Chapter 6

Kate simply watched from the kitchen as Anthony waved goodbye to Edwina and walked out the front door. An odd, empty feeling filled her chest upon seeing him leave, which was markedly different from the wild thumping in her ribcage when she walked into the house with her mother just a few minutes ago, seeing him and Edwina sitting on the couch together.

Laughing together.

She had expected to just see Edwina in the house when she and Mary came back from the shops, and so it took her completely by surprise to see Anthony sitting on the living room couch right beside her sister. He had apparently brought over a gift basket for them made by his mother, but Kate had a weird feeling that that was just an excuse. Because seriously, what twenty-something-year-old guy would happily hand deliver a gift basket made by his mother to the neighbors house? Not unless there was another reason he wanted to visit?

Anthony walked across the yard toward his own house, and Kate kept her eyes trained on his retreating figure. She only watched for a few seconds before Edwina came rushing in, throwing her arms around her sister.

"Oh my GOD, Kate!" she squealed excitedly, practically squeezing the breath out of her. "Am I dreaming? I cannot believe that that just happened!"

"I get that you're excited, Eddie, but can you let me go before I choke to death?" Kate asked, trying to gently pry her sister's hands off of her. "What can't you believe, exactly?"

"That he came over here with a gift basket when I was here all by myself," Edwina gushed, sighing happily as she hugged herself. "And he stayed so he could spend time with me – it was like a romantic comedy!"

"I'm glad that we're getting to know the neighbors a bit better, Edwina, but I don't want you to have guests over when neither I nor Kate are here," Mary said firmly to her daughter as she began unloading groceries from the bags. "It's not safe."

"C'mon Mum, I'm not a child," Edwina rolled her eyes at her mother, crossing her arms. "We were just talking. Don't you trust me?"

"What did you two talk about?" Kate couldn't help but ask as she began to put the groceries away as well.

"Just regular stuff – our families, the dinner last night, our favorite shows," Edwina grinned, practically skipping over to a nearby grocery bag so she could help put food away. "He was so funny too. I felt like we could've talked for hours!"

Edwina continued to chatter on about Anthony and their conversation, but Kate wasn't really listening. She wasn't sure what she thought of Anthony coming over here to drop off a gift basket, and subsequently staying to hang out with Edwina for awhile afterward. What did that mean exactly? Was he interested in her? He certainly wouldn't be the first guy to be interested in her, and he definitely wouldn't be the last. However, wasn't it sort of predatory for a guy to be interested in a girl five years his junior? Especially since the girl in question was barely eighteen?

Kate felt anger and resolve settle in her chest: yes, it was inappropriate. And even on the off-chance that Anthony didn't like Edwina in that way, it wasn't okay for him to be alone with her like he was today, especially considering her obvious crush on him.

Maybe Anthony needed a reminder that he should probably think twice before spending alone time with a girl who hadn't even started her senior year of high school yet. And even if he insisted that he liked Edwina enough that he wanted to spend more time with her, then the two of them would need to be chaperoned. It was that simple.

Clenching her jaw, Kate continued putting away the groceries while Edwina continued to regale them with the details of her and Anthony's conversation.

~/~

As much as Anthony was looking forward to seeing Kate the following morning, once he and Eloise had arrived at Aubrey Farm, he couldn't help but think something was a bit off about her.

Eloise was more than excited to begin her second riding lesson, especially since now she was actually going to learn how to ride her horse around the enclosed paddock at the back of the farm. Anthony couldn't help but smile as he watched Eloise and Kate gently lead Lipton out of his stall and outside into the paddock, with Eloise practically bouncing in anticipation as they went. Kate, however, was steadfastly avoiding Anthony's gaze as she helped pull Lipton's reins toward the barn doors.

"I'm almost positive I remembered everything you taught me from the first lesson," Eloise was saying eagerly to Kate, moving her hand up to pat Lipton's side. He snorted before bucking his head slightly. "I'm pretty sure I can saddle and mount him without your help."

"I have every confidence you can," Kate smiled amusedly at the younger girl. She then glanced over at Anthony, who was walking beside Eloise; when he met her gaze, her smile faded into a frown before she quickly looked away.

Anthony couldn't help but feel a bit surprised and hurt by her standoffish behavior. He tried to meet Kate's eyes again, but she ignored him as she faced forward and led Lipton into the paddock.

What is going on with her?

Anthony stood back for a bit and simply watched as Eloise saddled her horse and mounted it (all by herself, just as she'd said she could), and Kate led them in a slow canter around the paddock, instructing Eloise on how to grip the reins and angle her feet. All her instructions were exactly what Anthony would give to a beginner like Eloise, and he was grateful for Kate's careful and kind demeanor as she taught his sister how to ride a horse.

Why is she being so cold to me though?

He thought that, since they had chatted in the games room the other night, the two of them were getting along a lot better. However, it seemed as if she'd regressed back into that angry, cold dislike of him from when they had first met. Whatever the issue she currently had with him, though, he was determined to figure it out.

Anthony decided to put it in the back of his mind for now, though, since he wanted to take Nectar out riding into the woods for a bit. He took the horse out of his stall and led him outside, expertly saddling and mounting him like he'd done a million times before; he didn't look at Kate as he began to gallop outside the paddock toward the tree line, but he could feel her eyes on him as he did so. Just the knowledge of that was pretty satisfying.

Anthony rode through the winding pathways of the woods for some time, enjoying the beautiful weather and nature all around him. He eventually stopped at a small creek, where Nectar could get a small respite and a drink of water, before finally making his way back to the farm.

He slowed his gallop to a light cantor as soon as he got closer to the barn. He saw Eloise riding Lipton around the paddock in a light trot all by herself, Kate standing and observing near the paddock door. Eloise glanced up and waved excitedly at Anthony, who grinned and waved back; he couldn't help but feel exceptionally proud of his little sister for learning how to ride all by herself so quickly.

After dismounting Nectar, Anthony took the reins and led him over to the barn, near the doors where Kate was standing. Her eyes were trained on him as he approached.

"El seems to be doing pretty well on horseback," Anthony noted, nodding to his sister still making her slow way around the paddock. "She'll be galloping laps around you and me pretty soon."

"You maybe," Kate said with a smirk, crossing her arms. Anthony couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm glad your semse of humor is still intact," he said teasingly, smiling as he led Nectar into the barn. "I was starting to wonder if I had done something wrong."

Kate didn't respond right away, and instead her smile faded into a frown. She watched Anthony as he put Nectar away in his stall, as if debating something in her head. "What did you and Edwina talk about?" she finally asked, and he looked over at her. "When you dropped off the gift basket yesterday?"

Anthony raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Nothing much. Why?"

"The two of you were laughing quite a bit when Mary and I walked in with the groceries," Kate said, walking toward him and gazing at him scrupulously. "It didn't sound like 'nothing'."

"I don't really know what to tell you," Anthony shrugged, locking the stall door after Nectar was inside. "Edwina and I had a nice conversation. She's really funny - she reminds me a lot of my own sisters."

An odd look crossed over Kate's face when he said that. "You know she's only eighteen, right?"

Anthony frowned at her. What on earth was she getting at? "Yeah, I know. So's my sister Daphne. What's your point?"

Kate lifted her chin slightly as she fixed him with a glare. "She's still in high school, and you're twenty-three. And we hardly know you… isn't it a bit inappropriate for you to be alone with her?"

Anthony quirked an eyebrow as he walked forward, now face-to-face with her. "So you're saying you don't trust me?"

Kate scoffed slightly. "Would you? If you were in my position?"

"Not at all," Anthony said immediately, but after a beat he grinned at her. "But you don't really believe anything happened between Edwina and I yesterday, do you?"

Kate hesitated a moment, grimacing slightly. "No, I don't. But I want your assurance that nothing will happen between you and her."

Anthony took a step closer so that he was only a foot away from her. He gazed into her eyes, as if trying to read something in them. "Okay."

Kate blinked a couple times, clearly surprised. "Okay? That's it?"

"What else do you want me to say?" Anthony asked honestly. "I want you to trust me, don't I?"

"I suppose," Kate said, looking at him oddly. "...Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said immediately. "But I hope you know that now you owe me a favor."

"A favor?" Kate frowned in confusion.

"I made a promise to you, so now you owe me something in return," Anthony grinned at her. "That's how this works, right?"

Kate reared back slightly, looking almost shocked. "What? No it isn't," she sputtered. "That's not at all how this works!"

"You just marched up to me and forced me to make a promise to you over a baseless accusation," Anthony explained. "The least you could do is give me something in return."

He raised an eyebrow and smirked, the implication of what he was saying obvious to both of them. Kate glowered at him, crossing her arms and staring up at him defiantly. "And what exactly were you thinking?"

Anthony took another half a step forward: he was now quite close to her, and he could see the blush creep up on her cheeks as she stared back at him. "A horse race. A proper one, with a determined start and end point. Think you can manage that, Miss Sharma?"

Kate stared at him for a moment before letting out an incredulous snort. "That's seriously what you want? You do know I can wipe the floor with you, right?"

"Is that a promise, Miss Sharma?" Anthony smirked back. "If you're so confident, then you won't have a problem putting it to the test."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Kate asked, smirking right back at him. "So when did you want to get beaten? We can go after Eloise is done with her lesson."

"No," Anthony said without hesitation. "Not today. I'll pick the time and place, but not just yet."

"Delaying the inevitable?" Kate asked, raising her eyebrows in amusement.

Anthony leaned in so he was close to her ear as he spoke quietly: "...More like building the anticipation."

He could sense her shiver as he pulled away, and as she looked into his eyes, it was like they were the only two people in the world. Anthony could tell she wanted him to kiss her, and there was nothing he wanted more in the world than to do just that.

"Kate, where are you? Can you help me dismount?" Eloise called from outside. "I don't think I've gotten that part down yet!"

Kate blinked, as if coming out of a daze, and she looked over to see Eloise cantering nearby in the paddock. "Sure thing, Eloise - I'll be right out."

Kate gave Anthony one last look, her expression conveying some unreadable emotion, before turning and heading outside.


A/N: Oh that Anthony ;)

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