Table Of ContentDream by the Fire: Winter Magic
An Anthology of Short Stories
Freya’s Bower.com ©2007
Culver City, CA
Dream by the Fire: Winter Magic
Collection Copyright © 2007 by Freya’s Bower. All Rights Reserved
A Love Rewritten © 2007 Esmerelda Bishop. Mistletoe Magic © 2007 Lanie
Fuller. High Maintenance © 2007 Jamie Hill. Letting Go © 2007 Ava Rose
Johnson. Upon a Midnight Clear © 2007 Kelly Madden. Solstice Night © 2007
Lyra Marlowe. A Winter’s Gift © 2007 Kim Rees. Einmal nach a Modresnach ©
2007 Emily Ryan-Davis. Sugar Baby © 2007 Fiona Shinn.
For information on the cover illustration and design, contact [email protected].
Cover art Freya’s Bower © 2007
Editor: Michelle Puffer
ISBN:
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any
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may quote brief passages for review purposes.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any person, living or dead,
any place, events or occurrences, is purely coincidental. The characters and story
lines are created from the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Warning:
This book may contain graphic sexual material and/or profanity and is not meant
to be read by any person under the age of 18.
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Table of Contents
Works are arranged alphabetically by the last name of the author.
SWEET
MISTLETOE MAGIC BY LANIE
FULLER................................................................ 21
UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR BY KELLY
MADDEN................................................ 64
SOLSTICE NIGHT BY LYRA
MARLOWE................................................................. 70
EINMAL NACH A MODRESNACH BY EMILY RYAN-
DAVIS............................... 97
SUGAR BABY BY FIONA
SHINN............................................................................. 104
TANGY
A LOVE REWRITTEN BY ESMERELDA
BISHOP..................................................... 6
HIGH MAINTENANCE BY JAMIE
HILL.................................................................. 29
LETTING GO BY AVA ROSE
JOHNSON.................................................................. 47
A WINTER’S GIFT BY KIM
REES.............................................................................. 85
A Love Rewritten
by
Esmerelda Bishop
The book slipped from Gabby’s limp fingers and landed on the floor. The soft
thump stirred her from a dream-filled sleep. A groan left her lips, and she rolled
over onto her back. The bright light of the room made her wince. She covered
her eyes with her arm. The afghan that was wrapped around her body slipped to
her waist. Goosebumps rose on her arms from the change in temperature, and
she shivered. She reached down and grabbed for the blanket. Instead of the
knitted cloth she expected, her fingers sank into soft fur.
What in the world?
Her eyes popped open. No longer in her quaint little cabin, she instead lay on
a pallet of furs in what appeared to be a dungeon.
Gabby gasped and sat up. Okay, maybe dungeon was a little dramatic, but she
definitely wasn’t within the wooden walls of her four-room cabin. Tapestry-
adorned stone walls surrounded her.
Throwing back the fur, she froze as the icy air hit her naked body. A squeak
of surprise escaped her lips, and she pulled the covers up to her chin. Why was
she naked, and where in the hell was she?
My book!
The sound of her book hitting the ground had woken her. Where did it go?
Gabby clung to the blankets, scooted off the pallet, and surveyed the floor. The
bright red cover peeked out from underneath a side table, and she reached for it.
Her fingers closed around the worn novel, and she cradled the endeared item
close to her heart. Confused, she frantically tried to make sense of the turn her
life had taken.
Before she fell asleep, she’d been curled up in her favorite recliner as a
blizzard raged outside, reading her most loved book. Maybe she was dreaming.
Yes, that had to be it.
The door behind her creaked, and Gabby whirled around. She spotted the
cause of the noise, and her novel dropped from her grasp.
In the doorframe stood the largest man she had ever seen. Well over six feet
tall, he towered over her five foot two form. Dark hair spilled over powerful
shoulders that spanned the width of the frame; the hilt of his sword peeked from
behind his back.
What?
Gabby’s gaze lingered on the sword. Oh yes, it was definitely a sword.
Gulping, she pulled the fur more tightly around her and backed up.
“You’re awake, lass.” The deep timbre of his voice caused goose bumps to
rise on her arms.
She folded her arms across her chest. “Ummm. Yeah.”
“How do you feel?” He watched her with an unidentifiable, unnerving
expression.
“Uh, great?” Who was this man, and why did he act like he knew her?
The exquisite man walked into the room and stopped in front of her. He lifted
his hand and trailed his fingers down her cheek. The path of heat left in the
gesture’s wake made Gabby tremble.
“Ahh, sweet Gabrielle.”
She jerked in surprise. “How…how do you know my name?”
His hand froze then dropped from her face. A deep frown drew his eyebrows
together in a scowl.
“You doonae know me?”
A creepy feeling of déjà vu gripped her. No, it couldn’t be. “I’m sorry, I
don’t.”
“Lass, please lie down.” His voice rose, as if he was panicked
Just as she thought he would, he scooped her up in his arms and deposited her
on the pallet. With surprisingly gentle hands for a man of his size, he tucked the
furs around her.
“Sleep well, sweet Gabrielle.” A quick kiss to her forehead, then he was gone.
Oh, wow. Oh, wow.
When the door closed, Gabby jumped from the bed and grabbed her book.
She flipped through the pages until she found the chapter she needed. She read
the last sentence, and the paperback fell from her fingers.
Dear God. She was in the castle of Lord Devlin McCalister, the hero from
her romance novel.
*
Devlin paced the Great Hall. The fear he felt for Gabrielle kept him on his
feet. It had been by sheer luck that he happened upon her lying in the snow. He’d
no idea how she’d come to be there or why she’d been unconscious and he
hadn’t taken the time to contemplate it. Instead, he’d gathered her in his arms
and headed for the warmth of his castle.
And now she didn’t know who he was. Devlin smiled. This was a blessing in
disguise. He’d spent weeks wooing this woman to no avail. Not even the
slightest hint of interest had radiated from the lady… Until tonight. When he
walked into the room, he’d sensed a change in her immediately. Gone was the
