The Princess And The Alpha *Excerpt Only*

Poisoned

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I sat deep in the saddle, feeling the powerful horse's every stride as he moved. I took a deep breath, letting all of my previous worries waft away. here, with my beautiful horse Poison, I didn't have to worry about proper form, the right fork to eat a salad with, or the best way to wear a tiara. All I had to think about was rising on the right diagonal and keeping myself in a calm, happy state.

I glanced at the small fences that I had set up in the massive indoor arena and encouraged Poison into a smooth canter. He took off easily, his ears pricked forward with excitement. As we got closer to the jump I could feel his pace quicken beneath me, so I gently tugged on the reins, bringing him back to reality, then steered him around the jump. Poison obeyed, like I knew he would. He loved jumping, but he didn't work on autopilot. He snorted and shook his head, annoyed with my tricks, but when I looped him around and switched his lead he still stayed at a good level pace. Even when we approached the jump he stayed good and leveled.

"Princess Adeline!"

Poison let out a startled scream at the booming voice and dug his heels down into the sound. I had been ready to jump with him, and not prepared for a sudden stop. I let out a startled cry as I tumbled forward, falling onto Poison's strong neck. I quickly collected myself, sitting upright and getting a better grip on the reins. Once I had gotten myself together I gave the reins a light tug, grounding Poison as I spoke soothingly to him.

I glared over at the guard who stood stiffly at the door, staring at me as if he had done no wrong.

"What is it?" I hissed out through tightly clenched teeth, "What was so important it couldn't wait till after I was over the jump?" I demanded.

The guard, Preston, just ticked his chin up defiantly, "The queen and king demand your presence for dinner." He said, his gray eyes narrowing into slits, "So I suggest you get off that animal and go straight to the palace."

I hated Preston. I hated him with all I had in me. Since I was young my parents had deemed him to be the only one who could look after me, though I protested extensively. He was arrogant beyond belief, and less than thrilled when he found out he was going to be nothing more than a baby sitter. Still, my parents were fairly busy this time of year and I knew there was very little time we got to spend together.

"I'll be there in a few minutes." I sighed reluctantly.

Preston shook his head, "Now, Princess, they were quite frustrated when I left, we don't want to make them angrier."

"But Poison needs to be cooled down and brushed." I protested.

"You have staff for that. Hand him off to a groom and come with me." he ordered.

I wanted to snap at him, remind him that I was the royalty here, not him. But I knew he would go crying to my parents, telling them how un-lady-like and rude I had been. The last thing I wanted was my father to sigh and look at me with pleading eyes while he told me, again, how important it was to be nice to staff. Frankly, if my mother- the hot head of the two- had to deal with the real Preston for more than five minutes she would come undone and fire him. but I didn't have my mother's authority and Preston would forever kiss my parent's asses in hopes of a promotion.

I slid off Poison after I made sure he was perfectly calm again, then I led him out of the arena and back into the barn. I handed him to the first groom I saw and told him what he needed, trying not to sound too dejected. I knew the staff in my barns were the best for miles, but Poison was still my horse and he deserved my attention.

"Come now, Adeline! We can't keep your parents waiting any longer!" Preston called.

I grumbled profanities under my breath and walked behind him.

I suppose, to many people, I was lucky. I lived in a grand palace with my loving parents. We had acres upon acres of land to ourselves, more than enough luxurious cars, a handful of staff to attend to our needs, and a healthy amount of guards to protect us from every angle. I had clothes from every material in every style hand sewn by my personal seamstress and my parents didn't bat an eye when I said I wanted horses and a big fancy barn.

When I was young I thought it was amazing, indoor swimming pool to impress all my friends, a big theater room inside my own house, my room was enormous, and I had personal chefs who would make whatever I was craving at the wave of a hand. But now things were different. I was completely alienated from my peers, I only had one real friend. And my days were filled with lectures about things I hardly cared about, like the correct etiquette, how to curtsey, the history of the waltz. And through it all there was Preston, tailing me, watching my every move.

I sighed, removing the thoughts from my brain as I moved behind Preston, entering the dining hall.

"Ah, Adeline." My mother said excitedly, "We were waiting for you, come sit and eat with us."

My father's green eyes glimmered when he took in my state, "How is Poison today?"

I blushed as I looked down at my riding gear. Yes, even my riding clothes were the top of the line, I mean, I was a princess, I could never be seen in anything less. But riding clothes were not to be worn at dinner. Dinner was a time for grand gowns and when I glanced warily at my mother I felt my heart drop. She was, in fact, wearing a specular dress and one of her prettier crowns.

"I'm sorry, your Majesties. I tried to get her here earlier, but she refused to get off her horse." Preston whined.

I nearly rolled my eyes but resisted and instead, sat down at the table.

"It's fine, Preston." My mother said, "You are dismissed."

Preston's smile gleamed brightly at my mother, then he bowed deeply and scurried away like the dirty little rat he was.

"So?" my father prompted.

"So what?" I said stiffly, ready for an argument about disobeying Preston.

"How is that horse of yours?"

"Oh." I diffused quickly, but them beamed with happiness, "He's getting so much better, Dad. He's incredibly responsive to me, you should've seen him today. He listens so well and I know it's because he's starting to trust me more. You should come watch me sometime."

My dad smiled happily, "Sure, maybe next week, I'm swamped this week." He said, "But I'm glad to hear that he's turning around. I have to admit that I was quite worried when you first got him, he was really wild."

My mom scoffed, "That horse is just like her, if anyone could tame a wild beast it would be another wild beast."

*****Hello reader, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of my book. For those of you who have discovered this book first I would just like to mention that She's the Alpha depicts the story of Adeline's parents if you're interested. I wouldn't recommend reading both at the same time as there are spoilers in this one!*****