Some small amount of tension left Vanessa as he agreed, and she shifted her hand to the crook of his elbow as they headed off towards the bar, each step away from the vase much like a step away from the edge of a precipice. "I've opened the shop as much as I could," she told him as they walked, using the conversation to anchor herself in who she was. "Started an inventory, even."

She would ask about New York in a minute. For now, she was still off centre.