Angel hates what he asked of Lorne, but he wouldn't go back and change what he'd asked him to do. It was a necessary means to an end and Angel didn't have the luxury of putting one above the many. Maybe that made him a little bit heartless, but that's why it was him who asked and not someone else on his behalf. He knew there would be consequences and he accepted them, which was a large part of why he was mostly against seeking Lorne out. Distance was a consequence, distrust was a consequence... All of this was accepted as an outcome when he'd made his decision to ask Lorne to kill Lindsey. Lorne could be angry with him, Cordelia could and countless others, but Angel would endure it. He couldn't change the past and he most certainly wouldn't change the future.

"I'm...protective. We covered this like...a couple years back, Cor. And that whole...quiet thing..." He sighs and avoids looking directly at her. "Yeah. That was about me being terrified and not wanting to talk or move until I was sure I wasn't just going to start freaking out on you, because you didn't need me doing that."