Authors: Nikki Magennis
Circus Excite
Contents
Julia Spark is a professional dancer, newly graduated. Jobs are hard to find and, after a curious audition, she finds herself running away with the circus â a circus of erotica.
It's an adult show full of bizarre performers trained to arouse the audience. And not only does the ringmaster mesmerise his artists, but also seems to have taken a special interest in Julia. He dares her to experiment, plays with her desires and encourages Julia to explore the darker secret side of her sexuality.
Nikki Magennis is a writer and artist who lives in Glasgow, Scotland. Her stories have appeared in numerous short story collections, including
Sex in Public, Sex with Strangers
, and
Sex and Music
. She is also the author of
Circus Excite
and
The New Rakes
, all available from Black Lace.
Nikki Magennis
âFREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDOM!'
A girl in a crumpled ball gown and stilettos stood at the top of the steps waving an empty champagne bottle in one hand. Her dishevelled hair and flushed cheeks gave her a wild look that was a far cry from her usual poised demeanour. Julia, watching from the street below, knew the girl from her classical dance class. She'd always thought her a stuck-up prima donna and was quietly delighted to see her sweaty and hysterical with mascara running down her cheeks.
Julia smiled. Tonight was the last time she'd be together with all her fellow students. She and her friend Karin were sitting on the wall outside the Union and downing an illicit half-bottle of fizz before they went in to the graduation ball. It was a balmy summer evening; the air was full of celebration buzz, and she felt a surge of anticipation that made her light-headed and jittery.
A funky up-tempo Stevie Wonder song was playing inside the hall, the music spilling out of the tall windows and into the street. Without thinking Julia started counting the beat, moving her shoulders along with the rhythm. She couldn't help herself â whenever she heard music she started keeping time, like one of Pavlov's dogs. She felt her hips twitching and the butterflies in her stomach start to jump. She elbowed Karin.
âFreedom indeed,' she said. âAre we ready for it?'
âReady? Are you crazy, girl? I'm gagging for it. No more 6 a.m. starts, no more Advanced Pilates . . . Christ, Julia, we'll be able to join the real world again.'
Julia watched as a couple of guys climbed the steps, white shirts unbuttoned at the neck, hands in pockets. They moved with the natural grace of male dancers, muscles taut and spines straight. Julia eyed them wickedly.
âYeah, but I'm going to miss Contact Improvisation.'
âJulia, when you're let loose from here you'll have the whole of London to practise your moves on. A world of men to fuck.'
âTrue. But you know, dancers do have the most phenomenal stamina.'
âAnd they're phenomenally over-sensitive. At least we won't have to deal with the jealous fits any more,' Karin reminded her.
âOh, you're right there. Three years of sulking boys is more than enough.'
âThree years of juggling lovers would be enough to exhaust anyone. Specially with six hours of practice a day on top.'
Julia nodded.
âI guess the dance classes were supposed to be the important part.'
They watched as the boys entered the glass doors to the students' union, joining the throng in the entrance hall. As she looked at the crowd of glammed up, excitable new graduates, Julia saw it all play back in a whirl. Sweating bodies, aching muscles, the pounding of her heart as she relentlessly practised, practised, practised â and all along the steady beat pounding out an endless rhythm she couldn't resist.
âTo the dance!' she said as she turned to Karin, holding up her glass.
â
Fuck
dance, darling, let's drink to escape.'
âAnd wild adventures.'
Behind them, the noise of the party spilled down the
steps. Julia drained her glass and jumped down from the wall.
âLet's get moving. Our last chance to seduce the undergraduates.' She smoothed her silk dress over her hips. The fabric was silver and shimmered like the skin of a fish, revealing her toned curves and the taut musculature of her thighs. âThe night is young.' With a wink at her friend, she sashayed up the steps and into the school's foyer.
Inside was a mess of balloons and streamers, girls in fancy dresses and men in tuxes, shirts unbuttoned at the neck and dishevelled. Drunken students clung to each other, slurring promises of undying friendship. Karin stepped lightly over an inert body lying passed out on the floor, heading towards the ballroom where the music and chatter built to a deafening roar. The corners were full of writhing bodies, couples kissing in a frantic last-minute surge of emotion. It could have been a scene from a French masquerade. Julia walked with a confident stride through the crowd. She turned heads as she did so, men eyeing her high, rounded ass and toned legs. Julia dressed in clothes as playful and vivid as her personality â calculated to tease. She knew everyone was staring at the outline of her tits under the dress, and smiled back at them as she walked into the dark cavernous ballroom.
In here, the music was loud enough to make her guts vibrate, and she felt herself break out in a sweat with the heat of a couple of hundred bodies rubbing up against each other. The dancefloor was packed, and the girls fought to get through the crowd. Julia grabbed Karin's waist and clung on tightly, feeling the temperature rise as they made their way towards the bar at the far end. It was easier to get through if you jigged yourself around, and Julia found herself crushed against
the dancers, grinding her hips against other revellers and dancing onwards. Arms wrapped around her waist; a hand stroked her spine; she felt a warm pressure on her arm as a girl brushed her breasts against her. The atmosphere was jubilant, intoxicating. Bodies en masse writhed and bumped in time to the music. Julia felt herself melting in the heat, her heart beating strongly and her body pulsing with the bass drum. Karin grabbed her wrist and shouted to make herself heard.
âIt's like Dante's inferno in here. I'm going upstairs. Get me a vodka, will you?'
She pushed a £10 note at Julia and disappeared into the throng, leaving Julia to bump, grind and fight her way to the bar. It was three deep, and piles of empty bottles and glasses were strewn over the counter, while the exhausted bar staff struggled to hand out more beer. Julia realised it would be a hopeless battle to get served
A dark-haired boy leaning against the pillar caught her eye. She squeezed into a tight space next to him.
âRory!' She had to shout over the joyful sound of Donna Summer and a disco beat.
âHey.' Rory smiled back at her. His hair was all mussed up and sweaty and he looked as sweet and sexy as ever with his impish face and high sharp cheekbones. Julia hugged him hard and leant in to his shoulder.
âAren't you going to give me a dance?' she asked, knowing exactly what the answer would be. She found Rory particularly easy to manipulate.
âI guess getting a drink is looking unlikely,' he agreed, taking Julia's arm and swaying back towards the floor. With one arm looped round his neck, Julia started swinging her hips. She could feel the muscles under his suit, and the way he held himself perfectly tensed, ready to respond to every turn she made. They fitted together snugly, clicking into the groove and winding round each other with practised fluid movements. Julia grinned,
knowing his body and how good he looked under his clothes. She pressed herself closer till her mouth brushed his neck and she inhaled the scent of his aftershave mixed with the tang of sweat. The familiar smell gave her a sudden rush of nostalgia, a rising feel of sweet affection for the life she was about to say goodbye to forever. She let her hip bump against him in time with the music, and sank into the familiar, delicious feel of moving with a man. Rory swung her round and folded her into his arms, pulling her against him so he could press her up against the length of his body.
âNice moves, Jools,' he whispered into her ear, so close she could feel the tickle of his breath warm her neck. âYou always were the sexiest dancer in class.'
Rory had his arm round her waist, and he pulled her in tight, so she could feel the bulge of his cock rubbing against her ass. Julia knew he was telling the truth, not just flattering her. For a start, her body was far from the delicate fragile ideal of a classical dancer. Her breasts were full and heavy, her hips curved and sensuous. Though her muscles were rigorously toned, and she had the strength and graceful lines of a cat, there was a soft extravagance to her body that invited men to touch it. In the centre of the dancefloor she looked at the bodies surrounding them. Usually clad in sweaty T-shirts and leggings, tonight everyone was glammed up. In the throng surrounding them, bodies moved with abandon, forgetting the precise and measured movements of their schooling and enjoying the sheer pleasure of rhythm.
Across the floor, Julia recognised the girl chosen as principal dancer for the school's company. Around her was a circle of girls shaking their hips like divas. They wore ball gowns with plunging necklines that showed porcelain skin and modest little breasts pushed upwards with padded bras. Standing tall and willowy in spike heels, the girls seemed to be haloed with a special aura
of preciousness, as though destined to be spot-lit and adored. They were flawlessly made-up, hair pinned in elaborate chignons, their lips painted hard dark shades of red. Although their movements were faultlessly executed, they didn't have the special dirty kind of moves that Julia had. She smiled inwardly, knowing that in this environment she was queen. In the rarefied strict atmosphere of the studio she had looked wildly out of place, her full extravagant figure and shimmering outfits a splash of vibrancy. While the girls in the circle danced with effortless control, turning exquisite poses and holding themselves gracefully, Julia had been too full of a desire to move wildly. She had struggled to maintain her poise. She was just too sensuous to be a dainty ballerina.
On nights like this, she was let loose and her body ached for it. As she felt Rory jam himself hard against her and reach down to stroke his hands along her thighs, Julia kept shimmying with the music, feeling the light jiggling of her tits, the rub of fabric against them as her nipples stiffened and stood out. In front of her, another man turned to see her, and moved irresistibly towards her, blatantly staring at her cleavage. She wasn't surprised â her dress had a low stiff bodice that held her breasts gently and threatened to let them spill over the top. She met his eyes and held his gaze. Still feeling Rory at her back, working his hands at the fabric of her dress, letting the hem ride up so that her stocking tops were exposed, Julia locked her eyes on the man in front of her and bit her lip. He was dancing closer to her, pulling his own dance partner round so that he was next to Julia. Now they danced side by side, the man still twirling the girl he was dancing with â girlfriend? Julia didn't care. She adored this illicit flirting with strangers and the thought of turning on another guy while he danced right next to his unsuspecting partner
was enough to make her wet. Their shoulders rubbed together, and Julia smiled at him as Rory nuzzled his face into her back and bit gently on her neck. If he was aware of Julia's divided attention, it wouldn't shock him.
