Ariana was anatural horsewoman with a good seat and a courageous connection with her horse. They had trotted sedately through the outer courtyard, but once they were out in the fields, Otto felt confident enough in his companion to urge his horse into a gallop. A quick glance over his shoulder assured him that Ariana was secure in the saddle, enjoying the speed and exhilaration as much as he was. Desire, deep and unanticipated, stabbed through him. His bride was an intriguing prospect, the more time he spent with her, the more curious he became.
He pulled up at the far side of the meadow, where the grass grew long and the ground began to slope down to the river. Just seconds later, Ariana arrived at his side. Her eyes were bright and her cheeks flushed from fresh air and exercise.
“Are you well?” he asked, happy to note her enthusiasm. “Enjoying the ride?”
“Very much,” she answered. And he could tell that she had bitten back the words ‘my lord.’
Good.At last, they were getting somewhere.
Ariana gathered her reins in one hand and used the other to scoop her long hair away from her face. Her gown had gone askew during their ride, falling tantalizingly low over her generous breasts. Otto’s instinct, as a gentleman, was to look away. But this was his wedded wife, he reasoned, and he enjoyed the view as she better secured her hair.
“Would you like to lead the way?” he asked.
She twisted in the saddle to look at him and he knew another rush of desire. “But I do not know the way.”
“Simply follow the path,” he assured her. “Anyway, the horses know where they are going.”
He had an ulterior motive asking Ariana to go ahead. From behind, he could gaze at her soft curves and the bewitching fall of her hair without fear of being caught.
All too soon, they reached the river, a wide ribbon of water which gushed over jutting stones and widened into a welcoming pool where colorful birds flittered in search of food. For a while, all they could hear was the rushing of the water and the rhythmic singing of an ousel perched nearby.
“It’s beautiful,” Ariana breathed.
“As are you.” When her cheeks colored again, he simply shrugged. “I only speak the truth.”
“You embarrass me,” she said, but her lips curled upwards into a smile, and he knew he had pleased her.
“Let’s stop here a while,” he suggested. When she nodded her assent, Otto flung a leg over his horse and dismounted, then held Ariana’s hand while she slipped from the saddle.
“What about the horses?” she asked.
“They will be fine.” He looped both sets of reins over a branch, before unclipping a blanket from the back of his saddle and spreading it over the soft grass. “Come and sit beside me. Only for a moment,” he added, noting her hesitation. “Wedeserve a rest after our rough ride, do we not?” He stretched out, enjoying the view of both the river and his young wife.
“As you wish.” She picked her way over the uneven ground towards him and carefully lowered herself down onto the blanket, arranging her skirts so they fell respectfully over her legs. “I have not ridden with such speed and freedom for too long.”
He plucked a long blade of grass and twisted it through his fingers in an effort to distract himself from her alluring closeness. “Why is that?”
She gave him a small smile. “My father wished to ensure no harm should befall me…”
“Quite right,” he interrupted.
“In the days leading up to our marriage,” she added, a slight shrug of her shoulders indicating her indifference.
He followed her gaze to a series of ripples on the surface of the river, indicating fish swimming deep below. It seemed as though they were the only two people for miles around. “Were you surprised to discover your father’s plans?” he asked hesitantly.
“To marry you?” She turned to face him; her eyebrows raised in disarming honesty. “Of course.”
He allowed the grass to fall through his fingers, breathing in the smell of spring. “You were not pleased?” he guessed, speaking quietly, unsure why he was pressing on with this line of questioning.
Her chest rose and fell with her breathing. She had grown anxious and suddenly he wanted nothing more than to reassure her, but she spoke up before he could find the words.
“At first, I was shocked, afraid even.” She glanced up and once again he was impressed by the courage shining in her green eyes. “You have a considerable reputation throughout the North.”
Otto pressed his lips together as a cloud passed over the sun overhead, casting them into shadow. “I know what they call me.” He had never flinched from his reputation, but the idea that brave Ariana had feared him made him strangely uncomfortable.
She shifted on the blanket and lowered her head so he could not see her expression.
A kingfisher darted by in a sudden flash of glistening blue. It dived into the river and emerged victorious; a small fish clamped inside its beak. The horses watched with their ears pricked forward, then lost interest and began to crop at the grass.
