She hadn't directly chastised him, but she didn't need to; her tone did that for her.

"Of course," he agreed, head bowed. He hadn't been planning to bring it up, obviously, but it had been a thoughtlessly cruel choice to keep her in the conversation. Now he had to square with the fact that there was nothing he could say or do to detain her without making matters worse. He didn't have the right to her time, her attention, or any insight into how she was feeling. He should stop pretending that he did.

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