Dragonborn (The Jade Lee Romantic Fantasies, Book 1) (50 page)

Jade Lee

USA Today Bestselling Author

Michaela Becker's heart sank as she reached for
The Scarlet Letter
. Sure, she loved discussing the fate of a woman branded by passion, the issues of male-dominated religion run amok, of government repression, stoic women, and sex, sex, sex! But she doubted her classroom of sneering, giggling, or comatose highschool kids were going to engage in spirited debate. At this point, she'd be thrilled if any of them had read the American classic. Even the comic book version.

Putting on her perkiest smile, she stepped out from behind her teacher desk and began the last class of the day.
Please
, she prayed,
let them listen. Let me reach someone today. If that's not possible, please let someone's hair burst into flames so I can cancel class while I put them out
.

No one listened, not even God. At best, her questions on the story received nonresponsive stares. At worst, well... heads in the back bobbed to "hidden" iPods while other students texted each other on their phones. And nothing burst into flames, except perhaps her dream of being an inspiring teacher.

As the period wound toward its inevitable dreary end, Michaela understood why she'd been nicknamed "Micki Mouse." She was a complete failure as a teacher. She'd wanted to revolutionize education; instead she was just another ineffective warm body standing uselessly amidst the chilling tide of teen boredom.

Maybe she should strip naked and stand on her head; that might be better than setting someone's hair on fire. A dozen other maybes filtered through her thoughts, but Micki didn't act on any of them. She never acted on them. Instead, she stuck to her initial plan: kill them with kindness. Surely just a little more effort on her part, a little more understanding and compassion, would do the trick.

The bell rang—thank God—but Micki wasn't done yet. There was one student whom she still hoped to reach: Lucy Varner, a smart girl with a bad boyfriend. Last year, Lucy's brother had gotten high and shot a cop. Now the boy was in jail, her single-parent mom was exhausted from working two jobs, and Lucy was at loose ends. Or she had been until she hooked up with her brother's best friend and fellow druggie. But the way she was headed... If only Micki could connect with the girl, maybe the child would see that she could do so much more.

"Lucy, could you wait a moment, please?"

The dark-haired girl looked up from collecting her things, and her brown eyes blinked beneath ragged bangs. Unlike some of the other girls in class, she had yet to develop a woman's curves. In truth she appeared very average for a fourteen-year-old brunette, especially in her Goodwill jeans and tee, though her skin and eyes held a hint of Mediterranean beauty. One day the girl could turn into a willowy Sophia Loren, but for the moment she was just a little kid without makeup, without confidence, and without a real friend.

"I wanted to compliment you on your short story," Micki said. "It was wonderfully written, but so sad." The piece had been about a young girl who looked for a protector in a world that betrayed her at every turn. She found her answer in a fairy godmother who ended up getting raped and murdered by a drug lord. Then the magic wishes turned bad, and the heroine ended up dying of an overdose. If fiction was a window to the spirit, then Lucy's soul was in dire need of a miracle. Micki so wanted to be that miracle. "Can you tell me a little about why you wrote it?"

Lucy said nothing.

"You know, when I was your age, I really got into Mae West. You've probably never heard of her, but she was beautiful, busty, and bold. She did and said things that nobody dared do, and she'll be remembered forever for it. I desperately wanted to be her. I even used to strike a pose and say her lines." Micki dropped a hand on her hip and tried to look sultry. " 'His mother should have thrown him away and kept the stork.'" It was the least risque Mae West quote she could think of right then, but one look at Lucy told her she should have just gone for a sexy line. The girl was clearly bored.

Micki sighed dramatically as she straightened. "Yeah, a complete disappointment. I would look in the mirror and see this." She waved generally at her tiny chest and boyish curves. "The point is that I was looking at the wrong thing. Magic doesn't come from big boobs or a magic fairy godmother; it comes from...

Sexy Bites

The Jade Lee Romantic Fantasies

Two Sexy Novella Adventures in One

by

Jade Lee

~

To purchase

Sexy Bites

from your favorite eBook Retailer,

visit Jade Lee's eBook Discovery Author Page

www.ebookdiscovery.com/JadeLee

~

Discover more with

eBookDiscovery.com

JADE LEE
has two passions (well, except for her family, but that’s a given). She loves dreaming up stories and playing racquetball, not always in that order. When her pro-racquetball career ended with a pair of very bad knees, she turned her attention to writing. An author of more than 30 romance novels, she’s decided that life can be full of joy without ever getting up from her chair.
 

A
USA Today
Bestseller, Jade has been scripting love stories since she first picked up a set of paper dolls. Ball gowns and rakish lords caught her attention early (thank you Georgette Heyer), and her fascination with the Regency began. Plus, she now gets to play in the best girl-heaven place of all: a Bridal Salon! In her new series, four women find love as they dress the most beautiful brides in England. Check out Jade’s website for details on the series and most especially
Wedded in Sin.

And don’t forget
KATHY LYONS
! She’s Jade’s lighter, contemporary half. Kathy writes sexy stories of love in today’s crazy world! She loves the faster pace of category books and that her humor can really let fly. She leaves the dark, tortured love stories to Jade.

If you’re wondering where Katherine Greyle comes in, she’s Jade’s first persona. Sweet, funny, and with a love of all things regency, Katherine started publishing before the turn of this century. But never fear, the romantic soul is the same whether it’s Jade, Katherine, or Kathy!

So if you love that special feeling when two people just fit, then email her through her website
www.JadeLeeAuthor.com
or
www.KathyLyons.com
She’s also on social media at Facebook -
JadeLeeBooks
and Twitter –
JadeLeeAuthor
.

Other Titles by

Jade Lee

The Bridal Favors Series

Engaged in Wickedness
, a novella

Wedded in Scandal

Engaged in Passion,
a novella

Wedded in Sin

~

The Regency Rags to Riches Series

No Place for a Lady

Devil's Bargain

Almost an Angel

The Dragon Earl

~

A Lady's Lessons

Rules for a Lady

Major Wyclyff’s Campaign

Miss Woodley’s Experiment

~

The Way of the Tigress Series

White Tigress

Hungry Tigress

Desperate Tigress

Burning Tigress

Cornered Tigress

Tempted Tigress

~

The Jade Lee Romantic Fantasies

Dragonborn

Dragonbound

A Magic King

Seduced by Crimson

Sexy Bites

~

Anthologies, Short Stories and other Novels

Winter Heat,
anthology

The Time,
a short story

Wicked Surrender

Wicked Seduction

The Tao of Sex

Getting Physical

The Concubine