A/N: Oh, God, just why? I've lived in the country too long. And I enjoy cowboys. Even though Steve and Tony aren't really cowboys in this. But hey, close enough. Uh. Hope you enjoy reading as much as I did writing!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Avengers. I do, however, own the horses in this fic. Lily is my personal horse in real life, and she's just as much of a spoiled brat in this fic.
Steve liked his life at the Avengers Tower, he really did. But even though he's lived all his life in the city, he'd been aching for wide open plains and nothing but forest. So, he got a job at a horse ranch about an hour drive from New York City in Goshen where he could work in the stables for a few hours as a groom, and then was given permission to pick out a horse and ride for as long as he liked until midnight. As a kid, when they had enough money to travel, his mother would take him to a horse farm her friend owned for a few days and he would ride a horse named Bud for as long as he could remember. He wasn't particularly a strong rider back then, what with his health issues, but he loved it all the same and now, now he could ride like he never could. Already a week into the job, he'd ridden the same horse every time. A big chestnut gelding that had a long line of ribbons on his door that were gathering dust after the owner boarding him had sold him to the ranch. He was fast, strong, and just what Steve liked.
So he didn't let Tony get to him when he teased. It was heartfelt, he knew, and he'd gotten used to it over the weeks. Tony was just…Tony. A spoiled, arrogant man child with the mind of a genius (Steve had read somewhere that geniuses weren't always good at being sociable toward other people, so he kept that in mind, too). Which would explain why Tony kept grabbing his ass randomly or constantly flirting with him. Or, he was interested in him. Steve didn't have anything against that, but…them? Together? He was almost sure Tony still had a hatred for him.
He'd always thought of Tony as a man who didn't get his hands dirty unless he absolutely had to. So imagine his surprise when after Tony teased him as he got ready to go to work he asked to come with and help him work. "You? Muck out horse stables?" he asked incredulously. "You're just going to pester me."
"Only slightly. C'mon, Steve, I'm bored." Tony sighed dramatically, throwing his hands in the air. "No projects have come to me. This can be inspiration."
"For what? A robot horse?"
"That's catchy. Really. I should write that down." Tony snorted. "Now, back to business. Let me come? We can take one of my cars, and be there in 45 minutes instead of your motorcycle that you won't let me fix."
"It's not broken." Steve said curtly, crossing his arms.
"Sure, honey bear." Tony grinned. "So, can I come?"
What the hell, Steve thought; it'll be fun watching Tony work in a barn when he's probably never been to a farm. "Okay. But you have to do as I say. And you have to work."
"I can work, Steve." Tony wrinkled his nose in annoyance. "What do you think I do every day down in my lab? Twiddle my thumbs and touch my screens?"
Steve shrugged, smirking.
Tony's eyes narrowed. "I'm going to drive my Audi out front. Meet you down there."
"Are you going to wear that?" Steve raised an eyebrow at Tony's gray AC/DC t-shirt and dark jeans and bare feet.
"Why, yes, Captain, I'm going to go like this." Tony rolled his eyes and left his bedroom. Steve shook his head and hoisted his duffel bag over his shoulder, wondering if inviting Tony was worth it.
When Steve exited the lobby and saw Tony leaning against the car patiently, he noticed that Tony had replaced his jeans with faded ones, ripped at the knees and some stains of oil or grease on them and had put on work boots. "Been saving those in your closet long, Tony?"
"One of my closets, yeah." Tony said smartly and slipped into the front seat. Steve put his duffel bag under the backseat and then sat in front seat next to Tony. The billionaire put on his sunglasses, started the engine, and started driving before Steve could even get his seatbelt on.
The drive was pretty quiet, and Steve liked it that way. He couldn't hear much over the roar of wind hitting his face, anyway. Soon, there were less and less buildings, then smaller houses, and then rolling hills. The distinct smog of NYC faded, filling Steve's nostrils with fresh air. He grinned to himself and leaned his head back to the sky, squinting against the sun. It was around 10 AM, but it was already starting to warm up considerably. Even through the wind, he could feel the heat. Tony laughed beside him, shaking his head, and turned on the radio. What Steve knew as Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" (Tony made it his mission to teach him of the best music he'd missed) and he gave Tony a look.
"This is a classic song!" Tony insisted. "Don't judge me!"
"No irony intended?" Steve almost had to yell.
"Almost no irony intended." He grinned and turned his attention back to the wheel. "Hey, that's it, right?"
Steve saw a left turn up ahead that turned into a long, curved driveway. He could see the peaks of the large house, training building, and stables from here. He nodded. "Yeah, that's it."
"Nice place," Tony remarked. Steve smiled. This was going to be an interesting day.
Tony followed a little behind Steve walking down the dirt road. "Where is everyone?"
"It's Monday, one of the quietest days. Just me, you, and probably Ava working today. C'mon, I'll introduce you to the boss. Try not to make her angry."
Tony scoffed at him as they entered the farmhouse. It was a very modern house, but there were still hints of its oldness in the interior. "Ms. Atkins?"
A short, plump woman with graying hair and a wide smile poked her head around in the kitchen doorway. "Steve! Oh, you're here a bit early, aren't you? Come, come, take these apples out to the horses, won't you?" she greeted, wiping her hands on her apron and using one to wave them over. "Who's your friend?"
"Ma'am, this is Tony Stark. He's willing to help me work today."
"Tony Stark, hm?" Ms. Atkins's eyes twinkled. "I knew your mother, dear. And the last time I saw you, you were 2 feet tall."
"What?" Steve was startled. From what she'd told him, Ms. Atkins had almost never gone to the city. How could she possibly know the Stark's?
"It's been a long time," Tony said to Ms. Atkins, and then turned to Steve. "I used to come here as a kid. My mom said that sometimes I needed to take my hands off machines."
Steve's mouth opened, and then closed. That was definitely not what he expected at all. Tony thumped his shoulder and took the basket of apples. Steve just gave Ms. Atkins a wave and followed Tony out. They cross the house to the stables and Steve rolled the door over, being greeted with nickers and stamping feet. "Hey, guys."
Tony placed the basket of apples down on a hay bale in the corner and took an armful. "So, what's first on the schedule, Rancher Steve?" he asked, going up to a bay in one of the first stalls and offering it an apple. The horse took it greedily and Tony patted its nose, and then moved to the next one. Steve didn't know why, but he'd always figured that Tony would be timid around horses. Instead, he looked completely at ease.
"Ava already fed them, so we can put them out to pasture while we muck out the stalls. Then we have to polish the tack." Steve explained, and then grabbed Tony's arm when he reached Lily, an appaloosa with a white coat and decorated small brown spots all over. "Careful. She's stubborn and likes to bite."
Tony took his warning no heed and held out his palm flat, apple resting. The mare reached her head forward, sniffed the apple, then snorted and tried to grab it with it her teeth a little too harshly, almost catching Tony's fingers. Tony put his hand back and then looked Lily right in the eye. Lily stamped her foot and tried again, and this time Tony laid a hand on Lily's splotched muzzle, and Lily went still. Tony moved his hand again toward her and Lily took the apple more gently. Steve's eyebrows shot up.
"What?" Tony said defensively, wiping his hand on his jeans. "I've been around horses before. Let's get started, shall we?"
Once they'd led all the horses to the pasture, Steve rolled two wheelbarrows to the stable aisle and handed a pitchfork to Tony. "You know what to do, I'm sure."
"Scoop up the horse shit. Yep," Tony put his pitchfork over his shoulder and rolled his wheelbarrow at the first stall. Steve took his own pitchfork and went into one of the stalls, and took his first scoop of the waste and threw it into the wheelbarrow with ease, an advantage of being a super solider. He could hear Tony panting after a few minutes and he peeked over the stall door to see that Tony was on his second stall already, but sweat was already beading his forehead from the increasing heat.
"Having trouble, Tony?" he called, trying to suppress his smugness. It wasn't very Steve to take pleasure in watching Tony struggle.
"No!" came the adamant reply. "This is just harder than I remember."
True, Steve thought. It was harder than Steve thought it was, too, when he first started this job last week. Ava came in then, winking at Steve as she usually did, introduced herself to Tony, and Tony paused in his mucking to help her carry the rest of the feed sacks out of the truck outside.
By the time Steve was nearly done with his side of the stalls and noon started creeping around, the heat was thick and humid in the barn. Ava, before taking off, had turned on a few fans and Tim McGraw sang out through speakers in the barn, but it didn't help much.
Wiping his brow, he looked at Tony, who was finishing up his last stall, had stripped off his sweat-soaked shirt and leaving a black tank top that had a sloppy hole cut in it where the arc reactor shone through brightly. He caught himself watching Tony's finely toned muscles move with each movement, moisture glistening over the skin. Blushing furiously, he jerked his head away again.
"Done!" Tony cried, leaning the pitchfork against the aisle wall and then collapsing onto a bale of hay. "I'm done."
Glad to have the heat as an excuse for the red flush on his face, Steve finished the last of his stall and put his own pitch on the wall and took his wheelbarrow by the hands. "I can take these to the pile while you can start on the tack. The room's through the training arena and to the left. Think you can find it okay?" Steve asked, and Tony groaned as he got up again, breathing hard.
"Yup, I've got it, Cap." He said, a bit tiredly.
Once Tony reached the tack room, he struggled to catch his breath and wipe his face dry of sweat. Since he'd gotten the arc reactor, it made it difficult for him to perform hard, physical labor. The casing took up too much space in his chest for it to not have any side effects. Usually, Jarvis had measures so that Tony didn't have to deal with the temperature or lack of oxygen, but outside, with no Jarvis to watch his vitals and tell him to take a break, it was both frustrating and refreshing. Tony had to rely on himself, which wasn't necessarily different than what he's always done.
Finally, he got his breathing under control. He could feel his heart pounding in his head. And it didn't help that Steve was looking way too perfect covered in sweat and grime (how does he do that?), which just made him feel tingly inside and Tony's loving seeing Steve's reaction to Tony's knowledge of working on a horse ranch. He couldn't wait to go riding later. He took a cloth and saddle polish from a cabinet at the corner of the tack room, and started polishing.
And promptly squawked in surprise as cold water washed over his head and completely soaked his tank top. He whirled around and saw Steve chuckling, half a bucket of water in hand. "Oh, you think you're funny, huh?" He tried to laugh, to take it as what it was: a prank. His body shook and his head flashed of his drowning in Afghanistan, but hey, it'd been a while and Tony thought he'd got hold on it. But still, pure rage filled him and he pushed past Steve, freezing in the doorway because there's sand in that arena and nope, he couldn't deal with that right now. So he turned again and faced Steve, shuddering. The more he felt the wet dribbling down his face and chest, he felt boiling fear and rage. Invisible hands yanked at him all over, echoing shouts drifting through his ears. "Don't. Don't do that again."
"Tony?" the triumphant smirk had completely vanished from Steve's face and now he looked worried.
"I don't like…" he said through his teeth, and then snatched the towel Steve was now holding out for him. "Being splashed with water."
"Okay. That's fine. Are you okay now?" Steve kept calm, but there was concern and guilt in his eyes that he couldn't hide.
"I'm fine." Tony snapped, wiping his face.
"Are you sure?"
Tony took his polish rag again and began scrubbing.
"You should take your shirt off so I can lay it out to dry in the sun."
"Looking for a strip tease, Steve?" Tony snarked, satisfied at his blush. But Steve was right. So he peeled off his soaking shirt and tossed it to Steve. He didn't look back up for a while.
About an hour later, they were both finished with their tack cleaning and were washing their hands and arms rid of the grime and polish in the bucket of water. Tony felt better now, and felt like he should say something to Steve about the water thing.
"It's not your fault." He remarked. "You didn't know. It's a stupid thing I dragged back with me from Afghanistan."
Steve's face paled. "I'm sorry."
"It's fine. Like I said, you didn't know."
Steve ventured a little closer to him and touched his shoulder gently. "So you know that if I knew about what you felt about water, I wouldn't have done that?" Can you not, Steve? I really want to be furious with you. But you're making it impossible. Stop it with that face.
"You're you," Tony grinned, a little weakly. "I know you wouldn't." Ah, fuck it. He's too adorable to be pissed at.
"Okay," Steve accepted this. "Do you still want to go riding? If you don't-"
"Hell yes," Tony whooped, and grabbed one of the saddles and bridles, and a grooming kit. "I'm taking Lily."
"Lily?" Steve said incredulously. "Why?"
"She's got spunk." Tony retorted. "Ms. Atkins will fine with me riding her, right?"
"Yes, but…" the blonde lifted a shoulder, "She's just stubborn, that's all. Hard to manage."
"Love at first sight." Tony looked back over his shoulder, smirking. Then he darted toward the stables. Steve followed after him with his own set of tack, shaking his head.
"Hey, Tony!" Steve said from behind him as Tony was reaching Lily's stall. He tossed Tony his shirt. "It's dry, mostly."
Tony slipped on the t-shirt again and noticed Steve was wearing a cowboy hat. "Well, howdy."
Steve flushed. "Ava gave it to me. She said she'd kick my ass if I didn't wear it."
Tony walked up to him and adjust the hat to his liking. "I'll be a witness for her."
"Thanks," Steve said with complete sincerity, and if Steve noticed how Tony's gaze lingered on Steve's face far too long, he didn't show it. He cleared his throat and went to get his horse.
Tony clicked his tongue to get Lily's attention, and the mare turned her head to him from her position in the stall, body position backwards from him. She regarded him for a second before snorting, swishing her tail, and looked away again. "Not going to get rid of me that easily. Here, I bring gifts," he dug through his pockets and took out a horse treat. Lily's ears perked at this and turned herself around to the door. She ate the treat eagerly, munching contentedly. "See? You'll get more later, too."
Absently, Tony rubbed the area between her eyes as he opened the stall door. He slipped a halter around her head and clipping it on, gripping the rope attached to it and tugged gently. "C'mon, girl." As she followed him out of the stables and into the shining sunlight of mid-afternoon, Tony noticed Steve positioning a bridle around his horse's head. His horse was the perfect epitome of gentle giant, in which Tony found a little funny because so was Steve. He glanced back at Lily, who tossed her head and then nudged him impatiently but fondly, and he smiled to himself. Perfect matches, eh?
Just minutes later, Tony put his foot in the stirrup and heaved himself onto the horse, swinging his leg over and holding the reins with an iron grip. Okay, so it had been a long time since Tony had been on a horse. A very long time. But as he breathed steadily and shifted his ass on the saddle, his lessons that he'd been originally forced to endure as a child came rushing back to him. He'd been a rich man's son, of course all opportunities that rich men could have were taken, and that meant sticking a young Anthony on a horse's back. He'd hated it at first, his instructor strict and unyielding, but his mother had taken him from the class and brought him here, to this very ranch, and taught him herself how to really ride and enjoy it.
"Someday, Anthony, you'll be grateful you learned this. Even if you don't demonstrate it that often." She'd told him, and how right she had been. Now Tony could wipe that smug look off Steve's face when the man had asked Tony in the car if they wanted to go riding after their work.
"Are you ready to go, Tony?" Steve's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Yes," Tony said, forcing his voice to sound a little uncertain. Steve rode up to him, so they were side by side.
"We can go slow, if you want." Steve offered, and then Tony gave him a wicked grin.
"Your definition of slow is different than mine. See if you can keep up, Gramps!" With that, he gently kicked Lily's sides with the heel of his boot, clicked his tongue, and Lily took off. She was fast, and she had the ability to immediately spring from a halt to a gallop in just a few strides. As Lily's hooves thundered on the grass terrain, getting farther and farther from the ranch and into the long, rolling hills of the fields, Tony let out a whoop of joy. His eyes stung from the wind and his hair was flying in all directions, but it felt good and Tony felt like a kid again, free of responsibility and his "destiny" of being an heir of a multi-million dollar company.
That is, until Steve started to creep up on the side of him, his grin matching his own earlier. Oh, it was on. Steve wanted a race? He'd get one. He nudged Lily with his foot again, and Lily gave a surge of speed. All sights Tony could see around him became a blur. "Race you to the pond!" he yelled out, and couldn't hear Steve's response. He didn't care. He kept going. Steve was still calling something out to him, but Tony didn't look back.
"Tony! Watch out!"
He saw what Steve meant right away. There was a fence in their path. Huh. Tony didn't remember that being there. He felt his heart pound in panic, and he tried desperately to remember how to jump. As it got closer, though, Tony let his instincts take over. He leaned forward, digging his heels into the stirrups, and Lily glided over the fence with ease. He laughed to himself as they finished the race and he slowed the horse to a canter, trot, and then walk.
"Good girl," he leaned forward enough that the saddle horn pressed into his lower belly and he stroked Lily's think white mane. He smirked as Steve cantered past them, loping around in a wide circle before they came to a stop. The chestnut Steve was riding had sweat soaking his chest and was breathing hard, but he whinnied and stamped his foot in excitement. Lily whinnied back, bobbing her head up and down.
"Good race," Steve was smiling. "You're a good rider."
"Not what you expected?"
"No," Steve admitted sheepishly. "There's a lot I don't know about you, isn't there?"
"Touché," Tony said as he dismounted Lily. Steve made to do the same and he swung his leg over and once it reached the ground, he tried to get his foot out the stirrup. It didn't budge at Steve's movement. Tony smirked, and Steve frowned and tugged again. It still didn't move. Tony clicked his tongue, holding out his hand with a horse treat, which Lily tried to get to. The chestnut's attention went to Tony.
"Tony, what're you- Whoa!" Steve fell on his back with a loud thump as his horse began walking with Steve's foot still lodged in the saddle. It came loose at Steve's fall, and Tony chortled as the super solider squinted up at the sky. "I deserved that."
"Nah. But it was still fun." Tony said.
A bit later, the horses were grazing peacefully next to the pond and Tony and Steve were sitting against a large tree that generously had shade. "That was fun, actually." Steve remarked. I let Tony come to teach him hard work and to selfishly prove to him I'm better than him at some things. Both of those stupid reasons backfired.
"It was. You're not as much of a good looking asshat as you seem," Tony nodded. "Nice guy."
"And you're not a stuck up rich man child."
"I am a rich man child."
"You know what I mean."
"Took this long for this revelation? And a soulful trip to the country?"
Steve frowned slightly. "Why have we been such jerks to each other since we met, anyway? I never really understood why we were such hotheads these past months."
"Because we're opposites?" Tony guessed. "I don't really know, Cap. I'm a dick in general."
"Not all the time," Steve said gently, and lifted a hand to turn Tony's chin so he was looking at him. "We should start over."
"Okay," Tony nodded slowly, "Hi, I'm Tony Stark, and I," he suddenly grabbed Steve shoulders and pulled him close so that he could meet Steve's lips with his, hard, before Steve could react, and then breathed, "have wanted to do that since day one."
Steve blinked in shock at the spontaneous kiss, but then he let out a small smile and wrapped Tony in his arms, ignoring the tree bark digging into his back. "Well, hey, I didn't even know I wanted that until you did."
"Good timing?"
"Good timing," Steve agreed, and Tony kissed him again passionately, tongue trailing briefly across Steve's lips. "Want to head back?"
"Or, you know, we could wait until sunset. Good view." Tony snuggled up a little closer to Steve.
Steve couldn't think of a better option. "Ow!" he cried, looking up to see Lily nuzzling his hair with her lips, and Tony's laugh vibrated through Steve. "You're a horrible influence on her."
"And you're a terrible influence on me. Making me soft. I let Clint eat the last piece of pie last night without you telling me."
"I'm impressed."
"You should be," Tony grinned. "it's your work."
"Cheers for me, then. Maybe I can use it on Clint, too."
"Nope. You're all for me."
"Possessive already?"
"You know how I get."
Steve did, and he felt warm inside. He was wanted. Tony liked him. When Steve Rogers woke up from a 70 year coma, he didn't know what to expect. Definitely not this, that was for sure. But hey, things happen for the best sometimes, right?
A/N: Pointless fic is pointless! No plot, no extra chapters, just an easy, fluffy fic. With a sprinkle of Tony feels. Thanks for reading and feel free to toss in a review! C: