Chapter 13

The next

day , Alessandra went through

a similar ritual again. After putting on her riding habit, she

walked with Edward out to the stable. There he helped her up onto

her pony and led her around, helping her to feel more

comfortable.

"Are you ready to try

taking the reins yourself?" he finally asked. She looked so afraid

that, for a moment, he thought he'd made the completely wrong

suggestion to her. Then he saw her she smile through that

fear.

"I can try, Edward,"

Alessandra replied. "But she will not be able to run off with me,

will she?"

"We are in an

enclosed space , and the gates

are all closed," Edward reassured her. "I am sure she will not run,

but if she does, you need to hold on and relax. Soon enough, she

will stop."

He had meant to relax

her, but instead made her feel more afraid than she had been. When

he handed her the reins and talked her through what to do with her

hands and her legs, to guide the pony, Alessandra found herself

automatically in student mode again, set on learning and practising

what he was teaching her.

As she started to move

off by herself, putting her theory into practice, Alessandra felt a

blend of fear mixed in with pride as she realised she was riding a

horse! When she wanted it to move left, it was moving left. When

she wanted it to move right, it was moving right. She found it

exhilarating. She didn't want to trot, or move quickly in any way,

so she was happy enough being on the pony as it walked slowly

around the stable yard. She didn't dare look up at anyone else. She

wanted to maintain her concentration on the pony and her

alone.

"Can you walk her back to

me?" she heard Edward call out. She looked up briefly to see where

he was from her. With confidence slowly growing, she moved the pony

closer to him. As she neared him, he came up to her and smiled

brilliantly up at her.

"You are a

natural," he said to her and saw her instantly blush. "After a few

more days of this , we shall

take the horses out for a slow walk together up to the summit," he

continued, pointing up the hill not far from the house.

As

Alessandra looked at Edward

doubtfully, she saw him laugh at her.

"We will go at a pace you are

comfortable with. Do not worry," he said, helping her down from the

pony again.

Knowing their parents

were not nearby, watching, Edward took longer before he set her

apart from him, enjoying being so close to her again. In the

evenings, he'd started to find himself thinking about her in her

future role as his wife. He knew things were changing inside of

him, as he considered her in a much different way from when she'd

first arrived.