Her comments about her father brought up conflicting emotions in Emrys. He was inclined to preen at the compliment, because that was in his nature. He preferred to believe he was charming and he enjoyed being liked. He was vain, and enjoyed being told that he was liked. Her second sentence had him wary, however. Her father liked him, but had expected not to; why had he had any sort of expectations about Emrys at all? There was an obvious answer, of course. They were business rivals. Even though the two companies had not been in direct competition much in the past, it would behoove any businessman to be at least passingly aware of the others who worked in his field. It was possible, however, that there was more to it. Had the Professor told her father anything about Emrys prior to this event? And if she had, to what extent? With what tone? Emrys would be loathe to think that she had spoken of him as a potential suitor, and that Mr. Korvo may have been sizing him up as a potential son-in-law even as Emrys had been eyeing him as a prospective father-in-law. It removed something of the element of surprise that he was fond of keeping in his corner; he preferred to remain mysterious until it suited him to reveal his own ends.

Professor Vorona hardly seemed the blushing schoolgirl, though. He could not picture her gushing over a man because she had declared herself smitten. She was shrewd; if she had told her father anything about Emrys, it would have been with purpose... which meant that perhaps she was playing just as complicated a game as he was, moving pieces that were occluded from his view.

"Did it?" Emrys asked with one eyebrow raised, though his tone was neutral. "I hope I don't have a reputation as unlikable."

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