| You've never seen such a big horse in
your
lifeI had to, but I don't know why Colum put a steadying hand on
her armHer laughter was ragged and her eyes were bright with pain
at will go out," said the little voIce"No, sweetheart, not today Scarlett felt a terrifying vulnerabilityHow
could she have been so reckless? How could she have ignored the
danger
to Cat? Dunsany was not that far away, not nearly far enough to be
sure that people wouldn't know about The O 'Hara and her darkskinned
childShe kept Cat with her day and night, upstairs in their two
rooms while she looked worriedly out the window above the drive
Fitz was her go-between for the things that had to be done, and done
faster than fastThe dressmaker raced back and forth for fittings of
Scarlett's riding habit, the cobbler worked like a leprechaun far into
the night on her boots, the stableman labored with rags and oil over
the cracked and dry sidesaddle that had been left in the tack room
thirty years before Scarlett arrived, and one of the boys from the
hiring fair who had quiet hands and an easy seat exercised the
powerful
big bay hunterWhen Saturday dawned, Scarlett was as ready as
she'd
ever beHer horse was a bay gelding named Half MoonHe was, as
she'd told Colum, very big, nearly seventeen hands, with a deep chest
and long back louis vuitton speedy bag on sale and powerfully muscled thighsHe was a horse for a
big
man; Scarlett looked tiny and fragile and very feminine on himShe
was afraid she looked ridiculousAnd she was quite certain that she'd
make a fool of herselfShe didn't know Half Moon's temperament or
peculiarities, and there was no chance to get to know them because
she
was riding sidesaddle, as all ladies did
When she was a girl, Scarlett had loved riding sidesaddleIt produced
a graceful fall of skirts that emphasized her tiny waist
Also, in those days she seldom went faster than a walk, the better to
flirt with men riding alongsideBut now the sidesaddle was a serious
handicapShe couldn't communicate with the horse through pressure
of
her knees because one knee was hooked around the sidesaddle's
pommel,
the other one rigid because only by pressing on the one stirrup could a
lady counterbalance her unbalanced positionI'll probably fall off
before I even get to Dunsany, she thought with despair, and I'll
certainly break my neck if I get as far as the first fenceShe knew
from her father that jumping fences and ditches and hedges and stiles
and walls was the thrilling part of huntingColum had made things no
better when he told her that ladies frequently avoided active hunting
altogether
The breakfast was the social part and riding clothes were rolex datejust oyster very
becomingSerious accidents were much more likely when riding
sidesaddle and no one blamed the ladies for being sensibleRhett
would be glad to see her cowardly and weak, she was convincedAnd
she'd much prefer to break her neck than to give him that
satisfaction
Scarlett touched her crop to Half Moon's neck"Let's try a trot and
see if I can balance on this stupid saddle," she sighed aloudColum
had described a fox hunt to Scarlett, but she wasn't prepared for the
first impact of itMorland Hall was an amalgamation of building over
more than two centuries, with wings and chimneys and windows and
walls
attached higgledy-piggledy to one another around the stone-walled
courtyard that had been the keep of the fortified castle erected by the
first Morland baronet in 1615T? square courtyard was filled with
mounted riders and excited houndsScarlett forgot her apprehensions
at the sight
Colum had omitted mention that the men wore "pinks," misnamed
bright
red jac1 She had never seen anything so glamorous in her life
O'Hara!" Sir John Morland rode over to her, his gleamii top hat in
his handI didn't believe you'd come Scarlett'seyes
narrowed"Did Rhett say that?"
"On the contrary
He said wild horses wouldn't keep you away There was no guile in
Morland"How do you like Half Moon?" The Baronet stroked the chanel j12 watches big
hunter's sleek neck"What a beauty he"
"Um? Yes, ? isn't he?" said
ScarlettHer eyes were moving quickly, searching for RhettWhat a
lot of people! Damn this veil anyhow, everything looks blurred
She was wearing the most conservative riding clothes fashion allowed
Unrelieved black wool with a high neck, and low black top hat with a
face veil pulled tight and tied over the netted thick knot of hair at
the nape of her neckIt was worse than mourning, she thought, but
respectable as all get-out, a real antidote to bright-colored skirts
and striped stockingsScarlett was rebellious in only one matter: she
would not wear a corset under her habitThe sidesaddle was torture
enoughRhett was looking at herShe looked away quickly when she
finally saw himHe's counting on me to make a spectacle of myselfI might break every bone in my body, but
nobody's going to laugh at me, especially not him"Ride along easy,
well back, and watch what the others do," Colum had saidScarlett
began as he advisedShe felt her palms sweating inside her gloves
Up ahead the pace was picking up, then beside her a woman laughed
and
whipped her horse, breaking into a gallopScarlett looked briefly at
the panorama of red and black backs streaming down the slope in
front
of her, at the horses jumping effortlessly over the low stone wall prada black bags at
the base of the hillThis is it, she thought, it's too late now to
worry about itShe shifted her weight without knowing she should
and
felt Half Moon moving faster, faster, sure-footed veteran of a hundred
huntsThe wall was behind her and she had hardly noticed the jump
No wonder John Morland wanted Half Moon so muchScarlett laughed
aloudIt made no difference that she'd never hunted in her life, that
she hadn't sat sidesaddle for more than fifteen yearsShe was all
right, better than all rightNo wonder Pa never
opened a gateWhy bother when you could go over the fence? The
specters of her father and Bonnie that had plagued her were goneThere was only the excitement of the misty air
streaking past her skin and the power of the animal that she
controlledThat and the new determination to overtake and pass and
leave Rhett Butler far behind* * Scarlett stood with the muddy train
of her habit looped over her left arm and a glass of champagne in her
right handThe paw of the fox that she'd been awarded would be
mounted on a silver base, if she'd allow it, said John Morland"I'd
love it, Sir John
"Please call me Bart
"Please call me ScarlettEverybody does, whether they're friends or
not
She was giddy and pink-cheeked from the exhilaration of the hunt and
her success"I've never had a better day," she told tiffany round tag necklace B |
| 