[ he immediately stops in his tracks. accusing him of cowardice is a trigger, especially if he's had something to drink. ]

Oh, in that case forgive me for not having left sooner and having taken up your precious time, my lady.

[ there's some bite to his voice. she's fooling no one.

suddenly he takes a deep breath like he was exhausted. he just wants to drink and forget, okay? ]

Now, listen carefully because I'm only going to say this once.