Edwin told her everything – everything about his recent activities, about meeting four of their soulmates, and everything he knew about those people, with her commenting every once in awhile, because as much as she wanted to remain a little hurt, she found herself getting carefully excited instead.
"'You're coming with me'?" she repeated when he started telling her about meeting Agent Carter. "There was no other way you could've phrased that, particularly considering that you were talking to a woman in a dark alley? Meeting someone in one of those isn't exactly a gender-neutral experience! No wonder she hit you!"
He chuckled morosely, admitting, "You're so right."
"Always." She squeezed his hand from where they were still laced in the middle of the table, demanding, "Now what happened next?"
Yet she was perfectly able to get angry when he told her about being interrogated by Agent Thompson, shrieking, "The utter gall of that man!"
"You're right in that too," he commented carefully.
"But what?"
He debated before saying, "As much as I've come to trust Miss Carter… I believe she feels rather deeply for Agent Thompson and that makes me nervous for her sake."
"Maybe you ought to give him another chance?" she asked hesitantly. "Personally, I'd like to meet him… he is still one of our soulmates, and there must be a reason for that."
"I know," he sighed, "Once again you're right… but this mess with Mr. Stark has left us all with a lot to work through."
"But now that we know who more of our soulmates are, we have our entire lives to work through those things, don't we?"
"These really don't have to be your problems, Anna," he said gently. "Things may very well get worse before they get better."
"But they are my problems too; you're my husband and soulmate, and the others are my soulmates too. That means that I care and that I want to get involved and help every one of you in every way that I can."
"However, as your husband and soulmate, I want to keep you safe. The world that our soulmates live in isn't necessarily the one we're used to – there are too many dangerous variables – and if I can keep one… or two… of you safe from that, then my instinct is to do so."
Anna searched his eyes, asking him gently, "Even if I'm asking you not to?"
He sighed again, murmuring, "Very well. I'll see if I can't talk to Miss Carter and arrange a meeting between you and me and the other four in the near future."
"Thank you," a pause and she found her brain scrambling to process the influx of information Edwin had given her – and snagging on something that he'd just said. "Edwin, is one of our soulmate not involved with the SSR? You mentioned wanting to protect two of us?"
Edwin winced, muttering, "My pink words. She said them to me the same day I met Agents Thompson and Sousa. Previous to that, Miss Carter asked me not to speak to her to avoid another conflict of interest because she's a waitress at the automat where Miss Carter and I most often convened and was therefore an unavoidable presence. Thompson had so upset me the day she spoke to me though, that I have yet to answer her. At all."
Anna raised her eyebrows, demanding, "Well, if this whole ordeal her and I aren't supposed to know about is over, then why haven't you fixed it yet?"
"Because… I wanted to come home to you first before you got suspicious," Anna snorted and he amended, "Even more suspicious. Besides that, Miss Carter wanted to be the one to tell her the truth. I believe she thought I had enough to handle telling you."
"She was right," Anna said with a smile before asking, "What's the waitress's name?"
"Angie Martinelli."
"You need to call Agent Carter as soon as it's daylight and find out when the earliest opportunity is that you can fix this with Angie… unless she's right in believing that you don't want her?"
"Anna," Edwin drawled, trying to hedge past that particular line of questioning before his eyes snapped to the window with surprise as he realized, "It is daylight."
Dawn, to be precise; hours had passed unnoticed while the two of them talked through the story and he had described to her as much as he knew about their soulmates.
As if to punctuate how badly they needed to return to the world outside of their kitchen table, the phone rang in the next room over.
"I'll answer it," Anna said, going to pick up the receiver. "Jarvis residence."
"Anna! Just the woman I needed to speak to! I need you and Jarvis both to come in early this morning and get one of my houses cleaned up for some new residents."
"Mr. Stark, with all due respect, Edwin has more pressing matters to attend to this morning; I would be glad to help you though."
"Well, if you insist." He rattled off the address and thanked her with a flippant, "You're a doll."
"You're welcome," Anna said lightly, glad he couldn't see her expression.
Edwin came up behind her as she hung up, asking, "What was that about?"
"Housecleaning, and, I suspect, yet again a new mistress. He wanted both of us to go ensure that one of his houses is fit for habitation. But I told him that you were going to be occupied today."
"I am?"
She raised her eyebrows, picking back up the receiver and handing it to him, reminding him pointedly, "Yes, you are – calling Agent Carter and going to see Angie."
He sighed and plucked the receiver from her fingertips, giving her a quick peck on the lips before murmuring, "As you wish. But it'll be awhile before I go to see Miss Martinelli, so I'll help you with the house first."
Seeing his hesitancy, she asked curiously, "Don't you think our soulmates will be worth it?"
"Eventually, I'm sure" he admitted. "But I'm even more certain that it's going to be a fight to get to where I know you'd like these relationships to end up, if not an actual impossibility."
"All of the best things are worth fighting for, Edwin." Anna reminded him. "Our relationship certainly was. Now," she kissed him again before walking down the hall to dress, saying, "I'll go to this house of Mr. Stark's and leave you to it."