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Beth had been busy planning. For weeks now she had been making arrangements for a very specific day that was set for the end of the week. She had told Rip that they would make him a new birthday so they could celebrate, so she could celebrate him and show him how much he meant to her. Without him she knew that she wouldn’t still be here, whether that be because he’d saved her when they were kids and his pain had been consuming him too. Or when she’d been attacked at her office. Either way it didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things, Rip was her guardian angel and the man she was desperately in love with.
She had known since the moment she met him that he was the romantic between the two of them. He had always been the one pushing for them, taking the hits she dealt out knowing that it wasn’t meant to be aimed at him but she had trusted him enough to take her fear out on him. She had loved that man since the first time she came down to his room in the barn and they had kissed, call it the meeting of tortured souls but for the first time since her mother died, she felt calm when they were together.
The day she had been attacked was one of those moments that haunted her every night but when he had come in and taken those three bullets for her and still comforted her as he bled out in the middle of her conference room something had shifted. In the day following, when Rip had been resting in her room, she had been reassured by his presence which made the pain of him leaving in the middle of the night even worse. The twist in the knife had come when he had explained that he couldn’t get used to holding her, to being allowed in her bed and in her arms. When he had left, she had lay their all night unable to sleep – too scared to close her eyes now that Rip was gone – and consumed with every memory of how she had hurt this man.
She had come to a conclusion as she lay there that night. She loved Rip. Had since the day they had met not that she would admit that to anyone but the man himself. She would shatter if she lost him, she knew already that her heart couldn’t heal from that and they weren’t even properly together yet. She resolved herself to fixing her mistake, Rip had loved her in every way she would let him from the day they had met and now it was her turn to show him how much her meant to her.
She had been terrified to even think about approaching that conversation, being open and honest about her feelings was never a big thing in her family but she was going to do her best to change for him. Lord knows he had done more than that for her.
~~~~Yellowstone~~~~
She had been psyching herself up for this conversation since the day her Daddy had given Rip the cabin on the hill. The day she worked up the courage she had been up at the Lodge going over more paperwork with her Dad. They had taken a break for lunch, as usual her Daddy had headed towards the Great Room. She had not been feeling up to dealing with that particular issue today so she grabbed a plate from Gator and headed up to Rip’s cabin.
She grabbed a beer as soon as she got there and set herself down on the porch, quietly enjoying the view as she ate her dinner. She sat there for the rest of the afternoon as she worked on her laptop, keeping an eye on the horizon for Rip. It wasn’t until the sun began setting, casting that familiar pink and purple glow across the valley that she saw his silhouette became clear over the field. He smiled as soon as he saw her, that grin he saved for her that was pure happiness at the simple sight of her. She pulled a beer from the cooler he kept under the table and held it out to him as he came up the stairs, “Good evening, Dear.” He said with a smile on his face as he sipped his beer, “How was your day?”
She smiled at the familiarity of it and took a sip of her own drink, “It was good, did some work with Daddy and came down here to enjoy the view.” She turned back to the horizon and watched the sun going down, Rip was always going on about how much he enjoyed the sunset and part of her had to agree with him, it was beautiful.
They sat for a few minutes then, enjoying the silence between them. Beth could feel her nerve beginning to buckle, she turned to the cooler to fetch another drink for the both of them and stood. He took the drink she offered as she gently set herself across his lap, hand winding round to comb her fingers through the curls at the back of his neck. He made a quiet moan at the action, something she secretly delighted in knowing and frequently abused just to get him to do it again.
Breathing deeply for a moment she looked at him, “When you said it… it meant something to me. It saved me, Rip.” She gently cupped the side of his face watching as the guard began to slip down again, he clearly wasn’t sure where this conversation was going. “I don’t want to wait for one of our lives to be in danger again to say it back. So, I’m saying it here.” She paused as she felt a well of emotions beginning to overwhelm her but she couldn’t stop now. “In the arms of the man I love,” and damn if her man’s eyes didn’t start welling up at that, “on the porch of the house I would love to call our home.” Her heart was pounding and it echoed in her ears as she looked at the myriad of emotions that were swimming across his face. "I love you, Rip."
She wanted to keep going, tell him how much she loved him, how important he was to her but the breathlessly happy look on his face made her pause. They sat there together for a few moments just grinning at each other like idiots, she laughed gently as she thought about the sight they must make, she leaned forward to press her lips against his as his hands fell from their rest at her waist to pull her towards him, straddling his thighs.
~~~~Yellowstone~~~~
They didn’t let go of each other all night and as the sun rose again signalling a new morning it drew both sleep deprived adults from their cocoon in front of the fireplace and the night long exploration of each other, body and soul. The next few days passed quickly and with the amount of work the herd needed they very rarely saw each other beyond the early morning conversations and late evening whiskeys by the fire. As much as Beth loved spending time with him, his absence did give her the much-needed time to sort out the biggest hiccup in her plans to celebrate Rip’s birthday and that meant she needed to pay a visit to her Daddy.
She made her way up through towards the Lodge and made her way to the office that she knew her father was currently occupying and quietly took a seat opposite him. John was amused by the change in her behaviour, usually so loud and abrasive, he was not used to seeing her quietly waiting for anything. He waited in turn, trying to figure out what she may have wanted from him and eventually he decided just to ask, “Can I help you with something?” John asked, peering over his glasses at his daughter across the desk from him.
She met his gaze and answered, “Yes actually. I need to organise a couple of days off.” She turned her gaze to the window in an aim to avoid his suspicious look.
“Beth. You don’t need to ask me for permission.” He took his glasses off and a rubbed a hand across his face, praying to God that this didn’t dissolve into another argument.
“No Daddy, I am aware of that. The days off aren’t for me though.” That confused John, why the hell didn’t they just ask him themselves, why was Beth here asking on their behalf. As if sensing her father’s train of thought she continued, “They’re for Rip, Daddy.” She said, well that explained certain things. The man would never think to take a day off let alone more than one, his whole life was the ranch so it wouldn’t even cross his mind to spend his days doing anything other than cowboying. “He still doesn’t need my permission, Beth. Lord knows the man hasn’t taken any days off since he set foot on this ranch.” They both smiled at the truth of that particular statement.
They waited for a minute but neither of them spoke, John just raised an eyebrow at her. He knew her well enough to know she wasn’t done yet, she mumbled something so incoherent that John didn’t have a clue what she was trying to say. “What was that?” She sighed wishing he had heard her the first time but she stood and beckoned him over to the couch that rested by the fireplace in the adjacent room. John sighed deeply but moved to take a seat on the couch next his daughter and prayed to God that this conversation was worth the inordinate amount of patients he was having to exercise.
She handed him a whiskey, kicked off her shoes and curled her feat up under her as she turned to face her father, taking a sip of her own drink to settle herself for the explanation that she knew she had to give. “He doesn’t know when his birthday is Daddy.” They both needed a minute to take that information in before she continued, “When I asked why he said that him entering this world was something that his family didn’t celebrate,” Beth was heartbroken all over again for the pain that must have caused him but she kept going. “So, I picked him a new one, 28th September. Which as you know is next week.” John understood where this was going now and was already relaxing into the conversation with his daughter.
It did raise questions to John though, he knew the hands often went to town to celebrate each other’s birthdays and the events were often rowdy and lasted all night but now that he thought about it he had never head about plans for Rip’s birthday. He had been on this ranch for over twenty years and it had never even crossed his mind to consider if he celebrated his birthday, now he was with Beth and practically his son at this point it was something John would seek to rectify. “What do you need from me, sweetheart.” He asked, drinking the last of his whiskey and setting the glass back on the table.
“I need you to make sure he’s free on the Tuesday and Wednesday, no ranch business, no branded man work, nothing.” Beth went on to explain her plans for the two days and surprisingly John added some helpful suggestions and even offered the help of a few people to help organise the days she was arranging for him.
Later that night as she sat and ate dinner with Rip it was difficult to keep the smile off her face as she looked at him, he even questioned her about it and she deflected by simply stating, “I’m happy. Got a problem with that cowboy?” She smiled at him coyly as she stood slowly and walked towards him and took a seat on his lap.
Their dinner was left unfinished but neither of them was complaining.
~~~~Yellowstone~~~~
Once again, their peaceful morning was interrupted by the chaos of the ranch and Rip was pulled from their bed to deal with a scuffle that had happened between a couple of day workers they had on the payroll at the moment. The chaos seemed to continue until the morning of his birthday when she was awoken by Rip kissing her goodbye to head off to work, she wrapped her hand around his wrist to pull him back towards her and she smiled at the grin that spread across his face. “Baby, I need to get work.” The usual gentle chuckle that followed only made her smile wider.
She beckoned him closer and he obeyed as he took a seat next to her on the bed, she laughed and pulled him down to her as she kissed him. A slow deep kiss that had him moaning as he slipped his hat from his head and placed it atop the lampshade on the bedside table, she pulled back before he could take the kiss any further and placed both her hands on the sides of his face focusing her gaze on her. “Happy Birthday, Baby.” Rip looked at her confused before he remembered the conversation they had shared in the early hours of the morning so many months ago and shook his head as he laughed quietly before reaching down to kiss her once more. He enjoyed the kiss for a few moments before he pulled back and went to reach for his hat to head out to work.
She laughed, “You don’t have work today, or tomorrow for that fact. Daddy’s got Lloyd running the hands while you’re gone.” She slipped out of bed and unbuttoned the shirt she had slept in and let it fall from her body, delighting in the transfixed gaze he had on her body. She held her hand out and waited for him to take it, “I cleared it with the boss,” She smirked as she began unbuttoning the shirt he had on, “You are free and clear for 48 uninterrupted hours.” She raised her gaze to look him in the eye.
Rip was too stunned to speak; he couldn’t remember the last time he had had two days off that hadn’t involved him sleeping off some form of injury. “You did that for me?” He couldn’t believe she had done this for him.
“Of course, I did.” She cupped the side of his face and drew him in for another kiss before she pulled away with a smile, “Now while you looking all confused is absolutely adorable…” Rip snorted at the mere idea of being labelled as adorable but didn’t say anything as she continued speaking, “We do have plans. Despite the fact that we have two days off we can’t send the whole of today fucking on every available surface because we have an appointment this morning and it’s a bit of a drive.” She turned and led him towards the bathroom.
He smirked, “We do get to spend most of the day fucking though, right?” She couldn’t help but laugh as she pulled him towards the shower and set about removing the rest of his clothes as the shower steam began to fill the room. She entered the cubical leaving Rip standing naked and gobsmacked as he watched her bare ass disappear behind the curtain, whispering a quiet ‘fuck it’ he followed her in.
The steam engulfed the both of them as his arms wrapped securely around her waist as be pulled her back into him, pressing every inch of her against him. She slowly ground her ass into his growing erection as she turned and pulled his head around to her and kissed him deeply, twisting her fingers into the curls at the back of his neck as she gently scratched at his scalp.
Rip was in heaven, if he died right this second he wouldn’t have a single complaint. God the speed at which she could get him hard would have been embarrassing if it had been any other woman, it had only ever been her though. He was pulled from his thoughts by the feeling of her turning to face him and placing both her hands on his chest, her right hand absentmindedly caressing the brand that lay beneath it. Her brand on him. His vow to her.
The sensation caused a quiet sigh of contentment to fall from his lips as she gently applied pressure, pushing him backwards until his back pressed against the cold tile.
He gently cupped her ass, bringing her close to him as she pressed forward rubbing her swollen clit against the muscle of his thigh, they both let out quiet chuckles at the wanton moan that came from her mouth at that. He reached down to gently rub her clit but she pushed his hand away and sank to the floor of the shower, water raining down over the both of them as she firmly gripped the base of his cock.
Rip moaned at the contact, “Fuck, Beth,” His breathing was becoming more ragged as she moved her hand up and down his length, his breath hitched as she gently dragged her thumb across the tip before looking up at him and licking the pre cum off. Rip was done, his head dropped back against the tile at the mere sight of what she was doing to him. Beth wasn’t close to being done with him though as the next thing Rip knew was Beth’s mouth wrapped around his cock and set about sucking him off with a determination that made Rip’s legs want to buckle but he held firm, one hand on the tile wall and the other winding into her hair and pulling sharply.
She moaned at the action and Rip nearly fucking caved right there, she looked up at him with a mischievous glint in her eye as she moved her body to the right of him slightly, allowing him to see her other hand. Settled between her legs, two figures deep inside her pussy as her thumb rubbed at her clit.
His fucking cock twitched at the sight, “Jesus Christ woman.” He was pulling her hair a little more forcefully now and she moved her hand from the base of his cock to tweak her nipple causing her body to jerk upwards and taking him deeper down her throat.
Rip was unravelling, “Beth. Baby…” he was on the brink and she knew it, looking down at her she nodded gently at his questioning gaze and proceeded to force his cock down her throat and pulled out before sliding back all the way back in again, the sensations were overwhelming and he was so fucking close. He could feel her moans around his cock, she pinched her nipple again and she cried out in pleasure, muffled by his length in her mouth Rip broke.
He forced her head towards the base of his cock, he came hard. Eyes closed at the sheer force his head fell back against the tiles once more as his whole body shook from the sheer force of his climax. It was a few minutes before he came back to his senses and looked down to Beth, who still knelt on the tiles working her clit as she chased her own release.
He pulled her up to stand as he went down on his own knees in front of her, chest heaving with want and arousal she made such a fucking arousing sight that he knew he would dream of this moment for the rest of his life. He pushed her hand away, dragging his own fingers along her slit he pushed two figures into her wet heat and set a punishing rhythm as his own lips descended on her clit, sucking hard. He curled his fingers just right, slipping in a third and pressed upwards hitting her g-spot and she shattered. She cried out his name and her hands sank into his curls, searching for anything that would ground her as her climax ripped through her, Rip didn’t move as he gently coaxed her through it. Mouth secured over entrance as she came all over his face, his own moan vibrating against her clit that had her falling straight into another climax, mutterings of ‘fuck yes’ and ‘oh God’ and his name ‘Rip’, ‘Oh baby, yes’ again and again as the waves crashed against her, speaking in the most sinful of tones that would have him hard for the next month as she said his name over and over again.
He stood after a moment, knees protesting at the abuse they had gone through at such and early hour. He pulled her towards him as they stood under the shower and he reached above him to get the shower gel that she kept here and slowly lathered up every inch of her body. After she had been cleaned off, she turned him around and did the same, making sure she cleaned every inch of him. They dried off quietly, taking moments to touch each other and kiss each other. There was no urgency now and both knew they didn’t have time for another round before they left for his mystery appointment, so they stood naked in the steamed up bathroom kissing gently for the simple reason that this morning they could. Ranch life was chaotic and unpredictable so lazy mornings like this were few and far between.
They eventually came out of the bathroom and entered their bedroom, Rip sat on the bed and enjoyed watching Beth as she took a seat at the vanity. He watched with rapture as she combed her fingers through her hair, gently winding the strands around her fingers so they fell in little curls down her back. Satisfied with her hair she began her make up, it wasn’t anything elaborate so Rip knew they weren’t going anywhere fancy, which was a relief to him as he hated places like that. After she was done, she looked up in the mirror and saw him watching her in the reflection, “See something you like.” She asked with a smile on her face as he simply responded with that shit eating grin he so often had around her.
She stood and began throwing clothes at him, first a pair of dark blue jeans – they were slightly tighter around his ass and she loved nothing more than to watch him working in these jeans – then a new white shirt she had recently bought him followed with his usual white under shirt and looked at him expectantly, he smiled back at her, “You sure we have to leave, kinda like have you naked and all to myself.” He said with a grin and she laughed at the idea.
“You will have me naked and all to yourself later I promise you that but right now we have somewhere to be,” She turned to grab her own outfit before making her way over to the dresser to get dressed, “Put your pants on.” She said and he laughed but complied non the less.
~~~~Yellowstone~~~~
Beth hadn’t been joking when she said it was a drive, three hours in the car and he couldn’t think for the life of him what they were doing around here. She began slowing the car as they approached the entrance to a dirt road and now Rip was confused, “Beth what the hell are we doing here?” He asked baffled as to why this incredible woman who hated horses and dirt would be voluntarily going to a horse farm. She doesn’t answer though, just smirks at him and keeps driving until they pull to a stop in front of a large dark blue barn.
She beckons him to follow her and he does so, unsure as to what the hell is going on but if he can follow John Dutton into life-or-death situations without a clue as to what’s going on he can follow the woman he loves into a fucking barn. “This is your first present, baby.” Rip wasn't sure what surprised him more, the word 'present' or 'first'. She held her hand out to him and he took it as he looked for anything that could be considered a gift but the only thing he could see was a pen of two year old horses milling about.
“Beth, what the hell is going on.” He looked at her as she leant against the side of the pen that held the herd of two-year old’s.
She smiled as she spoke, “Couple of months ago you were taking about how you wanted to join some of the other hands at the horse show, right?” He nodded at that; Travis had said that the horse he had at the moment – while a decent ranch horse – wasn’t of the calibre needed for the horse shows and Rip was disappointed to admit that the other man was right.
She nodded as she turned to face him, “All these horses are bred for horse shoes, pedigrees and good blood lines and all that horse shit.” She said with a smile, “So, you’re going to pick one.” The silence that covered the area was deafening.
Rip was gobsmacked, she couldn’t be saying what he thought she was saying. There was no possible way that she was actually intending on buying him a fucking horse. “Beth… you can’t… its not.” He took his hat of to run his fingers through his hair as he tried to comprehend what she was saying.
She took his hand and looked at him, “You would do anything to make me happy, right” He nodded silently to shocked to be able to form words. “If I mentioned wanting something, or wanting to do something you would make it happen, right?” Again he nodded, “Then let me do something that makes you happy Rip. Lord knows I've done plenty of things to hurt you so let me do something that will bring you some happiness, Baby.” He looked at her then with so much emotion in his eyes that part of her wanted to cry at the idea of someone wanting him to be happy would be this shocking and heart wrenching for him.
She cupped the side of his face and as a lone tear managed to escape and she kissed him, taking a moment to enjoy the feel of him against her and the memory that today would become would be one of her favourites for the rest of her life. She pulled away and smiled as she saw an older man and two younger ones approaching them.
After introductions had been made the men set about discussing the breeding for the various horses and Beth quietly stood next to him as Rip talked to the owner about the type of horse he was looking for, after nearly and hour they had narrowed it down to two fillies and a colt. The two younger boys went to grab the three horses in question and moved them to a smaller paddock. They were broken but that was about it, if Rip wanted to make any of them into show horse, he would need to do a lot of training before they would be ready. Luckily for Rip he had been watching and accessing horses for John since he had become foreman seven years ago and knew what to look for.
Closer inspection of the horse while they were saddled and ridden by the younger boys had Rip torn between the buckskin filly or the blue roan stallion. He turned to Beth and smiled his boyish grin that brought to mind images of the happy boy he could have been if life hadn’t been so cruel to him. She was going to make it her life’s purpose to make him grin like that as frequently as possible. “What do you think?” He said and she looked at him wide eyed.
She laughed, “I don’t know shit about horses, Rip.” He laughed at that and nodded.
“Oh yeah, I know that sweetie. I wasn’t asking about performance, part of it is getting a good looking horse that suits me, that way we can put together a better show.” He explained and Beth looked at the two horses with a critical eye.
She pointed towards the slightly larger of the two, the stallion and smiled at him. “I think he suits you better, the owner mentioned that their coats change in winter right” Rip nodded at that as she continued, “He’s bigger as well, which is a good thing for you.” He laughed at that.
“You calling me fat woman.” She laughed as he pulled her towards him, wrapping his arms around her like he had this morning. The smile on his face was contagious and she couldn’t help but smile back at him, she had no interest in horses but damn if seeing that look on his face didn’t make her reconsider her opinion if only for how much he loved the creatures.
He turned to the owner and smiled, “I’ll take the roan then, Sir.” He said, the smile stretching across his face all over again as the owner nodded and walked towards the gate to his two sons. He turned back to her again and kissed her again, they couldn’t stop today.
Years of hurting and pining for simple moments like this caused them both to be a little giddy, she smiled at him as she gently scratched his beard, “Are you happy?” She asked quietly, looking into his eyes.
He couldn’t find the words to describe it to her, he hadn’t felt this much joy in his entire life and very little of it had to do with the horse. It was this woman, this incredibly caring woman who loved him with her whole heart and who he loved equally. He couldn’t put any of that into words so he simply nodded as he pulled her into another kiss, desperate to show her how much her was grateful for her, how much he loved her.
He turned to see one of the Yellowstone’s horse trailers coming round the corner attached to the back of his truck. He turned to look at her and she could only grin at him, her father had gotten Ryan to drop the trailer off the day she had gone to talk to her father so that she wouldn’t tip Rip off as to the purpose of they’re drive this morning.
They loaded Rip’s brand new horse into the trailer, thanked the owner and his two sons before bidding them goodbye and getting in the truck. Beth gave Rip the keys and tucked herself up next to him on the front seat of his truck.
The drive back was quiet as they sat and listened to the radio, mindful of their new cargo it took them a little longer and so they pulled into the ranch around three in the afternoon and Rip headed straight back to the corral. John was on his horse out with the other hands overseeing all the doctoring that needed doing to the herd today on one of his rare days off when he saw Rip's truck pulling in. He gently nudged his horse towards the trailer as Rip and Beth both exited the truck. John was taken aback by the grin that spread across his face and the playful laughter that was flowing between the two of them.
After a few minutes he swung off his horse and made his way over to the couple that had taken up position on the other side of the trailer, he came round the corner to find Rip pressed against the side of the trailer, hands firmly gripping her ass as they kissed. Taking a breath, he cleared his throat, pointedly looking in a different direction as Rip and Beth jumped apart with surprise.
“You gonna show me this new horse, Rip? Or am I gonna have to wait until you start training it?” He laughed at the guilty expression on his face and sighed. “For fuck’s sake Rip. You two live in the same damn house, I’m well aware that you’re kissing her son. Now show me this God damn horse that’s got you smiling like an idiot.” Rip straightened his hat and went to open the back of the trailer.
By now the rest of the wranglers had noticed the arrival of the trailer as well as their absent foreman and had gathered by the fence to see what he had returned with. They watched with awe as a beautiful blue roan stallion made his way out the trailer, he was tall – taller than the majority of the horses at the ranch – and held his head high. He was going to be a magnificent animal to show and they all knew that he wasn’t going to be a ranch horse. “Wonder whose horse that is?” Jimmy asked, and everyone was surprised that Ryan answered.
“Well, here’s a little something you didn’t know about our fearless foreman.” The rest of the hands turned to face him confused, “Today is his birthday.” Ryan said with a grin “And that right there is his birthday present.” The rest were astounded, the roan was Rip’s horse.
Lloyd frowned slightly, “Strange.” He said as he looked at Ryan, “Rip doesn’t know when he was born. He hasn’t celebrated a single birthday since he got here, definitely didn’t have one before.” With that he nudged his horse back towards the herd of cattle, calling to the rest to get back to work but the words he had spoken echoed in the minds of every single hand there.
John was impressed at the horse that Rip had picked, it was a solid animal and would serve him well at the shows. Hell, Rip might even do a couple of rodeos now he had a decent horse again. The one he had competed on to get the buckles he already owned had been on the older side and had been retired after three years on the circuit and they hadn’t had the quality of horse to replace it. Not to mention that Rip wanted to take over as foreman and so had dropped rodeoing in an effort to focus on the ranch.
“You got a name for him yet, son?” John asked gently stroking the horses nose as he sniffs his Yellowstone jacket, taking in all the new scents that clung to the wool.
Rip couldn’t help but beam at the use of the word ‘son’ but if John noticed he didn’t point it out, he just stood holding the horse’s halter and responded. “Well, his names Buell.” He smiles and John looks as him with a bemused look.
“What’s that horse ever done to you, giving him a name like Buell.” John said as Beth suddenly understood and let out a disbelieving laugh.
“Before I went to college Daddy I had a big clear out of a lot of my room, do you remember?” John certainly did remember it had been a fucking circus in his house for three straight days. “Well, I gave Rip some of my old book seeing as he loved to read but didn’t have any of his own and he had read every other book the other hands owned.” She smiled at that, those books were the only thing she had ever given him back them and he still had all four of them on his book shelf in their cabin.
“My favourite book, the horse in it was called Buell, so because Beth got me the book and the horse, I figured I would call him Buell.” Rip said with a smile as he glanced at Beth. John just nodded and rubbed the horse’s nose in some form of an apology.
After putting Buell in his new stable and making sure he had food and water for the night the couple bid him goodbye as they went to pop the trailer back and after twenty minutes drove back up to the cabin on the hill. She smiled as she saw her next surprise waiting for them outside of the cabin, Rip was even more confused than this morning seeing his horse as well as another tied to the hitching post outside their house.
He turned to look at her, “Do I get to know or is this another wait and see thing.” He smiled at the little grin that was beginning to spread across her face.
“Well I would think that two saddled horses was a little obvious but if you need me to spell it out for you then we are going for a ride.” With that she exited the truck and made her way over to the horses.
He came up to her horse and gently held the horse still to help her mount it, then moved to the other side and gently gripping her calf he slid her other foot into the stirrup. He let go as soon as she nodded to him that she was okay and made his way to his own horse.
~~~~Yellowstone~~~~
The ride down was beautiful and even Beth had to agree. They rode side by side talking to each other about anything and everything, Rip told her a story about how he had told this tale to his younger brother about wolves who attacked boys who strayed too far into their territory that had left his brother so scared he had nightmares for a week. They both laughed at the story and the punishment his mother had given him after the first night he had awoken screaming and she had found out why, was even funnier. “She made me sleep on the floor of his room for a week until he could sleep through the night again, never told him a scary story again let me tell you.” Rip laughed when Beth started laughing.
He came to a stop along the ridge and looked out over it, Beth came to a stop next to him and looked quietly at the horizon together. Rip gently took her hand as a sad look came across his face as he shared something with her that he hadn’t shared with another living soul. “His name was Reid.” He said quietly, the pain in his voice was evident to her, “My mama didn’t bother with middle names. Said no one would ever care about what my middle name was, I had a name already. She didn’t see the need for another one.” Rip had only ever been ‘boy’ to his father and his mother had always just called him ‘bean’, so the only people who had called him Rip had been strangers. It was one of the reasons he loved it when Beth called him ‘Baby’, it was all hers.
Beth gently pulled his arm and they continued along the trail for another hour or so before they came across a camp at the edge of a meadow with the river running along the middle, Rip looked at Beth in disbelief. “We are absolutely not sleeping out here,” One look at Beth told him that that was indeed the plan for the night, “Baby, you hate camping.”
She smiled and shrugged, “I won’t be sleeping on the floor, I’ll be sleeping on you so problem solved.” They both laughed as they set about sorting the horses out for the night, before Rip got started on the fire. Unbeknownst to him Beth had walked over to the large tree and undone the knot of rope at the base and down came a basket of food, as well as a bottle of whiskey for the two of them. He turned around once the fire was started and found her laying out the bedroll that they would need in a few hours.
With the ride down from their cabin it was easily early evening and the sun would begin setting soon but Beth had a plan for them before they retired to the fire. She laughed as she striped her shirt off and began kicking of her boots and jeans as she made a dash for the river near their camp, laughing as she ran passed Rip. She heard the quiet ‘fuck it’ as she went passed and glanced backwards to see him stripping off too and shaking his head with a smile on his face he made after her, quickly catching up and hoisting her bare ass over his shoulder, she shrieked as the ground tipped upside down.
Her indignity was short lived as she was faced with opportunity, Rip’s ass was perfectly level with her head and before she could even pause to think about what she was doing she slapped him on the ass. “For fuck’s sake woman.” He laughed as he placed her back down, ankle deep in the flowing river she grabbed his hand and pulled him in deeper before she turned around and dropped backwards pulling them both down beneath the surface. When they resurfaced she was laughing at that the look of surprise he still had, she didn’t expect the splash of water to come at her and she couldn’t help but retaliate. They didn’t stop fooling around in the river until well after dark.
Rip had been hard for the last twenty minutes and as they made their way back over to the camp, they didn’t address the raging erection that he had until she took his hand a pulled him towards the cloth laid across the ground next to the fire. Rip sat her down and she laid back against the fabric, stretching her arms high above her head as her back arched upwards, breasts pointing towards the stars. Rip gently nudged her legs apart and dragged two fingers through her folds and she gasped at the contact, they had spent hours teasing each other in the river that she was already soaking wet for him.
He dropped down, gently kissing the inside of her thighs and she gasped at the sensation of his beard against the sensitive skin there. Her hands came down settling in the curls at the back of his neck when his mouth wrapped around her clit. It was something she did every time they had sex, wind her fingers into his curls and gently scratch at his scalp and fuck if he didn’t love the sensation as he moaned directly against her clit and she came gently. The teasing foreplay of the last few hours coupled with the practised motions of the man she loved sent her over the edge, it wasn’t a hard or fast climax but the gentle waves felt just as fucking good as his hand came up to cup her breast.
She gently tugged on his curls, “Come here.” She said breathlessly as she pulled her lips to his, his tongue immediately entering her mouth to taste herself on him as he slipped a finger inside her heat pressed down on her clit. Her legs wound around his waist pulling him closer to her, as close as she could get him as he worked at ever spot he could. He pulled away from her, and began dropping kisses down her neck, focusing on the pulse point directly under her left ear that made her figures dig into the back of his shoulders. She was getting close again, he could tell. He gentle climax only moments ago had only added to the fire, she was wanted to shatter into a thousand pieces. Her heart rate was thundering under his lips and her breath was coming in pants in his ear, she was begging him now, begging him to make her cum. The half-moon dips in the back of his shoulders had now led to angry red streaks as she dragged her nails down his back in desperation.
He abandoned his position on her neck and came back to kiss her lips once more his left hand rolling her nipple between his fingers a little harder this time and threw her head back, crying his name, “Oh Rip, just a little…” She was breathless and he was so fucking hard it hurt, “…a little more.” He pulled both his hands away from her and settled on her waist and looked at her.
“Where do you want me, baby.” He whispered to her, arched her back into his chest, desperate for some form of friction against her nipples and she snaked her hand down his chest and wrapped her hand around his cock. He couldn’t help but thrust into her grip as he grunted, the contact he needed now nearly as desperate as hers.
She guided his cock down towards her entrance, he pushed her hand aside and took hold of his cock and swiped it across her oversensitive clit. “Oh, please Rip…” She took both her breasts in her hands, tweaking her nipple hard and he slipped straight inside her.
He knew this wasn’t gonna last much longer, her legs wrapped around his waist, both her hands now occupied on her breasts. She was sitting on the precipice, he pulled out slowly but one squeeze of her legs had him slipping straight back in again and he moaned at the feel of her. Rip's hands pulled her body up towards him and now when he slid in and out of her heat the base of his cock ground against her clit and that was it, she cried out. Hands abandoned her breast and wrapped around the back of his head pulling him into a messy kiss and he moaned as she contracted around his cock and it took every ounce of fucking will power he had not to cum there and then but he wasn’t done with her just yet.
Rip pulled away and withdrew out of her and she moaned at the loss of him so deep inside her. He grabbed her waist and turned her over, “Relax, baby. We aren’t done just yet.” She whimpered at that and Rip wasn’t aware he could get any harder until she did that, he pulled her up onto all fours and slipped straight back into her.
He moaned at the feeling of her around him, “Fuck, Beth. So fucking tight. So fucking wet.” He leant forward and gently took a fist full of her hair and pulled back. The filthy moan that came from her mouth followed by ‘God yes, Rip. Pull my fucking hair.’, was then also followed by ‘Fuck me baby’. So, he did. One hand had a bruising grip on her hip that was gonna leave one hell of a fucking mark and the other tangled in her hair as he slammed himself into her over and over again. He couldn’t pull it back anymore.
He moaned her name, “Oh God Beth.” He kept going in and out, he was vaguely aware of her hand moving to rub her clit and her whole body was shaking violently as another orgasm wracked through her body. She clenched around his cock and he before he knew what the fuck was going on he was cuming so hard his fucking ears were ringing, she was pushing back into him, egging him and he couldn’t stop slamming into her. Addicted to the sensations she was causing him, he kept fucking her.
He wanted more though and pulled her hair to pull her up so her back was pressed to his chest, his left hand fell to her clit the right up to her breast, clamping down on her nipple. He kept thrusting into her the change in angle meaning he could go even deeper and she was fucking incoherent now, he didn’t have a fucking clue what she was trying to say but she was crying out in pleasure all over again as she came and he dragged him with her pulling another climax from his exhausted body and they both fell forwards onto the bedroll beneath them.
After a few minutes he pulled out of her, sighing as the cold air hit them with a vengeance and quickly rolled over to pull the blankets on them as they both lay there completely unable to move and breathing deeply in an aim to get as much oxygen as possible after their workout. Beth rolled onto his side after a while tucking her face into the crook of his neck, breathing in that scent that she found so comforting. His hand came to the small of her back and pulled her closer until every inch of her body was pressed against him, her right leg hooked over his.
“This was the this I dreamed of, Beth.” He said quietly and she pulled her head from the crook of his neck to better listen, “Moments like today, picking horses, going for drives, sleeping underneath the stars.” He smiles slightly, “All that hippy shit.” He feels the laugh rather than hears and she places her hand over his brand, caressing it gently.
“I’m sorry for what I did to us.” She starts but he stops her quickly.
“No, Beth.” He turns his head to look at her and pushed an errant strand of hair away from her face as he looks her in the eye. “I’ve spent most of my adult life regretting something and it nearly cost me my sanity. I don’t regret our past, it happened. Nothing either one of us can do about it now except enjoy this, right here.” He kissed her gently before he continued, “I didn’t tell you that to make you feel guilty, I told you that so you would know how much today meant to me, this has been pretty much the greatest day I’ve ever had and while the bar is non-existent for past birthdays I can’t quite figure how you could have made this any more perfect.” She was openly crying now, the tears streaming down her face he gently wiped away before her stomach broke the silence by growly loudly in the open air.
They both laughed and set about getting dressed slightly, she slipped his white shirt on while Rip threw his jeans on and they both sat by the fire and set about eating the massive spread that Gator had prepared for them, all of them notably his favourites. She’d even remembered his love of potato salad. Not to mention the bottle of whiskey.
The rest of the evening passed in quiet, they sat talking again or simply staring at the stars as they based the whiskey back and forth. It was by far one of the best days he had ever experienced, “Now I don’t want you to start crying again but…” She gently punched him in the arm for bringing that up but the smile on her face said she wasn’t actually angry so he continued on before he lost his nerve. “Thank you.” He said quietly to her as she leaned back against his chest, her hand dropping to rub circles against his denim clad thigh, “I’ve never had a birthday before, you know that. When I was a boy, I used to dream about having a birthday – I mean really young, like four or five. My father made sure I grew out of it pretty quickly – but this is beyond anything I could have imagined.” She smiled at him this time and all he could do was smile back.
He watched as she turned and straddled his waist to cup his face, “I want to you understand something Rip. You matter. To me. To my family. To the ranch hands. You are something to celebrate baby. You being born is something to celebrate.” She leaned forward and kissed him deep and he pulled her down to rest on the bedroll, pulling the covers around the both of them.
“Well then mission accomplished.” He said as the day’s events caught up to them, they settled into a deep and restful sleep.
~~~~Yellowstone~~~~
The morning came and they packed up the camp and left the boxes behind for Gator to collect in a few hours when he came back with the truck. They hopped on the horses and headed back towards the corral and dropped them off in the barn and began the walk back to camp, the hands called out 'happy birthday's' as they walked past. They arrived in the house and were immediately aware of a parcel that sat on the table that hadn’t been there when they left, next to it sat a bottle of whiskey with a brown tag hanging off the side.
Rip walked over and picked it up like it was about to bite him, he gently turned the label over and read the blocky writing. Beth looked at him, “It’s called a present, Rip. It won’t bite you I promise.” She laughed as she watched him, “What does it say.” She stood at the breakfast counter and waited for him to catch up.
“It says, ‘Happy Birthday Rip, from Monica, Kayce and Tate’.” Rip looked up at her with the most devastated look on his face, “They sent me a present, Beth.” She walked over to him and took the bottle from his hand and set it down on the table.
“Rip. You and me. We're a done deal which means in this strange equation of relations and family you are a Dutton. Especially given that you’ve worked this ranch for over twenty years. Your family, baby. Of course, they’re gonna send you a present now they know when it is.” She gently stroked the side of his face, fingers scratching at his beard as she so often did when she wanted to comfort him. “Now I’m gonna take a guess and say that if that bottle was from my brother than the other one is probably from my Dad.” Rip looked even more alarmed than he had at the bottle of whiskey and the wide-eyed look he gave her would have been funny in any other situation besides this.
He tentatively stepped over to the box and pulled the lid off, he moved the paper out the way to find a dark green jacket in a thick flannel material with a white Yellowstone logo over the left pocket. It was gorgeous and exactly the kind of thing he would have bought himself if he ever bothered to go shopping, he remembered last year when he and John had been stood observing the calves they had in the pens in freezing temperatures and he had joked to John that he might need to go for a thicker jacket because this one wasn’t doing shit. He gently picked it up by the collar and unfolded as he lifted it out, paper falling out from the folds. Beth looked at it with a smile, God knows how her Daddy had figured that one out but it was perfect for Rip and she was pretty sure he had even managed to get the size right. Placing it back on the table he slipped his standard black jacket off on hung it on the coat hook by the door, before walking back over to the box and slipping the new jacket on.
Beth smiled and straightened his collar and smiled at him, “You look very handsome in that,” Rip ducked his head and smiled at the complement, he wasn’t used to being complimented sincerely, “Daddy invited us up to the Lodge for lunch, if you want to go.” Rip smiled and took her hand as they headed out towards the car and headed down to the Lodge.
~~~~Yellowstone~~~~
The meal was peaceful, a testament to Beth’s good mood that even eating in the Great Room didn’t put a damper on it and cause the meal to end prematurely. They had sirloin steak with butter potatoes and salad, one of Rip’s favourites again and also John’s so he was more than happy to capitalise on the opportunity to have steak without aggravating his daughter.
Rip was surprised when Gator came into the room with a lemon pie and a chocolate pie for desert, he didn’t remember telling any one about that particular like of his. He looked at the cook curiously and the man responded, “Mr Lloyd told me if you got to the diner after auctions you always order the lemon pie.” He said before setting the lemon pie in front of him and the chocolate one in front of John and left the room as the group made a start on desert.
Kayce, Monica and Tate headed off not long after the pie’s had been cleared and when Kayce stood to bid everyone goodbye, Rip stood as well and held his hand out to Kayce. “I just wanted to say thank you.” At the slightly confused look Kayce gave him, Rip shifted nervously as he explained, “For the gift. The bottle of whiskey, thank you.” Kayce just laughed lightly and shook the foreman’s hand.
“You’re welcome, Rip. If we had a little more notice we would have gotten you something a little nicer but whiskey was all we could come up with.” They all laughed at that.
“Well, I am a cowboy so whiskey is always a safe bet.” He said with a smile and the family left the house leaving John, Rip and Beth at the table.
“And thank you John. The jacket is… well” he laughed as he gestured to the very jacket he had draped across the back of his chair. “Thank you.” John nodded at that, a small smile on his face as he took a sip of wine.
“It’s your birthday, Rip. Now you and Beth have sorted yourselves out you had best get used to it, I intend to make a lot of changes to the way we’ve been doing things as a family and acknowledging things like birthdays is gonna be a part of it.” Both Beth and Rip smile at that idea, the hurt children inside them eager for the opportunity to be part of a functioning family.
Hell, Rip thought, maybe there were other ways he and Beth could add to their family. But that was a conversation for another day.