“There you are,” Piotr breathed. He ran a hand along the back of the colt with slow, gentle movements. “Trust cannot be a single-sided affair. One day, this horse might be asked to do the impossible. Charge into a situation when every instinct he possesses is telling him to flee the opposite way. But he will do what you’ve asked because you have earned his trust. Trust is everything.”

He dropped his hand and stepped away from both the mare and the colt to join Sophie and slip an arm around her.

She laid her head on his shoulder, a quiet ache constricting her heart. She wished that she could stay in this perfect moment forever but she could feel time slipping away from her. From them. “I wish you didn’t have to go,” she whispered.

“You’re the one who stole a car from the Foreign Office and needs to return it before they come looking.”

“I didn’t steal it, I borrowed it. I’ll have it back before they even know it’s gone. And what I do with my days off are my business. Don’t change the subject.”

He squeezed her shoulder. “My regiment isn’t even mobilized.”

Sophie grimaced. “But they were.”

“Everyone was, for a day. And now we’re not. It seems it is just a great deal of hurry-up-and-waiting for something that might never happen. Most of the boys in the squadron don’t think we will see action.”

“Most of the boys in your squadron haven’t heard what I’ve heard in the embassy,” Sophie muttered.

“Hitler is ambitious and arrogant, yes, but he is not stupid. I have to believe that he will not risk war with Britain and France by pushing into Poland.”

“I’m not so sure, Piotr. I’m worried.”

Piotr turned to face her. “I know. I am too.”

Sophie sighed and watched the mare and her colt wander away a few paces. “I’m sorry. We agreed that we wouldn’t talk of politics and war in what little time we have here—”

“Don’t apologize.” He tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. “Maybe we should. Maybe we need to talk about what should happen if the Germans do decide to do something stupid.”

She frowned.

“I think you should leave Poland.”

“What? No.”

“Just until things settle—”

“And go where?”

“To France, at least. From there you’d still be able to get back to England in case—”

“No. My home is where you are.”

“I want you safe.”

“I will be safe. I’ll be in Warsaw. Where I’m needed. Where, in my own small way, I can still contribute to whatever diplomatic efforts are being made to avoid disaster.” She stepped forward and slipped her hands around his waist. “I will not run, and you will not send me away. We are in this together, come what may.”