It felt as though she was making fun of him, and Oz wasn't sure whether to roll with it or feel slightly put out. He wasn't sure he appreciated the narrative she'd spun for her family that he'd met her once and become obsessed (because it was unflattering, or because it was too close to the truth of the matter?) but he couldn't control how she chose to spin their interaction. He'd given up any rights to opinions on that when he'd asked her to dance without having discussed their stories beforehand.
He didn't think he liked the implication that she had more at risk than he did, for all it might have been true. Women always had more to lose in these types of situations, but her stating it so baldly made it sound as though she didn't think he was risking anything with their encounters, and as he thought he'd made clear with his pointed questions during their dance, that simply wasn't true. But he couldn't respond to any of these points, because he'd been prevaricating enough already, and she was calling him out on it now.
Oz frowned faintly. He took a sip of wine to avoid looking too eager to either answer or avoid the question, then set his glass down. "No, my wife doesn't know. She might suspect in the abstract —" You only like shiny things, she had accused him once, and he had never gotten a straight answer on exactly what she'd meant. "— but certainly nothing specific. She knows I've become a patron of the ballet. That's all." As for the rest of his family, it was bold of Sophia to think any of them knew him any better than general society did. He kept them at arm's length — though in fairness, how would she know this was his custom when he had evidently welcomed her in with such little ado? Nevermind that she didn't actually know him well at all; the whole point of seduction was that she would feel as though she did.
"My family has lost interest in our arguments," he offered with a shrug. "Particularly with everyone focused on the wedding. If you asked one of them now I'm sure they wouldn't recall anything out of place from the party."
He didn't think he liked the implication that she had more at risk than he did, for all it might have been true. Women always had more to lose in these types of situations, but her stating it so baldly made it sound as though she didn't think he was risking anything with their encounters, and as he thought he'd made clear with his pointed questions during their dance, that simply wasn't true. But he couldn't respond to any of these points, because he'd been prevaricating enough already, and she was calling him out on it now.
Oz frowned faintly. He took a sip of wine to avoid looking too eager to either answer or avoid the question, then set his glass down. "No, my wife doesn't know. She might suspect in the abstract —" You only like shiny things, she had accused him once, and he had never gotten a straight answer on exactly what she'd meant. "— but certainly nothing specific. She knows I've become a patron of the ballet. That's all." As for the rest of his family, it was bold of Sophia to think any of them knew him any better than general society did. He kept them at arm's length — though in fairness, how would she know this was his custom when he had evidently welcomed her in with such little ado? Nevermind that she didn't actually know him well at all; the whole point of seduction was that she would feel as though she did.
"My family has lost interest in our arguments," he offered with a shrug. "Particularly with everyone focused on the wedding. If you asked one of them now I'm sure they wouldn't recall anything out of place from the party."
MJ is the light of my life <3