"I was just teasing, Lena," Andre said hastily when he noticed my silence. "I'm just saying that I won't treat you the way he did. That, I can promise you."
I was confused for a second, but then I realized he was talking about Philippe. I smiled weakly. "Thank you, Andre."
"I know you don't really know me yet," he continued. "But we'll have plenty of time to get to know each other better. We're just stuck together for, what, just the rest of our lives?"
That made me laugh. A bitter laugh. "Right. That's not very long, isn't it?"
His laughter mirrored mine. "We can just be friends, Lena. I'm not asking for anything else. And I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do — which, I guess, is stupid for me to say since you're literally forced to marry me." He ran a hand through his hair with a sheepish look. "What I mean to say is that I'm just hoping you and I get along, at least."
