Don't Forget to Dream (36 page)

Approaching the Palace entrance Rhyla could hear the commotion of horses and men already gathered on the cobblestone. Descending the stairs with Lady
Emelia, Rhyla
glance
d past the waiting men towards
Master Thomas
who was
leading a chestnut mare
.

“
My Lady,
”
the Master at arms greeted her
,
bowing formally.

“
Master Thomas, you have chosen well, a fine mare,
”
Lady Emelia said gentl
y stroking the white muzzle which
soon
moved forward and
nibbled at her palm. Rhyla was sure she had seen a lump of sugar disappear.
“
What is she called?
”

“
Sunse
t, my lady, a
comfortable, sensible mare but with a surprising turn of speed.
”

“
Oh, I am sure Rhyla is not challenging any of these men to a race today. Are you my dear?
”
Lady Emelia smiled as she laughed softly.

Rhyla looked startled at the suggestion,
“
Of course not my lady. They won
’
t even know I am there. I won
’
t disturb them in their work.
”

Looking around at the gathered men
and pointedly not looking in the
direction
of the two women, Master
Thomas chuckled softly,
“
No, these men are so blind they won
’
t notice a beautiful young woman in silks riding with them.
”
A deep blush reddened her cheeks but he hurried on pointing to an extra feature partially hidden beneath t
he saddle high on the left side.
The
h
ilt of the unique blade he
had given her
,
protruded slightly.
“
I thought you would feel happier carrying this. It should be obscured from casual view by your skirts.
”
Rhyla caught the raised eyebrow from Lady Emelia but her mistress remained silent.

“
Thank you Master Thomas I am sure there will be no need but I do feel better knowing it is there,
”
Rhyla replied with a small curtsey and nod of her head.

“
Of course there will be no need of it my dear,
”
Lady Emelia added soothingly,
“
just a pleasant ride through the country.
”
She briefly glanced over Rhyla
’
s shoulders at the sound of the mounts shuffling a little.
“
It l
ooks like it is nearly time for you to mount up my dear.
”

“
Ready men,
”
came
a st
rong deep voice from behind her.
The
sound made Rhyla
’
s face blanc
h
and her
heart skip
a beat before
it continued to race
on.
“
Grandmamma,
”
he said as Lady Emelia stepped around her and smiled warmly.
“
Are you joining us today? I was not informed.
”

“
You know full well my riding days are long past my boy. But I did think it would do Rhyla a fair turn to ride out, especially today.
”
At a light touch on her arm Rhyla remembered her position and manners. Snapping her mouth closed she turned and curtsied deeply to Prince Callum, keeping her eyes on his boots for several seconds longer than was strictly courteous. But her eyes slowly dragged upwards, past the tight fawn coloured riding trousers, to the open light woollen navy coat he wore over a simple linen shirt to finally meet his gaze. The confusion and pain she briefly found nearly made her step back, but he soon schooled his features.

“
If you do not wish me to join you I understand Prince Callum. I do not wish to intrude on your day. I did not realise you would be leading the guardsmen today,
”
she said smoothing her sk
irts and flicking her eyes towards the gathered men.

“
What? No
,
you have every right to join us if you wish. You are more than welcome to ride with me up front.
”
His words conflicted with his in
itial reaction at seeing her but
there was still
tightness
around his eyes as he tried to smile at her.

“
If my Prince is sure,
”
Rhyla said softly, dropping her gaze as she bobbed another curtsey.

“
Good, then it is settled,
”
Lady Emelia said swiftly, making her way towards the Palace Steps.
“
Enjoy the country air," she called casually over her shoulder.

Despite Master Thomas still holding Sunset
’
s bridle
,
Prince Callum stepped forward and held out his hand for her.
“
We had best be going,
”
he said softly.

Cautiously she placed her hand in his, hoping the motion of mounting would hide her trembling hand. Completely unprepared for his touch, her carefully cons
tructed facade was not in place.
She felt completely exposed.
Her
heart pounded against her ribs
. She glanced down to thank him
as simple courtesy required, but struggled to form the words as their eyes met, lingering.
Her hand tingled from his touch.
The
strong, callou
sed hand that enveloped hers
was a touch she had
longed for time and time again.
A
touch she desperately fought not to think about.

It was Master Thomas
’
coughing and clearing h
is throat that finally broke her
trance. Releasing her hand quickly and striding over to his mount Prince Callum called loudly for the men to mount up. The clamour allowed her a moment to regain control of herself, but not before she caught the wry smile Master Thomas was attempting to hide as he made unnecessary adjustments to the bridle and handed her the reins.

“
Enjoy your ride Miss Rhyla,
”
he said far too casually as she turned Sunshine towards the Palace gates. Her composure was once again assaulted as she saw Prince Callum as good as his word, waiting for her to join him at the head of the column t
o lead the men through the city
by his side. With onl
y a moment of hesitation she hee
led the mare to his side.

The procession through the streets of Lestran was a complete wonder for Rhyla. The mixture of cheers at the sight of the Prince but also the evident mutters as people tried to identify the lady in silk by his side. Callum waved at the call of his name but Rhyla wished she could drop back a pace or two,
even better to ride behind the guardsmen. Yet the first time she made to slow Sunset, Callum just drew rein to remain by her side, a gentle polite smile as he glanced at he
re. His eyes no longer lingered
now
that
dozens of faces were turned their way.

Chapter 14

Callum picked up the pace shortly after they had cleared the city's western gate. He rode at a gentle canter for nearly an hour before slowing to a brisk walk. Rhyla remained level with him but they rode in silence with a good
s
pace between their mounts. It was somewhat of a shock when he finally spoke.

“
This road con
tinues right through to Gayndar.
It
is a major trade route.
”

Rhyla was so startled at the contrast of his casual conversation to her jumbled, almost frantic thoughts that she just looked at him blankly.

He cleared his throat, clearly unsettled by her expression, before continuing,
“
Of course it is a two
week journey just to cross the border. We are only going a fraction of that distance this morning, to a hunting lodge. The gamekeeper should meet us there with an update of the game population. With so much else going on this summer we haven
’
t had time to lead any hunts, but they still provide what the Palace has needed. Once we know the current tally we will hopefully make arrangements to come out for a
week to enjoy the hunt as well, and s
tore up the kitchen
’
s supplies before autumn turns to winter.
”

His long rambling speech did little to quell Rhyla
’
s churning stomach. She dra
nk in the sound of his voice, luxuriating in the casual, relaxed tone that she had known
from her first days in Lestran.
Slowly
she regained her wits.

“
I am looking forward to seeing the hunting reserve. I have never travelled west of Lestran before so everything will be new to me. But how different can one farming region be from another, the crops and herds perhaps differ a little but the overall...
”
Rhyla blushed as she realised she was starting to ramble, not to ment
ion the uncontrollable effect that
meeting his
eyes had on her.
She
didn
’
t fail to notice his edging his gelding closer to her as he started talking again.

“
Then it would be remiss of me not to point out some of the unique features of the landscape and villages through which we shall pass.
”

Riding side by side,
their legs nearly touched.
Callum proceeded with a running commentary of all that they passed. Rhyla was surprised to discover just how much he knew of the numerous farms and villages they passed, their principle produce primarily but unexpected details of many of the farmers themselves. Their private conversation so absorbed them both that they failed to notice the column of men dropping back several paces. For these few hours, they were able to forget themselves, to relax in a simple conversation and enjoy each other
’
s company.

It was passed mid morning when their conversation slowed. Callum looked ahead and po
inted to a heavy forest appearing
only a few miles down the road.

“
That is the hunting reserve,
”
he said casually before turning back to the guardsmen for the first time. He seemed somewhat startled to see the gap that had formed. He slowed a little, and Rhyla with him, to allow the men to catch up.

“
Prince Callum?
”
a
sked the guardsmen lieutenant as he became aware
of
the
slight frown on the Princes
’
face.

“
I was thinking of riding ahead Lieutenant Tomlin, surely you can catch us up at the lodge?
”

“
Yes, Prince Callum,
”
he replied saluting.

“
Good,
”
Callum said uncertainly, a touch a
wkward, but he soon recovered his
composure as he turned to Rhyla with a wicked grin developing as he met her gaze.
“
Now we shall see how good a horsewoman you are.
”

Before she could reply he hee
led his gelding on, launching into a full gallop in a matter of strides. Rhyla was only a second behind as she urged Sunset on. The pretty mare soon caught
the battle trained gelding that
did not take kindly to the unexpected pace of his running companion.
The broad grin so obvious on
Callum
’
s face, Rhyla knew matched her own.

The horses raced along the road to Gayndar, quickly leaving the troop of guardsmen behind. At a wave
from Callum
and
a
hasty indication towards the forest
,
Rhyla searched and soon caught sight of a narrow dirt tract disappearing between the dense foliage. The mounts barely slowed as they turned to dive head long into the forest, Callum only a fraction ahead. The pair thundered down the heavily shrouded lane, laughing as the wind cooled their faces and the rich scent of earth and trees enveloped them.
Following the twists and turns caused them to slow only slightly less than that of their speed along the main road.
Rhyla was caught by surprise as Callum dre
w rein as
the trees broke before them to reveal the open sky above a broad clearing. The dense forest encircled a neat timber structure, simply designed to resemble a farmhouse but easily twice as large as any farm house Rhyla had ever seen. A well stood
by the end of the lodge nearest to them.
Hitching
rails and a water trough
could be seen
off to one side.