Why should she care or even notice that the other men seemed to like him and respect his authority over them, even though he was younger than most of the soldiers? Or that he looked handsome riding on his big blond war horse? Or that even though he was strong and tall and commanding, there was something gentle and vulnerable in his eyes?
She shouldn’t. And she wouldn’t.
Elyce just wanted to get to Württemberg and save her people. She would cease to think of Sir Gerard. If he did not want her, she certainly did not want him.
At the beginning of this journey, Elyce had enjoyed the mountains and the different views, even though it was winter and many trees were bare. Even the bare trees looked interesting and beautiful, stretching their branches like bony fingers high into the sky. She rarely left the familiar confines of Montciel Castle, after all. But now everything looked the same and she was just ready for this journey to be over.
“Are you well?” Ysa was staring at her from atop her own horse.
“Yes, I am well.” She forced a smile. But the fake smile made tears spring into her eyes.
She could not allow anyone here to see her cry, so she took deep breaths until the tears went away.
* * *
Gerard noticed Princess Elyce’s horse looking lethargic and moving slowly. When they stopped to rest, the horse lay down immediately.
Princess Elyce knelt beside the horse’s head and was stroking him and speaking softly to him. No one else seemed to notice, so Gerard walked over to her.
“Your horse looks sick.” He knelt beside her.
She turned worried eyes toward him. “Do you know what to do for him?”
Gerard shook his head. “Probably best to take one of the extra horses.”
“You won’t just leave him here, will you? He might die.”
“If he can walk, we will take him with us, but if he can’t get up . . . we might have to leave him.”
Suddenly her eyes were swimming with tears. She ducked her head so he couldn’t see her face.
What should he say? He couldn’t help but admire a heart that would cry over a horse, especially a horse that was not her own, only one she had ridden for a few days. He felt helpless to stop her tears, but if he could fix the problem . . .
“I’ll see if I can find someone who might know what to do for him.”
He got up and heard her say, “Thank you,” as he hurried away.
He asked around until one of the men pointed to a skinny young soldier who was constantly chewing on a straw and said, “He knows how to treat a sick horse.”
Gerard strode quickly to him and told him about the princess’s horse.
“I brought along some remedies that might help, depending on what’s wrong.” The young man clenched the straw between his teeth and pulled a pouch from his saddlebag. Then he followed Gerard to where the princess was stroking the horse’s neck. “What seems to be the trouble?”
“He was tired for the last hour or so, and when we stopped and I dismounted, he immediately lay down.”
The young man was already feeling the horse’s stomach, pressing here and there. Then he opened the horse’s mouth and looked inside.
“I think it might be a simple case of colic. He’s not eating his usual food and his insides don’t like it.” He reached into his bag and brought out a handful of something that looked like small green leaves mixed with hay. He held it up to the horse’s mouth. At first the animal just snorted at it, but as Princess Elyce coaxed him, talking soothingly, the horse began to take it from her hand.
When the horse had eaten it all, the young man poured water from his own water flask into the horse’s mouth.
“Will he be all right?”
“We will just have to wait and see.”
Gerard wished she would look at him the way she was looking at the horse, her eyes liquid and intense, her lips soft and parted.
Was he really jealous of a horse?
The man who had shared his remedy walked away. Princess Elyce looked up at Gerard.
“Thank you for your help. What happens now?”
“Well, if the horse is well enough to go on with us, we’ll take him, but you will need to get a new horse to ride either way.”
She chewed her lip.
“Don’t worry.”
Ysa came walking up to her just then and they began to talk, so Gerard went to get the princess a new horse.
There were only two spare mounts, and neither of them was particularly agreeable or gentle. He could not allow the princess to be thrown from her horse.
Gerard brought her his horse. “He is obedient and easy to manage.”
“But this is yours,” she said.
“I will take one of the extra horses. You must stay safe, and this is the safest horse.”
“Thank you. That is very kind of you.” She took the reins and let the horse smell her hand before she rubbed his cheek.
With three dozen men in addition to himself and Sir Oswalt and Ysabeau, someone was always nearby on this journey, but as he glanced around, he realized they were alone for the first time since they’d explored the castle garden. But she was not looking at him.
She probably realized he’d been avoiding her. Did she know it was because of his attraction to her? She must know how beautiful she was, with her sweet smile and kind eyes and humble ways. Whoever heard of a humble princess? His first impression of her had been just the opposite, but now he knew differently.
Somehow she was even more beautiful today, with wisps of hair loose and tangled next to her cheeks, than she had been with her hair perfectly neat and tidy, half covered by pearls and a veil, especially while she had that look of care and concern over her horse. Even now, from the strange look about her mouth and chin, he was fairly sure that she was near tears.
“Are you all right, Princess Elyce? I’m sure this journey has been difficult.”
She raised her hand and took a quick swipe at her cheek.
His heart ached to see her cry. Was she angry that he had been ignoring her? A sharper pain went through his chest. He had not been a good friend to her.
“I’m sorry,” she said, wiping furiously now, her voice watery. “No one wants to see a princess crying.”
“There is nothing wrong with crying honest tears.”
She still was not looking at him, but her movements slowed and she asked, “Honest tears?”
“Tears that show honest emotion. No one should be shamed for showing honest emotion. Do you not think so?”
“Yes. I do.” She smiled up at him, though her eyelashes were still wet, and her lips were a lovely pink.
One tear, alone and forgotten, winked at him from her jawline. He lifted his hand and brushed it away with his thumb, then let his fingers linger on her soft cheek.
Her gaze went to his lips as her eyelids closed.
I know I shouldn’t. But she wanted him to kiss her. And if he did, he’d be pleasing himself as well as her.
He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.
She put her arms around him and he pulled her closer, so close he had to angle his head to reach her lips. So soft. So sweet. Kissing her was heaven, and she pressed her hands against his ribs as if she were holding on to keep from falling.
“Princess Elyce!”
He groaned as they pulled away from each other. Princess Elyce ducked her head but kept one hand on his side.