When fate sends Kodiak DePaul from his home in Alaska to a new world in a big city it is a move equal to going from Manhattan to Mars.
His wild success as a model is quickly followed by tragedy and heartbreak, sending the young Alaskan running back to his home in the north to hide and heal. Intrusion in his now notable life continues in the forty-ninth state, sending Kodiak deeper into the bush to his grandfather’s homestead in one of the most remote parts of the state.
But soon even that place of solitude and refuge loses sanctuary status.
Mucklucked, an adventure with loss and love set against the beauty and danger of the Alaskan wilderness.
The name evokes excitement and adventure; dog teams. Glaciers, wild rivers with huge fish-all of these terms are correct and as someone who grew up there on a remote homestead, I can assure that all of these things are true.
But life off the grid takes hard work, courage and planning. We learned to make do without fresh milk, eggs and butter. Fruit was a rare and appreciated treat.
Reading was our main form of entertainment, aside from cutting wood to stay warm and hauling water in buckets from the lake (after cutting into the sometimes three-foot-thick ice in the winter), when we were not reading, we made up stories, which eventually we began writing.
Many of the incidents in Mucklucked, an adventure story with a romance, are based on actual events in my life. I have fished every kind of salmon in the most remote rivers, been chased by moose, foundered in snow over my head deep and watched the Northern Lights stretching for miles in the sky over head in the most brilliant neon colors.
I always knew I would one day write a novel set in my home state, Mucklucked became that work.
I am a Seat of My Pants writer, ideas start with that seed (Alaska in this case) and grow from there until I have enough story to make an outline. My characters are gay everymen, mostly adjusted there is not usually a lot of angst in their coming out, they are self-accepting but like everyone else in search of love and often in the wrong places.
Having known a number of GLBT homesteaders in my childhood made this story even easier to put together.
Once I have the story “hook” I begin a series of What if…questions. In this case they were, What if there was a handsome young Alaskan who was chosen to participate on a reality show about modeling. How would I get him back to Alaska and keep him in Alaska for the story.
Kodiak DePaul runs from the big city back to his family’s remote homestead land after a devastating loss of love and nearly his life but is followed by Hunter Davis, who has spent his life tracking animals. Kodiak is now his prey, with a much higher bounty on his head than any of the animals Hunter has ever gone after. A bounty which can be taken with a camera instead of a rifle.
Mucklucked is a highly personal work, my attempt at sharing time in one of the most extraordinary places on earth.
James is giving away a $50 Amazon gift certificate with this post – enter via Rafflecopter:
Rising Hunter looked out of the window, Kodiak brushing by him. The homesteader grabbed his outer coat, sliding his arms into it as he re crossed the room, throwing the cabin door open.
“Hey!” It took forever for me to get this place warm! Now you are trying to heat up the great outdoors!” Hunter bellowed
“Just look.” Kodiak said without looking back into the cabin.
“I don’t know what you are doing,” Hunter said, teeth clenched as he buttoned his shirt all the way up, grabbing his own coat and zipping it up while pulling his gloves on over his fingers, “but I’m freezing again.”
Stepping out of the cabin door he closed it and looked up, gasping in awe.
The sky was ablaze with color; emerald green, azure blue shot with ribbons of pale yellow moving in slow, lazy streaks like a symphony across the vast sky.
“This. This is why I’m here.” Kodiak whispered as the Aurora Borealis played lazily above them, vibrant colors stretching as far as their eyes could see, dotted from behind with glistening white stars. That far north in the crystal-clear skies the colors were deep and crisp as they moved in long, easy waves under the stars, the galaxy looking like a black velvet backdrop.
The two young men stood silently side by side, huffing plumes of the cold air out as they breathed, transfixed by the curving colors moving slowly around night sky.
“It’s like a Georgia O’Keefe painting,” Hunter whispered, his right arm raising he traced a finger to outline a ribbon of green rimmed with electric yellow. “I’ve seen a lot of night sky shows but never anything like this.”
“O’Keefe used almost these exact colors. She painted music just like Picasso painted light in the air. It’s ethereal.” Kodiak whispered in return, as if a raised voice might break the spell.
Shoulder to shoulder the pair stood quietly for some time watching the colors move languidly across the sky, the cold night air seeming to crackle around them. They likely would have remained transfixed had Hunter not suddenly shuddered violently.
Kodiak’s left arm rose, involuntarily he wrapped his fingers around Hunter’s thick bicep, pulling him in close against his body as the trespasser again shuddered in the cold.
Kodiak had made the move to pull Hunter in against him involuntarily. He was cold as well but he was not ready to go back into the cabin.
“Aquarius is there, Pegasus over there,” Kodiak said in a low voice as he pointed out the constellations visible at that time of year. “Cancer and Orion are right over there,” the homesteader used his index finger as a pointer to trace the stars with his finger.
Reaching up with his own hand Hunter pointed at the big dipper which was standing out clearly, with the North star looking big and bright as the moon.
Moving a hand over to Kodiak, Hunter reached over and traced a finger over the area of Kodiak’s jacket where the constellation was tattooed on his chest then turned his face up toward the handsome homesteader.
“I like where it is there better,” he whispered.
Kodiak turned just as Hunter was speaking to say something more about the amazing light show of the Northern Lights being displayed above them, their lips meeting accidentally, but the resulting kiss was far more than just an un planned moment.
The kiss was the result of passion held in on both of their parts since the first time they had looked into each other’s eyes on the riverbank with the great bear thankfully galloping away from them.
As their mouths met under the gently moving lights of soft yellow, green, blue and blush of pink in the sky the men turned, bodies pressing together, thickening erections pushing at their heavy winter gear as their gloved hands began to rove up and down over each other’s backs. The tentative meeting of lips became a passionate kiss. After the impromptu strip tease a short time earlier even Kodiak’s Fort Knox like defenses were down. The romance of making out under the multi colored natural lights moving lazily across the sky would have tempted the most rigid mother Superior to break her vow of chastity.
Kodiak did not want to be involved in the kiss, but it was as natural and easy as the involuntary sex had been earlier. Something he could not control and in the deepest part of his mind did not want to control.
Hunter’s lips were soft, he still tasted of the liquor, but Kodiak didn’t mind. He allowed his body to melt in against the phony game warden, his hands roving slowly up and down over the young man’s muscular back as they ground against each other with the brilliant, soft Northern lights lazily wavering back and forth above them.
The moment was the first in a long time that made Kodiak feel whole. He was in that brief time with his lips firmly pressed against Hunter’s, complete again. There was no before or after the incident. No missing Charles or Jimmy, just the delicious feel of being lost in the wonderful feeling of the moment.
The kiss ended slowly, naturally. Hunter was smiling from ear to ear, trying to get Kodiak to look him in the eye but the young homesteader only coughed and shuffled his feet, turning away and averting his eyes back to the sky before he finally spoke again.
“Show’s over, back inside,” Kodiak mumbled, suddenly feeling guilty over the un intended kiss even though he enjoyed every second of it. “Last thing we need is you getting sick.”
Deciding to accept a half-loaf accidental kiss rather than no kisses at all from the homesteader, Hunter silently followed Kodiak back into the cabin where the pair settled in front of the fireplace.
“If I promise to behave could I have another shot of that booze?” Hunter pled.
An Amazon #1 best selling author with Tailor Made, James has sold comedy one line material to Joan Rivers and Phyllis Diller, had essays published with the late Alyson Publications and sold erotic gay stories (Ok, porn) to every gay men’s magazine until they all folded in the 2000’s. His other novels are available at JamesBrockBooks.com.
James lives in Seattle with very appreciated indoor plumbing.
Author Website: JamesBrockBooks.com
Author Facebook (Personal): https://www.facebook.com/james.brock.102977
Author Facebook (Author Page): https://www.facebook.com/Men-Overboard-100109810041126/
