Mac was sitting on the porch swing when the headlights from an approaching car caught her attention. With a smile she didn't even try to hide, she got to her feet and walked down the steps into the shadows of the driveway to meet Harm. He was already out of the car by the time she reached him, and he opened his arms and welcomed her into his embrace.

"God, I have missed you," Harm said as he hugged her tightly against his body.

"I've missed you, too," Mac replied, returning his hug. "How was your flight?"

"Uneventful," Harm replied. "Is Ben asleep already?"

"He has been for about an hour," she confirmed. "I promised him a surprise when he woke up tomorrow morning to get him to settle down. It's almost like he knew you were on your way."

Harm chuckled as he leaned back enough to see her face. "Maybe he was just picking up on your own excitement," he teased.

"Maybe," she agreed with a grin of her own. "Although I'm sure his excitement is for an entirely different reason."

Harm nodded his agreement before he leaned down and captured her lips with his. They lingered in the kiss for a long moment, savoring being together again after days of separation. When they slowly eased apart, Harm said, "Four days is entirely too long to go without kissing you, Mac."

"Four days, sixteen hours and thirty-seven minutes, Harm."

Harm laughed softly and said, "Please don't remind me how long it's been since we've made love."

"We could remedy that situation, too," Mac suggested. "It's a beautiful night for a stroll along the beach."

Harm met her hungry gaze and was just about to respond when the front door opened and Mattie walked out onto the porch. "Mac, are you out here?"

"Over here, Mattie," Mac replied.

Mattie walked down the front steps and stopped when she realized that Mac wasn't alone. "Mac?" her voice was slightly suspicious and she was surprised when her question was met with laughter.

"Easy, kiddo," Harm replied for them. "I thought I'd surprise everyone."

Mattie resisted the urge to squeal her delight as she approached the couple. Once she got out of the shadow of the house, there was no mistaking Harm's tall frame, even with his arms still securely wrapped around Mac's waist. "What are you doing in the States?" she asked as she reached his side and he reached out one arm to pull her into a hug.

"I had an interview with the selection committee this afternoon in Washington," Harm replied. "So I figured I'd go ahead and fly the rest of the way across the country to spend at least a few hours with the family before we head back to London."

"Did they offer you the JAG position?" Mattie asked.

"No," Harm replied. "I merely sat in a room for over an hour while they asked various questions. They did say they are planning to take their selection before the board on Monday, though."

"So by Tuesday, you guys will be packing and then you'll actually be back in Washington before I go back to school next month."

"You're getting a little ahead of yourself, Mats," Harm warned her.

"Hey, just because you're too superstitious to say it, doesn't mean I have to be," Mattie teased. "Now, are we going inside, or do you want me to pretend I couldn't find Mac and cover for you guys for a while?"

Harm and Mac both laughed and Mac turned her face into Harm's shoulder as she said, "You've turned her into a monster."

"Me?" he asked with mock indignation. "I don't think so, Mac. Before you were in the picture, she wouldn't even think about saying things like that with me around. You and your 'girl talk' is what has corrupted her."

Mattie joined in their laughter as she opened the car door and grabbed Harm's sea bag. "It's a combination of both of you," she confessed. "It's hard to be around two people who are so demonstrative of their feelings and not be affected."

Mac and Harm exchanged an amused look as they fell in step behind Mattie. "Did you hear that, Mac?" Harm asked. "She called us demonstrative."

"About our feelings, no less," Mac agreed.

"We must be doing something right then," Harm replied as they reached the door to the house.

Mac pulled him to a stop while Mattie went on inside and called for Trish and Frank to join her for a surprise.

"How *did* it go today, Harm?" she asked softly.

"Better than I expected," he replied with a grin. "But I'm not calling the movers yet."

"There will be plenty of time for that next week," Mac replied. Then she leaned up and brushed a kiss against his lips before leading him into the house and into the waiting arms of his mom and Frank.

0630 Local Time
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Burnett House
La Jolla, California

Harm rolled over and reached for Mac, his eyes coming wide open when he found her side of the bed empty. Pushing himself groggily to a seated position, he looked around the room for her, disappointed when his search revealed that not only wasn't she in the room, but that she had clearly been awake for a while since she'd taken the time to straighten up their clothes from where they'd ended up strewn about last night in their eagerness to reconnect with each other on a more intimate level.

With a sigh of disappointment, Harm reached for his boxers and pulled them on. Before he could make it completely out of bed, the door opened and Mac stuck her head in. "Are you decent?"

Harm nodded slightly, and then the door was pushed completely open. Harm smiled as he saw Ben standing there with his hands firmly over his eyes.

"Okay, Ben," Mac said as she moved so he would have a clear view of Harm. "You can look now."

Ben dropped his hands to his sides and opened his eyes, giving off a squeal of delight before breaking into a run. "Daddy!"

Harm picked him up and hugged him. "Surprise, buddy."

"We missed you, daddy," Ben said as he wrapped his arms around Harm's neck.

"I missed you, too," Harm replied. "That's why I'm here now."

"Go 'wimmin'," Ben said.

Harm and Mac both chuckled at that. "Maybe we should have breakfast first," Harm suggested.

"Fly, daddy," Ben countered.

Harm looked at Mac for help, but she merely shook her head. "He's your son, Harm. He wants to either be in the air or on the water."

Ben laughed in delight as Harm tucked him under his arm and stood up. When he placed him securely in Mac's arms, Harm reached up to wipe the pout off of his face. "Let daddy get dressed and then you and I will make breakfast while mommy and Mattie get dressed. After we eat, we'll all go swimming."

Ben literally bounced up and down in Mac's arms in his excitement, causing Mac to tighten her hold on him. "We'll go make sure Mattie is awake for this adventure."

"Wait," Harm said, his hand on Mac's arm causing her to stop mid-stride and turn back to face him. He slowly lowered his lips to hers for a gentle kiss before straightening back up. Seeing the questioning look in her eyes, he merely shrugged and said, "Good morning."

"Good morning," she replied. "Now get a move on, Sailor. Our son wants to go to the beach."

Harm snapped off a salute and Mac couldn't help but laugh as he executed a perfect about-face and headed towards the bathroom - still wearing only his boxers.

0800 Local Time
Monday, July 12, 2010
Force Judge Advocate's Office
London

Harm tried to smother a yawn as Jen walked into his office carrying a cup of coffee. "Good morning, Sir," she said with a bright smile.

"Good morning, Coates," Harm replied with a sheepish grin. "I think I crossed one too many time zones over the weekend and it's catching up with me."

"Understood, Sir," she replied as she sate his coffee and a stack of messages on his desk. "Staff call is set for 0900 this morning, and you have a meeting with Commander Jefferson at 1500 this afternoon."

Harm nodded as he began sorting through the messages, but something caught his attention and he stopped and looked up at Coates. "Is there something you'd like to share, Petty Officer Coates?"

When Jen merely gave him a blank stare, Harm pushed himself to his feet and rounded his desk. "Attention, Petty Officer!"

Jen immediately snapped to attention, eyes straight ahead as Harm got in her face. "I will repeat the question, Petty Officer. Is there something you would like to share?"

"No, Sir," Jen replied, suddenly feeling very unsure of herself. She did a quick mental review, but could come up with nothing that would cause this kind of reaction in Captain Rabb.

When she continued to stare straight ahead, Harm took a step back and leaned against his desk. "Petty Officer Coates, please extend your left hand."

Jen did as she was told, but it wasn't until Harm said, "Are you really going to make me ask again?" that it dawned on her what he was talking about.

Fighting back a sudden smile, Jen replied, "No, Sir. Permission to speak freely, Sir?"

"As you were, Coates." Jen relaxed her stance, her smile shining almost as bright as the diamond on her finger, when Harm added, "Now talk."

"I thought that either the Colonel or Mattie one would have told you already, Sir," she began. "I had no idea that you didn't know. Anyway, after you and I talked last week, I called Tom and we had a long heart to heart conversation. We both agreed that regardless of where we ended up, we wanted to be together. So when we went out Friday night, he made things official."

Harm smiled as he moved back around his desk to sit down. "And both my wife and daughter are aware of this already?"

"Yes, Sir. I called Mattie as soon as Tom and I got back to my place Friday night. Once she finished screaming in the phone, I asked to speak to Colonel MacKenzie and told her as well. Perhaps it merely slipped their mind by the time you arrived in San Diego, Sir?"

"Or perhaps they thought you should be the one to tell me," Harm replied. "And they purposely kept me in the dark."

Jen nodded her agreement. "I suppose that is also a possibility, Sir."

"Have you set a date yet?"

"Well, actually, Sir..."

When her voice trailed off, Harm met her gaze. "You didn't elope, did you?" he asked.

Jen couldn't help but laugh at the look of terror in his eyes. "On the contrary, Sir. We're just waiting to see where the wedding is going to take place...here or in the States."

"I'm familiar with that predicament," Harm replied. "At least the circumstances are a little different in your case."

"Yes, Sir."

"I'm happy for you, Jen. Tom is a good man."

"Thank you, Sir."

Harm looked back down at the stack of messages. "I guess I'd better start returning messages." He had flipped through three of them before he realized that Jen was still standing there. Setting the messages back down, he met her gaze again. "Was there something else?"

Jen dropped her gaze from his for a moment and then pulled herself back to attention. "Actually, there is one more thing, Sir."

Intrigued by her return to formal military protocol, Harm leaned back in his chair and said, "Go ahead."

Jen drew a deep breath before she blurted out, "Captain Rabb, I was wondering if you would do me the honor of giving me away at my wedding, Sir."

Harm's eyebrows rose in question. "Jen, are you sure you wouldn't rather have your father do that?"

"With all due respect, Sir, no. You and Colonel MacKenzie have been more like family to me than my father ever has, Sir. You took a chance on me at a time in my life when nobody believed in me, and I was having trouble believing in myself. You have accepted me into your family and there is nobody that I would rather have walk me down the aisle on my wedding day than you."

Harm fought down a wave of emotion at her words, knowing that he and Mac had both come to think of Jen as as much of a daughter to them as Mattie was. He'd never considered that she might feel the same way towards them and to hear her confirm it filled him with a fatherly pride. "It would be my honor, Jen," he replied softly.

Jen let out a sigh of relief and visibly relaxed as she smiled. "Thank you, Sir."

"No, Jen. Thank you."

1015 Local Time
Monday, July 12, 2010
U.S. Embassy
London, England

Mac made her way from her office down the hall to General Thomas' office. Until the selection committee confirmed its choice for the new JAG, she and Harm were pretty much in limbo in regards to their plans for the immediate future, so they had both gotten ready for work as usual this morning. Well, other than the fun of getting Ben out of bed and ready for the babysitter's when he was convinced it should still be the middle of the night, things had gone as usual. She had arrived at the office by 0800 and had managed to make decent headway into clearing off her desk, so she thought she would take a break and visit with the general.

Even if there no problems with the appointment of the new JAG, Mac seriously doubted if it would be made public before tomorrow morning. With the time difference, it would still be mid-afternoon in London before they heard anything, and until it was official that Harm had been selected, and she was quite certain that it would be, she couldn't accept a position at Annapolis. However, that wasn't going to stop her from informing the general of the decision that she and Harm had made.

"Good morning, Colonel," the young man seated at the desk greeted her as she entered the outer office.

"Good morning, Corporal White. Would you see if General Thomas could spare a minute this morning?"

"Yes, Ma'am," he replied. Picking up the intercom, he announced Mac's presence before turning back to her with a smile. "The general said to go on in."

"Thank you, Corporal," Mac replied. Turning towards the office door, she knocked once and awaited the general's "Enter" before opening the door and stepping inside.

"Colonel, it's a pleasure to see you this morning. Please have a seat."

"Thank you, Sir," Mac replied with a smile as she made her way over and sat down opposite him.

"How was your vacation?"

"It was extremely nice. Ben's seen the ocean before, but this was the first time he'd really wanted to play in the water. After that, I'm pretty sure we're going to lose him to the Navy, Sir."

"He is undoubtedly his father's son on that front," the general commented.

"He is indeed that," Mac agreed. "I imagine he'll be flying planes before he's even thinking about getting his driver's license."

"I do believe it's in his blood," he noted. "So what brings you by my office this early on a Monday?"

Mac acknowledged the shift to business with a slight nod of her head. "Well, Sir, I wanted to let you know that I did what you asked and discussed the teaching position with Harm. He and I both agree that it is something I would definitely be interested in doing. That is, of course, dependent upon his transfer back to Washington."

"Has he heard anything from the selection committee yet?"

"Aside from the interview on Friday, no. They are supposed to be taking their choice before the board today, so I imagine that we won't hear anything before tomorrow afternoon, if not Wednesday."

"You sound fairly confident that it's already a lock," he noted.

"I have no reason not to be," Mac replied with a smile. "I know the other men who are on the list and I can personally attest to the fact that not only is Captain Rabb a better lawyer, he is a better commanding officer than any of them. It would be a disgrace to the Navy if he got passed over in favor of one of them."

General Thomas did his best to fight back a grin, but wasn't entirely successful. "I'm glad he has your endorsement. I must say that I agree wholeheartedly with your assessment and that while I'm sure you will both do extremely well back in the States, you will also be missed here."

"I appreciate that, Sir."

"Would you like me to go ahead and call my friends in Washington or should I wait until Harm receives official word?"

"In an effort to not be perceived as tempting fate, I would appreciate it if you would hold off for now, Sir."

"Consider it done, Colonel. But I do expect to hear good news from you soon."

"Yes, Sir," Mac replied as she got to her feet and prepared to leave. "And thank you again, Sir."

2100 Local Time
Rabb House
Kensington
London, England

Mac leaned against the doorframe leading into Ben's room and smiled at the sight of her husband sitting in the rocking chair with their son. "Is he asleep?" she whispered.

"Finally," Harm replied just as softly as Mac walked over to stand beside them. "It took three stories tonight. I think his system is still a little out of whack from the different time zones."

Mac reached out a hand and gently stroked the hair off of Ben's face. "He's not the only one. It's been a pretty eventful week."

Harm nodded his agreement before he stood up and carried Ben to his bed. After tucking him in, both Harm and Mac leaned down to kiss him goodnight. When they stood back up, Harm reached for Mac's hand and led her out of Ben's room.

"How are you doing?" Mac asked as she leaned against him.

"A little nervous," Harm admitted. "You?"

"The same," she replied as they turned off the hall light and headed towards their own bedroom. "And a little excited."

"I thought we agreed not to get our hopes up," Harm stated.

"I don't recall ever agreeing to that," Mac replied as they reached their room and she began changing for bed. "In fact, I'm pretty sure that I was the one who suggested going ahead and contacting a realtor while we were in the States and you vetoed that idea almost before I could finish suggesting it."

"I'm trying to be realistic here, Mac. I just don't want everyone to be disappointed if this doesn't happen."

Mac shook her head as she watched him slowly undress and prepare for bed. "Harm, the people who love you are going to be disappointed if this doesn't happen for you regardless of whether you try to keep them from getting their hopes up or not. Heck, I've talked to Harriet more in the last week than I have in the last six months and I'm pretty sure you haven't said a word to her personally."

Harm sighed as he carried his dirty clothes to the hamper and then walked back to the bed. "It's just that this is a really big deal, Mac."

"I know," she agreed as she slipped on her nightgown and deposited her clothes in the hamper as well. "And the fact that it affects so many lives means there is no way to just pretend it isn't happening."

"Speaking of affecting lives, why didn't you tell me about Jen and Tom?" Harm asked as he pulled back the covers and crawled into the bed.

Mac chuckled as she made her way to his side. "I thought it would be good for you to hear it from her yourself," she replied. "And after talking to Jen this afternoon, I'm only sorry that I didn't get to see your reaction first hand."

Harm reached out and pulled her onto the bed with him. For a long moment they just held each other, their eyes communicating in ways their words never quite seemed able to match. "I love you, Mac."

"I love you, too."

Their gazes held for another long minute before Harm got a mischievous glint in his eye. Running a finger under the strap to her nightgown, he gently pushed it aside. "You're way overdressed here, Colonel."

Mac laughed as he placed a kiss on her now bare shoulder. "I thought you were tired, Harm."

"I'm not that tired," he replied before reaching around her to turn off the light and then pulling her with him down on the bed.

Part 4