Wow, I was surprised you guys didn't gang up on me over the last name thing Guess being different works, huh? ;)
Thanks for the kind words, I know you guys are drooling over the shippery goodness. Maybe I can bring Palmer back? ;) ducks Kidding!
Here's part three... To more to go and YES you are all invited to H and M's wedding. :) And it will end at Chapter 5, then nothing from me until mid-July. Going on vacation in early july for a coupl eof weeks and don't want to start posting something now and leave it for a few weeks. Plus the long drive will help me write up more. :D
Jackie.
Thanks to: Bite Beccy, Molly, XBlueShadowX, froggy0319, LieutenantjgMegAustin, starryeyes10, indie , Nix707, jtbwriter, aserene, Feverish Dream, BrittanyLS, chawkchic, martini1988, BlueJay, Angee, jaggurl, froggy0319, LiseGirardi. For the feedback:)
Part 3 – Seeing The Obvious
1320 Local
Burnette Residence
La Jolla, California
"Frank! Look at that." Trish Burnett stood in the entrance to the living room, quieting her husband so that they would not disturb the couple. She grinned in that motherly way as her eyes drank in the sight of Harm laying on the sofa, one arm wrapped around Mac's waist who was draped over him with one of her hands resting on his chest. They were both asleep, wearing bathing suits and if that pinkish hue on their skins meant anything, they were also slightly sun burnt.
"What are you doing?" Frank whispered as Trish tiptoed her way to the couple, searching aimlessly for a particular piece of jewelry. She waved him off, glanced around, then retreated with a pout as she realized that Mac's left hand was tucked somewhere obscured from prying eyes.
With a huff, Trish took her husband by the arm and tugged him into the kitchen. "I was looking for a ring."
"A ring? What kind of ring?" Frank asked, in that oblivious tone that Trish was sure God specifically bestowed onto men.
She rolled her eyes. "An ENGAGEMENT ring!"
"Oh!"
"Yes, 'Oh!'" Moving out of the kitchen, she went back to the living room to find Harm had shifted slightly, his hand was now placed over Mac's six. Chuckling, Trish returned to her bewildered husband. "I like her for him. . .they fit." At Frank's surprised look, she added a, "What?"
Frank just shook his head. "Oh, nothing. . .Just that you never seemed to like ANYONE that Harm dated."
"That's because they were all playthings, dear. . .Sarah has never been. . ." She smiled wistfully, recalling a phone call from Harm in regards to his new partner 'Mac,' someone that Trish, was sure, was a man. As things progressed and more information was divulged, she was slightly annoyed at her son's fondness with female partners. Still, there was something in the way he spoke about her. She hadn't seen that sort of response since elementary school when he was sure he was in love with Patty Grissom, a blond girl with influential parents, one who never gave him the time of day until high school when he'd turned into a jock and was attracting different types of girls. "I don't believe in love at first sight, but, the way Harmon spoke about her. . .the way he still speaks about her. . .If there is such a thing as fate."
Frank smiled, wrapping his arms around his wife. Sometimes, though he'd never admit it, all of her romantic talk did get to him. "There is such a thing, it brought us together, didn't it?" Leaning forward he kissed his wife.
The sounds of laughing brought the two out of their world and back towards the living room where Mac was tickling Harm. "Will. . .you. . . stop. . .that!" Harm punctuated between his laughter as Mac poked him in places she knew would do just that.
"Nope. . .not until you drop that silly little notion of doing the whole long ass wedding dress with a train and a veil. . . I am not wearing that." Ever since they climbed out of bed, had breakfast and hopped in the pool, the two were making amusing suggestions on the wedding. Some of the ideas were humorous, like Harm's of having the men and women dressing like sailors, something out of the love boat. Mac's idea was to have one of those non-conventional weddings and repeat their vows jumping out of a plane.
When the talk became serious, Harm had pointed out that he wanted her to get a dress to match her beauty – an expensive dress with the train, the veil and the works. The thought of it was reminiscent to her botched wedding with the Australian, something she didn't even want to think about. Mic wanted it to be extravagant, the talk of the town. Her wedding dress alone had fetched more than a few thousand dollars. It just wasn't her. She wanted something nice and elegant, yes, but it also needed to be simple.
Harm groaned, then held his hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay, okay. . .I give up. . .You can come naked."
"Dear, I am not too sure that is legal in this state." Trish said, heading into the living room with Frank in tow.
"Mom!" Harm protested, pushing Mac off of him until both of them were sitting up. Breathing shallowly, he waited for a berating, much like those she would give him when he was a kid. But, it didn't come, instead she walked over and hugged and kissed the two of them.
Sitting on the coffee table, she reached out to take Mac's hand. "May I?" She glanced at the ring, impressed with her son's taste and the way it really seemed to "fit" with Mac's slender fingers. "Harmon, you outdid yourself."
"I agree." Mac said, nodding her head in agreement as she admired her own ring. "Trish, thank you for everything."
There wasn't anything to thank her for, at least, that is what Trish figured. "Why are you thanking me, Mac?"
"Thank you for raising such a wonderful man." It was difficult to keep the emotion out of her voice, so she didn't even try. Instead, Mac turned fully to Harm, holding his gaze with her own.
2145 Zulu
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
"General, Commander Rabb and Colonel MacKenzie are on line one." Coates said, poking her head in with a knowing smile. Though nothing had been said, there had been a buzz around the office recently. And the scuttlebutt on Harm and Mac's relationship was whirling more than ever.
The General nodded and slid his cup of coffee to the edge of the desk. "Coates, can you refill that for me? If that call is about what I think it is about, I am going to need it." He smiled at his yeoman, took a deep breath, then reached for the phone. Hesitating slightly, he stopped himself. "Christ, this is worse than a firing squad. . ." Sighing, he finally took the receiver and calmly greeted his officers. "Colonel, Commander, how are things in California?"
("Sunny, sir." Harm resisted the urge to chuckle. Though he still had some trouble 'reading' Creswell, the tone of his voice clearly indicated that he was worried about the purpose of the call. )
"Ah, I'm a slight bit envious. Here it's getting colder by the days."
(Mac chuckled. "Don't be, sir. . .The Commander and I have matching sunburns.")
"Well, I don't envy that." He said with a grin. "I am going to go out on a limb here – I assume the nature of this call is to inform your commanding officer that the status of your relationship will shift to something much more permanent." Okay, that wasn't too bad, at least he didn't sound like he wanted to head for the hills. Chegwidden had left some leeway with the SECNAV and others that would be affected as to how Harm and Mac should be handled if the, well, became 'Harm and Mac.' Still, it wasn't written in stone, there was no paperwork signed. The only thing he had are verbal promises and the little seeds AJ had planted to make sure they were treated fairly should their relationship shift gears.
("The Commander asked me to marry him and I accepted." She swallowed hard. They hadn't really thought about the ramifications this would have on work. Sure, they'd thought about it, but not as hard as they should have. Not that things would have changed, she would have still agreed to be his wife, but the plans would have moved along slower. "I know this puts you in a bad position, sir. . .Believe me if we could do something. . .")
"Let me speak as a friend here. . ." Creswell said, cutting Mac off as she breathed deeply, preparing himself to do something he, like his predecessor, had difficulty doing, speaking from the heart. "When I met my wife, I knew, right away, that she would be it for me. . .Some people don't believe in love at first sight and I do. . .I knew I would marry her, that she was the one. . . I don't pretend to know more than I do about your relationship. However, ever since I stepped foot at JAG, there was a buzz around you two. . .like. . .like electricity. . .Every one notices it, except you two. . . Anyone who's ever been in a room for a second with the two of you know that you're meant to be together."
(Though they'd accused Harm of running on emotion, it was still difficult to get him to feel sometimes. However, with that short run down from Creswell, he was already swallowing down a lump at his throat. "I ah. . .sir.")
Creswell chuckled. "Just don't go repeating that, or else I might have to pack you off to one of those places that the temperature is never higher than ten below. . .Just a minute." With a sigh, he buzzed Coates. "Petty Officer, please send Commander's Roberts and Turner to my office. . .Oh, and bring yourself along as well." With that he flipped off the intercom and placed the phone receiver back to his ear. "I suspect you'll want to tell your friends, correct?"
(Mac glanced over at Harm and shrugged. They were planning on calling everyone one by one, but this worked as well. "Yes, sir. . .thank you, sir.")
"While we're waiting. . .Have you two selected a date yet?"
(That was something altogether difficult as well. Mac took a breath and quickly spilled out. "Next weekend we both have leave time and we don't have to go before the review boards yet so it would be the ideal time and if. . .")
"Colonel. . .You're babbling." Suddenly, the General felt like banging his head into the desk. Sure, he wanted his people to be happy and ever since Christmas, he wasn't so sure that would happen, but, this was going to be hell on his nerves. "I can't say I like the timing. . .But, I half expected it to be soon. . .Even if I have to speak to the President, you'll get your leave time. . ." With a knock on the door, he called out, "Enter." Then spoke back into the phone. "Colonel, Commander, I'm switching you to speaker phone."
Bud, Sturgis and Jen stood side by side, all at attention as they heard the familiar voices of Harm and Mac bantering back and forth.
("You tell them.")
("No! You!")
("Fine, we'll tell them together. . . Ready?")
("We're getting married." Their joined voices said over the line, then paused for the moment of shocked silence they were sure their friends would go through.)
Creswell grinned at his staff and shook his head. "Commander, Colonel, I'd say they are a bit flabbergasted."
"Married, sir? Ma'am? That's wonderful!" Jen enthusiastically said over the line. Turning to Bud who was a few shades lighter. "Commander? Sir?"
"Bud's a little speechless here, guys. . .Congratulations." Sturgis said, patting Bud on the back. "Bud? You alright?"
Bud glanced around the room at everyone, then at the phone. "Harriet's gonna KILL me if she finds out I knew before she knew!"
(Mac chuckled. "Not a problem, she'll be our next call. . .")
Sturgis grinned, it was about time his friends realized they were good together. "So, did you two set a date?"
("Yup, next Saturday. . .I know it's a little early but it's convenient. . .we want you guys to come out. . .You too, General. . .and Bud, tell Mikey as well. . ." Groaning, he remembered a few other people. "If you want contact Gibbs and. . .Webb.")
"We have a few things to finish up for the day, the Commanders have a hearing to wrap up. .. but I'll make sure we all have some time for the wedding, thank you for the invite. . .Stay out of trouble." With a flick of the wrist, he turned off the phone and motioned to his staff. "Okay, people, show's over. . .back to work." He waited for the threesome to leave and then, behind closed doors, Creswell let out a rather loud "Hoorah!"
Back in California, Harm and Mac decided to contact Harriet who, literally, screamed, "OH MY GOD!" Followed by a, "No, honey, shhhh! Mommy is fine. . . Mommy is just happy. . .Oh, wow. . .I knew this would happen, eventually. . . I was always telling Bud how good you two were together. .. I mean. . .Wow. . . Mac, we have to go shopping!"
And then, they called Chloe who's first sentence was a rather loud. "It's about TIME!" Two minutes after the call ended, she was already on the horn with her father, trying to get away for the wedding.
They were treated that evening with a fancy dinner in a small, but elegant restaurant close to the Burnette home. It had been a favorite dining place for Frank and Trish, one that they had shared numerous anniversary dinners at. When they returned home, Mac had headed upstairs to use the restroom and Harm had stepped outside and was sitting on the top of the wooden steps which one would take to head to the beach from the house. "Frank and I are heading to bed, darling. . .Tomorrow, I am running off with Mac, we'll have a little arranging to do."
Harm smiled up at his mother and nodded. "Thanks mom, for everything." He stood up, kissed her goodnight, then took off his shoes, rolled up his pant legs and walked slowly onto the beach. It always amused him how the sand, even at night, could sometimes be so warm. He sat down and stared into the ocean, he noticing a light that seemed to come an go. From it's location and the fact that it never seemed to move and only bob, he deduced it to be a buoy, one that marked the channel. Off in the distance, he could see lightening crashing down into the ocean as an offshore storm ravaged the seas. He barely noticed someone standing behind him. The only thing that gave the person away was the scent of perfume.
"I didn't want to worry your mom, so I didn't ask you before." Mac said, taking a seat next to him in the sand. "But I'm asking now. . .What's wrong? You've been. . .distant since we called the General." She took a deep breath of the ocean air and chuckled slightly. "You afraid SECNAV is going to send us packing to Iceland or something?"
That definitely wasn't it. Work, was work, though it bothered him not to know what would happen. "No. . .I think we'll be fine. . .Work's not an issue. . .If things don't go right, I'll resign."
Work was always going to be an issue for them, even though he believed otherwise. There were TADs, his quals, and all of the foe they'd made as lawyers. However, there was something she wouldn't let happen again, it held too many consequences. "I am not going to let you do that. . .I'll resign."
"Maaac. . .You have more places to go than I do."
"Oh, really? How do you figure that one out? My record is FAR from spotless."
"Yes, and mine is worse. . .You haven't destroyed billions of dollars of aircrafts, you haven't been accused and locked up for murder TWICE. You haven't been investigated for writing a piece against our commander in chief. . .let's see. . .ah, yes, you haven't shot off an automatic weapon in the court room then been docked one hundred pops a hole. . .Admiral Morris STILL glares at me when I walk in a courtroom and that was almost ten years ago. . ." He thought out a few more examples - Sydney, and his fight with Brumby came to mind as did Diane's investigation and his little fist fight with Lt. Lamb. "You haven't had an Admiral's Mast for fighting. . .I've had a few. . .And then, well. . .Oh yes, how much money HAVE I burned the Navy out of? Start with breaking into Bradenhurst and end somewhere around my medical bills?"
Mac sighed. "All noteworthy, yes. . .but do you think every sailor is clean? Harm, I am sure there are people in high profile jobs that have done worse. . ." She stared at him, knowing that this line of conversation was another one of his stall tactics. Sometimes she wondered if they did that subconsciously. "Harm, what's REALLY bothering you? Please, tell me the truth."
The truth was so easy and yet, it wasn't. "Were we really that oblivious to each other?"
Furling her brow, she stared into the ocean, then turned towards him. "What do you mean?"
Harm wriggled his toes into the sand, then settled back on his forearms. "Sturgis, Bud, Harriet, Jen, my folks. . .Hell, even the general saw something between us. . . Why didn't we?"
The way he said the last words, literally broke her heart. It sounded that it truly meant something to him, she knew it did to her, but unlike Harm, Mac knew they weren't oblivious. "We both worked too hard to ignore it. ..Unfortunately, it worked. Maybe it worked a little too well." It had bothered her before how she could be so obvious to liking him and Harm just treat her like the 'girl next door.' As time went by, and their relationship became complex, she realized why they never got closer – they were both afraid of hurting more. "I had very strong feelings for you. .. I don't want to say 'immediately'. .. but soon enough. . . I found you sexy, charming, all of those things women find in men they want to be with. . .but I held back, a lot. . .I didn't want my relationship with you to suffer the same way all my other ones did. . ." Running her hands through the sand, she chuckled and watched as the grains elegantly parted through her fingers. "I remember getting pissed off at myself for being jealous over your girlfriends."
His head spun quickly as he stared, wide-eyed at his fiancé. "You were?"
"I'm not the jealous type, believe me. . .but. . .it irked me. . ." She shrugged, then dug her toes in the sand and moved back on her forearms so that she was closer to him. "I guess I should have made some advances towards you. . .tentative ones." Though, she figured that she had. Hadn't she? Or did he completely ignore the signs she was throwing him in Russia.
"And when you did. . .I read it wrong." With a sigh, he straightened up slightly, glancing out, trying to find the buoy. "In Russia, that. . .that sexy-as-hell nightgown. . .You not wanting me to leave JAG. . ." Trailing off he shifted slightly and looked straight at her. "Sydney. . .You gave me chances, Mac. . .a lot of them . .Jesus, I could have saved us so much pain and heartache."
"I'm not blameless, Harm. . . I read you wrong. . .I could have, explained what I wanted in Sydney and Russia." She turned her body so that she was completely facing him, then wiped the sand off of her hands. "How about Paraguay?"
Groaning, he shook his head. "Don't go there."
"No, let's go there. . .Damnit, Harm. . .What woman, in love, would be stupid enough to the man of her dreams that things would NEVER work out?. . .It's the dumbest thing I've ever said."
"Yea, it was. . ." He agreed with a nod. "But I guess we've both said stupid things. . .I just don't understand why. . .now?"
Mac shrugged. There was no rhyme or reason as to why things operated the way they did. No reason as to why they've missed so many signs, lost each other so many times and still, always, wind up together. "We missed many other signs. . .How was it that, even after fights and other boyfriends and girlfriends, we always wound up together? Everything happens for a reason, Harm. . . Everything."
"Yea, but what's the reason for it?"
"Maybe we weren't ready? Maybe it would have ended up badly? Who knows." She came to her knees then stood up, reaching a hand down for him. He took the proffered hand, stood, then wrapped her arms around Mac's body. "We're together now. . .on our way to being husband and wife. . . And I know that this is going to last. .. I can feel it." Mac's hand came just above his heart where she could feel the pounding beneath. In his eyes she could see he was afraid, she was too because, this time, there was so much more to lose. But, they would make it, she knew they would.
"I feel it too, Mac." Dipping his head, Harm took her lips with his own, in a slow, loving kiss.
