“That sounds wonderful,” she replied, reclaiming her composure. “A proper send-off.”
“Exactly.”
On the bright side, a special gathering meant another opportunity to spend time with the captain. On the downside, he would leavethe very next morning, and she would probably never see him again. How in the world would she manage her emotions when that moment arrived?
After dinner, Emma cleared the table and washed dishes while the men talked politics and worked their way through the bottle of brandy in the great room. She was just dipping her hands into the warm soapy water and swirling the wet dishcloth around on a plate when she heard the floorboards creak behind her. All her senses came alive with excitement because, somehow, she knew who it was. She felt it in all her nerve endings.
The captain approached the counter beside her, so close that his elbow touched hers.
“You’re hard at work.” He set down his empty glass.
“I like to keep busy. I hope you enjoyed dinner.”
“Everything was delicious.”
He lingered a moment, and as she placed another clean plate on the dish rack, she felt yearnings she didn’t know how to manage. The rapid beat of her heart made it difficult to think of what to say, but she didn’t want him to return to the men in the great room just yet.
Why was this so excruciating?
At last, he spoke. “Since I’ll be leaving the island soon, I wonder if you might have time tomorrow to show me the famous wild horses you keep telling me about.”
Something gave way inside her—a great cascading flood of relief. A rising euphoria.
She turned to him and dried her hands on a towel. “I’d love to, but we’ll have to go early because of the party. Why don’t we meet at the barn at six thirty? I’ll saddle two horses.”
“Wonderful,” he said. “Cheers, Emma. I’ll look forward to it.”
The sound of her name on his lips stoked a fire in her belly, and as she watched him walk away, she wondered if he had any notion of his effect on her.
She suspected that he did.
“Ready for a run?” she asked Willow the following morning as she stroked her nose. Willow pawed at the hay-strewn floor, so Emma set to work getting her saddled along with Mrs. Miniver, a strong gray mare.
Emma led both horses outside and spotted Captain Harris jogging energetically toward her. He wore denims and a black wool jacket he must have borrowed from Philip or one of the staff men. “Am I late?” he asked, slowing to a walk. “I’d planned to help you saddle the horses.”
“Not at all. I couldn’t sleep, so I came early.”
“I couldn’t sleep either.” He turned his attention to Mrs. Miniver. “Who is this enchanting creature?”
Emma laughed. “This is Mrs. Miniver.”
“From the Hollywood film?” His eyebrows lifted.
“That’s right.” Emma mounted Willow, then watched him stroke Mrs. Miniver’s neck as he became acquainted with her. He tested the tension on the saddle cinches and assured himself that all was in order before he mounted as well. Together, they trotted out of the station yard with the radiant sunrise warming their faces.
“What are the chances we won’t encounter any herds?” the captain asked a short while later as they crossed the green heath, making their way through the network of horse paths.
“Very low. I know most of their home ranges and where they roam at different times of the day. I’ll take you to the spot where I usually see Willow’s family in the mornings.”
“Willow was taken from a herd?”
“Yes.” Emma inclined her head. “I know that sounds cruel, but we need horses to survive here, and I feel better about taking them into our care than watching them get shipped off to the mainland for sale. That’s painful to see, because I’ve given names to all of them—which my father tells me not to do, but I can’t help myself. Lately, I’ve been sending letters to people in government to try and stop the shipments from happening. Maybe one of these days they’ll pass a law or something to protect the horses here.”
“That sounds like a noble cause,” he said.
Emma brought Willow to a halt and looked around. “This is where they usually make an appearance, over by that pond. It’s strange they’re not here today.” She gathered up the reins and dismounted. “Let’s take a walk.”
Captain Harris dismounted as well. “Do you ever worry that Willow will run off and try to rejoin her family?”
