When we photographed Ian Somerhalder at LAX on Thursday night, we figured he was rushing back from Comic-Con to be with new girlfriend Nikki Reed, and on Friday we caught the two trying to sneak off on a romantic vacation. Busted!

Ian was at Comic-Con in San Diego earlier this week to promote The Vampire Diaries, and after having to sit next to ex-girlfriend/co-star Nina Dobrev and tape an acceptance speech for the mtvU Fandom Awards, we figured he wanted to get the heck out of there.

While Nina and Nikki weren't as close as say, Nina and golden girl Julianne Hough, they were friends, but apparently she's taking the high road! “Nina has gone on with her dating life just as much as Ian has, and they both made a decision not to ruin the show or their friendship with their feelings on outside relationships,” a source tells HollywoodLife. “They are good, and they will be good if Ian and Nikki take it to the next level.”

“Ian and Nikki are still in the trial stage of their relationship and they haven’t shared with many that they are testing it out,” the source added. “They are definitely keeping others feelings close as they work on their decisions to start an exclusive relationship together. They don’t want to upset anyone. It is beyond baby steps right now between the two and Nina hasn’t been told anything.”

We'll see what happens!