Wrapped around your finger - Post Malone

30

An hour later and Hazel hears soft chewing in her ear. Her eyes widen and she snaps her head back to glare at Austin. "Are you...are you chewing tobacco?" she asks. Austin smirks, leans over the side of Lightning and spits then sits up again. "Yup," he says. "Ugh! You are so disgusting!" she says turning back around and ignoring Austin's chuckle. Austin then lets out an ear-splitting whistle and Ace comes galloping up to them, bringing his horse to a walk next to Lightning. " It looks all good up front, but they are wandering too much on the right flank. Tell Jack, Josh, and Matt to tighten their line on the right but make sure to stay on the left with Hamish and Ellis so they don't lean too much to the left," Austin says. "Aye," Ace says then gallops off again.

"You make them do all the work while you just leisurely walk behind the heifers?" Hazel asks. Austin spits again. Gross. "See my father, upfront? He is the point rider, determining the direction, controlling the speed, and giving the heifers something to follow. Jack and Ace are swing riders. They ride closely along each side of the herd, about a third of the way back from the point rider. Their responsibility is to keep the herd together, and they are constantly on the lookout for any cattle that might try to break away.  Josh, Matt, Hamish, and Ellis are flank riders. They ride on each side of the herd, near the rear, about two-thirds of the way back. Their role is to back the swing riders up and keep the cattle bunched, preventing the back of the herd from fanning out. I am the drag rider. I ride behind the herd to keep it moving, pushing the slower animals forward. It is the most exhausting and unpleasant job, but it allows me to see everything. Evelyn rides directly in front of me because one day this will be her herd. She is learning to be a flank rider."

"Well, what's my job?"

"Darlin', right now it seems your job is to be a permanent pain in my ass."

"Well, can this pain in your ass please have some water?"

She feels Austin shift in the saddle and then a canteen of water is placed in her hands. She takes a few sips and then hands it back to Austin. "Thank you," she says. She can hear Austin take a sip and then spit again. "Damit. I swear I will jump off this horse if you spit again," she warns him. "Relax I was washing my mouth out," he says. "I won't kiss you again if you chew that shit," she says. Austin leans in close to her ear. "Don't threaten me, darlin', I am a stubborn man," he whispers and then kisses her neck softly, it sends a shudder down her spine.

"Why did you insist I come with you? The others had a valid point."

"If you stay on my ranch then you have to earn your keep."

"That's bullshit. You could have left a list of things for me to do back at the house."

Austin stays quiet. Hazel guesses he is done with the conversation so she focuses on how the cowboys are moving around the herd with such precision. She knows it must be a hard job but they make it look so seamless, almost elegant as they move their horses carefully next to the enormous heifers and their sweet little calves. She is sure that they will all be dead tired by the time they set up camp tonight.

"Maybe..." she hears Austin speak softly behind her, "maybe I just wanted to keep you close," he says. Hazel's stomach does somersaults and her heart starts to hammer against her rib cage. She tries to turn around to look at him but he places his hand gently on her shoulder, preventing her from doing so. So, instead, she laces her fingers through his hand that is holding the reins and lets out a shaky breath.

It's mid-day by the time they reach the Green pasture. So Austin tells them to take a break, eat, and water their horses. When Austin halts Lightning under the shade of a tree Hazel immediately tries to jump off. She needs to stretch her cramped legs. "Hold on there, darlin', this is the longest you have ridden. You need to be careful with how you get down or you will be screaming in pain," he says. Austin jumps down and then helps Hazel down carefully. As soon as her feet touch the solid ground the muscles on the inside of her thighs pull. She looks up at Austin for help. "The only thing to do now is to stretch it out, if you don't it will get worse. Here, take the water bottle and fill it in the river down there - you need to walk," he explains. "Oh, I will go with you," Evelyn says grabbing her water bottle. Every step is painful but Austin was right, the more she walks the less painful it gets and by the time she and Evelyn walk back to the horses she feels a little better, still stiff but better.

Austin hands her a sandwich wrapped in a cloth and she eats it as she watches him tie down that soft fur he had wrapped around her shoulders the first night onto the saddle. Then he hands her an apple. "I do believe you made Zip a promise," he says. "Oh, he loves apples. Come I will show you how to feed him," Evelyn says. Hazel stands in front of Zip and suddenly sees that he has huge ass teeth. Shit. "Ok so put your hand out flat, if you curl your fingers he will accidentally bite them. Put the apple on your palm," Evelyn says. Hazel does as she says but drops the apple three times because she is shaking so much. On the fourth time she takes a deep breath and forces herself to hold still. She holds the apple up and then Zip takes it from her, his large sorts lips dragging over her hand. She starts laughing and looks back at Austin who is watching her with a smile playing on his lips. "Thank you for the lift, Zip," she says then walks back over to Austin as everyone starts to mount their horses.

"We will be moving fast to make it by the east pasture by nightfall. I am going to put you behind me. You need to hold on tight, I mean it. Lightning is fast and you can easily be thrown off. Do you hear me?" Austin says. "Ok," Hazel promises. Austin mounts him and then helps Hazel up, the soft fur helping with her stiff legs. "Put your feet here," he points to a strap just behind his feet. "Loosen your body a bit and don't fight against the rhythm. Move with my body," he says. "Ok," Hazel says then slides her hands around his waist and plasters herself to his back. Then Austin clicks his tongue and Lightning moves forward. Slowly at first but then he starts going a little faster. It takes some practice but soon Hazels gets used to moving in time with Austin. Then Austin clicks his tongue again and Lightning bolts forward. It feels like he goes even faster than he did when they were racing yesterday. Hazel grips Austin a little tighter as her hair whips behind her in the wind. Riding on the back of Lightning with Austin is amazing, freeing. Hazel can't think of a better place to be as she watches the grass and bushes zip past her in a blur. Hazel understands now why falling in love with this type of life is so easy.