The Prince's Choice ✔

Chapter Thirty Six • A visitor

-Jade-

William helped her off of Dimma when she had returned to him in the middle of the field. She was even sorer now than she was yesterday but she was too excited to care.

"That was so... exciting!" Jade breathed with her heart still beating from the exhilaration that Dimma had caused. William smiled widely and grabbed the reins in his right hand while his left hand's thumb stroked her cheekbone gently.

"You looked like you were having fun." He said friendly and then looked at Dimma. "He did as well..."

"I think he was just glad that he got to do something else than walk..." Jade laughed shortly. William shrugged his shoulders.

"Probably, but he wouldn't have let you ride him like that if he didn't like you." William stated and tugged playfully at Dimma's reins. The horse snorted at him. "Don't lie." William scolded the horse in a chuckle. "I know you loved it."

Jade covered her mouth to keep herself from laughing at them. William turned to look at her and raised his eyebrows questioning. It was so sweet how he acted with Dimma.

"What?"

"Nothing..." She giggled. William locked eyes with her and gave her a demanding look. "It's nothing, I just find it very endearing."

"Find what endearing?" He asked, frowning suspiciously but amused as well.

"The way you act around him... and how you talk to him." She said with a lower voice. She placed her left hand on Dimma's body and stroked his black hide. "It shows that the two of you have a tight bond." She added.

"That's enough out of you." He said quietly and smiled faintly. Did I say something wrong? Jade wondered unsure and watched as William started to check if the saddle was fastened properly.

It felt like he was avoiding her right now. Did I come to close to him? She thought as she watched while his fingers kept checking the saddle.

"Are you ready to go back?" He asked and reached his hand out to her. She took it and let him help her up in the saddle without a word.

William gave Dimma a piece of an apple before he got up in the saddle himself.

-William-

Jade suddenly became quiet after he had teased her. It had felt like she almost read him and Dimma like an open book. It scared him a little how she could see right through him or how well she read him.

When he was seated in the saddle Jade put her arms around him and he felt it in every part of his body. He did not want to go back but Jade's lip had turned a bit blue from the cold and he was not going to let Liz scold him in front of Jade again.

"Are you cold?" he asked while turning his head towards her a bit.

"A little." Jade answered honestly and squirmed a bit. William nodded and told her to pull her hood up while they rode back to the castle. He would have offered her his gloves but she had her own...

Dimma had not run out of energy even though Jade had done a very good job trying. Dimma speeded back to the castle like he had just gotten out of the stables. William could feel Jade's grip around him tighten and he could hear her laugh faintly every time he spurred Dimma to run faster. It felt amazing and if he could he would have kept doing this until Dimma couldn't run anymore.

. . .

Once again when they arrived to the courtyard Thomas met them. He had an annoyed and bitter look on his face when he realized that William had left the castle with Jade, again. Thomas always took William's mother's side and that meant that Thomas also did not approve of his prince's choice in Jade. Which was why his frown became even more bitter when he noticed Jade.