"Cadet Robyn Harmony Latham-Rabb" – Ch05– "Oceanside musings on a future life"

AU: Harm, Bobbi and a shared life

A/N: "they aren't mine, I'm just playing with them - apart from any character created by myself". See Ch 01 for disclaimers.

Summary: this is a fictional story, in a fictional (slightly) Alternative Universe, about fictional characters who entertained us in a fictional TV series between 1995 and 2005. Comments and PMs and suggestions are most welcome; I shall update periodically. Mike

Canon: "The Stalker" (S03Ep17) first broadcast 17-MAR-1998; "Gypsy Eyes" S04Ep01 first broadcast 22-SEP-1998

A/N: published 31-JLY-2021: A restful vacation alongside the Pacific gets our two lovebirds talking about the future - and Mac.

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Ch05– "Oceanside musings on a future life"

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Tuesday 29th December 1998, 10:13hrs PST

Guest suite, Rabb-Burnett home, Hidden Valley, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA

Bobbi had enjoyed three consecutive nights of sleep without disturbance. She had also become completely accustomed to sharing a bed with Harmon Rabb jr. They would fall asleep with his left arm beneath her neck, but by the next morning they would be intertwined, wrapped lovingly together when they woke.

For Harm, this unexpected countdown to fatherhood enabled him to see things clearly. He had been dodging a number of long-term plans. Maybe the Watergate apartment could be better as a base, or should they look into the 'burbs? His apartment was adequate (but, he admitted, mainly as a bachelor pad). It was a great base for him and, when he was called away, it was a simple matter of dumping any spare perishable food and leaving the heating on "low" in the winter. If he returned in the summer, the sensation was reminiscent of a sauna when he opened the door in July or August. Which meant that the apartment – sadly – was not going to be suitable for their child when she arrived.

She? He wondered where that had come from. Bobbi was clear that, for now, she was concentrating on getting to week 14 and concentrating on a healthy pregnancy, before she would even worry about the sex of the baby.

By the middle week, at the mid-point of their sojourn to the West Coast, Harm and Bobbi had settled into a routine. Morning saw a late breakfast (Frank was usually heading out to the golf course by 0830, but Trish was usually to be found pottering about the kitchen or the sundeck, ready to assist her guests if needed).

Harm had been honestly amazed how well Bobbi and Trish got along together. Then he realised that he was blessed by the company of two outstanding women – a consummate politician and an art gallery owner who was used to schmoozing with artists, agents and buyers or prospective clients, many of whom had more money than sense.

Nevertheless, he rejoiced that the two women in his life were getting along so well.

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All this new geometry in his female companionship caused Harm to think of another woman, several time-zones away. His steadfast Marine partner had gone further than any other partner, assisting him that previous summer on his quest into the god-forsaken land beyond the Taiga, to finally affirm that his quest for his father was at an end.

In some respects, closing the quest for his father had enabled Harm to begin to look forward rather than back. Mac had been working alongside him for nearly two years and they had become a very effective partnership. But Mac had her problems; he had been so relieved when the tracking device in Mac's car brought him to the lair of Coster, but the cruelty of the mad detective, pouring vodka down Mac's throat as she sat helplessly immobile, taped to the chair, had broken Harm's heart. She had then suffered as she tried to come to terms with Dalton's death - and the lie which she had told to a dying man.

He knew that, even as Bobbi Latham's husband, he could support Mac and he needed her support (both had willingly given their support to each other in the past).

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After breakfast, Harm and Bobbi took one of the Jeeps and drove down to the beach, parking near the lifeguard station and walking out into the surf.

Bobbi could see that something was bothering her tall aviator, but she decided to let him marinate until he was ready. After all, she had another week here with her gorgeous hunk – and father of her child. Instinctively, she placed one hand gently on her waistline as she took Harm's hand and gently kissed his fingers.

He looked down into her upturned face as the surf splashed around their calves.

"Bobbi, thanks for just being here."

"Yeah, I guessed that you need to think something through."

She turned to face him.

"Look Harm, I am committed to this pregnancy and I am gonna see it through, along (hopefully) with our marriage. If you have doubts about the marriage, or being with me – hell, even acknowledging this child – that's fine. I would love to have you with me – and I would love to be your wife – but do not feel under any pressure."

He took her hand and gently kissed each knuckle.

"Oh heck Robbi, no that isn't it at all. I want to marry you and I want to be there for our baby, our child, our son or daughter through to old age. I think it has just hit me; 1999 will see some big changes."

"Yes it will – stretchmarks for starters so you had better be very good at massaging the cocoa butter into my skin, Mister Daddy! Oh, and my preference would be – beyond a healthy child – ideally a little girl!"

"OK, that's an interesting preference – and hey, it's your body doing the heavy lifting, so sure. But why a little girl?"

She kissed him gently under the chin before replying.

"Because, my dear Mister Rabb, she'd be able to introduce her little brother to the younger sisters of her school friends, all properly vetted."

"You know, Bobbi Latham, I like the way you think."

Just then, his cell-phone pinged. Detaching one hand from Bobbi, he pulled the cell-phone from his shirt pocket and scrolled through the messages.

"Oh, it's from Mac. "Happy New Year and you won't believe how inquisitive Harriet is already, on the basis of a couple of newspaper photographs. Come back safely, Flyboy. Ninja Girl."

He showed the SMS message to Bobbi. She smiled and looked deep into Harm's eyes as she spoke.

"She's a good woman, Sarah Mackenzie. I am glad to know that she has my future husband's back."

"That she does, Bobbi. That she does."

They continued their walk along the surf line, hand in hand, bodies in sync; 1999 was going to be an interesting year.

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End of "Cadet Robyn Harmony Latham-Rabb" Ch05– "Oceanside musings on a future life"

Mike, United Kingdom, 31-07-2021