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“No, she’s fine. I just wonder who her parents were.”
Goldie twisted, sending the horse dancing sideways for a moment before she remembered to keep her hands still. How could someone forget the reins in their hands, but understand why a horse’s racing career had failed?
He pondered that so hard that he almost didn’t notice in time. “Stop!”
“Why?”
“Goldie!”
He’d missed the sign for the wards in front of them, two trees that his mother had braided together when they were saplings that now looked like one intricate trunk.
Beauty sensed something was amiss and shied sideways. Goldie forgot everything in her fear, especially when they danced near the tree and a branch whacked her. Between one blink and the next, she was on the ground, falling sideways straight out of the saddle.
He was off the horse and to her side in a second. “Are you okay?”
She rubbed her shoulder as she sat up. They hadn’t been moving fast. It had been a straight slide down and the ground was soft, but it was still a hell of a distance.
“Ow.”
“Don’t get up.”
“She’ll never throw me off, will she?” she asked, exasperated, which made him feel better. Hopefully, it meant she wasn’t too hurt. Then he realized she had been joking throughout her kidnapping, and he probably couldn’t trust her sarcasm as an indicator of safety. He didn’t want to point out that this was almost 100% rider error. But given that he was teaching the rider, this was still his fault.
“That was my fault,” he said. “We shouldn’t have ridden out. You needed more practice.”
“Let me see if I can translate that into reality from your universe of responsibility for everything. I ignored all of your teachings about the reins, the saddle, and my seat. Then I also ignored your warning to stop and ended up on the ground, and therefore it’s your fault.”
He opened his mouth and closed it. “I really shouldn’t have…”
“The same way that your family kidnapped me, my family attacked you, then your family locked us in, and all of that is also your fault?”
“Okay. Not all of that was my fault. But certainly my family…”
She stood.
“Can you move?”
She gaped at him.
“Clearly, you can move, sorry. Does anything hurt?”
“I’m fine. What happened?”
He frowned. She didn’t know?
He pointed. “It’s the wards.”
She twisted around and hesitantly put out a hand. She immediately pressed into the barrier. “Shit. I thought…”
“You thought what?”
“I thought after our talk. I… Never mind. I thought things would be different.”
“You haven’t even tried.”
Beauty nuzzled her as if in apology.
“No, you’re right.” She put both hands out.
