CHAPTER 19

It was later that night, after everyone had said goodnight, that Margaret heard a light rapping at her door. "Come in," she said softly from the bed. The door opened slowly and he quietly slipped into her room.

"Shhh..." He whispered as he carefully and silently shut the door behind him.

"This is the first place your father is going to check when he notices you're not on that couch," she told him as he crossed the room and took a seat beside her on the bed.

"Don't worry," he said as he kissed her. "He's asleep."

"He'll find out one way or another." She was sure that Daniel knew what his son was up to.

"No he won't, I've got it covered." Hawkeye moved closer to her.

"You do?"

"Trust me," he whispered as he kissed her neck.

"Hawkeye..." He'd rolled her over and pushed her papers to the side. "I'm a little busy."

"You told me you wanted me," he kissed her again. "I don't need to look at anymore wedding plans. You and Peg are handling that, and as I see it, it's too late to do anything else now except go to bed."

"By myself," she corrected him.

He moved over her, "No."

"I told you, the only way you're staying in here tonight is if you remain fully clothed and on the floor."

"I veto both those notions." He kissed her lips and then moved down to kiss her neck. By now he was lying completely on top of her, Margaret could hardly move

"Oh, honey, please." She breathed. "Don't do this to me."

"Its good for you," he mumbled.

"Hawkeye," she pushed his face away from her. "Get off me," she looked into his eyes seriously.

Hawkeye sat back up on the bed and let her sit up. "I just..."

"We've discussed this." She cut him off before he could start again. "If your father finds out he's going to throw a fit. Can't we just sit here together?"

"I don't want to."

"Fine." She grabbed some of the papers she had in her hands when he came in. "You're right about the wedding. Peg and I can handle that tomorrow. Don't forget that you're picking up Katie."

"I know." Hawkeye looked over her shoulder to see what she had. "You decide on paint?"

"Not everything. I don't know what to do with all those bedrooms."

"Just leave them white. We can get them painted later."

"I don't want to."

He rolled his eyes. "Why are you worried about this now? Can't we decide when we get back from our honeymoon?"

"If we do that, I'll be thinking about the house while we're gone."

He moved closer to her and looked at the papers in her hands. "Let's look now then."

Margaret held the papers up so he could see, "Do you think we should paint each room a different color."

"What's wrong with white?"

This was why Margaret made painting the house her priority. "Because white is so bland. I want our house to have a comfortable feel."

"That's a nice blue," Hawkeye pointed to one of the samples.

"I thought so too. What do you think about this pale yellow?"

"It's nice."

"I was thinking about painting one of the extra rooms that."

"What about our room?"

"I haven't really decided on that yet."

"Do you have some ideas?"

"Yeah. I'm not worried about our room. It's all of these others."

"You just said you're painting one yellow."

"Pale yellow," she corrected as she pointed to the color that was in the booklet.

Hawkeye looked down. "That's an odd choice. I don't think that's very comfortable."

She looked over at him. "It would be for a nursery. You know, just in case."

He smiled and nodded. "Okay. Makes more sense now." It scared him a little that she was thinking of children already, but he didn't think now was the time to tell her.

"Since we have a den, I would like it to be a dark color. Somewhere you could go and take a nap if you wanted."

"I'm loving the ideas so far."

"You are?"

"Yes. Can I decorate a room?"

She smiled at him. "You really want to?"

"Yes."

"Okay. You can have the den. That okay?"

"Fine. Now what about the office?"

All these rooms were making her head spin. There was so much to do in such a large house. "I don't know. The living room and kitchen are my main concern. I want color."

"Hot pink?" She gave him the look. "I'll take that as a no."

"Good."

Margaret continued to look over the samples and Hawkeye eventually just laid back let her be. He'd gone to her room hoping that it would give them the chance to be together, but his idea of being together and her idea of being together apparently weren't the same. They didn't have to make love, but he didn't want to sit around looking at paint samples either.

"Honey, they're going to be painting while we're on our honeymoon. We have a few days to do this. You don't have to decide on it all right now."

"Do you think we ought to go with a theme?" She looked over at him.

"A theme?"

"Well, this is New England. I want this to be a New England home."

Hawkeye chuckled softly, "Now it's a type?"

"I'm serious."

"Baby it's late," he told her. "Do we have to do this right now?"

"Well, when else are we going to do it?" It sounded more like a demand more then a question.

"How about tomorrow for starters."

"Fine, just give me a few more minutes." She turned back to her papers.

"That's fine." Hawkeye got off the bed and pulled back the covers. He took off his shirt and dropped it beside the bed.

"What are you doing?" She asked when she saw him.

"Getting ready for bed," he told her.

"You have to leave."

"Margaret, I'm not going back down there."

"Well, you're not sleeping here."

"I thought we talked about this. No one knows I'm here, no one will know I was here."

"There are three other people in this house. You mean to tell me that you don't think any one of them are going to notice you leaving my room in the morning?"

"That's right."

"No Hawkeye."

"Margaret..."

"No!" She said firmly. Just then there was a knock at the door. "Yes?"

"Its Dan. Is my son in there?"

Margaret quickly replaced the covers that he had pulled down. "Come in."

Dan opened the door and peered in. He saw Hawkeye sitting on the bed. "We're just looking at paint samples."

"I know better than that."

"We were," Margaret defended him. "But he was just getting ready to leave so I can get to bed. Isn't that right?"

Dan stood there looking at his son. Hawkeye stood up. "Yes."

"Well let's go."

"I'm going to say goodnight. I'll be down in a minute."

"You better be. I'll be waiting for you. I have to talk to you, Ben."

Hawkeye nodded. He knew his father didn't want anything important. All he wanted was for Hawkeye to get out of there. Once Dan closed the door and left Hawkeye took Margaret's hand and pulled her off the bed. "You just got me in trouble."

Margaret smiled. "No, you got yourself in trouble."

"I'll be back, I can promise you that."

She sighed. "You'll never give up will you?"

"Not until I'm back in your pants."

"What a way with words you have, Romeo."

Hawkeye smiled and gave her a nice soft and tender goodnight kiss. "I love you."

Margaret returned the kiss, "I love you too."

"I can't believe he came in here," Hawkeye growled lowly.

"He knows you," she told him. "He knew what you were up to."

"Whatever happened to trust?"

"Trust you?" She laughed softly. "You better get down there before he comes back."

"Yeah..." He kissed her again and then picked up his shirt. "But I'll be back, I can promise you that."

"Goodnight." She walked him to the door.

"Margaret, I'm serious. I absolutely refuse to sleep on that couch."

"I'm sorry, I can't help you. He'll know it if you come here. I'm not looking to get into anymore trouble with your father."

"Goodnight...Dad."

Margaret pushed him out into the hall at his remark. "I can always lock the door."

"You wouldn't dare," he whispered. He'd just become aware of the others sleeping.

"Watch me," she shut the door. Following that he heard the distinct sound of the lock moving into place.

Hawkeye clenched his jaw, he didn't like where this was going. He slipped his shirt back on and walked as quietly as he could down the stairs. There was no chance in hell that he was going to sleep on that couch or the floor.

Margaret stayed up later than she wanted to. She just couldn't sleep thinking about everything that she had to get done. By now the wedding was one of the least of her worries. It was the house that was on her mind. She ended up turned the light off in the room and turning the bedside lamp on. Once she was comfortably settled in bed she realized she couldn't sleep. The paint samples and notebook came out again and she started to plan out their new house.

Somewhere along the line she ended up falling asleep, but that wasn't until the early hours of the morning. Sleeping just seemed like a waste of time at the moment. At seven she woke up thinking that she would do something nice for Hawkeye and wake him up so he could sleep in her bed. When she went downstairs she wasn't expecting to see an empty couch. He wasn't there so she checked the den and he wasn't there either.

She didn't know where he could have gone, and she didn't want to call his name and wake everyone up. Instead she made a pot of coffee and sat out on the patio in the back going over what she had to accomplish that day. It seem impossible to have the wedding done in two days. It was Thursday now and Saturday was the wedding.

Margaret ended up falling asleep out there. It was quiet and the breeze coming off the water was nice. Around an hour later she was awoken by the sound of pans banging in the kitchen. Margaret stood up, pulling her robe tighter around her, and walked back into the house. "Good morning," Daniel greeted her when she walked into the kitchen. "I was beginning to wonder where everybody went."

She looked at him curiously, "You mean you haven't seen Hawkeye either?"

Daniel shook his head. "Not since last night." He pulled out a large plate from the cupboard. "He wasn't on the couch when I came down this morning."

Margaret turned and looked out the window. "He wasn't when I came down either."

"Don't worry honey, he probably went for a run or something."

That made sense, why hadn't she thought of that. He needed to go for a good, long run. With all his anxiety and sexual tension it would do him good. "You're probably right."

"You hungry?"

"Not really. Too much on my mind."

"You should still eat."

"I will." Margaret looked out the window. Back in Virginia Hawkeye didn't go for such long runs. She was a little worried about him. Maybe she really hurt him when she locked the door, but she didn't do it to be mean. She did it to keep them out of trouble.

"Should we wake the Hunnicutts up?"

"I'm sure they'll be along shortly. Do I have time to get in the shower before breakfast?"

"Yeah."

Margaret gave Dan a kiss on the cheek. "One day I promise I'll make you a nice meal."

"Don't worry about it," he smiled. "You can host all the Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners and we'll call it even. Just make sure I get some grandchildren to keep me occupied while you're cooking."

She smiled. "You've got a deal."

Margaret went back upstairs with her coffee cup in hand and gathered her shower things. She wanted to get in there before everyone used to hot water. After her restless night she needed a shower to wake her up, and all the caffeine that she could get wouldn't hurt either. Sleeping alone just wasn't for her. At least when Hawkeye was there she could let go of her worries and just be with him. Without him in the same bed all she did was think. There wasn't anyone to take her in his arms and tell her not to worry.

When she got into the shower she let the hot water cascade over her body and relax the tense muscles. Maybe she would get Hawkeye to massage her shoulders later. The only problem with that was that he wouldn't stop there. He had a tendency to take things one step too far.

A knock on the door prompted her to get out of the shower. It was Peg. Margaret finished up in the shower and then got out. She was used to it being just her and Hawkeye and she never had to worry about anyone else. It just didn't cross her mind that there were other people in the house. Had it been her and Hawkeye they would have just walked in on each other and it wouldn't have mattered. Soon it would be back to that.

"Peg," Margaret called as she stepped into the hallway. "Its all yours." Margaret headed back to her bedroom to get dressed and do her hair and makeup. She had moved all her things into her bedroom and she would just do her hair in front of that mirror now.

From the stairs Margaret could smell the aroma coming from the kitchen. By the time she walked into the kitchen she was overwhelmed by the smell of good food. "Have you seen Hawkeye?" She still hadn't seen him and was beginning to worry.

"He's right there," Daniel pointed out the window.

Margaret walked over to the window and looked out into the backyard. "I don't seem him."

"Look farther, in the surf."

Margaret squinted and realized that he was right. "He's swimming away," she said aloud.

"He swimming out," Daniel corrected.

"What does that mean?" She asked without ever taking her eyes off her fiancé, or what she could see of him.

"He's going to swim as hard as he can until he tires out."

Margaret looked over a Daniel, "Swim until he tires out?" The older man nodded. Margaret didn't think she liked the sound of that. "Isn't that dangerous?"

"It can be," Daniel said. "But don't worry about him; he knows what he's doing."

"I don't think I like this idea."

"You'd probably have to be from here to understand it," he told her. "Swimming like that doesn't allow for thinking, that's what makes it so appealing."

Margaret turned back to the window. She couldn't see him anymore. "I guess that makes sense."

"When he's had his fill he'll stop," he reconciled her.

"And then?"

"He'll float on his back, take a few deep breaths, and look up at the sky as he tries to sort through himself. Eventually, he'll realize how cold the water is and begin the long swim back in."

It all sounded a little crazy to Margaret, but to each his own. Hawkeye was a high energy person. That was one of the reasons he was driving himself up the wall in Virginia. He devoted most of his energy into chasing Margaret, but lately both she and Dan had put a stop to that before he could really do anything. Now with the wedding coming up so fast and her being stressed, it added to his. He had a lot on his mind right now and the way to clear that for him was to work out his physical energy and then be able to clear his mind.

"You think he's okay?"

"I'm sure of it," Dan smiled. "Is everyone up?"

"They're getting there." Margaret walked over to the coffee pot to pour herself another cup. "Do you want one?"

Dan nodded. "Cream, no sugar."

"Alright." Margaret stood there and poured the coffees staring blankly as the liquid was transferred from the pot to the cups.

"Honey, you okay?" Margaret didn't answer. "Margaret?"

"Hmm?"

"You okay?" Dan smiled at her.

"Yeah. I didn't sleep well last night."

"Lonely?"

She nodded uneasily, not sure if she wanted to talk to Dan about that. He had been very strict about her and Hawkeye sleeping in the same bed in his house, but then again he did know they lived together. "Lonely and stressed."

"You don't need to be stressed out. I can help you with that, but as far as the loneliness goes...."

"No, I understand. I would do the same if I were in your situation."

"I wish your fiancé would understand."

She smiled. "Maybe when he has children."

"I can't wait for the day. I hope he has ten just like him."

Margaret chuckled. "Don't say that, it might come true."

"Maybe just one then."

"One? I already have one of him. I don't need another."

"Well, children do act differently around their mothers then they do their fathers."

"Even that spells disaster."

Daniel laughed, it looked like he wasn't going to win this one. "Would you mind taking that stack of pancakes out to the table?"

"Sure," she picked up the plate off the counter and took it out to the dining room. When she had done that she brought out the syrup and poured five glasses of orange juice. Just as she was sitting down BJ and Erin walked in. "Good morning," she greeted them.

"Good morning Margaret," BJ said. He then turned to the little girl in his arms. "Can you say good morning?"

"Good morning"

Both Margaret and BJ smiled at the attempt. "How did you sleep sweetie?" She asked Erin. Then turning to BJ she asked, "Did she wake up at all?"

"She slept like a rock."

Margaret was happy to hear that. Last night, after she'd kicked Hawkeye out, she thought about it and hoped they hadn't been too loud. "How about you and Peg?"

"We slept pretty good, that's a good mattress."

"Good."

Daniel walked into the room carrying another stack of pancakes and a bowl of fresh fruit. "Is everyone here?"

"We're just waiting for Peg."

"Oh, okay." Dan sat down at the head of the table. "How long will she be?"

"Not too much longer. She said to go ahead and start without her." BJ placed Erin in a chair. "Where's Hawk? He still sleeping?"

"No. Swimming," Margaret said.

"In the ocean?! He must be nuts. That water is freezing."

"I know," she agreed. "But Dan tells me Hawk knows what he's doing."

"He's sure changed some of his old habits."

"He's not exhausted all the time anymore. You know how much things took out of him back in Korea."

BJ nodded. "I like him better now anyway. He's not so... I don't know the word."

"Crazy," Margaret answered.

"For lack of a better word, yeah."

She smiled and nodded. She couldn't have married the man that she met in Korea anymore than he could have married her. The love was there and so was the passion, but under those high stress conditions they just weren't themselves. Margaret was wound so tightly back then. It was part of her personality, but she was a lot calmer now. Then again calm for Margaret wasn't like calm for a lot of other people.

Just as they were dishing out the food they heard the back door open up and bare feet walk across the floor. "Smells good in here. Where is everyone?"

"In here," Dan called. "You're not all wet are you?"

Hawkeye stepped into the room partly dry from his walk back to the house. "Not really." There was an empty seat next to Margaret that he sat in. He gave her a tender kiss. "Good morning. Did you sleep well."

"No."

"Good."

Margaret looked at him. "What?!"

"Hey, if I can't sleep than neither can you." He snatched a piece of fruit off her plate. "Why couldn't you sleep?"

"I just couldn't." She really didn't want to talk about that at the moment. "Grab yourself a plate."

"Yours looks good to me."

Had it just been the two of them then she wouldn't have cared at all. When they were alone they weren't too particular when it came to eating, but Hawkeye's father and the Hunnicutts were the exception. "Get your own plate."

"You know, you're no fun when you're tired," he chuckled as he pulled a strip of bacon off her plate.

"I'll get him one," Daniel told her. "I don't want you dripping all over my nice clean floor," he said to his son.

Hawkeye tousled his hair and scooted his chair up to the table. "And a glass too please."  He turned to Margaret and said, "You forgot to set a place for me."

"I didn't know when you were coming back."

He kissed her cheek, "Well I'm here now."

"And your shirt is damp," she groaned as she pushed him back.

"Well what did you expect?" He asked. "It wasn't like I was sun bathing or anything, all though...." He lifted his shirt and looked at his stomach. "It wouldn't hurt."

Daniel walked back in and set a plate down in front of Hawkeye. "Put your shirt down, no one wants to see that."

Margaret started laughing; she reached over and lightly patted his stomach. "It's okay Tubby, I still love you."

Hawkeye glared at her. "You really aren't funny at all." He stole a piece of fruit off her plate again.

"Hey." She slapped his hand. "Get your own."

"What's yours is mine." He reminded her.

"Not until Saturday."

Hawkeye smiled and put his arm around her chair resting his hand on her shoulder. "Can you see how much she loves me?"

"It's pretty damn clear if you ask me." Dan said coming back into the room. "She puts up with all your sh..." He noticed Erin and changed what he was going to say. "With all your crap."

Hawkeye grabbed the plate and the glass removing his arm from Margaret's chair. "I should have stayed out there longer. I didn't know I would be treated like this. Would you pass the bacon?"

Margaret handed him the plate but not before making another comment. "Are you sure you need bacon? You have to go to a fitting this afternoon."

"Just give it to me."

BJ chuckled and looked at Margaret. "Look at it this way, now you'll have more of him to love."

"You are no longer my best man, and as for you..." Hawkeye looked at the woman sitting next to him. "I may just go out and find someone else to marry."

"Good luck," she grinned. "I'm the only one that would have you."

"God, you're so funny today." He said sarcastically. BJ was enjoying it and so was Daniel. Usually Hawkeye was the one that was picking on people and getting them going. "Where's Peg?"

"She was in the shower when we came down. She's not feeling too well today."

"Do you think she'll be able to go into town with me?" Margaret asked anxiously. She didn't know if she could handle it on her own.

"I'm sure she will. If not, Erin will."

Margaret smiled. "As nice as that would be, I would like Peg to go with us. Oh, Hawkeye don't forget that my sister is coming today."

"I know, honey. You've been telling me for days now." He took a bite of his pancake.

"I just want to make sure you get her. The baby will be with her and she'll need help."

"I got it covered."

"Maybe you should take your father's car," she suggested.

"What's wrong with my car?" He exclaimed. It was more like 'cars', but she didn't know that yet.

"I don't know if driving without the top is good for the baby."

"Margaret..." That sounded a little extreme. "It's a beautiful day."

"They're from South Carolina, it's a lot warmer there then it is here."

"I'll put the top up then," he told her.

Margaret took a pancake off the stack. "They're coming in at one, don't forget."

"I won't."

"And your fitting is at three."

"Margaret," he stopped eating and put his hand on her arm. "I won't forget, I promise."

"You know what, I'll write down the phone number and call to remind you. I'll be out most of the afternoon. I'll try to get here as soon as I can, but I don't know how things are going to go in town."

It was as if she hadn't even heard him. "Fine."

Peg walked into the dining room. "Good morning."

"Morning," Hawkeye said. "How did you sleep?"

"Pretty good."

Hawkeye looked directly at his father. "That is a nice bed. I wish I had one." Dan rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything. "Hopefully I can get some sleep before the wedding or I'll be spending our entire honeymoon sleeping."

"It wouldn't kill you." Dan said.

Margaret wanted the conversation to stay off of their sex life. She heard enough about that from Hawkeye when they were alone, she didn't want him to let other people know about that. He wasn't very private with such matters. "So Peg, BJ said you weren't feeling well this morning."

"No, I'm fine. That shower made a world of difference."

"That's good. You'll be able to go with me?"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world. Could you pass the pancakes? What time do you want to leave?"

"By ten." Margaret had everything mapped out. She knew where she had to be and at what time. Hopefully she could finish her fitting for her dress today and get the florists all set. That would take a huge weight off her shoulders. "Oh, Hawk, I don't remember if I told you this..."

"Katie will be here at one. I know, I know."

"That's not what I was going to say smart ass. BJ is going to build us an archway for the wedding. The two of you need to get the stuff to make it and paint it."

"Fine."

"Dan, could you check on the food for me?" Margaret really didn't know Hawkeye's family. As it was, she felt a little odd that they were handling all the food for the wedding and reception.

"Yes."

"What time is it?"

"It's only quarter till eight," Hawkeye said. "You have time."

"You'll need to hop in the shower before you go to the airport."

"Actually," Hawkeye sat back in his chair. "I was thinking I'd go like this, except without the shirt."

"You're getting in that shower if I have to drag you," she told him sternly.

"I wish you would."

Margaret blushed and Daniel saw it. "I'll do it," he offered with a large smile.

The smile on Hawkeye's fell right off. "No, I think I'll manage.  Thanks." Everyone except Hawkeye chuckled; he didn't like that idea at all.

"Do you need help shaving too? I know we went over that when you were fourteen."

"Ha ha," Hawkeye laughed sarcastically.

BJ pushed his chair back and stood up. "I'm going to take Erin upstairs and help her to brush her teeth."

"I'll come with you," Peg stood up. "Breakfast was wonderful Daniel," she smiled at him.

"It's not a problem, I'm glad you enjoyed it."

When the three of them had gone Daniel got up and started to clear the table. "I can do that," Margaret volunteered.

"You did the dishes last night," he told her.

"Please, let me help you."

Daniel pointed to his son, "I think you have bigger worries."

Margaret looked over at Hawkeye. He was still shoveling the food in his mouth, but she could tell his mood had changed. "I'll do the dinner dishes tonight."

"Deal." Dan grabbed some more dishes.

Margaret stood behind Hawkeye and wrapped her arms around his neck and shoulders. "You know I would love to drag you into the shower," she mumbled in his ear. Hawkeye smiled, but didn't say a word. "I didn't sleep well last night because you weren't there. I missed you." She kissed his cheek. "I missed your arms around me and your body pressed against mine."

He turned around and looked up at her. "I missed you too."

"Come with me upstairs"

Hawkeye's eyes widened. "You mean...?"

"No. I mean come with me upstairs. Your clothes are in my room and you need to jump in the shower."

"What I would really love to do is go to bed."

"Me too." She grabbed his hand and tugged on it so he would stand up. "You never gave me a proper good morning kiss."

Hawkeye took her in his arms and kissed her softly, but passionately. Daniel walked into the room to get some more dishes, but neither one of them noticed until he spoke. "Knock it off."

Margaret pulled away smiling. "Sorry."

"I can't wait until the two of you get married and get out of here."

"Neither can we." Hawkeye stated. He waited until his father was out of the room and then took Margaret by the hand. He just wanted to be alone with her for five minutes. "Let's go upstairs."

"The Hunnicutts are up there."

"I know that."

"Nothing funny," she said as she led him to the stairs.

"I've yet to hear you laugh," he said lowly as he walked up behind her. "Well, there was that one time..."

A smile spread across her face. That wouldn't have happened had he not been talking. "Hold your tongue Pierce."

Hawkeye grinned and followed close behind her as they walked up the stairs. When they were alone in her room he said, "I wish you could shower with me."

"In two days," she reminded him.

"I have the feeling we won't be doing much showering that night," he smiled.

"Fine then, four."

"Four? Aren't you skipping a number?"

"I'm not showering with you on Sunday morning, we'll miss our plane."

"We'll get up early," he grinned.

Margaret handed him a fresh towel. "Go."

"I still need my clothes."

She stood aside and let him get at suitcase. "Wear those loose blue slacks."

"Yes ma'am."

"And that white shirt with the vertical blue and yellow pin stripes."

Hawkeye stood up and turned around. "Margaret."

"Sorry," she gave him a kiss.

He put his hand on her hip and closed the distance between them as he kissed her deeply. "How's that for a good morning kiss?" He said against her lips.

"Mmm, very good."

"What if I skipped the shower and stayed in here with you instead?"

"It wouldn't do you any good." She gave him a kiss and gently pushed him out the door. "You'll be better off taking a nice cold shower."

"That isn't a good substitute."

"It'll have to do." She kissed him once more. "I need to fix my hair and makeup. Go shower."

"Fine." Hawkeye turned and walked away. He bumped into a little brunette running down the hall. "Excuse me." He picked Erin up. "Where are you headed in such a hurry?"

"Get my dwess."

"Your dress? Are you going into town today?" She nodded. "Bring back some candy."

"Okay."

Hawkeye gave the child a kiss on the cheek and sat her down. "Don't run in the house." He turned and looked at Margaret who was standing in the doorway looking at him. "I sound like my father."

She smiled. "That's not such a bad thing." She shut the door before he could comment.

Margaret got herself ready to go while Hawkeye was in the shower. She knew he was going to take a quick one so that he would be able to get her alone in the bedroom. It was nice to be so loved and wanted, but it seemed like they kept having the same conversation. When Hawkeye got out of the shower Margaret was in there doing her hair, but so was Peg and Erin. Hawkeye grabbed some socks and left.

That day Margaret got everything accomplished that she needed to do in town. She called back to the house a few times to make sure that Hawkeye was on track. Dan assured her that he was keeping his son on track. Hawkeye picked Katie up on time and got the materials for BJ to make an archway, and he even finished the final fitting for his tux.

Friday wasn't as hectic as Thursday had been; Margaret had gotten a lot accomplished that afternoon. Of course having two more people in the house complicated things, Hawkeye and Margaret hadn't had a moment to themselves since the previous morning. They finally got their chance that afternoon after everyone had gone into town for lunch. Margaret said she had a few more things to go over before the wedding and Hawkeye said the same. Normally they would have gone with, but right now they just needed a little time to themselves.

"How does that feel?"

"Ohhhhh," Margaret moaned. "That's really good, right there," she breathed quickly. He pressed a little harder. "Ah, that's the spot, don't move."

"Are you feeling any better?"

"Wonderful," she groaned.

"You're really tense," he said as he worked her shoulders with his hands.

"All that...stress."

Hawkeye moved his hands lower, "You're all knotted up."

"That feels really good," she said into the comforter.

"Here," Hawkeye lifted up her shirt. "Take this off." Margaret sat up and slipped her shirt over her head. When she laid back down she felt Hawkeye unclip her bra and push her straps down. After a moment she felt his hands on her bare back and gasped. "Are my hands cold?"

"No," she groaned again. He was just really good when it came to touching her.

"You should have told me how tense you were. I would have done this sooner."

"When would we have the time?" She relaxed more on the bed.

"Yeah, you're right. I'm surprised they all went without us today."

"They knew we needed a break. Peg did anyway. Maybe she spread the word."

Hawkeye's hands moved back to her shoulders and neck working some more knots out. "Maybe."

"Go lower," she moaned.

He moved his hands lower trying to hit every muscle on the way. "Will you do this for me?"

"Uh huh. Harder." Every time he talked he let up on the pressure he was applying.

Hawkeye concentrated on her for a little while without saying much. It was nice to just be with her like that. His hands roamed freely across her skin and that was when she knew it was time to switch. She replaced the straps on her bra and hooked it back up. "What are you doing?"

"Your turn."

"I was having fun." He watched her reach for her shirt.

"A little too much fun. Take your shirt off and lie down."

"Pants too?"

"No."

Hawkeye took his shirt off and threw it somewhere in the room. Then he laid down on his stomach waiting for her. "Ah," he yelled. "Your hands are cold."

"Stop being a baby."

"I am not a baby."

She smiled leaning down to kiss his shoulder. "Yes you are, but I love you anyway. You know that."

"That's what you say, but you don't show it."

"Oh, that's not fair. Tomorrow I'll show you all night long."

He smiled. "I could skip the whole ceremony and go right to the wedding night."

"I know you could."

"You know, we have this entire afternoon to ourselves, I could have given you a full body message."

"We don't know when they're coming back."

"We wouldn't have needed anything more then two hours."

Margaret worked the muscles in his shoulders a little harder. "They could be back any time."

Her hands went a little lower and Hawkeye moaned. "This is good." Just as long as they were together he didn't particularly care what they did.

"I thought running was supposed to relax you."

"It does, it's this wedding that's killing me."

Margaret looked over his back, "Your tan is looking good though."

Hawkeye smiled, "That's from all that work you've had me doing."

She shook her head, "It's September, I don't see how you can stand out there shirtless."

"I grew up here, I'm used to it."

"You're crazy."

"But I have a good tan," he smiled.

Margaret planted a kiss on his back. "Think about how it'll look after a week in the tropics."

"I'm not counting on that, considering we're going to be spending our entire honeymoon in the room."

Margaret smiled, "We're not staying in a hotel right?"

"Right. It's kind of like a small house on the beach."

She stopped massaging and lay down next to him. "I can't wait until we're there," she whispered to him excitedly.

Hawkeye moved over and put his arm around her. "Neither can I."

"It's going to be so much fun. Just us."

Hawkeye smiled at her. "Yeah. Remember last time we went on vacation?"

"You mean to my family reunion?"

"Yes. That was something."

She smiled at him. "Because you kept getting me drunk."

He laughed. "You were the one that wanted all the drinks, not me. If our honeymoon is anything like that was, it'll be a great change from what our sex life has been."

"What?"

"I think I'm a virgin again."

She rolled her eyes. "You really are a big baby." She kissed him. "What does this house look like?"

"The beach house?"

"Yes."

"It looks like a beach house. Glass front looking out into the ocean. Silky white sheets on the bed. You'll love it."

"Have you been before?"

He nodded. "Actually, we own it."

"Really?"

"Yes."

Margaret was shocked. "You and your father bought it? How long have you had it?"

"No," he chuckled. "When I say 'we' I mean me and you."

She smiled brightly. "What else do we own or are you going to keep surprising me?"

"I think I like surprising you." Hawkeye moved so that his head was on the pillow and she followed. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close to him intertwining their legs. "I haven't slept very well lately."

"Me either," she yawned.

"We're not going to be getting much sleep for a while."

"At least not until we're there."

"Just think," he whispered. "After tonight we'll never have to sleep alone again."

Margaret sighed and snuggled against him. "I'm looking forward to that."

"Me too."

"For one whole week you're the only person I'm going to see."

He ran a hand up her arm, "And feel."

Margaret's skin tingled when he did that. She wished they were there right now. "No family, no friends..."

"No phone," he added.

"No phone?"

"Well, no one has the number."

Margaret smiled, "No interruptions."

"No clothes," he kissed her ear.

"Yes, no clothes," she grinned.

"I think we should go right now, before they get back."

Margaret laughed, "You're incorrigible."

"And tired."

She sat up and picked up his shirt. "Put this on, I don't want you to fall asleep and have everyone think something happened."

"What? No."

"Please. For me."

Hawkeye sighed and grabbed the shirt. "Only if you take a nap with me."

She nodded. She could use the rest and as long as she was in his arms she didn't worry about things. At least not at the moment. Hawkeye slipped his shirt on and then laid back down with her. She snuggled close to him, burring her face in his chest. "I love you."

"I love you." He rubbed her back gently and watched as she closed her eyes. She really did need the rest. Her eyes were swollen and puffy from not sleeping. She would be so upset if their wedding pictures showed that. The nap would do both of the a world of good.

"Honey," she mumbled.

"Hmm?"

"Can you shut the light off?"

"I have to move."

"I know." She opened her eyes and looked at him. "Please."

"Yeah." He dropped a kiss on her forehead and got up to shut the light off. "That better?"

"Thank you." She patted the spot next to her.

Hawkeye crawled back onto the bed and lay down beside her. Once he was settled he opened his arms to her and she eagerly cuddled up to him. When they were comfortable Margaret said, "This is the most relaxed I've been all week."

"You haven't been sleeping on that couch."

"I wasn't sleeping with you."

Hawkeye smiled sleepily and rubbed her back. "We're together now."

"Mmm," she sighed peacefully.

"I love you," he said quietly as he planted a kiss on the top of her head.

It didn't take very long for either of them to fall asleep. It wasn't where they slept that really affected their nights, it was not being together. Margaret would have slept on the couch with him if she could. Granted it wasn't very comfortable and she'd probably have had to sleep on top of him, but at least they would have been together. Every time she thought about the wedding she would tense up. She wasn't nervous about marrying Hawkeye, he was the love of her life, it was just everything else involved that made her anxious.