Montana Sky

Chapter 23: Embrace

A/N: Sorry for the delay - I was enjoying a few days of better weather after three weeks of almost constant #RainOnMe, which seems to be back again now, and I had a slight writer's block, which I wasn't enjoying as much as the sun. But here we go:)

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I tried to face it, I can't erase it
So I must face it, I must embrace it
I have wasted my time, dwelling in the shadows from the past
In the front seat did you hear my heartbeat
Forward to the future I must move on, I will let go
To the future, that's where I will soar
Higher, higher, higher, higher, higher
– Dolores O'Riordan: Skeleton –

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Stefani had never considered herself a particularly possessive person, let alone one with a penchant for jealousy, but right now, the green-eyed monster was rapidly grasping her into its claws.

With her eyes narrowed and an annoyed frown forming on her brow, she stared at a tall brunette that had glued herself to Bradley, smiling and laughing and flirting, her dark hair glittering in the afternoon sunlight; the woman was dressed in stylish riding gear, her face immaculately made up. And naturally her hand just happened to accidentally brush against his, on the neck of the young gelding they were checking out; the horse clawed at the ground and for a moment Stefani experienced a very strong, quite childish urge to do the same. He wasn't responding to the obvious interest in any way, but that didn't make her feel much better, and it clearly did nothing to hold the brunette back either.

"Would you look at that?" she whispered to the little girl on her arms, wrinkling her nose. "I mean, seriously."

Lea gave her a wide smile, far more interested in playing with the stud-decorated strings of the blonde's green hoodie and she kissed the toddler's forehead tenderly, securely holding onto her adorable companion. A small wave of nausea washed over her, luckily quite mild, and Stefani chuckled, glancing down to her belly.

"Hi Alice; you're agreeing with mama, aren't you?" She took a few steady breaths, the nausea passing little by little, at least the one that was caused by the baby. "Really, you two, your daddy is too gorgeous for his own good."

They were on their way home from Whitefish and had, as planned, stopped at this beautiful ranch about half an hour outside Helena, to meet the young horses Bradley had raised. After greeting the owners, he had clearly been very eager to get to the stables immediately, and the older couple had told him to look for their daughter Annie, who would show him the horses; judging by the brunette's very similar facial features, he had found her. Stefani had remained behind for a while with Lea, who seemed to have reached her limit on how many new people she was willing to interact with this week, agreeing to offer their besotted hosts a little smile only after some tears and crankiness. They had followed Bradley to the stables, and now she was encountered with this, making a face as the brunette giggled at something he had said, grasping onto his arm briefly.

"Could you be any more obvious?" she muttered to herself, watching him move away from the woman's reach immediately and she felt almighty silly; there she was, hiding behind the corner of the large stable block and letting unnecessary fears build in her mind, despite knowing she had nothing to worry about, knowing she could trust Bradley fully. Deep inside her, some anger bubbled also, the desire to get rid of the competition, to give the other woman a piece of her mind and make it crystal clear that he wasn't available. She had never felt like this before, terribly shy and furious at the same time, wondering if the pregnancy hormones were messing with her head; she wanted to keep him all to herself all the time, was quite emotional and more attached to him than ever, especially following their incredible vacation.

They had left Whitefish in the mid-morning, following a very relaxing, intimate stay; it had helped her and Bradley to recover from the trials of the previous week both mentally and physically, with a lot of rest and a lot of talking that had bonded them even further. Stefani felt like they had fallen in love a lot more too, if it was in any way possible, connected on an even deeper level, partly because of the pregnancy, but also as a result of the long conversations they had been able to have uninterrupted during Lea's naps and in the evenings, sharing memories and life events. Opening up so completely to another person wasn't the easiest thing for either of them, but at the same time it felt immensely good, the deep trust and honesty between them giving her such calmness and reassurance; she hoped she was able to offer that to him in return too, wanted him to know he could rely on her, always, tell her anything and everything.