Stardust Dreams

Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one

STAR FIRE

"Trust me,"
Gallant said, Holding her tightly against him.

Cherry tipped her head back
and frowned at him. "How could I trust you? You're a liar and a cheat
and—" Before she could utter another insult, he silenced her with his
lips.

Suddenly Cherry felt as
though she had been thrown into a blazing inferno where the only escape was to
become one with the source of the fire. Tangling her fingers into his thick
hair to hold him still, she deepened the kiss.

His fingers curled beneath
the neckline of her jumpsuit, and she stopped stroking his arms and chest to
help him eliminate one more obstacle between them. He paused now, to give her
one last chance to pull back as she had before.

But her eyes were filled
with the size and the strength of him, her blood blazed with her hunger for
him, as she gasped, "No, not this time, Gallant. You want me. I want you. Right
now, nothing else matters…"

STARDUST DREAMS

Dear Reader:

I hope you enjoyed Cherry
and Gallant's story as much as it pleased me to write it. Topaz Dreamspun will
continue the Innerworld series in June, 1994 with
STOLEN DREAMS,
my
fourth futuristic tale of romantic adventure, featuring Romulus and Aster's
daughter, Shara, a deceptively angelic-looking historian named Gabriel, and the
lost continent of Atlantis.

I love to hear from readers
(s.a.s.e for reply please): P.O. Box 840002, Pembroke Pines, Florida 33084.

DREAM ON!

STARDUST DREAMS

by

Marilyn Campbell

A TOPAZ BOOK

TOPAZ

Published by the Penguin
Group

Penguin Books USA Inc., 375
Hudson Street,

New York, New York 10014,
U.S.A.

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Ltd, Ringwood,

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Penguin Books Canada Ltd, 10 Alcom Avenue,

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Penguin Books Ltd,
Registered Offices: Hamnondsworth, Middlesex, England

First published by Topaz,
an imprint of Dutton Signet, a division of Penguin Books USA Inc.

First Printing, December,
1993 10 987654321

Copyright © Marilyn
Campbell, 1993

All rights reserved

Topaz
Man photo ©
Charles William Bush

Topaz is a trademark of
Dutton Signet, 'a division of Penguin Books USA Inc.

Printed in the United
States of America

Without limiting the rights
under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced,
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10014.

If you purchased this book
without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was
reported as "unsold and destroyed" to the publisher and neither the
author nor the publisher has received any payment for this "stripped
book."

For Janice Dykes, a true
friend through good times and bad, successes and failures, eccentric husbands
and demon children—a toast to us for surviving it all so far.

"Do not be frightened
my children. I bring peace and goodwill to all mankind."

The group of twenty
tourists paying their respects at the Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine gaped in
stunned silence at the ethereal figure speaking the gentle words. Standing on a
fluffy white cloud that hovered just above the Shrine, was a female angel,
complete with golden halo and white feathered wings. With her light blond hair
and flowing white dress, she could have stepped out of the pages of a
children's Bible.

"You have been chosen
as the first on Earth to receive the message, but you will not be the last. Judgment
Day is near. Soon, the Messiah will take human form and walk among you. Behold
the image of the Messiah." In the air beside her, a face appeared. "Remember,
the meek shall inherit the Earth, and the nonbelievers will perish. Prepare
yourselves to meet your maker."

As suddenly as the angel
and the image had materialized before the people, they vanished. An Italian
woman fell to her knees before the Shrine and crossed herself. An American
family walked away smiling, satisfied that the special effects were up to what
they would expect from such a famous attraction. One opportunist ran for the
nearest telephone, while others shook their heads in bewilderment, uncertain
about what they'd seen or heard.

And the one among them, who
was not what she appeared to be, noted each of their reactions for the report
to her superior.

Innerworld
—
Planet
Terra (Earth)

Cherry Cochran screamed at
the top of her lungs as the man-eating, two-headed lizard caught sight of her. Tied
to a tree as she was, there was very little else the petite brunette could do. She
took a deep breath and let out another blood-curdling cry for help.