Affection was different from lust and while Matthew believed that Airy loved him, he knew Cassidy didn't feel as deeply about it. They were friends and connected by Airy, but even their brief roll in the Wilds had proved to be a one time thing, a product of lust.

What Matthew felt was hardly important; he had a dim view of the future, generally. He didn't deserve what they had, he couldn't ever control his impulses or change what he was for anyone or anything. He'd tried. He'd failed.

Still, it only took a few seconds of Airy's sincere squeezing to break down his cool resolve and return his arms around her slender frame. With her so close, his eyes had no other refugee than her gaze. Her last line makes him chuckle, one hand coming up her back to urge her head down against his chest so that he could hug her and bury his face into her hair.

"Mm." He couldn't say no. He couldn't say yes either, he wanted to embrace it blindly, so much that his chest felt like it was going to fold into itself. "Cassi, huh?" His grip on her loosened, but his hands stayed flat on her back. "How long do you think you'll live?"