Emerson nodded, hoping she meant that. He had expressed that worry before, that he took too much of Reed's time, but Reed had reassured him otherwise. Now however, he feared it wouldn't be a problem.
What she said next struck him, but he internalized it. Her words confirmed what he'd feared. Reed assured him that it was going to only be sex and nothing more. Emerson's worry that one or more of them would take it as more or develop some sort of emotion from it. Whether she meant it that way or not, that was how Emerson took it, and his heart started to pound. He did not want the tension to read on his features, so he let it drop to his hands, which were in his cloak pockets. His fingers clutched the material inside tightly.
"You have nothing to fear when it comes to what I think. Please do not concern yourself with that," he said quietly. "I think that no matter what we tell ourselves, when engaging in that sort of behavior it is very difficult not to have it mean more than just the act itself."