Disclaimers: Do I own anything? (checks) Nope. Suing would make you the proud new owner of absolutely nothing... I'm "barrowing" the characters... DPB can have them back when I'm done... Maybe he'll do something worth doing with them...

A/N: This is me being Harm again. I loved writing this... Talk about it flowing and flowing... Wow. Thank God for words and emotions, huh? Enjoy!

"Through Thick and Thin"

Part 3

I wake up smiling. She's asleep in my arms, her hair all over the place. Wow. I had sex with Mac. Repeatedly... And it was... It was so much more than just... sex. Each time was sweeter, more satisfying.. Oh, God, it was so much better than I had ever imagined it would be... I mean, it's not like I thought about having sex with Mac every time I was around her, but I would be lying if I said that I had never fantasized about her. I have. I've had some thoughts about her that if she had known what I was thinking at the time, she would have kicked my six...

Right now, I'm tangled up in sheets that are relentless, their hold on me prohibiting me from stretching... Well, that and there is Mac, who has her arm and leg tossed over me, pinning me to the bed. Why did we wait so long? Does she know how natural this feels? Waking up with her in my arms? We fit together perfectly... I can't help but stare at her. She's so beautiful. Why on earth I waited so long to tell her that I love her, I will never know... For someone who is smart, I have a tendency to do some stupid things...

She stirs a little and I laugh. Her big brown eyes flutter open and my heart starts pounding faster. God, I love this woman. "Morning." I whisper, kissing her lightly on the forehead.

"Mmm." Is the response I get from her. She pulls the covers up over her head and moans. I feel her hand sliding up my chest and I let out a breath I had no idea I was holding until now. I hear what sounds like a laugh. What is she laughing at this early in the morning?

"What's so funny?" I ask, ducking under the covers and wrapping my arms around her naked form. Mac has an amazing body...

"I just remembered something..." She says, struggling to free herself from the covers. I help her and we emerge together, both of us squinting, blinded by sunlight that is pouring in through a nearby window.

"And what was that?" I ask, smiling. She has my attention and she knows it. I watch intrigued as she pulls back the covers and points. Her tattoo.. Okay, so the location throws me for a loop. I would have never pegged her as the type to get tattooed, but I definitely would never have thought she'd get one... there.

"You asked me where it was once, remember? On the USS Patrick Henry. I figured that it was no longer classified information." She says, laughing at my reaction.

"Well.. It's nice. I never would have thought that's where it would be, but hey... I'm learning new things about you everyday." I lean in and kiss her passionately, my hands roaming the length of her body. I'll admit... After seeing her like this.. After holding her, touching her, kissing her, loving her... I'm hooked. I'm addicted to Mac. When the kiss ends she looks up at me and smiles. I love that smile...

"So what do you want to do today?" She asks, rolling out of my arms and standing up to stretch. Her back is hurting. I can tell. I lay here and watch her get dressed. She slips on a thong, a matching bra, and one of my t-shirts. She saunters back over to the bed and sits down next to me, her back to me. She glances over her shoulder at me and smiles again.

"Well..." I begin, but stop, noticing that she just grimaced slightly. Her back is bothering her still. "Are you hurting?" I ask, knowing the answer. She doesn't deny it. Instead she nods a little and stands up. "I'll make you some breakfast and then you can take some Tylenol, okay?" I tell her, sliding out of the bed. Shit. I forgot I was naked. Oh, well. She watches me walk over to my drawer. I take out a pair of black silk boxers and slip into them. When I turn around, she is smiling again. "See something you like?" I ask playfully. She just nods and I smile. "C'mon, let's go get you some food, jarhead."

"Hey, squid... Watch it." She says, her tone supposed to be a warning. I laugh and pull her into my arms for another kiss. I swear.. I can't keep my hands or lips off of her... When I pull away, she laughs at me and says, "Someone sure is touchy feely..."

"If you were a man and you had you in your arms, you'd be all over you too..." I say, laughing as she shakes her head.

"You do know how incredibly stupid that sounded, don't you?" She asks, grabbing me by the hand and pulling me towards the kitchen.

"What can I say? You bring out the best in me..." I tease, following her lead.

She leads me into the kitchen and says, "I'll take some toast and some juice. I'm not really hungry."

"You? Not hungry?" I ask playfully. She just rolls her eyes and shakes her head.

I look up from pouring the juice just in time to catch her do something that takes my breath away. I'm not much of a romantic, but I swear... this gets to me. She scans through the news paper, and upon finding an article about a Tomcat pilot that received a DFC for his efforts in the war on terrorism, she folds the page back and sets it aside. She then fumbles through the Classifieds. She's scanning the "Houses For Sale" section. I can't help but smile. Not only does she know me well enough to know what article I'll want to read first, but she's reading add after add, mulling over the possibility of there being an 'us.'

Her toast is ready, so I grab it and the glass of orange juice and head into the living room where she is stretched out on the couch, still looking through the Classified section. She looks up and smiles.

"There's the article about that pilot getting a DFC." She tells me, pointing to the folded page that she has to the left of her. She's already munching on the toast. She then takes a sip of orange juice.

"Thank you. I'll get you some Tylenol..." I tell her, smiling as she circles an add that caught her eye. "Hey, Mac?" I say, getting her to look up at me.

"Yeah?" She replies, half interested in what I have to say, half interested in her search for a house.

"I love you." I tell her, no hesitation whatsoever.

"I love you too." She replies, smiling at me, then she continues her search.

I find the Tylenol and return with two in my hand. She takes them then sighs. I wonder what she's thinking, but from the expression on her face, I can tell that maybe I should just let her think things through, give her some space, some time to think...

The article about the pilot doesn't keep my attention long. In fact, I don't even get half way through it. It's my turn to sigh. I toss the newspaper onto her coffee table and glance at her out of the corner of my eye. She's smiling and circling another add.

"Harm, I think I found it... Listen to this. 'Two story, five bedroom, 3 bath dream home. Spacious kitchen and living room. Fenced in backyard with in ground pool, landscaped front lawn. Two car garage. Perfect for the couple looking to start a family. In a quiet, safe neighborhood just outside of Falls Church.' What do you think?" She says, leaning close to me and pointing at the add that has been circled.

"I think it sounds nice. We can schedule a time to meet the realtor as soon as possible, maybe sometime after work next week. Price is decent too." I tell her, smiling at the fact that my dream girl has just picked out our dream home.

"About that... I don't expect you to just buy a house so that we can live together, Harm. I want to help too." She's got that concerned look she gets sometimes and I laugh.

"Mac, let's do everything together... Let's pick out the house together, choose wall paper together.. We can discuss the technical aspects of living together later... Anything else catch your eye?" I ask, noticing that there are a few other circles.

"Yeah.. I like this one, but it's only two or three blocks away from the Admiral.. It might be weird living right down the road from him. And this one sounds nice..." She's pointing at circle after circle, excitedly rattling off house stats. I just smile. I will do whatever it takes to get her anything and everything she wants... Price be damned.. We'll get up the down payment somehow, and with both of our salaries, pulling this off shouldn't be too hard. She's pointing at the first add she read aloud. "This one just sticks out for some reason... Maybe it's the yard thing... I've always wanted a yard..." She says, a flicker of pain in her eyes. I know why she's always wanted a yard... same reason I've always wanted a yard: kids and a dog.

I kiss her on top of the head and smile down at her. "If you want to, we can always ride out to the house and take a look, you know, get a feel for the place." I suggest, rewarded by her with a smile and a kiss.

"Really? Ride out there as in ride out there today or ride out there later?" She asks, excitedly.

"Put on a pair of jeans and grab some shoes. I'll put some clothes on. We can be out there in half an hour." I say, standing up and extending my hand. I help her up and she wraps her arms around me.

"We're going to look at a house that could someday be our house..." She says, probably trying to assure herself that this is really happening, that this isn't a dream.

"Go get dressed, Mac... We'll take your Corvette for a spin, go see what could possibly someday be our house. I'll cruise around in a beautiful car with a beautiful girl, top back so every guy we leave in the dust can catch a glimpse of God showing off..." I say, making a run for the bedroom, pulling her with me. She laughs and I kiss her once again.

"God showing off, huh?" She asks, studying herself in the mirror.

"Oh yeah, you know it... When God made you, he was showing off big time. Remind me to tell him thanks sometime..." I say, laughing as she shrugs.

"I don't see what the big deal is. I'm beautiful, I've got great curves, I'm a Marine, 36C, great smile, long legs... Other than all that, what's so good about me?" She asks playfully.

I raise an eyebrow and tell her, "Don't forget that you are great in bed, you have an awesome personality, you are one hell of a lawyer, and you're currently linked to an ex-Naval aviator turned JAG attorney who is easy on the eyes and completely devoted to none other than you... Yeah, you're going places..." She laughs and I flash her a smile.

In ten minutes we are both dressed and are heading out the door.