[color=#b97703]“If you say so,”[/color] Cas lifted his shoulders in a shrug, though there was an amused smile on his face when Iris got flustered over his offer to reserve a restaurant for them. He knew the attention a stunt like that would draw to them. Every tabloid in Aspiria would eat it up if word got out that the crown prince had bought out an entire building to take a girl on a dinner date. But that was the intent. [color=#b97703]“If you change your mind, just let me know,”[/color] he said in a luring tone, idly swirling the liquid in his glass as he casted her a sly smile. [color=#b97703]“Maybe it’ll give your family a wake-up call if they see a news article with a candid shot of you walking out of a restaurant with me above the headline.”[/color]

Of course, a photo like that would also start up the gossip train that circulated throughout the capital, but he didn’t mind. If anyone asked that knew her, it would be easy to explain that they had been trying to get the media’s attention in order to send her home. Plus, if it turned out she didn’t have a boyfriend, he was interested in asking her out on a real date later on. Hopefully by then, the intrusive photographers wouldn’t be quite as interested in capturing every public second of his dating life.

[color=#b97703]“I warned you,”[/color] he reminded her nonchalantly when she teased about not wanting to meet his friends anymore. Really, he had a feeling that Jay and Miles’s playfulness was the one trait about the pair that she would enjoy. It was their rampant flirting that he was concerned about, but with any luck, that wouldn’t be a problem once he sent the message that he was interested in pursuing her. The thought of admitting he had a crush on an amnesiac girl still made him cringe, but it was better than the alternative. As long as they didn’t scare her off, that was all he cared about.

At her comment about his drinking, Cas smirked amusedly. [color=#b97703]“There wasn’t even a full shot in that drink,”[/color] he said dismissively. [color=#b97703]“If I got hungover off a mini margarita, that would be pretty pathetic.”[/color] Chuckling, he lifted his glass to his lips to take another sip, cleansing his palate of the less preferred beverage. The scotch had a much more pleasant taste that lingered on his tongue even after he swallowed.

[color=#b97703]“Martini, huh?”[/color] he mused when she said she liked the second drink better. [color=#b97703]“I’ve always thought those tasted like soap. I’m glad you like it though.”[/color] Sipping his own drink once more, he could feel a hint of something in the back of his head, and he relaxed into the cushioned booth. After a tense evening with his father, the alcohol was a much needed stress-reliever. He just had to remember to pace himself, so he wouldn’t sink too deeply into the clutches of intoxication around Iris.

[color=#b97703]“You don’t have to wait for someday,”[/color] the prince laughed. [color=#b97703]“Here.”[/color] He slid his half-full glass to her across the tabletop. [color=#b97703]“I’m having a scotch whiskey with a little lemon in it. If you want to have a taste, I don’t mind sharing; but if you like it, you have to order your own.”[/color]

When she asked him what he liked to do after his lessons, he drummed his fingers on the table in thought. [color=#b97703]“A lot of different things. I go out with friends to parties, of course, but I also like to watch sports.”[/color] He gestured idly at the flat screens on the walls around them, all of which were playing different games. [color=#b97703]“I don’t have as much time for hobbies as I used to though,”[/color] he added with a thoughtful frown. [color=#b97703]“This past week has been pretty laidback, but I usually have to help my dad with his work more often. It’s just a lot of meetings with dignitaries and reading scripts for talk shows, since those are the jobs he can’t do very easily while he’s ill.”[/color]

Shrugging again, he met Iris’s gaze with another smile as he brushed past the serious topic, [color=#b97703]“Maybe we’ll figure out what your hobbies are tomorrow.”[/color]