A/N: While this chapter does contain Harm and Mac's preparation of a surprise for their kids, it also contains Mature Content. Please don't read it if you aren't over the age of 18 or isn't your cup of tea.

Santa's Surprise

Harm has just finished reading the last chapter of their latest book and both of his children are fast asleep. Trisha is curled into his side and Matthew is asleep across Mac's chest. Harm closes the cover of the book and immediately tries to slide away from Trisha without disturbing her. Mac furrows her brow wondering why her husband is in such a rush. Harm answers her silent question, "I still have to finish preparing Santa's surprise."

Before the children had gone upstairs for their baths, they had each planted small flower pots and placed their seed packs on top of the pots. The seed packs contained cinnamon Cheerios and a little bit of sugar. The packets read, "Santa knows how good you have been and gave me some donut seeds. You have to plant them in sugar or sprinkle them with snow. Leave them overnight and see what will grow." At first Harm was a little reluctant to try this since his children have planted real seeds in the garden, but Mac convinced him it was a unique idea to try anyway.

Mac stands up and lifts Matthew over her shoulder, "Ah. I forgot. Gardening does take a little work to get the right results. Give your children a kiss goodnight before you become Bobby Flay."

Harm rolls his eyes as he kisses first Trisha's forehead and then Matthew's. His poor wife will never understand the art behind cooking culinary delicacies! He points his index finger at her correcting her faux pas, "Bobby Flay is the burger king. Duff Goldman is the master baker!"

Mac merely laughs. Of course, Harm knows who all the master chefs are and their specialties. "I'll get Matthew tucked in and come down and help you."

Harm chuckles, "You mean you will sit on the island and supervise."

Mac banters, "Someone has to make sure you don't burn the house down!"

Harm shakes his head muttering as he walks off, "I set off the smoke detector one time, just one time, and she will never let me hear the end of it!"

By the time Mac gets to the kitchen, Harm has already donned one of her favorite aprons and is spraying Pam onto an oddly shaped tray. She grabs a water from the fridge, sets it on the island, and brings her lips to his in what soon becomes a scorching kiss. Trying to catch his breath, he inquires, "What was that for?"

Mac points at his chest. Harm furrows his brow for a moment before remembering that his navy-blue apron spouts the phrase, "Kiss the cook."

He smiles, "There will time for that later, but for now I have work to do."

Taking her place on one of the barstools she asks, "Harm, when did we get donut pans?"

His cheeks redden, "When I stopped at the CorningWare store."

Knowing her husband too well, she adds, "And what else did you buy?"

Harm shrugs, "This and that."

Mac teases, "Most husbands get excited at the hardware store, mine gets enthusiastic about kitchen gadgets."

Harm mixes the last of the spice cake batter and pours it into a bag, sealing the end so he can pipe the batter into the donut shaped holes, "Hey now, I love the hardware store too! And I didn't spend that much in the culinary store, but I did need a few things for my activities."

He places the trays in the oven and sits on the stool next to Mac, swiping a swig of her water. Turning towards him she huskily asks, "How long do they have to cook?"

Harm replies, "Ten to twelve minutes. Any ideas to pass the time?"

Mac leans towards him whispering against his lips, "I'm sure I can think of something."

Harm brushes his lips against hers, "Okay. But if they burn, it isn't my fault this time… You are the one who started it."

Mac deepens the kiss, "Yes, but I like it hot in here."

They continue their little make out session alternating kisses and nibbles until they are rudely interrupted by the ding of the timer. Harm reluctantly breaks away with a groan and slides off the stool, "Sorry babe, but I need to prepare the next ingredients. After that I am all yours for the next twenty minutes."

Mac wraps her arms around herself, immediately chilled by the loss of his body heat. She teases, "Twenty minutes? I thought I was yours for life, Sailor."

He smiles, "You are, but you can have my undivided attention for the next twenty minutes while these have a chance to cool off."

Harm uses his fish shaped oven mitts, a present from his daughter last year, to pull the pans out of the oven and places them upside down on a cooling rack. After pressing the "cancel" button on the oven to turn it off, he lifts the pans and the donuts fall out in place. He grins widely, "Perfection!"

He grabs a few small sauce bowls and places red candy melts in one, green melts in the second one, and vegetable oil in the third. He places some sprinkles in a small ramekin, and sets a skewer on the counter. Next, he grabs a handful of green and red straws from the cupboard and chops them in half, setting them next to the other ingredients, and sets the timer for twenty minutes.

Harm removes his apron, hangs it on the hook, and settles back in next to his wife, "Now, where were we?"

Mac banters, "We were somewhere? I didn't think I left this seat."

Harm tickles her, "You know we were in the middle of something before that annoying sound reminded me I had to get something out of the oven." Closing the gap between them he leans towards her lips, "I think we were just about here."

Mac turns her head to the side so Harm makes contact with her cheek. He exclaims, "Hey now, what's that for?"

Mac chuckles loudly, "I'm not allowed to kiss this cook. My husband might get jealous."

Harm raises both his brows to his hairline as he pulls Mac off the stool and hoists her up over his shoulder leaving her to dangle with her head near his backside. She's squealing "Harm, put me down!" as he heads toward the living room and dumps her on the couch immediately covering her body with his. Pinning her hands above her head in one of his bigger ones he asks again, "Now, where were we?"

Mac knows that she could easily wrap her legs around him, shift her weight, and flip them over, even if he does outweigh her by a good eighty or so pounds, but she doesn't want to be tumbling off the couch. Although them being a tangle of limbs definitely would be appealing. Instead she chuckles, "I think I was hanging somewhere where I had a great view. At least I did until you put me here."

Harm drops his jaw, "Are you implying that you like the look of my backside better than my face?"

Mac pretends to think about it for a few moments, but she can't keep a straight face and breaks out into giggles. "I like looking at every part of you." Sliding one her legs between his so that her thigh touches a specific part of his anatomy, "But there are some parts I like to look at more than others. I did marry a gorgeous man."

Harm shakes his head at his wife's antics, "And that's your favorite part?"

She shakes her head in the negative, "I don't have a favorite, per se. I love the whole package. But if I had to pick only one, I would say I love to look at your eyes the most. They are always so expressive and we have never had any problem holding a complete conversation by just the looks we give each other."

Harm's lips turn up in that sexy smile she loves and gets a twinkle in his eye, "And just what are my eyes saying now?"

Mac replies, "That you need to give me my hands back so that they can caress other parts of your body while I look deep into your open eyes and use my mouth to talk to yours in a language that only you and I understand."

Harm loosens his grip, freeing her hands, and brings his hand down to hold her hip while she wraps her arms around him lightly scraping her nails on his lower back just below his waistline. As his lips descend down to capture hers, she moves her hands down a little lower, kneading the perfect six that she was just admiring several moments ago.

They get lost in each other; kissing, fondling, and caressing, until the timer dings again. Mac begins to pull away, "Harm, the donuts are ready."

Harm groans, "Nope that wasn't the timer, it was the smoke detector because we are generating too much heat."

Mac laughs before pushing on his shoulder, "I won't argue with that, Sailor. But if you don't go finish your preparations, the kids are going to be awful disappointed."

Harm shakes his index finger at her, "No fair playing the guilt card, Marine. But if I have to go back in the kitchen, you can come assist this time."

As Mac reluctantly follows Harm into the kitchen, he grabs the bowl with the red candy melts and hands it to Mac instructing, "Put these in the microwave for one minute and then do the same with the green ones."

When the red ones are finished, she hands them to Harm and he adds a little of the vegetable oil to the mixture and stirs it until he gets the proper consistency. She watches him repeat the same procedure with the green melted candy.

He hands her back the bowl and continues as he demonstrates, "I want you to dip the donuts in the bowl like this, use a plastic fork to push it down to make sure one side is fully covered and then flip it over to get the other side. Then we place them on the wax paper and toss a few sprinkles on them. If you will do half in red, I will do the other half in green."

They work together side by side until Mac decides to be a little mischievous and dabs some of the red mixture on Harm's nose. He of course has to return the gesture by placing a few green dots on either side of her cheeks. Their flirting game continues as they finish up the donuts getting slightly less frosting on each other as they do on the donuts. When everything is complete, Harm offers, "Why don't you go clean up in the bathroom while I finish cleaning up out here. The only thing I have left to do is to place the stick holders in the donuts but the frosting has to fully set first and that will take a little while. I'll do them just before we go to bed."

Mac heads to the hallway bathroom and discovers that she has frosting all over not only her hands and face, but in several different spots on her jeans and shirt as well. Well, there is only one way to fix this minor dilemma. She finishes washing her skin and then strips all of her clothes off except her panties. She walks back to the kitchen and leans up against the wall. Harm has his back to her washing up the last of the dishes in the sink. She huskily asks, "Hey Sailor, you about finished?"

Harm replies, "Yeah, I am," just before he hears her clicking nails on the wall beckoning him to turn around. He immediately notices her attire, or better yet lack thereof. As his eyes drink in her scantily clad body he lowers his voice, "On second thought, I think I am just getting started."

He scoops his wife in his arms carrying her back to the living room, his lips immediately finding hers. He sets her down in front of the sofa, and as he tries to pull a blanket off the top of the couch, she is already popping the buttons on the fly of his jeans, remarking, "You are way too overdressed."

Attempting to hold back his already burning desire, he places a hand over hers, "Give me just a minute and I'm all yours."

He lays the blanket on the floor and tosses a few throw pillows down directly in front of the fireplace. He pulls his shirt off, and pushes his jeans to the floor leaving him clad only in his boxers, "Okay, now I am just as dressed as you are, but that is about to change."

He kneels down on the blanket in front of her sliding his hands behind her to cup her supple bottom as he pulls her to him. He places soft barely there kisses directly above her navel before placing his tongue inside of it and swirling around. He lowers her panties in the rear below her bottom as he slides a single finger between her cheeks to caress her silky folds as he lightly nibbles on her lace covered nub knowing the friction will drive her wild. Mac's hands involuntarily reach up to her breasts where she scrapes her nails over her hardened nipples as he lowers her panties to the floor with his tongue following the path of his hands.

She steps out of them and he turns her to lay her down on the soft downy comforter. She reaches to pull him down for a searing kiss, but he has other plans. He places one hand just above her mound and presses down as he slides one long finger into her hot center. He pumps it in and out of her slowly as his mouth covers her bundle of nerves alternating soft nibbles with long flat strokes. Feeling her internal muscles beginning to contract around his finger, he adds another and pumps them in and out of her rapidly as his tongue flicks against her nub simultaneously. Her hands slide into his hair holding him against her as her back arches, her hips begin bucking up against him of their own accord as she breathlessly moans his name. When she reaches her peak her toes curl with the sheer force of her orgasm. He lays his head on her inner thigh and lets his fingers slowly descend her from her high.

He slides back up so that he is next to her, removes the hand laying draped across her face, and gathers her in his arms for a loving kiss. He quietly tells her, "You are always beautiful, but you shine in moments like this. I absolutely love seeing you this way, knowing that you feel free enough to totally let go with me."

She mumbles, "Only with you, Harm."

They spend the next several minutes kissing and lightly caressing until Mac snakes her hand in his boxers and wraps it around his silken length. She strokes his shaft up and down gently before applying a little firmer grip as he clenches his jaw. She smiles, "I think it's time we let him join the fun. Don't you think?" Harm can only mutely nod his agreement as her hands slowly torture his rod. She turns her back to him and slowly pushes his boxers down nibbling the insides of his thighs, knees, and ankles. She pushes them off of his feet and slides back up placing her knees on the outside of Harm's thighs. She grasps his erection in her hand and begins sliding it into her folds from behind, bracing her hands on his thighs as she slowly lowers herself onto his length until he is in to the hilt. She releases him until just his tip is left inside of her and steadily rides him up and down, gyrating her hips in a circular motion as she pulls him in and out of her wet depths in a slow torturous pace.

Harm sits up and wraps his arms around her with his hands on her breasts, turning her face to him to offer her a sensual kiss. His tongue flicks against hers in the same rhythm his fingers are pulling against her nipples. He can feel his tension growing quickly and he needs to pick up the speed. He lightly pushes on her back laying her down so that her chest and arms are flat on the floor and her hips are the in air still intimately joined with him. Harm kneels and grasps both sides of her hips pulling her back to him as he thrusts into her from behind in long, but firm strokes in much deeper penetration. He holds her hips steady as she begins to convulse and he drives into her again and again until her muscles clench around him so tightly it inhibits his movements. The friction is so intense that it only takes them a few more strokes before she is spasming all around him, and he shoots his hot seed deep within her depths. He pulls out of her and collapses next to her, pulling her against him.

They may have been married seven years, but their sex life is still as exquisite as it was in the first year of their marriage. Their complete desire for each other burns hotter now than it did before they got married.

They are both fully sated and even after their breathing has returned to normal, Harm is unusually quiet. Mac inquires, "Harm, what are you thinking?"

He lightly lays his hand over her belly, "I'm hoping that maybe I planted a seed of my own tonight."

Mac places her hand over his, whispering softly, "Sorry Sailor, yours wouldn't grow overnight, they would take about nine months. But it would be nice to add to our family."

Harm smiles, "I agree. Even if they take a little longer than overnight to grow, it never hurts to try. And if I didn't succeed, we will just have to practice more."

Mac turns to settle her head on his chest, "I love you, Harm."

Harm drowsily replies, "I love you too, Sarah."

Mac wakes up as soon as dawn breaks and the light seeps in through their bay window. Giving her internal clock a quick check, she realizes that they only have about thirty minutes before their offspring come looking for them. Crap! They forgot to put the donuts in the pots! They got a little carried away last night and totally forgot about them. She pats the arm encircling her waist, "Harm."

He squeezes her a little tighter, murmuring, "Five more minutes, Babe."

Forcibly unravelling his arms around her she scolds, "Not five more minutes, Babe. Get your naked butt in the kitchen and finish making the donuts before our children run down here and find us in our current state of dress!" Standing up, grabbing his shirt and throwing it on, "I'll clean up here and grab the seed packets while you put the donuts out. Get the lead out and meet me in our room!"

Harm rolls over with a groan, feeling around the carpet until his hand finds his boxers which he quickly slides on.

Harm and Mac have no sooner gotten settled in their bed, somewhat clothed, when as if on cue Trisha and Matthew come running in, "Get up! We have to go see Santa's Surprise!"

Mac answers, "Go get changed out of your PJ's and we will all go down and see what his little elves left."

The children rush back to their rooms as quickly as they had entered their parents'. Once he is sure they are out of earshot, Harm asks, "Where did you put the seeds?"

Mac lifts her pillow and shows both packets hiding underneath. Harm laughs, "Looking for a gift from the Tooth Fairy?"

Mac smiles, "Nope. Just a present from my favorite Sailor."

Harm leans over and kisses his wife, "I'm sure he could go for an encore performance tonight."

He heads out of the room and is met by two whirlwinds at the top of the stairs, "Let's go, Daddy!"

Harm takes each of their hands in one of his as he yells, "Mac, you coming?"

Pulling her hair up in a ponytail as she exits the master bedroom with her camera in hand, she answers, "Right behind you."

Harm tells the kids, "We are going to walk, not run, down the stairs and we will see what Santa's little elves left us."

They all reach the bottom and Trisha's eyes go wide at her little flower pot filled with red and green sprinkled donut cake pops. She exclaims, "Wow!" before taking one out and handing it to her younger brother.

Matthew's eyes light up like a cloudless sky, but he has nothing to say as he sticks the entire thing in his mouth in one shot. When he is finished chewing, he mumbles, "Yum!"

Mac had lingered behind as she took several photos of the experience including Trisha's green tongue. She walks over to her husband and whispers in his ear, "You did good my big elf!"

He whispers back, "And hopefully by this time next year we will have another little elf to spoil as well."