Thanks for the reviews. I appreciate them always! Remember to read responsibly...touchy subject ahead...

Professor Snape observed Hermione over the next few days, not liking what he saw. She seemed lost, in her own world, practically ignoring all her friends, even Potter and Weasley, keeping to herself and being extremely quiet in class, not raising her hand to volunteer any answers. Even during meals, she kept her eyes on her plate, only eating a few bites, pushing the rest around with her fork, leaving before everyone else did. He even heard a few students whispering about her as he passed through the halls. He was tempted to corner her and probe her mind to determine just what was going on but decided not to with her sudden flashes of anger. Finding himself genuinely concerned for a student, the teacher wasn't quite sure how to handle the situation. All he knew was that she was surrounded by darkness and sadness that he recognized all too easily, and wanted to know why.

Hermione had poured over every medical book she could find to locate some spell or potion she could use but was shocked to find only one that she thought had a chance of working. The combination of certain ingredients induced labor and was the closest thing she could find that might end her problem. It took a number of days to gather what she needed and another couple days to brew everything, trying to ignore the ever-nosey questions of Moaning Myrtle as she hid in the bathroom to make her potion. She had to do this and soon.

Friday night was the chosen night for Hermione to take her potion, as there would be no class the next day incase something did go wrong. She slowly made her way down to the bathroom, creeping along, making sure no one saw her, realizing just how miserable the past few days had been. During the daytime, everyone would stare at her, whisper behind her back and blatantly avoid her. She sat alone in her bedchamber every night, barely civil when Ginny came in to sleep andhaving ignored everyone else, well aware of what was inside her, scared of what the pains shooting through her abdomen meant, praying that she wouldn't miscarry in the middle of a class. That was all she needed.

Once safely inside the bathroom, Hermione pulled a vial out from her robe and stared at it, still unable to believe she was doing this.

"Committing suicide?" Moaning Myrtle asked with a smile. "Can I watch?"

"That's not what I'm doing," Hermione told the invasive ghost. "And no you can't."

With that, the ghost frowned and dove into a toilet, a shrill scream following her.

The liquid in the vial was murky and dark and none too pleasing to look at, and she was quite certain the taste wouldn't be good either. But it didn't matter. It had to be done, or rather undone in this case. Taking a deep breath, she quickly forced herself to swallow the liquid that was the consistency of applesauce and then waited for something. She'd stashed a few extra necessities in her cloak, prepared for anything.

Minutes later, she was holding onto the side of a toilet, throwing up repeatedly, her throat raw and sore. Tears streamed down her face as she wiped her eyes and mouth with toilet paper, thinking that this wasn't exactly what she had in mind. She was expecting the other end to be the area affected. Throwing up certainly wouldn't fix her problem.

With no warning, pain seared through her abdomen, like a knife was stabbing into her, causing her to wrap her arms around her stomach and cry out in pain. She fought to breathe as the pain was excruciating, her stomach spasming and convulsing. "Please hurry," she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut, tears spilling from them. "Please be quick. I can't handle this. Please…" She'd fought to remain quiet but the pain caused her to scream, nearly freezing her in the fetal position. Sweat broke out on her forehead as she was beginning to feel dizzy, continuing to clutch her stomach.

I'm dying, she thought. The brilliant Hermione Granger has gone and killed herself after getting herself knocked up first. The pain tearing through her body was horrible, and she thought for a brief moment that if death had occurred right then, it would have been welcomed. What do I do, she thought. What if I've done something to myself? I'll never make it to the hospital wing on the other side of the school.

"Help me," she whispered in agony. "Help me please…please…help me…someone."

Realizing she must have passed out, Hermione awoke on the hard tile floor, cold sweats shaking her body, the threat of vomiting again too close for comfort while her heart raced and heart pounded, feeling more scared than she'd ever been in her life. Got to find someone, anyone, she heard in her mind. Got to tell them what I did before it's too late.

Rolling over, Hermione slowly pushed herself up to her hands and knees, fighting for consciousness as the room spun around her. She stood up, staggering and nearly falling, grabbing onto the sinks to steady herself. Glancing in the mirror and trying to focus her eyes, she noticed just how bad she looked. Her eyes were wide and vacant, her skin was white as a ghost, she was trembling and her nose had started bleeding, quickly realizing as she stood that it wasn't the only area bleeding. What did I do to myself? Does this mean it worked?

Each step required a tremendous amount of effort; effort her body could barely produce. After agonizing steps to the door, she fell once she was in the hall, clutching her stomach in pain again. "Help," she whispered, struggling to get up again, her hand sliding down damp stone. "Please." The hallway began to spin and soon everything was dark once more.

Professor Binns was floating through the halls, making sure everything was as it should be when he spotted something on the ground. As he floated nearer, he saw it was a girl curled up in a ball.

"Miss Granger!" he exclaimed, recognizing her. "Miss Granger, wake up!"

She didn't move.

"Oh my," he said worried. "What to do…what to do." He looked around, realizing he needed to get someone quick, not knowing what was wrong with her. The dungeons were closest and that meant alerting Professor Snape of her condition. He hated to but was afraid time was not of the essence.

"What the bloody hell do you think you're doing just floating into my classroom unannounced?" Professor Snape exclaimed when he saw Professor Binns emerge through the wooden door. "How dare you, you incompetent…!"

"Please," the ghost pleaded. "You must come. It's an emergency. A student has collapsed by the girls' bathroom. Please, you're the closest teacher and I don't know what's wrong with her."

Still annoyed but understanding the immediate concern, Professor Snape asked, "Who is it?"

"Miss Granger."

In a flash, Professor Snape jumped up from his desk, forgetting to be cross with the ghost for disturbing him, and rushed from the classroom, following Professor Binns down the hall and around the corner, seeing the ball on the floor that was Hermione.

"What happened?" Professor Snape asked, kneeling beside her body, quickly checking for a pulse and examining her wrists. Knowing how she'd been the past few weeks, he was thankful he found no marks or cuts.

"I don't know," Professor Binns answered, wringing his hands in worry. "I found her like this as I was patrolling the halls on my rounds."

He checked her face, noticing the nosebleed, but saw nothing that he thought would have caused her to pass out. "I will take Miss Granger back to my classroom," Professor Snape announced, picking up the lifeless body from the floor. "You will not repeat what you saw to anyone. Is that understood?"

"Oh yes," Professor Binns answered timidly. "Inescapably."

Professor Snape carried Hermione to his classroom, at first planning to lay her on a table and then thinking that wasn't the most comfortable choice, carried her through the classroom to his own chamber, gently placing her on the couch by the fireplace. Assuming maybe someone had performed a spell on her, he pointed his wand and said, "Finite incantatem."

Nothing.

Damn, he thought, checking her cloak pockets and finding female necessities, which he left where they were, and a piece of paper with potion ingredients listed. You foolish, silly girl. What were you brewing and why?

Retrieving a restoration elixir from his personal collection, he knelt by her, slipping his hand under her head, through the soft curls, and lifted gently, pressing the vial to her pale lips, immediately catching liquid with the back of his hand that slipped from the corners of her mouth. "Come on," he whispered, finding his heart was racing with concern. "You must tell me what you did so I can help you."

Seconds later, her eyes fluttered open, pupils extremely dilated, glancing around in confusion. "Where am I?" she asked, trying to sit up.

"Miss Granger," Professor Snape said. "You were found on the floor passed out by the girls' bathroom. You need to tell me what you were doing down here."

Hermione turned to look at him, all four of him, but everything was spinning around her again. Hands immediately clutched her stomach once more, pain continuing to sear through her abdomen, feeling as if she was being ripped in half. She cried out, her nose starting to bleed again, her face distorted with intense pain. "Make it stop," she cried, tears falling from her eyes. "Please…make it stop!"

He was shaken, not able to understand what was going on, wincing as he watched her roll back and forth, arms around her body. "You must tell me," he insisted. "What did you do? What did you take?"

Hermione could hear him talking to her but wasn't able to comprehend his questions or answer him.

Realizing his inquiries and her inability to answer them would get them nowhere, Professor Snape allowed his mind to open and tap into hers temporarily, long enough to discover what had happened. Images flashed through his mind…Hermione in bed with a boy he couldn't see…talking with Ginny…sick in the bathroom…discovering her pregnancy…pregnancy?…yelling at everyone…feeling depressed…in the library looking up potions to get rid of it…hiding from everyone…brewing the potion in the bathroom…terrible pain…then darkness.

"You're a fool," he hissed in anger. "You never should have done this."

Hermione didn't hear him. "Going…to…be…sick," she panted, wincing with pain.

"Wonderful," Professor Snape said with dripping sarcasm, pointing his wand to the container by the desk. "Accio trash bin," he said, setting it down and then turning away as she reached for it, closing his eyes in disgust listening to her, extremely tempted to take her to the hospital wing.

With the knowledge of her condition and understanding she wasn't planning on telling anyone, he couldn't bring himself to take her to the hospital now, thinking she would be extremely upset later when she discovered he'd involved another at this time. Damn her, he thought hatefully. Not that prenatal care or the dissolution of such is my area of expertise but I certainly could have prevented this. He headed to the bathroom, grabbing a cloth to run under cold water and, after wringing it out, returned to find Hermione lying down again, trash bin discarded to the side.

Not looking, Professor Snape pointed his wand inside the bin and said, "Evanesco," and then focused his attention on Hermione, wiping her forehead and face, applying more pressure to the dried blood under her nose and down her chin.

"Make it stop," she cried, writhing in discomfort. "It's killing me…please."

He noticed her eyes didn't look quite as vacant as when she first awoke. "Miss Granger," he said, gently shaking her shoulders. "Miss Granger?"

She looked at him again. "Professor…Snape," she said slowly. "Hurts so bad…make it...go away."

"I know what you did," he confessed, finding it hard to believe she had gotten herself pregnant. "But I cannot reverse the potion. I'm afraid you will have to wait this one out."

"No…please," she continued. "I can't handle the pain…I can't…oh god…" She scrambled for the trash bin again, dry heaves producing nothing. Tears wet her face as she cried and sobbed, setting the bin back down.

He felt bad for her but was helpless as he remained beside her. If she had come to him first, he could have done more for her. Now it was too late. Given the potion she took and when he assumed she took it, the pain couldn't last much longer. It had to be over soon. He hoped. He felt sorry for her, knowing the personal hell she'd been through, having caught flashes of it when he opened his mind to hers. He felt somewhat uncomfortable, thinking a woman would have been much better to handle this situation, but knew Hermione had intended on keeping this private. As uneasy as he felt, he would not bring another into this now. His knowledge was too much already but she needed help. He could always perform a spell so that she forgot he knew, if she wanted him to.

"Hot," Hermione breathed, trying to fan herself. "Hot…too hot."

Pressing his pale hand to her forehead, he realized she was burning up. He hoped this was the end of her torment drawing near, that after the fever broke she'd start to feel better. He slipped his arm under her back and lifted her up so she was sitting, removed her cloak and then laid her back down, hoping that would help. After a few moments of her still trying to fan herself, he realized it wasn't enough and removed her shoes and socks, smirking at her blue toenail polish before scolding himself. He palmed a couple places on her leg and arm, feeling a fire under her skin, knowing what he needed to do with her before the fever worsened.

"Miss Granger," he said again, shaking her shoulders gently as she was slipping in and out of consciousness. "Miss Granger!"

Her eyes opened half way, barely looking at him. "Do you trust me?" he asked, realizing how crazy it sounded to be asking her that question. If the fever didn't go down, she could end up with worse problems than she had now.

"Yes," she whispered, feeling as if her head would explode. "Please help me, Severus."

Did she just call me by my first name, he thought as he headed towards the bathroom, running a cold bath in the porcelain tub, sitting for a few minutes, watching the water level slowly rise. Images ran through his mind of slipping her clothing off to put her in the water, quickly shaking his head. I am a professional, he reminded himself. I can do this. This is a medical emergency.

He was also a man about to see a youngwoman naked.

How dare you, he chastised himself. She needs your help. You know what a serious potion she inflicted upon herself. You wouldn't be able to live with yourself if something happened to her while in your care. She's dependent upon you since you decided to keep her here.

Returning to her writhing body, he picked her up again and carried her into the bathroom. He tried to help her stand but her legs wouldn't hold her so he knelt on one knee, resting her on the other, and began the task of remove her clothing. He lifted her robe, struggling to get her arms out of it as her muscles were limp, her body continually falling towards him. Tossing that aside, her body pressing against his chest, he reached around and fumbled with her bra closure to unhook it, then pressed her from him to slip it from her lifeless arms, attempting to not stare at her breasts exposed to him. He closed his eyes while sliding down her underwear, not needing to see but well aware of the blood she'd lost already, hoping maybe her issue had already resolved itself and all that remained were the effects of the potion. He picked up her slender body and placed her in the cold water, infusingit with a healing spell from his wand, then performed a 'scourgify' spell on her clothing.

Thinking the porcelain might be quite hard against her head, he reached for a towel, folding it up and placing it under her brown mane, then took another washcloth and dipped it in the water, squeezing soothing cold droplets onto her neck and shoulders, also wiping her face and forehead. He tried not to look at her nakedness before him, tried not to stare at her creamy white skin, her small mounds of flesh tipped with responsive nipples….Stop it this instant, he reprimanded himself. How could you be thinking such things? You are her teacher and right now trying to help her out of a dangerous situation. But as hard as he fought to ignore her beauty and the fact he was physically aroused by her, he found himself internally admitting his attraction, both surprised and disgusted with himself.

Minutes passed, Severus continuing sponging water over her body, until Hermione opened her eyes, focusing on him. She smiled slightly, thankful the pounding had stopped and the pain had decreased, but felt weak and out of sorts. After licking her dry lips, she said, "Feel…better."

He smiled a little, his own reaction catching him off guard. "Good," he said relieved. "You've had me worried, Miss Granger." He felt her forehead again, thankful the fire was gone. "How's the pain?" he asked, not able to stop himself as he touched her cheek with the outside of his fingers. Even though she was an independent young woman, she was like a child now, helpless and needing comfort. And he wanted to provide that comfort. Are you losing it Severus, he questioned himself. Do you even know how to comfort anyone?

"Still hurts," she answered. "But better." She swallowed, realizing her throat was dry. "Thirsty," she told him.

He quickly fetched a glass of water and held it to her lips, noticing their color had returned, watching as she sipped slowly. "Do you want to get out?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered. "Little cold."

Setting down the glass, he asked, "Can you do it by yourself?" Now that she was somewhat better and with the torment of pain and fever hopefully behind her, he didn't think it proper to see her in a compromised position. Once had caused enough problems, knowing visions of her would plague him for days.

"Don't know," she answered, trying to stand up. "Awfully weak." She managed to rise about halfway before losing her balance, Severus catching her wet body quickly. He held her for a moment, gazing down into her brown eyes, wanting to keep her close and tell her she was all right now. Dammit, you old fool, his brain yelled at him. She'll probably just hate you later anyway!

"Apparently not," he said, keeping his arm around her body to steady her as she stepped from the tub. Don't look, he reminded himself. Don't look at her taut body and…god those breasts would feel so firm in my hands and…Stop, stop, stop! You're going to embarrass yourself! Has it been so long since you've seen a woman?

As her fingers fastened around his covered forearms to keep her balance, her body shivered from the cold air on her wet skin, her hardened nipples proof, while Severus quickly wrapped a towel around her, drying her skin, extremely hesitant as he felt a stirring in his lower region that he fought like hell to resist, knowing full contact with her entire naked body was separated only by one piece of cloth. Kneeling down in front of her with her hands on his shoulders for support, he finished wiping the water from her legs and feet, having worked his way down her body, and then allowed his eyes the deliciously naughty freedom to slowly scan back up the beauty before him, taking in her thighs and the small dark triangle between them, the smooth skin tight across her hips and thin waist, the pebbled nipples perched atop firm mounds of flesh, the creamy white shoulders covered by locks of luscious brown hair, his eyes purposely meeting with hers, wanting her dark depths to see his attraction if only for an instant, wondering if she'd remember later.

After wrapping the towel around her body, like covering a Christmas present with tissue paper as not to be seen yet, he picked her up and walked to his bed, enjoying feeling her once again in his arms, her hands clasped around his neck, fully intrigued when he noticed her pools of brown never strayed from his, even when he placed her against the pillows.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, pulling the sheets over her, fighting a blush from his actions in the bathroom. What was his problem?

"No," she answered quietly. "The pain has stopped though. Is it gone?"

"The…you mean…your problem?" he asked, not really sure what to call it.

"Yes," she answered. "I found this spell that…"

"I know which one it is," he snipped, briefly sounding more like himself, remembering his wand was in the bathroom. "Accio wand," he called, catching it in his hand when it flew into the room. He held it above her stomach and said, "Lumos Natalimate." The soft blue glow returned once again but never turned yellow.

"You've no more need to worry," he informed her with a slight smile, thankful it was over. He watched as her eyes filled with tears at his statement, as she covered her face, shoulders shaking, not able to hide her relief. He didn't know if he should leave or stay but chose the latter, instinctively sitting beside her on his bed and cradling her trembling body to offer what little comfort he could as she quietly sobbed. He told himself he should not hold her this way but argued that it seemed the right thing to do because of the odd yet undeniable intimacy that floated between them because of the evening's events and because of the fact he was the only one who could comfort her.

Moments passed until her cries slowed, wiping her face with the corner of her towel. "I'm sorry," she apologized, feeling the warmth of his body around her, happy he was holding her. "I'm just so sorry. I didn't mean to ruin your night."

"Nonsense," he told her, enjoying the fact she wasn't pulling from his embrace and surprised that he wasn't either. "Would you like to discuss any of this?" It felt rather…nice…to hold someone close, even if not in the best of circumstances. Though a female teacher would have been appropriate, he was glad to be the one with her. You're going soft, old man, he heard himself say but realized he didn't care at the moment.

She turned slightly to face him but didn't move from his arms. "I only did it once," she admitted, knowing he knew everything anyway. "It was my first time." Originally this was not how she had imagined talking about it but quickly discovered she wasn't uncomfortable.

"Did you use a protection spell?"

"Yes, he did," she answered. "He cast it but maybe it was wrong or not powerful enough or something."

"He, who?"

Brown doe eyes met softer than usual black ones. "I…I don't think I should tell you that," she said quietly.

"Why not?" he asked, wrinkle forming between his eyebrows in concern. "Miss Granger…"

"I think after tonight you could call me Hermione."

Severus cleared his throat, understanding her recognition ofthe peculiar intimate energy hovering in the space around them. "Hermione," he corrected. "If someone is performing an ineffective protection spell, there will be more instances such as yours. Do you want that? Do you want other girls to go through what you did? Maybe worse?"

"No," she answered, glancing down at her hands.

"It's imperative you tell me," he said sternly. "I will find out one way or another and won't hesitate to do so."

Hermione sighed, knowing he was not bluffing by the tone of his voice. She lifted her eyes again. "It was Draco," she whispered, hating to hear herself say his name.

"Mr. Malfoy?" Severus repeated in both anger and amusement. Certainly he was the last one he thought Hermione would ever have chosen, especially for her first, but Draco had been creating a new reputation for himself the past couple years. At one point, Severus had found himself proud of the young man's sexual prowess but now wanted to inflict a light Crucio curse on him for causing Hermione to go throughthe tormentshe did, not to mention the twinge of jealousy he felt knowing Draco had partaken of that ravishing body he'd visibly devoured earlier. "Well we will be having a little chat then."

"Please don't say anything about me," she said, pressing her hand to his chest and immediately pulling back when she realized she did it. "He has been with others."

"I will not mention specifics of those kind." And he'll be damn lucky I don't hang him upside down from the tower by his white hair, he thought.

She smiled slightly. "You know, the day you caught me running through the hall…when I knocked you down…well…twice almost…," she said. "That was the day I found out. I was so upset. My life was over. I didn't know what to do."

He remembered the despair he'd felt from her mind and knew she had been distraught, thankful he listened to his instinct then, not assigning detention. "So you thought you'd be your brilliant brainyself and locate a spell or potion," he added. "That way no one would know and you could take care of the problem by yourself."

"I took the only potion I could find that I thought would be effective," she said quietly. "I didn't know what it would do really. I just…wanted it out…as soon as possible."

"Miss…er…Hermione," he said, catching himself. "You could have killed yourself with that potion. It is only to be used by doctors and nurses who know the subtle nuances of…of that type situation."

"I know."

"Why didn't you tell someone?" he asked. "You could have come to me and I would have helped you or better yet you could have approached any of the female teachers if you didn't want to go to the nurse. It was utter nonsense for you to attempt that option alone."

"You?" she repeated. "You who always barks at me for being a know it all? You who is always taking points away and giving me detentions because my potion wasn't perfect? Why would I have come to you with this? I wasn't planning on going to anybody, much less you."

Unfortunately she had a point and he couldn't argue. "Do you regret that I was the one to help you?" he asked curiously. "Because I can cast a spell that would…"

"No," she quickly answered, realizing how she'd sounded. "I'm very…thankful you're here and helping me." At some point during the evening, the grumpy teacher who sneered at everyone had turned into a caring and almost protective…friend. Friend? her brain repeated. You are delirious.

Absentmindedly running a finger along her forearm, Severus told her, "You will have to tell Poppy so she can make sure you're all right. She will not repeat it."

"I know," she agreed as a lump found its way to her throat unexpectedly. Her eyes lifted to his again as they filled with tears. "I'm just…so…grateful and embarrassed all at the same time. I want to hide from you…and yet I want to hug you."

He understood her conflict and squeezed her gently in his arms as she wiped tears. "Don't you think I've been sick before?" he asked her. "And do you think you are the first woman I've seen unclothed?"

She shook her head in silence, brown locks tickling her bare shoulders.

"It's over," he said quietly. "Let it be over. Don't replay it in that head of yours. Besides, it's late and I'm sure you're exhausted. You should sleep."

Hermione nodded and started to get up.

"Where are you going?" he asked, holding her still.

"To get my things and try to get back to my dormitory," she answered, looking up at him through her red eyes.

"Most certainly not," he disagreed. "You will remain here tonight incase there's any relapse from that potion. We can't have you collapsing halfway."

She looked down, realizing she was still wearing only the towel. "Can I have something to sleep in?" she asked.

A blush crept to his pale face, making it near impossible to hide from her gaze. "Uh…yes…sorry," he said, quickly getting up from the bed, hating to leave the warmth created by their bodies, and walked to his closet to search, choosing an older white button down shirt that he never wore anymore. "Will this suffice?"

"Yes," she answered, slowly standing as she placed the towel on the bed and reached for the shirt. She smiled when Severus spun around away from her. "Oh really," she scoffed. "Does it matter at this point?" She slipped her arms into the shirt and began to button it up; somewhat intrigued by the fact he had seen her…all of her. Maybe she was delirious. Maybe not. The image of Severus kneeling in front of her, watching his eyes slowly crawl over her naked flesh, as if memorizing every inch of her, remembering the primal hunger she couldn't ignore in the pools of obsidian when their eyes met was not an image that would leave her mind any time soon. Even though the evening had been the furthest thing from pleasant, she couldn't deny that that one moment had been more erotic and sensual than anything she'd done with Draco.

"Yes but I…I did what I needed to do…to help you," he answered, his back still facing her, wanting nothing more than to turn around and gaze at her beautiful form again. "It would be quite inappropriate to…see now."

Hermione finished dressing, leaving the top two buttons open for comfort. "Do you have something to help me sleep?" she asked, getting back into bed.

"Of course," he answered, turning around to open a small drawer of the nightstand and handing her a vial. "Just a sip."

"Thank you," she said as he put it back. "I owe you."

"Sleep Hermione," Severus said, leaving the bedroom and closing the door behind him. As he passed the bathroom, he took a few minutes to straighten up, draining the water from the tub, still picturing her naked body glistening in the water, and picked up her scattered clothes there and in the outer chamber, quickly placing her undergarments between the other clothing, as if he had done something he shouldn't and set them on the couch beside him. He leaned back and closed his eyes as a wave of scent reached his nose, realizing it was her scent; her hair, her body, just her. His lips formed a crooked smile.

He lifted his head and shook it, as if trying to shake off his feelings and thoughts, like they were debris he could lose that easily. You are a teacher, he reminded himself. And you helped a student who could have killed herself. You will not think of her again like that. You will forget what you saw. She is an insufferable know-it-all remember?

But after what he'd witnessed tonight and with the nature of her reason for needing for help, he knew neither would forget it. They would always share this quite intimate, albeit not physical, experience and he hoped she would not grow to despise him for his knowledge and involvement as future days arrived.

After placing the towel underneath her since she didn't have her necessities at the moment and couldn't safely get them alone, Hermione lay her head against the soft pillows, inhaling the scent of the man that had probably saved her life, the man she used to hate but was now grateful to, the man who had once repulsed her but that now intrigued her with one look. He had been the last person she ever would have thought of telling about her situation, much less having him beside her through one of the most difficult and potentially embarrassing times in her life but somehow it was all right. He witnessed what she went through physically but also what she'd been through emotionally in previous days when he tapped into her mind, into her most private thoughts and fears. Not only had she seen a caring side to the man that she thought only felt hatred for everyone, but he'd seen the vulnerability of a young woman who was usually quite confident and sure of herself. It was an odd kind of intimacy but one that made her smile as she drifted off to slumber, thankful this bittersweet night was over.