“Great,” Crow grinned, meeting Penelope’s lips as she kissed him. He was glad she was willing to make the time to see him once more before the next battle. Now that he was getting so used to meeting with her every three days, the thought of waiting a whole week again felt torturous. Even if she could only get away long enough to visit with him for a little while, it would be worth it to the thief. He could already feel his pulse quicken with excitement, even though they had yet to part.

As she said it was nice to meet up every few days, he nodded in agreement. “I hope things stay this way,” he sighed longingly, intertwining his fingers with hers as she took his hand. It was good to see her so often, but he was also eager to keep meeting with her because of the way Rikki had been with him recently. Now that he knew the female thief’s plan to get between him and Penelope, he doubted he would give in to her temptation, but he also didn’t want to give any room for weakness in himself.

His relationship with Penelope was the most dedicated of his life. In the past, he had only ever been with women that he’d had a purely physical interest in, but ever since he had gotten back together with the knight, he had been trying hard to change that mentality. He loved her more than he’d ever loved anyone else, and he wanted more than anything to stay faithful to her. However, old habits died hard. He knew himself well enough to know that if they went long enough between physical encounters that he no longer felt satisfied, there was a chance that Rikki’s persistent flirting would be harder to resist. He didn’t want to even come close to risking that.

Lost in his thoughts, he barely noticed that they had reached the waterfall that curtained off his camp. He blinked a bit dazedly, coming back to himself as he realized it was time for them to part ways. With a reluctant sigh, he let go of Penelope’s hand to wrap his arms around her in one last embrace. “I’ll see you in three days,” he murmured, leaning his head against hers before pressing a swift kiss to her cheek. As he stepped back from her again, he trailed his hands down her arms and gave her hands a gentle squeeze before letting his arms fall to his sides. “I love you, Penelope. Be safe on your way back.”