Homeless for over two years, Merl has hunkered down to endure a second winter in Eden, Colorado. He has lost the ability to trust or accept kindness as anything but a sneaky attempt to weaken for an attack. He sells aluminum cans and other trash to survive, knowing he should attempt to get back into the mainstream but he lacks the will to try.<br><br>Nate has led a sheltered and privileged life as the only child of wealthy older parents, now deceased. He is working on a photo journalism piece about the homeless people in Eden when he first encounters Merl. The big man impresses him so much that when an early blizzard hits, he goes back to the camps try to bring Merl and others to shelter in his own home.<br><br>Can he win Merl’s trust and cooperation in an effort to provide positive long term help to other homeless people in the area? Even more important, can he forge a real partnership with the suspicious older man?

Homeless in Heaven

The bathroom door stood open. Since he rarely came into this part of the house, he’d forgotten it had a full length mirror on it. Although the glass was partly fogged with steam, the view was by no means obscured. Nate’s heart snagged in his throat and raw heat surged through him at the sight of Merl’s powerful nude body. The big man stood at the sink, working away to remove the tangle of beard covering his face, oblivious to his audience. All Nate could do was stand and gawk like a stupid kid.


Oh my God! I’ve never seen such a magnificent man in my whole life. I can’t believe this.


Without the layers of bulky clothing, Merl was actually lean, muscular, but far from the bearish brute he’d appeared. His dark-chocolate hair shone with reddish highlights now that it was clean and his skin glowed ruddy from the recent scrubbing. And now he was scraping off the snarled mat covering his face.


What will he look like when it’s gone?


Chapter 27