Starline

by Imogene Nix

  She’d spent hours hunched over the screen researching Andurs for Duvall, but by the end of the day she’d only managed to find partial information using the variety of searches. Andurs Feinstein was an enigma, official records with his details were few and far between. Right now, she didn’t have any records of an address or even contacts for him. Without more information, she couldn’t hope to find any family or friends.

  “If I didn’t know better, I’d think he didn’t really exist.” She racked her memory, trying to remember what Jem had told her about her latest boyfriend.

  She stretched tiredly and returned to the computer. They’d finally drawn near enough that she could access the internet with the assistance of the comm officer. She clicked on a newspaper page and a small article caught her eye. She followed the link to a report.

  The story detailed the woes of a small bookstore, where the owner had disappeared. The report alluded to something underhanded going on. Mellissa looked at the date. Six weeks from her disappearance. She checked the image and scanned the story again. The bookstore was Readabout Books. Hers!

  The Readabout Store was the scene of an explosion overnight. It is thought that it was a cover-up for a break and enter. Since the owner, Mellissa Davis, has disappeared a range of unusual and disturbing incidents have taken place in the small township’s only bookstore. Ms Davis, twenty-eight, was reported missing several weeks earlier, and the police presume that she is deceased.

  The story jolted her, her stomach souring as she scanned the brief report. The journalist stated that her assistant, Jemma Cardnew, had no idea where Mellissa was, and on that basis, police had taped off the building and the bookstore would be demolished as the site was considered unsafe.

  A tear trickled down her face, and she dashed it away. Jem, described as devastated in an interview, had been termed a ‘person of interest’. Mellissa continued to scan through the paper’s archival listings, searching for updates. Hidden in the obituaries, three weeks later, she found a listing. Jemma Cardnew died at the site of the bookstore. An industrial accident. The building had caught fire from one of the gas fittings damaged in the earlier explosion and the basement had collapsed.

  Mellissa raised a shaking hand to her mouth. Jem gone? Dead? She sat looking at the obituary, and the floodgates of tears opened.

  “What’s wrong?” She heard the panic in Duvall’s voice and lifted her face to him. She had been so distraught she hadn’t even heard him enter the room.

  Mellissa struggled to pull herself together and waved a hand toward the report on his screen. He quickly scanned it, his eyes closing briefly only to reopen with a wealth of understanding as he crouched down beside her on his knees. His head now level with hers, he opened his strong arms and enveloped her.

  “I’m sorry, baby. So sorry.”

  His gruff voice washed over her as sobs racked her body, exhausting her. They subsided to a slow hiccup, and he rubbed her back as she quieted. When she stopped, he stood then leaned over to pick her up in his arms.

  “I’m sorry for that outburst, Duvall.”

  “Don’t be sorry. Don’t ever apologize for feeling. I wouldn’t have you any other way.” He turned to sit down in the chair with her in his lap, and she buried her head in his shoulder. “I had no idea,” he said quietly.

  She shook her head. “Jem came from the same home as me. I knew her for years before I left. I suppose she was like a little sister, so when she needed a job, I took her on. She lived with me until she found a place of her own.” Mellissa hiccupped, sighed, then resumed. “She won’t have anyone except Andurs, and now, well, I don’t suppose he counts, does he? Especially if he’s using her.” Her mind blanked, the emotions wringing her dry.

  “Then you found out what happened to her.”

  “Yes. I left everything to her in my will. She was supposed to at least have something to fall back on,” she whispered, leaning into his strength.

  * * * *

  He listened to the words, knowing how hard she found the situation. This Jemma meant such a lot to Mellissa. A lump lodged in his throat, and his heart raced. Never before had she cried. Not like this. Such a strong woman, but blow after blow had finally taken their toll.

  He’d been working with Chowd and Grayson, and they’d formulated a plan. Maybe there was room to add to it? Give her more than just her own belongings. His chest tightened. He wasn’t sure if it was even fair to tell her right now. If he couldn’t pull it off and he’d told her... No, I’ll keep this to myself for now.

  He held her close and considered how much easier his life had been with the Gentrys. Sure, his parents had died in the war with the Ru’Edan when the scout ship attacked the planet where they lived, but being sent to live with the Gentrys, his parents’ friends, had given him a buffer and a family. They may not have been his birth parents, but in every way that counted, they were his real family.

  He barely remembered his birth parents. Their frequent absence on research missions kept them from home, though he had a nanny and grandmother who had doted on him. His grandmother’s fatal heart attack when she’d heard the news of his parents’ death had changed his life forever.

  The Gentrys had welcomed him into their small family, ensuring he felt valued and loved. It was their support that had made him who he was.

  Mellissa though, she’d managed on her own, and his heart bled for the lonely little girl she must have been. The only other person she had felt a connection to would soon be dead, unless they could save her and bring her forward in time.

  She stirred in his arms, and he thought she might try to break free. He held her closer, needing the connection as much as he was sure she did. Mellissa lifted her head. “Thank you,” she whispered, reaching up and touching his lips.

  “What for?”

  “For being here. For holding me. For caring.”

  Each simple word filled him with warmth and strong emotion. She levered herself up in his arms and touched her lips to his. They still tasted of the saltiness of her tears. Her soft lips moved against his. He held himself still, letting her set the pace, even though the clawing need he’d banked during the day gnawed at him.

  Slowly, her hands reached up to his face, cradling it between them. “I need to be held,” she said.

  He looped his hands around her waist. He damned himself even as he let her deepen the kiss. He was already aroused, making him feel sick. Barsha! She needed support, and he wanted nothing more than to sink inside her body.

  She let her lips whisper across his cheek toward his ear. “I need to be loved by you. Help me keep the emptiness at bay, Duvall.” She whispered the words, her breath dancing over his skin, setting licking tongues of fire alight along his nerves. He held himself still. “I need to love you,” she said finally, looking directly into his eyes.

  Her eyes glittered with emotion, holding his gaze. Her hands dropped to his shirt, slipped the first button out. She kissed her way down to the cleft in his chin. Her hands continued their unhurried path down his shirt, releasing each button slowly. She lavished him with open-mouthed kisses at his throat and over the chest she’d bared.

  He tried to hold himself still, but he wanted to grab her, strip her bare, and sink within her soft, molten body. He let her continue, holding on to his control, though it was tenuous at best. His chest heaved with the effort of staying still, letting her set the pace. He kept telling himself this was for her, gripping the arms of the chair.

  She continued the torture, eyes closed as she found his waistband. She couldn’t get any purchase between them. The touch of her mouth sent currents of electricity coursing through his veins. Wherever she touched him, burned.

  She stood and he opened eyes he hadn’t realized he’d closed. She held out a hand, and he gripped it like a drowning man. He stood up with a jerk, and he was sure all his hard-won composure would crack.

  She smiled at him and stripped off her shirt, then took his hand before she led him to the cabin. He knew insti
nctively that she needed to be in control this time. When she reached toward him and pushed the shirt off his shoulders, twining her hands behind his head and reaching up to kiss him, his mind exploded.

  Her mouth closed over his. His control slipped just a little, and Duvall fisted his hands, seeking more.

  “I need to touch you,” she said, and reached again for his waistband, drawing his belt from the loops and unfastening his ship suit pants, pushing them down.

  He stood in his boots and briefs with his pants puddled at his feet. She sighed with feminine exultation, her lips full and promising, skin glowing pink from arousal.

  “Touch me,” she commanded him.

  He reached out and slowly, ever so slowly, peeled away her shirt. He wanted to touch her, love her. Duvall outlined lush breasts hidden only by a plain white bra. He unfastened the clips, his fingers fumbling before it gave, then he pushed it off her shoulders. The air was heavy with passion, the musky scent all around them, and her eyes shined with emotion. He kneaded her breasts, savoring the silky feel of her skin. Her nipples puckered, and he just had to lean forward, closer. He blew softly on them. She moaned as they tightened further, peaking below his mouth as if they ached for his touch, and so he leaned forward a little more, and the ripe berry tips filled his mouth as he suckled.

  * * * *

  She placed her hands on the band of his briefs and pulled them down, watching as his engorged penis finally sprang free of the confining material. She lifted her eyes to his. They were hooded and smoky, and she burned, turned on by the need she read on his face.

  Her heart skipped a beat when he surrendered the control to her. Slowly, she traced one hand up his body and tangled her fingers in his hair. His head lowered, then mouth met mouth in another scorching-hot kiss, their breath mixed, and they both panted. Her heart rate thrummed and heat grew. The scent of arousal filled the air.

  His hands moved faster now. They slid over her waistband, unfastened the remainder of her clothes, and Duvall gently pushed them away. When their mouths parted, he bent down and removed his boots. The whole time, his eyes bored into hers, demanding all her attention.

  Emotions, hard and savage, played over his face. Here he was, her own tender warrior. Letting him go would be like surrendering part of her own body and soul.

  “You’re mine now.” His words mirrored her thoughts. He stood back up to take her in his arms. “Mine,” he growled against her mouth. Then he opened his to meet hers almost savagely as he plundered hers. He picked her up and carried her to the bed. “I need to be with you too.” The words shook her with the possessiveness.

  Placing her on the bed, he stripped off her boots and grasped her foot in his hand. She breathed deeply as he placed a quick kiss on her ankle, not stopping but butterflying kisses up her legs until reaching the juncture of her thighs, which he opened wide. Placing his mouth on her delicate flesh, he flicked at her. She jerked up in response. He touched her again with his tongue.

  She was molten. Her arousal ran deep, demanding more while he caressed and teased. Her chest heaved before he devoured like a starving man.

  He stopped, and she whimpered at the loss of his touch, heard him breathe deeply as he touched her with one finger, circling her core, then dipping the finger within her body. She shuddered, so close to climax, muscles rippling under his touch. Her body vibrated with passion, and she cried out. Her heart beat in overdrive now, and she sweated, panting, wanting to give him all the love in her heart. She writhed in his arms, fingers digging into the mattress as she moaned once more, beyond coherent thought.

  He opened his mouth over her and sucked gently, laving her with his tongue.

  She nearly splintered in his arms as he lifted his head. His eyes burned with passion. “I’m going to take everything you have to give,” he growled, and she bucked beneath him as the light breath from his words played over her moist and swollen flesh.

  He started to move up her body as she extended her hand and pushed against his chest. Hard. He rolled back as she moved over him, his chest bellowing, his muscles sheened with sweat. She opened her mouth on his nipple and flicked her tongue. He jerked. Her hand trailed down his body and found his erection. She squeezed, then with a gentle touch pumped once, twice.

  He shuddered and closed his eyes. “Stop,” he wheezed.

  Her hands stilled. He shuddered yet again as Mellissa licked the saltiness from his skin, whispering over his body. He grabbed her and stilled her movements, his hands like steel bands as they pulled her higher for his kiss.

  Slowly, so very achingly slowly, he penetrated her, pulling her down on his cock as each delicious inch slowly joined with her. The slide so deliciously erotic, she trembled once more in his arms. She wrapped herself around him, glorying in how tightly he held on to control and wanted it to shatter.

  “Duvall!”

  He thrust into her harder and faster. She met his thrust, parrying with him. Together, they moved in tune with each other. Their mouths met and fused until finally her head flung back as she climaxed. He plunged one final time, holding himself within her, then exploded into the starlight with her.

  * * * *

  They lay together for some time afterward.

  “I meant it,” he said, his words soft.

  “Meant what?” Mellissa turned her head on the pillow to look at him. She seemed puzzled by his words.

  “You. Forever.” He took a deep breath, plunging into the most important conversation of his adult life. “Since the night you spent in the cabin away from me, I’ve been thinking. I know you had no choices with the time thing, but I want you with me. Forever.” The skin of his cheeks burned as he waited for her reaction. He felt so unsure of himself. “I don’t think I could ever let you go now.” He stared into her shocked eyes.

  “I love you,” she said simply.

  He felt humbled. After everything they had been through, she could say that with such certainty.

  “I know,” he said. “And I love you too.” The words that had him tied in knots came tumbling out. Once said though, he felt his chest lighten. “I know this has been quick, but we can take it slowly…you know. Take our time…” His voice trailed off. “Barsha!” he growled, rolling onto his side and holding her close. “I’ve made a mess of this.” He ran his fingers through his hair. He felt like a fool. He couldn’t even make a declaration of love to the woman in his arms without sounding like some sort of ape.

  Mellissa smiled at him as if he had just given her the moon and stars. She reached out, her fingers touching each side of his face, and kissed him soundly. “That is the best, most amazing thing you could ever have said to me.” Then she burst into tears.

  He held her helplessly, a lump lodged once more in his chest. Now what have I done? He racked his brain, but all he could think was she hadn’t wanted him to say the words.

  “By Eshra, Mellissa, I’m sorry.”

  “No!” she wailed. “It was just right! I love you too.” She pulled away, looked up, and smiled through her tears. “These…” She sniffled and crawled closer. “These are happy tears.”

  Confusion warred with love while his heart melted again. He pulled her close, and they remained that way for some time, entwined and quiet.

  * * * *

  When they finally emerged to lunch hand in hand, they sat with Elara and Grayson. Elara lifted an eyebrow, and Mellissa nodded silently. She wants an update, Mellissa thought with a small smile.

  The meal was companionable, and at the end they went their separate ways. Grayson and Duvall headed to the bridge, Elara to the SurgiTech suite, and Mellissa had a meeting with Chowd. He’d promised to show her some more basic self-defense techniques and the latest weaponry.

  She joined him in the holographic station, where he stood in lightweight pants and a skin-tight shirt. She’d also dressed as he’d suggested. Entering the deck, she saw he waited on a thickly padded mat.

  Duvall had agreed that even though Mellissa wouldn’t have any inv
olvement in any combat situations, she needed a way to protect herself until help came. So Chowd focused on the easy moves that required very little body strength.

  “Like this.” Chowd’s voice cut through the silence in the room as he wedged a foot behind her knee and she fell to the mat.

  “It’s easy when you know how,” Mellissa groused, pushing her hair behind her ear as she got up.

  “You try.” He pointed to her then gave her the come-on movement of his hands.

  She tried to wedge her foot behind his leg, but he danced away from her. She moved forward, and he feinted again. “Stay still.”

  “No bad guy is going to stay still for you to get him. You need to be quick and smart.” He smiled at her as she growled her displeasure.

  Her body ached and she reached for her rear, where she’d landed several times already.

  “Okay, that’s enough of that for today. We have a bit of time to sort this out.”

  He led her over to a table where an array of weapons were displayed. He named each for her, encouraging her to lift each and feel its weight. She picked up a small blue pistol, the smallest there.

  “Good choice.” He stood behind her. “That’s a laser pistol. It’s deadly and accurate, with enhanced targeting. Tomorrow I’ll show you how to use it. For now, go have a hot shower. That’ll help relieve any sore muscles.”

  She hadn’t managed to even pull Chowd down, let alone anything else. She sighed heavily as she made her way to the cabin, taking off her clothes once inside and crawling into the shower. The need to get clean overrode her anger at herself. “It’s probably just as well I’m only ever going to be a researcher.”

  Briskly washing herself, she mused over what had happened and pulled a face. Sure, like she could really protect herself or help Jem. She shook her head slowly with a sigh, turning off the shower, drying herself, then locating fresh clothes. She looked forward to catching up with Elara, who had left a comm message of “When you’re done for the day, head up to SurgiTech for a coffee.”