Page 197 of Galaxy Circus Act One

“Is it really that cold down there?” I ask, and Magenta shrugs.

“Colder probably. Iceen is fairly inhospitable. Only the lightning cats and the yalani, as well as some low-level life-forms, live on it. I think their lightning helps regulate their temperature, but they are so damn secretive.”

“Come, I have the perfect outfit for you. It will keep you warm, and you will look fabulous at the same time.” Tynka moves smoothly away from us, and Magenta whispers out of the corner of her mouth.

“Our conversation is not done, just postponed,” she threatens me, and I raise an eyebrow.

“Same. Don’t think I forgot that you didn’t answer my own question either.”

She sighs and rolls her eyes. “Fine. After Iceen, we’ll have a girls’ night. Your mates have been hogging you, and Nixie is dying to see you again. We can invite Susie too, if you want.”

A night with my best friend and my two new ones sounds like heaven to me. “Deal. I’m in, and I promise I’ll tell you what sex with a male Vilaxian is like, because don’t think I didn’t notice the tension between you and Hale too, and the interest the other three had as well.”

“They are only interested in me as a blood source. Vilaxians like Xenos wouldn’t lower themselves to having a fling with another race. Not all of them are as open-minded as Hale and Velorina. Look at how Estrella and Radella reacted to you being Saxon’s blood rose,” she mutters as Tynka stops in front of us, and the conversation ceases.

As Tynka starts to pull clothes out and pass them to me, I think about what I saw high in the rafters. The sexual tension was off the charts, and I think my friend doth protest too much.

But clothes now, sex talk later.

Maxsim

Ihaven’t slept a wink since we arrived at my home planet. I still haven’t been able to get in contact with my mother. Echo called his mother and requested if she could find out where mine is, but we haven’t heard back from her either. I suspect something is amiss and something has happened to them both. It will be up to me to find them.

The ship has been orbiting Iceen for the last eight hours, waiting for the faraway sun to reach the side the landing platform is on. The temperatures are way too frigid for anyone other than lightning cats to venture out before it is up. Long ago, our ancestors made it so that people couldn’t transport directly into a building. There’s a special electrical charge that runs through the cave walls and our home structures that disrupts ateleport beam. This way they have to use the arrival platform and brave the weather on the short walk to the nearest dwelling. We were hoping this would deter most invaders or people with not so honest intentions. Not to mention anyone visiting is a little frosty, so it makes negotiations on our side more favorable because all they want to do is warm up.

Echo and I arrive at the teleporting room ten minutes before we are scheduled to beam down. I know that others will be accompanying us, but I’m surprised by how many when we get there. I thought it would just be William and Eric, but Caspian and Dr. Link are both here, as well as the Earth girl.

She and Link have a quiet, whispered conversation off to the side before he pulls her into his arms and presses a kiss to the top of her head. I wrinkle my nose at the smell that starts to drift over from her. Next to me, Echo whines softly, and I feel a scowl cross my face. That girl is going to be a problem.

“Ah, Maxsim, great. Seems like you have the same idea as us. We just want to get this over and done with,” William addresses us, and Eric and Caspian both wave.

I look around the room. “Where is Natalia?”

“Saxon and Xavier went down to the brig earlier. They were going to release the Aaz’axian Brannock and show him to a spare room. He hasn’t decided where he wants to go yet, so we’ve offered him refuge here for now. It can’t be easy having your life completely upended just because one man in the Earth Alien Alliance is an asshole. I’m sure we can find something for him to do. Anyway, they are going to grab her once they have taken care of him. They should be back any minute,” Eric explains, pushing a couple of buttons on the controller. Officer Kirk is nearby, but I know Eric likes to be hands-on.

The door opens behind Echo and me, and we step away from the doorway, but it’s just Trace, Sim, and Fuse. The other three cats move into the room, and William raises an eyebrow at us.

“Well, have you all decided what you are going to do? Are you going to continue with the circus or stay on Iceen when we leave?” he asks, and I exchange a glance with my fellow cats.

“Trace, Sim, and I would like to stay on with the circus if that is okay with you. We were hoping that maybe Minx would be able to come in place of Natalia,” Fuse answers, speaking up for the three of them.

William huffs. “Not if she’s going to be a problem like Natalia was.”

“She’s nothing like Natalia. She’s sweet, kind, and gentle,” Trace says quickly, and Sim nods.

“Yes, we want to mate with her, so if she doesn’t want to come, we will be leaving.”

Eric and William exchange a glance, and I have a sinking feeling they are going to say no.

“Oh, let her come,” a husky voice interjects. We all turn to look at Lila. “You’ve been dealing with Natalia this long, and from what I understand, she hasn’t made any friends on board. How much worse can Minx be? We need an act, and the cats are a big draw, plus she may be just what the boys say she is.” She gestures to my streak mates, who are all looking at her like the sun shines out of her ass. A small growl slips out from between my lips, and she must hear it, because her eyebrows rise, and she turns to look at me with surprise in her eyes.

“And you two?” William asks.

Echo nudges me, and I sigh.

“It all depends on what we find when we get to Iceen. My mother has not responded to any of my calls, and now neither is Echo’s. I am worried Mazlan, Natalia’s mother, may have done something to both streaks in an attempt to hold onto her matriarch role, which is against our laws. If she is challenged, she must fight to hold her position. Challenges are taken very seriously on Iceen.”

“Why doesn’t a male challenge for the position?” Caspian asks. “It’s quite obvious that the males are bigger than the females. You five are way bigger than Natalia, even Echo as an omega, and would easily defeat her in a fight. I’m assuming the rest of the males on the planet are the same.” Caspian seems confused by our matriarchal society.