Rating: GS
Spoilers: Um...I don't know, but don't be surprised if I use any episode as reference.
Disclaimer: Not mine...never will be, but I wish I owned DJE.
Summary: Mac has a reunion to go to.
Note 1: I have to admit I was sort of inspired by the movie "The Wedding Date". Note 2: I don't know any of Mac's relatives. We have never really been introduced to anybody besides her uncle and parents so just pretend. Sorry for any mistakes.
Archive: Just ask, please.
Monday
Mission Viejo, California
They strode into the hotel with Harm carrying most of their luggage. He had managed to take it from her hands without her actually realizing it. How he did that, he wasn't sure, but he was certain that he wasn't going to bring it up. Well, at least he wouldn't.
"Harm...how long have you been carrying my stuff?" She looked down to where he held her bag when she felt she was missing something.
"Um, I don't know. Let's see...when we went to baggage claim at the airport, when we got off of the cab, and just now as we walked in." He grinned at her those flyboy smiles of his that made her heart melt.
Oh no, he was waiting for her to complain and give him her usual "I'm a marine" speeches, but he was surprised when she hadn't. "Thank you." Her voice full of gratitude and a smile flashing bright.
On the airplane he and Mac had talked about her family and where they lived. From what she had told him, this side of her family appeared to be much more loving and caring than her own parents when she was growing up.
She mentioned that she hadn't seen them since before she graduated from high school because they had moved west. She had never even seen their home. Rumor mill had it that they were very well off financially.
But it wasn't until they were nearly on California ground when Mac realized that they hadn't reserved a hotel room for Harm. This was bound to be VERY interesting.
* * * * * * * *
"Harm, we didn't get a hotel room for you!" Mac turned to Harm with eyes nearly coming out of their sockets.
"Ah...did you make reservations for you?"
"Yeah. But I got a single and we completely forgot to call and get you a room."
"Excitement will do that to you sometimes. Relax, we'll think of something."
* * * * * * * *
"Good morning." The young lady at the front desk smiled.
"Good morning, um, I have a room reservation for MacKenzie, Sarah." She smiled back.
"Ah, yes. Ms. MacKenzie. You are in room forty-four." She looked over to Harm, a grin in place. Harm, being a guy, grinned back, unaware that Mac was eying both of them with a death glare.
"Um, actually I was wondering if you had another room for my friend." She mustered out another smile.
"Sorry, you need reservations."
"Um, Mac...I'll share with you." He smiled tenderly at her.
"Actually, I think that could be arranged...for you." She turned to Harm, her flirtatious behavior evident to both Harm and Mac. All Mac could do was roll her eyes. Harm just smiled back.
After everything was arranged and they had gotten situated, Harm dropped on the small couch. It had been a while since he had visited California and to be honest, he missed it a lot. And the fact that he was here with Mac made it all that more pleasant.
On that thought, he turned to Mac who was by the dresser putting her clothes away, walking back and forth between the full-sized bed and the furniture. She looked tense, maybe even angry, but he had a feeling he didn't want to question her. If she had something on her mind and she wanted to talk about it, she would open up to him eventually.
She sensed him looking at her. It was another one of her gifts that had developed when she met Harm. She always knew when he entered a room, his presence sending waves of energy her way. And she always knew when he was looking at her as if his eyes transmitted heat rays straight to her heart. It made her feel warm inside, but also uneasy and uncomfortable because of the fact that he possessed so much power over her.
She turned to face him looking up briefly from the bed and the neatly folded shirt in her hands. "Harm...what's wrong?"
He chuckled. "I should be the one asking you." He paused for her rebuttal, but got none. "Ever since we stepped through that door you've been quiet. Tense. I get the feeling you're angry."
Now she rebutted. "Harm I'm not angry. I'm ok. Just jet lag I guess." She went back to her task hoping that Harm would drop the subject.
Not likely! "I doubt it's just that. We've both been through jet lag, many times. But you've never let it bother you this much. Talk to me. Please." He hated to sound like he was begging, but it killed him to see her so troubled.
"Harm...later. I'm ok. I promise. It'll pass." She prayed that it would. The way that woman looked at Harm made the blood in her veins boil. But she couldn't, wouldn't let Harm know it.
"Alright. But when you feel like talking, I'll be right here." He sat there a while longer while Mac finished unpacking her stuff. Once she had, she turned to look at him with a questioning look. "What? I'll unpack later." She smiled. Amazed at how they could read each other so well.
"Well, we're pretty much all settled in. You wanna grab some breakfast. My stomach is telling me it's lunch time, though." She patted her stomach.
"It's only ten o'clock, Mac." He chuckled. "I guess it is jetlag. Still on eastern time I see." He smiled. "Let's go see what we can find. What are you in the mood for? Lunch or breakfast?"
She pondered her options. "I'll take the breakfast. Buttermilk pancakes and some eggs."
Harm grinned. "Let's go rent a car. I'm pretty sure we can find you a Denny's."
Later That Day
They had adjusted to the time difference pretty quickly. Maybe it was all of the practice they had from previous cases that were handled somewhere else other than Virginia. Besides, being in the military like they were, it was almost a requirement to be able to adjust quickly to changes...all kinds of changes.
Harm was sitting on the small couch the same way he had earlier that day. It was comfortable, but not nearly comfortable or long enough to accommodate his six foot-four inch frame. He looked over to Mac who was on the bed talking on the phone.
"We'll see you on Wednesday then, Lizzie. Yes. No, we're fine here at the hotel. It's ok, don't worry about it. We're military people, we can sleep anywhere." She laughed into the phone oblivious to the look Harm was giving her. She never failed to mesmerize him. The way she laughed, walked, yelled when she was angry, everything she did knocked him off his feet every time. "Ok. See you then, Lizzie. Ok. Goodnight."
"I take it you got along well when you were younger?" Harm looked at her.
"Always did. It's going to be fun to reconnect with her." He smiled at her and she returned his with a wide one of her own. "Harm, thank you for coming with me. It means a lot."
"You're welcome. And it means just as much to me that you agreed to let me come with you." He was about to get ready to lie down to sleep when Mac cleared her throat.
"Excuse me Mr. Stickboy, what are you doing?"
"What does it look like I'm doing Mac? I'm going to bed...figuratively speaking." He chuckled.
"Uh-huh, and how do you plan to do that on that tiny couch?"
"I'll manage."
"Unless you're elasticman or something you're not going to be doing a lot of sleeping on that thing." She grinned.
He hesitated. "What do you suggest Ninja Girl?"
"Well, this isn't a king-sized bed or even a queen, but I'm sure we both can fit here."
He flashed her his flyboy grin. He stood rooted in place, though.
"Do you want an invitation?" She repeated the words he had once spoken to her one chilly night in Afghanistan.
"Yes." He crossed his arms over his chest, his appearance resembling that of a four year old kid about to throw a tantrum.
"Why don't you come over here so you won't wake up looking like a pretzel come morning." She patted the other side of the bed as she made room for him.
"Alright." He walked over to the bed and climbed in. He turned off the lamp on his side of the bed that rested on the night stand.
They made themselves as comfortable as they could. But how comfortable could they get when they were sleeping so close to each other? It was going to be a long night.
Mac switched off her lamp as well. "Goodnight Harm."
"Goodnight Mac."
She was enveloped in a pair of strong arms. The warmth of his body radiating off of him and embracing her. Her back rested against the front of his body with one of his legs comfortably in between both of hers. She felt so relaxed, so loved, so...wrong. This was Harm she was in bed with, not some ordinary guy. But it felt so good to be sleeping in his arms, but it was so wrong.
She tried to shift her body in order to extricate herself as quietly as possible, but Harm sensed her movement and subconsciously tightened his grip on her pulling her closer to his chest. She thought she heard him mumble something, but she wasn't sure, she was too nervous to think about anything other than her current position. She attempted to get up again. This time Harm roused enough to comprehend what was going on.
He smiled against her hair, but very quickly released her. "Mac I'm..."
"It's ok Harm. It's a small bed, you were just trying to sleep without falling out of bed." She turned to face him.
He wasn't so sure that was what he was trying to do. Fact is he felt the need to hold her while he slept. It made him feel at home and very content. He smiled coyly at her. "Good morning."
He looked so cute when he did that, almost like a teenager in love. "Good morning."
"So what do you want to do today? We have all day." Harm smiled at her.
"I was hoping to go swimming in the pool downstairs."
"We could do that. It's been a while since I've gone swimming outdoors, where the sun actually shines. Maybe later we can go out to dinner or something."
"Like on a date?" She didn't want to sound hopeful or too excited, but she was.
"Yeah...like on a date. Just you and me."
"That sounds like fun." She smiled at him.
They had a lot of fun ahead of them and they both had a feeling they were really going to enjoy the day.
TBC...