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It had been after a rainy morning, nearly fifteen years ago, when Elizabeth’s family had invited William and his mother to their country estate for the summer. Elizabeth had only been twelve then, eager to begin her first true lessons with riding. As was the custom back then, William had been by her side as a curious onlooker while her father had taken charge of the lessons. That day, what had begun with an overexcited Elizabeth standing by the windows waiting fervently for the rain to stop, had ended with a generally gentle pony growing frightened at the sound of a nearby shotgun and throwing Elizabeth from its back in a fit.
She’d been unharmed physically, thanks to the quickness of a groom that had been standing nearby, but she’d been utterly terrified of horses ever since.
The last time he’d seen her, that fear hadn’t diminished in the slightest. She’d stayed away from horses and thus, was not well-versed in how to ride one. He couldn’t deny that it made him anxious knowing that, if she was not careful, that incident fifteen years ago could happen all over again. But this time, it was bound to end badly.
“If you are doing this because you know that I will not like it, then you are far craftier than I’d guessed,” William stated after a moment. “I would only prefer to not have to deal with having you break a bone, or worse, because you are so hell-bent on getting a rise out of me.”
“I am not trying to upset you,” she murmured, shaking her head slowly. Then her jaw ticked, as if she’d clenched it tightly.
“Then why are you doing this?” he barked, unable to contain himself any longer.
Elizabeth flinched. She looked as if she was trying her best not to move too much. And her skin was growing more pallid by the second. The dots of sweat on her temple had nothing to do with the overhead heat, he was certain.
“I only want to be close to you again,” she mumbled. She gripped her riding crop so tightly that her knuckles grew white, but it still couldn’t stop her trembling. “You always enjoyed horse riding. I’d hoped that…that…”
Elizabeth swayed. William’s heart flew into his throat when he saw her eyes roll to the back of her head, and without any concern for his own safety, he swung himself off his horse. She slid off her horse and right into his arms.
“I’d hoped,” she continued to whisper, her eyes fluttering. “But I don’t think I’m strong enough…Not yet…”
“Hush,” he told her harshly. Though she managed to hold on to him, her grip was weak. “You truly must be out of your mind. Why would you get atop the horse if you knew that you could not handle it? What would you have done had I not gone after you? Simply slide right off and let him trample you?”
To his surprise, her lips lifted into a half-smile. The sight made his heart flutter and it didn’t help the fact that he was very aware of how perfectly she fit against him. And how lovely it felt to have her bust pressed against his chest. Try as he might to ignore it, his body could not do the same.
“You sound worried for me,” she murmured. Her lashes parted and his chest constricted when she leveled her slightly disoriented gaze on him. “That is a start, I suppose.”
William wrenched his eyes away, annoyed with himself. Without stopping to think, scooped her into his arms. Elizabeth let out a small gasp.
“William, I don’t think—”
“You don’t think what?” he snapped. “You said it yourself. I’m not a brute. I’m not going to leave you out here to fend for yourself.”
“I know that but…” She couldn’t finish her thought as he heaved her on top of his horse, her legs kept on one side. William kept his hands on her hips, willing himself not to move them further up. Nor further down.
“Can you keep yourself upright?” he asked.
Swallowing, she nodded. William wrenched his eyes away from her and proceeded to get atop the horse behind her. He didn’t move for a second, then he wrapped his arms around her waist and took hold of the reins.
Elizabeth was quiet. She seemed to be holding her breath, in fact, her body held so rigidly that he was afraid he might snap her in half. As they set off, William tried to keep his eyes on the stables in the distance, to ignore the silkiness of her hair and the lavender scent that wafted up to his nostrils. He tried not to think about how small her waist was and how good it would feel if she were to lean back against his chest. Her exposed neck proved the biggest difficulty because William was seized by the urge to rest a gentle kiss there and listen to how she moaned.
