"Lieutenant Harriet Sims reporting for duty, ma'am."
Colonel Sarah MacKenzie looked up from her desk to see her visitor standing at the door. "Harriet!"
She quickly rose from her desk and enveloped her friend in a warm hug. "What are you doing here?"
"Helping you out for a few days," Harriet explained. "The general thought you might need someone on 'special duty' to get the San Diego office up and running."
"Well, he couldn't have sent anyone better for the job," Mac said approvingly. "How are you? How's Bud? How are the kids?"
"Oh, Bud's good, and so are the kids. How are you, ma'am?"
"I'm...good."
Her slight hesitation didn't go unnoticed.
"Are you?"
Mac turned away, a little embarrassed by her emotional state. "Harriet, I'm fine."
"Are you settled into your apartment out here?"
Mac nodded. "Yeah, it's a nice place."
"Did all of your boxes arrive from Georgetown? Do you need any more furniture? Is the weather warm enough for you? Are you eating okay?"
"What is this?" Mac laughed. "An interrogation?"
"I'm sorry, ma'am," Harriet said a little sheepishly. "It's just...well, I got a phone call from London before I came."
Mac's eyes narrowed. "He put you up to this?"
"His exact words were 'make sure she's settled in okay and make sure she's not eating too much of that burger crap.'"
Mac rolled her eyes in irritation, but the heavy sigh as she sank back into her desk chair told a different story.
"You miss him so much it hurts?" Harriet asked softly.
"Is it that obvious?" Mac looked away and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
Harriet let out a soft gasp. "Is that it?" She took a hold of Mac's left hand. "Ohhh, it's beautiful."
Mac's heart warmed instantly as she thought about her fiancé, and she twisted the ring around her finger, making the diamond shimmer in the sunlight.
"It's hard, Harriet," she admitted. "I'm here, and Harm's in London. It's five thousand four hundred..."
"And eighty-nine miles away," Harriet finished with a sympathetic smile. "Well, like I said before, ma'am, it helps if you're sure."
"I am." There was no hesitation in Mac's voice now. "I'm sure. He's always been the one."