40 A Day in the Kerr Residence [Part 4]

'This is so fun! I never thought that riding a horse would be this enjoyable. Am I perhaps a genius? Un! That must be it. Hehe~ I wish Ciel was here to see me.'

Stella smiled from inside their shared mindscape. She too was interested in riding a horse, but decided to allow Kate to have her fun. Since Ethan said that they could come and visit anytime, there would be plenty of opportunities.

Unlike Kate, Stella was very good at reading people's body language. She knew that Ethan was smitten with Kate, but she decided to become a bystander and let things unfold.

Ciel was the first boy that the two of them had interacted since they ran away from their pursuers. Since Ethan meant them no harm, it would be good to have another 'boy friend' inside their small circle of friends.

Right now, Kate's only friend was Ciel, and Chloe. Although Claire was not yet their friend, she was close to being one. Stella wanted Kate to experience what it was like to interact with children close to her age.

The pitiful girl didn't get the chance to make any friends when she was young. The reason? It was because they were always moving from place to place. They never stayed in one place for too long and would always be in hiding. Now was the perfect opportunity to regain a bit of her lost childhood in this moment of peace.

"Casper, how about we try galloping? Please?" Kate pleaded. "Be a good boy and I'll give you some chocolates later."

[You shouldn't do that unless you want to kill Casper,] Stella commented. [Feeding them chocolate will cause them to get ill, and in some cases, they can even die. Kate, don't randomly feed animals. They are different from humans. Some foods are bad for them.]

"O-Ok! Casper I take it back, I'll just feed you tomatoes later on!"

[Didn't you just listen to what I said?] Stella groaned. [Don't feed animals random things! Tomatoes are bad for horses. Do you really want to kill Casper that much?]

'T-Then what should I feed him as a reward?' Kate asked. 'Shouldn't you feed them when they do a good deed? I saw this show on T.V that said that teaching a dog to do tricks would be faster if you reward them with certain foods.'

[It would be best to ask the Stable Master,] Stella didn't want to continue the conversation and decided to push the problem to other people. [He's the expert on horses. Ask him what to feed Casper as a reward.]

'Good idea! I'll do that!'

[Hah~]

Casper didn't listen to Kate's pleading. Even when Kate nudged him with her feet, he didn't listen and simply trotted. Stella grew fond of Casper because the horse understood that his current rider was still a rookie. It was as if the horse was a dad that was ignoring his daughter's tantrum.

"Kate, you shouldn't be too pushy with Casper," Ethan said while jogging beside her. "What will you do if you get into an accident? You don't have to rush. Let's continue the lessons when you are wearing clothes suitable for horse riding."

Kate pursed her lips and pouted. "But I want to experience what it's like to ride a running horse."

"Do you really want to experience it that much?"

"Yes!"

Ethan stopped jogging beside her and stood in place. "Very well. I will grant your wish."

The boy whistled and Casper perked his ears up. The horse made a turn and walked towards Ethan. Casper stopped beside Ethan and the boy brushed the mane on his head.

"Kate, take your right foot out off the stirrups and stand up. Then dismount."

"Eh? I don't want to!"

"Didn't you say you want to ride a running horse?"

"I did," Kate nodded her head. "Then why do I have to get down?"

"You will sit behind me," Ethan replied with a grin. "We will ride Casper together."

"Sounds like an interesting idea. Ok, I'm in!"

Kate dismounted and allowed Ethan to mount Casper. The saddle was wide enough to allow two people to ride together. After Ethan and Kate were properly mounted, the boy took hold of the reins.

"Hold on to me from behind," Ethan said. "Make sure to hold me tight so you don't fall off."

"Understood!"

Kate hugged Ethan from behind. The boy's body became stiff for a brief moment before returning to its normal position.

"Um? Are you fine?"

"Don't worry, I'm fine."

"Why is your face turning red?"

"Because I got tired from jogging beside you," Ethan faced forward not daring to look at Kate. He could not tell her that his heart almost jumped out of his chest when Kate hugged him tight.

"Are you ready?"

"Ready!"

"Ah, I forgot to tell you. When Casper starts to gallop don't say a word, don't shout, don't open your mouth," Ethan advised. "You might accidentally bite your tongue. Do you understand?"

"Understood!"

"Uncle John, please open the pen," Alex ordered the Stable Master of the Kerr Residence. "We will be back shortly, don't worry about us."

"Be careful, young master," John replied and signaled his assistant to open the horse pen. He was not worried about Ethan because he knew that he was a capable horse rider.

Ethan held the reins firmly, raised his body, and bent forward. He was not planning to make the horse go into a full gallop because Kate was seated behind him. At most he would just make Casper go into a canter.

With his command, Casper began to trot. He was paying close attention to Kate's position behind his back. Feeling that she was holding him securely, he put his weight forward nudging the horse to trot faster.

After a brief transition of faster trotting, Casper began to canter. They left the horse pen and ran in the open fields of the Kerr Residence. Kate being the newbie that she was, thought that Casper was already running.

She had no idea that there were four stages in horseback riding namely the walk, the trot, the canter, and the gallop.

Since galloping with two people was dangerous, Ethan and Casper compromised with cantering. Kate had a firm hold on Ethan's waist and the three of them traveled freely.

For the first time in his life, Ethan understood the meaning of the phrase "I wish that this moment could last forever."

Although this moment would eventually come to an end, the boy wanted to make sure that Kate would enjoy the time they had together. He already had a destination in mind. Ethan was planning to show Kate one of the most majestic views that she could find in the countryside.

He hoped that Kate would love the surprise he prepared for her. With her happiness in mind, the lovestruck boy led Casper to the place that both of them knew so well.