annepsilvaauthor

[annepsilvaauthor]

Begin Again - Lee Dutton

Pairing: Lee Dutton x OC (Natalie WentWorth)

Summary: The life of renowned lawyer Natalie WentWorth was quiet in Boston, but everything changed when she received a call from a former Harvard colleague, Jamie Dutton. After reflecting a lot, Natalie agreed to solve some problems at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, but she did not imagine that her life would change completely when she arrived in Montana. One of the reasons for this change was Lee Dutton, the eldest son of John Dutton, cowboy and livestock agent, who would represent all the comfort she needed to have in the midst of the chaos of the Dutton family. Natalie could begin again at that ranch.

Warnings: Subtle sexual innuendos, brief language, alcohol consumption, angst, smut, fluffy.

Parte II

Boston folks

Natalie stared at the steering wheel, frustration bubbling over. She turned the key in the ignition once more, but all she got was the same pitiful click. Her Volvo refused to start, as stubborn as she was. After everything—being brushed off by John Dutton, navigating a tense auction hall full of Montana’s roughest ranchers, and dealing with Jamie’s half-baked plans—the last thing she needed was a dead car.

She leaned her forehead against the wheel, taking a deep breath. She’d been at this for what felt like forever, but the car wouldn’t budge. Damn it.

Just then, she heard the unmistakable rumble of a truck pulling up behind her. She didn’t need to look to know who it was.

"Car trouble, Miss Wentworth?" Lee’s voice carried that familiar mix of amusement and concern. He was enjoying this far too much.

She sat up straight, took another breath, and forced her face into a mask of calm before turning to face him. "Nope. Just sitting here for fun."

Lee chuckled, his grin widening. He stepped closer to her window. "Need a hand, or are you too proud to admit defeat?"

Natalie narrowed her eyes at him. "I’m perfectly capable of handling my own car, thank you very much."

"Sure you are," he said, leaning against the side of her car, clearly settling in for a long conversation. "But you’ve been at it for a while now, haven’t you? You can keep fighting it, or you can let me help."

She glanced down at the key in her hand, contemplating her options. She hated asking for help, especially from someone like Lee who seemed to think he had the world figured out. But, unfortunately, so did her car.

With a heavy sigh, she turned back to him. "Fine. You win. What can you do?"

Lee straightened up, a cocky grin playing on his lips. "That’s more like it." He walked around to the front of her car, lifted the hood, and took a look. After a few minutes of tinkering, he stepped back and shrugged. "Looks like your battery’s shot. I can tow it for you if you want."

Natalie pursed her lips. "I didn’t realize Montana hospitality involved towing cars for damsels in distress."

Lee gave her a look. "You ain’t no damsel, but we help our own out here. Whether they like it or not."

She crossed her arms, stubbornness flaring up again. "I don’t need rescuing."

"No one said you did," he shot back, heading toward his truck. "But you do need a ride. Now, unless you plan on walking to your new apartment, I suggest you let me do what I’m good at."

She bit her lip, watching him as he hooked up her car to his powerful truck. The man was infuriating, but there was no denying he knew what he was doing. Eventually, she relented, slipping out of her car and making her way toward his truck.

"Just… don’t think this means I owe you anything," she muttered as she climbed into the passenger seat.

"I wouldn’t dream of it," Lee drawled, sliding into the driver’s seat. He turned the key, and the engine roared to life beneath them. As they pulled out of the parking lot, Natalie found herself watching the landscape pass by, the mountains cutting into the sky like jagged teeth.

After a few moments of silence, Lee glanced over at her. "You know, you could’ve just flown in. Would’ve saved you a lot of trouble."

Natalie shrugged, her eyes still on the horizon. "I don’t like flying."

He raised an eyebrow, expecting more. "Bad experience?"

"No," she said simply. "I just don’t like it. I like driving. I like the control, the speed. The feeling of being on the road. Planes… they take that away from you."

Lee chuckled softly. "You like speed, huh? That why you drove thirty-six hours straight just to deal with a bunch of stubborn ranchers?"

She smirked. "Among other things."

He shook his head, half-impressed, half-amused. "You Boston folks are something else."

Natalie shot him a look. "Oh really? And what makes us so different from you ‘cowboys’?"

Lee grinned. "Well, for one thing, we don’t mind helping folks out when they need it. Seems like you city types are too busy trying to prove something all the time."

She bristled at that. "That’s not true. In Boston, people help each other. We just don’t go around assuming everyone needs saving."

Lee raised an eyebrow. "Is that what you think this is? Me trying to save you?"

"You tell me," she retorted. "I didn’t ask for your help."

"No," he agreed, his tone calm. "But that doesn’t mean you didn’t need it."

Natalie opened her mouth to argue but stopped herself. She hated that he had a point. Back in Boston, she was used to fending for herself. It was a dog-eat-dog world, and asking for help was seen as a weakness. Here, though, things were different. People just… helped, without expecting anything in return. It was disconcerting.

"I guess we see things differently," she muttered after a moment. "In the city, no one has time to stop and offer help. Everyone’s too busy."

"Maybe that’s the problem," Lee said quietly, glancing at her. "Out here, we don’t see kindness as a weakness. We just see it as the right thing to do."

She scoffed. "Kindness? You call this kindness? You’ve been teasing me non-stop since we met."

"Hey, I’m just having a little fun," he said, smiling. "Can’t blame me for trying to lighten the mood."

"I can, actually," she replied dryly. "And I will."

He laughed, his deep, warm chuckle filling the cab of the truck. "Alright, alright. I’ll tone it down. But you’ve got to admit—it’s better than sitting in silence, brooding."

"I don’t brood," she snapped.

"Could’ve fooled me," Lee teased. She shot him a glare, but he just smiled wider.

They fell into a more comfortable silence after that, the tension between them easing as they drove. When they reached her new apartment building, Lee parked the truck and got out to unhook her car.

As he finished up, he turned to her. "Need help with your bags?"

Natalie shook her head immediately. "I can manage."

Lee leaned against his truck, folding his arms over his chest. "You sure about that? You don’t have to prove anything to me, you know."

"I don’t need your help, Lee," she insisted, her voice firm. "Just because I’m from the city doesn’t mean I’m incapable of carrying my own bags."

He chuckled. "Never said you couldn’t. Just thought it might be nice for you to take a break, is all."

"I don’t need a break," she replied sharply. "I’ve been taking care of myself for years, and I’m not about to stop now just because some cowboy with a hero complex thinks I should."

Lee’s smile faded, and he raised his hands in surrender. "Alright, Miss Wentworth. Have it your way."

She nodded once, satisfied. But as she grabbed her suitcase from the back seat, she couldn’t help but glance at him out of the corner of her eye. He was still standing there, watching her with that infuriating calmness, like he had all the time in the world.

Finally, she spoke up. "Why do you even care? You don’t know me. You don’t owe me anything."

Lee shrugged. "Doesn’t have to be that complicated. Sometimes, it’s just about doing what feels right."

She stared at him for a moment, trying to make sense of his words. In Boston, everything was calculated. People didn’t do things without a reason. But here, in this strange, wild place, people seemed to operate on a different set of rules—rules she didn’t fully understand.

"Maybe you’re right," she admitted quietly, almost to herself.

Lee smiled again, but this time it was softer, less teasing. "Maybe I am. Or maybe we just see the world differently."

With that, he tipped his hat and climbed back into his truck. "Good luck with the rest of your night, Miss Wentworth. If you need anything else, you know where to find me."

She watched him drive off, the rumble of his truck fading into the distance. As she carried her bags inside, she couldn’t shake the feeling that her time in Montana was going to challenge her in ways she never expected.

And somehow, she didn’t entirely hate the idea.

[annepsilvaauthor]

Begin Again - Lee Dutton

Pairing: Lee Dutton x OC (Natalie WentWorth)

Summary: The life of renowned lawyer Natalie WentWorth was quiet in Boston, but everything changed when she received a call from a former Harvard colleague, Jamie Dutton. After reflecting a lot, Natalie agreed to solve some problems at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, but she did not imagine that her life would change completely when she arrived in Montana. One of the reasons for this change was Lee Dutton, the eldest son of John Dutton, cowboy and livestock agent, who would represent all the comfort she needed to have in the midst of the chaos of the Dutton family. Natalie could begin again at that ranch.

Warnings: Subtle sexual innuendos, brief language, alcohol consumption, angst, smut, fluffy.

Part I

Cowboy stuff

Lee was sitting in one of the stands of the Greater Montana Livestock Auction when the president of the session asked everyone to get up, as the Montana anthem would be sung. There were around a hundred people scattered around the shed, some went to really buy the cattle, the buffaloes or the horses arranged surrounded in the center, others accompanied those who would come to buy, to have fun, and others, those who were upstairs of the place, came to do politics. It was in that place that his father was at that moment.

Lee stood up, took off his hat and held it on his chest as a sign of respect. The little girl of no more than twelve years old singed the Montana anthem in the microphone while the rest of the audience stared at the Montana flag extended from top to bottom on the wall behind the auction directors' table. He had not yet returned home since what happened at the Reservation, he just had time to stop by a cafeteria to buy some donuts and remove the bulletproof vest. Lee wore the same heavy boots dirty with mud, jeans, flannel shirt and a cream jacket, which matched the color of his hat.

After the anthem was sung, everyone clapped their hands and the auction actually started. Two cowboys rode on the horses and began to chase half a dozen cows in the enclosure while the announcer explained the qualities of those horses. However, Lee could not pay attention to the first batch because the entrance door opened and that lawyer appeared. Like him, she still wore the same clothes that afternoon, with the difference that the curls of her blonde dyed hair were falling apart, but she was still beautiful.

Lee watched Natalie walk aimlessly through the corridors between the stands as if she were looking for a familiar face or some specific place to sit. Her small size probably prevented her from seeing on the other side of the fence, despite wearing very high heels that highlighted the shape of her legs. She walked confident, with her expression concentrated, but Lee somehow knew she was lost.

Then he raised an arm and waved to her with a smile. Natalie didn't realize it right away, since he was on the other side of the enclosure and the announcer screamed in the microphone. Lee got up and went down the stairs from the bleachers, walking towards her.

"Are you lost, Miss WentWorth?" He joked as he approached her, scaring her slightly.

"Why are you everywhere I go?" She asked, still looking upset.

"This is my state, madam. You're the intruder here." Lee mocked by trying to pull out a smile from her, but she was irreducible. "I can guide you where you want to go."

Natalie sighed strongly and pierced her eyes through the environment. "I have no idea. Jamie told me he would be here, but he didn't clarify where he would be."

"Jamie? Jamie Dutton, my brother?" He asked surprised and she nodded. "I'm confused."

"I don't have time to explain now, Mr. Dutton. I just need to talk to your brother urgently."

"OK." Lee sighed and looked up at the office on the second floor of the auction. "He's up there."

"Thank you." Natalie was already heading towards the office, but Lee interrupted her with a hand on her small arm.

"I don't think you're allowed to enter there. There are only the most influential people in the state and they don't allow anyone to enter." Lee explained politely, but you could feel a little afraid in his tone.

"I was invited by your brother to be there. I'm sure they'll let me in." She got rid of his touch easily since he didn't squeeze her tightly. Natalie took a few steps towards the cabinet again, but stopped and caught up with Lee. "Aren't you like John Dutton's successor? Shouldn't you be up there too?"

"I spend all the day busy with this political bullshit, ma'am. I don't want to waste my night with that either." He explained looking upset about something for the first time. "If you want to try your luck up there, it's your problem. I'm going to stay down here doing something I know and like to do: cowboy stuff."

Lee hid his hands inside the pockets of the jacket and turned his back on Natalie, walking back to his place in the stands. He observed that she disappeared through the door that gave access to the stairs on the second floor and he decided to concentrate on what he had come to do there.

"Now, we're gonna start out with lot number two! It's Royal M. Duke a 2013 registered English bull ofered by Double G Angus Ranch sired by Supreme Domino out of Miss Domino. Now, we're gonna start the bidding out at 25,000." The announcer screamed in the microphone while the animals paraded in the enclosure.

"I'm at 25!"

"I'm at 50!"

The ranchers raised their plates to warn about the auction bid and Lee was just watching for now. He used to do that long enough not to be enchanted by the first lots, because they were usually the most expensive and did not always have enough potential for the price. If it were his father there he would certainly buy those oxen, since they were strong and virile, after all it would be a great way to resell them later. But Lee just thought about how those animals would behave in the pasture, whether they would be able to help or destroy the ranch. It was like his father always said, Lee had a thought of a cowboy and not a landowner.

After lot two was sold, Lee noted that Natalie reappeared on the ground floor with a worse expression than she was before. She stepped on her heels so firmly that even from afar Lee could swear that he heard the 'tec-tec-tec' noise on the floor. Natalie crossed the fence and found Lee's bleachers. She snaked between the people until she reached the last step, sitting next to him with all the strength she had. Natalie snorted so much that she looked more like one of the oxen being sold down there, although those oxen seemed more docile than her at that moment.

"Do you want to...?" Lee tried to talk, but she interrupted him with her index finger in the air.

"No word. If I hear another Dutton speak today, I'll explode!" She squirted keeping her hands closed next to her head and Lee widened his eyes.

Then he scrambled in the bag and removed a pink box, where the donuts were stored. Lee chose one with a vanilla flavor and offered one of the donuts to Natalie without saying a single word. He watched her eyebrows descend in accordance with her shoulders and she chose a chocolate-flavored doughnut. When taking a big bite, Natalie let out an exhausted sigh mixed with satisfaction. Lee didn't say a word, just smiled and continued to observe the following lots.

When lot five was sold, Lee felt confident enough to talk to the woman next to him. She seemed calmer, she had eaten almost all the donuts he bought, but he didn't care. She seemed to be having a very difficult day, so a little sweet wouldn't hurt her.

"There's only one thing I like more than taking care of my father's ranch." He started in a mild, polite tone.

"And what would it be?"

"Donuts." Lee lifted the empty box and Natalie seemed to realize that she had attacked those donuts.

"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have..."

"It's okay. They were really a lot of donuts." He smiled playfully and she gave a mini smile. "A smile. We're getting progress, aren't we?"

"I'm not always like that, you know? You're only seeing me on a bad day. And getting hungry affects my mood even more." She confessed watching the horses run through the fence.

"I'm glad I had food, otherwise I would probably be the food." He played once again and she kept her smile. "How many hours have you not eaten?"

"Since I arrived in Montana. It's a novelty after novelty and I didn't have much time to eat or even to go to my apartment." She paused to look around. "And now I'm sitting in the stands of a livestock auction next to a person I don't even know. What a strange way to end the day, don't you think?"

"What do you mean we don't get to know each other? You know my name and my job, you even know who my family is. And now you know I love doughnuts. That seems to me to know a lot about someone."

"This argument is so unbelievable that I almost agree." She crossed her legs and watched him for the first time that night, noticing that there were doughnut crumbs on his beard. She laughed internally. "There are...crumbs in your beard..."

"What?" He tried to look down as if it were possible to see the crumbs that way and tried another way. Lee ran his fingers through his beard, but because it was too thick it was difficult to remove the pieces.

"Here, let me help you." Natalie advanced her hands towards him, but Lee interrupted her with a dazed look.

"Be careful, it's hard to make it perfect like that."

Natalie rolled her eyes and sighed. "I'll be, now, shiu."

Lee watched her little fingers reach for his beard, wiping his hair with concentration and dexterity. He watched her small face, brown eyes, prancing nose and small, full lips, as if they formed a heart. She was a really beautiful woman, a different beauty from the one he found in Montana, it was something refined, subtle, feminine. He could barely feel her touch, but he still did. It was a delicate one, even kind. Lee was enjoying that version of her. At least, Natalie didn't want to kill him anymore.

"Your father doesn't want my help." She confessed seriously while still touching his beard. "The reason for this you must know by heart."

Lee reflected for a moment and understood what she wanted to refer to. "He didn't let you in there, did he?" Natalie shook her head confirming his question. "What about Jamie?"

"Well, he asked me to wait out here." Her tone regained a certain annoyance. "I don't understand why I left my city to come here and be humiliated like that."

Lee sighed strongly, grunting a little. "What do you have with my brother anyway?"

"We studied together at Harvard. We become friends and even work together in some cases. Then he returned to Montana and we lost contact every day. Two weeks ago he called me asking for help with his family's affairs, but apparently he didn't ask for his father's opinion."

"He didn't ask because he knew that his answer would be no. My father doesn't trust those who are not in the family, much less those who are from another state."

"And what does he do up there if he doesn't trust people outside the family?"

"It's an influence. To do politics it is not necessary for there to be trust from both sides, in fact, it seems to me the complete opposite. You must be suspicious of people to be able to be two or three steps ahead of them."

Natalie lowered her hands to her own lap and looked at him with a reinvigorated curiosity. He could even swear that he could see a smile on her graceful face. "For someone who is not interested in politics, you seem to understand it well."

Lee let out an ironic laugh. "I said I didn't like it, I didn't say I didn't understand it."

It was her turn to laugh, but in a restrained mode. "You are more than your name and your job, Mr. Dutton, much more than that. If you were up there you would probably be the kindest person in that room."

"I'm not sure about that, but I certainly wouldn't prevent a competent lawyer from entering."

"I would really appreciate that."

Lee noticed her gaze changing towards him, it seemed more friendly, even kind, as if she were lowering her guard with him. He returned her comment with a complete smile trying to show her that despite being a Dutton, he was not so thick, unless he needed to be, which hardly happened. Dirty work usually stayed with his father or with Rip. Lee only dealt with the real affairs of the ranch and the livestock commission. The conversation between the two did not stretch for long, because they noticed Jamie approaching the stands.

"Maybe I need to buy more donuts?" Lee asked her when Jamie approached.

"Thank you, but I can deal with it more calmly now." She replied with a tiny smile.

"If you think so..."

Jamie crossed the steps of the stands and asked one of the ranchers to move away so that he could sit next to Natalie. It was a discordant vision, two lawyers properly dressed among ranchers who only cared about cattle being auctioned in the fence in front of them. They were displaced, so they caught the attention of almost everyone present in that place, including the people upstairs. They caught their father's attention.

"I see you've already met my brother Lee." Jamie announced it to her with a smile and waved to his own brother.

"It seems that he is the only Dutton who really gives me some credit here." Natalie seriously mocked and Jamie gave up his smile. "Don't tell me I came here for anything, Jamie."

"I wouldn't say that. I just didn't have enough time to tell him because I called you here."

"You had two fucking weeks to tell him, Jamie."

The Dutton sighed strongly and lowered his head, shaking it in accordance with what she said. "He doesn't know the seriousness of what we are facing. There was no one here competent and reliable enough who could help me with that."

"So because of your cowardice in talking to your father about my arrival I was humiliated all day. I'm not surprised that you need help, Jamie, you can't even have the courage to try to convince your father about the matters of his own interest." Natalia acquired a firm and even enraged tone by pouring her indignation on Jamie.

"I understand your anger, Nat. And I'm sorry about that, I'm really sorry. I will be honest about what we are facing and I am sure he will accept your help."

"Are you really convinced of that? He didn't seem willing to change his opinion."

"I can talk to him." Lee intruded in the conversation, having the curious look of both lawyers. "One cowboy understands the other."

"That's not your job, Mr. Dutton. It wasn't you who made me drive thirty-six hours from one state to another." Natalie stared back at Jamie, who swallowed it dry and fixed his suit.

"I'll fix it, I promise." Jamie didn't wait for her to give a triplica about that and soon got up. "Do you need help with the change?"

"I can take care of myself."

"I know you do, that's why I called you."

Jamie went down the steps and was soon walking back to the cabin on the second floor. Lee listened to Natalie's strong and accelerated breathing next to him and decided to leave her quiet, after all, he had no more donuts to calm her down. The next few weeks would certainly be busy and he couldn't wait for them.

[annepsilvaauthor]

This should be headcanon! I totally agree with this fact because Lee seemed to be that kind of guy who took care of what he loved fiercely. He would certainly defend Jamie from their own father and Beth. Maybe if Lee had survived Jamie wouldn't have gone to the dark side of the force because he would have someone other than Kayce who loved him.

That's why I love these two characters! I love them so much that I'm publishing fics about them. I'll be really happy if you read them 🥰

You belong with me (Jamie Dutton x OC)

Begin Again (Lee Dutton x OC)

YELLOWSTONE HEADCANON

Lee always knew about Jamie's adoption; he was old enough to remember his mom hadn't been pregnant, and a few years later he found some papers in his father's desk. He never told anyone.

It didn't matter to him, not in the slightest, but he became a lot more protective of Jamie, trying to shield him from pain and make him see he mattered. A voice in his heart told him his little brother would need it one day, and maybe he wouldn't be there to do it then.

[annepsilvaauthor]

Another moodboard! This time with dear Natalie WentWorth from my other Yellowstone fanfic Begin Again - Lee Dutton 🥰😛

[annepsilvaauthor]

Begin Again - Lee Dutton

Pairing: Lee Dutton x OC (Natalie WentWorth)

Summary: The life of renowned lawyer Natalie WentWorth was quiet in Boston, but everything changed when she received a call from a former Harvard colleague, Jamie Dutton. After reflecting a lot, Natalie agreed to solve some problems at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, but she did not imagine that her life would change completely when she arrived in Montana. One of the reasons for this change was Lee Dutton, the eldest son of John Dutton, cowboy and livestock agent, who would represent all the comfort she needed to have in the midst of the chaos of the Dutton family. Natalie could begin again at that ranch.

Warnings: Subtle sexual innuendos, brief language, alcohol consumption, angst, smut, fluffy.

Fix the law after you break it

A few more kilometers and she would finally arrive in Yellowstone. Her Volvo XC40 exceeded the thousands of miles at a speed fast enough to make a journey of thirty-six hours of travel in less than thirty hours. Yes, she liked speed. It was one of the few things she allowed herself to "lose control". Her life experience and her profession had taught her to take care of her own control. If anyone would lose their mind, it would be the other side and not her.

She looked at the folder on the bank next to her. There was her name engraved on it: Miss Natalie WentWorth. She smiled proudly. She had not chosen the law, the law had chosen her. And her last civil hearing had proved it.

Natalie's thoughts were interrupted when she observed a movement a few kilometers ahead. There were men mounted on horses, armed, wearing bulletproof vests, on one side of the fence, and other men without any armament, but with unfriendly expression were on the other side of the fence. Natalie reduced her speed and a lawyer's sense of curiosity did not allow her to move forward, stopping on the shoulder.

Looking more closely, she realized that the men on the other side of the fence were indeed armed, some police officers and other civilians. She also noticed that there was a huge herd of cows on the side of the fence and she soon considered a problem. Natalie got out of the car and put her high heels on the dirt floor, something she wasn't used to.

"You should move on, ma'am. The thing here will soon be very bad." One of the cowboys warned her by jogging next to her.

"What's going on?" She asked ignoring his request.

"What happens every day here in Yellowstone: big dog fight." The cowboy waved his hat and trotted towards the discussion that was forming.

Natalie noted that the fence was free of barbed wire, so it would not be very difficult for cattle to go from one place to another. However, she doubted that the cowboys of that ranch had left the fence like that, just as it would be almost impossible for the cattle to take a different direction from what they took every day, unless someone attracted them with food. She got closer to the scene and noticed the remains of hay on the other side. Wow, a crime scene right on her first day in Montana.

"Madam, I'll ask you to leave, please." A serious and deep voice echoed behind her and she turned around. One of the men in the bulletproof vest was in front of her and at that distance she could read Livestock Agent on his chest. He carried a powerful rifle between his hands.

"As far as I know, the road is public." She responded without being able to see him right, because the strong light of the sun prevented her.

"This one is not. It belongs to the Reservation."

"Well, then they should take me out of here and not you...agent." Natalie replied pointing to the police and heard a low laugh coming from him. "Besides, I'm much more helpful here."

"I doubt that."

"OK, agent. I can tell what I know to the police officers of the Reservation and so they can win this fight." Natalie crossed the fence and walked a few steps on the pasture, but his voice came up again.

"I could get you out of there with little effort, ma'am!"

"Try it! Let's see what happens to you after that."

Natalie turned her back on the agent and approached the Indians of the Reservation, but seconds later a heated argument began. One of the Indians insulted one of the cowboys and he crossed the fence to attack him, but the Indian quickly knocked him out on the ground. The scene was transformed without Natalie being able to keep up. The police officers lifted their weapons, as well as the cowboys on the other side, but soon the agent came up with the rifle and threatened the Indian with his barrel on his head.

"Whatever happens next happens to you first." The agent threatened in a loud and deep voice.

"Son of a bitch." The Indian released the cowboy under his hands and faced the agent with danger in his eyes.

Tensions were stifled with the arrival of a helicopter on land. Natalie managed to read Yellowstone Dutton Ranch in the helicopter body and smiled playfully. What an unusual way to meet the boss. He got off the vehicle dressed as the good landowner he was, with simple clothes and a hat. The livestock agent went to meet him and exchanged some words that Natalie could not hear due to the distance and noise of the helicopter propellers.

The two men approached the fence and John exchanged glances with Natalie, surprised by her presence there, but he had more urgent matters to deal with than to know why a white woman dressed in a white satin blouse, navy blue pencil skirt and high heels was on the other side of the fence. She soon found out that she was on the wrong side of that fight, so she walked slowly towards the track, and she had difficulty walking due to her high heels sinking into the grass.

"This is a tribal issue, John. Livestock commission's got no authority here." One of the police officers informed John with caution.

"Those look like livestock to me." He pointed to the cattle on the other side of the fence and kept walking.

"The Chief's at Commencement, but I'm calling the shots."

"I'm impressed you said that with a straight face, Ben." John mocked with a smile and continued walking on the tribal ground until he approached a gentleman sitting on the hood of the truck that was among the cattle.

"If you know anything, it's better to say it now. Things won't be more friendly between us and them for much longer." The agent approached Natalie again and she remained looking at John's back, wishing to hear what he said, but it was too far away.

"If I say what I know, I lose the letter in the sleeve I have, don't you think?"

"Look, ma'am, I don't know where you come from, but here in Montana we solve the problems in two ways: either we follow the law, or we break it." The agent responded politely after a brief pause, as if he were thinking about what he should say. She liked it, he didn't want to push her away, he thought she was important enough to try to insist on the subject.

"I come from Boston...and from what I see now, you will need a good lawyer."

"I don't think we'll win this fight through laws, ma'am."

"You really won't go, so you'll need a lawyer: to fix the law after you break it. I have my card in the car, if you want."

The agent smiled openly, showing his white and big teeth. Very perfect for a cowboy and livestock agent, she thought. Either he spent all the money on dental appointments or...

"Lee Dutton." He supported the rifle in one hand and offered her the other. "Can I know your name, Madam from Boston?"

"Natalie WentWorth." She accepted his greeting and had her small hand engulfed by his big hand, tanned and full of calluses in a strong but gentle grip. "Don't worry, I'm on this side of the fence."

He just kept smiling and Natalie could watch him at that moment, since he covered the sunlight from her face. Lee was tall, although any man taller than one meter and seventy was taller than her, he wore a cream hat that covered most of his hair, and he wore a grown beard, blonde, and looked well cared for. And there was that smile that besides being beautiful, was cheerful. How could he be happy in that situation? She didn't know, but she was curious.

"Lee!" John Dutton's voice sounded authoritarian when he crossed the fence. "Clear everyone out."

"You know, there was barbed wire on this fence a week ago." Lee explained to his father.

"I know. Clear them out."

"Alright! Move on!"

While Lee gathered his men, Natalie hurried the step to accompany John Dutton, but her high heels did not help, so she removed them.

"Mr. Dutton! Mr... Dutton!" She called feeling her feet pincing due to the tall grass. After a few seconds, he stopped and waited for her to approach.

"It wasn't a good choice to wear these shoes today, ma'am." John mocked with a smile as he observed the high heels in Natalie's hands.

"I'm a newcomer to Montana, sir. I can get used to it." She put on her shoes and extended a hand to him. "My name is Natalie WentWorth. Your son Jamie told me that you were in need of help."

"All the help I need is in my house, ma'am. I don't need another lawyer." John seriously informed without accepting her hand.

"But I came here from Boston. Jamie told me that..."

"I don't know what Jamie wanted with you, miss, but it certainly has nothing to do with me or my ranch." He stared at her in a mixture of pity and anger. "If you want, we can take you back in the helicopter."

"I've been driving, sir."

"I'm sorry for what Jamie made you go through. I hope you have a good trip back." John put his sunglasses on his face and walked away from her with slow steps towards the helicopter.

Natalie was planted in the same place for so long that the police officers of the reserve had left, as well as the tribals and most of the cowboys. She couldn't believe that. After all the effort to get there, after thinking long before getting close to cowboys again, she was rejected. Natalie didn't know who else she was angry with, if it was Jamie, Mr. Dutton or herself.

"Miss WentWorth, is everything okay?" Lee appeared next to her and she had to control herself so as not to shrook another Dutton next to her.

"It'll be." She started walking again and heard his steps following her. She rolled her eyes and growled softly. "Go back to your work, Mr. Dutton. You're going to need a lot of work."

"What do you mean? Hey, wait!"

Natalie was already used to walking with high heels on the grass and was already approaching her car on the side of the side. However, to her misfortune, one Dutton was determined to leave her away while the other did not leave her alone.

"What did you mean?" He put himself between her and the driver's door.

"I need to go now, Mr. Dutton. Can I get in my own car?" She asked impatiently, but Lee remained in the same place.

"Only answer the question." Lee asked kindly, but Natalie was too angry to notice.

"I am not obliged by law to answer anything. And if you don't get out of the front of my fucking car now, I'll sue you for so many things that you'll never have a penny in your cowboy pants again." She threatened him fervently and Lee took a few seconds thinking to then clear the way. "Thank you, Agent."

"Aren't you going to give me your card?" He asked at the window when she got in the car.

"It will no longer be necessary."

Natalie started the gear and started the car, causing the tire to leave stains on the asphalt.

[annepsilvaauthor]

You Belong With Me - Jamie Dutton

Pairing: Jamie Dutton x OC (Ava North)

Summary: Ava only wanted one thing: to be a horse tamer. And when she had the chance, she took it. Ava became the new horse tamer of Yellowstone, a totally different ranch from the others she met, either because of its immensity or because of family problems. Ava thought her problems were big, but when she met the Dutton family that thought dies. However, there is a Dutton who is a point out of the curve, a lawyer mistreated by the problems and by his own family. Meeting Jamie Dutton may not have been the work of chance, after all one broken understands the other.

Warnings: Subtle sexual innuendos, brief language, alcohol consumption, angst, smut, fluffy.

Author's note: Can someone tell me how I put the "read more" by app? Please, help me!

Part III

Someone I can't have

The days went by and Ava became more and more connected with the cowboys and especially with the foreman. They didn't have another moment as intimate as that, since Ava no longer showed any interest beyond the conversations and Lee seemed to understand this. She respected him and liked to see that he respected her equally. This fact alone could have made him even more attractive, but something got in the way. He was kind, capable and kissed very well, he was a man. Why didn't she feel attracted to him?

One day the Duttons invented to have a family reunion on top of the horses. She could see Lee, Jamie and another brother she later discovered was Kayce, John's youngest son. There was a boy with him and from the way John looked at that boy, he was his grandson. But there was no sign of Kayce's wife, if he had any. Ava knew there were more children, a woman, but she didn't leave the House much and she certainly wouldn't share that moment with them.

Ava rode on one of the horses and joined the other cowboys, waiting for the Duttons to gather on the horses. Lee was the first and stood next to her at a distance considered far enough not to cause suspicion, but close enough to take care of her. Ava can observe Rip's look on himself, curious and mocking. She knew he understood what was happening between them, but had let her bear her own decisions. And she would thank him for that.

Jamie was the second to climb the horse. That stallion was one of the most docile and calm in the stable, which made it clear how far Jamie was from the farm and the routine of the cowboys. He certainly wasn't a landowner. At least, Jamie didn't get out of balance and managed to guide his horse to where Lee was, keeping his eyes fit, of course, on John Dutton. He helped his grandson to climb on his horse with satisfaction and love, with a look that she had not yet seen launch even to Lee, let alone Jamie.

Jamie, at a rare moment, looked away from John to Ava. It was a quick moment, maybe milliseconds, but she can glimpse a look of sadness. He fixed his gaze on Kayce, calling him to ride, but Ava kept watching him. Once again he had dressed differently from the suit and tie, wore boots, jeans, a white shirt and a cream jacket. However, as much as he dressed like a cowboy, he wasn't one. The well-aligned hair was certainly not from a cowboy. Jamie represented everything that Ava never managed to stay close to, that she never saw in that small town. He represented a class very far from her. Still, her body kept burning whenever she saw him.

Kayce finally joined the rest of the family and everyone headed to the countryside, where they guided the immense buffaloes from one valley to another. They did that from time to time to give the land time to recover while the buffaloes fed on the other part. The land trembled with the noise of the strong footsteps of the animals, both buffaloes and horses and Ava admired the beautiful and raw landscape of Yellowstone. The clean air, green and blue of the sky enchanted her every day as if it were the first time.

"I'll get him going for you." Kayce informed Lee with a playful smile.

"Race you!" Lee took the challenge and rode next to his brother, pairing the speeds in the middle of the herd.

"Men." She laughed alone when she watched the two brothers increase their speed more and more and the buffaloes follow them downhill.

"Think they should hold here." Jamie announced to his father, who ignored him for a few minutes.

"Kayce might be the only man who can outride him." John replied calmly as he watched the two sons ride through his land and then walked away from Jamie taking Tate with him.

The cowboys continued with their work and followed John, but Ava took a few seconds to watch Jamie. He stood there after hearing that from his father, with a sad and disappointed expression. John had said with all the letters that Jamie was not good enough to defeat Lee. And that statement didn't seem to be just about the race. Jamie was destined to be just the family's lawyer forever, at least according to John Dutton.

Before following the same direction as the others, Ava noticed a mucca on the back loins of Jamie's horse and rode to him. Jamie received her with a question mark on his face, after all, their last meeting had not been so friendly for her to want to approach him again.

"There's a mucca on your horse, sir. Don't move. I'm going to remove it." Ava informed respectfully when she got close enough to him. Jamie was reluctant for a moment, as if he didn't believe she was helping him, but gave in with a nod. If that mucca stung the horse, God knew how far he would take Jamie.

"Be quick." Jamie ordered by observing that the herd and the cowboys were distancing themselves. Ava rolled her eyes without him noticing and stretched towards Jamie's horse, pushing the mucca away with the thick gloves.

"Quick enough?" She didn't contain the sarcastic comment. "Oh, sorry...sir."

Jamie shook his head in front of her comment and left towards the others without looking back.

"Thank you, Ava. You were very kind." She replied to herself and rode quickly in the direction of the other cowboys.

After they guided the herd to valley nine, the Duttons took a different turn on the way back. They took a turn and rode towards the river. Ava and some cowboys remained at the top of the hill, waiting for the bosses to fish in the river. They prepared the baits and hoisted them over the water while still riding the horses. They seemed to be having fun and for a moment Ava wished she wasn't a cowgirl and could just had fun in that river.

Lee was the first to catch a fish and handed the fishing rod to Kayce, who gave it to Tate. John Dutton had gone up with the other cowboys to solve landowner problems and left his grandson with his father. Tate was an adorable boy who didn't seem to have much contact with nature, at least not like that.

"I got a fish!" Tate exclaimed excitedly to his father.

Ava observed that Jamie had positioned himself in the center of the river and after a few minutes he hooked a fish as well. Then Jamie got off the horse in a cumsy jump and wrapped the nylon thread of the fishing rod.

"Lee, get my horse. Whoo!" Jamie exulted when he could catch that fish as if he were a child, almost as excited as Tate. "Little late in the year for that!"

"Do they have the habit of coming here?" Ava asked Ryan, one of the cowboys who had been left behind.

"Not in recent years." He responded by watching the family downstairs. "Only Lee still shows up here from time to time."

"You can tell that."

Ava watched Jamie lift his huge fish from the river with a smile of satisfaction. He seemed very proud of his feat, it almost seemed that he had never done something so good that he deserved to be proud of or that someone had never given him due recognition. One thing or another, the fact was that Jamie seemed happy. It was the first time Ava saw him smile, most of the time Jamie was frowing, sad or worried. She could almost see every line of expression of his no longer so young face from above. He raised the fish so high that she thought he wanted to show her his big fish too. She laughed without warning.

"Oh, she's so beautiful." Jamie admired the dead fish in his hands.

The Dutton brothers lit a small bonfire by the river and roasted the two fish they had caught. They were more comfortable at that moment, taking off their jackets and sitting on small tree trunks. The moment seemed so intimate that Ava felt bad for having to watch them. She, more than anyone, knew the value of privacy and they deserved it.

"You're gonna raise him on a reservation?" Lee asked his brother about Tate while eating some of the roasted fish.

"People do it every day." He responded in disdain while taking care of his son's fish.

"Cause they have no choice, Kayce." Jamie entered the conversation after eating another piece of the fish, carrying a small knife between his big hands.

"Yeah, looks like you're ready to eat." Kayce ignored the brothers' comments to pay attention only to her son.

"It's a good day." Tate sentenced by finally tasting his fish.

"Every day, just like this." Jamie reported excitedly, but Kayce didn't buy that.

"Who are you kidding? Bet you haven't fished here in years."

"Only thing we haven't done in years is seeing you, Kayce." Jamie replied looking for another piece of fish meat.

"Well, he told me to leave."

"He told us all to leave." Lee recalled with the most serious voice. "You were just the only one who did."

"It's different. You know that."

"So you're gonna raise him in that meth-filled desert to prove a point." Lee continued to debate with his brother.

"What I'm proving you'll never understand." Kayce explained and the brothers laughed.

"Shit, I miss being young. You wake up in the morning and you just keep right on dreaming, huh?" Lee mocked his younger brother.

"You're a 38-year-old bachelor living in your father's house, working 100-hour week for a nibble of his approval." Kayce countered directly in a heavy argument. "Is that the dream, Lee? Sure as shit it ain't mine."

Ava could see the brothers talking from afar without being able to hear them, but she could notice a certain repulsion and anger in Lee's always cheerful expression. She wonder what they were talking about? Suddenly, Lee caught a pebble and threw it in the direction of Kayce, who deviated before the piece hit his face.

"Hey! Don't throw things at my dad!" Tate screamed anrily and got up to throw, with all his childish strength, the fish he had caught on Lee. The brother fell back more scared than by the force of the object. "Fucker!"

The brothers laughed because of the boy's behavior and verbiate. Even Ava laughed from up there. It was something so unexpected that she couldn't hold back her own laugh even if she didn't know what it was all about. Lee was hit by a little boy. She would definitely make fun of him later.

And there it was again, his smile. It was more surprised than happy, but it was still a beautiful smile. Jamie had big and wide teeth, but crooked. She was sure he could have left them straight if he wanted to, he had money for it. Ava didn't understand why someone who apparently cared so much about appearance didn't care about their own teeth. However, she had to admit that it matched him. A sign of imperfection on that plastic mountain. She liked that, it was fucking charming.

The brothers remained talking for a long time until Tate seemed tired and they decided to return home. The Duttons reunited again with the cowboys and they rode back. Jamie didn't ride as fast as his brothers, not even the cowboys, so he always ended up behind the crowd. And this distance allowed him to see a red handkerchief stuck in one of the branches of the trees. Jamie recognized it and approached to pick it up, keeping it in his jacket pocket.

Upon arriving at the stables, the cowboys collected the Duttons' horses to feed them inside the barn and they all entered the house, at least that's what Ava thought. She took care of the last horse in the stable, combing the mane while he fed, when she saw boots appear at the door. Ava raised her head to contemplate Jamie Dutton.

"Is there a problem, sir?" She asked with a frown, since he had never entered there since she had taken over the job.

"My father cares about his men as much as about animals and the land, Ava. He gives you everything you need to take care of what is his." He began his report by crossing his arms over his chest and staring at her with disdain.

"We are grateful for that, sir."

"Is it really? It doesn't look like it. Where's your handkerchief, Ava?"

She continued to frown at his question and looked for the piece on her neck, but did not find it. Ava widened her eyes and looked under her jacket, in her pockets and even in the cabin, but she couldn't find it. Holy shit! She sighed strongly and closed her eyes for a second trying to remember where she could have left it. Damn, the wind was so strong that day that it could have fallen anywhere.

"I lost it, sir." Ava responded after realizing that lying would not be the best option.

"Good. You were honest." Jamie let out a mini smile and rummaged through his jacket pocket, removing the red scarf. Ava opened her mouth slightly in surprise and closed it immediately. "It was near the river. It looks like you got distracted."

"This is not going to happen again, sir."

Jamie didn't answer by just studying her entirely with those huge and bright blue eyes. She had never been so close to him as to see them like that. They were beautiful, although a little sad. Jamie extended the handkerchief towards her and Ava picked it up, but not before she felt a remnant of his warm skin between her fingers. Sparks exploded from that touch.

"I feel like I know you from somewhere." Jamie resumed talking after the brief shock.

"I don't think so, sir. I would remember, for sure."

"You would?" Jamie asked almost choking and Ava felt a little powerful for making him disassemble like that.

"We are from completely different worlds, sir. If I'm in a place where you are, or that place is poorly frequented or it's from high society." Ava acquired a seductive tone that she had no intention of having. Jamie swallowed it dry over and over again. "I would definitely remember someone like you."

"Someone like me..."

"Yes, someone I can't have."

Ava didn't understand why she did that, in fact, she knew well, she just didn't understand why she couldn't contain herself. He was her boss, just like Lee. If she continued like that, she would lose the respect of cowboys and bosses. But she couldn't help but like everything that Jamie threw at her at that moment, in complete shock, as if he had never heard something like that from someone, especially from a woman. Ava saw him as an imposing man, smart enough to rid the ranch of many problems, but she realized that Jamie didn't seem to have many experiences with women. He seemed naive, disconcerted and fucking surprised. Probably, Jamie had never been desired by a woman before, at least, not one as attractive as Ava.

"IIII, I need to go." He stuttered and swallowed dry several times.

"OK, sir. Thank you for returning the handkerchief to me." Ava maintained the malicious tone and opened an irresistible smile, which Jamie almost disassembled in front of her. "Have a good day, Mr. Dutton."

"Likewise, Ava."

Jamie squeezed the step away from the stable and if she wasn't looking maybe he would have run out of there. Once alone, Ava allowed herself to laugh at the situation and bit her lower lip.

"Did you see that, Leon?" She talked to the horse that squeamed.

[annepsilvaauthor]

Moodboard of our beloved Ava North from my new Yellowstone fic You Belong With Me - Jamie Dutton 🥰🔥

[annepsilvaauthor]

You Belong With Me - Jamie Dutton

Pairing: Jamie Dutton x OC (Ava North)

Summary: Ava only wanted one thing: to be a horse tamer. And when she had the chance, she took it. Ava became the new horse tamer of Yellowstone, a totally different ranch from the others she met, either because of its immensity or because of family problems. Ava thought her problems were big, but when she met the Dutton family that thought dies. However, there is a Dutton who is a point out of the curve, a lawyer mistreated by the problems and by his own family. Meeting Jamie Dutton may not have been the work of chance, after all one broken understands the other.

Warnings: Subtle sexual innuendos, brief language, alcohol consumption, angst, smut, fluffy.

Parte II

Bosses are called 'sir'

In the days that followed, Ava tried to do her best at work, but it was difficult not to notice the cowboys' looks on her. At least, she seemed to have earned their respect and they just looked at her with curiosity, perhaps thinking the same as Lloyd. She just ignored all this and tried to fit in with them, getting into their games and playing poker games.

A specific look did not seem to have changed: Lee Dutton, son and foreman of John Dutton. He was the oldest son and to whom Ava realized that John gave more confidence and love. John's look at Lee was completely different from looking at Jamie. Ava admitted that Lee was an attractive man, who knew how to govern the cowboys well and take care of the pasture, but did not look like a landowner. He loved to take care of the land but not command it.

Sometimes, when returning from the expeditions with the cattle, Lee invited her to talk about the work, but deep down she knew he wanted to know more about her. Ava wouldn't reveal anything. Since she was little she recognized the value of discretion and silence, in addition, Ava did not feel attracted to him enough to tell him about her suffering life. However, the silence did not seem to bother Lee, since he always found an opportunity to talk to her. Ava even liked these moments, after all he was an eye drop and was still one of the only cowboys in which the subject did not revolve around football or cattle.

Lee was a nice guy. So cool that she allowed him to kiss her. It happened behind the barn after she fixed the horses inside the stables. It was still day and he surprised her with a stolen kiss. To her surprise, his kiss was soft, sweet, completely different from what she expected from a cowboy. A point outside the curve. Ava enjoyed that kiss until they both lost their breath.

A throat scratch prevented Lee from saying anything about that gesture and they both turned their heads to the left, where Jamie was. Unlike the other times she had seen him, he wore slippers, wide sweatpants and a white blouse transparent enough for her to notice some chest muscles and hair. His hair was not licked with gel, it looked natural, as if he had just woken up and just ran his fingers to comb them, which she found very difficult to have happened. Jamie seemed to give a lot of importance to his appearance.

For a moment her whole body burned. He was...different, he almost looked like an ordinary person. Lee moved far enough from her with a heavy and angry sigh and looked at his brother.

"Dad wants to see you at home." Jamie announced and took a sip of his coffee in a big blue cup.

"I'll go in a little while."

"It's better to go now. You know that dad hates waiting."

Ava could feel the tension in Lee's body even from afar and was sure of his anger when he left stepping firmly on the sand floor until he disappeared from sight. As she did not want to be among the affairs of the family, Ava recomposed herself and began to walk away from there, but his voice appeared again.

"Who are you?"

"Ava."

"How long have you been working here, Ava?"

"A month." She tried to respond as politely as possible, but his incisive tone was making her angry.

"I think you had enough time to know that the bosses are called 'sr'."

"Yes, I had."

"So why do you talk to me as if I were one of you?" Jamie asked about that nonsense and drank another sip of the coffee. Ava wanted to punch that cup and break his nose.

"I didn't know you were my boss."

He laughed without humor and approached her. "That doesn't surprise me at all. If you really knew who your bosses are, you wouldn't go out kissing anyone."

It was her turn to laugh in derision. "I'm confused...sir...are you complaining that I kissed that boss and not 'this' boss?"

Jamie choked on the coffee, spitting out the liquid and dirtying the clear shirt. Well, she found the weak point of that well of arrogance. Ava observed that his expression became bitter, even a little painful and she was intrigued by that.

"Do you want some help, sir?" Ava asked with false education and Jamie denied it with a gesture, then leaving. "Idiot."

[annepsilvaauthor]

My boy needs more love 🥹🥹

The fact that Kayce is the only Dutton who has any empathy or shows love for Jamie is 🥹🥹🥹

[annepsilvaauthor]

One thing I think about Jamie Dutton is that he's not as stupid as the writers want us to think. Speaking specifically about when he took over as Commissioner of Livestock, I saw Jamie again from the pilot episode of the show.

I saw a man confident in solving his own problems and those of the people around him. The wit with which he created an entirely new scene to prevent his agent from being arrested still takes my breath away.

Jamie was very smart when he was younger, that's why John sent him to Harvard. I'm almost certain he would have been accepted to the university if he had applied on his own.

The writers could explore this side of Jamie more and stop his arc with Beth, which doesn't seem to lead either of them to growth in the show.

Jamie is so weak, does he get a redemption arc or what?

[annepsilvaauthor]

The Bunkhouse be like:

Lloyd, setting down a card: Ace of Spades.

Teeter, pulling out an Uno card: +4

Jimmy, pulling out a Pokemon card: Jolteon, I choose you!

Jamie, trembling: What game are we even playing?

[annepsilvaauthor]

You Belong With Me - Jamie Dutton

Pairing: Jamie Dutton x OC (Ava North)

Summary: Ava only wanted one thing: to be a horse tamer. And when she had the chance, she took it. Ava became the new horse tamer of Yellowstone, a totally different ranch from the others she met, either because of its immensity or because of family problems. Ava thought her problems were big, but when she met the Dutton family that thought dies. However, there is a Dutton who is a point out of the curve, a lawyer mistreated by the problems and by his own family. Meeting Jamie Dutton may not have been the work of chance, after all one broken understands the other.

Warnings: Subtle sexual innuendos, brief language, alcohol consumption, angst, smut, fluffy.

Part I

A woman among rustic men

"Guys, this is Ava North. She will stay with us from now on. Treat her like one of you." Rip announced to the cowboys at dawn.

Ava watched every look of the cowboys carefully. They stared at her in a mixture of discredit, confusion and horniness. She did not expect anything different from what she received, after all, she was the only woman among those rustic men who probably had no time or willingness to leave the barn in search of some adventure in the city. Rip could order them to treat her like a man, they could try to treat her like a man, she wanted them to see her like that, but Ava would never pass herself off as a man.

Ava had inherited her mother's long dark hair, as well as slightly tanned skin and small, black eyes. They said that her nose and mouth looked a lot like her father's, but she couldn't say it since she never saw him. The slender and curvilinear body may have been inherited by genetics, although the years of training for competitions have physically prepared her for something beyond rodeo. The fact was that, even under a hat, wide and thick clothes, heavy boots and dust, Ava did not go unnoticed by anyone, especially for those men.

Rip did not give enough time for the cowboys to whisper or approach Ava, sending them to perform the daily tasks. One of them, Lloyd, a man who looked more than fifty years old, but with a cervix as hard as hers, guided her with a respectful smile to one of the horses in the barn. It was big, black and shiny.

"How gorgeous you are." Ava exclaimed walking her hands through the robust mane and it snealed loudly at her. "Hey, calm down, boy."

"This stallion has given us a lot of work." Lloyd explained in his hoarse voice. "Rip told about your old job. Do you think you can do your magic with this one?"

"I can try." She caressed the strong shoulders of that horse as a woman would caress the man she loved. "The secret is in trust. Probably whoever rode him was more afraid of him than he was of the tamer. He can feel everything, even a miserable fly in the hull, and he certainly feels our fear."

"He seems to like you." Lloyd smiled under his thick mustache as he contemplated the calm of the stallion under Ava's hands. "Let's test it."

Lloyd opened the gate and guided the stallion through the partitions until he reached the huge fence about a hundred meters away. He prepared the cell and the stirrups, so he invited her to assemble. As much as Ava had practiced that for long years, it had been a long time since she rode a horse for the last time. And taming one ha longer than that. She didn't want to tell Rip about it or she wouldn't convince him to accept her there. But the fact was that Ava was a bit nervous to ride again,

She noticed that Lloyd was watching her carefully, trying to find some reason for her to be there in the middle of those rough men who barely knew how to read. Maybe he thought why she had left the competitions or how she had convinced Rip to let her work there. Whatever his thought, Ava should demonstrate with actions that she deserved to be there, that she really had a talent and loved what she did.

So, she leaned on the cell and rode the horse. Immediately, the stallion was surprised by her presence there and began to jump and rabble, wanting to expel her from there. However, years could have passed, but the muscular memory was as alive as before. Ava grabbed the cell tightly and tied her other hand to the stirrup, slightly forcing the horse's snout. He still moved under her mount, making her run through the white sand a few times. That horse was very fierce, but Ava wouldn't be defeated.

She lightly pressed the stallion's ribs with her boots, also trying to calm her own being. Once again relaxed, Ava finally got the animal to stop jumping and start running. The strong breeze of the morning hit her face without merce, taking her hat away, but she didn't care. The smile of satisfaction covered her dusty face and she only noticed that there was an audience when the horse ceased its movements.

Lloyd clapped his hands on the other side of the fence, proud of what he had just seen. However, her attention was fixed on the man next to him. He exhaled power in his bluish look and calm expression. No one needed to report that that was Mr. John Dutton, the most influential landowner in Montana. He stared at her with a mini smile that she interpreted as something not very common to him, a smile that he released only when he was satisfied with something. Not bad for the first day, she thought.

John Dutton didn't have time to say anything about her performance ��� if he was going to say anything — because his attention was stolen by someone else. Ava observed a tall man, so white that he shone in the sunlight, and navy blue suit very aligned to visit a ranch. He walked in a hurry, touching the buttons of the suit in the meantime and aiming at nothing more than John's back. The rest of the world didn't seem to exist for him. Ava didn't seem to exist for him.

The man who looked like a businessman or perhaps a lawyer called John, who did not seem so happy with his arrival and walked away from the fence. The two began a quick conversation that ended in expressions that transited between worry and boredom. So, John Dutton walks away from the stables with the man in a suit. He didn't even look at Lloyd, or anything around him. His focus was just John Dutton and that intrigued Ava more than it should.

"Who was him?" She asked as soon as she got off the horse.

"He was John Dutton. Yours and our boss." Lloyd responded by collecting the stallion's stirrups.

Ava shook her head. "I know. I mean the other one, the one with the suit and tie."

"Oh! That's Jamie Dutton, John's son."

"He doesn't seem to be the son of a landowner."

Lloyd laughed as if he knew something else. "That boy always behaved as if he were more, and became more. He is the family lawyer, he graduated from Harvard and blah, blah, blah, these nonsense that you or me don't even understand."

"He really seems to be more...or want to be more." Ava thought out loud and decided to leave that subject behind, since the life of the bosses was none of her business.

But her mind wouldn't stop searching that scene and that man. Jamie Dutton. It was not a good name for a lawyer, certainly not a good one for a landowner. Still, it was a name that echoed in her mind all that day.

[annepsilvaauthor]

You Belong With Me - Jamie Dutton

Pairing: Jamie Dutton x OC (Ava North)

Summary: Ava only wanted one thing: to be a horse tamer. And when she had the chance, she took it. Ava became the new horse tamer of Yellowstone, a totally different ranch from the others she met, either because of its immensity or because of family problems. Ava thought her problems were big, but when she met the Dutton family that thought dies. However, there is a Dutton who is a point out of the curve, a lawyer mistreated by the problems and by his own family. Meeting Jamie Dutton may not have been the work of chance, after all one broken understands the other.

Warnings: Subtle sexual innuendos, brief language, alcohol consumption, angst, smut, fluffy.

A place for women

"The ranch isn't a place for women, Ava." Rip said sounding more protective than she had ever seen. "There are only animals there."

"Great, I love animals," she replied with determination after taking a sip of her beer.

"Don't tell me you want to wash a cow's ass? That's what a cowboy does...and many other things."

"No, I don't want that. You know what my talent is, Rip." She reminded him with a confident smile of her glory days in the rodeos.

"Oh, of course. The 'horse enchanter'. I remember her." He disdained with a smile and drank a sip of beer straight from the bottle. "You earned much more at the rodeos than you would at the ranch."

"You know why I done competitions, I'm not going to get into this subject again." She protested almost angry and asked for another drink.

Ava looked around. It was almost three in the morning and the bar was empty, there were only the two of them there exchanging favors as they always did. Rip sent it, she did it and he paid for it. It was always good money, but she was tired of infiltrating, selling her body to get information and pretending to be who she wasn't. The competitions gave her a lot of fame and exposure, the work of private detective locked her in lies. Ava wanted an escape from all that, she wanted to live in a place where she could be herself. Yellowstone looked like one of those places.

"Are you going to help me or not?" Ava asked incisively, but Rip continued in his passive state, drinking the beer as if it were the most expensive wine in the world. "Damn, we've known each other for I don't know how many fucking years and I've never asked you for anything, Rip. This should help you understand how much this matters to me."

"I know it's important to you...and it's precisely because we've known each other for so long that I'm afraid to put you in there." He sighed heavily and ran away from her eyes with every word. "You know the...things I've been doing, damn it. You know that. In there you're not a simple cowboy or horse tamer, you're their property. His property."

"You never complained about what you had to do for the Dutton. This means that you agree with what should have been done. You are part of them now or of his property. And if he protects his own property so well and I will be a part of it, then there is no other place in the world safer than there."

Rip shook his head in denial and fixed his dark and deep eyes on hers. There was pain, anger and sadness in them, something not so different from Ava's. That's what connected them and continued to keep their friendship so alive.

"I'm not going to convince you otherwise, am I?" He asked with a weak smile and she denied it with her head. He sighed strongly and drank two more big sips of his beer. "OK. I can do it for you...but there's something you need to know before you get in."

"I'm all ears." Ava moved around on the stool, turning totally to her friend, who had suddenly taken a very serious tone.

"We all value loyalty very much. John values that for real. We do what he asks without questioning... out here you had the opportunity to change branches as many times as you needed, but not there. Once you entered the ranch, you don't leave there anymore, do you understand?" Rip's eyes shone in a kind of devotion mixed with terror and Ava paid attention at every word, internalizing that for good. She nodded in agreement. "Are you sure you still want to do that?"

"More than anything in my life." Ava opened a moved smile." It will be good for me, Rip, you know that. They were good for you. Look at you! All full of authority, toughness and giving me orders. What can be so bad about that ranch that I haven't seen in my life?"

He didn't answer that, he just looked at her again in depth, which made her feel as small as she was when they met a few months before the tragedy with his family. Rip had been her protector as a child and, even though Ava was already on the verge of thirty-five, he still protected her as if she were that frightened and lost girl from Miles City. Well, Ava was no longer like that, she could take down anyone who approached her with ulterior motives, but a part of her liked Rip's protection, as much as it often irritated her.

"I'm going to be your boss." He informed in a mocking tone after the brief pause.

"Let's see for how long." Ava returned in challenge and the two laughed.

"Be in the shed in an hour." He announced and Ava raised an eyebrow. Rip laughed. "I'm not going to make it easy for you just because we're friends. You'll be like any other beginner."

"I didn't expect anything different from you." Ava stroked his shoulder with one hand, pulling his attention out of the bottle to her. "Thank you for that."

"Let's drink one more as friends."

[annepsilvaauthor]

Sally: You're obsessed with this guy, Betty!

Elizabeth: Of course not! I'm just saying that...

Sally: He's insufferable and blah, blah, blah...you've said it a thousand times. But you know what, if he was really so unbearable you wouldn't have kissed him!

Elizabeth: I was drunk!

Sally: The second time you weren't.

Elizabeth: He kissed me forcibly.

Sally: And the third time?

*Elizabeth threw a pillow in Sally's face and left the room thinking about the other times she didn't tell her friend*

Summer Nights (2024)

Glen Powell & Monica Barbaro

Gifs multiple vias, one of those is from @natashatrace . The other ones a I don't remember where they're from 😓. If the gifs' owners are around here, please don't be mad at me. I'll take you all the credits 🙏

[annepsilvaauthor]

Elizabeth: That's an invasion of privacy!

David: You're so dramatic. I just messed up my room, I wasn't looking at you, which I can't say the same about you.

Elizabeth: What do you mean?

David: I notice your eyes on me at the beach. But I don't blame you, I don't go unnoticed anywhere.

Elizabeth: You invade my room and still insult me? Get out!

David: Dramatic and stressed, a terrible combination.

Elizabeth: I can report you for harassment. Get out of my room!

David: I'm coming...ah, before I forget: you don't go unnoticed either.

Elizabeth: GET OUT! *she lets out a smile after hearing the door slam*

Summer Nights (2024)

Staring: Glen Powell & Monica Barbaro

[annepsilvaauthor]

"Dear diary, is there such a thing as hate at first sight? Because I feel it now. He keeps showing up on the beach, much to my dismay.

If his breathing wasn't so altered, if his laugh wasn't so loud, if his mood wasn't irritatingly moody in the morning, if he didn't use his own dog as a dumbbell, or if he didn't always appear shirtless every days, perhaps he would become less unbearable.

However, sometimes I think he knows I can't stand him and insists on getting worse and worse. And I continue to go to the beach. And so does he. Hate at first, second, third, infinite sight."

Summer Nights (2024)

Glen Powell & Monica Barbaro

[annepsilvaauthor]

Summer Nights (2024)

Staring: Glen Powell & Monica Barbaro

David: Can i call you 'Liz'?

Elizabeth: No.

David: Rude. And what about 'Miss Sunshine'?

Elizabeth: And what about you get the fuck out of my way?

David: Nah. I don't like it. Miss Sunshine is endgame!

Gifs multiple vias