New release from loveyoudivine!
The Hounds of Hollenbeck

Allen and Sam are unlikely lovers. Both are graduate students at Browning College in the small Pacific Northwest town of Lagrange. Allen works with hyper-intelligent dogs on a secret Army project, while Sam is a detective on the police force who is also pursuing his masters degree in criminology. Everything changes when one of Allen's professors finds dismembered human bodies in her research habitat. Sam investigates and uncovers evidence of a brutal serial killer who targets young gay men. The trail leads back to the Army lab, to Allen, and to his beloved experimental dog Teena. The tension increases when Allen disappears and Teena leads Sam on a desperate search to save him.

Excerpt:

After the play, they strolled hand in hand in the Campus Commons, a large park in the middle of the College. The main buildings faced onto this wooded reserve, while College Street looped about it. Tonight, as with most nights, cars cruising the night clogged the street.

Allen took his hand and smiled. "I had a wonderful time tonight." They detoured around puddles in the sidewalk and the air filled with the fresh scent of the light shower that had come and gone while they were in the play.

"I did too." A light breeze rustled the trees and stirred the leaves that clustered on the ground. "Geeze, look at all these worms." He looked in disgust at the slimy creatures that covered the walkway.

"It's the weather. They've come out because of the rain." Allen knelt and probed the soil to the side of the path. A gaggle of beetles waddled away from his fingers. "See, there's a whole universe down here if you know where to look."

"It's just creepy. You know beetles eat dead things."

"That's the way of the world." Allen stood and brushed himself, then took Sam's hand again. "Let's sit for a bit. I know a place down by the Duck Pond." He led the way to a secluded park bench that rested under an ancient oak tree. Ducks paddled in the moonlight across the little pond, quacking and diving for food.

They sat close to one another watching the birds swim and the moonlight glimmer on the pond. Allen sighed. "I'm glad you sat at my table in the Union, even if you are a table thief."

"Is that what you thought I was doing?" Sam put his arm around him. "I saw you come in and decided I wasn't going to let you get away." He brushed Allen's hair out of his eyes. "Did you know you have the most beautiful eyes?"

"These beady things?"

"You have eyes that were made to be kissed." He leaned forward and slipped off his glasses. Allen's breath warmed his cheek as his lips brushed his eyelids. "Even here, in the moonlight, your eyes are this incredible color. I don't know that I've seen that shade of blue before."

Allen's finger traced a line down his cheek. "You're so beautiful you scare me, you know that?" His sigh broke in his throat.

"The only thing I'm afraid of is that I'll lose you, now that I've found you." He wove his fingers through Allen's soft curls. Sam pulled him close and inhaled his sweet scent. Their lips touched in a silent grace note of anticipation.

"We found each other, I think," Allen whispered in his ear.

Sam pressed closer, pulling him in a tight embrace. Their lips touched anew, this time in a thunderous crescendo of sensation. Their bodies twisted in longing and their souls rejoiced at the promise of new love. Sam dared to slip his tongue forward and the willing softness of the other's mouth yielded to his advance. Their tongues twined about one another and their teeth clicked in percussive cadence to their yearning. The kiss lasted but a moment, but it promised an eternity.

Sam pulled back and gazed into his eyes. "Where did you learn to kiss like that?" His heart raced in his chest and his hands trembled.

A smiled played with Allen's lips and his eyes twinkled. "You mean where did you learn to kiss like that, don't you? I felt as if we were the only people in the universe. Like you didn't have anything else to do but kiss me." He rested his head on Sam's shoulder.

"I felt the same way." He descended again, his mouth greedy for sensation and his soul hungry for sustenance.

The second kiss stretched longer than the first. Allen's hands traced circles on his back and his muscles rippled in response. His own hands reached lower and stroked the hardness that strained at Allen's khakis. Their moans of pleasure merged with the quiet splash of ducks diving and the gentle rustle of leaves blowing in the breeze. Their tongues embraced in a liquid caress that transcended passion and sang with ardor.

Sam gasped, withdrew and played again with those amazing curls. "With any other guy, I'd have you off in the bushes by now. But with you, I want the first time to be special."

"I know what you mean." His fingers played with Sam's earlobes and followed tendons down his neck to his collar. "I want this to be more than a one night stand, you know? It's already the best first date I've ever had in my life. Shit, it's the best date I've ever had."

"Me too." Sam grinned. "Does that mean you'll go out with me tomorrow night?"

Allen sat back and fisted him in the shoulder. "Of course, you idiot."

"I'll fix dinner if you'll come to my place." He leered at him. "Said the spider to the fly."

Allen just smiled back and kissed him on the cheek. "I'd like that. A lot."

They strolled through the park and back to Sam's car. On the way, a dilapidated old van cruised by, streaming blue exhaust in its wake. Sam didn't notice the van slow and the man inside stare at Allen before it sped away into the darkness.