Crow grinned excitedly as Penelope kissed him on the cheek and agreed to come with him on another late-night adventure. “Of course I can,” he chuckled softly when she challenged him to get them both there and back without her father noticing. “You just watch, love. We’ll be back before he even realizes we left.” Leaning in again, he pressed one more quick kiss to her lips and slid his hand down to lace his fingers with hers, giving her a gentle tug towards the door.

He took the lead as they exited the room, moving quietly so the sound of his footsteps wouldn’t disturb her sleeping father. By the sound of the older man’s snoring, he doubted anything they did right now would wake him, but he still didn’t want to risk ruining their one opportunity to get away together before they reached the castle, so he proceeded with caution regardless. Fortunately, their efforts paid off, because the knight didn’t even roll over on his bed as they slipped through the door.

For an added measure of precaution, Crow didn’t speak to Penelope until they had left the boundaries of the inn and were walking down the main road of the village. His eyes swept over the area with interest as they passed between the buildings. It had been quite some time since he had come this far into the center of the kingdom. It was strange to see a village so untouched by the war. Perhaps there had been a battle or two that had reached Sarton’s borders, but it was nowhere near as damaged as the outer villages were. He wasn’t sure what to think about that. Geographically, it made sense that this place wouldn’t see as many battles, but it still bothered him to know that the wealthier parts of Brerra were flourishing while the peasants were barely surviving in these uncertain times.

Eager to put the discouraging thought out of his mind, Crow turned to Penelope with a smile. “Do you remember the last time we were here together?” he mused. “It’s strange to think how distant we were back then.” The last time they had been through Sarton, it had been the very first night of their journey to Younis. He remembered how he had been trying to earn her trust for the purpose of using her for his own escape. The memory made him shake his head in amusement. If he had gotten away with his plan back then, he would have missed out on falling in love with the most amazing woman he’d ever met.

[i]I’m glad I couldn’t run away,[/i] he thought, glancing at the knight with an affectionate look.

“Speaking of the past,” he went on, casting her a wry smirk. “Have you figured out where I was going to take us yet?”