An Enchanting Liftoff

by A. J. Marcus

  Once drinks were on the table and orders had been placed, Rusty pulled out his phone.

  Chad frowned at him. “Is it that important?”

  Slightly confused, Rusty glanced from the phone in his hand to Chad, then remembered Chad wasn’t fond of electronics while they were eating. He’d explained that he liked being the center of attention, not being ignored for some phone. Rusty flashed him a quick smile. “I think you’ll think it is.” He brought up the first picture with Rising Pride in it and turned the phone to Chad. “This is one of the pictures that’s going to be used by the tourism bureau in their new ad campaign that’s going to spotlight ballooning in New Mexico.”

  “Cool.” Chad’s eyes got big as he took the phone. “We’re right there up front.”

  “That’s not the only one.” Rusty leaned across the table and flicked his finger across the screen to go to the next shot.

  Another frown darkened Chad’s features. “Did you do this, or Tyler?”

  “Oh, the photoshop? That’s what we pay Tyler the big bucks for. Is that a problem?”

  Chad sighed as Rusty went to the next picture. “I guess there’s only a few of us that will know it’s been doctored. I just know what wave most of the balloons around me were in, and this year I didn’t launch close to the same time as those balloons.”

  “Yeah, but having this going in the tourism ad campaign will be great advertising for you.” Rusty gave Chad his best ad-executive smile. “And it isn’t costing you a dime.”

  “So far you haven’t let me pay for any of the things you’ve done to help boost my business anyway.” Chad’s features softened as he continued to look at the balloon pictures.

  Rusty shrugged and settled back in his own chair. “What’s the point of dating one of the best ad men in the state if you don’t reap a few perks now and then?”

  Chad looked from the phone to Rusty. “Free ads and website redesign are more than just perks.” He touched Rusty’s hand. “Perks are getting my own personal Wookiee to cuddle whenever I want.”

  A wide grin split Rusty’s face. “And I come complete with a bunch of unique noises.”

  A matching smile brightened Chad’s features. “I like eliciting unusual sounds from you.”

  “Then we better eat quickly and get somewhere we can get noisy.”

  Their food showed up, and Chad passed Rusty’s phone back over. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. You’re awesome.”

  “You’re fairly great yourself,” Rusty said as he picked up his fork. It felt nice exchanging compliments with Chad. He almost felt bad about having Tyler work his photoshop magic, but it hadn’t been a big thing, and Chad looked like he was already over it. But he made a mental note to remember things like that in the future so he wouldn’t do anything that might get under Chad’s skin. That was unusual too. Rusty thought about the future with people like Tyler and his family, but Chad was the first guy he actually thought he might be able to find a future with. It made things even better when he was around Chad, thinking they could be doing the same thing the following week, following month, and maybe the following year.

  THE NEXT morning, Rusty fought back a yawn as Chad drove his truck with the balloon trailer across a dirt road in the foothills south of Santa Fe. “I guess it’s a good thing I’ve been learning all I can about helping the ground crew. I hope Rose and Lisa get to feeling better soon.”

  “Me too.” Chad kept his eyes forward. He seemed nervous about something, and Rusty wasn’t sure what it was.

  “You said the rest of the ground crew is meeting us out here, along with the clients, right?” The morning sun was just starting to peek over the mountains to the east.

  Chad barely nodded. “That’s right.”

  A couple of minutes later, he turned off the dirt road and pulled over in a grassy meadow. “I guess they’re all running late. We can get started.”

  Rusty flashed him a dubious look. He’d helped load and unload the balloon a few times since he and Chad started dating. The gear wasn’t extremely heavy, but it wasn’t exactly light either. Luckily he and Chad were both in good shape. “Okay, if you say so.”

  Chad flashed him a quick smile as he undid his seat belt. “Yeah, we’ll be fine. You’ll just have to show me some of that Wookiee strength I keep hearing about.”

  “Right.” Rusty unfastened his own seat belt and got out of the truck. The morning was a bit cooler in the foothills than it had been in Santa Fe. He quickly zipped his coat and pulled a hat out of his pocket.

  They were just dropping the tailgate on the trailer when one of the chase cars showed up. Rose, Lisa, Alan, and Jeff got out.

  “Sorry we were running late!” Rose called as she dashed toward them. “We got hung up at McDonald’s.”

  “The car in front of us must’ve had a whole soccer team in it,” Alan added.

  “Hey, Rose.” Rusty raised a hand in greeting. “Good to see you and Lisa feeling better.”

  “Better than wh—” Lisa started to ask before Rose elbowed her in the ribs, which earned her a harsh glare.

  “Yeah, we woke up this morning and felt great,” Rose said, seemingly oblivious to Lisa’s hard look. “I figured after the week we’ve all had, Chad was tired, so we should come out and help, even if we both felt like we were on death’s door yesterday.” She gave a loud, dramatic cough.

  Rusty glanced from her to Chad, who still looked nervous. He wondered what was going on. Rose had obviously not been sick, and they still didn’t have any clients showing up.

  Chad ignored Rusty’s look as he started undoing the straps holding the envelope in the trailer. The ground crew moved around the trailer with practiced efficiency and quickly had everything unloaded.

  As he walked next to Rose while they unrolled the envelope, Rusty leaned over toward her. “What’s going on?”

  Rose gave him a sweet look. “We’re trying to get set up before the clients get here?” She shrugged and looked innocent.

  The way she was acting didn’t help Rusty believe her. The longer things went on, the more he was convinced something was up, and unless Chad had suddenly decided to dump him by throwing him out of the balloon, he was just going to let it go and see what happened.

  By the time Rising Pride was inflated, the clients still hadn’t shown up, but neither Chad nor any of the ground crew seemed concerned in the least.

  “Okay, are we following today?” Rose asked.

  Chad shook his head. “I’m hoping to land right back here in a little while. It’ll be easier that way.”

  She arched an eyebrow and frowned at him. “And if something goes wrong with that plan?”

  “Then I’ll call, or Rusty will call, and you’ll come get us. I just hope you won’t be too far away. If the burner goes dry, we might freeze before you get to us.”

  With a laugh, she gestured to the rest of the ground crew. “Then don’t go too far.”

  “Right!” Chad saluted her, then turned to Rusty. “Looks like the clients aren’t showing up. What do you say you and I take a little float around by ourselves?”

  Rusty’s suspicions that something was up grew exponentially, but he shrugged. “I’m already in the gondola. Might as well take her up for a little while with you. Been a while since we had a flight without clients along.”

  Chad grinned broadly. “Exactly. And if you’re lucky, you can pull the lever a few times.”

  He couldn’t help it. Rusty laughed. “In this cold, I don’t think either one of us is going to have much of a lever to pull.”

  “There is that.” Chad joined in his laugh as he made the burner roar, and Rising Pride lifted off.

  The faint breeze was still enough to make things colder as they drifted up. Rusty wished he had his heavier ski gloves on, so he shoved his hands into his pockets as the balloon drifted up over the hills to the east, giving him an even better view of the sun rising into the clear blue sky. In the distance, the mountain peaks were all capped with snow fr
om the several storms that had hit the region over the past couple of weeks. Without other balloons going up at the same time, it was very peaceful as they reached the height Chad obviously wanted and started drifting toward the east.

  “So are you going to tell me what’s going on?” Rusty asked, stepping close enough to hug Chad but keeping his hands in his pockets in hope of keeping them warm.

  Chad gave him a sheepish look that was out of place on his rugged features. “Not yet.”

  “When?” Rusty was trying not to get mad. In two months he didn’t think Chad had kept anything from him, and it didn’t feel right. He also wasn’t one for any kind of games with men. Or at least ones that didn’t involve sex. He was fairly sure it was too cold for sex in the balloon.

  Looking to the east, Chad just grinned. “In a few minutes. I wish we could’ve been running a little earlier. It would’ve been prettier.”

  “A few minutes sooner and we would’ve launched in the dark.”

  “Right.” Chad pointed to the east. “But then we could’ve been here by sunrise, and this would’ve been even prettier.”

  Rusty looked the direction Chad was pointing. In a valley nestled in the mountains, a large lake was ringed in snow. It was a study in whites, grays, and blues. The sun was still low enough that some of the ice around the edge of the lake twinkled in the early light. He could easily see how this sight would’ve been really spectacular in the rising sun. He’d never had anyone try to do something so special for him.

  “Wow, this is incredible.” Rusty glanced at Chad, who’d dropped to one knee and held out a small jewelry box with a simple silver band in it. “Wait. Are you—”

  “Proposing?” Chad grinned like a fool. “Rusty, the past two months have been incredible. You held me when Felix died. You’ve done so much to help my business stay afloat, and it’s doing better now than ever before, thanks to you. You’re one of the few people I’ve ever met who likes science fiction as much as I do. We have really incredible sex. I want you to be my Wookiee for the rest of our lives.”

  Rusty didn’t know what to say. He had a similar box back in his desk, and he’d been thinking about waiting until Christmas Eve before popping the question. But he didn’t want the moment to pass him by. He took Chad’s hands in his. “Yes.” His throat tightened up. “I love you, Chad. I love waking with you next to me. I love going to sleep in your arms. I want to have that for the rest of my life.” He pulled Chad onto his feet. “Yes. I’ll be your Wookiee for the rest of our lives.”

  They kissed, and Rusty wished it was warmer. He would’ve had his way with Chad while they floated through the enchanting New Mexico skies. His heart soared as the balloon floated toward the lake. He hadn’t been looking for love, but it had swooped in and carried him off in a brilliant multicolored balloon.

  “I love you,” Chad said as their lips parted.

  Rusty smiled and hugged him tightly. “I love you too.”

  Chad pulled out of their embrace and held the lever to give the burner a long blast, lifting them up to new and unexplored heights.

  More from A.J. Marcus

  Every day Sam Benito watches his marriage fall apart. He and his husband, Charlie, a New York Times bestselling author, fight constantly, catching their teenage son, Iggy, in the middle. If there’s any love left, it’s hard to find. Charlie, bent on self-destruction, crosses an unspoken line, and Sam realizes it’s time to leave as the man he fell in love with is gone forever.

  After leaving his high-powered corporate job years ago, Sam now works at a small feed store in an effort to keep his family together. It’s a job he never thought he would find pleasant, but working with Geary Ellis may have something to do with his job satisfaction.

  Charlie digs himself deeper, and Sam is helpless to do anything. Torn between his budding love for Geary and his years with Charlie, Sam finds comfort in Geary’s arms, but it may not be enough to hold him together as Charlie falls apart.

  A Ren Faire Romance

  Dale O’Toole, aka Diederik, the Demon Duke of Denmark, takes his Renaissance festivals seriously. He has been on the jousting circuit for five years and enjoys his gypsy lifestyle, traveling to faires around the country. It’s fun and he has good friends.

  Austin Renfro has worked in a pirate gift shop at the Colorado Renaissance Festival for several years but has a life outside the medieval fantasy world. When Austin spies Dale during the first joust of the season, he knows he must find a way to meet him, even if the jousters and royal cast don’t normally associate with the working class.

  Their first chance meeting causes more than a little embarrassment for both men, but they don’t let that stop them. They try to let their budding love find its place while keeping it from becoming common knowledge. But when a particularly conservative knight catches them in flagrante, it’s bound to cause problems. After all, jousts are dangerous….

  Leo Caldwell’s life can be summed up in two words: ho hum. His job at a tech-support call center offers little in the way of excitement and outside of spending time with his two best friends, Felix and Julie, his social life is nonexistent. When Felix decides it’s time for the three of them to try something new to spice things up, they go all out… and take a drawing class at the local library.

  But that’s when everything changes. Leo meets Aud Sorenson, owner of Bright Thoughts Gallery and resident art teacher at the library. When Aud gets to know Leo and his friends, he feels an instant connection with the cute and geeky Leo and asks him to pose for a sketch.

  As sparks fly between them, Aud discovers he has a stalker who’s willing to do anything he can to make sure Aud is his and his alone. Aud and Leo hope their blossoming feelings will be enough to see them through the chaos that erupts around them.

  The lion, the jaguar, and the owl against the werewolf. Who will prevail?

  Phillip Twohands is a thief and a weremountain lion. When he takes a job stealing an ugly kachina, he never realizes it will change his life forever. Daniel Hernandez is a werejaguar who is hired to steal the same kachina by the same werewolf who hired Phillip. When their paths cross, it becomes clear the tension between them is not all about rivalry.

  The local sheriff, Shannon O’Flaherty, catches them in the act and has no choice but to take the two into his personal custody, which quickly ends up with the three of them in bed together.

  When they learn the kachina has an ancient wolf spirit trapped inside, they rally to prevent it from transferring its power to the werewolf who hired them, but it will take all the strength in their new bond to succeed.

  Hugh Lafoux managed to survive the Civil War, but came out of it scarred for life and with an intricately crafted metal leg. Since the war ended, he’s wandered aimlessly, looking for the next card game and easy sex. He boards the Bayou Belle in Saint Louis, expecting a nice easy ride down to Memphis. But he runs afoul of Big Al Shank, the owner of the Belle, and ends up beaten and thrown overboard into the dark river.

  Former slave Cotton Freeman spends most of his time hunting alligators along the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee. While looking for larger gators north of town one night, Cotton unexpectedly fishes a man out of the water. As Cotton nurses Hugh back to health, they realize a mutual attraction, and their love grows. But when Big Al Shank returns to destroy them, love might not be enough to win the battle.

  A.J. MARCUS has been writing to pass the time since high school. The stories he wrote helped him deal with life. A few years ago, he started sharing those stories with friends who enjoyed them, and he has started sending his works out into the world to share with other people. He lives in the mountains with his extremely supportive husband. They have a lot of critters, including dogs, cats, birds, horses, and rabbits. When not writing, A.J. spends a lot of time hiking, trail riding, or just driving in the mountains. Nature provides a lot of inspiration for his work and keeps him writing. He is also an avid photographer and falconer; don’t get him started talking about his birds becaus
e he won’t stop for a while.

  Website: www.ajmarcus.com

  E-mail: andy@ajmarcus.com

  Twitter: @aj_marcus

  Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorajmarcus

  By A.J. Marcus

  Animal Magnetism (Dreamspinner Anthology)

  With K.T. Spence: A Bouquet for Adam

  Embracing Change

  An Enchanting Liftoff

  With Nicole Godfrey: Hoofbeats

  Just a Sketch

  The Kachina Job

  Soul Survivors

  Throwaway Card

  REN FAIRE ROMANCES

  The Archer’s Arrow

  The Falconer’s Lure

  The Jouster’s Lance

  The Satyr’s Song

  Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS

  www.dreamspinnerpress.com

  Published by

  DREAMSPINNER PRESS

  5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA

  www.dreamspinnerpress.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  An Enchanting Liftoff

  © 2016 A.J. Marcus.

  Cover Art

  © 2016 Brooke Albrecht.

  http://brookealbrechtstudio.com

  Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.

  All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.