Crossover
The Chosen One # 1
By- Mireille Chester
Genre- Fantasy/ Paranormal/ Romance
Publication Date- June 8th, 2015
Published By- Booktrope Publishing
Twenty-three-year-old Hayden Carlson never led an exciting life, but that was how she preferred it. She never expected that an innocent trail ride in the woods would change her life forever.
Suddenly, Hayden is pulled into a world she never knew existed and discovers a future awaits her there she isn’t prepared to accept...until she meets the mysterious Jasper. Drawn to his quiet, conflicted spirit and entranced by his blue eyes, Hayden finds herself experiencing feelings she has never felt before and wondering where all this might lead.
Hayden’s presence in Quelondain creates tension. Amidst constant danger, she finds true love and through it all determines where she will take her stand in the conflict her arrival ignites between good and evil.
If you love fantasy, action, and romance, Crossover-Book One in a debut Fantasy Romance trilogy by Mireille Chester—is for you.
EXCERPT
Humming some slow song I couldn’t name, I went to the chair with the clothes Tara had found for me. The shirt was a white tunic with some gold and brown stitching. It was form fitting and extremely comfortable. The pants were buckskin like everyone else’s. At the end of the bed were some boots. They were calf high, dark brown leather with laces all the way to the top. I looked at myself in the mirror and laughed. All I needed were some pointy ears and earthy-colored skin and I could have passed as a Wedelve.
There was a knock at the door. “It’s just me.” Tara let herself in. She grinned when she saw me. “Not bad! Jasper’s going to want to undress you, though, as soon as he gets back! As it is, I can’t believe he managed to tear himself away! Remember when I missed two weeks of school because I had mono?” She grinned at me when my eyes widened.
“No!”
She nodded. “Yep. And even that is a short amount of time compared to some!”
“Holy shit!”
She laughed and sat on the bed. “So? How are you feeling?”
I took my time and thought for a moment. “Well, I miss my mom and dad. I’m scared about what’s going on, but excited, too. And then there’s Jasper.” I blushed. “I’m happy. I am unbelievably happy. I would fight dragons if that’s what it took to stay with him.” I laughed. “Are there dragons here?”
She laughed with me and nodded. “But don’t worry. They tend to keep to themselves up in the Northern Regions.” She tossed me a belt with a little scabbard on it. “Put this on and let’s go.”
I stared at it. The dagger handle that was peeking out of the scabbard was beautiful. It was silver and imbedded with green stones. “Go where?”
“Practice.”
“Oh, no! I can’t fight! I’ll do more damage than good!” I contradicted my statement by putting on the belt.
“Don’t worry. I’m going to teach you a few defensive moves, just in case. From what the others tell me, your magic will wipe out the enemy before we even have the chance to draw our weapons!” She laughed at the shocked look on my face.
At that moment, Jasper and Zane came to the doorway. They both stopped short and stared at me. Jasper looked over at Zane and elbowed him playfully.
“Go find your own. She’s mine!” He was laughing, but the way he said it made me blush. He walked over and planted a kiss on my hair. His casual gesture betrayed the look I saw in his eyes. I could tell he was already relishing the thought of what he would do with me when he got me alone. I turned scarlet.
He wrapped his arms around me, and his hand brushed against my belt. He looked down, then turned and glared at Tara.
“I told you no.”
“She has to know how to defend herself!”
“She won’t have to! I’ll be there!”
Zane put a hand on his shoulder. “What happens if you’re fighting and another dog sneaks up on her? Are you going to trust Phlann to keep her safe after what almost happened last time? You can’t be everywhere at once, Jasper.”
Jasper turned to glare at his friend. “Well, what if she just stayed here? She doesn’t have to come! It doesn’t make sense to bring her anyway. She’s the one they’re after!”
It was my turn to glare. “If you think you’re going to leave me here while you run off into danger, you’re crazy! I go where you go! I am not going to stand around here pacing while you guys are off fighting!” The thought of him engaged in combat almost made me choke. Suddenly I realized that my heart was pounding.
“What’s wrong?” Jasper’s head snapped up from the invisible hole he had been drilling into the floor with his eyes.
I stood as still as I could. “The colors are back.”
Jasper turned to Tara. “You need to go find a Wedelven healer named Fillian. She can help Hayden.”
“I know who she is. She’s the one who sent Wedelven guards for Hayden. She actually just got here this morning.” I heard her run off.
Jasper and Zane stood still.
“Jasper? They’re everywhere. I can’t even see through them!”
“I’m here, Shlova. Do you have any on your hands?”
I shook my head and managed to relax as he took my hands in his. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me in close. I lay my head on his chest, counting his heartbeats, trying to make the waves disappear.
“My goodness, child! Put those away!” The voice was new to me.
“I’m trying!” I felt a hand touch my shoulder.
“You need to find something to think about. Something calming. Whatever this thing is, it must be able to make everything else disappear.”
The first thing that popped into my head was Jasper. The colors brightened.
“No. That’s not it. Whatever you just thought about is a good thing. That may be the thought that makes your colors stronger. Try something else.”
I thought hard, still listening to Jasper’s heartbeat. It reminded me of something. The steady rhythm. The thumping noise. Something clicked. There was only one thing that could calm me, one thing that always made things right. Only one thing made me feel at peace.
I concentrated on Dodge. Riding in the trails, working in the ring. My two hours of peace and quiet away from the rest of the world.
I opened my eyes. The colors were fading. I thought of lying in the grass and watching him eat by the bridge. His soft nose on my hand when he ate crunchies.
The colors evaporated and I sighed with relief.
“Thank you,” I said as I turned to my helper. “You must be Fillian.”
She smiled back. “You must be Hayden.”
Fillian was beautiful. She had waist-long, thick strawberry blond hair. Her skin was a smooth caramel color with darker brown shadows blended into it. She was a couple of inches shorter than me and had curves in all the right places. My quick glimpse of her in my dream had been lacking details.
I glanced up at Jasper and was surprised to find him still looking at me. He planted a kiss on my forehead.
“Good job,” he whispered.
I looked back to Fillian. “I need your help.”
She nodded. “Tantara was explaining everything on the way here.” She gestured to Tara. “It seems you are a bit of a mystery.”
“I can do things no one seems to think I should be able to do. Like manipulate the colors, or see the bridge, or see the future in dreams. That’s how I knew about you.”
She nodded as she listened.
About the Author
Mireille Chester is a fantasy author who likes to spend time in made up worlds filled with magic. She is a firm believer that no hero is perfect and that all villains are burdened with a tiny shred of humanity.
Born in Ottawa, Ontario, Mireille now resides in the beautiful prairies of Saskatchewan. Wife and mother, she spends most of her time with her three children and husband. When she is not writing stories or grooming dogs, you can find her on the lake fishing with her family.
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