PART 16

1320 Zulu

JAG Headquarters

Falls Church, Virginia

"Welcome back, Colonel." Sturgis said from under Mac's doorframe. "Colonel? . . . Mac!"

She'd been back for two days and for those two days everyone could tell that she was in another world. It was almost as if she didn't want to be back. Mac sat there, reading over the e-mail that she had sent Harm months ago. A private e-mail that she was sure the agency had probably read over and over. It was a miracle they didn't go after him from the get go. Sighing, she finally noticed Sturgis and looked up, offering him a half-smile. "Hey Sturgis, what can I do you for?"

Walking in, Sturgis slid into a guest chair and watched her for a moment. "You okay?"

"Why won't he take my calls?" She said, referring to Harm who had two weeks to go before he returned home from a TAD assignment in Iceland.

Sturgis shrugged. "He doesn't want to talk to anyone. . ." He watched her as she nodded and then stood to look out of her window. "Did something happen, Mac?"

"Yea. . . a lot happened actually." She said, looking out at the rain clouds that were headed towards Falls Church.

Sturgis just watched her figure. The way the strong Marine persona was suffering. He'd needed to talk to her about his conduct months earlier. "Look, I want to apologize for calling you sanctimonious and priggish. . . It was un-called for."

Snorting, she turned around and leaned against the desk. "Sturgis, you were right on the money with that. I was so busy trying show everyone that I could handle myself. . . I ended up becoming someone else. . ." Sighing for the millionth time that day, she slid into her chair and put her head in her hands.

"You know what pissed me off the most about you, Mac?" Sturgis said as he slid onto the edge of the chair. "The fact that not too long ago you told me that you were in love with him. Then I hear the scuttlebutt of you and Webb"

She looked up from her hands and nodded. "I was tired of us going in circles. I thought it was best if I put an end to it. . ." She wove her fingers together and placed them on the desk. "I know a lot of people around here blamed me for Harm leaving JAG. . . But you guys don't know the half of it." It had been more than a year since the return from Paraguay and it still plagued her. She could have handled things differently. She could have stated her real intentions to him.

"I can't pretend that I know what happened to the two of you down south, but whatever it was. . . Could it have been that bad that you lost that love for him?" Since Christmas, Sturgis had made a silent vow to try and become approachable again. He'd tried his best to repair his friendship with Bud and succeeded. Now, he needed to patch up things with Mac. When she didn't say anything, he figured that he could continue on. "You two are the most stubborn individuals I've ever seen. . . You two are so right for each other that you don't even see it. Don't let the mistakes of the past dictate your future." Standing, he walked out of the office and let Mac stew in her thoughts.

She leaned back into her chair and remembered his words from weeks earlier. Something about him not wanting to change the current status of their relationship. Mac didn't want to change it either, but how could he possibly want to be with her? She was the sole reason as to why he went away. She'd endangered his life. She omitted the crucial detail that she and Webb never passed platonic. She had a reason to. In Paraguay she noted that he would never let go so she would have to stop things if she were to live a full life. Instead, she spent months worrying about his every move. And now, he wasn't even returning her calls.

Grabbing a pen, she made a darker circle around a certain day on her desk calendar. He would be back by then and she would do something nice for him. Something that made him realize just how needed he was. She just hoped that things hadn't changed too much since they returned home.

"Colonel?" Looking up, Mac saw Mattie in the door way. "Can I come in?"

Mac smiled and pointed at the chairs. "Sure."

"Mac. . . I . . . well I just wanted to say thanks for helping me out with Harm being gone and all." It wasn't easy for her to say such things. Like Mac, the words "thanks" and "I'm sorry" didn't rank very high in her vocabulary. "Have you heard from him at all?"

Mac shook her head and frowned making the lines that she had from lack of sleep, even more apparent. "No. . . I tried calling but he isn't taking any calls."

"Is he mad at everyone but me or something?" Though Mattie was very mature for her age, she couldn't quite comprehend what was going on with Harm. Whenever he would call, he kept it short and reassured her that he missed her. But, it was nothing more than that. He didn't want to talk to anyone else.

Mac had been spending time with Mattie, helping her out while Harm was away. Ever since Mac had been let out of the hospital, she felt she needed to help out with the teenager. She would do that for him.

Mac shrugged. "Maybe mad at me. . . I put him in this mess."

"No you didn't. He chose to help you out." Mattie studied Mac for a moment. "You love him don't you?"

"More than anything in this world." She confessed with a half-smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Doesn't mean we'll stay together though. . . we've done a lot of damage to each other."

Mattie nodded. She knew by the way that Harm talked about Mac that he too was madly in love with her. "Well, I have to get going. Jen and I are going to get a few welcome home things for Harm. . . see you tonight?"

Mac nodded. "Yep, I'll bring the popcorn and rent a movie."

"See you then." Mac watched as Mattie headed out of her office. At first, she didn't take the news about Harm very well at all. But, she'd made a promise to help the teenager out. She'd also made plenty of calls and with the help of her family in JAG, made sure that his current predicament would not affect things with Mattie. It was the least she could do to help him out

TWO WEEKS LATER

0240 Zulu

Harm's Apartment

North of Union Station

Harm unlocked his apartment and walked in, slowly making the trek to his fridge. He was finally home. 'It's good to be home', he thought as he found a bottle of beer that had yet to expire. Smiling, he unscrewed the top and took a long pull. "Harm!" He heard the shriek and two seconds later was pummeled by a very happy teenager. "You're home."

"Yep, how are you, kiddo?" He said, putting the beer down and giving her a tight hug. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." She said, taking a step back to look him over. "Don't they feed you over there?"

Harm nodded and chuckled. "I was so busy over there, I barely had time to sleep."

"You just missed Mac." Mattie said, pulling out a few plates of food from the fridge and sticking them in the microwave.

Harm raised an eyebrow and took another swig of beer. "Mac was here?"

"Yea, she has been helping out. . . with homework, dinner, shopping. Even bought Jen and I a few plants for the apartment." Smiling, she took a fork and knife and placed them on the island. "She's been by every day ever since she left the hospital." His mouth, wide open, was closed by a giggling Mattie. "You're going to go see her tonight, aren't you?"

Clearing his throat, Harm leaned up against the counter. "I ah. . . well." At the annoyed look that Mattie shot him, he couldn't help but grin. "Mathilda Grace Johnson, are you playing match maker?"

"Maybe." She said coyly, before removing the food from the microwave and sliding it onto the island. "There you go."

"What about you?" He asked, walking around the island to prop himself up on a barstool.

Mattie grinned. "I had a late lunch. . . so anyway. . . you are going over there aren't you?"

Harm chuckled. "Persistent aren't we?"

"Harm, she missed you . . . a lot. . ."

"I missed her too." He confessed. During his whole time away all he could think about was Mac. "Why didn't she stick around?"

Mattie shrugged and leaned up against the island. "She thought you were mad at her. . . I thought that too."

He stared down at the plate before taking another bite of food. "I'm not mad at her. . .I just. . ." Sighing, he looked over at Mattie. "It's complicated."

"You know, I hope that when I get to be your age, I am not as stupid about love." Walking over to Harm she gave him a kiss on the cheek and patted his shoulder. "Go over there, trust me." With that, she headed on out of Harm's apartment and off to find Coates.

Harm finished his meal and, after a few moments and second thoughts, headed over to Mac's apartment.

0330 Zulu

Mac's Apartment

Georgetown

Harm made it to Mac's apartment and stood, in front of her door holding a vase with flowers. It was a similar arrangement to the one that he had purchased for her months earlier. He hesitated a few moments before knocking. When he didn't get an answer, Harm pulled out his key and walked into Mac's apartment.

The sight before him made Harm stop dead in his tracks. The fireplace was lit, casting a subtle glow over the couple that occupied Mac's sofa. There was Sarah MacKenzie sitting on top of someone.

"Mac." Harm said, his voice cracking as he willed himself not to break out in tears.

Then, just as quickly as the vision appeared, it vanished leaving only the darkness that engulfed Mac's apartment. He sighed and placed the flowers in the center of her coffee table. Rummaging through her desk, he pulled out a paper and a pen and left her a small note.

Mac,

Give me a call when you get this. I missed you.

Love,

Harm.

Sighing, he turned away and went back home. When he arrived, he found the door to his apartment unlocked and instantly came on the defensive. He walked in slowly and stopped in his tracks when he saw Mac washing the dishes he had left on his bar. "Mac?"

Turning around, he saw Mac's eyes light up. She dropped what she was doing and ran to him. In a sight that was reminiscent of old black and white love stories, she fell into his arms and kissed him. Mac held on to the side of his face as she indulged at something that she missed so much. "I missed you." She finally said once she broke the kiss off.

Harm sheepishly grinned at her. "I could tell." He held her and couldn't help but wonder what his insecurities were. She was there, with him and it felt right.

Taking his hand, Mac lead Harm over to the sofa and snuggled up with him. He was home. He finally came home.

"Mattie told me you were hear earlier, why didn't you stay?" Harm asked, pulling her against him.

Mac sighed. "I thought you were mad at me. . .but then, I figured that I wasn't going to let whatever we started just disappear. . . so I came back for you."

"We need to talk, Mac. . . there are a lot of things to say."

Mac shook her head. "I've been thinking about that talk. . . and I think we should table it indefinitely."

"Oh?" He said with a raised eyebrow. He'd thought several times about just giving up on the infamous talk.

Mac smiled. "We have all the time in the world to talk about the past. .. Right now I want to think about the future. . ."

"I like that." He said with a smile.

"I thought you would." Chuckling, she moved herself over Harm and straddled his lap. "I've been dying to do this, Harm." Leaning forward, she kissed him passionately. Her hands ran through his hair.

Harm moved his hands up and down her back. Eventually, he leaned into the sofa and laid so that she was still on top of him. "I missed you so much, Sarah."

Mac studied him for a moment and noticed that he wasn't lying. "I missed you too, Harm."

Grinning, he moved his hands under her shirt and upward, but she stopped him. "Something wrong?"

Mac nodded. "There is something missing from all of this. . ." They studied each other for a moment. And then she realized what was missing. The reciprocation of feelings that she never admitted to him. The three words that would seal the deal and bind their hearts together. "I love you." She said softly as her eyes maintained on his. She waited for a moment, holding her breath.

"I love you too, Sarah. . ." He moved so that she lay fully on top of him and then wrapped his arms around her.

They didn't know what other dangers life would throw at them, but they did know that they would go through them together. Eventually all the things were said, all the wrongs were righted and two people finally realized that they were made for eachother.

THE END.