"Mac, let's get through the door first," Harm chuckled as she tried to remove Morgan from his carrier on the front porch. The retired Marine sent him a cool glare and continued to free the baby anyway. She tucked the newborn against her chest and walked into the house. Harm grabbed the empty carrier and followed after her.

"This is your home, Morgan," Mac whispered, pressing her lips to her son's downy head. "And there is nowhere in the world you will be safer than right here," she added. "You might have gotten off to a rough start, but your dad and I already love you so much and we are going to do everything we can to make sure it only gets better from here on out."

Harm felt his breath catch in his chest. He thought he'd seen Mac in her element as a lawyer, but this… She looked almost otherworldly standing in the middle of the home she had made for them cradling the baby both of them had almost given up hope of ever having. In that moment, he saw the rest of his life laid out before him. Morgan running around, a yet to be determined number of siblings chasing after him, their laughter filling the house. He saw holidays and birthdays, family trips, and quiet nights at home with movies and popcorn.

"Harm?" Mac's soft voice pulled him from his musings. She tilted her head questioningly. "You ok?"

He swallowed past the lump in his throat and blinked back the unexpected tears pricking the back of his eyes. "Yeah, better than ok," he grinned, closing the distance between them. He reached up to tuck a stray hair behind her ear. "I love you, you know that?"

"Well, now I know," she chuckled. Harm playfully rolled his eyes. It wasn't like she was exactly forthcoming in the last nine years. At least not all the time. "And I love you too."

He gripped her chin and pulled her in for a sweet kiss. Mac slid her free arm around his waist, keeping him close. He circled her with his arms, tucking Morgan between them.

"It's wild to think that six weeks ago we were living completely different lives," she mentioned.

"Not completely different, we at least knew each other," he chuckled, the sound rumbling through his chest.

"You know what I mean," she chided. And he did. When he thought about it too long, it made him uneasy like he was living in a dream and eventually he'd wake up.

"Either way, I think I like this life better," he replied, his voice thick with the emotion he'd pushed back earlier.

Mac blinked up at him for a moment, then glanced back down at the baby. "Yeah, me too," she concurred. Harm pressed a kiss to the top of her head and released a contented sigh.

The one advantage to Morgan's six weeks in the hospital was the fact he was used to a routine. It didn't mean he slept for more than an hour or two at a time and didn't need to be fed or changed every time he was awake, but at least his needs were predictable. The only problem was after four days of interrupted sleep, neither Harm nor Mac could remember what part of the routine they were on, add in random fits of overstimulation and constant calls from well-meaning family willing to offer advice and they were just as lost as every other set of new parents.

Harm laid in bed counting the minutes until his alarm went off. Mac had gotten up with Morgan about an hour earlier and he never really got back to sleep. He was expected at the office in a little over an hour. With that thought, he tossed back the covers and padded toward the shower.

As he squared away his uniform, he could faintly hear his son fussing in the other room. He took one last look at himself in the mirror before going to assist his wife.

"He need changed?" he offered by rote, figuring it was about that time.

"Well, um…" Mac started, causing Harm to actually look at her.

"Oh, it looks like you need to change too," he replied with a chuckle as he noticed the amalgamation of bodily fluids splattered across her t-shirt. Morgan was similarly covered and growing more irritated by the second. Harm grabbed the swaddling blanket off the counter and wrapped it around the messy wriggling child before taking him from his wife. "I'll clean him up. You go grab a shower," he directed.

"But, your uniform…" Mac protested, eyes flicking towards his crisp dress whites. "and I don't want to make you late on your first day back."

Harm waved her off. "Go shower, Mac," he pressed. It was going to be her first day alone with the baby, the least he could do was let her start the day not smelling like spit up. Plus, he was the boss now. He wasn't late, everyone else was just early.

By the time Harm got Morgan to the changing table, the baby was in a full out cry. His tiny face was bright red and his limbs were splayed in all directions.

"Morgan…" he crooned. "You're ok." He fished a pacifier out one of the drawers and stuck it in the boy's mouth, applying slight pressure with his finger until Morgan started to suckle. "That's better," he smiled softly at his son. He eased Morgan's soiled clothes off, wiped him down with a warm wash cloth and changed his diaper.

Harm took great pleasure in putting Morgan into one of his multitude of Navy themed outfits. He knew by the time he got home that evening, the baby would be back in Marine greens, but he took advantage at every opportunity.

Once Morgan was clean, dry, and redressed, Harm laid the now content boy against his shoulder. While Morgan snoozed, Harm started a fresh pot of coffee for Mac.

"You better get going or you're going to be late," Mac announced as she walked into the kitchen, towel drying her hair. Harm studied her for a moment. Her face was tight with anxiety and there were dark smudges under her eye. They settled so quickly into a routine that he nearly forgot it had only been five days since they brought Morgan home. They were still very new at this.

"I can stay…" he offered. She waved him off.

"No, Harm. We'll be ok," Mac assured him, rolling onto her toes to press a quick kiss to his lips.

"Then I guess I should get going," he spun on his heel towards to door.

"Do you maybe want to leave the baby with me?" she teased. Harm looked down at Morgan still sound asleep against his shoulder.

"Oh, right," he stammered, color dusting his cheeks. They executed a careful transfer of the sleeping baby, Mac settling him easily in her arms. Harm was once again distracted by the sight. He wasn't sure he'd ever get tired of watching Mac with the baby.

"Harm, go," she urged, noticing his distraction.

"Ok, ok," he broke out of his reverie and threw up his hands in mock defense. "If you need anything, I'm only a phone call away," he reminded.

"Yeah, yeah," she grinned. "Try not to call more than once an hour, Captain. I'm gonna have my hands full," she added knowingly. Harm stuck his tongue out at her. "I love you, now go" she chuckled, playfully shoving his shoulder.

"Love you too," he replied quickly, pressing a kiss to her cheek before taking his leave.