Crow stroked Penelope’s arm gently as she leaned her head on his shoulder and finally told him what she had been going through since the last time they had been able to really talk. He was a bit confused at first when she brought up the death of one of the knights. They were in the middle of a war, so a lot of people were dying on all sides. He didn’t understand why she thought it was important to mention a particular knight he didn’t know.

However, as she mentioned the name of her former suiter, he listened a bit more attentively. By the sound of what she was saying, it seemed like she as still spending time with the nobleman. He frowned, unsettled by this new information. While he trusted Penelope wholeheartedly, he didn’t like the fact that this knight was still lingering around her. What reason would Gavin possibly have to keep contact with her after they had broken off their courtship? It seemed suspicious to the thief.

Trying not to get hung up on the detail, he fixed his gaze on her eyes as he listened to her go on about her patrols with her brother. It was good to hear that Layth seemed to be redirecting his focus off of him and his companions. The thieves preferred to go about their business relatively ignored. When attention was off of them, they had more freedom to steal without worrying about being caught. It was good timing too, because he suspected they were going to have to raid the knights’ camp for more food soon now that their supplies were starting to dwindle.

As Penelope finished by mentioning that Olivia seemed to be acting differently around his friend, he quirked a brow in surprise. “That’s funny,” he said. “Because Alistair’s been a bit strange as well. He often goes through phases of taking interest in a woman, but I never really thought anything of it since they usually just end up leaving him because he’s a thief. If Olivia is interested in him too, he might have better luck this time.”

Crow fell quiet for a moment, glancing away from Penelope as his mind wandered back to her mention of her former suitor. As much as he tried to ignore it, he couldn’t disregard the twinge of annoyance he felt that this man was continuing to linger around the woman he was with. After a moment, he cleared his throat awkwardly. “So, you’re still spending time with Gavin?” he asked, trying to keep the displeasure out of his voice. He eyed her curiously, “I would have thought he’d move on after you ended your courtship with him.”