How to get a Cowboy 101 ⎯ a Ryan story [Yellowstone]

ix

The night air was crisp, carrying the scent of pine and horses, mingling with the faint smoke from the campfire in the distance. Jane lay in the grass, her back against the earth, one arm propped beneath her head, watching the vast canvas of the sky above. The stars blinked down at her like scattered diamonds across an infinite sea of black. It was quieter here, away from the campfire's warmth and the laughter of the wranglers. The strum of Walker's guitar drifted faintly on the breeze, blending with the occasional murmur of conversation, but Jane had retreated from the crowd, finding solace in the silence. The music and the talk had been too much—her head ached from it all, so she sought out the quiet of the horse field, laying herself down in the soft grass, surrounded by the night.

The universe felt vast above her, the stars shimmering with a clarity she hadn't seen in years. Outlines of constellations became clearer, even the faint traces of a nebula glowed subtly against the black void. It was a kind of beauty that made her feel small, but also profoundly connected to something greater. Here, under this celestial dome, it felt like time had stopped, like she was simply a part of the earth, watching the eternal dance of the heavens.

Footsteps crunched softly on the grass nearby, slow and deliberate, but she didn't move. They were too light to be Rip's, too measured to be her uncle's. Jane knew who it was before he even spoke.

Ryan sat down beside her with a quiet huff, stretching his legs out into the grass. "You tired?" he asked, his voice warm and familiar—the same voice that had called her 'doll' the first time they'd met, the same voice that had made her feel she might just fit in here after all.

Jane smirked a little, still not tearing her gaze from the sky. "Not tired enough to miss watching a clear night like this," she replied, her eyes catching his briefly as she turned her head. Ryan's cowboy hat was pulled low, the brim cutting across his face and shielding his eyes from the glow of the stars. But there was a smile tugging at his lips, the kind of easy, lopsided grin that made him seem both playful and sincere.

Without asking, Ryan gently slid his hand beneath her head, guiding it into his lap, replacing her forearm. Her neck had been craned awkwardly, and now, resting against him, the tension eased. She didn't resist; it was an oddly comforting gesture, and it felt natural somehow. Like this had become their new normal—stealing quiet moments under the stars while the rest of the world carried on.

"Do you see that?" Jane asked, lifting a finger toward the sky. "Ophiuchus. You can only see it during the summer." Her voice was soft, almost reverent, as if she was sharing some kind of secret only the sky could offer. Her eyes reflected the stars above, shimmering just like them, a mirror of the cosmos.

Ryan's hand brushed a loose strand of her hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear. His smile deepened as he looked up at the constellation she pointed out. "You know your stars, huh?" he said, his voice low, almost as if he didn't want to disturb the stillness of the night.

Jane only nodded, her gaze returning to the sky. "Yeah... my dad taught me when I was little. Said the stars would always be there when nothing else was."

Ryan stayed quiet for a moment, letting the weight of her words settle between them. He admired the way she spoke of the stars, like they were old friends, offering comfort in a way the earth couldn't. "Smart man," he finally said, the warmth in his voice cutting through the cool night air.

For a while, they sat in silence, finding constellations and trading stories about their childhoods—small details neither had known about the other. They laughed softly at inside jokes, shared shy glances that lingered a little too long, and, for a moment, the world beyond the field seemed to disappear. At one point, Ryan dared to tickle her, just to hear her laugh, and she retaliated with a playful punch to his arm before they raced through the field in a spontaneous game of tag, her hair flying behind her as she ran.