Page 457 of Lodestar

Kat gaped some more then, in a flurry of energy, barreled into Savannah. She squeezed her so hard, Savvie yelped, then she quickly grabbed Camden’s hand and shook it up and down like she was the Hulk.

“Sir, I just need you to know thatUntold Promiseschanged my life.”

Star snorted, but Camden sent her a dead serious look and stated, “It changed mine too. I’m glad we had the same vibe from it.”

Her eyes turned round and for a moment, I didn’t know if she was going to melt into the ground or just fade to dust, but she only whispered, “I knew we were soul mates.”

Chuckling, Star retorted, “What have we said about being a stalker, Katina? Come on, brat, let’s stop freaking Camden out.”

Kat nodded then drifted backward. “This is my house, Camden.Mi casa es su casa,okay?”

Aidan laughed as she darted toward her room, muttering about telling Juniper and Ginger. I’d thought they were a style of teabag from Starbucks for a week until Star told me they were her new frenemies at school.

“You’re still trying to hide from the paps? It’s that bad, Camden?” Star asked, breaking into my train of thought as she beckoned everyone into the apartment and guided them into the living room.

Determined to focus, I heard Camden admit, “This time of year always sucks.”

“If you want to stay with us, I don’t think Conor would mind,” she offered, shooting me a glance.

I hitched a shoulder. “Kat said it—mi casa es su casa,Camden. We have plenty of room here.”

He shot me a sheepish grin. “Thanks, but it’s okay. I’m staying at the Langham. It’s just that I was saying to Aidan how difficult it was to get out of the hotel with the press haunting my every waking move.”

“The offer’s there,” I said amicably, earning a kiss from Star as she clapped her hands together.

“Do we want something to drink first or food?”

“Food!” Savannah barked. “I’m hungry.”

Aidan and Camden laughed but Star just rolled her eyes and snagged Camden’s and Savannah’s hands to tug them forward. The move was borderline juvenile and it made me happy to see.

She’d settled into the penthouse as if there’d never been a day where she wasn’t here. Mostly, I wished that therehadn’tbeen a time when she hadn’t been here, but hell, I had her now.

Leaving the three to walk ahead, I stayed behind with Aidan. “Why’s this time of year hard?”

“I don’t know,” he answered with a frown. “But Idoknow he’s a gambling addict. Got the shit kicked out of him two Christmases ago by some two-bit bookie.”

I hitched a shoulder. “If Camden’s finding it tough right now, then maybe him hanging around Savannah will help? You know how close-knit they are.”

“Close-knit and argumentative as fuck. I totally understand why Ma used to knock our heads together when we were kids. They never shut the hell up.”

“Is that why you tried to dump him on my door?”

“How do you know that was my endgame?”

“You didn’t offer to let him stay with you.”

“I like the guy but the pair of them together drive me insane.”

Chuckling, I walked with him toward the dining room where the trio had already started digging into the food that Star had ordered.

Spying the dozen-plus cardboard takeout boxes, I laughed when I saw she’d gone for broke and had ordered Italian, Chinese, Korean,andsteak.

“For me, I assume?” I teased, grabbing the steak and dumping it on a dish without waiting for an answer.

“You’re turning into one-hundred-percent prime rib,” she joked.

“You need to diversify your diet, Conor. You know red meat isn’t great for you, don’t you?” Savannah chided, pointing at me with her chopstick.

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