Chapter Twenty-Five
Saying Yes To The Dress

WEEK 19-PART TWO
OCTOBER 13TH, 2001

1230 EST
APARTMENT OF SARAH MACKENZIE
GEORGETOWN

Harm had been trying all morning, but Mac wouldn't budge. Not from her decision, or from the bed.

"I'm not going."

"Mac..." Harm started, but he knew there was no use. His marine was doing what any good marine did; standing her ground. Mac was hunkered down in their bed, still in her pajamas, with a pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream one hand, the remote in the other.

He was hoping that she would come around (at least come out of bed) by the time he got back from picking up his dress whites from the dry cleaners. Much to Harm's dismay though, she was still buried under the covers when he returned.

Wednesday night, Harriet was able to lasso Mac into going dress shopping. When Mac returned, Harm didn't need to ask to know that it hadn't gone well. She announced that night that there was no way in hell she was going to the ball and hadn't made any indication of changing her mind since. It was now Saturday afternoon, the ball was six hours away, and Mac was adamant. She was not going.

"Harm, I told you. You can go without me. You're a big boy," Mac said, scraping the bottom of the ice cream carton with her spoon.

"What am I going to tell everyone when you don't show up?"

"Tell them I'm pregnant," Mac shrugged. "That should be a good enough excuse."

Harm rolled his eyes. "This isn't the 1800s, Mac. You don't have to hide from society just because you're pregnant."

"I know I don't have to, but I want to."

"Mac-"

"This is a free country, Harm."

Harm huffed. Mac was the only person who could make him huff. Looking at Mac in mild disbelief, he couldn't believe that this, of all things, was their first big fight as a couple. He thought about giving in. He considered putting on his own pajamas, grabbing the other pint of ice cream in the freezer and joining Mac in bed to spend the rest of the afternoon watching whatever bad reality TV show she wanted to watch.

But he wasn't going to give in. He knew it might be selfish, but he wanted a chance to take Mac out somewhere fancy. This was their chance to make their first grand outing as a couple, and Harm wanted to do everything in his power to not avoid it. He'd already had his dress whites dry cleaned and everything.

Harm gave Mac the illusion that he let her win by leaving her to her own devices in the bedroom. He went into the kitchen to make a few phone calls. He called two people he knew-or at least hoped-could help.

Melinda arrived at the apartment in twenty minutes, Harriet got there in ten. Harriet had giant purple rollers piled high in her hair and Melinda had some sort of eye cream under her eyes. They were standing in the doorway of Mac's bedroom with Harm, observing her intently. She still refused to get up, let alone go anywhere.

"This is interesting," Melinda commented. "I don't usually make house calls. I didn't even do this at my private practice."

Always being the diplomat, Harriet turned to Harm and asked, "Have you tried asking nicely?"

Harm sighed. "Mac, can you please get out of the bed and come to the ball with me?"

Mac looked at him as though he'd asked her (politely) to go skydiving. "No."

"Do you see what I'm dealing with?" Harm turned around to look at Melinda and Harriet. "She's impossible-"

"I'm impossible?" Mac demanded, and Harm cringed. He definitely shouldn't have said that. "You're the one being impossible! You can't take no for an answer!"

"Harm, why don't you step aside and let us handle this?" Harriet asked.

"Yeah," Melinda agreed. "You're really not helping."

Harm put his hands up in surrender, taking a step back. "Fine, but if you two can get her to anything, I'll be shocked."

"If you thought we couldn't do anything, you wouldn't have called us," Melinda replied.

Harm huffed again, making it his second huff of the morning. He leaned against the wall, folding his arms across his chest. As much as he felt Melinda and Harriet weren't going to be successful, they were his only hope. He thought about calling the Admiral, but he had a feeling Mac was sick of hearing men's opinions. In fact, he knew she was.

Meanwhile, Harriet and Melinda were trying their best to help Mac-and not let Harm down, but that was a secondary priority.

"Mac, are you sure you don't want to go to the ball?" Harriet asked gently. "It sounds really fun, you might regret it."

"Harriet, I would love to go, but I have nothing to wear," Mac replied. "You know that as well as I do."

"Have you been shopping?" Melinda asked

Harriet's eyes widened. "Don't-"

"Shopping?" Mac sat up, the empty ice cream carton tumbling over the side of the bed. "Oh I've been shopping, haven't I, Harriet? And was it successful?"

"No…"

"Exactly!" Mac tossed her hands up. "All of the dresses I tried on were hideous, not to mention made me look like a whale."

Melinda sighed, already prepared to throw in the towel. She was supposed to be coaching Mac through her pregnancy and subsequent delivery, not her fashion dilemmas. This was way above her pay grade, not to mention probably a breach of some doctor-patient code of ethics. Harriet, however, was not going to give up so easily. Mac was someone she admired, not to mention her best friend; Harriet didn't like seeing her act so wishy-washy.

"Colonel Mackenzie, I'm surprised with you," she said suddenly. Mac's eyes widened at the use of her official title.

"You've worked so hard to get where you are and gain respect. You can't throw all of that out the window just because you're pregnant," Harriet said. "You know the military is still one big boy's club. I think it would be very valuable for you to show that women in the military can be powerful and pregnant."
Mac looked up at her meekly. "Really?" she asked.

"Uh-huh," Harriet nodded. "So, what do you say, Colonel?"

Sighing, Mac ran her fingers through her messy hair, and for a moment Harriet and Melinda were worried she'd say no.

"Alright," she finally said. "I'll go."

Harriet's face lit up, and Melinda sighed with relief. Mac threw back the covers and sat up. She was wearing her Marine Corps sweatshirt, one of the only non-maternity items she owned that still fit her.

"Okay Cinderella," Harriet said. "Let's get you ready for the ball."

1810 EST
MARRIOTT MARQUIS WASHINGTON DC
WASHINGTON DC

Guests were already filing into the ballroom, but Harm wasn't, because Mac wasn't there yet. The smooth jazz coming from the band within the ballroom wasn't doing anything to soothe his nerves.

"She's never late. Are you sure she didn't bail on you?" the Admiral asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Harm replied. "I think Harriet would tackle her if she tried to escape."

Harm and the Admiral were standing in the foyer of the Marriott Marquis hotel, waiting for Mac. The Admiral didn't have a date, so he was just keeping Harm company until Mac arrived. She wasn't the only one running late. Harriet was with Mac, Bud had a hang up with the babysitter, and Sturgis was apparently stuck in traffic.

So it was just Harm and the Admiral. Waiting.

"Why are you fidgeting?"

"Sorry, sir." Harm abruptly stopped adjusting his bowtie. "I wasn't aware I was fidgeting.""

"You are. Your bowtie is crooked now."

Harm looked down, and sure enough his bowtie was askew. He hastily fixed it, also reaching down to straighten his cumberbund. He would admit it; he was impatient. One of his biggest faults was impatience, hence why he liked jets and cars-anything that went fast. On the occasion that he had to wait for something, his go-to method for passing the time was to fidget.

He couldn't help it. Half of the time he didn't even notice he was doing it until someone else pointed it out. That time it happened to be the Admiral. When he was younger, it had been his mother. Harm would never forget one occasion in particular, on the day Trish and Frank got married.

Harm was twelve at the time and had no knowledge of the fact that weddings could take a while. The morning of, Harm spent roughly four hours waiting for things to get started. It was the second time in his life he was wearing a suit, the first time being to his father's funeral. Thankfully, Trish and Frank decided to have the wedding in the backyard rather than in a church, so at least Harm didn't have to pass the time in the stuffy back room of a church. He was still bored, though.

When one of Trish's friends found Harm to tell him that it was finally time for the wedding to start, his dress shirt was untucked, his hair was ruffled, and his tie had become completely undone. Needless to say, it wasn't a very good luck for the best man. When Trish got to the end of the aisle, she stopped dead in her tracks and said, "Harmon" in that way that only his mother could say his name.

"Was she able to find a dress?"

Harm looked up at the Admiral with a shrug. "I hope so."

The Admiral's eyebrows shot up. "She doesn't have a dress?"

"As of this morning, she didn't."

"And she wasn't freaking out?"

"You know Mac," Harm said. "She's calm under pressure," he decided it was best not to mention the meltdown Mac had earlier that day.

The Admiral nodded, even though he knew Harm was only telling half the truth. He knew Mac was resourceful; but she was also a planner. He seriously doubted she would wait until the last minute to find a dress. He wouldn't dare say anything though; he made it a point to know as little as possible about the personal lives of those who served under him.

"So, I see they're letting everyone in here," a voice came from behind them. "I thought this party was supposed to be exclusive."

Harm and the Admiral both turned around. Harm's eyes widened. "Keeter?"

Keeter beamed as he came strolling up. "How's it going, Harm?"

The two of them shook hands. The Admiral gave Keeter a strange look, wondering how he'd gotten an invite to a JAG gala. "It's going well," Harm replied. They hadn't seen each other in person since Keeter's plane crash in Iran, so them showing up to the same function completely by chance was a welcome surprise.

"Admiral, how are you?"

AJ shrugged. "I'm as a good as I can be," he replied dryly, biting his tongue to keep from asking Keeter why he was there. If he was anything like Rabb, he probably didn't even know how he got there.

Harm looked over Keeter's shoulder in search of whatever girl-of-the-month he brought with him as his date. They may not have seen each other in person, but Harm had kept up with Keeter enough through email and phone calls to know that Keeter still had no intention of settling down. Harm was in position to judge; if it wasn't for Mac he'd still be a bachelor himself.

"Where's your date?"

Keeter shook his head. "Don't have one. Decided to fly solo this time."

Harm raised his eyebrows. "Really?" he asked in surprise. "That's a first."

"Looks like it's a first for you too," Keeter replied. "I don't see your reporter around here anywhere."

"Oh," Harm paused, trying not to grimace. Ever since him and Mac got together, giving his best friend updates on his life hadn't been at the forefront of his to-do list. Harm and Keeter had a habit of having an unreliable correspondence. They would send up to twenty emails back and forth during one month, then go six months without saying so much as a word to each other.

"Renee?" Harm asked. "We're not together anymore."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Keeter asked, the hurt evident in his voice and expression. What Keeter would never admit to was that their poor communication wasn't Harm's fault. Harm only struggled with communicating his feelings.

"The last email I sent you was five months ago, and you didn't answer it."

"Oh," Keeter frowned. "Who is your date, then?"

Harm smirked. "It's a surprise."

Keeter had been on Harm about confessing his feelings for Mac ever since Iran. Keeter was probably the only person that knew how deeply Harm's feelings ran for Mac. It was his job as Harm's oldest friend to be privy to all of Harm's issues. Well, Harm's feelings for Mac were no longer an issue, as Keeter would soon find out.

"It's not a surprise anymore," the Admiral said. "Look."

Harm turned around and, completely giving into the cliche, saw a sight that took his breath away. Mac always looked gorgeous, but there were certain times, like this time, when she left Harm absolutely speechless.

Mac was wearing a gorgeous, off the shoulder gold gown with a plunging neckline. The gown's a-line skirt draped elegantly over her bump and the shimmering fabric made Mac look like she was actually glowing. Harm knew it was too juvenile of a compliment to say out loud, but he thought that Mac looked like a princess.

Despite noticing Harm's slack-jawed expression, Keeter wasn't able to put two and two together. "Damn, her and Brumby didn't waste any time, did they?" he murmured to Harm.

Harm peeked over his shoulder at his best friend and gave him a grin that explained everything. Keeter's eyes widened.

"You sly bastard," he said before he could remember that he and Harm were standing within earshot of an Admiral. AJ didn't say anything, though. He just turned his head in the other direction and pretended he couldn't hear. He might be JAG, and he might be in his dress whites, but AJ was considering himself off duty. It was a Saturday night, after all.

"Who's sly?" Mac asked when she reached Harm and Keeter.

"No one," Harm answered, slipping one arm around Mac's waist and gently pulling her closer to him. Her hair had been curled into soft waves swept away from her face, and her makeup was done nicely. It wasn't Mac's usual makeup look for formal events (Harm spent enough time with Mac's face to know how she did her makeup for different events) so it must've been done by a professional. He had a feeling Melinda and Harriet had been pretty busy that afternoon.

"Mac, you remember Keeter, right?" Harm asked.

"Uh-huh," Mac nodded. Turning to Keeter, she said. "It's nice to see you again. You haven't changed at all."

"You have," Keeter said. The looks he got from Harm and the Admiral made him quickly correct himself. "You've gotten even more beautiful, I mean."

Harm looked at Keeter as if he'd lost his mind. After this morning, the last thing Mac needed was for someone to comment on how 'different' she looked. Mac, however, took Keeter's comment a lot lighter than Harm did. She laughed at Keeter's sheepish expression and how puffed up Harm had gotten-fully prepared to defend her honor, even from his best friend.

"Thank you Keeter," she said with a smile. "You don't look too bad yourself."

Keeter visibly relaxed, knowing that he hadn't gotten on the bad side of Lt. Colonel Mackenzie-someone he certainly did not to be on the bad side of. Harm was still eyeing him with apprehension, until Mac kissed him on the cheek. It was her way of telling him to stand down

"Yeah Harm, you didn't tell me you were dating Aphrodite," Keeter said.

Harm deemed that a good enough recovery. He shrugged and replied. "I wanted it to be a surprise. And anyway, Mac's always been a goddess."

She giggled, nudging Harm with her shoulder. "Harm, stop it."

The Admiral cleared his throat. "Well, I think I'm going to head into the ballroom," Seeing Harm and Mac being all lovey-dovey was enough to melt his Admiral-persona, something he didn't want to happen in public.

"You don't have a date, Admiral?" Mac asked. The Admiral only laughed in response.

"Don't worry, sir," Keeter said as he followed after him. "I'll save the last dance for you."

That time everyone laughed except the Admiral. The Admiral and Keeter headed into the ballroom, leaving Mac and Harm alone in the hall.

Harm, taking Mac into his arms, looked down at her and said, "Don't punch me for this, but you're glowing."

Mac smirked. She ran her fingers over the medals on his suit jacket. "You are too."

"Pre-fatherhood glow?" Harm asked with raised eyebrows.

"Yep."

He grinned. "Melinda and Harriet really outdid themselves," he placed one of his hands on Mac's bump. "Looks like you have two fairy godmothers, huh?"

Mac rolled her eyes affectionately. She should've known the princess comparisons wouldn't stop with Harriet's comment. "Sure," she said dryly. "I'm a regular Cinderella, only I didn't come in a pumpkin, I have it with me," she glanced down at her bump. She received a small flutter in response.

Harm chuckled. "Still. You look stunning."

Mac noticed his gaze drift downward. At first she thought he was looking at her bump, but then she realized his gaze was targeted at another area. She followed his gaze down to her neckline. "Harm."

He blinked and looked up. "What?" he asked innocently.

"My eyes are up here," she told him.

"Oh. Oh," Harm was suddenly blushing fiercely. "Sorry. It's just-you really look stunning Mac. I mean seriously."

Mac snorted. She had been a little self conscious to wear a low cut dress, but she'd agreed to it at Harriet and Melinda's urging. Now that she was wearing the dress, she had to admit that Harriet and Melinda were right. She looked good, damn good, and she was secretly glad Harm was appreciative of her stylistic decision.

"Thanks," she replied. "Chalk it up to the wonder of pregnancy. Do you wanna head inside now?"

As Harm and Mac headed into the ballroom, Harm looked over his shoulder, frowning when he didn't either one of Mac's 'fairy godmothers.'

He looked back at Mac. "Where are Melinda and Harriet?"

"Harriet forgot her purse, and Melinda's waiting for her date."

"Oh," Harm said. "Who's her date?"

Mac shrugged. "Some Marine Colonel."

"Did she say who?"

"Nope."

1840 EST
MARRIOT MARQUIS HOTEL
WASHINGTON DC

Mac was very pleased to find that pregnancy didn't stop her from being light on her feet. She was still able to keep up with Harm as they waltzed around the dancefloor. Even though Mac was barely past the halfway mark of her pregnancy, her feet already had a tendency to swell, so wearing heels was a little more uncomfortable than what she was used to. But Mac wasn't about to let her feet ruin her night, at least for the first hour.

"I hate to admit it, but you were right."

Harm's eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

"Yeah," Mac nodded. "This was a good idea."

Generally, Mac was a pretty confident person, but she'd recently forgotten that confidence. If she knew that all she needed to feel like herself again was to put on a nice (maternity) dress and get her makeup and hair professionally done, she would've been a lot less reluctant to go to this ball. For the first time in a while, Mac felt like Mac. Not only that, but she felt damn good.

Who says I can't be hot while I'm pregnant? She thought to herself with satisfaction.

"Think we'll win the award for best dressed couple?" Harm asked, giving Mac his signature Flyboy grin.

"I didn't know there was a contest," Mac replied. She did a quick scan of the room, looking at the men in dress uniforms and women in gowns of various different colors. "People are staring at us."

"They are? I didn't notice."

Mac smirked. "That's because you're too busy staring at me."

It was true, her and Harm were getting some looks, and had been getting looks ever since they walked in. But it didn't bother Mac. She knew they were staring just because she was pregnant, which didn't necessarily mean they were staring because she looked bad being pregnant. Mac wasn't used to being the center of attention, but for that night, she decided to bask in it.

People were also staring just because Harm and Mac were who they were. Other than Chloe, Trish and Frank, no one outside of JAG knew Harm and Mac were together prior to that night, let alone that they were expecting. So it was quite a shock to a lot of people that Commander Rabb and Lt. Colonel Mackenzie were going to have a baby. Harm and Mac were too busy dancing to have anyone come up to them and ask them about it, which they were both grateful for. Looks they could weather easily, words were a little more dicey.

"You know," Harm said. "I have a surprise for you."

Mac arched an eyebrow. "Oh really? What is it?"

"I can't tell you. Then it wouldn't be a surprise."

They turned around, so Mac was facing towards the ballroom entrance. While peering over Harm's shoulder, Mac caught a glimpse of lavender and someone-two people actually, that she recognized. It wasn't the sight of Melinda that surprised her so much, but who she was with.

Harm soon noticed Mac's wide-eyed expression. "What?" he asked, his brow furrowing with concern. "What is it?" he looked down to make sure he hadn't accidentally stepped on her foot.

"Melinda's here."

"Oh…" Harm paused. "Is that bad?"

"No, but look who she's with."

Harm led them into another turn as discreetly as possible. It took him a minute to track down Melinda and her date, but once he did, it took everything in him to keep his mouth from dropping open.

"Is that-"

"Farrow?" Mac nodded. "Yeah. It is."