Defining Distance in a Relationship
Long-distance relationships are nothing new, just ask Antony
and Cleopatra. But with the advent of
internet and the infinite ease of communication, they have gotten a lot more
common and rather less fraught with angst (well, theoretically). Most people take “long-distance” to mean that
a couple is in separate states, countries, or even hemispheres, or any such
distance as to create a barrier to seeing one another frequently. Here in Pittsburgh, a long-distance relationship
is defined as having to cross a river, of which we have three. The sad thing is I’m not joking.
Distance between people isn’t always just geographic,
though. One can see a person every day,
live in the same house even, and still be light years apart.
In Half the World Away, Dade (from London) and Elliot (from
Australia) face the question of whether their budding romance is strong enough
to withstand 10,000 miles, or indeed if it is worth trying to make it
work. The reason they even have to ask
is less to do with the mileage and more to do with the men.
Dade is a city-boy.
He loves London and urban living.
As a photographer he’s always hoping for more urban assignments where he
can explore how people live and bring out sides to cities that most people
overlook. Dade usually feels that nature
photography is “hacky” – not that he doesn’t appreciate the beauty, but in his
opinion the natural world is so beautiful it presents no challenge to a
photographer.
Elliot, on the other hand, is all about his Aussie bush
lifestyle. He has a strong respect for
nature and all its inhabitants. Sure,
crocodiles and snakes can be very dangerous, but Elliot knows better than to
tangle with them. Elliot emphasizes
understanding your environment as safety tip number one. And he’s never stopped being awed by seeing
whales and dolphins near Australia’s coastline.
Dade and Elliot are two very different lads, and when they
first meet it certainly looks as if it’s going to stay that way. Dade is annoyed about getting stuck with yet
another nature shoot for the travel magazine he works for, and Elliot is het up
about Dade and his assistant going out wandering after having been warned about
the crocs. Naturally, England and Australia
being separated by a common language, not all information gets across
smoothly.
Once they get a little more at ease with one another,
though, Dade and Elliot learn there are some commonalities between them – such
as serious mutual attraction.
There is a little hiccup though, in the form of Dade’s
boss/erstwhile boyfriend, Jackson.
Jackson and Dade’s “relationship” is a perfect example of distance
between two people who live in the same city.
Dade knows it’s over with them, Jackson never has time for him (or
anything other than what his personal assistant tells him is next on the
agenda). But Jackson might have been a
little too busy to notice Dade’s unhappiness with the state of things. Dade and Jackson may be geographically much
closer, and perhaps even closer in personalities than Dade and Elliot, but that
doesn’t mean there’s any real chance for them to have a Happily Ever After.
The question is, is there a chance for Dade and Elliot to
have one?
Blurb: Photographer Dade Faber keeps hoping for
assignments on a big city beat, but time and again he’s sent into the wild.
This time, he’s half the world away from London shooting the Australian bush.
When Dade is nearly attacked by a crocodile, it leads to a shouting match with
Elliot Harris, who owns Dade’s hotel. Elliot is both hot and persuasive, and
when he offers to play tour guide, Dade accepts. After a week spent mostly
together in the bush, Dade begins to fall for Elliott. The attraction is
mutual, and when circumstances lead both men to London, they find they have much
in common. But can their romance bridge the 10,000 miles between London and the
Australian bush?
Bio: Jessica Skye Davies has been a writer since
her first works were “published” in her grandparents’ living room and written
in crayon. She is a lifelong native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she has
been active in the community, including serving as library director on the
executive board of a local GLBT community center. Outside of writing, Jessica
has a wide range of interests and hobbies: from Mozart in a music hall to punk
in pubs, from Shakespeare to Vonnegut, from salsa dancing the night away to
afternoon coffee in the square to kicking back with a good movie. She loves
meeting new people and exploring new places, always open to whatever elements might
inspire her next writing project.
Links:
Half the World Away: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4282&cPath=399
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