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  Hold Me

  A Stark Ever After Novella

  By J. Kenner

  1001 Dark Nights

  Hold Me

  A Stark International Novella

  By J. Kenner

  Copyright 2017 Julie Kenner

  ISBN: 978-1-945920-28-8

  Published by 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

  Hold Me: A Stark Ever After Novella

  By Julie Kenner

  My life with Damien has never been fuller. Every day is a miracle, and every night I lose myself in the oasis of his arms.

  But there are new challenges, too. Our families. Our careers. And new responsibilities that test us with unrelenting, unexpected trials.

  I know we will survive—we have to. Because I cannot live without Damien by my side. But sometimes the darkness seems overwhelming, and I am terrified that the day will come when Damien cannot bring the light. And I will have to find the strength inside myself to find my way back into his arms.

  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 eighty 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.” A five-time finalist for Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA award, JK took home the first RITA trophy awarded in the category of erotic romance in 2014 for her novel, Claim Me (book 2 of her Stark Trilogy).

  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

  Subscribe to JK’s Newsletter

  Text JKenner to 21000 to subscribe to JK’s text alerts

  Twitter

  Instagram

  Facebook Page

  Facebook Fan Group

  Also By J. Kenner

  Click to purchase.

  Click here for an updated Printable Booklist

  The Stark Trilogy:

  Release Me

  Claim Me

  Complete Me

  Anchor Me

  Stark Ever After:

  Take Me

  Have Me

  Play My Game

  Seduce Me

  Unwrap Me

  Deepest Kiss

  Entice Me

  Hold 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)

  Jamie & Ryan Novellas:

  Tame Me

  Tempt Me

  Dallas & Jane (S.I.N. Trilogy):

  Dirtiest Secret

  Hottest Mess

  Sweetest Taboo

  Most Wanted:

  Wanted

  Heated

  Ignited

  Also by Julie Kenner

  Click here for an updated Printable Booklist

  The Protector (Superhero) Series:

  The Cat's Fancy (prequel)

  Aphrodite's Kiss

  Aphrodite's Passion

  Aphrodite's Secret

  Aphrodite's Flame

  Aphrodite's Embrace

  Aphrodite's Delight (free download)

  Demon Hunting Soccer Mom Series:

  Carpe Demon

  California Demon

  Demons Are Forever

  Deja Demon

  The Demon You Know

  Demon Ex Machina

  Pax Demonica

  The Dark Pleasures Series:

  Caress of Darkness

  Find Me in Darkness

  Find Me in Pleasure

  Find Me in Passion

  Caress of Pleasure

  The Blood Lily Chronicles:

  Tainted

  Torn

  Turned

  Rising Storm:

  Tempest Rising

  Quiet Storm

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection One

  Click here to explore

  FOREVER WICKED by Shayla Black

  CRIMSON TWILIGHT by Heather Graham

  CAPTURED IN SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  SILENT BITE: A SCANGUARDS WEDDING by Tina Folsom

  DUNGEON GAMES by Lexi Blake

  AZAGOTH by Larissa Ione

  NEED YOU NOW by Lisa Renee Jones

  SHOW ME, BABY by Cherise Sinclair

  ROPED IN by Lorelei James

  TEMPTED BY MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  CARESS OF DARKNESS by Julie Kenner

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights

  TAME ME by J. Kenner

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Two

  Click here to explore

  WICKED WOLF by Carrie Ann Ryan

  WHEN IRISH EYES ARE HAUNTING by Heather Graham

  EASY WITH YOU by Kristen Proby

  MASTER OF FREEDOM by Cherise Sinclair

  CARESS OF PLEASURE by Julie Kenner

  ADORED by Lexi Blake

  HADES by Larissa Ione

  RAVAGED by Elisabeth Naughton

  DREAM OF YOU by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  STRIPPED DOWN by Lorelei James

  RAGE/KILLIAN by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  DRAGON KING by Donna Grant

  PURE WICKED by Shayla Black

  HARD AS STEEL by Laura Kaye

  STROKE OF MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  ALL HALLOWS EVE by Heather Graham

  KISS THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  DARING HER LOVE by Melissa Foster

  TEASED by Rebecca Zanetti

  THE PROMISE OF SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights

  THE SURRENDER GATE By Christopher Rice

  SERVICING THE TARGET By Cherise Sinclair

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Three

  Click here to explore

  HIDDEN INK by Carrie Ann Ryan

  BLOOD ON THE BAYOU by Heather Graham

  SEARCHING FOR MINE by Jennifer Probst

  DANCE OF DESIRE by Christopher Rice

  ROUGH RHYTHM by Tessa Bailey

  DEVOTED by Lexi Blake

  Z by Larissa Ione

  FALLING UNDER YOU by Laurelin Paige

  EASY FOR KEEPS by Kristen Proby

  UNCHAINED by Elisabeth Naughton

  HARD TO SERVE by Laura Kaye

  DRAGON FEVER by Donna Grant

  KAYDEN/SIMON by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  STRUNG UP by Lorelei James

  MIDNIGHT UNTAMED by Lara Adrian

  TRICKED by Rebecca Zanetti

  DIRTY WICKED by Shayla Black

  THE ONLY ONE by Lauren Blakely

  SWEET SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  Sign up for the 1001 Dark Nights Newsletter

  and be entered to win a Tiffany Key necklace.

  There's a contest every month!

  Click here to subscribe.

  As a bonus, all subscribers will receive a free

  1001 Dark Nights story

  The First Night

  by Lexi Blake & M.J. Rose

  Table of Contents

  Book Description

  About J. Kenner

  Also by J. Kenner

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection One

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Two

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Three

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Four

  Discover the World of 1001 Dark Nights

  Discover More J. Kenner/Julie Kenner

  An excerpt from Wicked Grind by J. Kenner

  Special Thanks

  One Thousand and One Dark Nights

  Once upon a time, in the future…

  I was a student fascinated with stories and learning.

  I studied philosophy, poetry, history, the occult, and

  the art and science of love and magic. I had a vast

  library at my father’s home and collected thousands

  of volumes of fantastic tales.

  I learned all about ancient races and bygone

  times. About myths and legends and dreams of all

  people through the millennium. And the more I read

  the stronger my imagination grew until I discovered

  that I was able to travel into the stories... to actually

  become part of them.

  I wish I could say that I listened to my teacher

  and respected my gift, as I ought to
have. If I had, I

  would not be telling you this tale now.

  But I was foolhardy and confused, showing off

  with bravery.

  One afternoon, curious about the myth of the

  Arabian Nights, I traveled back to ancient Persia to

  see for myself if it was true that every day Shahryar

  (Persian: شهريار, “king”) married a new virgin, and then

  sent yesterday's wife to be beheaded. It was written

  and I had read, that by the time he met Scheherazade,

  the vizier's daughter, he’d killed one thousand

  women.

  Something went wrong with my efforts. I arrived

  in the midst of the story and somehow exchanged

  places with Scheherazade – a phenomena that had

  never occurred before and that still to this day, I

  cannot explain.

  Now I am trapped in that ancient past. I have

  taken on Scheherazade’s life and the only way I can

  protect myself and stay alive is to do what she did to

  protect herself and stay alive.

  Every night the King calls for me and listens as I spin tales.

  And when the evening ends and dawn breaks, I stop at a

  point that leaves him breathless and yearning for more.

  And so the King spares my life for one more day, so that

  he might hear the rest of my dark tale.

  As soon as I finish a story... I begin a new

  one... like the one that you, dear reader, have before

  you now.

  Chapter 1

  “See?” I say, balancing on the edge of my daughter’s bed as I close her favorite book, Goodnight, Sleep Tight, Little Bunnies. “All the animals are asleep, and now it’s time for Lara to go to sleep, too.”

  “Kitty sleep?” She holds up her stuffed cat, its once plush fur now matted and dull, a reflection of its status as the best-loved animal in her menagerie.

  “Kitty and Lara can both go night-night, okay?”

  She wraps her arms around Kitty and nods, her thumb going into her mouth.

  “I love you, Lara Ashley Stark,” I say as her eyes start to flutter closed. Honestly, mine are a little fluttery, too. Who would have thought that taking care of an infant and a two-year-old could be so exhausting?

  “Love Mama,” she murmurs around her thumb as I bend over to give her another kiss, breathing in the scent of baby shampoo and powder.

  Her eyes open again, and she blinks at me. “Baba?” she asks, still using the Chinese word for Daddy that she’s used since the day we adopted her. She was twenty months old then. And although it’s been only eight months since we came home from China, it’s already hard to remember what it was like not having this precious girl in our lives.

  “Daddy loves you so much,” I say, stroking her hair and speaking softly so that she'll drift off. “Close your eyes, baby girl. Daddy will come kiss you night-night later. When you’re already in dreamland.”

  I have to fight a melancholy frown. Although Damien tries hard to be home for both our daughters’ bedtimes, his work as a master of the known universe sometimes keeps him away.

  In contrast, I’ve been a permanent fixture in our Malibu home ever since we brought Lara home. Except, of course, for the hospital stay when our second daughter, Anne, was born almost four months ago.

  At first, I’d stayed home to bond with Lara. And for that first month, both Damien and I had concentrated one hundred percent on our family. Then he’d returned to the office, and I’d started to handle a few work tasks from home.

  I had intended to take a typical three-month maternity leave with Lara, then spend the last month of my pregnancy working in my office in order to make sure all of my clients were happy and every project on track before Anne came along.

  But I ended up on bedrest for the last month, which turned out to be only two weeks, as Anne came early. And as soon as she made her appearance, I dove immediately into another three months of leave.

  Now I’m on the last weekend before I return to my office and a full-time work schedule. And even though I’m starting to go a little stir-crazy during my maternity leave, I also know that I’m wildly lucky. I have two beautiful, healthy daughters, and I’m married to a man who not only adores me and our children, but who makes my heart flutter with nothing more than a glance or the whisper of my name.

  Even more, he’s a man whose talent and resources have ensured that we have an amazing home, that our children will never want for anything, and that even if neither one of us ever works another day, we have the means to keep our family not just afloat, but living in comfort and privilege.

  I’ve known about Damien’s wealth as long as I’ve known him. Longer, really, since as a former professional tennis star turned billionaire entrepreneur, Damien’s reputation is both deep and wide. And goodness knows I’ve experienced firsthand the luxury and convenience that his dollars can buy. Everything from private jets to personal drivers to penthouse suites in hotels all over the world.

  But it wasn’t until after we had our girls that I started to truly feel the impact of his wealth. How it will protect their future. How it’s a cushion against all the scary stuff that life can throw at you.

  Except that’s bullshit. And as I look down at my daughter—at her sweet, innocent face—I have to sigh. Because the truth is, there’s no protection. Not ever. Not really.

  No one knows that better than Damien and me.

  I grew up in Dallas with the kind of money and privilege that oil and gas interests can buy. Not Stark-level money, but not shabby. And yet those dollars didn’t shield me from pain. Didn’t keep me from trying to escape from the dark corners of my life by taking a blade to my own skin.

  And the empire that Damien built didn’t erase the abuse he suffered as a child or eradicate all the challenges that have been tossed at him—at us—over the years. Everything from physical assault to blackmail to professional sabotage.

  But not my kids, I think fiercely. Maybe I can’t protect them from everything out there in the world, but I can damn sure try. And at least they have me and Damien as parents, and not Elizabeth Fairchild or Jeremiah Stark.

  The very idea makes me shudder, and I stroke a soft hand over Lara’s hair. “I love you, baby,” I whisper. “And I will always be there for you.”

  Always.

  The word seems to expand in my mind, reaching out and poking me with guilt-stained fingers. For the last three months, I’ve mostly left my still-nascent business in the hands of Eric and Abby, my two employees, both of whom have been with me almost two years now.

  But Monday, our nanny starts working full time—and I’m going back to work. And the truth is that I can’t wait. Even though I adore my girls—and even though we don’t need the money—I’m eager to dive back into my business and get dirty. I started with just a love of coding and designing apps, and from that meager start, I built Fairchild Development from the ground up. I’m incredibly proud of not only the business, but its products and services, its growing client base, and, most important, its excellent reputation.

  And while I can do some of the work from home, it’s not the same as being in the office in much the same way as Damien. Sitting behind my desk and running my empire—albeit a much smaller one.

  So, yes, I’m excited about Monday. But as I gently stroke Lara’s warm cheek and watch the rise and fall of her chest as she breathes through parted lips, I have to admit that I’m also dreading it. Because my girls will be here in Malibu while I’m about an hour away in Studio City. I’m going to miss something wonderful, just like Damien so often misses dinner or bedtime. A word or a reaction. A silly face or a boisterous giggle.

  And even though that hasn’t even happened to me yet, the inevitable certainty feels like a knife in my heart.

  With a heavy sigh, I stand slowly, careful not to move the bed too much. But apparently not careful enough, because as I rise, Lara’s eyes flutter open, and her mouth moves in a silent Mama.