Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, Crow saw the frustrated look come over Penelope’s face. However, he didn’t have time to react before she shoved him away from her and shot him that venomous glare. He rolled his eyes back at her, but in his head, he was already calculating what went wrong. Perhaps the kiss had been a little too much after all. Given the way she had been acting, he’d thought it would have been just enough to win her over. Instead, her guard had immediately flown back up, and she was wary of him again. He should have stuck with the compliments rather than pushed her boundaries.

Slinking back to the spot he’d claimed by the blankets, he let out a low sigh. Upon thinking about it harder, it seemed like she had just tricked him to see what he had been plotting. Why else would she have stammered at his flirting one minute and then scowled at him the next? He chided himself internally for missing the signals that she had been faking her attraction to him. Normally, he was quicker at picking up on the lies of other people, but he hadn’t expected a noblewoman like her to string him along. Although it didn’t matter anyway. Even if she was genuinely interested in him, he wasn’t foolish enough to let it slip that he was just using her to escape from her comrades. He studied her with hooded eyes. She might have shut down his advances this time, but if she thought he would give up that easily, she had another thing coming. Part of his reputation had been for his stubbornness, after all. He wouldn’t quit until he had her under his thumb.

Once William had turned away from them again, Crow threw Penelope an offended look, “You didn’t have to be so harsh. When has a compliment ever hurt anyone?” He sighed audibly this time and turned his head to stare out the window, pointedly avoiding eye contact with her. “You seem to have it in your head that I’m just a loathsome snake, but I’m not always a liar, you know. I meant what I said.” He let the subject drop as he watched the trees roll by, wearing a look of bitter indignation.

So far, he was feeling quite pleased with himself. He thought he had done a fairly decent job of pretending to be interested in Penelope. It was easy enough, since he really did think she was beautiful. If she had been a young peasant girl rather than a knight, he might have considered making an honest attempt to woo her. Alas, she was a knight, and he was her captive. Sharing the air inside the wagon was the closest they would ever get. He was far from disappointed though.

Once he was free from his armored entourage, he could have his pick of the peasant girls in the outer villages. There were plenty who were willing to look past his criminal record in exchange for a few drinks and a sultry night at an inn. He may not have been the most eligible man to marry, but thanks to the fame attached to his name, he could boast a high spot on the list of deviants that common women were partial to bedding. The daydream brought a faint smile to his lips. He couldn’t wait to return to his homeland.