I would like to thank everyone for their reviews and alerts. You kind people mean a lot to me and I love to hear from you, even more so when you're nice. I hope you enjoy this chapter :)

Just a reminder that if you bought my book 'Becky's Last Chance' from Blushing Books, I'd love it if you could leave me a review. I am working on a sequel to that story and there will be another book not related to the first one at all, called 'Times Up' out soonish...so I hope you like that one too. :)

Chapter 30

Peace reigned again in the eclectic Jag household. The dogs were all bathed and dried and looking as pretty as any of them were going to look. They were all in the living room being petted by the fire while the kids all watched a movie.

Harm looked around with a mischievous smile when he realised the dogs were all busy. And they were all busy downstairs. He may have lost the battle to get the dogs outside again, but at least with a toddler gate installed at the bottom of the stairs he'd managed to get the family to agree to keeping them all away from the bedrooms. His bedroom in particular was off limits. He chuckled at the memory of the afternoon, before he'd been interrupted by Bullwinkle, Mac's new personal body guard. Luckily for him the call of the warmth in front of the fire had superseded the old dog's need to protect Mac from the man that fed and housed him...well one of the people that fed and housed him...or at least told the kids to feed him when they forgot.

JAGJAGJAGJAGJAGJAG

Mac was stacking the last of the dishes in the dishwasher when she felt Harm's warm breath on the back of her neck.

"We have unfinished business." he said.

"Ah...no, no we don't." Mac said with a giggle.

"Oh yes we do...and your friend is otherwise engaged."

"I have to do...something."

"Oh?" Harm asked with a grin.

"Yes..."

"What?"

"Uh...laundry."

"Nope. I did it already."

"The floor?"

"Done this afternoon when I helped the kids clean up the mess." Harm didn't wait for anymore excuses he tugged Mac's hand and towed her towards the stairs. She couldn't help but let out a squeal when Harm jumped over the gate and picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder before jogging up the stairs...

JAGJAGJAGJAGJAGJAG

"Did that just happen?" Mattie asked with a horror filled look.

"Uhhuh...Mommy and Daddy are making out." Chloe said in a cutesy voice to Daisy who looked suitably impressed.

"Eww..." Josh said turning up the TV to try and block the image from his brain.

"So gross."Mattie said. Chloe tipped her head on the side in thought...

"You know... I wonder if they'll get married." she said. Mattie shrugged.

"Maybe."

"They kind of are already." Josh added.

"Kind of and are is not the same at all." Chloe mused. "Wouldn't it be fun to have a wedding...like a real wedding..."

"As opposed to a fake wedding." Mattie quipped.

"You know what I mean."

"Yes I do... and it'd be great but we can't make them."

"I don't see what all the fuss is about with a piece of paper."Josh said once again turning up the television. Chloe rolled her eyes.

"Harm probably thinks the same thing but it IS important. He has to be the one to ask though."

"That's right...so there isn't much we can do about whether they do or whether they don't."Mattie said.

"We could give him a push...Harm I mean...to ask her."

"Nope...stayin out of it Chlo." Josh said. This has trouble written all over it. Chloe looked dramatically offended.

"How can we get in trouble by HELPING Harm to see what he wants...what they both want...?" Chloe said...

"Your ideas are always trouble." Mattie said... "But a wedding between Harm and Mac...has merit...I'm in." Josh turned up the TV to block them out...didn't help they just talked louder.

JAGJAGJAGJAGJAGJAG

Mac yelped as Harm darted through their bedroom door with her dangled over his shoulder.

"Put me down!" she giggled.

"Ok." he said with a shrug, that made her feel like she was going to slip to the took a seat on the edge of the bed and tossed her over his knee.

"No Harm..." she said pummelling his legs with her fists and kicked her legs about wildly. "Let me up..." Harm brought his hand down with a light smack on the seat of Mac's jeans.

"Sorry I can't hear you?" he said clapping his hand off her bottom.

"What are you doing Flyboy? Are you crazy?" She was seriously considering taking a leaf from Bullwinkle's book and taking a big chunk out of his leg...but he had the upper hand at the moment. Literally.

"Nope...just getting a little retribution for this afternoon when I do believe you aided and abetted a criminal of the heavily set ugly mutt persuasion and then lied about it..." he said again tapping on her backside, although a little harder.

"I was kidding...I was just kidding." she said through her fit of the giggles.

"That mutt was gonna eat me!" he said with a resounding whack.

"Hey! That one hurt!" Mac said with a wince.

"Dogs downstairs."

"Ok. ok."

Harm let her up and then ducked when she swung a playful punch in his direction. He caught her as she tumbled onto his chest and he held her tight as their lips met in a passionate kiss.

XXX

"Ok so how do we go about making them see they should get married?" Josh asked finally realising the girls weren't going to allow him to stay out of it.

"Hmmm." Chloe said. "I can't think of everything. You two have to bring something to the table."

"What did you bring to the table huh?"

"The IDEA..." Chloe said incredulously. "Really Josh...I can't believe you'd even ask..." she scoffed.

"Guilt." Mattie said ignoring the other two. "Harm has a need..."

"Gross Matt." Josh said, his face screwed up with distaste.

"Yuk Josh...I not that kind of need. I mean a need to be a really good father."

"Go on..." Chloe said ...this idea had merit...maybe. Josh was listening intently...it was something more than nothing after all.

"Harm wants to be the perfect Dad." she said. The others nodded in agreement. "Sooo...if we make him think that we're SUFFERING or we NEED them to be married parents..."

JAGJAGJAGJAGJAGJAG

Both now showered and dressing in pyjamas, Mac turned to Harm. "Don't you think that..." she said pointing to the place on the bed where Harm had taken her over his knee. "That THAT is gonna happen again...I'm NOT one of the kids."

"I think I KNOW that." Harm wiggled his eyebrows. She slapped his arm playfully.

"I mean it."

"I was playing."

"I know and playing's fine as long as that is all it is."

"You loved it." Mac blushed.

"I'm trying to be serious here Harm."

"So am I...YOU LOVED IT." Mac's face was even redder.

"Stop..." Harm just kept nodding annoyingly, thoroughly enjoying his girlfriends discomfort.

"Finally giving up and opting tom change the subject, Mac headed for the door.

"Let's go join the kids." she said.

"Yep good idea." Harm agreed. But as Mac reached for the door handle his grinned.

"Better keep that dog downstairs." he said narrowed her eyes.

"If I feel like it I will." she said.

"If you wanna risk it." Harm said a twinkle in his eye.

"Ugggh." Mac grunted before walking through the door and shutting it behind her before Harm had a chance to get out of the room.

Staring at the shut door Harm smiled.

"She loved it." he said out loud to no one.

JAGJAGJAGJAGJAGJAGJAG

"That's brilliant." Chloe said. She was impressed.

"You need to keep one thing in mind though Chlo." Josh said.

"What?"

"Subtlety."

"Are you saying that I can't be subtle?"

"No...what I'm saying is that you're a drama queen." he said throwing a pillow at her head. Rocky raised his head in a bored fashioned and barked. These kids were nice but they were definitely disturbing his quiet evening.

TBC