"Yeah. Clover happened to be out and around at that time of night - another stroke of luck."

He shrugged, his gaze following hers.

"Look, I'm not big on self pity. Fact is, I didn't and I wasn't gonna. Whatever this problem is - the problem that's making you turn to these candies, I mean - you're either going to fight through it or you're going to wind up in another alley with no-one around to help you out. If that winds up happening, the people who actually give a damn are going to get hurt pretty bad. And if they aren't worth fighting for, then I dunno what to tell you."