Chapter Nine #3
The lad balked when the new mother mare lifted her roan head, turning her ears in their direction.
In response, Dorian pulled an apple from the rucksack and offered it to her.
She took it, and he rubbed her velvety nose, murmuring to her, “Be calm. We’ve just come to admire your beautiful baby. ” She whickered appreciatively.
“We call ’er Maisie,” Freddie said. “She’s the gentlest mare in ta area. She even lets ma baby sista ride ’er, ’n’ she’s only four-years-old.”
The mare stepped to the side and Archie gasped when he saw the tiny foal curled up in the sweet, golden hay.
“Colt or filly?” Dorian asked, continuing to bribe the mare and purposefully keeping his attention away from Archie. If he was going to get his confidence up, then he knew the boy had to be the one to make the first move.
“Filly; born two days ago.”
“She’s rather late,” Dorian remarked; most foals were born earlier in the spring. She was a pretty one, though, roan, like her mother, with a dark mane and tail.
“We didna’ think the pregnancy took at first,” Freddie explained. Dorian listened and watched from the corner of his eye as curiosity slowly began to win out over fear, and Archie took a few hesitant steps forward to see the filly.
She stood on shaky legs, taking several seconds to steady herself. Curious, she wobbled over to them. Taking cues from her mother, she was interested in the new, unfamiliar sights and smells of the visitors. Dorian continued to stroke the mare and watch Archie carefully.
“She’s smaller than Faye,” the boy said more to himself than Dorian. He watched what Dorian did and tentatively reached out to touch the filly’s nose. It sniffed and sneezed, making the boy jump back.
Dorian bit back a grin. “Try again,” he coaxed gently.
“Move slowly. She’s a new baby. She has to learn what and who you are,” he spoke softly, as if to the mare, but addressed Archie.
A few more bats of the filly’s large, expectant eyes, and the boy slowly held out his hand once more.
She held still, snuffling his palm until he giggled, all the tension rapidly draining from his tiny frame.
The filly, her curiosity sated, pulled her head back through the rail, whinnied, and bounced a few times before stumbling to the straw.
Archie let out a laugh, and the mare turned to check on her foal.
“She is a funny little thing, isn’t she?” Dorian asked with a smile. “Not frightening at all?”
The boy shook his head. “She is like a puppy.”
“I suppose you are correct in some ways—a large puppy.” Dorian turned to Freddie, thanked him for his time, and handed him the sack of remaining food and a few coins in gratitude before they took their leave.
“I should like to have a puppy,” Archie said thoughtfully as they headed back toward the castle.
“Would you, now?”
He nodded vigorously.
“A big one like Faye?”
He nodded again.
They walked along and Dorian spoke once more. “That was quite brave of you. It takes great courage to overcome one’s fears.”
“It is silly to be afraid of horses,” the boy mumbled sullenly. “My mother loves them; Father did, too. And you have a great big horse of your own.”
“No fears are silly,” Dorian reassured him. “And it will take time for you to learn to trust horses again. Today was an excellent first step.”
They walked along in thoughtful silence before Archie finally asked, “May I see the foal again?”
Dorian turned to the boy, pleasantly surprised by the request. “If you would like.”
They returned to the castle and encountered Amelia and Clara on a walk of their own. He couldn’t help his grin at Amelia’s second glance when she saw Archie with him.
“And why are you not with your tutor?” Amelia asked her son, a fist propped on one of her hips. She took in his dirty shoes and dusty clothes. “Where on earth have you been?”
The boy looked up at Dorian as if requesting permission to speak.
After receiving a subtle nod, he looked back at his mother.
“We went to the village. I met a foal! She was so sweet and small—smaller than Faye!” As he continued to describe their outing, Amelia’s shock settled into pleasant surprise.
Dorian’s chest tightened when he noticed emotion welling up inside of her and threatening to spill over, held in check only by the way she bit her lower lip.
“I am so pleased you had a nice time,” she finally said, her voice slightly tremulous. “Clara, would you mind bringing him inside to Nanny? Archie needs a good dusting after his adventure.”
Alone, Dorian and Amelia stared at one another for several long seconds heavy with unspoken feelings. Eventually, he offered her his arm and they began to stroll at a leisurely pace.
“However did you convince him to interact with a horse?” she asked, awe still coloring her words.
Dorain began to detail his plan all the way from when he’d recognized the boy’s fear, to how his inquiries in the stables had led him to Angus the groom’s family farm, to how slowly he’d introduced Archie to the harmless foal.
It took him several minutes to realize that she’d begun to cry.
Stopping instantly, Dorian pulled her into the shade of a large tree and held her face in his hands.
He shushed her. “It is alright, love,” he murmured consolingly as he used his thumbs to wipe her cheeks. He found he truly could not abide her tears. “Did I do something to upset you?” She gripped his wrists in her hands and sniffled up at him.
“You did nothing wrong…I am simply so grateful. I do not know why you are being so incredibly kind to him, but I do not really care. I am so pleased that Archie seems to be healing. Thank you.”
Unable to resist, Dorian kissed her lightly. It quickly turned more urgent—a kiss with clicking teeth and hungry sighs. Amelia clung to him as he bore her back against the rough trunk of the tree.
“I need you so badly,” he growled. “I want you so much that it hurts. I might commit murder if we are interrupted again.”
She stared up at him, her heart in her eyes, her plump lips parted and glistening. “Tonight,” she said, almost breathlessly.
“No children?”
She shook her head.
“No dogs?” He cast a sideways glance to where Faye kept her vigilant watch.
“No,” Amelia laughed.
“Thank God,” he said, slumping dramatically. He then proceeded to scoop her up into his arms when she laughed at his antics. “And what, pray tell, is so amusing about my suffering?”
“Set me down before someone sees!” she squealed.
“Let them…”