Page 64 of My Queendom for a Horse

“Actually.” Sean pulls something out of his pocket. “We have seen one another a lot lately, but it seems like something’s always getting in the way.” He extends his hand, holding out an envelope. “I talked to your dad and to John. They said they can haul the horses.” The look on his face is almost sly.

I take the papers, staring at them in confusion. “Haul the horses?” I’m not following.

“Fly out early and spend Christmas with me. Kempton Park is close to my estate, as you know, and—”

My brain goes blank. He’s asking me to come home with him. In the eighteen months we dated, he never once took me home. I was the girl he was mildly embarrassed to be dating. The Latvian girl. The horse-obsessed breeder who raced her own horses.

Jockeys don’t fraternize with owners.

They certainly don’t fraternize with British nobility.

Especially the ones who own banks.

I’ve always known that, but now it feels like something has changed.

“Dad got sick,” Sean reminds me. “It shouldn’t have taken something like that for them to realize their priorities were wrong, but they want to meet you now. Truly.”

His parents.

They want to meet me.

I’d be welcome at his fabulous estate as a guest. Or, that’s what he’s saying. In my wildest dreams, I never imagined this day would come, but here we are.

“Kristiana.” Sean steps closer and reaches for my hand with his right, gently lifting my chin with his left. “You are what I want—you’ve always been what I want.” His head drops toward mine.

In all the time we’ve spent together since he came back into my life, somehow we still haven’t kissed. How have we not kissed?

At first, things kept interfering, but then as it went longer and longer, it felt like the kiss had to be epic. Like, throw all the papers and the lamp off a desk, hurl me on top of it, and kiss the life out of me.

Or put on fabulous dresses, attend a ball, and dip me for all to see. Then plant one on me.

But in this moment, I realize that a kiss isn’t about the perfect moment. It’s about the perfect person. The one who makes your heart flutter. The one who will keep you safe no matter what. Sean’s head lowers slowly toward mine.

Until Obsidian snorts and shoves him sideways.

Sean falls face first into the dirt. He flies back to his feet, eyes flashing, fists clenched. “I’m going to kill that horse.”

“He’s a horse, Sean.”

“I hate him, Kris. I really, really hate him.”

Obsidian, always as obnoxious as possible, leans toward me and starts to nuzzle my jaw. Then my neck. I shove him off. “Knock it off already.”

Sean looks ready to pull out a revolver and challenge Obsidian Devil to a duel at dawn. But the never-ridiculous Sean brushes off his impeccably tailored clothing and straightens. “So, how about it? Ditch the horses with the guys and come with me.”

Before I can even say a word, Obsidian grabs the tickets out of my hands and starts chewing. I yank them back, but they’re already slobbery and mangled.

“I can’t go with you.” I want to go, but I can’t even imagine my dad and John trying to handle Obsidian. “I wish I could, honestly I do. But after the King George, we can sell Obsidian and then—”

“I have a buyer, you know. It’s Robbie Stanford, whose family owns Dover Stables. His favorite stallion just died. He’s looking for a new sire for their chase horses, and he’s willing to pay quite well. He offered us a quarter of a million for High Flyer last month, but I know his budget is all the way up to three hundred thousand pounds.”

That’s. . .I can’t believe he waited to tell me this kind of news. I figured he’d be pressuring me.

“He actually asked me about Obsidian Devil himself. I told him you’ve made great strides in the behavior department, which clearly isn’t strictly true, but. . .”

After all his stupid fits, I’m honestly tempted to tell him I’ll think about it. Obsidian could use a little fear. But it’s someone’s life—it’s not some kind of game. “I can’t sell him, Sean, not yet anyway.”

“You’ve signed up for the King George, I know. But think about this. If you manage to defeat Five there, while riding this monster, it’ll keep Five’s handicap lower.”

---