[ he winces at the blow, but does his best to hide it. there are still eyes on them, even if they're a bit too far for anyone to really tell what's happening. ]

...fair enough.

[ he does still feel rather bad about that, so for once it's enough to get him to stop protesting. part of him feels she's probably overselling this a bit, but the guards at the gate are starting to get closer, curious about what this pair of weirdos is even doing out here. ]

Yes, I've simply been overworking myself a bit lately. Providing for you isn't easy. [ actually, this isn't even a lie?? which is perhaps why he doesn't sound at all fake as he says it. ] This... vacation will do us both some good.