Steamboat Days – Stephen del Mar

Selected Scene: “Get on the bike”

Parker nodded and scratched his chest. Ethan realized he wasn’t wearing a shirt under his leather jacket. There was something hot about the leather over his naked torso. Even in the darkness, he could see the outline of his pecs and abs. “What happened to your shirt?

Selected Scenes are a recent scene pulled out of my WIP. They are raw and minimally edited.

Back to posting! My chest cold turned into bronchitis that took a good six weeks to get over. I’m back to writing and posting again.

Ethan kicked at a rock on the walk sending it out into the darkness of the lake. A kerplunk sound came back as it hit the water. He stopped and grabbed the rail. He pulled on it testing its strength. He had a restless-pissed-off feeling he didn’t know what to do with.

He wanted Sean, but he wasn’t here. It pissed him off that he wasn’t here and it pissed him off that a few days without him was screwing him up. Something was bottled up inside. He wanted to run, to scream, to fuck. His hand twitched. Usually he’d draw when he was upset. But what would he draw now? Continue reading “Selected Scene: “Get on the bike””

Selected Scene: Ethan, Tony & Victor in the Park

Even in the dark everyone could see John’s face go red. “I’m not gay,” he blurted. Then he glanced at his uncle, concern spreading across his face. Tony winked at him and mouthed, It’s okay.

Selected Scenes are a recent scene pulled out of my WIP. They are raw and minimally edited.

“So you like mint chip ice cream?” Tony asked.

Victor smiled as he licked his waffle cone. “Not particularly. I ate it a lot when I was a kid. It just caught my eye. How’s the butter pecan?”

“Oh, so creamy. The guy at the cart said they have a storefront in town, right? If they’re open we’ll have to pick up a few pints to take back to the house.”

Victor tapped his shirt pocket. “Old Cannon Creamery, got their card. I’m thinking a sidebar story.”

Someone in the crowd bumped Tony and he nearly dropped his cone. “Damn. It’s packed here.” Continue reading “Selected Scene: Ethan, Tony & Victor in the Park”

Selected Scenes: Lydia & Ethan by the lake

Selected Scenes are a recent scene pulled out of my WIP. They are raw and minimally edited.

“Banana split?”

Ethan held his hand to block the light from the setting sun. His mother held a plastic boat with banana, ice cream, whipped cream and toppings out to him. He shrugged.

She sat down on the bench next to him. “Oh Dear, what is it? You perked up there during dinner with Marcus and Max, but now you’re moping again. Is it so bad spending time with us?”

He took the boat from her and used the spoon sticking out to scoop up some of the whipped cream and toppings. She reached out and tucked a bit of hair behind his ear. He pulled his head away. It was embarrassing for his mother to touch him like that. He was seventeen now. Then he frowned and stabbed the spoon back in the ice cream. It was also comforting. Something Sean would do when they’d lie together after sex. “It’s not you guys,” he said and took a mouthful of banana and ice cream. Continue reading “Selected Scenes: Lydia & Ethan by the lake”

Selected Scenes: Enter Roxie Blue

Selected Scenes are a recent scene pulled out of my WIP. They are raw and minimally edited.

“Oh wow,” Victor said. “That really is an old Florida Cracker house.”

Tony got out of the Wrangler and stretched. “Yeah, you don’t see that many anymore, especially in this condition. Roxie put a lot of work into the restoration and remodeling.”

Jack pulled their minivan in next to them and smiled as he killed the engine and undid his seatbelt. The back passenger door slid open and the boys burst out laughing and pushing at each other as they came around the van.

“Wow, that’s a bright blue. I’ve never seen a house that blue,” Bobby said.

Johnny, his older brother, said, “I like the yellow trim. It makes it look happy.”

Tony gave his nephew a one-armed hug. “It does look like a happy house doesn’t it?” Continue reading “Selected Scenes: Enter Roxie Blue”

Sunday Morning Scene: Steamboat Days

Sunday Morning Scene

Sunday Morning Scene is a weekly post of a scene I’m currently working on. It is raw and rough, copied and pasted directly from my WIP.

Sky, an eight-year old boy with bushy blond hair, scurried up the ladder to the bridge of the Camelot. His fraternal twin brother, Storm, close behind him. “Bear’s here!” He called when his head popped over the deck.

Aidan eased back on the throttle to slow the houseboat’s approach to the shore. “I see that. And Stan, Zach, and Auntie Lisa too. They came up river on the Broken Heart yesterday.” Continue reading “Sunday Morning Scene: Steamboat Days”