As time passed, Crow began to wonder if Penelope had been able to sneak away from the party at all. He reclined on her bed with his arms propped underneath his head and his gaze fixed on the stone ceiling. After the busyness of the day, it was tempting to nod off, but he refrained from the urge. He had come to the knight’s room to spend time with her, and, knowing how she always put other’s needs before her own, he had a feeling she would just let him sleep if she saw him passed out when she arrived. So, he forced himself to get up and pace a bit to keep his blood flowing, so he would be alert by the time she showed up.

With so much extra time, his thoughts wandered back to the party and the results of the knight’s speech. She really had done an impressive job. Hearing her speak to an audience with such authority made him realize what a natural leader she was, and reassured him that he’d made the right choice when he had taken the title of viceroy. There would have been ways for her to use her talents in the outer villages too, but she could do far more good as a high-ranking noblewoman in the inner kingdom. If their efforts to end the war panned out, he was curious to see where her efforts would take her next.

Stopping in the center of the room, Crow let his gaze wander over her plain bedchamber. There wasn’t much around besides the bed and a desk in the corner, but he wondered if there was a way he could surprise her. She certainly deserved to be treated specially after all the hard work she’d put into the party over the last week. Deciding to be more productive with the time he had—and giving himself something to do to stave off boredom—he ambled over to the desk and began rifling through the drawers.

Unsurprisingly, all he could find were practical items. The same went for the dresser where she kept her clothes. Crossing his arms, the viceroy drummed his fingers against his bicep in thought. He didn’t have many options, so he would just have to make do with what he had. He went back to the desk and crouched down to look over the utensils in the bottom drawer one more time. As he did, an idea crossed his mind that made him grin. There was one thing he could do.

Gathering the spare candles and chambersticks from the desk, he placed them around the small room on the table, windowsill and floor near the wall. Once he liked the way they looked, he lit the arrangement with a couple matches and put out the lantern that had been glowing steadily in the corner of the bedchamber. In the dark, the candles were just bright enough to cast a low, orange radiance that danced on the walls of the room. He watched the display with interest until the doorknob rattled behind him. It seemed he’d finished just in time.

Turning around, Crow casted Penelope a mischievous smile and gestured with one hand to the ambiance he’d created for them, “Surprise.”