Page 32 of The Beast of Ashwood Manor

“Do you . . . want to have a picnic tomorrow?”

I raised an eyebrow. “A picnic?”

Cale cleared his throat, and he looked away, rubbing his arm. “Right, it sounds silly. I don’t know why I even suggested it.” He laughed nervously.

“It’s not silly. I just . . . I’ve never been on a picnic.”

“No?” He gazed at me, his face suddenly full of enthusiasm. “They’re actually really fun. You can do them anywhere, but the best place is by a stream so you can swim after eating.”

“Hm.” I looked down at the book, curious. “What else?”

“Well, there are mainly sandwiches, but it’s also a good excuse to eat pies and tarts. I enjoy flying a kite if I’m lucky enough to find one. My mother always loved taking me to the apple orchard. We’d eat lunch and then pick a basket of apples before laying on the quilt and looking up at the clouds to make shapes out of them.” He smiled broadly, and his eyes shined.

My heart fluttered. He truly seemed enamored by the whole idea. “Oh, yes, sounds nice.” I shifted and looked anywhere but at him. “If I had a stream, that is. Or a kite or orchard. Doesn’t sound very nice with prying eyes around the manor.”

“Well, we could all do it, then. Let everyone have fun. We don’t have to have a stream. We could play games instead.”

I looked at Cale again, long and hard. He was so innocent. To him, this was a game he thought he could beat. He had no idea of the real dangers of this realm. “Is this you still trying to break the curse?”

“I mean . . . in a way, yes. But, honestly, I’m just trying to find things to do around here. I don’t like the silence of this place.”

I stared at the fire for a long moment, and when I cut my eyes back to him, I saw him slump forward, looking defeated.

If he gets lonely enough, he’ll run away. No, I can’t just keep ignoring him.

“All right, Cale,” I said, setting down the book. “We can have a picnic. But only us.”

His face beamed. “You mean it? Thank you. It’s nice to have some company.”

I gave him a nod, and we both stared at each other for a long moment before I finally left.

A picnic? What am I thinking? What am I doing?

Rather than figure it out, I made my way to my chamber to sleep it off.

Thedaywasgloomy,the clouds dark on the horizon near the sea, but Gil met me for a picnic anyway. I wasn’t sure why he’d agreed to it, especially after being so cross before, but I had a feeling it had to do with pity and nothing more.

Regardless, I spread the blanket out behind the house closest to the woods and sat down. Gil set the basket on the ground and pulled out bread, cheese, apple slices, and ham. There were no pies, but there was honey and some sort of small pastry.

We ate in silence for too long. He never once looked at me, and the air between us was tight. I gazed up at one of the cherry trees, remembering how pink its blooms had been before I’d come to the abandoned manor and eaten the food, only for it to appear in another realm with orange autumn colors.

It seemed so distant now.

The breeze picked up, and the clouds rolled closer to us. It was still warm, and with the storm rolling in, I wondered if it would bring in more cold. “Are we very close to winter?”

“About a month off,” Gil replied. He finished the last of his bread and set his wooden plate aside.

“Oh. Does it get very cold?”

“Freezing. The animals usually stay in the barn. I have stocks of food. To preserve firewood, sometimes the others will stay in one or two rooms together.”

I looked down, unable to see myself staying with any of them. I peered around at the house now to see if any of them were watching, and sure enough, a curtain closed as I looked up.

“Is there anything you want to talk about?” I asked him.

Gil shrugged. “Not particularly.”

Looking past the gate, I glanced at the red trees of Ashwood. “Mary told me the leaves always stay red in the woods.”

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