He raises his eyebrows in surprise. He'd only been joking about the help, but it has been a little lonely since Lydia's been gone.

"I can manage it on my own, really," he says, even though he knows that the pile of paperwork at his feet kind of completely undermines that statement. "But if you really wanted something different, I wouldn't mind the company every once in a while."

And who knew? Maybe he could help her with some of her work sometime also. He shakes his head and kneels to start scooping up paper. "No, it's okay." He pauses to look up at her. "How have you been?"