"You have no reason to be sorry, mon chou," I assure him, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead before tipping my face down to smile at him. "I really like you too, and you're not going to mess it up."

I cup his cheek and thumb at the arch of bone, eyelids drooping a bit. "It's been... a really long time for me. Years. We'll wait, Bits. I have no problem with that."