Sorry for the short chapters. Two kids, two dogs and husband tend to keep
me hopping!
R/R pls
Jungle in Paraguay
It was two hours and sixteen minutes later when Harm returned to the shack. "Mac?" he called softly.
"Yeah?"
"We have to get moving." He tossed her shoes to her. "Saddiq's men are on the move." After he helped her down he pressed two foil packets into her hand. She gave him a questioning look. "Airline peanuts," he answered.
The rain may have let up, but the surrounding foliage was heavy with moisture. Soon they were soaked again and chilled in the morning air. After noticing Mac was shivering Harm took off his jacket and wordlessly draped it around her shoulders. Mac tried to catch his eye with a smile, but he refused to look at her. She wasn't sure what hurt more; the silence or that he wouldn't look her in the eye. It disheartened her that things seem to be falling into the same old pattern for them, she was hurting him and he was withdrawing from her. This time something was different though, he had an air of resignation about him. She wanted to say something, anything, to bring back her best friend, but she knew it wouldn't be so simple anymore. This thing between them, whether it be love or something else, had taken on a life of it's own and there could be no going back to the way things used to be. Like it or not, they could never be just best friends again. The question now, was she ready to take a leap of faith?
"Harm, we need to talk."
To his credit he didn't even lose stride. "Now if I had a dollar for every time one of us has said that and didn't do it, I'd be a wealthy man."
"We should have made time." She persisted
"If I recall correctly, there has always been a third party involved." He barely tried to contain the acid in his tone.
"Let's do it now."
"Why?" he stopped and faced her. "You and I are something aren't we? I'm too afraid to commit and you're just too damn afraid NOT to commit. I guess it's a good thing we never connected, I might have come home to find you committed to the milkman."
Before she knew it was happening her left hand connected with the right side of his face. "Damn you, Harmon Rabb! I love you and I think I always have. I can't remember what it's like to not be tortured by it. I tell you how I feel and you toss me aside. I find someone and try to have a life and suddenly you're Mr. Sensitive. I am so tired of waiting for you to come around. I want babies, and pretending to be pregnant has only made me realize how much. I can't wait around forever so if I can't have the man I love at maybe I should just settle for one that loves me." She was breathing heavily as she turned away from him. When he didn't say anything she turned to look at him again. He stood rubbing a red and swollen cheek, the look in his a mixture of confusion and regret.
"What about Webb?" he asked.
Mac sighed and looked down at her hand. "I think it was the moment. Neither of us thought we were going to survive this mission. I kept thinking of you and me and all the times we kept missing, thinking we never would get it right. Then they started torturing Clay, each interrogation was sores than the one before. He came in after about the third time and told me he would do anything to keep them from me and that he was in love with me. She stopped as the tears fell and put her cool hand against Harm's hot cheek. "Haven't you ever said or done something to make someone happy even for a moment?"
Harm studied her intently for a moment. He smiled inwardly at the thought of the debacle with Katherine Gale. "Yeah, I guess so."
Mac smiled back then leaned in and paused. Casting indecision aside she closed the distance between their lips.
Jungle in Paraguay
It was two hours and sixteen minutes later when Harm returned to the shack. "Mac?" he called softly.
"Yeah?"
"We have to get moving." He tossed her shoes to her. "Saddiq's men are on the move." After he helped her down he pressed two foil packets into her hand. She gave him a questioning look. "Airline peanuts," he answered.
The rain may have let up, but the surrounding foliage was heavy with moisture. Soon they were soaked again and chilled in the morning air. After noticing Mac was shivering Harm took off his jacket and wordlessly draped it around her shoulders. Mac tried to catch his eye with a smile, but he refused to look at her. She wasn't sure what hurt more; the silence or that he wouldn't look her in the eye. It disheartened her that things seem to be falling into the same old pattern for them, she was hurting him and he was withdrawing from her. This time something was different though, he had an air of resignation about him. She wanted to say something, anything, to bring back her best friend, but she knew it wouldn't be so simple anymore. This thing between them, whether it be love or something else, had taken on a life of it's own and there could be no going back to the way things used to be. Like it or not, they could never be just best friends again. The question now, was she ready to take a leap of faith?
"Harm, we need to talk."
To his credit he didn't even lose stride. "Now if I had a dollar for every time one of us has said that and didn't do it, I'd be a wealthy man."
"We should have made time." She persisted
"If I recall correctly, there has always been a third party involved." He barely tried to contain the acid in his tone.
"Let's do it now."
"Why?" he stopped and faced her. "You and I are something aren't we? I'm too afraid to commit and you're just too damn afraid NOT to commit. I guess it's a good thing we never connected, I might have come home to find you committed to the milkman."
Before she knew it was happening her left hand connected with the right side of his face. "Damn you, Harmon Rabb! I love you and I think I always have. I can't remember what it's like to not be tortured by it. I tell you how I feel and you toss me aside. I find someone and try to have a life and suddenly you're Mr. Sensitive. I am so tired of waiting for you to come around. I want babies, and pretending to be pregnant has only made me realize how much. I can't wait around forever so if I can't have the man I love at maybe I should just settle for one that loves me." She was breathing heavily as she turned away from him. When he didn't say anything she turned to look at him again. He stood rubbing a red and swollen cheek, the look in his a mixture of confusion and regret.
"What about Webb?" he asked.
Mac sighed and looked down at her hand. "I think it was the moment. Neither of us thought we were going to survive this mission. I kept thinking of you and me and all the times we kept missing, thinking we never would get it right. Then they started torturing Clay, each interrogation was sores than the one before. He came in after about the third time and told me he would do anything to keep them from me and that he was in love with me. She stopped as the tears fell and put her cool hand against Harm's hot cheek. "Haven't you ever said or done something to make someone happy even for a moment?"
Harm studied her intently for a moment. He smiled inwardly at the thought of the debacle with Katherine Gale. "Yeah, I guess so."
Mac smiled back then leaned in and paused. Casting indecision aside she closed the distance between their lips.
