Stark September (Stark Trilogy Book 1)

by C. D. Bradley

  CHAPTER 8

  Stark heard movement at the top of the stairs. He looked up to find a wide-eyed Kira staring down at him. The horrified look on her face spoke volumes. “Kira, wait!” he pleaded as she turned and walked away from view. Stark bounded up the stairs. “Please Kira, don’t walk away,” he pleaded. He crested the stairs in time to see the door shut. Panic set in. He raced across the landing and threw open the door. Kira was stuffing her clothes in her bag. “What are you doing?” His voice was raspy and tight showing his desperation. He crossed the room, taking her by the shoulders and turning her to face him. “What are you doing? Are you leaving? Why, Kira? Talk to me, damn it!”

  Kira looked up. He could see she had been crying. She had showered and her wet hair clung to her tear-stained face. “Stark…Owen. I don’t even know who you are. You were engaged to her? When? You have this whole life I know nothing about. I can’t compete with that…devil in Prada. I’m not like that, Owen. I never will be.”

  Stark stifled a laugh. “I don’t want that plastic bitch. I want you,” he said. “I don’t know why you can’t see how incredibly beautiful you are. I’ve been waiting my whole life to meet you and I’m not about to let you go now.” Stark pulled her tightly against him. He couldn’t bear the thought of letting her go.

  The warmth of his embrace flowed over her, enveloping her. Here in his arms she struggled to remember why she was mad. “You were engaged to her. You loved her.” As she spoke the words, searing jealousy cut her deeply. She realized that this hurt the most —he had been in love with someone else.

  Stark tipped her face up to look him in the eyes. “Kira, that was a long time ago. We were never formally engaged. Everyone expected us to get married, I guess. We were still kids. I’m not that person anymore.”

  “Did you love her? Do you love her still?” Kira’s voice trembled.

  “I thought I did. I was nineteen, for Christ sake. What did I know about life or love? That was a lifetime ago. I’ve been to war, seen more people die than I care to discuss. I’m not that boy anymore. I don’t want to be.” His voice softened, as he leaned into her..

  “And now?” She had to know.

  “I want you. Only you,” he whispered as he kissed her hair.

  Kira tilted her face up to his. How can I ever resist this man? “So where were we before we were so rudely interrupted by bitch Barbie?”

  “I believe I was about to have some very dirty pancakes,” he answered, grinning as he reached down to pick her up. Kira shrieked as he reached through her legs and picked her up by her butt and thighs. His brute strength was breathtaking. With ease he lifted her up so that her sex rested right in front of his mouth. “Mmm, yeah, that’s what I’m hungry for,” Stark rumbled into the crotch of her jeans. She squealed with delight at the sensation of his hot breath through the fabric.

  “Ooh. You’re going to make my pants wet on the inside and the outside,” she said in mock disapproval.

  “We can remedy that,” he said laughing, and carried her over to the bed, tossing her lightly. He pounced on the bed beside her.

  “Who said you get pancakes?” she teased. “It’s way past time for breakfast.” She began to crawl away.

  “OK, then we’ll have brunch,” he countered, just in time to catch her by the ankle and pull her back to him. “You’re not getting away from me that easily.” And then more seriously, “I will never let you go.” He stared at her for a moment before taking her face in his hands and kissing her deeply. He rolled on top of her, kissing her as if he would eat her up. Kira giggled and returned his kiss, opening her mouth and allowing him full rein.

  Never let me go! All the pain and embarrassment of the morning disappeared as his words suffused her. All her life she’d been so damn independent, yet when he took control and she surrendered, she felt more alive than anything she’d ever known. The heat of his body warmed her to her core. Kira’s breath came heavy and short as he kissed down her neck and began to unbutton her blouse. He still has flour in his hair! A wicked thought filled Kira. The whole time he was talking to bitch Barbie she had to be staring at that flour. That’s right, bitch. He’s mine! She kissed him back, hard, running her fingers through his thick dark hair. Mine! He had her blouse undone, and an appreciative smile grew on his lips as he exposed her lace bra. He traced his finger down her breast and over the nipple. The sensation sent electrical shocks deep into her, and she felt the now-familiar ache between her legs begging for attention.

  “Owen, please,” she begged, her voice thick with desire.

  “What do you want, baby? Tell me what you need.” His voice was wan ton and heavy.

  “I want you,” she said between breaths, “inside me.”

  He groaned loudly at the words and pressed his hardened cock against her silky thigh. Kira was so anxious for his touch it hurt. He raked his fingers deliciously down her abdomen to her sex, rubbing through the fabric, setting her throbbing clit ablaze. The smell of his cologne permeated the air as she breathed him in. She panted helplessly and he smiled, knowing he was in complete control. Expertly, he peeled her jeans away. Again, his lips pressed into the soft satin of her panties. His hot breath was torture. She whimpered, impatient for gratification. He grinned wickedly up at her and discarded the panties.

  “Wrap your legs around my neck,” he ordered.

  Eagerly she obeyed, envisioning the pleasure that awaited. But he did not kiss or lick or touch her aching sex. Instead, he picked her up and stood. She squealed, surprised and impressed at his strength. At first she was a touch uneasy being held six feet off the ground. He stood upright, holding her up by her ass, and she held on to the back of his head, her fingers tightly laced into his hair

  “Relax,” he ordered. “I have you.”

  His words trailed off as he buried his face into her waiting slit, and she screamed at the intensity of the pleasure. His strong arms held her firmly. Involuntarily Kira’s thighs tightened around him. His tongue between her legs was warm and wet as he paid lavish attention to her aching sex, her body becoming a growing inferno. The sweet aguish of pleasure and pain took over every muscle, every nerve ending. As if far away, she heard herself moaning between ragged breaths, and she surrendered as the explosion racked her shattered body. Kira fell limp into his waiting arms, still shuddering from the aftershocks of the intense orgasm. Gently he lay her back onto the bed.

  “There, baby, does that feel better?” he soothed. Stark watched her recover. He smiled, knowing the sleepy happy look on her face was due to him. You are mine. I will never be able to let you go. He knew he couldn’t explain why he needed her so.

  “Hmm,” Kira sighed, as she lay contented on the bed. “That’s…nice.”

  Stark climbed up in the bed beside her. He lay there, gently stroking his hand back and forth over her abdomen. Kira smiled up at him, looking at the incredible strong, sexy man lying beside her. She knew without a doubt that he cared for her and that she wanted to be with him. She didn’t care what phone sex queens or plastic bitches he had in his past. She would stay and fight if necessary. He was worth it, so very worth it.

  Kira rolled on top of him. “My turn,” she said, smiling. “Now, let’s get rid of some of these clothes.”

  **

  As they cleaned up the disastrous kitchen and made lunch, Stark explained his history with Simone. They had dated through high school. She was from a very affluent family in San Francisco, as was he, which had put them in all the same social circles. When they started college, he moved to Boston but she had gone to Berkeley.

  “What school did you go to in Boston?” Kira asked, surprised.

  Stark laughed. “Don’t sound so surprised. For your information I went to Havahd,” he said in his best Boston accent. “We were still dating seriously when my mom and Maggie died.” Stark was quiet for a moment.

  “You don’t have to. Owen, it’s OK.” Kira didn’t want to send him back to that dark place.

  “My whole world ha
d changed but Simone’s hadn’t. She was still the spoiled socialite who was so self-absorbed she didn’t even notice my world spiraled out of control and fell away. The things in my life that had once seemed so important were pointless. In the weeks following their deaths I lost my grip on that life. I was so racked with guilt and pain that I stopped participating in my own existence. I was drinking heavily. Instead of being there for me, Simone was busy planning sorority events and fundraisers. I was expelled from school. Instead of going home, I came here.” Stark looked up at Kira. She put her hand on his arm.

  “I reached out to Simone, who told me to get my shit together. ‘We still had a future to consider,’ she said, and hung up. I sat in this very house, alone. So very alone. Days stretched into a week. I found a pistol of my grandfather’s and sat at the table, wondering how long it would be before they found me. I had reached my breaking point. Life seemed empty, void of any real measure of worth.” Stark was very quiet. Kira’s heart ached, realizing just how close he had come to ending it all. She reached out to hold him while he talked.

  “It was then in my darkest moment that the phone rang and a crusty old voice asked for Owen Stark. It was the breeder calling about Maggie’s dog. What was I supposed to do with a damn dog? He insisted I come to pick the dog up. I contemplated hanging up on the old bastard and finishing what I had planned to do, but something stopped me.” He paused, looking at the falling snow out the large window.

  After a few minutes, he said, “I think it was Maggie. I think she and Mom were reaching out to me.” Stark told her how he’d driven his truck from Aspen to the breeder’s in northern California. The breeder was an old retired Army Master Sergeant. The experienced sergeant could see at once that Stark was broken

  “Come on in, son.” His gravelly voice had reverberated with years of smoking. He opened the young man a beer and told him to have a seat. Decades of dealing with traumatized young men gave the sergeant the ability to reach Stark. For the first time since the tragedy that had claimed his family, he was able to talk to someone who really understood.

  “I don’t know why, but I could talk to him. He knew what I was going through. He’d been there so many times before. And he reminded me of my grandfather. My mom’s dad was a great man,” Stark continued, remembering his time with the old breeder.

  “I have someone I want you to meet,” the older man said to the younger. He led Stark out back to a large kennel. Reaching in, he scooped up a wriggling puffball of speckled white fur and handed it to Stark. “I put a tag on her just to mark her for your sister,” he said. “You can name her whatever you like.” A small tag hanging from her collar was barely visible through the billow of white fur. “Maggie” was written crudely on the tag. Stark’s heart leapt inside his chest. He held the little fuzzball up and looked into her frosted cobalt eyes. They reminded him of Maggie. “She would love you,” he said to the fuzzball. The little pup cocked her head to the side and wrinkled her little pink and black nose. At once she wagged her stubby tail and licked his face. Stark’s heart was won. He had never been able to say no to his sister, and as he held the little pup he felt his sister’s spirit and love.

  “I knew there was nothing left for me in California or Boston. I spent a week with the old sergeant before deciding to come back to Colorado. Over the course of that week the sergeant told me stories of his days in the army: the family, the band of brothers, and their inseparable bond. I recalled the stories of my grandfather and his days with the Marine Raiders in World War II. That’s when I realized what I wanted to do with my life. The sergeant made a call and set up an appointment for me to meet a recruiter at Fort Carson. I left with little Mags to start a new life.”

  Kira drank a glass of much needed wine and listened thoughtfully as he talked and cooked their lunch. “So little Mags and the sergeant saved you?” she asked tenderly.

  “I guess so,” he said softly. “And my team. Kira, I had so much anger. I poured myself into revenge, worked night and day to be the best soldier and teammate that I could. I will not stop until the terrorists are gone, all of them. I won’t give up. I can’t. I have to keep fighting.”

  “Relentless,” she said, smiling sadly. Kira knew this goal defined him, but still, she wondered if he could ever be happy and really live again.

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know how to explain what it does to you to lose your family, your parent. To have the whole world change in an instant.”

  “You don’t have to explain.” I know all too well. Kira reached out and touched his hand, reassuring him. Her sweet confident smile hid the all the doubts and fears looming just beneath the surface.

  **

  “Let’s suit up. I want to take you on a ride. This is our last day before we have to head back to the real world. I want to make it good,” Stark said after they had eaten. He and Kira went to the ski room and donned their heaviest gear. “It’s going to get really cold before we get back so bundle up.”

  Kira was excited; she loved snowmobiles but hadn’t been on one in years. Stark led her into one of the three garages. “Whoa,” she said in a low voice, looking around the large space. All manner of outdoor gear was contained here. It was like an REI warehouse. The far wall was lined with kayaks, oars, and life jackets. Large floor-to-ceiling wooden shelves contained totes labeled by activity. She saw what looked like a mini mountain bike shop in one corner. On another side of the room was a yellow and black Ski-Doo XM Summit X 154 snowmobile. Stark opened the garage and moved the big sled out onto the snow. After checking to make sure everything was ready, he turned to Kira. “You ready?”

  “Oh, yes!” she exclaimed as she climbed on behind him. Stark started the engine and raced up the mountain. They followed trails through the trees in the deep snow, the boughs of the pines heavy with snow, almost making a tunnel. Other than the engine, the world seemed silent. The wind was cold but invigorating. Kira held on tightly as Stark raced through fields and passes, climbing higher and higher, above the rest of the world. Here with him it was easy to imagine they were the only two people on earth. Kira looked up. The high sunlit clouds drifted aimlessly across the clear blue sky. The troubles that were so overwhelming down in the regular world were nonexistent here. The snow covered all flaws and made everything appear new and perfect. Kira smiled and held him tighter. They reached a clearing that overlooked the entire world below. Kira gasped at the incredible beauty and knew in that moment there was hope. If they could hold on to each other no matter what they had to face when they went back, they would be alright.

  Stark must have felt it too because he stopped the snowmobile and got off to stand beside her. He wrapped her in his arms, the smile on his face genuine and finally happy. “I’ll stand by you with all that I am. Promise me you won’t leave, and I know we’ll be OK.” They stood there together, holding each other and watched the sun slip away.

  CHAPTER 9

  Kira awoke to the hateful buzzing of her alarm. Ugh, how was it already time for work? She thought back to her lovely weekend with Stark. It was like a dream: perfect, except maybe for the plastic bitch Barbie, but she wouldn’t think of her now. So much had happened—it seemed more like a lifetime than just a weekend. Kira was a little sad to be heading back to work. Then she thought of Abbey, who would no doubt be waiting for details. Kira was getting ready when her doorbell rang. Could it be him? she wondered, suddenly excited. She answered the door. A delivery man was there, shoving a clipboard in her face and asking her to sign here, please. Surprised and bewildered by the early morning intrusion, Kira fumbled with the clipboard.

  “Well, here you go. Have a good day,” the curt delivery man grumbled and thrust a long box into her arms.

  “Uh…thanks, I think,” Kira answered as she watched him hurry back down the walk. Kira took the oblong box back into her apartment. Now what is this? Who is it from? She unfastened the bright red ribbon and opened the white box. Inside were two dozen roses, all white except for two deep red ones. The stark co
ntrast of crimson on white was spectacular. Kira opened the note and her heart melted.

  Sometimes in the white noise that is our everyday lives

  Fate hands us a surprise

  A spark of passion

  In the midst of the mundane

  Thank you for a lovely weekend

  Owen

  Smiling like a schoolgirl, Kira held the note up to her lips. She closed her eyes for a moment and pictured him on top of the mountain. The red roses surrounded by all the white made her think of the two of them sitting at the top of the mountain as if there was no one else in the world. She took a long, lingering breath, inhaling the fragrant aroma of the beautiful flowers. She was sure it was her imagination, but they smelled like the honey-jasmine body wash and sensuous showers. She could still taste him on her lips.

  Realizing that the morning was passing her by, Kira quickly put the roses in water and ran out the door. She would have to hurry across base to get to the clinic on time. She cursed herself for not taking Stark up on his offer to let her use his Jeep until she got a new car. Damn Kira, way to be stubborn! she thought as she raced down the sidewalk. Kira jumped as a car horn blared behind her. Turning suddenly, she saw Holt’s red BMW slow down. It pulled up beside her. Oh, great. Kira had hoped to avoid him today.

  “Kira, you’re running late. Would you like a ride?” Holt asked hopefully.

  Lacking any believable excuse, Kira accepted his invitation and hopped in. “Thanks for the ride, Captain Holt. I was running a little behind this morning.” Kira thought of the roses and smiled.

  “You’re welcome. You’re lucky I came along. It’s really unacceptable to be late for clinic,” Holt said in a self-satisfied tone. She’s really starting to fall