The smile made a world of difference. Ben let out a long breath, and with it much of the tension he'd been holding in his shoulders since this conversation started. If Aldous could pretend to be pleased by the news, or at least recognize that this child was what Ben wanted, then they could have this conversation as teammates rather than as adversaries.

"I don't trust her alone," he admitted. He hadn't been planning on saying this, but now that they'd gotten to this point it seemed the most efficient way through the conversation was just to come clean. "Especially if she feels like she's running out of options. She makes stupid decisions when she panics. Marrying me, for one," he said, shaking his head. He took a small drink to keep his throat from getting too dry as he continued. "That's why I didn't want to leave, the other day. I asked her to go stay with a friend, so I think she's okay now, but... I'm going to stay until the baby's born," he said firmly. "After that, if things are still the way they have been, I can get out. But I don't want to bring up London until that. And she can't know that I told you. About the night we eloped."