Chapter Five
Rick
I’ve not been here more than five minutes, and all my assumptions have just been blown out of the fucking window.
Not that Rick was unhappy about it, he was more quietly stunned.
It helped that Ian, for all his size, reminded him a bit of a gangly foal when they first started to walk.
And yes, he did have a quiet chuckle to himself because clearly Ian being overwhelmed was due to his presence more than anything else.
So yeah, Rick had that going on, but he’d also paid attention to the safety rules that Remy had outlined.
He was immediately protective of Ian. Ranches, places like that, where animals and people interacted, could be dangerous, especially if people were inclined to show off.
Not that Rick wasn’t already thinking about doing that later on in the day.
If seeing me on top of a bull doesn’t stir Ian’s blood, nothing will.
It wasn’t easy, though, walking by Ian’s side over to the stables where they would learn to brush down and prepare a horse for riding.
Rick could do that sort of thing in his sleep, and every instinct he had demanded that he take Ian to his den.
There were far too many alphas around who were potential competition, and worse, Ian could get hurt.
He’d been there when Ernest’s mate, Toby, had gotten hurt, hot air ballooning of all things.
Ian had already admitted, that he’d never been to a ranch before.
Ian was one of those people that years ago, Rick would have laughed at, not wanting to help at all—because that’s what it was like back in the day.
He pushed back on his bear, who was thinking of making honey muffins and feeding them to Ian, surrounded by all the pillows on his bed.
Ian deserved to be shown respect, to have a date of sorts.
He had paid for his ticket the same as Rick had, and while Rick would have cheerfully chucked that money away and not cared about it, there was another part of him that realized that being on the ranch would give him the time to show Ian how caring and helpful he could be.
Charlie was waiting in the stables, and he quickly tapped Rick’s arm. “I’ve got Beauty over here for you,” he said. “I know there’s no point in letting you have a learner pony. And then for this guy, well, that horse over there will be fine.”
Rick shook his head as he quickly glanced at the animal that Charlie indicated would suit Ian, and he glared at his friend. “Would you put Pip on that horse?” he demanded, putting his hand on the base of Ian’s spine. He could see the way Charlie was joining the dots.
“Oh.” Then his eyes widened. “Oh, yeah, right, definitely not doing that. Sorry, mate. Ian. Whatever. Um, that one over there, Annabelle, she would work better for a learner rider, wouldn’t she, Rick?
” After another quick glance at him, Rick nodded, and Charlie hurried off to get the replacement horse.
“What was that about? Do you know these people?” Ian asked blandly.
Rick couldn’t tell how Ian was feeling, although his mate did press into the hand on his back for a moment. Ian smelled amazing, even over the scent of dung, hay, and horse.
“Charlie and his mate are good friends of mine, although it’s been quite a few years since we’ve seen each other,” Rick admitted reassuring his mate that there was nothing for him to worry about.
“There was a time when I was a part of the rodeo circuit, and we often traveled together, or would be at the same events.”
“And this Pip you mentioned, is he your friend too?”
“Yep. That’s Charlie’s mate. You’ll meet him later, at the grill they are doing. Pip makes the most amazing pork spareribs. They are honestly divine.”
Rick kept a smile to himself as Ian let out a bit of a growl. It was cute, like when a puppy is trying to get a stick off a larger dog, but they don’t really have enough oomph.
At least that was how Rick saw it. Ian would soon learn that Rick was someone he could trust. Thanking Charlie when his friend brought over the second horse, Rick tethered him to the railing before grabbing two brushes and handing one to Ian.
“Okay, let’s talk about how to approach a horse,” he said quietly.
“Er… should we even approach them at all? Or like, put our hand out so they can sniff us first?”
“You could.” Rick chuckled. “But horses have big teeth and a tendency to bite. You want to watch the front and the back end of a horse at all times.”
“But…” Rick mentally sighed happily. Confused Ian was adorable. “They’re not shifter horses, so aren’t they upset over our animal sides. They can sense that sort of thing, can’t they?”
“These horses are well-trained and used to crowds and shifter types.” Rick and Ian both looked over their shoulders as one omega shrieked and started flapping their arms when a horse snorted on them.
That horse did not look happy as he snapped its teeth at the silly omega.
“Most of them,” he added, directing Ian back to the horse he would ride.
“Your animal side would be able to tell if the horse is upset.”
“All right.” Ian straightened his shoulders and then looked down at the brush. “So do I?” He lifted the brush and mimicked an up and down movement in the air, but not actually touching the horse.
Moving around so he was between both of the horses, Rick held his brush up.
He’d already slid the brush over his hand, so the bristles were pointing out from his palm.
“You want to move in the same direction as the horse’s hair,” he said, running his hand down Beauty’s neck and following it with the brush.
“You don’t want to press too hard, although be firm.
Think of it like a massage. You want Annabelle to know you’re there and you’re caring for them, and that you are smoothing their hair, not trying to rub it off. Just long, soothing motions.”
As Rick spoke, he was brushing Beauty’s neck and across his back and flank. He looked up when Ian said nothing. His mate was clutching his brush in both hands, watching Rick’s hands, his nostrils flared and the tip of his tongue peeking out from his full lips.
Oops. Rick wanted to adjust his dick so badly, but there was nowhere for that appendage to go. Swiping over Beauty’s side one last time, he moved around to where Ian was standing and gently took one of Ian’s hands and placed it on top of his—the one holding the brush. “Like this,” Rick rumbled.
Some of the horses and riders were already heading out, and while the pile of hay in the corner of the barn was really tempting, Rick wanted Ian to get something from the event itself. He would certainly get something if you took him to the hay.
Pushing his bear back, Rick smiled. “Relax your arm. There you go. See how Annabelle’s just standing there. She’s perfectly happy with what you’re doing.”
“Yes. Thanks.”
Rick had to step back. Ian’s ass, encased perfectly in those worn jeans, was right there. It would be so easy to press up against his back, slot the lump in his pants against that cute dip in Ian’s…
“Did you want stock saddles, or the regular riding ones, Rick?”
Charlie’s intervention was probably well-intentioned, although in that moment, Rick was hard-pressed to tell what those intentions were.
Ian deserves more than being fucked in a barn, he chastised himself.
“I’ll take a stock saddle, thanks, Charlie, and Ian…
are the event people doing anything more than just riding, or are they going to put on barrel racing and things like that as well? ”
Charlie shook his head. “Health and safety regulations. We’re putting on demonstrations. I’m sure Ian will be fine with a regular saddle, and it’ll be a lot more comfortable as well, being a newbie.”
“My thoughts exactly, thanks.”
Charlie hurried off, and Rick focused on Ian again. Running his hand over Annabelle’s flank, he could tell she was ready for the saddle.
“I didn’t even know there were more than one type of saddle,” Ian confessed quietly. “And I have no idea what this barrel racing business is.”
“That’s why you signed up for the event, wasn’t it? To learn new things?”
“I signed up to meet you, and look…” Ian winked at him from where he was bending to reach Annabelle’s underbelly. “It worked.”
Bent over Ian was a work of art. His ass was like a delicious ripe peach, just begging for a bite. Deliberately pushing down on his dick, Rick showed his teeth. “I’m the gift that keeps on giving,” he said as he hurried off to help Charlie with the saddles.
Gods, could I get any more cringe? Pull yourself together, man.
Resting Ian’s saddle over the railing, Rick wiped his hand over Annabelle’s back one last time.
“When you’re saddling your horse, keep in mind what I said about smoothing out the hair.
Even when putting on the underblanket, you want to think about going with the line of hair…
in this case, from front to back. Can you imagine if someone was ruffling your fur the wrong way? ”
“My furry self doesn’t like anybody touching me at all. He can be a bit stroppy at times,” Ian confessed, and gasped, then added quickly, “I’m sure he’ll make an exception for you. Definitely for you.”
Rick didn’t have any worries about that.
He couldn’t quite place what type of shifter Ian was.
From what he could tell, he’d think Ian’s animal side wasn’t as big as his, and there was a bit of attitude behind it.
It was almost as though Rick’s bear was already communicating with Ian’s animal side, and Rick was going to count that as a win.
And for now, he had to focus on what they were doing.
When it came to saddling the animals up, Rick helped Ian with his first. Not that Ian had a problem with the giant saddles that they were putting on, but he made sure that everything was securely tightened, not to hurt the horse, and to make sure that Ian wouldn’t slide off.
He showed Ian how to slide his fingers under the girth strap and then wait a moment and then tighten it again because some horses were great at blowing out their guts when the cinch tightened and then letting that breath out so that the strap was loose again.
“Have you ever ridden a horse before?” Rick asked, suddenly worried at the way Ian was eyeing up the stirrup closest to him.
“This is the first time I’ve been anywhere near a horse. But it shouldn’t be too hard, right? Like I’ve been on a motorbike and not fallen off.”
Oh, shit. Rick’s heart was in his mouth. “Yeah, no, riding a horse is not like riding a motorbike. For one thing, you can’t turn it off if you’re going in the wrong direction.” Suddenly, the thought of seeing Ian on a horse seemed like a terrible idea. He paid for this… just like you.
“Here, let me show you.” He helped Ian up onto the saddle, and yes, if his hand lingered just a little bit longer on the man’s butt, then it should have done, Ian didn’t seem to mind.
Although the way Ian kept adjusting himself in the seat reminded Rick of the comment he’d made to Charlie about his ball sack.
Unfortunately, Rick knew he was going to have the same problem.
“Lean back a bit,” he suggested, wishing he could just reach into the crux of Ian’s crutch and give him a hand.
But there were still others in the stable, and Rick would never embarrass his mate that way.
“If you lean back a bit, spread your legs and wiggle yourself until you’re comfortable, then you should be able to lean forward and move more easily as the horse does. ”
Rick checked the first stirrup strap length and then ducked under Annabelle’s neck and checked the other one. “You want it so your legs are at a decent angle, so that you can rise up off the seat if you need to. You don’t want to be shoving your feet right into the stirrups either.”
“If my boots are lodged in the stirrups won’t that stop me from falling off?” Ian was watching him closely. Rick could get used to that sort of attention.
“You’d think that it would, but it won’t.
If you fall off and your foot is fully hooked”—he moved Ian’s booted foot in the stirrup to show what he meant—“your foot will get stuck, and the horse will either drag you or you’ll break your ankle or both.
It happens. Rest the ball of your foot on the stirrup.
That way, if you do fall, your boot will slide out of the stirrups.
You’re not hanging onto the horse with the stirrups.
You’re keeping your balance by using the pressure of your knees and thighs against the horse. ”
Rick couldn’t help patting the leg area he mentioned. Standing so close to him, Ian’s arousal was overcoming the smell of horse and leather.
“Yep.” Ian coughed, and his voice came out a bit deeper. “I think I’ve got it. Okay, so press with my knees and your thighs… I mean, my thighs.” His gorgeous face was flushed a glorious bright red.
“You look like you’ve got good, strong thighs there, so you’ll be fine.
” Rick had to get on his own horse before he made a mess in his jeans.
“Try not to hang onto the horse’s mane”—at the look of confusion, he explained—“the long hair on the back of its neck. Use your thighs, knees, and reins for directing Annabelle where you want her to go, although I’ll use the leading rein for you, until you get the hang of things.
” He quickly unhooked one from the wall and clipped it to the ring in Annabelle’s bridal.
I have to let Ian do this. He’s a shifter. He’ll be fine. Although Rick’s nerves for his mate weren’t helped when he noticed Ian was peering over his horse’s shoulder and looking at the ground below. “It’s high up here, isn’t it? You don’t realize it until you get on.”
Oh, gods! Maybe he’s scared of heights. Rick quickly saddled his horse and hopped on, loosening his stirrup lengths and then moving Beauty so he could swing around and grab hold of a leading rein.
“I’ll lead you for a bit, so you can get used to the movement of the horse before we do anything else.”
“I’d far rather you were leading me to ride something else,” Ian muttered under his breath, only Rick’s hearing was excellent.
Rick mentally chuckled, sure that anything he said would be as cheesy as his earlier efforts. He wasn’t what anyone would call a smooth talker. Yet as he slowly led Ian out of the stables, he was looking forward to showing off later that afternoon on one of the bull rides.
He’d probably be thrown off—the odds of that happening were over fifty percent, especially as it had been a few years since Rick’s last ride.
The only question would be how hard he landed when he fell.
Maybe that’ll prompt Ian to want to follow me to my den after and check me over for bruises. After the grill, of course.
In the meantime, Rick looked back over his shoulder. “How you doing back there?” He was slowly leading Ian’s horse around a large, fenced ring.
“Like I’m going to be seasick,” Ian yelled back with a laugh. “Keep going.”