Star Princess (In the Darkness Book 1)

by Sophie Stern

  “Much better.”

  “Good,” she lets go of me and begins to bustle around the room. “I’m the doctor here. Well, there are a few others from time to time, but I’m the one who’s always on the ship.”

  “Where are the other doctors? I mean, when they aren’t on the ship.”

  “Oh, here and there. Sometimes they’re off on missions. Sometimes they go acquire items on different planets. Sometimes they’re needed in battle. You never know, really.”

  “How long have you been on this ship?” I ask. The medical room is clean and bright, and although I pride myself on keeping up with alien tech, the truth is that I really am an Earth girl at heart. Oh, I was taken to Mars long before Earth was destroyed, but my father and I didn’t stay there long. As soon as he saved up money for passage on a ship, we were off, and our treasure hunting days began.

  This room is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. I can’t begin to imagine what the different gadgets are for.

  “A very long time,” Sarah says, and her voice sounds almost sad.

  “I’m sorry,” I whisper. “I shouldn’t have asked.”

  “It’s fine,” she says, looking over her shoulder at me. She flashes me a smile once more. “It’s a long story, and people don’t tend to ask too many questions about their doctor. I’m just not used to having anyone be curious. It’s been a long time since I’ve been around another human.”

  “You’re human, too?”

  “Can’t you tell by my awesome hair?” She asks, and we both giggle. “But in all seriousness, most people assume I’m Orchidian. My best friend, Blake, is. The two of us came on the ship at the same time.”

  “Were you running away from something?”

  “More or less,” she says. “He needed to get away from his family. I needed a fresh start, too. There’s not much more to it.”

  “You’re lucky to have him,” I say. I wish I had someone, anyone, to go back to after this. The realization that I truly have nothing left is staggering, and it hurts. It shouldn’t be this painful, should it? The realization that my dad and I will never take another trip pains my soul.

  “I am lucky,” Sarah says slowly. She comes over and begins to start checking the bandages on my legs. I’m wearing a sort of gown that ends mid-thigh. I don’t have panties on. Embarrassed, I quickly slam my legs closed. “Don’t worry about that,” Sarah looks up at me. “I’m a doctor, Diana. I’ve seen it all. Please, don’t let your modesty keep you from getting the care you need.”

  I take a deep breath.

  She’s right. I’m being silly. I nod, and carefully I relax my body.

  “I’m just changing your bandages, okay? You had quite a few nasty cuts when they brought you in.”

  “How long have I been here?” I ask quietly.

  “Three days.”

  “What?” I’m shocked. I thought she would say I’d only been here a few hours. “Was I asleep? Why don’t I remember?”

  “You had a nightmare. You woke up screaming and couldn’t be calmed, so I sedated you while you healed.” She finishes taping a bandage and looks up at me. “Everything is going to be okay, Diana.”

  “The man who brought me…”

  “Max.”

  “Has he…”

  “Been to see you?”

  I nod.

  “He has tried,” Sarah smirks. “Every day he shows up here. Usually a few times a day, but I haven’t let anyone in to see you. There’s no need for that yet. You need time to heal and to recover. When you’re ready, you’re more than free to meet with the men who rescued you. They’re all really good guys. They won’t do anything to hurt you.”

  “They seemed different.”

  “Different?” She gives me a questioning look. “What do you mean?”

  How do I say they didn’t try to hurt me? How do I say they seemed gentle? How do I say any of this without sounding completely crazy and weird?

  As it turns out, I don’t have to say anything because the door to the room slides open and Max strides in. He looks different than I remember him. He seems bigger, if that’s possible, and he’s wearing some sort of uniform with the shiniest boots I’ve ever seen in my life.

  “Hey!” Sarah turns around. “What the hell are you doing here? You know you can’t be here yet.”

  “Are you okay?” He ignores Sarah completely. His eyes are fully focused on me. “Is everything all right?”

  “Yeah,” I say, but my words come out a whisper. Was he this big before? This intimidating? He’s so much bigger than the men who stole me, but he seems gentle, somehow. He seems kind.

  Max isn’t the type of man who would hurt a woman. I can already tell.

  “Max, you really need to leave.” Sarah steps forward and places her hand on his forearm. “She just woke up. She needs some time.”

  “I’ll sit with her,” he says. Again, he doesn’t look at her. He just stares at me with those big, beautiful eyes.

  Sarah sighs and looks at me. She seems to realize this is a battle she can’t win.

  “Are you okay with that, Diana? Would you like Max here?”

  “Yes,” I nod. “He can stay.”

  Chapter 6

  Max

  I didn’t realize I’d been holding my breath until I heard her say the words.

  Yes, he can stay.

  Immediately, I relax, and I move to her side. I pull a chair up to the bed and sit beside Diana. Then I take her hand in mine, and I hold it.

  She doesn’t stay anything, but she doesn’t have to. Her eyes hold all the gratitude in the world, and that makes me feel like a much bigger, much better man than I truly am.

  “Everything looks good,” Sarah says. She spreads some ointment on one of Diana’s bruises, and the purple marks fade a little bit more. “It’ll be a few more days before the rest of the bruises are gone, but you’re going to be just fine.”

  “And her ankle?” I ask.

  “My ankle?” Diana seems confused. “It doesn’t hurt.”

  “I put some numbing cream on it,” Sarah says. “It’s not broken, but it’s sprained, and she’ll need to stay off of it for awhile.”

  “That doesn’t seem to be a problem,” Diana says. “I’ll just stay in bed.”

  “You’ll stay with me,” I say. My words sound more blunt, more harsh, than I intended them to.

  “Is that right?” Sarah seems amused, but Diana looks shocked.

  She does not, I notice gladly, look scared.

  “But I…but you…but we barely know each other,” she says.

  “I’m not asking you to sleep with me,” I feel the need to clarify. “But as a high ranking officer on this ship, I have an entire suite at my disposal. There’s an extra bedroom, and it’s yours. You can stay as long as you like.”

  “Really?” She squeezes my hand. “That’s so kind of you. Thank you.”

  I’m surprised. For some reason, I thought I’d meet more resistance when I offered to let Diana stay with me. It just makes good sense to me. She’ll be safe, and I’ll be able to watch over her. Ulizeoa is already off of the ship. We dropped him off on Orchid and when I told Rex what the fucker had done, he gave me the honor of taking the bastard out.

  I don’t regret it.

  Maybe I should, but I don’t.

  I’ve killed before, but only bad men, only terrible men.

  Ulizeoa?

  He wasn’t a man at all.

  He was a monster.

  She’s safe now. Diana is safe and nothing bad is going to happen to her on my watch.

  “It’s nothing,” I say. Sarah mutters something under her breath and rolls her eyes.

  “When can I leave?” Diana asks.

  “Anxious to be alone with the big guy?” Sarah winks. “I don’t blame you. Orchidian guys are hung like this,” she holds her hands about a foot apart and I’m just about to chastise her for being ridiculous when Diana laughs loudly.

  I look at her and I see her smiling brightly.
/>   And it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

  Chapter 7

  Diana

  When I try to put weight on my ankle, I cringe. Even with the healing ointment, the pain is there.

  “Don’t try to walk,” Max says. He wraps a blanket around me, and then he sweeps me into his arms. He turns to Sarah and asks if she has any further instructions for care, but Sarah just shakes her head and laughs.

  “Come back tomorrow,” she says to me. “And I’ll check you and change your bandages.” She hands Max a cane. “For when she needs to walk around your housing unit.” He carefully accepts the cane.

  “Thank you for everything you’ve done,” I say to her, and Sarah just smiles and waves. Max leaves the medical unit and turns down a hall. I’m still wearing the glasses on my face. They darken everything around me, but even with them on, the ship is very, very brightly lit.

  “Why is everything so bright?” I ask.

  “Eyes still feeling sensitive?”

  “Very.”

  “I’ll keep the lights low at my living unit. You’ll be able to take the glasses off, and you won’t be in any pain.”

  “Thank you,” I whisper. “That’s very…”

  Sweet?

  Kind?

  “Thoughtful.”

  “Anything for you,” he says, and he keeps walking in silence. I’m curious about the ship, but I’m also feeling very shy. I don’t want to make eye contact with anyone else. I certainly don’t want to know people are looking at me or wondering who I am. Instead of looking around, I lean my head on Max’s chest and close my eyes, and I just let myself think of the new world I’ve been thrust into.

  I’m still in shock things have turned out the way they did. I gave up hope that anyone would find me. I had come to terms with living in an isolated place and being hurt over and over again. I didn’t think safety would come.

  I didn’t think a savior would come.

  But he did.

  I still don’t know what Max was looking for in that building. I assume it was Boss Man. The guy made a lot of enemies, from what I could tell, and I hope beyond all hope that Max and his gang of heroes killed him. I hope they killed all of those guys so they can never hurt anyone ever again.

  I hear voices surround me as he moves through a busier part of the ship.

  “Don’t worry,” Max keeps his voice low. “No one is looking at you. They’re all too busy with their own days to even look twice, okay? You can keep your eyes closed if you want, and we’ll be at my place in no time at all.”

  “Thank you,” I whisper, and then I nuzzle closer to him. I can hear his heart beating in his chest, and I focus on that. Soon all other sounds fade away until the only thing I know is that Max is here for me.

  He’s here, and he’s going to protect me.

  He is my safety net now.

  For a long time, my father protected me, and then he couldn’t. I’m not under the impression that Max will be able to protect me forever, but I think he’s a good man. I think he’s a strong man, and I think he’ll watch over me on this ship.

  It seems to be a big place with a lot of action happening. Max hasn’t told me much about this place at all, but I’m sure there will be time to explain.

  When my father and I hunted together, we would rent ships from time to time, but we usually rode as passengers on larger interplanetary ships. It’s easy to get from one planet to another on a huge ship, and it’s not too hard to sneak on. If we got caught, we would pretend to be lost passengers or crew members, and we ended up working on ships on more than one occasion.

  My dad and I always had fun, though, no matter where we were.

  That’s probably the thing I miss about him the most.

  I miss having my dad around to spend time with, to joke with. I miss having him promise me everything will be okay. I miss hearing him tell me that no matter what happens, he’ll always love me, always protect me.

  I don’t blame my father for what happened to me. Not at all. Not ever. He tried to protect me, but at the end of the day, he’s just one man. We were outnumbered and outgunned, and we did our best.

  Our best just wasn’t good enough.

  “Here we are,” Max says, and I hear a door slide open. We step into the space and the door closes behind us. I keep my eyes closed until Max stops and gently lowers me down to a soft, round chair.

  “Thank you.”

  “It’s nothing. Would you like a drink?”

  “Yes, please,” and then I realize I didn’t cough once on the way to his unit. “My cough,” I tell him. “It’s gone.”

  “Oh, yeah, Sarah took care of that.” He walks over carrying a cup of petal juice for me. I’m not going to argue with that. I sip the alcohol, and it warms my belly instantly. “You had a lung infection, but she gave you some medication and it cleared it right up.”

  “That was fast.”

  “It’s good medication.”

  I finally take the time to look around Max’s living unit. It’s a wide open space, and there are several sofas and chairs, along with some bright, warm tapestries.

  “Those are beautiful,” I say.

  “From Orchid,” he tells me proudly. “My grandmother made them.”

  “She’s very talented,” I say. “They’re incredible.”

  “She’s a pretty fantastic lady,” he confirms. “She actually has a shop on Orchid and takes special orders. People travel from all over the universe to come see her.”

  “You must miss her.”

  “I do.”

  We stand for a minute in silence as I look around. It’s quiet, but not awkward. Somehow, being with Max is comfortable. It’s more comfortable than it should be, and I feel safe here.

  There’s something I need to know, though, something that’s going to bother me if I don’t find out. I need to ask him.

  “What’s going to happen to me?” I ask. I probably shouldn’t. Maybe it would be better not to know.

  “What do you want to happen to you?” Max sits down. He seems strangely calm. He’s comfortable in his own skin, I realize. He’s not like me. He’s not nervous and fidgety. I know I’ve been through a lot and I should be patient with myself, but that’s easier said than done.

  Each moment feels like a struggle, and this isn’t something I want to be dealing with forever, I realize.

  I want to get past what happened to me as quickly as possible.

  Yeah, I was raped, and I was hurt, and I was ignored. I was beaten. I was starved.

  But you know what?

  I wasn’t killed.

  I’m still alive.

  Right now, I want to feel alive.

  “You,” I whisper.

  “Excuse me?” Max cocks his head to the side. “I’m not sure I understand.”

  I reach for him and grab his uniform in my hands, and I pull him close to me. I kiss him before he can stop me. I kiss him before he can tell me it’s a bad idea, that we should think this through. I kiss him and there’s not a thing he can do about it.

  For a second, I’m worried he’s going to play the gentleman and pull back, but he doesn’t. He kisses me back deeply, passionately. He kisses me and for a minute, I don’t feel like a broken girl.

  I feel like a woman.

  I pull back and look at him, searching his eyes for any sense of regret, but I don’t see any.

  “Tell me what you want, Diana,” he says. “There are no expectations here, love.”

  “I want to forget about what happened to me.”

  “I can’t make the pain go away,” he says slowly.

  “But you can stop it for a little while,” I point out.

  “Is that what you want? Are you sure?”

  “Yes, Max,” I whisper. I’m so close to the edge of tears, but I’m not going to cry. Not right now.

  I used to love sex, crave it. I used to love my body and the things I could do in the bedroom. I don’t want my memories of sex to be tainted by the men
who took me.

  “Please,” I say again. “Please make love to me.”

  Chapter 8

  Max

  I shouldn’t be doing this. She’s been through hell and back again, and the truth is that Diana may very well still be in shock. She’s not in a place to make rational decisions.

  “We shouldn’t,” I say. I can do this. I can be the good guy. I can be the hero. One of us needs to be strong, and it can be me.

  “Max,” she presses her hands to my chest, and for a minute, I don’t feel like the officer. I don’t feel like the team member. I don’t feel like the guy who leads mission after mission after mission. For just a moment, I feel completely raw.

  I feel like a man.

  This is the way I’m supposed to feel.

  There was an instant connection with Diana I wasn’t supposed to have. I can’t explain it.

  She’s my mate. The thought floats through my head, uninvited, but I can’t seem to shake it. I adore Diana, and if this is what she wants, then I can offer her this reprieve. I can get her out of her own head for a little while. I can make her feel again.

  “Fuck it,” I say, and I lift her up. She wraps her legs around me and I carry her to the bedroom, kissing her the entire way. When I set her on the bed, the blanket around her falls away, revealing the thin gown Sarah gave her to wear.

  “First things first,” she chuckles, and she yanks it off. She drops the gown on the floor, and I just look at her.

  “Damn, you’re beautiful,” I whisper.

  “You’re too kind,” she says.

  “I’m being honest,” I tell her. “Just look at you.”

  “I’m a little too thin,” she says. “And I’m pretty bruised, but I think I’m in pretty good spirits, considering.”

  “You’re perfect,” I say, and I strip out of my clothes, too. I toss them aside because I’m not going to need them anymore. Not tonight, and maybe not ever. I climb next to her on the bed, and Diana presses her hands to my chest.

  “I like you like this,” she says. “Naked, hot, ready. You’re sexy, but you’re not pushy. You make me feel really good, Max.”