Taken by Storm (Storms of Blackwood Book 1)
Page 32
"What happened to your sloth? Did he finally manage to off himself?"
I wanted to laugh. It was hilarious how often that sloth had gotten himself into suicidal situations. But now that he'd just been violently murdered, the humor was completely lost.
"No, " I sniffled, shaking my head. "The Storm King."
"What?"
I nodded. "The Storm King was just here. He told me never to defy him again or my baby cousin would be next."
"Fucking Hades!"
As they cursed and fumed and plotted their revenge, a light caught my eye. It curled like magical dust radiating from Speedy's chest and collecting into a ball of energy above him. Déjà vu struck me—hard. My memories flitted back to the fateful day I'd received my magic, when Rory had passed me his powers upon death.
This was so eerily similar it could only mean one thing... Speedy wasn't merely a sloth. He was magical somehow.
Slowly, my pet’s body disintegrated. Tiny pieces of his form joined up with the swirling ball of glowing gold energy until there was nothing left of the original animal. Only a puddle of blood that had soaked into the wood of the table.
The ball of magic stretched, and the pieces realigned, forming into the rough outline of a human. As the glow faded, a flesh-and-blood man stood before us. A man I recognized immediately.
He was bare naked, ripped, and beyond any shadow of a doubt, the most wonderful sight I'd seen in my entire life. My heart hammered like a miner on crack, relentlessly pounding adrenaline through my system. My body shook, and a rush of emotions came pouring back into me as I stared at his handsome face.
"Adam?" I moved closer, but hesitated, afraid to reach for him in case my fingers passed straight through. He couldn't be more than a ghost. This couldn't possibly be happening.
All four Storm brothers moved closer too, their faces even more disconcerted and mystified than mine.
“Asher?”
Wait. My mind screeched to a halt.
I shook my head, hardly daring to believe what I’d just heard.
Speedy was Adam... and Adam was... Asher? The man I’d fallen in love with all those years ago was their long-lost brother?
He staggered closer to us, swaying a bit since it had clearly been years since he’d last used his legs, and his familiar amber eyes bore into mine with an intensity that captured my breath as well as my soul.
“Do you have any idea how fucking long I’ve been trying to die?”
THE END of book one
Continue the dark and steamy adventure with Alexis and her Storm Princes in Stormy Nights!
Afterword
Thank you so freaking much for reading about Alexis and the Storm Princes! This is the first reverse harem novel I’ve ever written, but I absolutely loved every bit of it! I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Seriously, thank you for being so awesome.
If you liked this book, I hope you’ll consider leaving a review. It would mean the world to me!
To stay updated on release dates and everything bookish, feel free to join my Facebook reader group, very cleverly coined: Elle Middaugh’s Reader Group LOL
Acknowledgments
A gift to my alphas:
Michelle, I give you Ash (who is just as cute as a sloth as he is a man).
Jess, you may have Ben (because he looks like Jenson and has some yummy kink lol).
Brittany, you can have Rob (the brooding badass who looks damn fine on the September calendar).
Thank you girls SO MUCH for all of your help! It’s been an absolutely joy to share this series with you! <3
As for me, I’ll keep Dan and Cal to myself lol jk I’ll share them ALL with my lovely readers! ;)
Thank you Lori at Cover Reveal Designs for once again designing an absolutely STUNNING series of covers. You are AMAZING! Xoxo
And a huge thank you to the Hot Tree Editing team who always goes above and beyond to meet my ridiculous editing needs and deadlines! You girls freaking ROCK!
Also by Elle Middaugh
Storms of Blackwood Series
Book One: Taken by Storm
Book Two: Stormy Nights
Book Three: Storm Chaser (coming soon)
Book Four: Perfect Storms (coming soon)
Enchanted Royals Series
Book One: A Crown of Blood and Ashes
Book Two: A Sword of Scales and Song (coming soon)
Trials of Enchantment Series
Book One: Queen Witch
Book Two: Alpha Witch (coming soon)
The Essential Elements Trilogy
Book One: Elemental Secrets
Book Two: Elemental Lies
Book Three: Elemental Betrayal
Standalone Books
Siren Awakened
Connect with Elle
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About the Author
Elle Middaugh is a USA Today bestselling author living in the Pennsylvania Allegheny Mountains with her wonderful husband and three beautiful children. She spends most of her time raising kids, writing stories, playing video games, reading, and attempting to keep a clean house.
She’s a proud Navy wife, a frazzle-brained mother, a fan of health and fitness, a lover of tea and red wine, and a believer in happily-ever-afters.
Sassy. Seductive. Spellbinding.
www.ellemiddaugh.com