. They couldn't see her eyes but the way that the setting sun hit her hair made it look like Damon's favorite caramel candies that he would buy at the small candy shop Mystic Falls had. Her dress looked old and worn and Damon wondered if it was all she could afford. It seemed dirty and he would swear that he could see speckles of sweat beading her forehead but despite this, she walked, or rather glided, across the ground as though she were royalty.

Neither boy realized that they were staring until Jonathan noticed them. "Damon, Stefan," he called. "Come meet Ms. Carter. She'll be staying with me for a while." Jessica turned her head to see who he was speaking to and that was when she saw him. She could see his bright blue eyes from where she was and his hair was a jet black that looked so soft she had to refrain from trying to touch it when he approached. She curtsied to the men as Jonathan explained that they were part of the founding families as well and the the Salvatores had even more money than the Gilberts.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," she addressed both boys before focusing on Damon. "My name is Jessica Carter."

Damon grabbed her hand it brought it to his lips for a kiss. "The pleasure is all mine, I assure you. What brings you to town, if you don't mind me asking?"

"My family was killed by a horrible man. They had sent me away when they got word he was coming but they never sent word again. I had promised that if they didn't contact me I would flee Europe and come to the new world. I spent all of the money I had to make it here and Mr. Gilbert was kind enough to allow me to stay. If you'll excuse me, I should go and get settled." With that, she gives Damon a small smile and heads into the house. Damon watches her the whole way and continues to stare at the door in hopes that she will come back out until Stefan pulls him away saying they should get home.

_______

Three weeks later, Damon was beginning to wonder if the meeting was all just a dream. Stefan never talked about it and the only way he knew she was real was because she had quickly become the talk of the town. She had taken to tutoring the young girls in town how to have proper manners and she made quick work of it too. According to a few of the gossips Damon had eavesdropped on, she was quickly rebuilding her family's former fortune with how well she taught the girls in this town and the ones around it. He had also heard that the reasons the mothers liked her so much was because she also taught the girls things that they would learn in school, not to the father's knowledge of course, but enough that the girls would know that they were just as good as any man.

Damon had admired her beauty the first time he saw her but the more he heard about her, the more he began to admire her values too. This is what he's thinking about as he treks through the woods, heading to the waterfall to escape his father's wrath. He had learned quickly after his mother died that the drunker Giuseppe got, the more violent he got but also the easier it was to escape without his notice. So long as he was back by the time his father awoke the next morning, he would be fine. He sees the waterfall through the trees and smiles.

This was his favorite place. It always had been, since he was a young boy. As far as he knew, nobody knew about it, not even Stefan. Which is why he is so shocked when he sees the outline of someone sitting in his spot watching the waterfall. After a moment, he realizes who it is. Jessica Carter. He tries to be silent but Jessica can sense him. "You don't have to stand there. You can join me, or I can go. I don't mind either way," she states without turning around.

"How did you know I was there?" Damon asks as he comes to sit next to her.

"I could feel another person near me. Tell me Mr. Salvatore, what are you doing here all alone at night?"

"I needed to get away," he answers, not telling the whole truth. "Why are you out here all alone at night? You're a lady, after all, and didn't you say a man was after you?"

"The man was after my family. They weren't my true family, I never knew my true family. They cared for me though and I them. This man, he had hunted us for what felt like centuries all so he could kill his own children and when they heard he was in town, instead of running, they made sure I escaped instead," she whispers. "Besides, I'm far more dangerous than any man."

Damon chuckles. "Really, do you believe you can take me on Ms. Carter?"

She looks at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "I know I can, Mr. Salvatore. But for now I would like to watch the waterfall."

"Then I shall watch it with you," he declares and so they do. They both sit there and watch the water trickle into the stream until they eventually fall asleep on the blanket Jessica had laid out. Damon flat on his back and Jessica with her head on his chest, feeling safe for the first time since Niklaus had 'died' and completely unaware of what their relationship would become.