Matched to His Bear

The Dates of Our Lives #2

by Lorelei M. Hart, Colbie Dunbar

an alternate cover edition can be found here

Fate doesn't use dating apps to pair true mates...except when it does.

Alpha Brad Galway is a hot successful lawyer and Beta of his Den with omegas throwing themselves at his feet. From the outside, it appears as though he has everything he could possibly desire. Inwardly, he has a bear clawing to get out—no longer willing to stand by and let his mate go unclaimed. But there’s a problem with his bear’s plan. Brad doesn’t know who or where he is, just that they crossed paths in an airport over a year ago. If he doesn’t figure out how to control his bear soon, he risks losing everything—including his life.

Human omega Gabe Rafferty is excited to start his new job as a professor of English Lit. Ever since a layover in an airport last year, he’s felt like his luck has changed. He can’t explain how or why...but something happened that day, and everything from that point was onward and upward. He just wishes he had someone to share it with.

When Gabe is talked into using a dating app, he isn’t expecting much until he stumbles onto profiles that are fixated on the TV series, Shifter World. And he definitely isn’t anticipating the smoldering alpha who recaptures that feeling he experienced at the airport. Sparks fly, feelings grow, and their worlds are turned upside down in the very best of ways, but is it too late for Brad’s bear?

Matched To His Bear is the second book in the sweet with knotty heat Dates of Our Lives, an M/M mpreg shifter dating app romance brought to you by the popular co-writing duo of Lorelei M Hart and Colbie Dunbar. It features a human who stumbles into a world he never knew existed thanks to a silly little soap opera, an alpha who is losing his humanity, a stalker bear who turns out to be more trouble than anyone could’ve suspected, and an adorable baby.

Genres: M M Romance, Paranormal, Shapeshifters, Omegaverse, Romance, Contemporary, Fantasy

Kindle Edition

First published September 10, 2020

About the author

Lorelei M. Hart is the cowriting team of USA Today Bestselling Authors Kate Richards and Ever Coming. Friends for years, the duo decided to come together and write one of their favorite guilty pleasures: Mpreg.

Reviews

[Len Evans Jr · Rating 5 out of 5]

The authors took this one up a level!

Loved this a lot! Great writing and awesome characters! Gabe and Brad were incredible together. Now on to book three!

[Aղցela W. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was book 2 in " The Dates of Our Lives" series. Alpha Brad Galway is a hot successful lawyer and Beta of his Den while at the airport he smells his fated mate but he can't find him. Human omega Gabe Rafferty is excited to start his new job as a professor of English Lit while on a layover at the airport gets a feeling that he can't explain. When Gabe's roommate and best friend sign him up on a dating app he goes Gabe has been having wild dreams for a year. Brad who is a bear shifter almost went feral can't believe that the man he has been searching for has been found. I really liked both of these characters and the alpha Soren I hope he gets his own book. I also liked Corey Gabe's best friend. After mating these two a surprise and Brad got a challenge from a jealous den member. This was a good read I have read both of these authors before. This book was well written with no errors in grammar or spelling. I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series.

[Ed Davis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t care for this book. I liked Brad alright, but Gabe got on my nerves. He was childish and acted awfully dumb for someone teaching English Literature in college. I didn’t care much for the plot, what little there was of it. I read the first book, but for some reason I didn’t rate it.

There were some inconsistencies in the story. When they went in for the ultrasound the doctor was a woman. When the ultrasound was performed several minutes later she had become a he.i don’t plan to read any more books in this series.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was nice, a lot better than the first one. It gives more context to how shifters work, even. And even though Brad is losing his humanity and sanity, he acts a lot more civilized than Bentley did. That says a lot

[Badh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too cute

Gabe and Brad are just too cute together. I love how their near miss eventually works out. Fate was busy, for sure.

[Coco.V]

🎁 FREE on Amazon today (5/13/2022)! 🎁

[Penumbra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Matched to His Bear is the second book in the ‘Dates of Our Lives’ series. This stars Alpha Brad Galway, a lawyer, and human omega Gabe Rafferty, an English professor. This is told in first person through both Brad and Gabe’s pov.

3.5 Stars



The blurbs are usually pretty accurate in telling the plot of the book. This one is not. The first over the top falsehood is that Brad has ‘omegas throwing themselves at his feet.’ He does not. He has one specific bear shifter named Barry, doing that. The second paragraph says Gabe’s luck has changed and it’s ‘onward and upward’ after scenting his mate at the airport. This is also not true. Nothing changes for Gabe except he starts having strange dreams. The fact that the authors wrote a blurb that is overly dramatic and untruthful, also explains some of the scenes in the story which are overly dramatic, so much so, that I rolled my eyes and wondered ‘what were they thinking?” Seriously it was over the top.

This is the second book in the series. I didn’t read the first book, and I don’t feel like I was lost. What I liked about the plot was that it wasn’t all about getting pregnant once meeting their mate. It was about searching for their mate and Brad trying to restrain himself from claiming Gabe in shifter fashion when Gabe was a human and didn’t know that shifters existed. So that is one issue that has to be navigated between the two, that’s after Gabe and Brad finally find each other after the ‘ships passing in the night’ at the airport. Pregnancy didn’t show up until near the end. I never understand why this writing team are so into Alphas and omegas never using condoms. It’s a pretty bad message to send about carelessness. Would they write this way if it was an M/F story? Brad also had to deal with another problem, an Alpha at the den, Barrett, who was pushing his son Barry, to mate with Brad. After Brad mated Gabe, trouble escalated.

Some things I didn’t like: Why was there an over-abundance of ‘B’ names? Were the authors trying to be cute, naming them after ‘Bear’. There was ‘Brad, Barrett, and Barry.’ Toward the end of the book there was one more I think. It was very confusing. And it was confusing between Gabe and Brad’s names too. Why pick two names with four letters out of all the male names available? At least make them more distinct. And why, oh why, did the authors have Gabe try and throw himself into the middle of the battle between Brad and Barrett, not once, but twice? That was absolutely ridiculous, it turned the scene into a farce. Again, I have to ask, what were the authors thinking? Gabe’s reaction didn’t make him look like he cared, it made him look like an idiot that would end up getting not only him, the baby and Brad killed, by distracting Brad. Seriously, it was a bad scene because of Gabe’s reactions. That’s when the authors really lost me and I had to decrease the star ratings.

Once Gabe and Brad meet, they can’t keep their hands off each other. I liked Brad as he tried to understand more about the human world and how to give Gabe what he needed in terms of courting as humans would. Gabe was a mess. He’s this super, clued-in professor when it came to teaching, with students loving his teaching techniques. But Gabe was a failure at private life. It’s like he had a split personality, and I didn’t care for how the authors wrote him. He was like totally incompetent. He was an absolute slob relying on his best friend to clean his home and look after him. Gabe also never cooked. Did he eat out all the time? How much of a salary did he make to eat dinner and lunch out? When he met Brad, Gabe depended on Brad to cook and feed him. It’s like Gabe was some overaged man living at home in his mother’s basement, and his mom did everything for him. I didn’t find it funny or endearing but rather disgusting. I have no idea why the authors wrote him that way, he came across as a user having others do his dirty work.

I’m conflicted on how to rate Matched to His Bear. It’s a good stand-alone and much more interesting than these authors usual mpreg books because it focuses more on the relationship and den dynamics than on the pregnancy itself. But on the other hand, Gabe’s private behavior was annoying, and so were the overuse of the ‘B’ names. Plus, Gabe in the battle scene was way too over the top. I want to give the book 3.5 stars, but since I can’t, I’ll give it 3 Stars. There were too many strange things the authors wrote into the plot that didn’t work.

[Red Talisman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second book for the The Dates of Our Lives series and a great way to continue the saga. This entry was fun, cute and unexpected. After book 1 I thought another character would get his HEA and after Brad's part in the previous book I wasn't really invested in him... but after the prologue I was invested, and I seriously liked his story. The premise was interesting and it showed a more sensible side of Brad as well as explaining his actions with Colin. He's also painted in a different light as someone responsible, trust worthy and caring of his friends.

Gabe on the other side was a laugh! In a good way. Quite simple and carefree, but so pationate and committed to his profession and goals in life. His POV was a blast. The blurb had me confused tho. His past and present situation show him as someone constantly struggling, but taking life with a good mood... yet the blurb had me belieaving his luck was turning or something like that. There were also a couple confusing things, he contradicts his actions later in the novela when fearing a particular situation while chosing to put himself in a similar one at the beginning of the story. About him too, I found a similar issue than I had with Colin, despite Gabe being more into Shifter World than Colin was there's a lot of misunderstanding and overthinking about shifters and their "rituals" again... which felt unnecessary and to be honest, kind of dumb, made me think Gabe wasn't very smart... also, again, contradicting actions or decisions he made at the beginning of the book.

Something else I found confusing was (without going into spoilers) a way for Gabe to "know" Brad as his "mate" and that he's a shifter. It feels like a bit of world building the author decided to put for this book alone... since there's no real mention of it in book 1, even tho they go through a separation of sorts or a period of time denying each other as a mate. Anyway...

Once more we have a book with a simple but good, insta-atraction and a nice paced romantic relationship. Mpreg... which I still can't find a good explanation to how it works in the "Omega-verse". Entertaining sex scenes. Fun and relatable secondary characters. And a simple but good world building. Most of my issues are quite small, and to be honest the writing is fantastic either way so I'm really pleased with this story.

I give Matched to His Bear a 3.5 (4 because of reasons) and my whole hearted recommendation, specially for those who love sweet bear shifters and cute but silly omega guys. Please, read, buy, re-read, review and all those things to support the author.

[C.B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

We all have wandered an airport late at night looking for that 'one' store that is open and has edible food, right? During an unscheduled stop during his flight, Brad scented his mate while he was exploring looking for food. He chased his scent down to a departing flight. Gabe, just moving in with his old college buddy, Corey. At his old position, his boyfriend was in a loving relationship with an undergrad. Gabe has no good dating karma, he kisses a lot of frogs! Corey suggested the dating app, Love and Hate. Gabe puzzles over many of the questions. His ex, Shawn liked the Shifter World TV show. A year later, Brad and his bear are stressing out. Soren, his Alpha and best friend tries to convince Brad, not to give up on the app. Brad's bear is near feral and if that happens, technically, Soren must put him down. Brad was having dreams that were getting more heated. In their own ways, they were getting emotionally more heated. They are matched in the app and try a date. Will Gabe's being human cause problems? Will Brad's bear settle down. Will they try to fight the draw to each other? Will the guys stand strong and resolve bumps on their path? Good story. Brad and Gabe are absolutely delightful. I look forward to Corey's and Soren's stories. Nice character developments and integrations. Good flow. The series is good.Nicely done. I received an ARC from Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Anne Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh i really like these two!!!
Alpha Brad Galway Is a beta in his den and a very successful lawyer so overall a very busy man but what he doesn't have is a mate. And his bear is getting fed up. While he is at the airport he get a scene of his mate and he cant help but follow his nose but sadly he misses his man by just minutes. Brad knows he has just missed his chance at happiness.
Omega Gabe Rafferty is excited to start his new job as a professor of English Lit. But its a big move and as he waits at the airport he smells something but he isn't sure what it is. As a human he doesn't have such a powerful nose. He gets on his flight but cant seem to forget that smell.
But fate has a fun way of making sure you finally meet. They both sign up for a blind date on a ap and Although Brad has to get his head around the fact his mate is a human, he does everything to make Gabe happy. One their first date just when things were getting interesting Brad gets called into den business. What will Gabe think of him being a bear??? Brad decides to have a few more date to get to know Gabe before he thinks about telling him but that doesn't stopping him from texting Gabe every chance he got. But will Gabe except Brad for who he is???

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Latecia Jennings · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where's my Bear! ...Loved it:)

I'm loving this series. This is the second book and I'm hooked. It started out bittersweet.These two guys almost had a moment but it was lost...fast track a year later and fate intervenes. Brad is the ultimate brooding alpha bear. He wants/needs his fated mate before he ends up feral and (here's fate) thank goodness he signed up for the shifter app. When he finally meets his omega, Gabe he notices he's human and disappointed a little bit but it was sooooooooooo touching that he wanted to make a good impression for his mate so he doesn't mess his chance up for happiness. Their connection was intense and instant. Both realized this was their forever and was all in. I loved it...entire time I reading their fated journey I'm smiling, laughing because their banter is hilarious and sweet. Gabe is so likable and funny...he is not tidy and doesn't know how to cook...those scenes were too funny...when he acts like a baby and whines to his alpha it so adorable. Gabe made this book enjoyable and throw in his brooding bear this was wonderful read. Now i'm invested and can't wait for the next story.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Deb Swietek · Rating 5 out of 5]

The App matched you with your True Mate who you have been chasing for a year!

What a wonderful book! I love the concept of the Dating App with a secret code for shifters. When the App matches a bear & a human, well, that's fate! This book has is all: fate, understanding, Den, a challenge, a courageous omega, good friends, and compassion. Did I mention an adorable baby? You will love this book!
A year after Brad scented his mate at the airport, he scents him again. His match from the dating app. But what is fate thinking... his mate is human! What's a bear to do? Brad needs an omega. His bear is close to breaking down. But can a human handle him? But Gabe isn't a weak little human omega. For the last year his dreams have been getting more real. He is ready for Brad to let him meet His bear.
HEA is assured. The road there will be bumpy. A deadly challenge shows an omega's untold strength, and a mate's undying love. And you will never look at limericks the same way again. Get. This. Book. Now! I can't wait for the next book.
This book contains adult themes and language, mm sex and is intended for mature readers only.

[Stephanie W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brad is a Beta who is slowly losing his cool. Scenting and losing his mate in the airport a year ago has been unsettling for his bear. Becoming harder to control, the only thing to remedy his short fuse is to find hit true mate.

Gabe is an omega who teaches English Literature. Moving to make a change in his life, oddly everything has been a mess since that strange pull in the airport. His dreams have been too vivid for someone he never met. Trying to make some sort of positive change, he sets himself up on a dating app.

What are the odds of meeting the one person who changed your whole world a year ago on a dating app in a new place?

A year long wait. Matched by fate...

You will laugh, become saddened, want to hug the characters, cheer for them, enjoy the pregnancy drama and delivery. Yes, there is always one idiot who is blinded by power and loses.

I can't wait for book 3. Corey has been a fabulous, and neurotically clean friend, to Gabe. He even grew on Brad.


**I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.**

[Miriam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I liked that this one started with that almost meeting between the MCs. Brad, being a shifter, realized that he had scented his fated mate. Gabe, being human, knew there was something pulling on him, but wasn't sure what exactly. I did really like the way Gabe embraced everything. Brad certainly had some missteps, but I liked that Soren, his friend and Alpha, called him on the way he was acting. I liked the side characters in this story, I'm looking forward to both Soren and Corey getting their own stories. I wasn't really sure about the conflict with Barrett, I could never really understand his motivation for behind his actions. Overall, it was a good story and an entertaining read.

I don't think you have to read the previous book to understand this one, but there is some overlap with the stories.

Because I had an ARC edition I am rating and review only on the story, not on grammar/editing.

[Siobhan Flynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my go to authors and they never steer you wrong. Brad is a bear and smells his fated mate but it takes over a year over searching before Gabe seemingly just falls into his lap but there is a problem, Gabe doesn't know about bears and their kind. The relationship is very cavity inducing sweet but it suits the pair but they are not without their trials, while most of the pack accept Gabe as a mated human, there is descension among them as someone believes their son will be better and pure fit for Brad as he is a bear. A vicious situation with the potential to turn deadly puts Brad in trouble but Gabe tries to reason with everyone and calm them down, will he prove successful or will ruin reign ? Brad needs to pull his head out his behind a few times as he causes Gabe some pain with his thoughtlessness but Gabe has a best friend that proves invaluable and provides some comic relief, 10/10 would reccomend these books anytime.

[Bianca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was really intrigued about Brad's attitude in the first book in this series and now we can understand his motives.
Brad and Gabe story was an interesting one that brings us new elements about the shifter culture or more exactly about bear shifters culture that are unexpected, sweet, and some that needs some changes for being old and barbaric.
I really liked the dancing around and near miss until they are finally able to meet thanks to the dating application.
The story is packed with funny moments, some scenes that will make you cry, we also see some power hunger characters that try to win, understanding, forgiveness and the fact you have to fight and win for what you believe in and for your happiness.
I really enjoyed it and I'm excited that Corey will find his happiness in the next one.

[Becky A · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Matched to His Bear" received ONE AND A HALF stars.

Started out okay, but I lost interest as soon as they got together. Also, the numerous missing beginning quotation marks pulled me out of the story many times.

The novel gained *stars* for these items:

* gained for: "The book caught my interest in the first five pages."

1/2 * gained for: "I thought about the book when I was forced to set it down and re-enter society."

The novel failed to gain stars for this item:

NO STAR gained for: "There were no info dumps, poor writing, or copy edit mistakes that jerked me out of the story."

NO STAR gained for: "I was sad when the book ended. I wanted more!"

NO STAR gained for: "That's it. I'm hooked on this author. I will automatically try anything she/he/they writes."

[Denise Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

So glad Brad joined Colins dating apt and was paired off with a human.
Brad was at the airport and first smelt his Fated Mate , but was unable to find him as he had already boarded a plane.
Gabe was in the airport thinking someone was holding him back , but needed to board the plane so ignore his feelings .
A year later Gabe was still dreaming of his mate in the woods , and Brads Alpha told him to join the dating apt to find a mate as his bear was becoming unstable after finding them losing his mate .
From their first date they both knew they were ment to be together .
Brilliant second book in series looking forward to third . Can be read as standalone with happy ending

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ugh but ok

First, the editing need something some with it. Missing quotation marks and paragraphing issues.
Second, the developmental editing needs something done with it. There were just not enough details about what was happening and the timeline and all that! Like, Brad and Gabe have sex and the very next day he’s taking a pregnancy test and positive. That’s not how pregnancy works. Like, in any species. Even if this is PNR that is way too fast.
Third, I DNFed this. I got to 87%, but I was done at that point. So freaking done. This book was prematurely published. Needs a lot of work.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brad has been forced to the airport after his plane made an emergency landing then he scented his mate.
Bear shifter Brad found himself in the airport after someone had damaged the fire alarms in two bathrooms and they landed to take the offender off the plane. Brad goes in search if something good to eat when a scent catches his notice and he realizes it his mate. He chases the scent all over the airport ending at a gate where three planes had recently departed to three different destinations. Finding himself at a dead end he decides to head home to talk to his Alpha.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book describes the story of Brad, a bear shifter, Beta to his clan, finding his true mate's scent at the airport, but losing him to a departing plane. Since then he is unstable and finally his alpha forces him to take a chance on an app that has a special feature for shifters. He is shocked when he not only gets a hit, but actually meets his fated mate, who is a human.
Their difficult way of finding and growing together is the story of this book.
Well-written, entertaining, but also with a touch of human interest (despite the shifter angle)
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not the Three little Bears

This is a m/m shifter romance with mpreg; comments are made with accepting the premise of this trope. This is book 2 of a series and it was an enjoyable read! You meet some characters from book 1, otherwise it’s a unique story. What if you caught the scent of your fated mate but just missed them by mere minutes? That’s how this tale starts! I really love the humor of this author; I found myself laughing out loud in the darkness of night when I got up with my baby! I am definitely pleased that the author continues the quality of book 1!

[ReadToFilth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reasonably good shifter smut. The stories are very direct there isn't a whole lot to invest in. The characters are well written. I like the series as a way to just relax and not have to really invest in the books. The smut can get a bit repetitive but generally not bad.

Question though: Why do so few smut, in shifter book, scenes include rimming?

Anyway, decent enough if you want what I call a "popcorn book".

Popcorn book: A book that you consume like a piece of popcorn and won't remember but enjoyed reasonably well.

[Justine Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matched to His Bear is book 2 in The Dates of Our Lives series. This an enjoyable mpreg story about Brad, an alpha bear shifter, and Gabe, an omega human. I actually enjoyed that they didn't find each other right away and that Gabe wasn't completely surprised that Brad was a bear. They really are great together. This is a wonderful addition to this series and I look forward to the next book.

*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

[Cynthia Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brad caught the scent of his mate at an airport but his mate's plane took off before he could get to him. A year later and he's going out of his mind because he can't find his mate. His alpha finds him a date on a dating app. Gabe has moved to a new town for his job and his friend gets him on on a dating app to start dating again after a bad breakup. When Brad meets Gabe on their date he knows Gabe is his mate. The only problem is Gabe is human. I enjoyed this book.

[Dawn Siemer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Do adults really act like this?

I like Lorelei Hart sometimes, and the other books in this series were good, but I got 43% through this one and had to put it down. The characters have little personality. They act immature, and say things real people wouldn't say. The conflict is mostly "how do I tell him I'm a shifter" and schedule conflicts.

There is nothing in this story to pull a reader along, only frustrate and annoy them.

[MN Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A chance passing in the airport brings Brad to his mate, but he doesn't catch him in time. Months later his Alpha forces him to try a new dating app and low and behold, he finds his mate. He has a hard time letting Gabe know they are mates as Gabe is human, but Gabe knows, he just doesn't know he knows. After they mate, then come the issues with a challenge from a father, but it all works out and they get a HEA. I can't wait to read more.

[Teal Wolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Matched To His Bear by Lorelei M. Hart and Colbie Dunbar is the second book in The Dates of Our Lives series. This is a shifter mpreg romance that is the perfect mix of warm and fuzzy sweetness, hot and steamy chemistry, and put a smile on your face fun. The characters, the story... it all made me happy.

[BusyM3 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book in this series and another great read. The story was well written, it will hold your attention till the end. The characters fit well together and have amazing chemistry. The story of a shifter and his fated mate who is a human. Looking forward to read the next book in this series. You will enjoy this book.

I am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed reading the second of the series--The Dates of Our Lives--with Gabe who is human and Brad, a bear that we met in the first book. This was a funny book--I laughed out loud when Gabe was imagining meeting the den for the first time--especially with his Goldilock and the three bears reference. Liked the HEA, and loved Corey. Glad he will be in the next book.