Apparently all it took to find Lyden was to find Skylar. No sooner had the Nez Perce approached the solitary mare than they were joined almost instantly by the pale spotted stallion. And here Şahin had begun to think he no longer existed. He flipped his ears back as Lyden nuzzled up against the mare and mumbled something to her, only pushing them to a more relaxed state when the taller male deigned to acknowledge his presence. At least Skylar was not disrespectful. Her apparent calm at seeing Lyden made him wonder if the two of them had not been hidden somewhere together. After all, he hadn’t seen her since she first arrive, either, and her swollen barrel indicated there had definitely been an intimate get-away somewhere. Maybe she and Lyden had been busy elsewhere, in which case he was glad not to have seen them. No need to be reminded of how many children of his own he would not have once foals started dropping.

These thoughts flashed through his mind even as he smiled widely at Skylar and excluded Lyden from his focus. “I am glad to hear it,” he said. “I would be delighted to speak with you more at length, if you’re interested. But,” and here his dark eyes shifted to Lyden and lost all their warmth. “I can see you have other company to keep at the moment.” His eyes moved back to the mare and warmed again. “Perhaps this evening, you would join me on the beach to watch the sunset? There’s a stand of palm trees we could meet by.” She was free to refuse him, of course, but he hoped she would not.

The shining palomino turned his attention back to Lyden. “You I would like to see as soon as is convenient,” he said. It was clear by his tone that the words were a formality only, and that he expected to speak with Lyden as soon as he and Skylar had finished conversing. He dipped his nose to both of them in a casual farewell before he turned and walked back to the beach. He kept walking until he was well out of hearing range, and only then did he stop and cock a hind hoof as he relaxed just out of the tide’s reach. Lyden could find him there later. Şahin would not extend his invitation twice.