Cas wished he knew what was on Iris’s mind that made her so unhappy that evening. To his best guess, it was probably something to do with her still-missing memories or the fact that no one had yet come to claim her from the mansion. Though he wouldn’t say it to her face, he was starting to find it strange just how little progress they had made in almost a week. He had toured her around the capital to bring her to places that most high borns visited at least once in their youths, but nothing had sparked any recollection in her fuzzy brain. Similarly, someone had to have noticed her disappearance by now, but there were no calls on the line asking if she was still there, and no missing person reports had come through with her photo attached. He didn’t know what was preventing her from getting home, but even he was beginning to feel the frustration that was probably bringing tears to her eyes now.

As she whispered something ominous, the prince frowned concernedly. She really was losing hope if she thought something even worse was still yet to come. [color=#b97703]“That’s just the fear talking,”[/color] he shook his head adamantly in denial of her prediction. [color=#b97703]“There’s no reason for something dreadful to happen. The attack was nothing to do with you. It was just an unfortunate coincidence, and now that it’s been taken care of and security had been boosted, you’re completely safe here. My dad isn’t going to kick you out because he’ll realize he overreacted, and you can stay as long as you need to in order to make sure you’ve got a roof over your head until you’re able to go home.”[/color] He squeezed her hand as he spoke, trying to comfort her. Despite the strangeness of her blocked up memories and the mystery of why no one had come out looking for her, he chose to remain optimistic.

[color=#b97703]“You’re welcome,”[/color] he returned her smile when she thanked him, though he noticed that she wasn’t finishing her food. At the follow-up question, he glanced down at his watch again. [color=#b97703]“Soon, but Jacob will come fetch me when the car is ready. He said he was going to meet me in the kitchen, since I hadn’t eaten yet.”[/color] Reminded of his own dinner, he lifted another forkful of salmon and rice to his lips. He’d already finished more than half of the plate, but he didn’t want to waste what was left by running out of time before he could eat the rest.

[color=#b97703]“Well, I was planning to swing by the bar for a whiskey after I get back,”[/color] he admitted with a smirk. [color=#b97703]“I’ll come to your room first to check if you’re awake before I go there. How does that sound?”[/color] Truthfully, he was exhausted, and he was mostly planning to have the drink to help him sleep more soundly, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to spend more time with Iris. He’d barely seen her all day. It was terrible timing since they had just professed to like each other the night before.

When she said that she couldn’t stomach the rest of her food, Cas just nodded. He didn’t have the heart to tell her that she was tossing a dish that would be worth easily sixty credits at a gourmet restaurant and a glass of white wine from a five hundred credit bottle. At least the kitchen staff would probably finish off the latter once they were gone, since she hadn’t touched it at all. [color=#b97703]“Try to get what rest you can,”[/color] he advised, returning the favor for the mothering she had done to him earlier. [color=#b97703]“At least there’s one benefit to being stuck in this place: You can sleep all day if you’d like.”[/color]

“Your Highness.”

At the sound of Jacob’s familiar voice, the prince slipped his hand out of Iris’s and peered over his shoulder. The security guard was standing by the door with his head inclined as his future king’s eyes fell on him. “Are you ready to leave?” he inquired.

[color=#b97703]“Give me two minutes,”[/color] Cas replied, turning back to his dinner to shovel down the rest of the food quickly. As soon as the last grain of rice had disappeared, he swallowed the rest of his wine and stood up from his seat. [color=#b97703]“I’ll see you later, Iris,”[/color] he offered her a smile. [color=#b97703]“Wish me luck.”[/color] With the address fast approaching, he turned and followed Jacob out the door that led to the landing pad for the hover car.