His Wicked Heart (19 page)

“Don’t be frightened,” Louisa said. “Jasper
will help you up, dear.”

He went to stand at Tulip’s nose. “Come, Miss
West. Tulip’s as gentle as the day is warm.”

Olivia walked up beside him and looked into
her horse’s eyes. The animal blinked, but her regard was
steady.

“You ought to greet to her.”

Olivia started. “Oh.” What on earth did one
stay to a horse? “Uh, good morning, Tulip?” She looked at Jasper
who nodded encouragingly. He didn’t seem the sort who would talk to
his animals. “Do you converse with your horse?”

“I do. I believe it fosters a close, trusting
relationship between man and beast. Or in your case, woman and
beast.” He said the latter with a sparkle in his eye. Was he
flirting?

Olivia was glad to see this side of Jasper
again. She turned back to Tulip. “Pleased to meet you. I’m sure
we’ll get on quite well together. I
hope
we’ll get on quite
well together.” She smiled at the horse, who nodded her head as if
she agreed with Olivia’s sentiments.

“Jasper, Tilda has missed me,” Louisa said.
“Do you mind if I go along with one of the grooms?”

And leave her alone with Jasper so he could
interrogate her again? No, thank you. “I’m still nervous,
Louisa.”

“You’ll be much better off with Jasper than
with me, dear.”

Jasper gestured to one of the grooms. “Go
ahead, Aunt. I’m certain Miss West will prefer to take things
slow.” He turned to Olivia. “You don’t want to deprive Louisa of an
invigorating ride, do you?”

Now she had no choice but to be alone with
him. “Of course not.”

After a jaunty wave, Louisa and her horse
took off up the hill, followed by one of the grooms. Deciding to
put all of their arguments and her shameful attempt at trickery out
of her mind, at least for today, she asked, “Is that cantering or
trotting?”

“Cantering. Would you like to try it?”

Olivia was relieved he seemed to want a
pleasant interaction, too. His kind demeanor, however, didn’t
alleviate her fear of cantering. “No. I mean, not today. I’ll be
satisfied if I can manage to sit on the horse.”

He smiled and it seemed genuine.
Careful,
Olivia
.

“Sitting’s the easy part. Are you ready to
give it a go?”

She nodded, thankful for this easy
conversation. He guided her to Tulip’s side. “We could use a
mounting block, but I’ll help you this first time.” His hands
clasped her waist, the contact jolting her even through the layers
of her costume. She made herself focus on the saddle in front of
her.

“I’m to sit on this sideways, like
Louisa?”

His breath tickled her ear and she startled.
“Yes. I’m going to lift you up. Your right leg will go around that
pommel.” He pointed at a round protrusion at the front of the
saddle. “And your left foot will go in this stirrup here.” He
indicated a loop hanging down the side of the horse.

She looked back at him. A mistake. He was so
close. His jaw was freshly shaven and smelled of evergreen. His
eyes reflected the sky and his expression hovered near cheerful.
The bruise beneath his eye had faded. She wanted to ask him why he
was being amenable today. But the morning was so lovely and his
concern so divine, she couldn’t bring herself to shadow the moment
with such talk.

“Ready?”

She nodded. He put his hand under her behind
and boosted her. She was not prepared for such an intimate touch,
but up she went until she sat on the saddle. Her cheeks were
probably scarlet, but she stayed facing forward and hoped he didn’t
notice.

“Now position your right thigh on the saddle
in front of you and bend your knee around the pommel.”

She did as he instructed.

“That’s right. Don’t lean forward even if it
feels like you should. Try to position all of your weight on your
thigh.” He laid his hand there briefly, eliciting another jolt of
awareness.

Seemingly unaffected, he picked up the reins
and handed them to her. “These are the reins. Don’t be afraid to
use them to steer. It will be difficult for you to hurt her. I tell
you this because every horse is a bit different. Tulip is very
responsive, so you won’t have to work too hard. Finally, this is
the lead rope. I’m going to give it to the groom who will walk with
you.” He wasn’t going to walk with her?

She gripped the reins. “What are you going to
do?”

“Ride my horse beside you.” His gaze flicked
to her hands. “Don’t hold them too tightly.”

She loosened her grasp. “This is a lot to
remember.”

“No more than memorizing a script full of
lines, I imagine.” He winked at her and she was again bewildered.
Was he actually joking about her being an actress? As if it wasn’t
a key point of conflict between them?

He handed the lead rope to a groom, but
thankfully not Carter. Olivia doubted the ancient man could walk
around the house, let alone control a horse if it decided to run
off.

Jasper swung himself up onto his horse, a
much larger animal than Tulip. A long scar marred the flank.

“What do you call your horse?” she asked.

“Malheur.”

“Isn’t that French?” Olivia had learned a
little at the vicarage, but had forgotten most of it.

“Yes, it means miserable.”

What an odd name. “Is there a reason you call
him that?”

He stroked the back of his horse’s head.
“When I bought him he’d been mistreated.”

Her gaze strayed to the mark on the horse.
“You rescued him then?”

He shrugged, as if saving a mistreated animal
was a regular occurrence. But then maybe for him it was. “I
recognized a superior animal and knew I could train him into a good
horse.”

She refused to let him pretend it wasn’t a
good deed. “You rescued him.”

“What does it matter?”

“It makes you noble.” She wondered at his
penchant for rescuing things. Had he been mistreated? Suddenly the
tension between him and his father took on new meaning.

He gave her one of his patented looks that
revealed nothing. He lifted Malheur’s reins and said, “Walk.” The
horse moved.

Olivia took a deep breath. “Walk.” She
mimicked what he’d done and grinned when Tulip lurched forward.

He returned her smile. Her heart tripped
again. She diverted her attention to Tulip. Her pride couldn’t
afford to be seduced by him.

After several minutes during which they rode
in complete silence, Olivia braved conversation once more. “Louisa
says you’re the finest horseman she knows. How old were you when
you rode your first horse?”

“Four. And he was a pony.”

“So young?”

“My father insisted on an early start.
Dibbles was quite small, perfectly suitable for a child.”

She laughed. “Dibbles? That’s a far cry from
Malheur.”

His eyes crinkled at the corners, though he
didn’t laugh with her. “I’ve no idea who named the unfortunate
creature. He was rather old. I only had him for a year. Then I got
a new pony.”

“How many ponies did you have?”

He shrugged. “Maybe half a dozen. My father
has extensive stables. Here alone he keeps two dozen animals.”

“And you ride all of them?”

“No. Some are coaching horses. He doesn’t
breed here, however. That he does at our family seat in
Middlesex.”

Scores of horses. His wealth was
staggering.

“Dare I ask how many homes your family
owns?”

“There are eight entailed, and another two
are unentailed, one of them through my mother. Oh, and my sister
inherited one from our mother’s mother.”

Ten—eleven—houses! Until she’d gone to live
with Louisa, Olivia had never lived in a house with ten
rooms
.

“Have you changed your mind about cantering?”
he asked.

Olivia was just becoming used to the motion
of walking. “I don’t think so. Maybe next time.”

“Do you mind if I ride around the drive?”

“Not at all. I’m sure I could benefit from
watching your technique.”

He said something to Malheur and shook the
reins. They took off quickly, the dirt kicking up beneath the
horse’s hooves.

After a few moments during which she admired
Jasper’s skill, Louisa rode up beside her, slowing Tilda to a walk.
“You’re doing very well, dear! I knew Jasper would set you
right.”

Olivia watched him ride. She knew next to
nothing about horses or riding but it was obvious he was
exceptional. “He told me he saved that horse.”

“Malheur?” Louisa nodded. “Yes, that was, my
goodness, almost ten years ago now. Merry was with Jasper when they
went to see the poor thing. Holborn was furious when Jasper bought
him. Thought the animal was a waste of time. It took Jasper two
years, but he finally rode that horse. Now look at them.” Her voice
rose with pride.

Olivia barely knew the duke but was
predisposed to dislike him intensely. He seemed less like a parent
and more of an autocrat, whereas Merry sounded as if he’d been the
best sort. Her heart squeezed at the thought.

After a few minutes, Jasper rode back to
them. His cheeks were flushed with exertion, his lips parted as he
regained his breath. Every line had been wiped from his face. He
looked relaxed…free. She’d never seen him like that.

“You were splendid.” Louisa beamed at him.
“How did Olivia do?”

Jasper flicked Olivia an appreciative glance.
“Very well, but she didn’t want to go above a walk.”

Louisa managed Tilda’s reins as the horse
danced two steps to the side. “Is that true Olivia? You must take
advantage of Jasper’s excellent tutelage. After lunch, you should
allow Tulip a short jaunt.”

After lunch? She hadn’t yet dismounted, and
they were already planning her next ride.

They walked their horses back to the stable
yard. Olivia was more than content to allow the groom to continue
to lead Tulip.

“Yes, after lunch, and after you show Jasper
the designs you sketched for his waistcoat.”

Jasper looked at Olivia in question. “I
thought you’d perhaps forgotten.”

She slid Louisa an arch glance. “As if Louisa
would let me.” She grinned so they would know she was jesting. “If
it’s convenient, you can choose the design you prefer.”

“I should be delighted.” His gaze lingered on
her and seemed to smolder.

Olivia swallowed, hoping to encourage
moisture into her suddenly dry mouth.

“Ow!”

Both Olivia and Jasper turned at Louisa’s
exclamation in time to see her slide off the mounting block. She
hobbled a bit before half-sitting/half-falling down on the large
square of wood.

Jasper quickly dismounted and rushed to her.
“Are you all right?”

“I’ve turned my ankle.” She reached down and
wrapped her hand around her boot. “Give me a moment, and I can
probably put my weight back on it.”

“Nonsense.” Jasper was already scooping her
into his arms. “I’ll carry you inside.”

“Oh!” Louisa laughed. “You take such good
care of me.”

Olivia wasn’t sure if Jasper would come back
out for her or not. She looked down at the groom who still held the
lead rope. “Shall I try the block then?”

“As you wish, miss. I should be pleased to
assist you.”

Guiding Tulip to the block proved easy
enough, but navigating her skirts from the saddle and dismounting
required the groom’s assistance. Olivia thanked the groom before
making her way to the house. Jasper met her at the door.

“Is Louisa all right?” Olivia hoped she
hadn’t broken her ankle.

“Quite. There’s no pain if she doesn’t put
weight on it. Hence, she’s reclining in the library. I’ve asked the
staff to reorganize luncheon in there so we may dine together.”

Extremely thoughtful
.

“It will take them a few minutes. In the
meantime, I thought you might enjoy a tour.” He opened the door
wide, beckoning her inside.

Olivia hesitated. He’d lulled her into a
sense of security, but was it honest? Or did he have ulterior
motives now that he had her alone?

“A few of Merry’s paintings are hanging in
the gallery.”

The temptation was too alluring to resist. He
knew just how to woo her—at least in this.

“Yes, thank you.” She took his proffered arm,
hoping she hadn’t just agreed to accompany the lion into his
den.

JASPER’S BODY tightened with lust. Such a
simple touch, but then her proximity was enough to drive him to the
edge. He immediately regretted his invitation for a tour.

She shot him a quick glance. It was brief,
but contained the same emotions she’d reflected all morning.
Anxiety. Uncertainty. Awareness. He didn’t trust her—had just
dispatched a man to Newton Abbott in Devon yesterday in fact—but he
meant to tell her that her secrets would be safe with him. Provided
she told him the truth.

A footman held the door for them as they
entered the house. Olivia swept the tall black riding hat from her
head and gave it to the liveried retainer.