Title: Cold Light Of Day
Chapter Two
By: LizD
Spoilers: Mid-Season 8
Notes: This is the sequel to Better Never, Than Late story (by request from a couple of reviewers – I got inspired). s/b humorous with lots of sexual situations.
Written: Summer 2006
Disclaimers: No disrespect to JAG's cast, crew or creators. With love and thanks.
Chapter Two
The cold light of day woke him in her bed. She stirred in her sleep and he pulled her close. "We have to stop meeting like this," she whispered in his ear.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Harm walked into the briefing late.
"Nice of you to join us Commander," the admiral quipped.
Harm was as cryptic as possible. "Sorry sir." He made eye contact with no one. "Car trouble."
"Isn't that a new car?" he pressed.
"No sir," Harm was confused as to why the admiral was continuing the line of questioning. "Not new … just new to me."
"Oh right … body work."
Mac choked on her coffee.
"Excuse me?" Harm asked hoping to take the attention off of Mac.
"The accident you had the other day … the one that messed up your back … said you needed to get some body work done."
"Right," Harm looked down. "I meant for MY back, not the car," he corrected.
"Back's are tricky things … never know when they might start acting up again."
"I am fine, sir," Harm wanted the attention off himself. He took his seat next to Mac. He was probably the only one to notice that she had changed her shampoo and that her hair was still wet. He was also the only one who knew that she was wearing her silk navy blue high cut bikini panties and matching bra that closed in the front. He tried not to let that distract him from the meeting, tried and was failing.
"Fine … fine … in the future see that you handle your private business on your own time and that you get to work on time."
"Yes sir," he stated emphatically. "Never again."
"Never say 'never' commander," the admiral smiled. "However, maybe the colonel can help you with that."
"Sir?" Harm did not look at Mac.
"She rarely seems to have a problem with coming on time."
"Yes, sir," he stole a glance at Mac who blushed slightly.
"OK ... back to business …"
X X X X X X X
When he was back in his office – pretending to look over his case files – he let his mind wander over the morning.
His first thought was that she suffered from insomnia – that was what she had told him on a number of occasions - and was surprised that she was still sleeping. Twice – that he knew of – she slept harder than he did, and he had always considered himself a good sleeper. He pondered the plan of getting up and getting out while the getting was good, but changed his mind. Clearly they both had desire and to try to ignore what had happened and what was probably going to happen again was just not reasonable.
"We have to stop meeting like this," she whispered in his ear.
"Do we?"
She leaned back into him, "we do."
"How do you propose we stop?" he rested his lips on her shoulder and pulled her closer.
"It will be difficult to discuss in this position," she tucked the sheet up to cover her before rolling over to face him.
"Should I go?" he asked.
"Do you want to?"
"No," he pushed her hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. "Should I get dressed?"
"Do you want to?"
He licked his lips and smiled letting her know that the answer to that was a 'no'.
Mac put her fingers up to his mouth. "In all the years I have known you … I've never really … appreciated …" she laughed. "Your mouth."
He laughed too.
"Could be because of all the crap that was falling out of it," she admitted. "But it's really … very sexy," she kissed him.
He trailed the kiss down her neck. "For me it's this," he told her.
"My neck?" she giggled.
"Neck … throat … I shouldn't tell you this … but it's very distracting."
"Distracting?"
"Particularly when you stroke it in that way you do," he sighed. "Maybe it's because it's the only thing truly visible when you're in uniform … but yeah … it's very distracting."
She kissed him again … hence the reason he was late for work.
X X X X X X X
"Car trouble?" she queried from the doorway.
"Had too far to drive this morning," he answered.
"Should have gotten up earlier," she stated.
"It wasn't the getting up, it was the getting out of bed that was the trouble."
"Ah yes," she needed to get back to her reason for being there. "Lunch?"
"Lunch?" he asked back hoping that it was a euphemism for something else.
"The meal between breakfast and dinner."
"I didn't get breakfast this morning," he smiled slyly.
"I am a little hungry too," she admitted.
"What are you thinking?"
"The park," she clearly had a plan.
"The park?" It occurred to Harm that her plan was not his.
She held up a bag from some sandwich shop down the street. "We need to talk," she stated.
"Oh … a talking lunch," he stood up and grabbed his cover. It wasn't going to be a good lunch … a great lunch … hell it probably wasn't going to be nice or fine one either.
X X X X X X X
It had been about a week to ten days since they had cryptically agreed to 'not let it happen again.' They didn't speak of it, they didn't allude to the new intelligence that they had. Occasionally they would catch the other staring at them from across the room with an enigmatic smile, but nothing overt. On more than one occasion they found themselves driving in or around the other's neighborhood, but made no attempt to make the call.
They were given a case to work on together. It was a murder investigation. There would be a lot of late nights and a good bit of traveling together. The principles in the case were stationed in Norfolk. Mac reluctantly agreed to a working dinner and thought that if she could control the situation it wouldn't get out of control. She told Harm to pick up Chinese and meet her at her apartment. That was around 1500.
Around 1630 they were sitting in the conference room with Bud and some new JG discussing another case. Harm and Mac were across the table from each other. Something caught Harm's eye. Mac's necklace had slipped out of her collar and was swinging freely. Absentmindedly Mac started dragging the pendent across the chain and putting it in her mouth. Harm was completely mesmerized. The JG had to call his name four or five times before he was able to draw his attention away. They were all looking at him.
"Commander?" Bud asked. "Are you all right?"
Harm stood up quickly and grabbed the files he was working with. "Sorry … just thinking … I have something I need to check out," he stated. "I'll catch up with you later."
Harm left to go home. He needed to prepare himself for that evening with Mac. So he did what any man would do faced with the prospect of being in close quarters with a desirable woman who he was not permitted to touch. He ran. He took his second five-mile run for the day and stretched it to eight miles … he made record time too. Then he took a shower … a long … long … cold shower. He found the tightest jeans he could find and the biggest over-shirt he had in his closet. It was all he could do – for the moment. He would take another "cold shower" when he got home.
X X X X X X X
The work part was fine. They ate and worked at the table. If Mac were trying she could not have dressed more enticingly. She really wasn't trying to and Harm couldn't expect that she would have worn a turtleneck or a scarf. She had a Marine t-shirt and fatigues on – both as loose as she owned. She really wasn't trying to entice him.
He was very uncomfortable. His jeans were cutting in all the wrong places. He ate too much on purpose. But she kept rubbing her neck – how could she possibly know what that was doing to him? He got up to clean up. She offered to help and was met with a sharp "No, I got it," the last thing they needed was for the two of them to be moving around in close quarters, that was how this latest mess got started.
She was still working at the table when he was finished cleaning up and still rubbing her neck. It was getting late and he really needed to go. The thing was, it was not THAT late and they had more work to do. He stood behind her for a moment and struggled with a desire. He lost the battle.
"Here," he pushed her hands away. "Let me," he placed his hands on her neck and started rubbing.
She stiffened at his first touch but it felt so good she had to ease back into it. What started as a muscle massage; was edging toward something else. Mac felt herself losing her resolve. She stopped the massage. "Thank you … much better … but we need to get back to work," she stated.
Harm sat down with great discomfort. He was chewing on a chopstick to ease his frustration. It was distracting for Mac. She kept catching the movement of his mouth and lips and tongue out of the corner of her eye. She could still feel his warm hands on her shoulders. She was about to do something that she would regret. She had to put a stop to it.
"I think we should call it a night," she stated. "Hit it hard again tomorrow."
It was hard for Harm to know if he was disappointed or relieved. "Right," he quickly gathered the folders he was working on.
She followed him to the door and there was an immediate uneasiness. She had no idea how to send him home. Did she look in his eyes and say 'good night'? Did she make a joke about the case? Make a comment about how he would sleep that night? Shake hands? Stand back and let him fumble with the door? She was totally confused.
Harm too had a similar confusion.
Instead, without thinking, they nervously laughed and he leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss. It was comfortable; it was right; it was natural. It surprised them both. He stepped out the door and she watched him walk down the hall. She watched as he rang for the elevator and waited for it to arrive. He turned back to look at her. No expression could be read. Their eyes locked. Seconds passed very slowly. Without letting his eyes rove passed her face he took every bit of her image in. She did the same. Tension was building. It was building past the point of tolerance. Images were forming in their minds of past events and future fantasies. Still the elevator didn't arrive. A slight smile edged on to her face matched by his at the end of the hall.
D*I*N*GLike a shot they were in each other's arms – the elevator forgotten – lips seeking lips, hands groping. He pushed and she pulled him back into the apartment slamming the door behind them.
X X X X X X X
"What are we going to do?" she asked after they had eaten lunch and got some work business out of the way.
Harm stretched out on the grass. "It's bigger than both of us Mac."
"Don't flatter yourself," she stated.
He laughed. "It's hard to give up something that you find so … enjoyable."
"And are good at," she added.
"You are not helping your case, Colonel."
"One of us should ask for reassignment," she stated even though she knew it was a stupid idea.
"I just got back," he smiled.
"You expect me to leave?" she was appalled.
"You are the one that suggested it."
She shook her head. "Neither one of us has to leave … and I refuse to believe that this is bigger than the both of us."
"I never suggested that it was TOO big," he stuck another chip into his mouth. "Or that it couldn't be given up, if necessary."
"So you would have no problem if we just went on as before."
"Before when?"
"Before a week and a half ago," she clarified annoyed that she had to.
"I might have an issue with that," he said.
"But …"
"You were mean to me," he asserted.
"Excuse me?" she asked.
"You were not very nice to me before."
"How can you say that?" she slammed back at him. "You were impossible; petty, nasty, baiting, down right RUDE at times."
"That was before."
She was frustrated. "Before when?"
"Before I knew ... you know … knew what it was like … knew that you were attracted to me," he smiled.
"WHAT?"
"When I thought you were with Webb," he corrected, but what he really meant was what he said. He was petty before because he thought she didn't want him. He had that misconception corrected for him – and how.
"Ya know Harm, that was always your problem … you never stop to find out the facts before you BARREL ahead and form an opinion – AND ACT ON THAT OPINION."
"So now I have the facts," he grinned. "And they are more than I could have hoped for."
She shook her head. "We can't do it again … if we get caught one of us will be reassigned," she ran her hands through her hair. "Or both of us."
"There is no RULE against it," he asserted.
"Harm … please … we could barely maintain a professional relationship when we hated each other --."
"You hated me?" he was hurt.
"No," she relented quickly. "But I was VERY ANGRY with you."
"You seem to have gotten over it … at least you did last night."
"YOU SEE!" She stood up. "That is EXACTLY what I am talking about. This just isn't going to work."
"Yes it will," he said calmly motioning for her to sit down.
She did.
He calmly continued. "We can go back to being friends … like you want … like we were before."
"Before? Before WHEN?" she asked.
"Before Webb, before Paraguay, before Singer and before Brumby."
"Didn't we try this once before?" she wasn't convinced.
"I think – in light of recent events – I think we can make it this time."
"No rude comments … no off color remarks … you can stop yourself from saying things to me – in public and private – that … that … that …"
"Prove that I have seen you naked?" he helped – not.
"Like that?" she stated. "You can't say stuff like that?"
"I know. And I can stop," he grinned. "Can you?"
"Yes," she stated emphatically.
"Ok."
"Ok," she affirmed. "What if we find ourselves in a situation like we did last night?
"Together?" he slurred. "Alone?" he cooed. "Just the two of us and a case load of files? With no place to be and no one to report to for 12 hours and a bed just a room away. " His voice was low and slick.
"Harm!"
"Exactly … what would be the HARM if we did … on occasion? … No one needs to know."
"NO."
"No?"
"It would get confusing … we would make mistakes … we would slip up and get caught … no … we can't."
"And you can go just cold turkey like that and never look back?"
She laughed. "I am not ADDICTED, Harm," she shook her head. "It was only twice."
"Three times … but I guess we shouldn't count the first time."
"The POINT is … I can put it behind me … can you?"
He scanned her up and down lustily lingering on her 'behind' for a little too long.
"Harm."
He smiled. "If that is what you want … yes, I can agree," there was something a little to easy about his concurrence. "And I won't make any off-color remarks."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Ok."
"Good," he got up. "We are agreed – AGAIN," he dusted himself off and straightened his tie. "Thanks for lunch and for setting the record straight," he strode away leaving her to clean up.
Damn but he has a great ass. She thought.
X X X X X X X
Harm had been home all night working. He and Mac had shared a few phone calls about the case – all very professional. He was beginning to believe that she had meant what she said at lunch. At the time he believed it was only a matter of time. He was confident that she would cave before he would. So he was in no hurry and could give her as much time as she needed. But in the several conversations they had that afternoon and in the course of the evening, a thought crossed his mind that maybe she wasn't fooling herself. Maybe she could actually walk away. That maybe he/they were not the irresistible. He had to believe that he could get her to change her mind, but it was too soon to try, too soon to bring out the big guns and it was WAY too soon to give up entirely.
It was after 0100 when his doorbell rang. He was still up. He had hopes that his caller was who he thought it was but it was probably too soon for that too.
He opened the door. There Mac stood looking slightly embarrassed and DEAD SEXY in an open collared shirt and camisole that she had chosen just for him.
He stepped back.
"You were expecting me?"
"I wouldn't say expecting, but you have to know that I was hoping."
"Shut up," she said as stepped up and kissed him.
He slammed the door behind her.