Touch me, p.1
Touch Me, page 1
part #4 of Stark International Series
Touch Me
A Stark International Novella
By J. Kenner
Touch Me
A Stark International Novella
By J. Kenner
Copyright 2024 Julie Kenner
ISBN: 978-1-957568-90-4
Published by Blue Box Press, an imprint of Evil Eye Concepts, Incorporated
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or establishments is solely coincidental.
Book Description
Touch Me
A Stark International Novella
By J. Kenner
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J. Kenner comes a new story in her Stark International series…
Former wild child Jamie Archer can’t believe how amazing her life has become. Not only is she married to the sexiest man on the planet, Stark Security Chief Ryan Hunter, but she’s also set to star in a big budget blockbuster that is sure to send her career soaring into the stratosphere.
Everything is perfect until Jamie, the least maternal person on the planet, finds out that not only is she pregnant, but that her due date interferes with the film’s production schedule.
Ryan has always supported his wife’s ambition, but he never expected to learn that they were having a baby from the shouts of paparazzi. Hurt, angry, and afraid that Jamie will choose her career over their family, Ryan tries to pull her closer, but only succeeds in pushing her away.
Now, as the pillars of their once fairytale marriage begin to crumble, Jamie and Ryan must find a way to outshine the glitter of stardom and rediscover the strength of their bond.
About J. Kenner
J. Kenner (aka Julie Kenner) is the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, Wall Street Journal and #1 International bestselling author of over one-hundred novels, novellas and short stories in a variety of genres.
JK has been praised by Publishers Weekly as an author with a “flair for dialogue and eccentric characterizations” and by RT Bookclub for having “cornered the market on sinfully attractive, dominant antiheroes and the women who swoon for them.”
In her previous career as an attorney, JK worked as a lawyer in Southern California and Texas. She currently lives in Central Texas, with her husband, two daughters, and two rather spastic cats.
Visit JK online at www.jkenner.com
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Also From J. Kenner
Click here for an updated Printable Booklist
Fallen Saint Series:
My Fallen Saint
My Beautiful Sin
My Cruel Salvation
Sinner’s Game
Stark Security:
Shattered With You
Broken With You
Ruined With You
Wrecked With You
Destroyed With You
Memories of You
Ravaged With You
Hidden With You
Charmed By You
Tangled With You
Entwined With You
The Stark Saga:
Release Me
Claim Me
Complete Me
Anchor Me
Lost With Me
Damien
Enchant Me
Interview with the Billionaire
Stark Ever After:
Take Me
Have Me
Play My Game
Seduce Me
Unwrap Me
Deepest Kiss
Entice Me
Hold Me
Please Me
Indulge Me
Delight Me
Cherish Me
Embrace Me
Stark International
Steele Trilogy:
Say My Name
On My Knees
Under My Skin
Take My Dare (novella, includes bonus short story: Steal My Heart)
Stark World Standalone Stories:
Justify Me (part of the Lexi Blake Crossover Collection)
Jamie & Ryan Novellas:
Tame Me
Tempt Me
Tease Me
Dallas & Jane (S.I.N. Trilogy):
Dirtiest Secret
Hottest Mess
Sweetest Taboo
Most Wanted:
Wanted
Heated
Ignited
Wicked Nights:
Wicked Grind
Wicked Dirty
Wicked Torture
Man of the Month:
Down On Me
Hold On Tight
Need You Now
Start Me Up
Get It On
In Your Eyes
Turn Me On
Shake It Up
All Night Long
In Too Deep
Light My Fire
Walk The Line
Royal Cocktail
Bar Bites: A Man of the Month Cookbook
Blackwell-Lyon:
Lovely Little Liar
Pretty Little Player
Sexy Little Sinner
Tempting Little Tease
Also by Julie Kenner
Demon Hunting Soccer Mom Series:
Carpe Demon
California Demon
Demons Are Forever
Deja Demon
The Demon You Know
Demon Ex Machina
Pax Demonica
Day of the Demon
How to Train Your Demon
The Dark Pleasures Series:
Caress of Darkness
Find Me in Darkness
Find Me in Pleasure
Find Me in Passion
Caress of Pleasure
Rising Storm:
Tempest Rising
Quiet Storm
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Click here to explore.
Lara Adrian
Dylan Allen
Jennifer L. Armentrout
Kristen Ashley
Tessa Bailey
Sawyer Bennett
Shayla Black
Lexi Blake
Lauren Blakely
K. Bromberg
Audrey Carlan
Claire Contreras
Tina Folsom
Melissa Foster
Heather Graham
Donna Grant
Liliana Hart
Helen Hunting
Larissa Ione
Alexandra Ivy
Lorelei James
Darynda Jones
Lisa Renee Jones
Laura Kaye
J. Kenner
Corinne Michaels
Elisabeth Naughton
Laurelin Paige
Devney Perry
Carly Phillips
Jennifer Probst
Kristen Proby
C.D. Reiss
Aurora Rose Reynolds
Christopher Rice
Carrie Ann Ryan
Kendall Ryan
Kennedy Ryan
Kylie Scott
Jill Shalvis
Gena Showalter
Cherise Sinclair
Susan Stoker
Tijan
Rachel Van Dyken
Skye Warren
Laura Wright
Joanna Wylde
Rebecca Zanetti
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Jennifer L. Armentrout
Kristen Ashley
Xio Axelrod
Sawyer Bennett
Steve Berry
Lexi Blake
Audrey Carlan
Robin Convington
Kaylea Cross
Jay Crownover
Avery Flynn
C. W. Gortner
KL Grayson
Cristin Harber
Lynn Raye Harris
Liliana Hart
Larissa Ione
Suzanne M. Johnson
Laura Kaye
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Kimberly Kincaid
Gennita Low
Randy Susan Meyers
Corinne Michaels
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Table of Contents
Book Description
About J. Kenner
Also from J. Kenner
Discover More 1001 Dark Nights Authors
Discover More Blue Box Press Authors
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
&n bsp; Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Epilogue
Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Eleven
Discover More J. Kenner
Discover the World of 1001 Dark Nights
Special Thanks
Chapter One
“More plane! More plane!”
I stare at the blond-haired demon standing at my feet, his little arms raised, those big brown eyes imploring.
“Come on, kiddo. How can you want more? In the last hour, we’ve pretty much flown to New York and back. And boy are my arms tired.” I whip out the punch line with a wacky grin, only in this case, it’s true.
Little David blinks those eyes at me, but it’s the trembling lower lip that reels me in. And in that moment, I know he’s going to grow up to get anything he wants. Starting, apparently, now.
Without warning, I swoop down to snag him around the waist. He squeals and giggles as I go round and round in a wild circle, probably making both of us dizzy, while he blows raspberries in a two-year-old’s attempt to sound like a plane.
At least this is making up for skipping my morning workout. The one at the gym, anyway. I toss a sultry smile over David’s head as Ryan steps into our living room, then leans casually against the archway that divides the living area from the dining room. The light from behind him gives his chestnut hair even more of a reddish hue, and his cornflower-blue eyes sweep over me as I continue to spin the little imp. And with each rotation, Ryan’s eyes find mine, his mouth curving more and more into a teasing half-smile.
I know every line and angle of his chiseled face. Which means I know that he’s thinking exactly the same thing that I am—if it weren’t for the kid in my arms, we could be repeating this morning’s workout right then.
And that’s reason number five-hundred and seventy-six on my list of why it’s too soon to be a parent.
“You’re a natural,” Ryan says as I lower David to the ground, then point him toward the television, where a DVD of Backyardigans—courtesy of Nikki’s extensive kid-vid collection— is already playing.
As David succumbs to the lure of the television, I cross my arms and face my husband. “Why are you insulting me after we had such a nice wake-up call this morning?”
“Wake-up booty call?”
“Ryan!” I jerk my head toward David.
“Pretty sure I haven’t scarred him for life.” He starts across the living room toward me. “And it wasn’t an insult.”
“I’m many things, but a natural at childcare, I’m not.”
“Quick study, then,” he amends, and I can’t counter that. I may not be a mother, but there are enough kids in my life that I’ve learned the basics. Like making sure to tire them out before nap and bedtime. And to never underestimate the power of that most ultimate of all babysitters—the television.
“It’s easy to earn an A when you’re not living the final exam,” I say as I move into his outstretched arms. He draws me closer, and I tilt my head to look up at him, studying his face.
“Would it be so bad?”
“I don’t know. But what does it matter? We’re aunt and uncle to a whole gaggle of kids, which means we have the luxury of giving them back when they get on our nerves.”
“Definitely a perk,” he says. “But what if we couldn’t give them back? Would that be so terrible?”
I’m not crazy about the turn the conversation has taken, but I only realize that I’ve taken a step back when he tightens his arms to pull me back into place.
“Jamie.” His voice is low. Tender. “Would it?”
This time when I step back, he releases me, and for a moment, I see a flicker of frustration play across his chiseled face. I shrug. “I’m not saying kids aren’t fun to have around, but we aren’t even close to ready. Not for having one twenty-four seven.”
“Aren’t we?”
We’ve had this conversation a number of times, the topic floating into our marriage here and there like shiny soap bubbles dancing in the air. Fun to look at, but nothing serious. And so very easy to pop.
Today, his voice doesn’t float.
I turn away, my attention on David, as if I’m thinking hard about Ryan’s words. I’m not. Instead, I’m regretting telling Emery that I could babysit.
Emery Newton is a single mom who works as the assistant to Eli Jones, an Oscar-winning actor turned hotel magnate who lives two houses down the beach from me and Ryan. Eli’s been out of the country for a few months, so Emery and her son moved in so that she could house-sit.
When she called last night to ask if I could watch David while she went on a breakfast-to-dinner date, I said I’d be happy to oblige. I hope she’s already hot and heavy with the guy, because I’ve only been at this for two hours, and I’m already exhausted. If I’m going to suffer through babysitting, I want it to be for something with more pizazz than a lazy brunch and a stroll through the surf.
“Kids sleep, too, you know,” Ryan says, interrupting my thoughts.
“That’s a myth.”
“No, it’s true. I saw a sleeping toddler once. I’m pretty sure it was the top story on the news.”
I hit him with my best deadpan stare. “You’re not as adorable as you think you are.”
“Oh, but I am,” he says, his expression pure sin.
The den is right off the kitchen, and I grab my mug off the side table and head that direction, direly in need of more caffeine. Ryan follows, and once we both have our refills, we sit at the island where we have a view of David’s back and the cartoon characters dancing on the screen.
“As for adorable…you have to admit the kid’s got it going on.”
I sip my coffee, then swivel on the stool to face my husband directly. “We’re not ready.”
I watch his face—a face I know so damn well. He wants to argue. That’s obvious enough. But what’s also painfully, screamingly obvious is that this conversation is different from all the others.
We’re no longer tossing around those shiny soap bubbles we can pop and forget. The mantra I’d taken so much comfort in—we’re not ready—has become a total fallacy, and now I’m left with my uterus hanging out there.
Because Ryan is ready.
He has been, I think, for a very long time.
Well, shit.
I take a long slug of coffee, hoping that will make my brain cells process all of this faster. Then I wave my hand as if clearing the air of our entire conversation. “I have a toddler to entertain. And you, mister, need to get to work.”
I start to slide off the stool, but he puts his hand on my thigh. There’s barely any pressure at all, but it’s enough to keep me firmly in place. “Ryan—”
“We have to talk about this sometime.”
“Clearly. But it doesn’t have to be now.”
“Kitten.”
That’s all he says. Just that one word. But it’s enough to make me snap. “No. We do not have to talk about this now. I’m not even sure I can think about it now.” I’ve dropped my voice, as if this conversation might somehow scar our very pre-pubescent house guest.
“My career’s just now taking off,” I continue. “And once filming begins on Dead Certain things are going to get even more crazy.”
“Jamie—”
I slide off the stool and put up my hand as if that will block whatever he’s going to say. Somehow, magically, it does.
“Please, just hear me. I can’t do my job and be pregnant. And not just because a baby bump isn’t part of the character descriptions. I mean, I saw how exhausted Nikki was with every one of her kids. Are you really ready for our sex life to come to a screeching halt?”
I can’t even remember a weekend when we haven’t made love. Hell, I’m not sure I can remember a Thursday.
Sex may not be the defining quality of our marriage, but like every relationship counselor says, it’s good for a couple to share a hobby. And stamp collecting just doesn’t do it for me.
There’s both amusement and heat in his eyes when he says, “Do you really think our sex life will ever come to a screeching halt?”
Dear god, I hope not.
I cross my arms and try to stare him down. “Babies are exhausting. Toddlers, too. Maybe when the kid starts school we’ll have time to squeeze in a fast fuck, but—”
“When you’re right, you’re right,” he says, shaking his head in what is clearly only mock agreement. “It’s a damn shame that Nikki and Damien have three kids. I’m pretty sure they haven’t had sex in years and years.”
