AN: Woo, it is all finished now. And seven months to the day I first posted to boot! I'm so happy! (tear) This is my first completed story! No applause, please. :D Now I'm not quite sure about helicopters or temperatures in France, so bear with me and allow some leeway, okay? Let's see; I don't know if Renee and Harm were still dating during this time, but for one parts sake, let it be. One more thing; I think I might've said the 23rd, instead of the 24th in the last chapter as their arriving day. For the fluff of this chapter's sake, let me fix that typo now and say that 'today' is Christmas Eve. Alright, on with the end of the show. :D
Harm whipped around in a second at the familiar voice. Mac could only freeze in place, staving off relieved tears. Harm was the first of them to regain the power of speech.
"Webb! How the? What the? You're alive!" The agent calmly rearranged his tie and ran a hand over his gelled hair, allowing a small smirk to curl his lips.
"Yes, yes I am." Mac spun slowly and resisted the urge to hug him when his nose wrinkled at their haggard appearance. On second thought, she was glad she didn't embrace the rat.
"Wait just one damn minute. You've been here HOW long?" Harm put his good arm around her waist, hugging her close, seemingly in anaffectionate way, but was also pinning her against his body to prevent bodily harm from coming to the CIA man if this Marine didn't like his answer.
"Oh, a few days. I was about to send a search party, actually. But let's not talk about this out in the open, shall we Mr. and Mrs. Longfellow?" Plastering a sickeningly sweet fake smile on his face, he escorted them to their suite before debriefing them on what had happened after they jumped ship.
It seemed that there was indeed a leak in Webb's team and that he had turned the rest of the numerous double agents aboard to his side. The few people he trusted went with him to the mysterious fourth car, where he had stockpiled radio equipment, emergency supplies and of course enough weaponry to support a small country, like a good spook should. Using the electronics it was discovered that the helicopter was an ally and escape route. Of course he couldn't leave any kind of trail, so Webb shot out the engine and was safely away when the oil ignited and the coals blew out. The specialty helicopter was able to fly them straight to Paris where he had been patiently waiting, lounging about and dining on caviar while they were trying to keep from freezing their sixes off in below freezing temperatures.
Harm began relaying the first half of their adventure while Mac cleaned up, unable to stand being 'disgusting and covered in filth' any longer. ("And here I thought Marines liked being dirty, Mac!" Harm teased as she glared and stalked off.) He carefully danced around their intimate moments (especially sharing body heat - and the odd kiss here or there!) and was just listening to Webb scream his lungs out about them going to Lyon.
"You WHAT! Do you two have a death wish? I mean the ONE place I told you NOT to go and where do you end up? I am surprised you made it out alive!" A disbelieving chuckle escaped him as he sank back into the cushy armchair across from Harm. Mac returned then, fully dressed (much to Harm's disappointment). Pulling himself up, Mac helped him to the bathroom before returning to the seat opposite Clay.
"So where are we?" She settled in and crossed her legs, ready to say her piece and be done with it.
"You're getting thrown around like rag dolls and headed to the lion's den!" Huffing, the man crossed his arms, not caring about the creases he was creating in that three piece suit.
"Oh yes, Commander Big Mouth is to blame for that one. We got in and out and were back in the mountains for a day or so. I was so excited when we got on the boat, but it seems Pierre doesn't give up easily."
"He was on your tail the whole time? Why didn't you call for help?" She sat up a little straighter and stared into his emotionless face, beginning to regret ever caring that this jerk might have died.
"We were TRYING to move as fast as we could and just make it there in one piece!" Sighing, she regained her composure and found her sarcasm again, accompanied by a smirk. "So even though you and your pathetic mission went bust, we managed to kill LeBlanc and quite a few of his men." Webb turned his head, shocked.
"You KILLED HIM?"
"Isn't that what I said?" Blinking innocently she clasped her hands together and propped them on her knee, looking quite prim as the agent babbled incoherently. Fortunately, before he could interrogate her further, Harm stumbled in, holding his arm.
"Hey, Spook. You got a doctor on call who can look at this?" He was attended to and the agent left them after given them the details for the next couple days.
"We can't get a flight back until 3 AM. I thought you'd both be okay with that seeing as it's first class. It'll just be a simple 7 hour flight. You'll be home in time to enjoy Christmas Day. You are free to do as you please until then." Both of them sighed with relief as he closed the door on his way out.
"Finally!" A small chuckle escaped Harm as he fell back onto the plush king-sized bed. Mac smiled, peeling off the extra clothes she'd put on in Webb's presence, revealing plaid pajama pants and a white tank. Smiling, she crawled under the comforter and promptly fell asleep. Dozing off himself for a short nap himself, he yawned, kicking off his shoes and slipping under the covers. Snuggling against Mac's back, Harm slipped an arm about her waist and smiled before the Sandman did his work on the exhausted couple.
Meanwhile, Webb had contacted his boss back at CIA Headquarters, and got his butt reamed for not knowing where the two had been for the past few days. Holding the phone away from his ear, he explained what had happened in a yell and finally got his CO to calm down. Kershaw had a right to be pissed though; AJ had gone above him, almost all the way to the president! The SECNAV was good enough to get the head CIA man to contact Clay everyday until they were found. Rubbing his temples,Kershaw hung up on France and dialed JAG, intent on getting one furious Admiral off his six ASAP!
A few hours later they woke up, the city lights streaming in through their window indicating that they'd most definitely slept the rest of the day away. Somehow (neither party was quite sure how), a tickle/pillow fight emerged, that wrecked about half the suite in its course. Finally Harm conceded to a tactical ambush and hugged an elated Marine. Famished, Mac dragged Harm moaning and groaning out to eat. ("Aw, Mac! But what if I'm not hungry?" One look from those brown eyes caved him "Okay, okay, we'll go, Marine.") They enjoyed a quaint meal at a small cafe, quite a romantic setting, actually. Uncharacteristic giggling and close almost-snuggling was a wonderful change from the hellish week they had gone through. After they went through four courses of rich French cuisine AND dessert ("Jesus, Mac!") they finally rolled themselves out of the restaurant.
"Alright, Flyboy. Let's go back to pack." Harm immediately balked, slowing in his walking down the street.
"Aw, but Mac, our flight's in a few hours!"
"Three hours, nine minutes and...10 seconds, to be exact - if all is well and on time." One dark eyebrow arched dubiously.
"Oh, so now your inner clock is perfect."
"Don't worry; I'll be all out of wack and needing recalibration once we're back in the States." Flashing an innocent smile at him, she wrapped her scarlet scarf around her neck once more.
/The maroon really brings out her beautiful hair.../ Harm was lost in a dream world when he realized Mac was no longer by his side. She had her back turned to the street, but her feet kept backing up towards the curb.
"C'mon, Harm!" She called to him, but he didn't hear her. Cobalt hues widened when her boot slipped off the step and headlights bounced over her figure.
"Mac!" His hand shot out with lightning fast reflexes that yanked her out of harm's way just as a speeding taxi blew past them in the next instant. Backing up a few paces into a small alcove he pulled her body close under the small arch. Despite all the layers between them his skin still felt like it was on fire when he held her in a protective embrace, his head buried in her shoulder, hers in his.
"Oh my god," was the shaky breath she finally let out. A small chuckle came from him.
"I don't know what I'd do if I lost you to a wayward cabbie after all the crap we went through." Mac pulled away enough to see his smiling face, but the foggy breath coming from his lips mingled with her own; she hadn't realized she'd gripped him so tightly around the neck.
/He cares so much.../ She found her eyes sliding half closed before she knew what was happening. The last thing she saw was Harm's face moving closer; then she was lost. Tentatively he brushed his lips against hers, timidly tasting and testing her. She pulled him closer and fused her mouth to his, passion and hunger overtaking them both in a moment. Trying to get as close to each other as possible, Harm even lifted her to tiptoe in his loving hug. Their tongues dueled for control, exploring territory they'd both only fantasized about before. Oxygen was running low in both their bodies, but neither wanted to ever stop kissing the other first; that is until a thought came into Mac's head, and she pulled back from the kiss, taking a step away from the love of her life.
"But you...and Renee..." She seemed hurt, and was withdrawing again.
"Mac, we broke up the night before we left to come here. When I told her I was going on another mission, and that you were going with me, she exploded. She said that if I wasn't ready to marry her and get engaged right then and there that she was going to walk out of my life and never look back. So I opened the door and she left." Harm didn't seem at all perturbed; in fact, a little smirk was tugging at the corners of his mouth. He looked back at her, smiling now. "So there's nothing between us but air." He took both of her hands in his, and she shyly (yes, shyly!) stepped close to him and closed the gap.
"Not anymore," she whispered, her brown eyes dropping from his blue ones to his lips as a white cloud came off her hot breath in the cold air before their lips met again. The need for air was again great, and after he reluctantly released his hold on her lips he spied the mistletoe above them. He pointed at it, smiling at Mac's surprised face.
"We're standing under mistletoe, on Christmas Eve, in one of the most romantic places on the planet." Harm's Flyboy grin was at maximum capacity and couldn't get any bigger. "If I didn't know better I'd say you planned the whole thing." Smiling, he shook his head, a little seriousness coming into his demeanor.
"The setting is perfect, and the time is right, so I'm gonna say it." Harm took a deep breath and said...
"I love you." But he heard Mac's voice at the same time, and when he opened his eyes she was beaming at him. He picked her up, swinging them around as she laughed delightedly.
"Christmas in Paris," she sighed dreamily after their spinning was done.
"Merry Christmas, Sarah." He kissed her again, softly and romantically this time as a light and powdery snow fell on them. Smiling under the pure white shower, Mac leaned into him and rested her head on his chest, arms encircling his neck as his hands rested on the small of her back. Fireworks shot into the air and exploded in a myriad of colors, church bells tolling midnight at the same time. Wrapped in each other's arms, each was happier than they'd ever been before.
For once, everything was right in their world.
The End
AN: WOOO! FINISHED! I'm a little sad though; I've got the same feeling now that I get when I watch the final episode of JAG for the (cough thirteenth cough :D) time. Happy but depressed too. I've been working on this story for a long time. Oh well though; that just means I can lose myself in another one! Hooray:D Review, please, and tell me how you think the whole story went; suggestions and anything else you noticed would be a great help. Hope you enjoyed the whole ride as much as I did.