Page 101 of Peasants and Kings
He arched a brow. “I know what you’re thinking, and you couldn’t be more wrong.”
“Maybe this horse ismyspirit animal,” I joked.
Hadrian offered me a carrot and gestured with his chin to the mare. “What did you name her?” I asked. “She’s so regal.”
“She doesn’t have a name yet. Would you like to do the honors?” he asked with a wry grin.
I tried to stem the rapid beat of my heart. “You want me to name her? Are you sure?”
He nodded.
I reached my hand out, palm flat, and the mare devoured the carrot and then nudged my shoulder in an obvious demand for another. When I didn’t oblige fast enough, she bumped her nose against me again.
“She’s pure trouble,” I said with a laugh as I gave her another carrot.
“Definitely,” Hadrian agreed, coming to stand closer to me, so his side was pressed to mine. He stroked his hand down the mare’s neck.
Midas didn’t like losing Hadrian’s attention and gave a loud whicker.
“She’s definitely gonna cause an uproar.” I stroked my hand down her silky nose. “You’re such an Eris.”
The mare tossed her head again.
“Do you like that name?” I asked. “Eris?”
She repeated the action.
“All right then. Eris it is.”
“Eris?” Hadrian asked.
“The Greek Goddess of Discord,” I said.
“I don’t know why, but it feels like a bad omen,” Hadrian said.
“You’re being superstitious,” I said as I patted Eris’s neck.
“Are you ready for your first riding lesson?” he asked.
With the help of the stable master and Hadrian, I was able to mount Eris with very little trouble or embarrassment.
“She’s a natural,” Airik said.
Hadrian nodded, a slight smile on his face.
Airik handed me the reigns, but he remained close in case Eris decided to pitch a fit. It turned out to be completely unnecessary. From the moment I settled on her back, it was as though we’d become one entity. She was naturally in tune with me, and I felt the same with her.
“For someone who’s never ridden a horse, you look like you were born to it,” Hadrian said, mounting a newly saddled Midas.
His words dug deep into my soul, and I thought instantly of my mother. I remembered the bedtime stories she’d told me about a young woman riding bareback across the hills of the Italian countryside by the light of the full moon. They hadn’t been fabricated stories after all, but memories from her youth. Perhaps riding horses was in my blood.
I caught Hadrian watching me, his expression carefully blank. “What are you thinking about?”
Stroking Eris’s neck with one hand and holding the reigns with the other, I said, “I was thinking about my mother. She loved horses. Come on.” I flashed an overly bright smile. “An island like this must have a pirate cave somewhere.”
“A pirate cave? Really?”
“I’m imaginative. Humor me,” I teased, gently prodding Eris with my heels. I had to get away from Hadrian’s prying gaze.
