AN: I needed to write something just to see if I could. I wrote this one-shot off the top of my head, so if it doesn't seem well thought out, that's why.

It was as though time suspended, reducing everything into slow motion. Even sound ceased to exist, becoming muted to her ears.

All Bonnie Bennett could do was stand there, gripping the shopping bags in her hands. Frozen to the spot as she watched the scene play out in front of her.

Though every fiber of her being was telling her to look away. To just turn and go. Get the hell out of there. She just couldn't.

Because her eyes wouldn't allow her to abandon the opportunity this moment presented, needing to see for herself all that her imagination had gotten wrong because now stood the real McCoy mere feet away in the flesh.

And she was nothing like Bonnie imagined her to be. Far from it. If anything she exceeded expectation. The woman was beautiful. How could Bonnie have thought anything less. Of course Damon would marry someone who looked like her.

Bonnie could not find a single flaw.

Not even a strand of her long dark hair was out of place as she tucked the silky locks behind her ears staring up at Damon with a tiny smile on her face as though what he was saying was quite amusing to her.

Then suddenly the spell of the moment was broken as two little kids came barreling towards them. The little girl jumping into Damon's arms while the boy came to a stop at his mother's side holding up to her a huge cookie.

She laughed, taking the sweet treat from his hand to bite into before giving it to Damon who did the same before feeding some to their daughter.

They looked like the perfect all American family. And it was quite the blow to Bonnie.

It was only then that she turned and walked away. She'd seen enough.

The shopping bags sat untouched on the floor by the front door. Her purse and coat thrown carelessly on the sofa.

Bonnie sat alone in her living room by the fire, drinking a glass of wine with the Christmas tree lights on.

Her mind kept replaying seeing Damon with his family.

What was crazy was that when she saw him, her first instinct was to go to him.

But it was a good thing she didn't because not a second later his wife appeared at his side, tucking her arm around his for warmth as the cold wind picked up.

Taking a generous sip of red wine, Bonnie willed herself to stop thinking about it. But it was no use.

It would be tough now trying to pretend like Damon's wife didn't exist or that there weren't kids in the picture because she'd seen their faces.

Bonnie couldn't trick herself into believing that she wasn't hurting anyone. Not anymore.

The sad truth of the matter was that she shamelessly went after Damon knowing good and well that he was married. But at the time she just didn't give a damn because he was a rich powerful, good looking man and he could help her career and that was all she cared about.

Being fresh out of college Bonnie got a low level position working at Salvatore Industries, but after a year of working there she was ready to move up in the company. But the one and only opening they had available was as an executive assistant.

It wasn't her ideal choice, but it was her only option. So she applied for the position and got an interview. And she nailed it. Getting the job.

It wasn't until her first day in her new position at the company that she found out who she was working for.

Damon fucking Salvatore. The Boss.

Bonnie couldn't believe her luck. Things were finally starting to turn in her favor. She was so excited because she was working for the headhuncho himself. So what if it was as his assistant. Bonnie didn't care about that anymore because she was now apart of his inner circle, at least professionally which meant that she would have complete access to the multi-million dollar business mogul and she planned on learning everything she could from him.

Three months into working as Damon's executive assistant, Bonnie got to go on her first business trip with him to New York.

After weeks of lowkey flirting with him, she decided to make her move.

It was the first time in his life that Damon Salvatore was not the hunter, but the prey and he found himself quite amused, enjoying the role reversal. He wanted to see just how far Bonnie Bennett was willing to go.

It turned out, she planned on going all the way with the two of them joining the mile high club on their connecting flight back home.

Afterwards, Bonnie played things cool with Damon like he wasn't the best fuck she'd ever had in her life.

In fact, she acted like their little dalliance on the plane never happened and it was work as usual.

She openly flirted with her male co-workers in front him, making it clear to Damon that what happened between them was no big deal.

One week after the two of them did the nasty on an airplane, Damon showed up at Bonnie's apartment shocking the hell out of her.

It was a Saturday night and she was just about to head out to the club to meet her friends. She was dressed and everything, literally ready to go.

But Damon's appearance at her door shut that shit down and he took her up against the wall of her living room with Bonnie still wearing her heels.

And it went on like that for months with the two of them fucking around.

Every business trip that Damon took, Bonnie was with him. His very apt pupil, in and out of the boardroom.

But then the unexpected happened. Bonnie fell in love with him.

It hit her like a ton of bricks and sent her running for the hills. She completely went ghost on Damon.

Days went by and then all of a sudden there she was at work like nothing ever happened.

It took everything in Damon to keep his composure and not go off on her.

He was furious.

They made it through the work day without incident.

But that night, he came to Bonnie's apartment and it was explosive.

If only Bonnie would have explained herself, telling Damon why she left, it would have calmed things down, but she didn't.

Damon called Bonnie a selfish bitch and she slapped his face.

Two seconds later, the two of them were ripping each others clothes off and fucking on the kitchen floor.

Sure Bonnie had been with other men before meeting Damon, but never in her life had she experienced anything like this. The level of intimacy that she shared with him was unmatched. He consumed every part of her.

Hearing the key slide into the lock of her front door, broke Bonnie from her thoughts. She got up as Damon was entering her apartment.

Grabbing the bottle of red wine and the empty glass, she took them into the kitchen.

"It looks like someone went shopping today." Damon said glancing down at the bags on the floor as he closed the door shut.

Bonnie didn't respond, rinsing out the wine glass underneath the running faucet and placing it into the dishwasher.

She turned around and Damon was standing in front of her smiling softly. "Hey you." He said, his two big hands reaching out to cup her face.

But when he leaned down to kiss her, Bonnie pulled away, causing Damon to frown slightly not understanding why.

"Sorry...my head hurts." She explained. And it was the truth. She'd made herself sick from thoughts of him and his family.

So Damon kissed her forehead instead, pulling her into a hug as he gently cupped the back of her neck.

"Don't be sorry. What can I do to make you feel better?"

She sighed softly, closing her eyes. "You're doing it."

And she tightened her arms around him, wishing they could stay like that forever with it just being the two of them and no one else.

Bonnie didn't know that she could love someone so much and in the beginning that scared the shit out of her but now she welcomed the all consuming feeling.

Burying her face against his chest, she inhaled his scent.

But when her very sensitive nose detected the faintest hint of perfume on his shirt, she instantly pulled out of his arms getting angry.

"Gotdamnit Damon, at least you could've changed your fucking shirt!" Bonnie snapped before walking away from him.

Stunned by her sudden angry outburst, Damon looked confused more than ever. "What?"

"When you leave here you shower before going home, well I want the same fucking consideration you give to your wife, so don't show up to my apartment smelling of her!"

Having said her peace, Bonnie gathered up the shopping bags and took them to her bedroom, leaving him standing in the kitchen.

After a few moments Damon went after Bonnie and when he entered the bedroom, he found her pacing back and forth in front of the dresser, crying.

He stopped right there, taken aback because he'd never seen her cry before.

"I didn't realize that my shirt smelled of her perfume. I'll take it off." And he began to undo the buttons, willing to do anything in that moment to defuse the situation.

Bonnie stopped pacing the floor and held herself with her arms wrapped around her middle as she watched him struggle to take off the shirt.

"You have a beautiful family." She said softly.

Damon's head snapped up, his blue eyes meeting her green ones. "What?" That confused look back on his face.

"I was at the Village Grove today Damon...and I saw you with them."

He looked at the shopping bags on the bed.

Bonnie wiped the tears from her face. "Your son looks just like you and your daughter like her."

"Bonnie..." Damon took a step towards her, his tone pleading.

But she stepped back, holding up her hand for him to stop and he did so respecting her wishes.

"You want to know something crazy? When I was sixteen, I caught my father cheating on my mother with another woman. I'll never forget that day. It was summer and I was at the movies with my friends. We were just coming out of the theater when I spotted him across the street with this woman. At first I didn't think anything of it, but then the woman wrapped her arms around my father and kissed him on his lips. And I just stood there. I didn't know what to do. I kept waiting for him to push her away, tell her to stop. But he didn't. He kissed her back. And seeing that, really crushed me. That night, I purposefully broke curfew and when I got home my parents were waiting up for me. My dad was furious and it was on the tip of my tongue to expose him for the dirty rotten bastard that he was. But then I looked at my mom, and I realized that if she knew it would kill her because my dad was her world. And I couldn't do that to her. I never said a word. You're the first person I've ever told."

"So is that what you think of me...that I'm a dirty rotten bastard?" His beautiful blue eyes boring into hers.

"No Damon. If you recall, I'm the one who chased after you, remember? I knew what I was doing and I didn't care. I didn't think about your wife or your kids. I didn't think about them at all. They didn't exist to me. But all of that changed today when they became glaringly real. I can no longer pretend them away now that I've seen their faces." She said with a sad little smile on hers.

Hearing the quiet resolve in her voice and realizing what it meant, Damon went to Bonnie closing the space between them and he kissed her, his mouth desperate and pleading as it moved over hers.

"Bonnie, I love you." He breathed against her lips.

"And I love you." She said brokenly. "But we can't be together."

The two of them stared at each other, his eyes searching while hers remained steadfast allowing him to see the truth of her words shining in them.

When he did, Damon nodded his head.

It was over.