Blind Dating the Alpha Prince

7 - Responsibility

~~Carter's PoV~~

I'm not sure when it happens, but sometime during the course of dinner, my goal for the night changes. It stops being about getting Quinn into bed and just becomes about enjoying her company. The mask gives me a bit of freedom and I tell her things I haven't told anyone in a long time, funny things from my childhood, and I find that I like making her laugh. That sadness in her eyes when she told me about her mate vanishes and doesn't return, and I feel a bit proud knowing that it's because of me.

She makes me laugh too. She doesn't have any problem saying what's on her mind and I like that. I'm so used to people around me not saying what they mean, it makes a refreshing change.

So when we get to the end of the night and she refuses my offer to take her home, I'm not even that disappointed. It's been a long time since I spent time with a woman I find attractive and didn't just jump straight to s*x, but in a weird way, it's actually kind of sexy.

And her saying she doesn't want a relationship doesn't bother me at all. It's not just a line to blow me off. She's lost someone and she's got a kid, so it makes sense, and when it comes right down to it, I'm not after a relationship either. I'm only doing this because my mother forced me to, I remind myself.

And it's not that Quinn doesn't want to see me again. She does, but as friends, which means she actually just likes spending time with me. It's not because she wants something from me because of my position. When she makes her comment about the prince, I'm completely certain she doesn't know who I am. Again, it's a nice change.

So friends is fine with me for now, and if we can work our way up to friends with benefits, even better. After all, if she likes me even with this stupid mask on my face, I have to think she'll like me even better when she sees what's under it.

So when I get up the next morning for breakfast, I'm in a very good mood. It's the best I've felt for a long time.

My parents are already eating when I get to our private dining room. I take a seat with them as the servers set down my usual coffee and go to bring my breakfast.

I know my mother is dying to hear how things went but she tries to wait for me to bring it up. I'm just as stubborn though, I can wait as long as she can, so finally she breaks down and asks. “You were out for a while last night. How did it go?”

“It was fine,” I understate before asking the question I want answered. “I guess you knew she has a baby before you set us up?”

My dad nearly chokes on his coffee as he looks over at his mate in surprise. “You sent him on a date with a woman who's a mother?”

Even though it's almost exactly what my reaction was, I'm a little insulted by my dad's response. “What's wrong with that?”

He gives me a disbelieving look. “Responsibility isn't really your strong suit, Carter. Do you know the first thing about babies?”

What's there to know? They're small and don't do much other than cry a lot.

“But what did you think of Quinn?” my mother asks. “Aside from the baby?”

“She's... different.” It's not the best word, but it's the best I can come up with on the spot, and my mom looks satisfied with it even if my dad's still looking a bit confused. “Did you know she's in the defense forces?”

“I know a lot,” my mom says enigmatically. “The form she filled out was very thorough.”

I really need to take a look at this damn form. “Yeah, well, she didn't even fill it out. Her friend did it for her. She had no idea she was being set up with me.”

I expect my mom to be surprised by that, as I was, but she just smiles. “That makes sense.”

Why does it make sense? Before I can ask, one of my dad's aide's comes in and he and my mom need to leave for some kind of ceremony this morning. I finish eating on my own and head to my office to start the day. My assistant Simon is already there waiting for me.

He was not my choice for an assistant. My dad hired him after I kept getting involved with the female assistants I chose. He's definitely not as nice to look at, but I have to admit he's pretty good at his job.

He runs me through my schedule for the day, which is mostly meetings. Usually I find these meetings a bit tedious, but I remember what Quinn said last night about why the empire is important to her and how she hopes the prince will do a good job of running it, and it makes me want to pay a bit more attention.

Simon's almost finished going through everything when he gets to an item that spoils my good mood.

“Tomorrow is a year since that failed operation in the East Forest,” he reminds me. “I've arranged for flowers to be sent to the families of the men involved. Do you want to include a personal note to go with them?”

I know I should. It's what my dad would do. He would have met with all the families too after it happened. I've seen him do it before, offering his sympathy, letting them grieve, sharing in their pain, even if they blame him for it. He says they have a right to yell at him if that's what will make them feel better. He never shies away from taking the blame.

But I couldn't face the families of those men, not after what happened. I didn't even want to know their names. I know it makes me a coward and I'm not proud of it. In fact, it's the only thing in my life I've ever truly been ashamed of.

So when Simon asks me about the note now, for a moment, I waver, torn between doing what's right and doing what's comfortable, and in the end, I choose the easy way out. “No. The flowers are fine.”

Simon nods, but I feel like there's a bit of disappointment in his eyes. Or maybe I'm just imagining it, since I'm disappointed in myself too.

Maybe my dad's right. Maybe responsibility really isn't my strong suit after all.