Out of Her Element (MysticSpraxman and myself)

Madeline Novak arrived at the airport in San Jose and walked down the ramp, heading into the main building. She had her Prada sunglasses perched on her head, her long brown hair pulled up into a taut bun, tendrils of hair falling around her rounded face. She made her way through the airport and stopped at the Starbucks, buying a white chocolate mocha and a coffee cake. She sat and ate the coffee cake, and slowly sipped her coffee before she walked towards the baggage claim. The 24 year old stood at 5’5, 5’8 with her ivory Madden Girl heels. She was dressed in a slate grey pencil skirt that accented her curves and a white Michael Kors cashmere short sleeved sweater. She picked up her two bags, full of designer clothes and accessories. Her father was the CEO of a large technologies company, so she was never left wanting. You could call her spoiled, but she wasn’t a total bitch.

Maddie took her bags and walked to the rental car window. She rented a BMW and handed the cashier her credit card. The woman was visiting family in the town and didn’t know how much she’d like the laid back country life. She was used to the hustle and bustle and glamour of New York City. She took the keys and thanked the cashier before walking outside to catch the shuttle to the rental parking lot. When the shuttle stopped and let her off she walked towards the car, her heels clacking against the hot concrete. She popped the trunk and placed her bags inside. She got inside, started the car and drove off.

After a half hour or so she heard a pop and the car started wobbling. “Oh shit.” She said. She stopped the car, got out and looked at the right rear tire. “What the hell am I going to do now?” she groaned. She took out her cell phone and tried calling her Aunt, but to no avail. She had no idea how to change a tire. Her life revolved around cabs and limos. She leaned against the car, hoping somebody would stop and help her. She looked down the road and groaned as she saw how sparse cars were. She tapped her French manicured nails against the car, looking at her cell, hoping her aunt would get back to her soon.

It had been a somewhat busy morning for Dante Alexander. He had to get up early as there had been a number of things that he needed to do around his ranch. Unfortunately for him, they also happened to be the type of things that couldn’t really wait either. For one, he had to tend to his horses, and then he had to clean up his home, and just about everything around his home. Basically, it was safe to say that he was going to be a very busy person for most of the day. There again, it was the same for him just about every day since he had been living out on his ranch. See, Dante wasn’t born out in the country. Originally, he had been born in the city of Atlanta, but when he had turned ten years old, both of his parents moved out to the country, taking him with them. It took him a while, but Dante was able to adjust to life out in the country. Dante remained with his parents out on their ranch until the age of eighteen. As soon as he had turned eighteen, Dante moved out of home, moving from his parents ranch to a ranch of his own. His parents had brought their ranch in the state of Texas, and Dante chose to do the same thing as he had wanted to stay close to his parents anyway.

Before he started his chores around his ranch, Dante showered to wake himself up just that little bit more. He didn’t remain in the shower for too long, mainly because of how much he knew he had to get done. There was also something telling him that he would have to head into town to pick up some more food for both himself and his horses. He remained in the shower for around fifteen minutes before getting out. After getting out of the shower, Dante dried himself off, and then he got dressed in the clothes he had picked out for himself. The clothes he had picked out for himself consisted of a blue and silver silky short sleeved shirt, and he also put on a pair of three quarter length jean shorts. Once he was dressed, he stood in front of his mirror and wiped off the steam that had gathered. There was a small smile on his face as he looked at his reflection in the mirror. Dante stood at a height of 6’2 and he had icy blue eyes. He had short and wavy black hair that stopped just above his shoulders. Because of how much work he would usually do around his ranch, the 25 year old was quite slim with a muscular build, and his skin was slightly tanned too. As soon as he was done in the bathroom, Dante had opened up the door and stepped out into the hallway.

Making his way downstairs, Dante walked into the kitchen where he got himself something to eat for his breakfast. Because of how much needed doing, he knew he couldn’t sit around forever, so he only had something small for breakfast. As soon as he was done, he washed up everything that he had used, turned on his heel and walked out of the kitchen. Walking into the living room, Dante sat down on the couch and slipped on his black cowboy boots. Getting back to his feet immediately afterwards, he grabbed his car keys off the coffee table just in front of him and headed for the front door. He was sure that he was going to need to get some food for his horses, so that was going to be the first thing he would have to do. There was a smile on his face as he had made it outside. It looked to be a nice day today, which made him smile some more. Tossing the keys in his hand up and down, he walked over to his black and red mustang boss. When he reached his car, he unlocked his car and climbed in. Dante started up the car after closing the door, and then he shifted the car into gear. As soon as he had shifted his car into gear, he drove down the dirt driveway of his ranch, and pulled out onto the main road a few minutes later.

Dante was driving for around twenty minutes when he spotted something just up in the distance. It looked like a car pulled over by the side of the road. ”Hmm, what’s this?” He muttered to himself as he slowed his car down. Dante slowed his car down some more and then he pulled up just behind the car that was parked by the side of the road. As he brought his car to a stop, he saw the girl standing by her car. She was rather attractive too. Dante opened up his door, and then he climbed out of his car. He closed the door, and then he walked over to the woman as she stood by her car. There was a small smile on his face as he approached the woman. ”Having a little car trouble Miss?” He asked in a curious tone, speaking in a rather strong Texan accent. Sure, he may originally have been from Atlanta, but due to the fact he had lived in the country for so long, he had picked up on the Texan accent too. ”You will be lucky to get a signal out here Miss, but where were you headed before you broke down? And have you been stuck here long?”

Madeline looked down the road, sighing as the minutes ticked past. She moved and sat in the driver’s seat, looking at her phone again. “Just my luck.” She said under her breath. She shook her head and sat there, waiting. After another 15 minutes she saw a car driving down the road. She prayed he’d stop. When he did she praised the lord in her head. She stood up and walked towards the back of the car. She watched the male figure exit the car and she was taken aback. He was hot! When he walked over to her and she heard that accent she thought she’d melt. “Yes, my tire’s flat, and I have no idea how to change it.” She said. She backed up slightly and smiled. “City living for you, I suppose.” She brushed bits of brown hair behind her ear and sighed. “I’ve been out here for probably 45 minutes. This road is dead.”

She looked at her phone when he said she’d be lucky to get a signal. “I was able to get one earlier, but my aunt didn’t pick the phone up.” She said flippantly. She crossed her arms and looked around. “There’s not much out here, is there?” she said, a bit incredulously. She was used to life on every corner; there was no quiet ever in New York. Here it was so quiet it was eerie. She shook her head and smiled at the man. “I’m Madeline, of Maddie, if you prefer. And hopefully you know how to change a tire.” She chuckled softly.

There was a smile on Dante’s face as he studied the woman standing by the back of her car. There was no denying the fact that she most definitely was attractive. As soon as she told him that she had a flat tyre, Dante moved around to the side of her car to take a look at the flat tyre on her car. After looking at the flat tyre, he turned the focus of his attention back to her once more. ”Well, that certainly is flat. This really isn’t the best of places to pick up a flat tyre, especially with these roads being so empty.” When she told him how long she had been stuck by the side of the road, he nodded his head in a fairly understanding manner. ”You have been here for 45 minutes already? Well, I guess it’s lucky I passed by when I did. After all, who knows how long you would have been out here otherwise.” He spoke in a rather friendly tone, and then winked at her soon afterwards.

He smiled and nodded his head when she asked him if he knew how to change a tyre. ”It’s nice to meet you Maddie, and it must be your lucky day because I do know how to change a tyre. I will help you to change yours, okay.” With that said, he moved around to the boot of her car, and then he popped the hood. After doing so, he looked inside for her spare tyre. When he found it, he pulled it out of her boot, along with the jack he was going to need to take off the flat tyre. With both items in hand, he moved to the side of her car where she had the flat tyre, and then he set about changing the tyre. As he was changing the tyre, he looked back to Maddie once more. ”You know, you might not believe this Maddie, but I’m not originally from the country. I was actually born in Atlanta, but my parents moved out here when I was ten years old. I’ve been out here ever since.” He smiled before he spoke again. ”What are you doing out here anyway?” He asked in a somewhat curious tone. ”I was headed into town to pick up some food for my horses, so if you were headed that way, you could always follow me as soon as I’ve finished changing your tyre.” He smiled once again as he looked up at her, and it was around ten minutes later that he was finally finished changing her tyre. When he had finished changing her tyre, he picked up her flat tyre and placed it into her boot, along with the jack he had used to change the tyre. He closed the boot and walked back around to the side of the car, standing in front of her once again. ”There you go Maddie. Is that any better?”

Maddie nodded. "You couldn't go 45 minutes without seeing someone where I'm from. Hell you probably couldn't go a minute." she said and laughed lightly. "It's nice to meet you too Dante." she said. "Thank god you can change it." She watched him moved about the car and looked at her watch. She was wondering what her aunt had planned for dinner. She knew they were taking her out, but she had no idea where. When he started talking again she turned her attention to him. "Atlanta, huh? How was that?" she asked. She smiled a bit. "I'm visiting family. My aunt invited me out here to spend a few weeks. Hotel costs are gonna be hell to pay though." she sighed. She watched as the tire was put back on. "Yes it looks fabulous. And sure, I have no idea where I'm going anyway, it'd be nice to have a tour guide." she said and laughed lightly.

Dante smiled a little bit as she told him how he couldn’t really go 45 minutes without seeing someone from where she was from. It was clear that she was from a city, but Dante just didn’t know which city she may have been from. Well, at least he didn’t know yet anyway. He would be sure to ask her at some point though. ”Ah, well that’s what it’s like in the city. That’s probably one of the main differences out here. In the city, you’ve got people on every street corner, but out here in the country…..well, you can see for yourself.” He said as he looked all around them. ”Of course, you will find people in the towns out here, but even these towns aren’t as packed as the cities.” He paused for a moment soon afterwards. ”So, where are you from anyway Maddie?” He asked in that same curious tone as always. He couldn’t help but be curious about her. As soon as he had finished changing her tyre, he turned his attention back to her as she had asked what it had been like to live in Atlanta. ”Well it wasn’t really too bad if I’m honest with you Maddie. From the time I spent there, I did quite like it, but my parents moved out here, and I’ve been out here ever since. I didn’t like it out here at first, but over time, I got used to being out here, and now I couldn’t really see myself being anywhere else.” He smiled as he moved to lean against the side of her car. ”So, you have family all the way out here?” He smiled. ”Does your aunt have a ranch somewhere around here too then?” He rubbed his chin with his thumb and his finger a second or so later as she told him about hotel costs. ”Hmm, well you can follow me into town, and if hotel costs are too much for you, then you are welcome to stay with me on my ranch. I’ve got more than enough room, and you wouldn’t have to worry about costs either.” He thought he would let her think over his offer for the time being. A second or so later, he started to walk back towards his car. He stopped after taking a few steps and then he looked back over his shoulder. ”So, just follow me okay.” He smiled once more and then walked back to his car. Once at his car, he climbed inside, closed the door and started up the engine. Dante shifted his car into gear, and then he waited for Maddie to climb into her car also.

Maddie smiled as he talked. "Yeah, I can see there isn't much life out here." she said and laughed lightly. "I'm from New York. My folks moved out there when I was born, so city life is pretty much all I know." she said. When he began talking about Atlanta she nodded. "You really like it here that much?" she asked curiously. She couldn't see what the appeal was, really. There were no big stores, no busy streets, not much that could be considered night life. It was... boring really. She hoped her Aunt had some plans. "Yeah, my aunt and uncle have a small ranch down that way." she said pointing. "I'm not really sure where. I have to call and get directions when I get into town. When he offered her a place to stay she smiled shyly. "Oh no, I really couldn't impose..." she said. She nodded when he told her to follow him into town and got back in her car, shifting the BMW into gear. She saw him start to drive off and promptly followed.

Dante had laughed a little bit as Maddie had told him that there wasn’t much life out in the country. The funny thing was that Dante had thought the same thing when he had first moved out to the country, but now the lack of life was something he had managed to get used to. Sure, it had taken him a while to get used to, just like everything else had taken him a while to get used to. After he had gotten back into his car, he had waited for Maddie to get back in her car also, and he watched her in his rear-view mirror as he had pulled back out onto the road. Dante waited for her to pull out also, and when she did, he pressed his foot down on the gas pedal and started driving towards town. He was sure to keep his speed down to a moderate level, mainly because he knew how fast his car was capable of going. Not only that, but he didn’t really want to lose her either. The drive into town took him around thirty minutes, and he slowed his car down as he approached the town. He took one more look in his rear-view mirror just as he pulled up in front of the store he needed to go into. After pulling over, Dante shut off the engine of his car and climbed out. He waited for Maddie to pull over also, and when she had done, he walked over to her car. Dante waited for her to get out of her car before he spoke. ”Well this is the town, and there’s a phone just outside that store right there if you still need to call your aunt.” He pointed to the phone box that was right outside of the store that he needed to go inside. After doing so, he turned his attention back to Maddie once more. ”Anyway, I know there isn’t that much life out here, but it’s something you get used to. I didn’t think there was much out here when I first came out here, but I got used to it in the end. It just takes a while to get used to, especially if you’re coming from a big city such as New York. It really isn’t so bad out here. You just need to give it time, that’s all.” He turned on his heel and took a few steps before stopping. Dante looked back over his shoulder at Maddie once more. ”And if you do choose to stay with me, then you won’t be imposing at all.” He smiled before turning back around to face her. ”I need to go in this store over here to get some food for myself, and then I need to pick up some food for my horses too.” With that said, Dante turned on his heel once again, and then he made his way into the store to pick up what he needed.

Maddie followed him until they arrived at the town. She got out of her car and smiled at him. When he pointed to the phone she smiled. "Thank you." she said. She walked with him to the store where the phone was. "Yeah, I'm sure it's not awful, I'm just a little underwhelmed. I thought maybe there'd be a bit much. What do the older teens do for fun?" she asked. She smiled when she said she wouldn't be imposing. "I think that would be nice then. Thank you so much." she said. She watched him leave into the store and picked up the phone, dropping in two quarters and calling her aunt. They talked for a few moments and Maddie told her it would be maybe a half hour until she arrived at her house. She hung up and then walked into the store Dante entered, looking around. Even the grocery store was lifeless. It amazed her how quiet everything was. "I hope I can sleep without the city noises...' she mused. She looked around for Dante, wandering up and down the aisles. A few people gave her odd looks, but she assumed it was because not many people in this town wore Michael Kors and 4 inch heels.

Dante smiled a little bit as he saw Maddie walking over to the phone to get in contact with her aunt. As he had made his way into the store, he was able to understand exactly how she felt. Of course this was mainly due to the fact he had felt the exact same way when he had first moved out to the country. There again, he didn't really know if she was permanently moving out to the country or not. Anyway, Dante continued to make his way around the store, picking up what he needed. As he made his way through the different aisles, he picked up some food and drink for his home, including bread, soda, some fruit and vegetables, cereal and a number of other things. Dante also picked up some food for his horses too. He was almost finished picking up what he needed when he turned into the same aisle Maddie had come to find herself in. He smiled a little bit as he walked up behind her. "Hey Maddie, did you manage to contact your aunt?" He asked in a somewhat curious tone. "Oh, is there anything you want here? Something to eat or drink? If you want anything, just pick it up and toss it in the basket." He said with a small smile on his face. "I don't mind, really I don't. Besides, I'm sure you must be hungry or thirsty after you've been travelling for so long." Dante brushed a few strands of hair behind his ear. "I'm almost done here anyway, but what did your aunt say?" He asked in that same curious tone. "You might not believe this, but there is a number of things to do around here. There's the kareoke that takes place in the saloon each week, and then you've got the rodeo too. There are other things that I'm sure you might find entertaining, even if there isn't as much as you might get in the city. It can still be fun around here. Maybe you could even try a bit of horse riding if you choose to stay with me." He smiled. "Anyway, pick up what you want, and then we will get out of here."

She saw him walk into the aisle and walked towards him. "Hey there." she said. "Yeah, I talked to my aunt. Told her I'd be there in an hour or two." she brushed her hair out of her face. "Are you sure?" she asked when he asked her if she wanted anything. She looked at the aisle they were standing in and walked to the far end, She picked up some flavored sparkling water and put it into the cart. "I try to cut back on soda." she said simply. She walked with him up and down the aisles, putting a few items in the cart. "I really appreciate you letting me stay with you." she said. When he told her about some of the things to do in the town she smiled. "Karaoke, huh?" she asked. "I love karaoke." she chuckled. "I go every Thursday with my friends." she said. She shrugged. "I never rode a horse before, is it dangerous?" she asked curiously.

He nodded his head with a smile as she had asked him if he was sure that she could pick out some things she wanted. Dante continued to walk up and down the aisles with her as she added some things into the cart. As she spoke of going to karaoke with her friends each week, his smile seemed to widen. "Well, there you go then. We've already found you something here that you like doing. I also happen to like the karaoke here, so maybe we could go together sometime? Anyway, you're welcome. I've got the room on my ranch, so having you stay with me really isn't a problem. Besides, the company is always nice." He flashed her another smile before he checked to see if there was anything else that he needed. When he was sure he needed nothing else, he turned his attention back to her once more. "Is there anything else you need here? If there is, then just pick it up and toss it into the cart. Anyway, to answer your question, yes it can be dangerous to ride a horse if you've never done it before. You shouldn't worry too much though, because I'd help you if you wanted to learn to ride a horse."

She walked with him, heels clicking against the hard floor and smiled. "Sure, karaoke together sounds fabulous." She said and nodded. "I really appreciate this. It'll save a bunch in hotel costs." She walked with him to the checkout and smiled. "Well, I guess I can try..." she said. "I don't know how good I'll be at riding a horse though." she said and chuckled. She helped unload the groceries onto the conveyor belt and shifted her weight on her feet. "Thanks for the groceries too." she said.

Dante moved down to the end of the conveyor belt as the items were being scanned. He picked up Nc openeda plastic carrier bag, and then he started to place the items into the bag after they had been scanned. Dante brushed a few strands of hair behind his ear as he looked back to Maddie once again. "I think it could be really fun for us to try karaoke together. Hopefully we should both be able to find a song we both like that we can sing together. Anyway, you don't have to thank me for anything Maddie. I've got more than enough room on my ranch, and you should have more money to spend on other things with what you would be saving in hotel costs. Besides, I'm sure you would be more comfortable on a ranch instead." He smiled and continued to pack the items into bags. "Well, don't worry about it too much. I guess you could say learning to ride a horse is almost like learning to ride a bike......kind of. It's not something you forget once you know how to do it. I will be there to help you anyway." Dante finished packing up all of the items, and after doing so, he pulled out his wallet and handed the cashier the required amount of money. He put his wallet away and picked up the bags. "I'm happy to buy these for you. Anyway, shall we make a move? You can follow me back to my ranch in your car, unless you have something more you need to do here in town."