Theart.” He and His Sons Resumed Playing in the Water
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TABLE OF CONTENTS One More Step Foreword A Meet Cute and Other Natural Disasters | Emma Scott Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five More from Emma Scott Something Like Kismet | Ginger Scott Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four About Ginger Scott Books by Ginger Scott Love at First Fight | K.L. Grayson Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Follow K.L. Grayson First Flight | Jessica Sorensen First Flight About the Jessica Sorensen Something Wonderful | LK Farlow Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight LK Farlow Opening Up | T.K. Rapp Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six The Ex-Dynamic | S.M. Soto Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Follow S.M. Soto Bound | Cathlin Shahriary Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Want more of The Fae Realm? About Cathlin Acknowledgments Saving Ava Grace | Julie Solano & Tracy Justice Saving Ava Grace Follow Julie Solano & Tracy Justice The Story | Evan Grace Chapter One Chapter Two About Evan Grace Hail Mary | JB Salsbury Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven About JB Salsbury Whatever it Takes | Gianna Gabriela Whatever it Takes Magical Show Down | K.F. Breene Magical Show Down About K.F. Breene Rendezvous Dot Com | Lilly Wilde Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Lilly Wilde Books from Lilly Wilde Interception | Santana Blair Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Follow Santana Blair The Bride | Devney Perry The Bride Follow Devney Perry Leap Of Faith | Jaci Wheeler Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Epilogue Follow Jaci Wheeler Spy’s Heart | M. Lynn Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Follow M. Lynn 8°F | Debra Anastasia Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Kess | Tijan Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Tijan Set Fire to the Sky | A.L. Jackson Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Follow A.L. Jackson Kick off | Amy Daws Kick Off Follow Amy Daws Call Me Heather | BB Easton Call Me Heather Books by BB Easton About the Author The Deal | Aleatha Romig Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six About Aleatha Romig Saint | Colleen Hoover Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Epilogue About Colleen Hoover Edited by Lillian Schneider, Marissa Taylor, and Murphy Rae Cover design by Murphy Rae Formatting by Alyssa Garcia at Uplifting Author Services Have you ever been curious how a writer’s mind works? The Bookworm Box is proud to present ONE MORE STEP, an exciting and unique reading experience. Each of the twenty-six authors featured in this anthology were given the same first sentence. Where they took that first sentence was completely up to them. Every story is different. No story is related. demeaner The only thing these stories have in common is their starting point. Each author showcased in this anthology was featured in The Bookworm Box charity during 2019. Each author has graciously donated their story so that 100% of profits from this anthology will be going to all the various charities The Bookworm Box is able to support because of you, the readers. Good deeds, great reads. A NOTE FROM COLLEEN HOOVER When I first started this charity with my sisters Lin Reynolds and Murphy Rae, we had no idea how far it would really go. The little purple boxes we were packing in our living rooms eventually turned into a bookstore, an annual convention and now an anthology. We owe a huge thank you to every person who has supported our charity, whether you’re new to us or you’ve been with us since day one. With your help and with your purchase of this anthology, we have been able to distribute well over a million dollars to hundreds of various charities. The idea for this anthology came to me in 2015, before the charity had a team of people who could follow through with the necessary steps it would take to pull it off. Now that The Bookworm Box is staffed by people who are passionate about books and charity, we were finally able to put our heads together and bring this idea to fruition. What’s unique about this anthology is that each author was given the same first sentence. It was up to me to create the first sentence. I didn’t think it would be that hard, but once I put pen to paper, I realized I didn’t know how each author would want to tell their story. I tend to write primarily using first person present tense, but not every author does. It was a challenge to create a sentence that could then be turned into any tense, but once we had the sentence, the authors ran with it. And they ran in MANY different directions. It was fascinating to see how one simple, short sentence could be turned into so many different things. The authors who contributed to this anthology are some of the authors who were featured in our subscription boxes in 2019. We would love for this to become an annual tradition to showcase our contributors each year in different ways, while raising money for charity. A huge thank you to each author who contributed their time and effort by donating a short story to our first Bookworm Box anthology. And a huge thank you to The Bookworm Box team for organizing this and getting it out into the world. We hope you enjoy! Sincerely, Colleen Hoover Good Deeds, Great Reads A MEET CUTE AND OTHER NATURAL DISASTERS EMMA SCOTT PROLOGUE “ONE MORE STEP would mean certain death.” Asher, sitting beside me, snorted into his beer. “Please excuse Faith,” he said to our guests. “As I’m sure you’re aware, she has a slight tendency to exaggerate.” I gave him a dark look but couldn’t conceal my smile. Asher Mackey’s ridiculous excess of charm and extreme hotness—especially that night, dressed up in a dark button-down and slacks—made it impossible to stay irritated with him. That’s love for you, I thought, warmth flooding me. Turns you into a sap. Asher was sitting on the lush carpet with his back to my chair, his long legs stretched out in front of him. He glanced up at me, and his dark eyes read the thoughts in mine. His own glance mellowed to something warm and soft. For me. I wasn’t used to having a man look at me with his heart and soul naked and alight in his eyes. My pulse kicked up a notch every time he did it. Which was frequently. My ex-fake-fiancé-turned-BFF, Silas Marsh, (long story) and his husband, Max, exchanged knowing smiles from their side of the living room in my Queen Anne condo in Seattle. The city skyline rose up behind them through my bay windows, glittering in the gray light of dusk. “Anyway,” I said. “I am not exaggerating. That hike was no picnic. There were many drop-offs where one wrong step would most certainly plummet the unwary hiker to her doom.” Asher smirked. “It’s not that bad a hike. Unless you’re danger-prone and not wearing proper footwear.” He coughed into his fist. I fixed my man with a hot look. “Who is telling this story? You or me?” “It’s how we met,” Asher said. “I’m allowed some input. Otherwise, you’re likely to say that a dinosaur popped out of the ferns, or that you saw Big Foot.” I ignored him and sipped my wine. “Speaking of dinosaurs, this hike was one where they filmed Jurassic Park. Despite my mishap, I still maintain it’s one of the most beautiful spots on earth.” Asher smiled appreciatively. He loved it when anyone said something complimentary about his adopted home, Hawaii. “And it’s where I met this big lug,” I said, leaning down to kiss him on his stubbly cheek. “That helps.” Asher’s hand slid up to my calf. “That makes it my favorite place on earth.” Damn him. I wasn’t a fan of things like “emotions” and “feelings” and “being vulnerable to another person because you love them so much you can hardly see straight.” But here I was. Silas, ever impatient, shifted on the couch beside Max. “Well? Did you plummet to your doom or not?” Sweet Max—dark-haired to Silas’s gold; compassionate to Silas’s grouchy—chuckled and sipped his seltzer water. “I’m going to guess no.” I huffed. “Obviously not. Now all of you hush up and let me tell you what happened.” ONE I’VE ALWAYS HATED mud. Unless I’m paying someone to smear it on my skin in an expensive spa while soaking in a hot bath while essential oils lace the New Age-music- laden air, no thank you. Now, my legs were covered to the knees, and my cute pre-Hawaii pedicure was ruined. Mud squelched between my toes, and I cursed the makers of the sandals I was wearing. “All-terrain, my ass.” All along this two-mile hike through one of Kauai’s lush forests, I’d spent more time slipping and sliding while climbing over rocks and tree roots than I had enjoying the scenery and finding my inner peace.