...Till Death Does Us Part Chapter III – Part 19/24
Disclaimer - See part one for all important information
Saturday May 29
Harm and Mac's House
McLean, Virginia
1:37 AM
Beep...beep...beep
Mac held tighter onto her pillow as the sound of an annoying beep filled her bedroom. She groaned and opened her eyes. They quickly focused on her flashing cell phone on her nightstand. She picked it up and mumbled, "Hello."
There was no response, but she heard the sound of heavy breathing from the other end. Her anger and annoyance grew. "Hello, who is this?"
"Sarah," was said in a very timid and light voice.
Mac recognized the voice. "Clay, is that you?" Again, there was no response. She sat up in bed and turned on her lamp. "Clay?"
"Yeah?" Clay mumbled into his phone.
"Clay. Do you have any idea what time it is? Why are you calling me in the middle of the night?"
"I wanted to say that I'm sorry." His words slurred together, but they were still clear enough for Mac to understand them.
Mac sighed. "You're calling me at 1:40 in the morning, just to say that you're sorry?"
"No."
"No?"
"No," Clay paused. "I'm here to say that I'm sorry. Forgive me, Sarah?"
Mac thought about his words for a second. Then stood out of her bed and walked to the big window in her room. She looked down and saw a yellow taxicab and a figure near the door.
"Just a second," Mac told Clay before she hung up her phone. She grabbed her robe and walked downstairs. She reached into her purse and pulled out the cash she had and opened the front door.
Clay swayed in front of her, blinked, and then proceeded to fall towards her. Mac caught him before he completely lost his balance. "Whoa, I've got you, Clay." He wrapped his arms around her waist for help. Mac took a deep breath and suddenly regretted it. The smell of alcohol on his breath was extremely noticeable; it was almost as bad as the smell of stale cigarettes. "Double whoa. Come on. Let's get you to the couch."
Mac half dragged him to the couch in the living room. Once he was down on the couch, Clay fell over onto the cushions in a drunken stupor. Mac stood there for a few seconds and wondered what he was doing to himself, before she walked out to the cab driver.
"How much?" Mac asked the cabby as he stood near his cab.
"40.77," the cabby said with a grin at Mac in her bathrobe.
Mac could have cared less about his blatant observations of her. She knew first hand drunks in cabs were worrisome things. "Keep the change," she said while giving him a fifty.
"Hope your friend is okay," the cabby smiled before he walked back to his cab.
Mac quickly walked back into the house and found Clay nearly asleep on the couch. She kneeled down and nudged him a few times to wake him.
"Wha'?" Clay moaned as he opened his eyes.
Mac looked into his boozed eyes. "Come on. Let's get you cleaned up before you try to get some sleep."
Clay gave her a half smile. "You take care of me."
"Yeah." Mac pulled him off the couch. "But you have to help me get you upstairs."
"'kay," Clay said as he stood and swayed in front of Mac.
Very slowly and carefully, they made their way upstairs. A few times Mac thought Clay was going to overpower them and they were going to fall. However, after a few minutes they reached the top of the stairs. Against her better judgment, Mac took Clay into her bedroom.
Clay looked at her bed and drunkenly grinned at her. "Why Sarah, are you going to take advantage of me?"
"In your dreams, Clayton." She quickly moved them towards her bathroom. Once in the bathroom, she took off her robe and found herself happy she had decided to wear her cowboy pajamas to bed. Clay leaned against the counter and sighed, he then moved, so he was half sitting on it.
"Okay, Clay, you've got to help me here."
"I'll always help you," Clay mumbled.
"Good." Mac started to push Clay's jacket of his shoulder. "You need to get undressed."
"Okay," Clay stated, but he didn't fully listen to her words. He reached up to her shirt and tried to grab at the buttons of her top.
Mac slapped away his hands. "Not me. You."
"Ooohhh." Clay shrugged his coat off his shoulders and Mac unbuttoned his shirt.
Once Clay was topless, Mac leaned down and took his shoes and socks off. Clay looked down at her hair. "You have such pretty hair. Does Rabb ever tell you that?"
Mac ignored Clay's words. She reached for his belt buckle and undid his pants. Mac took a breath and looked at Clay's face as she unbuttoned and unzipped the pants. There was an alcohol daze that she recognized from her time with Chris. Clay had no idea what was going on, he was out of control and killing himself with a bottle. Mac tugged on his pants and Clay wiggled so they fell to the ground. Mac tapped his foot and Clay stepped out of the pants. Clay now stood in front of her in his black boxers.
"Come on." Mac took his hand into hers.
"Okay." Clay followed when she tugged his hand. He stepped up into Mac's shower and Mac moved him so he would be under the spray of water, which was about to be turned on. Mac placed his hand against the wall and the other on the towel rod behind him.
She took a breath and turned on the water. Cold water exited the showerhead and quickly awoke Clay.
"Aargh! Damn it! That's cold. Damn it! Turn that off," Clay cursed and yelled as he almost fell.
Mac quickly stepped into the shower and behind Clay to support him. "Sshhh," she commanded and Clay stopped his moaning. "There is a little boy in this house, so be quiet. And the cold water is better for you than a hot shower. This way you'll be awake enough to get into bed, you're a long way from sober." She reached onto the towel bar and grabbed the dry washcloth that was there. Working quickly she got the cloth wet and soaped up before handing it to Clay who was starting to wake up.
Clay took the cloth and moved it over his face and his chest very slowly. Mac held him from behind and found herself partly glad that this was Clay and not Harm. If Harm was in this mess, she would have had a very hard time holding him up in the shower. She spent another second thinking about Harm, 'well, at least my Flyboy will have a peaceful night.'
Clay moved the cloth across his arm and it brushed against Mac's hand. It also got her attention back to him. "You'll have one hell of a headache tomorrow. And you are damn well sure going to tell me what got into you."
Clay shook his head. "Sooo cold."
Mac felt sorry for him. "I know, but it will be over soon."
A few minutes later, she shut off the water and moved Clay onto the bathmat outside the shower. "Hold still," Mac ordered.
Clay blinked at her, his haze starting to wear off. Mac put a towel over his neck and put another in his hands. Clay shook his head and started to dry off. Before Mac could do anything Clay pulled off his boxer shorts and stood completely nude in front of Mac. She was too concerned about his health to wonder, but she did peek. Once he was dried off, Clay held the towel around his waist, realizing he did give Mac a show.
He opened his mouth to apologize. Mac cut him off. "Nothing I haven't seen before."
"Not mine." Clay blushed.
"It will be our secret," Mac told him. "Go sit on my bed, I'll be out in a minute."
"Okay." Clay left the bathroom.
Mac quickly stripped out of her wet bedclothes. She hung them in the shower to dry. Then she put her robe back on and made sure to double knot the tie before walking into her bedroom.
Clay was sitting there on her bed, holding the picture that sat on her nightstand. It was a silver frame and inside was a picture of Mac holding Ty with Harm sitting behind her. It was taken a few days after Ty was home from the hospital. The smiles on their faces were an example of how happy this little family was. Clay stared at the picture as a tear fell down his cheek.
Mac stepped over to Clay and put her hand on the picture. Clay looked up at her. "I'm sorry."
"I know you are, Clay." She took the picture and set it back on the nightstand. She extended her hand and Clay took it. Very slowly he stood up.
She led him into the guestroom across the hall from Ty. Once she walked into the room, she pulled down the covers of the bed and Clay sat down. Mac turned around to leave the room.
"Where are you going?" Clay asked, afraid she was going to leave him.
Mac smiled back at him. "I'm going to get you something to wear."
"Please, not Rabb's clothes," Clay told her.
Mac folded her arms across her chest. "Do you want to wear my jammies instead?"
"No," Clay grumbled.
"Good. I'll be right back." Mac left the room.
She closed the door behind her and walked to check on Ty. She opened his door and found her son sound asleep and as usual, his blanket was kicked off. She lifted the blanket and covered him, before giving him a soft kiss on his forehead. Ty smiled in his sleep and Mac chuckled at his sweetness.
She walked down to Harm's room and quietly opened his bedroom door. She silently walked into the room and over to his closet. She opened the door and pulled one of his shirts off a hanger. Then she moved to his dresser. She opened the bottom drawer and it squeaked.
Harm heard the noise, opened one eye, and looked towards his dresser. "Mac?"
Mac cringed and turned her head towards him. "Yeah, it's me."
"What's wrong?" Harm asked, more asleep than he was awake.
"Nothing." Mac pulled a pair of sweatpants out of the drawer. She closed the drawer and stood up straight. "Go back to sleep, Harm."
Harm groggily looked at her. "Okay." His head fell back onto his pillow and he entered the dream world again.
Mac looked at him and shook her head. Sometimes Harm reminded her of Ty when he slept. Pulling open Harm's top drawer she got a pair of boxers for Clay and returned to the guestroom. She opened the door and saw Clay was still sitting in the same spot with a lost look on his face.
"Clay," Mac said getting his attention. Clay looked at her, but didn't say anything. "I got you some clothes." She handed them to Clay.
Clay looked at the clothes, the boxers sat on top. "Rabb's underwear."
"It's your call if your going to wear them or not," Mac told him and he shook his head. "I'm going to get you some water from the kitchen and some Tylenol. I'll be back in five minutes and I want you dressed by then. Do you need any help with that?"
"No, I've been humiliated enough," Clay told her softly.
"Okay, I'll be back in five minutes." Mac walked out of the room.
Before she went to the kitchen, she went into her room and got dressed in another pair of her pajamas. She was not about to be naked while in the same room with Clay. She grabbed the bottle of Tylenol and some water for Clay.
"All dressed?" Mac asked gently knocking on the door.
"Yeah," Clay told her from the bed.
Mac stepped into the room and looked at him. She set the water bottle and Tylenol on the nightstand. "Get under the covers, Clay." Clay did as he was told and took the Tylenol with the water Mac gave him. He laid on his side and Mac sat on the edge of the bed.
Clay looked up at her. "I love you so much, Sarah. It hurts."
Mac ran her hand over his hair. "Go to sleep, Clay. You're going to have one hell of a night."
"I love you." Clay repeated and closed his eyes.
Mac leaned down and kissed his forehead. "I know, Clay. I know."
8:15 AM
Mac sat in the kitchen with Ty in his baby walker. He was slowly moving around the room and making his usual happy morning sounds. Mac laughed as he got stuck in the corner, again. She grabbed the back of the walker and straightened him up, before returning to her coffee.
She sat there and recounted the night. The night was spent staying in the room all night with Clay. He tossed and turned, nightmares haunted him in his sleep. She soothed him and helped him when he had to go to the bathroom to throw up. All night she was there and lost sleep over him. That part of the night brought her back to Paraguay when she held him and didn't sleep.
He was finally sleeping solidly and she knew it was time that Ty would be getting up. She was right because at 7:10 Ty started to wake up. Mac got him before he started making too much noise and got him ready for the morning. She changed, dressed, and fed him.
Once she was finished with Ty, she had started a load of laundry, mainly Clay's clothes and the towels from the night before. At least this way Clay wouldn't have to be in Harm's clothes when he left. She chuckled as she wondered if Clay wore Harm's boxers or not. Then she blushed at the other bit of knowledge she had on Clay. He was nice, but not as nice as Harm.
She also made breakfast for Harm and herself. It was now in the oven, keeping warm. She stood up from her chair just as sounds could be heard from upstairs. She figured Harm was up and knowing Harm would be using the bathroom across the hall from Clay, he would be up soon, too. She poured herself a cup of coffee then started to work on something for Clay.
As she finished the mixture, Harm walked into the room. "Morning."
"Morning, Sleepyhead." Mac opened the oven and took out a plate full of pancakes and bacon. "I made breakfast and some coffee."
Harm looked at her with surprise when she placed the plate on the table. "Thanks." He was temped to make a statement about the bacon, but changed his mind when he saw what Mac had made in a glass. "What are you making there? It looks horrible."
Before Mac could answer, Clay walked into the kitchen. "Morning," he said in a half voice.
Harm looked at Clay and thought nothing of it. Then his pre-coffee mind did a double-look. He looked at Mac with complete surprise. "What's he doing here?"
Mac ignored his question at first and handed Clay the liquid mixture. "Here, Clay, drink that." Clay gave her an odd look, but she started to talk to Harm. "He was our guest last night. Clay was kind enough to call me at 1:40 this morning, while standing in front of our door."
Clay looked at the drink and got Mac's attention. "Umm, Sarah? What is this?"
Mac gave Clay a blank look. "It's a MacKenzie Special."
Clay looked at her skeptically and then at the drink again. "Do I want to know what's in it?"
"No," Mac told him in all honesty. "Oh, and you should try to drink it in one gulp. It burns more if you take a break."
Clay set the drink on the counter top and looked at Harm's coffee. "I don't know, maybe I'll take just a coffee."
Mac glared at Clay in a mix between Marine-mode and Mother-mode. "First MKS and then you can have your coffee. Now drink."
Clay looked at Harm for some help. Harm opened his mouth to say something, but his son knocked his walker into the table. Harm chuckled as Ty looked up at him. "Da."
Harm turned his attention back to Clay and shrugged. "You got yourself into this. You better do what she tells you. Right, Ty?"
Ty looked at his father, then at the other man in the room. He gave Clay a confused look and went back to his puttering around the room.
Clay looked at Ty, before he looked at Mac. "He looks just like you, Sarah."
Mac crossed her arms and looked at Clay. Clay looked at the drink and swallowed his courage, pride, and then the drink. When he finished drinking it and the burning sensation stopped, he looked down at the floor and grimaced.
Ty looked up at Clay and laughed at the man's funny face. Clay took a few deep breaths as Ty laughed and smiled. "Okay, but that's a Rabb-smile."
"He has my brains, too," Harm announced with fatherly pride.
"Let's not forget your bad timing, too." Mac grinned at Harm. Harm chuckled and ate his breakfast. Mac looked at Clay. "Sit down at the table, Clay."
Clay sat down across from Harm. Mac sat down beside them with her own plate of breakfast and a cup of coffee. She glanced at Ty. He was now sitting in his walker playing with a toy that was attached to it.
She turned her attention to Clay. "So, do you want to tell us why you came here in the middle of the night? Completely drunk no less?"
Clay sighed. "I screwed up, more than once and I guess yesterday was the last straw . I remembered your words from the last conversation we had. I thought I should come over. Guess I was out of control and I do apologize. How bad was I last night?"
Mac rolled her eyes; this was the worst part about being drunk. "You don't remember?"
"Not really," Clay admitted, embarrassed about the situation.
Mac and Harm exchanged knowing looks before Mac retold the night to Clay. Clay was surprised that he got himself so intoxicated, that he did not recall the night at all. He was more embarrassed when Mac told him about the shower, but she was kind enough to leave out the most embarrassing part.
As she spoke, Ty decided he wanted to be with the adults and Harm picked the little guy up and set him on his lap. "So you did go into my room last night?" Harm questioned as he settled Ty onto his lap.
"Yeah," Mac responded and glanced at Clay. "For some reason Clay refused to wear my clothes to sleep in."
Harm pushed his fork and knife away from Ty's grabbing hands. "At least you didn't grab my favorite t-shirt."
Clay looked at his shirt and it just read 'Go Navy.' "You're favorite shirt?"
"Yeah, it's blue and has a Tomcat on the back." Harm thought for a second. "You know, come to think about it, I haven't seen it in a while."
"Laundry monster?" Clay suggested as he watched Ty put both of his hands into Harm's plate and thereby getting maple syrup all over his hands.
Harm looked knowingly at Mac. "Yeah, he's friends with the sock monster."
Mac ignored his comment. "So the rest of the night I just took care of you, Clay."
"Sarah, I don't know how to ever thank you," Clay honestly said.
Mac looked sincerely at Clay. "That's what friends do, Clay."
Clay gave her a soft smile, but from the corner of his eye, he saw that Ty had successfully rubbed his hands over his face, causing it to be covered in syrup. It even looked like the little guy got some in his hair. A grin broke across Clay's face and Mac followed his attention.
"Benjamin-Andrew," Mac said staring at her son.
Ty looked at her and laughed, then stuck a hand in his mouth. Harm looked down at Ty. "Oh...Tyler."
Mac stood up from the table and walked to the sink. She wet a dishcloth and came back to the table; Harm pushed his plate away from Ty who was still giggling. Clay tried not to laugh at the little troublemaker. Mac started to rub his hands, but it wasn't working too well.
Harm glanced up at Mac, who was in mom-mode now. "I think he's going to need a bath."
Mac looked up at Harm and inside the briefest of seconds; they had a conversation with their eyes, which did not deal with the sticky-situation Ty was in. "Yeah, I'll go take care of him."
"You sure?" Harm asked, knowing Mac was.
"Yeah." Mac placed the dishcloth on the table. "Can you handle the dishes?"
"Sure." Harm smiled as he stood up.
Mac picked Ty out of his arms. "Kiss sticky."
Harm leaned down and kissed Ty's forehead, but wasn't quick enough to escape as Ty's sticky hand landed on his cheek. "Auggg," Harm moaned. Mac laughed at Harm's predicament and Harm decided she needed to learn her place. He leaned towards her and kissed her cheek, thereby rubbing some of the syrup on her cheek.
"Harm!" Mac tried not to laugh at Harm's antics.
Harm chuckled and walked away before Mac could do anything. Mac turned around and smiled at Clay. "You know sometimes I don't know who is worse, Harm or Ty."
Clay looked at the bubbling child and then at Harm, who started to load the dishwasher. "I'd have to say Harm."
Mac shook her head before leaving the room. "Have fun, gentlemen."
"Don't get too soaked, Mac," Harm called after her with a laugh in his voice.
Clay looked over at Harm and felt a ping of jealousy. Harm had what he wanted. Married to Sarah MacKenzie with a baby and to top it, and Sarah MacKenzie was in love with him. Clay doubted that Harm knew that bit of information and he would keep it that way.
Harm walked back to the table and collected the dishes. He looked at Clay and wondered what had happened to his friend.
"You really have a cute little boy, Rabb," Clay honestly said.
Harm placed the plates into the dishwasher and closed it. "Yeah, he is a cute kid. But he'll be a troublemaker before the age of three." He wet a paper towel and wiped the leftovers, of the sticky syrup from Ty, off his cheek.
Clay chuckled. "You're giving him that long."
"I know." Harm poured himself another cup of coffee and offered it to Clay, who accepted. "But I wouldn't trade him for anything."
"You're lucky to have him."
"I know." Harm set the pot back on the coffee maker. "Let's take this into the living room. You and I need to have a little talk."
Clay gave Harm a minor grim look, but he knew he had to explain a few things. He stood up and the two men walked into the living room. Harm sat on the couch while Clay took the loveseat.
Harm didn't wait long to start the conversation. "You know Mac's really worried about you. What is going on, Clay?"
Clay took a deep breath. "I wish she wouldn't worry about me. I'm not worth it."
"Clay," Harm interrupted. "You are one of her friends. You're worth her worries. And on the side, ever since she's become a mother she worries more about everyone."
Clay chuckled. "Yeah, she was really worried about me, when she had me pinned against my wall."
Harm looked honestly at Clay. "Knowing Mac she was, but she was also hurt." Harm took a pause. "Clay, I don't care about all of that. I want to know what made you turn to the bottle when you have friends you could turn to."
Clay stared at his coffee cup; he watched a fine ripple move across the liquid. His hands started to shake and he set the cup on the table next to him. He leaned over and held his head in his hands. He took some calming breaths. "I wish, I could tell you, Harm."
"Try to, Clay. I want to help you," Harm softly said.
Clay took another breath and looked at Harm with fear-filled eyes. "I can't sleep unless I'm drunk. Every time I close my eyes I see Sarah...dead or being tortured."
"Clay, Paraguay was over a year ago," Harm told his friend.
"I know, but it still haunts me." Clay looked at his coffee cup. "I've screwed up so many times in the past year. Not just with Sarah, but with the CIA as well." Harm didn't say anything as Clay started to talk and finally let everything out. "I'm on a month suspension. We had an informant give us the possible location on Sadik. I went in on the raid and almost cost the lives of everyone on our team. It was a set-up and I should have caught it, but I didn't."
Clay took a drink of his coffee and wished it was whiskey or bourbon. "There's this young kid. Michael Curran. A fresh faced kid who was recommended to join my group. He was part of the team," Clay paused. "He was shot. The doctors hope he'll be able to walk again."
Harm stared in shock at his friend. He knew Clay was hurting but he didn't know it was this bad.
Clay continued to speak. "The review board said that they can't fully place all blame on me. My superiors didn't catch my mistakes. So I'm taking a vacation from the CIA for a month."
"What will you do once your month is up?"
"Hopefully by then I hope I've cleaned up my act. But I can't leave, Harm."
"Why not?"
"Sadik is still out there. I won't stop till I get him."
"Or he gets you," Harm added on.
Clay looked deadly into Harm's face. "That is not an option. I will do everything in my power to make sure that SOB is stopped before..."
"Before what?" Harm asked, knowing Clay must have stopped for a reason.
Clay cursed at himself. "Before he hurts another person."
Harm had a feeling that Clay meant to say something else, but he wasn't going to push it. "Clay, you need to take care of yourself too."
Clay ruefully chuckled. "I've never been good at taking care of people."
"What do you mean by that?" Harm asked.
"I couldn't take care of Sarah in Paraguay."
Harm cut Clay off before he went any further. "From what Mac's told me, you were the one who risked your own life so she wouldn't be hurt."
Clay took another drink of his coffee. "If I took care of her, then why does Sarah blame herself for what happened to me down there in Paraguay?"
Harm looked in surprise at Clay. "What? Why would she think that?"
Clay took a breath. "We knew Sadik had Gunny. The C.I.A..." Clay paused and admitted the truth to himself for the first time aloud. "I would have left him there to face his fate, but Sarah went into full marine-mode and wouldn't leave him there to suffer in misery. She tried to leave on her own. I wasn't about to let her go on her own and lose her, so I followed her and her plan."
"Do you blame her for that?" Harm asked, wondering if there was any resentment.
"Of course not," Clay angrily answered. "The only one, who's to blame for all that shit, is me."
Harm looked harshly at Clay and wondered the questions he wondered since last night, when he and Mac talked. He knew the answer Mac gave him, but he wanted to hear it from Clay's mouth. "Then why did you do what you did, Clay? Why did you get Sarah and me in so much trouble? I know how much you love her. Why would you do something like that?"
Clay ran his hands over his head. "I'm not sure. When she declined another assignment with me and then when she said that you would always be more family to her than I would... I guess it was the last straw for me. It felt like I lost her trust and her friendship," Clay paused. "I just saw red. You got the woman, her love, her trust, her first child and I lost about everything that had to do with her."
"So you were blaming me?" Harm wondered.
"Yes, in some way I do." Clay closed his eyes in order to fight his emotions. He opened them and looked forgivingly into Harm's. "It was wrong. I know that now, but what's done is done. I'm not even sure if I can ever make that right again."
Harm listened to Clay's words and knew he meant them. This was probably the most honest Clay had ever been in his entire adult life. Harm wasn't about to diminish that. He gave Clay an accepting look. "I don't know what happened here last night, but if you really lost Mac's friendship and trust, do you think she would have let you sleep here last night? And do you think she would have given you the MacKenzie Special?"
Clay cringed at the name of the drink and chuckled. "Never get drunk, Rabb, that drink was beyond horrible."
Both men started to laugh as Mac and Ty came down the stairs. She reached the bottom of the steps and smiled at the two men. They both looked at her and grinned. Harm and Clay both held a special part in her heart and life. Ty bounced and smiled at his mother.
"I think Daddy and Uncle Clay are getting along fine," Mac softly said to Ty.
Ty looked at Clay and wiggled in Mac's arms. Mac walked over to Clay and Ty stuck out his arms to him. Clay looked at Ty then Mac. Mac chuckled. "It's okay, Clay. He just wants you to hold him."
Clay gave a nervous chuckle and very quickly found the dark haired boy in his lap sitting quietly. Mac sat on the edge of the coffee table in front of Clay and handed him a business card.
"He's a good friend of mine, who will listen no matter what. I also wrote the location and time of a place for meetings. If you don't want to go alone, I'll go with you."
Clay flipped the card over between his finger and read Mac's handwriting carefully. He looked up at her and softly smiled, he would have said something but his voice caught in his throat.
Mac took his hand into hers. "You know that, whenever you need a friend, Harm and I will be there. Never forget that."
Clay couldn't speak. After everything he had done to hurt her, she was still his friend. He lifted her hand to his lips and gave it a kiss. Mac leaned forward and gave him an awkward hug with Ty between them. She kissed his cheek and sat back down.
"Everything will be okay. You just need to give yourself some time and I know everything will be alright."
Clay shook his head and felt his throat start to un-tighten.
Mac looked deeply into his eyes. "I love you, Clay. We three..." She started, but turned her head and looked at Harm, who nodded in agreement. "We three got through Paraguay together." A smile crossed her face. "I'm pretty sure we can handle this little challenge as well. Don't you think?"
Clay chuckled. "I think we can."
Mac smiled back and moved to the couch next to Harm.
"Thanks," Clay said to the both of them.
Harm put his arm behind the cushion Mac was against. "You're welcome, Buddy."
Ty felt a little left out and looked at Clay. "Tay!"
Clay looked down at Ty and picked the little boy up, so his feet were resting on Clay's lap. "Clay."
Ty smiled. "Tay!"
Harm and Mac chuckled. "It's not going to work. For a week the only word he said was 'muuummm'," Harm told Clay.
Clay looked at Ty and shrugged. "Okay, I'll be Tay."
Ty reached and patted Clay's cheek. "Tay." Then the little boy laughed.
Mac rested her head on Harm's shoulder and Harm kissed her temple. Clay glanced at them and saw for the first time what happiness was. It wasn't something forced, it was about the small things. Like your son creating names for the first time. Clay watched as Harm and Mac seemed to be in their own world of family. He felt a little out of place. Clay cleared his throat. "I... ummm... better get going."
Mac lifted her head from Harm's shoulder. "You don't need to."
"Yeah, I do, Sarah," Clay told her, feeling very uncomfortable.
Ty noticed something wasn't right, so he moved in Clay's hands. Clay pulled Ty towards him and Ty wrapped his arms around Clay's neck.
Harm noticed what Ty was doing. It was his famous 'hold and grab.' He usually did it when he was upset or felt like being clingy. Harm raised an eyebrow at Clay. "You may think you're going somewhere, but Ty doesn't."
Clay felt the little boy's body and realized that he was sunk, just like everyone who ended up being wrapped around Ty. "Will he let go?"
"Once you decide to stay," Mac told him.
Clay smirked. "I don't want to intrude."
"You should have thought about that last night, Clayton," Mac joked. "We were going to go to the zoo today; do you want to join us?"
"The zoo?" Clay repeated.
Harm decided to be the smart one now. "Yeah, the zoo. They have animals there. We thought Ty would get a kick out of them."
Clay looked down at his borrowed clothes. "I don't have anything to wear."
Mac cut Clay off. "I did a load of wash this morning. You're clothes are on top of the dryer."
Clay wanted to try to argue, but he didn't. "Okay."
"Okay," Mac repeated. She stood up and walked out of the living room.
Harm leaned over and looked at Clay. "You see, you're already learning."
"What?" Clay asked confused.
"Don't argue with Mac and Ty, they're a powerful duo." Harm laughed.
Clay chuckled and Ty let go of his hold on Clay. Clay set Ty in his lap. "Zoo?" Ty just giggled and looked at his mother as she walked back into the room with some clothes. "Trade ya' the kid for clothes?" Clay offered.
Mac handed Clay the clothes and picked up Ty. "I'll take him; he's much cuter than the clothes."
Clay stood up. "Thanks, Sarah." He gave her a kiss on her cheek.
Mac just smiled as Clay left the room and walked up the stairs. Harm stood up and moved behind Mac. He wrapped his arms around her and Ty and whispered into her ear. "You did a really good thing there, Ms. MacKenzie."
Mac turned in his arms. She surprised Harm by leaning up and giving him a quick kiss on his lips. "You weren't bad either, Mr. Rabb." Harm smiled softly and Ty laughed. "Now what do you say we go pack up this little guy's bag?"
"Sounds like a good idea to me," Harm said as he lifted Ty out of Mac's hands and held him above his head. "Come on, Buddy. We're going to the zoo." Harm carried Ty out of the living room and upstairs to get his diaper bag.
Mac remained in the living room for a few moments and just wished Clay would get better. He deserved to be happy in his life. The picture of her and Harm from Afghanistan on the mantel of the fireplace caught her attention. "We deserve to be happy, too."
End Part 19