With each passing day, Kiera had an unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach. It was a feeling she thought was exclusive to the prince mainly for the reason that it only came about when she thought of him.
When he sent her a letter saying he was healed, she felt as if she had swallowed a handful of worms and they were squirming about inside her stomach. There was nothing else she had experienced that she could compare the same feeling to.
How could she get so affected by only one meeting?
Kiera decided she would go to the stables early. She had thought the action of brushing the mane of her horse would help calm her nerves, but when she entered the stables she quickly was greeted by the blinding golden hue of a certain man's hair. It seemed they both had thoughts of arriving at the stables early for their outing.
"Kiera," Sam smiled when his emerald eyes landed on her. The sight of such a smile was only increasing the sickening feeling she felt. Her stomach was all in knots as she entered further into the stables. Even the familiar scent of the horses wasn't enough to calm her.
"You are here rather early prince." She commented as she watched the prince brush his horse with a gentle hand.
"I was nervous," his eyes held her stare as he openly admitted, "I came early as the thought of waiting around was too much for me." The look in his eyes made her think he was aware that she also went to the stables early for the same reason.
"Did you also come here early for the same reason?" His question and the look in his eyes made her nervous. She turned her face away from the cunning Solomon prince.
"I came to prepare my horse, not because I was nervous. My horse does not like when other people prepare her." Her words sounded more like an excuse to her, but she did not stop to look at the prince's face as she walked toward her horse. Lassie snorted and stomped her hooved foot when she saw Kiera coming toward her. She was intelligent enough to understand the riding gear Kiera wore meant she was going to be saddled.
"Come on girl," Kiera whispered as low as she could. She guided Lassie out of her stall, grabbed the saddle, saddled her horse, and waited for the prince outside of the stables. She did not have to wait all that long for the prince to leave the stables after her. He appeared behind her.
"How long have you had your horse?" Kiera looked to the prince, his horse saddled and ready to be ridden. The spotted horse of his calmly let itself be led by the prince. Her eyes went from the prince's relaxed riding outfit, from his white shirt to the tan pants that extended down into his black riding boots. She frowned as she felt her stomach twist again.
"I've had her since I left the Academy. She's the offspring of the first horse I had ever ridden." She remembered the first time before she met Lassie. The time she had ridden the calm black beauty that was Lassie's mother. Back then, she had never formed a bond with an animal, as she was never allowed a pet at every home she went to. One of the first things she was taught at the Academy was how to ride a horse and the horse her instructor taught her to ride on was Lassie's mother.
"Does she have a name?"
She nodded at him as he came closer to Kiera and her horse, leading his horse by the reins. "Her name is Lassie."
"May I pet her?" Smiling, Sam reached out his hand hesitantly, only extending out his hand fully once Kiera gave him a nod. Lassie sniffed at the prince's hand, curious about the man that smelled of plants and herbs. Kiera did not know why she had held in her breath, as if waiting for her horse to give her approval of the prince. She breathed once more when Lassie lowered her head slightly for the prince to rub her head.
Sam let out a twinkling laugh, happy that Lassie seemed to like the prince. She smiled at his laughter, reaching out to pet Lassie as well.
"She's well behaved."
Kiera only nodded at him, fully conscious now of how close he had managed to get to her.
"Would you like to meet Hope?" Kiera looked up as the prince grinned, gesturing towards her to bring herself closer to his spotted mare.
"Hope?" Her eyes shifted to the spotted grey and white horse he held the reins for in his hand. She briefly wondered why the prince had given her that name.
"Yes, come pet her. A fair warning though, she can be quite affectionate." She did not know what she had expected after his playful warning. Kiera heard him laugh when Kiera was surprised by his horse as it nuzzled her hand. Hope had short, coarse hair, a lot different than Lassie whose hair was soft and silky to the touch.
"What's that girl?"
Kiera's eyes landed on the prince suddenly, as he bent down as if listening to his horse. He then smiled some more as he turned his head and whispered close to his horse's ear.
"You like her? Well, that makes two of us." She watched, riveted by the strange performance he was putting on.
"Hopefully, she likes us too girl." She had to roll her eyes when he added the last part. The coquettish smile he flashed her way as his eyes studied her face was enough to make her heart palpitate in the most bizarre way. Her reaction was followed by the prince's boyish laughter.
"What? Do you not converse with your horse?" His words made her think about all the times she had talked to Lassie in hushed tones, always afraid someone would overhear her conversing with her horse. She flushed when she remembered. Surely she did not appear as strange as he did when she talked to Lassie?
She thought if anyone had heard her speak to Lassie even once before, she would be mortified.
"Enough." She quickly changed the topic. "If we don't start heading out now we might be at the stables all day."
"I don't mind staying here all day just as long as you are here with me."
She sighed before she mounted on top of her horse. Lassie flicked her tail as if sensing her owner's exasperation.
Hope went unperturbed by Lassie's outburst, and she held steady as Sam climbed on top of her.
"Shall we be on our way then?" He grabbed onto the reins of his horse, motioning with a tilt of his head as he repositioned the direction to where his horse was facing. He seemed natural, sitting on top of Hope. Both he and his horse seemed to be moving as one, giving Kiera an indication that the prince was very accustomed to riding horses.
"I did not notice this before, but you appear to be good with horses." She took Lassie's reins in her hands. Seeing the prince maneuver his horse with ease stroked the competitive side within Kiera.
A lazy smile soon appeared on the prince's lips as he noted the tone of her voice.
"I am a good enough rider. Why? Would you like to race?" There was a glint of the same competitiveness inside his emerald eyes. Kiera nodded her head before she could think through the decision carefully.
The prince took off first, urging his horse with only a slight movement of the reins. Kiera was left shocked as she felt the whoosh of air from the force the prince had taken off. The space where the prince was standing atop his horse was now empty.
"Come on!" Sam yelled over his shoulder at her, his golden hair flying in the breeze.
Kiera felt her blood pumping and she kicked her heels, sending Lassie sprinting after the prince and his horse. She leaned forward in her saddle. She could feel them gaining speed as they got closer to the spotted mare and the blond-haired man.
"Is that all you can do?" She yelled over to him as she and Lassie swiftly caught up with the prince and his mare.
"What do you mean?" He laughed, "we are just barely getting started!"
With a cocky curl of his lips, Sam bent his body forward a little more. The effect was rather instant as his spotted horse sprinted faster, completely taking the lead a whole couple of heads further than the Beast General and her horse.
Lassie flared her nostrils, discontent in having an unknown horse beating her.
"Would you look at that Lassie?" Kiera reached down to pat her horse. "They think they can beat us. Let us show them otherwise."
"Ha!" Her horse was all too eager to sprint forward faster when Kiera pulled on the leather reins. Rearing her black head, her horse inched Kiera closer to the blurring figure of the prince in front of her. His white shirt bellowed in the wind only a few yards in front of her. She could reach out and grab onto him if she wanted.