Title: Acsquidentally in Love
Author: KL Hiers
Series: Sucker for Love #1
Genre: M/M Romance, Paranormal
Release Date: August 25, 2020
Publisher: Dreamspinner
Cover Design: Tiferet Design
Nothing brings two men—or one man and an ancient god—together like revenge.
Private investigator Sloane sacrificed his career in law enforcement in pursuit of his parents’ murderer. Like them, he is a follower of long-forgotten gods, practicing their magic and offering them his prayers… not that he’s ever gotten a response.
Until now.
Azaethoth the Lesser might be the patron of thieves and tricksters, but he takes care of his followers. He’s come to earth to avenge the killing of one of his favorites, and maybe charm the pants off the cute detective Fate has placed in his path. If he has his way, they’ll do much more than bring a killer to justice. In fact, he’s sure he’s found the man he’ll spend his immortal life with.
Sloane’s resolve is crumbling under Azaethoth’s surprising sweetness, and the tentacles he sometimes glimpses escaping the god’s mortal form set his imagination alight. But their investigation gets stranger and deadlier with every turn. To survive, they’ll need a little faith… and a lot of mystical firepower.
“I’m sorry,” Loch said suddenly, his attention stolen away from the television and focusing intently on Sloane.
“What?” Sloane turned his head, staring in shock. He didn’t think gods were much on apologies.
“I obviously caused you great discomfort with my actions earlier today,” Loch explained, his hand reaching for Sloane’s, “and yes, while I am a trickster… I don’t aim to always be a complete bastard.”
“Loch,” Sloane murmured softly, surprised by how genuinely sorry he sounded.
“What?” Sloane turned his head, staring in shock. He didn’t think gods were much on apologies.
“I obviously caused you great discomfort with my actions earlier today,” Loch explained, his hand reaching for Sloane’s, “and yes, while I am a trickster… I don’t aim to always be a complete bastard.”
“Loch,” Sloane murmured softly, surprised by how genuinely sorry he sounded.
“I got this for you,” Loch said, a tentacle reaching over to present Sloane with an incense bowl. “It upset you, but… it also brought you joy. I thought you might like to have it.”
“This is from the museum!” Sloane gasped, recognizing it immediately as the one that had reminded him of his mother’s. “You stole this? Loch! How did you, it, it was in a glass case! We need to take it back!”
“Technically, the museum stole it from my family,” Loch said smugly. “It was an offering for my aunt, and I was merely making an effort to return it to its rightful owner. Since she’s asleep, it’s my responsibility to liberate it on her behalf. I am now giving it to you.”
“I can’t… I can’t accept this!”
“Don’t you like it?”
“Yes, but—”
“Then please take it,” Loch urged, “with my most sincere apologies.”
“Thank you.” Sloane was touched and looked over the bowl with a helpless smile. It was as good of an apology as he would likely ever get from an immortal being, with or without the well meaning theft. Suspicious, he added quickly, “I’m still not going to have sex with you.”
“We’ll see.” Loch laughed, giving Sloane’s hand a playful tug.
“No, we won’t,” Sloane said despite a big grin creeping onto his face. He didn’t pull his hand away, letting their fingers tangle together even after he put the incense bowl aside. It felt nice.
A few more sips from his drink and Sloane ended up cuddling against Loch’s side with his arm around his shoulders. That was nice too.
“Do you… uhm… do you want something to eat?” Sloane asked quietly as the hour grew late, and he realized that sandwich was the only thing either of them had had all day.
“Right. Uhm….”
“Would you like… something?” Loch asked innocently, his tongue swiping slowly over his lips to indicate he was definitely not talking about food.
Sloane’s cheeks flushed immediately, his attention drawn to Loch’s mouth as he stammered, “N-no, I’m actually pretty good right now.”
Loch shifted, using his arm around Sloane’s shoulders to pull him closer. He cradled Sloane’s face, fingers running into his hair as he purred, “Are you absolutely sure?”
No one had ever looked at Sloane the way Loch was right now, with such heat, such adoration and raw desire. It made his blood pump excitedly and his breath catch in his mouth before he could properly inhale.
“Not really,” Sloane replied weakly.
Loch nosed along Sloane’s cheek, sighing, “Why are you so afraid to let yourself experience pleasure with me?”
“I don’t just go around ‘experiencing pleasure’ with people!” Sloane protested even as his voice cracked when he felt Loch’s tongue slide along the edge of his ear. “Fuck….”
“Why not?” Loch asked, his breath hot and husky in Sloane’s ear.
“Because… because….” Sloane couldn’t think straight, stammering to think of an answer. It was impossible to gather his thoughts with Loch’s tongue at his ear and his fingers curling so sweetly through his hair.
“Because?” Loch pressed, calm and perfectly innocent.
“When I’m with someone, I want it to mean something,” Sloane said finally, his head foggy and trying to remain firm. “I want something that will last.”
“It can last all night,” Loch promised, his lips lightly pressing against Sloane’s jaw. “And the night after that… and the night after that….”
“Fuck it,” Sloane hissed, dragging Loch into a hot kiss, shoving his tongue into his mouth with a loud moan.
What is the biggest influence/interest that brought you to this genre?
Being queer. When I first started writing, it was all fantasies with unicorns and monsters, things like that. The princess always ended up with the handsome hero because that’s just how things were. It didn’t matter how I really felt about it inside since everything around me at that early age was telling me that what I feeling was wrong. I kept all those thoughts to myself for years. It wasn’t until I discovered slash fiction back in the AOL days that I realized it was okay to feel this way – it was okay to be different. People could love someone else who was the same sex, they could feel like they were trapped in the wrong body. The princess could marry another princess or the hero could marry the dragon instead of having to slay it. I’ve always loved writing gay and queer stories because this is where I feel the most at home.
When writing a book, what is your favorite part of the creative process(outline, plot, character names, editing, etc)?
Outlining is probably my favorite. I usually have the ending and a few other specific scenes in mind first, and then I have to figure out how to get there. That’s the most fun for me because it’s setting up all the highs and lows, where to put those special scenes, and how it’s all going to come together for that fantastic ending. It’s like putting a puzzle together, and I surprise myself sometimes with what I come up with to make it all work.
When reading a book, what genre do you find most interesting/intriguing?
I always loved suspense and horror the most. I don’t read much now, but when I was a kid, I ate up everything that I could get my hands on. When I got bored of my Goosebumps and Fear Street, I started sneaking all of my parents’ books to read. Stephen King, Anne Rice, Dean Koontz, and all that good adult stuff. I can still remember reading with a dictionary next to me so I could look up all the words I didn’t know!
If you could co-author with any author, past or present, who would you choose?
If I was going to write a mystery, I would want to write something with Edgar Allan Poe. If I was going to write any kind of romance or love story, I would want to write it with Amanda Meuwissen. She’s my freakin’ hero, and I respect her talent so much.
Have you always wanted to write or did it come to you "later in life"?
Always. I love telling this little story about how I wrote my first book when I was eight years old. It was a very ridiculous fantasy that I scribbled down in a Hello Kitty notebook, and I just kept on writing until I ran out of pages. After that, I was hooked. Any and all journals and notebooks were reserved for writing, and I wrote whatever crazy little story came into my head. I still have some of those early books from my childhood – sadly, I lost the Hello Kitty one – and while they’re quite terrible, ha, it reminds me of how far I’ve come.
Being queer. When I first started writing, it was all fantasies with unicorns and monsters, things like that. The princess always ended up with the handsome hero because that’s just how things were. It didn’t matter how I really felt about it inside since everything around me at that early age was telling me that what I feeling was wrong. I kept all those thoughts to myself for years. It wasn’t until I discovered slash fiction back in the AOL days that I realized it was okay to feel this way – it was okay to be different. People could love someone else who was the same sex, they could feel like they were trapped in the wrong body. The princess could marry another princess or the hero could marry the dragon instead of having to slay it. I’ve always loved writing gay and queer stories because this is where I feel the most at home.
When writing a book, what is your favorite part of the creative process(outline, plot, character names, editing, etc)?
Outlining is probably my favorite. I usually have the ending and a few other specific scenes in mind first, and then I have to figure out how to get there. That’s the most fun for me because it’s setting up all the highs and lows, where to put those special scenes, and how it’s all going to come together for that fantastic ending. It’s like putting a puzzle together, and I surprise myself sometimes with what I come up with to make it all work.
When reading a book, what genre do you find most interesting/intriguing?
I always loved suspense and horror the most. I don’t read much now, but when I was a kid, I ate up everything that I could get my hands on. When I got bored of my Goosebumps and Fear Street, I started sneaking all of my parents’ books to read. Stephen King, Anne Rice, Dean Koontz, and all that good adult stuff. I can still remember reading with a dictionary next to me so I could look up all the words I didn’t know!
If you could co-author with any author, past or present, who would you choose?
If I was going to write a mystery, I would want to write something with Edgar Allan Poe. If I was going to write any kind of romance or love story, I would want to write it with Amanda Meuwissen. She’s my freakin’ hero, and I respect her talent so much.
Have you always wanted to write or did it come to you "later in life"?
Always. I love telling this little story about how I wrote my first book when I was eight years old. It was a very ridiculous fantasy that I scribbled down in a Hello Kitty notebook, and I just kept on writing until I ran out of pages. After that, I was hooked. Any and all journals and notebooks were reserved for writing, and I wrote whatever crazy little story came into my head. I still have some of those early books from my childhood – sadly, I lost the Hello Kitty one – and while they’re quite terrible, ha, it reminds me of how far I’ve come.
K.L. “Kat” Hiers is an embalmer, restorative artist, and queer writer. Licensed in both funeral directing and funeral service, she’s been working in the death industry for nearly a decade. Her first love was always telling stories, and she has been writing for over twenty years, penning her very first book at just eight years old. Publishers generally do not accept manuscripts in Hello Kitty notebooks, however, but she never gave up.
Following the success of her first novel, Cold Hard Cash, she now enjoys writing professionally, focusing on spinning tales of sultry passion, exotic worlds, and emotional journeys. She loves attending horror movie conventions and indulging in cosplay of her favorite characters. She lives in Zebulon, NC, with her husband and their six children, three of whom have paws and one who sometimes thinks he does.
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