Average story about two damaged men...and a bear?
3.75 stars rounded down.
***CONTAINS SPOILERS***
A mostly basic plot involving a runaway abused teen and a man who had his heart shattered by his ex-wife and best friend.
Elijah ran away from his home, fleeing an abusive father who blames him for the death of his wife (during childbirth) and despises him for being gay. Lost in a dense forest, Elijah breaks into a clearing with a cabin in it.
The cabin's owner, Oliver, is a deeply emotionally scarred man who, after being betrayed by his then wife and best friend, chose to live away from people and close off his heart from further pain.
Oliver sees Elijah and brings him into his self-built home. Both are wary of each other at first, but Oliver begins to fall for the young, damaged teen and allows him to stay as long as he wishes. Elijah agrees to stay and help out around the cabin and property.
On a hike into the surrounding forest to gather edible mushrooms, Elijah stumbles upon a brown bear. The bear sees the young man as a threat and begins to advance upon him. Oliver, who has basically raised the bear he calls "Coco," stops the animal's attack by first standing in front of Elijah and letting Coco sniff and lick his face. He then kisses Elijah to show the bear that the stranger is his friend, and Coco accepts him, licking his face to show her friendship.
Both men are not inclined to act on their physical attraction to one another but do reveal their history of pain and abuse to each other. Afterwards, they open their hearts a fraction and begin to form a relationship.
Things are going fine for the men and Coco visits the home nearly every morning. But Elijah's ingrained low self-esteem begins to take control when he realizes he is putting Oliver in danger from his cruel father, who has the police looking for Elijah. He leaves the security of both Oliver and his home, walking away from a life he truly wants.
Elijah stays with his sister-in-law, which is NOT a smart move. Days pass with both men increasingly regretting their decisions. One day the police arrive and take Elijah back to his father. As soon as they leave, the father begins his mental and physical abuse on his terrified son. Removing his belt, the older man orders the pleading Elijah to remove his shirt and face to wall, in preparation for a whipping.
Oliver, unhappy and realizing he loves Elijah, sets out for the younger man's home, to the address Elijah had given him. Arriving just as the beating was about to begin, Oliver confesses his love to the teen, and Elijah reciprocates by admitting his true feelings. Disgusted, the father heaps verbal insults at both men, forcing Oliver to take the crying Elijah back to his house to live, as he is 18 years of age.
The bear plays a larger role in the plotline, but I felt it best to focus on the protagonist's story. Character development was average, same with the relationship. (Which the author made into a Daddy/little relationship.) Editing errors were fairly prevalent and annoying. Overall, a story that could have been better but settled for average.