“But we can’t eat in front of Franklin,” Bella said. “It wouldn’t be fair.”
“Don’t worry. He has a basket, too.” William felt his heart do a series of backflips. Bella was not only the prettiest lass he’d ever met, but she was also the sweetest. Her concern was always for others. He’d be hard-pressed to find many young ladies in thetonwho were so considerate and attuned to other people’s needs.
Suddenly, Winterborne reared up, yanking Bella backward. She cried out and stumbled, her balance faltering as the horse lunged, grabbing her cape with his teeth and trying to drag her away.
In a flash, William shot forward, reaching for Bella’s hand to keep her from falling as he caught the horse’s reins and assessed what was going on. Winterborne’s behavior was wild, but not aggressive—urgent, almost desperate. His muscles were taut, his ears pinned back, his nostrils flaring as he tossed his head.
Something was wrong.
After William made certain that Bella was steady on her feet, he turned toward the still-agitated horse. And that was when he saw it.
The steel jaws of an animal trap, half buried in the underbrush, glinted in the morning light.
A chill ran through him. Winterborne had been trying tosaveBella.
His breath tightened as he turned back to Bella. Her face was pale, her eyes wide with lingering fear. Without thinking, he pulled her close, feeling the frantic rhythm of her heart against his chest.
Tilting her chin up, he kissed her—firm yet gentle, grounding them both in the warmth of the moment. The scent of her—wildflowers and something purely Bella—wrapped around him, pushing back the icy grip of fear.
“I’ve got you, Bella,” he soothed, pressing a kiss to her cheek, holding her close.
She sagged slightly against him, her heartbeat slowing, her body softening in his arms. He didn’t want to let her go. Not yet. Maybe not ever.
Franklin caught up to them, reaching for Winterborne’s reins.
“Stay behind me,” William said to Bella before turning to help steady the horse. Together, he and Franklin worked to soothe him, stroking his neck and murmuring reassurances.
Just as Bella started to walk back toward them, Winterborne snorted and pawed the ground again, his head thrashing, his agitation flaring once more.
William tensed, watching the horse, and then—he saw it. Another trap.
“Wait. Bella, don’t move. Nobody moves,” he said sharply, his chest tightening with realization. “We’ve misjudged Winterborne.”
Bella froze, color draining from her face. “What do you mean?”
William ran a hand down the horse’s neck. “My God… I see it too, boy.” He looked around, spotting what he needed. “Stay here, both of you. Don’t move a hair.”
He strode purposefully but carefully to the nearest tree and picked up a fallen branch. Returning to the spot just ahead of Winterborne, he extended the thicker end of the branch and pressed it down into the undergrowth.
A sharp snap cracked the air as the steel jaws of the second animal trap slammed shut around the wood. Then he walked to the first trap and sprang it.I thought we had gotten all of these,he thought.Now… two so close together.
William exhaled heavily. “Winterborne sensed the traps before we did. He was protecting you, Bella. If either of you had stepped on one…” He didn’t finish. He didn’t have to.
Winterborne lifted his head, his ears twitching, then gently pawed the ground—calmer now, as if confirming his success.
Bella turned to her horse, her eyes brimming with tears. Reaching up, she cradled his face in her hands, pressing a kiss between his eyes. “I am so sorry, sweet Winterborne. Thank you for saving me… I love you.”
The horse nickered softly, nudging her, as if to say he already knew.
William fought to keep emotion from his face, hearing the words he suddenly longed to hear from Bella—but they were for the horse, not him. How could he be jealous of a horse? A horse who had just saved Bella from serious injury, he reminded himself.
Suddenly, things clicked in his mind. “I’m no farrier, and it’s hard to understand people at times, let alone animals, but Ithink what Winterborne did—saving you—he would have done for your father.”
“He would’ve done anything for Papa. He would have given his life, I’m certain of it,” Bella said, looking into the horse’s eyes. “Winterborne, forgive me for the way I’ve treated you—not riding you, leaving you in the stable,” she said, her eyes filling with tears.
The horse replied by softly whinnying and nuzzling her ear, making her chuckle through her tears.
“Think about how much Winterborne must have loved your father,” William said, his voice low, steady—though his pulse was anything but. “Just now, he dragged you back to save you from a trap, right in your path. If you’d stepped on either one of them, it would have surely been sprung.”
