The Secret of Two

Chapter 5

I decided to go take a ride with one of the royal horses. The sun came up over the horizon when I entered the stables. The Royal Mews surrounded a square where the horses could be harnessed to the carriages on the right. The horses were housed on the left so I headed in that direction.

Some of them were still asleep and some were already chewing on the remaining bits of last night's hay. The horses they used for the carriages were the white ones, which meant I could take any other horse.

The stables were like a second home to me. I spent a lot of time there during my training. I searched for a stableman but it seemed I was the first one here. I walked to every horse and gave them a gentle pat on their nose.

A brown mare tossed her head and seemed restless despite the early hour. I reached her and she looked at me with eager black eyes telling me she wanted to get out of her stall. I took the bridle and led her out, tied her on a nearby hook, and continued looking around for the tack room. Finally, a man came out of a stall, leading a black horse and I called for him.

He looked up and I recognized his greyish blue eyes and his brown hair as Liam's. "Do you know where the saddles are?" I asked him.

"Great minds think alike, don't they?" He gave a pat on his horse's neck and attached its bridle on the hook next to mine.

"Just tell me where they are so I can leave."

"Not up for jokes today? I guess we're here for the same reason, we could go for a ride together."

I tried to maintain an annoyed gaze at him but he just knew how to cheer people up. "If you mean horseback riding, sure."

He smirked at me and walked to the right side of the stables, to a room next to the carriages. He knew we understood each other without words and I saw even more why he caught my brother's attention. We saddled up our horses just as the first maids and cooks woke up to prepare breakfast.

We galloped through the lands surrounding the royal palace. The only sounds around were the chirping birds and our horses's hooves beating the ground in rythm and I forced my thoughts on the road straight ahead instead of the road to my future married life. We returned to the stables after what had felt like hours and minutes at the same time.

I had no idea what hour it was, the only indication of time being my gurgling stomach. Some stablemen were giving hay to the horses. Others approached us to take care of our now exhausted mounts. Walking back towards the PODS to bring us back to our separate homes, Liam stopped me. "Did you need to get your thoughts out of your head? Coming here is one of the ways I can get my mind straight."

I turned my head to the stables, "It's nothing really, I just like the horses and it reminds me of the home I have across the ocean when I used to go out for days with my siblings or my friends." I looked back at him.

He shot me a shadowy glance. No one would go this early to the stables except the two of us. "I don't believe you but just remember this: I'm one of the friends you have here, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm your man."

I gave him a friendly slap on his shoulder. "Right. I won't forget it since I think I'll need one in the next week," and I left him to go wash off the sweat and horse smell that clung to me.

                                                              *          *          *

    I came back to my room and Andrea was already there, doing my bed. When she heard me enter, she stopped to face me and curtsy deeply for me. I told her to stop that and she did stop. Until now.

    "Princess Naomi." My body froze halfway through the door.

    "You have to be joking, stop that! I assume the news is already out then."