title: Needing Her Bear
author: Nowlan, Anya
description: A love followed by tragedy. Past deeds that damn both sides. Can love conquer where nothing else seems to? Jacqueline Arder has done things she is not proud of. She's been running from them ever since, too ashamed of her failures to give love a chance. Returning home to Montana was no easy feat and it is only the safety of her loved ones that brings her back. But, there she is faced with what she has missed the most - her mate, Ryder. Or the man that used to be her mate, but now seems to be a completely different beast - cruel, calculating, hard. Logic says that their past is just that - the past. But her heart screams something completely different. Ryder Hunt has been playing a dangerous game. No one must know what his plan is, or the safety of both his werebear clan and the Arders may be in jeopardy. It has been almost entirely too easy to keep up the facade of the heartless warmonger, but it begins to crumble fast when Jackie returns. He's been looking for her for more than a year after her abrupt exit, but the woman he loves has made it more than clear that she wants nothing to do with him. It's never that simple when fate is involved, though. Both Ryder and Jackie are tasked with the hardest of choices - follow their heart, or listen to their head. When the future of all they care for is at stake, neither option seems like quite enough. This is a 29,000+ word novella with a HFA ending. The book includes a steamy scene and can be read as a standalone.