He MAY have been joking, but I'm not sure I buy it. He threw it out there (since he gets what he wants that way), but he did it in such a way that he can say he didn't mean it, if you didn't react "well" to it. It isn't a new trick! I can't see how a reasonable person could make a "joke" like that in your/his situation. I think he meant it, and then used "plausible deniability"!
Retrouvaille, absolutely! It isn't a terrible idea, even if you are not sure what you want, it might help you understand what you want, and whether he can give it. Maybe, anyway.
