Page 61 of Polo Fever
‘But… I was with you this morning!’
‘I made a call when we were queueing for security at the Eiffel Tower. You were distracted by those people holding everyone up by filming a dance for TikTok.’
‘You really booked a private boat for us?’
‘Yes, I did.’ He smiles hopefully at me, a thousand butterflies dancing around my stomach. ‘Is that okay?’
I laugh lightly. ‘Mateo, it’samazing!’
‘The least I can do after everything you’ve done for me.’ He offers me his arm. ‘Shall we?’
Twenty
It feels like I’m in a dream, drifting through Paris on our own private boat. We’ve turned down the offer of bubbles – Mateo has a rather important match tomorrow and I’m up at the crack of dawn – but honestly, I still feel drunk because of how surreal this is. The city is even more magical from the water. I marvel at the architecture of the buildings we pass, exquisite stone structures and stained-glass windows clashing with the pockets of noise floating from vibrant bars and restaurants right next door.
Mateo is sitting opposite me at the front and his frequent glances my way haven’t gone unnoticed, as though he’s anxiously checking I’m having a good time.
‘I’m not going to want to go home after this,’ I joke as we go under the most magnificent and ornate bridge. ‘Maybe I’ll stay here in Paris. I could work for the polo club and spend all my free time eating amazing food and going on boat trips.’
He smiles. ‘Sounds like a good life.’
‘We’ll have to transfer all the ponies from Maycourt to Paris, though.’
‘Ah.’
‘I couldn’t be without them. Especially Serafina,’ I shoot him a look, ‘who you’ve benched yet again.’
‘I’ve been wondering when that was going to come up. We’re through to the finals of the Paris Open, Ash. I think I was right with my line-up of ponies.’
‘If DQ were playing this tournament, it might be different.’
He quirks a brow, looking mildly insulted.
‘I’m not saying you can’t beat them, because you can; you’ve already proved it,’ I say quickly. ‘But at some point, you might need the biggest weapon we’ve got, and that’s Serafina. I think Eduardo would agree with me.’
‘He didn’t think she was ready for Paris,’ he gives a knowing smile as I sigh with irritation, ‘but would it make you happy if I told you I was considering her for the British Open? The biggest tournament of the season. How’s that?’
‘It would make me happy… but that’s not why you should pick her. I want you to believe in her as much as I do.’
He nods silently.
Chewing my lip, I go back to admiring the sights we’re passing. I was hoping to see the Eiffel Tower sparkling at night, but it’s too light still, the summer evening shading the city in a warm-orange glow.
‘It’s interesting that when you move to Paris, you’ll still work in a polo yard,’ Mateo says lightly. ‘Do you think polo is it for you, then?’
‘You know, I didn’t even think when I said that,’ I admit, laughing, ‘but there it is in my subconscious. It’s strange for me to think of doing something else now. God, the younger me would bedyingof joy knowing I was going to end up working with ponies.’
‘I thought you didn’t know much about horses when you were a child.’
As I fill him in on my horse-riding experience through the school programme, I watch as he listens with great intrigue and then his face falls with devastation on my behalf when I get to the part about it being shut down.
‘They should start it up again!’ he declares, as though he’s suffered the injustice himself. ‘How else can children like you learn to ride? If you hadn’t come to Maycourt, you never would have known about your talent. You might have gone your whole life without riding again!’
I smile at his passion. ‘Maybe.’
‘That’s a scary thought. I hate the idea of another kid not having that chance.’ He sighs, the weight of the world suddenly pressing down on his shoulders. ‘Horses can do so much for children, you know? Without them, I wouldn’t have lasted long, I don’t think. They see the good in you that everyone else misses. They make you feel like you are… like you are worth something.’
I could listen to you talk like this for hours.
