Caspian rolled his eyes in disbelief when Iris backpedaled to say that she didn’t actually think he was harmless. He was sure she was just trying to make him feel better about it. Whether he liked it or not, that was the impression he’d made on her, so if he wanted to change it, he was just going to have to try harder at living up to the reputation he preferred to make for himself. He felt like he was making a decent start at it lately. How many spoiled high borns could say they’d survived a fight against a psychotic man with a knife? Or escaped from a collapsing building in the middle of a war? Even though those were pretty much the only two things he could add to his short list of badassery, he felt like they were achievements he could be proud of.

[color=#b97703]“You didn’t do that to get my attention,”[/color] he laughed when she claimed that her mishap with the bear trap had been the awkward thing she’d done for him. [color=#b97703]“I don’t think it counts when you were on your way to assassinate me either. Nice try, Slick.”[/color] It was almost funny how easily the words flowed off his tongue. Most people probably would have thought he was crazy for falling for the woman who’d been sent by the rebellion to kill him, but it had happened so naturally that he couldn’t help himself. Plus, after seeing the way her father and ex-boyfriend had been treating her, he knew she hadn’t actually wanted to kill him. He couldn’t hold it against her when she’d been coerced into coming to the capital in the first place. It didn’t feel right to even try.

Noticing that they were approaching the gate that would carry them into the next district, he looked straight ahead, trying to see if the buildings that laid beyond were in better condition than Bel Bicis. Since they were getting a little closer to the capital, he was optimistic that the area wouldn’t have seen quite as many battles as the ones closer to the outer edges of the country. He didn’t have much of a chance to look though, as he was soon distracted when he noticed that Iris had stopped walking along at his side.

Turning toward her, he stared for a moment, mesmerized by the way the yellow glow of the street lights reflected in her blue eyes. When she leaned in to kiss him, he met her halfway, closing his own dark brown eyes as he pressed his lips against hers. He was mildly surprised by her initiative, but it was a good surprise. His arms slipped around the small of her back as they kissed, and he pulled her closer to himself. Every time they closed the distance between them, it felt like they were the only two people in the world. He was reminded again that he’d made the right decision when he’d chosen to be with her instead of push her away just because it was easier.

After a bit—he lost track of how much time had passed—Cas pulled back from her lips to breathe. [color=#b97703]“Okay, I give. If that’s how you want me to repay you, I’ll do it as much as you want,”[/color] he grinned at her dazedly, trailing his fingers through her long, blonde hair while he held her close with his other hand.