Ford shrugged in response. The gesture had a slight edge to it, like a sulky teenager. He knew Verity could be charming, so maybe Noble had a point, but he had trouble carrying that train of thought through to a conclusion that looked something like a happy ending. Maybe Noble had a different end goal in mind than Ford had, though. Back at the beginning of all of this, they'd always been half a step out of sync about their goals for the girls. Noble had always talked about getting them married, while Ford had been concerned with getting them happily married. Maybe Noble thought that this was good enough; if Swann thought he was in love with her, he was unlikely to change his mind between now and the wedding, unless something went terribly wrong.

"It's just —" Ford started. He ran a hand through his hair. He probably ought not to even say anything about it, because it wasn't as though he could do anything about it one way or another. What point was there in even voicing it at all, when there was nothing to be done? Despite this thought, he found himself continuing all the same: "If she ends up miserable — if he's wrong for her, and I gave him my blessing..." He left off with a helpless look, and opted to take a long drink instead of finishing his sentence.

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