Crow held the door open for Penelope to step through first. His mind raced, separating him from the world around him as he thought about what he had just said. He wondered if he should have just kept his mouth shut rather than complimenting her aloud. She had sounded so uncomfortable when she had thanked him. Was she embarrassed that he had been staring so much? It wasn’t like he could have helped it. Like all men, he was drawn by attractive women. The fact that she was his friend didn’t change that.

He followed Penelope to the front desk, still in a daze. [i]What if she figured out my feelings for her?[/i] he blanched. [i]This could change everything. Damn it! Why did I have to say something to her?[/i] As much as he desired to have her, he knew she would never be his. The next best thing was their friendship, and now he didn’t even know if he would still have that by the end of the day. He wished he could go back in time and take everything back.

He blinked, suddenly realizing the innkeeper was staring at him. “Err, yeah,” he said slowly, trying to remember what the man had said to Penelope. Unfortunately, he had been so distracted that he couldn’t remember. He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. “I’m sorry. What was that?”

“Forty-five Tael,” the innkeeper said, giving him an estranged look. “Had a little too much to drink, huh? You seem out of it.”

“No, I was just… nevermind,” Crow dug in the coin purse and handed the man his money. “Here.”

“Thank you very much!” the innkeeper handed him back a key. “You’ll both be in room twenty-four on the second level.” He leaned towards Penelope, speaking quietly. “Make sure your companion here gets plenty of sleep. Wouldn’t want him hungover when you need to hit the road again tomorrow morning.” He chuckled to himself.

“I heard that,” Crow narrowed his eyes. “And I told you, I’m not drunk.” He turned to Penelope. “Come on. We should go find Hartley and tell him where we’ll be staying tonight.”