Special thanks to Minimindbender for describing the dress. If you're on the facebook group, pictures of the dress are in the comments.

Chapter 21

"Marry me." It was an absurd suggestion and maybe a brief moment of absolute insanity. Or maybe it was her greatest desire that wouldn't come to fruition if Mac didn't have a say on her own destiny.

The determination in her eye couldn't be ignored even as Harm choked a little on the bite of pizza he was chewing. He forced it down with a pull from his beer and eventually recovered from a coughing spell. "I'm sorry…What?"

"Marry me." The way she asked sounded far too diplomatic like Mac was explaining the finer points of a piece of evidence she'd recently unearthed. She began to pace again with purpose; it reminded him of long nights in Washington when they worked together trying to crack a case. "I mean it, Harm. Marry me."

"Mac-"

"Here me out." She waved off an argument and stood with her arms folded across her chest. "If we're married I can't prosecute you and I can't be used as a witness either."

"That's not reason enough to marry someone, Mac." He cringed at how that sounded and when Mac looked at him with a sad expression, Harm realized the mistake in his words.

"You said that you loved me."

"I do, but-"

"But you can't marry me? You can't commit even if it means saving you?"

Harm frowned. This wasn't how he expected a proposal between them would go. While it was true that nothing worked conveniently between them, wasn't it the man that should do the asking? "I don't want to marry you to keep me out of trouble."

"It's more than that…You know it's more than that." Clearly he was upset and it scared Mac a little to think that the push and pull of the last ten plus years could mean nothing. "Please talk to me."

There was resentment and anger; lots of anger at himself for not taking the initiative years ago. "I dunno, Mac… Frankly I always thought I'd be the one doing the asking. You don't usually do things like this…so-"

"Impulsive?" She finished for him. Harm was right, she was calculating and careful because life had taught her to be. Risks were rarely taken unless Mac was sure the outcome would be in her favor. Playing the waiting game was no longer a viable option. "I guess I can also make knee jerk decisions.

"Obviously." Christ was his heart racing and for once it wasn't out of fear. Harm had known for years that he wasn't the marrying type but for one woman - the one standing in front of him now. "If I say yes your career might take it hit. The powers that be will see this insubordination of sorts."

"We're not in the same command and haven't been for over two years. Even if we got together back in DC, we were the same rank. There was nothing wrong with it."

There she went, being all practical and reasonable. For some reason, I made Harm feel like the past was all his fault. She pulled his arms open and stepped into his embrace. Harm's eyes held an intensity she'd never seen before, the first sign of his control cracking under pressure. "I love you…I want a future with you. So, fuck my career."

"I love you too but-

"No…No buts…I've been ready to die for you, to risk jail time for you. Hell, I gave up a six figure salary for you...It's always been you and it'll always be you." It was the honest truth and the reason why all paths always led her back to him. Mac couldn't deny fate any longer and she knew that he couldn't either. "If you believe in fate you know I'm right."

"Give me a minute." He hopped off the stool and nearly toppled Mac over as he hurried to his office. There was a small safe in the closet where Harm kept cash, important documents and a small, cinched blue velvet bag. He held it up between two fingers, pinching the precious ring inside that Harm then dropped into the palm of his hand - white gold with an elegant, three stone setting.

He had the ring for five years, bought it in California while he covalesed from his crash into the Atlantic. He thought he knew what he wanted, surviving such a massive storm at sea had forced Harm to reevaluate several points of his life and his relationship with Mac was now front and center.

Unfortunately, she was gone when he returned to JAG and though he followed her to the LHA, the timing was not right. It seemed the timing was never right between them or maybe he just never had the guts to stop their little dance.

He headed back to the kitchen where Mac sat on a stool with the most pitiful deer-in-the-headlights look. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah but, if we're gonna get married, you deserve a ring."

"I don't-" Her eyes dropped to the small circle in the palm of his hand. Three diamonds, one large and two small and a band that braided downwards past a row of even smaller diamonds. The ring was elegant, not gaudy like the oversized rock Mic once gave her. "Whose is that?"

"Yours." His smile widened when she looked up at him with a cute and confused expression. "I've had it for years - since Mic left. I went to La Jolla to spend a few days with my parents after the crash. Mom needed a bracelet cleaned." Trisy was chatting with the jeweler, trying on a few pieces as women loved to do. Out of boredom Harm wandered the store until the ring caught his eye. "The moment I saw it, I knew I had to buy it. I knew it belonged to you."

He placed it in the palm of her hand and watched with delight when Mac held it up between her thumb and index finger. The tiny diamonds glimmered in the light and it made Mac catch her breath when she realized he'd been waiting to propose for over five years. "It's so beautiful."

"I threw it away once… when you and Webb…I was so pissed." He was jealous, upset and so angry that tossing the ring just made sense. Harm didn't want to see it in his safe anymore, just the very presence of the damned thing in his closet conjured up a wave of pity and hate that was eating him alive. So he tossed the ring in the trash and dreamt of it being sliced to pieces like his heart had been.

Instead, he found the velvet box it came in laying in a puddle near his building's trash bin. "The box was run over, caked in mud but the ring was perfectly fine….I took that as some sort of sign."

"I'm surprised no one took it."

So was he. "That has to mean something, right?"

"Yeah, it does but I don't need it. I don't need a ring." She placed it back in the palm of his hand and wrapped his fingers over the small circle.

"Sarah." The use of her given name made Mac halt all arguments as did the pleading expression on his face. "I'll marry you and not because of what happened. I'll marry you because I've loved you for a while and never knew how to tell you. But, I need you to take the ring."

The moment was flawed, just like they were. It wasn't the perfect, on one knee proposal most girls dreamt of and despite it seeming so soon, in reality, this had been years in the making. "You haven't said 'yes.'"

"Yes, I'll marry you." As Harm slid it on her finger and an incredible feeling of peace fell over him.

The dancing flames from the fireplace were the only light in an otherwise dark apartment. The orange hues shone differently against the diamonds as Mac held her hand up to admire her ring. The man had impeccable taste and she knew the nearly perfect diamond cut must have set him back a considerable amount.

"Looks good on you." They lay on the sofa, an oversized USN throw covering their nakedness. Harm might have been exhausted from his trip to Naples but his vigor was renewed when they kissed after he accepted her proposal.

The bedroom felt miles away and when Mac pushed him onto the couch and straddled his legs, it was obvious she needed him too. "You spent a lot and don't try to play it off. I may not be a diamond expert but the CIA taught me a few things." She was surprised how well she remembered what to look for from cuts to clarity, carat and color.

"You're worth it." He had the money to cover the expense and probably would have purchased something more extravagant had he not known better. "Hell, I would have bought you the Hope diamond if you asked."

"Mmm." She lowered her hand to his chest and admired how it looked when Harm took her hand in his. "I'm a little shocked by this."

"That makes two of us." He was single just two weeks ago and in the last fifteen days acquired a girlfriend and a fiance. Not that the timing mattered, in reality they were probably past the point of dating and waiting. "What's wrong?"

Her frown was cause for concern as her happiness wafted away. An engagement was simple: someone asked and the other accepted but the wedding portion felt daunting. Mac thought about the wedding planning with Mic and the months upon months of choosing the dress, the band, the food, the cake.

It felt endless and the notion of having a dream wedding quickly became a nightmare she pawned off on Mic. "I was wondering how we do this, the wedding thing. We can't exactly enjoy a lengthy engagement."

Harm wasn't phased, not one bit. He calmly slipped out from under her and casually walked across the room not caring that he was stark naked. A cell phone was pulled out of the pocket of his slacks and though it was a little late for house calls, he called in a favor.

Captain Peter Mankelow stood in front of Harm helping his American counterpart look polished for the upcoming nuptials. Three days was all it took to find a small chapel at a five star hotel in London. It had a small oratory which fit no more than eight patrons and was impeccably decorated with white roses and baby's breaths.

"I keep owing you, don't I?" Harm said as he stared at Pete's reflection in the mirror. He was lucky to have a friend in London, especially one who was well connected. It was Pete who

helped procure a marriage certificate in short order as well as the vicar to carry out the actual wedding.

Pete shrugged, "It's a wedding not some national security related favor you Yanks love to ask for. Plus I'm kind of honored to be your best man. I think you're a little insane but with a looker like the Colonel, I get it."

"I'm actually nervous." He fiddled with his tie a final time and then fastened the buttons of his all black suit. Both Harm and Mac rejected military formality or uniforms, opting for something classy but simple during their small ceremony.

"Hah. At least you're not hung over and throwing up. I was two hours late and Vivian wanted to kill me, so she nearly called it off…You, my friend look smitten."

"I am. This was a long time coming, far too long." And it almost didn't happen. Mac showing up to London was pure coincidence which led to this incredible chapter in his life. "I could have lost her. I almost did a few times. I'm a lucky son-of-a-bitch."

A knock on the door and it was time, a woman's voice dictated that the bride was ready. It made Harm feel like the first time launching off a carrier - excited and terrified all at once. He wasn't the marrying kind, no matter what he'd told friends or clients or ex's. Harmon Rabb Jr, wasn't designed to be contained by the vows of marriage.

Yet he bought her a ring - he reminded himself. No other woman in his life mattered enough for the time and care and expense that an engagement ring entailed. Still, he walked into the tiny chapel on autopilot with Pete chattering away some unimportant story.

Run. He heard the voice, it was his own internal monologue, the fight or flight reflex that was pushing him to bolt out the door. Harm's hand shook and a fine bead of sweat fell from his brow. He scouted the two points of egress and just when his feet made to take the door to the right, a champagne colored vision stopped him.

There'd been little time to shop and it had been pure luck which led Mac to a new boutique just a few blocks from Harm's apartment. The dress was made of a soft champagne fabric, floor length, with an overlay of lace that ended in a short train. It was sleeveless, with narrow shoulder straps leading to the deep V neckline of the bodice, accenting the beauty of her breasts without being the least immodest. Her favorite feature was the open back and the cross-cross of laces that allowed the dress to hug her every curve, from her breasts to the swell of her hips.

It was as far away from the dress she would have worn to marry Mic. At his suggestion that one was chosen with the most modesty in mind as a way not to offend the congregation and his very Catholic mother.

What she loved the most and would remember to her dying day was the expression on Harm's face. She'd been watching him through a crack at the door wondering if he had the guts to stick the landing. The apprehension was real and though she might have wavered as Pete's wife helped her dress, her reflection in the mirror ceased Mac's insecurity.

Apparently, it had the same effects on her fiance who was holding his breath and staring like it was the first time he'd ever seen her. There was a crack on his veneer, a smile that was unlike anything she'd ever seen.

The walk to his side was blessedly short and she was taken back by how handsome he looked in his suit. Her hand slipped into his and despite himself, Harm leaned in and kissed her much to the vicar's chagrin. "Save that for later, Captain."

"Look at her, I couldn't help myself." He mentally chastised himself for ever wanting to run.

Mac grinned, "Looking pretty good yourself, sailor." Her hands smoothed over the lapels of Harm's jacket and slid into his palms as the ceremony began. "Let's get married."