Note to moms everywhere: if you phrase an order as a “would you like to?” question, you imply there is an option not to comply. Don’t be surprised by the answer you get.
My wife is a history professor specializing in medieval Europe. Culinary history isn’t a common discussion theme for us, but I’ll post if she has any ideas.
Yes, feeling should be communicated. But sometimes raw, unprocessed emotion leads one to say things now that one regrets later. Even though this has transpired over a couple of days in “strip time” for us readers, it may have been all of half an hour for the characters. I don’t think it is at all obvious that Brad is “knowingly hurting” Toni. That presumes he is in a state in which he can not only acknowledge Toni’s feelings (whereas it seems to me he is still in a self-centered funk and simply is not thinking about others at all), but also that he strategically chose a hurtful reply (which is not likely in his current state)
Note to moms everywhere: if you phrase an order as a “would you like to?” question, you imply there is an option not to comply. Don’t be surprised by the answer you get.