Page 26 of Galaxy Circus Act One

“So what are you saying?” I ask cautiously, bracing myself for the answer.

“Those are the marks of whoever you find yourself attracted to, so long as they return the attraction.”

“The interest has to be mutual for the mark to show?” I need to check, already feeling like my world is about to be rocked.

“Yes,” he says, setting my mind whirling. There are plenty of men that I’ve found attractive so far. If I had to guess, one is the doctor. But who could the other one be?

“Was there anyone in the elevator with you? That's when you felt it, yes?” Eric asks, his eyes still laughing even though he’s calmed down.

“Caspian was in it for a while, but he’s the only one.”

“Well, there you go. It would be safe to assume he’s one of them. I guess he’s not as grumpy as you thought.”

Showing remarkable class and self-control, I very maturely ignore the temptation to make that whole foot/ass situation into reality. Caspian!?

“Well, fuck!”

CASPIAN

The elevator doors close, leaving me with an impression of sexy as fuck Lila wiggling her fingers at me burned into my retinas, and my anger fades away. She really isn't disgusted by me. In fact, if the scent that drifted to my nose as my tentacle caressed her leg is anything to go by, she was turned on. I shake my head when I realize I was so flustered that I got off at the top floor even though I needed to get out on the performers’ level. I push the button to call it back while I contemplate the conundrum that is Lila.

The minute I saw her in the cafeteria that first night, my kraken tried to come out. He smelled her and thoughtmate, but I couldn’t stand the thought of being rejected again. I pushed him down and brought out my asshole self, but she didn't even flinch. Sure, her mouth dropped open, but she’d quicklyrecovered and greeted me like I wasnormal. Then gave back as good as I dished out.

But of course Dylan wormed his way into a seat at the head table. Sure, the guy’s my buddy and we've been performing together for a while now, but he doesn’t hide the fact that he has big goals. And yes, we’ve been lovers on and off for a while now, but it’s nothing serious. I know that my kraken would never consider him a compatible mate, and let’s face it the guy’s a manwhore. I'm certainly not the only person he’s sleeping with. Thankfully, there’s an inoculation for alien STIs.

My mind is a whirl of chaotic thoughts on the ride back down. Once I’m on the right floor, I find Dylan already dressed for the performance.

“Cas! Where have you been? Come on, man, you need to get ready.” He drags me to our dressing room without waiting for me to answer.

He throws himself onto our couch as I pull off my clothes and replace them with the leather pants I wear for the performance. Moving over to the nearby makeup table, I start to apply the show makeup, using a ridiculous amount so that we can be seen from the top rows.

I’m staring off into space as I apply it, only meeting Dylan’s eyes in the mirror after he clears his throat to get my attention. “What's wrong with you? You’re all spacey. Where were you?” I can’t help but roll my eyes at the suspicion in his voice. God, he’s a jealous asshole. He can fuck anything that walks, but the minute I do something out of the ordinary, he assumes there’s something else going on.

“I was talking to Lila in the elevator.” His face wrinkles into a frown, and there’s a flash of his dragon’s presence in his eyes.

“Why? I thought you didn't like her. You certainly were an asshole the first day.”

“Yeah, but that was when I thought she would be repulsed by me. Now that I talked to her again, I don't think she is.” Even to my own ears I sound amazed.

He scoffs. “You don't have a crush on her, do you? Because I think she's a fangbanger. She got all turned on when I was talking about Saxon the other day. You haven't got a chance, bro.”

I narrow my eyes at him, which makes putting on eyeliner a little tricky. “I thought you were all Team Lila. Sure seemed like you liked her too. Why are you being like this? Do you know how long it’s been since the last time someone was genuinely interested in me? She wasn’t scared off, man, or even disgusted. I swear she was actually into it!”

“Maybe, but is she really going to be serious about an eight-legged freak.” His words fucking hurt. That’s the thing about Dylan—he’s so fucking thoughtless with his words. He knows how fucking sensitive I am about being rejected by women. Sometimes I wonder if he does it just to keep me to himself, but then I don't know why he would. He knows that I won't commit to him even if he wanted it.

There’s a loud knock on the door, distracting me from our conversation, thank god. I call out for whoever it is to come in before finishing applying my makeup.

When it opens, Magenta walks in. “Hey, guys. How’s it going? You ready yet?”

The pretty Skarrian drops down on the couch next to Dylan, already dressed in her costume even though her face isn't made up yet.

“Hey, babe, how are you?” Dylan pats her on the leg and turns the charm back up, but she curls a lip up at him.

“Eww, don’t touch me! I don't know where your hands have been,” she jokes, pushing his hand off her knee, but I see Dylan's eyes flash reptilian. I don’t know if it was her comment orpushing him off her leg, but something about that interaction genuinely bothered him.”

“Yup.” I stand up and grab a bottle of oil. “Just got to rub this in then I’m good to go.”

She rubs her hands together. “Whoop, this is my favorite part!” She leans back to enjoy the show, and I roll my eyes. Magenta has never been disgusted by me, but we also friendzoned each other very quickly. She’s like the sister I never had, which is actually nice.