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

His gaze dropped to Dustin’s lips. They stood so close, it wouldn’t take anything to close that gap between their mouths. When Rafael realized what he was about to do, he snapped out of it, awkwardly patting Dustin’s shoulder and stepping back. “Yeah, maybe you should listen to me from now on, huh?”


Dustin nodded, swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing. He took a swig from his can.


“Want to put on a movie? Or just watch TV?” Rafael walked into the living area, trying to calm his runaway heart.


He plopped into the recliner and flipped on the TV, trying to ignore the damn butterflies throwing a party in his gut. What the hell had just happened in there? Damn, he’d almost crossed the line. He blamed Caleb again.


Chapter 5