He obviously did not realize that he had already unknowingly let her slip into his life and his social circles.
Some things evolved and silently influenced things with time, settling in without a sound. When one came to realize it, the subtle changes would already have happened. Perhaps, the amount of change would even have accumulated to becoming a fundamental change in effect.
Yet, upon hearing him, Xiaye immediately frowned unhappily. She narrowed her twinkling eyes at him and said begrudgingly, "Is my EQ really that low?"
He nodded calmly. "Yes, very!" he answered swiftly and certainly. Immediately, her beautiful face crumpled.
When he saw that she was unhappy, he cleared his throat and added on, "However, you're a good woman. That I completely agree with."
