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“Exactly,” he replied, his hand on my hips as he helped me onto the horse though I didn’t need it.
“And handsy,” I muttered.
“What was that?”
“Nothing,” I lied, taking hold of the reins. “Where are we riding to?”
“It’s your birthday. Wherever you want.” He got onto the other horse beside me.
“Fine, try to keep up, Your Highness.” I winked before kicking off. The feel of the wind on my face, the blur of green as I sped past, and the sound of the hummingbirds above us was like a symphony all made to feel too magical to be real.
“You have to do better than that, Cinderella!” he yelled as he raced in front of me.
Ugh, that nickname. Ugh, him. Ugh, me for grinning so damn much.
“I win!” She smiled so wide you would have thought she had won the Royal Ascot. It was funny how one moment she looked breathtakingly sinful and the next unbelievably innocent.
I hadn’t been able to take my eyes off her ever since she overtook me. Each time she laughed or smiled or giggled, my heart swelled a bit more with pride. I hadn’t slept. The moment I had remembered it was her birthday, I had run out of the room like a madman and forced Iskandar, Wolfgang, and her mother up just to plan something, which was completely limited by the fact that I wasn’t allowed to be seen anywhere. We’d all but been trapped inside for most of my time here, and although I did enjoy those moments, I also wanted to do something—something more than a restaurant. Something more than any other guy would normally do for her. I wanted her day to be amazing.
“Gale?”
“Hmm...I mean, yes?”
“You’re staring,” she said as she and the horse now walked side by side with me and mine.
“You’re worthy of staring at.”
“Oh, the lines are back.”
Normally, they were lines, but with Odette, they were feeling more and more like reality. I wanted to know more about her, everything about her—everything.
“What happened to your horse Maple?”
“I sold him.”
“Why?”
She shrugged. “I was immature? My dad grew busy with work, and I got upset at never seeing him or Maple because I only ever went with my dad. So, I called my dad and told him I was going to sell Maple. What I really meant was, ‘Dad, you aren’t spending time with me, and I’m upset.’”
“You wanted him to tell you not to sell him.”
She nodded. “He said to make sure I got a good price for him.”
“Ouch.”
“And I did, still thinking he’d regret it or call to change his mind. I was waiting for that point in the movies where there is an epiphany, and they fix the issue.”
“And it never came.”
“Nope.” She exhaled slowly and smiled a little. “What happened to Ass?”
I chuckled. “I went riding one day, and there was an accident. Both he and I fell and broke our leg.”
She gasped.
“Is that intake for me or Ass?”
“Ass! I know you made it out all right.”
