CHAPTER 6: MORNING AFTER MESS

THE NEXT MORNING HARM'S APARTMENT Mattie would have knocked on the door but it was early and she knew Harm wouldn't be up yet. But she had left something at his apartment that she needed and so she just walked in. She stopped short at the sight that met her.

It was a mess. Food was everywhere, on the floor, the furniture, a few pieces were even sticking to the walls. When she dropped the pan, it couldn't have made that much of a mess.

"Harm?" she called out, somewhat quietly, walking up to see if he was asleep.

He was and Mattie was happily surprised to find that Mac was asleep, curled up next to him. Obviously, something had happened between the two. Maybe they had both finally gotten their heads out of their sixes. Mattie smiled at the serene picture and quickly grabbed what she needed and went back to her apartment.

LATER THAT MORNING
HARM'S APARTMENT

Harm slowly awakened from his slumber, fighting every urge to do so. It had been a really good dream...Mac had been in it. They had been having a food fight and then he had kissed her. From there on was all still a daze, but it left him with a smile on his face. He started to move his arms to stretch when he realized that someone was in bed next to him. He looked down to see Mac and in an instant he remembered that it was not a dream.

Unconsciously she moved slightly and cuddled up closer against him. He reached out to brush her dark hair away from her face. She had been letting it grow longer and longer, a look he loved on her. She was beautiful. He would love to wake up to her lying beside him every morning for the rest of his life. He ran his finger gently down the side of her cheek, as if to make sure that she was really there. He reached out to pull the blanket up to cover her a little more. She stirred a little and started to wake. He watched as her eyes slowly fluttered open and as her gaze rested on him. There was a small moment of confusion but then recognition dawned.

"Morning, Sarah," he softly greeted.

"Good morning," she returned, delighted that he was calling her Sarah. Somehow, it made her feel more special. She realized that she was curled up next to him, a comfortable spot to be in, and snuggled in closer, not wanting this to be a dream.

"I never imagined you as a cuddler," he said.

"I'm usually not," Mac told him, yawning.

"Is it me?"

"Must be."

"Tired?"

"Yeah, you did a pretty good job of keeping me up late last night," she pointed out. "Aren't you?"

"Yeah."

Their conversation was kept short but it wasn't awkward. In fact, the atmosphere seemed to be void of all the tension they had had over previous months. Things were calm and content, a feeling they both relished in. It was a while before either was willing to leave their warm cocoon they had created but Mac's stomach was growling loudly.

"Come on, my hungry Marine. Let's get you fed," he said reluctantly. If he had his way, they wouldn't be moving from their spot for another several hours but Harm knew better than to have a hungry Marine on his hands.

They stepped out of his bedroom and surveyed the damage. Somehow, it was messier than they remembered. They never knew that just one pan could make such a mess.

"I never imagined that we'd be spending our first morning after cleaning up my apartment," he said with a groan.

"What did you imagine we'd be doing?" she asked curiously.

"Definitely not cleaning," declared Harm with his usual flyboy grin.

Mac tried to ignore how his grin was affecting her, not wanting to let him now how weak it really made her. "Come on, we might as well get started," she said.

After having eaten a small breakfast they found themselves on the floor, trying to clean up the pasta. Unfortunately, the pasta had dried overnight and was now stuck to the floor, only coming off in small pieces.

"You do realize this is all your fault?" she told him, throwing a handful in the garbage bag next to her.

"My fault?"

"Yeah, Navy thinking they could take on Marines, you should have known better. I should have known that Navy only makes a mess of things and we Marines have to clean it up," she accused teasingly.

"As I recall, you didn't seem to mind the 'mess' we made last night," teased Harm.

She blushed, something that rarely happened and he knew that. "I wasn't talking about that mess."

He moved over to sit next to her, being careful to avoid the pasta on the floor. "Is that Sarah Mackenzie blushing that I see? Dare I think that I have made her blush?"

Mac playfully slapped him on the arm. "Ooh, you."

"I bet I can make you blush even more," he flirted.

One word caught her attention and quickly ended her playful mood.

Bet. Tickets. Super Bowl Tickets. Kiss.

That's what last night was all about. He didn't really love her like that, he just wanted to those stupid tickets. She unconsciously moved away from him and he wondered what was going through her mind as a hurt look crossed her face.

"Mac?"

She snapped back to reality. "Yeah?"

"You okay?" he asked, reaching out to put his hand on her arm. It was a gesture meant to comfort her but she only pulled away again.

"Yeah, I just remembered I need to take care of something," Mac lied, starting to get up.

"Do you need to leave?" he asked, looking around. The apartment was still a huge mess. He wouldn't mind cleaning it up alone but he'd much prefer it if she'd stay.

She saw him looking around. Bet or not, she couldn't leave him to clean up alone. He was still her best friend and she had thrown her fair share of pasta too. "No, I'll just take care of it later," she sighed.

They cleaned up the rest of the apartment in silence. Harm spent his time wondering what he had said or done to make her pull away and shut down on him like that. After several minutes of worried thinking, a thought finally came to him. Maybe he was coming on too strong and too fast. Or maybe she didn't feel for him like he had thought.

Mac was startled from her own thoughts when she heard Harm let out a soft groan. She had been thinking about the bet, wishing that Harm's behavior could be because he loved her and not because he was competitive. She didn't say anything as she got up off the floor to wash out her dirty sponge. With the water running, she didn't hear Harm come up behind her. He wrapped his arms around her gently and leaned forward to whisper in her ear. "Sarah."

Normally, she would have enjoyed this moment but she had had enough of his phony behavior. She turned around and pushed him away. "Stop."

"What?" Harm was shocked, not only be her reaction but by the pain and hurt that was so thinly veiled in her voice. He moved back, leaning against the island counter, in an attempt to put some distance between them.

"Nothing," she muttered, looking away.

He decided to head for it straight-on. "This morning, things were going great and now you're pushing me away. What is going on? What did I do?" he asked.

She couldn't look him in the eyes. "I'm tired of you pretending you love me. Why can't you just act like you really want?"

"What do you mean? I am acting like I want. I want you, Sarah."

She was stunned at his declaration but didn't let that stop her anger. "Why don't you just admit that it's all for your stupid bet? That you're using me to get some stupid tickets?" she threw at him.

He stared at her, hoping that he had not just heard that. "What bet?"

Playing dumb and innocent was not the way to go. "The one you made with Sturgis and Keeter. I was there, Harm. I heard the whole thing. Why don't you just admit that last night was all about you winning your bet?" she yelled, almost on the verge of tears. The pain was too much for her to snap into Marine-mode and put up her protective shell right now.

Mattie chose that moment to stick her head in the door. "Harm?"

Harm took a deep breath, grateful for the interruption so he could clear his mind and formulate his words. "Yes, Mattie?" His tone clearly indicated that now was probably not a good time.

She glanced back and forth between her "dad" and Mac. Mac looked like she was about to cry and Harm had worry lines on his forehead. "Never mind, it's not that important," she said.

"No, Mattie, come on in, I was just about to leave anyway," Mac said, avoiding looking at Harm and starting to move towards the door.

"No!" he blurted out, deciding that it was finally time to fix things. "Mac, you're staying," he ordered, his voice firm yet gentle. "Mattie, can we talk later, please?"

Mattie caught the begging tone in his voice and nodded, shutting the door behind her. "Come sit down." He turned to face Mac, his tone much kinder this time. He sat on one end of the couch and waited for her to join him.

She stayed standing, a fair distance away from him, patiently waiting for him to take the lead. He took a deep breath. He was a lawyer and a good one, why did his gift for words suddenly fail him when he was with Sarah?

"First of all, I have acted like I wanted this week. There was nothing I did or said that I didn't mean. I'm not pretending about anything. Second, the bet. At first, my behavior was about the bet but then that became the last thing on my mind. I don't care about the tickets, I just want our relationship back," he explained to her.

As he continued on, she finally took a step and moved closer to him, finally sitting at the other end of the couch. His final words let her know that he was ready to let go of everything for her. He finally spoke the words she wanted to hear, having no regrets once they were spoken.

"Sarah, I love you," he said, simply and honestly. He had laid it all out for her and now held his breath, waiting for a reaction.

She couldn't look away from his steady gaze, his clear blue eyes holding her chocolate brown ones captive once again. Tears started to fall down her cheeks and she hurriedly reached to wipe them away, but they continued to fall.

His heart fell. She was crying, he had pushed too much and made her cry. What had he done? If he lost her now, the pain would be unbearable.

AN: Sorry, last chapter said it was a pan of fish. It's supposed to be pasta.

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews. And a special thanks to the representative from Ohio for helping me with ideas and plot problems. I don't know what I'd do without her.