The Duke’s Twin Lust by Lorena Owen

Chapter Fourteen

The stable boys retreated back into the stables.

“Bested by you?” the duke said with a chuckle.

Amelia looked at him with mock indignation. “Surely, you don’t think a woman cannot be a better rider than you?”

The duke shook his head, the amusement still evident in his eyes. “Why, no, of course. I’ve seen women who are adept at riding. But you strike me as a carriage kind of girl.”

“Well, let’s hope I can change that perception,” Amelia said.

The stable boys returned, pulling leading two of the horses. The horses were white, similar to the horses Amelia had ridden with Mary to the manor. Although Amelia did not know much about horses, she could tell one was male and the other was female. They were fully saddled, looking down upon the duke and Amelia imperiously.

“Do you need some help, Christiana?” the duke asked, and Amelia shook her head, barely listening.

The duke moved forward, and in an effortless, graceful movement, he swung up on the saddle of the stallion. Now, he was looking down at her.

“Let me see you climb up, then,” he said, a smile playing at the corner of his lips.

Amelia let in a sharp intake of breath. How the hell was she supposed to do that, alone? But thankfully, Pat lurched forward. Taking her hand, he guided her up on the horse. Amelia swung up clumsily, and when she was finally seated, she gasped. This mare was far taller than the horse she’d ridden up to the manor, and Amelia could hear the mare distinctly rumble an unhappy neigh.

When she looked at the duke, she saw that he was staring at her, looking slightly amused.

“My lady, would you prefer a different horse?” he asked.

Amelia bit her lip. She wanted a different horse, but she also wanted to prove herself in the face of the duke’s amusement. And so, she shook her head.

“This is fine, thank you,” she said.

The duke nodded. Giving his horse a kick, he nudged it forward. The horse started to trot towards the gates.

Amelia looked down at her animal, which appeared to not be interested in moving. She gave the horse a slight kick, but the horse did not budge. When she pulled on the reins, it made a rumbling sound again. Amelia felt sweat break out on her forehead.

What was she supposed to do?

She looked around for help, but the duke was already halfway to the gate, apparently oblivious to the fact that Amelia was not following. Amelia turned to the stable boys, hoping they saw the plea in her eyes. Pat came to her rescue again. Moving forward, he slapped his palm against the horse’s rump.

The horse did not budge.

Amelia’s eyes widened. There was something wrong with this beast, she was sure of it.

Turning around, she saw the duke had reached the gates. He seemed to have finally realised Amelia was not with him, as he had stopped and turned around, and was now squinting back at them, his hands over his eyes.

Amelia turned to Pat. “What is going on?”

The lad looked perplexed. “I don’t know, Your Grace. Trisha has been in a bad mood for a couple of days, though. Perhaps she doesn’t want to go on a ride.”

Amelia’s eyes widened. The stable boys had given her a horse in a bad mood? Her grip tightened on the reins.

“Perhaps we should switch the horses,” Amelia suggested in a tiny voice, finally accepting defeat.

But, as though Trisha was listening to every word, she suddenly took a step forward.

“I don’t think that is necessary,” Pat said with a slight smile.

Suddenly, the horse started to move in earnest, cantering towards the gates. Amelia felt herself moving along with the horse, unable to sit as steadily as she thought she would have. Wobbling on the horse, she held on to the reins as tightly as she could. The horse seemed to increase her speed, and Amelia found herself being thrust up and down by the movements of the horse. She tried to maintain her seat on the saddle, but she found out she couldn’t, and very soon her feet were flying off the stirrups.

Amelia forced her feet back into the stirrups, but the horse’s movements dislodged them again. Losing all hope, she clamped her legs against the horse’s trunk, trying to find a balance as she was getting dislodged intermittently on her seat. Finally, the gates came into view, and Amelia heaved a sigh of relief as the horse slowed to a walk. Sweating and panting, she looked up at the smiling face of the duke.

“You ride well, my lady,” the duke said, the amusement in his eyes more pronounced.

Amelia rolled her eyes. “Oh, leave me be,” she muttered under her breath.

He let out a bark of laughter and then raised his arm. The gates flung open. Nudging his horse once more, he started to ride through the gates.

Amelia paused, wondering if Trisha was going to stop again. However, she needn’t have worried. The sight of the open gates appeared to put Trisha into a frenzy, and suddenly the horse reared up on its hind legs.

Amelia screamed, grabbing onto the reins.

She was aware of the duke turning back to look at her, but before Amelia could assure him she was fine, Trisha started to gallop at full speed, plodding away towards the forest. Amelia screamed again. She was completely dislodged from her seat, her entire torso rearing backwards as the horse lurched forward, and she held on to the reins for dear life.

The duke shouted something, and glancing back, Amelia saw that he was riding towards her as fast as he could. She could not experience slight relief from this sight, however, because it seemed like Trisha was trying to dislodge her completely. Amelia had thought the horse was already racing at full speed, but, somehow, Trisha increased her speed, crashing past the trees in the forest at an alarming rate.

Abandoning the reins, Amelia swung forward and grabbed the horse’s neck, latching on to prevent herself from flying off completely. The horse let out a guttural sound, shaking her head dangerously from side to side. Amelia yelled. She knew she was close to being thrown off, and if that happened, she would sustain dangerous injuries.

Suddenly, something blurry flashed by, and Amelia felt the horse rear again. She slammed her eyes shut, not wanting to know what would happen next. But in the next second, she felt the horse come to a standstill.

Amelia’s heart was pounding furiously. Slowly, she forced her eyes open and unhooked her arms from the horse’s neck. Looking up, she saw what had happened.

The duke had formed a barricade with his own horse between two trees and prevented Trisha from going any further. Now, he was staring down at her, looking partly amused and partly worried.

“Christiana,” he said. “Are you alright?”

Amelia found out she could not speak or nod. She just stared at him, her heart still pounding.

The duke swung off his horse. Amelia was only faintly aware of him coming to her and tying the reins of her horse to the trunk of the nearest tree. Finally, he reached up for her and lifted her into his arms.

Amelia gasped. She had not been expecting that.

The sheer masculine energy the duke exuded numbed her brain even further. His arms were strong as they wrapped themselves around her. She collapsed against his chest, feeling the muscles underneath his shirt. His scent was in her nostrils, threatening to cloud her common sense.

“I’m sorry, Christiana,” the duke said. “I should never have suggested this.”

He seated her on his own horse before swinging up on the saddle and retook his seat. His arms were around her again, and it was all Amelia could do to not melt into them.

“I didn’t know you were a bad rider,” the duke said.

The words made Amelia regain control of her tongue. “I’m not,” she croaked. Her heartbeats were finally beginning to subside, and she was feeling somewhat normal again.

The duke let out a chuckle. “After what I just saw, Christiana, I don’t think you should ever be around horses again.”

Amelia shook her head vehemently. She was slightly embarrassed, but did not want to give the duke this victory. “It has been quite long since I’ve been on a horse as bad-tempered as this, Your Grace,” she said. “I merely forgot how to handle such a horse.”

“Ah,” the duke said. He did not seem to believe her. “Well, for now, I reckon you should ride with me. You gave me such a fright.”

Amelia looked up at him. Had she, really? She was pleased to know he cared even a little for her. But, a second later, she pushed her pleasure away. It was stupid to feel joy over the duke caring for her. She was nothing to him. He cared for his dear wife Christiana.

“This entire riding expedition has been a bust. Shall we return back to the manor?” the duke asked.

Amelia glared up at him. “No,” she said quickly. It had been awful, yes, but she had to admit that a part of her liked this, being alone with the duke with no prying eyes on them. Even though she had spent the last few hours avoiding him, she wanted as much time as she could get now. Ernest had this effect on her, she realised. When she was around him, she felt like all was right in the world.

The duke nodded. He seemed to want the same thing, judging by how he didn’t argue his point further. “What shall we do then?” he asked.

“Let’s ride,” Amelia said.

He raised a brow. “I’m not letting you on that horse ever again,” he said, and the intensity of his gaze as he said those words made Amelia’s belly twist.

“I can ride on yours,” she said in a small voice.

He nodded. Pulling his arms from around her, he grabbed the reins and pulled. His horse started to move once more.

“So,” the duke said, “You did not best me, after all.”

Amelia let out a low groan. She had been dreading this.

“This was just a bad day, Your Grace,” she said. “I assure you that you would not be able to handle the wild mare I was given by the stable boys.”

The duke laughed, his laughter rumbling up his chest. Amelia inadvertently snuggled closer to him, loving the sound. “I can handle any horse,” he said confidently. “Perhaps I should give you riding lessons.”

“I don’t need them,” Amelia said, trying to match his level of confidence. “My horse was just too wild. Perhaps it was a practical joke, Your Grace. Perhaps you gave me a wild horse because you were too afraid of being bested by me.”

He laughed again. “I play fair, my lady. Always. Besides, the stable boys selected the horses themselves.”

“I suspect you must have put them up to it,” Amelia said.

“I wouldn’t,” he said, a smile in his voice. “I would love a wife who can ride better than me,” he said almost wistfully. “We could go on long rides every day, talking about everything and nothing in particular.”

Amelia felt a pang to her heart. She could not help feeling like she had let down the duke in some way.

“Well, I’m pretty good at riding,” Amelia insisted. She knew for a fact that highborn ladies were generally good at riding, and Ernest would find it a little strange if she was the exception to the rule.

When she looked up at him, he looked a little suspicious. “I should think so,” the duke said. “Once, before your incident, when you weren’t moping in your room, I remember you requesting a horse from the stables and riding across the grounds. I thought you were in good form.”

Amelia’s heart missed a beat. “Yes, I recall that too,” she lied in a small voice.

“I wonder what changed since then,” the duke said. He was teasing, Amelia knew, but she could not help the flush that crept up her cheeks. She was grateful the duke was not looking at her.

“I told you, Your Grace,” Amelia said in a mock-exasperated tone. “I have not been on a wild horse for a while.” Amelia looked behind her. The mare was nowhere to be seen anymore. “What will happen to her?”

“Oh, I shall ask the stable boys to come for her when we return to the manor,” he said.

Amelia nodded. “Perhaps I won’t be saddled with such an intolerable horse next time.” After the words fell out of her mouth, she realised what she’d said. She had inadvertently admitted to looking forward to a next time. She looked up at the duke, wondering what he thought of that.

He seemed to have noticed it as well. “I’m pleased you still want to come riding with me, particularly after what just happened,” he said.

Amelia smiled. It was always a pleasure to be in the duke’s company, she thought, but she knew she would be overstepping personal boundaries by saying that. So, she sighed and changed the topic instead.

“You seem to enjoy riding a lot, Your Grace,” she said.

“Yes, I do,” he said simply. “I consider it one of the few joys in life.”

“Riding and boxing are your primary sources of enjoyment, I see,” Amelia noted.

Looking up at the duke, she saw he looked impressed. “I wish I knew half as much about you, Christiana,” he murmured. “You remain an enigma.”

Amelia felt her heart miss a beat. She cast her mind back for things she did for pure enjoyment, but she could not figure out anything. In truth, she had not had time to find hobbies, because all she had done in the past was work. Hobbies were a thing for idle highborn ladies, Amelia thought. Commoners did not have time for hobbies.

But she couldn’t tell the duke that.

“I am rather boring, Your Grace,” Amelia said. “But I’m sure the same cannot be said of you. You seem like a very interesting person. I’d like to know more about you.”