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Slippers And Thieves
Christina Bauer
(Fairy Tales of the Magicorum #4)
Published by: Monster House Books
Publication date: November 26th 2019
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult
Years ago, Elle—never call her Cinderella—escaped her evil step family in order to build a new life for herself in Manhattan. Today, Elle’s awful past is a distant memory. In fact, Elle even attends West Lake Prep, an exclusive high school where regular humans mix with members of the Magicorum, such as fairies, shifters and witches. Although she still must live in hiding from her evil stepfamily, Elle has always found ways to get whatever her heart desires.
That is, until Alec Le Charme.
Alec is the heir to the Le Charme dynasty of high-end jewelers. He’s also kind, charismatic, has a knee-melting smile. Elle has fallen for him, hard. Unfortunately, thanks to Elle’s evil step family, Alec is absolutely off limits. In fact, if Elle and Alec so much as kiss, it will start a magical chain reaction that would end in powerful factions of witches and wizards going to war. As a result, Elle and Alec vow to stay friends, no matter what. Then West Lake Prep holds a masquerade ball. Identities get mixed up and forbidden kisses are finally shared.
Time for the Magicorum to go to war, and for Elle to confront her hidden past in ways she never thought possible.
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Excerpt:
Alec – Age Fifteen
Clarissa leads me to the L’s loading dock. She asks me to wait (again) while she tries to find someone to answer a few questions (again.) So I hang by the back wall and stare out across a small and empty lot. In New York, this counts as a Zen moment.
A girl steps onto the concrete. She’s about my age and clearly a Cinderella template. Now I’ve met my share of possible Cinderellas. This girl is singular in how she combines so much in a single glance. She’s both fierce and sweet, gentle and rough, lovely and simple. In fact, a bubble of life and light seems to surround her. Beside her, a few boxes sit on a broken wagon. A bunch of human girls stand close by, along with an elf. The girls all wear passes for tonight’s Le Charme Extravaganza.
My pulse speeds. Every corner of my soul becomes awash with one thought. How can I approach this girl? With extravaganza fans around, I can’t step out as Alec Le Charme.
A plan forms.
I scan the dock. Excitement zings through my limbs. Sure enough, a worker’s jacket hangs on a nearby wall hook. True fact: it’s amazing what you can get away with when you wear a uniform. I slip on the jacket and march out to meet the girl.
“Hello.” I wave in her direction.
“Hey, I need to drop these off and…” My perfect girl looks around. “Everyone’s gone.”
That’s right. There was an elf and some humans here before. Lucky for me, they’ve all taken off.
I gesture toward the boxes. “Can I help you?”
“That would be great.” Her face brightens with a dazzling smile. Inside my soul, emotions shift. Desires align.
This girl.
Returning the grin, I hoist up one box on my shoulder. The other goes under my arm. I could use magic, but these aren’t too heavy. Soon I’m setting them both onto the edge of the loading dock.
The girl takes out a little scrap of paper. “Um, can you…”
“Sure, I’ll sign for them.” I scratch out my signature. For once, I’m glad my writing is an unreadable mess. I’m not ready to reveal who I really am. Yet.
“Thanks.” She takes in a shaky breath. “I’m Elle.”
I grin. “Elle.”
She gestures to my jacket. “And you’re Fred.”
“I am?” I look down at the jacket. Sure enough, the name Fred is written on my chest. “I mean, I am.”
Elle blushes. “Thanks for helping me with the boxes.”
“Any time.”
“I should probably get going.” Elle takes a step backward, but the pavement here is really uneven. She missteps and starts to topple. On reflex, I move forward and catch her.
A second later, I’ve got Elle in my arms.
An electric charge pulses through me. Threads of connection wind between us. Is this magic? Do I really care?
The moment stretches on. I should really let Elle go. yet I don’t. It’s not like I want to kiss her. I mean, I do want a kiss, but it’s more than that. Together—it’s like we’re meant to fit this way. I shake my head. I’m only fifteen and Elle looks about the same age. That’s early too get feelings for someone, isn’t it?
It’s an effort, but I release her. “You almost took a tumble there.”
“Yes, thanks for your help. Again.”
Think, think, think. There must be some way to keep her here.
About Christina Bauer:
Christina Bauer thinks that fantasy books are like bacon: they just make life better. All of which is why she writes romance novels that feature demons, dragons, wizards, witches, elves, elementals, and a bunch of random stuff that she brainstorms while riding the Boston T. Oh, and she includes lots of humor and kick-ass chicks, too.
Christina graduated from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School with BA’s in English along with Television, Radio, and Film Production. She lives in Newton, MA with her husband, son, and semi-insane golden retriever, Ruby.
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