Beneath the Palisade by Joel Skelton

Author:Joel Skelton [Skelton, Joel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

“YOU got to drive last time. Besides, this was my idea.” Harper accelerated down the ramp, merging their rental car onto the freeway.

“Yeah, well it’s my retirement dream.” Ian swatted the dashboard.

“So? I stopped so you could get a bag of sliders, didn’t I?”

“And admit it, you loved them, right?” Ian slid over and placed his head on Harper’s shoulder.

They were good. Sinfully good, there was no doubt about it. The little square hamburgers covered with onion bits melted in your mouth. White Castle was another new experience Ian had introduced him to. How was it he had tolerated living under a rock for so long?

It was fun driving again. So far, his arm wasn’t giving him any trouble. Ian had confessed in a weak moment how much he hated being a passenger. Playfully, he had badgered Harper to let him drive but had finally caved when he realized it wasn’t going to happen. A wonderful sign that the carefulness of their new relationship was starting to fade away. They were starting to settle into each other.

The landscape was changing. Flat crop fields were being inundated by large, majestic pines. First just a few clusters planted here and there, most likely as a windbreak to protect the freeway from the fierce blowing snow that could make winter travel next to impossible. As they furthered their journey north, the wind blocks were replaced by an endless forest.

“It’s starting to get really beautiful, isn’t it?” The respect for the landscape was impossible to miss in Ian’s voice.

“Yes. I can’t believe how different it looks here, and we’re only a few hours out of the city. Does it look like this where you grew up?” He had a million questions for Ian floating around in his head, and the answers couldn’t come soon enough. He had been trained to replace unknowns with fact. The more he knew about Ian, the more comfortable and relaxed he would feel in their relationship.

“Yeah, in a way it does. What I miss most about home are the wooded hills and valleys and the beautiful clear lakes. You’ll see. We’ll plan a trip there sometime soon. If it works out, we’ll try and make it back for the reunion. I haven’t heard anything about it yet. Some years we just skip it. Not sure why. Our immediate family usually figures out a time in the summer to get together.”

What was Ian’s family like? He wanted very much to meet them. He longed to be included in their plans. To be a part of them. He’d heard bits and pieces here and there, but it wasn’t enough. It was in his nature to speculate, to formulate an image, and based on what he’d learned from Ian, he pictured the Burke family as loving and caring. Simple, in a way meant to compliment. Ian had values, deep-rooted traits Harper recognized from his own upbringing. There were things in life that mattered and many more that didn’t. He felt confident both he and Ian had been blessed with a knack for valuing what really counted.

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