Russ opened Shelly's door but was surprised to see that she was already fast asleep. Deciding not to wake her, he headed on down the hallway to Joslyn's room.

Russ slowly slid the door open. The small sound machine in the corner that played a soft meditation track set to the gentle lull of waves in its background. The beautiful melody nearly completely drowned out the muffled sobs coming from the bed. The pain of the situation hit him full on as his eyes swept over her quivering form. He quietly shut the door and walked over to the bed setting her cell phone on the nightstand as he moved.

Joslyn was laying under the covers in the center of the bed with her back to the door. She didn't protest as he lifted the sheets. He noticed she was curled into a tight ball. He shook his head sadly as he scooted into the bed behind her. She released a soft whimper as he pulled her back tighter against his body. He slid one arm under her neck and gently tucked her head under his chin. When he was satisfied with the spooning position's level of comfort, he squeezed her tight and placed a light kiss on the top of her head. "I'm sorry." He whispered against her ear. "I truly didn't expect you to be this upset."

"How long have you known?" Joslyn asked on a muffled shaky breath.

He looked down at the top of her head a questioning expression on his face, "How long have I known what? That you were attracted to me?" He kissed her head again then sighed, "For a while now. I just figured you hadn't made a move because I was underage."

Her whole body jerked as she tried to pull away, but he held on tight, refusing to let her pull away from him. She gave up the struggle and said instead, "Though it's nice to know you've been so…. Observant… That wasn't what I was referring to. How long have you known that transforming would eliminate the effects of alcohol?"

"Ah that… I've…. Well, the truth is… it's always helped me heal quicker, recover faster. Since I turned 18 though, instead of just making me heal quicker or recover faster; it has begun to completely repair the injury or illness." He felt her body become even more rigid, so he decided to elaborate farther. "Honestly, I thought you knew that. When you asked me to transform tonight, I figured... well ya know…. But then when you actually started washing my body…" she began to squirm in his arms, still trying to get free of his embrace. "Jos, I'm warning you if you don't hold still, I'm not going to be able to stop myself. I am an animal after all." With that, her body went still and rigid once more. "Anyways, when you started washing my body, I thought it was your way of making a move. I've never actually seen you date anyone, so I figured you were just more comfortable with me in that form." He laughed softly, "You were getting so into it and was making this face… I couldn't hold back any more… I assumed once I shifted back and you were still stroking my chest and stomach that that was the green light… sooo…" He could feel his body begin to harden just by thinking about the way she had responded with such passion earlier. Her sharp inhale brought him back out of his reveries. She started sobbing harder. "Shhhh." He whispered softly into her ear as he pulled her closer. "Calm down, its ok."

"NO, IT'S NOT." She yelled loudly and hoarsely. "I'm your guardian, I'm supposed to protect you, not seduce you!" she broke off into sobs once again before adding softly, "You're still just a child." She jerked against his grip once more while covering her face with her hands.

Her words hit him like a kick to the face. He quickly released her and pushed her onto her back. As he brought his body over her, he quickly took both of her hands in one of his and brought them over her head. With the other hand, he grabbed hold of her jaw, forcing her to look up at him. "Look at me, Joslyn! Do I look like a child to you?" He asked through sharp, gritted teeth. He brought both her hands up to his chest and pressed them to his chest, "Do I feel like a child to you?" He slid her hands slowly down his body as he asked. He pushed her hands back up over her head and captured her mouth with his in a single movement.

She tightened her lips and began sobbing louder and more uncontrollably. "Russ, please stop." It was barely a whisper, but enough that Russ finally sat up and released her face.

Pain and confusion colored his next words, "Please, give me one night and if you still feel this much guilt and whatever else, then I'll stop. I'll give up and move on." He bent down, both her wrists still in his hands and kissed her lips softly. He whispered against her lips, "Please."