Chapter 22

Sunday, December 23, 2001

It was getting close to Christmas now. As they wrapped up training one evening, Phil commented to Duane, "Hey, Dude. You're from southern Michigan, right? You figuring on heading home for the holidays?"

"Not really," Duane replied. "I haven't been home since a year ago last summer, and that was a one day in and out, so I wouldn't mind going. But it's close to a day's drive each way, and there's stuff to be done here. Besides, Michelle isn't planning on heading back to Flag for the holidays, either."

"Oh, hell," Phil snorted. "You've been putting in seven-day weeks without a break. Tomorrow morning, you and Michelle hop in the Jeep or her car and get out of here for a few days. We're going to give the dogs a break over Christmas anyway, and I think I can get enough friends and relatives to help with any needed training while you're gone."

"Well, when you put it that way," Duane smiled. "I guess I'm up for it if Michelle is."

"Works for me," Michelle grinned. "I'm always up for a road trip."

"Will it be all right if we get back, oh, Wednesday or Thursday?" Duane asked. "We've got that wedding on Saturday; there'll be people in town we'll want to see. Maybe even take some of them for a dogsled ride."

"Sounds all right to me," Phil said. "Just remember that once the wedding is over we get real serious about training."

"And you're going to have to do it without me," Michelle said. "I'm pretty much figuring on hitting the road right after the wedding, the next day if the weather isn't too bad. I'm set up to do some surfing for a few days in Florida before we head off to the Bahamas."

"We're going to miss you," Phil told her. "You've really picked this up well and been a lot of help, but I guess we'll just have to get along without you. But you two have a good holiday."

After the dogs were fed and Phil took off, they headed into the trailer. While he watched Michelle make dinner, Duane felt just a little morose. He'd had a terrific month with Michelle, especially in bed – she'd taught him things he'd never dreamed! But it was clear to him they were still just friends, fuck buddies, and nothing had been said or intimated about anything continuing once she headed for Florida. In that month, they'd learned that they had even more in common than they'd thought; though the Canyon was at the center of it, they tended to see things a lot alike, and had a lot of fun together. She'd come out of the woodwork in total surprise, and now he knew he was going to miss her for more reasons than just sex. But sex was still part of their agenda, and they had another few days to enjoy it; Duane figured he'd better make the best of what he had left.

It's close to five hundred miles from Spearfish Lake to Bradford, Duane's hometown. Unfortunately, that five hundred miles took them through Milwaukee and Chicago. Cities were something these two wilderness-oriented people didn't endure well, and the bigger they were, the more pronounced the aversion. By the time they got through the worst of Chicagoland, Duane was just about fit to be tied. "How can people live like this?" they both wondered aloud.

Before many more miles had passed they were on the Indiana turnpike, the last lap to Bradford, and traffic had thinned out enough to allow them to relax. In the past, he hadn't had much to say about the place, other than a few stories from time to time, but now he told a few more. "So what's your dad like, anyway?" she finally asked.

"Oh, he's pretty cool," Duane told her. "We get along pretty well; it's just that there hasn't been enough time to go home since he got married again."

"I thought maybe it was because you didn't care for your stepmother," she said.

"No, not at all," he said. "I suppose Vicky is technically my stepmother, but I don't think of her as that. She's not a whole hell of a lot older than I am, eight years or so. She was my babysitter some when I was little, especially back when mom was dying, so we got to be real close. Then she went to college and got married. That lasted for a couple years, then she broke up with her husband and moved back in with her folks, who are right across the back yard from Dad. He's known her forever, too. Well, finally, just a couple years ago, they realized they were such good friends that they ought to get married. I don't know what took them so long; it was obvious to everyone else. Anyway, they just had a baby last fall; I've never seen my new little sister."

"That's got to be a little strange, having a sister young enough to be your own daughter."

"I haven't really thought about it," he shrugged. "It might be even stranger for Vicky, since her mom used to date Dad back when they were in high school."

"Yeah, that's strange, all right." she smiled. "But everybody is still good friends, right?"

"Oh, yeah," he replied. "I think I told you that most people consider both Dad and Vicky to be a little strange, anyway. I mean good strange. Dad is mostly Scottish, and he's really into Scottish cultural stuff. He's got a Scottish accent he'll turn on at any time and likes to wear kilts, even around the house or around town."

"Yeah, you told me about that," Michelle grinned. "That's got to be a little different for a small town. I'm starting to get interested in meeting your Dad and Vicky. It's been too long since you've seen them."

Duane's father Jason proved to be at home when they arrived. He was a tall, lean man with short graying hair, and an infectious smile. Vicky was a solid woman, a brunette about Michelle's height, also with a nice smile. "We're used to getting strange looks and sometimes having strange people around," she explained. We'll have some of off-the-wall people here tonight, you'll fit right in."

"Uh-oh," Duane shook his head. "Did we walk in on something?"

"Aye, but 'tis no great matter," Jason smiled. "We was havin' some friends in for a wee ceilidh tonight, 'tis all."

"It'll be mostly people you know and will want to see you anyway," Vicky explained. "Emily and Kevin, Dayna and Sandy, and like that. Maybe some people in town for the holidays, we're not sure."

"'Twill be nae more than sittin' around talkin' an' bein' wi' friends," Jason explained. "Might hoist a wee dram or two ta' be sociable."

"Well, I guess," Michelle replied dubiously. "If you don't think anyone will mind."

"Oh, there'll be some giggles," Jason replied, dropping the Scottish accent. "But it'll be good enough to have some time with Duane and hear some new stories from the both of you that I don't think anyone will have any problem with it. I have to admit to some surprise that my son showed up with a girlfriend. That hasn't happened for a while."

"Oh, we're just friends," Duane protested. "Not boyfriend-girlfriend friends. We've run trips together on occasion the past two years."

"Michelle, I can't believe you're a river guide," Vicky shook her head. "You don't look old enough."

"Everyone who meets her says that," Duane explained. "You should meet her folks. Vicky, they look about your age, and they're closer to Dad's age. She's the senior boatman in the company, except for the guy who owns it. Believe me, there's a lot about her that doesn't meet the eye."

"Well, it's good to have you here anyway," Vicky smiled. "Girlfriend or not. Duane, just to bring you up to speed, we're having dinner here on Christmas. My folks will be here, along with Troy and Brittany, and Casey and Alissa. Michelle, Troy is my brother, and Alissa is my sister. They'll have their kids with them, too."

"It'll be good to see Troy again," Duane nodded. "It's got to be at least a couple years, maybe more than that for Alissa."

"If there's anything I can do to help with dinner, let me know," Michelle smiled.

"I appreciate the offer," Vicky said. "This is the first time I've gotten stuck with doing dinner for the whole crowd."

"Oh, no big deal," Michelle smiled. "Duane and I can handle it. It's only a dozen people or so, after all."

"A dozen people? That's a big dinner," Vicky said.

"Not to us," Duane laughed. "We're used to kicking out meals for thirty people or so, doing it on a couple gas burners set up on a sandbar somewhere, and we don't get many complaints about our cooking."

"I've literally done thousands of them," Michelle smiled. "It's no big deal."

"Duane was right," Jason laughed. "There's more to the both of you than meets the eye."

"While I'm thinking about it," Vicky smiled. "We're planning on dressing up a little for Christmas, mostly to pull my sister's leg. She thinks we're weird, and there's no point in letting her think she's wrong. We're not planning on telling her about that ahead of time, though."

"Duane and I were involved in a wedding like that last fall," Michelle laughed. "It was supposed to be a casual wedding. Just T-shirt and jeans, you know? Well, the bride had pulled that same stunt on most of the people at the wedding at one time or another, so everyone showed up in ball gowns and tuxes and like that."

"We heard about that from Duane," Jason laughed. "In fact, that's where we got the idea."

"I'd be willing," Michelle said. "But I didn't bring any clothes like that. I only brought one dress from Arizona, and I left that in Spearfish Lake."