Ric watched Damon's face, and then turned toward Hayley with a smile. "Maybe we should have started filming earlier?" Then he gave a slight shrug to Damon, and his smile softened but didn't entirely vanish. "You've been good to me, Damon. If I can trust you living with Hayley, I'm pretty sure I can trust you with my throat."

It was a big deal for him, but there was so much Damon had done for him lately, and so much of the reason he was happy was tied up in Damon. Not the same way as Hayley, but it was there. He wanted to give that back in a way that maybe Damon would let himself believe in for a little bit.