Title: Broken Promises

Author: Tsarina Smith

Rating: PG-13/Maybe an "R" for bad language.

Disclaimer: JAG isn't mine. If it was, nothing after season 8 would have happened.

Spoilers: The whole series is fair game, but there are "spoilers" from my previous story Twenty-Six Weekends. You don't need to read that to understand this, but it might be helpful.

Summary: They had the perfect marriage until Harm makes a mistake that could cost him everything.

Authors Notes: Thank you to everyone who read & reviewed. It is definitely appreciated. I hope you all will continue to do so.

Part Three

The city was surprisingly quiet that evening. Mac drove through the deserted streets trying to organize her thoughts. She couldn't believe this was happening. She knew her marriage wasn't perfect; no marriage was perfect. But she thought that she and Harm were for keeps. She thought that out of all the men she had ever known, he would be the one to keep his promises. The pain she was feeling right now was more substantial than any she had ever known. No physical pain she had ever experienced was as intense as the emotional pain she felt right now. The worst part was she felt she had no one to turn to. Even before Harm was her significant other and her husband, he had been her best friend first. She had always gone to him with everything. And now that tie was severed. She didn't even feel like she could turn to her other friends- their friends. She knew most of them would 'side' with her as the betrayed party. But putting them in that position wasn't fair to them.

Frustrated, she wiped a fallen tear from her cheek and turned her car towards a familiar elementary school. After a five minute drive, she pulled her car into the lot and hesitantly got out, locking the doors behind her. She pulled open the main doors and quietly made her way down the hall. She hadn't been here for a while, and the uneasiness she felt at being here was still as prevalent as it had been when she went to her first meeting many, many years ago. She heard voices coming from both rooms and checked the signs before walking in.

Taking a seat toward the back of the room, she sat there quietly and listened as the others shared their heartaches and victories. After a while, there was a lull in the sharing. Taking a deep breath, she stood.

"My name is Sarah, and I'm an alcoholic."

"Hi Sarah." The group chorused.

She smiled slightly and nodded. "It's been a while since my last meeting. And an even longer time since my last drink. It's been almost five years since my last drink, and if I was ever going to turn to alcohol again, it would be tonight. I just out that my husband slept with someone else while he was out of town for work. He said it was a one time thing and that it meant nothing. I believe him, but it still hurts more than anything else ever has." She took a deep breath and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I'm not sure what is going on with me. I'm normally stronger than this. I have a very high stress job. I work with many powerful people. I don't let things affect me. But my marriage is falling apart and I am so lost and have no clue how to move forward. We have the same group of friends, and I don't want to pull them into the middle of our problems, and I just don't know what I'm going to do."

Mac stopped talking and looked around the room. The sympathetic faces made her feel uncomfortable all of a sudden. She picked up her purse, muttered a quick "thank you" and hurried from the room. Once outside, she collapsed on a bench and buried her face in her hands. She indulged herself for a moment before lifting her head and running her fingers through her hair and leaning back against the wall. She watched the room from across the hall empty out. People leaving and going back to their lives. Jealousy filled her; she felt as if she didn't have a life to return to. As the room continued to empty, she was shocked upon seeing a familiar figure.

"Booth."

Seely Booth looked in her direction at the sound of his name and his eyes widened. "Mac, hey." He walked towards her. "I didn't see you in the meeting."

She used her head to gesture behind her. "I was in that meeting." She smiled slightly at his obvious surprise. "I know, most people are pretty shocked when they find out."

"Is everything okay?"

Mac shook her head, "not really."

He sat next to her and squeezed his shoulder. "Feel like talking about it?"

She tilted her head and glanced at him, before returning her gaze to the wall. "Harm slept with someone else."

Booth's eyes widened and he opened and shut his mouth twice before words managed to come out. "Wow. I wasn't expecting that either. How do you know?"

"He told me." She sighed and leaned back against the wall. "He said it was a one time thing with a woman he met in a bar last night."

"Do you believe him?"

She nodded and twisted her wedding rings around her finger. "I do believe him."

Booth leaned back as well and glanced at her. "What are you going to do?"

Mac shrugged. "I don't have the slightest idea. The thought of my marriage being over makes me sick to my stomach, but how can I ever trust him again after this?"

He didn't respond, sensing that what she needed was to talk; she wasn't really looking for answers. Not from him anyways.

"I just don't understand how this could happen. I know things haven't been perfect, but I thought we were stronger than this. I never, ever pictured this happening to us."

Harm dropped his keys and wallet on the dresser in his hotel room and looked around. 'This is depressing', he said to himself. He sat on the comfortable bed and fell backwards. How in the hell did his life get so screwed up, so quickly. How could he let this happen? Barely before he fell backward, he had a thought and popped back up. He plugged in his laptop and signed into his banks website. He checked his latest transactions and found the name of the bar in California, and then ran a quick search for a phone number. He took a deep breath and pulled his cell phone out of the pocket of his jeans and dialed the number. After two rings, a hurried voice answered.

"Yes, I'd like to speak to someone who was working last night please."

"Dude, I'm here every night. What can I help you with?"

He cleared his throat. "Sir, my name is Harm Rabb. I was there last night and was joined by a young woman. I had several beers that I recall and my bank statement says that I spent 90. I was just wondering if you could recollect what I exactly ordered."

"You're tall, dark hair, was driving a dark gray SUV."

"Yes, that was me." Harm waited a moment for the employee to speak and got nothing. "Sir?"

"Man, you had at least 4-5 beers and then you and the young woman you were sitting with went through an entire bottle of tequila."

He was momentarily speechless. He couldn't believe he had drank that much. At least that answered his question about why he could remember so little. He hadn't drank that much in a very long time. "Thanks for your time." He waited for the other man to acknowledge him and than hung up the phone. He buried his face in his hands massaged his temples. How did he end up here? How did a romance that started out so amazing end up with him sleeping with someone else. He tossed his phone aside and stood up. He had unzipped his bag and began hanging clothes when he heard his phone ring. Logically, he knew it wouldn't be his wife, but couldn't stop the hope that filled him before he glanced at the caller ID. Seeing his mothers name on the screen made his heart hurt all over again. His mother had experienced a cheating husband and the thought of telling her was almost as terrifying as telling Mac had been. Granted the situation was much different, but he saw the pain his father's infidelity and his half brother's existence had caused her. Reluctantly he picked up the phone.

"Hey mom."

"Harm, darling!" He winced at the smile in her voice. "I've been calling the apartment and I tried calling Mac's cell but I got no answer to either."

"Is everything ok?" He didn't need anything else to worry about at the moment.

"Of course, honey. I just needed to speak to my beautiful daughter-in-law about plans for the holidays."

Harm sighed and sat on the bed. "Mom, sit down please."

"What's going on, sweetheart?"

"Making plans for Thanksgiving might be a little premature. Mac and I are having some marital difficulties."

"What happened?" Trish sat on the edge of the sofa and gripped the phone so tight it hurt her fingers. "What kind of marital problems, Harm?"

"I slept with someone else." The other end of the line was completely silent. He waited for as long as he could before asking if she was still there.

"How could you do this?"

"I don't know, Mom. I was drunk and it just happened. I know that is no excuse, but it's all I have right now."

"I'm so disappointed in you, Harmon." She said, her voice trembling. "I can't talk to you right now."

He heard some slight commotion going on and heard Frank pick up the extension.

"Harm, son, what's going on?"

"I'm guessing you heard from Mom."

"Yeah, I did. How are you?"

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "I'm devastated. I can't believe I did this and honestly, I don't know what the hell happened that lead me to this point. Mac and I have had fights before, we've been apart before because of work, but regardless of anything going on, I never would have cheated on her. Ever."

"How is Mac doing?"

"I have no idea." Harm hated the fact that he had no clue how his wife was doing. "I told her tonight when I got home from California. She was understandably upset. She left and asked me not to be home when she got back."

"Where are you staying in the meantime?"

"At a Marriott in Annapolis. I figured if I couldn't be in my home, I could at least be nearer to work."

"With gas prices what they are right now that's a smart move." Frank flipped through his rolodex and pulled out a card. "Harm, I can't say I know what you're going through but don't give up on her or your marriage. Give her the space she needs right now, but fight for your marriage. Can I offer a suggestion?"

"Of course."

"Ask her to go see a marriage counselor with you. You're not the cheating type, Harm. We all know that. There has to be something going on underneath the surface for you to lose complete control and let this happen. So, give her the space she needs right now, but once the pain isn't so raw, ask her to go talk to someone with you."

"Thanks for the advice Frank. Please tell mom I love her."

Frank sighed softly. "I will, Harm. She's disappointed, but she loves you."

"Bye."

"Bye Harm."

End Part 3

I'm not crazy about the lack of Harm/Mac interaction in this part, but I felt they needed to explore what was going on in their heads.

Just for those of you who haven't read Twenty Six Weekends, (and don't watch "Bones") Seely Booth is a character from the show "Bones". Harm and Mac met the gang from that show during one of their activities in that story and Mac developed a friendship with some of the characters. Since his character really does have a gambling problem, I felt like he would be a good outlet for her.