Page 124 of Men of Fort Dale: The Complete Series

Pulling his phone out, he checked the screen with trepidation. He nearly sighed in relief when he saw it was Matt.

Still in the meeting?

Just got a call from the idiot duo . They’re still who the hell knows where, and apparently in one piece.

Half a minute later, the reply came back.

To tell me they weren’t going to make Christmas. Don’t think they know when they’ll be back.

Nick stifled a sigh, though he wasn’t surprised.

With their disbandment, Team Maelstrom had been scattered worldwide.

Ricardo was across the country but seemed happy.

Despite how abysmal things had looked at first, Aidan and Sean were wrapped so tightly around one another they were happy doing whatever.

The only two left behind without any forward momentum were he and Matt.

It was a bittersweet thought. And maybe not a completely honest one.

He’d been given a good position at Fort Dale, and he knew if he did well, he might have better options open in the future.

Matt hadn’t been as lucky, and Nick knew his friend was struggling to figure out what to do with himself.

Still, left behind or not, they had each other, which was all Nick could ask for.

I guess it’s a good thing I told Ricardo to hold off trying to buy tickets. Nick typed back.

Matt’s reply shot back quickly.

Yeah, they’re going to call him next to let him know. Kinda sucks. I was looking forward to a Maelstrom Christmas.

Nick sighed that time, reading more into the sentence than Matt had tried to convey.

His friend had never really known a family until Team Maelstrom.

Matt was a full-grown man and knew everyone else had their own lives and he dealt with their new lives with patience and understanding.

Nick knew it still hurt his friend somewhere deep, though, to have everyone scattered, and on Christmas of all days.

It’s alright, Nick typed back. We’ll figure out something.

True, we always do. You and me.

There came the flare of an ache in his chest, which he shoved away with practiced ease.

For years, it had been Nick and Matt. They had met at the beginning of their military careers, went through hell and back at one another’s sides, and experienced their personal lives together.

Brother in arms, loyal and true friend, and a host of titles could be laid at Matt’s feet.

That lover, boyfriend, future husband, or even partner couldn’t be one of them had been a source of frustration and heartache for Nick for years.

Always, Nick typed back, leaving it at that.

Matt had once commented that he thought it funny Nick had never dated other men despite having at least some attraction to them.

Nick had shrugged and said that none of the guys he’d met held his interest, whereas some women did.

The truth was, the only man Nick had ever felt anything romantic for was his best friend, but despite their shared honesty, Nick kept that little detail to himself.

“And what do you think, Engel?”

General Winter’s words brought his attention back to the discussion. The handful of other people in the meeting watched him, but it was Winter’s pale blue eyes on him that Nick was focusing on.

“Of which part?” Nick asked calmly.

The general raised a brow. “Of the entire idea.”

Nick shrugged. “It’s a crap idea.”

“I see. Do you feel like sharing why?”

“Poorly thought out, and not cost-effective enough to justify.”

General Winter eyed him for a second too long before nodding. “I agree. We’ll have to find something else that isn’t going to take an eternity and a quarter of the year’s budget.”

Nick leaned back in his seat, glad his phone was out of sight.

He had no clue what idea he had just shot down without batting an eye.

He wasn’t convinced he’d gotten away with anything, but it was difficult to read General Winter.

Thankfully, Matt swore up and down that Nick wasn’t much better to read, and Nick’s delivery was too dry and cool to raise any questions.

A knock on the conference room door brought the conversation to a standstill. General Winter’s latest secretary, a guy whose name Nick could never remember, stood in the open doorway.

“What is it, Nathaniel?” General Winter asked.

“You asked me to interrupt your meetings only when a few select people wanted to see you,” the man told him evenly.

General Winter raised a brow. “That’s correct.”

Nathaniel gave a low grunt of surprise as he was pulled out of the doorway, and his presence was quickly replaced. Light to the previous man’s dark, a beaming blond stepped into the room. And although Nick had only seen him in passing, he knew the General’s husband when he saw him.

“A good thing I’m on that list, or we’d have to have a long conversation,” Christian told him, smirking.

Nick needed only to look at the general to know the meeting was over.

If his tension over the upcoming celebration was obvious, then his reaction to Christian was as overt as an explosion.

The pale color of his eyes grew vibrant, and the tension in his expression melted as though it had never been there in the first place.

“Are you here to save us?” Nick asked Christian.

The man grinned. “I heard there might have been a little trouble in the planning department. Who else to drag the boss away and get things sorted out?”

If the pleased expression on the general’s face was any indication, Nick had a good idea of what might get sorted out.

Everyone was gathering their things and preparing to head out, knowing they were being cut loose.

Nick knew that with Christian’s schooling taking up a good chunk of the year, they didn’t get as much time together as they would have liked.

So when he found time to show up, everything on the general’s plate was put on standby.

“We’ll take a break from this, gentlemen,” General Winter said as he stood. “Perhaps come back at it with clearer heads in a day or two. Engel, I expect those reports on the latest recruits by lunch tomorrow.”

“Yes, sir,” Nick said, practically scrambling to get out of his chair.

The meeting had been the last thing on his to-do list for the day, which meant he was finally free.

As he stepped into the hallway, he contemplated giving Matt a ring to see what the man was doing but remembered his mother.

Not only had he promised he’d call back when he had time, but she was persistent enough he knew it was better to get it over with quickly.

Sure enough, she answered on the second ring. “Well, hello. Who’s this?”

Nick rolled his eyes. “Hi, Mom.”

“Ah, that’s right, I do have a son, don’t I? I’d almost forgotten,” she said.

“Yes, because it’s been so long since you last talked to me.”

“I’m sure your father will be happy to know you still remember we exist.”

“Since when do you do guilt trips?”

“Since someone apparently forgot our number.”

Nick tucked his phone between his face and shoulder as he opened the door to his office. It wasn’t like his mother to beat him over the head and make him feel guilty, at least not without good reason. Then again, considering how she was around the holidays, he might be willing to blame that.

“Mom, if this is about your yearly party not working out exactly the way you want, can we put it on pause? I’ve spent all week listening to work talk about that same problem,” Nick complained.

“Nicholas, I’ll have you know the celebration this year is shaping up to go off without a hitch. Do you honestly think so little of my abilities?” she demanded.

Nick pulled on his jacket and grabbed his hat. “No, I don’t. I worry about the stress you put yourself through for these things. You know, at the time of year that’s supposed to be about goodwill and cheer.”

“Well, I’m glad you’re so worried about me. There is something you can do to make this year’s Christmas gathering better.”

Locking the door behind him, he took hold of the phone again. “If I can manage it, you know I will.”

“Well, it’s been a while since we last saw you. And I know you’ve been busy, especially with your promotion.”

Nick chuckled. “Did you just try to guilt me so I’d be willing to agree to come home for Christmas?”

“I would never be so underhanded!”

“You would if it was ‘out of love,’ and you know it.”

“Well,” she admitted begrudgingly. “The thought might have crossed my mind. Your father was, of course, insistent that it wasn’t necessary.”

“No offense, Mom, but maybe you should try listening to him once in a while.”

“Well, I know how much you love celebrating with your team.”

Nick stepped out into the chilly air, adjusting his coat as he walked. “Eh, Sean and Aidan aren’t going to make it this year. I guess they’re pretty busy with whatever they have going on.”

“Oh, that’s a shame. I was going to tell you to invite the whole team if you wanted. It would have been nice to have all you boys over for the holidays,” she sighed.

“I can pass the message along to Ricardo if you want, but I’m not sure what’s going on his end.”

“Well, if not, that’s fine too. Just as long as you and Matt show up, I’ll be happy.”

Nick smiled, his affection for his mother flaring.

No one in his family had batted an eye when he’d first shown up to a family gathering with Matt years ago.

It wasn’t until Matt was brought to the third gathering that he even told them about his lack of blood family.

It was a moot point by then, though, as his family had adopted Matt as one of their own.

Years later, his family came to expect Matt’s presence as well as Nick’s.

The expectation ran deep enough that Matt knew full well he was expected to show up just as much as Nick was.

It was a little strange for the man at first, having Nick’s massive family take him in as one of their own, but after almost a decade, it was second nature.