Mr. Hideaway

By R.W. Clinger

Pittsburgh filmmaker Josh Hideaway feels he's lost his mind at thirty-five. After his psychiatrist recommends a summer off at his family's cabin for some heavy duty rest and relaxation, Josh leaves the city and heads north.

Following a warning from park ranger Zeth Mandell, his muscular and attractive neighbor by the lake, Josh learns that a pack of dangerous coyotes is causing random havoc in the area. The coyotes fail to stop Josh from his goal, though: clearing his mind and finding a mental balance.

Unfortunately, Ranger Zeth needs to heed his own advice when an emergency transpires at the lake. A helpful Josh comes to the hurt hero's rescue. Will something more than friendship blossom between the elusive Mr. Hideaway and the ranger? Sometimes hiding out is the only way to fall in love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: JMS Books LLC
• Release date: Jul 16, 2016
• ISBN: 9781634861182

R.W. Clinger

R.W. Clinger is a resident of Pittsburgh. He has a degree in English from Point Park University of Pittsburgh. His writing entails gay human studies, and includes the novels Just a Boy, Skin Tour, Skin Artist, Soft on the Eyes, Pool Boy, and The Last Pile of Leaves. He has published many stories with Starbooks Press as well as The Weekender, a novella with Dreamspinner Press. His gay mystery, Cutie Pie Must Die, is published with Bold Stroke Books. For three years he has held the position of managing editor for the literary magazine, The Writer’s Post Journal. For more information, please visit rwclinger.com.

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Mr. Hideaway

By R.W. Clinger

Published by JMS Books LLC at Smashwords

Visit jms-books.com for more information.

Copyright 2016 R.W. Clinger

ISBN 9781634861182

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Cover Design: Written Ink Designs | written-ink.com

Image(s) used under a Standard Royalty-Free License.

All rights reserved.

WARNING: This book is not transferable. It is for your own personal use. If it is sold, shared, or given away, it is an infringement of the copyright of this work and violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

No portion of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher, with the exception of brief excerpts used for the purposes of review.

This book is for ADULT AUDIENCES ONLY. It may contain sexually explicit scenes and graphic language which might be considered offensive by some readers. Please store your files where they cannot be accessed by minors.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are solely the product of the author’s imagination and/or are used fictitiously, though reference may be made to actual historical events or existing locations. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Published in the United States of America.

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For Kenito Padilla.

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Mr. Hideaway

By R.W. Clinger

June 3

Josh Hideaway couldn’t think of anyone else in his life that had temporarily lost their minds at the young age of thirty-five. Not Andy Apple, his best friend of forever. Not his parents, Debbie and Mitch. Not his coworkers at Hatch Films. And certainly not any of his prior boyfriends and lovers, most of which he believed deserved to lose their minds because they had all broken his heart. Losing one’s mind couldn’t have been construed as a positive challenge, he deemed.

Two shrinks both told him, It can happen to anyone. Disparage is common among the living. There’s nothing to worry about. You just need a little help.

Truth told, there just happened to be an overabundance of things to worry about in Josh’s world. Comets were coming closer to the planet every day. Isis had planned to annihilate the human race. Electric cars were driving themselves. Viruses were becoming out of hand. Guns in the United States were still legal. Honeybees were almost extinct. Water would eventually be rare to find. Everything concerned him about the world, a little too much.

When did he first notice that his mind spiraled out of control toward insanity? June of last year. Right before the Fourth of July. Approximately three days after Andy Apple told him, I’m going straight. I’m done with men. They’re all shitheads, ignorant, drama queens, high maintenance, dogs, and impossible muscleheads. I don’t need that in my life anymore. I’ve decided to try women out for a change.

So Josh blamed Andy Apple for losing his mind. Why not? No one else had the broad shoulders to handle the position. Plus, Andy Apple knew everything about crazy, since he had spent a good few times in the local looney bin, rehabbing his mind and life, suffering from being bipolar.

There were some people in Josh’s life who couldn’t understand that he was half-baked. All of his coworkers at Hatch Films had a hard time relating to his situation. Most of them thought that his good looks (blond hair and blue eyes, six-three frame, one hundred and eighty pounds of muscle) and his intelligence (IQ equaled 135) were promising features in his life. Josh also drove a nice car: Mazda 3, nothing too sporty and fun, but just right. And he owned a condominium along the Allegheny River in downtown Pittsburgh: two bedrooms, two baths, access to an in-ground and heated pool during the winter months, free parking.

Lately, life couldn’t be considered perfect for Josh, though. Honestly, those coworkers didn’t know that he feared egg yolks, would never climb into a car without checking if someone decided to carpool in the trunk, and always read the last three chapters of any mystery. Bottom line: Joshua Franklin Hideaway was plenty fucked, both emotionally and mentally. He’d finally decided to do something about it that summer, listening to his physician, Dr. Shamir Ahmed at Regional Medical in downtown Pittsburgh.

Ahmed told him during his last visit, "You simply need to relax. Too much is going on inside your head. You have the summer off from making movies. Take a month or two and obtain some mental repair. Head north. Your family owns