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“I could’ve—”

“No” He leaned back, cupped her face so that their eyes met There wasn’t pity in his, which she would have hated There wasn’t sympathy, which would have scraped her raw

There was si

“You couldn’t have Not you You had to know, didn’t you? You had to be sure if she’d knoho he was to her Now you do”

“Yeah, now I do No one’s that good an actress She’ll see herself, again and again, together with him Over and over”

“Stop You couldn’t have changed that, no matter how she found out”

“Maybe not” She closed her eyes again, sighed “I swiped at Peabody”

“She’ll get over it”

“I caht out on the street I nearly—”

“But you didn’t” He gave her a little shake before she could speak again “You irritate me, Eve Why must you beat yourself up like this? You haven’t slept in over thirty hours You’ve entered into a phase of this investigation that hits so close to a personal horror most people would run away or shatter You’ve done neither”

“I broke”

“No, Eve You chipped” He pressed his lips to her forehead “Then you came home Lie down for a bit Close your eyes Turn it off”

“I shouldn’t have told you to leave me alone I didn’t mean it”

“It hardly ance in his voice nearly made her smile “I wouldn’t have I won’t”

“I knoanted you to be here” She slid into hie her back “I needed you to be And you were” Her“Roarke”