Stardust And Shadows

by Janelle Taylor

  Jana’s arms encircled his waist as she used her torso to caress his. As if on cue, her fingers buried in his blond hair as his slipped into her tawny tresses. Their mouths meshed to share a kiss which stole their breath and ignited their smoldering desires into a raging blaze of urgency.

  One kiss blended into another until there was no beginning or ending to any of them. His hands roved her bare shoulders and sleek back, admiring the silky feel of her unmarred skin. His fingers were ravenous in their search for more treats; they wandered to her soft curves to caress her firm buttocks and upward to rove her tempting breasts.

  Jana shifted sideways to allow him easy freedom to explore her aching body. He cradled her in the curve of his right arm as his mouth feasted at hers and his left one closed over a firm mound. When her peaks responded without haste and became taut with need, his mouth drifted over her chin and down her throat to ensnare one with his teeth in a gentle and stirring grasp. His lips had left a trail of kisses behind that still tingled. The rosy-brown buds bloomed beneath his questing mouth and tongue. She was always astonished by how his actions affected her from head to foot. Even her tummy quivered in suspense and delight. And the core of her womanhood, it ached with pleading. Her entire body was alive and burning, as was his.

  Varian returned his mouth to hers for a short while and kissed her with almost feverish intensity. He wanted her now, fast and fully. Yet he knew this moment must not be rushed, even if his self-control was hard to maintain. She had come to him of her own free will. She was showing him she wanted him, loved him, needed him. He must do all within his power and skills to give her exquisite pleasure and supreme satisfaction.

  Jana felt afloat on dreamy clouds as his hand moved past her abdomen and stroked enticingly along its predetermined path. She quivered when his deft fingers stroked the sensitive flesh between her parted thighs. They labored with a skill, eagerness, and gentleness that left her breathless. She felt as if her legs would give way at any moment as a languid weakness washed over her. He caressed her until she was trembling and limp, until she murmured, “Take me, Varian; please take me.”

  He was thrilled to hear his name escape her lips. In gratitude and joy, his mouth seared over hers, parted her lips, entered her beckoning recess, and allowed their tongues to mate first. His grasp on her was snug and possessive. “Stars above, Jana, I cannot resist you. I knew that the first moment I saw you. Kahala, how I do love you.” Varian guided her to the bed and they collapsed to it because neither would release the other to brace their fall. They laughed in amusement and began their play anew.

  Jana inhaled his manly scent which mingled with an arousing cologne that was perfect for him. His mouth tasted like spearmint; it was delicious and provocative. Her tongue danced with his in an erotic and stimulating manner to a seductive beat they heard only inside their heads and hearts.

  Once more Varian’s mouth trailed down her neck, kissing and sampling every inch of it along the way. His tongue played with both succulent breasts with an intent to conquer and delight them. Her nipples hardened even more under his loving siege. Again, his fingers journeyed to the dark triangle between her thighs. They stroked the downy soft hair surrounding her portal to love. The heat of her arousal warmed his hand, the mist of it dampened his fingers.

  Ecstasy, sweet and tormenting, enthralled Jana. It began deep within the core of her being, mounted and teased, searched and found, then sent charges like tiny lightning bolts over her flesh in all directions. She writhed and moaned. She clung to him. Every part of her was sensitive and susceptible. She yearned for more of him. She locked her softened gaze with his fake green one and smiled. Yet, not once did she think of him or see him as Ryker Triloni. Her rosy-eyed vision saw her sapphire-eyed, ebony-haired lover who had won her heart long ago.

  Both knew they had plenty of time to love as long as they desired tonight, but passions soared and urged to be sated. It was as if they were exploring emotions as well as passions, allowing spirits to mingle as well as bodies, allowing hearts to reach out and speak without intrusive words.

  Varian was thrilled and encouranged by her fiery need. He obtained extra pleasure from the rapture he was giving her. He eased atop her, parted her thighs, and obeyed her mute summons to possess her to the limits of love. The contact between their private regions almost staggered his senses and stole his mastery. He wanted and craved to drive within her over and over.

  Jana’s legs curled around his thighs as she matched his rhythms Her mouth clung to his and her flesh melded with his. She rode the stormy waves beneath him as the marvelous forces mounted in power. She felt like a glowing star shooting across the heavens.

  Both realized this wasn’t just raw sex taking place. Both knew they were speaking from their hearts and souls, with their whole beings. It was more than a fusion of starving bodies; it was a union of spirits, a forging of their cores, a flight toward their entwined destinies. Their desires, pace, and patterns matched. Their ardor inspired them to hold nothing back. Passion’s flames engulfed them in a blaze that only fulfillment could extinguish.

  Jana arched to meet each thrust, then relaxed a moment before returning for the next one. She wanted the tantalization to continue, but she also wanted release from the achingly sweet torment. The bud and core of her womanhood began to spasm wildly. “I love you,” she murmured in the throes of ecstasy without realizing she had spoken those revealing words.

  Varian heard and his heart drummed with happiness and relief. He knew she wasn’t conscious of uttering them, but they had come from her heart, the very place she was guarding against being hurt again. He kissed the tip of her nose, her cheeks, her eyes, her ears. He cast aside his control and chased after her to join her in a serene paradise. His release spilled forth within her in rapid, joyous, and uncontrollable splashes.

  Afterward, they nestled together in the golden afterglow of their loving. They cuddled and caressed, stroked and kissed, until, at last, they slept.

  Following days of a fragile truce, the moment Varian dreaded arrived. “We’re orbiting Darkar, my love, so there’s one last promise you have to make before we shuttle to the surface for your reunion with Andrea.”

  Jana was filled with excitement. In the past few days they had made love many times and in many ways. She realized he was weakening her resistance and was winning her heart and trust again: perhaps, she decided, that wasn’t bad. “What promise do I need to make?”

  “When you see Andrea, you can’t tell her the truth. She’ll meet me as Ryker, your husband. She won’t meet Varian until this mission is over and my brother officially dead. You can’t ever tell Andrea about my ruse.” As he related his order, Varian witnessed an array of emotions in her reaction: she was stunned, hurt, disappointed, and suspicious.

  Every time he nodded after each of her ensuing questions, her heart sank more and more. “You mean downright lie to my dearest friend? Let her believe Varian Saar coldly and cruelly betrayed me? Believe I’m Ryker Triloni’s wife of my own free will and I’ve been living with him all this time? Dupe her like the others? Forever?”

  “It has to be that way, Jana. I’m sorry, but too much is at stake. If anyone ever extracted the Birth from her, it would tear down all the good we’ve built. This risk is too great. She must never know the truth. Never.”

  She had looked forward to a soul-cleansing and comforting talk with Andrea. She couldn’t ever imagine deceiving her. “I can’t lie to her. I won’t lie to her. Damn you! Always your duty!”

  “Think, Jana: she could drop a clue and ruin everything.”

  “How? She’ll be secluded with me on Darkar.”

  “Not permanently if Nigel marries her and she leaves with him. In the near future, she could make a slip to a visitor, a client, a friend. Even if you swore her to secrecy, accidents happen. If she doesn’t know anything, she can’t expose anything. It has to be this way.”

  “I trust Andrea completely. She wouldn’t betray me as you have. I will not l
ie to her or deceive her. She won’t endanger our secrets; I swear.”

  “Your blind faith isn’t good enough in this crucial matter.”

  “If you asked me to keep something from her for a while, I would. But you’re demanding I lie to her for the rest of our lives. Besides, she knows me; she would know I’m being dishonest. That would hurt her deeply. How could she ever trust me again? Our relationship would be damaged. What if I were demanding you lie to Nigel or Tirol?”

  “That’s different. They know everything and are trustworthy.”

  “So is Andrea! And me, too!”

  “I chose my word badly, Jana. Calm down. I meant, they’re trained and experienced in guarding secrets. Because of those traits and Rendelar, they can’t be tricked or forced into exposing vital secrets. That isn’t true of Andrea. She’s susceptible to potentially perilous slips and coercion.”

  “You’re asking me to risk destroying the closest friendship I have. Once trust and loyalty are gone, Varian, it’s never the same. I can’t tell her such horrible lies about my entire life here. I can’t imagine you wanting her—my best friend and Nigel’s fiancée—to think you so terrible. She’ll be prejudiced against you before you even supposedly meet. How can she ever change her mind if she’s fed those malicious tales?”

  “You refuse to protect all we’ve worked for by misleading her?”

  “I refuse to lie to my best friend forever; it isn’t necessary.”

  Varian took a deep breath and released it. “You leave me no choice; you won’t be allowed off the ship until the mission is over. Afterward, you’ll get a mind block so you can’t remember the truth. If you won’t give me your word of honor and keep it, I’ll have to make sure you believe the ruse, too.”

  Jana gaped at him. “You wouldn’t dare, not if you love me and want me.”

  “I do love you and want you, Jana. Please don’t force me to challenge you. Think about what’s at stake, love. What will it be?”

  “You’re serious, aren’t you?”

  “Yes, Jana, I am,” he said, but knew it was a desperate and offensive bluff to safeguard their priceless secret. He knew he could trust Jana to hold silent to others, but Andrea McKay might not have his love’s wits and courage; Andrea could destroy everything they had accomplished.

  “Damn you, Varian Saar. You’ve had me for the last time, so I hope you enjoyed yourself. I was just about convinced you had changed, but you haven’t and you never will. Do your blasted duty and let it keep you warm at night. Let it give you love and pleasure because I never will again.” She saw him wince and grimace but remain unyielding in the stance he had taken.

  “I need your answer, Jana. Do we shuttle down or not?”

  “Yes, you sorry snake, you have my word. I want to see Andrea.”

  “If you break it, Moonbeam, Andrea will also pay for your guile.”

  “I’m not even going to ask what that threat means. I promise,” she gritted out as she plotted how to return this fresh pain to him.

  Part III

  Moondust And Magic

  As the playful Gods gather to watch mortals below, The helpless Fates warns sadly, for only they know:

  Beware foolish men with bold dreams and false pride;

  Dangers abound for loves lost from your side.

  On wings of magic, passion and victory wish to ride;

  But how can they conquer a Universe so wide …

  Chapter Fifteen

  Varian grasped Jana’s forearms in a firm grip. “Listen to me! I’m not being mean, selfish, or unreasonable; and protecting the ruse isn’t my sole concern. If you tell Andrea—or anyone— the truth, it will endanger all of our lives, including hers. Have you forgotten Taemin and Cass are out there somewhere plotting against us? We think we have them fooled, but we could be wrong. If they thought they could extract information from Andrea and use it against us, they would. But if she knows nothing, my tender-hearted love, she’s no threat to us or to herself and no help to them. Then there’s Maal. After Ryker’s death, he’ll be crazy with grief for a while. If Cass goes to him with her suspicions about me while he’s in that state, there’s no telling what he’ll do to seek the truth. If Andrea is captured and questioned under Thorin, she’ll have to tell the truth, what she believes is the truth. If Andrea and your friendship with her are the only important things to you in this grim situation, then do it just to protect her life and safety.”

  “It isn’t fair for you to put me in this difficult position.”

  “You and fate did that, Moonbeam. You asked me to save Andrea from Earth’s doom. If I hadn’t loved you and done that favor for you, she wouldn’t be here to tempt you to endanger our mission. I can’t let that happen.”

  “Are you forgetting about Nigel and Andrea’s romance? If I tell her you’re awful and all you’ve done to me, what is she going to think about him being the best friend of the man who nearly destroyed me? She might think Nigel has her fooled and is just like you, that he’d do similar things to her. It could ruin their relationship. Is the ruse worth everything it’s costing, Varian?”

  “How do we place values on saving lives and creating intergalactic peace? What are they worth, Jana? Or do they mean nothing to you because it isn’t your world or people in jeopardy? I wonder if you’d feel the same if your world were involved in the decision instead of mine.”

  Ouch, J. G. “What about me? I know the truth. Enemies or doubters would come after me before capturing and questioning my best friend.”

  “You won’t be at risk much longer because I’m putting you through the Rendelar process. It won’t seem strange for Ryker to do that for you, not in your position as his wife and heir and his assistant in Trilabs with all of its secrets to guard. After Tris finishes the process, no one will be able to extract anything from you. I can’t do the same for Andrea because that would be too suspicious.”

  Jana stared at the alien. Dangers abounded for anyone near him. She had ridden the wings of magic in his arms, but there was a universe of differences between them, perhaps a span too wide for her to cross to reach him. He was right, she admitted with reluctance, about his precaution and their possible jeopardy. But did protecting the charade and their lives justify so many deceptions? His loved ones knew the truth. It wasn’t fair for hers to be kept in the dark forever, to be fed horrible tales. She and Andrea had always told each other everything. Her best friend would know she was lying. Too, the restriction kept her from having anyone with whom to share her fears and doubts. Jana couldn’t help but wonder why he could use those reasons to explain her being Rendelared now when she couldn’t be earlier.

  “I know what you’re thinking, woman; it’s written in your eyes. Ryker wouldn’t have done this until he was certain of you. Since you two had just met and married, he would have waited a while.”

  “Are you a mind reader now? If so, you know how much I hate this trap. All right, my lips are sealed. But I’m doing this for everybody’s survival and for peace, not just for mine and Andrea’s. I only hope this demand doesn’t cost me her friendship.”

  “If she’s anything like you, Moonbeam, it won’t. Thanks, Jana. I was confident that once your anger subsided, you’d understand and agree.”

  “Just get this nasty, sacrificial business over with so I can get on with my life.” She had made the promise with good intentions, but she didn’t know if or for how long she could keep it.

  He seemed to read her mind again when he added, “All right, Jana, I’ll compromise. As soon as this mess is cleared up, which shouldn’t take much longer, I’ll also have Andrea treated with Rendelar so that you can tell her everything. Will that appease you, woman?”

  “Are you serious? You swear? You promise?” After each question, he nodded and his sexy grin broadened. She knew he could carry out his earlier threat, so she was pleased he had relented. A compromise was fair.

  “Well, are we still a team? Total silence until the mission ends?”

  She smiled a
nd hugged him. “Yes, and thank you, kind sir. As you’re always telling me, you won’t be sorry; I promise.”

  “For all our sakes, I hope not.”

  Jana hurried down the shuttle steps to be reunited with her auburn-haired friend after eight long months of separation. She almost squealed like an exuberant child at Christmas, “Andrea! Andrea! Mercy, you’re a soothing sight for sore eyes.”

  The young woman raced forward to greet her in a heavy Texas twang. “Jana! Jana! You’re finally here!”

  They hugged, kissed, and shed tears of joy. Then, each studied the other as words tumbled forth in excitement.

  “Heavens, Jana, it’s good to see you. When you vanished, we went crazy with fear. I’m so glad you’re alive and safe. But this …”

  “I know, incredible, isn’t it? I’m sorry I got you into this fix. When they told me Earth might be destroyed, I begged them to rescue you. If you want, you can go home now. I’m sure your parents are out of their minds.”

  “They shouldn’t be. When I was captured, I was told about you and informed I would be joining you soon. They let me write a letter to Mom and Dad telling them I was going away on a trip for about a year. They’re probably miffed and concerned, but they believe I’m all right, and there on Earth.”

  Jana was amazed to see the twenty-four-year-old bundle of energy was smiling and at ease in what most females would view as an intimidating situation. “You must tell me everything, Andrea, everything that’s happened since we were taken captive. I still can’t believe you’re here with me.”

  They hugged again and shed more tears of relief and happiness. Jana unintentionally ignored Tristan, Martella, and Nigel during her excitement for a short time.