“Will it be too hard for you, watching me age?” “It will gut me,” he said calmly. “But everyone watches the one they love age. At least I can know that you will not be alone. And I would rather be here, for as long as you live, than out in the world, worrying about you.” He smiled abruptly. “Besides, I know you. You’ll still need someone to pull you out of trouble when you’re ninety.”
