Chapter 21
"Not move in, Tony, just someone to help out until I can care for the babies on my own."
"Sure, that's what I meant! I can help out, and go to the store and things like that! So how soon are you going to be out of here?"
"Dr. Wood said that if I continue to do well, I could go home as soon as Thursday or Friday," Kara told him.
Tuesday, 16 May 2002
1300 EST
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
AJ sat looking at the lollypop tree that Kara had given him for a long time, before making a decision. He took the card off of it and stored it carefully in the top drawer of his desk. There was no way he wanted the staff speculating on the meaning of her words.
"Tiner, come in here." When PO Tiner stood in front of the Admiral's desk, he pushed the lollypop tree to the edge of the desk. "Put that in the break room."
"But, Sir, it was a gift!" The look that the Admiral gave him at this comment had Tiner shaking in his shoes. "Right away, Sir!" he said, picking up the gift and leaving the office.
A short time later, AJ headed to the break room for another cup of coffee. He was not expecting the sight that met him in the bullpen. Nearly everyone there had a lollypop in his or her mouth! He moved quickly through the bullpen to enter the break room, where he found Colonel Mackenzie unwrapping a pink lolly and running her tongue over it.
"Yum! Pina Colada!" she exclaimed, taking another long slow lick of the sucker. "Oh Sir! I'm sorry I didn't see you come in."
"As you were, Colonel," AJ told her.
"Thank you for sharing your special treat with us, Sir."
"Think nothing of it, Colonel. There is no way I could have eaten all of them anyway."
"I know what you mean. They are so big, it would take a long time to finish one," she replied with another slow lick.
AJ's mind went back to Kara doing that very same think to the head of his penis, and he felt himself begin to harden. Excusing himself as quickly as he could he left the room without even getting his coffee. In the bullpen, he almost ran into Harriett, who also had a lolly stuck in her mouth.
She removed her yellow sucker to say, "Thank you, Sir, for the suckers. This lemon one is so tart and tangy. They are so big, that I could suck on one of these all day."
Groaning at the tightening in his pants, AJ brushed passed her and nearly raced into his office.
Giving his retreating back an odd look, Harriett shrugged and went back to work and the enjoyment of her sucker.
Tuesday, 16 May 2002
2200 EST
Bethesda Naval Hospital
Maryland
That evening, Dr. Wood dropped by to once again tell her that if she needed pain medication to use it. But since it had been twenty-four hours since she had any she was allowed to nurse for the first time. Tony, who was there when Jeremy wanted to be fed next, could not take his eyes off of her.
His stares made her uncomfortable so she asked, "Tony, why are you staring?"
Thinking quickly he told her, "It's because you are so beautiful doing that! I mean you had great breasts before, but now…WOW!"
"Um…thank you, I guess," Kara replied, still a bit uncomfortable, but it felt so good to finally be able to nurse her babies that she tried to ignore it.
Wednesday, 17 May 2002
1100 EST
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
The TV's were on in the bullpen as usual that day, at 1100 EST, there was a special news bulletin. Senator Randolph Ramsly was holding a press conference. The volume was turned up, and all worked stopped as the staff watched to see what he had to say. Tiner took a minute to let the Admiral know what was happening. AJ elected to watch in his office rather than joining the others in the bullpen.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you all for coming here today. I would like to start off by offering my deepest apologies and sympathies to Ms. Wyatt for what my wife had done to her. Sybil has suffered three nervous breakdowns in the past several years, the most recent was just after the Pentagon was hit on 9/11, killing our only son. The loss of Jeremy and his beloved wife was just too much for Sybil. When she was finally released from the sanitarium, just three weeks ago, and discovered that there was still a part of our son alive in the unborn children Ms. Wyatt was carrying, Sybil just lost control and felt she had to have Jeremy's babies. She is getting the help she desperately needs at this time. Once again, I would like to offer my heartfelt regrets about all that has happened. I hope that someday Ms. Wyatt will be able to find it in her heart to forgive Sybil for what she has done. Thank you, that is all I have to say. No…no questions at this time…"
Senator Ramsly picked up his notes and walked back into the building he had been standing in front of. The reporters where still shouting questions at his retreating back, when the announcer took over to recap the Senator's speech.
1500 EST
By the middle of the afternoon, everyone in the office could feel it, everyone was talking about it, but no one could put his or her finger on the reason for it. There was a pall over the entire office staff, an air of gloom hung over them that you could almost see. It was as if storm clouds were gathering overhead and no one knew why.
It was not until 1530 when the Admiral came through the bullpen that Harriett realized what the problem was.
Tiner jumped to his feet as usual when the Admiral came out of his office, "Admiral on deck!" he called.
The Admiral usually replied with 'As you were', but this time he strode through the room as if it were empty, leaving everyone standing at attention. When he came back through the bullpen from the break room a minute later with a full mug of coffee, everyone was still at attention. Admiral Chegwidden didn't even notice.
Harriett now knew that it was the Admiral's mood that was causing the gloom hanging over the office, and by the chatter that broke out, when the Admiral's office door closed behind him, so did everyone else now. Electing herself to go and talk to him, she went over to Tiner's desk and asked to see the Admiral.
"Do you really want to go in there, Ma'am?" Tiner asked. "He is not in a very good mood."
"Yes, Tiner, that's why I need to see him."
A few seconds later, she heard the Admiral say, "Send her in." over the intercom. She smiled at Tiner and knocked softly on his door.
"Enter."
She did, and walked up to his desk waiting for him to look up.
He never did, he just said, "Yes, Lieutenant?" while still reading the papers in front of him.
"Sir, I was wondering if you wanted to talk about what it is that seems to be bothering you?"
"And why would I want to do that, Lieutenant?"
"Because your mood is affecting everyone in the office, and we are all concerned about you."
Still without ever having raised his eyes to look at her he said, "I am fine, Harriett, really. You can go now."
"Begging your pardon, Sir, no, I can't. I not only want to help, I need to! You have done so much for Bud and I, and I wanted to return the favor."
Finally, his eyes lifted from the paperwork and met hers. "Unnecessary, Lieutenant. Anything I have done has been because I consider you and Bud like family. I do not expect anything in return."
"But that is what family is for, Sir! To help when someone needs it! Please talk to me! Let me help."
"There is nothing that can be done, Harriett. I have given my word, and now will just have to live with the results."
"This has something to do with Commander Wyatt, doesn't it, Sir?"
"You are not going to give up on this are you, Lieutenant?"
"No Sir, I'm not," Harriett said.
AJ sighed, resigned to having this conversation that he most certainly did not want to have. "Sit down, Lieutenant."
Harriett pulled a chair up closer to his desk and sinking into it.
"All right, why do you think my mood has something to do with Commander Wyatt?"
Harriett lifted her hand and began to tick off her reasons for thinking that. "You had dated her at least twice when you asked advice on Friday, you were seeing her that evening by your own admission, you are were planning on bringing her to our home on Mother's Day, you were beside yourself with worry when she was missing, you never left her side in the hospital for a minute, and then all of a sudden, out of the blue, you leave the hospital and don't go back."
AJ sat across from her, his fingers tented in front of his face, staring at her in amazement, "Impressive, Lieutenant."
"Thank you, Sir! Now, what was it that caused you to stop seeing Commander Wyatt?"
"Harriett, it's complicated."
"Love often is, Sir."
"Who said anything about love?" AJ demanded.
"It's in your eyes every time her name is mentioned, Sir."
"I did not know that I was that transparent."
"Oh, Sir, you're not. I only see it because I love you!"
To be continued…