Just because he had said he didn't have someone didn't mean he never would. And, granted, that that someone would be a human had never occurred to him. But there were friends first, and they knew each other. Trusted each other. Cared about each other. And somehow that had changed, deepened.

"Naomi, this is new for me, too," he said, and to his credit he wasn't teasing Naomi about how red she was turning. "But I know I care about you a lot- more than a lot. Probably more than a friend and ally should." A pause. "Maybe I was feverish, but that doesn't mean I didn't realize what I was doing, and given the chance, I wouldn't do a thing differently."