"I'm sorry I called you a navy brat." That's a little better, right? Right. "Lost my footing trying to put you back down when you said you couldn't swim. That's what I get for wandering around barefoot."

The rest? The rest. Christ.

"It wasn't even her I was mad at- well. A little. But it's not all on her that we never talk about what happens after I die. She doesn't like talking about it and I don't like making her do things that she doesn't like. I'll never not be stupid around her." A beat. "I met the Alpha. He's here. So's Tex."