I Will Love You

Chapter 9- Nicholas

The Schimidt house has always been considered the most elegant of Spiez, only for the Anderson and Harris. People say that nothing beats the mahogany door in contrast to the wooden panels in the Anderson house, and that the white Victorian windows in the Harris house are Spiez’s most beautiful and graceful thing, but for sure Diana owns the most beautiful and well-tended garden, People love the yellow roses and the wild lilies, and I believe that Lily is the only one who pays attention to the lavenders.

I stare at the huge, empty yard, through the iron-stick window, as the coachman enters the stable, perhaps to care for the horses, suddenly he beckons to someone coming from the left corner of the house and calmly steps Lily appears, sitting quietly on the lawn, She raises her head, making me roll back the window, afraid of being considered an observant maniac.

I walk away from the window returning to my bed, reminding me of the party the night before. It was quite a party, I admit, even though all the unmarried women were there for one purpose, to get Marquis Roux’s attention, even though they knew that just like them, the man had a target in mind, Lily. The man was completely serious, he didn’t have a story capable of taking a sincere and lively smile from some woman, he could only talk about France, Cannes and its business with the royal family and the family vineyard, Sipp was interested in him, which does not surprise me, since my brother is completely greedy.

- Honey, try to understand... - I hear Sipp’s pleading voice.

Quick, noisy footsteps down the hall make my attention diverted from the quarrel that happens outside my room. I know it’s wrong to pay attention to other people’s conversations, but it’s inevitable when she’s tall and people who live with you.

- You promised me that you would talk to Nicholas.- Diana says such. - That you would let him take care of family affairs...

I am not surprised that my name is in an argument that I am not present, Sipp always finds an opportunity to insult me, even to ridicule this persecution.

- Diana, you know how Nicholas is...- Sipp take a break. - He does not pay attention to a foot in front of you, he would ruin us.

- How do you know that he is inattentive? That is a responsibility, and I see in him a much more responsible man. - Diana defends me. - You’ve never given him a chance to prove himself, just insult him and make him feel as miserable as you do.

If I fully focus my attention on what’s going on out there, I can hear Sipp’s rapid heartbeat and decompensated breathing. Few things hurt your ego more than being called miserable.

- If I take you to the trip with me, can that matter be closed? - Sipp lowers the tone of voice.

- No.- My sister-in-law responds firmly. - The promise is that he will start to take care of these matters alone.

Quick and strong steps flow down the corridor, before decreasing down the stairs. If I’d be crazy to walk out on Sipp right now, but I’m not, I’m not in the mood to get blamed for something I didn’t participate in. 

I divert my attention to the book on the back table, already finished, but surely something I need to review in this book...

Before I reached the book, again I heard footsteps echoing down the hall, and like the first, vanishing down the stairs.

Maybe I’d better take a walk, get away from all the family bitterness that sets in the walls after every fight by Spiez’s younger, beautiful, happy couple. I get out of bed and carefully open the bedroom door, analyzing the huge hallway, to make sure I don’t really have to ignore Sipp. I walk out the same, calmly.

Hardly the coachman is seen walking along the front of the house, which obliges me to have to go all around the place, to meet the man who can tell me which horse is on a better day today, some of them dawn on bad days, Which makes them virtually impossible to ride, they’re like wild horses.

As I approach the large barn door, I see Lily passing her hand over the head of one of the horses, I try to identify which one it is, but as I notice the black coat of her ears raised and attentive, I can tell it’s Felix.

- Would you like to go for a walk? - I wonder.

Lily turns to me, still holding her hand over the horse. I’m not laughing. I stare at the dilated green eyes, probably because of the fright.

- I do not know how to ride. - She admits quietly.

I wonder how a woman who’s lived her whole life on a farm can’t ride, it seems to me the most pointless thing in the world. Women don’t have that many farm jobs, almost none really...

- Didn’t you and Diana live on a farm? - The questioner walking up to the saddle hanging.

- Yes.- Responds without worries. - But I was always too busy keeping the house in order and mom well, to worry about having some hobby that would get me out of the house.

- And what did you do? - I turn to her, finding her close to Felix again.

- Embroidered, painted, read... - Shoulders.

She’s even more boring than Diana.

- I could teach you to ride. - Offering me.

I enter the lodgings of the grey meadow, the brown mane and black eyes. Lily doesn’t give me back the answer, I look into River’s eyes, trying to identify his mood. I’m still not crazy about riding a wild horse. I give up the idea of identifying myself, and I decide to wait for the coachman while I wait for Lily’s answer.

I observe, the green eyes with the expression of doubt, the brown hair stuck in a coke with some loose threads, the yellow dress coy in the bust, but slightly accentuated in the waist. I’ve heard that all the Meyer sisters have green eyes, I haven’t had a chance to meet the firstborn, but from the two I’ve met, I believe that’s actually true.

- I think I can try to learn to ride. - I notice that Lily He stares at me with suggestive eyes. - It would be interesting, and if it doesn’t work out, it can become a story.

She’s certainly less boring than Diana. Lady Schimidt would never accept learning to ride, I believe my brother made her think that this is a practice only for men.

- Let’s wait for the coachman, I like to make sure they are in a good mood. - Lily just nod and caress the horse again.

Maybe you’re rethinking your decision to ride with me.

As soon as the coachman arrived, I hastened to ask which one was in the best mood, and how I expected River was the chosen horse. Lily probably wondered why I was taking one horse, but the explanation is simple, it’s easier to teach her with a horse that I already own.

- Let’s...

I called the lady, while I went out with the horse. I helped her to ride first, and then I did the same, sitting behind her. Staring at the horizon made me wonder if that was a good idea.

- Give me your hand. - I extended mine in front of her and soon felt her palm touch mine, I put my hand on the coast of hers and guided her to the horse carriage, teaching her how to hold. - Always hold so, so the control you will have on the horse will be greater.

Lily nodded her head. I touched River’s belly with my foot and soon the horse started to walk, calmly, it is better to start slowly, so the chances of unforeseen things will be less.

- Where are we going? - He asked firmly with his eyes still fixed on the horizon.

- A more open space. - I lied, but she seems to have noticed, since she tightly tightened the rope attached to the horse. - And away from your sister’s judgmental eyes.

Lily laughs quietly relaxing her hand. As time went by, I felt the woman in front of me more secure than I was doing and so I moved my hand away from hers.

- It is not so difficult. - She assumes quietly. - I thought it would be a terror, that I would scare myself and lose control.

Laugh low of your assumption.

- I think we should run then.

I touched the horse’s belly again with my foot, this time with a little more strength and the animal began to run in a straight line, the way Lily was holding him, I could hear his nervous laughter and adrenaline, it was a loud laugh of a wide and good sound to hear, Lily may never have had the feeling before of running on a horse, feeling the wind in her face and the adrenaline in her chest, and somehow I feel good knowing that it was me who brought it to her.