Crow was tense as he approached the table where the others were sitting. Despite his enthusiasm to have more time with Penelope that morning, he couldn’t help himself. After what she’d told him about her past with Cedric, he no longer saw the other nobleman as just another friend in her life. Now, he felt quite sure this knight was trying to get something from her. He wasn’t sure what that something was yet, but no matter what the case may have been, he knew he didn’t trust him.

When Penelope greeted him, he relaxed slightly and returned her smile. Even though he didn’t like the fact that Cedric was with them, he wasn’t going to ruin the time they had left by brooding over it. “Good morning,” he nodded to her, offering a curt dip of his head to the other knight as well as he settled down on the bench beside her. Part of him was tempted to sidle a little closer to Penelope out of protectiveness, but he restrained himself. After all, he wanted to be able to stick to the lie that he’d only come over to spend time with his “friend,” and he couldn’t do that if he gave away how close they really were.

He leaned forward to cross his arms on the table, disregarding his etiquette in favor of comfort after yet another long night. Though he’d wanted to sit here to speak with Penelope, he wasn’t sure what to say right away. His eyes wandered back to Cedric’s face as he wished once again that the other man would quit lingering. But of course, there was no way to get rid of him, so he supposed they would just have to be careful about what topics they conversed about.

“So, what are your plans for today?” he asked, shifting his gaze to Penelope as he attempted to strike up a conversation with her.