GET IT

After a couple ofps around the fieldb, /bCharlotte and Sean slowed to a stop.

by still off riding

Mia,n, and Lena were nowhere to be seen. They were probably

Only Vivian was left at the paddock

ed up with a sweet smileb. /b

As they approached, Vivian walked up

“Wow, Charlotte, you looked so cool out there. Can I leam to ride from you?”

Charlotte was caught off guard.

? ? ? ???? ? ?

Didn’t she just say earlier she only wanted Sean to teach her?

“There’s a trainer over there,” Charlotte replied politely. “I can go bask /bhim to give you a lesson.”

Vivian pouted, her tone soft and deliberately cutesy.

“But trainers are so intimidating and I don’t even know him. I’m afraid he’ll yell at me. You’re so nice, Charlotte. I bet you wouldn’t yell at me, right?”

Charlotte wasn’t used to strangers acting sweet with her. She nced at Sean, hoping to gauge what he thought.

He tumed to her at the same moment and asked gently,

“Lottle, would you mind teaching her?”

He was clearly leaving the decision to her.

Charlotte hesitated for a second.

Vivian was, after all, Sean’s sister–and likely her future sister–in–low. Sure, their first meeting had been a bit awkward, but Vivian bhad /bapologized, and she seemed friendly enough now

Charlotte wasn’t the type to assume the worst of someone, especially another wom

woman.

“bSure/bb,/b” she said with a smile. “I can proper riding bss/b.”

show

you some b

you basics today so you get a feel for it. After bthat/b, maybe your brother can enroll you in a

“Really?” Vivian beamed. “Thank you so

so much, Charlotte!”

She sure wasying it on thick with the “Charlotte” this and “Charlotte” that

a moment, Charlotte wondered if she had been overthinking things. Vivian didn’t seem hostile after all

For al

“bYou’re /bwee,” Charlotte said with a polite smile.

Vivian studied her quietly.

Charlotte Riley. Her brother’s fiancée.

She was supposed to call her “sister–inw.”

But those words stuck in her throat and she couldn’t say them, not even as a formality.

She didn’t want to believe Sean would ever belong to another woman.

Sean tumed to Charlotte, his voice warm.

“Thanks for doing this, Lottle.”

Then he bfaced /bVivian. The softness in his gaze vanished, reced by his busual /bcool Indifference.

“Listen to her,” he said with quiet authority. “Whatever Lottie tells you to do, you bdo /bit. And be careful”

“Yes, Sean.” Vivian’s voice was sweet, all innocence again.

“Come bon/b,” Charlotte bsaid/b, leading the horse forward.

Vivian followed.

“Okay, you’re going to mount from the left,” Charlotte exined patiently. “Left foot in the

She steadied Vivian by the waist, helping her onto the bsaddle/b.

“Careful”

Vivian wasn’t wearing riding gear, but her athletic outfit worked just fine for a beginner.

Once Vivian was seated on the horseb, /bCharlotte took the reins and began walking slowly alongside.

was calm and steady, her steps slow and gentle.

Snowbell, guided by her owner,

“Doing okay up there?” Charlotte looked up and asked.

With her back to Sean, Vivian didn’t bother pretending anymore.

The smile from earlier had vanished, her expression now cool and distant

“I’m fine,” she replied tly, her bvoice /bdevoid of warmth..

Charlotte didn’t seem fazed by the shift in attitude. If anything, she let it roll right off her.