“Huh,” Crow grunted absently when Penelope said she didn’t know how John would have figured out how they were related to each other either. He hadn’t thought that she’d told him they were father and son, since he knew she wouldn’t share his past with anyone else, but it was curious to him that her father hadn’t said anything about it to her. After all, it was a rather large secret that the king of Brerra had sired the most infamous thief in the kingdom. Maybe John had only recently learned of their blood ties? That seemed to make sense, but even then, he wondered where the information had been sourced from. Surely Albin wouldn’t have told anyone else the truth, right? If word got out that they were related, the king would suffer much more than the criminal.

At Penelope’s theory that her father had simply put two and two together to figure it out, Crow nodded contemplatively. The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed to be. Of course John would have found it strange that the king would send him to personally track down a thief for the purpose of bringing him back to talk. He must have been trying to figure out the reason for himself and made the connection when they came face to face.

While he’d never seen his father up close before—he’d only caught one glimpse of the man in passing during a day raid on the castle many years ago—Crow knew that he bore a close resemblance to the man based on what his mother had told him. She had even gone so far as to say that he looked like a younger version of Albin when he’d been about nine or ten years old. He knew that she’d meant it as a compliment at the time, since his father had apparently been quite attractive in his youth, but it was always something the thief had resented about himself, and he knew it had made his mother uncomfortable in spite of what she claimed. His mother had been a beautiful woman too. He wished he had taken after her instead.

As Penelope went on to bring up the unfortunate irony that her father was the one Albin had sent to find him, Crow shook his head in agreement. “I know,” he sighed. “We just never get it easy, do we?” With all the complexity surrounding the news of his own father, he hadn’t thought much about what John’s presence in the camp would mean for him and Penelope. Now that he had time to think straight, it worried him to know that the strict man would be lingering around until he was healed enough to travel. Along with that, he [i]really[/i] didn’t want her father to find out that they were together. If John learned she had broken off her courtship for a thief, he might decide to turn him over to the barons regardless of whether he agreed to meet with the king. The thought made him shudder.

Letting out a quiet exhale, Crow brought Penelope’s hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. “If it will help, you and Gavin should act like you two are still courting,” he said softly without looking up to meet her gaze. The idea of her going back to her ex suitor, even if it was just a rouse, was off-putting to him, but he knew he had to push his own feelings aside for the sake of keeping their secret. “Spend your time with him, hold his hand… even kiss him if you have to. Whatever it takes to keep your father from finding out you broke off your courtship.” He glanced up at her, giving her hand a gentle, yet reassuring squeeze. “As long as he doesn’t learn we’re together, I can handle it.”