Page 68 of Men of Fort Dale: The Complete Series

The plush couches against one wall and the soft chairs against the other were suitable for those who had to cool their heels.

He didn’t imagine the natural wood-colored floors or the soft blue walls, did much to calm the nerves of those left to wait.

It was a fact of life at Fort Dale, however, that those without an appointment had to wait, and sometimes, even those who did still had to cool their heels.

P sure Dan is avoiding me rn.

Have you tried letting him have a bit of room? Can’t smother the guy.

It took only a minute before her response was fired back.

It’s been two days that’s not smothering.

Christian shook his head, typing back a message reminding her that the man worked two jobs, one full-time and one part-time.

He turned his attention back to his computer and logged in.

The system took a moment to check its records before a confirmation screen popped up.

It was always his least favorite part of the process, as the confirmation screen always involved a picture of himself and his ID number.

The picture had been taken after a particularly harrowing couple of days where Christian had been run ragged as he’d tried to settle in at Fort Dale.

The circles under his eyes had been so dark they’d nearly obscured the bright blue color.

Even his blond hair, usually so bright it looked almost gold, had seemed to lose its luster and had grown just a shade too far past regulation.

His narrow jaw and high cheekbones were lost in the general pale look of his skin from exhaustion and an overly bright camera flash.

Rather than look at the screen with the god-awful picture, he turned his gaze back to his phone.

Just cuz he’s busy doesn’t mean he can’t message me once.

Sighing, Christian opened the message and tapped back.

It does if the poor guy is exhausted. Give him a break. And don’t blow his phone up either.

With the computer logged in, he set his phone aside and began reviewing what new messages awaited him.

There were the standard emails sent directly to him, and then the messages which were sent down the chain from Command.

There was nothing of any real note, so he moved on to the inbox reserved for General Winter.

His access to General Winter’s messages was limited to the same general and personal emails as his inbox.

General Winter had granted access to Christian months ago to try and create some order out of the chaos that liked to flood his inbox.

Christian scrolled past an email from General Winter’s sister, Sara, and moved to a message from the general’s bank.

He wouldn’t read anything deeply personal, but since he was generally the first to realize when General Winter was missing a due date on a bill or an update from a business he might need to know, Christian typically read anything that looked important.

As he expected, his phone began to buzz constantly once the clock hit half-past six. Christian tapped the Bluetooth in his ear to answer the call without looking at the device.

“Good morning, Lily,” he said.

“I can’t believe you’re taking his side,” she said in greeting.

Christian laughed, deleting the bank email. “You’ve been blowing up his phone, haven’t you?”

“Oh, come on, you and I both know he’s not taking the time to talk to me.”

Christian shrugged, reaching to open the new message in his inbox. “He might be, he might not be. But if he is, pestering him isn’t going to do you any good. He’s going to keep ignoring you. If he’s just busy and tired, then all you’re doing is driving him away.”

“I still say it’s not hard to send one text in forty-eight hours to let me know he’s alive.”

He’d known Lily for a dozen years, and he knew damn well there was no point in trying to change her mind when she was determined and set on a course.

He also knew it was better to distract her before she picked up steam.

Once Lily got going, there was no bringing her back until she ran out of energy, which could take the better part of an hour if she was really riled.

“How’s Mary?” Christian asked.

“Don’t think you can distract me.”

“I’m asking about our sister because the last I heard from her, she wasn’t feeling too good.”

Lily sighed. “She had to stay home yesterday, but don’t worry. When I saw her last night before I headed out for my shift, she was up and didn’t look so bad.”

Christian frowned. “Not looking bad isn’t quite the same as being okay.”

“She was making dinner and reading, so I’d take that as a good sign.”

Christian snorted. “And since you don’t know how she was feeling, I’m guessing she wasn’t talking about it.”

“Nope, and you know what that means.”

“It means she was feeling less like death.”

“Exactly.”

It had been a little while since Mary’s last episode, and Christian was relieved to hear it was brief.

Christian had met Mary when he’d been fourteen, and it had been a few months before he’d seen her go through the agony that she had, at the time, called ‘headaches.’ At first, the doctors thought she was having migraines, odd for a girl of fifteen but not unheard of.

It wasn’t until a few years ago that someone had finally diagnosed her with cluster headaches.

There were treatments, but they didn’t make the headaches stay away for good.

All they did was decrease their frequency and make them not last as long.

It still didn’t stop her from feeling like rusty nails were tearing apart her entire head.

She swore up and down it was better to spend a day or two like that every few months rather than days in agony every few weeks.

Christian had to agree, but it still hurt to see her in so much pain that she couldn’t function.

“I’ll call her later when I’m off my shift. Maybe she’ll be less stubborn if I talk to her.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. I’m pushy, and people don’t want to talk to me like they do you.”

Christian chuckled. “I think it’s because you guys are just...both stubborn. You won’t stop, and she won’t give in.”

“I don’t think that’s totally true,” Lily said slowly.

“Right, because I haven’t watched the two of you go at it over the years or anything, you’re right.”

“Sarcasm isn’t cute, Christian.”

Christian grinned, motioning at himself even though he was alone. “Good thing I’m adorable enough to make it cute, huh?”

“I see someone’s coffee has started kicking in.”

“As if I need it.”

“Yeah, a regular bundle of sunshine and energy you are.”

“Says the woman who wakes up ready to sing half the time.”

“I just...get songs stuck in my head, is all.”

Christian’s laugh almost muffled the sound of the elevator. He checked the computer screen and sighed. General Winter was early, but Christian was used to that.

“Ah, the general is here,” Christian warned his sister.

“Ooh, General Daddy?” Lily cooed.

“Oh, God, shut up.”

He carefully arranged his face so it didn’t look like he was on the phone as the doors slid open to reveal the general.

In all the months he’d been working directly under the man, Christian had never seen the general come into the office looking anything but perfectly put together.

His uniform was always carefully pressed and neat, his hair had never been longer than it should be, and Christian was pretty sure he’d never seen him look groggy.

“Good morning, General,” Christian said, keeping his voice warm but not too perky.

General Winter looked at him, the corner of his mouth turning up. “Good morning, Christian. Everything alright?”

Christian nodded, bringing up the day’s schedule on his screen. “Everything’s going smoothly so far. You’ll be happy to know you don’t have that busy a day.”

General Winter snorted as he reached the desk. “Meaning, I’ll be able to eat lunch without interruption.”

“That about sums it up.”

“Well, send the schedule to my screen, and I’ll take a look.”

Christian tapped a button. “Done.”

“Not that it’ll matter. You’ll keep the ship afloat whether I see the schedule or not.”

Christian tried not to look pleased at the compliment.

For all the assholes with superiority complexes and a love of abusing power Christian had dealt with in the service, he was pleased to find there were still men like General Winter in charge.

The general was a good man, a bit too serious, but a man who believed in doing right by the men and women serving under him and was not shy with a compliment or a criticism when either was called for.

“I’d rather be out here keeping things neat and trim than dealing with everyone like you do, General,” Christian said.

“Good, because I’m sure it would look like a disaster if I had your job.”

Christian restrained the urge to contradict him.

General Winter was dedicated to his job, and Christian suspected that would translate to whatever the older man was doing.

Christian considered it an honor to help the general get through his day as smoothly as possible.

If that meant doing everything from structuring his schedule to something as mundane as ordering food and cleaning out his inbox, he was happy to do it.

Lily’s voice came through the Bluetooth again. “Oh, General Winter, please tell me how good a boy I am.”

Christian held his smile as he unlocked the door to Winter’s office with a press of a button. “I’ll be sure to let you know if anything changes.”

General Winter nodded, his eyes searching Christian’s face. “I’m sure you will, thank you.”

Despite his resistance to Lily’s words and desperation not to be too obvious, Christian still found his eyes drifting after the man as he entered his office.

For all the good things Christian could say about the man’s personality, there was plenty more to be said about him physically.

The general was not a man to rest on his laurels and, despite being in his upper forties, was in as good shape, if not better, than many of Christian’s peers.

“You’re looking at his ass, aren’t you?” Lily asked.

Christian almost growled a response until General Winter popped his head back out. “And good morning to your sister as well.”

Christian waited until the door was shut before speaking. “You are absolutely impossible.”

Lily laughed. “God, he said good morning to me. My day is complete.”

“Lily, please,” Christian moaned.

He hadn’t known it at the time, but having his foster sisters come to the base had been a terrible mistake.

It had been four months since their visit, but all it had taken was one glimpse of General Winter for Lily to remember and never let go.

It hadn’t helped that she was the only one to see the lingering look Christian gave the older man, greeting Christian as he’d passed.

“Damn, I wish I got to see that every day. My boss is greasy from head to toe, and I don’t think he knows what a toothbrush is.”

Christian drew up the day’s schedule he’d created the night before. “And on that oh-so-delicious note, I’m afraid I have to bid you good night, dear sister.”

“It’s seven am.”

“Good night to you and the rest of the third shifters of the world.”

“AKA, shut the hell up, Lily, and let me get to work?”

“Something like that.”

“That’s fine. I’ve made it home anyway. I’ll tell Mary to expect a call from you later as I pass her in the living room.”

“Like two ships in the night,” Christian said.

“Well, at least we have you as a lighthouse.”

Christian smiled. “Love you too.”

He hung up, turning his attention back to the rest of his morning routine. Returning messages and fiddling with the schedules for the rest of the week kept him occupied despite the dull ache of loneliness and homesickness that had settled deep in his chest.