Chapter 49
***
On the second fitting day of the chemise, which, according to the tailor, was institutionalized, Louise stood in front of her in her undergarments. She had already seen the fabric on the first day, when it showed too much.
Madame Dichen, the tailor, jumped up and down.
"My lady, this underskirt is a no-no, it will make my designs look like nothing. You must throw it away at once."
"But it's too sheer."
Louise frowned, but Dichen did not back down.
"It's a chamber dress, and you're a newlywed, and you should be entertaining His Excellency indoors!"
Pauline sneaked up on Louise and pulled off her undergarments.
The chemise was supposed to reveal a bit of her body under the bright lights, but this time it was too much.
The new ones were slightly different, with ruffles at the bustline, waistbands of different colors of fabric, and frills at the bottom, but they had a terrible commonality.
The curves of her body were visible just by looking down. If she went to a window with some sunlight, they could see the color of her skin and even the location of her moles.
"I’ll catch a cold wearing something like this, even indoors. It's cold in Burg."
Despite Louise's gloomy words, Madame Dichen was confident.
"That's why you must wear furs, My lady. If you catch a cold, you'll be in trouble."
What a waste of money to pay so much for such a thin, useless garment that had to be worn indoors, even during the day.
Louise clicked her tongue as she watched the tailor leave, leaving her with a hollow promise.
***
"I have a little time in the morning, would you like to go horseback riding?" asked Caius, three days into their practice.
Louise's eyes widened in surprise.
"What? I don't know how to ride yet..................."
In fact, she still wobbled on her horse. If she did it wrong, she might make a fool of herself.
"I hear you can do pretty good. Michael wouldn’t say that if you weren’t any good.”
He added sweetly.
"And the worse you ride, the better we can practice together, so today you can practice with me instead of Michael."
It was breakfast time, so there were a lot of eyes on them.
But despite his polite tone, he wasn't asking for permission, as usual.
Louise couldn't help herself, so she nodded.
"Yes, thank you............... for your time."
Caius replied lightly.
"You're welcome."
After they finished eating, they walked down to the garden together.
The coachman had two horses ready and waiting for them, as he had warned her.
Caius watched in silence for a moment as Louise stroked Gloria's nose and scratched her back with delight.
Then Louise led Gloria over to the stepping stones.
It was something she did every day, but she still got nervous every time she sat down. Much less when she was being watched.
Caius waited patiently for her to move her stiff legs and clumsily climb onto the horse, then leaped up onto the black stallion, much larger than Gloria, with a single bound.
"Let's go. If my horse makes the first move, she's more likely to follow."
Louise didn't want Gloria to make a sudden move, either, so she tightened the reins as she'd been taught.
"Gloria, let's go."
Her voice was low from nervousness.
Gloria, the purebred, didn't move, as if Louise hadn’t been able to control her. When Michael had been watching from the sidelines, the horse had listened.
"Gloria."
Louise raised her voice in frustration.
"Let's go."
Gloria, in all her many facets, barely started walking. The man beside her followed without a word.
She was inwardly surprised when he took the lead and passed through the front gate; she had only trained with Michael in circles around the garden.
"You look like you feel well today," Caius said nonchalantly.
"If you're feeling better, let's go as far as the Drow River."
"What? I've been practicing all this time and never left the mansion......."
He smirked at Louise's answer.
"If you go down the slope up ahead, it's flat all the way to the river, and you don't think Gloria can't walk down a slope you can walk down?”
Of course Gloria would go down. Louise was just afraid she'd fall.
Caius felt Louise's disapproving eyes on him and laughed.
"If you're really scared, tell me, and I'll give you a ride."
So far, Michael had never been on a horse while she was learning to ride; he had always walked right beside Louise, just in case.
But the man who guarded Miriam whenever she went out with her had left Michael, who always followed her like a shadow, at the manor.
That meant Louise had only Caius to lean on.
"You must go slowly."
Louise replied, trying to hide her fright. Judging by the way the corners of his mouth kept turning up, he wasn't doing a very good job of hiding it.
It was a huge challenge for Louise, who was used to walking around the garden every day, but she eventually reached the river.
The sun shone down on the aspen trees. The light blue sky was cloudless.
Winter birds chirped high above their heads. The sound of the shallow water gurgling made Louise feel a little better about the long ride.
Caius asked her if she'd given away her feelings.
"Shall we pick up the pace a little?"
Louise shook her head. She wanted to fall off the horse rather than speed up.
"Your Highness, my legs already hurt."
Then he suggested good-naturedly.
"I'll tell you what, do you see that big tree over there?"
Her sparkling emerald gaze followed the man's fingertips, and sure enough, a large tree stood prominently in the distance.
"There, let's run like you’ve been taught, light breaking."
Her thighs tightened and her bottom clenched at the mere thought. When Louise sighed, he added sweetly.
"Then I'll give you a ride on my horse on the way back."
She'd been so frightened on the way down from the mansion, not having to climb the hill was a tempting offer.
"Even if I'm not good..................?"
Louise asked, and Caius laughed in disbelief.
"Since when have you been so brazen as to ask for compensation for not doing well?"
But the man quickly nodded.
"Fine," he said, "it would do me no good to make things too difficult for you."
Louise pushed down hard on her heels in the stirrups and slid to her feet. Caius advised.
"It's common for people to lean forward, but it's not good. It'll make your back hurt more, and it'll shift your center of gravity, increasing your risk of falling."
A quick warm-up was all it took to improve your posture. Louise took a deep breath, straightened her posture, and spoke quickly.
"Gloria, let's go."
The tree in the distance remained standing, but for some reason it was no closer.
***
"Hmph, hmph................"
Louise eased back in the saddle until they reached the promised tree.
The man who had kept pace asked in a chuckling voice.
"Are you okay, are you tired?"
Louise looked back at him wearily, and his golden eyes met hers. In the bright morning light, the pair of pupils glowed like the final work of a great master craftsman.
Suddenly, a gust of wind rustled the leaves. A shadow fell over his once radiant face, darkening his fine, smooth forehead, dimming his jewel-like eyes, and plunging the once clear outline of his face into darkness.
But Louise could see.
The raw sensitivity in his dark brows, the hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth, the determination in his smooth cheeks.
Even as the light faded, she was dazzled by all of it. Because of the man in front of her.
Louise blinked dazedly.
Caius dismounted from his horse. He stepped out into the light once more, revealing each of his exquisite features. Beautiful, dazzling form.
"Louise, are you having a hard time? Do you need help getting down?"
***
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