"Oh, I'm not denying that." Edward chuckled and shrugged, deciding that he didn't have the grace to feel embarrassed about that. "I simply feel I am well worth being at the centre of someone's world. Especially if I deign to give them that much attention."

Honestly, he felt that was only fair. "Anna, that was before the Riddler. Before, you know, all that. I rid myself of her and whatever infatuation I harboured. And, yes, I suppose I may have used the fact that I am, at my core, a cool logician, to convince myself that she was beneath my efforts. Mind over heart, if you will."

He sat up, but only to pull up his knees and wrap his arms around them. "After Anna... The next one. I needed more that time."