Once she started to settle and her heart was steadily coaxing itself into a less frantic rhythm, she became aware of a throbbing ache that while not exactly comfortable wasn't painful enough to make her regret what had transpired. She was far more likely to regret it if he taunted her about it. He spoke and she couldn't help but wonder if he was already trying to tease her for it. She seemed to lack the energy to whip up her temper beyond a vague sense of annoyance. Even that emotion was lost when it suddenly dawned on her that he wouldn't be getting up and leaving her as he always did. Tig wasn't sure how she felt about that. Her instinct was to lament it, but on the second thought she realized that as relieved as she usually was for him to go, it also felt insulting that he came and went as though she was a privy or a billiards room. Not that she particularly wanted his company afterwards. That he had to stay now she anticipated would be awkward and unpleasant.

"And what if I did?" There was only a hint of defensiveness in her voice. She felt pleasantly calm and everything outside of her calm felt trivial and unimportant. Feeling a little chilly, she pulled the sheets closer around her. "Did you not?"

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