Enchanted: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella Read online

  Enchanted

  A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  By Lexi Blake

  1001 Dark Nights

  Enchanted

  A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  By Lexi Blake

  1001 Dark Nights

  Copyright 2019 DLZ Entertainment, LLC

  ISBN: 978-1-970077-10-0

  Foreword: Copyright 2014 M. J. Rose

  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

  Enchanted

  From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lexi Blake comes a new story in her Masters and Mercenaries series…

  A snarky submissive princess

  Sarah Steven’s life is pretty sweet. By day, she’s a dedicated trauma nurse and by night, a fun-loving club sub. She adores her job, has a group of friends who have her back, and is a member of the hottest club in Dallas. So why does it all feel hollow? Could it be because she fell for her dream man and can’t forgive him for walking away from her? Nope. She’s not going there again. No matter how much she wants to.

  A prince of the silver screen

  Jared Johns might be one of the most popular actors in Hollywood, but he lost more than a fan when he walked away from Sarah. He lost the only woman he’s ever loved. He’s been trying to get her back, but she won’t return his calls. A trip to Dallas to visit his brother might be exactly what he needs to jump-start his quest to claim the woman who holds his heart.

  A masquerade to remember

  For Charlotte Taggart’s birthday, Sanctum becomes a fantasyland of kinky fun and games. Every unattached sub gets a new Dom for the festivities. The twist? The Doms must conceal their identities until the stroke of midnight at the end of the party. It’s exactly what Sarah needs to forget the fact that Jared is pursuing her. She can’t give in to him, and the mysterious Master D is making her rethink her position when it comes to signing a contract. Jared knows he was born to play this role, dashing suitor by day and dirty Dom at night.

  When the masks come off, will she be able to forgive the man who loves her, or will she leave him forever?

  **Every 1001 Dark Nights novella is a standalone story. For new readers, it’s an introduction to an author’s world. And for fans, it’s a bonus book in the author’s series. We hope you'll enjoy each one as much as we do.**

  About Lexi Blake

  Lexi Blake is the author of contemporary and urban fantasy romance. She started publishing in 2011 and has gone on to sell over two million copies of her books. Her books have appeared twenty-six times on the USA Today, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. She lives in North Texas with her husband, kids, and two rescue dogs.

  Connect with Lexi online:

  Facebook: Lexi Blake

  Twitter: authorlexiblake

  Website: www.LexiBlake.net

  Instagram: www.instagram.com/lexi4714

  Also from Lexi Blake

  Click to purchase

  ROMANTIC SUSPENSE

  Masters and Mercenaries

  The Dom Who Loved Me

  The Men With The Golden Cuffs

  A Dom is Forever

  On Her Master’s Secret Service

  Sanctum: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Love and Let Die

  Unconditional: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Dungeon Royale

  Dungeon Games: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  A View to a Thrill

  Cherished: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  You Only Love Twice

  Luscious: Masters and Mercenaries~Topped

  Adored: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Master No

  Just One Taste: Masters and Mercenaries~Topped 2

  From Sanctum with Love

  Devoted: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Dominance Never Dies

  Submission is Not Enough

  Master Bits and Mercenary Bites~The Secret Recipes of Topped

  Perfectly Paired: Masters and Mercenaries~Topped 3

  For His Eyes Only

  Arranged: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Love Another Day

  At Your Service: Masters and Mercenaries~Topped 4

  Master Bits and Mercenary Bites~Girls Night

  Nobody Does It Better

  Close Cover

  Protected: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Enchanted: A Masters and Mercenaries Novella

  Masters and Mercenaries: The Forgotten

  Lost Hearts (Memento Mori)

  Lost and Found

  Lost in You, Coming August 6, 2019

  Lawless

  Ruthless

  Satisfaction

  Revenge

  Courting Justice

  Order of Protection

  Evidence of Desire

  Masters Of Ménage (by Shayla Black and Lexi Blake)

  Their Virgin Captive

  Their Virgin’s Secret

  Their Virgin Concubine

  Their Virgin Princess

  Their Virgin Hostage

  Their Virgin Secretary

  Their Virgin Mistress

  The Perfect Gentlemen (by Shayla Black and Lexi Blake)

  Scandal Never Sleeps

  Seduction in Session

  Big Easy Temptation

  Smoke and Sin

  At the Pleasure of the President

  URBAN FANTASY

  Thieves

  Steal the Light

  Steal the Day

  Steal the Moon

  Steal the Sun

  Steal the Night

  Ripper

  Addict

  Sleeper

  Outcast

  LEXI BLAKE WRITING AS SOPHIE OAK

  Small Town Siren

  Siren in the City

  Away From Me

  Three to Ride

  Siren Enslaved

  Two to Love

  Siren Beloved

  One to Keep

  Siren in Waiting

  Lost in Bliss

  Found in Bliss

  Siren in Bloom

  Pure Bliss

  Chasing Bliss

  Siren Unleashed

  Acknowledgments from the Author

  This year has been a journey for me. After I lost my mother the previous July, I was told to give it a year to sink in. I’ll be honest I’ve been numb most of the year. I’ve gone through my days marking time and writing words and only feeling what I put on the page. I got into a routine. Then I took a trip that changed things. I had planned this trip for way over a year and when it finally came around, I didn’t want to go. I’m glad I did because I realized what I had been missing in the last year. Wonder.

  Thank you to RARE Paris for giving me a reason to go.

  Thank you to MJ and Kristen for making me understand that I am not alone in my grief.

  Thank you to Jillian who boldly led us to places she didn’t even want to go.

  Thank you to Kim for taking care of my baby girl so I could explore Munich.

  Thank you to my husband for taking his bad knees up into the Alps and never complaining.

  Thank you to my daught
er for letting me see the world through her eyes.

  Thank you to Steve for letting me share an amazing journey.

  Thank you to Liz for holding my hand and taking me up a mountain and for helping me find my wonder again.

  But in the end this book is dedicated to one of the best friendships I’ve ever seen. To Kori and Sara. I wish you all the happily ever afters and I’m deeply proud to be considered your friend.

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights

  Click here to explore

  COLLECTION ONE

  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

  COLLECTION TWO

  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

  COLLECTION THREE

  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

  COLLECTION FOUR

  ROCK CHICK REAWAKENING by Kristen Ashley

  ADORING INK by Carrie Ann Ryan

  SWEET RIVALRY by K. Bromberg

  SHADE'S LADY by Joanna Wylde

  RAZR by Larissa Ione

  ARRANGED by Lexi Blake

  TANGLED by Rebecca Zanetti

  HOLD ME by J. Kenner

  SOMEHOW, SOME WAY by Jennifer Probst

  TOO CLOSE TO CALL by Tessa Bailey

  HUNTED by Elisabeth Naughton

  EYES ON YOU by Laura Kaye

  BLADE by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  DRAGON BURN by Donna Grant

  TRIPPED OUT by Lorelei James

  STUD FINDER by Lauren Blakely

  MIDNIGHT UNLEASHED by Lara Adrian

  HALLOW BE THE HAUNT by Heather Graham

  DIRTY FILTHY FIX by Laurelin Paige

  THE BED MATE by Kendall Ryan

  NIGHT GAMES by CD Reiss

  NO RESERVATIONS by Kristen Proby

  DAWN OF SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  COLLECTION FIVE

  BLAZE ERUPTING by Rebecca Zanetti

  ROUGH RIDE by Kristen Ashley

  HAWKYN by Larissa Ione

  RIDE DIRTY by Laura Kaye

  ROME’S CHANCE by Joanna Wylde

  THE MARRIAGE ARRANGEMENT by Jennifer Probst

  SURRENDER by Elisabeth Naughton

  INKED NIGHTS by Carrie Ann Ryan

  ENVY by Rachel Van Dyken

  PROTECTED by Lexi Blake

  THE PRINCE by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  PLEASE ME by J. Kenner

  WOUND TIGHT by Lorelei James

  STRONG by Kylie Scott

  DRAGON NIGHT by Donna Grant

  TEMPTING BROOKE by Kristen Proby

  HAUNTED BE THE HOLIDAYS by Heather Graham

  CONTROL by K. Bromberg

  HUNKY HEARTBREAKER by Kendall Ryan

  THE DARKEST CAPTIVE by Gena Showalter

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights:

  TAME ME by J. Kenner

  THE SURRENDER GATE By Christopher Rice

  SERVICING THE TARGET By Cherise Sinclair

  TEMPT ME by J. Kenner

  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 can download FIVE FREE exclusive books!

  Table of Contents

  Book Description

  About Lexi Blake

  Also from Lexi Blake

  Acknowledgments from the Author

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights

  Foreword

  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

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Six

  Discover More Lexi Blake

  An excerpt from Lost in You by Lexi Blake

  Discover the World of 1001 Dark Nights

  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.

  Once upon a time in a land far, far away…

  (Or really close. It all depends on your relative distance from Dallas, TX)

  Prologue

  In which we meet our fairy godparents and hope they don’t cuss too much…

  Charlotte Taggart felt the baby fluttering in her belly and a deep sense of peace filled her. She genuinely enjoyed being pregnant. It wasn’t for everyone. Her sister hated it, and Simon was going to have to be happy with the only kiddo he would ever share with Chelsea. Her friend Kori had vowed to never be pregnant, and it worked for her and Kai. They had a whole lot of dogs and it filled the need for them. The truth was there was no one way to have a family.

  But damn she loved hers—all of them. She loved the ones she shared blood with and the ones she’d chosen. She was blessed beyond measure.

  It made her feel the need to give back.

  Soft baby snuffles came from the monitor, letting her know her son was still sleeping. She’d given up keeping a monitor in the twins’ room since they’d gotten big enough to simply come and ask for what they needed. Too many times she overheard plans for world domination and it kept her up at night.

 
-->