Hi, everyone! Only one more chapter left after this one. So this isn't a very long story, but it's been fun to write, and I'm really glad that you're all enjoying it, too. Thanks for reading!

"Commander Walker."

Harm immediately rose to his feet as the gruff, gray-haired captain entered the office. "Captain Jenkins, sir."

"Nice to have you aboard, Commander," the older man said. "Ever since we lost Commander Madison, we've really been crunched for manpower around here. Kevin was a hard worker and a good guy. Everybody will miss him, but we have an F-14 upgrade to get through, and the Navy isn't going to wait for it. Now I understand you know a little something about F-14s, Commander?"

"Just a little," Harm replied with a grin.

"Well, then let me introduce you to your new partner, and he can show you around the place. Bruce!"

A shorter, lanky, brown-haired man, also with commander stripes, entered the room immediately and stood at attention. "Sir?"

"Bruce, this is Kevin's replacement," Captain Jenkins said. "Why don't you show him around and get him started on the latest design?"

"Yes, sir. Nice to meet you," Bruce said, extending his hand. "Bruce Sanderson."

"Matthew Walker," Harm introduced himself.

"It'll be nice to have a partner again," Bruce remarked as they made their way down the hall. "We really miss Kevin…he was a great guy and an even better engineer."

"Did you know him well?" Harm asked.

"Yeah, my wife Julie and I used to double date with them a lot. Kevin and Melissa loved going out to dinner at La Vittoria and then catching a movie. Are you married, Commander?"

"I am."

"Why don't you and your wife join us for a movie some time? In fact, Julie and I were actually thinking of going tonight."

"Oh, I'll, uh…have to check with the wife." Harm laughed a little. "You know how it is."

"I do," Bruce agreed. "We're going to see that new airplane thriller movie, so just let me know if you'd like to come. In the meantime, can I show you the latest upgrade to the F-14 afterburner design?"

~*~o~*~

It wasn't until his lunch hour that Harm had a chance to call Mac.

"Hey," he said when she answered the phone. "How would you like to go to a movie tonight? Commander Bruce Sanderson – he's one of the guys who used to work with Commander Madison – said he and his wife Julie are going to see Above the Clouds tonight."

He could just imagine the smirk on her face over the phone. Of course he would ask her on a date to see a movie about airplanes.

"Sounds great," Mac replied.

His voice lowered to a softer volume. "Maybe you could find out some more info about the show before we go?" he asked. "Maybe you could check the web." He emphasized the last word, hoping that Mac would get the hint.

She did.

"Sure," she said, drawling out the word so Harm would know she understood. "I'll see what the web has to say about it."

"Thanks," Harm said. "I'll see you tonight, okay?"

When Harm had called earlier, Mac wasn't sure she was going to enjoy herself tonight. She knew her partner well enough to catch the subtle message to have Webb run background checks on Bruce and Julie. According to Harm, they had been close to Kevin and Melissa, but there was no evidence that they were involved with the murder.

Bruce seemed friendly enough, and his wife Julie was a very bubbly strawberry blond. Julie screamed at several points during the movie, hanging onto her husband in fright during some of the scarier airplane scenes. Mac wasn't scared, as she realized that she and Harm had actually lived through some of these aerial stunts together, and even in the dark theater, she could see from the look in his eyes that Harm was thinking the same thing.

Mac laughed silently to herself. This is what happens when you marry a fighter pilot, she thought.

Wait, what? No, she wasn't really married to a fighter pilot.

But the idea that she was getting used to being "married" to Harm unnerved her, and it occupied her thoughts even after the movie when Bruce and Julie invited them to go for a drink.

"I'll have a draft beer," Bruce called to the bartender.

"Make that two," Harm added.

"And for the ladies?" the bartender asked.

Mac smiled. "Soda with a twist, please."

"Just water," Julie said. She gave the group a sheepish smile. "I'm two months pregnant."

Bruce put an affectionate arm around his wife, and Harm and Mac congratulated them both.

"Are you?" Julie asked.

Mac blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Are you pregnant? Your drink...it's non-alcoholic. I didn't know if that's because you also have a little one on the way."

"Oh...I...uh..."

"Just wasn't in the mood for alcohol tonight," Harm explained smoothly.

Mac shot him a grateful look.

"So have the two of you ever talked about having a baby?" Julie wanted to know.

Five years from this moment...if neither of us is in a relationship, we'll go halves on a kid.

You and me, have a baby together?

Yeah, with your looks and my brains, he'll be perfect.

And what if she has your looks and my brains?

"Um, no, not really," Mac answered.

"Oh, I understand," Julie said, although from the tone of her voice, Mac wasn't sure that she did. "You want a little time to yourselves first, don't you? The whole newlywed thing."

Harm could almost see Mac's defenses bristling at the current subject of conversation. "So, Julie," he said, flashing her a charming grin. "What was your favorite part of the movie?"

"The part where they tried to land the damaged plane," she replied. "I thought it was so suspenseful...it sent shivers up my spine."

"Well, actually…" Harm began.

"It wasn't very realistic, darling," Bruce finished.

Julie looked at Mac and rolled her eyes. "This is what we get for marrying aerodynamics engineers."

Mac laughed.

"I liked the part where the pilots challenged the crew to a basketball game," Bruce said. "Very realistic. I've never known a pilot who could play basketball."

"Oh, really?" Harm asked, raising an eyebrow.

Almost automatically, Mac laid a hand on Harm's arm as if to hold him back. She knew that look in his eyes, and she felt his muscles tense beneath her touch. Whether it was Matthew Walker or Harmon Rabb rising to a challenge, she had a feeling that the outcome would be about the same.

"Do you play?"

"A little," Bruce replied.

"Well, then we should play some time."

"You're on," Bruce said. "But let me warn you, Walker, I have a mean left hook shot."

"Well, bring it on, Sanderson."

"Hey, it's me," Harm said over the phone to Mac as he was leaving work the next day. "Listen, Sanderson wants to take his beating on the basketball court tonight. Do you want to meet me at the gym?"

Mac laughed. Harm had a height advantage of at least four inches on the other commander, and after Bruce's remark about pilots, she had a feeling that Harm wasn't going to take it easy on him.

"Basketball is the game with the hoop, right?" she asked suddenly.

"Umm...yeah," Harm replied in a slightly puzzled tone.

"Well, I saw something about it on the web today, and it seems that when two basketball players are competing for team captain, usually only one of them gets the position."

Instantly, Harm realized the connection. Somehow Webb had discovered that Kevin had received commendation for his aerodynamics work instead of Bruce.

"But sometimes teammates can still get along," he said carefully.

"And sometimes they can't," Mac pointed out. "Matthew," she said, her voice suddenly very soft. "Be careful."

She could almost see him roll his eyes. "Monica, you know me."

"Yes, I do," Mac said a little smugly. "And that's why—"

Suddenly there was a jolt of fuzzy static over the phone.

"Monica?" Harm said. "Are you there?"

Silence.

"Monica?"

Mac was vaguely aware of Harm calling her name, but she couldn't seem to make her voice respond. She felt a wave of dizziness wash over her, and she realized that there was some sort of noose coiling tightly around her neck, squeezing the breath out of her. The room started to spin wildly in front of her eyes…

And then she blacked out.