Page 19 of Wicked Is the Duke
Chapter Seven
Anna descended thestairs the following morning, grateful that the weather was perfect. Blackmont had just arrived to take her riding, and she couldn't wait to see him. Especially after their walk in the garden the night before. He'd kissed her, really kissed her for the first time. Certainly, she'd been kissed by men before who’d courted her, but with Blackmont it was different. There was a passion she felt which had never been there with the others. Blackmont sparked intimate feelings, ones she wondered if she should even have.
She entered the drawing room where he was looking out the French doors that led to the garden. Hearing her enter, he turned to greet her. "Good morning, Anna. Are you ready?"
The sound of her given name rolling off his tongue made her shiver. Once again, those unfamiliar feelings crept up and down her body.
"Good morning, Your Grace. Yes, I'm ready. It's a beautiful day to ride, don't you think?"
"Henry," he replied. "And, yes, it is. Shall we get started?"
Outside, his huge black stallion stood pawing the ground impatiently as a stable boy tried to hold him. Nearby, a young man on a nondescript bay stood holding a black mare. A star and snip graced her face, and she had three white stockings.
The groom brought the mare closer, as Blackmont took the reins from him. "Do you like her?"
Anna nodded enthusiastically and stroked the mare's silky neck. "She's beautiful, Henry."
"She's yours," he replied.
She looked at him in shock. "I...I can't accept such an elaborate gift, Your Grace."
"Henry," he replied. "Yes, you can accept her. You need your own mount, and she will serve you well."
"I don't know what to say; thank you."
"My pleasure."
The groom led the mare over to a mounting block as Henry helped her settle in the saddle. He'd made sure the mare had a proper saddle and not a side saddle. She smiled down at him. "Thank you for remembering."
She watched as Henry smiled and mounted his own horse. The stallion was full of energy. Nothing a good gallop couldn't do to help calm him. She patted the mare's neck, talking softly to her.
They walked down the long drive in silence until Blackmont turned onto a trail. "There is somewhere special I want to show you today. I hope you're up to a rather long ride."
"I've been looking forward to being able to ride without the confines of London parks."
"Excellent. This leads to my property, a path Norwood and I used as children."
She gathered the reins and gazed at Henry. "Since you know where we're going, lead the way, Your Grace."
