Penelope’s reaction was confusing to Crow. For a woman who had decided to leave him, she was acting much more affectionate than he’d been expecting. As she pressed a kiss to his cheek, his heart began to beat a little quicker in his chest as another thought came to him. What if she’d changed her mind? Given the way she was treating him now, it almost felt like nothing had changed between them. What if she had decided not to leave him after all? The thought made him feel warm with relief. Still, it didn’t change the fact that he wanted to make sure she knew he hadn’t been lying to her out of ill intent.

“Well, I had to get your attention somehow,” he said teasingly, casting her a lopsided smile. “I just saw an opportunity, and I took it.” Now that his internal fears had died down some, he found that he was beginning to relax in her comforting presence. He ran his hand gently down and up the length of her back, gazing at her with affection. “All joking aside, taking that sword was worth it if it meant you would live,” he added softly, shuddering at the thought of what might have happened if he hadn’t made it to her in time.

As she told him that she would listen if he wanted to explain, he nodded, glad that she would let him speak. However, before he could even utter a word, he frowned as he heard her voice tremble when she added that she was glad he was alive. He didn’t like seeing her look so sad. So, instead of jumping right into his defense, he took a moment to pull her closer to himself, resting his hand on the back of her head and pressing a soft kiss to her cheek as he let her lean on his chest.

“I am alive,” he murmured, stroking his fingers through her hair. “And I’m not going anywhere anytime soon, so you don’t have to worry.”