Crow felt a wave of relief when Penelope said that she believed him. After worrying that his slip up with Rikki had driven them apart, the words made him feel much better. However, even though things seemed to have been patched between them, he couldn’t shake the lingering shame he felt in the back of his mind. He needed to be more honest with her, even when it was painful. He shuddered to think what might happen if he betrayed her trust again.

As she gave his arm a tug, he blinked and turned to her again in confusion, wondering why she had indicated for them to stop walking. He didn’t have time to ponder over it for long before he felt her wrap her arms around him in an embrace. After a brief moment of hesitation, he mirrored the gesture and slipped his arms around the small of her back, holding her close as she leaned her head against his chest. It warmed him to hear that he hadn’t lost her trust, but her following words made him frown. He was slightly surprised to hear her bring up the more recent incident with Rikki and began to realize that he might have hurt her more than he had thought when he had confessed that the thief’s advances had tempted him.

He glanced down at her, hoping that she didn’t think his moment of weakness had anything to do with her, but also knowing her too well to discount the possibility that she had taken it personally. When she pulled back from him to say that she had forgiven him, he met her gaze and smiling halfheartedly. Even though he had let her down so many times, she was still merciful to him. [i]I don’t deserve her,[/i] he thought with a faint shake of his head.

[color=fff79a][b]“I have a sinking feeling this trip is going to be a difficult one, huh?”[/b][/color]

Crow nodded, shifting his weight uncomfortably. [i]You have no idea,[/i] he thought silently, once again reminded of his assignment from Jaxon. He felt another burst of guilt and forced himself to push the thought aside. Despite how terrible it felt to keep yet another secret from her, he couldn’t let himself dwell on it. After all, she was the reason why he was working for the other thief in the first place. He studied her wordlessly for a moment before reaching out to catch her by the wrist before she could turn to keep walking. While there was nothing he could do about Jaxon, he still wanted to reassure her about the things that were within his control.

“Wait,” he said, averting his gaze for a moment before looking up at her again. “I know I’ve kept a lot from you—more than I ever should have. I’ve spent most of my life working and living alone, so I’ve still got quite a few old habits to break and relying on myself is one of them. However, I want you to know that I’m going to do better.” He held her gaze with a determined expression. “I meant it before when I said we’re a team, so I’m going to start acting like it.”

He wavered, his resolution fading slightly as he went on, “As for what happened with Rikki, I’m sorry if I hurt you. I swear, it had nothing to do with you.” He took on a more contemplative look. “It’s sort of hard to explain to a woman, but I was… detached, I suppose you could say. In the moment, I wasn’t thinking about whether or not you’re enough for me. It was just a physical drive, sort of like if you don’t eat for a few days and someone puts a plate of your favorite food in front of you. It doesn’t matter who put it there or where it came from. You just want to fill your stomach.” He shrugged sheepishly.

“It was wrong of me to even consider her offer, but I wasn’t thinking about it in terms of preferring her over you. If I had been, I would have said no without a second thought,” he smiled at her softly. “Stupid primal urges aside, I don’t want to be with anyone else. You’re the only woman I need, and you’re more than enough for me.” He leaned down to press a kiss to her lips. “Don’t ever forget that, okay?”