"And it is a hurt I've accepted as a necessary risk. You don't get to make that decision for me."

He smiled crookedly. "I would hope that I do, more often than not. But should I not also want you to be happy when I am not involved?"

...come to think of it, no. He'd rather be her sole source of happiness. What a delicious thought that was; she'd be his, all his. But stating that would not help this argument, even as he mulled over the thought. Later. He could work on that later, once she was in the right frame of mind.