Chapter 3
Mac had never felt so at peace in her life. Snuggled into the crook of Harm's arm, she breathed in his wonderful scent. The memory of this morning sent shivers rushing through her body once again. Wanting to enjoy the moment for as long as she could drag it out, she wasn't going to let herself think about what would be coming next.
Running his fingers up and down her arm, Harm couldn't believe he was holding Mac. Even harder still, he couldn't believe he had just made love to her less than seventy-two hours before he was due to ship off to England, halfway across the world from San Diego. As heart-wrenching as the idea of leaving her behind had been before, now the thought was horribly unbearable.
Closely watching her shoulder rise and fall with every breath he took, Harm pulled Mac a little closer. Leaning into her, he whispered, "Let's get married."
Mac's eyes sprang open.
Harm searched her eyes for some indication of what was running through her mind. "Marry me, Mac," he repeated.
Blinking frantically, Mac stared silently into his eyes. She might have misheard him the first time, but there was no way she had heard him wrong twice. Before he had time to change his mind, "YES!" she almost shouted.
"Today," he whispered.
"What?" This time she sat up.
"Today. It's still early. We can get a license and get married in a few hours."
"Today?" she stammered.
"We don't exactly have a lot of time." Stretching his hand out slightly, he began slowly caressing her hip.
"No. No we don't." Reality was beginning to slap at her. "Then what?"
"Then I take my wife back to bed." Unwilling to allow her to forget the magic of being together, Harm moved his arm to slide around her waist and pull her into his embrace. Delicately kissing the side of her neck, he nibbled on her chin, then whispered into her ear, "Say yes."
Her head thrown back, her body coming alive at his touch, "Yes...yes."
Despite their good intentions, it was a long while before they made their way to the Alexandria City Hall. By 1600 hours, Harm and Mac were standing in front of a local Justice of the Peace. By 1800 hours they were back at Harm's apartment.
"What are we going to do now?" Mac asked, drowning once again in the longing in Harm's eyes.
"We're going to get dressed and go to the General's, then we're going to meet Bud and Harriet for a private celebration at McMurphy's." Harm pulled Mac into his arms, his hands resting loosely along the curve of her hips.
"I suppose we need to at least make an appearance, since we are the General's guests of honor." Mac let her hands fall softly on his chest.
"Too bad more of our friends and fewer brass weren't on his guest list." Harm's fingers began drawing swirling patterns across her lower back.
"Mm. That's what happens when you're an O6, politics takes priority over fun." Mac began playing with locks of his hair.
"If we don't stop this and start dressing, we're going to be considered UA because I won't be held responsible for dragging my wife off to bed to start our honeymoon." Harm practically growled at the sensations she was creating, fiddling with his hair and the back of his neck.
Letting her hands fall to her side. "I suppose our 'honeymoon' can wait," Mac sighed.
"I'm sorry." Harm took her hands in his.
"For what?" Mac cocked her head sideways.
"No time for a real honeymoon." Raising her hands, he kissed her knuckles, savoring each one as if it was a rare delicacy.
"There isn't much time for anything." Mac's voice dropped to an almost inaudible level. She hadn't let herself think about it, but being married changed very little. They were on their way to separate posts halfway around the world from each other.
"Mac..." Harm started.
"No, not now. Let's not ruin today with thoughts of tomorrow." Mac tried to smile.
"Okay, Mrs. Rabb." Kissing the tip of her nose, he turned his cheek against hers and whispered in her ear, "I love you."
"I love you, too." Kissing his cheek, Mac stepped back and leaned over to grab the dress she'd brought from her apartment. "Care to join me in the shower?" she tossed over her shoulder on her way up the stairs.
"I'd love to, but then we'd really never get to the party." Harm let out a deep sigh. There was no way he could leave her now that she was finally his. No way."
McMurphy's Pub
2210 hours
"I'm going to make a quick detour to the little girl's room," Mac whispered to Harm as they came through the door.
"Shall I order you a drink?"
"The usual. No, wait. Make it a ginger ale, in a champagne glass," Mac smiled.
"Done," Harm smiled back, resisting the urge to kiss her there in front of everyone.
Harm took a seat at the bar, ordered a beer and ginger ale, then waited for Mac and the Roberts'. When Mac came strolling towards him from the ladies room, he couldn't fight the feeling of pride as he watched her approaching. It was obvious to anyone in the room that he was as puffed as a peacock, his eyes on only one person.
Within minutes Harriet and Bud had joined them, and the four moved to a booth in the back corner.
"It's going to seem really strange not having you guys around. I know these last few years with everyone have been the happiest years of my life, but it looks like this change of billet is doing you well. I've never seen you two look happier," Harriet remarked almost sadly. She had secretly always hoped that someday her two friends would do something about how they really felt for each other.
Both Harm and Mac tried to swallow a huge grin. Their eyes twinkling madly, the corners of their lips twitched with desire to impersonate the Cheshire cat.
"What? Did I say something funny?" Harriet immediately caught their misguided attempt to swallow their laughter. Or was it joy?
"It's probably safe to say it's not the change of posting, or the promotion that has us a little 'happier' than usual," Harm started.
"A little!" Harriet interrupted, her curiosity now piqued. "You guys are glowing enough to light half of Georgetown."
This time Mac couldn't stop the blush that rose in her cheeks at Harriet's comments.
"Okay, give. What's going on?" Harriet prodded in her motherly tone.
Reaching across and taking Mac's left hand in his left hand, Harm moved them across the table and set them down in front of Harriet, moving his fingers just enough to expose both plain gold wedding bands. "We got married this afternoon."
"Oh my Gosh!" Harriet screeched so loudly that every head in the pub turned to stare at them. Raising her hands to cover her open mouth, "Oh, my Gosh. Ohhh, my Gosshh. Oh Gosh," she repeated, and repeated through spread fingers.
"Harriet, dear." Bud pulled his wife a little closer. "I think they get the point." Soothing his wife's shoulder with one hand, he turned to his longtime friends. "Congratulations, sir, ma'am."
"Bud, if there was ever a time when you should call us Harm and Mac, this is it," Harm smiled happily.
"Yes, sir...Harm. Permission to speak freely?"
Rolling his eyes, Harm sighed heavily. "Of course, Bud."
"Harriet's right. WOW!" Bud broke into a heartfelt chuckle.
"Yeah, we sort of feel the same way," Mac smiled sweetly.
"Oh, my Gosh," Harriet continued to whisper over and over.
"I think you may want to get her something a little stronger," Harm teased.
"That may not be a bad idea." Bud turned to his wife, "Harriet how about a little champagne to celebrate?"
"Oh, my Gosh." For the life of her, Harriet couldn't manage to say anything else.
Everyone burst out into full laughter at Harriet's somewhat unexpected, and continued response.
"I'd better go get those drinks." Sitting by the window, Bud nudged Harriet out of the booth, scooting out behind her. Standing up, he shook his head at his wife. And people said HE had a tendency to babble absurdly.
"Are you okay, Harriet?" Mac was starting to get a little concerned.
Finally quiet, Harriet nodded her head yes, and sat down heavily on the edge of the seat.
"You're sure?" Mac pressed.
"Mm hm," she mumbled.
Harm and Mac glanced at each other, then Harriet, then back at each other. Neither was convinced they hadn't sent their friend into a permanently catatonic state, but both were instantly relieved when Harriet finally found her voice.
"Now what?"
"We haven't discussed it." Harm picked up his beer and took a sip.
"Well, you won't be the first or last military couple to marry and ship out. It's sort of romantic, like an old World War II movie," Harriet shrugged. Taking a deep breath, a broad smile replaced her previously shocked expression.
"What about World War II?" Bud set a fresh glass of ginger ale and a bottle of champagne on the table with three fluted glasses, while Harriet climbed out of the booth, allowing Bud to return to his preferred seat by the window.
"Getting married just before shipping out. That always happened in the old movies. Only Mac won't be waiting home for him here in DC, she'll be waiting in San Diego." Harriet helped pour the drinks before sitting back down.
"Maybe," Mac replied under her breath.
"What do you mean, maybe?" Harm took hold of her hand, squeezing it tightly.
"I'm not sure I want to go to San Diego now. I don't know that I ever did."
"Mac, this is a great opportunity. You'll be guaranteed your eagles after this." Harm's thumb slowly caressed the top of her hand.
It may have been meant to calm her, but the tingling sensations his thumb was creating were quickly traveling up her arm and down her spine, only helping to convince her she didn't want to leave this man.
"It doesn't matter to me anymore." Her eyes pleaded with him to believe her. Nothing mattered now that she had Harm.
"Well, it's probably a moot point anyway." Harm dropped his other hand on her wrist. "I'm not going to accept the promotion. I'm going to leave it at twenty and retire. Besides, my mom will love having me, I mean us, in San Diego."
Harriet and Bud watched the conversation go back and forth like spectators at a sporting event. His glass in hand, still poised to make a toast, Bud was fascinated by the repartee.
"NO! You're a Captain. Harm you know how hard that is to do. You can't walk away from that. You were meant to be a Navy man." Mac moved her free arm onto Harm's.
"I've pretty much made up my mind. I can't ask you to give up what you've worked so hard for and I don't want to wait months to spend a little leave time together. I've waited too long for this." Harm had taken his hand away from her wrist and rested it on her other hand.
"I can't let you give everything up again... and... I want to be with you too." Mac's eyes dropped down to their jumble of arms and hands, and couldn't help giggling. "This looks very much like the story of our lives, complicated."
Smiling back at her, "No, it's very simple." Pulling his hands away Harm grabbed both her hands, clasped them together and enveloped them in his larger ones. "See, very simple, meant to be together."
"Okay, then tell me, what do we do now?" Mac tilted her head.
"Bud, you got a quarter?" Harm shifted in his seat, still holding onto Mac's hands.
"Yes, sir." Setting the glass down on the table, Bud reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of change, sifting through it until he held a shiny quarter up in his right hand. "Here you go."
"No. Call it Mac."
"Are you crazy? You're going to leave our careers up to a coin toss?"
"Yup. Either I go with you, or you go with me. Which is heads?"
"I can't. Bud, you call it." Mac shook her head, her eyes closed, her lips pressed in anticipation.
"ME? I don't think..."
"Call it, Bud." Harm nodded his head in both agreement and reassurance.
"Okay...heads it's London, tails San Diego." Flipping the coin high above the table, four sets of eyes watched with bated breath as the coin tumbled, making its way higher and higher before turning and beginning its gravity-hastened descent.
Spinning and clinking on the edge of the window sill, both couples' eyes flew wide with horror as the coin managed to twirl and position itself directly over the heating vents before sliding gracefully down into the thin space and out of sight.
Looking across at his two startled friends, Bud smiled awkwardly. "One of you could always request a transfer."
"the end"