Yellowstone

Chapter 27 - Frogman

35k holy shit...

Walker buried his nose in her hair and inhaled deeply while keeping her in his embrace.

"Why do you always do that?" Elisabeth asked with a curious smile.

"'Cause you smell good." He answered simply.

She groaned a little, shifting to hide her face in his bare chest. "I love you." She purred.

"Mmm... do you love me enough to stay in bed with me for an extra ten minutes?"

Elisabeth smiled and chuckled a little at his words. "I do, but I can't. I have extra shit on my plate today."

With a groan of protest from Walker, Elisabeth stood up out of bed and pulled a t-shirt down over her head to conceal her previously nude torso.

"Hey, you gotta get up too." She smiled, stepping into her jeans and shimmying into them, deciding to go braless for the day.

Walker arched his back in a stretch, groaning a bit more. "Doesn't mean I want to."

"C'mon. Up, up, up." She gave him a nudge and he sat up in bed, rubbing his face to rid it of any fatigue.

She pulled on a jacket and didn't wait for him as Walker dressed himself and soon followed her down to the barn. They saddled up and headed out to work.

"And where the hell were you last night?" Ryan asked as Elisabeth rode up next to him, allowing Milo to match Andorra's pace.

"Sleepin'." She answered simply. "Your chest feel alright?"

"Hurts if there's pressure on it and if I move certain ways. Other than that it's all fine. I put the burn cream on it like Rip told us to."

"Good. All of y'all get it?"

Ryan nodded. "Yeah."

"Well shit..." She huffed.

The elder cousin looked over at her with an arched eyebrow. "Where's your man candy at?"

Elisabeth chuckled a little. "Working. Tryna stay in Rip's good graces, you could say."

"Fair. Come to think of it, why wasn't he out in the woods with us? All the branded ones witness the ceremony, right?"

"He was sleepin' too."

"Jeez, how old are y'all, seventy? Goin' to bed that early."

Elisabeth stifled a chuckle. "Never said we were a-sleep."

Ryan looked at her, confused. "What do you- Jesus Christ, Elisabeth!" He exclaimed, finally understanding her innuendo.

She couldn't help but laugh at his reaction.

He crinkled his nose in a grimace and groaned, shaking his head to shoo the unpleasant image from his mind. "God! Ugh, no."

Elisabeth chuckled again and dipped her head to look down at the saddle horn. "Somethin' ain't right though."

"With your man candy or with the ranch?" Ryan picked up on her now serious tone.

"The ranch. It's too quiet. Somethin' bad's gonna go down soon. I know it."

"We're all on edge, Lizzie."

"Tell me one time that it's ever been this peaceful. Go on, I dare ya."

Ryan opened his mouth to speak but soon decided against it as he came to the realization that Elisabeth was right.

Whenever something seemed peaceful on the Yellowstone, it seemed that bloodshed and chaos would take its place right as the ranch's inhabitants began to settle.