A/N: Having been out of town all week, I didn't have nearly as much time
(or energy) to work on this chapter as I would have liked. I can't
guarantee that there won't be similar delays like this in the future --
I'll be out of town again for 2 weeks in March and 2 weeks in April -- but
I appreciate your understanding and patience. Please know that I'm writing
as fast as I can!!!
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1315 Zulu; National Naval Medical Center; Bethesda, Maryland
The wide door swung open heavily as the registered nurse led Mac and Harm into the examination room. Walking over to a cabinet, she pulled out a simple white robe and set it on the examining table.
"You can leave your underwear on. The technician will be in shortly," the nurse instructed Mac before leaving the room in silence. Mac's eyes rested on the closed door for a second before her gaze met Harm's. She was finally going to have her first ultrasound -- the two of them had been nervously anticipating this appointment all week. Flashing a reassuring smile, she set her purse and cover on the chair in the corner.
"You have to get undressed for this?" Harm asked warily as she began to unbutton her uniform. "I thought they only needed access to, you know, certain body parts."
"They do," she chuckled, "but it's easier to get to 'those' body parts when they're not hidden underneath clothes. Besides, I don't want to get the jelly all over my uniform. It wouldn't befit a Marine. What would everyone at work say?" Shrugging out of her jacket, Mac laid it carefully over the back of the chair in the corner and deftly removed her tie. Her hands moving to the buttons of her blouse, Harm fought against the instinct to give her some privacy by turning his back. *It's not like you've never seen her naked before,* he admonished himself sharply. Folding his arms across his chest, he leaned back against the wall with studied ease.
"The rumors would start flying, I'm sure. Although," his voice turned pensive, "I bet some of the women who have kids might be able to figure it out if they thought about it long enough."
"Harriet's already onto us," Mac said nonchalantly.
"What?" Staring as she eased the shirt off her shoulders and set it on the seat of the chair, Harm's jaw went momentarily slack. "What do you mean, she's 'onto us'?"
"Exactly what you think I mean -- she's been dropping hints all over the place. Quite frankly, I'm surprised she hasn't come right out and asked me to confirm or deny." Glancing over at him, Mac stepped out of her shoes with a teasing smile. When she reached for the waistband of her skirt, however, Harm's gentlemanly nature kicked in and he involuntarily dropped his eyes to the floor.
"Have you given any thought to what you'd like to do?" he asked, carefully examining a spot on the linoleum next to his foot. The sound of fabric rustling echoed through the room. "Harriet can be pretty persistent."
"You always were the master of understatement," she laughed.
"Mac, be serious."
"I'm perfectly serious."
"What are we going to do about Harriet?" he repeated, purposely ignoring the teasing in her tone. He rubbed the spot on the floor with the toe of one shoe.
"Okay, okay." Mac's voice grew sober. "We may as well tell her and Bud, and get it over with."
"Don't sound so enthusiastic."
"Hey, you asked!" Harm opened his mouth to reply, but she cut him off. "It's all right to look now. I'm decent."
His gaze slid up her body as she hoisted herself up onto the examining table. Taking in the light cotton robe that was cinched loosely around her waist, for a moment Harm could do nothing but look at her. "Comfortable?" he finally asked.
"Very." One eyebrow cocked saucily at his intent expression. Returning the look, Harm didn't speak when they were interrupted by the sound of a knock on the door.
"Colonel MacKenzie?" A young woman slipped through the doorway with an easy smile. "Good morning, ma'am, sir. My name is Nancy and I'll be performing your sonogram today," she greeted cheerfully. Setting the clipboard she carried atop the monitor next to the examination table, she extended her hand first to Mac and then Harm.
"A pleasure."
"Ma'am, if you'll lie back we can go ahead and get started."
Complying, Mac scooted herself to the head of the table and laid down, while Harm stepped up next to her. Their hands came together reflexively as Nancy pulled a thin paper blanket up over Mac's legs and gently untied the robe, exposing Mac's abdomen.
"This might be a little cold," the technician warned, reaching for a squirt bottle of clear gel. An instant later, the hiss of Mac's sharp intake of breath resonated through the room.
"A little? Are you sure you don't keep that stuff refrigerated?" Mac accused with a nervous smile. Her grip on Harm's hand tightened.
"It's room temperature, I swear," Nancy chuckled as she picked up the ultrasound wand and used it to rub the gel into Mac's skin. "But there *is* a twenty-six degree difference between room temperature and body temperature, which is why it feels like such a shock. Now, if you'll just direct your attention to the monitor..."
Craning her neck, Mac's eyes focused in on the black and white picture that had appeared on the screen to her right. The droning of the technician's voice drifted into silence. A fleeting sense of panic washed over Mac as she struggled to make sense out of the grainy images. Then, unexpectedly, the rough lines began to transform into an identifiable likeness. Serenity and joy flooded into Mac's heart, momentarily stilling her ever-present internal clock. An interminable amount of time passed before it resumed ticking, and sound once again began to filter through.
"... and this curve here is the fetus' spinal column," Nancy was saying, pointing towards a white line in the center of the monitor. She glanced over at the parents-to-be, who stared wordlessly at the image with identical expressions of wonder and awe.
Harm's heart was in his throat. *That's our baby,* he marveled. Not for the first time, he found himself astonished by the knowledge that Sarah MacKenzie was carrying his child. His hand squeezed hers gently.
"Would you like to hear the heartbeat?"
The words penetrated the haze of Harm's thoughts. Ripping his eyes away from the monitor, he stared blankly at Nancy for a moment before nodding slowly. From the table in front of him, Mac's eyes met his with mutual understanding. Nancy's lips curving upward with a knowing smile, she reached over and flipped the switch on the machine's speakers.
Suddenly, the room was filled by the fast *whooshing* sound of blood being pumped through the baby's cardiovascular system. Recognition dawning, slow grins spread across Harm and Mac's features as they listened to the steady rhythm. His eyes stayed focused on hers as Harm lifted Mac's fingers to his lips for a soft, lingering kiss.
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To be continued...
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A/N #2: For those in the audience who live outside the U.S., room temperature and body temperature are considered 72.0 and 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, respectively.
--- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---
1315 Zulu; National Naval Medical Center; Bethesda, Maryland
The wide door swung open heavily as the registered nurse led Mac and Harm into the examination room. Walking over to a cabinet, she pulled out a simple white robe and set it on the examining table.
"You can leave your underwear on. The technician will be in shortly," the nurse instructed Mac before leaving the room in silence. Mac's eyes rested on the closed door for a second before her gaze met Harm's. She was finally going to have her first ultrasound -- the two of them had been nervously anticipating this appointment all week. Flashing a reassuring smile, she set her purse and cover on the chair in the corner.
"You have to get undressed for this?" Harm asked warily as she began to unbutton her uniform. "I thought they only needed access to, you know, certain body parts."
"They do," she chuckled, "but it's easier to get to 'those' body parts when they're not hidden underneath clothes. Besides, I don't want to get the jelly all over my uniform. It wouldn't befit a Marine. What would everyone at work say?" Shrugging out of her jacket, Mac laid it carefully over the back of the chair in the corner and deftly removed her tie. Her hands moving to the buttons of her blouse, Harm fought against the instinct to give her some privacy by turning his back. *It's not like you've never seen her naked before,* he admonished himself sharply. Folding his arms across his chest, he leaned back against the wall with studied ease.
"The rumors would start flying, I'm sure. Although," his voice turned pensive, "I bet some of the women who have kids might be able to figure it out if they thought about it long enough."
"Harriet's already onto us," Mac said nonchalantly.
"What?" Staring as she eased the shirt off her shoulders and set it on the seat of the chair, Harm's jaw went momentarily slack. "What do you mean, she's 'onto us'?"
"Exactly what you think I mean -- she's been dropping hints all over the place. Quite frankly, I'm surprised she hasn't come right out and asked me to confirm or deny." Glancing over at him, Mac stepped out of her shoes with a teasing smile. When she reached for the waistband of her skirt, however, Harm's gentlemanly nature kicked in and he involuntarily dropped his eyes to the floor.
"Have you given any thought to what you'd like to do?" he asked, carefully examining a spot on the linoleum next to his foot. The sound of fabric rustling echoed through the room. "Harriet can be pretty persistent."
"You always were the master of understatement," she laughed.
"Mac, be serious."
"I'm perfectly serious."
"What are we going to do about Harriet?" he repeated, purposely ignoring the teasing in her tone. He rubbed the spot on the floor with the toe of one shoe.
"Okay, okay." Mac's voice grew sober. "We may as well tell her and Bud, and get it over with."
"Don't sound so enthusiastic."
"Hey, you asked!" Harm opened his mouth to reply, but she cut him off. "It's all right to look now. I'm decent."
His gaze slid up her body as she hoisted herself up onto the examining table. Taking in the light cotton robe that was cinched loosely around her waist, for a moment Harm could do nothing but look at her. "Comfortable?" he finally asked.
"Very." One eyebrow cocked saucily at his intent expression. Returning the look, Harm didn't speak when they were interrupted by the sound of a knock on the door.
"Colonel MacKenzie?" A young woman slipped through the doorway with an easy smile. "Good morning, ma'am, sir. My name is Nancy and I'll be performing your sonogram today," she greeted cheerfully. Setting the clipboard she carried atop the monitor next to the examination table, she extended her hand first to Mac and then Harm.
"A pleasure."
"Ma'am, if you'll lie back we can go ahead and get started."
Complying, Mac scooted herself to the head of the table and laid down, while Harm stepped up next to her. Their hands came together reflexively as Nancy pulled a thin paper blanket up over Mac's legs and gently untied the robe, exposing Mac's abdomen.
"This might be a little cold," the technician warned, reaching for a squirt bottle of clear gel. An instant later, the hiss of Mac's sharp intake of breath resonated through the room.
"A little? Are you sure you don't keep that stuff refrigerated?" Mac accused with a nervous smile. Her grip on Harm's hand tightened.
"It's room temperature, I swear," Nancy chuckled as she picked up the ultrasound wand and used it to rub the gel into Mac's skin. "But there *is* a twenty-six degree difference between room temperature and body temperature, which is why it feels like such a shock. Now, if you'll just direct your attention to the monitor..."
Craning her neck, Mac's eyes focused in on the black and white picture that had appeared on the screen to her right. The droning of the technician's voice drifted into silence. A fleeting sense of panic washed over Mac as she struggled to make sense out of the grainy images. Then, unexpectedly, the rough lines began to transform into an identifiable likeness. Serenity and joy flooded into Mac's heart, momentarily stilling her ever-present internal clock. An interminable amount of time passed before it resumed ticking, and sound once again began to filter through.
"... and this curve here is the fetus' spinal column," Nancy was saying, pointing towards a white line in the center of the monitor. She glanced over at the parents-to-be, who stared wordlessly at the image with identical expressions of wonder and awe.
Harm's heart was in his throat. *That's our baby,* he marveled. Not for the first time, he found himself astonished by the knowledge that Sarah MacKenzie was carrying his child. His hand squeezed hers gently.
"Would you like to hear the heartbeat?"
The words penetrated the haze of Harm's thoughts. Ripping his eyes away from the monitor, he stared blankly at Nancy for a moment before nodding slowly. From the table in front of him, Mac's eyes met his with mutual understanding. Nancy's lips curving upward with a knowing smile, she reached over and flipped the switch on the machine's speakers.
Suddenly, the room was filled by the fast *whooshing* sound of blood being pumped through the baby's cardiovascular system. Recognition dawning, slow grins spread across Harm and Mac's features as they listened to the steady rhythm. His eyes stayed focused on hers as Harm lifted Mac's fingers to his lips for a soft, lingering kiss.
--- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---
To be continued...
--- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---
A/N #2: For those in the audience who live outside the U.S., room temperature and body temperature are considered 72.0 and 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, respectively.