With a disappointed tsk he finally dropped the weed and the pretense.  His joke didn’t have a leg to stand on when she met him with such sincerity.  He shouldn't have been surprised, knowing her, but he hadn't expected to be met with actual feeling when he set foot in the florist shop

"You're such a mom." he teased, brushing dirt from the weed off his hands.  Unfortunately the stimulation awakened the irritation on his skin with a jolt.  Quite suddenly it felt like his hand was on fire and he looked down at it in genuine alarm.  The skin on his fingers and palm was red and angry, peppered with what looked like aspiring blisters.

"Merlin - why is something like that just laying around?!" he demanded, ineffectively flapping his hand in the air as if trying to cool down a burn.  At least he had the sense not to scratch at it.

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