Vacations were for other people, he decided. Commander Rowan Hale had followed orders. He’d arrived on Earth and checked into a nice little bed-and-breakfast at the base of the Grand Tetons. The pile of PADDs he’d carried with him was full of documentation, manuals, ship schematics, and whatever else he thought would make for good studying material. It hadn’t taken a few days before his comm badge chirped with a message.
Commodore Geronimo Fontana needed to have a word. It turned into several words over an hour, where Hale learned his assignment had changed to the USS Denver. He would be her eighth commanding officer in just over thirty years. Rowan sat on the porch of his cabin at the far end of the property, enjoying a fresh cup of coffee. The Grand Tetons loomed high into the blue sky, the air crisp. Snow still scattered across the peaks, the cragged rock outcroppings reminding all that nature still ruled these lands. The other five cabins held families eager to explore the park’s natural beauty and admire the inspiring, awe-inspiring, and fear-inducing mountain spires. Hale had dabbled in mountain climbing. The sight of the Tetons from this distance was enough to convince him to leave that hobby firmly in the past and him on terra firma.
He heard the faint rumbling of a shuttle in the distance, irked to find a Starfleet transport settling down across the way. He became annoyed when he read the markings. A shuttle from the Denver? Fontana had made it clear he wasn’t expected on the ship for a few weeks. Most of the crew was on leave across the planet and the Sol System. A striding figure soon appeared, a shock of dirty-blond hair bobbing along. He strained his eyes and muttered, “For crying out loud.” The figure reached the path to his cabin and stood at the end, wiping her forehead. She clearly hadn’t prepared for July in Wyoming.
“Commander Hale, I’m Lieutenant Grace Albright.” She stood at attention, and he immediately waved her off. She seemed uneasy at the motion, but still relaxed.
“At ease, Albright. I know who you are. What the hell are you doing here?” He took a sip of his beer, shifting back and forth gently in the rocking chair.
She kicked at the ground, nervous. “I…uh, I wanted to meet you. Sir. Fleet Captain Crawford was my first starship commander.” She winced at his glance, and he wasn’t sure why. Albright sighed. “I just…I wasn’t sure what to do, sir.”
Hale gestured to the twin chair to his right. “Drinks are in the cooler. First , have a seat. Second step: get a bottle.” He watched her hesitantly step forward until she stood at the cooler, eyes wide at the choices. She gingerly picked a local brew and ambled over to the chair and delicately sat down in it. “Good.” He tossed her a bottle opener and waited for the hiss and the clink. “Now drink.” She took a small sip, frowned, and took another. He asked, “Well?”
Grace took a third pull and examined the ornate label. “That’s real alcohol.”
Hale let out a chuckle. “Welcome to Wyoming.” He sipped at his bottle for a few minutes, enjoying the blackberry notes. He set his bottle on the ground and turned back to Albright. “I read your dossier this morning. Seeing you here shouldn’t have been a surprise.” Her blank look required him to explain further. “You work hard, Albright. You don’t know how to turn it off.” He gestured to the natural beauty all around them. “You didn’t even give the Tetons a look when you walked up.” He leaned forward in the chair as the wood groaned. “What do you see?”
She blinked. Twice. She turned and faced the mountain range that had earned the title ‘grand’. Hale watched her take a moment and saw a slight change in her posture. A little wider eyes, and her mouth dropped slightly open as her eyes searched the sights before her. More minutes passed until she turned back to him. “It’s incredible, sir.”
Hale smiled widely. “We’re off duty, Albright. You can call me Rowan or Hale. Whatever boot fits.” He sat back in the chair, satisfied that he’d taught her something. “I was born in Washington, but my parents moved us out to Wyoming when I was five years old. We lived an hour away from this,” he nodded to the Tetons, “and I never miss a chance to sit here and enjoy the sights.” He tossed the empty bottle into the trash and kicked open the cooler, rooting around until he found another.
She sipped at her first beer until she felt confident enough to ask, “Sir…I mean Rowan. I’ve heard about you. They say nobody can outwork you.” She clinked her bottle with her tightly trimmed nails.
He chuckled softly, eyeing her with curiosity. “You do your research. The funny thing about those ‘they’ is that they never got invited on trips like these. I know how to work hard, Albright. I also learned that shore leave means shore leave. Denver will be there when it’s time to take the center chair. This moment? You don’t always get the chance to be here.” He pushed out of the chair. “The cabin’s got two rooms on opposite sides of the living room. You’re going to learn how to take a proper shore leave, Albright.”
She stood, confused. “Sir, I have-”
Hale opened the door to the cabin, shaking his head. “I can make it an order. Have Denver send down whatever you need. Whatever you don’t have, Charlene at check-in is a former quartermaster. She’ll get you covered. Whatever it is, it can wait.” He waited for her to nod before he entered the cabin, leaving the door open behind him. “How do you feel about burgers on the grill for dinner?” he called from inside the house. Grace blew a quiet raspberry, but followed her new commanding officer into the cabin.
