Saved by the Billionaire Bears: Howls Romance

By Celia Kyle

Christmas Eve is a time of love, joy, and… getting it on with two hunky bear shifters. 

 

Tessa's life has turned into a country song—she lost her job, her roommate, and her parents have holiday plans that don't include her.  At least she has her boyfriend. Until she finds him in their tent with his hands full… of another woman. One stomp-off later, she's lost in the mountain wilderness—alone, afraid, and still angry as hell.

 

Thankfully sexy bear shifter Aaron smells her terror and insists on helping her back to his camp—there's only two problems. First, according to her scent, Tessa is Aaron's mate. Second, he's not the only one who can claim her. There's Aaron's equally sexy brother, Scott, who also wants Tessa. When an outside threat almost kills Scott, Tessa is forced to face the truth—she's just as enamored with Scott as she is with Aaron.  She wants them both!

 

Tessa has never been attracted to two men at once—and when they inform her that they've both imprinted on her, this Christmas surprise has her considering arrangements she's never imagined…

 

This standalone holiday romance has hot territorial bear shifters, a smart heroine, and plenty of steam under the stars.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Summerhouse Publishing
• Release date: Mar 27, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215229873

Celia Kyle

Ex-dance teacher, former accountant and erstwhile collectible doll salesperson, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Celia Kyle now writes paranormal romances for readers who: 1) Like super hunky heroes (they generally get furry) 2) Dig beautiful women (who have a few more curves than the average lady) 3) Love laughing in (and out of) bed. It goes without saying that there’s always a happily-ever-after for her characters, even if there are a few road bumps along the way. Today she lives in central Florida and writes full-time with the support of her loving husband and two finicky cats.

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

TESSA

Tessa’s boots crunched on the dried grass as she crossed the campsite. She’d been hoping a nice walk would clear her head, but the dark thoughts simply wouldn’t leave. The bad mood attached to them remained persistent. Not all-consuming, but nonetheless a taint on the bright afternoon.

She should’ve been enjoying herself. The sun, just tipping toward its afternoon slants, was bright and warm. The breeze teased at the heat, wiping off the edge and leaving a coolness in its wake. Birds sang high in the trees and mountains shouldered up to the clouds in the distance.

Tessa paused and took a deep breath. She held it for a heartbeat and then two before releasing it to draw in another. She had calmed but was no happier about her situation.

Like a house of cards, her life had fallen apart piece by piece, faster and faster with every passing moment. All that remained were a couple of diehard aces, standing desperately against the destruction that destroyed the rest.

I can rebuild. I don’t need more than what I have. I’ll be fine.

The pep talk and nice walk didn’t do much for her. The view of the mountains was distracting in its majesty, so she gave herself a few more minutes to enjoy the sight. As the bad feelings rolled in, she gave way beneath them and let them soak through her. Maybe if she faced it all instead of fighting it, she would finally feel better.

The job had gone first. Three years… Three years she had battled her way to the top rung of the graphics design company—her dream position, a place to be involved in the highest-paying advertisement and web content design. Having them fire her so close to Christmas like that was a shot to the heart.

She had been told, quite simply, that she wasn’t experienced enough to keep up with the pace. Her manager had explained with a sorrowful look on his face that it just wasn’t working out. Sorry to dump this at such a bad time, but you know how these things work.

She clenched her fists at the memory. She’d like to use one of those fists on his goddamn face. She knew her webpage copy was better than the other top-level designers, even the boss. But, so close to Christmas, no one would let an apprentice take their bonus.

To cheer herself, she had called her parents as soon as she arrived home, mindful of going home and getting the comfort she needed. She wanted to revel in the warm living room, mom’s hot eggnog, and dad’s bad jokes. She desperately wanted to feel loved and safe while having an opportunity to pull herself together before she launched into the job market again.

When her mother’s breezy excited voice answered the phone, dread filled her. Then her mother breathlessly explained about their five-star Hawaii holiday extending from Christmas right to the new year. The only thing she had been able to say was, Have a great time.

She hadn’t dumped any of her mood on her mother. That would’ve been unfair. She was determined to pick herself up and dust herself off on her own. And on that fateful day when everything broke loose, Tessa figured it couldn’t get any worse. All she needed to end the day was pizza and beer with Sally, her roommate.

Yeah… That hadn’t gone well either.

Tessa hadn’t even gotten a chance to tell Sally her plan. Her best friend of five years walked through the door, grabbed an overnight bag, and announced she was leaving to live with her boyfriend. Perfect! Not. Tessa stood mutely as Sally packed her bags, exclaiming about Jack’s big apartment and how he would surely propose soon.

Tessa had watched her go, utterly powerless for the first time in her life. Sally waved and called over her shoulder that Tessa would enjoy the extra room, and she’d be fine with the rent, right?

Tessa didn’t even get a chance to tell her she’d lost her job. Would Sally even care?

On that day, it seemed, no one really cared about Tessa.

So, she called the one person she had left. Her boyfriend Mark.

They’d only been together a few months, but she admitted she was falling hard for him. A photographer, they often had lively conversations about how their passions and training shared creative aspects. They met at an art show, and from the moment she looked into his wide brown eyes, she was hooked. His fine, long-fingered hands liked to stroke the air while he talked, and the light glinted off his sandy hair.

His smile made her feel like the most special girl in the world. If anyone could lift her out of the string of unlucky events, it would be him.

And then it wasn’t. Her heart fell, swallowed by the dark pit of her stomach when he told her they couldn’t get together because he was packing for his big trip. Almost in tears, she remembered he had told her all about it. But given her day, it had completely slipped her mind. Plus, there was the way he’d mentioned the getaway but never invited her along… It seemed strange. Oh, he’d never said anything like, Hey, sorry, I’m going to miss you, or, You’re not welcome. But he hadn’t invited her either.

The idea of being alone incited such an intense fear that she’d blurted out she wanted to go with him. The silence across the phone line was vast enough to erode all hope. Did he not want to spend time with her?

That weird feeling she had seemed even stronger now—stronger than all the feelings she’d hoped to have for him. Without her job, all that enthusiasm seemed… put off.

He told her it was a survival camp, not a holiday trip.

She didn’t care. God, she so didn’t care! Don’t leave me alone!

With an edge in his voice, he agreed to let her join him. However, he made a point of telling her he would be off searching for the perfect shot, so she couldn’t get mad if he wasn’t there to indulge her every whim.

As she stood on the outskirts of camp, she wondered if he had returned. When she left for her hike, he’d been packing a bag and getting ready to go out. When she asked if she could come along, he said it interfered with his artistic process.

She tried to be understanding. Really. Obviously, he was a serious artist and since she was very protective of her own creativity, she could respect his as well.

That didn’t stop her feeling utterly alone. It was almost worse than the string of bad luck. It was as if this empty feeling had always been present and she had simply covered it with distractions. Now that they were gone, she was aware of the stark gaping thing beginning to growl inside her with its needs to be filled.

Her soulful, purposeful deep breaths transformed into an exasperated sigh as she turned and marched toward the tent she shared with Mark. She could use some attention from his long-fingered hands right now. Anything to push away the sense of emptiness.

She strode to the tent, slowing as she drew near, and realized far too much noise came from inside. At first, she wondered if he was watching something on his phone, but she quickly remembered they had to leave their phones at the ranger station. It really was a survival camp, designed to be tough. No calling for help, no distractions.

So far, she had learned how to make a fishing line, build a fire, and forage for food. Throwing herself into these activities had been an excellent distraction, but that didn’t help her figure out what was going on in that tent.

Though, didn’t she already know? A part of her had to know. Her eyes sparkled with tears. Her chest hurt. There was no mistaking what she witnessed.

High-pitched, feminine giggles. Mark’s voice. Fumbling. More giggling.

This wasn’t happening. The universe had already shit on her so much. The idea that it might be about to take another dump on her was simply inconceivable.

This was a bad country song turned into real life. This kind of shit just didn’t happen. And yet…

She grabbed the tent’s zipper and tore it open as abruptly as she could. A shapely woman with long black hair cascading around her shoulders snatched at Tessa’s sleeping bag and tugged it over herself with a shriek. Mark’s eyes lasered to the entry, his face falling as he spied Tessa standing there.

Now, babe. Don’t go getting all upset about—

I’m not upset. Tessa stared into his eyes, her heart cracking and splintering as her insides grew cold. I don’t give a fuck.

She totally did. She totally gave lots of fucks. But she sure as hell wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of showing it.

Ignoring the half-naked woman and her hugely ex-boyfriend, Tessa moved through the tent, grabbing and filling her pack as she went. Mark chased her, sleeping bag around his waist like a kilt, stumbling over the bulky fabric as he tried to explain. The dark-haired woman just glared at Tessa, probably trying to figure out how to leave gracefully.

After Tessa collected her belongings and moved to walk away, Mark finally gave up trying to talk to her and instead dropped a bomb. Fine then! If you don’t want to listen, fuck off.

She ignored him and kept walking, pretending not to hear the raised voices behind her as the others talked about the situation. That was just great. Everyone had someone to talk to, except Tessa.

She strode through the forest for a long time, each step fueled by hurt and anger.