The Last Always | A Regency Romance

Chapter Five

Georgiana kept a small distance between her and her brothers. She watched as their bodies bounced up and down in the smooth leather saddles on the backs of their horses. Their horses were almost identical to their masters. One stern, strong and fast. The other was a sucker for a sugar cube and an apple.

Her bones felt tired and weary as her body reminded herself of the lack of horse riding she had done recently. Although she thought herself an accomplished rider, she didn't like doing it. She would rather paint a horse than ride one. But it was required of her to participate in the hunt today.

She did delight in looking at the scenery around her. The fall foliage hung heavy on the tree with melted frost from the morning. Some parts of the floor still had little patches of ice where the sunlight hadn't reached yet.

She took mental images, storing them away in her mind to reference later when she had time with her paints. She had never been on this part of the land before. She knew that her father's house and the Sunderby Estate were close, but Sunderby was surrounded by acres and acres of land. The estate was much larger than the Wycliff house. Part of the land was filled with tenant farmers and their families. Little cottages set on the now pale yellow grass with soft pillows of smoke coming out from their chimney.

This side of the estate was filled with trees, flora and fauna that she didn't recognize as being a part of the ecosystem in her own backyard. If she was riding near her house, she would've dismounted and looked at the mushroom she saw peeking out from the leaves. Since she was riding side-saddle, she would've needed a block and a groom to get back up.

Georgiana must have been in her thoughts longer than she realized, for when she looked up to study her brother's again, they were no where to be found. A quiet panic coursed through her, and she chastised herself for becoming distracted so easily. As much as she hated to admit it, being a woman and being alone, especially out in a place she wasn't familiar with, was a scary thing.

She stuffed down her feelings, afraid that her horse would pick up on the anxiety and bolt. Instead she clicked him on, figuring someone would locate her eventually.

There were many trails that went in all different directions in the thick of the woods. She wondered how anyone was getting around. She could hear shouts, faint and far away. She thought about yelling herself but all hope was not lost yet. She would not resort to shouting until she absolutely had to.

Directing her horse into the general direction of the men she could hear, she started on a slow trot down an unmarked trail. She had to move her body low to the bristled hair of her horse's neck to move under the low branches.

She had no idea how long they had been out now, for the hunt, but she assumed it was well past the luncheon hour. The sun was starting to get low in the sky. Pink, purple and gold softly painted the sky. Soon it would be dark.

"I think I've seen that tree before," she said aloud. Her mouth was dry and she felt her stomach rumble. "I daresay, I think we are just plain lost. How incredibly embarrassing."

By admitting her unfortunate situation, Georgiana made the decision to give her horse a rest. They were both tired and growing wearier by the minute. All she had to do was carefully drop down without hurting her or her horse.

She shifted her habit and grabbed hold of the pommel on her saddle. She managed to slide down halfway with no problem. When she dropped the rest of the way, she immediately felt her ankles and legs give out as she collapsed onto the ground. Her legs tingled, most likely from the excessive riding and spending the whole day in the side-saddle.

With her skirts pulled back, she massaged her legs gingerly. Aware of every aching muscle that she possessed screaming at her. She took off her half boots and wriggled her toes in the cool autumn air. Removing her hat from its secured spot, she took out some of the pins, leaving her hair half up and down. All day it had been pinned too tight causing her head to ache.