Aaron Jones quits his job as an IT tech and decides to tour the east coast of the U.S. before flying home to Britain. But hitching rides isn’t easy, especially when there’s a heat wave going on. Standing on the side of the road, thumb extended and bottle of water empty, Aaron starts to despair. Seeing a cute guy trying to hitch a ride, trucker Ben Knight picks him up before the cops do. Aaron is relieved to be out of the heat, but gratitude almost instantly heats up into something more potent when he gets a look at his rescuer -- a handsome, mature bear. Ben cannot believe anyone as incredible as Aaron could be interested in an overweight guy with too many miles on the clock. What happens when they finally reach Newark and the heat between Ben and Aaron rivals that outside?

Heat Wave: Newark

But the intolerable heat and humidity made him sweat, and the small bottle of water he’d bought at the diner was soon gone. His arm was getting tired, not to mention his feet.


A jeep slowed and Aaron picked up his backpack and began to walk toward the hot Tarmac. The passenger’s window rolled down and Aaron heard a wolf whistle. A whisper of air-conditioned air passed over his face.


“Hey, mate, thanks for stopping,” Aaron panted, wiping the sweat off his forehead with the back of his arm.


“Fuck, we thought you were a chick!” a college-age guy from inside the jeep said.


“Uh, no?” Okay, he wasn’t overly tall at five feet seven, slender in build, had long blond hair tied up in a man bun to keep it off his face and neck, and maybe his facial features were a bit on the androgynous side.


The window wound up and the jeep sped away, its tyres squealing.


Chapter 5