Teddy and His Bear: Oh My! Book 1, Andi James and Lila Wilde

One announcement and the world under Teddy's feet has dropped.  Feeling sad and alone, abandoned, he finds comfort in friends and work.  There's one other bright spot, though, and that's the handsome older man that frequents the coffee shop where he works.  Barrett has a crush on Teddy too, but with his damaged heart and their age gap, not to mention his suppressed desires, he can't see a future where they're together the way he truly wants.  With the help of an accident-prone co-worker Teddy gets a glimpse of what a future might look like with the older man who's captured his attention and maybe a piece of his heart.  If they can get past their pasts and accept one another for everything they are and enjoy they just might have a chance at forever.

Right from the outset I was moved by Teddy's pain.  His ache became an echoing ache in my own heart.  Partly because of things I'm going through but also because the writing was simple, clear, and good enough to convey the depth of what he felt.  His evolution felt natural and organic, to a point.  I think the new relationship dynamic he found with Barrett suited him to a T though I did feel he became a bit more naive than merely endearingly innocent toward the end.  The way he could be sappy and scattered and yet perfect for Barrett's yearnings made up for that though.

Barrett was an interesting character.  There's a lot about him to love and to root for.  I will say, though, that he was endearing up to a point.  The way he complemented Teddy and how they fit just right for one another's desires was a little too simplistic.  Not that simple isn't good, it was just so nice that it felt a bit more sappy than deep.

The burn was very slow to start in this story but it was very much appreciated.  It made their evolution all the more believable and created a great foundation to build on.  Teddy and Barrett fit together very nicely, share a lot of passion, and have a seriously happy future ahead for them.  With a great cast to encourage and support them they were able to overcome their individual difficulties to find a solid partnership in one another.  I'm actually looking forward to reading the other couples' stories as well.  There's definitely going to be some interesting roads they'll have to travel to earn their HEAs.

*$3.99 on Amazon!