Title: Alright

Author: socgrl

Rating: PG

Spoilers: Everything, especially "Hail and Farewell"

Disclaimer: You know who owns them, and it certainly isn't me

Last time on Give In:

"Let's get you home and into some PJs. Then I'll make you some tea and get you set up with a heating pad for your back," he said standing up and pulling her along gingerly.

"That sounds wonderful," she said finally letting a smile reach her eyes.

0330 Zulu

Mac's Apartment

Georgetown

They entered Mac's apartment, Harm guiding her ever so slightly with a hand at the small of her back.

"Why don't you head into your bedroom and put on some PJs and I'll go put the tea on," Harm suggested.

Mac nodded with an appreciative smile and walked down the hallway towards her room. Moments later she walked back into the living room wearing her favorite navy blue silk PJs and found a comfortable spot on the couch.

"I made a cup of green tea with honey and a cup of Chamomile tea. Which would you prefer?" Harm asked placing the two mugs down on the coffee table.

"Thank you Harm. This is very sweet of you. I'll take the Chamomile, it may help me sleep." She shifted her wait on the couch and grimaced at the mild shooting pain that ran down her spine.

Immediately Harm was at her side. "Mac, are you alright?" he asked, concern written all over his face.

"Yeah, my back's sore" she said, "Calm down flyboy. It'll be alright," she smiled, trying to lighting the mood.

"Would you like a massage?" he asked, "I've been told I have the magic touch, in fact I recall you moaning 'don't stop!' before," he said with a mischievous grin.

"Harm, you've been too good to me already. I don't want to impose on your goodwill" she said still smiling. "Besides, are you sure that my moaning wasn't some fantasy your subconscious dreamed up," she returned his wicked smile.

"Why don't we find out beautiful, roll over," he told Mac. She looked into his eyes and saw that he was not going to back away. He really was there to stay, through everything. Momentarily she thought of the night when Clay tried to give her a backrub and she refused. She couldn't bring herself to fully trust him. She couldn't allow herself to be that vulnerable around him. But she trusted Harm with her life and more and more she was again trusting him with her heart. Without questioning him again she pulled the three back pillows off of the sofa and tossed them over the side.

"I have some Bengay™ in the medicine cabinet, would you mind rubbing it into my lower back and between my shoulder blades? I'm going to try and get more comfortable," she asked with thanks shining in her eyes.

"I'd be happy to," said Harm as he made his way into her bedroom. "Hey...you don't still have my Academy sweats do you?" he yelled toward the living room.

"Yeah, they are at the bottom of my PJ drawer. Bottom right corner," Mac yelled back. She was attempting to make herself comfortable on the couch. She grabbed a blanket out of the armoire, laid it down on the couch, took off the top to her PJs and placed herself on top of the blanket, stretching her arms above her head.

Harm rooted through Mac's PJ drawer to the bottom and found what he was looking for. His sweatpants were under a number of silk nighties and teddies; he groaned inwardly but suppressed those thoughts for a later time. 'She can take advantage of me, but I will not take advantage of her.' He was deadly serious about not screwing this chance with her.

After a couple of minutes Mac heard the door to her bathroom open. "Sheesh flyboy. What the hell took you so long? Man the navy really needs to work on time management. Did you find something appealing?" she said raising her eyes to watch him saunter into the living room.

Mac had to suppress a groan of her own when she saw him walk in wearing his navy blue sweat pants with USNA going down the leg in yellow print. The white t-shirt he had worn under his dress whites fit him like a second skin. She could feel tightness in her stomach and it wasn't cramping from her procedure.

"Wouldn't you like to know," he said suggestively. Then he saw her. She was laying face down on her couch. She was looking up at him with her cheek resting on folded hands. And she was topless.

Mac saw him stall a little. "Harm, if this makes you uncomfortable in any way you don't have to. I can get my lower back," she said giving him opportunity to back down.

He cleared his throat. "I'm game if you are," he said with a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"Hey now," she returned jokingly.

Harm walked over to the couch with the Bengay™ in hand, "Now how do you want me to do this, sit by your side or lean over top of you?" he asked honestly.

"Whichever why you feel would work best," she answered him. Mac knew that no matter what Harm wouldn't hurt her.

"Well I don't want to make you uncomfortable, but the best way to do this would be for me to, ah, um," he trailed off.

"For you to ah, um, what Harm?" she teased.

"For me to straddle your six. It would give me the best angle," he grimaced at his choice of words and saw Mac shaking in laughter beneath him.

"You find this funny Marine?" he asked enjoying the fact that she was releasing some of that tension.

"No, well yes, that just sounded like a line from a really bad porno or something," she said laughing again.

They were both laughing now.

"Alright Marine, now try to relax," said Harm as he opened up the bottle of pain relieving cream.

The moment that he put his hands to her skin Mac felt a tingling, reserved only for Harm. He had an effect on her. His touch sent shivers throughout her entire body. She got goose-bumps.

Harm saw the reaction he was creating and smiled to himself. At least I'm not the only one affected by this.

Too soon after it started, it ended. Harm had rubbed the cream in the best he could and found that he now had no excuse to continue touching her. "How are you feeling? I didn't hurt you did I, I didn't press too hard?" he asked, his voice filled with concern.

"No Harm, you didn't hurt me, that felt wonderful. Thank you," she said sincerely.

"Well I'm going to run into your bathroom, put this stuff away, and wash up. You get dressed," he said kneeling down on the floor next to her. He tucked a piece of long hair behind her ear and ran a hand once more, slowly, down her back. She watched his eyes follow the contours of her back and heard him murmur, "God, you are so beautiful." She smiled at this and pulled his head down to kiss his forehead. She looked into his eyes and once more said, "Thank you."

A/N: So what do you think? Good, Bad, Ugly. Please R & R. Chapter 3??