From part 2…

Calum noticed her as well and twisted around, reaching out for her.

"Mommy…" he pleaded, his little hands performing a little 'give-me' gesture.

Mac sighed, "He's really getting stuck on this Mommy idea…Aunty Mac, sweetie. You call me 'Aunty Mac'."

Calum just looked at her, blankly.

"Aunty Mac," she repeated, gently, putting a hand to her chest, "I'm Aunty Mac."

"Mom…mee?" Calum uttered, unsurely.

"No, Aunty Mac…"

Mac turned to gesture to Harm.

"Uncle Harm…"

Then to Bud and Harriet.

"Uncle Bud, Aunty Harriet…"

Then again to herself.

"Aunty Mac…"

Little Calum at first seemed confused, then started to get upset. His little mouth pouted, his little lower lip began to quiver and his eyes got teary. Mac drew in a breath, sensing impending disaster. Calum drew in a shuddering breath and emitted a timorous, "Mommy?"

"Yeah," Mac gave in, pulling him into a warm, comforting hug, "yeah, that's right…"

"Well," she conceded, looking over Calum at everyone else's pitying looks, "That went well…"

Part 3…

An hour later, Bud, Harriet and AJ got up to go, so Mac went to get up too, to walk them out.

"Uh," she hesitated, having difficulty now that Calum was fast asleep against her shoulder.

"Okay…just give me a second…"

She managed to carefully ease off the couch then settle Calum back on it, without waking him. Everyone waited patiently while she fixed pillows around him, so that he wouldn't roll off.

"Whew!" Mac breathed, "Everything takes so much longer with a toddler. I forgot what it was like with AJ…"

"You're doing a really well, Ma'am," Bud complemented.

"Yes, Mac," Harriet agreed, "You're very good with him."

"Goodnight, Ma'am," Bud was the last out of the door.

"Thanks for all of your help…Bye…" Mac waved.

"So, I take it you don't have any plans for tonight?" Harm mentioned.

"Nope, not that I did before Calum appeared, though," Mac admitted, "You?"

"Just a quiet night in, I guess," he told her.

"You want to stay for dinner or something?" Mac asked, "I can't promise that it'll be anything spectacular…"

"Yeah, okay," Harm nodded, "Sounds great, anyway."

Harm and Mac ordered in for dinner and once Calum woke from his nap, he even had some. Mac had just thrown the bits and ends together for him, because she really didn't have any good idea about what children liked to eat (apart from junk food, which she wasn't about to give him.) She and Harm were astonished when Calum tackled the vegetables on his plate, first.

"Mac," Harm's mouth fell open, "The child is eating a vegetable!"

"He is!" Mac grinned in amazement, "He's a stickboy in the making!"

"Hey!" Harm protested, "Some of us just like the healthy stuff, okay?"

Mac just smiled as she watched the little boy chow down.

"That's my boy!"

It's bath time, I think," Mac announced, a little while later.

"Oh, great!" Harm joked, "Do we have any bubble-bath? I love lots of bubbles!"

"Not you, silly," Mac told him off, smiling, "I meant this little guy here. You can join us, if you want…"

Harm's eyebrows shot up and the image of her lovely form in a bathtub, surrounded in bubbles, while they were in Paraguay jumped into his head.

"…but Calum's going to be the only one in the tub," Mac hastily added.

Once Mac had got Calum into his bath, Harm joined them, sitting on the floor beside the tub. Suddenly, he reached over and dropped something into the water. Looking over the rim, Mac saw a little, plastic boat, floating on the water.

"Where did that come from?" she asked.

"From the shopping," Harm told her.

"I never saw it."

"I sneaked it in."

"You sneaky squid!"

She turned to Calum.

"I notice you never told me…you boys!"

Calum just happily continued splashing his toy boat through the water.

"He never saw it," Harm explained, "I couldn't have shown it to him, or he would have wanted it straight away."

"Hmm…" Mac pretended to brood over it.

"It's a shame that they didn't have any toy airplanes," Harm continued to ponder.

"For the bath tub?" Mac frowned, "Airplanes don't go in the water."

"Mine do!" Harm laughed, jokingly and Mac laughed and slapped his arm, playfully.

"Okay, let's get you clean," she decided, lifting Calum to standing, "It's getting near to your bedtime…"

In truth, she didn't know what his bedtime should be, she'd forgotten to ask Harriet that.

Mac got a sponge and the bath wash and started to wet Calum down.

"Could you give me a hand?" she asked Harm, "I'm worried that he'll slip…"

Harm joined her, perched on the rim of the bath. Mac was washing Calum down with the sponge in one hand, so could only get one arm around him to support him. His skin was soapy, so Harm held him under the arms.

"That better?" he asked.

"Yeah, thanks," Mac told him, " He's just so wobbly!" Even though the two of them were holding him and Mac was gentle while washing him, Calum was still wobbling all over the place and it was making Harm and Mac laugh. Once they were finished, they rinsed him off and Harm set out the big bath towel on the floor. Mac lifted him out onto it and began to brusquely rub him down, drying him off.

"I love that baby smell!" she commented, breathing in the smell drifting off the little boy in waves.

"Yeah," Harm agreed.

As they were walking into the bedroom, to get Calum dressed, Harm commented, "Oh, by the way, how's your Uncle Matt doing? Did you speak to him today?"

Mac's mouth fell open.

"Oh, sh…" she quickly corrected herself, "shoot! I forgot to call him…I wonder if they'll still be allowing calls…"

"It's not too late," Harm told her, "Here, pass Calum to me, I'm sure I can manage to get him sorted. You go and call your Uncle."

"You sure?" Mac checked and when Harm nodded, she passed Calum to him.

"Thanks, Harm. His pyjamas are in the bag by the bed and his pull-ups are on the counter-top by the sink in the bathroom."

By the time that she had returned from her phone call, Harm already had Calum tucked up in bed and fast asleep. She stood in the doorway for a minute, admiring the sight of Harm's protective figure sitting on the side of the bed, just watching over the little boy.

"In another lifetime, maybe," Mac finally dismissed, pulling herself out of her reverie.

"Isn't he precious?" she asked Harm, who wasn't really too surprised by her sudden appearance. Truth be told, he kind of wanted to share this moment with her, so he had waited for her return as long as he had dared.

"He's a beautiful kid," he agreed with Mac's assessment, softly stroking the white-blond wisps of hair from around Calum's face.

"I know that I'm the last person who should ask this, my own mother left me a long time ago and I guess I've come to terms with it…but how could you leave your child?" Mac pondered aloud, "I know it had to be something serious, but look at him. He looks so helpless and defenceless…If…"

"Hmm?" Harm urged her, "Go on. 'If' what?"

"I don't know…It's silly, really…"

"Mac, this is me. I'm your best friend, I'd never think that any thought of yours was silly; you know that."

"If I were…" Mac finally continued, gathered courage, "If I were…his Mom, I'd never, ever let him spend a day without me in his life, in one way or another, letting him know how much I loved him."

Harm just smiled and stood up from the bed, moving over to her and putting his arms around her, hugging her to him.

"That's exactly how I know you're going to make a great mother, Sarah MacKenzie," he complimented her, "You could be nothing other. One day…"

"I hope so," Mac uttered, quietly, silently adding, "One day soon, just like this, with you by my side, God willing."

After that, Harm made his way out.

"I'd better get going, Mac. I've really enjoyed today, although I never thought it would be how I'd spend Christmas Day."

"Me too," Mac nodded, "Thanks for all of your help."

"No problem," Harm told her, then suggested, "Perhaps we could do something tomorrow? You, me and Calum…If you don't have any plans, that is…"

"Yeah," Mac nodded, "That sounds great. I think that I'll have to call social and take care of finding Calum's Mom, but not until the afternoon. We could do something in the morning, say about nine?"

"Sounds great!" Harm enthused, "See you tomorrow."

With a quick peck on Mac's cheek, Harm disappeared out into the cold.

Before she went to bed, Mac gently stirred Calum, to check if he needed the bathroom. Harriet had told her to check once in the night, then again early in the morning, to reduce the chances of accidents and so that he got into a good routine.

"Calum, sweetie? Do you need to go pee-pee?"

The little boy just shook his head and buried it further into the pillow.

"That's odd," Mac's sleep-fogged brain registered, "He had apple juice with his dinner and he didn't go before or after his bath."

She didn't think that Harm would have taken him, while she had been on the phone to Uncle Matt…She let the worry pass, because Calum had his pull-ups on and she would check again early in the morning…Without another thought, she got dressed for bed and climbed in beside Calum. Before she drifted off, she noted with amusement how her living circumstances had changed so drastically in less than 24 hours!

Mac slept solidly until Calum woke her up at 4.45 the next morning. He had wiggled around in his sleep, so had ended up at the far side of the bed, away from Mac. He sat up in bed and regarded her sleeping form.

"Mommy?" he spoke up, timidly, then with more confidence, "Mommy?"

Mac stirred and rolled over, lifting her head sleepily to search for him.

"What is it, honey?" she asked, "You need the potty?"

Calum shook his head and lifted his arms, reaching out for her, "Mommy…"

"C'mon then," Mac pulled the duvet beside her up in invitation.

Calum quickly crawled over and scrambled in beside her.

"Night-night, baby," she told him, kissing him on the head as they both settled back down to sleep.

Mac got up at six forty-five, but left Calum to sleep for a while longer. She noted it as another one of the things that she should ask Harriet. How much sleep were toddlers supposed to get, anyway?

While she was in the kitchen making coffee, her phone rang, so she ran to answer it in the living room, so it didn't wake Calum up.

"Hi Mac!" she was greeted by Chloe's cheery voice, "Merry Christmas!"

"Chloe!" Mac exclaimed in surprise, "Merry Christmas! Are you calling from a payphone? Do you want me to call you back?"

"That's okay," the girl told her, "I'm calling from my Dad's cell phone. He says we can talk as long as we want."

Mac knew that Chloe and her family were away on a skiing holiday this Christmas, so she hadn't expected to hear from her, not even on the day after Christmas.

"So, what's it like there?" Mac asked, "Are you having fun?"

"Oh yeah!" Chloe enthused, "I've made friends with two girls I met in the ski club. They're the same age as me. Laura's from California and you'll never guess where Jessie is from."

"Where?" Mac played along.

"Arizona!"

"Really? How's she liking the snow, then?"

"Oh, she loves it. She's like me, this is her first skiing holiday."

"That's great, Chloe…"

Here, Mac cut off, because Calum had emerged from the bedroom.

"Mommy…" he declared, loudly, "Drink-drink…"

"Uh, Chloe, I'm going to have to call you back…"

On the other end of the line, Chloe couldn't quite believe what she had heard.

"No, wait Mac!"

"I promise, I won't be more than ten minutes," Mac told her, "I've got your Dad's number, I'll call you straight back."

Once the line was disconnected, Chloe just sat, staring at the phone. Had somebody really called Mac 'Mommy'?

As promised, Mac called Chloe back, just five minutes later.

"Sarah MacKenzie!" Chloe exclaimed as she picked up the phone, "What was that all about?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Mac replied.

"I'm serious, Mac," Chloe scolded her, "Did you have a baby and not tell me about it?"

"No," Mac told her, "I didn't have a baby…"

"Then what was that?" Chloe demanded.

"Guess who I've got here, sitting beside me?" Mac teased her.

"A baby!" Chloe guessed, logically.

"Not exactly, no," Mac revealed, "He's a little boy, he's three years-old and his name is Calum. I found him sleeping in the hallway of my building, yesterday morning."

"You mean somebody left their child on Christmas morning?" Chloe practically shrieked into the phone.

Mac winced and held hers away from her ear.

"Easy there, Chloe," she soothed.

"But…but…what was she thinking?"

"I don't know, but I think that she must be scared or in serious trouble, if she resorted to doing something like that."

"Are you going to keep him?"

"No, I'm going to call social services this afternoon. They've been closed over the holiday."

"I think you should adopt him, Mac," Chloe gave her opinion.

Mac sighed audibly in amusement, so Chloe continued.

"No, I'm serious, Mac, it all makes sense. You could adopt him and legally become his Mommy then when I visit, I could baby-sit him and be his 'Auntie Chloe…Think about it, you've always wanted a child and nothing would attract a man like a woman with an adorable child…"

"How do you know he's adorable?"

"He sounds like it…All children are cute…That's why men will come flocking…"

"No, Chloe, I don't think that it really works like that."

"Well, even with me around, my Dad still managed to find a girlfriend."

"Yes, but that was a man attracting a woman with his paternal abilities."

"It would work the other way around too…Say, what does Harm think about the baby?"

"He thinks Calum is cute, but he's like me. He knows how much responsibility a child is…"

"But you guys have already agreed to have a child of your own, why couldn't this work…?"

"Hey!" Mac exclaimed, "How do you know about that!"

"Oops!" Chloe uttered, "Umm…Harm kinda told me…"

"When!"

"When we all went out for dinner, last Christmas. You and Harriet were in the bathroom."

"So Bud knows, too?"

"No, he was busy trying to get little AJ out from under the table…He didn't mean to tell me, Mac…It just slipped out. It was an accident."

"I guess…"

"You're not mad, are you?"

"No, just a little disappointed…but not at you or Harm, I promise."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Then why are you disappointed?"

"I'm never going to be able to hold up my end of the deal…"

"But why?"

Mac only hesitated momentarily before telling Chloe. She really had grown up into a mature young woman. She only struggled finding the words to explain.

"Because it's highly unlikely that I'll ever be able to have kids of my own, Chloe. I've got a problem with my reproductive organs. It's called 'endometriosis' and I've got it pretty bad."

"I'm sorry, Mac," was the only thing Chloe could think of to say.

"It's alright," Mac assured her, "I'm sure I'll manage. I'm 36 and I have done, so far."

"That's why you should keep Calum."

"No," Mac discounted, "He's already got a Mother out there, somewhere."

"Then why's he calling you Mommy?"

"I don't know" Mac replied, "That's what I can't understand. He just started it yesterday."

"You would make a great Mom, Mac," Chloe told her.

"No, I'm not keeping Calum, Chl…" Mac started.

"No, I didn't mean that…I just meant a Mom, to any other child, one of your own…"

"Thank you," Mac told her.

"If you want, I'll have a couple of kids for you."

Mac laughed, "What do you think your Dad would think of that?"

"He'd probably not be too thrilled."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking, too."

"But I mean it, every word. You know that, don't you?"

"Yeah, thank you, sweetie."

After that, Mac explained that she was going to have to go, to get Calum ready to go out.

"C'mon, you!" she smiled at Calum and lifted him from the couch, "Uncle Harm will be coming in a while. Let's get you all ready."

By the time that Harm arrived, they were all ready, but it had started snowing again.

"Is it too heavy out there?" Mac asked, gesturing to the window.

"No, it's not too bad," Harm dismissed, "Just as long as we take the SUV."

"Where were you thinking about going?"

"Well, I was thinking about the park, but I now we're going to have to find somewhere indoors."

"Yeah," Mac agreed, "Let's think about it in the car."

She checked through her latest 'fashion accessory,' the diaper bag, before they left. Lifting Calum up onto her hip, she grabbed her purse and key, and they headed out the door.

As it turned out, the fall of snow was much too heavy for a trip to the park, so they decided to head for a nearby mall with a large soft-play area.