The Snow Leopard's Christmas Surprise

by Emilia Hartley

The look on Gwen’s face said that she saw through his lie. Liana needed more help, but neither of them were sure that Gwen could offer the kind that she needed. The dragon refused to talk about what happened to her in the forest. At least she refused to blame Gwen for what happened.

  His mate carried enough blame on her own shoulders for all that happened, no matter the outcome. It made her sit at Liana’s side every morning, casting her blanket of healing over the dragon. Yet, as he pushed her knees apart, she let him. She gave in to him as his head lowered between her legs. Her hand fisted in his hair.

  She was alive and she was his. It was more than he’d ever asked for.

  I hope you enjoyed Books 1 to 3 of the Fated Dragons series!! If you’d like to find out what happens next, you can get books 4 and 5 here:

  Fated Dragons Complete Boxed Set: Books 1 - 5

  Don’t stop now, I’ve included some more bonus books for you to enjoy below!!

  Adored by the Alpha Bear

  Alpha Bears Book 1

  Emilia Hartley

  Chapter One

  This sucks, Jo thought to herself, biting back a bored yawn as her boss prattled ceaselessly into her ear from the rickety headset she wore.

  “You absolutely must get this artist on board,” Brian insisted. “If we want to keep my little gallery running, pulling in the big names is paramount!”

  “Don’t you mean our little gallery?” Jo muttered back into the mouthpiece, taking small pride in the way her boss spluttered on the other end of the line to cover his tracks.

  “I, well, of course. Though you do work for me, I try to make everyone I employ feel that they are… apart of something bigger,” he rambled, his voice taking on a horribly synthetic British accent. “Which is why I need to make sure you understand how important this prospective client is!”

  “Yeah, yeah, I kno…”

  “I certainly hope so, Jo,” Brian interrupted. “I don’t want your lack of experience mucking things up!”

  Bastard, I’m your best scouter! Jo growled inwardly, barely stopping herself from saying the scathing retort aloud. “You do your job, and I’ll do mine,” she opted to say into the mike.

  She could almost hear his empty head rattling in an arrogant nod. “And I expect nothing less than success.”

  “You know,” Jo said, shifting her weight as she leaned against the side of her car, “it’d be easier to do a perfect job with a more realistic traveling budget. Just a thought.”

  She could hear Brian’s heavy sigh over the phone. “We’ve been over this,” he replied, voice clearly annoyed. “The budget was meticulously crafted with all of the current expenses carefully taken into account! It’s quite nuanced in ways I couldn’t possibly explain to you.” Jo knew this was Brian speak for, ‘I’m a cheapskate who doesn’t care how you get the work done, as long as it’s on as little of my dime as possible.’

  “Trust that if we had even a penny more to spare, we wouldn’t hesitate to put it towards your trip,” he finished in a mock sincerity that made Jo’s lip curl.

  “Right.” Her tone clipped.

  “Yes, right, right.” She could hear a bit of unease seep into Brian’s voice, and she knew the conversation was pretty much over. “Well… at least this way you get to see the sights! Keep me posted.” With a beep, the line went dead without either saying goodbye.

  Jo groaned loudly, grateful that the gas station lot was nearly empty. She could let out her frustrations in peace without disturbing the general public.

  Sights? What sights?! The drive to San Francisco, California was two slow-moving days of alternating forestry and farmland. Two days! Apparently that wasn’t long enough to warrant spending the extra dollars for a plane ticket, so here she was, a day into the trip, kicking herself—both in frustration for not standing up to Brian and just to keep herself from dying of boredom.

  But hey, as least she would get to ‘see the sights!’

  “Pathetic,” Jo spat. Brian just didn’t want to admit that he’d been caught pinching pennies at the expense of her suffering.

  Taking a deep breath, she tried her best to ignore the agitation she had for her boss. Already a day into her two-day drive, it was much too late to stew about it now. We’re going to have a really long talk when I get back to Chicago, though. Brushing a stray lock of wind-tousled brown hair from her eyes, she strolled into the gas station convenience store to pay for a full tank of gas.

  Jo welcomed the cashier’s peppy voice, allowing it to wash away some of her chagrin. “Heading anywhere nice?” the high school aged girl asked?

  Jo shrugged. “Not really. San Francisco, for work.”

  “Oh wow! Quite the drive,” the girl replied, holding out Jo’s receipt.

  You’re telling me, kid. “That it is.” Jo took the proffered paper from the girl. “But at least I’ll get to see the sights!” she said in mock enthusiasm.

  The girl smiled in response, but Jo could see her confusion underneath. Instead of explaining, she gave a half-hearted wave and left the store. She hadn’t expected the cashier to get the joke, anyway.

  “Drive safe!” Jo heard the girl call, as the door closed behind her.

  ***

  “At least it’s quiet,” Jo said, eyeing the empty road as she drove. It had been two hours since she departed from the gas station, and she hadn’t seen a single car, bus, or even a hitchhiker. “That’s probably because they had the common sense to fly,” she muttered, grimly.

  Wallowing in her sadness once more, Jo let out a deep sigh. She used to love this job. Being an Art Liaison had always been her passion. She was good at it; she had a natural eye for potential, and when Liberty Art had scouted her for her talents, it had been like a dream come true. When did it all go south?

  “Brian,” she groaned, gripping the steering wheel tightly. She’d been happy at her job until titles shifted hands about a year back and she suddenly found herself under the direct order of Brian Koenig, the cheapskate Gallery Manager. From that moment onward, trips that used to warrant a booked flight were made solely in her car. Hotels turned to motels or whatever hovel Brian could scope out for a few scarce dollars a night. Food had been stricken from the budget entirely! Jo bit back another groan as she recalled the first time she had to dip into her own pocket for a gas station sandwich.

  She’d tried to argue for a bit of leniency from Brian time and time again, only to be met with the usual placating words of, “We’ll get right on it!” and, “We’re doing everything we can!” Still, nothing had changed, and here she was yet again, driving insane distances in her tired car to the next big thing in art, hoping that maybe this time her hard work will warrant the tiniest bit of luxury in future travels. Fat chance.

  “I could just leave. Strike out on my own.” She nodded like it was a good idea, but knew she’d never make good on it. As Brian never ceased to remind her, her job was to ‘liaise,’ and as much as she wanted to oppose him, she was inclined to agree. Being a liaison was what she was good at. She didn’t know anything about the ins and outs of the Art Galley business as a whole, nor did she have the skill-set necessary to start the business and keep it running. She couldn’t risk walking away from a good job doing what she loved on the very off chance that she’d be okay on her own. Tolerating Brian was preferable to being homeless.

  On that depressing note, Jo decided it was best to move her thoughts elsewhere. As if on cue, something shot out of the tree line in a blur of brown, heading straight for her car. With a shriek, she slammed the brakes hard, swerving roughly towards the shoulder of the road. The brown blur slid to a stop in front of her car, narrowly missing direct impact with the hood.

  “What the hell.” Her fingers gripped painfully at ten and two. She peered warily over her dashboard into the road beyond, fearing that she might have hit… whatever the heck that thing was.

  Just as she found where it lay, the thing rose to its large, furred paws, wobbling slightly from the shock of its fall. Jo saw it give one
full-bodied shake of its coarse brown coat before it turned.

  In more shock than fear, Jo met the clear dark eyes of a great brown bear as it took its first terrifying step towards her car.

  Chapter Two

  Jo’s eyes never left the massive beast, watching unblinkingly as it rose onto two paws. It was tall—taller than what Jo would have expected from even a bear, and it made her stomach churn. The bear turned its head, tipping it to the side as if it were contemplating her.

  Making sure to move slowly and inconspicuously, Jo peeled her fingers from the steering wheel, moving her hand to lock the doors. Absently she realized that if a bear truly wanted her for a snack, it could probably tear off the entire door easily enough, but the motion made her feel better nonetheless.

  Despite her slow movements, the bear seemed to track her. She couldn’t be too sure, but it looked like the bear’s eyes had followed her hand as it slowly pressed down on the ‘door lock’ button. The two shared a lingering guarded glare, as if neither knew what to do about the other. It gave Jo time to take in the dark, thick coat of the bear’s brown fur, highlighted with a singular long stripe of gray that made it stand out. It rippled over the bear’s mighty muscles with every move it made, hinting at the strength that lay beneath. Jo felt something like awe before the road rumbled and the trees rustled with a ruckus the likes of which she had never experienced before.

  In a rush of fur and flesh, another bear launched from the forestry on the roadside. Jo didn’t have momentum on her side this time, and it looked like the second bear was definitely going to make contact. She could only stare in horror as the second bear skidded across the road, holding out its paws as it closed in on the side of her car. At the last moment, a blur of brown tackled the second bear off course, and they both connected with the rear of her car.

  The car spun violently with the impact and Jo screamed, the trunk of her car dangling lazily over a steep decline at the road’s edge. She tried not to move, fearing that rocking the car would send it sailing over the precipice and down the steep hill, when a roar rattled the windows. It was deep, loud, and painfully close.

  Jo turned slowly to the left, petrified as she watched the two bears launch themselves at one another yet again. Giant paws swiped and fangs snapped in a fearsome display, and for one frightful moment, Jo was sure she’d see the two beasts tear each other apart. She thought maybe she should call Animal Control or something before it was too late, when one of the bears flopped onto its back in the road, paws batting lightheartedly at the other bear. The standing bear roared, bouncing toward the other and pushing it back onto its feet. It almost looked like they were… playing?

  They tumbled and leapt at one another, bouncing and wrestling around Jo’s wrecked car. It was like they’d completely forgotten that she was there! Any hope she had of possibly getting herself out of this situation was slim, and two playing bears only made her odds worse. The road rumbled and vibrated as they landed on heavy paws, and she feared that any moment her car would go sailing into the wooded abyss, taking her with it.

  In a moment of panicked resolve, Jo leaned heavily on her horn.

  The noise was long and loud, stilling the bears’ jousting almost immediately. In unison, they both turned to look directly at her, and the shock of what she’d done sank in all at once. Her heart fell into her stomach as they both rose onto their hind legs, and she thought she might begin to hyperventilate as the solid brown bear took a step towards her teetering car.

  The grey striped bear nudged the other before it made it too far. Jo could hear a few grunts and snuffs through the muffled panes of window glass; they almost looked like they were having a conversation. Then finally with one last glance at Jo, the grey striped bear dropped onto four paws and loped back into the trees. The full-brown bear eyed her a bit more closely, lingering behind for a breath longer before following the other bear. The trees rustled with their departure, and then they were gone the way they came.

  Jo could barely collect herself. Everything had happened so fast, and now in the renewed still of the rural roadside, she could hardly believe that she was truly alone once more. She knew at some point she’d have to step out and assess the damage to her car, but try as she might, her body wouldn’t move. She didn’t know what she was more afraid of, the thought of bears barreling out of the darkness at a moment’s notice, or the precarious teeter-tottering of her car, still hovering dangerously above a steep drop off behind her.

  It took a few deep breaths, but she was eventually able to move. She flexed her fingers first, and then her arms, pulling them close to shiver off the fear of what she’d just been through. She slid her hand over the ‘door lock’ button, listening as the locks all shot up in unison. Then slowly and fearfully, she opened her car door.

  The car seemed to tilt dangerously under her shifting weight, and she snapped her eyes shut tightly, already fearing the worse. Fortunately, the care stabled itself, and she used that moment to slide out quickly before gravity changed its mind.

  Almost immediately, Jo felt ridiculous. The car was dangling, but not nearly as much as she’d thought. It was barely past the drop of the hill, and hardly in any danger of plummeting her to her death. The worst of the damage was to the back left tire itself; it appeared to be buckled completely, the tire barely holding on. If she pushed up a bit of mud under the back wheels, she’d easily be able to roll the car back onto the road. She just hoped the wrecked tire would drive well enough to make it to the nearest town.

  She noticed that the car must’ve stalled in the collision, and so she fumbled in the dim shade of the car to start the engine back up. Her heart sank as the engine stuttered to life, only to die a few moments later. She turned the key again. It didn’t turn over at all. She closed her eyes tightly, letting out her breath in a stressed sigh. “This can’t be happening,” she moaned. She leaned her head against the steering wheel, praying silently to some holy car deity to grant her a miracle. She had GPS, but she hadn’t seen a single car since she got on the road hours ago. She’d be hard pressed to find a tow or even hitchhiker. Walking was out of the question. She looked at her phone. One bar, no internet, so no chance to find a nearby mechanics and call for help. She cursed under her breath.

  With one final centering breath, she decided to give the ignition one last try before crying, “Please work.” She turned the key with a hopeful vigor. The engine sparked and wavered, but sprang back to life. Jo held her breath, hands hovering over the steering wheel for a few moments to make sure the spark would hold. When she was sure it would, she exhaled a relieved sigh. Sliding out of the driver’s seat, she made quick work of pushing dirt up under the back tires so she could hobble her broken car to the nearest town.

  Back behind the wheel, she gripped the steering wheel tightly and tapped the gas with the softest of pressure. With a lurch, the car slid forward. It landed heavily on the bum tire, making Jo flinch, but it held. She let out one more sigh of relief before making the tough ride to the nearest town.

  It wasn’t long before she began seeing signs for Rawlins, Wyoming, only a few miles off. The drive was lumpy and stressful, the broken wheel threatening to bounce away from her with every rotation. Lights were flashing on the dashboard, alerting her to problems that she didn’t have the knowledge to even think about. All she could do was pray she’d make it to the nearest mechanics. As she cleared the town limits, the car began to make a funny sound, and she swore she could smell smoke. Seeing a few passersby giving her strange glances, she rolled down her window next to the nearest one.

  “Hello! I was wondering where the nearest mechanics is?” she asked the older lady.

  The lady peered into the widow with concern. “Have you had an accident? Are you hurt?”

  “Oh no, not at all,” Jo assured. “There was just an incident with some bears.” The lady gasped. “It’s no big deal. Everything is fine. The car’s just a bit banged up,” she finished, trying to get the conversation back on track.
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  “Bears!” the lady exclaimed. “We hear ‘em out and about all the time, but hardly ever see ‘em.” She tutted. “What bad luck!”

  Jo grimaced. “Yes, it is. The mechanics?” she asked again, hoping she didn’t sound too rude.

  “Oh, yes. Just down the road, take a left and then it’s on your right. Right on the edge of the woods. Run by a Nick and Tom Brewer. Big burly pair, you can’t miss ‘em.” She gave her an open smile. “They’re friendly enough, and fair despite their dashing looks. You won’t have to worry about ‘em ripping you off.”

  Jo nodded. “Thank you,” she said, grateful. With a wave, she drove off, following the direction the lady had given her. The road tapered off from asphalt to dirt the closer she got to the wooded tree line, making the car drive even worse. She’d left the small town behind, the noises of the everyday hustle and bustle giving way to nature once more. As her poor car hobbled painfully onward, Jo began to wonder worriedly if the senile old lady had given her the wrong directions.

  As if on cue, a bright red sign came into view, labeled ‘Brewer Mechanics’. It stood in front of a slightly run-down shop, but everything looked to be in working order. There were cars littered here and there and in various stages of repair, but no sign of anyone working. Jo hoped that maybe this meant their workload wasn’t to full and they’d be able to get to her car as soon as possible. She coasted jerkily to a stop in front of the shop and shut the car off before leaning back in her seat with a sigh of relief. She’d made it.

  Now for the hard part.

  Chapter Three

  Nick stifled a yawn as his brother nudged him in the ribs. “Looks like we got a customer.”

  Lifting his head from the notebook he was writing in, Nick peered lazily out the front-facing windows at the approaching woman. He could already sense her frustration. “Mmm, she’s mad.”

  “Easy study for you, eh?” Tom asked with a knowing glance. Nick shot him an annoyed look. His brother only grinned in return before training a wary leer back on the woman. “Car looked a bit funny coming in.”