readytosee | closed rp post

He'd drink champagne anywhere with Casper, if Casper wanted him to. He realizes, not for the first time, that he's going to end up wrapped around Casper's finger and really that's fine. The more Alexander thinks about it, the more he likes the sound of that. And it will be incredibly gratifying to show his brothers that he's found someone.

"I think we can find time for that. Oh - tomorrow we have an appointment at the spa. To relax a bit."

Casper doesn't have anything like that. Well, he has Carla, which is nice, but mostly he has colleagues. Still, it could be fun to brag to some of his peers who insist on showing family photos at every conference that he's managed to land a highly successful CEO.

"A spa day?" Casper raises his eyebrows in surprise, draping his arms over Alexander's shoulders. "Well that sounds absolutely luxurious. You really do think of everything, don't you?"

"I really do."

He has to. You don't run an organized crime syndicate without having everything planned out meticulously. It helps him adjust for his impulsive nature, too, when everything has a contingency plan in place. Of course, Casper doesn't know about all of that yet. Alexander doesn't plan on hiding it from him, either, he's just waiting for a natural time to bring it up.

The time isn't now. He said he wasn't going to think about work, after all.

He gives Casper a kiss and there's a knock on the door, which is only moderately annoying, because he doesn't want to be interrupted right now.

"I'll get it. You keep enjoying the view."

Luckily, quite a few of Alexander's extra curriculars line up well with Casper's. He doesn't mind getting his hands dirty, if the occasion calls for it.

There's a knock, and Darling sighs a little at having to pull away from the embrace. But he kisses Alexander's chin and pats his chest lightly. "I will be right here. Taking in the sights."

"I hope I'm part of the sights."

It's a bad joke, but he couldn't resist, and he gives a little smirk as he pats Casper's hips before going to answer the door and get their room service. Naturally he ordered a bottle of bubbles as well, which gets opened and poured into glasses first and foremost.

"So next trip is Venice. Where else in the world do you want to go?"

Naturally. Casper is more of a dark liquor in the evenings sort, himself, but he will absolutely not turn down a glass of champagne if it's being offered. Especially by a handsome man intent on spoiling him.

He touches his glass to Alexander's with a warm smile, letting their ankles brush under the table. "You know I'm not sure. There are so many fascinating places in the world, it's hard to narrow it down to a list. I do know I want to go somewhere to get a great view of the Northern Lights, some day. Some interesting architectural marvels that I'd like to be able to see.

Where do you want to travel? Or where have you gone that you've enjoyed?"

Northern Lights. He tucks that away, immediately thinking of Finland and its neighbouring nordic countries. He abhors the idea of visiting any of them during winter, but Casper might find the Christmas markets charming.

"Mm, I don't know."

Alexander doesn't really have a bucket list. Maybe it's because he can, for the most part, do and go wherever he wants.

"Sometimes Santorini sounds nice, but then I've never been a fan of sweating all day."

"I'm not certain I see you on the beach. You'd look amazing wet and in a swimsuit, of course, but it's not..." He hums thoughtfully, toying with the stem of his glass.

"It's not neat. A lot of sand, and once sand gets somewhere it's everywhere for the foreseeable future. That doesn't seem like your style. Which is fine, it's not mine, either."

Thank God. No need to plan any resort vacations any time soon. He's not sure he could suffer it, even for Casper.

"Where do you see me, then?"

Alexander smirks a little over another sip of champagne. Listening to people talk about him is one of his favourite things.

"Oh, all sorts of places," Casper teases, reaching over to touch Alexander's hand lightly before he starts in on his dinner.

"But in all honesty, whenever I imagine you -- which is often. I imagine you in very elegant places. At the opera, or some sort of grand ballroom. Amidst a lot of classical art and statues. Candlelight and chandeliers. Very fine suits and champagne."

Casper imagines him often. There's no denying how pleased that makes him.

"If I'm being honest, I'd rather be where there's fewer people."

Sure, he's charismatic. He loves attention. He loves using his wealth and notoriety (and maybe his brothers' fame) to leverage everything he can. But people are exhausting, they're annoying, they're mostly stupid. And Alexander can go from enjoying a party one minute to losing his cool over it in the next.

"And for what it's worth, I like a late night stop at Shake Shack as much as the next guy."

Though definitely not as much as he likes a good quality drink over a five-star meal, that's true.

"I'm the same way, honestly. I'm very animated and talkative around people, but I prefer time alone with someone I care about, rather than having to negotiate a room of a hundred people." Which might let slip a little more than he means to, but maybe Alexander won't notice.

The Shake Shack comment makes him smile, though. Shows him a side of Alexander he wasn't expecting. "Be still my heart," he says, delighted. "I have had my fair share of late night diner stops over the years. I would not say no to splitting a milkshake with you."

Oh, he notices. Casper isn't going to get something by him that easily.

"What makes you think I'd share?"

He's teasing. Mostly. Either way, there's an amused (and good natured) sort of smile on his face, and he nudges their feet together under the table.

"Sharing's never been my strong suit."

"Oh? I'm not the best at sharing, either." He meets Alexander's gaze as he says it, his fingers sliding over his partner's wrist. Quiet, but possessive.

"But it sounds like a fun date, anyway. Honestly I just enjoy spending time with you. You're an interesting person. You certainly make coming into the office a lot more enjoyable."

That gets an amused snort around his bite of food.

"That's probably your bias showing."

No one has ever claimed he makes the office enjoyable. Most people who work for him have a slightly unhealthy dose of fear, and he likes to maintain that.

"Didn't I say I don't want to hear anything about work?"

Ah, well. He'll tread more carefully, then. "My apologies. I just meant that I very much enjoy your company. I don't get to do that a lot, actually. I uh," Casper ducks his head, rubbing at his ear shyly.

"I put people off, I guess. Talk too much, or too loud."

"Their loss."

Most people that talk loudly or talk a lot don't do well around him. But Casper is endearing, and his voice is soothing, and when he talks he has substance to his words. Casper doesn't just run his mouth.

Alexander tops up their glasses with more champagne, and takes a bite of something off of Casper's plate.

Dinner is lovely; trading bites of food, chatting about plans for the next day, or books they're reading. Anything and everything. Afterwards, Casper reaches over to take Alexander's hand again, brushing his thumb over his partner's knuckles, his smile soft and very very fond.

"I still can't believe you stole me away to Paris. This is incredible. Everything about this, with you, has been incredible."

Alexander raises up Casper's hand to kiss his knuckles in turn, deciding this is what it must be like to be smitten.

"I wanted you to know how much you mean to me."

He's not the sentimental sort, but the moment calls for it. You pretty much have to be a little bit sentimental when you're on the edge of being champagne-tipsy with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

Oh, Casper is absolutely over the moon. He is a rather sentimental man, despite appearances, and everything that Alexander has been doing to woo him (because it is, truly, a wooing) has been playing into that beautifully.

It's the way that Alexander pays attention to little details that really gets Casper. It makes him feel seen, in the best way possible.

The kiss makes him sigh (a little dreamily, if he's honest) and he rests his chin on his hand. "Well this says it in spades. And you mean a lot to me, too."

There's a brief moment of silence, the two of them just looking at one another while Alexander debates something for a moment. He decides, yes, he and Casper are important to one another, so he may as well -

"My brother, the older one," aka not He Who Shall Not Be Named, "is here for some film press, and he's insisting we find time to go for dinner with him and his wife."

Never in a million years would he invite anyone to a dinner with any of his family. But he knows if he shows up with someone who genuinely enjoys his company, then Barbara will tell Alice and Alice will tell Alan, and Alexander is petty enough to enjoy that. He also has no intentions of letting Casper go, so he has to meet the good part of the family at some point.

"Don't feel obliged to say yes if you'd rather it just be the two of us."

Casper looks absolutely touched at the idea. "Really?" he asks, his voice soft but pleased. "I'd love that, actually. If that's something you'd enjoy, of course. But I think it could be fun."

It's not something he's ever done. Gone to meet someone's family like this. But it's such a nice idea, and it means that this is something serious. Something long term, even.

He doesn't really mind Tom. Tom's eccentric and weird but Alexander gets along with him more than Alan.

"I'll call him tomorrow."

Because Tom can wait. There's still some champagne left and a chocolate dessert to share, and then maybe a nice shower to wash off a day of being in a plane.

"After our spa day, which I'm very much looking forward to. I don't think I've ever had a proper spa day, though I do get the occasional manicure." He likes to keep his nails neat, it's the one thing he really splurges on for himself.

"I noticed."

He runs a thumb along Casper's knuckles and offers him up a spoonful of dessert, an amused smile playing on his lips. As if he hasn't already clocked so many things about Casper over the last few weeks. He decides not to mention he's booked manicures, not just because of Casper obviously getting them but because he likes to keep his nails neat, too. It's part of the whole image.

"The spa, a museum, dinner with my brother, drinks on top of the Eiffel Tower. That seems like a good itinerary for tomorrow, don't you think?"

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