Page 31 of Mistaken as His Royal Bride
She did have some more colour in her cheeks now, and Ari felt something in him relaxing. On an impulse he said, ‘I was going to go to my stables and check the horses, maybe go for a ride. Would you be interested?’
She turned to him, eyes wide. More hair had fallen loose from the bun, as if it was impossible to contain her hair fully. ‘I’d love to.’ She made a face. ‘But I only started learning to ride this year on Isla’Rosa, so I’m not very good.’
‘That’s not a problem. We’ll give you one of the more sedate horses.’
‘That would be amazing.’
She smiled, and it took Ari’s breath away for a second. This woman was full of something he’d never really encountered. Her emotions rose up and she appeared to have no filter for hiding them. They burst out of her irrepressibly. She hadn’t been calcified, like him and everyone he knew. It disarmed him.
He instructed the driver to take them straight to the stables and put in a call to have Hannah bring some clothes for Maddi.
Maddi was glad to be engaging in something active to take her mind off how Aristedes made her feel and the things he said that cut her when they shouldn’t.
They’d arrived at the stables and Hannah had been waiting there with more suitable clothes. Maddi had changed in a room used by the grooms, and now wore khaki jodhpurs and a white short-sleeved polo top and black boots. And a hard hat on her head.
She’d given Hannah all the jewellery and was glad to feel a little less encumbered. She’d pulled her hair out of the bun and into a low ponytail. For the first time in days she felt more like herself again.
It was her sister who had taken her horse riding for the first time. Laia was a proficient horsewoman, having learnt from an early age. And Maddi loved it, even if the horses still terrified her a little, with their size and sheer power.
There was a knock at the door. ‘Princess Laia? The King is ready.’
And she shouldn’t keep the King waiting. Maddi almost rolled her eyes. But secretly she was excited to see him in a far less structured habitat. She could already imagine him on a horse...the effortless grace and athleticism.
When she did emerge into the yard she couldn’t see him. All she saw was the back of a very tall man tending to a massive chestnut horse. He was wearing faded jeans that clung to his muscular backside and strong thighs with such explicitness that Maddi couldn’t look away.
For a moment she felt a giddy sense of relief—the King hadn’t had a unique effect on her after all—but then he turned around and Maddi’s skin goosebumped all over.
It was the King.
Of course it was.
He was wearing a polo shirt, like her, short-sleeved, showing off impressive biceps. His olive skin was gleaming.
She walked over and he stood aside, his gaze sweeping over her. She felt warm, and tried to ignore this one-sided mortifying awareness.
The horse was saddled and ready. He patted its neck. ‘Here she is—La Reina.’
Maddi squinted at him. ‘Is that meant to be a joke? She’s called The Queen?’
He shook his head. ‘Not at all. Sheisthe Queen here. She’s eighteen years old and she’s the dam of some of the best racehorses in Europe today. Some even in Ireland.’
Maddi came closer, nervously. ‘She was a racehorse?’
‘Very successful, yes. My father bought her as a yearling at a sale in Dublin, when Dax and I were younger.’
Maddi reached out and tentatively touched this great dam’s back. ‘So you’ve had her for ever?’
‘Yes, I guess so.’
‘Is this a stud?’
‘No. We do have training grounds and a separate stud nearby, but this is just the palace stables, where we keep La Reina and other horses we use purely for riding. Her mating days are long over now—aren’t they, my beauty?’
Maddi watched the King’s big, graceful hand and long fingers running over the horse’s neck. She whinnied softly and Maddi could empathise.
The nearest stirrup was low and Aristedes said, ‘You know how to mount a horse?’
Maddi balked. ‘You want me to ride her? What if I hurt her or something?’