"Not true," Hank replied, pointing the fingers currently clamped around the cigarette at her. When he realised, he transferred it to his other hand, but kept his attention on her. "We like to be heroes, do we. When Rome is burning, we like to be the ones to rescue the damsel in distress. Makes us feel manly as hell."

Hank was speaking generally and not particularly about himself. Whenever Karen had cried back home, he'd of course wanted to help her stop, but that usually entailed making her laugh and acting the fool rather than the hero. And in the direst of times, he'd cried with her, manliness be damned.