Rafael Patino has a great life in Rain Valley. He’s a teacher at the high school, has a great group of friends, and enjoys the occasional baseball game. Other than the sporadic call from his drunken mother, he’s pretty content. He’s also been in love with his best friend Dustin for nearly a decade. Years of keeping those feelings under control are put to the test when they begin a summer project together. Dustin Vance builds furniture for a living, has just earned his pilot’s license, and has an amazing best friend. When he buys a 1976 Cessna Skyhawk, he asks Rafael to help restore it, then travel with him to Wisconsin for the largest aviation convention in the world. As they spend their days working on the plane, they begin to spend their nights together. Will they find love in the clouds, or will they stall out before they even take off?

Love in the Clouds

“Great. I’ll call Jack and see if we can set something up. I’ll text you details,” he added as they arrived at the first floor, less excited about the party than moments ago.


Caleb took off toward the field as Rafael texted congratulations to Dustin before heading into the front office to find out what he needed to do about the tablet. A quick check with Brandy told him he needed to see the technology department, not the principal as he’d thought, so he made his way down the hall to a small room near one of the exits.


Chapter 3