"I did. Until I started losing," I said wryly, my smile softening as I found him sitting propped up on the sofa, looking pale and small but more alive than I'd seen him in days.

Setting the bottle of wine on the coffee table, I bent to kiss him, fingers curling warmly along the back of his neck.

Faintly amused, I brushed my thumb across his upper lip, saying, "I thought you might be growing it out."