by Brianna York
Matthew shook his head and continued down the aisle. Setting the saddle on Apollo’s back, checked the girth was on the correct holes on the stallion’s off side. He had just returned to the horse’s left when Alex and Duchess passed. Apollo, who was infatuated with Duchess nickered and swished his tail. “Quit,” Matthew said softly to the horse. Apollo glanced at Matthew, then looked at the mare again before deciding to listen to his master. “Thank you,” Matthew said, finishing his work with the girth. “If Duchess is in as prickly a mood as her owner today, you’re better off, old man.” He snatched the horse’s bridle off a nearby hook and slipped the horse’s halter off his nose. “Have pity on me and be good today, all right?”
By the time Matthew and Apollo stepped out into the alley, Alex was just swinging aboard her mare. “May I join you?” Matthew asked in a carrying tone of voice.
Alex flicked a glance his way, then returned her attention to her horse, who was pawing impatiently. “Of course. If you hurry up.”
Matthew decided that was the best he could expect. He ran down his stirrups, checked his cinch and climbed aboard. He legged the horse gently and caught up to Alex and her mare.
“Shall we be off?” Alex asked of her brother, stuffing a loose tendril of hair back under the hat she always wore low over her eyes to disguise her hair and her face. Anyone in the park in the morning would assume that she was one of the Duke’s stableboys sent out to exercise a horse for him.
Matthew nodded. “We’re ready when you are.” They set off down the alley, their horses’ hooves ringing sharply on the cobblestones and a little silence stretching out between them.
“How has Duchess been?” Matthew inquired. He had not been out to ride with Alex in quite some time, and so had not seen the mare worked recently.
Alex smiled and stroked the mare’s tautly-muscled neck. “Well, I think that she might qualify as well-trained now,” she said with a laugh. Duchess was extremely pretty and extremely well-bred. Matthew had bought her for Alex as a present. She had been completely untrained at the time, and Matthew had assumed she would be a nice project for his talented sister. Much to Matthew’s chagrin, the mare had proven to be flighty and head-strong and generally almost more trouble than she was worth. Matthew never took the sight of Alex riding the mare for granted, having witnessed firsthand all the time and effort she had dedicated to bringing the horse around.
They rode out onto Upper Grosvenor Street and turned toward Grosvenor Gate. A carriage came toward them, traveling much too quickly for the confined space the street afforded. Duchess jigged and tossed her head as it passed with a loud clatter, but Matthew’s stallion, disregarding the carriage as something completely unworthy of his attention, merely flicked an ear at it in obvious boredom. “Arrogant, aren’t we?” Matthew commented to the horse. “You are all right?” he asked of his sister as she soothed her frightened mare.
“We are fine,” Alex replied as her mare returned to a flat-footed walk. “In spite of the idiot driver.”
“I think that the person in charge of that coach belongs in the more blunt than brains category,” Matthew commented drily and Alex chuckled. Observing Grosvenor Gate across the street, Apollo’s ears popped up and he snorted softly in anticipation. “Easy now,” Matthew ordered the stallion as the pair halted and waited for passing traffic to thin enough to allow them to cross the street and ride into the park.
They warmed their horses up at a trot for a few minutes, then cantered a bit before allowing the horses to stretch out and gallop. Although Apollo was much larger than Alex’s mare, Matthew did not have to hold him back for the mare to keep up. Apollo made a bid to pass the mare, but Duchess dug in and caught up to him in two large bounds.
Laughing, Matthew shouted into the wind, “Two redheads are definitely more dangerous than one!”
Alex laughed aloud and asked her mare for more speed. Slowly but surely, the delicate wedge-shaped head of the mare drew ahead of Apollo’s.
“You aren’t going to let her beat you, are you, Apollo?” Matthew asked his horse, letting the last little bit of tension out of his reins. Snorting, Apollo drew even with Duchess. He pinned his ears at her as he drew alongside, then pricked them forward as he put Duchess behind him.
They drew up their horses a minute later, Alex and Matthew laughing and windblown and the horses panting in rhythm. Matthew pulled out his pocket watch. “We should be returning home.”
Alex nodded and they fell into step again, walking the horses on loose reins and allowing the silence between them to stretch comfortably.
“You really are planning on calling on Miss Dartmoor, aren’t you?” Alex asked nonchalantly.
Matthew shot a wary glance at his sister before replying. “I am.”
Alex met his scrutiny for a moment, then smiled ruefully. “I am sorry, Matthew. It is just that I have despaired of you ever courting anyone marriageable ever again.”
At the mention of marriage, Matthew frowned and turned away. Gathering his reins, he clucked to Apollo and set off at a trot. “Let’s not have talk of marriage ruin a perfectly lovely morning,” he called back over his shoulder.
Frowning, Alex, hurried to catch up to him. They crossed the street again, the horses too tired to notice the passing traffic. They halted in front of the stables, each of them patting their horse a last time in reward for a good ride. There was a sudden clatter, and the Danbrook’s carriage pulled into the narrow drive that ran the length of the mews.
“Alex!” Matthew called sharply. Alex had already dropped quickly to the ground and started for the stables, her head ducked as she hurried along. Squire Danbrook emerged from the carriage just as Alex slipped into the semi-darkness of the barn’s interior. “Hell’s bells,” Matthew sighed before summoning up a sunny smile and riding Apollo over to the squire. “How are you, Aubrey?” he asked in a hearty voice.
“Can’t complain, Matthew,” the Squire replied, glancing over his shoulder to be sure that the coachman was helping his wife from the carriage. Seeing that all was well, he turned back to Matthew. “How’s Apollo?”
Matthew smiled and slapped the horse’s neck. “Couldn’t be better. Your horse is having a shoe put back on. William should be returning with him shortly.”
“Excellent,” the squire replied, eyeing Apollo critically. Matthew knew that the Squire was considering breeding Apollo to his prize mare, and so he said, “Would you like to return to the park and take a quick turn on Apollo?”
“I should greatly enjoy that,” the Squire replied, proving Matthew to be correct.
Nodding, Matthew slipped to the ground. “Shall we be off?”
“Yes, let’s,” she Squire answered. “Margaret?” he called to his wife who had just emerged from the carriage. “Would you be willing to wait for me to return?”
Margaret nodded and climbed back into the carriage. The two men walked to the park, the stallion clip-clopping along beside them as they discussed bloodlines, pedigrees, horse racing and foxhunting. Once in the park, Matthew handed his horse over to the Squire with a few brief instructions. The Squire was not the caliber of horseman that Matthew was, but he had spent years in the saddle and he knew his way around a good horse quite thoroughly. Yes, he decided as he rode Apollo’s silky-smooth canter, his mare would cross out admirably with Apollo.
The Squire had been breeding horses for most of his adult life, and he considered himself very good at what he did. He was also a shrewd businessman, which was why he made sure to know the whereabouts of nearly every young, unproven sire on his side of the island. Despite Matthew’s good reputation, Apollo was only four years old. The horse had only ten foals on the ground to date, and only one of them was broken to ride. This made it difficult to ask a large fee for a breeding to him. Squire Danbrook recognized the horse’s potential, and he also knew that, once proven, a breeding to the horse would be very nearly to out of his budget entirely.
“He’s a damn fine horse,” the Squire said a few minutes lat
er as he halted the horse beside Matthew. He dismounted and handed the reins back to Matthew with a smile. “Thank you, m’boy.”
Matthew nodded. “It was no trouble at all,” Matthew assured the other man before turning back toward the stables.
“That is a pretty horse,” Margaret Danbrook said to her husband when the men had rejoined her. “Are you thinking of breeding Belle to him?”
The Squire nodded silently, his eyes on Apollo as a stableboy took him from Matthew and led him back into the stable. He was so absorbed that he did not hear the clip-clopping arrival of his own horse.
“Ah, there’s Bailey,” Matthew observed. “Will you tack him up, William?” Matthew called. William nodded, and Matthew patted the horse on the hip as he passed.
Matthew stepped into the stables after the horse. He surveyed the building’s dim interior quickly, making sure that Alex had slipped away unobserved, then walked over to Bailey, who was tied up and being saddled by Steven.
“Here’s Bailey’s bridle,” William told Matthew as he handed the piece of tack to his employer. “Aren’t you going to come and see your horse?” Matthew invited the Squire and his wife. He slipped the horse’s halter off and pulled on the bridle. As he fastened straps and checked that all the rest of the horses’s tack was as it should be, the Squire made a slow circle around the horse, his critical eye making sure that all was as it should be.
“He looks marvelous, Matthew,” he finally said with a slow smile. “How do you make them all look so damned good?”
Matthew shrugged. “Lots of personal attention,” he replied, thinking of how Bailey had looked upon his arrival a month ago. He had been all gawky legs and ribs, completely uncoordinated and undisciplined. Matthew led the horse into the wan sunlight, noting the bright, clean shine to his coat, and listening to the even clip-clopping of his feet as he followed Matthew obediently. It was the feeling of accomplishment that went with such moments that made all the time that Matthew spent with the horses worthwhile. There was nothing better, he was sure of that. “Hello!” There was no mistaking the slightly husky tone that carried despite its lower-than-average pitch. Matthew glanced over his shoulder and grinned at his sister. He read the subtle pride in her return smile. There was no one more masterful than Alex at the quick change. She had replaced the boots and breeches with a forest green day dress. She carried a matching parasol to shade her face from the sun. Her hair was swept up into an intricate topknot that seemed to Matthew to defy the strictures of gravity. He made a note to tell Alex to give her abigail a raise.
“Might I say that you look positively lovely, Lady Alexandra?” the Squire said quickly. He knew that Alex made him blither like an idiot, but he just could not seem to help himself. She was the most strikingly beautiful woman that he had ever seen. He did not regret his own wife, but he often found himself wishing that he was the kind of man that could both equal and win Alex over.
“Thank you, Squire,” Alex replied somewhat demurely. She turned to his wife with a bright smile. “And how are you Margaret?”
Margaret thought that she should resent Alex and the amount of attention that she drew without the slightest effort, but she found that she could not. There was something very genuine about Alexandra that kept her from being pegged as a snob. Margaret was not an unattractive woman for her age, but she knew that Matthew’s sister eclipsed her totally. Because Alex was Alex, however, Margaret did not resent her for it. “I am very well, Lady Alex. I trust that you are getting on as well as ever?” Maragaret would never have admitted it, but she was very proud of knowing Alex well enough to call her by her nickname.
Alex nodded ever so slightly and twirled her parasol. “I cannot complain.” Alex’s gaze went to the Squire’s horse and she watched her brother swing aboard the tall, lanky horse before saying, “Your horse has really made progress these last two weeks, Squire.” Alex also managed to be well-informed about horses without being suspected of being involved in the actual training of them which was considered a highly un-ladylike occupation. Despite her sex, many of the men of the ton would not be at all surprised to find themselves chatting with her about horses while they danced with her.
“Sorry to be late,” a masculine voice said, and the small group of people in the stable yard swivelled around to see Mr. Dartmoor jogging up the stable drive. “I have not missed seeing Squire Danbrook’s stallion, have I?
Alex shook her head. “You are in luck. He cast a shoe earlier and thus Matthew has just begun with him.”
“Ah, capital!” Dartmoor said with apparent relief.
“Mr. Dartmoor,” Alex went on smoothly, “Might I introduce Squire Danbrook and his wife?”
“A pleasure,” Dartmoor told them, bowing properly.
“Might I assume that you are interested in purchasing a breeding to my stallion?” the Squire inquired.
Dartmoor nodded. “I have heard good things about him.”
“He certainly looks better than when I sent him,” the Squire returned as the small group started walking after the horse down the alley. He watched the horse silently for a moment, then said, “Matthew rather makes me feel like a negligent owner. I send them to him in what I consider to be good condition, and they look infinitely better within two weeks.”
Alex laughed at that. “Matthew has a gift,” she said with such simplicity that one did not doubt her. “Four-legged animals seem to thrive merely by being in his presence.” She did not notice the contraction of Dartmoor’s mouth as if against some hidden pain.
Six
M
atthew halted Bailey for a moment to wait for a passing carriage, then rode into Hyde Park. The small group of spectators followed closely.
Once the horse had walked for a few moments, Matthew sent him off at a trot. The Squire watched his horse intently while Margaret and Alex chatted. Dartmoor watched the Duke ride and had to admit that the man did look very fine on a horse.
“That looks lovely Matthew!” Alex called to Matthew as he half-passed the horse for six strides.
“How about this way?” he inquired, circling around and half-passing the other direction.
“Not quite as good as the other side, but still good,” she returned.
Matthew shook his head. “No, I want to fix it now before it becomes a real problem,” he argued, trotting past them and repeating the exercise.
“The other thing to know about Matthew,” Alex said to the group of people around her, “is that he is a perfectionist.”
The Squire chuckled. “Obviously a good trait if the horses have anything to say about it.”
“I’ve been told that he’s been riding every day since he was four years old. Is that true?” Dartmoor asked in his slightly sharp voice.
Alex knew that the question was not inappropriate in any way, but she still could not help feeling that Dartmoor was prying. She nodded. “His father set him up on his first horse when he was three years old, and he was riding all by himself by the time he was five. He broke and trained his first horse by the time he was fourteen.”
“Amazing.” The Squire shook his head. “Let me tell you, if I had even half of his talent, I’d be making a fortune training my own horses.”
Alex, who was getting tired of the Squire rhapsodizing about her brother’s immense talent, just said, “Don’t worry, Squire. Matthew will make certain that Bailey’s worth a very high stud fee.” She instantly regretted the slightly sharp note in her voice. It was not Matthew’s fault that no one save their closest friends would know that she was as talented as he when it came to training horses.
The Squire eyed Alex’s beautiful profile, not entirely sure what her comment meant. “I do not doubt that, Lady Alex,” was all he said in reply.
Matthew rode Bailey over to the small group of bystanders fifteen minutes later and hopped to the ground. “That was the best ride I’ve had on him yet,” he announced. “Ah! Dartmoor! You made it,” he said, noticing the other man for the first time.
&
nbsp; The Squire smiled. “He looks wonderful, Matthew. I could not be more pleased with his progress.”
Matthew grinned and slapped the horse on the neck. “I’ve put word out that he’s for stud. Mr. Dartmoor is the first person to come and look him over, but I am sure that I shall hear later this week from some of the people that I talked to about him.”
“I am in no tearing rush to breed him. All things in due time,” the Squire said as they all turned to follow Matthew and the horse back to the stables.
“Oh!” Alex exclaimed suddenly. “I forgot to tell you, Matthew!”
“What?” Matthew glanced back at her as he spoke.
“I mentioned him to Lord Trowbridge last night, and he said that he might stop by sometime this week.”
Matthew wrinkled his brow and stopped. “He doesn’t own any stock worth breeding to, does he?”
“I think he is looking to breed a string of hunters for himself and his son,”Alex guessed.
Matthew shrugged. “I have no intention of selling breedings to a rank beginner with a high opinion of himself.”
“Is this Trowbridge a horseman?” the Squire asked Matthew. The Squire and his wife spent most of the year in the country. They rarely came to town for longer than a few weeks at a stretch, so it was not at all surprising that he had not heard of Trowbridge.
Matthew exchanged a small smile with his sister. “He owns horses, yes.”
“Oh,” the Squire said, correctly interpreting Matthew’s statement.
“So,” Matthew said, turning to his guests after handing Bailey to William in the alley. “Do you all have time enough for some tea?”
Margaret looked at her husband before answering, “That would be lovely, thank you.”
“Mr. Dartmoor?” Alex asked of the young man standing to her left. She pretended not to notice that he had been staring at her for too long and in much too intent a manner.
