Page 69 of For the Strange and Surprising

“We’d love to have you all over for dinner, dear.” Shyla’s cheeks round as she glances from me to Ada. “I’ll let you go now. Your friend is leaving without you.”

I turn my back on Ada for two minutes, and she’s gone.

Of course, she is.

I spy the edges of her vermilion hair and light orange dress as she disappears between the bakery and the butcher’s shop.

Nothing good will come from her wandering off by herself. And as much as I hate babysitting duty, I promised my friends I’d keep an eye on the delicate Shade.

It’s the worst way to waste a day off duty.

I trail behind Ada, but I don’t realize what she’s doing until I see a man ahead of her in the trees. He stops at the stone barrier, and she drops low to the ground, completely hidden. At least, from his angle, she is; my view is a different story entirely.

The man glances to the left, and I recognize Poko immediately. He’s not on duty today either, so I can’t imagine why he’s out here.

I stay as far back as I can without losing sight of her. As we head farther into the forest, the trees begin to block their path. I have to pause several times to listen to their footfalls. But Ada isn’t exactly quiet, which makes me wonder if he knows that she’s behind him.

I hope I haven’t barged into some secret romp between the two of them.

She’s just ahead of me, though she isn’t walking any deeper into the woods. Her head swivels, and her back straightens as if she’s getting ready to move to another tree.

Poko drops to one knee, tucking his chin into his chest. I take my chance, gliding on silent footsteps to get to Ada. I press into her, leaving no space between us. Her entire body tenses as I cover her mouth.

If she screams, he’ll hear her and see us both.

I don’t like Poko on a good day, much less the day I have to spend traipsing around after this infuriating woman.

“You’re too close,” I whisper. “You’re going to get caught. We need to leave.”

She bites back her startled reaction when she recognizes my voice. I move my hand, but she doesn’t turn to acknowledge me.

“No,” Ada speaks so softly I can barely hear her. “Do you see that cloud in front of him?”

I glance between the forked branches of the tree, observing him as he talks to himself. He gestures wildly with his hands, growing more frustrated by the second.

“I don’t see anything, Ada. Poko is alone.”

She whips her head around to glare at me over her shoulder. “Who is Poko? That man’s name is Pavelo.”

I can only stare at her as I try to understand where she came up with that name. She turns away from me, then she gasps. I look up in time to see Poko searching frantically around him.

Ada spins on her heel, color draining from her face. “He knows someone is watching him.”

“Fuck,” I growl. “I hope you’re good at pretending.”

That’s all the warning I give her before I slam her back against the tree trunk. I step into her space, and she drapes her left arm over my shoulder. Her right hand fists in the fabric of my shirt as she pulls me closer.

A stick breaks beneath Poko’s feet as he strides in our direction. Ada kicks her left leg up, resting her knee on my hip. The skirt of her dress cascades in a way that should cover what we’re doing. But when I peek down, we both realize that it doesn’t sit right.

She grabs the gathered material of her dress, tucking it into the waist of my pants. I glare at her, and she glowers back.

“Suck it up. This could have been a lover’s quarrel. You chose the route. Now, stop killing me with your eyes, and—”

I kiss her.

I’m rough and angry as our mouths collide. And I know it’s rude, but it shuts her up before Poko hears us. She bites my bottom lip in warning, so I shove her a little harder into the tree trunk.

I’m not a complete asshole, though.