Kicked out of his home at eighteen, Cole ends up at The Haven, a drop-in spot for homeless teens, run by Adam Franks. Unable to spend the nights there, he ends up sleeping rough, is attacked by a pair of punks -- and rescued by a Bullmastiff he names Bull.<br><br>Cole and Bull become inseparable. Cole also meets, and is attracted to, Ky, a friend of Adam's, who twice saves Cole from more attackers. After the second attack, things suddenly change in Cole's life when he finds out why someone seems to be after him.<br><br>Will Ky be able to convince Cole he's told him is the truth, while dealing with his own attraction to Cole? And can Ky and his friends keep Cole safe from a man who claims to be Cole's real father?

Cole and His Dog

Bull must have agreed, because he settled down right next to Cole when the teen crawled into the sleeping bag. Soon, despite the sounds of traffic and occasional voices along the path, Cole fell asleep.


Sunlight woke Cole the next morning. For a moment he was disoriented, before realizing where he was—and that Bull was nowhere in sight.


“Guess he didn’t think this was such a great spot after all,” Cole muttered disconsolately as he got out of the sleeping bag and rolled it up. Desperately needing to pee, he made his way down to a bush by the edge of the creek a few yards from where he’d slept. It gave him just enough cover to relieve his bladder without anyone seeing him. Going back, he used the bungee cord Adam had given him to lash the sleeping bag to his backpack, then slung the pack over his shoulders.


Chapter 8