Date: Sun, 20 Jul 2003 16:39:14 EDT
From: MissColly@aol.com
Subject: Riding for the Brand

Riding for the Brand
Colleen Thomas
Misscolly@aol.com


Maria Gonzalez sat on the hard wooden bench between her two
friends and stared fixedly at the scoreboard. Her time of
16.082 seconds was still holding third place behind Marsha
and Kim. Only one racer had yet to ride and she was about to
make her run. Kim and Marsha almost always placed top three,
but Maria was new to barrel racing and had not placed better
than fifth this season. A top three finish here in Austin,
the biggest event of the season, would assure her of an
invitation to ride again next season, even though she
wouldn't have the points otherwise. She was so nervous that
her mouth was dry and her heartbeat was pounding in her
temples. Her long fingers unconsciously stroked the beads of
her rosary.

The final rider thundered down the chute and as she crossed
the line the clock began running. Maria didn't watch the
girl; her eyes were glued to the clock. The rider chose to
go left first, which meant she would have two right turns
before the long straight away to the finish. She cut the
last barrel very tightly and it leaned over at a dangerous
angle. The crowd watched as the barrel slowly tumbled to its
side. In racing you could touch the barrels, but if you
knocked one over there was a five second penalty. With that
barrel falling Maria was assured of holding third and she,
Kim and Marsha all jumped up and down and hugged. It was the
first one, two, three finish for Valdez Junior Collage that
season.

Maria had been born and raised in Valdez. Her father worked
as security advisor for one of the big defense contractors
and her mother ran a small clothing shop. The two had met in
Mexico City where her father had been an embassy guard. Her
mother made a very comfortable living with her shop, which
catered to the large immigrant population in Valdez. She
sold dresses, skirts and tops in traditional patterns and
colors and all of her cloth was imported from Mexico. She
also did a small but lucrative business with some of the
richest Anglo families in town, to whom showing up in
"authentic" Mexican garb was the new Chic. They had two
children, the older a boy named Curtis who took after his
father and the younger was Maria, who looked like a carbon
copy of her mother.

Maria had earned a scholarship to Valdez Junior College for
her scholastic achievement. Her real desire was to go to A &
M and become a vet, but it was expensive and two years free
at Valdez while living at home would make it much easier for
her folks to afford her final two years at A & M. Maria
wasn't sure she was ready for living so far from her family
and friends anyway, so the JuCo seemed the best option. The
fact that Kim was going to Valdez too had made the decision
easy.

Kim Hall had been her best friend since third grade. Kim was
tall and had movie star good looks, she was also very
charismatic and Miss Popular both in high school and later
at college. She was the first freshman to be Captain of the
riding team, based on her scores from high school. It was
only though her intercession that Maria had made the
college's barrel racing team at all, most of her training
had been in dressage. Placing today meant so much to Maria,
because it validated her friend's faith in her and let Maria
feel like she had proven Kim right when the tall blonde had
gone out on a limb for her with the team's faculty advisor
last summer to get Maria on the team.

Laughing and joking the three girls waited for the bull
riding competition to begin. The crowd grew restive as the
excitement built; bull riding was the most dangerous sport
at the rodeo and thus the most popular. Kim's boyfriend Bo,
and Maria's boyfriend Carlos, rode bulls, as well as Maria's
older brother Curtis and most of their male friends. Curtis
was tall and lean, with heavily muscled arms, blonde hair,
blue eyes and a devil may care "bad" boy image that made him
a hit with all the girls. He had even dated Marsha for a
while, but with Curt girlfriends only came in flavor of the
week.

Maria was short and slight with the olive complexion, brown
eyes and thick black hair of her mother. Her figure was lush
with a heavy "tear drop" ass, nice legs and large full
breasts. No one would ever guess she was Curt's sister and
usually assumed they were a couple when they were together.
The two were extremely close and shared many secrets of each
other's private lives. His decision to keep riding after
high school and not go to college hadn't sat well with their
parents and for a few months she was his only contact with
the family.

Maria held her breath as the competition began; Curt had
drawn a cantankerous old bull named Diablo. Maria was
worried about Curt because his ribs had barely healed from
being gored up in Abilene a month earlier. The doctor had
told him his season was done, but now she was watching him
settle in on Diablo. Maria just didn't understand the
machismo driven need that drove her brother and boyfriend to
compete in such a dangerous sport. All she could do now was
watch and pray.

The gate swung open and old Diablo came out bucking. The
fans cheered as the big bull spun around before going on
high, but Maria was silent, her eyes were glued to Curt's
face and the grimace of pain. When the buzzer sounded, he
came off smoothly and was out of the ring before Diablo
could get zeroed in on him. The bull had done pretty well,
but the score of 65 was a dissapointment. Bo and Carlos both
failed to do any better, each being thrown early in the
ride. Surprisingly, Curt's 65 held up throughout the
competition. With one rider left it looked like he might
win, despite his seemingly poor score. By then Bo, Carlos
and Curtis had joined the girls in the stands with some of
their friends and girlfriends.

"Up next, the state's only girl bull rider, Connie Robinson,
riding Hellbent," the Pa announcer called.

"Girl bull rider?" Maria asked incredulously.

"Yeah, that he-bitch from hell won her court case last
year," Curtis said.

"Bull riding, perfect sport for a bull dyke," Bo said and
the guys burst out laughing.

"Si, she is muy loco," Carlos added.

Maria was barely listening as the string of insults
continued. Her eyes were focused on the chute and the lanky
cowgirl settling in on a mean looking black bull. She wore a
red shirt and red chaps with silver fringe that caught the
light. Apparently someone other than the boys thought she
was gay, or it was a strange coincidence because she had the
number sixty-nine today. She finished cinching up and put
one hand on the rail as Hellbent stirred, once she steadied
herself she put her free hand up and nodded.

When the gate swung open Hellbent took a single prancing hop
and then bucked. Both his font and rear legs seemed to be
off the ground as he exploded like a coiled spring, trying
to dislodge the rider. His feet barely hit the ground before
he twirled violently sideways and kicked again. The bull's
feet never seemed to be on the ground at the same time and
there was a point where Maria would have sworn by the Virgin
that his nose and tail were pointed in the same direction,
he was twirling so violently. Through it all the rider kept
her hand and feet free. Maria was amazed at the way she
seemed to absorb all of the motion with her hips. At no
point in the ride did she ever seem to be off balance, and
even the jerking motions of her arm and shoulders, and the
losing of her hat seemed contrived, more for effect and
points than out of actual necessity.

Eight seconds. It seemed such a short amount of time, but to
Maria it seemed hours. The entire ride played across her
mind in slow motion. She was still staring when the buzzer
sounded, the girl dismounted and the world returned to
normal speed. The crowd was cheering as the clowns got
Hellbent back into the chute. The girl retrieved her hat and
then looked into the crowd and raised her hands in triumph.
In that instant she seemed to be staring into Maria's eyes.
If the eight second ride seemed to last hours, that instant
of a glance seemed to last an eternity. Maria noticed how
tall the girl was, her long clean-cut arms, the heavy black
glove she wore and even the red bandanna tied around her
boot. Every detail of her face and body were impressed on
the small girl's mind, as if she had been staring at the
girl for hours. She had high cheekbones, an aquiline nose
and strong chin, thin lips and the most haunting gray eyes.

"Fuck," Curt said. The sudden curse seemed to break the
spell and the world returned to normal time. When the score
of 83 came up the crowd went wild, but the girl just tipped
her hat and walked away. Maria's heart was beating wildly
and she felt flushed. Her clothes seemed to be too tight and
her breathing was heavy, like she had just ridden herself.

Maria watched the girl as she walked away, she was tall and
lanky, but there was something about her that kept the
little Hispanic girl's eyes on her. Once she was away Maria
returned her attention to her friends, but her mind kept
returning to the strange cowgirl. The girls decided to go
get some food and use the restrooms while the guys went off
to get ready for the bronc busting competition. As they
walked along the concourse Maria noticed the girl bull rider
walking out of the bathroom. Up close she was even more
impressive. She was tall, about five ten or eleven Maria
guessed, and lanky, with a lithe build and rugged face. Her
hips were slim, as was her waist and her breasts were small.

"Hi, Congratulations," Maria said impulsively. The girl's
gray eyes turned to her and Maria felt a little thrill pass
through her body. It seemed to emanate from the pit of her
stomach and suffused her whole body.

"Fuck off spic," the girl drawled before walking away. Maria
felt as if she had been slapped. She knew there was a lot of
prejudice out there, she had received more than her share of
it growing up, but this was totally unexpected. She was hurt
deeply and had to fight back tears.

"What a rude bitch," Marsha said while staring at the
cowgirl's back.

"What brought that on I wonder?" Kim said as she put an arm
protectively around Maria's shoulder.

"I don't know, I was only trying to be nice,"

"Don't worry about it," Marsha said as they walked away.
Maria tried, but for some reason the words had cut her a lot
more deeply than they should have. The small thrill that had
passed through her when the girl's eyes made contact with
hers was perhaps even more disturbing than the words had
been.

----------

During the bronc busting competition Maria was distracted.
She told herself she was still smarting from the girl's
words, but it was more than that. The arena seemed
unbearably hot and stuffy and she felt a rising excitement
that was almost painful. She nearly died of embarrassment
when she noticed her nipples were hard and clearly visible
through her bra and blouse. Excusing herself she left the
arena and walked out into the gravel parking lot. The night
air was still and hot, but it seemed better than the air
inside the arena and the stars were beautiful.

"Hey, you, girl," a voice called. Maria turned to see the
tall cowgirl approaching her. Connie had changed out of her
riding garb and was now wearing a sharp red top and black
jeans that seemed to be painted on. Maria turned and started
to walk away quickly, but the girl over took her and put a
hand on her shoulder.

"Wait a minute, I want to talk to you," she said as Maria
spun to face her. The girl seemed ill at ease and pushed her
hat back up on her head.

"Look, I'm sorry for calling you a spic earlier," she said.

"It's too late to apologize," Maria said and started to turn
away.

"God damnit girl, let me finish," the cowgirl nearly
shouted.

"Maria, my name is Maria, not girl," Maria said angrily. Her
brown eyes locked with the girl's gray ones. In those eyes
she saw embarrassment, regret and a lot of pride that the
girl was trying hard to swallow.

"Okay, Maria. Look, I am not real popular with the guys who
ride, they all know I'm gay and last weekend they got a
couple of their girlfriends to come on to me. It was a real
big joke, real funny, everyone had a good laugh at me.
Anyway, I thought you were doing the same thing and I
snapped. You don't have to accept my apology, hell I
probably won't ever see you again, but there it is," she
blurted out. Before Maria could respond the girl spun on her
heels and stalked off. Maria watched her go, not even
noticing that her eyes stayed glued to the girl's shapely
ass in those tight jeans.

The whole of the long ride back to Valdez those measuring
gray eyes filled her thoughts. She kept seeing the cowgirl
whenever she closed her eyes and found herself increasingly
agitated. When she got home she hurried to her room,
stopping only to peck her mother on the cheek, she always
waited up for them with a candle burning. Once in her room
she took a long hot shower and crawled into bed. She just
couldn't get Connie Robinson out of her mind. She tossed and
turned and suddenly was able to put a name to the restless
energy she had been feeling. She was horny, hornier than she
had ever been. Her slim hand slid down her flat tummy and
into her thin cotton panties and she began to rub herself.
She moaned quietly as the most powerful orgasm she had ever
experienced rocked her small body. In her mind she saw only
those haunting gray eyes.

--------

The next week passed slowly for Maria. She spent most of her
time in classes and her free time working out with Blue. He
was a great cutting horse and Maria's slight frame made her
a natural for the sport of barrel racing, but she had a lot
to learn and her cuts were nowhere near as precise as Kim's,
who often brushed the barrels. Even when riding, she thought
of the girl with the gray eyes and long legs. Twice she woke
from incredibly erotic dreams that she couldn't remember
except that her lover had haunting gray eyes that seemed to
look right through her. It was disconcerting, but also kind
of nice, in a strange way.

The long ride to the state fair at Waco was ahead of her,
but she made sure Blue was taken care of before returning to
her home to pack her gear. Curtis was there already, having
a quickie with his current girl judging by the sounds coming
from his room. Maria didn't particularly like Shelly, but
she tolerated her, knowing that Curtis never stayed with the
same girl long.

"Ready sis?" Curtis called from his bedroom a short time
later.

"Yeah, lets get going," Maria called as she shouldered her
overnight bag. The two of them were going in Curt's truck.
Maria had turned down a ride with Carlos, Marsha, Kim and Bo
in Carlos's van. She was in a very contemplative mood and
felt like the cab of the pickup would be more condusive to
thinking. She also didn't want Curt making the long drive
alone, he was still not one hundred percent healed. They
loaded Blue up in the old trailer Mr. Johnson had given her
when he moved his family to Houston for a better job. Once
they were on the highway Curtis tuned in the New Country
station and for a long while they rode in silence.

"How's it going?" he asked finally.

"Fine," Maria replied automatically.

"Ya sure?"

"Yes, why? What's up?"

"You have just been real distracted lately. How are things
with Carlos?"

"Honestly I don't know, I haven't seen much of him this
week," Maria said thoughtfully. That was suddenly strange
because she realized she had been increasingly horny for
most of the week, but had never even thought of calling her
boyfriend. What's wrong with me? she thought.

"Yeah, well...That's kinda why I wanted you to ride up with
me,"

"What's going on?" Maria asked suddenly suspicious.

"Look sis, you shouldn't have to hear this from me, but no
one else seems like they are going to tell you and you don't
seem to be too concerned anyway, but Carlos is sleeping with
Marsha,"

"No way!"

"It's true sis, I saw them out at Cotton Eyed Joe's last
Tuesday and confronted Carlos, he admitted they were
sleeping together,"

"And you didn't kill him?" Maria said.

"Aww, come on sis, he's my best friend," Curt said
defensively. Maria smiled and leaned over to kiss her bother
on the cheek.

"It's not a big deal," she said as she settled back into the
corner of the seat and door.

"Thank God, I had the feeling it wasn't but, if you had been
pissed I would have had to whip his ass," Curt said with a
sound of relief in his voice. Maria smiled and shook her
head thinking brothers were such strange creatures. When
they were young he tormented her mercilessly, from pulling
her ponytail on the bus to flying one of her training bras
from the flagpole at elementary school. Now he defended her
honor even when she didn't feel it was threatened and she
had no doubt he would have fought Carlos if he thought it
was needed. She could never tell what he was thinking or
what he would find necessary, but she was glad he had asked
before acting this time.

Maria and Carlos had been dating for over a year, but she
had been thinking of how to end it for the last three days.
He was full of the same bravado that motivated the other
boys and she knew it hurt him that she didn't want sex with
him more often. She hadn't really ever enjoyed it, but had
done it with him a few times. Their relationship had become
more like that of good friends than lovers and she knew it
stung his pride. She knew she should feel betrayed or
something, but all she really felt was an overwhelming sense
of relief. She had started dating him because all of the
rest of her friends had boyfriends and it seemed the thing
to do, in actuality she had never really had much interest
in guys. Maria wasn't sure what had been wrong with the
relationship, but she promised herself her next one would be
real, meaningful, and not just for show.

She dozed most of the trip, not really realizing until then
that she had been loosing sleep over her relationship with
Carlos. She was a sweet girl and the thought of hurting
Carlos had kept her from trying to end it. She just couldn't
bring herself to dump him, but if he was seeing Marsha it
meant she could end it without hurting him. Even in her
deepest dreams she had not consciously admitted to herself
the reason for her sudden desire to end the relationship.

-----

Maria again sat with Kim and Marsha, but this time several
other girls from school were with them. The barrel-racing
event was on the schedule for tomorrow so they were just
here to watch Bo in the roping contest and the other boys
riding the bulls. Bo went early and after his turn Kim went
down to talk to him. The other girls went to see who was
riding first, which left Maria and Marsha alone. Maria felt
like she needed to say something, but wasn't sure how to say
it.

"Marsha, I now about you and Carlos," Maria said. If she had
expected Marsha to look shocked or even upset she was
disappointed, the dark haired girl just stared at her
coldly.

"It's okay, really, I wish you both the best," Maria said.

"Really?" Marsha asked with an unreadable expression.

"Really, I hope it works out," Maria said earnestly. Before
more could be said Kim returned and as if by mutual ascent
they dropped the subject. After the roping contest came the
bull riding. Maria excused herself and made her way back to
where the contestants were waiting. She wanted to find
Carlos and tell him that it over. She didn't want him
worrying about it while riding.

She turned a corner and came face to face with Connie. The
cowgirl smiled instantly and Maria colored when those
intriguing gray eyes roamed appraisingly up and down her
body. Connie wore her ropers and tight jeans with a faded
flannel shirt, her red chaps and had her heavy glove tucked
into her belt. She wore the number thirty-four today and her
black hat partially shaded her face. It didn't matter, those
fascinating eyes were plainly visible and Maria wouldn't
have noticed if the girl was missing all her teeth.

"If I didn't know better I would think you were following
me," Connie said.

"No, I was looking for someone else," Maria said quickly.
She was still not sure how angry to be or even if she should
be. What she was sure of was that this girl had some hold on
her and it was disconcerting to be so close to her.

"Oh, looking for your man? He's over by the trailers," she
said indicating the line of trailers where the riders
dressed with a nod of her head.

"How do you know who I am seeing?"

"I asked around," the cowgirl said with a wry grin.

"Why?"

"You're pretty cute, I decided to find out more about you. I
saw you staring at me after my ride and wondered why you
said hi to me,"

"I was impressed with your riding," Maria said quietly, "I
just wanted to ask how you got so good at it,"

"Oh, well that's easy. It's all in your hips and I have a
lot of experience," she said arching an eyebrow.

"Experience?" Maria asked, she was almost in a trance,
unable to tear her eyes away from those piercing gray ones.

"Yeah, experience," Connie said with a smirk. When Maria
just blinked the lanky cowgirl stepped behind her and in a
smooth, single motion caught her hips and pulled them
tightly back against her pelvis. A few stabs of her hips
against the smaller girl's soft ass made it clear to Maria
what she meant. Maria blushed scarlet and tried to move away
from her but the cowgirl held her hips tightly. The smaller
girl nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard Connie's
voice close to her ear.

"Now, you best get along and find that little boy of yours,
you're too cute a little filly to be running around free and
I am tempted to shake out a loop and slap my brand on your
cute ass," she whispered. Her hands had released Maria's
hips, but Maria was too stunned to move.

"Or maybe that's what you really want?  Would you like me to
show you how I got so good? Or maybe you want to practice
your riding?" she whispered and then licked along Maria's
earlobe.

That caress sent a stab of excitement through her that was
far more intense than anything she had ever experienced with
Carlos, but when she spun around to confront the lanky bull
rider all she saw was the girl's back as she walked away.
Try as she might Maria had a hard time not staring at the
girl's ass. The sound of several pairs of boots helped her
break the trance she seemed to be in. Curt, Carlos and two
or three of their friends were approaching.

"You all right sis?" Curt asked.

"Yes, I'm fine,"

"If that bull dyke was getting handsy, I'll personally kick
the shit out of her," he declared.

"I too will have words with her," Carlos said.

"No, it's all right. I just came to wish you guys good
luck,"

"Someone is going to have to do something about that bitch,"
Donnie said. He was one of Curt's best friends, but Maria
had never cared for him.

"Yeah, she was hitting on my girl last week," another
volunteered. While they discussed what a bitch she was,
Maria took Carlos aside. She was kind of upset at the boy's
words, they were obviously very threatened by Connie. Maria
suspected it had nothing to do with her sexual orientation;
they just resented a woman in their sport.

"Carlos, I know about you and Marsha. I just came to say I
wish you both the best and I hope we can stay friends,"

"Of course Maria, you will always be my friend," he said
with a smile. Maria returned it.

"I am sorry I did not tell you sooner, but I did not want to
hurt you," he said. Maria could tell he was being sincere;
of all the boys she had dated the proud young man had always
treated her with kindness. He had been her first and she
knew she would always have a soft spot in her heart for him.

She hugged him and wished him luck, then made her way back
to the stands. Kim had returned and they all chatted about
guys and the upcoming competition until the announcer called
out the first rider. They all cheered for Carlos and he had
an excellent ride on a powerful bull called Danger Wheel.
Curtis did the best he could with the bull called Streaker,
but the animal didn't put up much of a fight and it hurt his
score. Bo drew a vicious animal called Stomp, but wasn't
able to stay in the saddle and looked rather disgusted with
himself as he headed back to the trailers. Now that all the
boys had ridden Marsha suggested they all go back to the
dressing rooms to meet them so they could get to the fair
before the crowds let out.

"Up next, Connie Robinson riding Columbo," the pa announced.
Maria immediately turned her attention to the ring.

"Coming Maria?" Kim asked.

"No, I'll catch up," she replied. Kim gave her a very
quizzical look. She then turned to Marsha and the rest of
the girlfriends.

"Y'all go ahead, we'll catch up," she said and sat back down
next to Maria. Maria crossed her fingers when the gate flew
open and Columbo came out. He was a real high kicker and
Connie rode him as easily as she had handled the last bull
Maria saw her ride. Somehow Maria's eyes stayed glued to the
girl's hips, watching as her body undulated, matching, even
anticipating each of the bull's moves. Even when he suddenly
reversed the direction of his spin Connie didn't loose her
balance. Experience. The word echoed through Maria's mind,
causing her to blush hotly.

"Sexy ain't she?" Kim said suddenly. Maria turned to her,
but her friend's face held no mockery, only a smile and her
blue eyes sparkled.

"What do you mean?" Maria asked.

"You can't blow me off like that, I've been watching you and
you are hung up on her, aren't you?"

"No!"

"Oh, come on Maria, you can tell me, anyone can see you have
a major crush on that girl," Kim said.

"I...I don't know," Maria said at last. Was it a crush?
Examining her behavior over the last few days Maria admitted
to herself it felt like one.

"Don't worry about it, I have kinda suspected for the last
few months you might be gay," Kim said matter-of-factly.
Maria just stared at her friend; this day was becoming more
and more surreal by the moment.

"Why?"

"Just a feeling. Look Ria, its no biggie. I'm bi and so is
Bo, we have both wondered about you. You have been giving
off the right vibes for a while and when I heard you took
Carlos and Marsha hooking up so well I had to wonder if
maybe you weren't more relieved than upset?"

"You knew about them?!!"

"Honey, everyone in Texas could see it. You just didn't seem
to care so no one said anything," Kim said in a placating
voice. Maria sighed heavily and looked back to the ring to
see Connie walking off. Her eyes went to the board to show
the girl rider had again taken first. Despite herself she
was elated, even though it meant Carlos would have to settle
for third.

"You do have a crush on her don't you?" Kim said taking
Maria's hands.

"Oh Kim, she's just...I don't know...I have been dreaming about
her every night since Austin,"

"Yeah, you've got it bad," the blonde said laughing.

"But, I don't know what to do, or even if I should do
anything," Maria said.

"Just be yourself, see what happens. If you think about it
this isn't the first girl you have had a crush on. Remember
Miss Martinez back in ninth grade?  We were just too young
back then to know what it meant,"

Rosa Martinez had been their ninth grade music teacher. She
was beautiful, sweet and had the loveliest voice. All the
young guys had been crazy about her, but so had Maria and
Kim. Maria was lost in memories of staying after class to
help put away the books and stands. She and Kim had both
gone out of their way to spend as much time around the young
woman as they could.

"Come on, let's catch up with everyone," Kim said, shaking
Maria from her memories. Maria turned back to the ring, but
Connie was gone. Kim took her shoulder and gently turned her
until they were face to face.

"Don't worry about it, it will all work out,"

"How do you know?"

"I have my ways," she said mysteriously.

-------

While the guys were getting cleaned up the girls all sat
around talking about the fair and what rides they wanted to
try. Kim disappeared, but Maria was actually thankful. She
was ashamed that she felt uncomfortable around her best
friend, but the subject of the girl bull rider was deeply
troubling to her. Kim showed up with a coke and gave Maria a
wink. Maria knew her wild friend well, but wasn't sure what
that wink meant.

Once the guys were all cleaned up and dressed for the midway
the whole group started off towards the entrance to the
fairgrounds. Kim lagged back a little and made sure Maria
was near the end of the line with her.

"Wait up a minute," Kim said as she knelt and removed her
boot.

"Y'all coming?" Bo called.

"We'll catch up!" Kim hollered back.

"What is it Kim?" Maria asked. The blonde just smiled and
put her boot back on then watched as their group of friends
disappeared around the corner of the building. Maria was
staring at her friend like she had lost her mind when a
lasso settled over Maria's shoulders. Before the startled
girl could react it tightened, pulling her arms to her
sides. Her eyes shot to Kim's face to see her friend smiling
broadly.

"Have fun," she whispered as she turned and scampered off to
catch up with the others. The rope was taut now and Maria
felt herself pulled back towards the shadows. She turned to
find Connie pulling the rope to her hand over hand. The
lanky cowgirl wore a blue shirt with 2 rows of buttons, one
was done up to her shoulder, but the flap lay over showing
white. Impossibly tight black jeans, black boots, Stetson
and a string tie completed her outfit.

"What the hell?" Maria said. She was confused and felt a
deep nervousness, but also a powerful excitement. Connie
drew the rope in until Maria was standing close to her.

"I told you, if I found a cute filly like you running
maverick I was going to slap my brand on her," Connie said
with a big grin. It suddenly became clear to her that Kim
had ratted her out. Instead of being angry she found herself
loving her wild friend even more.

Maria tried to speak, but Connie released the lariat and
wrapped her arms around the small Hispanic girl, her head
dipped and she pressed her lips to Maria's. When her tongue
played along Maria's lower lip, they involuntarily parted.
Connie's tongue slipped between them and she began to gently
french kiss Maria. The smaller girl was still apprehensive,
but it felt so natural, so right. She found herself kissing
back with more passion than she had shown any of her
boyfriends.

When the kiss broke Maria felt flushed and hot. She shook
her hands free of the lariat and put her hands on her hips.
She watched as the tall girl coiled up her rope.

"So now what?" Maria asked. Sometimes things just felt right
and this did. She couldn't explain it, or even really
comprehend it, but she knew she wanted to stay with this
intriguing girl, consequences be damned.

"That's up to you, I'd like to take you to the fair, but I
don't know how you feel about being seen in public with me,"

"Would you like to be seen with me?" Maria asked
coquettishly. She was fishing for a compliment and knew it,
but Connie's reaction surprised her. Connie stepped up
before her and placed both hands on her shoulders then shook
her.

"Wise up Maria, this isn't an adolescent fantasy. I'm out
and everyone knows it, if you walk out of here with me they
are going to assume you're a lesbian, even if we don't do
anything. I have been living with the looks and snide
comments for a couple of years, you don't even know if you
are really into girls or just have a crush, but if you spend
the evening with me at the fair you'll be called cunt licker
and worse. People can be a lot more cruel than you know; do
you really want to sign up for that shit, because I promise
it's coming if you hang out with me,"

"If it bothers you so much why do you put up with it?" Maria
asked. Connie laughed and shook her head.

"You just don't get it do you? I didn't ask to be this way,
but I am and I'll be damned if I am going to skulk around
hiding who I am. The difference here is I know I would love
to take you home and fuck your brains out, you just think
you might enjoy it."

Maria blushed deeply, Connie's graphic descriptions
embarrassed her, but she had to admit they also excited her.
She had no real conception of the stigmatization Connie had
to endure day in and day out, but the boy's earlier comments
gave her some idea. On the other hand she had dealt with
being a minority all her life, where as the girl before her
hadn't.

"I'll go with you to the fair," Maria said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I don't know what is going to come of this, or even
what I want, and while you scare me a little it just feels
right," she said.

"Well, I never have been one to shy from what I want and I
want you for my own," Connie said earnestly, her gray eyes
found Maria's and everything else just didn't seem to matter
very much.

"Come on, I'll show you a good time tonight at the least,"
the cowgirl said as she tossed the lariat over a post.

Connie put her arm around Maria's shoulder and guided her
out into the sultry Texas evening. As they stood in line for
admission Maria felt the eyes on her, instead of being
intimidated or scared she found it exhilarating. She felt
natural, for the first time in her life she felt like she
belonged and Connie's arm around her made her feel safe.

They moved slowly down the midway enjoying the sights and
smells. Maria had always loved the fair and tonight it
seemed even more wonderful than usual. They stopped and got
a funnel cake and coke, which they shared while watching the
high wire act at the mini circus. Connie turned out to be a
quiet person, but an excellent listener and Maria found
herself talking nonstop. She often talked a lot when she was
nervous, but this was different. Connie seemed genuinely
interested in her past, her hopes, and her dreams, and with
short comments prompted her to keep talking. Maria began to
get the idea that the tall cowgirl was very lonely and that
she was just enjoying having someone talk to her.

They were moving through the portion of the midway where all
the games were. Maria watched as all the boys tried to win
prizes for their girls or kids wasted their parent's hard
earned money for trinkets that cost a fraction of what they
spent trying to win them. She had a fine collection of
stuffed animals in her room that were worth nothing, but had
cost her dates a small fortune.

Suddenly Maria stopped and let out a little squeal of
delight. On the top shelf of one of the games sat a
beautiful miniature carousel horse. It was pink, with
intricately carved tracings and saddle and mounted on a
small hand carved jewelry box. Maria had been collecting
carousel horses since she was a small child. Maria gazed at
it longingly then started to move on, but Connie pulled her
over to the stand. The carnie was a thin man who smiled
lecherously at them both.

"What do you think miss? Want to show these clowns up?" he
asked indicating several guys throwing baseballs at beer
bottles while their dates cheered them on.

"How much?" Connie asked, ignoring his stare.

"Three balls for two dollars, one broken bottle wins,"

"How much for that one?" Connie said, indicating the horse
Maria had been staring at.

"That's a top prize, you have to trade in ten wins for it,"

The tall cowgirl nodded, produced a roll of bills from her
pocket and peeled off a ten-dollar bill. The carnie smiled
and poured out fifteen balls on the counter before her.
Maria smiled, she liked the fact that Connie was going to
try to win the horse for her, but she didn't want her to
waste a lot of money. Maria recognized the carnie's smile
too, he was looking forward to making a lot of money off
this. The tall cowgirl hefted the ball and then stepped back
from the rail, with a fluid motion she whipped the ball
underhanded and a bottle flew into pieces.

"Now ya see folks? Even a girl can do it! Any prize on the
bottom row Miss," he said loudly. He was good Maria mused,
quickly making sure all the other players knew it could be
done and challenging their manhood to make sure they kept
playing.

"Keep it, I want the one on top," Connie said and with the
same motion flicked another ball and another bottle busted.
Even the carnie seemed impressed and all of the people in
the immediate vicinity gathered around. The cowgirl took no
notice and flicked another ball that also found its mark. In
the end she had to buy six more balls to win. Maria felt
like the most special girl in the world when the tough
cowgirl smiled self-consciously and handed her the horse.

"All state pitcher, three years running," she said by way of
explanation. They continued on down the midway with Connie's
arm firmly around Maria's waist. Maria saw a lot of couples
and wondered if any of the girls felt like she did now.
Maria was so happy and having such a good time, but an
excited anticipation was building within her. When would her
cowboy decide to kiss her again? That first one had been so
arousing and Maria longed for another.

A lot of people gave them long stares, but no one said
anything. Maria smiled when she imagined what they were
seeing. A petite Hispanic girl in gaudy riding outfit with
hair down to her ass and a tall, lanky cowgirl holding her
close. Maria thought it must look strange, but she also
liked the mental image and Connie's arm around her waist
felt so natural. They made the big turn and started down the
east side of the midway. Games began to thin out and the
rides started to become more and more prevalent. At first it
was kiddie rides, but these quickly gave way to the more
expensive and wild ones like the Avalanche and the Cyclone.

"You like the rides?" Connie asked as they passed a ticket
booth without a long line.

"I love them," Maria replied.

Connie bout a bunch of tickets and they rode several of
them. Maria had always loved the rides and the adrenalin
rush that came with them, but tonight nothing compared to
the rush she felt being pressed close to the lanky bull
rider or the thrill she felt when Connie's arm slipped
around her and held her tight. They were passing the double
ferris wheel when Connie guided Maria into the line with
her.

When they were next Connie took the horse from Maria and
approached the carnie, pretending that the main idea was to
give it to her for safekeeping. Maria felt a blush rise to
her cheeks and pretended not to notice her date slip the
carnie a large bill. She knew what that was for, Carlos had
done it often enough. The idea of being stopped at the top
of the ferris wheel with the lanky cowgirl sent a thrill
through her, but also left her nervous.

They both sat down and the carnie, a fat woman with blue
hair winked at Maria as she closed the gate to their chair
and made sure it was secure. The big wheel turned and
stopped again and again, to on load people and then with a
lurch that brought Maria's stomach into her mouth the whole
thing rotated taking their wheel to the top. From here she
could see the whole fair and watched with bright-eyed
interest as the midway passed beneath them. The second wheel
was empty and not moving so they were alone at the top of
the world when their wheel came to a stop.

Connie's arm around her shoulder tightened, pulling her
close. Maria turned slightly in the seat and looked up
expectantly. Connie's face dipped and she pressed her lips
to Maria's. The tall cowgirl captured Maria's lower lip
between her teeth and slowly slid her tongue along it,
causing Maria's tummy to knot. She melted against the taller
woman and sighed happily when Connie's tongue slipped
between her lips. The girl's tongue gently explored her
mouth and Maria kissed back passionately, dragging her
tongue along Connie's and sucking gently. As good as it felt
Maria balked when she felt Connie's hands working on the
button at the throat of her blouse. She disengaged herself
and giggled.

"What do you think you're doing?" she asked in mock
severity.

"Making out," she said with a toothy smile. Her hands moved
back to the button and Maria caught both her hands.

"Connie, behave!"

"I'm trying, but you keep interrupting me," she replied and
began trying to undo the button again. Maria continued to
try and keep her from opening the button. It wasn't that she
didn't want to get physical with her date; in fact she would
have readily agreed to go back to Connie's hotel room in the
mood she was in. Maria just balked at doing anything like
that out in the open, never mind that no one on the ground
could tell what they were doing.

"Call me Conn, Connie sound so girly," the bull rider said.
She managed to get the top button undone and her fingers
moved to the next.

"Conn, isn't that enough?" Maria asked, she was rather
nervous about making out in public as it was. But the shirt
only had four buttons and you could almost see her bra with
the top one undone.

"Hell woman, don't tell me you never made out on the top of
the ferris wheel before," Conn said incredulously.

"Several times," Maria admitted, "But I always keep my
clothes on!"

"Well, no wonder you dropped him," Conn said as she leaned
in close and pressed her lips to Maria's again. The cowgirl
pressed her chest against Maria's and the smaller girl found
one arm pinned between the back of their chair and her
date's shoulder. She felt the buttons to her blouse
inexorably come undone as Connie's hands now were free to
work unimpeded. Maria felt the cool evening air on her bare
skin and tried to protest, but it was hard to say much with
her date's tongue shoved down her throat. Maria actually
felt a bit of panic rise when she felt her cowgirl tugging
her blouse out of her jeans, but as soon as the shirt was
free and Conn's hands stroked along her tummy the panic
turned to pure desire.

Wherever those warm, calloused hands moved, her skin felt
like it was on fire. Connie backed off a little on the deep
kiss and gently cupped Maria's soft breasts through her
plain white bra. Maria moaned softly into the cowgirl's
mouth as she felt her breasts being tenderly kneaded. Conn
moved from her lips to her neck, where she gently kissed and
licked working towards the hollow between her collarbones.
Maria found the sensations overwhelming, her body thrummed
with desire and she only moaned louder when she felt
Connie's hands tug her bra cups down below her breasts.

Maria's breasts were large and full, she took a C cup and
had often been embarrassed by their size. Carlos had loved
them, but his rough massaging had never produced anything
close to the sensation Connie's gentle fondling brought. The
cowgirl's hands were rough and calloused, but they were so
gentle as they kneaded the luscious mounds of flesh that
Maria barely noticed. When Connie's palms dragged over her
nipples Maria had to bite her tongue to keep from yelping.
The girl's lips were now kissing down the slope of her
breast and Maria actually found herself anticipating the
moment when they would envelope her stiff nipple. Even
expecting it she was unprepared for the shock of sensation
and moaned again.

While her mouth formed a seal and her tongue worried the
taut pink nipple Connie's hand gently rolled the other
between her thumb and forefinger. Maria was caught in a
whirlwind of sensation and emotion. It felt so good, but the
fact that she was in public added a spice all it's own to
the moment. There were people in the seats just below them
and she bit her lip to keep from drawing attention to
herself. She didn't notice that Connie had released her
breast until she felt the girl's hands working on her belt.

She's really going too far I should stop this, Maria
thought, Even as she thought it Connie's teeth nipped her
erect nipple sending a shockwave through her body. Her hands
shot to the girl's head, knocking her hat off. Connie's
hands shot out and caught the hat, but her mouth never left
Maria's aching nipple. She put her hat on the seat behind
her and her hands returned to the button and zipper of
Maria's jeans as her mouth moved to Maria's other nipple. It
was warm out, but she felt a shock of cool air on the nipple
Connie's mouth had just abandoned. Maria looked down to see
it glistening with the cowgirl's saliva.

"What are you doing?" Maria moaned. She had her head thrown
back and saw the other ferris wheel begin to turn. Her body
stiffened when she realized that soon there would be people
able to see her.

Conn released her nipple and moved up until they were nose
to nose. Maria felt Connie's palm on her flat tummy and
groaned when the bull rider pushed it downward, sliding into
the waistband of Maria's panties. She felt the long index
finger slide over her pubes and between her moist lips and
stop just at the entrance to her pussy.

"I'm finger fucking the hottest girl I have ever met,"
Connie breathed as her finger found Maria's slick entrance
and slipped in to the first knuckle. There was very little
room for her to maneuver her hand, trapped as it was by
Maria's panties and jeans, but Connie proved to know what
she was doing. Placing the heel of her hand on Maria's
pelvic bone she pressed back forcing the fabric of the
Hispanic girl's tight jeans far enough out to allow her
finger to sink all the way into Maria's hot channel.

"Ohhhhh," Maria groaned as she felt Conn's stiff finger seat
deeply in her hot pussy. The cowgirl's lips returned to her
nipple as the stiff finger began to steadily plunge into
Maria's now soaked pussy. The wheel next to them was turning
now and Maria started when she realized it was bringing the
lower wheel up and that meant.People! Part of her wanted
desperately to get her clothes back on and not make a scene,
but her body was having none of that.

She had never been so horny in her life. Nothing had ever
felt so good. The long finger slowly frigging her, Connie's
mouth on her nipple, the cowgirl's closeness and the thrill
of being so exposed in public all fused into a single
driving need. Maria just had to cum and found herself
spreading her thighs as much as she could to give Connie's
finger better access. All too soon, she felt a tingling in
her extremities that she knew was the precursor to climax.

She was moaning softly now and whimpering occasionally as a
particularly jagged bolt of pleasure hit her. Maria threw
her head back and got a dizzy upside down view of the other
wheel as it turned. There were people in those seats but she
just couldn't care about that right now. Her lower body
rhythmically tensed and relaxed, the inner muscles of her
pussy gently squeezing Connie's finger as it stroked in and
out. When her hips began to jog in the seat Connie released
her nipple and licked from her nipple up to her chin in one
impossibly long swipe. Those haunting gray eyes locked onto
Maria's and despite her pleasure she couldn't close her
eyes.

"Cum for me baby," Connie whispered as she began to grind
her palm against Maria's clitoral hood. That was all it took
to send Maria over the edge.

"I'm coming!" Maria yelped as that first powerful
contraction was followed by more. They rolled in upon her
consciousness like towering waves. Each was a discreet
packet of pleasure, starting in her groin and radiating
outward through her body. For a timeless, breathless moment
the world contracted to just the wild pleasure shooting
through her body and Connie's eyes. Maria threw her head
back as the orgasm peaked and for a while she saw only the
stars as her body untensed and her breathing slowly returned
to normal. People on the other wheel were staring and
pointing, but Maria couldn't even move to cover herself.

With a lurch the big wheel began to turn again. Maria
hurriedly buttoned her shirt while Connie withdrew her hand
from the steamy confines of Maria's panties. The big girl
looked at Maria, smiled devilishly and then sucked her
finger into her mouth. That visual stimulation was so hot
that Maria felt her body shiver as an aftershock rocked her.
When the chair reached the bottom Maria looked somewhat
presentable, but she knew it was going to be readily
apparent to everyone at the bottom of the wheel what had
been going on. The blue haired carnie opened the gate to
their chair and handed Maria her horse.

"I can tell you two had a good time," she said loudly enough
for everyone in line to hear. As they made their way through
the exit Maria was sure her blush was brighter than anything
on the midway, but Connie was smiling, as if she were proud
of herself. The rest of the evening was a blur, more rides,
more food, and more making out whenever they were even
partially obscured from the public view. They never did run
into her friends and Connie gave Maria a ride back to her
hotel on her bike.

In the parking lot the lean cowgirl helped her off the
motorcycle and removed her helmet. They embraced and kissed
deeply, when the kiss finally broke Conn looked down into
her eyes. A long silence followed that was neither awkward
nor uncomfortable.

"I hope you had a good time," she said at last.

"I had a wonderful time," Maria assured her.

"Can I see you again?"

"I'd like that,"

"Well, can I have your number then?"

Maria scribbled her number on the back of a scrap of paper
she found in her purse and gave it to the tall cowgirl.
Connie folded it carefully and put it in her pocket before
giving Maria a sound good night kiss and roaring off into
the darkness.

Maria watched until her taillights disappeared and then
kicked the ground. I'm such a fool, she thought. I should
have invited her in. Back in her room she put the Carousel
horse on the dresser and undressed. She was embarrassed when
she found her panties were still damp, but also turned on.

"I really should have invited her in," Maria said to herself
as she put on clean panties and a nightshirt and crawled
under the covers.

----

Maria woke early and felt deliciously relaxed. She hadn't
slept like that in days. It lasted only a short time as the
butterflies she always felt before riding began to assail
her. She was just checking her outfit for the last time when
there was a knock at her door.

"You ready sis?" she heard her brother call through the
door.

"Coming," she called and then blushed at the memory that
invoked.

The ride to the arena was quiet, Curt seemed withdrawn and
Maria was getting nervous as she always did before riding in
competition. Maria was an absolute wreck by the time the
racing started. She scanned the crowd repeatedly, but saw no
sign of Conn. She was still staring out when a pair of arms
twined around her waist and pulled her tightly to a tall
hard body.

"Relax, you're going to do great," Connie's voice whispered
in her ear. Maria relaxed completely, the competition wasn't
important now. She realized with a bemused smile, that win
or loose everything was fine now.

When Maria finished her run the lanky cowgirl was there to
greet her. She took Blue's reigns as Maria dismounted. They
stood there looking at one another for a long time. It
dawned on her that the tall girl didn't hug her because
everyone could see them. Maria threw herself into the tall
cowgirl's arms and after only a moment of hesitation Connie
wrapped her arms tightly around the small girl and they
kissed. The whole arena could see them, but Maria just
didn't give a damn.

"We have a new leader at sixteen point three-oh-eight," the
PA announced.

"I told you, you were going to do great," Connie said as she
held her tight. Maria just smiled, it didn't matter, what
mattered were her lover's strong arms and soft hands. After
they had walked Blue back to his stall and wiped him down
they stood awkwardly just staring at one another.

"Come on, lets go join everyone in the stands, the roping is
coming up," Maria said.

"I don't know, those guys don't like me much," Conn said.
Maria smiled, the taller girl's concern for what her friends
would think was so touching. What she really meant was that
she didn't want to cause problems.

"Conn Robinson, if you think your getting away from me that
easily you are mistaken. All the girls sit with their
boyfriends and if you think I am sitting alone when I have
the best looking of the bunch you're crazy," Maria said.

"I am crazy. Crazy over you," Connie said in a very serious
tone. Maria took the taller girl's hand and started dragging
her towards the stands where her friends were sitting.

The tall cowgirl grinned and followed, but Maria could tell
she was still very apprehensive. Once there she introduced
Conn to everyone and then plopped down in her lap,
surprising the lanky cowgirl.

There was silence and everyone was staring at them. Maria
could feel Conn getting tense and knew she had to do
something before it became too uncomfortable.

"Curt, how are your ribs?" she asked quickly.

"Huh? Oh, they hurt like a sum bitch," he responded, still
staring.

"Curt, got gored by Trickster last month," Maria said
turning to Conn. The tall girl grinned at her brother.

"He's a son of a bitch ain't he? Busted my leg last year,"
she said.

"Yeah, but I'd rather have him than Cyclone, that cocksucker
nearly got me over at Wytheville," Curt said smiling.

"Cyclone is bad, but at least he's a high jumper pure and
simple, I'd rather have him than Tilt-a-whirl any day," Conn
replied.

"Si, for me, I do not ever want to have to ride Breakaway
again, that cow is very bad, someday he will kill someone,"
Carlos chimed in.

Maria smiled and said nothing. Bull riders were all the
same, get them talking about past rides and bad bulls and
they would go all night, even if they had been at each
other's throats over something just the moment before. By
the time Kim joined them Curt, Carlos, Donnie and Conn were
swapping stories like old friends.

Maria's score held up and a day that was going well, turned
into one that was perfect. Only a couple of the girlfriends
continued to give them looks, but all of the guys and Conn
seemed to be getting along well. Maria was a bit
apprehensive when she had to leave them to accept her
trophy, but it seemed she hurried back for nothing because
they were still talking about wild rides and mean bulls when
she returned.

"How bout we all go over to Rancho Rio for dinner and some
drinks," Curt said. It sounded good and everyone agreed so
they all loaded up and rode over. Maria loved the wind in
her hair on the back of Conn's bike.

Rancho Rio was a little Tex-mex joint that had some of the
best food in the area. Luckily it was in an out of the way
place and they had no troubled getting seats at one of the
large tables. It became apparent very early on that they
would be doing more drinking than eating, when the waitress
didn't bother to check IDs. Maria was content to sip on a
hurricane, but the guys and Connie started drinking beers
like they were water. The rodeo stories continued through
the evening, getting taller and taller as the tellers got
drunker.

Marsha kept staring at Connie and finally blurted out, "is
it true you like girls?"

"Some girls," Conn said easily.

Maria could have killed her. She now feared they would all
gang up on Conn, but her brother of all people came to her
rescue.

"You mean like my sister?" he said, maybe a little too
loudly.

"Yeah, I have a thing for dark haired girls," Conn said. Her
tone wasn't belligerent, but there was a slight edge to it
that wasn't lost on Maria. Maria held her breath, this was
the worst possible thing she could have imagined.

"I prefer blondes myself, like that Cindy Richardson," Curt
said smiling. Maria could have kissed her brother at that
moment.

"You can have her, she hasn't got enough meat on her for me
and besides she's an awful kisser," Conn said.

"You've hit that?" Bo blurted out incredulously, "I mean,
you've been with her?" he finished in an awed tone of voice.

"Yeah, we went out a while, and she ain't a natural blonde
noways," Connie said. The conversation quickly turned to
other girls that they guys fantasized about. Several of the
girls at the table tried to steer the conversation back to
something else and shot Marsha dirty looks. No one liked to
sit while her man told his buddies about the other girls he
wanted to bang, but the guys seemed oblivious. Maria excused
herself and went to the ladies room. When she came out Curt
was standing there, waiting for her. She waited for him to
speak with a feeling of impending doom.

"Sis, are you and Conn...going together?" he asked. He was
drunk and she could not read his face. He seemed strangely
calm, but she knew that was no guarantee of his mood. Curt's
temper was very bad, and often launched itself from a
deceptive calm.

"I don't know Curt, but I am hoping that we will be before
the weekend is out," Maria said.

"All right," he said.

"Does it bother you?" she asked. Her big brother just smiled
and shook his head.

"No, I just want you to be happy. CR is cool, I really
thought she was a bitch before tonight, but I like her. You
know what your letting yourself in for though, don't you?"
he asked. Maria had to smile at the concern in her brother's
eyes.

"No, I really don't,"

"It's going to be rough sis. Have you been to bed with her
yet?"

"Curt!"

"Aww, hell. I'm not prying sis honest, I just want to make
sure you know this is what you want before you have to deal
with the crap,"

"I only know for sure that I am happy with her, and have
never felt so content. I don't know how I am going to tell
mom and dad, but I don't think I am ever going out with
another guy, even if things don't work out with Conn, and
yes, we have already had sex," she added, blushing
furiously. He stared at her curiously and nodded again.

"Don't worry about the folks, just keep an eye on Marsha,"

"Marsha?"

"That's a cold little bitch. Seeing you happy after she took
your man is really pissing her off,"

"Oh, come on Curt, she's my friend,"

"She's nobody's friend," he spat vehemently, "There's a big
empty hole inside her and she can only fill it by making
herself feel superior to everyone around her. She gets off
on other people's misery. She's going to fuck Carlos over
and if she can she is going to fuck you up too. I know you
don't believe it, but I slept with her and I know what she's
like, under the friendly crap she's a cold hearted bitch,"

"Your drunk,"

"Not nearly. Mark my words sis, she will drop Carlos in a
week and before you know it she will hook up with Bo if she
can. She's only a few points behind Kim and she will try to
fuck her over before she rides at Centerville. One reason I
am not upset about you being with CR is that Marsha is
afraid of her,"

They returned to the table to find everyone talking about
the fair. Marsha was flirting with Bo. Normally Maria
wouldn't have noticed, it was pretty normal for them all to
joke about sex, but tonight there seemed to be something
sinister in it. Both Kim and Carlos seemed oblivious and
Maria decided she was just being paranoid, but she took
Conn's hand under the table and squeezed it.

The tall girl looked at her and smiled warmly. Once the tabs
were paid up they all headed for the fair. The night was
sultry and Maria had a wonderful time. Her friends seemed to
just accept Connie being there and they guys quickly began
to treat her as one of them. The night was a blur and she
was happy when they all parted at the gate to go their
separate ways. This time when Connie dropped her off Maria
was ready.

"Why don't you come in?" she asked. The tall girl looked at
her and grinned.

"I'm not sure that such a good idea," Conn said.

"Why?"

"Cause you drive me nuts. I've never wanted anyone like I
want you, but you aren't sure what you want now and I get
pretty wild in bed,"

"Conn, I've already decided this is what I want.  I even
told Curt we have already had sex," Maria said blushing.
Connie laughed loudly.

"That wasn't sex, that was just heavy petting," she said
grinning.

"Well, I want some more heavy petting then," Maria said
smiling coyly.

"Damn Girl, you're hotter than a three dollar pistol, but if
I come in now it won't be heavy petting, I'll fuck your
brains out,"

"Then come in," Maria said blushing madly, but also feeling
a knot of desire tightening in the pit of her stomach.

She stepped close and pulled Maria into a tight embrace,
those wonderful eyes captured the smaller woman's and held
them.

"Do you know what you're asking for? If I come in I am going
to put on a strapon and fuck you senseless. You are so cute
and sweet and. innocent. I want you, not just for a night,
but forever. I don't want to screw it up by letting my
hormones get the better of me, I'll wait until your ready,
but I swear you would tempt St. Peter himself,"

"Just because I'm inexperienced doesn't mean I'm not ready.
If you want me I am yours, for the night or for forever. I
just don't want to sleep alone tonight,"

Connie kissed her then. It was a long, soft kiss. Their
tongues caressed and glided against one another. It was
unhurried, without the urgent need they both felt showing.
When the kiss broke Conn released her and opened the
saddlebag. She pulled out a black bag and slung it over her
shoulder. She put her arm around Maria's trim waist and
followed her to her room.

Once the door closed behind them Connie tossed her bag on
the bed and wrapped Maria up in her arms again. This time
the kiss was more demanding, the tall butch's tongue forced
its way into Maria's mouth and began to explore. Maria
melted into the embrace, happily parting her lips to accept
her lover's agile tongue. It outlined her teeth, caressed
her palate and slid under her tongue. Conn's hands slipped
down her back and squeezed Maria's sensitive ass, causing
the smaller girl to stand on tiptoe.

While still ravishing her mouth and feeling up her ass
Connie maneuvered Maria back towards the bed. The little
barrel rider felt the bed bump the backs of her knees and
before she could do anything they toppled to the bed with
Conn lying on top of her. Maria groaned softly into the
taller girls mouth when Conn forced a knee between her legs.
Maria spread her thighs and felt the bed shift as Conn moved
between her thighs. The dark haired girl gasped when
Connie's pelvis smacked lightly against her mound, the
tightly stretched denim seemed to do nothing to lessen the
intensity of that contact.

While the kiss continued Conn slowly dry humped Maria,
sending chills down the smaller woman's spine. The taller
girl used a slightly plunging motion as she ground her
crotch into Maria's. In a very short time Maria's hips were
rising to meet Conn's and she could feel that she was
beginning to lubricate. When Maria moaned softly Conn broke
the kiss and smiled down at her.

"That's nothing babe," she said and then began to unbutton
Maria's blouse. As it parted it revealed the sexy black push
up bra she wore. Conn pushed herself up on her arms and
whistled.

"You like it?" Maria said. Her voice sounded husky in her
ear.

"Shit yeah, I'd find you attractive in a burlap sack, but I
love a girl in sexy lingerie,"

While her hands tugged the shirt out of Maria's jeans her
mouth slipped to the girl's neck. Maria's hands clenched
taking in two fistfuls of the comforter, she tossed her head
to the side and chewed on her bottom lip. Connie's hands
slid into the blouse and pushed it aside until Maria's
midriff was bare. The tongue and lips on her throat felt
fantastic, but Maria inhaled sharply when she felt those
calloused hands on her bare flesh. They raked up her tummy
and then cupped her full breasts.

"I love your tits," Conn whispered.

Maria couldn't understand why, but the dirtier Connie talked
the more excited she became. The butch seemed to realize
this and made sure to keep ratcheting up Maria's desire. She
pulled Maria to a half sitting position and her hands
slipped to the Hispanic girl's back. She deftly unclasped
the bra and Maria wondered fleetingly how many times she had
done it to other girls. Conn pulled her shirt and vest off
her shoulders and gently pushed her back onto the bed.

"God, what a rack!" she exclaimed before dropping her head
and taking one of Maria's stiff pink nipples into her mouth.
Connie's mouth was warm and when her soft tongue began to
worry Maria's nipple the smaller girl arched her back. It
seemed to Maria that her nipple was directly connected to
the small of her back, and each flick of Connie's tongue
sent a tinge of pleasure there. Her hips and ass seemed to
have minds of their own, moving without her conscious
thought and in time to those shocks from her nipple.

Between her shirt, vest and bra Maria's arms were virtually
trapped at her sides now. Conn seemed to be in no hurry at
all and lavished attention on Maria's breasts. She squeezed
them, kneaded them, stroked them and licked them until Maria
thought she would explode. It felt as if there wasn't a
single millimeter of skin Conn didn't pay attention to and
every nerve ending in every one of those millimeters was
totally alert. Her back arched as a spasm of pleasure shot
through her and she turned her head and caught a mouthful of
the comforter. She bit down hard and held it in her teeth,
hoping to stifle some of her growing moans as Conn continued
to worship her breasts.

Finally, when she was almost crying because it felt so good
Conn relented and slid her hands down Maria's tummy to her
belt. Maria tried to help this time rather than hinder, but
her clothes had her arms held fast and all she could do was
raise her hips when Conn peeled the tight jeans over them
and down her smooth thighs. She wore a pair of black lace
panties, it was the only pair she owned that she thought
were sexy. Her mother was very traditional and Maria had
decided long ago that as long as she was living at home she
would play the good catholic girl. It prevented so many
arguments. Conn peeled the flimsy garment down Maria's legs
and then held it to her nose.

"God, you smell edible," she breathed as her fingers gently
caressed Maria's mound.

"And you're so fucking wet," Conn said excitedly. Maria
blushed, but it didn't stop her from watching as the lanky
cowgirl stood and removed her shirt. Conn's breasts were
small and flat, but her nipples were thick and longer than
Maria's. The bull rider sat on the bed and quickly removed
her boots. Maria started to shrug out of her shirt and vest
when Conn stood and undid her jeans. She was looking right
into Maria's eyes when she pulled her jeans and boxers down
and stepped out of them.

Conn's legs were smooth, lean and well muscled. They seemed
impossibly long and tan, but Maria's eyes were glued to her
pussy. Maria had seen plenty of girls naked, but never one
who kept her mound clean-shaven and it was amazing how the
lack of pubic hair seemed to make Conn's pussy more
prominent.

Conn opened her bag and took out her strapon. She turned her
back to Maria, allowing the little Hispanic girl to drink in
the sight of that beautiful, well-muscled ass while Conn
buckled the harness on. When Conn turned around Maria
gasped. The harness covered her mound completely and the
dildo was nothing short of enormous. It was flesh colored
and at least ten inches long with veins and a wicked looking
head. It also had an upward curve and was so big around at
the base that Maria doubted she could get her hand around
it. Maria shook her head silently, mouthing words that
wouldn't come.

"You like?" Conn said with a chuckle as she stroked the
large dong.

"It's huge," Maria breathed at last.

"I told you I was going to fuck you senseless. A lot of the
girls I have slept with also sleep with guys. Call it penis
envy or something, but I made damned sure I am always bigger
than anyone they have been with when I got this thing,"

"It's not going to fit Conn," Maria said with a trace of
fear in her voice.

"Yes it will baby and you're going to love it," the butch
said as she knelt on the floor between Maria's legs and
pushed her thighs apart. Maria was unable to protest further
because Conn pressed her face tightly to Maria's pussy and
forced her tongue between the Hispanic girl's pink lips.

Maria cried out in ecstasy when Conn's long tongue began to
lap at her inner labia. She had never been eaten out before
and the difference between someone's fingers and Conn's soft
tongue was nothing short of apocalyptic. Her mind tried to
cope with the influx of new sensations, but when Conn's
tongue found her clit and started to lash it Maria screamed.
The muscles in her pussy contracted violently once and
stayed clenched. The rest of the muscles in her body seemed
to follow her pussy's lead and contracted until she was so
tense she felt her skin would be ripped off. Another
strangled cry was torn from her lips when her orgasm
arrived. The blissful relief of her muscles unknoting was
shattered by violent contractions in her pussy. Waves of
pleasure spread from her center outward and she shook
uncontrollably. The animal cries of passion that issued from
her throat shocked her.

After shocks were still wracking her slight frame when Conn
rose to her knees and firmly grasped the big dong. She
stroked the head of the massive phallus up and down Maria's
lips, causing the girl's bottom to undulate. Maria felt the
thick head of Conn's cock at her entrance. She was afraid of
the big cock and wanted to protest, but her tongue seemed to
be stuck to the roof of her mouth. Conn was applying a
steady pressure with her hips and the ring of muscles at
Maria's entrance slowly yielded to allow the fat head to
pass between her lips and into her tight tunnel. Her inner
muscles immediately clamped down on the large intruder.

Maria groaned. The only boy she had ever had sex with was
Carlos. Compared to Conn's massive cock his seemed like a
toy. Maria had never felt so full. She was sure the cowgirl
would split her in half if she didn't stop.

"Please no, it hurts," she cried out in alarm, struggling to
get away from the big cock.

"Shhhhh, its all right baby. Just take some time and get
used to it, I'll go slow," Conn said while gently stroking
her thighs. The girl's calm and soothing touch allayed
Maria's fears to some degree. Maria closed her eyes and
willed her body to relax. Slowly the tightened muscles
relaxed and after a minute or two the feeling of fullness
actually became mildly pleasurable. Conn seemed to sense
that she was ready and slowly pressed forward again. Maria
could feel the blunt head of the cock as it pushed tissue
aside and nosed deeper into her body. Conn was as gentle as
she had been with Maria's breasts, stopping often and
pulling back if she saw Maria was experiencing discomfort.
At some point it hit a spot deep inside where nothing had
ever touched before and Maria's body spasmed. She tried to
speak, but no sound issued from her open mouth.

She tried to relax and waited for the huge cock to resume
its assault, but after what seemed a very long time she
carefully opened her eyes. Conn was looking down at the
juncture of their thighs with a smile and Maria was shocked
to see the whole dildo was buried in her pussy.

"See babe?" Conn said. Maria could only nod. She couldn't
believe she could take such a massive instrument and the
knowledge that she had made her very aroused. Conn slowly
withdrew the big cock and Maria groaned as she felt suddenly
emptied. She could feel it sliding out of her and found to
her surprise she wanted it back in. Conn didn't let her
yearn for very long, she slowly pushed back in, this time
there was no pain associated with penetration, just a
pleasant friction. After a few more long slow strokes Conn
bent and wrapped her arms around Maria's legs and then
straightened. She was now on her knees and holding Maria's
legs straight up from the bed and tightly against her chest.
Bent this way the slight girl could feel the imposing cock
even more acutely. Conn set her legs and pulled out slowly
until only the head remained inside her little lover.

"Ready baby?" she said in a husky voice. Maria could only
nod, she seemed incapable of speaking in her passion.

Conn jabbed her hips forward causing the big cock to shoot
deeply in to Maria's pussy. The sudden charge forced the air
from her lungs and made her see stars. That was only the
beginning though, Conn repeatedly thrust forward,
establishing a pace that was hard and deep, while using
Maria's legs for purchase. Maria tried to get used to the
pounding rhythm; in, out, in, out, full, empty, then
deliciously full again. Already sensitized from her first
orgasm her second came very quickly. She tossed her head
from side to side and mewled like an animal as the
contractions tore through her. Conn kept up the driving
rhythm and before long a third, then a fourth orgasm
assailed the smaller girl.

How long it went on Maria would never know. As orgasm
blended into orgasm she lost all track of time and all count
of how many she had experienced, she only knew she was being
fucked like never before and she never wanted it to end.
Eventually the pleasure of each orgasm became so acute that
it was almost painful. Conn continued to hammer into her
yielding body and Maria found herself hanging on that
exquisite razor's edge, where one side was sheer bliss and
the other side pure hell. She couldn't stand the pleasure
any longer and her mind simply shut down, carrying her off
to a restful place where all was dark and quiet.

She was dimly aware of Conn rolling her over onto her tummy.
She closed her eyes and felt the butch's arms slide around
her waist and pull her onto her knees. Maria pulled a pillow
down and put her it under her head, more to muffle the noise
than for comfort, she was alarmed at how loud she was
becoming. The colossal cock was quickly pressed against her
wet lips again and she groaned softly as it slid into her
sore pussy.

Conn's calloused hands took a tight hold on her hips and
then the butch leaned over her back and nuzzled her ear.

"Ready to see how I got to be so good?" she whispered. Maria
nodded and gasped when the cock was quickly withdrawn and
then rammed back into her. The angle was different, the
stroke was different and Conn's hips rhythmically slapping
against her ass cheeks seemed unnaturally loud. Maria felt
her body begin to tense as another orgasm approached but
Conn slowed down. Maria groaned in frustration and surprised
herself by thrusting back on the huge dildo, causing Conn to
chuckle.

"That's right baby, give me a ride," Conn said as her
fingers dug into Maria's hips. The tall cowgirl started to
fuck her in earnest then, slamming the fake cock into her
with long powerful thrusts that took poor Maria's breath
away. Conn was now adding a flourish of her hips to each
stroke that drove the cock against the walls of Maria's
pussy at different angles. It made her feel like it was even
bigger than it was and she groaned into the pillow.

More orgasms. How many more? She would never know. At some
point her mind disassociated itself from her pleasure-
wracked body. She whimpered into the pillow and knew no
more.

-------

Maria woke to find the bed empty and Connie gone. A note was
sitting on the nightstand and she took it with trembling
hands, her imagination immediately leaping to the conclusion
the tall butch had not enjoyed their night together. She
wondered what she might have done wrong, or if the tall
cowgirl had just used her. A million fears ran through her
head as she opened the single sheet of paper.

     Maria,

Sorry to leave without a goodbye fuck, but you looked so
peaceful I couldn't bring myself to wake you. I had a
message on my cell this morning when I woke up. There has
been a bus accident over to Collier and several of the
riders are laid up. My friend Lacy said to hurry over if I
want to ride as a replacement. I will call when I can.


Love,

C.R.

p.s. I invited Curtis to ride over with me, he asked that
you get his truck home for him.

Maria reread the note several times, always feeling her
heart leap at the word Love. Her body felt as if she had
been run over by a truck. Her muscles ached and when she
made the mistake of moving the abused tissues in her pussy
caused her to gasp. She was so sore, but god, it was a
wonderful soreness. She felt relaxed and content, her body
wishing only for her to roll over and go back to sleep.

She noticed Curt's truck key on the nightstand and smiled.
The Collier rodeo was a pro event, if they managed to make
it as replacement riders it would be Curt's first chance to
ride in a pro event. Nothing would ensure that they got
along like it would if Curt's first shot at the big time was
due to Conn. Maria wished them both luck as she rose and
packed. She was just putting her trophy into her bag after
admiring it once more when there was knock at the door.

"Who's there?"

"It's me, Kim,"

Maria stiffly rose and pulled on her shirt and panties
before letting her in. Kim had a bag over her shoulder and
wore daisy duke cut offs that revealed a daring amount of
thigh.

"You about ready?" she asked and then giggled when she saw
how Maria was dressed.

"Ready for what?"

"To get out of here, Carlos and them started back over three
hours ago," she said with a laugh. When Maria seemed lost
the blonde took her by the shoulders and shook her gently.

"Earth to Maria, it's one o'clock in the afternoon, we have
a long way to go," she said smiling broadly. When Maria
still just stood there in confusion Kim chuckled.

"Must have been some night! But, we can talk about that
later, we need to get going, come on,"

"Your riding with me?' Maria finally got out as she tugged
her jeans on and threw things into her bag.

"Of course, I'm not going to let you drive back alone.
Everyone knows about the accident, thank god no one was
killed. Hopefully Curt and Connie will make it as
replacements,"

----

The first part of the ride was very pleasant, with Kim
talking about this and that and Maria just listening. Her
mind wasn't on the road nor her companion, it kept returning
to last night and the incredible sex she had enjoyed.
Finally Kim stopped talking and turned to her.

"All right, I have been good as long as I can, how was it?"

"How was what?" Maria said.

"Maria Gonzalez don't you even think of playing innocent
with me, you know damn well what I am talking about," Kim
cried.

"No, what?" she said, doing her best to look innocent. Kim
growled and dug her fingers into Maria's ribs. The Hispanic
girl screamed and dodged away, causing the truck to swerve,
luckily there wasn't another car in sight.

"All right, all right!" she giggled as Kim continued to
tickle her. The blonde stopped and looked at her
expectantly.

"Oh Kim, it was awesome! I came like ten times...I had no idea
sex could be that fun, she fucked me all night long,  I
finally passed out it felt so good," Maria gushed. Kim
squealed in delight and made her recall the entire night
with every detail. By the time they got home they were both
horny and Kim quickly left to meet up with Bo. Maria went in
and told her folks about the rodeo, about Curtis getting an
opportunity to ride professionally and showed them her
trophy before going to bed. She fell asleep instantly and
Connie was there, in her dreams, waiting with open arms.

The week passed slowly and by Friday night Maria felt like
she was going insane. She missed Conn so much it hurt and
despite masturbating every evening as soon as she got in she
was so horny she felt like she would explode. She was
daydreaming in class and the only time she managed to keep
the tall bull rider out of her thoughts was when she was
riding Blue. She was finishing dinner with her folks when
the phone rang. Her mother got it and came back to the table
to tell her it was for her. Maria was expecting a call from
Kim and her legs went weak when Conn's voice came across the
line.

"Hey, babe,"

"Conn!"

"How's my girl?"

"I'm lonely, when am I going to see you again?"

"I'll be in Centerville next weekend," the voice said.

"I will too," Maria said smiling like a Cheshire cat.

"I know, can you bring Curt's truck up?"

"Sure, Ya'll staying in Collier?"

"No babe, rodeo here is over, but a lot of the regulars are
still in the hospital so they asked Curt and I and a few
others to ride in the show up at Groatansville,"

"That's great," Maria said, trying to hide her
disappointment at not seeing her this weekend.

"You're hell on me girl. I've never had anyone to call my
own. The rodeo is my life, but you sure make it hard not to
pack it in and run to you,"

"It's no picnic for me either,"

"Well, keep that little pussy warm for me,"

"Is that all you're interested in?" Maria said, perhaps a
bit to harshly.

"No Maria, I miss you so bad it hurts. I'm trying to joke my
way through this, that's all. I hate to sound sappy, but
damn I miss you,"

"I miss you too. I'm sorry for snapping, it's just so damn
unfair that you're so far away," Maria nearly whined.

"Keep smiling lover, I will see you next weekend. Curt wants
to talk to your folks so I'll let you go,"

Maria picked at her meal while her parents talked on and on
about how lucky it was that Curt had gotten such a break.

"Who was that girl Maria? I thought Curt and Shelly were
still seeing each other?"

"They are mom and Connie is seeing someone else, they're
just friends," Maria said, excusing herself from the table
and going to her room. Maria had often heard of how lonely
the life of a rodeo girlfriend was. If this last week was
any indication then the stories fell far short of the mark.
She had never been so lonely, or missed anyone so much. She
knew it was the price she would have to pay for staying with
Conn, but even as she ached with loneliness she remembered
how good it felt when the tall cowgirl put her arm around
her and how joyous she could make her feel with just a word.
That inevitably led her mind to sex and she slid her hand
down her body and began to gently stroke herself. Memories
of their one night together flooded her mind and before she
knew it she was cumming. She curled up holding tightly to a
pillow and pretending it was her cowgirl.

----

Maria hung out with her friends that weekend and endured
another seemingly endless week. On Thursday she had the
trailer hooked up and Blue loaded by 2:00. She planned on
cutting her last class and being halfway to Centerville by
the time it got dark. Her mind was filled with Conn and her
big dildo. She had reached the point where her horniness was
getting equal play with her loneliness by now. Orgasms
brought about by her own fingers were just not the same. She
was on her way out of the house when the phone rang.  She
almost didn't get it, but decided it might be her mom so she
picked up.

"Hello,"

"Ria?' Kim's voice came over the phone. It had a strange
quality to it, forlorn and upset.

"What's wrong Kim?" Maria asked, suddenly very concerned
about her friend.

"Nothing. Have you got room in the trailer for Gent?"

"Sure," Maria said. She was worried now, Gent always rode
with Bo's horse Rivets.

"Can you pick me up at the stables?"

"Sure thing,"

"Thanks Ria," Kim said and the line went dead.

They loaded Gent up and stopped off at Kim's house to get
her stuff. She was quiet, withdrawn and totally unlike
herself. Maria didn't say anything either because she was
worried about Kim, but she knew Kim would speak only when
she was ready.

"Thanks again for the ride," Kim said nearly an hour later.

"You know it's no problem, are you going to tell me what's
wrong or just leave me in suspense?" Maria said.

"I caught Bo in bed with Marsha last weekend," Kim said in a
subdued voice.

"Kim, I am so sorry..." Maria began.

"Don't be. If he would do that to me I don't need him. I'm
sorry I haven't been around all week, but you are so in love
and it hurt to see someone so happy when I was so down,"

Maria thought carefully. What did one say here? Offer
condolences? Condemn Bo or rant about what a cunt Marsha
was? Just offer quiet support maybe? Maria decided on humor,
which was one thing Kim usually responded to.

"Maybe you should think about getting a girlfriend," Maria
said smiling.

"Maybe I should," the blonde girl said with a smile. The
rest of the trip they talked a lot and by the time they
reached Centerville they were both laughing and happy. They
stabled the horses and parked the truck behind the motel
they were staying at. Kim didn't want to be alone and
truthfully neither did Maria, so they both crashed in
Maria's room. They sat up all night drinking coke, eating
junk food, watching bad movies and talking about things.

"I think I just need to get away," Kim said as they were
both drifting of to sleep.

"Why not take a trip up to aspen to see you grandparents?"
Maria suggested. She had visited once with Kim when they
were younger and the scenery still impressed her years
later.

"That sounds like a plan," Kim said.

When morning came they dressed and dropped the trailer then
rode over to the Ag building for the competition. Maria was
a little disappointed when she didn't see Conn's bike
anywhere, but didn't really have time to worry about it. The
competition began badly for her when Marsha posted a time of
16:034. Kim wasn't herself and knocked over a barrel.

Maria was standing next to Mrs. Cannon, the riding team
faculty advisor when Kim knocked the barrel over.

"Well, that's bad for Miss Hall," she said.

"Why?' Maria asked.

"She and Miss Tucker were neck and neck in points for team
captain next season. Miss Tucker has to win today and Miss
Hall has to not place. I am actually sorry, between us
chickens I think a lot more of Kim than I do of Miss
Tucker,"

"Does Marsha have to win, or just place?" Maria asked.

"She has to win. If she takes second even she will not over
take Miss Hall," Mrs. Cannon said. Maria thought about it as
she got Blue ready and lead the small horse out of his
stall. As she was leading Blue to the starting gate she
passed Marsha who was all over Bo. It was all she could do
to keep from spitting in her smug face and she knew suddenly
she was going to have to beat this bitch.

She climbed on Blue's back and whispered to the little
horse. She told him how important it was to her that Marsha
not win. How she just had to win so Kim would stay captain.
The little horse seemed to understand and when the bell
sounded Blue thundered across the threshold. Maria leaned
way over and took him left, cutting the first barrel so
tightly she felt it against her leg. Blue was going all out
and she barely had time to lean in as he made the sharpest
right cut Maria had ever seen him make. Her leg again
brushed the barrel and then it was a hard sprint for the
last barrel. Blue took this one so sharply that Maria felt
like her hair was dragging the floor of the dirt arena. The
little horse shot into the straightaway and was flying when
he crossed the sensors and the clock stopped. Maria had to
rein him in hard to keep from hitting the wall at the back
of the starting area.

She was breathing hard and her muscles were twitching
beneath her clothes, but she nearly shouted when the
announcement came over the pa.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, your winner today, Maria Gonzalez
with a time of sixteen point oh-two-two seconds,"

Kim ran up and hugged her. Something passed between them, a
silent acknowledgement that Maria had won it for Kim and an
equally silent out pouring of thanks. Suddenly she was
surrounded by her friends. Curt was there and wrapped her up
in a big hug and Carlos smiled and hugged her too. There
were many others and the congratulations felt wonderful, but
nothing felt quite as good as the sour look on Marsha's
face. Maria was ecstatic, but she didn't see Conn anywhere.
Eventually when the congratulations petered out Curt pulled
her aside.

"Sis, I have some bad news," he said.

"What is it?"

"Connie took a bad spill over at Groatansville,"

"How bad?" Maria said her voice quavering.

"This bad," a familiar voice called. Maria spun and her
mouth fell open. Connie was standing there on crutches. Her
left leg was in an air cast from the knee down and her pants
leg was split to go over it. Her left arm was also in a cast
from the shoulder down. Both of her eyes were black and
blue, her nose was twice its normal size and her upper lip
was busted. Beneath her hat Maria could see that her head
was also bandaged. Maria ran to her, but stopped before
throwing her arms around her.

"What happened?"

"Tilt-a-Whirl," she said with a shrug. She looked awful, but
her smile made Maria's heart leap. She reached out and
gently stroked the taller girl's cheek.

"Can I hug you?"

"Just don't squeeze to hard," she said. Maria hugged her
gently and Conn hugged back with her good arm. They kissed,
but it was just a peck, Maria was afraid to even touch her
right now. Curt came up and smiled at them.

"I'll get Blue loaded up while you get your stuff sis. Kim
is going to grab your trophy for you and catch a ride back
with Carlos,"

"Where are we going?"

"Home," he said easily, "I called mom and dad from the
hospital, they said it would be fine if CR stayed with
us till she recovered," he said winking.

"Curt, load up Gentleman too please," Maria said. He looked
at her quizzically, but nodded and turned on his heel.

During the ride back Connie dozed with her head on Maria's
shoulder. The painkillers made her drowsy and before they
had been on the road twenty minutes she was sound asleep. As
excited as Maria was about having her girlfriend with her,
she was more concerned about her welfare and so let her
sleep.

"Was it bad Curt?" Maria asked quietly when she was sure
Conn was asleep.

"I've seen worse, but I am glad you weren't there," he said
staring fixedly ahead. It bothered Maria that he didn't face
her.

"She looked bad before they cleaned up the blood and mud,"
he said seriously. Maria looked lovingly at the head resting
fitfully on her shoulder. In her mind she saw that beautiful
body crushed under the weight of a plunging bull and felt
sick to her stomach.

"I'm not sure I can deal with this," she said in a whisper.

"Sure you can sis. She's a good rider, a damned good rider,
she just took a bad spill. It happens. I think she may make
it onto the professional circuit soon. She was good before
you two hooked up, but now. Now she has something to ride
for besides herself and it shows. She scored 86 at Collier
and took third place. I know you don't want to hear advice
from your older brother, but I've spent a lot of time with
her. She'll take good care of you sis, I've never seen
anyone more in love. I mean, she scores an 86 in her first
pro ride, takes third place and all she talked about the
whole blessed evening was you. She has plans for her life
and she's going somewhere, not like the rest of the bums we
hang out with. She's been on her own a long time now and you
mean so much to her. She's tough and she's stubborn, but
she'll never hurt you," he said. The words came with
hesitation here and there, but Maria could not mistake the
honesty with which they were spoken.

By the time they got home and got the horses taken care of
it was approaching dark. As they pulled up in the driveway
Maria gently shook Conn awake.

"We're home baby," she said in a hushed voice.

"Home?" Conn said sleepily, as if the word were alien to
her. They helped her out of the truck and as they approached
the front door Curt suddenly pushed Maria away from Connie
and put his arm around the girl. Both of them were staring
at him when the door opened and her mother stepped out onto
the porch.

"Hey ma, this is CR," Curt said a bit too loudly.

"Good gracious, get the poor thing inside, dinner is almost
ready. I haven't cleaned out the guest bedroom yet," their
mother said.

"That's all right, she can sleep in my room with me," Curt
said, squeezing Connie's waist and kissing her cheek. The
lanky butch was staring daggers at him and Maria wondered
what he was up to.

"I don't think so. Maria, it won't bother you if she shares
your room for a few nights will it?" her mother asked.

"No, that's fine mom," Maria said, trying not to grin when
Curt winked at her. Connie was groggy and they decided to
just take her straight to bed. Curt helped her into the room
and stayed with her a while before coming out and joining
the family in the dining room. Maria sat up with her folks
and Curt for a while and then yawned conspicuously.

"I'm going to bed,' she said as she stood up.

"Good night dear," her father said and hugged her.

"Try not to wake that poor child Maria," her mother
admonished. Curt grinned at her and Maria blushed as she
made her way down the hall. Conn was lying in her bed with
her head propped up and her body covered with a comforter.

"I was beginning to think you had forgotten about me," she
said with a smile.

"Never," Maria said. As soon as the door was closed and
locked Connie whipped the blanket off to reveal she was
naked and wearing her strapon.

"I'm sorry, but for the time being at least I won't be able
to show you how I got so good, you will just have to show me
how well you ride," she said and smiled. Maria was torn
between her lust and the frightful condition Conn was in.
Seeing her naked really brought home to Maria just how bad
the spill must have been. On her thigh was and angry bluish
green bruise that stretched from the top of the cast to well
over her hip. There was a tear along her flat tummy that
showed signs of having been stitched up and even her good
arm was covered in bruises and barely healed cuts.

"I've seen that look before. You're wondering now what you
have gotten yourself into and if the next one won't kill
me,"

Maria came over and sat on the edge of the bed. She wanted
to say something comforting, but all her mind could see was
a huge bull trampling her lover and it frightened her.

"Why?" Maria finally asked.

"Because I love it, I guess. I know it's dangerous, I think
I may have even started hoping something bad would happen to
put me out of my misery. For a long time I couldn't accept
who and what I was. I found out I was good at it and came to
take pride in my ability, but always the danger provides the
real thrill,"

"I can't love someone with a deathwish!" Maria said, shaking
her head violently. Conn sat up painfully and caught Maria's
shoulder with her good arm. Their eyes locked and the bull
rider spoke. She was hesitant at first, but became more
confident as she went on.

"I don't have a deathwish...At least I don't any more. I had
always imagined it, going down under a bull and just
watching as it trampled the life out of me, but I swear to
you Maria, when I went down my only thought was of you. I
had to get out of his way, not for me, but because I had to
get back to you. When my life flashed before my eyes the
only thing in it worth a damn was you. I love you,"

There it was. The final piece in the mosaic that was loving
Conn. Nights spent alone with just her imagination and
fingers, days filled with the lurking fear of serious injury
or god forbid even death, and only the fleeting time between
shows to share. No sane woman was going to sign up for that.
Add to it the fact that it was a lesbian relationship and
all the hardships that would create and an interracial
lesbian relationship at that. How would she tell her folks?
What would father Contrares say? A million other what-ifs
flooded her mind.

She looked at Conn again and felt the love for her rise up
to battle the what-ifs. The internal struggle was so fierce
Maria uttered a prayer unconsciously.

"Mary Please," she whispered and then glanced at the
Madonnas on her dresser. At that moment Conn placed her good
hand in Maria's and a car passed by the house. The
headlights illuminated the small statue and the soft
features of the Virgin were cast in relief. It seemed to
Maria that the statue was smiling at her and a sudden peace
filled her, stilling all the voices. She knew then, knew
that it was all right and that things would be fine. She
pulled Conn's hand to her face and brushed the back of the
cowgirl's knuckles with her lips.

"I love you too,' Maria said as she gazed into Conn's eyes.
She saw a slight blush rise to the cowgirl's cheeks and her
gray eyes blazed with happiness.

"Let's fuck," Conn said with a grin. It didn't bother her
anymore that her lover seemed fixated on sex. That blush had
told Maria far more than the cowgirl could ever realize. For
all her bluff bravado, brashness and confidence, Maria
realized Connie was nervous about being in love. The
constant reference to sex was her way of trying to cope with
it. She felt this was probably the first time the lean
cowgirl had ever been in love and Maria thought it was
probably her first time too.

"No way," Maria giggled.

"Awww, come on. I have been dreaming about you for two weeks
now," Conn said as she struggled to pull Maria to her with
just her good arm.

"I'm afraid to even touch you," Maria said.

"Don't be," Conn said smiling.

Maria rose and slowly unbuttoned her top. She kept her eyes
on Conn's face and the cowgirl's eyes never left Maria's
fingers as they slowly undid the buttons. Maria finished but
didn't pull the shirt aside, instead she undid the belt she
wore and unbuttoned and unzipped her fly. She knew that Conn
would be able to see that her bra was red and so were her
panties, but that was all. Continuing to move slowly she
stepped out of her boots and pulled the clip from her hair
letting it spill down her shoulders.

"God," Conn moaned softly. That expression brought a smile
to Maria's lips.

Maria hesitated and then slowly removed her blouse, exposing
her shoulders, tummy and the racy red bra. Conn's good hand
slid down to her strapon and began to stroke it, pushing it
hard against her mound. Maria noticed that even the
cowgirl's larger hand wasn't able to close all the way
around it. Maria tossed her shirt away, perhaps
unconsciously it landed on her dresser and covered the small
statue of the Virgin.

Maria licked her lips and peeled off her jeans, stepping out
of them she approached the foot of the bed. Even with the
casts and bruises she felt herself growing unbearably
aroused. Conn looked so good and Maria had been waiting for
it for over two weeks now. A month ago sex was a take it or
leave it thing, now her body hungered for it in a way she
would never have been able to imagine.

"Loose the panties and mount up," Conn said in a voice thick
with desire.

Maria hooked her fingers into her panties and pulled them
down her smooth legs, exposing her thick black pubic
triangle to the injured cowgirl's hungry eyes. She then
carefully climbed onto the bed, straddling Conn's legs and
finally coming to rest with her ass on the cowgirl's thighs.
Conn winced in pain and Maria immediately pushed herself up
on her knees again.

"This just isn't going to work," the little barrel rider
said ruefully.

"The hell it ain't," Conn grunted as her good hand went to
Maria's hip.

"You can't even take my weight on your legs without
grimacing, I am not going to enjoy it at all if I know its
hurting you," Maria protested.

"I've been dreaming about getting back in your pants since
Austin. Come hell or high water someone in this room is
getting fucked tonight and it damn sure isn't me," Conn said
stridently. Maria frowned and glanced at the door fearfully.
The lanky cowgirl smiled and her voice softened perceptibly.

"It's o.k. baby. My thigh smarts some, but it isn't bad and
my hips are fine. I really want to make love to you, but if
you are going to be worried the whole time about hurting me
then there's no point,"

"I'm willing to try, but I don't want to hurt you,"

"Baby, sleeping all night with you and not making love will
hurt a lot more than a little pain," Conn said. Maria nodded
and looked down at the imposing dildo again. She carefully
moved her knees up until she was poised over the big dong.
Conn held the base of it steadily and gave her an
encouraging smile.

Maria's hand grasped the big dong and she felt a shudder run
through her. She knew it would fit, in fact she knew if felt
incredible, but she was still a little apprehensive. It
seemed so big. She placed the bulbous head at her entrance
and slowly lowered herself onto it. Even without foreplay
she was excited and her nether lips were already slick with
her juices. The head had only slipped about halfway into her
when the ring of muscles at her entrance contracted around
it.

"Go easy baby," Conn whispered. Maria nodded silently and
closed her eyes. She unconsciously bit her lower lip,
totally unaware that the expression was driving Conn nuts.

Maria groaned softly when the muscles finally gave and the
thick head sliced into her. She felt so full and stretched
that she just held herself there, her slight frame
shuddering as her inner muscles clamped down on the
intruder. Where it had been painful the first time there was
only pleasure and anticipation now.

Conn moved her hand from the base and ran her fingers gently
through Maria's pubic hair, slowly caressing her mound. Her
fingers slipped deeper into the soft fur and found the top
of Maria's slit. The little barrel rider hissed when she
felt Conn's fingers begin to stroke her lips. She relaxed
slightly and felt the big dildo ease deeper into her cavern.
She suddenly wondered what it looked like. The idea, once it
had taken root in her mind seemed to blot out all else and
she leaned forward, supporting her weight on her arms and
knees and looked down to the juncture of her thighs.

Maria could see the big cock and the lewd way her vaginal
lips were stretched around it. She was stunned to see that
most of the big dildo was still outside, she felt so full
already, but she guessed she only had about two inches of
the actual shaft inside her pussy. Something about it was
extremely fascinating and Maria relaxed her leg muscles
while watching as more of the shaft disappeared into her
pussy. Conn gently pulled her hair aside and Maria realized
that her lover was watching too, which only made it seem
more erotic. More and more of the plastic cock disappeared
until with a satisfied little sigh Maria's mound rested on
Conn's.

For a while she just lay there while Conn gently stroked her
hair. The lanky cowgirl seemed content to wait until Maria
got used to it and Maria just reveled in Conn's nearness and
the nice full sensation the dildo gave her. Conn's body was
hard but her skin was soft and her hands so very gentle.

"Now, show me how my little barrel racer rides," Conn said
eventually.

Maria nodded and straightened up on the big dildo. At first
she just gently rocked her hips, feeling the big dildo
stirring slightly inside her. The motion was slow and gentle
and rubbed her clitoral area against the leather of Connie's
harness. As the gentle rubbing of her clit combined with the
slight movements of the big dildo inside her Maria began to
become more and more aroused. Her hips jogged quicker and
she experimentally raised her body an inch or two and let it
fall back on the big dildo.

Conn grunted and thrust upward with her hips. She couldn't
use her legs for leverage, but she did manage to drive the
cock hard into her little lover. Maria gasped and rode down
hard again producing another grunt from Conn. Maria got it
then, the base of the dildo was seated right over Conn's
clit, each time she rode down on it, it pressed against the
tall cowgirls clitoral area. The harder she rode down on it,
the better it felt to Conn.

Maria began to rise higher on the cock so she could ride
down harder.  Conn bit her lip and thrust upward as much as
she could. Maria thought back to their first night and
realized Conn hadn't cum, at least she didn't remember the
tall girl having an orgasm. The big cock moving in and out
of her pussy felt wonderful, but Maria realized she was
really in control now. By stopping her downward plunges just
short of making contact with the harness she could hold off
her orgasm while driving Conn towards hers. For her part the
lanky butch tried to thrust upwards to give Maria that
contact. It quickly became a contest of sorts with each girl
fighting off her own orgasm to make her partner cum first.
Conn's free hand seized her breast and began to squeeze.

Maria placed her hands on Conn's breasts and squeezed them
while going wild on the big cock.  It felt incredible
sliding in and out and she knew she couldn't hold back too
much longer. She looked down to find Conn's face contorted
with pleasure. The tall butch was fighting off her orgasm,
but Maria felt sure she could drive Conn over the edge
before her own control slipped. Her hips went wild, smashing
down on the big dildo with all the force she had in her
body.

"Fuck," Conn groaned. Maria almost shouted in triumph when
Conn bit her lip and her tall body shook from head to foot.
Knowing she had brought her lover off Maria let go and with
in a few seconds her own pussy spasmed in delight.

--------

Kim came into the stables just as Maria finished mucking out
Blue's stall. Kim's eyes went immediately to the huge belt
buckle Maria wore. The blonde smiled and shook her head.

"I guess that means your taken now?' she said indicating the
buckle. It was more than just a belt buckle, it was the
buckle Conn had won at the Austin rodeo. Any guy who saw
Maria wearing it would know she was dating a bull rider.
Maria and Conn privately referred to it as her brand.

"Yep, when did you get back?" Maria said smiling. She hadn't
seen Kim in almost two months. Her friend had taken a long
trip to Aspen the day classes had ended. Bo had split with
Marsha, but neither was talking to Maria so she didn't know
if he had tried to patch things up with Kim.

"Yesterday. What's doing this weekend?' Kim said as she
sauntered over to Gent's stall.

"Going to be boring. Everyone is out of town," Maria said as
she leaned against a post and removed her gloves.

"Have you taken good care of Gent? Has she baby? Has Miss
Maria been good to you," Kim said as she nuzzled her beloved
horse and fed him a sugar cube.

"She's been better to that damned horse than she has her own
girlfriend," Connie said as she walked in. Her face was all
healed and she had made them take the casts off as soon as
the bones had knit. She wore her nice boots and a pair of
worn jeans that Maria loved because they showed off her hips
and ass. Her blouse was one of the nicest she owned and she
wore her good hat. She walked up and embraced Maria and as
they kissed her hands slid down to squeeze her ass.

"Jeezus Christ you two, get a room!" Kim said smiling.

"Already have," Conn said, and after breaking the kiss she
stared into Maria's eyes.

"I got us the old Johnson place, signed the papers on it
just this morning," she said with pride showing in her eyes.

Maria smiled again and they kissed deeply. Her arms were
around Conn's neck and she moaned softly when the big
butch's hand gently squeezed her breast. Their own place,
she was so excited. If Kim hadn't been there she would have
dragged her lover over to the hay bail right then and there.
In less than a month she had become a complete sex fiend,
her seemingly insatiable lust moving Conn to complain that
she was going to be too worn out to ride if it kept up.

"Oh come on, that's so unfair. I haven't had sex since Bo
left me!" Kim whined.

"Is that a fact?" Conn said looking at the little blonde.
The expression on her face told them both it was true.

"I told you, you should find a nice girl," Maria said,
smiling wickedly when Conn's hand slipped into the waistband
of her jeans and caressed her ass. Kim looked at them with a
mix of amusement and desire. The look was precious and Maria
was forced to laugh.

"I tried," Kim pouted.

"Come on over to our place tonight," Conn said with a grin,
"My friend Lacy is coming down from Amarillo for the house
warming. She's partial to blondes and she'll put a smile on
your face Ajax won't take off,"

"I will, about seven?" Kim said quickly, surprising them
both.

"Make it eight, we should be done by then," Conn said and
tossed Maria over her shoulder like a sack of feed. This
might be an interesting weekend after all she thought as
Conn carried her out to her bike.

End.