"That's alright," Fausta says, tongue lolling from her mouth, looking for all the world like she wouldn't mind more petting at all. "William doesn't mind, do you, William?"

Her tail thumps against the floor as Spike finally manages to pull out the chair and sit down. "Yes, I do mind. Come here." She obliges, and goes over to rest her head against his leg. He sinks his fingers into the fur behind her ears almost without thought. It doesn't feel at all like what Sunshine had done, but it is comforting. For some reason, he doesn't correct her calling him William.

"I should have done that instead of slapping the thing across the room." By which he means that he's sorry for that.