Dating Mr. Darcy - Kate O'Keeffe Page 0,47

It’s true, he does fill that Darcy costume pretty darn well, but I’m beginning to realize it’s more than just that. He’s got an air of confidence to him that’s very appealing, and as his eyes find mine and he offers me a hint of a smile, a sudden jolt of electricity shoots through me.

Much like The Force in Luke Skywalker, The Darcy Effect is getting stronger in me.

“Sebastian, how kind of you to join us,” Mrs. Watson says as her eyes dart to Toni, one of the crew who gives her a shrug and gestures for her to continue. “A lovely surprise. We weren’t expecting to see you until we were at the stables with our top four riders.”

“And miss out on all the fun, Mrs. Watson?” he replies with a cheeky smile. “But please, continue.”

“All right,” she replies dourly.

“Come sit next to me, Sebastian,” Camille simpers as she pats the sofa beside her.

“Thank you, Camille,” he replies. In a handful of strides—which I don’t want to refer to as “manly,” but they totally are—he’s across the room and sitting between Camille and Shelby, much to both women’s unadulterated delight. Camille places her hand possessively on his forearm on one side, and Shelby scoots over so she’s pressed up against his other arm.

He’s a Mr. Darcy sandwich, stuck between two adoring slices of womanhood. (Too far? I thought so, too, but you get the picture.)

“Mrs. Watson, please pretend I’m not here,” he says.

As if.

“In that case, since you’re staying,” Mrs. Watson begins, looking a little ruffled, “we’ll get back to our planning. Miss Emma and Miss Reggie are our first volunteers. They’ll be riding side saddle around the paddock, after some tutoring.”

Sebastian quirks an eyebrow in my direction. “Will they indeed? I am glad I came.”

I bet he’s remembering how I fell out of that limo. But just because I fell then doesn’t mean I’ll fall off a horse. At least, I hope not. I lift my chin and shoot him a defiant look, but my heart’s not really in it.

“Who would like to take their turn after our first volunteers?” Mrs. Watson asks.

Every hand in the room stretches up to reach the ceiling, and Mrs. Watson busies herself assigning everyone to groups.

Meanwhile, I notice Sebastian talking with Camille and Shelby. He looks relaxed and more than happy to be in their company, and I get a weird feeling inside, much like I did when he chose Kennedy for that date. It feels like, well, I can barely admit it to myself, but it feels a lot like jealousy.

Which is totally ludicrous. I mean, it’s not like he and I are in a relationship or anything. In fact, he’s the one who’s helping me leave this reality dating fiasco. He wouldn’t be doing that if he felt anything for me, would he?

It’s just that darn Darcy Effect, making me think things I shouldn’t.

Much flirting with Sebastian by the contestants and bossing by Mrs. Watson later, and Reggie and I are ushered down to the stables, followed by a group of contestants who are next on the list.

We’re met by a man in a check shirt and a ten-gallon hat, holding the reins of two huge horses that are snorting and huffing as they stand beside him. And when I say huge, I mean freaking huge. Surely they’re larger than your average horse. They’ve got to be as tall as a building!

I try not to panic.

“Howdy, ladies. I’m Russell, and today I’m gonna teach y’all how to ride side saddle,” the man in the hat says with a broad grin.

“Hi there, Russell,” Reggie says pleasantly.

I grunt my hello, my mind filled with horror scenarios, all of which involve oversized horses trampling me to death.

Matilda Horsie did not prepare me for this.

“This here is Marilyn,” Russell says, petting one of the horses, “and this here is Monroe.”

“Marilyn and Monroe, huh?” Reggie says.

Russell shrugs. “The boss is a big fan.”

Casually, she walks over to the horses. “Can I pet one?”

“Sure can,” Russell says.

She smiles as she pets the side of the horse. “She’s gorgeous. Which one is she?”

“That’s Monroe. You can ride her, if you like.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Monroe. I’m Reggie. I’m sure we’re gonna get along just fine.”

I look at Reggie with wide eyes. She’s not at all afraid of these creatures. Quite the opposite in fact: she’s a freaking horse whisperer.

Russell turns his attention to me. “Would you like to meet Marilyn?”

“Oh, I’m fine here for now,” I