“Groundbreaking,” he tried the word out, offering it back to her as if hearing it would reveal to her that it sounded awfully silly as well, at least as far as he was concerned. Maybe it was groundbreaking, but calling it that seemed like reaching to him. Even in her guise as a Sidhe half-breed, she had been blessed with those feathered wings. It was a trait that would have enabled her to overcome the “tragic” fact of her mixed blood. Which made this whole thing with Andrew look like some sort of rebellion.
“You would never forgive either of us.” He dismissed the plan, whether there was an ounce of seriousness to it or not. He didn’t even seem to have to think it over. “I think this wedding might be the first thing I’ve ever had a reason to be jealous of with you. You like things that are difficult, or you wouldn’t be with me.”
He could understand enjoying even the trying parts. He felt the same way when it came to what he thought of as “normal” obstacles. Even the grimy bits of the mundane were beautiful in their own right. When it came down to it he was confident that it would all be perfect in its own way, no matter how much fell apart. Cedric might show up in something new, Liliana might arrive late, and odds were good Shay would be throwing snow at everyone she saw, but Andrew would be there just as he was supposed to be to provide an anchor for the whole thing.
“Meet strange girls at the bar down the street.” He didn’t miss a beat, squeezing her hand and resigning himself to the stranger’s judgment for making the joke at all. “Reports. Evaluations. Reviews. Assigning everyone else their work. You can come sit across from me and observe someday if you want to.” He never would have considered bringing her to Aegis before, but they had their cover story down now and keeping her hidden seemed to draw more attention.
“I’m sure if you ask what she was up to with Henry, she’ll elaborate. And until then, I can handle three more changes before we go for lunch.” Em was a topic for another day, and a little shake of his head demonstrated that. He didn’t know, of course, that Amelia knew all about Mel. At least, in the cryptic sense that their Seer spoke of her.