Crow smiled against Penelope’s lips as they kissed, enjoying the time he had with her that night. He slid one hand down her back to rest against her hip, following the curve of her body as he leaned into her. His heart was already beginning to beat a little quicker with excitement. It had been over a week since the last time they had slept together, so he was quite eager to be with her again. However, in the back of his mind he noticed that something seemed to be different. He couldn’t tell for certain, but she felt a little bit stiffer than she usually did when they were together like this.

When she pulled back from the kiss to rest her head against his chest, he knitted his brow slightly as his suspicions were confirmed. At her question, he sighed, bringing a hand up to rest against the back of her head. “It was another dead-end,” he admitted softly. “Just village gossip, after all.” Guessing that her tension was because of her urgency to find and capture Jaxon, he tilted her chin up so that she would look him in the eyes as he went on. “I’m sure we’ll find him eventually,” he said with a smile as he repeated the assurance he had given Rikki before. “The outer villages are vast, but he can’t hide forever.”

Feeling a pang of guilt for the lie, Crow leaned in to press a tender kiss to her lips in an attempt to distract himself from the uncomfortable emotion. As he did, another thought came to him, and he frowned as he pulled back again. “Since we’re already on the subject of business…” he said slowly. “Has anything else happened at your camp since the attack? And is there any word on when your new supplies will be coming in?” Even though she had made it to their meeting, that didn’t necessarily mean Jaxon hadn’t done anything else to the knights. It was possible that the other thief had already conducted his second raid on their camp too, since he hadn’t told Crow about when it was supposed to happen.

Concerned that there was another reason why she was stiff, he studied her face closely as he waited for her reply.