Page 94 of Galaxy Circus Act One

“For fuck’s sake, Tirrian, she is Skarrian. You know they are polyamorous. I dare you to call the Adams brothers’ wife a whore for having three mates. What do you think would happen to you?” Silac points out, and Tirrian flinches.

Ah, so the dragon isn’t a complete idiot. He knows the importance of the Galaxy Circus to the federation. He just needs to wrap his head around the fact that Lila is a part of that family too.

“Look, why don’t I show you to the ring, and we can discuss the logistics of the act? We need you to get up to speed before the next show. Your luggage will be delivered to our room where you will stay tonight while we arrange for more permanent accommodations.”

“That sounds great.” Silac jumps on the distraction, and I gesture in the direction we’re going. Tirrian just grunts and crosses his arms, but he joins us. His black wings, which have a slight pink shimmer, tuck tightly against his back.

“I’ll show you to the uniform office so you can grab some. We tend to wear the standard issue jumpsuits while on duty and rehearsing, and there is a costume for performances. You will have a few more duties other than just the show, since we tendto hold dual roles. I work with the security team, as did Dylan, if needed, so you will probably just jump into that role too, but to be honest, there hasn’t been much need for security, apart from the incident with Dylan. Mostly it’s if we get detainees or deportees from any of the planets we visit. The ship and its crew all mostly get along,” I explain, though at the moment, the ship is in the most upheaval it’s ever been. The Vilaxians are not getting along with one another, Xavier is sick of his harem, and the lightning cats are fighting like, well, cats. I’m sure if I mention that though, Tirrian will probably place the blame on Lila, but all of that was happening before she even arrived. The next few months will prove interesting, that’s for sure.

“My cousin said you used excessive force to subdue him and then threw him in the brig where he was denied food and representation,” Tirrian snaps, and I roll my eyes.

“Excessive force? Your cousin was restrained when he tried to attack the Adams’ granddaughter, and Link, our cyborg doctor, quickly and calmly incapacitated him with one squeeze of his shoulder. Whatever Dylan told you, he lied. He was put in a cell because he tried to shift in our living quarters and eat Lila. He was let out the next morning and put on a transport. I guess the first thing he did was call you and make up a big story.”

I’ve had enough now. The dragon is getting on my very last nerve. I turn around with my hands on my hips and a glare on my face as I stare down the belligerent dragon. “Look, Tirrian, you have two choices. Either get the fuck over yourself and actually make an effort to fit in around here, or hold an unfounded grudge against Lila and go the same way as Dylan, on the next transport back to Fluxx. What do you think your father will say if you damage the relationship between Fluxx and the Galaxy Circus?”

More smoke drifts out of his nose, but I see him swallow whatever he wanted to say next, and he gives me a nod. “Fine,but I will be watching closely. If there is any hint that she deliberately destroyed my cousin’s reputation and standing with my father, then I won’t hesitate to ask for reparations.”

I shake my head sadly at the stubborn shifter. “You do you, bro, but I think you’ll end up regretting your behavior.”

I lead them to the elevator and down to the circus pod where I show them around the ring and explain the current act without any more arguments. Tirrian is surprisingly cooperative and has some suggestions about making the act better.

Dylan was the one who orchestrated the original one. I thought we could be more creative, but he didn’t want to hear my ideas. Between Silac, Tirrian, and myself, we come up with a show that’s going to be really exciting—a mock fight between Silac’s naga and Tirrian’s dragon. We discuss involving the audience, but I shoot that idea down. The humans can’t be allowed to get too close to any of us in shifted form. They think it’s all animatronics, holographics, and costumes.

“What if we plant a crew member in the audience and use them?” Silac suggests.

“That’s a good idea. It could still look like we were having audience participation without risking the circus’s secret. Lila would probably do it. I’ll discuss it with the Adams brothers and see what they think. Come on. I don’t know about you two, but I’m hungry. Let me give you a tour of the rest of the ship and grab some food, then I’ll take you to our rooms. Lila is staying with Link tonight, so I’ll introduce you to her tomorrow,” I tell them, kind of thankful she won’t be there.

Hopefully by the time Tirrian meets her, he will have let go of some of his resentment, especially if he can ask around about Dylan and discover he isn’t the dragon he thought he was. Hell, I could tell Tirrian exactly that, but he won’t believe anything that comes from me. He’s going to have to hear it from others, but I’ll make sure that he talks to the right people. Magenta will be theperson to introduce him to. She won’t care who he is to Dylan or the fact that he’s the crown prince. She’ll tell it to him straight, that Dylan was a grade A asshole and deserved everything he got. Whether he believes her or not will remain to be seen, but for now, he either has to get with the program or return to Fluxx with his tail tucked between his legs. I wonder what he’s going to choose.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Lila

Link drops that bomb, making me responsible for Saxon’s life. Holy fuck! How fucking cruel can this universe be?

“He can no longer take blood from another being until he seals the bond with you. It’s considered cheating, and their bodies will reject it until his connection with his blood rose is secure.”

I remain silent while I consider my alternatives. Not that there is anything to consider now that I know he will die. There’s no way I’m going to let that happen, but it feels so sudden. Sure, the man’s sexy as fuck, but apart from that, I know nothing other than he held my hair back when I puked from motion sickness. I mean, that was kind, right? Especially with his enhanced senses.

I’m still warring with my thoughts when Link stands up and holds out his hand. “Come on, you don’t need to make a decision today. Remember, I have him sedated in my clinic, and I can sustain him intravenously until you make a choice. His body won’t reject that, so we can keep him out for a couple of days.”

“I’ll need to talk to Caspian, and of course I want your opinion too,” I tell him, and he blinks, seeming shocked. “Link, you and I are seeing where this relationship might take us. Unlike Caspian or Saxon, I guess, we have the luxury of it happening naturally without it being forced on me, and I can’t tell you how much that relieves me. Of course I want to ask your opinion on anyone else I might be sleeping with or marrying, so to speak.”

He yanks me into his arms and hugs me tightly. “Thank you, Lila. I didn’t actually really think I had any chance with you with all these magical matings. Why would you want someone as boring as me?”

I pull away but grab his shirt, fisting the fabric as his hands fall to my hips. “Oh, Link, you are anything but boring to me. Come on, let me bury my head back in the sand for another twelve hours. I’ll worry about Saxon in the morning. Right now, I want to see what your dance moves are like.”

And a few other moves… in bed.

Patience, Lila. Patience.

He grabs my hand and twirls me under his arm before dipping me. “Let me tell you, Lila, my dance moves are on point. My programming won’t let me be anything but perfect. I know how to seduce you with my moves, so are you sure you’re ready for me to bring the heat?” His eyes twinkle with amusement, and I feel all my lady bits squeal with excitement.

“I can’t wait for you to show me what you’ve got,” I purr suggestively, and when the amusement in his silver eyes changes to a hot smolder, I know my night is about to get exciting.

I’m sweaty and breathless and horny as fuck after we spend a couple of hours drinking and dancing. Link introduced me to a few people who came over and talked to him earlier, but he didn’t encourage them to stick around.

I can see Magenta on the opposite side of the dance floor, but she’s dancing with a tall, athletically built woman, and it looks like it might be getting hot and heavy. They have their arms wrapped around each other, and the taller woman’s leg is between Magenta’s. She’s so engrossed, she doesn’t even notice me.