Emmett put the finishing touches on Brian's newest costume and draped it over the chair. He got up to grab a beer from the small fridge of their trailer. Drew, his boyfriend stepped out of their bedroom and made his way forward so he could join Emmett. Anticipating Drew's wishes, Emmett turned back to the fridge and grabbed a second bottle. He handed it over to Drew who thanked him with a sloppy kiss. This was their second week back on the road and they had plenty to accomplish in order to fine-tune all the problems that inevitably popped up during their first week of performances. They would be moving out and heading for their second booking in just a few hours.

For Emmett, most of the work that needed to be done consisted of fixing the usual costume malfunctions and repairing torn or damaged costumes. All the costumes had their own special truck that contained every piece of wardrobe. Emmett usually did most of his work in the specially-equipped truck, but when they were moving he always kept the most important pieces in his private trailer. The royal red and silver suit he was working on now was a particular favorite of his because of the way it hugged every inch of Brian's body. It looked just as good on the rest of the flyers, but Emmett had a soft spot for Brian. Some of the sequin work on the shirt had been damaged during the act and that was why he was hard at work on it now. 

Drew hurriedly gulped down the last drops of his beer. He had taken a brief break, but it was time for him to get back to the job of closing everything down and making sure all of it was packed away properly for the journey. There was little left to do. The tents had been struck and all the booths broken down and stored away in their own truck. He was glad he didn't need to deal with the animals. Some of them had been more restless than usual lately and had given their handlers a few problems. They kept acting like something was spooking them. Drew didn't mind the extremely hard labor that came with the job of roustabout but he wasn't so fond of the task of cleaning up after the animals. Of course, one of the perks of being the head roustabout was the right to assign some of the less pleasant tasks to others. Naturally that included mucking up after the menagerie.

Drew gave Emmett a quick peck on his sweaty forehead and headed for the door to the trailer. He was just about to push it open when the door was pulled from the outside. Ted, their roommate stepped through the door. He had closed up the books in Debbie's makeshift office trailer for this leg of their tour and made his way back to his own trailer to see if he could connect with his own boyfriend, Doc Blake. Neither of them had any more duties for the night and he was hoping he could talk Blake into making one last quick trip into town. Ted loved his job ever since he had answered the ad for an accountant almost fifteen years earlier. He had just been fired from his old job when his boss found out he was gay. It was perfectly legal because there were no protections in the law to prevent discrimination against gays. He did miss staying in one place, however. He liked going into town even more than most of the troupe because he could pretend he belonged there for just a little while. Blake understood and usually went along with him to keep him company.

Ted was disappointed when Emmett informed him that he had no idea where Blake was, but Drew interrupted in order to let Ted know that he had seen the good Doc taking care of a minor mishap involving the trapeze rigging. Ted's furrowed brow indicated his concern. Emmett was ticked off that Drew hadn't mentioned it when he first came into the trailer. Drew immediately calmed both men down by letting them know that nobody was hurt badly except for a couple of bruises on Anna, one of Brian's flyers. Apparently she had climbed the rigging that led to her perch so that she could get in a little practice with Robbie catching her. The two had formed a close bond and loved working together, using any excuse to spend more time with each other. 

Drew hurriedly apologized for failing to mention it, thinking that small mishaps were nothing new within the circus, and ran out the door to complete his job. Ted settled down next to Emmett and the two chatted while Emmett worked on another costume that needed tweaking. Both men were surprised to hear about the accident. Brian was a stickler for keeping all the trapeze equipment in perfect working order, checking everything out for himself even after the riggers had done their job. The two men finally decided that even the 'great' Brian Kinney was only human. They were just glad that no one was hurt badly. 

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Brian's head fell back onto the cushion of his sofa, and he let out a loud whoosh of air from his lungs which he had been holding in tightly as his body reacted to the building orgasm Justin was stimulating for him. Justin's blond head moved rapidly in a piston-like manner as he ran his lips up and down Brian's turgid cock, using his tongue to tease the thick vein on the underside. He could feel Brian's body tensing up for the big moment through his mouth and his hands, which rested on Brian's muscular thighs. This had become almost a ritual experience after every show, and it still had its place even though they had lots to do before moving on to their next destination. It didn't bother Justin one bit that it was Brian's turn tonight. He was more than happy to be either giver or receiver. Besides, he knew he'd get his turn once they arrived where they were going. Brian always played fair when it came to lovemaking.

Justin rose to join him on the sofa once Brian had his moment of extreme pleasure. Brian wrapped his arm around Justin and pulled him even closer. The two men kissed deeply, their tongues seeking out one another. Justin laid his head against Brian's chest and listened to the comforting beat of his lover's heart. It was still pumping hard from his exertion, but Justin could feel it calming down. He sighed with a deep sense of contentment. Life simply couldn't get better than this. He had a job that he loved to perform, people he loved being around, and Brian. What more could a young man want? Somehow he just knew his Mom would have been happy for him. He knew his father would be outraged, but that didn't matter one tiny bit. He was happier than he ever thought he could be.

"Penny for your thoughts," Brian interrupted.

Justin looked up into Brian's gorgeous eyes. 

"I'm not sure they're worth that much," he laughed.

"Don't sell yourself short, Sunshine. Your thoughts are worth a fortune to anyone who cares about you."

"And you?" Justin asked.

"Me, most of all," Brian declared with pride. "Haven't you figured out yet that I care about you more than anything else in the world?"

Justin's chest swelled with emotion. It wasn't that Brian hadn't already stated his feelings and certainly proven how much he loved him, but every time he heard it again he felt a renewed sense of pride. He had heard enough from the others in the company to know that Brian wasn't the type to speak casually about such things. He had a reputation for never having more than one-night stands before now, so Justin knew that Brian's commitment to him was genuine and heartfelt. 

Justin hardly ever thought of Ethan any more. He was a mistake from the past, but the man suddenly popped into his head. He reminded himself how lucky he was to have found someone who only had his best interest at heart. Brian would have willingly stepped back and let Justin go if he had wanted to remain in Florida to pursue his career. Brian only wanted Justin to be happy and successful. Ethan would have had a fit and done whatever it took to keep his lover locked away and close at hand. Brian would never hold Justin back in any way. Brian never showed jealousy when Justin commented on some good-looking guy. He felt secure in Justin's feelings for him. It was just one of the ways that Justin knew how fortunate he was to be rid of Ethan. As long as he had Brian, he need never worry about men like Ethan messing up his life again. With that thought, Justin dismissed Ethan from his brain and snuggled even closer to Brian.

The two men sat in comfortable silence together for long minutes. They were just about to get up so they could finish the task at hand of preparing to move on when they heard the knock on their trailer door. Brian threw on his pants and answered the door. It was Lisa, Anna's sister, and she was clearly upset. She had come to let Brian know about Anna's accident. Brian was well aware of the blossoming relationship between Robbie and Anna. He knew they often flew together when they had time. It reminded him of the closeness he felt with Justin when they were teaming in the air. He didn't mind them using the trapeze for themselves if he didn't need it to spend time with Justin. It just bothered him that something like this could happen on his watch. He always felt responsible for the equipment and his team. 

Brian left Justin to take care of securing the trailer while he made his way quickly to the main tent. The roustabouts were striking the tent. The trapeze equipment had already been lowered and prepared for packing. Brian had wanted to see for himself what had gone wrong but he would have to wait until they reached their new destination. He talked with Doc Blake and Robbie and was reassured that the fall hadn't been too serious. A few scrapes and bruises was all Anna sported....no broken bones or necks. Brian was clearly relieved. As he slowly walked back to his trailer, he wondered what could have gone wrong. The rigging had been very secure during the show. He made a mental note to triple check all the hooks and braces as soon as he possibly could.

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Kip kicked himself mentally. Why did Brian and his boyfriend have to hurry off to their trailer right after the show? They usually waited until the tent had emptied of guests and then they would indulge in a little practice flying before enjoying the rest of their evening. Of course, this time the entire circus was being taken down for their move to the next venue. Kip had foolishly not taken that into consideration when he used his disguise to mess with the rigging. He had felt lucky when no one recognized him as he hung around spying on the movements of his enemies. It hadn't been easy to find a good time to screw with the rigging since there always seemed to be someone around. He had spent almost two weeks waiting for his break and naturally it came on the wrong day. 

When the final parade through the grounds of the tent had ended and all the visitors had left for home, Brian and Justin went straight to their trailer. Kip had made the mistake of thinking they would probably come back and get in a few practice swings after they had finished whatever they were doing. The opportunity to slip in and jack with the rigging had finally come when all the riggers and roustabouts had gone outside the tent to start tearing things down. Kip moved with agility and speed like the athlete he was. In a matter of minutes he had tinkered with the safety loop for the rope leading to the flyer's perch. Then all he had to do was hide in the shadow of the bleachers to see the results of his handiwork. 

Kip had been royally pissed when Robbie and Anna showed up instead of Brian and Justin. He had looked forward to seeing Brian's boyfriend take a tumble, which he suspected would really hurt his royal majesty, Brian Kinney. Instead, he was forced to stand by and watch Anna, a gal he had no beef with, as she made her climb and fell after getting less than half way up. The thick sawdust and expert way of landing had kept her from sustaining serious injuries. It also didn't hurt that the rigging let go much quicker than Kip had expected it to. Once he saw the fall, he hurried away from the scene, his heart pounding in his chest from fear of being caught. He quickly made his way back to the cheap motel he had been staying at and checked out. He knew where the next venue was and he needed to get there first. Besides which, he wanted to put as many miles between himself and the accident as he could.

************************************************************

Ethan crouched behind the tiger's cage and watched as he saw his Justin being dragged off to the trapeze artist's trailer.  It wasn't the first time he had concealed himself in order to spy on Justin, unable to stop the two men from being alone together.  He was lucky that his immense wealth made it possible for him to bribe two of the roustabouts into turning a blind eye whenever he was around. He had caught a plane to the city the circus was appearing in a week earlier and every night he had hung around after the show to see what he could find out about Justin and his crazy life with the circus. It hadn't been easy for him. He wasn't used to sneaking around himself to get information. He could have had his detective do the dirty work for him, but his curiosity about the relationship between his boyfriend and this Brian Kinney was too much for him. He had to see for himself. 

He was constantly on edge as he disturbed the animals by using them as shields from prying eyes. He had even been caught a couple of times by different trainers who questioned him about why he was in a restricted area for visitors to the circus. He had used his quick wit to talk himself out of trouble both times but he knew his number would be up sooner or later. He would soon have to confront Justin whether he knew everything he wanted to or not. His particular goal was to get Justin alone. This would be extremely difficult. During the performances, Justin had his own booth and the flyer was too busy to be with him but there were always plenty of other folks around. When the show was over, the two seemed to be inseparable. Ethan told himself he wasn't afraid to confront Justin with the flyer around, but the truth was that he wanted a one-on-one with Justin. He was certain he could make the young man see the light if he could get him away from the bad influences of the Circus and its' trapeze artist. 

All he needed was the right time and place to achieve his goal. It hadn't happened in this town, but there was always tomorrow. Ethan went back to his five-star hotel and checked out. He would follow the Circus to the next town. Maybe there, he would finally get the chance to get Justin alone and make the man his again. Then they would both be happy. He was certain of that.

To be continued...................