Baby It's Cold Out Bear Holiday Bundle

by T. S. Joyce

  Then he exploded.

  The force of whatever he’d done pushed her backward, and she landed hard on her rear.

  Colin didn’t exist anymore, and in his place was a giant grizzly bear.

  “Oh, my God,” she whispered in horror. “Colin? Colin?” she asked again, louder.

  The enormous creature was covered in dark fur, and scars crisscrossed his body, making his fur look uneven in patches. Impossibly long claws sank into the earth as he approached with powerful steps that rattled the ground beneath her.

  She couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. Her Colin was gone. He was gone! And in his place was a predator with his glowing eyes.

  Tears streamed down her cheeks as she waited for him to kill her. Why else would he have brought her up in the mountains where no one could hear her scream?

  Panting, she froze completely as he placed his paws, each the size of her head, on either side of her hips. She didn’t know what the animal saw in her expression, but she could read his as clear as day.

  It was the first time she’d ever seen true sadness in an animal’s eyes before.

  Inhaling deeply, like he was committing her scent to memory, Colin-the-Grizzly slowly lowered his head against her stomach and just rested it there.

  She wouldn’t touch him. Couldn’t. She was frozen fast. Perhaps she’d die here, just like this, scared of the one she loved. As suddenly as he’d changed into this thing, he spun and strode with long, forceful strides into the woods.

  Sobs wracked her body as she lay there. She drew her hands over her mouth to stifle the sound of her weakness, but it didn’t help. Curling into a ball, she squeezed her eyes closed and wept for all she’d lost—for all he’d lost, too.

  She hadn’t fallen in love with a man at all, but something entirely different.

  She didn’t know how long she lay like that, shocked to her core and crying. As the chill began to seep into her bones, she pushed herself upward and stumbled toward her car in a daze. Behind the wheel, she shut the car door and pressed the lock button. It wasn’t like Colin couldn’t get to her through her puny hatchback if he had the mind to. He was massive and belied a power she could only guess at. He could cut into it like a tin can.

  She turned the key and the engine roared to life. Her headlights illuminated Colin’s tiny cottage and his tiny shop—his tiny life.

  He could’ve killed her.

  He could’ve hurt her.

  She remembered the sick look on his face when he was about to show her what was living inside of him. This was why he banished himself to these mountains and to this lonely existence.

  You swore you wouldn’t leave, his voice whispered over the hum of her motor.

  Slamming her head back against the seat cushion, she searched for her dwindling inner strength. She couldn’t do this to him. Fuck, she couldn’t do it to herself without knowing everything. She wiped her damp lashes with her sleeve and turned the car off.

  A quick scan of the woods said the terrifying bear wasn’t anywhere near, so she made her way back to his house and let herself in. With one flip of the light switch, the entire living and kitchen area were illuminated.

  Every strange thing he’d done and said made sense now.

  Bearman28.

  His shifting eyes.

  The growl in his throat.

  His impeccable hearing.

  Those scars on his back weren’t just from any animal attack. She’d bet her flower shop they matched claws that looked like Colin’s.

  And that picture…

  She stood in front of it and saw it in a new light. It wasn’t some weekend retreat picture with his coworkers and their kids. It was taken in their home, in some wilderness somewhere where they’d felt safe. These weren’t people at all, but bear shifters Hadley had thought only belonged in legends and stories.

  The door creaked open, and Colin entered with his pair of tattered jeans clutched in front of his lap. The rest of him was bare, and he looked down at the carpet, as if he were ashamed. It ripped her guts out. She’d made him feel like this.

  Without a word, he disappeared into his bedroom, then reemerged five minutes later, dressed in a pair of loose sweatpants and an old T-shirt.

  “Who were they?” she asked in a small, tremulous voice.

  “That is Blood Den, my clan. I was their alpha, and they were my people.”

  “They’re all dead?”

  He still hadn’t lifted his gaze. “All but five. They live with another clan now.”

  Tears stung her eyes. “Why? Why aren’t they here with you?”

  “Because I don’t deserve them. I couldn’t protect them. Not any of them. Four of them barely escaped in the chaos with their lives. And Joanna was taken as a spoil of war.”

  “Who did this?”

  He rested his hips against the wall and leaned his head back, swallowing until his Adam’s apple dipped into the tensed muscles of his neck. “There aren’t many of us left now, but that wasn’t always how it was. We had separated into clans. Blood Den, Raiders, Kodiaks, Rocky Hunters, Long Claws, Ridgeback, and Bear Valley. The Long Claws made an alliance with us, with everyone, but they broke them when they became power hungry and wanted more territory. They didn’t care about the survival of bear shifters. They only cared about the survival of the Long Claws. They attacked during a time of peace, but I should’ve seen it coming. My second, Marshall, warned me time and time again that we were at risk, but I didn’t believe him. I was a young alpha, twenty-one and new to the rank, and I put my trust in those stupid alliances.” His voice dipped low, shaking with emotion. “I tried to save them, but we weren’t trained for war and Blood Den fell in a day. I fell too, but the Long Claws left me for dead. I didn’t quite get there.”

  Hadley’s face crumpled as the weight of his words settled over her shoulders like a suffocating blanket. She slid down against the wall until she was sitting with her arms draped over her knees. Hot tears made streams of pain down her face as she imagined the things he’d seen and been through. How could a soul bear so much? “What happened to the Long Claws?”

  “They came for Bear Valley a few years ago, and I lined up for battle there to finally avenge my people. But as the fighting started, the Long Claw’s new alpha called an end to the war. Eventually, the Long Claws who had ordered my clan and the Kodiaks to be annihilated were overthrown and killed. They’re a reformed clan now with new, ironclad alliances with Bear Valley. I try to tell myself that, but my bear only understands vengeance. There was no justice for my people. Now, I’m broken. You’re the only thing that has soothed me in the seven years since I lost them.”

  Hadley rubbed her cool palm over her forehead, like it would calm the headache that was forming behind her eyes. No wonder Colin kept his secrets so guarded. His ability to keep them meant the safety of an entire group of people whose survival depended on humans not knowing about their existence. Oh, she could guess what people would do if they found out men who turned into grizzlies walked among them. They’d snuff bear shifters out entirely.

  “Who else knows?”

  “Shifters and human mates only. There are only a couple in Bear Valley. Riker, the alpha of Bear Valley has a human mate, and his sister is mated to a human, as well. You’re the only one outside of my people I’ve ever talked to about this.”

  “Human mate? Is that what I am to you?”

  “Yes.”

  She clenched her hands as his words of devotion filled her with hope that they could have a future. She dipped her voice to a whisper. “When you asked me to be your Valentine, were you really asking me to be your mate?”

  Such raw openness pooled in his eyes as he held her with his gaze. “Yes.”

  A familiar fluttering filled her stomach, and she closed her eyes at the relief. Colin being a bear shifter didn’t change how she felt about him. It didn’t change who he was. He’d been more caring toward her than anyone she’d ever been with, and not even a hidden grizzly could change how pu
re and good his heart was.

  Colin watched her with something akin to hope in his eyes. He approached slow and knelt down in front of her. He held her hands in his and brought her knuckles to his lips. He laid a long, tender kiss there as he searched her eyes for something she couldn’t fathom. “Is what you said out there still true? Do you still love me?”

  She couldn’t help the slow smile that stretched her face. “Your bear doesn’t matter. I was scared when you turned into him because I didn’t expect it, but you’re still mine, Colin Cross, bear shifter of Blood Den. You’re a broken alpha, and I love you enough to want to shoulder that burden with you. You aren’t alone with this anymore. Now, you have me.”

  Colin was meant for more than the life he’d forced himself into. It wasn’t his fault that his clan had died. The blame was on the clan who’d gone after his people. Anyone with eyes could see Colin bore the scars for his people. He’d tried to protect them at the cost of his body and soul, but she would do everything in her power to heal him.

  No Valentine’s Day gift could ever touch the one he’d given her tonight. The one where he shared his deepest secret self with her and asked her to accept all of him. She did. She loved him more now because of his bravery. Her Bearman.

  Someday, somehow, he would be the alpha of Blood Den again.

  And it started with her.

  She reached up and traced the curved scar across his cheek, the mark she’d grown to adore because it told of her mate’s strength. “Now, I’m Blood Den, too.”

  The End.

  For more of these characters…

  Check out T. S. Joyce’s Bear Valley Shifters series.

  (Amazon US buy links)

  The Witness and the Bear (Book 1)

  Devoted to the Bear (Book 2)

  Return to the Bear (Book 3)

  Betray the Bear (Book 4)

  Redeem the Bear (Book 5)

  Bear Valley Valentine (Book 6)

  UNLOVE ME

  By T. S. JOYCE

  Unlove Me

  Copyright © 2019 by T. S. Joyce

  Copyright © 2020, T. S. Joyce

  First electronic publication: February 2020

  T. S. Joyce

  www.tsjoyce.com

  All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the author’s permission.

  NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental. The author does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for third-party websites or their content.

  Published in the United States of America.

  Chapter One

  It needs more hearts.

  Graphic designer, Ava Dennis, gave a dead-eyed stare to her computer screen and contemplated chucking it out the window of her second-floor apartment.

  Twenty-seven was the number of rounds of edits she’d done for a personalized Valentine’s Day card.

  Four was the number of times her client, Kathy, had typed the phrase we want this card to resemble our love in emails to Ava.

  Zero was the number of Valentine’s Day dates Ava had been on, which was probably the reason for her questionable attitude around this time of year.

  You see, Ava Dennis was a victim of the Valentine’s Day Curse.

  Three times, she’d had a serious boyfriend in January, and gotten excited about finally, finally getting flowers or chocolates, or geez, she’d settle for a hug and a compliment. Yet all three of those boyfriends had broken up with her just weeks before the holiday. There was nothing less romantic than sobbing over breakups during mid-February.

  Ava’s view of the commercialized day of romance was a little skewed, but she had never ever taken the fun from someone else. As was evident in her big push every year to take on as many freelance Valentine’s Day graphic design jobs as she could. And it wasn’t about the money. It was about keeping busy so she didn’t feel left out while all the other couples around her were preparing for the big, mushy day.

  But mostly, Ava Dennis wanted to believe in love.

  The problem was, love didn’t really happen for creatures like her. As a shifter, she was caught between two worlds. Dating humans was difficult at best, because the general view on shifters was they were abominations. She would love to date a shifter but, unfortunately, the animal she was born with wasn’t that badass. She wasn’t exactly up there with weretigers and werebears.

  Ava read through the rest of the email and gritted under her breath, “I don’t want to read an essay every time, Kathy. Just tell me where you want the hearts.”

  We want to inspire everyone we send this to with our love.

  Can you photoshop Brandon’s smile to be bigger so he looks more in love with me?

  Maybe put some stars in our eyes and warm up the color in the background.

  Can you change the color of my boots to a more vibrant red?

  Definitely a smaller font so it doesn’t take away from the purity of the picture.

  Okay, but who sent pictures of themselves to all their friends and family for Valentine’s Day? Wasn’t that a Christmas card type of thing?

  Ava opened the artwork on her computer and, feeling overwhelmed, she stared at the heart-riddled, mushy picture of the couple cheesy-smiling and hugging in the snow. Snow sounded nice about now. It was February 11 in Longview, Texas and warm enough for a T-shirt. She’d grown up in the snowy mountains and missed it often.

  Actually, anywhere but here sounded nice. She’d been working non-stop for the last two months with no days off.

  She glared at the stack of empty microwaveable soup containers. She had most of her meals at her desk to make her art deadlines, and she was really tired of soup.

  On a whim, she exited out of the artwork, and with flying fingers, typed UnValentine’s Day food into the search engine. Maybe she should make a feast for one on Valentine’s Day. Okay, that sounded awesome. Wine would be involved. Maybe she would even send herself flowers. And chocolates. And a new car. No, scratch that, she was being crazy. She didn’t need to treat herself to a car. But maybe a spa treatment? A facial and a massage or something. Just treat herself like she wanted to be treated! Okay, yes! This was a genius plan. She was taking Valentine’s Day back for the single ladies!

  A discounted hotel came up with the words UNVALENTINES DAY DINNER in all caps as the tagline. The picture was a rustic log cabin with a handsome model shot-gunning a beer on the porch, the beer spraying foam everywhere. Hot model, beer, log cabin, and was that snow out front?

  Click.

  Ava read in a rush, excitement trilling through her blood.

  Tired of the mush and gush of Valentine’s Day? Join us at Woodpecker Lodge outside of Crested Butte, Colorado for a night you won’t ever forget. No romance, no pressure, no couples making out at the table next to you. Just beer, good food, and fun. Come relax in your own personal lodge and get pampered.

  “Ermergerd, yes!” she said, poking the Book Now button. “This is the party I want to be at. My peoples.”

  Was it impulsive to plan a last-minute trip to snow country? Yes. Was she concerned with that right now? Heck no.

  For the first time ever, she could really and truly look forward to the holiday and not worry about a date or worry that a boyfriend would break up with her early. This year was her year!

  She began filling out the information fields as fast as she could, and all went smooth until the question at the bottom.

  I
t was a simple one with two check boxes. Are you a shifter? Yes. No.

  Instantly deflated, she sank back in her chair and let her hands fall from the keyboard. When sites did this, nine times out of ten, if she checked yes to being what she was, they denied her. A part of her understood. Most shifters were barely in control of their animals and were destructive and dangerous at times, especially if provoked or cornered. But she wasn’t like that. Her animal was harmless. Still…she paid for the destructive nature of her kind.

  She was registered, as all shifters were required by law. It wasn’t like she was hiding who she was, but she wanted the beer and the food and the relaxation.

  What was the worst that could happen if she checked No? She was an honest-to-her-core type of person and had never lied about what she was before, but what if? What if she said no? She could go on this snowy adventure and have fun, take a break from work and do a self-care week.

  An email notification from Kathy popped up. More edit requests for the love-fest picture.

  Clenching her teeth together, and really damn determined to take a well-earned break, Ava leaned forward and poked the button she never thought she would. It was her claiming to be human, but so what? That wasn’t so bad. Not if it gave her a well-earned vacation. She’d been a good, honest, loyal person all her life, and where had it gotten her? Alone in a two-bedroom apartment with a life that revolved around freelance work and a pitiful social life.

  Well shit was a-changin’.

  Click.

  Congratulations on your approval for the newly renovated Pants Are Overrated Cabin.

  She snorted and then laughed a little as she read the names of some of the other suites.

  Purple Nurple Queen Cabin.

  Junk in the Trunk Cabin.

  I Can’t Dance and I Don’t Want To Double Twin Bed Cabin.

  What’s Responsibility Cabin.