Bridget flashed him a wry smile.
“It is only so I don’t go in the same direction, Lady Bridget,” Nicholas claimed. “I would not want to disturb you on your morning ride. Unless you would prefer the company? We could talk together about the wedding.”
“I appreciate the sentiment, but no, thank you, Your Grace,” Bridget replied. She walked off toward the stables. But before she got there, she turned around and called out, “I am riding east toward the river and estuary.”
Nicholas watched her enter the stables. He could not tell if she told him where she was going so he could avoid that spot or if she really wanted him to follow.
The wedding preparations were all fine and well, and he was glad to see his younger brother so happy, but he was thoroughly bored. There was little to do in town, and there were only so many times he could go for a swim. They were a couple of days in, and he was aching for entertainment.
When Bridget emerged on her horse, he knew he had to follow her. He knew she was a challenge, and he had never been one to shy away from a challenge, but it was not only that. It was seeing her on her horse again.
She was magnificent. An Amazonian warrior about to ride into battle. The Duke wanted to get to know her better, and because she resisted his charms, he needed to break through her defenses to discover the woman she really was. Perhaps he would have a word with her father and ensure he left the estate. That might endear him to her. Or, she might be frustrated that he was trying to solve her problems.
Bridget seemed like the type of woman who liked to be independent.
She glanced at him before she rode out. The Duke watched her ride toward the edge of the estate, and when she had almost left the grounds, he rode after her.
He pushed his horse close to its top speed as she switched to a gallop at the edge of the estate. He hung back for a while, watching her.
She moved in one fluid motion, her back arching as she bobbed up and down on the horse. She leaned forward more, and the Duke became impressed by her riding skills. He did not know a woman who was her equal on a horse, and when he thought out it, he knew few men who could ride as well as Bridget. She continued to impress and intrigue him.
He rode a little behind her for a while before closing in. She wore a riding cap on her head, and there was something magical about the way her golden hair fluttered in the breeze behind her. Back at the estate, she had been shackled by the wedding and her father, but out on her horse, she was free.
Nicholas felt guilty for following her. He enjoyed their rivalry, and it brought some fun to an otherwise all-too-pleasant stay on the coast, but when he looked at how her body moved, he saw the freedom and relief she gained.
I should not push my luck with her. She needs this time to better deal with what she will face when she returns to the estate.
He was about to turn his horse around when Bridget looked over her shoulder and spotted him. She immediately pulled on the reins and slowed her horse, turning the beast to face him. He could not back off now, and he slowed his horse and brought it to a stop before hers.
The horses snorted at each other and nodded their heads.
“You are following me,” Bridget stated.
“Oh, was this the way to the river and estuary?” the Duke asked innocently.
“You know full well it was,” Bridget said, her chest rising and falling gently as she caught her breath.
“I wondered if it were you or some other rider, but now that I see it is you, I shall turn around and go the other way.”
“Why do you keep approaching me?” Bridget asked.
“Whatever do you mean?”
“I’ve seen the way you look at me. You have been with many women, and I will not be one of them. I shall not fall into bed with you because you are handsome and a duke. That is not who I am. I am not a challenge to be accomplished.”
“I do not see you as one,” the Duke assured her. “Not in that way. I must admit that you have a certain charm, and it draws me in. When I say I want to get to know you better, I mean exactly that. I want to understand what makes you tick.”
“You think pestering me enough will get you that?” Bridget asked.
“I have not meant to pester you, even if it has been fun to tease you a little. Perhaps I do see you as a challenge, but only because you put up so many walls. When I find something I want, I don’t easily back down, and I want to know who you truly are, Lady Bridget.”
The Duke could not be sure, but he was certain Bridget’s already pink cheeks darkened a little. He had caught her attention, and that was the first step to knowing this beguiling woman.
“You are certainly entertaining,” Bridget told him.
Nicholas was unsure if it was a compliment or not.
“Now, I must continue my ride,” Bridget said.
