Sapphic Cowboi (22 page)

“
Who is your father?” Maggie
asked, she knew he was with the circus but she had never
asked.

Ariana pulled back from the
bench they were sharing at the kitchen table in surprise “you don’t
know? You
really
don’t know?”

Maggie shook head feeling like a dunce,
should she have known?

“
Carlton Bigelow is my
father” she said quietly watching for Maggie’s reaction.

Maggie’s eyes went wide in surprise.
“Carlton?” she asked incredulously.

Ariana nodded “yeah, he got one of the
showgirls pregnant, my grandfather Carl made him marry her and she
died giving birth to me. The circus people have always been my
family but once I was old enough he sent me off to boarding school
to learn to be a lady. I got to visit every summer and travel with
the show thanks to Grandpa Carl and Uncle Cecil, Carlton was too
busy chasing his next victim” she told her without any rancor or
guilt. It was what it was and she had accepted it long ago. “I
actually had a pretty good childhood. The circus was fun and the
school great until I got too old and Pop wouldn’t send me on to
college. I got finishing school but that was a waste” she grinned
repentantly “and Grandpa Carl welcomed me back and I’ve been
traveling with them ever since.”

Maggie was amazed, she had never heard this
side of Ariana despite all the months of knowing her and talking to
her. She had never known she was one of the Bigelows. “I didn’t
even know your last name” she said wonderingly.

Ariana shrugged “I assumed you knew or
someone told you.”

“
I feel terrible; I should
have asked you or someone…”

“
Don’t worry about it,
you’re not a gossip, it’s one of your best qualities”

Maggie had progressed far enough that she now
read aloud books that Ariana chose, mostly cookbooks because she
loved cooking and trying out new recipes. It was an amusing past
time and some of her creations turned out horrendously. Because
Maggie had never read the things she knew by rote were a totally
different combination of ingredients, a little bit of this, a
smidgeon of that, when she had time from her duties training and
working with the horses.

“
I want a picture of us in
our Spanish costumes” Ariana told her “it will be great for
publicity” she enthused.

“
I think there is a
photographer in town, maybe he will be willing” Maggie responded
musingly.

“
Uncle Carl will be
thrilled” Ariana added. She had been so proud when Maggie read the
contract aloud to her, sounding out the words she didn’t know and
learning them with her lighting swift mind. Once learned they
couldn’t be unlearned and in the months since she had started her
progress had been amazing perhaps because she wanted so much,
perhaps because she was loved so much by the one teaching
her.

They slept now full time together in the
bedroom that had been her parents and her grandparents before them.
Waking up in each other’s arms was delightful for them both, making
love before going to sleep or after waking up was an experience
neither had had. Ariana told of her past experiences and they
realized the shock she had experience by the two bums was probably
because as a teenager some of the elements that hung around the
circus had accosted her and while she hadn’t been raped it had been
a near thing, it was probably why she had shut down and remembered
nothing of that night but since it had led to them discovering each
other neither regretted it.

“
I’m going to miss this”
Maggie told her one morning as they neared the time for departure,
she was leaving earlier this year and with Ariana’s help they would
start in Georgia this year as the circus traveled up the East Coast
and then across the Northern states like they had last
year.

“
What, miss what? Being
home?” Ariana asked as she caressed along Maggie’s naked
hip.

“
No, sleeping together,
being together all alone like this” she responded as she enjoyed
the feel of Ariana touching her.

“
What, we won’t have it
again?” Ariana asked amused as she felt the tightening of not only
her own nipples but Maggie’s against her chest and began to kiss
along her neck enjoying the arousal of her lover who had learned so
rapidly.

Maggie delicately ran her short nails up
Ariana’s back who arched into her in surrender of the feeling it
gave her. “Yes we will have it but it won’t be the same, we will
have to be more discrete” she murmured as she began to kiss
Ariana’s neck arousing her further.

“
Then we will have to be a
little quieter” Ariana grinned knowing how loud they could both get
in their moans and groans over the feelings the other
caused.

Maggie chuckled “I wasn’t the one that had
the dogs barking” she teased.

“
That was because you caught
me by surprise” she protested.

“
Yes but
what
a surprise” she
laughed.

Their love play was quick, intense, and
mutually satisfying as they had learned each other over the past
few months. There was a life time of learning and neither wanted it
to end but they had agreed to meet the circus in Georgia and would
be leaving shortly. Peter had agreed to watch over the remaining
animals. They were only taking ten this year since two of the mares
that had gone last year were in foal and Maggie didn’t want to
jeopardize them and she hadn’t had enough time to train older foals
for the circus, she didn’t want to take chances.

“
Maybe we should get
married” Ariana teased her later, “then we could sleep together
every night.”

“
Yeah, that will go over
well” Maggie laughed at the thought. Later though as she thought
about it she realized she would never have a wedding and that
saddened her. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with Ariana;
she knew that beyond a shadow of doubt. She knew Ariana never
planned to leave her, but being married, at least having the
ceremony would solidify that for them. Even if it had no legal
status in the State of Alabama or anywhere else for that matter it
would mean something
to
them
.

“
Okay, everything is taken
care of” Peter waved them off, he had all the mares with foals over
at his farm, he had agreed to harvest her crops on shares, and he
had an agreement for stud services for his own mares that more than
paid for his work over here. He was driving the Model T up to
Jackson for them as he headed out ahead of the herd.

The ten horses she was
leaving with were excited, they knew where they were headed or they
thought they did as the others looked on longingly to their
departing friends. Their tails held high and with them prancing
both women had their hands full trying to keep them under control.
It was an impressive sight the ten horses thundering through town,
people waving, those that were awake and rose to see them off,
Ariana had made a good impression on the people who had known
Maggie her whole life and they approved of her friend from the
circus. While some suspected at their relationship most were
honest, God-fearing folk, and would never entertain the thought of
their true standing to each other. They were just two pretty women
who worked with horses and they were pleased for Maggie,
their
Maggie having a
good friend to help her train them. The thought of a sexual
relationship between them never entered most of their
minds.

The two women both had guns on their belts
this time, Maggie had insisted on teaching Ariana to shoot. It had
built a confidence she needed. Maggie was so grateful for Ariana
teaching her to read and write she felt it was the least she could
do. Their easy intimacy and close friendship added something to
their act they weren’t aware of as yet but others would see, others
would comment, most, especially those in the circus community would
understand. Others would assume it was part of their ‘act’ and not
realize it was because they trusted each other completely and
intimately. Their honeymoon months together meant they had an
understanding that few had, even man and wife, they trusted each
other implicitly and totally.

“
Think we can make it in one
day?” Ariana teased, it was a fine spring day and the rainy cold
days of winter were long past. They were dressed nearly identically
with dungarees and button down shirts, at least these were of
different colors. It was simpler to work with the horses in such
outfits. Their bags were packed and tucked behind their saddles.
Extra gear was on Ashes whose broad back held vet supplies and
things they had made for their act. Ariana had found a capacity for
drawings and drawn out things she wanted to talk to the
seamstresses about and things she had convinced Maggie to add to
the act, things that required costumes and seemingly death defying
stunts that they had worked on with the horses. Maggie and Ariana
both had the bruises to prove they had been working and worked hard
with the horses. As long as they kept it ‘play’ the horses were
willing, laughter, delight, and treats helped keep it light
hearted.

“
I’ll race you” Maggie
offered and they were soon off as long as the horses wanted to
gallop or trot. They passed the log cabin without even looking at
it.

Due to the early start, the galloping horses,
the fine day, and taking the main road instead of the back roads
they made it to Jackson in one day instead of two. The horses were
quickly loaded in a car reserved for them and the Model T tied down
on an attached flat car. Maggie handed the reins of her
Quarterhorse to Peter and said “take care of them for me” with a
smile for her friend.

“
You know he loves you don’t
you” Ariana asked as they lay on the baled hay together heading
east towards Georgia.

“
Yeah, I know and I’m sorry
there will never be anything there” she said sadly in
guilt.

“
You could marry him you
know, legally” Ariana was feeling a little low.

“
Yes I could legally but you
hold my heart and that would be dishonest.”

Ariana loved the answer “I love you too you
know” and reached down to kiss her as a horse lay down with large
‘woof’ behind them in the box car.

Their honeymoon together continued until they
stopped in Atlanta and had to take the horses off the train and the
Model T. They got directions to the fairgrounds where the circus
was to meet them. They found they were there ahead of them so they
had their choice of the paddocks and since they had no tent they
put their things under an overhang where Feathers could guard them
and the horses had access to them. The horses were now protective
of Ariana as well and Maggie was pleased to see that, she wasn’t
even aware of it but they loved her too now.

The circus was two days behind them and they
had fun exploring the empty buildings, only the fact that Ariana
was a Bigelow had allowed them onto the fairgrounds ahead of the
circus. They would have had to of gone to a hotel otherwise and on
their limited funds that wasn’t a good idea, they wouldn’t have
been near the horses and they were just too valuable to be left
alone.

“
Are you
sure
you are with the circus?” the
property manager asked for perhaps the fourth time in two
days.

Maggie finally showed him one of the papers
pasted to posts all over town that the advance people had plastered
to insure a good turnout. One of them had Maggie and Ariana’s
picture on it and this finally got his suspicions laid to rest.

It was a relief to see their old friends and
family start to come en masse onto the grounds, the tents began to
rise in record time, Maggie and Ariana were everywhere helping
where they could and greeting everyone they hadn’t seen in months.
A couple of the friends when they saw the two of them together
nudged each other and nodded. A same sex couple in their midst
wasn’t anything new.

“
Well you learn anything on
that farm of hers?” Carlton asked snidely in greeting.

Ariana looked at him as she
always did, with disdain. He had been a poor excuse for a father
and she had always secretly hoped she would find out that Uncle
Cecil was her real father but she knew he had loved a woman and she
had died in a flu epidemic and he hadn’t looked or chased anyone
since. Perhaps she should shock him and answer “yes, I learned that
Maggie loves me and she is good in bed” and wondered if this would
intrigue or disgust him. She chose to ignore him instead and went
to greet Grandpa Carl and Uncle Cecil who
were
glad to see her.

Carlton looked at her and shook his head, he
couldn’t believe a beautiful girl such as her was his daughter but
the gal he had knocked up hadn’t been with anyone else so he
guessed he had to believe, besides she looked just like his mother
had and she had been a beautiful woman. Ariana had more poise, more
brilliance, and had the delicate womanly ways that the school had
instilled in her, none of which his mother had had. She had been
blunt, coarse, but beautiful, she would have loved to raise his
daughter if she hadn’t died. He hadn’t known what to do with the
baby after its mother had died and turned her over gratefully to
others more responsible than himself and never looked back,
avoiding her for the most part except when Carl insisted.

That Maggie girl was a bad
influence he felt, no womanly ways although he had seen her on that
ranch and seen how good she looked in a dress. He would have
tumbled
that
. She
never even looked at him. That was okay, there were plenty who were
willing. He had never given Martha another thought as he left her
in Los Angeles without any money and no clothes either as he left
her in a hotel room after a night of debauchery which had kept him
enthralled for so long. He wondered if the man he had paid two days
later to return a bag of her stuff had done so or how she had
gotten herself of the predicament he had left her in, she probably
whored her way out as was her nature.