Chapter 6

“Why do they allow those sluts into this hotel? It makes a woman feel like she should be ashamed to live in a decent town like this.”

I stopped and squeezed Fiona’s hand. Stepping down off the staircase, I turned to see a very nicely dressed woman looking down her nose at us. She stood her ground, I’ll give her that. I walked towards her and her escort. The two of them had to be in their late thirties. I approached them, pulled out my pistol, and aimed it right between her eyes.

“My fiancé, Fiona,” I said with emphasis, “and I have been shot at twice since I came to this ‘decent’ town. We have been treated poorly by folks like you two, supposed ‘decent’ people, and I am frankly tired of it. Where I come from when someone insults you, you shoot them. So should I shoot you,” I put the barrel of my gun a few inches closer to the woman’s face, “or will you take the bullet for the words that came out of the mouth of this so called ‘decent’ woman?”

With those words, the woman fainted, so I pointed the barrel at the man, who was by her side looking terrified, and said, “It looks like she volunteered you!”

He fainted! I looked at the man at the desk whilst holstering my pistol and said, “Tell them I’ll catch up with them when they feel braver.”

I walked around the small group who had come to their aid and took Fiona’s hand. We calmly walked up the staircase. I think we both stood a little straighter to impress others that we were not to be treated poorly.

It was easy to see the door to our room, it was the only one not stained. The entire door was still bare wood. I put the key in the lock, it turned effortlessly, and opening the door, we headed in for the night.

In the morning, after a rousing bathing and drying session, Fiona and I started downstairs. Fiona was wearing the same shirt as the previous day.

“Fiona, do you want to stop and get a dress to wear around? I mean I don’t mind the dresses you have that allow your teats to flop around, but it seems something more modest would suit you and lead me into less fights.”

“Sure I guess. I mean a dress is a lot easier to lift up in back so I can present myself for our pleasure.”

“Fiona, it doesn’t matter to me. At home you’ll probably walk around naked when the weather’s right. I was just thinking about you and the way people look at you. I don’t want to see the disrespect in their eyes when you walk around in britches or with your goods on display.”

“Don’t worry Mick, I’m not going to embarrass you anymore.”

“Now Fiona, I never said anything about ME being embarrassed to be seen with you. I will NEVER be ashamed or embarrassed to be seen with you. I was seriously not wanting to have to put down more decent people.”

“I understand. The only dress I have is the one you’ve seen and that’s the one I wear to church on Sunday. Everything else was for my job and for showing off my teats. So it’s either my going to meeting dress or the britches and shirts.”

“Wear what you feel comfortable in. I’m a big strong man and I can squeeze your behind through a dress or britches.”

Fiona put on her pants and a flannel shirt. I was in the process of pulling my pants on when she stopped me.

“Let me, please.”

She knelt, took hold of my cock, gently squeezed and kissed it. Then bent it down my right pants leg and tucked it away. She paused for a bit and rubbed her face in my curly hairs before kissing her way up to my face.

“That was fun.”

She stepped back to watch me. I shook my head to wake up from that experience and finished dressing. We opened the door and saw a boy just outside with a can and a paint brush.

“Hi! I was waiting for you to come out so I could stain your door. I’m going to leave the door open while I do it. Do you have anything valuable lying about? I don’t want people to see anything and get ideas.”

“We have all our valuables with us,” Fiona said, smiling up at me after looking over the lump in my right pants leg.

We walked down the stairs and were going to go out to the café but I stopped and turned towards the bat-doors and the saloon. We walked over to the bar and I spoke to the bartender.

“Have you seen Arly Conroy?” I asked.

“He’s out back with Betty,” the barkeep replied.

“Still?”

“Yup, I think maybe you started something,” he said smiling at Fiona.

“Oh no. Don’t blame his actions on me,” she giggled as she looked at me.

“Well, I’m gonna head over to the barber shop. If he comes up for air tell him where he can find me. Please spread the word that Fiona and I are getting married today at four in the church. Anyone who wants can come, if they stay polite.”

“You and Red?” the bartender blurted out. “I meant Fiona. Sorry, I’ve always known her as Red. Well ain’t that something.”

“It is indeed. Well, like I said, I’m going over to the barber shop.”

Fiona put a hand on my arm and turned me towards her.

“I’m going back to the store to pick up a few things I forgot from yesterday. I’ll catch up with you at three at the church. Please be on time.”

“I will. We don’t want the preacher to be angry on our wedding day. I love you.”

“Well at last, you said it in public. I love you too.”

We left the saloon and I turned to the right and walked down the boardwalk. Fiona patted me on the bottom, said “I’ll see you at three”, and turned towards the store.

“Yes ma’am,” I replied with a stallions nicker.

I smiled and nodded to everyone I passed. Some responded some didn’t. When I got to the barber shop I walked in and all the old timers that had been there a couple of days before were there again.

“Well if it ain’t the young fella was asking about the sportin’ girls,” the talkative one declared.

“Howdy gentlemen,” I responded.

“So did you find one to your liking?” he asked.

“I did and this afternoon at four I’m going to marry her over at the church.”

“What?!” Was the reply spoken in varying degrees of volume by all in the shop.

“Yup. And you remember what you told me about the girls with black hair and blond hair and red hair?” I asked the talkative one.

“Yup,” he said.

“I guess I didn’t listen too good. I’m marrying a redhead.”

“Redhead!? You’re marrying Red?”

I smiled at the old man and gently said, “Yes sir, I am. And her name is Fiona.”

“Oh son, there are going to be some very upset men in this town. Are you sure about this? I mean it’s only been a few days.”

“Yup. Kinda hit me like a bolt of lightning. Remember that you said a redhead was like waving a torch over a powder keg?”

“That its gonna blow up, you just don’t know when? Yes sir, young fella. I remember well.”

“Well it blew up. Anyway, if you know of anyone else knows Fiona, you’re all welcome to come to the wedding. Then afterwards we’ll be at the church social.”

Everyone in the shop nodded and one of the old men let out a whoop.

“Now that I’ve invited you,” I said with a slight smile. “Would one of you tell me where the church social is held?”

The general laughter in the shop was polite and involved all.

“You know where the church is,” the old man doing most of the talking said. “Well the social is held in the barn across the street from it

“OK! Thank you. I hope to see y’all there.”

“Before you go,” Buck the barber observed. “You look like you could use a shave.”

I rubbed my chin and realized Buck was correct. I smiled and nodded as he waved his arm towards his chair like he was fighting a bull. I put my hat on the stand near the door and sat in the barber chair. Buck retrieved a hot wet towel and wrapped my face.

“So, are you gonna live here after you get hitched?” Buck asked.

“No, actually, we’re moving to my place back in Wisconsin.”

“That’s a shame. Red has been an angel in this town. She’s the only one of the sportin’ girls that the uppity women in town don’t hate.”

“That’s what I’ve been told. Fiona is of course no longer a sportin’ girl. I had a little talk with a man in the saloon before I came over here. Arly Conroy had to knock him out.”

“Arly?”

“Yup, Arly and I had a disagreement just after I left the barber shop the other day. Today he seems to have become a friend.”

Buck removed the towel and began to smear shaving cream around my face.

“I don’t want to get in trouble with you, but I hear that you shot Bear Nilsson and his woman.”

“Yup. They both started it. Bear drew on me and the woman took a shot at Fiona. I just defended the two of us.”

“What?” one of the old timers said. “You out drew Bear Nilsson?”

“It would seem so.”

The shop got quiet.

“Before anyone says it, I’ve been told his friends are going to come after me. And I’m told that they would follow me back to Wisconsin if Fiona and I just ran. I’m not going to live always looking out for those men to come after me. So the church social might get a little tense. I’m saying this cause you men have been welcoming and I don’t want you or yours getting hurt if the social get wild.”

The shop got quiet again. Buck finished shaving me and applied a new hot towel. I sat there in the quiet of my thoughts, the only sound was the background chatter of the old men. I was feeling relaxed under the hot, wet towel and quietly thinking about the shootings I had to do and the fights I’d had since coming to town. I knew I could take care of myself but I was also going to have to protect Fiona, and maybe Arly ... and maybe even the sheriff, Charlie Fellows.

“Son,” Buck said. “Nobody in this town cares a lick for the people that Bear rode with. But no one in this town is fit to run them off. Once word gets out of what you intend to do, you might find that some of the folks with backbone will stand with you. All of the decent folks in town care for Red and are not going to be happy if it looks like harm might come to her.”

I looked around the shop, raised my hand to my smooth chin and said, “I don’t want anyone to get hurt. I’ve already had to shoot two people protecting Fiona. But I’ll burn down the world to keep her safe.”

“Move your hand, son, I’m not done with you,” Buck instructed.

I put my hand back under the cover he had over me and Buck proceeded to splash some smelly stuff on my face. He then began to rub it in. When he was done my face felt kind of like my funny bone did after a good pop.

When he was finished I stood up and scanned the room again.

“Fellas, I hope to see you at the wedding and the social. Maybe if the place is packed Bears friends won’t start anything. Thanks, Buck,” I said to the barber as I handed him a couple of dollars.

The fresh air felt cool on my face and I walked with a bit of a bounce to my step as I headed back to the hotel to put on some cleaner clothes for the wedding.

At three o’clock I walked into the church and found the Preacher, Jeremy Willis, and Sheriff Charlie Fellows waiting for me.

“And where is my bride to be?” I asked.

“You can’t see her before the wedding,” Charlie responded.

“So what was it I was supposed to see you about Preacher?”

“Sheriff, you go first,” Jeremy instructed.

“Mick, you can’t go to the social in just a shirt and pants. You need a jacket and a tie. You certainly cannot marry a fine woman like Fiona Quinn dressed like you are. So I have taken it upon myself to fix the situation.”

He walked behind the pulpit and returned with a buckskin colored coat. He stood in front of me and held it up checking the size.

“Yup, Jeremy, it looks just right. Come on Mick, try this on.”

I turned and reached behind me as the Sheriff placed the coat so I could get my arms into it. He pulled it up over my shoulders and placed it around me. I lifted my arms and reached forward before moving my shoulders around. The coat fit like it was made for me.

“How does that feel, Mick?” Charlie asked.

“Good! How did you find this? It’s like you knew I was going to be getting married before I did.”

“It was in a trunk left by a man one of Bear’s men shot. I remembered that he was about your size and went looking for it. Now then, one more thing.”

He reached in his pocket and pulled out what we in Wisconsin called a string tie. He lifted my shirt collar and placed the thing around my neck, evened it up and slid a beautiful, oval shaped, stone up until it was almost to my neck.

“This is called a bolo tie and the stone is called amber. I thought it might look good with the jacket and my golly it does.”

“There’s a mirror in my office, Mick. Go and take a look at yourself and see if you think Fiona will still want to have anything to do with you.” Jeremy ordered with a smile.

I walked back to the office and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked respectable. I looked completely different than the man I’d felt like before and after the cattle drive. Before I’d met Fiona. I took off my hat and cleaned off the street dust. Preacher Jeremy walked in behind me.

“What do you think?”

“I think I’m starting to wonder if I’m good enough for her.”

“Good! Please have a seat and let’s talk.”

I took a seat in the chair facing his desk and he took his place.

“That’s one of the things I wanted to talk to you about before the wedding, Mick. It’s good to wonder if you are good enough for her. She’s wondering if she’s good enough for you.”

“She’s more than good enough for me, Preacher.”

“She’s a whore, Mick.”

“She’s not anymore.”

“Will you be able to remember that when times are tough? Will you be able to remember that when men back home look at her and see her beauty and might want a piece of that beauty?”

“Any man who speaks ill of her will have to deal with me.”

“What happens if you two have an argument? Will you reminder her that she’s was just a sportin’ girl?”

“She’s not, Jeremy. She’s not. She’s a fine woman. She’s going to be my wife. What she was, it’s in the past, just like what I was.”

I looked at the preacher like I’d given away a secret.

“I know, Mick. Fiona told me about your family and what you did. All of it. I think you can look on your life with Fiona as a second chance and as a sign that God has forgiven you. He’s sent you an angel from up on high. He’s sent her to help keep you straight and true. And he’s sent you so you can do the same for her.”

We talked some more about my place in Wisconsin and about my hopes for the future, now that I was really going to have one. The time flew by and suddenly I was aware of a commotion outside the office door. Jeremy stood with a smile and said, “I think we have visitors.”

He went to the door and opening it, stuck his head out. He retreated back into his office and looked at me with the biggest smile.

“Mick, you are going to be amazed at this.”

The first thing I thought of was that my bride had arrived and was going to look more beautiful than I could imagine. I stood and walked behind Jeremy to look out the door. I was amazed!

So many people.

I didn’t think that there were this many people in the entire town. But here they were, filling the pews and standing along the sides under the windows and lined up out the doors. The Preacher walked out and held up a hand to me so I wouldn’t follow.

“Please stay here until I come back.”

I did as he asked and several years later, or at least it seemed so, he returned.

“Fiona wants to know if it would bother you to move this ceremony to the social hall across the street? She says that makes sense seeing as how so many have come for the wedding and that’s where everyone is going to end up for the social. What do you say?”

“I say that since this is Fiona’s day that we do what she thinks is best. I learned from my first wife that in situations like this the best thing is to say, “Yes dear”.”

“OK, I’ll go tell her. She said that if you agree that you should give her time to get across the street so you don’t see her before the wedding. It’s an old superstition.”

“I remember. I’ll wait here until someone come to get me.”

He nodded with that smile of his and headed out the door, coming back several minutes later. He stepped to the pulpit and got everyone’s attention.

“Hello my friends. Fiona and Mick are very pleased and surprised at the turn out today. They’ve decided to move the ceremony to the social hall since we’re going to end up there anyway. So if you would please head over there. People waiting in the doorway please go first then the folks standing along the sides of the room and then the people in the pews. Thank you.”