A Nickel Trumps a Dime of Fate

AN #1: Thanks for all the reviews guys…I'm enjoying them as much as you appear to be enjoying the story.

AN #2: Evie rides to the rescue…it's off to the woodshed for a major "six" whooping! Hope this explains both Harm and Trish's behavior.

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Part 5

19:30

Sunday, Christmas Eve

24 December 2006

The Burnett Home

La Jolla, California

Evie spent several minutes, outside on the front porch, trying to sort out how the evening had gone so terribly wrong. She, Trish and Mattie had planned the events of the night down to the smallest detail. They were certain the two star-crossed lovers would be a couple before Santa could finish his appointed rounds. They didn't expect an announcement of marriage or an exchange of rings, but a few whispered 'I love you's' and stolen kisses under the mistletoe were well within the matchmakers' realm of possibilities.

Something about her Harmon's behavior just didn't add up. Trish had talked to him two weeks before, and he hadn't mentioned anything about a girlfriend, blonde or otherwise. So how, in the course of two weeks time, does a man show-up with a woman draped on his arm? A woman, who by the way, was willing to spend the Christmas holidays some five thousand miles away from home? Maybe, she could understand him bringing a date to the party, but to travel that great distance with someone who you'd known less than two weeks? Her boy was good, but even he didn't move that fast, especially when said girlfriend was coming home to meet mom. She knew from past experience, he'd rather give up flying than bring a girl home to talk to his mother. Something was definitely amiss in this picture, and she was about to get to the bottom of one devious flyboy.

Arms akimbo and attitude incensed, she headed into the house with a determined stride. Trish met her at the door, inquiring after Mac's hasty departure. Evie explained the less than cordial encounter and pointed out the unwanted interloper. The motherly duo devised a plan and Trish was dispatched to the study.

Evie attracted Harm's attention and waved him over to the side hall. He approached her with a flyboy smile of welcome and a tall blonde in tow. As he neared his substitute grandmother, his smile grew with devotion, "Merry Christmas, Evie…it's wonderful to see you at the party tonight." He pulled Julia to his side, "I'd like you to meet Julia Worthington…she lives next door to me in London." He leaned in to kiss Julia's cheek and then stood up to motion toward Evie, "Julia, this is Evie Dryer…she an old family friend and a surrogate grandmother to me."

Julia extended her hand in greeting, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Dryer. Harm told me you own a bistro, and something about a roasted vegetable salad that I just had to try."

Evie briefly shook the young woman's hand, "I'm sure he did," she scowled at Harm, "…if you don't mind, I need to speak with my 'grandson' a moment."

Julia smiled back warmly, "Not at all, I think I'll just go in search of the food and enjoy the decorations." She nodded her head toward Evie, "If you'll excuse me."

As Julia walked away, Harm looked quizzically at the feisty little woman before him. Clearly Evie was not happy, flashing her a tried-and-true smile, he asked, "Is something wrong? You know we tried to get here sooner, but the flights were delayed."

Evie crooked her index finger at him to come closer. As he leaned down to her level, she pinched his ear between her forefinger and thumb and held on tight. He yelped, both in surprise and pain, before attempting to pull away. Evie held on and tugged with all her 4'-10" height, dragging him toward the study, all the while muttering, "I swear, if there was a woodshed close by…I never once laid a hand on any one of my 6 boys; but young man, if I had a switch in my hand right now, I don't know what I'd do."

Not having a choice in the matter, Harm followed close behind, as she led him to the study. As they crossed the threshold, she released her stronghold. He stood back up to his full height and rubbed his now red earlobe, "Evie, I don't know what's gotten into you, but I need to go find Julia and apologize…"

He was stopped in his tracks by Trish's commanding voice, "Oh no you don't…you're not going anywhere until you explain that little display in the living room."

Before he could form a single word in response, Mattie wheeled into the study, slamming the door behind her, "Harm, what did you do to Mac? She left here in tears…and after all the work we did…"

He stood in the center of the room dumbfounded, "I don't know what's going on around here. A guy comes home to spend Christmas with his family and this is the welcome he gets? Now clearly there was some agenda in place for tonight, and obviously that agenda involved Mac; although for the life of me I can't understand why. I won't even ask what she was doing here, but I can't believe you would so flagrantly flaunt her in my face knowing how I feel."

Evie shook a finger at him, "Young man, the only one flaunting anyone was you. Now, who is that woman hanging all over you tonight?"

He sniped back, "She wasn't hanging all over me and I wasn't flaunting her to anyone."

Evie glared at him with that 'don't start with me buster' look that every mother is endowed with at the birth of her firstborn, "Oh yeah, then what do you call that slobbering demonstration you put on with the blonde?"

"I wasn't slobbering on any…."

Mattie maneuvered her wheelchair into his path, "You brought a woman here tonight? Who is she? You never said anything about being involved with anyone? What about Mac…I thought you were in love with her?"

He backed up from the frightening female trio, "Alright, will all of you just stop for a minute. First of all, the name of the lovely lady that is with me this evening is Julia Worthington. She lives next door…"

Mattie cut him off, "You brought Julia? Why would you bring Julia, I thought you were just friends. I mean, I know she's has the hots for you…but I thought you only loved Mac. You never said anything about the two of you dating; much less being involved…at least not enough to bring her home. Heck, you never even brought Mac home to met Grandma Trish and you loved her. Why in the world would you bring Julia home, especially on Christmas?" She glared at him with a growl.

He scrubbed a hand over his face, "Are you done now, young lady? What I do in my personal life is my business, just who do you think is the parent here?"

Mattie snapped back, "What do you mean just your business? I'm the one that had to watch you mope around for a year and half; and besides, families are supposed to share things…how would you like it if I just showed up with a boy out of the blue?"

Trish cleared her voice, "That's enough, now everyone calm down. Harmon, why didn't you tell me you were bringing a guest home for the holidays? I would have prepared a room, and I certainly wouldn't have invited Sarah to join us this evening."

He waved his hand in the air, "I didn't think…ah, why was Mac here tonight? I mean, if I were her husband I would have wanted her home with me, not gallivanting around and partying with a family she hardly knows. What did she do, leave hubbie at home to watch junior? And how do you know Mac anyways? Did Mattie put you up to this; because after our discussion on Labor Day, I would have thought you would have respected my feelings."

Trish sighed, "Mattie didn't put me up to anything. Mac came into the gallery quite by accident, over the Thanksgiving holiday. I invited her to lunch with Evie and I…we had a lovely time. I only wish you had introduced us much earlier. As for your current date…."

The conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door. Frank stuck his head into the study and opened the door to reveal a nervous Julia. "Harm, could I speak with you for a moment?"

He walked over to the door and placed an arm around her waist, leaning in to whisper, "I'm so sorry about all this. I guess I should have warned them you were coming. Usually, they're much more friendly and welcoming."

She smiled back and responded softly, "It's OK, really it is. I think I might understand what's going on. Anyway, I called my family and my brother is on his way to pick me up and take me back to the house."

Harm shook his head, "No, that's not necessary. I can drive you to your parent's home."

She patted his chest and whispered conspiratorially, "No, this will work out just fine. I think you should take the time to honestly explain what's going on to your family." She placed a kiss on his cheek, pulling back slightly, "And Harm, I think you should really take a closer look around you. I may be the stranger here, but even I can see that things are not as they appear. You need to take the time to listen with your heart not rationalize with your head. Sarah is a beautiful lady who is obviously very much in love with you."

"But she not…."

Julia pulled away and winked, "Listen to your mother, I suspect she has something to say about that." She smiled graciously to everyone in the room, "I'll just take my leave now. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas."

Frank stuck his head back inside, "I'll see her to the door and then be back. Hang in there, son."

Harm walked around behind the desk, "Would someone please tell me what's going on? I seem to be the only one in the dark here."

Trish sighed, "Do you remember when I said I had a lovely girl that I wanted you to meet? Well, Sarah was that girl…I invited her here tonight so that the two of you could work things out."

Wrinkling his brow in confusion, he asked, "Why would we work things out? Don't you think her husband might object to her spending the evening with her former…" he waved his hands around trying to come up with the right descriptor. What were they anyway? Friends, partners, acquaintances…lovers wasn't right, he never knew how to classify what they were to each other.

Trish laid a hand on his arm, "There is no husband…Sarah isn't married."

He fell heavily into the desk chair, "Wha…What did you say? I don't understand, what about that day at the restaurant? The baby…the man…who were they?"

Evie walked over to him, "Sugar, I'm afraid that was all a misunderstanding. The baby was her godson, Benjamin. She was babysitting him for the day, and the man was Benjamin's father. He was picking the baby up to take him back home."

Harm rested his elbows on the desk in front of him and placed his head in his hands. "What did I do? I was so…she must hate me. I didn't want her to think I was pining away. I wanted her to think that I went on with my life."

Evie ran a hand through his hair, "Well darlin, we're just gonna have to find a way to fix this."

He looked back up between Evie and Trish, "Fix this? You think I can fix this? I already hurt her when I walked away the first time; she'll never forgive me. Why didn't you tell me about this sooner? You said you had lunch with her over Thanksgiving…why didn't you say anything?"

Trish shrugged her shoulders, "What would you have done? You hadn't contacted her in over a year. Can you honestly tell me it would have made a difference? Can you honestly tell me that you would have come home for Christmas if you knew Sarah was going to be here?"

He looked away, "I don't know, because I wasn't given the chance to make the decision myself. Instead, my ignorance only made things worse."

Trish shook her head, "Harm, why did you bring Julia home? Are the two of you really a couple?"

He rubbed his eyes, "No, she was a plant?" At his mother's look of confusion, he explained, "I knew you were gonna try to fix me up with someone and I wasn't ready to move on. Julia is my neighbor in London, and she was kind enough to play along in this fiasco. Her family lives here in San Diego. She was coming home to spend the holidays with them. She really is a very nice person, " he sighed, "…and apparently a lot more astute than I am. She picked up on everything immediately."

Mattie wheeled in closer, "So what are you going to do now, Harm?"

He closed his eyes to shut out the overwhelming sense of dread, "I don't know, Mattie. I'm not sure I can fix any of this; I let it go on for too long."

Frank came back into the room, "Harm, Julia left with her brother. She wanted me to tell you that she's OK…and that you should go for it." Harm rotated the chair away from everyone's view; he just wanted to be alone. Frank cleared his throat, "Alright, we have guests to entertain. I think everyone should get back to the party…Trish, Evie…Mattie." When Trish started to object, Frank shook his head, "Go on now, the caterers have been looking for you."

Once the footsteps had faded and the door closed, Harm rested his head against the back of the chair and let the tears fall. This was even worse than back in September, when he thought she'd moved on and gotten married. This time, he'd driven her away for good. He shouldn't have treated her that way; even if he was hurting, he had no right to inflict that pain back on her. She hadn't done anything to deserve his recriminations. There was no way to fix things this time.

He was startled from his thoughts by a firm hand placed on his shoulder. Whirling around to yell at the intruder, he deflated at the look of understanding in Frank's eyes. "How are you doing, son?"

Harm looked away, "Not so…" his voice cracked with emotion.

Frank pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to Harm. "Look Harm, I'm sorry for what happened. I didn't know what the women were up to, but I have to say, I agree with your mother. You're pretty good at running away and ducking emotional issues. If you'd know about Sarah, can you honestly say, you would have come home? I suspect you would have invented a million reasons why you needed to stay in London for the holidays."

Harm glared back, "It should have been my choice."

Frank nodded in agreement, "Yes, it should have…but your mother didn't do it to hurt you. She loves you and just wants you to be happy. I think we can all see how miserable you are without Sarah."

"Yeah well, it's a moot point now. She'll never want to see me again."

Frank sat down on the desk top, "Well son, then you just have to change her mind…make her understand how much you love her."

Harm leaned his head back against the chair and closed his eyes with exhaustion, "Like that's gonna happen."

Frank crossed his arms over his chest, "Well that's a first. I never took you for a quitter. You've always fought for everything you ever wanted or loved…your father, flying, Mattie. So why in the world would you quit when it comes to the one thing you want most…the one person you love most?"

Harm wiped away a tear before it could escape, "This is different…I…it's…what if I fail. I don't know if I could survive, if I let go with Mac and she decided she didn't want me."

Frank stood to pace, "Son, I know it's a frightening prospect to lose control, but what's worse…to try and fail…or to never try and then live with the regret. Did you ever wonder why I married so late in life?" Harm opened an eye at that remark. "I had dated before your mother, you know. I even fell in love once before, but I was afraid to commit and I lost her to someone else. I don't know why the fates smiled on me a second time, but they did. When I fell in love with your mother, I knew that was it…there wouldn't be anyone else who was my perfect equal…who could challenge me and make me this happy. Nothing, and I mean nothing was going to stand in my way," he pegged Harm with a serious look, "…and that included a sullen rebellious teenager. I knew if I wanted Trish, you were part of that bargain, and I was determined to hang in there no matter how many roadblocks you threw in my direction. At first I loved you because you were Trish's son, but with time I grew to love you as my son."

Frank walked back to Harm, "As your father, I want you to have whatever makes you happy. So answer this one question, if you give up and walk away, can you live without your Sarah? Can you honestly tell me that you will be happy without her in your life? If the answer to that is yes, then go ahead, walk away and forget her. But if the answer is no, then you need to go find her, tell her how you feel and make this right."

Harm rolled his eyes toward Frank, "How do you know she loves me? After all that's happened in the last year and a half, how do you know she still cares or that she'll even listen to me?"

Frank shook his head with a sigh, "Son, are you blind? Anyone who stands in the same room with you and Sarah can tell. Hell, your friend Julia was only around the two of you for five minutes and she knew. So, you need to decide what's most important in your life and go for it."

"But I don't even know where to find her," he responded with defeat.

Frank pressed a card into his hand, "That's her address; I'm quite sure you'll find her there. It's Christmas Eve, and holidays are a time for family. Unless I'm mistaken, you're Sarah's family and she's part of yours. So why don't you go get her and bring her home, so we can all spend Christmas together."

Harm nodded and held out a shaky hand, "How come I can fly an F-14 off a carrier, go down at sea, face the enemy…but the prospect of telling the woman I love that I want her for forever, scares the crap out of me?"

Frank rested a hand on his back, "Son, that's because the former only requires you to risk your life, and if you fail, you won't be around to live with the consequences…but with Sarah, you're risking your heart and failure takes on a whole different meaning." He smiled, "But I'll let you in on secret, I have it on the best authority that Sarah is a sure thing…and I've learned that Evie and Trish are a twosome I rarely ever cross."

Harm stood to leave, but Frank stopped him, "Harm, do you need a car."

Harm shook his head, "No, I've got a rental."

Frank nodded with a smile, "Alright then…I'll see you in the morning with my future daughter-in-law at your side."

Harm released a genuine smile, "Goodnight, Frank." He walked through the door, but then turned back, "And thanks, Dad…for now…and for everything."

Frank nodded in acceptance, "Merry Christmas, son."

To Be Continued…