Crow didn’t know what he had been expecting when he had asked her his question, but silence certainly wasn’t it. He stopped what he was doing and leaned up to try and meet her gaze, concerned that something was wrong. Still focused on the present moment, his first impulse was to mentally review his own performance under the assumption that he must have done something she didn’t like. However, as she continued to avoid his gaze, he began to wonder if it was more than that. Surely she wouldn’t be so upset with him as to give him the silent treatment just because he wasn’t at the top of his game that night? She wasn’t the type to behave that way; it had to be something else.

He was just about to ask her if she was alright when she finally spoke up to say that trying something else wouldn’t matter. As she shifted to put some distance between them, he moved off of her to lay on his side, getting the hint that she was done. Of course, he was disappointed that she didn’t seem to be in the mood to sleep with him, but it was clear now that she was too distracted to keep trying. If there was something on her mind, it was more important for him to be there for her than try to force a round of intimacy that ultimately wouldn’t be very enjoyable for either of them.

As she assured him that it wasn’t anything he had done, Crow relaxed slightly. Even though he’d already had his suspicions that her distraction was related to something else, it was nice to hear her confirm out loud that it wasn’t because of anything he had done wrong. However, in the next moment, he frowned as she trailed off, clearly wrestling with telling him what was on her mind. He reached out to take her hand in an attempt to ease whatever discomfort was preventing her from being honest with him as well as sooth his own worries as his mind began to work on deciphering what would be so difficult for her to say to him.

It was hard to tell if his gesture worked, but after another moment, she finally admitted that something actually had happened at her camp. He blinked in surprise, not expecting that she would have lied to him before. He’d thought that she still trusted him completely, but apparently that belief had been wrong. His heart sank at the realization that they perhaps weren’t as close as they had been before now that he was working for Jaxon.

[i]Can I really blame her?[/i] he thought sadly. [i]I’ve been lying to her every day we’ve seen each other lately. She has every reason not to trust me.[/i] The realization stung, and he had to force himself not to let the pain show on his face as he listened to her go on about what had actually happened in her camp.

At the news that Gavin had been attacked, Crow couldn’t stop his eyes from widening in shock. He gritted his teeth, his sadness giving way to anger as he made the connection right away that Jaxon had been behind the attack. [i]I told him not to get involved,[/i] he thought scathingly. [i]That double-crossing bastard![/i] However, in the next moment, he faltered as he remembered that the other thief had told him he would only send someone to deal with the knight if Crow proved that he couldn’t handle him alone. The thought made him pale slightly. Perhaps Jaxon wasn’t as unaware of Gavin’s confrontation as he’d thought.

When Penelope finished speaking, the thief didn’t respond right away. Instead, he let a brief silence fall between them as he took some time to process everything that she’d said to him. It was a lot to take in. “I-I can’t believe that happened,” he finally said after a pause. Though he couldn’t tell her everything he knew, he wanted to be as honest with her as he could. He was sick of lying to her all the time. “I’m glad you were there to save him, but gods,” he shook his head, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t even know what to think. I’m just sorry you had to deal with that.” He finally looked up, trying to meet her gaze. “Is Gavin alright?”