He looked up as she entered. His eyes swept her hair, and the barest start of a smile flickered on his lips, but it wasn't quite enough to ease the tension on the rest of his face. He looked… guilty. As she approached, he reached out, hesitated, then finished the gesture, reaching for her hand.

"There's so much I should have told you before…" He shook his head, tortured by inability to articulate. "You might not have chosen to… let me… with you… if you knew about… everything."