FLASHBACK (to some time after the last story but before this one):

"I had a really good time tonight, Kris. I'm glad you asked me out."

Kristofer Schanz smiled as he looked back into the eyes of the beautiful young woman standing before him. Charlene Montoya. She had once told him that she was a bit of a tomboy, but tonight she looked like a lady. He took another moment to gaze into her eyes as they stared unflinchingly at each other as if playing a game. And if it must be said, in a way, they were...

"Charlene, I--I know it's been somewhat awkward between us ever since that New Year's party," Kris said with an accent that sounded like that of an uppercrust Englishman's but with a peculiarly Northern European flavour to it marking him as a Scandinavian, "but I had a few... issues to deal with at the time."

"I understand, Kris," Charley said with a wink. "Completely."

"Well, I hate to cut short our evening," Kristofer said.

"But...?"

"What?"

"You were going to tell me you have to get up early tomorrow morning for something important, right?" Charley said.

"N-no..." Kris lied, realizing she knew him almost as well as he knew himself. "Well... yes." They chuckled. "But what the hell? I can go without a bit of sleep."

Kristofer Schanz made a big show of offering his arm to Charlene Montoya as he stepped up next to her. "May I request the honour of your accompanying me on a walk down to the Fish Factory, milady?"

Charley moved close to him and took his offered arm, saying in a mock 'Southern Belle' voice, "Why, I do declare, sir! There's nothing like the aroma of dead and rotting fish to spark romance in a lady's heart."

Kris looked at her then, and they both laughed as they began walking towards the beach which would take them towards Del Mar where the company's one-time temporary headquarters was situated. By the time they had walked from the Complex to the beach, they were holding each other's hands and speaking in soft tones to each other about things that were not at all important and yet were.

Reaching the beach, they took off their shoes and rolled their pants up to their knees, wading through the warm Caribbean waves washing gently ashore in regular intervals like the soft beat of a heart.

They spoke of many things. Charley told Kristofer about her immigrant father and the hard life he lived to put food on the table when she and her four older brothers were young. Kris spoke of his relatively normal Swedish upbringing as a single child and his time as a member of the Royal Guard at the Palace in Gamla Stan, Stockholm during his stint in the military.

They were both surprised when they found themselves in Del Mar much sooner than they had expected, the time seeming to fly by much too quickly.

"Well, we're here," Kris said. "The good ol' Fish Factory."

"Whose idea was it again to use this place as a temporary headquarters?" Charley said, laughing.

"Oh, you know what Kit is like," Kristofer said with a smile, "always looking for a good deal."

"Where has he been lately, anyway? I haven't seen Kit much since January."

"He's been busy, I suppose. He was granted custody of his daughters, Denyce and Latisha by the U.S. State Department after they... after they lost their mother. He still drops by the Complex once in a while since he's still part of the company, but it's not the same any longer. Miss X runs a much tighter ship than Kit did, and I think he's a bit embarrassed about that."

"Mmm..." was all Charley said as a response. She was looking wistfully at the Fish Factory before them. Suddenly she turned back to him, her eyes lighting up. "Kris! Do you know where we happen to be standing?"

"Where?"

"Look down."

"Hm? Ooof!" The wind was knocked out of Kristofer Schanz's lungs as he was pushed to the ground by Charley, landing on the green grass lawn outside the Fish Factory. "What--?" was all he managed to say as Charley laid down upon him.

"'I'll tumble for you'? Remember, Kris? This is the exact same place where we were knocked down by Drax at the New Year's party!" Charley was smiling and didn't seem to be making any moves to rise again, her dark hair falling from one side of her head, slightly tickling Kristofer on his cheek.

"I remember," he said in a husky voice. And then he said no more. In the dim light from the moon he could just barely see her eyes as they looked into his own almost beseechingly, craving his touch. Chance gave in to the desires he felt for this headstrong woman he'd been dreaming about for a year now, and he pulled her towards him, kissing her deeply. The grass seemed more comfortable than it should have.

Kristofer Schanz never did get to his bed that night...

END FLESHBACK... er... FLASHBACK [wink]

The thoughts of that evening not long ago passed through Chance's mind presently as he thought about Charley once more. All he wanted now was to get through another damn mission so he could get back to her. After pining away for another man's woman for so long, he had finally found someone who had captured his heart and was willing to give herself to him. He was starting to feel like the Luckiest Man Alive again now that Vanguard's lovely lady-mechanic had entered his life after such a long period of waiting.

And if he found himself distracted from the present as he spoke with Mr. Smith, well, it was only to be expected.