"Mick, we've been over this before." Josef muttered, sliding a glass of scotch across the antique mahogany desk. "It's a bad idea to get involved romantically with a human. Why won't you just listen to me?"

They sat in Josef's office, high above the city streets that bustled with commuting traffic as people rushed home to their families. The sun was beginning to set, highlighting the sky in a golden hue that was broken only by the clouds as they made their sleepy way across the horizon. The floor to ceiling windows, double glazed specially for vampire use, allowed the office space to be adequately lit without artificial help.

Mick stared intently into the amber liquid as he considered his answer. Why wouldn't he just listen? Everything he and Beth had been through together, the trouble they had gotten themselves into screamed at him that things were wrong. If someone found out what he was, if a rogue vampire took a liking to her, there were so many things that could go wrong. At least if he was there, he could protect her, and Josef would too. And yet -

He could remember the way the moonlight hit her face as she took off her shoes to stride across the fountain in the centre of the plaza that first night they met. Some kind of determination in her eyes constantly declared to the world that the truth deserved to be told, no matter what the consequences were. People were entitled to have peace, she had told him once. And they made a great team. Already, she knew him well, as though they had been friends for much longer than in reality. Not as well as Josef knew him, that was true, but no one was ever likely to know him that well again. It had been difficult for them after the death of Josh, but if anything, they were closer because of it. Mick had watched Beth grow up, from a distance. He remembered the scared child he first encountered, and regularly found himself marvelling at the woman she had become. There was no one quite like her.

Of course he had considered the fact that Beth was mortal. It had never been far from his mind. She was breakable, frighteningly so. What was he going to do when she was forty, or fifty, or sixty? That was the biggest problem. He did not know if she had considered being turned, and he certainly wasn't sure if he was capable of doing it himself. Or if that was what he wanted for her. There were so many uncertainties when it came to Beth.

"She captivates me, Josef. I can't stay away from her. Can't you remember what that was like for you with Sarah?"

Josef took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, as if he was trying to put off the fact that he had to answer the question. He ran a hand quickly through his chestnut hair and spoke clearly, careful to choose the right words.

"Of course I can remember. You don't forget feelings like that. But look how that turned out. Fifty years later and she has no kind of life. And I did that to her. I regret that decision every single day of my existence. I don't want that for you." His tone shifted and he stared imploringly into Mick's eyes as he leant across the desk, pale hands twisting and untwisting themselves, almost pleading. Mick was a little taken aback. Josef had never appeared to show such concern before, only ever allowing himself to be slightly aloof. It was almost touching.

"Well, what do you suggest I do?" Mick asked. He knew that he couldn't make this decision on his own; he wasn't strong enough. He needed someone to make it for him - he needed Josef. If there was one person that could make a difficult decision, it was Josef. Especially when it came to other people's lives. He had a quick, confident and clinical judgment that allowed him to become the powerful investment banker he was. He certainly looked the part; when he wasn't wearing his trademark shirt, tie and braces, he was asleep. And he rarely made the wrong decision.

"You honestly want my opinion? No holds barred?" He arched his eyebrows, looking for confirmation that Mick wanted to hear everything Josef had to say. There was no guarantee he was going to like it.

"Of course, Josef. I value your opinion above everyone else."

He hesitated for a second with his head cocked slightly to one side, unsure as to whether or not he wanted to say what he was thinking anyway. There was no way of telling how Mick was going to react. He stood up, out of his seat and stepped around the desk to crouch in front of his friend, making a point of looking deep into the cerulean of Mick's eyes.

"Leave. Get out of the state, as far away from Beth as you dare to go. It won't end well, Mick, it can't. And it'll be you that gets hurt. I can't stand by and let that happen, not after Coraline."

There was silence for a few seconds, as Josef watched Mick process exactly what he'd just been told. He used those seconds to take a calculated risk, to plunge headfirst into the unknown. Bending closer, he kissed Mick softly, a mere brushing of lips, before straightening up and retreating back behind his mahogany desk, waiting for the explosion. He felt better now, as though some heavy weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He had finally taken the first step. The next move belonged to Mick.

Suddenly he was up, and at superhuman speed, Mick had circumnavigated around the desk and now crouched in the same position Josef had taken up only a minute before. He kissed Josef back; a longer, firmer kiss that moved slowly along the jaw line until Mick's lips were hovering next to his ear. Josef relished the sensation of the whiskers on Mick's cheek as they brushed against his own clean shaven face. It caused him to let out an involuntary gasp.

"And where do you suggest I go?" Mick murmured. Then, as Josef had before him, he stood straight and flashed across the room, leaning casually against the bookshelf that lined the wall on the right hand side. In some unorthodox chess match, it was now Josef's move. Neither man was sure exactly how far they wanted to take the game. They watched each other intently, sizing one another up.

In a blink, Josef had Mick pinned, back to the wall. A third kiss, more fervent than the last, more passionate. Using his tongue, Josef explored Mick's mouth, pausing every few seconds to whisper a few words.

"I've been meaning… to leave for a while… myself," He suggested as though he were talking about a brief vacation for the weekend. "We could go… just the two of us." He broke the kiss and looked at Mick expectantly, panting a little. In anticipation, he ran his tongue along the underside of his fangs.

But the pause seemed to have dragged Mick's senses back; he pushed Josef gently away, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. There was a look of shock in his deep blue eyes that Josef had anticipated, yet still it caused him a pang of fear.

"I have to think." Mick said as he ducked underneath Josef's arm, which continued to keep him penned in against the wall. Josef silently let him go, looking solemn. Without another word, Mick escaped from the room, leaving Josef alone.

He sat down heavily at his desk, poured himself a large scotch that was laced with blood and drained the glass. The encounter had gone further than even he was anticipating. He had had no idea that Mick might have a fraction of the feelings Josef carried. It was an added bonus, and it certainly changed things. He wondered briefly if he had pushed things too far, or moved too fast, but quickly dismissed the thought from his mind. There was no use worrying about that now. What had happened had happened. He had learned the hard way that you couldn't change the past.

Still, he did not regret what he had done. Kissing Mick, he was sure, was the right thing to do. If he couldn't reveal tonight how he felt, then he probably never would. After all, it had been nearly a decade already. The hardest part was over. All he had to do now was wait. And pray that Mick didn't sever their ties to one another.

Hello! Thank you for making it this far. I sincerely hope you bother to carry on. If you can, please review, I'd love to know what you think.

Charlotte.