Saturday, July 2nd

Mac giggled as Harm ran his hands down her body. They were in the shower cleaning up after their run. Mac softly pushed him away.

"We should hurry up. Mattie will be up soon," she reminded him.

"But," he reached for her again. "This is so much fun."

"I know, but we can do this later," she cupped his face. "I think Mattie needs some father/daughter time."

Harm moved a little away from her, stepping under the water to wash off the soap. "Did she say something?"

"I could just sense it," Mac smiled. "You should spend some time with her. Alone."

Harm let Mac get under the water and stepped out of the shower, reaching for a towel he wrapped it around his waist. "What will you do?"

"Read," Mac shrugged and turned the water off.

Harm watched as she stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around herself. "We could do something all of us," he suggested.

"It's fine, I don't mind some alone time," she smiled.

"Okay," he hesitated. "Are you sure?"

"Positive," she reassured as she wrapped a towel around her head. "It'll be nice for Mattie to have you to herself a little."

"I guess," he smiled. "You're right."

"I usually am," she teased.

Later that day

Harm had taken Mattie to the maritime museum, then they'd had lunch. Now they were walking through a park, enjoying the nice weather. Mattie had been in a good mood all day, a little tired after their visit to the museum, but after lunch, she asked to go for a walk instead of going straight home.

"Harm?" Mattie hesitated.

"What's up Matts?" he asked.

"I don't know how to thank you for this," she smiled sheepishly. "I mean, this wasn't your plan. To get stuck with me."

"Mattie, that's not how I see it," he stopped and motioned for a bench. "Let's sit," he suggested.

"Okay," Mattie walked over to the bench and sat down. "You're so busy, and I don't want to be in the way."

Harm sat down and took her hand in his. "Mattie. When you went back to live with your father I felt a huge loss. I knew it was the right thing, but still, there was a huge void in my life. I'm sorry about your accident, and I'm sorry your father couldn't stay sober, but I'm also happy that you're back in my life. You're like a daughter to me, and that won't change, even if you decide to go back to live with your father."

"I don't know if I want to go back," she admitted.

"And that's your choice," he smiled. "Mac and I will be happy to have you with us, for as long as you want. We're a family."

"Thank you, so much," Mattie smiled. "Mac is great. It's like having a mom again, or at least a super cool aunt," she chuckled. "It feels safe to be here with the two of you. Like I have someone who'll never let me down or abandon me."

"We never will," he promised.

Later that day

Harm finished the lasagna and put it in the oven. He sat down on a barstool and reached for the book he was reading. Today had been a great day. After spending time with Mattie, all three of them took a drive and fund a nice beach where they could bath. Mattie had met some girls' her age and gone to get ice cream with them while Mac and he relaxed in the sun. It had been a wonderful family day, something he could get used to.

"Almost dinnertime?" Mac wondered as she walked into the kitchen.

He looked up from his book. "Yeah, in a little while."

She walked over and sat down beside him. "Today was a great day."

"I agree," he put his book away. "You in a bikini…" he wiggled his eyebrows.

She rolled her eyes. "Men."

"You like us," he moved his arms around her.

"I like you," she smiled as she leaned in and kissed him, meaning for a short kiss, but as usual neither of them wanted it to end.

"Sorry," Mattie turned to leave.

Harm and Mac broke apart. "No, stay," Mac hurried to say.

"Dinner is almost ready," Harm started to stand. "I'll just set the table."

"Okay," Mattie hesitated. "I talked with Jenn. She's looking forward to coming here."

"Is she looking forward to experiencing London?" Mac assumed.

"Yeah, she really is," Mattie slumped down on a chair.

"We have a surprise," Mac looked smilingly at Harm.

Harm nodded. "I'll take off early on Friday, Mac booked us a hotel in Colchester to stay the weekend."

"It has a great history," Mac added.

"That sounds cool," Mattie smiled. "Thanks."

"It'll be great to see more of what England has to offer," Harm took the lasagna out of the oven.

Wednesday, July 6th

Mac stretched lazily. She could sleep longer, but somehow, she was wide awake. Harm's alarm had woken her up and usually, she would sleep an hour longer before getting the day started, but now she was ready for a run. They had gone to bed early last night, leaving Mattie and Jennifer to watch a movie. They had made love then fallen asleep wrapped together and woken up the same way. It was the best way to fall asleep and to wake up. She couldn't picture herself ever getting tired of being with him. She got out of bed and found her running gear. Harm walked into the bedroom clad in a towel.

"You're up?" he kissed her softly as she walked past him on the way to the bathroom.

"Feeling ready for a run," she slipped into the bathroom to relieve herself.

"I didn't exercise you enough last night," he called after her and heard her laughing as she closed the door. The truth was that it had been great going to bed early, making love and falling asleep together. He loved married life.

He dropped his towel as she was walking back into the bedroom. "Oh, Captain."

He slipped his boxers on. "Sorry, no time," he flashed her a sexy grin.

She walked over and kissed him softly. "I love you."

"I love you more," he kissed her again. "What's your plan for today?"

"Take Mattie to her physio session. I told her she could skip her group therapy session since Jenn is here, so we'll probably do some shopping and lunch. Hey, we could come by and take you to lunch?" she suggested.

"1300?" he suggested.

"Sounds like we have a date," she kissed him again. "Have a nice day."

"You too," he kissed her once more before reluctantly letting her go. "I better get ready."

Later

Mac found Jennifer busy in the kitchen after her shower. Mattie was thrilled to have her old roommate around again, and Mac could see that Jennifer too was happy to be there.

"Good morning, ma'am," Jennifer motioned for the table. "I made scrambled eggs and toast. There's the newspaper."

"Will, you ever stop calling me ma'am?" Mac reached for the paper and sat down.

"Old habits die hard," Jenn chuckled. "It's so nice being here. It's a great house."

"Yes, being married to the highest-ranking JAG officer in Europe has its advantages," Mac joked. "We're really happy with the house. Not that the apartment he got before he was married was bad, actually it was pretty spacious, but a house is better for us."

Jennifer sat down. "You seem to be adjusting well to civilian life?"

Mac hesitated. "Yeah, I guess I am. It's strange how plans change. I was so determined to go to San Diego and continue on my career path, wherever that would have taken me. And now," she smiled I'm here."

"But aren't you afraid you'll regret it?" Jennifer was curious. "I mean, you probably would have been a full Colonel by the time the Marine Corps promotion board had made their decisions. Maybe a General someday…"

"Yeah, and all of that would have been a huge honor," she shrugged. "But I wouldn't have had Harm and Mattie."

"If the coin landed differently, you'd all be in San Diego," Jennifer reminded her.

Mac smiled. "Yeah, but I'd be stressing with work. The hours would be long," she hesitated. "Not a lot of people know this, but I have a condition that will make it really hard for me to have a baby. Endometriosis. I was diagnosed a little over a year ago."

"I'm so sorry," Jennifer was sincerely sad for her friend.

"Thanks," Mac hesitated. "It has always been my dream to have a family. Being in a stressful command probably wouldn't have made it any easier. The way I see it, that coin landed just right. We might not have our baby, but this way it feels like we stand a better chance than if Harm's and my roles had been reversed."

"I get that," Jennifer smiled. "I hope it happens for the two of you because you're great together and I can't think of anyone being better parent's."

"Thank you, Jennifer. That means a lot," Mac looked up as Mattie padded into the kitchen rubbing her eyes.

"Okay, you military people really have to learn to chill," she slumped down on a chair. "It's not even eight thirty yet, and it's summer. You're on vacation," she reminded Jenn. "And you're retired, or whatever you call it," she reminded Mac.

"Reserves," Mac smiled. "And it's 08.34 and sixteen seconds."

"How do you do that?" Mattie and Jennifer both wondered.

Mac smiled cleverly. "Time for breakfast. It's a lovely day out there," she said in a British accent.

Friday, July 8th

They had been out for a fantastic seafood dinner and were walking around in a park they found on the way back to the hotel. Harm had left work around lunchtime and gone home and pack. They'd had lunch then gotten into the car and headed for their new destination. Harm and Mac had made a pact to explore England as much as possible while they were stationed there, and this seemed like a good start.

Jennifer and Mattie had gotten a little ahead of them and found a bench to sit on while waiting for them to catch up. Mattie was the true image of a tourist, walking around with her camera snapping pictures of everything. Harm was in no hurry, he was just happy to be having the weekend off and strolling around holding Mac's hand was perfect. He had never been the hand holding type, but with her, it just seemed like something was missing if he didn't have a hand touching her.

Mac stopped and looked at the waterfall, taking in the surroundings. It was a warm July night and a lot of people were spending it outside.

"It's a beautiful place, Harm. I'm glad we did this," she moved her hand out of his and around his waist.

He pulled her closer. "I'm going to be better at taking time off, doing things like this."

"Is that a personal goal?" she teased.

"It's a promise," he put his other arm around her and pulled her closer, his nose almost touching hers. "It's time I experience other aspects of life."

"It sounds like a good plan," she agreed.

He leaned in and kissed her softly. "I love you, Sarah."

"I love you too, Harm," she kissed him again.

Unknown to them Mattie had snapped a perfect picture of them, that would later be put up on the wall in the living room.