the I-love-yous come at the heart of the scene that gives the fic its title -- I was psyched about that too! As I recall, I didn't arrange it that way -- it's just how it worked out in the writing. Feels so good when that happens.

Alas, poor Egru .... *g* I was looking over my notes for later in the fic, and it seems I had a double comeuppance in mind, since his actions do need, dramatically, to come back and haunt them one more time in the story.