Stark Pleasure; the Space Magnate's Mistress (The LodeStar Series) by Cathryn Cade Read Free Book Online

hand smoothing over her back. “Shh, you’re safe. You’ll come with me. In the morning we’ll figure things out.”
    Without being asked, Opal glided to the back of the ship, to his private cabin and returned with a comforter, woven of Pangaean halfpaca, soft and warm, in Lodestar’s trademark gray. She helped Stark tuck it around Kiri, wrapping her in a cocoon of warmth.
    “It’s all gone,” she mumbled. “My things.”
    Stark met Opal’s eyes. Kiri couldn’t have had much, in that place. But losing it tonight, on top of losing her credit … that was one hell of a lot to process.
    “Mementoes, perhaps,” Opal murmured, her eyes soft with pity.  
    He’d nothing to say to that. Everything he possessed, he’d fought for and won, or purchased for himself as a grown man. But he knew that to people who’d grown up with a family, such things were important. Holographs, jewelry, pieces of furniture, even treasured clothing were passed down, squabbled over.  
    He’d started with nothing. Was this woman strong enough to do the same?

Chapter 5
    Kiri dreamed that she ran through the dark, wet streets toward her apartment building. In the way of dreams, her feet would not move, mired in helplessness as thick as glue. Around her, the buildings burned, flames spurting viciously between the buildings, hissing in patches of old fuel and piles of garbage. Beings shouted, their cries far away, muffled as if a curtain hung between her and their battles.
    But she was not alone. Whirling, she gaped at the tall form looming in the street behind her, a black silhouette against the flames. Only his eyes glittered, reflecting fiery red and yellow of the flames, and yet she knew the flame that burned inside him was more powerful still—that of absolute will.  
    “It’s gone,” Stark told her, his deep voice slicing through the chaos like a steel blade. “Nothing left for you here.” He held out his hand to her in a clear command.  
    “No,” she protested, shaking her head desperately. “No, they’re still there; I just have to find them.”
    She turned away, trying to move on, but her feet were trapped in hot, enveloping folds. She tried to scream, but nothing emerged but a whimper.
    “Kiri,” he ordered, his heavy hands grasping her arms like manacles. “Kiri. Wake up.”
    She woke to find herself lying in a soft bed. Stark leaned over her, a powerful silhouette against dim lamplight. His hands grasped her bare arms. As she stared up at him, her heart thundering against her ribs, she knew a sudden, nearly overpowering urge to fling herself against his shoulder and weep.
    He didn’t give her the choice, pulling her into his arms. He was living heat and strength, from the broad expanse of his chest to the length of his legs, clad in some light, clinging fabric. Against her bare skin… Someone had undressed her, although she still wore her soft bra and panties.
    He was in the bed with her. This realization should have shocked her, but instead, he was a bulwark against the nightmare. She snuggled closer, shivering, her face in the curve of his throat. His scent filled her nostrils, clean male musk, tinged with that delicious tang of the forest. She spread her palms flat on the hair-roughened plane of his chest, her belly snugged against his, her legs opening to tangle with his longer ones.
    “Shh,” he murmured, his voice a rumble in her ear. “It’s all right. You’re safe.”  
    One of his arms was wrapped around her, his hand stroking her bare back. The other hand cupped the back of her head, his long fingers spearing through her short hair. From this warm nest, it seemed safe to examine her memories, terrible as they were.
    “My place ... is it really gone?”
    “Yes.”  
    She shuddered. Not a nightmare then, but real. “I dreamt I was there. While it burned. And I couldn’t do anything.”
    “You were there.” His breath was warm on her temple, his lips brushing her skin. “And you can’t do