Title: She's a Brunette
Author: Nan
Classification: Vignette, Romance, (H/M)
Spoilers: "Automatic for the People"

Author's Notes: I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I think the majority of the people on the boards have this episode wrong. Call me sadly deluded if you must, but it is a shipper episode and follows very nicely on the heels of 'A four percent solution.'

Mac tapped lightly on the familiar door. Without waiting, she pushed and it swung open. She looked towards the glass block wall. "Harm?" she called. "You ready?"

"Not yet." He wasn't getting dressed in the bedroom. She turned to see him standing at the window. Still in his uniform, he was staring out said window.

"Hey, Captain Kirk, your namesake is waiting. Bud and Harriet have reservations at 7 pm." She walked over and stood beside him. "What are you looking at?" Mac asked. All she saw was an empty alley.

"Not looking, thinking." Harm turned his head and smiled at her.

"Ahhh," she said. "I tried that once.. Gave it up for Lent."

No comeback. Mac studied his half turned face. He looked tired. Six hours on a C-130 will do that to you. "Your case of the crashed Oscar wrap up okay?"

"Yeah," he admitted. "Better than I thought."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, I negotiated a 1.2 million dollar settlement for the daughter of the man who was killed. Delivered the check this morning." At this point he turned to look at her, leaning against the pane of glass, arms crossed against his chest. For some inexplicable reason, Mac felt her heart rate quicken under the intensity of his gaze. Standing close, she fought the impulse to step back.

Since her accident on Christmas Eve, the two of them had settled into a comfortable routine. Without discussion and completely platonic, they met for dinner whenever possible. Harm had taken to calling her every night. They even jogged one Saturday morning.

Unfortunately, Mac found the whole thing maddeningly frustrating. There was no way in hell she was going to push the status quo but she felt despair whenever she thought about it. Were they never going to be anything more than friends?

"The daughter must have been grateful," she said.

He considered her comment. "Very," he said.

There was something about the way it was said. "Very?" she responded, somewhat weakly.

"Very," he reaffirmed. "She was beautiful. Long, red, hair. Big eyes."

"Beautiful?" God, she needed to kick her brain into gear. But try as she might; she couldn't think beyond 'very' and 'beautiful.'

"You know, she didn't really want the money. I think she is going to use it to build a kids park in commemoration of her father."

"Really? How generous." Mac tried to sound sincere. Her voice squeaked.

"I thought so too," he said. He cocked his head to one side and continued to study her reaction.

"She was estranged from her father for years. Since she was ten. It was only now they were getting close."

"Oh," said Mac. He felt sorry for the woman. Mac's heart sunk.

"Megan told me she was ready for a change in her life. She was considering chucking it all and picking up where her father left off. Painting."

"What did you think?" Not that she really wanted to know. He was on a first name basis? Megan, was it?

Harm gave a small smile. "Well, I guess it's not a surprise to you to know I've often considered leaving JAG."

Mac said nothing. He was not only going to take up with a woman called Megan, now he was going to leave JAG? She felt numb.

"She asked me, you know," said Harm. "To chuck it all."

With all of the nonchalance she could muster, Mac managed to say, "What was your answer?"

He narrowed his eyes as he looked at her. "I said I tried that and it didn't work."

"It didn't?" she squeaked again. "What did she say at that?"

"She asked me if I had a girl and if she was a blonde."

Mac couldn't speak.

"I said 'not yet' and 'she's a brunette.' At this point, Mac raised her eyes to look at him. She had seen that look before. Dead serious, like just before he shot his service pistol. Or presented the closing arguments at a murder trial.

It was just then that Mac felt something touch her finger tips of her left hand. She looked down. There was his hand trying to timidly engage hers. She grabbed it and gave it a squeeze. She looked at their two hands. Somehow, it felt so right to have hers nestled inside his strong one.

She looked up again and studied his serious face. Whatever was said here was important. Time to state intentions.

Looking into those sea blue eyes, Mac said. "Next time, Harm, tell her definitely you have a girl and I'll never be a blonde."

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