A/N: I seriously considered having Harm slip in the bathroom on a wet floor at the hospital and have him hit his head again, but I figured I would have a mutiny on my hands if I did that. So…I came up with a different plan to work my thoughts in which will be coming up shortly.

Harm can feel the moisture in his eyes as he can only mutely nod. Why are his emotions all over the place? He's used to being able to keep a tighter lid on them. He idly wonders if it has anything to do with the countless blows to his head or if it is because he is finally "letting go." Either way, it is something he needs to mention to the doctor because this is definitely not normal for him.

Pulling himself together and making a split-second decision, he jumps up, ignoring the minor twitch in his back, and pulls Mac behind him. He heads over to the nurses' station, puts on one of his most charming smiles and politely tells the one sitting there, "Since Captain Armstrong seems to be running quite a bit behind today, can you please call my cell phone when he is ready to see me."

The petite Ensign that just came on duty doesn't glance up as she shuffles through her papers trying to put them in order, offhandedly stating, "You really need to wait here for the doctor. We are not in the business of calling patients when it is time for their appointment."

She is totally unprepared when she looks up into one of the most beautiful sets of blue-green eyes she has ever seen on a man. Adding them to the charming smile and his handsome face along with his velvety voice begging, "Please, I promise I won't leave the grounds. I'm just heading to a bench outside." She can't help but smile and ask for his name. After he provides it, she internally chides herself for flirting with a man that has several stripes on her. She advises him not to take any longer than thirty minutes after noticing on her log that there are still two other patients to be seen ahead of him.

He nods, "I promise. If the doc is ready before I am back, just call me. It wouldn't look very good for a Commander to be late to an appointment with a higher-ranking officer, even when said doctor is running behind."

As Harm and Mac head toward the elevator the nurse glances at her co-worker after spying the beautiful brunette the Commander was holding hands with sighing, "Why are the good ones already taken?"

The Lieutenant chuckles, "This is a hospital, not a bar. You shouldn't be looking at any of the patients as a potential date, regardless of how fantastic they look!"

Mac is trying to keep her cool as she inquires, "Harm, why are we going outside?"

He answers matter of factly, "Because I would like to discuss a couple of things in private before I see the doctor and the waiting room isn't conducive to that. I realize my timing sucks, but it usually does. If I was better at dealing with these types of things, it wouldn't have taken us anywhere near this long to get here."

Harm can feel her hand start to go slack in his as he realizes he must have said the wrong thing again. He abruptly stops, sending her crashing into the back of him with an "Ooph!"

He quickly turns around steadying her with his hands on her hips, "Oh, Baby. I'm so sorry. I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Mac is momentarily stunned by his term of endearment as she rubs her nose. She replies, "Not really. However, my nose might be the same size as yours for the next day or so."

Harm drops his jaw in mock consternation, "Are you implying that I have a rather large honker? And all these years I thought you liked my facial features."

Mac waggles her brows devilishly, "You should take it as a compliment. You know what they say about men with big feet and large noses!"

Stepping into the elevator, he doesn't miss a beat with his response, "Ugh! Gross, Mac!"

Paying him absolutely no mind as she notices they are alone in the elevator, "What?"

He rolls his eyes, "I was just reminded of when you mentioned the size of Dalton Lowne's feet! I don't really wish to be compared to that man!"

Mac chuckles, "What can I say, I tend to be attracted to men who wear a larger than normal shoe. I was half surprised I didn't have to bring out the yardstick back then. But as I reminded you then, a Porsche may be a nice car, but it isn't a Tomcat. And I hate to break it to you, but you have been compared to every man in my life since we met, or more accurately they have been compared to you."

Harm's heart is filled with warmth at her admission. She too has been the standard that he compares women to, all of them falling short. It's nice to know that he wasn't the only one putting his partner on a pedestal. He smiles, "Same here, with all the women. And not a one of them came close."

They find a bench sitting under a large oak tree, and Harm motions for her to sit down before taking a seat next to her. He turns towards Mac, and takes both of her hands in one of his much larger ones, tracing soothing patterns across the tiny bones in the top of her hand. He inhales deeply and feels her tense up immediately. He gives her a soft smile, "Nothing to be scared of, Marine. I love you, and I'm not going anywhere. I just didn't realize how much keeping things bottled up inside was weighing on me."

Mac responds with a somewhat shaky breath, "Harm, you aren't making me feel any better here. What's going on?"

He tightens his grip on her hands slightly, admitting, "I'm nervous."

That surprises her. This man has been in some pretty harrowing situations in his life since they have been partnered, probably more so when he was an active pilot. She prompts, "About what?"

He looks away, muttering, "The doctor giving me the 'all clear' so to speak."

Mac grins widely, the tension immediately seeping out of her as she realizes what he is implying. She has gotten a lot better and reading between the lines with him lately. "I never thought I would see the day that Harmon Rabb would be nervous about hitting the sheets with a woman."

He shakes his head in disbelief, "Me either. Until I met the woman that means everything to me and I don't want to screw it up by moving things to the bedroom faster than we should."

She pulls one of her hands away to softly cup his cheek, "Harm, everything will be fine. And I hardly think that after all these years that anything would be considered 'too fast.' In the same respect, I don't expect you to throw me on the bed as soon as we get home either."

He looks longingly into her eyes, "Even though we have known each other for years, we have just recently crossed that line of something more than friends. While I believe we have an excellent foundation for the future, I just want to handle this relationship the right way. With courting, and little gifts to let you know how much I care, and spending time together like we have this past week. I want things to progress there naturally, not immediately just because we can. Am I making any sense here?"

Her eyes fill with tears at his thoughtful words, "It makes perfect sense to me, Sailor. You've come a long way from the 'dress whites and gold wings will get you into bed anywhere.' This means just as much to me as it does to you. With you, I am risking everything, and I don't want to lose it. It will happen when the time is right for both of us."

He softly brushes the water away from her eyes with the pads of his thumbs and leans in to place a soft, sweet, tender kiss on her lips, "I love you, Sarah."

She follows him as he pulls away for one more kiss, "I love you too, Harm. Now that we are on the same page, do you think we could get back to your appointment? I really would like to be fed at some point today."

Feeling a lot lighter, he pops up off the bench teasing, "You and your appetite! One of these days I will rate higher on your list than food!"

She banters back, "Uh huh. That will happen on the day that I rate higher than an airplane on yours."

Shocked by her remark, he wraps his arm around her waist, turning her towards him, "You already do. Did you really not know that?"

She leans her head in the crook of his neck, "I didn't, but I do now."

He squeezes her a little tighter and any response he would have is interrupted by the large growl coming from her stomach. He tosses his head back in laughter, "Got it, no more serious discussions until later. Appointment to be had followed immediately by an all you can eat buffet."

She pulls away and lightly swats him on the arm, "Watch it, Sailor, I don't eat that much! We'll save the buffet for when I'm carrying your children!"

Harm is left standing there shell-shocked thinking to himself, 'Did she just say what I thought she said?'

Mac is already two steps away from the speechless Harm when she calls over her shoulder, "You coming back inside, Squid?"