Ferally Funny Freakshow
Page 9
I nodded. “Well, I won’t bring any of the tricks of my trade to work my magic,” I said with a wink. “But I think I can come up with a few things that will help.”
“Thanks. I have to run. I need to go help Lolli load all of our boxes and rings.”
“Oh, Lemon,” I said, stopping her. “What’s going on with Tom and you and your sister?”
“We broke up with him.”
“Both of you?”
She nodded. “We agreed that no man was worth fighting over. Family trumps sex, even if he was amazing with the way he—”
“That’s enough,” I said, grimacing. Hearing about cat sex was not my thing. I couldn’t get past the idea of a barbed penis.
She giggled. “I just remembered, Finn wanted me to tell you that he has some brownies he made to thank you.” She glanced over her shoulder and then lowered her voice. “He scored some peyote out in Tinkerville and thought you needed something to help you chill.”
I already had something that helped me chill—Bruno. That man in my bed did wonders for my stress level. Not to mention that he’d managed to locate my parents and make sure they were safe and doing well. He’d also scored their address, which I’d hidden away for now. Contacting them might not be wise, seeing as how it could put their lives at risk. But I really missed them …
I smiled at Lemon. “How’s Finn doing?”
“He’s totally healed. That vet in town is freaking amazing. She had him all fixed up in no time. Eugene, too.”
I smiled. Eugene had stopped by earlier. Not only had the veterinarian mended Eugene’s injuries, but she’d also inspired his self-confidence somehow. He hadn’t needed me to do a reading for him before his last show here in Tinkerville earlier this evening. He claimed fire was now his friend.
“Too bad Kenneth couldn’t go to her to have his broken heart stitched,” I said. The poor man was a sniffling, watery werepug mess with Ming gone.
“He told Lolli he’s taking a break from the circus,” Lemon Drop said.
“Who’s going to be our ringmaster?”
“My adopted uncles.”
“Well, that should be entertaining.” The monkey brothers would certainly bring new life to the show.
“With Bruno back as head of security, it feels like we’re one big happy family again,” Lemon Drop said, but then frowned. “Except for Clint and Ming, of course.”
I patted her on the shoulder. “The pain will ease with time. Besides, Clint would hate to see you frowning.”
She smiled. “You’re right. I’d better go. I’ll talk to you later.” She zipped away, leaving me to my packing.
I’d decided to stay with the circus, even though my cover was partially blown. Bruno, Finn, and Eugene all agreed to keep quiet. Publicly, they’d continue calling me Electra, and help me lay low until Runash’s deeds were no longer exciting news.
I had a family now, plus a mate. Running no longer appealed to my coyote blood.
An hour later, everything but my bed and parlor chair had been packed and prepped to load on the train when Bruno came into the parlor and sat down in the chair.
He yawned. “I’d forgotten how busy it is the night before we leave.”
“What’s the name of the next town?”
“Tippytoe, Louisiana.” He smirked. “According to Finn, there is a gang of weremuskrats there that I need to be ready to round up. They like to spray paint our signs and scare the lady flamingos.”
“Sounds like you’re going to be busy.”
He eyed my camisole and matching silky shorts. “Not that busy. Come here.”
“What’s the magic word?”
“Come here and let me read your palm, beautiful.”
Grinning, I walked over and sat on his lap. He took my hand in his, holding it out, tracing the lines as he looked down at it.
“According to this heart line here, there’s going to be a lot of sex in your future.”
“That’s my dominant hand. Are you saying I’ll be having sex while working?”
He lifted my palm to his lips. “That depends on your definition of working.”
“Telling fortunes to paying clients?”
“I’m talking about your other job.”
“What job is that?”
“Attending to your fated mate’s many needs.”
“My fated mate has turned out to be very needy. I’m going to have to start charging for all of the attending he requires.”
He smiled against my lips. “Add it to my bill, Nora Mai.” He kissed me slowly, soothing away the last of my stress for the evening. Then he stood, carrying me into the bedroom. “Now, attend me, woman.”
My laughter turned to moans moments later while he worked his unique brand of magic on me.
The End … for now
Stay tuned for more laugh-filled mysteries with Nora, Bruno, and the rest of the traveling freakshow gang in A Bunch of Monkey Malarkey (the 2nd installment in the AC Silly Circus Mystery Series).
Available Fall 2018
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About the Author
Ann Charles is s a USA Today bestselling author who writes award-winning mysteries that are splashed with humor, romance, paranormal elements, and whatever else she feels like throwing into the mix. When she is not dabbling in fiction, arm-wrestling with her children, attempting to seduce her husband, or arguing with her sassy cats, she is daydreaming of lounging poolside at a fancy resort with a blended margarita in one hand and a great book in the other.
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Ferally Funny Freakshow
Copyright © 2017 by Ann Charles
All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means now known or hereafter invented, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author, Ann Charles.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is coincidental.
Cover Art by C.S. Kunkle
Cover Design by B Biddles
Editing by Eilis Flynn
Formatting by B Biddles
E-book ISBN-13: 978-1-940364-56-8
Print ISBN-13: 978-1981135332