“Sir, I fully intend to ride. But might I ride western style?” she asked, trying to sound as 1812-ish as possible.
“I’m afraid not. Only a lady of title may choose to ride astride.”
The footman led Chestnut toward the field where the rest of the riding party waited. The horse took steady, solid steps. Still, even this hunky footman couldn’t hold a cheap tallow candle to Sebastian, who appeared on the field like the sun bursting from behind a cloud. There was something about a man on horseback—especially such a cultured, Oxford-educated man who also happened to be, well, a total hottie, as Emma would say.
She pictured herself and Sebastian in a white carriage festooned with pink peonies, pulled by white horses, riding off into the sunset together, he reciting poetry and—
Just then the hounds howled and Grace’s gray horse sidestepped away from Henry’s and toward Sebastian’s. The tail on her horse whisked back and forth, brushing Sebastian’s as if in shameless flirtation, as if even her horse were moving in on the guy.
Henry trotted over on his horse, and glad as she was to see him, he blocked her view of Sebastian.
“Will you manage, Miss Parker?” he asked.
What struck her was that he’d picked up on her fear.
“You have the gentlest horse in the stables.”
“Let’s hope he’s not too gentle, I’ll need some speed.” She moved Chestnut backward to keep an eye on Sebastian, but Henry guided his horse closer, eclipsing Sebastian again.
“Just because he’s gentle doesn’t mean he’s not powerful and fast,” Henry said.
Chloe raised an eyebrow. “We’ll have to see, then, what he’s made of.”
“I think you’ll be quite pleased with his performance.” Henry smiled.
Chloe wasn’t quite sure they were sparring about Chestnut anymore, but she knew Grace was monopolizing Sebastian. Gillian, Kate, and Julia waited at the starting gate, doing the smart thing and resting their horses.
Chloe brought Chestnut forward again and stopped in full view of Sebastian. She waved good-bye to the footman, who, embarrassed, nodded awkwardly. She wasn’t supposed to wave to the servants, and Henry chuckled.
“Just take it easy during the hunt, Miss Parker.”
“Are you saying you don’t want me to win? That ultimately you’d prefer your brother to end up with, let’s say, Lady Grace, so you could spend all your holidays and birthdays with her?”
“How kind of you to think of me and my long-term happiness, Miss Parker. It’s almost as if you’re winning my brother over just to save me from a lifetime of misery. I’m much obliged.”
“I’m always thinking of others.”
“People who say they’re always thinking of others are usually thinking of themselves.”
Chloe sighed. As if she willed Sebastian to do it, he turned his horse away from Grace’s and cantered toward her, tipping his hat. She went all aflutter, and certain swaths of her skirt unfolded.
“Have fun on the trail,” she said to Henry. She brought her horse to a walk and left Henry in the dust. She patted Chestnut and gave a nod to Mrs. Crescent and Fifi under a tree on the sidelines.
“Ready for the hunt?” Chloe asked Sebastian. His designer stubble glistened in the morning sun.
He shook his head. “I’m not really a hundred percent. I’ve been rather out of sorts since the night of the dinner party. One of my French cooks kept the cream off the ice too long, and it went bad.”
Chloe’s mouth fell open. “I was sick the night of the dinner party, too.”
“You were? I think we were the only two. I’m so sorry about that. It won’t happen again.”
“It only lasted a few hours for me.” Chloe wanted to change the subject, and quick. “Perhaps you can inform me, Mr. Wrightman, what exactly it is we are hunting?”
He smiled. “It’s only the smell of a fox we’re after, not a real fox. The hunt master lays down the scent and trees it at the end.”
“Trees the scent?”
“The hunt master will end the scent at a certain tree and the dogs will surround it, signaling the end of the hunt.”
They trotted toward the gate, where the hunt master and the rest of the riders stood ready.
“I do so love the chase,” Sebastian said as he adjusted his cravat. “Even if it is just a mock hunt.”
“Do you prefer to chase or be chased?” Chloe asked.
“Why he prefers to be chased, of course,” Grace butted in. “Isn’t that why we’re all here, darling? To chase you?” Sebastian looked out past the fence, toward the field. Henry slid his horse between Julia’s and Chloe’s.
The hunt master raised the horn to get attention and shouted. “I might remind everyone that fifteen Accomplishment Points are at stake in this race. Lady Grace, Miss Tripp, Miss Potts, and Miss Harrington lead with twenty-five Accomplishment Points each. Miss Parker has fifteen. Now, a scented trail has been laid out—along with some false leads and dead ends. Experienced riders may take the jumps. Others are advised to take the way around. Ladies are advised to keep pace with Mr. Wrightman and me if you can. Be the first to finish the race by finding the ‘fox’ and win. Everyone ready?” He brought the horn to his lips.
Chloe tightened her grip on the reins. “Let the chase begin,” she said to no one in particular.
“I believe it already has, Miss Parker,” Henry said.
“Tallyho!” shouted the hunt master. He blew the horn, the gate swung open, and the hounds came hurtling through, barking and yipping. A pounding of hooves sent a spike of determination up Chloe’s back.
She gripped the reins, doing her best to stay on Sebastian’s tail for what seemed like forever, until the hounds howled, the hunt master blew the horn, and the pace increased. Her riding hat flew off, and the ribbons chafed her neck, until finally she released one of her tight fists from the reins and untied the hat, letting it soar into the thicket.
Sebastian looked back at her and winked. He didn’t have to ride sidesaddle, so he was able to go increasingly faster. Still, she gained on him with Chestnut. Grace’s horse huffed and snorted right behind her, but Chloe knew better than to look back and lose any rhythm. The camera crew drove alongside them on ATVs.
Finally she caught up to Sebastian and leaned over, tapping him on the butt with her riding crop.
“Caught you!” she shouted.
He flashed a smile and spurred his horse to go even faster. Suddenly he turned, driving his horse off trail into the thick of the forest. Far ahead, the hunt master had stopped, his horse pointing in the direction of the yipping hounds, his hat signaling the turn.
Chloe hesitated just long enough for Grace to lunge ahead of her. Julia charged past, too. Kate and Gillian were still behind her, but Chloe realized she’d fall into second, then third, and then no place at all.
She kicked Chestnut, spurring him on, gaining on Grace, and finally passing her. But where was Sebastian? She saw his horse’s backside way up ahead, and the horse seemed to be doing a jump. She couldn’t do a jump, she’d have to go around, but she’d lose time. She leaned into the horse and squinted, making out a long tree trunk stretched over two stumps. Chloe’s neck tightened as she bore down to steer him around it—but she had waited too long and Chestnut stumbled.
He regained his footing after they cleared the jump. Chloe inhaled as if she forgot how to breathe. Behind her, she heard Grace’s horse knock the log off-kilter. Chloe almost stopped to turn around and help, but then she heard the stream of obscenities that confirmed that Grace had to be okay.
Her blood pumping, Chloe urged Chestnut on and caught up to Sebastian, but up ahead, in a ravine, she saw a black riding hat floating in the water, and it wasn’t Sebastian’s. She spotted Henry’s horse rearing up, without anyone on him. Fear zigzagged through her. Henry was on the ground near his horse. He could get trampled. Was he hurt?
Sebastian mustn’t have seen him. He clipped right by his brother.
Closer now, Chloe slowed Chestnut. Time froze as she looked to her left at Henry, who was struggling to sit up and rubbing his leg, then at Sebastian, who was galloping after the hunt master.