Emily tried hard not to let her reaction to that honest statement show, but she didn't think she did a very good job. She was well aware of just how easily harm could come a girl's way, and just how easily it was for men to be kept from protecting the women they loved. Her breathing was unsteady, and she couldn't focus on the rest of what he was saying, any of it. She felt guilty for it, but she was getting lost in her head, and there was no room for polite conversation alongside it.
After a minute, she pulled her hand away, her eyes filled with moisture. She stood up rather abruptly, moving away from the couch, just needing to move in an attempt to get her emotions under control. It had been a long time since she'd had an emotional near panic attack like this, and she tried to remember her tools for coping with it. She was being rude, some small part of her mind recognized, but she couldn't seem to help it in that moment.