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And he’s gone like a ghost, sinking back into the shadows.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
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PENN
It’s one of the best shows I’ve ever been to.
The exotic instruments, the way Keon plays the crowd. He’s an expert at what he does, making the audience part of the experience, and I watch as more than a few Aelyds start to lose themselves in it. Aelyd males grind on each other, the few women in the audience disappearing into groups of sex-crazed men. I watch as one Aelyd woman with silver skin is surrounded and ravished, three different men lifting her onto the stage and disappearing under her skirt as Keon sings to them all.
I’m jealous, I realize.
I want what she has.
I feel this ridiculous sense of sadness when the show ends, my ears ringing slightly. I haven’t had a sip of alcohol and haven’t touched the drugs in the booth, but I may as well be drunk. Fuck…I almost let Corvus bend me over and fuck me while I made eye contact with Keon.
What the fuck is wrong with me?
I’ve been trained to use sex as a tool, and I’ve managed to use it to extract information before. I’ve never fallen for any of my marks, never slipped up. I was only able to get this mission because I’m meticulous and disciplined.
Now, I’m falling for not just one man, but three.
And they’re aliens.
Maybe Layla fell victim to the same alien sex magic.
I sit down in the booth and pour myself a glass of what I hope is water from a jug. I glance toward the entrance to the booth, but I don’t see Corvus anywhere. He must be keeping himself out of sight.
He’s not embarrassed, is he?
I’m still peering at the curtained off entrance when someone bursts through: Keon, flushed bronze with flashing eyes. His pupils are dilated; maybe the effects of the drug he called “flora” before he left. He falls into the seat across from me, his long legs straight out in front of him. His hair is drenched with sweat, his shirt open, his chest glistening.
“Hello, sweet thing,” he says, raking his hand through his hair. “What did you think of the show?”
“I promise I’m not flattering you,” I start, taking a sip of my water. “It was fantastic—I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it.”
“Gifted trick,” he says. “Not all Aelyds can play theCaltaria. So I’m somewhat of a novelty.”
“You make it sound like that’s the only reason you’re here,” I say.
“Well,” he says, “it’s a circus trick. If I didn’t have the Gift…”
“Trust me,” I say. “You’re great. I’m a horrible musician, but my best friend is a very talented pianist, and…”
I trail off. Maybe that wasn’t water I just drank; I feel a little too open, talking about Layla like that.
“Tell me about your friend,” Keon says.
He leans forward, his intense gaze pinning me to the booth behind me. I toy with the edge of my dress, chewing on my lip before I meet his eyes. “You know something, don’t you?”
His long black tongue darts out, and he catches it between his own teeth as he laughs. “The deviant prince meets his devious princess,” he says. “But I can’t just say it out loud…it’s a secret.” His eyes narrow. “Come here, Penn.”
He pats his outstretched knee, and my eyelashes flutter down to look at it. He can’t be serious—can he?
I wish someone had warned me Atlas wouldn’t be the only one I’d be seducing.
Not that I mind.
