Monsters in my Bed

I've always hated Christmas. With a name like Chris Kringle, it's hard not to. It's only gotten worse since I've been back from the war. Christmas is supposed to be jolly, but for me, it's a grim reminder of past failures. I need to get away from it. To be somewhere quiet. To heal. When I wake up in the South Pole after an accident to a Krampus tending my wounds, it feels like the perfect opportunity to get some much-needed R&R. Yet this gentle giant is so achingly sweet, I can't help but fall for him, even though he's a monster.

All I've ever wanted was to protect the people I love. That's why I joined the military's Elite Specimen Containment Unit. When I learned they were experimenting on sentient monsters, however, everything changed. Now, I have a new mission: protect a scaly winged monster named Bud and escort him to somewhere he'll be safe from my superiors.

My life is a country song. I lost my abuela, my wife, my house, and my religion. After helping my two best friends find love, I'm broke, out of shape, and lonelier than ever. Until I find an injured winged monster in the church basement I'm remodeling. He's the most beautiful creature I've ever seen. Hurt and alone, he needs my help to find his missing halo. He also seems to think I'm destined to be his mate.

After hearing about a dragon ranch and monster haven out in Wyoming, I set off on a road trip with my roommates and two goals: pet a dragon and live out my cowboy riding fantasy. There's just one problem: Hopper Meadows, the monstrous owner of the Jackalope Ranch. He's got a chip on his shoulder the size of Texas and seems to have it out for me in particular. Sparks fly the moment we meet, and not the good kind.

My disciplinary file at ESCU is almost as thick as my personnel file, which is saying something since I've been working for them for more than twenty years. I do the jobs no one else wants, go places no one is supposed to go to deal with monsters that don't exist. After a while, you get a feel for how a mission's going to go, and I have a feeling this next one is going to be fifty shades of FUBAR.

For the last year, I've been living with an invisible monster who steals my snacks, turns off my electricity, and runs off all my dates. As annoying as that is, he's my only companion, and the only one I trust with my deepest, darkest secret. I'm not human. Then again, neither is my new roommate, and he and ESCU have history. Not the good kind either. But since he seems to think we're mates, his problems are now mine. I'm certainly not going to argue, especially since he's got a razor-sharp teeth and claws. But hey, I'm into that so it works out . . .