Ovation (Galaxy Circus #9)

Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

Lila

S he shrugs.

“Can’t a girl be happy with her own company?”

“A girl can, but not you,” I retort, and she sighs.

“I’m feeling a little less enamored with being a Skarrian than I usually am. Seeing you with all your mates makes me want the same thing. Playing the field is getting a little tiring.”

“So what are you going to do about it?”

She grimaces. “I kind of thought I had something good here on the ship, but it turns out I was the only person who thought that. None of them have returned. I guess they were only having a bit of fun. Serves me right for getting attached.”

“Are you talking about Nixie, Velorina, and Hale?”

She nods.

“Nixie couldn’t really help it. She’s now crown princess of Aquila, and her mother is a fucking sea snake who’s no better than that slug of a father, and has recently imprisoned her. As for the Vilaxians, they are probably going to join us when we stop there on the way.”

“They’ve been dodging my calls. I went to Vilax for a few days to hang out with them, but they were busy with that clan dissolution shit. I spent my time shopping and having spa treatments. Vilaxians have amazing anti-aging spa treatments.”

“Well, okay, but there are plenty of other fish in the sea. Two of those shifters for example.” I gesture back the way we came.

“Yeah, I’m not sure. If they want me, then they are going to have to do the pursuing. I think maybe I’m just too easy. I need to make them work harder.”

I spot someone I recognize and pull Magenta to a stop. “Connor? What are you doing here?” Mags gasps and shuffles behind me. That’s weird.

The Skarrian dino keeper smiles at me. “Hello, Lila. With all the mini steggies joining the show, a keeper was needed, so I volunteered. I always wanted to do some traveling.” He eyes Magenta behind me with an amused look. “Hello, Mags. It’s been a while. You’re looking gorgeous, as usual.”

She clears her throat and steps from behind me before giving him an awkward wave. “Hi, Connor. Can’t talk, we need to be somewhere. See you around.” She practically drags me away.

“An ex?” I ask her, and she groans softly. “Yes, you could say that. That man has a talented tongue, but he was as free with his love as I was. I can hardly hold a grudge for his wandering eye, but when it’s on me, I prefer for it to stay focused and not drift. He was seeing a couple of other people at the same time as me, which I wouldn’t have minded if I was invited to join the fun, but I wasn’t, so I walked away.”

“How does that work? If you’ve already slept with him before, do the five times reset after a certain period of time, or do the times you’ve already banged count?”

She giggles. “Lila, you are so fixated on the five times rule. You do know it’s five mutual orgasms, right? As long as you don’t come at the same time, you can bang as much as you like without sealing the mating bond.”

I stop suddenly and gape at her. “Seriously?”

She stops giggling, and her expression turn serious. “Did you really think it was five times period?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, honey.” She tugs me, and I start walking again. “As long as you don’t come together, you’re fine. They could pull out once you orgasmed and come all over your body, which is one of my favorite ways to avoid sealing the bond. It also keeps my skin silky smooth.”

“Well shit. The grandpas weren’t all that clear about it. I guess I don’t blame them.” I wrinkle my nose at the thought of having to explain it to my grandchildren. It’s going to be bad enough giving my own kids the birds and bees talk. Thankfully, most of them will take after their fathers and won’t need to hear the Skarrian version of it.

“I guess it’s a little too late now anyway. I’m mostly sealed to all of them now except Brannock.”

She shudders slightly. “I completely understand why you haven’t done that one. Sex with an Aaz’axian sounds brutal.” She, of course, hounded me for the details, and I took such glee in her pale face while I gave her all the gory facts. Serves her right for being nosy.

We make it to the front of the room. Echo and Maxsim followed us the whole time, but they stayed quiet, allowing Mags and me to talk uninterrupted. They join my grandpas and other mates on the raised platform. The children are being watched by their nanny and bodyguard. We really have to get another one, or we’re going to cause Kinga to run off, or maybe stumble away sobbing with exhaustion.

Magenta leaves me and grabs a seat off to the side as I join my family. My nerves are starting to sing. What happens if the performers and crew aren’t happy with the changes? Are we even going to have a circus after this next announcement? I look around the room and notice there are a lot of smiling, happy faces and very few grumpy ones, which is a relief.

I see Aura and their family sitting in the back, and they give me a little finger wave. I really haven’t had a chance to get to know them. Maybe it isn’t such a bad thing if there is animosity between them and my besties.

Susie and Mark are at a table on the opposite side of the room. Mark has his beautiful Celestian wings on display, and Susie is snuggled up next to him. Susie is my ride or die, and I will take her side every single day. Sitting with them is another blindingly attractive Celestian whom I don’t recognize. The three of them seem to be deep in conversation and haven’t noticed my arrival yet. The man is the very definition of golden—golden skin, long golden locks tied back at the nape of his neck, and even some kind of golden gladiator outfit that I noticed was popular on Celestia. He looks like a golden archangel warrior from an Earth religion.

“Who is that with Mark and Susie?” I ask my family, hoping one of them knows the answer.

“That is Mark’s guardian angel that his parents insisted on sending along with him. Being the crown prince of Celestia comes with responsibilities that are chafing him.” Xavier sounds amused. “But he is new to his power, and his parents don’t want to lose him again. Aarin is a general in the Celestian army and has been instructed to protect him with his life.”

It looks like the conversation turns heated. Susie watches on with wide eyes as Mark and Aarin argue, and eventually, Mark throws his hands up in exasperation. Aarin remains calm the whole time and has an expression of extreme satisfaction on his face. I’m guessing Mark lost that argument. The golden angel turns his attention to the front of the room, and I meet his eyes. He gives me a nod before his attention keeps moving, but then it stops dead. His eyes widen, and he sits up straight, mouthing words I can’t make out. I watch as he goes to stand, but a throat clearing next to me draws my attention away from the surprised Celestian.

“If I could have your attention please?” William amplifies his voice to address the loud, overcrowded dining room. The noise slowly settles as everyone turns their attention to us.

“Welcome back! We are so pleased you could all join us once more, and we hope you enjoyed your impromptu vacation.”

“Once again, we thank you for your patience while we dealt with a number of personal matters. As you can see, John is back and fighting fit again.” Eric waves his hand at his brother, and the crowd cheers and claps. Although we tried to keep his condition quiet, it’s not easy on a ship as big as this one, and word got out. He is well loved amongst our staff, and everyone was very worried.

“Thank you.” My most humble grandfather blushes at the reaction and gives a nod of thanks before clearing his throat. “But as you are probably aware, we are ready to get underway again. The ship has been fully stocked, and the crew and performers are mostly all here apart from a couple of new acts who should arrive and board overnight, which means we will be leaving as soon as possible tomorrow morning.”

There are more cheers and foot stamping from the enthusiastic crowd.

“We hope you make all the newcomers feel welcome. Things will need to change a bit, but we will keep everyone updated on the ship-wide news service and will arrange for rehearsal time as well during our trip to Earth,” William informs everyone. “As you all know, we changed our policy regarding families on the ship, and we now welcome everyone to travel with theirs if they wish to. Many of you put in requests for family accommodations, and we have allocated you new rooms if this was the case. We welcome them all and look forward to meeting each and every one of them. New facilities such as play areas and school rooms have also been allocated, and an information packet is available for anyone who requires it. Depending on how many children there are, we may need to hire some more teaching staff, but that will happen as needed. If anyone has any questions, please address them to Lila’s mates Ghosie and Zeydan. Both of them have kindly offered to run this program.”

This last announcement causes a small amount of muttering amongst the crowd. I’m not sure if it’s because Ghosie is a carevasta bear and they don’t have the best reputation, or the fact that the rumor that Zeydan is one of the original gods is doing the rounds. We haven’t confirmed or denied anything, since it’s no one’s business.

“I think the fact that I trust both of these males with my five children should speak volumes to you, but we are not a dictatorship, and we welcome constructive criticism, but it better be valid,” Xavier calls out, his mist shrouded body shimmering with enough agitation to stop the muttering in its tracks. It’s weird seeing him like that, since he hasn’t worn it for a long time. I don’t know how I feel about it. I know he thinks it intimidates people, and he isn’t wrong, but I think seeing his real form would do the same. He claims he’s too pretty to be intimidating though. That made me roll my eyes.

“Please bring any of your concerns to the warlock. He will hear you. Moving on.” Eric is smirking, knowing full well no one will speak to Xavier. “We have one final announcement. William, John, and I are retiring.” The murmurs start up again, but he holds up his hands. “I’m sure you have all heard by now that our wife has been found, and we have made the unanimous decision to spend as much time reconnecting with her as we can. That means we will not have time to split our attention with the circus, but we are very happy to announce we are turning its responsibilities and leadership over to our very capable granddaughter and her twelve mates.” He waves at the thirteen of us with a game show worthy flourish.

“Lila will now be your ringmaster and boss, and we hope you will give her the respect and courtesy you have always shown us,” William growls as stunned silence fills the room. It’s kind of awkward, and I resist the urge to fidget.

“Woo, yeah! Congratulations,” Malik shouts and starts clapping, with Thorn and Titus quickly taking up the call, followed by their other buddies who are all from Cas’s first act. This quickly spreads, and the applause is thunderous. I’m not sure how sincere it is, and I am certain there will be a number of hiccups as we find our way, but I have hope that this is all going to work out.

“Speech,” I hear someone shout, and I glare at Susie who just gives me a wink.

A hand on my back gives me a little shove forward. I’m not sure which of my mates did it, but I will find out and make them pay. I wipe my sweaty palms on my pants and wave.

“Uh, hi. I can’t tell you how proud I am to be a part of the great Galaxy Circus legacy, and I look forward to trying my best to fill my grandfathers’ very big shoes. It won’t be easy, but I hope you help make this transition smooth. Please feel free to approach any of us if you have any questions or suggestions as we take this new step forward.”

The meeting breaks up not long after that with food and alcohol flowing, turning it into an impromptu retirement party for the grandpas. They are surrounded by cast and crew alike, so I leave them be. I decide to join Mark and Susie at their table. I want to grill her since I haven’t had a chance to yet, so I look around to tell my mates, but all of them have been dragged away and are being monopolized by other people. I shrug my shoulders in defeat, knowing they will find me when they can, then I head toward my friend’s table, hoping I can order something to eat and drink as well. It’s been a long ass day, and with everything I learned from Gigi, I haven’t felt like eating until now.

Before I can get there, I’m waylaid again. I’m starting to get annoyed, but that disappears when I see who it is. “Zala!” I cry out and throw my arms around her. She stiffens, but I don’t let her pull away, and eventually, she relaxes and returns my hug.

“Hello, Lila. Congratulations on the promotion.”

I pull back and study her, but she doesn’t look surprised.

“Did Zamala see something?” I ask, and she just smiles mysteriously. She’s obviously been taking lessons from her grandmother, but then the smile drops, and she frowns. “Is everything okay?” I ask, butterflies starting in my stomach. “Did you bring Shiny? Is he okay?”

I can’t wait to see my larnuk again. I’ve been missing him something fierce, even if we only just bonded.

“Yes, Shiny is with my animals. He’s a mischievous boy,” she tells me with a small grin. “But I have some rather disturbing news. We’re not quite sure how, but Zilla has escaped her imprisonment and disappeared.”

“She what?” a gruff voice grumbles behind me. “How did this happen?” Tirrian wraps an arm around my waist, and I snuggle into him. Who would have guessed that the asshole would be so touchy-feely? I’m not complaining though.

“We’re not sure, but I’m assuming she had some help.”

“Zamala couldn’t give you any insight?” my mate snaps, and I pinch him.

“Hey, it’s not Zala or Zamala’s fault.”

“I’m sorry, you’re right, but it doesn’t mean I can’t be pissed.” He presses a kiss to the top of my head.

“I can assure you Father and I are just as pissed. We traced her to the spaceport, but she obviously jumped a transport and went off planet. She could be anywhere now. She wasn’t doing well. Her bond with her larnuk faded quickly, and she was going through withdrawals. She will need to seek medical intervention.”

“Or drugs,” Tirrian says wryly, and I frown, not understanding what he means.

“Rilunese who end up with severed larnuk bonds often resort to recreational drugs to ease the symptoms and end up addicted to something else. Suva is often used, and while it isn’t addictive, they mix it with numerous other synthetic compounds to extend the effect, and that’s what makes it dangerous,” Zala explains. “Father has put out a galaxy-wide bounty on her, so she shouldn’t get very far.”

“Well, she isn’t on this ship, and that’s all that matters.” I brush off their concerns, because I have enough problems to worry about without adding Zilla to the list. She’s someone else’s problem now. “I’ll come and visit Shiny as soon as I can,” I promise the larnuk mistress, then I say my goodbyes before heading in Susie’s direction again.

Tirrian stays behind. I’m sure he will grill her for more information, and I’m okay with letting him handle that. I have twelve mates, and I need to spread the responsibilities out, otherwise I’m going to be spread too thin and have a nervous breakdown before we even arrive in Earth’s orbit.