Whatever thoughts of "predictability" she'd been having vanished immediately as he begun leading her away from the pub, yet she was in a good enough mood to follow without complaining or questioning. Besides, Mr. Crouch seemed really nice, even compared to other men she considered likable; it wasn't like he would hurt her if they wandered off alone. Thus, Bella allowed Mr. Crouch to lead her onto the deserted street and into the shadows — which, fortunately, seemed to have a little bit of light thanks to a gas lamp that hung above — before doing a 180 to face him.

His constant touches over the past few minutes had emboldened her when it came to contact, so she didn't even think when she reached out to straighten out his coat. "Do tell me, Mr. Crouch," she prompted, her teeth tugging on her bottom lip as she looked back into his eyes. "What are you thinking about right now?"