While he'll admit that his actions then had, perhaps, not been his finest, it's somewhat less about how he feels about Ashley and more about the fact that threatening Helen herself would only have led to him very swiftly finding himself either imprisoned properly or on the receiving end of a very thorough asskicking. Or possibly both; in Ashley he'd had a bargaining chip. A means to force the most favorable outcome. Still, in light of the fact that he had used Ashley that way, he can't say he blames her for reading his words in a way other than how he'd meant.

And perhaps he could have phrased it better, too, but now that the words are said there's no correcting them. Not when he can absolutely tell that she's in no place to think about it. Instead, he meets her offensive head on, letting each blow of hers that lands, each new potential bruise pull him further into his own anger. His own rage, and when the fire fueling hers burns out perhaps they'll be better able to speak.

Right now, however, there's only this. Only the fight, the blows they're exchanging, and the rage hanging over them both as they both push themselves heedlessly forward.