Page 42 of A Single Obsession

To hear Beau’s unfeigned praise of his horse seemed to soften Cunningham a little, and he gave a genuine smile. “Majesty won’t let me down. He’s unbeatable.”

“In this field,” Beau muttered under his breath.

Cunningham’s smile vanished as quickly as it had come. “What did you say?”

Anthony had kept quiet during this conversation, but now he shot his friend a pointed look. They both knew Beau’s words would rile his adversary.

“I agreed with you. Majesty is unbeatable in this field,” Beau said, pretending not to see Ant’s warning glance. “I don’t foresee any of the other contenders rivalling him. There is always the chance of a freak mishap, like your jockey having a stroke half-way round the course, but barring that, he’ll win.”

Cunningham was not to be put off. “If there is a horse to rival him, why isn’t he racing?”

“Too early. I won’t race Romeo until he’s ready.”

“Your treasured colt?”

Beau stiffened at the contempt in the man’s voice. “He’s fast.”

“Is he?” said Cunningham, stroking his chin. “I’d like to see him run.”

“And so you shall—in October.”

“There must be some way I can persuade you to race him sooner. There has been so little competition of late. Bring him to the Epsom meeting next month and I’ll stake my Majesty to win against your Romeo.”

Beau looked at the man as if he were mad. “You want me to risk my colt against a known winner? I don’t even know what he’s capable of yet.”

Cunningham’s gambling instincts were fully aroused. “Come on, your lordship. Surely you believe in your own horse.”

Anthony put a restraining hand on his friend’s arm, but Beau needed no encouragement to refuse the challenge. “I won’t risk losing Romeo by racing him too early.”

“Hmm. What if I made my offer a little more inviting?” Cunningham said, his growing excitement making his eyes shine. “I contend Majesty is unbeatable now. In October, who knows? I can’t wait for your colt to be ready. Race him in May, and if he’s victorious, I’ll give you Majesty and £5,000. If you lose, I get your horse. That would be prize enough for me, as I feel I would be cheating you out of your animal, because I’m so certain I’ll win.”

Beau’s jaw dropped, his eyes growing wide as saucers. Had the man gone insane? “You haven’t even seen Romeo run.”

“That’s irrelevant. It is you who needs to have faith in the speed at which he can go. I know how fast Majesty is.”

Beau paled at the possibility of losing his colt, but his heart beat faster at what Cunningham was offering. This was a chance he could not pass up.

It was a cry for independence. If Romeo won, he could finance his stables until he turned twenty-five and inherited his fortune. He would no longer need to do his mother’s bidding. And he would not have to wed Eliza.

The thought was not as pleasing as he’d expected, but he shook it off. Though he doubted he would find another lady who suited him so well, he wasn’t ready to marry anyone.

Cunningham was getting impatient, waiting for an answer. He’d taken hold of the idea and was desperate for Beau to accept.

Templecombe strolled up and joined the group as Cunningham offered an even greater prize.

“Tell you what, let’s open it up a bit. A subscription race with stakes of, say, 200 guineas each. The Cunningham Stakes—I like the sound of that. The £5,000 bet stands between us, irrespective of the other runners. If Majesty is placed higher than Romeo, I win. If Romeo beats Majesty, you triumph, and I’ll pay up, even if by some freak occurrence some other horse storms in and steals the victory.

“I’ll be really generous and even put up the stake for you and offer 200 guineas for second place. That way, if Romeo comes in second to Majesty, you’ll have the money to repay me for the stake, and all you’ll lose is your colt. If you cry off and don’t show, you’ll owe me the 200 guineas. You can’t expect more from me. Come on, act like a man.”

Templecombe, with more enthusiasm than understanding, slapped his cousin on the back. “Go for it. You’re always boasting about how fast Romeo is.”

Beau was conscious of Anthony glaring at him, but he kept his eyes down, refusing to meet his friend’s gaze.

“Think what you’re doing,” Ant urged him in an undertone. “Why risk Romeo on a whim when you said you wouldn’t race him until the autumn?”

Beau was sorry to ignore his friend’s words, knowing they made sense, but he had already made up his mind. This was his chance to take control of his life.

He held out his hand to Cunningham. “You’re on.”