Oh that, said like she had no idea that was the reason that he had been drawn from his office above the Last Drop to investigate. No doubt she had no idea how much a knife it twisted in his guts, the paranoia that she might find someone to focus more of her attention and affections on and be stolen away. No, he would never allow that to happen, even if he had to divide his time more aggressively with the consolidation of power within the undercity and his daughter.

He was somewhat placated with her affections, of course, and his hand slid from cupping her jaw to the back of her neck where he could hold on lightly and massage the smooth skin. "And has practicing on those your own age provided you the experience that you were hoping for, Jinx? Fumbling, handsy teenagers who are generally only thinking of one end point."

Of course, she apparently was also likely thinking of the end point herself if she was experimenting.

He stepped further into the circle of her arms, pressing their bodies together as he tipped his chin up and away so that there was room for her face in the hollow of his neck. She was the only one he would allow so close without it triggering the nerves of old memories, of him. "Are you looking for the human connection or sex?" Or both, he supposed. To be loved, cherished, desirable? She was two out of three of those for him, though the third was something he had noted as she had blossomed into a woman.