…Till Death Does Us Part Chapter III – Part 4/24
Disclaimer - See part one for all important information
Parma Woods Development
McLean, Virginia
3:23 PM
"I have one more house to show you two. It's just down the block. You know, I could call some friends tonight and get appointments set up for this week or the weekend," Tom Byers told Harm and Mac as they walked out of the twelfth house of the day.
Mac rubbed her neck. "Tom, I'm getting really tired and this kid is acting up right now."
Harm gave her a concerned look. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, the baby didn't like lunch and is letting me know it," Mac told Harm as they walked to the cars.
"I'm sorry to hear that, Mac. The last house is right down there." Tom pointed down the street towards a big oak tree.
Harm shrugged his shoulders. "We're right here, Mac."
Mac sighed knowing Harm and Tom had a point. "Okay, lets go, but you do owe me."
Harm smiled and held the car door for Mac.
Tom smiled. "Let me just lock up here. It's 1603, the house behind the oak tree."
"We'll meet you down there," Harm told Tom as he got into the car. Once inside the car Harm turned to Mac as he started the engine. "Tom's a nice guy."
"You said Frank knows him."
"Yeah, they're old friends."
"You never did tell me how Trish took the news."
Harm gave Mac a small smile as he pulled out of the driveway. "She wasn't home, but I'm going to tell her."
"Before the baby is born," Mac instructed.
"Funny, Mac," Harm chuckled. "Okay, we're looking for 1603."
Mac looked out the passenger window. "1625, it should be down a ways." She glanced at the houses on the street. They were nicely sized, but spread apart. All of them were lovely and had a certain feeling of class with them. "Harm, we can't afford to live here."
"The last few have been pricey, but Frank said Tom could get us a deal."
"Okay."
Harm slowed the car down as he saw the big oak tree and the mailbox which read 1603. He pulled the car into the driveway and both of them stared at the house. The house had a ranch feel to it. It was two stories with a chimney. The front porch wrapped around the front of the house and ended on the side. It was painted blue with white trim. The garage looked big enough to hold two cars. There was a round turret on one side of the house, which probably meant there was a sitting area in the master bedroom or it was a very nice den area. In front of the porch were several blooming bushes. There was a very large oak tree in the front yard, giving shade to a nice size area of the front yard.
Mac turned her head and looked at Harm who drove the car into the spacious driveway. "This place is huge."
"Plenty of room."
"We can't afford it," Mac stated bringing Harm back to reality.
Harm shut off the engine. "We can still look at it and dream a little."
"We're never going to be able to afford it," Mac muttered before getting out of the car.
Harm opened his door and step out. "I can pretend," He muttered to himself.
They were looking around the front porch as Tom drove up. Harm looked at the front porch swing. "My grandmother has one of these."
Mac grinned at the look on his face. "Swings are nice."
"They are. I bet you the backyard would be big enough for a play gym for the little guy and maybe there's another tree and I could build him a tree house." Harm smiled.
"What if it's a girl?" Mac asked as Tom walked onto the porch.
"I'm sure she would enjoy it, too," Harm said as Tom unlocked the door.
Tom held open the door. "So what do you say we take a look at the place?"
"Thank you," Mac smiled before walking to the house. Harm walked in behind her and joined her in the entryway.
Tom joined them with a smile on his face. "Okay, here we have the entryway. To the left is the living room and to the right, the family room. One room is always good to have set up as a formal area for company and the other is used as the room everyone lives in."
They moved into the living room to find there was the first level of the turret area, causing one corner of the living room to have a round area. Next to that area was a fireplace which Mac smiled at.
"Right through this walkway we have the dining room," Tom said as they moved into the dining room. They didn't remain in there long though because Harm caught sight of the kitchen.
He walked into the kitchen and smiled at the stainless steel appliances. "Wow."
Tom grinned at Mac and she just chuckled. "He cooks."
Tom laughed. "Well, you'll be glad to know, Harm, that all of this is included in the house. In fact the owner just replaced all the appliances last year. It's all top of the line."
Harm's gaze moved to the island in the kitchen. He looked up at Mac. "I could do some major cooking in here."
"You are definitely the cook out of the two of us."
Harm laughed. "Hey, you order a mean pizza."
Tom laughed with them. "Through here is a pantry and laundry area, this is a brand new washer and dryer. Here's the half bath and the entry in the garage." He opened the garage door. "The garage is big enough for two cars and deep enough to have room for plenty of storage."
He led them back into the house. "The family room has a small closet to hide the kid's toys in, once it grows up." The three walked back into the entryway of the house. "The basement is through that door and completely finished. Should we go upstairs?"
"Sure," Mac said as she moved to the stairs.
Harm looked at the basement door. "Why don't you go up, Mac? I want to look at the basement."
"Sure," Mac said before going up the stairs with Tom behind her.
"There are two bathrooms up here, three bedrooms, and a den which could be used as an office." Tom informed Mac as they moved to the landing at the top of the stairs. "Let's start at the far end of the hall."
The two moved down the hallway towards a bedroom. "This is one of the three bedrooms, it's the largest excluding the master bedroom. It has a closet and faces the back yard."
Mac looked out the window and chuckled as she looked into the spacious backyard. "A lot room."
"The owner wanted a place for his grandchildren to play." Tom smiled as they walked out of the room. "Here's the den. This could also be used for the nursery, office space, or guest bedroom."
"It's a nice size for an office," Mac said as Harm joined them.
Tom looked at Harm and saw the look on Harm's face that told him he fell in love with the house. "Liked the basement?"
"Yeah, I'm beginning to wonder why the homeowner wants to sell it." Harm chuckled.
"He was going to move here with his wife, but they changed their mind," Tom told them as he pointed to two doors in the hallway. "These are two of the other bedrooms. They are mirror images of each other. That is, as long as you don't count the view from the windows."
Harm stepped into the bathroom which was across from one of the rooms. "Small, but nice."
"But with this one being small the master bath makes up for," Tom said as the three walked into the master bedroom.
Mac glanced at the room and fell in love. It was nicely sized and had a sitting area where the turret was located. She quickly imagined herself sitting in a rocking chair holding the baby. Harm glanced at her and smiled. He had a pretty good idea about what she was thinking about.
Tom smiled as well. "If you like the bedroom, wait till you see the walk-in-closet and bathroom." He then led them into the bathroom.
Mac looked at the tub and her smile grew. "Whirlpool?"
"Top of the line, and a nice sized shower." Tom pointed to the glass enclosed shower, which looked big enough for two. "My wife said she could live in this bathroom. The walk-in-closet is right behind you."
Mac turned around and tried not to sigh as she looked at the closet. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head as she noticed the shoe racks on the wall. Harm smiled at the room and knew that this was the house for them and the baby.
Tom carefully looked at Harm and Mac and knew they liked what they were seeing. He took a breath and looked at his watch. "I have to make a phone call, so I'll just meet you two downstairs when you're ready."
"Thanks, Tom," Harm said as the other man left the room. Harm then turned to Mac. "Well?"
"We can't afford it," Mac stated.
Harm sighed. "Just forget about the price, which by the way we don't know yet. Do you like it?"
"It's too big," Mac avoided the question.
Harm gently took her hand into his. "Do you like the house, Mac?"
"Yes," she softly said.
"Good. So do I." Harm grinned. "I want to make an offer."
"Harm…" Mac started but Harm cut her off.
"We can swing it."
"How? And don't tell me you'll ask Frank for a loan."
Harm gave her a sheepish grin. "Okay, I won't tell you that." Mac rolled her eyes and Harm lost his smile. "You like the house and so do I. This is the first house we've seen, where you actually see something."
"How do you know I see something?"
"The bathtub, walk-in-closet, the sitting area," Harm rattled off. "I know you and I know what you like. Let's just tell Tom we're interested and see what he can do to help us."
Mac was about to answer when the baby gave her two solid kicks. She chuckled and Harm gave her an odd look. "The baby thinks we should talk to Tom, too."
Harm smiled and rubbed his hand across Mac's belly. "We've got a smart kid."
They both laughed as the baby delivered two more kicks. Harm and Mac smiled at each other and left the room. As they got downstairs Tom was finishing his phone call. He turned around as they reached the final step.
"So what do you two think?" Tom asked with a smile.
"We like it," Harm told Tom. "What are we looking at here?"
Tom gave a slight grin. "Why don't I call the owner and see what he would like?"
"You don't have a price?" Mac asked.
Tom shrugged. "The owner told me to call him when there was an offer to buy. He'll want to talk to you to make sure you're good for the house."
Harm and Mac exchanged an odd look as Tom dialed a number on his phone. They then listened in on Tom's part of the conversation. "Hey…yeah, I've got an offer…they're a nice couple, expecting a baby in a month…Lawyers for JAG, he's a commander and she's a lieutenant colonel…yeah…sure hold on." Tom handed the phone over to Harm. "He would like to talk to you."
Harm apprehensively took the phone from Tom. "Hello."
"Hello, Harm," a cheerful voice said on the other line.
Harm's eyes got wide. "Frank??"
Frank chuckled. "It's me, Son. So you like the house?"
Harm chuckled in surprise. "We like it a lot. But you do know we have a few questions?"
Frank couldn't help, but smile. "If price is one question. Don't worry about that right now. Tell Tom you're interested and you, Mac, and I will talk tonight." He looked at his watch. "I'm sure the baby is hungry, since you've been out all day long."
"How do you know how long we've been out?"
"I told Tom to hold my house for last." Frank smirked.
"Why do I have the feeling I've been set up?" Harm asked Frank as Mac gave him a confused look.
Frank just chuckled. "Call me when you and Mac get back to your apartment."
"Sure thing," Harm said before hanging up the phone and giving it back to Tom. "We're interested. He wants us to call him back later."
"Great." Tom grinned. "He'll give you a good deal."
"Are the other houses owned by him too?" Harm asked.
"No, only this one. The others are owned by a few friends who were more than happy to help out," Tom told him.
Mac glanced at the conversation between the two men and knew she was missing something. "Is there something I need to know?"
"A lot and I will tell you everything over dinner," Harm told Mac with a sincere look, before turning back to Tom. "Tom, thanks for all your help. I guess we'll be in touch."
Tom shook Harm's hand. "Yes we will be. It was nice meeting you, Harm, Sarah." He then shook Mac's hand. "Good luck with the baby."
Mac gave him a nervous look. "I have a feeling I'm going to need all the luck in the world right now."
Harm laughed as he and Mac walked back to the car while Tom locked the house up. "It's good news. Now what does baby want for dinner?"
"An explication," Mac told him as she opened the car door.
"Over dinner," Harm told her as they both got into the car.
End Part 4
Thought we made up the house? We're not creative. Take a look at the Rabb/MacKenzie house. Oh course this site, won't allow a web site to be placed here. So e-mail us and we'll send you the link. E-mails are in part 1.