It's in the early evening, Alberto busy in his office handling some scheduling business, when his phone beeps. He only has a select few accounts set to send their tweets directly to his phone, so he doesn't miss anything, one of which is Ricardo's. Rubbing his tired eyes, he picks the phone up and accesses the text messages, smiling when he sees that it is indeed from his ring announcer, talking about how nostalgic he is towards riding horses like he did as a child, and how he had woke up from a dream about doing that very thing this morning.

Alberto pauses over the words, frowning at the thought of Ricardo yearning for something and not letting him know, because he thought he'd made it clear he'd do pretty much anything to make the other man smile, especially after how things had gone the past year. "Hmm, well, a tweet will have to suffice, I suppose," he mumbles, putting the phone down and pushing his other busy work away to begin planning something else.

-x

Ricardo wakes up the next morning off of more dreams about horses and the curious feeling of being weightless as he rides them through meadows, releasing a soft yawn before blinking his eyes open to find Alberto laying on his side, watching him with a small smile. "Hola, El Patron," he greets him sleepily, pressing his face into the older man's chest.

"Buenos dias," Alberto murmurs, stroking his hair. "Are you ready to get up?"

"Hmm, I suppose," Ricardo hums. "Do we have obligations today?"

"Of a sort," Alberto laughs, kissing the top of his head. "Come, mi valiente. Let's see what the day brings, hm?" Ricardo nods sleepily and allows his former employer to lead him into the kitchen, where Sofia is waiting with coffee and a soft smile.

"Do you know what he has planned?" the younger man asks her with a small laugh, sitting down at the table.

"Mmm," she muses, pouring him some coffee before moving to serve them breakfasts of eggs and sausages. "Perhaps."

He pouts, already aware she wasn't going to tell him anything, before picking up his fork and beginning to eat. "Of course," he sighs, always hating to wait for one of Alberto's surprises.

This one ends up stranger than usual because, once he's done eating and dressed for the day, Alberto blindfolds him and makes sure he can't see anything by sneaking up on him and kissing him, satisfied when he jumps in response. "Come then," he says quietly, taking Ricardo's hand and leading him to the car. The nearest horse farm that Alberto thought sounded the best is a decent drive away and he worries over how Ricardo will handle being blindfolded that long, but he's a champ through it all, not complaining once. If not for the uncertain twist to his lips sometimes, Alberto wouldn't know if he was feeling off about things at all. "Almost there, mi valiente," he says, turning down the music that he'd left up loud to comfort Ricardo. "You doing alright?"

"Si," Ricardo nods. "But... I can look as we drive back home, right?"

Alberto feels even worse at the realization that one of Ricardo's favorite things to do is see the sights they drive by on one of these adventures, and he had taken that from him. "Si, of course," he agrees, already deciding to take the long way home so Ricardo can see even more of Florida country side to make up for what he had missed this afternoon.

"Gracias," he says with a soft smile. They drive in silence for a little longer before Alberto sees the signs pointing towards Aluchua Ranch. It's a small little ranch, with trails leading away from it, and Alberto can already see a couple of horses peacefully feeding off in the distance. He smiles, turning to look at Ricardo. "We're here," he says quietly, cutting the engine and getting out of the car. He races around and helps Ricardo out of the passenger's seat before standing him in perfect sight of the horses grazing. "Ready?"

"Mm hmm," Ricardo whispers, waiting patiently as Alberto unties the blindfold and allows him to look around. He gasps, his eyes widening as Alberto beams at him. "El Patron!" He stares at the beautiful animals for a moment before hugging his former employer hard. "It... they... this is amazing."

"I saw your tweet," Alberto explains. "And I began to look around and found this place. They allow horseback riding, and the pictures looked so beautiful... I thought perhaps you would enjoy spending the day here."

"Yes!" Ricardo gasps, gripping his collar and pulling him closer, kissing him. "Gracias, this is... I can't even describe it."

"I like to make you speechless," Alberto chuckles, kissing the side of his face before they turn to find the ranch hands to set things up. It isn't long before Ricardo's on top of a horse, looking natural and graceful up there. Alberto watches him while struggling to get atop his own steed, biting his lip as the animal just doesn't seem to like him. "Perhaps we should..."

Before he can finish, Ricardo dismounts from his own horse and comes over. "Are you alright, El Patron?" he asks, stroking the horse's flank. It immediately turns and noses at Ricardo, causing him to giggle, and Alberto grits his teeth at the finicky creature.

"I may have to get a different horse, this one doesn't like me."

Ricardo glances over at him and shakes his head. "What's wrong with him? He seems fine..." He strokes the horse's nose and smiles. "You're an alright guy, aren't you? Yeah..." He turns to look at Alberto, raising his eyebrows. "Try now, El Patron. He was probably just a little nervous."

Alberto narrows his eyes at Ricardo but this time, with a little bit of assistant from the ranch hand, manages it, ending up safely on the horse. He huffs as Ricardo easily hops back up onto his own horse and lightly flicks the reigns, guiding them side by side. He reaches over and pets Alberto's horse once more. "Ricardo..."

"It's fine, El Patron," he says softly. "You'll take good care of him, won't you?" The horse knickers and Alberto huffs, though his eyes are soft with affection for the ring announcer. "You ready to ride?"

"I suppose," Alberto says, gripping the reigns tightly. Ricardo gently reaches over and holds his hands until he relaxes, taking a deep breath. "You'll stay close, si?"

"Of course," Ricardo tells him with a small smile. "We'll go slow, El Patron," And they do, going at a slow walk through the grass up to the trails where they amble for awhile. Alberto breathes easier when his horse doesn't seem inclined to rear back and buck him off, the walk suiting all four of them just fine. "Doing alright, El Patron?"

"Si, gracias. I've never ridden a horse before," he confesses lowly. "With all of my cars, I never saw the need. I am glad I decided to try it." Ricardo smiles at him and loosens his grip on the reigns, reaching over. Alberto meets him half way and squeezes his hand as they look around at the beautiful foliage and countryside.

"This is so amazing," Ricardo whispers.

"Any time you want to come back, just let me know," Alberto tells him. "I'll make it happen."

Ricardo grins. "I love you, El Patron."

"I love you too, mi valiente," he says softly, lifting his hand and lightly kissing it.

They ride for another fifteen minutes before Ricardo decides Alberto's had enough for his first time, helping him to guide his horse back around so they can return to the ranch. "This has been an amazing day," he sighs, stroking his steed's mane.

Alberto quietly agrees, unable to take his eyes off of the peaceful expression on Ricardo's face.