Montana Sky

Chapter 5: Tangled Up

What if I told you
I got a little too honest?
What if I stumbled on three words and made a promise?
'Cause there's a fire between us
And it's too late to stop it
'Cause you and I are tangled up like headphones in my pocket
– Jon Bryant: Headphones –

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It was another beautiful, bright and sunny day, the air starting to have much more of a springtime feel as the wind had turned far warmer overnight; Bradley tightened the reins of the dark brown horse he was riding, moved his eyes carefully over a fence that ran along the side of a large field, towards a blue river glittering in the distance. The cattle that had gathered nearby to graze on dried hay lifted their heads upon spotting the horse, mooed in greeting; satisfied with the fence's condition, he turned Shadow back around, the stallion whining in annoyance and tossing his head, probably frustrated by the slow pace.

"Settle down, boy," he said quietly, glancing over his shoulder as another horse approached, Sarah re-joining him after checking the fence on the other side. "We'll do a bit of running soon."

"All good, although some of the fence posts are starting to look a bit loose and pretty worn out too." The blonde settled her lighter brown gelding next to Shadow, the horses saying hello to each other with a little nudge of their noses. "Might be best to get them replaced soon."

Bradley nodded, adding the task onto the rather long to-do list he was combining in his head. "Good point. I'll check the equipment when we get back, see if we have enough; Tom's heading to town later so he can get whatever's missing from the hardware store."

They made their way towards the river, a large eagle flying across the blue sky and disappearing into a patch of trees that grew on the other side of the water; the horses' hooves created a steady rhythm against the dusty ground, the saddles creaking softly, late March sun already warm. It was very comfortable, the landscapes surrounding them breathtaking and he smiled slightly, once again so grateful that his life had brought him here. It hadn't been what he had planned for, originally, having spent so many years trying to get into acting, but this beat the craziness of Hollywood a million times over; he appreciated having been given that experience, truly, the opportunity to see inside the entertainment industry but today, he wouldn't change this for anything.

"So." Sarah tugged her long, blonde ponytail up from her neck, tightened it with one hand. "Natali looked like a cat that got the cream at breakfast this morning; I thought it was all about Mike, but she told me she walked in on you almost kissing her sister last night."

She narrowed her eyes, tried to look angry despite the wide smile that was breaking onto her face, reached to slap his arm. "Kissing, Bradley! And you didn't tell me; not that you ever really tell me anything, but you could have told me this."

"I didn't see you until we left, and we didn't actually kiss because Natali walked in on us." He chuckled, patting Shadow's neck. "I'm surprised you've managed to control your curiosity for this long; no wonder you've been giving me looks for the past hour and squirming like crazy."

"Oh please. I have not been squirming." Sarah released an annoyed puff of air, tried to contain her grinning. "And if I was, it would be completely justified. You almost kissed Lady Gaga; not that I'm surprised, I've been able to see it coming ever since the accident, but... talk to me, Cooper. Come on."

He scratched his cheek, resumed stroking Shadow's neck; the horse gave a sideways look towards him, snorting as though guessing his attempts to stall and he smiled faintly. "So, Natali and Mike, huh? Do you think that's maybe going somewhere?"

"Good one, Bradley. Nice try." Sarah poked a finger into his side. "And yes, I think it might be going somewhere, considering they seemed pretty interested in each other last night, but what I want to know is where you're going with her sister."