AN:My apologies to those who reviewed part 1, I inadvertently deleted the reviews before I could reply to them. Please know I appreciate your comments.
Part 2
Further kissing and expressions of love were interrupted by Sergei's return home.
"Good morning, Sergei, how was the coffee?" Mac asked.
"Coffee was good, thank you. Good morning to you both," he greeted.
"So, who's the lucky woman, I mean coffee companion then, little brother?" Harm asked.
Sergei just smiled and shook his head.
Harm noticed the time on the mantel clock and sat up.
"God, I'm gonna be late. The General's not going to be impressed," he said.
"Steady brother, you're not expected in today," Sergei replied.
"Yes, I am," he corrected.
"No, the General has given you the day off in light of the change in circumstances," Sergei said looking at Mac.
"And what circumstances would those be?" asked Harm.
"Well, given your visitor last night, I rang the General this morning and …" he began.
"And you did what?" Harm was concerned.
"And I told him that the tests results were still outstanding and I would sincerely appreciate it if he could spare you for one more day so you could support me through the tough day ahead." He smiled and headed for the bathroom.
"Thanks Sergei," Harm called after him. "And what about you?" he asked Mac.
"I'm off today myself," she said. "The General said yesterday that in light of my difficult week I could take the day and rest up."
"Good on the General," Harm said kissing her again.
They were interrupted again by a knock on the door.
"It's open," called Harm. Jen entered and was pleased to see the Colonel and Commander being so friendly.
"Good morning, sir, madam," she smiled.
"Good morning, Jennifer. How are you this morning?" Mac asked.
"Doing better, ma'am, I just came to ask if there was anything you wanted me to do for you today – given that you are not going in," she offered.
"No, Jen, I don't think so but if I think of something I'll give you a call, okay?" Mac replied.
"Okay, ma'am, sir, anything I can help you with?" she questioned.
"No, thank you, Petty Officer, I think you've done enough helping," he said, still not happy with her error when speaking to Mac yesterday.
"Sir, I've apologised, I don't know what else I can say. How do I make this better?" she asked sincerely.
Harm said nothing, so Mac replied. "Look, Jen, it will be okay. You'll just need to give Harm some time, alright? Deep down he knows you meant well, I'm sure there's no permanent damage from this situation."
"Thank you for saying so, ma'am, but excuse me if I don't seemed convinced," she said, her eyes darkening.
Sergei came back into the room. "Hi Jennifer," he said smiling.
"Hi Sergei." He could tell she was upset.
"Jennifer, what's wrong?" he questioned, moving towards her.
"Nothing - I've got to go." She ran out of the room but not before they saw the tears in her eyes.
"What did you say to her?" Sergei snapped. He didn't wait for an answer and took off after her.
"Harm, Jennifer meant well. She thought she was acting in my best interest. She…" Mac began.
"She interfered again and left you thinking I was sick. She has to learn…" he interjected.
"She has to learn to trust the people who care about her and we are that, like it or not," she interrupted.
"But she…" he broke in.
"But she has a vested interest in this situation. She cares about us. We are the closest thing she has to family. She has been upset about this whole Sergei thing and …" Mac tried to explain.
"And what?" he prompted.
"Harm, you might be an excellent investigator but sometimes you are just so thick," Mac said in frustration, tapping his head.
"What?" he questioned.
"You can find truth and justice across the globe but you can't see the obvious in your own home," she sighed.
"Mac, all I know is that Jennifer interferes frequently in my affairs and it needs to stop," he sighed, having had enough of the conversation.
"That's all you know?" she questioned.
"Yes," he nodded.
"Then I'm right, you are thick," she replied, sitting up on the sofa and facing him. "Let me paint the picture for you, Harm. Your brother has visited here three times in the last eight months. He spends a lot of time at your apartment, even when you are not here. He has a detailed knowledge of the trivial things that have occurred in your life, down to you getting that flat tyre out on Madison. Jennifer has been feeling the effects of Mattie's absence, feeling alone and disconnected. She has had a few spells of happiness that dissipate after a few days when visitors are gone. This whole episode with Sergei has thrown her. What does that tell you?"
"I don't know Mac. What does it tell me?" he sighed.
"Who do you think Sergei had coffee with?" she questioned.
"I don't know Mac," said Harm tired of the Q and A.
She raised her eyebrows and the penny dropped.
"You mean …" he began.
"Sergei and Jennifer, exactly," Mac smiled.
"I think you're wrong, Mac. I mean there have been no signs," he protested.
"Except for the coffee meetings, close personal contact, time spent together and the fact that he went running out after her just now," she listed.
"Sergei and Jennifer, are you sure?" he asked.
"Definitely," she grinned.
"How can you be so sure?" he continued.
"They told me – not in as many words but they told me."
By the end of the day the results were back and to Harm's dismay he was not a match for his brother. Sergei seemed to take the news in his stride but Harm felt a deep sense of guilt that he could not help him. It was Harm who needed support that night.
"You knew there was a chance things would go this way," said Mac as they entered her apartment.
"Knowing it and accepting it are two different things. In my heart I truly believed I would be a match and now I have let him down," Harm sat on the sofa with a sigh.
"Hey, Harm, you haven't let Sergei down, he doesn't blame you. It just means they have to access the donor bank, see if anyone's compatible," Mac sat beside him and draped an arm across his shoulder.
"But that could take months, or longer. Time Sergei might not have and if I…" he began.
"And if you what? If you had been born with brown eyes and blonde hair you'd have been a match or if you were 5"3 or female or had you been a fireman. Harm you can't "if" this situation. What we need to do is figure out a plan from here." She kissed his cheek gently before tousling his hair. He smiled sadly.
Mac's plan of action was to call in the one person she knew who could inspire, organise and mobilise large groups of military personnel in the name of charity and goodwill. She picked up the phone and called Harriet. After a short conversation where only the basic details were discussed, Mac hung up.
"Harriet will be here tomorrow at 0900 and we will come up with some strategies, some way of helping Sergei's cause, okay Harm?" Mac reported.
There was no response. "Harm?" she said again moving back to the sofa.
There was her sailor, curled up and sleeping peacefully. Carefully, she tucked a pillow under his head and covered him in her favourite purple blanket. Mac kissed his forehead and turned out the light. She grabbed her briefcase and although it was Friday night decided to do some reading, telling herself it would free her weekend for more important things, like a re-enactment of the morning's events.
When Mac awoke at 0630 she was surprised to find Harm asleep in the bed with her. He had woken after midnight, confused momentarily as to where he was. He had lay on the sofa for a while wondering if he should stay or go home and decided to go. He had folded the blanket and straightened the cushions before going into Mac's bedroom to see if she was still awake. The bedside lamp was still on and an opened book was still in her hands but Mac was asleep. He removed the book, quietly placing it in the open briefcase which was on the bed. He closed the case and put it under the bed. He then adjusted her blankets and turned off the lamp. Harm walked to the door and turned around for one last look before he left. The streetlight outside lit the room enough for Harm to see Mac roll over and reposition herself. She had a slight smile on her face and Harm thought again that she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. Deciding he would be an idiot to leave such a beautiful woman alone, he kicked off his shoes, took off his shirt and jeans and climbed under the covers. At first he was hesitant but as soon as reached out to stroke her hair, Mac rolled herself into him and muttered his name. Harm knew he had done the right thing.
Still, it came as a surprise, a nice one at that, to Mac that she was sharing her bed. Her first instinct that morning was to get up and go for a run, to get a clear head before her meeting with Harriet but she looked up at Harm's sleeping face and decided she'd rather spend the time with him. At first, she was content to let him wake in his own good time but as the minutes ticked passed Mac found herself urging him to wake. A couple of times he stirred but didn't wake. Gently she blew into his face hoping it would do the trick, it didn't. Then she eased the blankets off him, hoping the cool air would wake him, it didn't. So, she quietly called his name but the result was the same. She lay beside him and contemplated her next move; slowly she rolled over to face him. She eased her cool hands under the blanket and beneath his undershirt.
Harm, who had been awake the whole time, found it incredibly difficult to stay still. He wanted to see just how far Mac would go to wake him. He lay there and tried to think of military regulations, dress codes and other mundane topics that would take his mind off Mac's actions. When her latest effort failed Mac realised that more drastic measures would need to be taken.
She ran her hands back down his chest and across his abdomen, when she saw Harm bite his bottom lip she realised he was awake. It didn't change her plan but she made sure she watched his reaction. Gently she eased her hands under the elastic of his boxers and down to the tops of his thighs. Then she ran her fingernails across his lower abdomen and watched as he clenched his teeth, still pretending to be asleep. Mac withdrew her hands to the elastic band again and with her right hand, slowly and deliberately, walked her fingers towards, what Harm hoped, would be their final destination. Step, step, step, her fingers got closer with each movement, step, step, step, applying increasing pressure as they went. She then let her left hand do a similar march and before long both hands were so close that, despite feigning sleep, Harm's interest in the situation was obvious. Her fingers moved closer, almost imperceptibly, and then marked time with quicker and harder movements. When she knew she had Harm exactly where she wanted she removed her hands, yawned and sighed, "I think I'll go for a run." It was not the ending Harm had been anticipating.
"Hey," he said grabbing her arm. "Aren't you going to finish what you started?"
"Oh, good morning, Harm. I didn't know you were awake," she said playfully and continued to make her way out of bed.
"Mac, where are you going? You need to …" he began.
"Need to what?" she questioned, turning to face him.
"Finish what you started," he answered.
"I didn't start anything. You must have been dreaming," she smiled.
She jumped out of bed and grabbed her sweats from the chair and headed to the bathroom.
Harm jumped out of bed. "Mac, please," he called longingly after her.
It was all Mac needed to hear. She reappeared from the bathroom, nude, and threw her arms around his neck. She kissed him passionately and then wrapped her legs around his waist.
"You are so lucky I reconsidered, Harmon," she said kissing his neck. "Next time I might not be so understanding."
She knew full well that Harm would never pretend to sleep through her advances again. She loved it when she had the upper hand.
Harriet arrived while Harm was showering and Mac quickly filled her in with all the details relating to Sergei's condition and the results of the blood tests. With her usual good nature, Harriet expressed her sadness at Sergei's illness before getting down to business. The first thing that was needed was to get as many people as possible to register as bone marrow donors. Before Mac could make a suggestion, Harriet had a list of ideas:
- Contacting the National Marrow Donor Program for information and support
- Have a Be the Match registration day at Headquarters for all serving members
- Have another one running at the JAG Family day
- Publicity, press and promotion...
Mac just sat back and smiled, this was why she had called Harriet in the first place.
Within a month, Harriet had assisted in having an additional 675 potential donors registered to the program. For some it was their gracious goodwill which had them volunteering, for others it required a little more persuasion. However it had occurred, nearly every man or woman who dared to venture into Headquarters and who were medically capable registered.
Whilst none were suitable for Sergei, it boosted his spirits that complete strangers were prepared to do this for people in his situation. It was a very humbling experience and one that made him keener to become a US citizen.
Over the month Harm had come to terms with both his brother's leukaemia and the fact he wasn't a match. While he still didn't like it, it was Mac who had sat him down one evening and pointed out, in rather blunt terms, that this time should be all about Sergei, not him, and wasting his time regretting what he couldn't change was shifting his focus from where it should be – on Sergei.
Through it all, Sergei remained stoic and optimistic. His health was still good and he was living life to its fullest – taking the time to do and see all he wanted to, spending his spare time with Jennifer, enjoying brotherly outings with Harm. Leukaemia aside, life was good.
Nearly nine weeks after Sergei arrived in DC, Mac received an urgent phone call at work from the Be a Match Program. Her name had popped up on the register as a possible donor for a patient in DC. After initial discussions, Mac was asked to attend a medical examination and information session, if she was still willing to be a donor.
Slipping her hand into Harm's as they walked into the Riverside Medical Clinic, Mac took a deep breath. It was one thing doing this for family, and she considered Sergei family, but this was for a stranger and it was an odd kind of feeling. Still, she never once thought of changing her mind.
Dr Brett Orson was a man in his early thirties and seemed friendly enough. He ushered them into the consulting room before closing the door and gesturing to the seats in front of them.
"I'm sure you have a lot of questions and perhaps you're a bit hesitant," Dr Orson started and Mac half nodded, half shrugged. "And that's normal. Some people say it would be easier if it was a direct donation to a family member but others say it's harder as there can be a lot of guilt if a full recovery doesn't take place." Mac nodded and squeezed Harm's hand tighter.
Over the next 30 minutes, Dr Orson gave them all the usual information, answered Mac's three questions and Harm's 15 and performed the examination on Mac to determine if she was medically fit to donate – she was.
"So, the next step?" Harm asked as Mac dressed behind the screen.
"Now, I'll send Sarah down the corridor and she'll have blood drawn for further testing and matching purposes," he explained. "Those results will be back in three –to five days and, if she's the most suitable match, we will schedule the procedure."
In the early hours of the following morning, Harm awoke to an empty bed and went in search of Mac. Finding her sitting in her living room with the lamp aglow, he watched as she stared at the small bruise on the crease of her arm where the blood had been drawn. Gently, she ran her finger over the site and wondered what the results would be...it was all that had filled her mind in recent hours.
"Everything okay?" Harm finally asked, padding across to her and sitting beside her on the sofa.
"Yeah, just thinking..." she said wearily.
"About?" he prompted, even though he had a fair idea.
"Oh, you know, this, that, the other," she said looking up at him.
"Coming to any conclusions?" he asked, taking her hand in his before raising the arm in question and tenderly kissing her bruise.
"Yeah," she said with a nod. "I think it's an honour to be able to do this for someone... and if I was in that position, I'd like someone to do this for me..."
Harm kissed her head and pulled her closer. "Me too."
"Just wish someone could do it for Sergei," she said snuggling into him.
"Me too," he repeated before kissing her head. "Me too."
The day Mac received notification that she was the most suitable match for their client; Sergei received notification that they had a bone marrow donor for him. They were both standing in Harm's living room at the time, both on their cell phones and they looked at each other. Was it possible?
Privacy is word which rules lives and due to privacy regulations neither Mac nor Sergei could be given any information which could potentially identify the other. Still, the coincidences seemed to continue when they were both scheduled for their respective procedures at the same facility and on the same day. When Mac questioned that with a nurse, she was told that they performed several procedures a day and she couldn't even be certain that the patient receiving Mac's marrow was even at their facility. In the end, Sergei and Mac decided to believe they were the match but neither completely ruled out another benefactor or recipient. Just the fact they were doing this together meant they would always have a special relationship, one that would transcend what was already unofficially a brother / sister in-law one.
"Do you know how much I love you?" Harm asked, kissing Mac's head as she lay on her gurney ready to go in for her procedure.
"I do," she said, pushing up to kiss him. "But I love hearing you say it."
"I love you, I love you, I love you," he whispered, kissing her quickly between each declaration.
"I love you too," she replied tearfully. "With all my heart."
Then she was wheeled away.
"Jennifer, stop walking," Sergei instructed, holding out his hand to her. "You'll break the floor."
Jennifer stopped and took his hand before moving closer to the bed. "Sorry, I'm just nervous."
"Why?" he said, kissing her hand.
"Why? You are asking why?" she said incredulously and Sergei laughed.
"Why don't you do something to distract you?" he said, pulling her closer.
"Like what?" she replied.
"Kiss me," he said hopefully and Jennifer complied.
All too soon for Sergei's liking, Harm disturbed them when he came in to report on Mac.
"Mac's gone in and...oh, excuse me," he said quickly and Jennifer sprung back from the bed, feeling very much like a teenager who'd just been caught making out by her father.
"It wasn't what it looked like..." she said automatically and Harm laughed.
"I hope it was exactly what it looked like," he said, patting her arm. "I'm sure my brother could use the distraction."
It was Sergei's turn to laugh but Jennifer struggled to hide the flush creeping up her face.
"How's the Colonel?" she countered.
In the weeks after the procedure, Sergei continued to improve and, after some initial pain and discomfort, Mac had no physical issues from her donation. Lying in bed, entwined with Harm, both naked and sweaty, she finally spoke about an issue that had been on her mind for a while.
"Harm..." she started slowly, unsure as to how she would phrase it.
"Yes," he replied with similar intonation.
"Do you think I was Sergei's donor?" she asked, running her hand up and down his chest.
"I do. Why?" he questioned, tilting her face up to see her eyes.
"I don't know," she said. "Just can't fathom the odds of me being a match for my brother-in- law. I mean...I know stranger things have happened but it just seems like ... fate ... destiny ... something, that brought us all together... maybe your dad has been watching over his boys and orchestrated it."
"Maybe," Harm replied, he had had his own thoughts and sleepless nights contemplating Mac being a more suitable donor for his brother than himself but in the end he realised it didn't matter who it was so long as he got the marrow.
Silence fell before Harm spoke once more.
"Mac," he said, stroking her face.
"Yeah," she replied, struggling to keep her eyes opened.
"You referred to Sergei as your brother-in-law," he said, playing with her hair.
"Yeah," she said, loving his caresses.
"Don't we have to be married for him to be your brother-in-law?" Harm asked and Mac nodded.
"Well, I figured we will be one day so it's okay to call him that," she answered, trying to suppress a yawn.
"We will, will we?" he asked, grinning at the mere thought of marrying the woman in his arms.
"Yep," she said with a weary sigh. "And don't pretend you don't know it." Harm kissed her tenderly, he knew it and one day soon he'd formally ask but for right now he was content to smile and be nonchalant about it. "And when it happens he'll officially be my brother-in-law... but before that you'll be Jennifer's brother-in-law..."
"What?" he said, sitting up.
"Sergei's proposing next week, on Jen's birthday," she said forcing herself up and sitting in bed her arms crossed.
"What?" he repeated.
Mac glared at him. "What what?" she said, "He loves her, she loves him, they are great together. She's been devoted to him over this illness and that's what!"
Mac laid down once more, turned away from Harm and pulled the covers high.
"I didn't mean anything by it," he said quietly, rubbing her arm. "Just surprised me, that's all."
"Why?" she countered , rolling over to face him. It was plain to anyone who'd been in the room with them that they young couple were deeply in love. Surely Harm would have picked up on that.
"Because the older brother is meant to marry first, isn't he?" Harm asked, slipping the engagement ring onto Mac's finger. "That is, if you will marry me, Sarah MacKenzie."
Kissing him deeply, Mac muttered a "yes" into his mouth before the night was lost in a haze of heated passion.
In years to come, the family bloodlines would run deep and strong. A new generation of Rabbs would grow up, bonds strong between cousins, and while no one ever knew if it was Mac who saved Sergei or not, the most important thing was that a life was saved through the generosity of another and family folklore would have her saving him, just as it had her saving her husband on numerous occasions too.