Home in Your Arms

Sarah
Bale

Swept away in a tornado, Lexi lands
in a magical realm where evil witches threaten everything. Lexi’s only hope of
getting home is Ian, the hot leader of the royal guard. As soon as she sees
him, she feels a connection to him that leaves her panting. But something is
happening to her and she needs to reach the Sapphire Palace and the king to
find out what.

Ian could lose himself in Lexi, but
if she turns out to be a witch, he’ll be forced to kill her when he’d rather be
loving her. Their few moments together show that there is definitely heat
between them, something Ian wants more of.

Getting Lexi to safety is urgent
but the Witches are doing everything to stop them, including kidnapping Ian.
Lexi launches a desperate plan to free him. With help from others, she faces
the Witches and learns the truth about herself. Along the yellow-brick road,
Lexi and Ian’s love blossoms…almost as if it were magic.

A Romantica®
fantasy erotic romance
from Ellora’s
Cave

The harsh shrieking of the tornado siren jolted Lexi Smith
from her afternoon nap. She only meant to close her eyes for a moment but
exhaustion finally won over. Pushing the blanket off, she sat up. The wind
chime in the tree blew wildly, causing it to sing its heart out in an eerie
rhythm. Through the open window, she could smell the rain in the air and saw
the blue sky turning a dark gray. An unsettling sense of déjà vu made her heart
pound. She’d had a dream about a tornado the other night…

Knowing how fast a storm could fire up in Oklahoma in May,
she grabbed the remote control and turned on the TV. The local news station had
taken over the channel, interrupting a soap opera.

“The tornado warning is for Cleveland and Canadian counties.
Viewers should seek shelter immediately,” the weatherman said in a deliberate
monotone.

His trained voice ensured he would remain composed when the
weather grew dangerous. Lives depended on it.

Someone off camera yelled something and the weatherman went
on, “Folks, I’m just getting a report from one of our storm chasers. We have a
confirmed tornado on the ground. Doppler radar shows it is near Southwest Eighty-Ninth
Street and Morgan Road. I repeat a twister on the ground.”

“Shit.” Lexi jumped off the couch.

Morgan Road was too close for comfort. She briefly debated taking
shelter or going outside to look for the storm, as any Oklahoman would do, when
the TV turned off and the house went dark. Power outages were normal during a
storm but with a funnel cloud nearby, she didn’t want to take any chances.

“The closet it is.”

More than likely the storm would turn, missing her
completely and this would be an uncomfortable waste of time. As a child, her
parents always stressed tornado safety.
Go to the center of the house. Don’t
be near windows. Always be prepared. If you hear it coming, run.

Now their words danced in her mind as she opened the door to
the closet. Luckily she had just finished her spring cleaning, otherwise she
wouldn’t have been able to fit into the small space, which was also the most
center part of her house.

Lexi searched around and found a flashlight and an old
football helmet. Nearly banging herself with the flashlight, she quickly put
the helmet over her long red hair. If debris began to fall, she wanted to make
sure her head was protected.

She mentally kicked herself for not buying a real tornado
shelter a few months ago but she just didn’t have any extra money to spend. Now
she hoped her stinginess with money wouldn’t bite her in the butt. Four
thousand dollars was hard to come by, though.

Outside, rain pounded the roof and thunder shook the house.
She could only imagine what was happening out there. Unfortunately, she really
had no way of knowing without a TV or radio. It was an irony of depending so
much on modern amenities. Something fell and she could hear glass breaking
right before the house rocked on its foundation with a loud groan.

She took in a slow, calming breath. Her mom and dad would
have been proud of her if they had still been alive. In fact, her mom would
even suggest opening the closet door to see what was happening. Her mom had no
fear when it came to storms but it had been her dad who was scared of them. She
pushed the memory away. Now was not the time to think about them.

“Come on, Lex. You’re going to be fine.” Her voice sounded
odd to her own ears, as if she were in a tunnel.

Her hearing wasn’t the problem, though. Something was
happening outside, causing her ears to pop. She opened and closed her mouth,
trying to get rid of the buzzing sound she heard. The blood drained from her
face as realization struck. The tornado was almost on top of her.

What everyone said was true. It sounded like a runaway train
headed right for you. The sound wasn’t the worst part, though. It was almost as
if she could feel the storm coming
for
her. She bit her lip and
whimpered as walls began to crumble.

Curling into a ball, she held her hands over her head the
best that she could. The house shook to its core and the floor beneath her felt
as if it were breaking. She knew there was no way the house could take much
more damage.

“I don’t want to die,” she cried as the closet door shook
violently.

Everything went still and she knew the tornado was directly
overhead. She strained her ears and an eerie silence met her. The eye, she was
in the eye of the storm. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the second
round. Her odds weren’t looking good…only two people known in history had
survived being in the eye of the storm.

The house groaned as the tornado moved away. It sounded as
if the building was sliding across its foundation. If the house came down, she
knew she would die. Her only hope now lay with her little closet.

Debris struck the walls around her like shrapnel from God’s
artillery. Light sparked above her like a camera flash, illuminating the closet
in an actinic bath of white. She looked up and her stomach sank, making her
dizzy. Her little sanctuary swayed and jolted as if it were an express elevator
to hell. She was going to die.

Taking a deep breath to swallow the vomit that threatened,
she smelled rain mixed with trees. Why in the heck did she smell trees? Before
her mind could process the thought, the closet door shook as if someone were
trying to open it. It blew open and the sight before her eyes made her heart
stop.

“How could this be happening?” her mind screamed.

Rain hit her in the face and she looked down, seeing the
ground far below. The stained concrete floor of the closet became her own
personal safety net and she held on for dear life. The floor bore the weight of
the remainder of the wall. Through the swinging door, she could see part of the
kitchen floor and one cabinet.

The cabinet had holes all through it, like a pathetic
survivor of war. Bits of drywall spun around her and she moaned. How could this
be real? A ruffled pillow flew by and she reached out for it.

“That’s from my bedroom,” she whispered.

She stumbled backward as her world tilted and the remainder
of her house fell from the sky.

“Oh my god. Someone help me.” Lexi screamed right before she
fainted.

* * * * *

Ian crept slowly toward the crash site. His team stood
behind him with their weapons drawn. He could see the pitiful remains of a
house ahead. A house that had fallen from the sky and crashed into their world.
A house that shouldn’t be there.

“Ian, be careful. It could be a trick,” Andrew said in his
earpiece.

“I will. Stay behind and wait for my command.” His voice was
low but his men knew to obey.

He continued to approach the wreckage. Andrew was right, it
could be a trap set by the Witches. It would be the type of diversion they
would think of, a way to get the Royal Guard to emerge from their compound.

Ian moved cautiously now. Something was not right. He couldn’t
hear the chirping birds or the buzzing insects. He moved with stealth, not
making a sound as he approached the crash site. Years of training with the
Royal Guard had ensured that he could sneak up on an enemy without their
knowledge.

He reached the site and stepped around the remains of the
house. Just from looking at it, he could tell that it was from the other realm.
The Realm of Sinoda had stopped using this type of building a very long time
ago. He touched the wood and shook his head. So many trees had died so this
house could be built. He could almost feel the trees’ pain.

As he continued, he came upon a door. A pale hand held onto
the bottom of it. Instinctually, his own hand went to his weapon. No one could
have survived the fall from the sky. No one that is, except for a Witch.

Grabbing onto the door, he pulled it open and saw a young
woman lying on the floor of a closet. She wore some type of helmet on her head.
How silly of her to think that the helmet would have protected her from a storm
that had been out to get her. The storm had known not to hurt her too badly,
though, which was something of interest. Just looking at her pulled at the
deepest part of his chest.

Reaching out, he put his fingers on her neck. When he felt
the pulse, a breath of relief left his lungs. She lived.

“Please help me,” she croaked out. “It hurts.”

He jerked his hand from her throat. Golden eyes filled with
tears looked up at him—eyes that were so familiar, they took his breath away.
It had to be a coincidence…

“We have one survivor,” Ian said into his earpiece. “Female.
Injuries not assessed. Accent suggests other realm.”

A hand lifted toward him. “Please help me.”

He glanced down at the woman as he waited for his team to
approach. Small cuts and bruises covered her arms and hands. A larger cut on
her leg caught his attention. She’d need stitches for that injury.

Her eyes were compelling and magnetic as they locked with
his. She looked so vulnerable but he could do nothing to help her. He would
not
risk touching her any more until she’d been checked out. He’d learned a long
time ago that those who appeared weak could be the most dangerous of all.

Andrew and the rest of the team ran toward him. Two medics
pushed past him and examined the woman. Her gold eyes never left his face.

“She appears to be clean but we won’t know for sure until
the Wiz looks at her,” one of the medics finally said in a grim voice.

By clean, they meant she was not showing the obvious signs
of a Witch or being under a spell. It also meant her fate was still
undetermined and he would not have to kill her just yet. He took comfort in
that.

Ian pushed the thought aside and said, “Take her to the
holding compound. We’ll finish here.” He added for good measure, “Watch your
backs. We still don’t know who she is.”

The medics nodded and loaded the woman onto a transfer cot.
She watched him, even though he could see she was struggling to stay awake.
Andrew cleared his throat to remind him of the work left to do. His friend
would notice the interest he was showing in her. Ian turned his back finally
breaking eye contact with the mystery woman. There was work to be done.

* * * * *

Lexi dreamed. Two men carried her toward a white, round
building made of marble. It glistened as the sun hit it and she blinked slowly.
The men talked about her but her mind couldn’t focus on their words. Nothing
made sense. Witches weren’t real and yet the men wondered if she was one.

She wanted to speak but she couldn’t. Pain. All she could
think about was the pain. Lexi moaned. She wished the man who had found her had
come. Something in his electric blue eyes had made her feel safe. She knew his
face from somewhere. Had she met him before? She whimpered as the men put her
on a table.

They removed her clothes and she tried to fight them but
something held her back. Her head rolled to the side. They tied her arms and
legs down to the exam bed with leather straps. The men left the room, murmuring
to each other. Tears fell from her eyes and she waited for someone to come
back.

If this had not been a dream, she would have been very
scared. The two men returned a few moments later.

Something cold touched her head, throat and then her chest.
Lexi tried to pull away but couldn’t find the strength. A needle pierced her
skin and the pain faded away into a dull ache. A blanket covered her and the
lights turned off.

She wanted to call out to the men but her voice wouldn’t
work. Sleep. That would cure everything and when she woke up, she’d probably be
back in her own bed. With a sigh, she let slumber take her over.

* * * * *

“What did you learn?” Ian questioned the medics as he
entered the holding compound.

It had taken longer than he thought to clear the remains of
the house. The impact of the crash had left the earth damaged and they had to
wait for a healer to come to restore the balance. The healer had been unable to
confirm if the storm had been called by a spell or if it had been a natural
occurrence.

Ian’s mind had been on the woman the entire time he worked
and he realized he was worried about her.

“We found no evidence to link the woman to the Witches, sir,”
the head medic replied. “It appears her house was sucked into a tornado in the
other realm and ended up here.”

Their assessment matched his own but he still wasn’t
convinced she’d ended up in Sinoda by chance. Her eyes… It was her damn eyes
that made him question everything.

“We need the report before we can be sure.”

“The Wiz is almost done,” the medic replied. “You’ll have
your answers then.”

Ian went to the window and watched as the machine finished
examining the woman. The blanket covering her had slipped down revealing one
perfect breast with a rosy pink nipple. He stared at her, mesmerized. She
was…beautiful and he felt a longing he had not felt in a long time. He closed
his eyes.

Since when did a member of the Royal Guard lust after a
stranger, especially a stranger who fell from the sky?

The medic cleared his throat, interrupting Ian’s thoughts
and said, “The Wiz is done. You may go to the viewing room to see the results.”

As the head of Royal Guard, Ian saw the reports first in the
viewing room, a secure area where he could gather all the facts he needed
without being interrupted. The Wireless Interrogation and Zapper, known as the
Wiz for short, was the newest machine created by scientists of Sinoda to read a
person’s mind.

Since its inception, it had become the most effective way to
see if a person was friend or foe. And it was hell of a lot faster than using “other
methods” to get answers from them. Its main use was to protect the innocent
from those who could be under a spell, though.