Whenever Lachlan had held her hand, it was just that or, at most, a friendly squeeze. He'd been feverish for most of their time in the Arctic, so she couldn't blame him or overthink it too much really. The fact was that he had held her while she was upset, which surely had to count for something? Merlin, she was confused.

JP's grip on her hand felt softer than any of the embraces she and Lachlan shared, like she was something precious to him. Part of her bristled at the thought, seemingly ready and willing to have another tense conversation about women in Society. The other, much larger, part of her was content to enjoy it. If anything, she was more tempted to ask him to lie down with her than anything else.

"They said it'd take a few days to get my body temperature back up to normal. Magic can only do so much..." Her hands had never been cold like this before.