First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage 

Sequel to Hotel Bora Bora

Tsarina Smith

I DON’T OWN ANYTHING EXCEPT FOR A BLUE HONDA!

Part 1

6 months after Bora Bora

Mac groaned as the alarm buzzed. She reached over and slammed her hand 
down on it. She pulled herself out of bed and walked to the bathroom. 
She hit the light switch and grimaced as light filled the dark room. 
She rubbed her eyes and turned the shower on. She stripped out of her 
clothes and stepped under the harsh spray. She moaned blissfully. A hot 
shower was the only thing that could even compare to sex with her boyfriend. 
Mac stayed in the shower for quite a while. By the time she had finished, 
put her robe on and fixed her hair, Harm was awake, sitting on the bed, 
fully dressed.

“I guess getting an apartment with two bedrooms and two bathrooms was a 
pretty good idea.” She said with a grin. She leaned down to kiss him before 
walking over to the closet. She pulled out a uniform and then went over 
to the dresser. She searched for the bra and panties she wanted and went 
back into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.

Harm smiled, watching her and sighed. The phone rang and he leaned over 
to pick it up. “Hello.”

He heard a sniffle on the phone. “Harm?”

He sat up. “Chloe, what’s the matter, sweetie?”

The little girl began to sob. “Grandma and Daddy are dead.”

“WHAT?” 

His scream brought Mac our of the bathroom. Half dressed, she sat on 
the bed next to him. “What’s wrong?” She mouthed. 

“Chloe, angel, Mac is right here. She’s gonna talk to you, and I’m gonna 
get my cell phone and make some arrangements to come get you here, ok. Ok. 
Here’s Mac.”
“Sweetie, what’s wrong?”

“Mac.” She sniffled again and took a sip of water. “Last night I spent the 
night with my friend Callie. We’re doing a project together, so I spent the 
night so we could work on it. This morning, we were leaving for school and I 
realized I forgot one of my books, so Callie’s mom stopped by the house and when 
I went in, there they were.” She started to sob. “Mac, there was so much blood.”

Mac tried to soothe her while Harm made travel arrangements. He walked over to Mac. 
“Let me talk to her.” She reluctantly handed the phone over. “Chlo, it’s 
Harm again. Listen very carefully. In 15 minutes a man in the NAVY is coming to pick 
you up. He was a friend of your dads. He is going to take you to the airport and take 
you to your plane. Go ahead and pack everything you need right now. Mac and I will meet 
you at the airport when your plane lands. We love you , honey.”

Mac took the phone back. “Chlo, do what Harm says. Go pack your stuff. We’ll see you 
in a couple of hours. It’ll be ok. I promise.”

She sniffled again. “Mac, I love you.”

Mac wiped a tear off of her cheek and looked at Harm. “I love you too. And 
Harm sends his love as well. I’ll see you soon.” She waited till she heard 
the ‘click’ on Chloe’s end, then she hung up. “Honey, can you call the 
admiral? And how did you know a friend of her dad’s?” 

Harm smiled slightly. “I have my secrets. And I was just about to call the 
Admiral. Finish getting dressed and when you get done we can get back on the 
phone and try and find out what happened.”

Mac nodded and discarded what of her uniform she had on and grabbed a pair 
of jeans and a soft pink sweater from the closet. She went back into the 
bathroom, changed, and put some make up on. A few minutes later, she went 
back into the main part of the apartment and looked around. She was glad 
they had moved into a bigger place after the trip. Mac walked into the 
guestroom and sighed. She stripped the bed and walked over to the closet, 
pulling out Chloe’s favorite sheets. They were white with purple and blue 
stripes on them. She made the bed, putting a purple velour blanket down 
next, and then the purple, blue and teal comforter. She fluffed the pillows 
and set some stuffed animals on it. 

Harm walked in. He wrapped his arms around her waist. “What are you doing.” 

She turned in his embrace. “Just making sure everything is comfortable for her.” Mac sighed. 
“I just can’t believe this is happening.” She lay her head on his chest and breathed deeply. He 
ran his fingers through her hair. 

“We’re gonna get through this together, Sarah. You and I have always considered Chloe 
a part of our family. Now she will be.”

“I know.” She walked over to the dresser and straightened the pictures. She smiled as 
she looked at them. Both were from Bora Bora, One was taken the last day they were there. 
Chloe and Mac had buried Harm in the sand and were kneeling over him. They all had 
huge smiles on their faces. The second one was of Chloe, AJ and the Admiral. Sydney had 
taken it the night the four of them went out. The Admiral had been trying to 
read to the little boy and Chloe kept distracting him. Finally, AJ had put the 
book down and started tickling her. Little AJ decided he was missing the action, 
so he picked up the flimsy book and bopped the Admiral in the head. And that was 
the moment Sydney had captured. The little boy holding the book in the air, 
Chloe and AJ with both shocked expressions on their faces. It was such a cute picture. 
This was unofficially Chloe’s room. When their friends occasionally stayed over, or 
when they kept AJ, they slept here, but this was Chloe’s room. It had her stuffed 
animals. A couple of dresses Mac had bought for her. It had a TV and Chloe’s favorite 
moves. And it had pictures of her. Chloe had even picked out the bedspread and colors 
for the room. Mac put the photo down and moved over to the bed. “I can’t believe 
this is happening, Harm. I mean, I’m glad she’s going to be living with me. But she 
had just found them not to long ago. Her life was wonderful. And now this had to happen. 
Its Bullshit.” Harm walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her. 

“I know sweetie, I know.” He kissed her forehead. “She’ll always have us 
though. We’re gonna get her through this.”

Mac nodded and stood up. “I’m gonna go to the store and make sure we 
have everything she could possibly need. Call me if anything else happens.”

Harm nodded and stood up. He walked over to her, wrapped his arms around her 
and gently kissed her full lips. “Everything will be ok. I’ll see you in a little while.”

She nodded and walked into the living room, grabbing her keys and her purse 
and headed out. Harm sighed and walked around the apartment. He reached into 
his pocket and pulled out a beautiful engagement ring. It was stunning. The 
huge 2 carat marquis stone was set in a platinum band, with smaller 1 carat 
princess cut stones on either side. He would be paying it off for the rest 
of his life, but if anyone was worth it, it was Sarah. She deserved the best. 
He put the ring in his pocket and sighed. ‘Maybe once Chloe got settled in.”

Two Hours Later

Harm and Mac stood by the gate, waiting for Chloe to arrive. Finally, the 
little girl stepped into their sight. Chloe ran to them and dropped her bag, 
giving Mac a hug. Mac held her as close to her as she possibly could. “It’s ok, 
sweetheart.” She stroked her hair. “I’m here.” She pulled away from Mac, finally, 
and wiped her red, swollen eyes. She looked at Harm and they shared the same warm 
embrace. When they broke apart, Harm walked with her to the baggage claim, picked 
up her bags, and they headed home.

Mac unlocked the door to the apartment and let them go inside first. Once in, she 
shut the door. Chloe looked around. “Mac, Harm, if its ok, can I just go to my room. 
I really want to be by myself.” Mac nodded and she watched as the little girl walked 
into her room and shut the door.

“Harm, what are we going to do?” She asked. “She is one of the strongest people I have 
ever met, but I think this could be too much for her.”

He nodded. “I agree.” He looked down, then back at her. “Honey, I know how you feel 
about shrinks, but maybe Chloe should see someone.”

Mac nodded. “Actually, I agree with you.”

He looked at her surprised. “You do?”

She nodded. “I love Chloe so much. And I want what’s best for her. And 
talking to someone who has more of an idea as to how to deal with this 
could be a very good thing.”

“I’m gonna go make some calls.” He kissed her gently and went to their room
 to make some calls. Mac went over to Chloe’s room and knocked on the door. 
“Chlo, it’s Mac. Can I come in?”

“Sure.” A teary voice replied. Mac opened the door and saw her cured in a 
ball on top of the covers, holding a bear close to her.

“Can we talk?” Mac asked.

Chloe sat up. “Sure. What do you want to talk about?” Then a horrible thought 
hit her. “Mac, you guys are going to let me stay here, aren’t you?”

Mac put her hands on the girls face. “You listen to me. From now on, this is 
your home. You are welcome to stay here as long as you want. You’re family, 
Chloe. You, me and Harm. We’re going to help each other get through this. Ok?”

Chloe smiled. “I love you, Mac.”

“Love you too, sweetie.” She sighed. “Listen, Harm and I were talking and we 
would like it If you saw someone about how you’re feeling. We love you, and 
we’ll be here for you, but a therapist could help you more then we could. Will 
you talk to someone?”

Chloe nodded. “I will, Mac.”

Mac got up and started to leave. “Mac, don’t go.” She turned and looked. Chloe 
looked so scared, so vulnerable. She smiled and walked back over to the bed. 
“Stay with me, please?”

She nodded and laid down on the bed next to Chloe. Chloe lay her head on Mac’s 
chest, and she quickly fell asleep as Mac stroked her hair. A few moments after 
Chloe was asleep, Mac fell asleep. 

Harm walked over to the room and peeped in the door. His heart was warmed seeing 
the woman he loved with the girl they both adored. He quietly walked in and gently 
kissed them both on the forehead. He grabbed a blanket from the closet and draped 
it over them. He left the room, shutting the door behind them. He picked up the 
phone and dialed a familiar number. The phone rang twice before someone answered. 

“Hello, Robert’s Residence.”

Harm smiled. “Harriet, it’s Harm. I need a favor. Will you give me 
the number of the grief counselor you saw when you guys lost Sarah?”

Harriet picked up her phone book. “Sure.” She flipped through a couple 
of pages. “Its 555-0059. Harm, Bud told me about Chloe. I am so sorry. 
In fact, we were all planning on stopping by tonight. Will that be okay?”

Harm smiled. “That’d be great. I’m sure Mac and Chloe would love that. 
I’ll talk to you soon, Harriet.”

“Bye Commander.”

Harm hung up the phone and dialed the number he had just written down. 

End part 1

Part 2

Mac finished draining the pasta and got everything ready for dinner. 
Every night her and Harm took turns making dinner. Although, usually 
when it was her turn, he was behind her, kissing her neck. He was behaving 
himself tonight. Him and Chloe sat at the table, eating their salads while 
she brought the actual dinner to the table. Harm looked at her. This was 
incredibly awkward.

“Will someone please say something?” Chloe asked. “You guys can talk. I’m 
not gonna keel over as the result of human conversation.”

Mac looked at her and smiled. “Sweetie, things just seem so trivial. Nothing 
is really all that important.”

Harm stood up. “Speaking of important,” he walked over to the stack of mail 
and handed Mac an envelope. “This came for you today.”

She opened it and found it was an invitation. “It’s for Harriet’s baby shower.” 
Mac put it down and looked at Chloe. “Chlo, what’d ya say? You wanna go?”

Chloe looked at her with big eyes. “Me?”
Mac smiled. “Yeah. Sweetie, Harriet knows you’re staying with me and she’d 
probably kill me if I didn‘t bring you. It’ll be fun. All of us girls talking 
about men and playing with baby presents.”

Chloe smiled. Her first smile pretty much since she got her. “I’d love to.” 
She ate some of her pasta and sighed. “What’s going to happen to me?”

Harm and Mac exchanged glances. “You’re going to stay here.” Harm said simply. 
“Chloe, Mac and your dad had an agreement. If anything ever happened to him, 
Mac was going to be your legal guardian. You are to stay with us for as long 
as you want. Hopefully, that’ll be till you are grown up and married and all 
that fun stuff.”

“You guys really want to keep me?”

Mac smiled. “Chlo, you’re not a puppy. We’re not keeping you. Since your daddy 
is gone, and so is your grandmother…” she stopped when she saw Chloe look down. 
She only started again when her eyes met hers. “I am your legal guardian. Its 
now my responsibility to take care of you. Sweetie, Harm and I are a family. 
And out family got bigger today because you’re here. You are part of our family 
and we will do everything we can to make you happy and safe. You don’t have to 
worry about us not wanting you. That couldn’t happen. Not now, not ever.”

Chloe got up from her chair and ran to Mac. She wrapped her arms around her waist 
and held her for as long and as hard as she could. Mac wrapped one arm firmly 
around her waist and stroked her head with the other one. Harm walked over to 
the two of them and wrapped his arms around them both. 

***


“Harm, I’m so worried about her.” Mac said as she crawled into bed. She opened the 
drawer to the light wood nightstand and removed a tube of hand cream. She rubbed 
the thick lotion on her elbows and then returned it to its location. She lay back 
on the pillows and looked at him. He pulled off his shirt, causing her to smile. 
‘He has a magnificent body…’ she thought, and she never got tired of looking at it.

“Honey, Chloe is going to be fine. She just needs time and plenty of love and support.” 
he crawled in bed next to her and pulled her close to him. “We’ll all get through 
this together.” He thought of the engagement ring he had put in his top dresser drawer 
and sighed. God did not have a very funny sense of humor.

“Harm?”

He realized she had been saying his name. “Oh, sorry, I was just in another world 
for a second.”

She smiled at him and turned on her stomach, propping herself on her elbows. “Really, 
was I in that world?” She leaned over and kissed him softly. 

He wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to his chest. “You are my 
world.” He kissed her and rolled them over so he was now hovering over her. 
He began to kiss her softly, his hands working his way up her night shirt. 
She moaned her pleasure. Harm grinned at her reaction and pulled her shirt, 
and placed gentle kisses on her stomach. She sat up and pulled her shirt off, 
giving him easier access. He looked at her in awe. “God, you are so beautiful.”

She pulled him down to her and began kissing him. Her hands worked quickly to 
remove his boxers. “Make love to me now Harm.” They quickly removed the boxers, 
along with her panties and shorts, and he entered her. “Oh God…” She moaned. 
“Harm, faster, harder, please.” She begged. Never in her life before Harm had 
she begged for anything. Harm smiled, knowing the effect he had on her. He kept 
his pace slow. She writhed beneath him, moaning. “Oh God, Harm, please.” 

Deciding he had tortured enough, he quickened his pace, slamming into her with a 
force and an urgency he only experienced with her. She was on the verge on coming, 
and he knew it. “Come on, baby,” he moaned. “Let go.” She came with force and held 
him closer to her.

“Oh God… Oh God… Oh God…” She buried her face in his neck while he finished and came 
inside of her.

Harm pulled off of her. “I love you Sarah.” He lay down beside her and pulled her 
into his embrace. “Sarah, will you do something for me?”

“Sure Harm. What is it?”

He started to speak and then stopped. “Nothing. We’ll talk about it later.”

She shrugged and curled herself into him. After a few minutes she was fast 
asleep. He looked at her. He ran his arm down her soft arm, and then through 
her thick brown hair. He was terrified to ask her. He thought that telling her 
he loved her was his biggest fear, but if she said no, God. It would kill him. 

***


Mac awoke unusually early the next morning. She went out for her traditional 
morning run. Even after the Jag-a-thon, her and the Admiral continued to run 
together. 

“How’s Chloe doing?” The Admiral said, as they stopped to take a quick break. 

Mac took a sip of water. “She’s doing okay, I think. She’s going with me to 
Harriet’s baby shower tonight.” She stretched, grabbing her ankle and then 
standing back up, pushing her arms behind her neck. 

“That’s great. When are the funerals?”

Mac sighed and sat in the soft grass. “Her grandmothers funeral is next Monday 
morning in Indiana, and her fathers is at Arlington on Wednesday.”

“That poor girl. Mac if there is anything that any of us can do, please let me 
know.”

She smiled. “I will, sir.” Mac looked at him. “How are the wedding plans coming?”

AJ looked at her and scowled before taking off running again.

***


Mac parked her corvette outside of Harriet and Bud’s home and her and Chloe got 
out of the car. They went up to the door and Mac knocked loudly. Harriet opened 
the door and grabbed Mac into a hug and then Chloe. “Com on in you guys.” They 
walked inside, the first ones there. Mac always had to be early. Harriet took 
Mac’s coat, and then Chloe’s. Harriet looked at Mac and sighed wistfully. She 
would love to be that small. Mac had on a pair of snug pink pants and a three 
quarter length black and pink sweater. Chunky black boots and a silver and pink 
necklace completed the outfit. At eight & a half months pregnant, she felt big 
as a house. Chloe looked up at Harriet.

“Where should I put the present?” 

Harriet smiled and pointed to the big kitchen table. She then looked to Mac. 
“How is she doing?”

Mac looked at Chloe and sighed. “I think she’s doing ok, considering. She’s 
gone through more then anyone should ever have to, and she’s gotten through 
that. I think she’s gonna be ok, I just hope she can take all of this. But 
she has Harm and me, and all of you guys.” 

Harriet smiled. “After all you and Harm have done for us, it’s the least we 
can do.”

***


Carolyn Imes laughed as she sipped the glass of iced tea. “Oh Mac, 
I can’t believe Harm did that!”

They all laughed as Mac told the latest Harm story. Harriet wiped 
her eyes. “Oh God. I can’t believe that. That was worse then a Bud move.”

Sydney laughed and then sat her drink down. “Ok, Harriet, it’s time to 
open your gifts.”

Harriet pushed her plate to the side and grabbed a present. “Ok. This 
one is from Sydney and AJ.” She unwrapped it. “Oh, Syd, this is beautiful.” 
She held up a white Christening gown. “I love it thank you.” 

Sydney smiled and pulled an envelope out of her purse. “This is AJ’s part 
of the gift. She handed the envelope to Harriet and smiled as she opened it.

Harriet laughed. “A years supply of diapers.” She sat the envelope back on 
the dress and smiled at Sydney. “Will you tell him Thank you?”

Sydney nodded. “Ok. Next present. She handed Harriet another box, this one 
much bigger. “This one is from Chloe, Mac and Harm.” She tore into the box. 
The gift was the new sleeping Pooh toy, were Pooh sings or nature sounds play 
untill the baby is asleep. “Oh, this is great. I saw it on…” She drifted off. 
“On TV.” She picked up a small jewelry box, and looked curiously at Mac.

“That’s a little something we bought for you. I’ll have plenty of opportunities 
to buy my God Daughter things, but I wanted to get her mother something.”

Harriet’s eyes misted over and she opened the box. “Oh, Mac, it’s beautiful.” 
It was the silver charm bracelet she had admired earlier in her pregnancy. There 
was a charm on there for AJ, a silver disc with his birth year inscribed on one 
side, and “AJ” on the other. The second disc was silver also, rimmed in tiny 
little diamonds. One side was inscribed with roses, the other had “Sarah” in a 
beautiful script. The third disc was empty on one side, with the year, “2002” on 
the other side. Harriet’s eyes spilled over. She got up and moved to hug her 
best friend. “Thank you, Mac.”

She wiped her eyes and got Mac to help her put the bracelet on. She laughed. 
“Ok, next?” She looked at the card. “This one is from Carolyn.” She smiled 
and unwrapped it. Inside the box was a simple envelope. Inside was gift 
certificate for $100 dollars at a popular baby store. “Carolyn, this is 
wonderful. Thank you so much.” 

Carolyn smiled. “I didn’t know what to get you. I remember Mac and I got you 
the little sailor suit for AJ, but little girls are different. So I though you 
could buy her all the pretty things yourself.”

“Ok.” Sydney said, handing her the next present. “Bobbie’s is next.”

Harriet tore the wrapping from it and laughed. “Bobbie, this is… pictures?” 
Inside the box were pictures of a crib. “I don’t understand.”

Bobbie laughed. “If I walked in with a crib, it would be a little obvious, 
so I decided to take pictures of it and give you those. Turner and Harm put 
it up the other night.” Her and Mac burst out in giggles. “It was quite 
interesting. Anyways, Harm told me you guys were using little AJ’s old crib, 
and I knew his was white and I thought this light wood would look so pretty 
in the nursery.”

Harriet got up and gave Bobbie a huge hug. “Thank you.”

Sydney smiled. “Ok. Last, this one is from…” she paused while searched for 
the tag. “This is from Harm’s mom and Grandmother.” 

Harriet took the box and unwrapped it. “Oh my… this is absolutely beautiful.” 
It was a soft, gorgeous pink, white and yellow blanket. “This is incredible.” 

Mac smiled. “Grandma Sarah gave it to Harm and I when we went up their for 
Christmas. We decided to save it for your baby shower though.”

Chloe grabbed a camera from a side table. “I need to get a picture of all 
of you guys.”

Mac smiled and took the camera from her. “Ok. Lets get together guys. 
She set the self timer and propped the camera up. Come on, sweetie.” Mac 
sat on the sofa by Harriet, Chloe by her side, huddled close. Sydney, 
Bobbie and Carolyn stood behind the couch and smiled. The flash went off 
and the happy moment was captured.

***


Harriet, Mac and Chloe were cleaning up the mess after everyone else 
left. Harriet stopped cleaning for a moment. “Ooh.”

Mac stopped cleaning and looked at her friend. “Harriet? Everything 
okay?”

Harriet sat down. “Mac, you were there when I had AJ. You helped 
deliver him. And unless we get to a hospital ASAP, you’re going to 
be delivering this baby.”

Mac’s eyes widened. “Harriet, where are your keys. We’re gonna have 
to take your car.” Harriet pointed in the direction her keys were in. 
She handed Chloe her phone. “Chlo, Harm is with Bud at the apartment. 
Call them. If no one answers, call his cell. I’m gonna go get Harriets 
bag, and then we’re going to go.” She ran up the stairs as Chloe hit a 
button, calling Harm.

“Hello?”

“Harm, it’s Chloe.”

Harm sat up. “Chlo, is everything ok? Is Mac ok?”

Chloe sighed. “Yeah, Mac’s fine. Listen, Harriet’s in labor. We’re taking her 
to the hospital right now.” 

Harm almost dropped the phone. “Chloe, tell Mac that Bud and I will meet y’all 
at Bethesda in a few minutes.” He shut up for a moment. “And tell Harriet that 
Bud loves her.”

Chloe closed the phone as Mac ran down the stairs. “Come on, lets go.”

She looked at Mac. “Harm said he’ll see us at Bethesda in a few and Bud said to 
tell Harriet that he loves you.” Harriet smiled a small smile as Mac helped her 
up and out to the car. 

***


In the delivery room, Bud was letting Harriet squeeze his hand as she pushed 
as hard as she could. Finally, the cries of a baby were heard throughout the 
room, and Bud and Harriet both laughed with joy. The doctor handed Bud scissors 
to cut the umbilical cord. He did it and the doctor cleaned her up. “It’s a girl.” 
He said, smiling. He handed Bud the baby, who looked at her in awe. 

“Harriet, she’s beautiful.” Bud said. He carried the baby over to her and handed 
her to his wife. Harriet started crying.

“Oh Bud. I can’t believe she’s here. And she’s ok. She’s perfect.”

Bud looked at his wife, and then touched his baby daughters forehead. “Madeline 
Nicole Roberts, welcome to the family.”

At that moment, the doctor opened the door, letting in Harm and Mac. 

“Hey.” Bud said. “You guys ready to meet your God Daughter?”

Harriet handed the baby to Mac. Mac was immediately in love. “Oh, you guys, 
she is so beautiful.” Harm leaned over Mac and smiled at the new addition 
to the family.

“She’s gorgeous. He smiled at Harriet. “Just like her mother.” he looked 
back at Mac and knew this is what he wanted. A family with Mac, Chloe and 
a baby of their own. Mac looked up at him and smiled. She knew what he was 
thinking. It helped she was thinking the same thing.

End part 2

Part 3

Mac checked out her reflection in the mirror. “Hmm. Not bad.” She smiled at 
what she saw. To be in her 30’s, she still looked pretty good. The leather 
pants she bought in Bora Bora looked awesome with her pale pink halter top. 
Her, Chloe & Bobbie were going to a Brian McKnight concert that night and 
she was so excited. She loved his music. 

Harm watched her. She was so excited. He would love to be able to propose 
to her at the concert. On stage, in front of everyone. He went into the 
office and picked up his phone. “Webb, it’s Harm. I need a favor. I need 
you to find out where Brian McKnight is staying while he’s in DC.”

“Why?” Webb was confused. “Is he involved in something?”

“No. It’s a secret. But I need to speak to him.”

Webb sighed. “Ok. I’ll find out and get back to ya in a few minutes.”

Harm hung up the phone and waited for Webb to call him back. A few minutes 
later, the phone rang. “Webb, what do ya have for me?”

Webb looked at the paper he had in his hand. “Brian McKnight. 1548B Capitol 
Hotel.”

Harm smiled as he wrote the info down. 

***


Harm took a deep breath as he knocked on the door. The tall, distinguished 
man looked at him curiously. “Can I help you?”

Harm looked scared. “Yeah, you could, but I’m not sure if you will.”

Brian leaned against the door frame. “What do you need?”

He sighed. “Me and my girlfriend have been together for a while. We’ve 
been through a lot lately and I want to propose to her. She is going to 
your concert tonight and I would love to propose to her after a certain 
song. I’ll pay you anything you want.”

Brian looked at the man. ‘He has to be crazy.’ He thought. Then he took 
a closer look. And he noticed a pair of gold wings on the mans chest. 
“Those wings. Are you a pilot?”

Harm nodded. “Yeah. I was a fighter pilot in the NAVY. Now I just fly my 
Steerman.”

“How many people can fit in your plane?”

Harm looked at him as if he were the crazy one now. “Two. Why?”

“I’ll cut you a deal. You can propose to your girlfriend if you will fly 
me to North Carolina after the concert. My wife is going into the hospital 
tomorrow morning for a c-section and there is no way I can get a flight out. 
Will you fly me to Charlotte?”

Harm nodded. “Yeah, no problem.”

Brian held the door open. “Come on in. Lets decide how we’re going to do this.”

***


While Harm was planning with the popular R&B star, Mac was visiting Harriet 
and the baby. “How is Chloe doing at her new school?” Harriet asked.

Mac smiled. “She’s doing pretty good. She’s so easy to love, she’s fitting in 
very well. Her therapist thought I should wait till after the funerals to start 
her in school, but I didn’t want to wait that long.”

Harriet smiled. “Mac, a tip about being a mother. Go with instinct. Don’t 
worry about what anyone else says.” She looked at the baby. “Mac, she’s so 
beautiful. I’m so grateful that you were there when I went into labor. I don’t 
know what I would have done if something had happened to her.” 

Mac smiled and looked at the beautiful baby in her arms. “Hey Maddie. Maddie. 
I’m Mac. I’m your God Mother. And I’m going to love you, and take care of you, 
and spoil you.” Maddie reached up and wrapped her tiny hand around Mac’s finger. 
Her heart absolutely melted. “Harriet, I want what you have so much.” She finally 
confessed. “I want a baby, I want a husband, I want a house with a fence and a 
garden and a cat to torture Jingo. It’s been over six months since Bora Bora. 
Harm and I have the perfect relationship. We’re practically married, but we’re 
not. And that’s all I want. I want to be his wife have you hold my baby, telling 
me how beautiful she is.” Mac sighed. “I love Maddie. I love AJ. But I want a 
baby of my own.”

Harriet smiled. “One of these days, Mac.”

***


“Mac, Bobbie’s here! Let’s go!” Mac walked out of her room, wearing the 
outfit she had tried on earlier. 

“Come on, ladies, lets go.”

After spending about 20 minutes on the interstate, they arrived at Ovens 
Auditorium. The found their seats and sat down, waiting for the show. After 
the opening performance by Tyrese, Brian appeared. Mac went crazy. She was 
wild for his music. His songs made her fill the way that Harm made her feel. 
He started with past hit, ‘Back at One’. After a couple of songs, he stood 
in the center of the stage and looked into the audience. “I have a question 
for you guys,” he looked over the crowd and continued, “Is Colonel Sarah 
MacKenzie here tonight?” Mac looked at her friends, shocked and stood up, 
with much help from Chloe and Bobbie. A guard came up, took her arm and 
helped her up to the stage. A few men whistled upon seeing her. She laughed 
and focused her attention on the star.

“Sarah, or may I call you Mac?”

She smiled. “Mac is fine.”

“So, Mac. Let me ask you a question. Do you know a man, a Commander 
Harm Rabb?”

Chloe and Bobbie stood up and started screaming at the top of their lungs. 

“Yes, I believe I do.” She couldn’t stop smiling. What was he up to now.

“Mac, Harm asked for me to sing this song for you. He loves you with 
all his heart.” Brian lifted the mike back to his mouth and began to 
sing.

First, first time I looked into your eyes
I saw heaven, oh, heaven in your eyes
Everything I did before you, wasn’t worth my while
It should’ve been you all the time
I’d do anything, and everything to please you
You know how much I need you
You’re always, always, on my mind

Mac smiled. She loved this song. It always reminded her of her sailor. 

You’re more than wonderful
More than amazing
Irreplaceable, love, love, in my life
You’re so incredible, here in these arms tonight
The irreplaceable, love, love, of my life


Harm watched her from backstage and smiled. She was so beautiful. This was 
going to be perfect.

Always, seems like reality
Forever, don’t seem so far away
All I wanna do, all I wanna feel, all I wanna be is close to you
Everyday, is my lucky day
All I wanna do, is love you
I place no one above you
I’ll tell you why


You’re more than wonderful
More than amazing
The irreplaceable, love, love, in my life
You’re so incredible, here in these arms tonight
The irreplaceable, love, love, of my life


Baby you know, you know you’re my one and only
(All I wanna do is be together)
Sugar you know, I’ll never leave you lonely
In your eyes, in your eyes I see forever
Ohhhhh


You’re more than wonderful
More than amazing
The irreplaceable, love, love, in my life
You’re so incredible, here in these arms tonight
The irreplaceable, love, love, of my life

Brian finished his song and looked at the side of the stage. Harm appeared 
wearing his dress whites and carrying a single red rose. The women in the 
audience went wild, Chloe and Bobbie leading the cheers. Brian handed Harm 
his microphone.

“Sarah, you are without a doubt the love of my life. Watching you this past 
year, seeing your strength, your courage, your beauty, I’ve fallen more and 
more in love with you. Watching you with AJ and with Chloe and Maddie, Mac I 
want that with you. I want to make a family with you. I love my God children, 
but I want you, me and Chloe to be a family. I can’t picture my life without 
you.” He dropped down to one knee. “Sarah Elizabeth MacKenzie, will you marry 
me?” 

Mac began to sob. She looked at him. “Yes. Yes, Harm. I’ll marry you.” He 
stood up and pulled her into his arms. “I love you, Sarah.” He kissed her 
and when she pulled back, she gently touched her lips to his again. “I love 
you too.” They stood their, lost in each other when Brian came up. 

“Listen, you two, this is very sweet, but I have a concert I’d like to get 
through.” The audience laughed and Harm took Mac’s hand and walked her back 
to her seat.

“I have to get Sarah ready to go to North Carolina. But I’ll be home later 
tonight. I love you.”

She smiled. “I love you too.” They kissed one last time and she returned to 
her seat, and he left to prepare Sarah for flight. 

Chloe and Bobbie both grabbed at her hand to examine the ring. They both 
hugged her and sat back to enjoy the concert.

End Part 3

Part 4

Harm unlocked the door to the apartment and quietly walked inside. He sat 
the keys on the table beside Mac’s and walked into their bedroom. She was 
curled up in bed. Her arm was draped over the blankets and he could see her 
ring glittering in the moonlight. He smiled as he looked at her. She was so 
beautiful. He was so in love with every little thing about her. Harm opened 
the closet door and hung his dress whites up, and shut the door back. He took 
off his jeans, and then his t-shirt and climbed into bed beside her. “Goodnight 
Beautiful.” He placed a gentle kiss on her neck and gently pulled her to him.

***


Harm woke early, and just looked at his fiancé. “Fiancé.” He loved the way 
that sounded. The looked at the alarm clock. As if on cue, he reached over 
to turn it off. Soft strains of music began to seep out and he left it alone. 
He loved this song. He felt that way every morning when he woke up. The noise 
caused Mac to wake up. Her eyes locked with his. He smiled and kissed her 
softly. Then, to her surprise, he began to sing to her. His voice picked up 
with the song playing.

Good Morning, Beautiful
How was your night?
Mine was wonderful with you by my side.
When I open my eyes to see your sweet face,
it's a good morning, beautiful day

She smiled at him. He brushed the hair off of her face and continued with 
the song.

I couldn't see the light
I didn't know day from night
I had no reason to care.
But since you came along
I can face the dawn,
'Cause I know you'll be there.

Chloe stumbled to their room and opened the door. She yawned, wiped her 
eyes and slowly pushed it open. The scene warmed her heart. She smiled 
and watched.

Good Morning, Beautiful
How was your night?
Mine was wonderful with you by my side.
When I open my eyes to see your sweet face,
it's a good morning, beautiful day!

I never worry if it's raining outside,
'Cause in here with you, girl,
The sun always shines!

Yeah, Good Morning Beautiful Day...Good Morning Beautiful...It's a beautiful 
day...Good Morning Beautiful...good morning...Good Morning Beautiful...what a 
beautiful day...Good Morning Beautiful

Mac smiled at him and sat up to kiss him. “I love you, Harm.” 

“Ah-Choo!” They both turned towards the door. Chloe guiltily looked away. “I 
didn’t mean to interrupt.” She began to walk away but stopped when Mac yelled 
for her to freeze. She turned and looked at them. “I’m sorry.”

“Chlo, come here.”

She walked over to them and stood on Harm’s side of the bed. Harm grabbed her 
hand and pulled her down so she was sitting. “Is everything ok?” Mac gently asked.

Chloe nodded. “Yeah, everything is fine. I heard noise and I came in here. I 
didn’t mean to eavesdrop or interrupt or anything. Y’all are just so great 
together. I couldn’t help it.”

Harm looked at her and picked up her hand. “Chlo, the three of us are a family. 
This is a family moment. Now if you had walked in on something you shouldn’t 
have seen, I wouldn’t have been to happy. But nothing was wrong with you 
being here. We love you. And its gonna take a lot more then that to make 
us mad.”

Chloe nodded. “I guess I’m just oversensitive. Tomorrow is Grandma’s funeral.”

Mac nodded. “I know. Frank and Trish are coming in, in a little while. We’re 
going up there on Frank’s jet.”

The young girls eyes widened. “Frank and Trish are coming?”

Harm nodded. “Yeah. They demanded that they be there.” He sighed. “My mom 
knows she can’t replace your grandmother. But she wants to be a grandmother 
to you. And Frank wants to be a grandfather. They’re family, Chloe. And 
family supports one another.”

Chloe jumped up and into Harm’s arms. “Thank you guys so much.” She started 
to sob. Mac climbed over Harm and began to rub the girls back. Chloe turned 
and latched on to Mac.

“I am so glad you wanted to be a part of my life.”

Mac held her as close as she possibly could. “I love you Chloe. I’m so 
glad I’m a part of your life.”

***


Several hours later, the plane landed in Indiana. Frank made arrangements 
for the luggage to be taken to their hotels. They began to walk through 
the airport, to the rental cars they had arranged, when Mac stopped. Harm 
looked at her.

“What’s wrong, baby?”

She smiled. “I love our friends.” She pointed him to Bud, Harriet, the kids, 
AJ, Sydney, Turner and Bobbie. They sat in a cluster, smiling as their friends 
realized they were there. Chloe ran up to AJ and he held her close to him, as 
Mac, Harm and his parents walked up. 

Bud smiled at his friend and Harm didn’t even try to hide the fact 
that his eyes were misting over. He squeezed Mac’s hand and simply whispered, 
“Thank you.”

Suddenly, a voice few of them recognize piped in. “Oh, thank goodness I caught 
you here.”

Recognition dawned in Harm’s eyes. He turned to see his grandmother 
standing there. Mac let his hand loose and he all but ran over to 
the older woman. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. 
She smiled and laughed. “Careful Harmon, I’m old. My bones aren’t as 
strong as they used to be.”

He smiled and let go of her. She looked at the smiling group, and her 
eyes landed on the Admiral and the young girl in his arms. “Chloe.” She 
said gently.

Chloe nodded and her eyes spilled over. She walked slowly over to her. Unsure 
of how to be have. Sarah Rabb would have none of that and closed the gap between 
them. She pulled Chloe to her and gave her a warm hug. She then kissed her 
forehead and let her go.

Chloe sniffled. “Why are you here?” She wiped her eyes. “You’ve never even met me.”

Sarah put her hands on the girls shoulders. “Sweetie, you’re part of Harm’s family. 
That means you’re part of my family. And when my family needs me, I’m here.”

Chloe wrapped her arms around Sarah and began to sob. She had never 
known anything like this before. This much love and support. From people she 
didn’t even really know. 

***


The next morning was the funeral. Mac was the first to wake up. She 
walked over to Chloe’s bedroom and sighed as she looked at her. She 
walked quietly back to the bedroom and got back in bed next to Harm. 
She reached over and set the alarm clock so she could sleep for 15 
more minutes.

15 minutes later, the annoying buzzing woke her up. She turned it off and 
reached over to Harm. “Harm. Wake up.”

“Five more minutes, Mac.”

She pulled the blankets off of him. “Harm, get up now. The funeral is today.”

He realized what today was and reluctantly sat up. “I’ll go wake Chloe up.” 
He pulled on a t-shirt and walked down to her room. He knocked lightly on 
the door and then walked in. He sat on the edge of her bed and softly shook 
her. “Chlo, wake up.”

She groaned. “Do I have to?”

Harm sighed. “Yeah, honey, I’m afraid you do.”

“Grandma.” She said simply. She stood up. Chloe looked at him. “Harm, you
 and Mac are the greatest.”

He leaned over and gave her a hug. “We love you. Never forget that.” He 
looked at the alarm clock. I’m gonna leave so you can get dressed. 
We’ll see ya in a few, ok?”

She nodded. Once he had left, shutting the door behind him, she walked into 
the bathroom for a quick shower. Once she was done, she pulled the new navy 
blue dress Mac had bought her out of the closet. Chloe quickly dressed and 
went to Mac and Harm’s room. She knocked on the door, and upon their approval, 
entered. The two of them were dressed in their dress uniforms. “Mac, will you 
do my hair for me?”

Mac nodded and led the girl into the bathroom. She plugged in the curling iron, 
and began to brush her hair. “Are you doing okay?” She asked softly.

Chloe sighed. “Yeah. I guess. I miss Grandma, but I’m doing decent I guess.” 
She looked in the mirror and nodded with approval as a strand of her long hair 
became curly. After a while, Mac was done and her long mane was full of soft 
waves. She looked in the mirror. “Mac, I’m scared.”

Mac knelt down to her level. “Talk to me, Chlo.”

She breathed in deeply. “I’m so scared that I’m never going to have a family.”

“Honey. Don’t think that. You have a family. All of us here are your family. 
And I know we’re not blood, but we love you so much.”

Chloe looked up at her. “Let’s go. I’m ready.” 

Mac took her hand and they walked out into the living room. Harm was waiting 
and the three of them met the rest of their “family” and they were on there way.

End Part 4

Part 5

Two weeks after the funerals

Mac sat in her office, playing with her engagement ring when a knock on the 
door broke her thoughts. “Enter.” She replied. She looked up and saw Harriet 
in the doorway. She smiled. “Hey, what’s up?”

Harriet smiled softly and sat down in the chair in front of Mac’s desk. “Oh, 
nothing much. We haven’t talked much lately. I was just wondering how the 
wedding plans were going. “

Mac groaned. “They’re going. Slowly but surely. I just… I don’t know. I did 
some research and the wedding of my dreams would keep me in debt till I was 
a 100.”

Harriet closed the folder Mac was flipping through. “What’s the wedding of 
your dreams?”

Mac smiled. “You’ll laugh. Everyone would think it was silly. I mean, I haven’t 
even told Harm yet.”

“Colonel, you’re babbling.”

Mac sighed. “I was watching weddings of a lifetime once, a long time ago. And 
that gave me the idea. Then, the other night, Chloe and I were having a Disney 
marathon. When we got to Cinderella, that just cemented it. My dream is to get 
married at Cinderella’s castle at Disney World. I know it’s dumb. But Cinderella 
has always been my favorite fairy tale. I want to get married at the Disney 
Wedding Pavilion.” Mac released a wistful sigh. “Harriet, it’s so beautiful. 
It overlooks the “seven seas” and Cinderella’s Castle. It’s breath taking. And 
As the bride and groom kiss for the first time, fireworks go off over the castle. 
It was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. But its also $55,000 dollars.” She 
sighed. And I have to get my dress, and pay for rooms at the Disney resort. 
Planning a wedding is too expensive.”

“Mac, I understand.”

Mac looked up. “No offense, Harriet, but you don’t. Your family is rich. They can 
afford the wedding of your dreams. My family is myself and Uncle Matt. And he’s 
in prison. Oh God,” she said, a thought coming to her, “Who is going to give me 
away.” She dropped her head to her folded arms. “Maybe we can elope.”

Harriet smiled. “Mac, you’ll be fine. You’ll figure something out.” She sighed. 
“Not to put MORE pressure on you, but have you even began to look for a dress yet.”

The muffled cry was her answer. Harriet couldn’t help but grin. “Look at me.” 
Mac lifted her head and looked at her friend. “Let’s get all of us girls together 
tonight and go start looking. Trying on beautiful dresses will cheer you up. And 
make you remember why you wanted a big wedding.”

Mac looked up and nodded. “Yeah, I guess that could be fun. I’ll call Bobbie and 
Syd, and lets meet at my apartment at 6:00.”

Harriet smiled. “Sounds good.” She walked out of the office, shutting the door 
behind her. Once she was gone, Mac picked up the phone and called her bank.

“Hello, this is Sarah MacKenzie… I’m fine, how are you…. That’s wonderful. 
Congratulations….I was wondering about getting a loan…. I’m getting married 
soon and its going to be more expensive then I ever imagined…. Thank you very 
much. Ok… Yes ma’am. Just fax the info to my office.” She gave her the info and 
hung up. Waiting for the information to come through, she grabbed an empty 
folder from her desk and marked it, “wedding”. 

***


Once at home, Mac set her files on the kitchen table and went to change clothes. 
She put on a snug gray t-shirt and a pair of faded jeans. The doorbell rang, and 
she crawled out from under the bed to answer it. She opened the door and saw 
Harriet smiling at her. “Hey. I’ll be just a second. I can’t find my shoes.” 
She went back to her room, continuing the search for her silver and white adidas’. 
“Found ‘em.” She went into the living room, quickly tied them and sat down on the 
couch beside Harriet. They waited a few minutes and Sydney and Bobbie were at the 
door. Mac smiled, grabbed her purse and keys. “Ladies, lets roll.”

They went out to Harm’s SUV and climbed in. At work, after Harriet suggested 
going shopping, Harm and Mac switched cars, so they could all fit in one. Once 
they got to the mall, they went into a very pretentious bridal shop. Once she 
saw bridesmaids dresses, as well as wedding gowns, Mac realized she had 
forgotten something. 

“Hey, you guys, I have a question for you. Harriet has already agreed to 
be my maid of honor. Chloe is one of my bridesmaids. Will you two be 
bridesmaids also?”

Sydney and Bobbie each gave Mac a warm hug. “I’d love to.” Sydney said.

“Me too.” Bobbie said.”

Mac walked around the store, browsing some of the displayed gowns. She stopped 
and gasped as she came to one. “Oh my…” She trailed off and stood back to 
admire the dress. “You guys, over here.”

Her friends joined her and stared at the dress. It was stunning. “Oh Mac,” 
Harriet said, “It’s beautiful.”

The dress was absolutely stunning. It was satin and had a fitted bodice, with 
tiny pearls edging the top. The skirt was very full and had the same line of 
pearls at the bottom. It was simple. Classy. But gorgeous.

“Harm is going to die when he see’s you in that.” Bobbie said.

The owner of the store noticed the ladies drooling over the dress and came 
over to check on them. “Is there something I can help you ladies with?” She 
asked.

Mac tore her eyes away from the dress and looked at the older woman. “I was 
just admiring this dress.”

She smiled. “When is the big day?”

“We haven’t set a date yet. I was almost ready to elope when a friend told 
me to go look at dresses. It’d make me remember why I wanted a big wedding. 
And I want to wear this dress to my wedding.”

“I want you to look at the veil I love with this dress.” She pulled Mac over 
to a section of head pieces. She handed her a darling pearl and diamond tiara. 
“I just think this is lovely. And if you wear your hair pulled back, this 
clips into it.” She then showed her a beautiful, long piece of white lace. 
It had tiny pearls edging it and the lace was glittery. “You would look lovely.” 

Mac looked over at the dress, and at the tiara and lace in the woman’s hand. 
“When can I start my fittings?”

She smiled and walked over to her office. She pulled a large leather planner out 
of her desk and flipped through the pages. “I can fit you in next week at 6:00.”

“Great.” Mac said with a smile. She would find some way to have the wedding of her 
dreams.

***


Mac returned to her apartment and unlocked the door. She threw her purse on 
the table and was taking her shoes off when Harm came in.

“Mac, we need to talk.” He said. She smiled and then the smile faded as she 
noticed her ’wedding’ folder in his hand.

“Harm, I am not discussing this.”

“Yes we are. You are not taking out a loan to pay for OUR wedding.”

She sat down on the couch after pulling the file from him. “Harm, we agreed 
on a traditional wedding. Part of tradition is that the brides family pays 
for everything.”

“That’s right. Bride’s family. I am part of your family.”

“Not legally.”

He groaned. “Oh, so its okay for us to tell everyone that we are already 
a family, and for us to live together with Chloe like a family, but when 
your ‘family’ wants to help pay for OUR wedding, you refuse.”

She sighed. “Harm, no. I will find some way to do this on my own.”

He took her hands in his. “Baby, don’t you see that you don’t have to anymore. 
You’re not alone. You have a fiancé, a child who is almost like a daughter to 
us. You have a man and woman who think of you as a daughter. Mac, this is the 
only wedding my mom will ever be a part of. She wants to help. She wants to be 
there for you, just as much as she wants to be there for me. And she wants to 
help with all of it.” Harm sighed. “My parents are very wealthy. They could 
pay for a wedding the size of Princess Diana & Prince Charles without even 
checking their account balance. Hell, they could pay for a wedding like that, 
never work a day again in their whole lives and still live in the lap of 
extreme luxury. My mom wants to put some of her money to a good use.”

Mac looked at him. She almost started to cry. “Harm, the wedding I want, it 
isn’t exactly cheap. And you may not agree to it anyways.”

He smiled. “Sarah, I don’t care if we have a ceremony at Beltway Burgers, 
as long as the end result is you becoming my wife. Now. Tell me about how 
we’re going to get married.”

“I want to get married at Disney World.” She looked at his surprised face 
and continued. “I saw the wedding if my dreams on ‘Weddings of a Lifetime’ 
once. And the other night, when Chloe and I watched Cinderella, it just made 
it all the more obvious of what I want. I want to get married at the Disney 
Wedding Pavilion. Their chapel looks over the Seven Seas Lagoon and Cinderella’s 
Castle. When the Bride and Groom kiss for the first time, Fireworks go off over 
the Castle. And the Bride arrives to the chapel in a glass carriage.” She was 
going on like an excited little girl. “And they have a porter bring the rings 
on a glass slipper on a red velvet pillow. They provide the flowers, music, 
food, everything. Well, except for accommodations. But it’s just so expensive. 
And it doesn’t include invitations either.”

“Mac, how much.”

She bit her lower lip, and got prepared for him to tell her ‘no way in hell.’ 
“It’s $55,000.”

He smiled. “Honey, please let mom and Frank help. This would be a drop in the 
bucket. Please Mac. Mom wants this almost as much as you do.”

She leaned in and kissed him. “Okay. I’ll let your mom help.”

He smiled and bounced up from the couch and grabbed the phone. After a few 
minutes, “Hey, mom… she said she would let you help. And oh my God, are you 
going to love the wedding she wants.”

“Harm, put my daughter on the phone.” Trish demanded.

Harm smiled and he handed Mac the phone. “Hello Trish.”

“Hello, Darling. So, when am I going to help my daughter plan this dream 
wedding?”

A tear rolled down her cheek. “Anytime you want mom.”

A similar tear rolled down Trish’s cheek. “How about I come down to DC and 
we work from there.”

Mac grinned. “Actually, we have to be in Orlando to plan the wedding.”

“Huh?”

She smiled. “I’ll explain when you get here. I love you, Trish. Give Frank 
my love as well.” She listened for a minutes. “I will. Thanks. Ok. Bye.” 
She hit the end button on the phone and handed it back to Harm. “Mom sends 
her love.” Harm smiled, and took Mac in his arms. 

“I love you Sarah.”

“I love you too, Harm.”


End Part 5

Did ya like it! If so, feedback please!


First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage 

Sequel to Hotel Bora Bora

Tsarina Smith

I DON’T OWN ANYTHING EXCEPT FOR A BLUE HONDA!

Part 6

Mac looked at the clock for what must have been the millionth time. 
Then, finally, she heard the doorbell rang. She sprung from her position 
on the couch and answered the door. She smiled and hugged the woman on the 
other side.

“Mac, darling,” Trish said, “It’s so great to see you.”

Mac smiled. “It’s great to see you too. I’ve missed you.”

Trish walked into the apartment. “I love what you and Harm have done with 
this place.” She took her coat off and placed it over a chair. “Where is my girl?”

“Chloe is with a friend of hers. Some boy asked her out tonight and Heather is 
helping her pick out what she’s going to wear.” Mac checked her watch. “They should 
be back soon. Chloe is so excited to see you. She wants to get this wedding rolling 
more then any of us.” As if on cue, Chloe and a pretty young blonde came running in.

Chloe saw Trish and ran up to her. “Trish!” She squealed. “It’s so good to see you. 
I’ve missed you.”

Trish smiled and stroked her head. “I’ve missed you too, darling.” She pulled away, 
and looked at Heather. “Hi, I’m Trish.”

Heather smiled. “I’m Heather. Chloe and I have a bunch of classes together at school.”

Chloe looked at Trish. “Trish is kinda my grandma, but not really. She’s Harm’s mom. 
Her and Mac are working on the wedding this weekend.”

“Thank goodness.” Heather grinned. “All Chloe talks about is her awesome big 
sister Mac and the ‘bodacious’ Harm Rabb. And now that y’all are engaged, it’s 
even worse.” 

“Hey!” Chloe said. 

“Love ya, Chlo.” Heather said.

“Mmm-hmm.” Chloe reached into the bag and pulled out her stuff. “Mac, this is 
what I’m wearing tonight.” She held up a pair of gray pants, and a black ¾ length 
shirt. “I thought this would look cute with my black boots, and maybe one of your 
silver necklaces.” She looked at Mac with a pleading look.

“No prob, honey. Just wear whichever one you want.” 

Chloe ran to Mac and hugged her tightly. “You’re the best.” She turned to Heather. 
“Come on. Lets go in my room.” The girls grabbed their bags and disappeared into 
Chloe’s room.

“That is one remarkable little girl.” Trish said. 

Mac nodded and smiled. “She is.”

***


Harm got home later that night. Right before Chloe’s date was to arrive. “Harm, 
please don’t give him the third degree.” She pleaded.

He looked at her with an innocent expression on her face. “Would I do that?”

“Yes.” Trish, Chloe & Mac all answered in unison. 

“Come on, Harm.” Trish said. “You used to interrogate the hell out of my dates 
when you were a little boy.”

Mac grinned. “Likewise. May I bring up Dalton, Sokel and any other man I 
looked at?”

Harm grabbed her and kissed her. “That’s because I was in love with you, and 
I didn’t want to see you with anyone else. “ He kissed her softly and released 
her.

Just then the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it.” Chloe said adamantly. She opened 
the door and welcomed in a young, very good looking boy. 

Mac walked over to him. “Hey Charlie. I’m Mac. It’s nice to meet you.”

He shook her hand. “It’s nice to meet you ma’am.”

Chloe smiled and looked at the other people in the room. “Charlie, this is 
Mac’s fiancé Harm and this is his mom Trish. Trish is here helping Mac plan 
the wedding.”

He smiled. “It’s nice to meet all of you.” He looked up at Harm unsurely. 

Harm grinned. “So, Charlie. What do you have in mind for this evening?”

He swallowed nervously. “Well, sir, my older brother Daniel and his girlfriend 
Stacey are waiting downstairs. They’re taking us to the movie and then they’re 
picking us up, and taking us to dinner, and then we’ll be bringing Chloe home.”

“And what time will Chloe be getting home?”

Chloe rolled her eyes and looked at her young, nervous date. “Well, sir, the 
movie ends at 9:15, and then depending on how long dinner takes, sometime before 
11:00. If that’s okay with you sir.”

Chloe interrupted. “That’s fine with him. Right Harm.” She shot him a look saying 
he was dead if he acted like a jerk much longer. “Harm, we don’t want to keep 
Daniel and Stacey waiting. May we go please?”

Mac stood up and put her hand over Harm’s mouth. “Yes, you may go.” Then she 
removed her hand and went to kiss Chloe’s forehead. “Be good, have fun, and be 
careful.”

“We will.” Charlie said. He smiled a grateful smile at Mac, helped Chloe with 
her black leather jacket and they left. 

Harm frowned. “I don’t like him.”

Mac rolled her eyes. “Harm. Don’t start. And if you plan on acting like this 
with our children, the wedding is off.”

“Oh come on Mac. Dad’s should be protective of their little girls. And don’t 
tell me that when our son wants to go out with some senior girl at his high 
school when he is a sophomore, you’re not going to pitch a fit.”

She frowned. “But that’s different. Girls are manipulative. They’ll only 
hurt our son.”

“And what about what some guy could do to our daughter. What if she goes 
out with a guy like Dalton. Or Me. Or Keeter.” He shuddered and looked at 
her.

“And what about when our son starts dating someone like Singer. You don’t 
think I’m going to be protective.”

Trish stepped between them. “Ok. Whoa. I haven’t even got to see the two 
of you get married yet and you’re already discussing the dating lives of 
your children. God help us all.”

They realized the absurdity of the conversation and started laughing. He 
reached for her and pulled her close to him. “You sure you want to marry 
me, Marine?”

She smiled. “Wild horses couldn’t keep me away.”

He leaned in to kiss her pulling her even closer to him. Trish sighed 
and grabbed her coat. “Ok, I think we’ve done all we can today. Don’t 
forget we’re taking the jet down to Orlando tomorrow.” She smiled as 
she watched them, still kissing. “I’m going home to my husband.”

***


Later that evening, Mac lay in Harm’s arms, waiting for Chloe to get 
home from her date. “God, can you imagine our kids.” She said quietly.

Harm softly ran his hand up and down her bare arm. “Yeah. I can. Our 
daughter is as beautiful as her mother. She has long brown hair. It curls 
at the ends.” Mac smiled as he talked. She could see this perfect picture. 
“She has your eyes. They are every bit as easy to get lost in. And she has 
me wrapped around her finger.”

“And our son?” She asked.

Harm smiled. “Our son is the opposite of her. He is just like me. He looks 
like me. Only he has your coloring. Both kids have your coloring. He’s tall 
and strong, and protective of his sister. He’s got you just as wrapped as 
Caroline has me.”

Mac pulled her self out of his embrace and propped herself on her elbows. 
“Caroline?” She asked.

Harm smiled. “Not after Caroline Imes. I want out kids to be named after 
people important to us. But not like, obvious. Caroline is my moms middle name, 
and Nicole which is Harriet‘s middle name. I was thinking Caroline Nicole. If 
that’s okay with you I mean.”

She smiled. “It’s a beautiful name. I had the same idea actually, for our 
sons name. William for my uncle’s middle name. And Robert for Frank’s middle 
name, as well as for the Robert family.” She looked at him. “Our kids. Chloe 
Alexis, Caroline Nicole and William Robert.” She kissed him softly.

He sat up, pulling her with him. “Speaking of Chloe, there’s something we 
need to discuss. At her dad’s will reading, we were named her guardians. 
Well, you were. And I was thinking, if its okay with Chloe, if we could 
adopt her once we were married.”

Mac looked at him, wide eyed. Then she smiled. “Harm, I love you so much.”

“I love you too.” He smiled. “For all of our purposes, she is our daughter. I 
just want to make it legal. If she wants, I’d like for her to take my- our last 
name.”

She kissed him again. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” he leaned and kissed her, but a key turning in the 
door made them make the kiss short. They both jumped out of the bed and 
ran to get the details on the date.

Harm slid to a stop in front of her. “Well.” He said. “How was it. He 
didn’t try anything did he?”

Chloe smiled. “No, dad, he didn’t.” The smile dropped from her face and 
harm’s mouth dropped open. “Oh Harm, I’m so sorry. I didn’t me----” She 
ran into her bedroom, leaving Mac and Harm staring at each other.

Mac put her hand on his arm. “I’m gonna go talk to her. I’ll be right back.” 
She walked to the door and quietly knocked. “Chlo.” She said gently.

“Come in.”

Mac opened the door and saw Chloe curled up in a ball on the bed. Mac 
sat down beside her and began to play with her hair. “Chloe, it’s okay 
to love Harm like a dad.”

She sniffled. “I know. And I know daddy would want that. For me to be 
happy with you and Harm. But I feel guilty for moving on so fast.”

Mac pulled her up and into her arms. “Chloe, sweetheart, you have no 
reason to feel guilty. You loved you dad. You loved him so much. And 
you always will. When God made us, he gave us a memory. And you can 
keep your memories forever. And you can take your dad with you wherever 
you go. You can carry him with you in you memory, and in your heart. 
Chloe, he can be there always if you want him there. And Harm will be 
there always if you want him there, too.”

She pulled away from Mac. “So, it’s okay with you guys if I call you 
mom and dad?”

Mac let a tear fall down her cheek. “Chloe, I’d love that more then 
anything else in the world.”

Chloe hugged Mac again. “I love you, mom.”

Mac sniffed. “I love you too, honey. “ She pulled back, wiped the tears off 
of the girls face, and then called for Harm. He timidly walked in.

“Everything okay in here?”

Chloe got up and walked over to him. “Harm, I had a really good dad. He 
was awesome. But he’s gone. And he would be happy that someone as great 
as you was taking care of me now. I’ll never forget my daddy, but he’s 
not here anymore. And you are. And since I don’t think he’d mind, would 
it be okay if I called you dad?”

Harm grabbed her and hugged her. “I’d love that more then anything else 
in the world.” Once they pulled apart, “Mac did you tell her what we were 
talking about before she got home?”

She shook her head. “That’s why I called you in here. Chloe, sit.” Mac 
sighed deeply. “Chloe, after we get married, we would like to legally 
adopt you. Make you, Chloe Madison Rabb. Would that be okay with you?”

Chloe smiled. “You guys want to adopt me? You really want me as a daughter?”

Mac brushed the hair off of her face. “More then anything else in the world.”


***


Early the next morning, Mac, Chloe, Harriet, Sydney, Bobbie and Trish were on 
Frank’s jet, headed towards Orlando, where they had an appointment with the 
Disney wedding coordinator. Harm, Bud and Turner were watching TV, having a 
beer when they got a knock on the door. Harm got up to answer it. “Admiral, 
what are you doing here?”

AJ looked anxious about something. “Harm, may I speak to you in private please?”

Harm nodded. “Yeah, come on in. We can talk in the bedroom. He looked at his 
friends. “This shouldn’t take long.” he led the Admiral into his and Mac’s 
bedroom and shut the door. His older friend wandered around the room. He 
picked up a framed photograph of the two of them.

“You two are a beautiful couple.” 

“Thank you, sir. But I’m sure that’s not why you came over. Is everything okay?”

AJ sighed. “Harm, you know both you and Mac can’t continue working at JAG.”

Harm nodded. He knew sooner or later this talk was going to happen. “Yes sir. 
I am aware of that.”

AJ looked at Harm. “Have you two discussed at all who is going to be the one to 
leave?”

He sighed. “Not really. I always assumed I would do it. JAG has always meant more 
to her then it has to me. After I found my father, the military lost a lot of 
its desire. Mac still loves it. A part of her lives for it.”

AJ nodded. “Harm, Mac is a wonderful officer. And as much as I admire and 
respect you, I hoped it would be her that stayed.” He stopped for a minute 
and looked at the Marine Greens hanging on the closet door. “Harm, Mac is 
about to be promoted again.”

Harm looked at him in surprise. “That’s wonderful.”

AJ was glad he was genuinely happy. “She’ll be the youngest person ever to 
reach the rank of full colonel. And the only woman who has ever made it that 
far.”

Harm couldn’t stop smiling. He was so proud of her. There was no way in hell 
he would let her leave JAG.

“There’s something else, Harm.” The younger man looked at him and nodded 
for him to continue. “After the trip to Bora Bora, when Syd and I began to 
concentrate on each other and the wedding, I realized I was finally content. 
I was happier then I had ever been, and for once, my career had nothing to 
do with my happiness. After talking about it with Sydney, I realized the 
military was no longer the most important thing in my life. I’m not getting 
younger Harm. I have went well above and beyond my call of duty.” He smiled. 
“And now I just want to spend my golden years with the woman I love.”

“You’re retiring.” Harm said simply.

AJ nodded. “yes. I am. And they have chosen Mac as my replacement.”

Harm’s mouth dropped. “Oh my… My Sarah is going to be the JAG? My Sarah, the 
first female JAG. The youngest JAG ever. I am so proud of her.” His eyes filled 
with tears of joy for his fiancé.

The Admiral smiled. He was so grateful Harm was happy for her. If he had pitched 
a fit and grew sullen, they would have all been in trouble. “When the SecNav told 
me that she was the leading candidate, I was shocked. Her being a woman and after 
all the shenanigans you two have pulled over the years, it was definitely a 
surprise. But no one deserves it more then she does.”

Harm nodded. “Sir, when is this going to happen?”

He sighed. “I plan on promoting the Colonel on Monday at a mandatory staff meeting. 
Then, I’ll formally announce your engagement, and announce you will be the one 
leaving JAG. I will then announce my leaving and announce that Mac will be the 
replacement. I’ll work for 60 days, and then the place is hers.”

“I’m gone when you go.” Harm said. 

“That’s a good plan. Any idea on what you want to do?”

Harm nodded. “Actually, yeah. In Bora Bora, Bobbie told us she was planning on 
running for governor. After we announced our engagement, she knew one of us 
would have to leave. That’s when she suggested me being her running mate. Its 
crazy, me in politics. But it could be interesting.” 

AJ smiled. “I think its wonderful.” He stood up. “I have to go. I have a meeting 
with someone about the wedding next week. Harm, don’t reveal a word of this to 
anyone.”

“I wouldn’t spoil this for Mac for anything in the world.” He smiled and opened 
the door, the two men walking out. The admiral said his goodbyes to the men and 
left.

“What was that about?” Turner asked.

Harm grinned. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

End part 6

Part 7

Monday morning couldn’t come soon enough for Harm. He was so excited for his 
fiancé. She had no idea how things were about to change. On the ride to work, 
she talked happily about wedding plans. His mother was almost as excited as 
she was. They and the Disney woman had talked and planned for hours. They 
hadn’t gotten home untill late, and she had been too tired to talk then, so 
they were talking now. Seeing this look on her face, harm wished for a 
completely different reason that he had married her years ago. Once they got 
to the JAG parking lot, Harm got out, went over to open her door, and they 
entered the building hand in hand.

Once they were inside, Tiner rushed over to them. “Commander, the Admiral 
needs to see you in his office ASAP.” Harm smiled slightly and lifted Mac’s 
hand to his lips for a kiss. 

“I’ll see you later.”

Mac smiled and walked off to her office. Harm followed Tiner to the Admiral’s 
office and sat down in the chair across from his desk. “Is something wrong sir?”

“The meeting is at 9:00am. You haven’t said anything to her, have you?”

Harm shook his head. “No sir.” 

“Good.” He paused. “Dismissed.”

Harm stood, saluted and walked out of the office. He quickly checked 
his watch. It was 8:30. 

9:00am


“Admiral on deck!” Tiner yelled. The crowded bullpen fell silent and 
watched as the Admiral walked to the front of the room.

“At ease.” AJ commanded. He looked around the room. “I have several 
announcements to make.” He sighed and looked over at Harm and Mac. “I’m 
sure as most of you know, Harm and Mac are engaged to be married. I’m 
also sure that most of you know, that married officers can’t serve in 
the same chain of command. I spoke to Rabb this weekend and he informed 
me that he would be the one leaving. Commander Rabb, would you come up 
here please?”

Harm walked up the Admiral’s side. “It’s been wonderful working with you 
all these years. It was a very tough decision. But JAG has always meant more 
to Mac then to me. When we were all in Bora Bora a few months ago, Congresswoman 
Latham decided to run for Governor. A few weeks ago, she asked me if I would 
consider being her running mate. I have accepted.”

The Admiral smiled at him and looked at Mac. “I was glad to hear that 
Harm was the one leaving. Because if he stayed, his fiancé would outrank 
him.” Mac’s mouth dropped open. “Mac, will you come up here please?”

In shock, she moved up to the front, to the other side of the Admiral. “Sir?”

He smiled. “Mac, your bravery in Indonesia so long ago got the ball 
rolling towards this. It finally went through.” He handed a small jewelry 
box to Harm. “Commander, will you do the honors?”

Harm smiled and gladly did as he was told. Then he snapped the jewelry box 
shut. He leaned over and gave her a soft kiss. “Congratulations Sarah.”

Mac started to walk away, when the Admiral grabbed her arm. Freeze. I 
have a few more announcements.” He sighed. “Serving with you all has been 
a great honor and a great privilege. But all good things must come to an end. 
In a month, I’ll be getting married. Sydney brings so much happiness to my life. 
And I want to spend the time I have left; I’m not getting any younger; with 
my wife. I’ve decided to retire.” A gasp went up through the crowd. He looked 
over at Mac. Suddenly, she realized what was about to happen. “This was the other 
reason I was immensely relieved that Harm was the one leaving. After I out in my 
request for resignation, the SecNav approached me. He gave me a file, telling me 
it was all the information on a candidate for the JAG position. All the file was 
missing was a letter of opinion by the persons CO. I opened the file and was 
pleasantly shocked to see the candidate was Sarah MacKenzie. The approval came in 
Friday afternoon.” He smiled at her. “Congratulations, Colonel Sarah MacKenzie.” 
The room went up in applause. AJ held up a hand. “One more thing.” He smiled again. 
“Mac is currently the chief of staff. Since, in 60 days, she will be the JAG, we 
need a new chief of staff. If she picked this person, she would most likely be 
accused of favoritism. So I picked the person. This officer has been a tremendous 
asset to this office. Harriet, will you please.”

Harriet looked at Bud, eyes wide and she walked up to the Admiral. She 
grabbed him in a hug. “Thank you sir.” She then pulled away and looked 
at Mac. The two women smiled and grabbed each other.

AJ watched them, and smiled, before he looked back at the crowd. 
“Thank you, everyone. Dismissed.”

***


Harm sat in his office, working on some paperwork, when Mac walked in. 
He stood up and saluted her. “Is there something I can help you with, 
ma’am?”

Mac smiled, and shut the door behind her. “You knew, didn’t you?”

Harm smiled. “Yeah. The Admiral stopped by the other day when you and mom 
and everyone else went to Orlando.” He looked at her. “You’re not mad are 
you?”

She smiled. “Harm, how could I be mad. I just found out that I’m the new 
JAG. A position I never thought in a million years I’d get.” She sat down 
on the edge of his desk. Harm silently thanked God that the blinds were 
closed as he placed his hand on her perfect leg. “I’m glad you decided to 
take Bobbie’s offer. You two will make a good team.”

He moved his hand from her leg, and stood up, so his arm could circle 
her waist. “We make a good team too.”

She smiled and leaned in to kiss him. “Yes we do.” She pulled back from 
the kiss. “I love you, Harm.”

He pulled her to him in a tight embrace. “I love you too, Sarah.”

A knock on the door pulled them apart. Mac hopped off of the desk. Harm 
yelled, “Enter.”

Bud, Harriet & Sturgis came in to the office. “Harm,” Sturgis started, 
“I called Bobbie, all six of us are going out to lunch. Come on. Lets go.”

Mac laughed. “We can’t just go.”

Bud smiled. “Yes we can, ma’am. The admiral already said we could. Come on. We 
have to celebrate.”

She smiled. “Ok. I have to get something from my office.”

Harm leaned in to kiss her. “We’ll meet you in the parking lot in five minutes.” 
He kissed her again and they went their separate ways. Exactly five minutes later, 
Mac met them all in the parking lot, She had a small pink gift bag in one hand, 
her purse in the other.

“Where are we going?” Harm asked, unlocking the door of his SUV for her.

Turner shrugged. “Bobbie has an obsession for the Olive Garden. Is that okay 
with y’all?”
“Perfect.” They both said in unison. Mac climbed in, Harm went over to the 
driver’s side and got in. They followed Turner to the popular Italian restaurant 
and met Bobbie. Bobbie looked at Mac, smiled and ran over to her. 

“Congratulations.”

Mac couldn’t stop smiling. “Thank you. I’m still in a bit of shock myself.”

“You deserve it. And hell, it gives me a running mate that makes it easier to 
get women votes.”

Harm smiled and leaned over to kiss her cheek. 

“Bobbie. Don’t start.”
“Harm, just promise me you’ll wear the dress whites in the campaign posters.”

Mac smiled and looked at her fiancé. “Please honey. I love the dress whites too.”

He leaned down to kiss her. “Ok. I’ll do it for you.”

Mac smiled as they parted. “See, Bobbie. If you ever have any trouble out of 
him, just call me.”

Harm and Turner rolled their eyes. “Women.”

Bud cleared his throat. “Um, guys, are we going to stand outside all day or 
are we actually going to eat.”

“I’m for eating.” Mac said. She brushed past Harm and walked inside. 

Harm followed. “What else is new.”

Their friends laughed and followed them inside. Once they were seated at 
their table, Mac pulled out the pink gift bag. “I was at that new children’s 
store, ‘Magic Windows’, the one in Phillips Place, and I saw these and I 
couldn’t resist.”

Harriet smiled brightly and pulled the tissue paper out of the bag. She 
gasped. “Mac, these are so adorable.” It was a tiny white hat, with little 
bees embroidered on it, and a matching pair of booties. 

Harm smiled. “And this.” He pulled a box, wrapped in pink paper out of 
his briefcase. He handed it to Harriet. “We had to get this too.” 

She pulled the lid off. “You guys should not have done this.” She pulled 
a tiny pink dress out of the box. “This is gorgeous.” The dress was pink. 
It had a layer of pink chiffon over the satin. There was a paler pink ribbon 
around the waist with the bow tied in the front. Harriet got up and went to 
hug Mac, and then kissed Harm on the cheek. She smiled. “Between you two, 
and my parents, our kids are always so well dressed.” An evil grin appeared 
on her face. “I can’t wait till you guys have kids.”

Harm and Mac exchanged a look.

Harriet gasped and all but screamed out, “Oh my God, Mac are you pregnant?”

Mac smiled. “No. But, we had a long talk with Chloe the other night, and 
we decided that we’re going to adopt her.”

“Oh, Mac,” Bobbie said, “That’s wonderful.”

Mac nodded. “She slipped up and called Harm ‘dad’ so we talked about 
it, and we asked if it would be okay if we adopted her and she was 
happy about the idea. “

“It is a great idea.” Bud agreed. He sipped his water. “For so long she 
was gypped out of a real family. Now she has you two. Things couldn’t be 
better.” He smiled. “And she’s the perfect age to baby sit.”

Mac laughed. She raised her glass and clinked it with Bud’s. “Amen to that.” 
She sipped her water and looked over at Harm. “Could life get any better?”

Harm smiled. “If you think life is great now, wait till I’m the Lt. Governor, 
we’re married and you’re the JAG.”

Mac shuddered. “The fact I’m actually going to be the JAG gives me chills.”

Harm smiled. “You deserve it, baby. I’m so proud of you.”


End Part 7

Part 8

“Sydney you are getting married in 5 minutes. What is the matter?”

“That’s just it. I’m getting married in 5 minutes. I have the right 
to go a little bit crazy.”

Trish grabbed her hand and turned her so that they were facing one another. 
“Syd, you’re beautiful. You have a handsome, successful man out there 
waiting to marry you. Get your shoes on, grab your flowers, and marry the 
man of your dreams.”

Mac sank to the couch, sitting beside Bobbie. “Harriet went crazy on 
her wedding day. Sydney is going crazy on hers. I’m sure my wedding day will
be a trip.”

Bobbie laughed. “Yeah, if Harriet and Sydney lost it, I can’t wait to see 
how you act when you get married.”

A knock on the door interrupted their reverie, and Chloe went to answer 
it. “Hey Danny.” She smiled at Sydney’s son. She had met him last night 
at the rehearsal and he seemed nice. He was going to walk his mom down 
the aisle. 

“Mom, you look beautiful.”

Sydney pulled away from Trish and walked over to her son. They shared a 
warm, loving embrace. Danny pulled back and took her hands in his. “Come 
on. My future stepfather is waiting.”

Trish smiled at her friend. “You ready?”

Sydney picked up her flowers. “I’m ready.”

***


AJ stood nervously at he alter. He turned to Harm. “Do you have the ring?”

Harm smiled. “Yes sir.” Suddenly, his breath caught in his throat. Harriet 
and Mac made their way down the aisle. He smiled at his fiancé. He couldn’t 
wait till she was wearing a long white dress and walking down the aisle 
towards him. Both her and Harriet looked stunning. Their gowns were soft 
peach. Mac’s was a long full skirt, with a halter style top. Harriet’s was 
more simple considering she had just given birth. The skirt was just as full, 
but there was no defining waist line. The top was sleeveless and at the 
shoulders, the straps began to narrow and tiny, thin straps crossed at her 
back. They both looked lovely. Harm turned and looked at Bud and smiled. 
Next Trish came down the aisle. It was weird for Harm to be in a wedding 
and the maid of honor be someone other then Mac. It was especially odd that 
person being his mother.

AJ’s eyes widened as he saw Sydney begin her descent down the aisle. 
She took his breath away. The gown was white beaded satin. The neck 
was high, and past the shoulders, the back was sheer white lace. The 
skirt was full, and featured a lovely beaded design. The long, full 
train featured the same embroidery. She looked stunning. Finally, her 
and Danny approached the aisle. He gently kissed his mothers cheek and 
stepped back, allowing her and AJ to join hands. 

“Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”

Danny smiled. “I do.” Sydney and AJ both smiled at him, and he took his 
seat next to Bobbie and Turner. 

“We are gathered her today to join this man and this woman in Holy matrimony.” 
He smiled at the bride and groom. 

***


“AJ & Sydney have told me that they would like to recite their own vows. AJ?”

AJ smiled. “Sydney, I just want you to know how much I love you. Being with 
you has made me happier then anything else in my life. And I can’t wait to 
spend the rest of my life with you. You mean more to me then anything else 
in the world, and I vow that I will do everything I can to bring you as much 
happiness as humanly possible. I love you Sydney.” He reached over to her and 
wiped a tear off of her cheek.

“If someone had told me years ago that I would fall in love, and marry again, 
I would have said that they were insane. But once I looked into your eyes, and 
felt your arms around me, I knew life would never be the same. We’ve definitely 
had our fair share of problems, but I never once stopped loving you. I’m glad 
you were persistent. And I’m glad you never gave up on us. I love you, AJ. And 
I’ll love you for the rest of my life.”
The minister smiled. “The rings please.” Sydney turned to Trish to get AJ’s ring, 
while Harm handed AJ Sydney’s ring. “AJ, repeat after me. ‘I AJ, take thee Sydney…”

“I AJ, take thee Sydney…”

“To be my lawfully wedded wife.”

“To be my lawfully wedded wife.”

“To have and to hold from this day forward.”

“To have and to hold from this day forward.”

“For better, or worse. For richer or poorer, in sickness & in health, 
to love & to cherish untill we are parted by death. This is my solemn vow.”

“For better, or worse. For richer or poorer, in sickness & in health, to 
love & to cherish untill we are parted by death. This is my solemn vow.” 
AJ slid the tiny band onto her finger. “I love you.” He whispered.

“Sydney, repeat after me.” The minister said. “I Sydney, take thee AJ…”

She smiled at him. I have this part down pat. “I Sydney, take thee AJ, 
to be my lawfully wedded husband. To have and to hold from this day forward. 
For better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness & in health, untill 
we are parted by death.” She accepted the band from Trish and slid it onto 
his finger. They twined their hands together and looked at the minister.

“By the power invested in me by the state of Virginia, I pronounce that 
you are man & wife. For those who God has joined together, let no one 
pull asunder.” He smiled at AJ. “You may kiss your bride.”

He lifted her veil and gently kissed her. Bud and Harm exchanged grins 
and whistled & hollered the way AJ had done at Bud & Harriets wedding. 
The couple pulled apart and proceeded back down the aisle.

***


Trish and Harm danced, the traditional dance between the best man and 
the maid of honor. Harm couldn’t keep his eyes off of Mac. She laughed 
as she danced with his stepfather.

“Harm, darling,” his mother started, “Your beautiful fiancé will be back 
in your arms soon enough. Enjoy dancing with your old mother for a moment.”

He kissed her cheek. “I love you mom.”

“I love you too.” She grinned. “The next time we dance, it best be at 
your wedding.”

Harm smiled. “Have you seen Mac’s dress yet? I overheard her say she’s 
found the one she wants.”

Trish nodded. “Harm, if you think she is breathtaking now, wait till 
you see her on your wedding day. You heart may very well stop.”

“I love her so much, Mom.”

“I know you do, darling.” She looked over and noticed Frank and mac 
dancing near them. Trish stopped moving and pulled out of her sons arms.

“Is everything ok, Mom?”

“It’s fine. I just think I would love to dance with that handsome man 
right there. You think you can take care of that lady he’s dancing with?”

Harm looked to where his mother was staring and smiled. “I think I can 
manage that.” At once, Frank took Trish in his arms and swirled her away 
from the kids. “Looks like my partner ditched me.” He smiled at her. “May 
I have a dance with the most beautiful woman here?”

“I’d be honored.” He pulled her close to him and rested her head on his 
shoulder. “It was a beautiful wedding, wasn’t it?”

He nodded. “It was.” He glanced over to where AJ & Sydney were dancing and 
laughing. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him this happy.”

“He’s in love. What do you expect.”

“I shouldn’t be surprised. Once we got together, I have never been happier. 
I love you, Sarah.”

She looked up and touched her lips softly to his. “I love you too.”

Suddenly, the tapping of a glass and the music stopping caused everyone to 
look up. “May I have everyone’s attention please.” AJ said. “I’d like to 
propose a toast. To my beautiful wife, who I love very much. And to my JAG 
family, who put up with me while we planned this thing. They should all get 
medals of bravery.” The crowd laughed. “But everything was worth it. I have 
never been happier in my life, and it’s thanks to Sydney. Its amazing what 
the love of a beautiful woman can do for a grumpy NAVY man. I love you Syd. 
And I hope that we are always as happy as we are right now.” The two of them 
clinked their glasses, sipped the ginger ale and gently kissed.

Harm looked at Mac. “He’s right you know. The love of a beautiful woman does 
wonders. It has for me anyways.”

She leaned in to kiss him. “Your love has done quite a bit for me as well.”

The rest of the reception was fairly calm. Bobbie caught the bouquet. Turner 
caught the garter. Harm had laughed and patted his friend on the back. Once 
AJ & Sydney left, the guest began to clear out. Harm, Mac and Chloe said their 
goodbyes to their friends and left shortly after the bride and groom. The three 
of them got back to the apartment and started to get settled in. Mac noticed 
the answering machine blinking. She hit play and listened.

“Hi, Sarah, this is Karen, the wedding coordinator. I checked on the dates you 
gave me for when you’d like to have the wedding. April 19-21 was the only weekend 
that we had available. I went ahead and booked you for it. If you’d like to cancel, 
just give me a call. Either way, call me tomorrow. 

Harm and Mac looked at each other. “Harm,” Mac started, “Its October. In 
six months, we’ll be married.”

He got up and kissed her softly. “These are going to be the longest six 
months of my life.”

End Part 8

Part 9

2 Months Later

Mac came in and dropped her bags on the floor. “Oh my God, I forgot why 
I hated Christmas shopping.” Chloe sank into the sofa beside her. 

“Aw, come on, Mom. It was fun!” 

Mac smiled. She loved it when Chloe called her mom. She wasn’t doing it 
all the time so when she did, it meant so much. “It’s so exhausting. But 
now I’ve got your shopping done, Harm’s done, Harriet & Bud’s done.”

Harm walked out of the bedroom. “Did I hear my name?”

Mac got up, smiled and gave him a warm hug. “Please. Us? Talk about you? 
Ha!”

Harm leaned over and tickled her. “Hey!”

She kissed him. “I’m just kidding.”

Chloe sighed. “Please.” She smiled and grabbed her bags and went into her 
room. 

Harm smiled as he watched her. “Baby, I bought something for you.”

Mac lit up. “Really. Well. Can I have it?”

Harm loved buying her little presents, She always lit up like a Christmas 
tree. He knew it was because of her childhood, and he tried his hardest to 
make up for it by spoiling her now. He went over to the Christmas tree and 
pulled out a small, elegantly wrapped box. He extended it to her. “Open it.”

Mac smiled and tore at the paper. She opened the box and pulled out an ornament. 
She lifted it gently and looked at it. Her eyes misted over as she read the 
delicate script. “Harm, this is beautiful.” 

He smiled. He had been at the mall, doing some shopping, and there was a 
booth selling special ornaments. He saw this one and had to get it for her. 
It was a frosted white bulb, adorned with gold glitter. On one side the was 
an angel, and in script on the other it said, “May God Bless this Family.” 
Beneath that in smaller letters, it read, “Our first Christmas 2002.” He 
cleared his throat. “I know we were dating last Christmas, but this is our 
first Christmas as a family. You, me and Chloe. “ He looked at her watery 
eyes and he brushed a tear off of her cheek. “Hey, what’s wrong? I didn’t 
mean to make you cry.”

“Harm,” She sniffed. “Nothing is wrong. I am so happy. Everything is perfect. 
I love you.” She walked over to the tree and gently hung the ornament from a 
high branch. She admired the tree for a moment and then turned to him. She 
leaned in to kiss him. 

He pulled her close to him, and then they parted. “I love you, too.”

***


Mac looked over her appearance in the mirror as she waited on Chloe to finish 
getting ready. “Harm, when are your mom & Frank coming in?” She grabbed a pair 
of earrings and threaded them through her ears. He walked over to her and 
wrapped his arms around her from behind. She loved it when he did this. He 
would just stand behind her, and hold her, looking at the image of the two of 
them. When they had first started dating, he did it all the time. 

“I love seeing you with me.” He had said.

She turned in his arms. She lightly kissed him and then pulled back to 
look at him. “You look very nice, Flyboy.” She reached up to straighten 
his tie.

He looked over her approvingly. “You look rather nice yourself.” He grinned. 
“Are you sure we have to go to the admi- um, AJ’s party?”

She laughed. “Yes, we do.” She kissed him. “We are going, and,” She kissed 
him again, “we are going to stay the WHOLE time.”

He groaned, and then sighed. “Chlo, come on!”

Chloe came out of her room, just as they came out of their room. “All right, 
all right.”

The little family left the apartment, and got in Harm’s SUV. He drove them 
over to AJ’s house where he and Sydney were hosting a Christmas party. They 
got out of the car and walked into the house. Sydney had done wonders with 
the house. It was beautifully decorated for Christmas. Harm greeted his host 
with a handshake and his hostess with a soft kiss on the cheek. Mac followed 
with a soft kiss to AJ’s cheek and a warm hug for Sydney. 

“How is the office?” AJ asked, with a somewhat sad smile on his face.

Mac smiled gently. “It’s fine, sir. We all miss you though.” She looked at 
Harm. “And you.” She looked back at AJ. “It’s definitely more calm and peaceful, 
though. I mean, we don’t have to worry about people firing guns in the courtroom.” 
She smiled at Harm, and her and AJ laughed at the look of pretend hurt on his 
face. “I love you, honey.”


***


Harriet, Sydney, & Mac sat on the sofa in the living room, playing with the 
newest member of the family. “I’d love for the SecNav to see the JAG talking 
to a baby like this.” Sydney said with a smile.

Harriet laughed. “Oh, that’s nothing. You should’ve seen the Admi- AJ 
a couple of years back. Chloe was home for a visit, AJ was a couple of 
months old, and the three of them were in his office. Chloe was painting her 
nails, and AJ was crawling around on the floor with my baby. And of course 
The SecNav came in, with Webb on his heels.” Sydney started laughing. “He 
outlawed children in JAG for about 2 months after that.”

***


Mac, Harm & Chloe walked into the apartment, sometime past midnight. Chloe 
leaned up to kiss Harm and Mac and she didn’t even whimper about having to 
go to bed. Harm crashed shortly afterwards. Mac couldn’t sleep. She sat on the 
floor, staring up at the tree. So many things were different this year. Last 
year was a nice holiday. She spent it with Harm. They went to the wall of 
course, and then afterwards, they took a red eye to Belleville. This year 
was different though. Tomorrow, Trish, Frank and Grandma Sarah would fly in. 
Then, they would all go to the Christmas Eve service at church. Then they’d 
come back to the house and open presents. Her first holiday as a part of a real 
family. As a fiancé, as a mother, as a daughter. She sighed wistfully and got up, 
walking towards the kitchen. She wished Matt could be here. Then everything would 
be beyond perfect. She grabbed a diet coke out of the fridge and went back to 
the tree. Harm’s big present wouldn’t be delivered till tomorrow. She knew he 
would love it, and she couldn’t wait to see his face when he got it. 

Harm stood in the doorway, watching Mac. He smiled and tiptoed over to 
her. “What-cha thinking about?”

She looked up and smiled. “I thought you were in bed.”

He sat down beside her. “I can’t sleep alone anymore. I need to in my arms 
to be able to sleep. He leaned against the couch. “Come here.” Mac smiled 
and moved. She sat in between his legs and he wrapped his arms around her. 
“What are you thinking about?”

She rested her head against his chest. “This is my first Christmas with a real family.”

“Are you happy?” He asked.

She nodded and craned her neck to look at him. “I’ve never been happier my 
whole life.” She looked back at the tree. “I can’t believe Chloe picked 
Winnie The Pooh wrapping paper.”

Harm laughed. Each of them had picked a different kind of wrapping paper for 
their presents to be wrapped in. Mac’s was navy blue and silver. Harm’s was a 
Christmas Snoopy in an airplane, and Chloe’s was Winnie the Pooh. “it’s cute.” 
He rubbed his hands down her arms. “Mac, this is everything I’ve ever wanted.” 
He smiled and kissed the top of her head. “It’s amazing how things change. A 
couple of years ago, the last year that we were really close, was the first 
year I met Chloe. I’ll never forget the look on your face when she mentioned 
the part about the truth or your fantasies.” Mac laughed. 

“Yeah. That was when Harriet was pregnant with AJ.” And even though he 
couldn’t see it, she scowled. “And that was the year you met Jordan.” 

He tightened his hold on her. “Everything went downhill from there.”

“I don’t know about that. Just a few months later we made the infamous 
baby deal.”

She looked up at him again. “And less then a month later, you left.”

He grimaced. “Yeah. But look at us now.” Harm leaned over and kissed her 
cheek. “I mean, it took us forever to get here. But now we’re here. And 
it’s more wonderful then I ever imagined.”

She pulled her self out of his arms and turned so she was facing him. “I 
love you so much. And this moment makes everything we went though worth 
it.” She looked at him and smiled. “I mean, this is perfect. Sitting here, 
holding each other, staring at the tree, talking about our daughter. Life 
couldn’t get any better then this.” 

He pulled her into a kiss and wrapped his arms tightly around her tiny 
waist. “Mac…” He whispered.

“Yeah.” 

“Have you ever made love underneath a Christmas tree?”

She pulled away from him. “Excuse me!”

He grinned. “Have you?”

She stared, open mouthed and shocked. “No.”

He made sure that he used the adorable little boy grin. She could never 
resist that. “You wanna?”

She grabbed a pillow from the couch and hit him with it. “Harmon Rabb Jr. 
You want to make love under this Christmas tree. The very tree where 
tomorrow night Chloe, your parents and grandmother will sit unwrapping 
presents.” She was shocked.

‘Yeah.”

“What if Chloe wakes up?”

“She won’t. She was half dead.”

Mac looked over at her room and back at his face. He was so adorable. And 
she couldn’t say no to him. “Lets do it.” She leaned into kiss him, and he 
gently pushed the two of them so she was laying down and he was on top. He 
gently began to kiss her and undress her. 

“I love you, Sarah.” He whispered.

She looked into his eyes. “I love you too.”

***


Mac opened the door and smiled as Sarah immediately pulled her into a hug. 
“Merry Christmas, darling.”

She hugged the old woman tightly. “Merry Christmas, Grandma.” They walked 
into the apartment, Trish & Frank following. Frank was struggling getting 
all the presents in, when Harm rushed to help him. Once they had put the 
gifts by the tree, Harm hugged his mother, and then his stepfather.

Trish had handed her son her coat and looked around the apartment. “Where’s 
Chloe?”

Mac smiled and settled on the sofa next to Harm. “She’s laving lunch with 
her boyfriends family, and then he’s coming over to have dinner with us.”

Frank smiled. “You mean my granddaughter is bringing her boyfriend over? 
This could be interesting.”

Mac and Trish laughed. “Darling, don’t.” Trish said. “The first night he 
came to pick Chloe up, Harm did an okay job of torturing them both.”

“I was glad I did it, though.” Harm said softly. Him and Mac twined their 
fingers and he looked up at his mother with a soft smile. “That was the 
first night she called me dad.”

The door opened and Chloe waltzed in, Charlie right behind her. She froze 
when she saw her family. “Grandma!” She squealed and ran over to Trish. She 
gave her a tight hug, before moving to Frank & then Sarah. Once she pulled 
back, she smiled at Charlie and then looked at her family. “Charlie, you 
remember Trish. This is my grandpa, Frank and my great grandmother, Sarah.”

He smiled nervously. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Chloe squeezed his hand and said, “Well, since the whole family is here, 
lets go.”

Mac stood up. “No. We can’t.”

Harm looked at her. He looked at Mac and his mother who were smiling at each 
other. “What’s going on.” Mac walked to the door and opened it. “Come on in.”

Harm turned to look at the door. “Sergei.” He gasped. He all but ran to the 
door and the two brothers embraced tightly. “Oh my God. How? Why?”

Sergei smiled. “Your beautiful Colonel.”

Harm pulled back and looked at Mac. “I love you. This is the best Christmas 
present I’ve ever had.” He walked over to her and kissed her warmly. Once 
they pulled away, he looked at Sergei. “There are some people you need to 
meet. “This is Chloe. Mac and I are in the process of adopting her. This 
is her *friend* Charlie.” Charlie and Chloe looked at Mac and rolled their 
eyes. “This is my Step dad Frank, and my mom. Trish.” Trish’s eyes filled 
with tears as she looked at her husbands other son. She walked over to him. 

“Its wonderful to meet you.” She gave him a soft kiss on his cheek and picked 
up his hand, and then Harms.”

Harm looked over at his grandmother, tears freely falling down her cheeks. 
She walked over to them. “Grandma, this is Sergei.” 

She approached him and looked at him. “I can see your father in you.”

He looked into the woman’s eyes and saw what he had never expected to see. She 
loved him. He looked at her uncertainly, and was a little surprised when she 
took him in her arms. Harm stood by Mac, His arms wrapped around her. Frank 
held Trish.

Trish looked at Sergei, in his grandmothers arms. This was her husbands son. 
Her sons half brother. And she owed it to her son, Sarah, Chloe, Mac, and 
most importantly, her beloved late husband to treat him as a member of the 
family. Once he and Sarah pulled apart, Trish took his hand. “Come on, lets 
go to church.”

***


After the service, they were piling into their cars, to go back to the 
apartment. Mac, Chloe, Charlie and Sergei began to walk over to the other 
cars they had taken, leaving Harm alone. 

“What’s going on?” He asked.

Mac stopped, and walked over to him. “You’re not going to the wall?”

He sighed. “I am. Will you go with me?”

She raised her eyebrows. “Serious. I want all of you to go with me. He’s 
not just mine. I’ve shared my heart. “Now its time I share my memories.” 
He looked at Frank who looked out of place. “Are you guys going to come?”

Frank looked at Sarah who smiled her agreement. “Lets go.”

***


Harm walked up to the wall, and gently touched his dads name. “Lt. Harmon 
Rabb Sr.” Mac touched Sergei’s shoulder and he slowly walked up to Harm. 

“Thank you.” He whispered.

Harm nodded and his eyes never left the marble.

Sarah looked at her grandsons and walked over to them. She took both of their 
hands and looked at the name on the marble. “I miss you, Darling.”

Mac, Trish and Frank looked at each other and then back at the wall. Frank 
leaned over and brushed a tear off of his wife’s cheek. Sergei and Sarah 
walked back over to the group. Both crying. Mac looked at harm, then at 
Chloe. She took Chloe’s hand. “Come on.”

They walked over to Harm. He knew it was Mac. He turned and grabbed her, 
and Chloe and crushed them in a hug. Then he looked back at the wall. “Dad, 
there are some people I want you to meet. I know I’ve talked about Mac to 
you a lot. And here she is. Sarah MacKenzie, my dad. Then he looked at Chloe. 
I love Mac. In a few months we’ll be married. But we don’t have to be married 
for you to have a granddaughter. Dad, this is Chloe. She started out as Mac’s 
“little sister.” She’s always been part of our family, only now, we’re adopting 
her.” He smiled at them and then at his dad’s name. “For so many years, I held 
on so tight to my memories of you. Only now, that’s not fair. I’m going to have 
a family. A real family. I want my daughter to know her grandfather. I’m ready 
to share you. I love you, dad. Merry Christmas.” He kissed his fingertips, and 
placed them on the name. Then he turned and looked at Mac. She wiped a tear 
from his eye. “Let’s go home.”

***


Harm & Mac shared a devious grin as they sat around the tree, opening presents. 
Suddenly a knock on the door disrupted them. “I’ll get it.” Harm said, jumping up. 
He looked out the peephole, then over at Mac. “Its your present.” Mac looked up, 
and smiled. She hopped up, and walked over to him. He opened the door.

Mac gasped. “Uncle Matt.” She whispered. He grabbed her in a tight hug. “I’ve 
missed you so much.”

Matt looked over her shoulder at Harm. “I’ve missed you too, Sarah.”

They pulled back. “Man. We’ve been doing a LOT of introductions tonight.” She 
smiled. “Uncle Matt, you remember Harm right?” Matt smiled.

“The Rose Garden Sailor.”

Everyone laughed. Mac looked at him and hugged him again. “This is his mom, 
Trish, Step dad, Frank, his grandma, Sarah, his brother, Sergei.” She looked 
at Charlie and Chloe. “This is Charlie, and this is our daughter Chloe.”

Matt smiled at the girl, and then looked at Mac. “Excuse me? I know I haven’t 
seen you in a while, but it hasn’t been 13 years.”

Mac laughed. “Chloe and I met in the “big sister, little sister” program. 
Her father died a few months ago and she came to live with us. We’re adopting 
her.”

Matt smile grew and he walked over to her. “Welcome to the family.”


End Part 9

Part 10

February 2003

“Mac, hold still.” The Dahlia, the seamstress said.

Mac sighed and tried to look in the mirror without pissing off the already 
frustrated seamstress. Harriet smiled. “Don’t worry, Sarah. The dress is 
beautiful, and you are going to be beautiful in it.”

She sighed and looked at her friend. Harriet, Chloe and of course, baby 
Maddie had been with her to every single fitting. The bridesmaids dresses 
were long done, as was Harriet’s maid of honor dress. All of the attention 
now was focused on the stunning wedding gown. “Its not that, Harriet.” She 
looked down at Dahlia. “The dress is gorgeous. Its just the fact that in 
two months, I’ll be married. Harm and I will be married. I’m going to be 
a wife. Again.” She whimpered. 

Harriet handed the baby to Chloe. “Mac is that that these EXTREMELY pre 
wedding jitters are for.” She glanced down at Dahlia, and then back at 
Mac. “Honey, Harm isn’t Chris. He loves you. He worships the ground you 
walk on. You two are going to be so happy together.”

Mac sighed. “I know. But I’m still scared. I have one failed marriage 
under my belt, I have one almost wedding under my belt, and now there 
is Harm. A man I have been in love with almost from day one. What if 
something bad happens this time too?”

“Dahlia, can we take five?” Harriet asked. Dahlia smiled and stood up. 

“I’ll be back in just a minute.”

Harriet watched her walk off. “Mac, what’s the real problem?”

Mac looked at her and started to talk. “I um…” She began to cry. 
“I had a doctors appointment the other day.”

“Oh God, Mac,” Chloe said, “You’re not sick are you?”

Mac shook her head. “No sweetie. I’m fine. And before either of you 
suggest it, I’m not pregnant either. That’s the problem. I thought I 
was pregnant and the doctor did some tests and I… I may not be able 
to have children.”

“What?” Harriet gasped.

Mac cleared her throat and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. 
“When I was in Bosnia, I was shot in the abdomen. They thought everything 
would be ok, but it turns out now there was some kind of infection. I don’t 
remember everything, but they said there is a possibility I wont be able to 
have kids.”

“Mac, have you told Harm yet?” Chloe asked.

“No.” She bit her lip. “Once he finds out, I don’t think he’ll want to marry 
me. He wants children almost as much as I do.”

Harriet took her hands. “Mac, he loves you so much. He won’t care.”

“Yeah.” Chloe said. “You guys can adopt. There are plenty of babies out there 
that need parents. You guys can adopt a baby.”

Harriet looked at Chloe. “Chlo, honey, why don’t you spend the night with 
me tonight. Give Mac a chance to talk to Harm.” Chloe nodded. “Mac, you 
have to tell him.” Harriet said. “I know its not going to change anything 
he feels for you, but he deserves to know.”

Mac nodded and the conversation ended as Dahlia came back in. “Everything ok?” 
She asked.

***


Mac unlocked the door to the apartment and walked slowly inside. Harm stepped 
out of the kitchen and kissed her gently. She pulled back. 

“Honey, what’s wrong?”

Mac took his hand and led them to the sofa.

“Where’s Chloe?” He asked.

“She’s spending the night with Harriet and Bud. We need to talk.”

Harm looked in her eyes. He died at that moment. “You’re calling off the 
wedding aren’t you.” 

She hook her head. “No, but you probably will.”

He frowned, and she took that as her cue to start. “Harm, the other day, 
I thought maybe I was pregnant.”

“But that’s not possible. We’ve used protection, and you’re on the pill.”

She put her finger on his lips. “I’m not. And I know we wanted to wait 
till we were married a while before we had a baby.” She swallowed. “We 
may be waiting forever.”

Harm’s eyebrows almost disappeared into his scalp. “Honey, what the hell 
are you trying to say?”

“I may not be able to have children.” She looked in Harm’s eyes, and 
instead of seeing disgust or anything negative in his eyes, she saw 
love. And support. That gave her the strength to continue. “When I 
was in Bosnia, I was shot in the stomach. At the time, they removed 
the bullet, and everything worked out. When I thought I was pregnant, 
I went to the doctor. When they did a blood test, they noticed I wasn’t 
pregnant, but they also noticed an abnormality. They did some more tests, 
and it turns out that I had an infection from the surgery. It could prevent 
me from having a baby.” Tears began to fall from her face.

“Honey, why do you think this would make me call off the wedding?”

She looked up. She closed her eyes as he leaned over and wiped the tears 
off of her cheeks. “Harm, you want children so badly. I don’t want to keep 
you from that.”

“We can adopt.”

“You don’t want a baby of your own? One that looks like you, and your father?”

He picked up her hand. “Sarah, we have Chloe. We can adopt other children. 
I can live without a biological child. But I can’t, and I WON’T live without 
you. Sarah MacKenzie, you are my reason for living. There is no way I would 
back out of this wedding.”

The tears fell from her cheeks in a frenzied rush now. “Oh God, Harm. I love 
you so much.”

He pulled her to him, and held her tightly against his chest. “I love you 
more then you will ever know. Everything will be okay. I promise, it will 
be okay. We’ll get through this together. Like we get through everything.” 
He pulled back and kissed her forehead, and then closed her in his arms again.

***


Valentines Day

Harm leaned over an gently kissed his sleeping fiancé. She moaned in 
her sleep, and a slight grin appeared on her face. It had been a week since 
she told him she may not be able to have kids and they were doing much better. 
He leaned over to his nightstand and picked up a red rose he had bought for her 
on his morning run. He glided the rose over her cheek, over her lips, untill she 
finally began to stir. “Happy Valentines day, Angel.”

She opened her eyes and smiled. “Happy Valentines day.” She pulled him down 
to her for a kiss. She began to get up, when Harm gently pushed her back down. 
“Harm, what are you doing.” She sighed as he began to kiss her slender, sweet 
throat. “Baby, I have to get ready for work.”

He stopped kissing her long enough to say, “Call Harriet and tell her you’re sick.”

“Oh, right. I get sick on Valentines Day. Harriet will see through that one in 
a nano second.”

Harm smiled. “Oh well. It was worth a shot.”

Mac grinned and leaned over to kiss him. “I have to get ready for work.” She 
hopped out of bed and walked over to the bathroom. Once she had undressed and 
the water was running, she stuck her head out the bathroom door. “Baby, since 
it is Valentines day, you’re welcome to join me.”

Not needing to be asked twice, he hopped out of bed and all but ran to the shower. 

***


Harriet all but floated around the office this morning. When Mac got in, and the 
two settled in her office to go over some things, Mac couldn’t help but ask what 
had her so happy.

Harriet looked at Mac and all but burst with the details. “Well, I have to tell 
you, because we were hoping you and Harm would do us a favor.” When Mac nodded, 
she continued. “Bud surprised me this morning with breakfast in bed. Then he 
gave me a pink envelope and inside were two plane tickets for Paris! He wants 
us to go this weekend. Oh, Mac, will you guys watch the kids for us?”

Mac smiled. “Absolutely.” Harriet grinned and handed her some folder for the 
staff call later on. She noticed a beautiful Sapphire on her ring finger. Mac 
grabbed her hand. “Harriet, that is gorgeous.” She released her hand. “Another 
gift from Bud?”

She nodded happily. “He is so wonderful, I honestly don’t know what I’d do 
without him.” She looked at Mac, who had a twinkle in her eyes as well. She 
bit her lip and smiled. “So, what has Harm got planned for Valentines Day?”

Mac grinned. “He wouldn’t tell me. In the show-- uh, in bed this morning he 
told me he had a surprise for me and I’d have to wait till I got home to see 
what it was.” She grinned. “I got clearance to close this place a little early 
today.”

The two women laughed and began to go over the files before them.

***


Mac unlocked the door to the apartment and walked in. She was somewhat 
disappointed. She had hoped his surprise included candles and dinner. 
“Harm!” she called out, setting her keys on the table. “Harm! Chloe!”

She finally saw him and smiled. “Hey.” They greeted with a kiss and he handed her 
a rose. It was pink, unlike the red one this morning and every bit as beautiful. 

“Are you ready for your surprise?”

She nodded. Harm picked up his keys, her purse and grabbed her hand, pulling her 
out of the apartment. “Harm, where are we going.” 

He kissed her again, “You’ll see.”

“What about Chloe?”

Harm tried to suppress a grin. “Charlie is taking Chloe somewhere special 
tonight, and since it is a Friday, her and Heather are having a sleepover 
at Heather’s tonight.”

Mac pushed herself up on her tip toes and quickly kissed him. “Let’s go.”

They got in his SUV and started driving. They had been driving for about 
an hour when she finally decided to ask where they were going. “You’ll 
see.” He said.

Finally, they stopped. In the middle of a field. She looked around. “Uh, 
Sweetie, are we lost?”

He laughed. “Nope.” he reached into the back seat and pulled out a bag. “We 
are in a completely deserted area. Go change.”

“Harm…” She started to say, before being cut off by his finger over her lips. 

“Go change.” He repeated. She sighed and walked behind the SUV to change. 
He grinned and began to set up. She gasped as she pulled out what he had 
bought for her. It was a lovely emerald green dress. It fell below her knees. 
The top was halter style and dipped to form a modest, scooped V neckline. 
The outfit was completed with a pair of strappy emerald stilettos. She 
started to throw the bag back into the back of the car when she heard 
something moving around inside. She stopped and reached into the bag pulling 
out a large navy blue velvet jewelry box. Before she could open it, he 
appeared in front of her. “Happy Valentines Day.” He handed her an armful 
of roses. Most red, a few white, a few pink. 

“Oh, Harm, they’re gorgeous.” She took them and inhaled deeply. 

“Aren’t you going to open the box in your other hand?” She grinned and 
opened the box. He was pleased by her audible gasp. “Do you like it?”

“Its beautiful.” She breathed. The large, stunning emerald, surrounded by 
tiny, perfect diamonds, hung from a platinum chain. “Oh, Harm, this must 
have cost a fortune.”

He leaned in to kiss her. “I enjoy spoiling you.” She kissed him back. “I 
guess I’ll give you your gift now.” She felt bad. It may have been equally
as expensive, but not nearly as gorgeous. She lightly fingered the stone 
on her throat and reached into her purse, pulling out a black box. 

He grinned and opened it. “Mac, this is.” He stopped. “This is too much. 
Its beautiful.” It was a gorgeous silver Rolexâ . “I love it.” He took off 
his battered leather watch and pulled her to him for a kiss. “I love you.” 
Then he took her hand and pulled her over to where he had been setting up. 
There was a large blanket spread over the ground, tall vanilla scented candles 
lining the edges. A beautiful dinner was spread over the blanket.

She looked up at him and smiled. “This is wonderful, Harm.” He took her hand 
and helped her sit, carefully minding the food and champagne flutes of ginger 
ale. “I love you, I love you so much.” 

He leaned into kiss her. “I love you, too.”

After a wonderful dinner, they lay on their backs, looking up at the stars. 
“This has been a perfect night.” Mac said quietly.

Harm rolled on his side, so he could look at her. “Promise me we’ll be this 
happy forever.”

Mac rolled to her side. “I promise. We will always be this happy.” He pulled 
her to him for a sweet kiss.

End part 10

Part 11

“Harriet, I am getting married this weekend. I have the right to be a little 
bit upset.” She grimaced as she finished packing her bags. “My dress is 
already on the jet, right?” She suddenly asked.

Harriet put a soothing hand on her arm. “Your dress is on the jet, our 
dresses are on the jet, Harm, Bud, the Admiral, & Turner’s dress whites 
are also on the plane. I have your ring in my purse. The only thing left 
to do, is get on that plane. Tomorrow we will spend a lovely day at the 
Magic Kingdom. And the day after that, you will marry your sailor.”

Mac groaned. “I guess we should go.” She picked up her bags, and her and 
Harriet walked out to the cars.

Harm met them at the steps to the building and softly kissed her. “Are 
you ready?”

She looked up at him. “I’m scared to death.”

He grinned. “The big, bad marine is scared. I love it. I love YOU.” He 
laughed as a pout marred her beautiful features. “Come on, lets go.”

They joined hands and walked to the plane. They boarded and he looked over 
at her. Her eyes were closed and she was clenching the arm rest as if she 
was holding on to dear life. Harm frowned and studied her. ‘Was she having 
second thoughts?’ He wondered. He made a mental not to talk to her about it
later. 

***


Once the plane was in the air, he unbuckled his seatbelt. He stood up and 
looked at her. “Come on. We need to talk in private.” She nodded, undid her 
seatbelt and followed him into a private room.

“Baby, what’s wrong?”

He raised his eyebrows. “What’s wrong? Why don’t you tell me. Mac, you look 
like you’re going to a funeral, not about to get married. Are you having 
second thoughts about marrying me?”

Her eyes widened, and she stood up. “Are you out of your mind? Why would 
I have second thoughts. Harm, I love you. Why would I have second thoughts?”

He sighed and picked up her hand, kissing it softly. “I don’t know. I’m just… 
Mac this is all so perfect, and I’m scared you’re going to wake up and realize 
that you’re making a mistake.”

She moved and perched herself in his lap. “Baby, I love you. And I want to 
marry you, and raise our children with you. This could never, ever be a mistake.”

He brought his head down to hers for a gentle kiss. “I love you.” he whispered.

“Save it for the honeymoon.” Chloe said, with a smile.

Mac got off of his lap and walked over to Chloe and sat down next to her. “Honey, 
are you sure its ok for you to stay with Heather? Her mom told me it was fine, but 
what if you two get in a fight or something?”

“Mom, it’ll be fine. I promise. Heather and I always get along great. Don’t worry.” 
Chloe settled back and sighed. “This is going to be so much fun!”

Mac smiled at her daughter. “Ok. Charlie, Heather & Heather’s boyfriend Corey 
are flying in later tonight as your guests, correct.” Chloe nodded. Mac checked 
things off in her notebook. “Harm, Josh is flying in tomorrow as well, right?” 
Harm nodded and she checked his name off. She looked around the plane. The 
whole wedding party was here. Tomorrow, the rest of their friends were flying 
in. Tiner, Webb, their dates; Caroline and Mary Beth are coming in later tonight. 
She closed her notebook and sat down. She had never been so scared in her life.

***


The group arrived at the Grand Floridian Resort in Disney World. The wedding 
party was staying in suites for the duration of their stay. The other guests, 
were staying in more modest rooms of the same resort. Traditionally, the 
rehearsal dinner was the night before the wedding, but since they were probably 
going to be exhausted after their day at the Magic Kingdom, the rehearsal would 
be tonight. Harm and Mac had the largest suite. Not only because they were the 
bride and groom to be, but they needed the extra rooms for the “kids”. Chloe and 
Heather would have a bedroom, as would Charlie and Corey. Once they had got 
settled, Harm leaned in and kissed his fiancé gently. 

“I’m going to go ahead and put my dress whites in Bud’s room.”

She nodded. “Ok. When you get back, I’ll probably be in the shower, I’m 
gonna go ahead and get ready for tonight.”

Harm smiled and kissed her again. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” She reluctantly pulled out of his arms and walked towards 
the bathroom.

***


“… And the two of you will say your own vows?” The minister said.

“Yes sir.” Harm said.

“Ok. You may kiss the bride.”

“Yay, my favorite part.” Harm smiled and leaned in to kiss his “wife”. They 
pulled apart by the clearing of the ministers throat.

“Sorry,” Mac said with a smile, “we always get carried away at that part.”

Everyone laughed. “Ok,” AJ said, “Lets eat.”

The group made their way to the large reception area. The tables were beautifully 
set, place cards at each setting. Harm pulled out Mac’s chair, then sat himself. 
He leaned over and gently kissed her. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”
A smile lit up her beautiful face. “Actually, you haven’t told me in about an 
hour or so.” She pouted slightly. “I was starting to think I lost my touch.” She 
leaned in to kiss him. 

Chloe groaned. “How long are they going to be like this AFTER they get married?”

Harriet laughed. “Sweetie, I hate to tell ya this, but most newlyweds stay like 
that for sometime.”

Harm and Mac finally parted, realizing that oxygen was still a vital part of 
staying alive. “Wow, that was some kiss.” She looked at her family. “How bout 
we do the whole wedding thing here and now so we can leave for our honeymoon.” 

Everyone laughed, and the waiters began to bring out the food. After a delicious 
dinner, everyone went back to the rooms. Mac unlocked the door, and followed the 
kids in. They settled in the living room, watching a movie on the big screen TV. 
Chloe looked up at Harm.

“Uh, Harm…” She pointed her head towards the clock, and smiled.

“Come on, honey.” He smiled. He took her hand, and led his confused fiancé out 
of the suite. Once they were out in the lobby, she stopped them and crossed her 
arms over her chest.

“Harm, what are you up to?”

“It’s a surprise.” He delighted her with his famous smile and led her to 
the elevator. Once they got in the car, he took off his tie and tied it 
around her face, blindfolding her. They drove for not even five minutes. 
Once the Lexus came to a stop, he got out, and went around to open her car 
door. She smiled to herself as he opened the door, and helped her out of 
the car. He took her hand, steadying her and guided her to their destination. 
“Stay here.” He said as they came to a stop. She could hear him walking a few 
feet and heard muffled voices. As the footsteps neared her again, she smiled.

“What are you up to?”

“You’ll see. Come along.” He took her hand and they walked. After walking for
what seemed like miles, they stopped again. He took off her blindfold and saw 
they were in the middle of the Magic Kingdom.

“Harm…” Her voice died off. “What are we doing here?”

He smiled that wonderful smile at her and looked up Cinderella’s Castle. 
“Mac, tomorrow & Sunday, those are days for not just us, but for our 
friends and family. I want to have one night, one perfect night for just 
us. A night where we can have fun, be alone.”

Mac tore her eyes off of the castle and looked at him. A smile on her 
face and unshed tears in her eyes. “How did I get so lucky? This is the 
most wonderful thing anyone has ever done for me.”

“Well, since we’re going all out for the wedding, they gave me a great 
deal on renting this place for a couple of hours after closing time. 
“I’m sorry you won’t get the characters or the parade, but you have the 
rides. We can watch the parades and go to the shops and everything tomorrow.”

“I don’t need anything but you.”

He grinned and lifted her hand up to his lips for a gentle kiss. “May I have 
this dance?”

“There’s no music.”

“Listen with your heart.” With that he took her into his arms, and crushed 
her against him. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and buried her 
face in his neck. 

Hold Me
Hold me forever
Here in your arms the world seems so far away. 

‘This seemed right out of a fairy tale.’ Mac looked up in his eyes and 
kissed him softly.


Now we’re alone.
Please hold me tighter, closer, feel my heart 
And promise me we’ll never be apart .

Harm ran his fingers through her soft dark hair and then moved his hand 
to stroke her soft cheek. “I love you.” He whispered.

Hold me 
Don’t be afraid now.
This is our world and no one can come inside.
Look in my eyes, these eyes have loved you missed you.
Now there yours so hold me like you never have before.


She found it hard to believe that in a few hours all of her dreams would 
be coming true. Never in a million years would she have thought that she 
would have made it this far. Dancing with her gorgeous fiancé in the Magic 
Kingdom, the wedding of her dreams not even 48 hours away.

I’ll be right here holding you.
Trusting you and knowing you can feel how fast my heart is beating.
Feel how much I’m needing you too.........

‘She will probably never know how much she means to me.’ He thought. He 
had dreamed of his wedding day, his wife, and the future he would have 
many times when he was growing up. But Sarah MacKenzie was so much more 
then any dream her had ever had. 

Hold me
Seems like I’ve loved you forever.
Now I believe that our love was meant to be.
Keep holding on.
Promise you’ll never, ever let me go.
So all the world will know I’m yours to hold.
You're mine to hold.

The song in their hearts ended and Harm pulled back. “I’m crazy about you, 
you know that, right.”

“Harmon Rabb Jr., if you get any sweeter, I may break my resolve not to 
make love again untill our wedding night.”

He grinned a particularly mischievous grin, and pulled her close to him. 
“Well, that’s one promise I wouldn’t mind not being kept.”

She playfully smacked his chest and leaned in for a kiss. “You are 
incorrigible.”

“No, I’m just in love with you.” They shared another tender kiss, and 
she pulled back with an excitement. “Come on! The rides await!”

End Part 11

Part 12: The Wedding

They had a wonderful time at Disney World. When 
they met up at the exit of the park, at 8:00, the men 
took off with Harm, while the women disappeared with Mac. 

“So, Mac…” Bobbie said with a grin, “Chlo, Heather, 
Trish and Sarah, y’all may want to disappear.” Trish laughed.

“No way. No way.” Trish said, while Sarah laughed. 

“Cool.” Chloe said. “Heather, Charlie, Corey and I are going to go 
explore the hotel.” She kissed Mac’s cheek. “We’ll be back in a little 
while.

Mac nodded. “Ok. Be careful.”

Chloe smiled and she left the room with her friends. Mac smiled. “So, 
Bobbie, what’s up?”

Bobbie pulled a bag out. “Harriet and I saw it the other day. And 
even though we know you won’t get MUCH wear out of it, but we thought 
it would knock Harm’s socks off on your wedding night.”

Mac pulled the item out of the bag and gasped. “Guys, this is beautiful.” 
The negligee was beautiful. Pure, white silk. It was almost virginal. The 
material fell a little above her knees. The silk was covered with a layer 
of delicate lace. The top was low cut. The material would push up her 
breasts, and was lightly beaded. “This is stunning.” She held it up for 
the others approval, and then laughed. “I can’t believe I’m getting an 
opinion on lingerie from my future mother and grandmother in law.” 

They all laughed and Trish grabbed her glass of diet coke. “I’d like to 
propose a toast.” She waited for the others to fill their glasses, and 
then she raised hers. “To Mac and Harm. You guys took so long to get 
together, and ever since Bora Bora, I have never seen my son so happy. 
You make him happier then I’ve seen in a long time. Maybe since before 
his father died. I hope my son can bring you half of the joy you’ve brought 
him. And since you’re getting married in less then 24 hours, I want to be 
the first to welcome you to the family. I love you, darling.”

Mac leaned over and gave her future mother in law a warm hug. She wiped a 
tear and then raised her own glass. “Now, I’d like to make a toast. To Trish. 
If not for her, we wouldn’t be here today. We never would have gone to Bora 
Bora, and we wouldn’t be getting married at Disney world tomorrow. Her love 
and generosity has been so much more then I could have ever wished for. I love 
you, and I can’t wait to be part of your wonderful family.” She smiled and then 
said, “And you all of you. You guys have all been amazing. Harriet, you have 
stood by me throughout the years. You’ve been the best friend I could have ever 
of hoped for. And I’ll love you, and treasure our friendship always. Bobbie, I 
know we haven’t always gotten along.” Her and Bobbie shared a smile, remembering 
the night Mac came to Harm, and she was there. “But you have become a wonderful 
friend, and you are so important to the both of us. And I’m so happy you agreed 
to be one of my bridesmaids, and I’m glad we became friends. Sydney. You’re the 
newest to this group. But I have so much respect and admiration for you. You have 
changed AJ’s life. He loves you, and he has become even more wonderful because of 
the love you guys share. And because of you, I got his job.” They all laughed. 
“You’re so strong, and so smart, and loving. You stand up for the people you love, 
and you never give up on them. Not even when they deserve it. I treasure your 
friendship. “ Her eyes fell on Grandma Sarah. “Grams. I love you.” She smiled 
softly. The first time Harm talked about you, I was jealous.” Mac laughed at the 
confusion on the old woman’s face. “Harm and I played hooky from work one day and 
went flying in the mountains. The plane had a mechanical, and when he was landing 
it, he said, “Come on Sarah.” He told me the plane was named after an important 
woman named Sarah in his life.” Sarah Rabb smiled and leaned back, listening 
intently to the story. “After I was shot, and he fixed the plane, and we were 
safe, I asked him if “Sarah” was alive. He told me yes, and that she lived in 
Pennsylvania. I um… I bit my tongue, and then finally worked up the courage to 
ask the next question. I asked if he still loved her. He said, ‘I’m wild about 
her, she’s my grandmother.’” Everyone bust out laughing. Mac moved, and took 
Sarah’s hands in hers. “You have always been such a big part of his life. And 
over the past year, you’ve become so important in mine too. Like Trish, you 
accepted me into your family, with no hesitation. And since that first Thanksgiving, 
I have known nothing but love. Love in a way I have never had. You never judged. 
You were there, and you loved me. And I love you so much. I may have been gypped 
out of a family when I was a child, but God made up for it when I fell in love with 
Harm. Because he gave me the family I never could have dreamed of.” She looked around 
the room. “All of you are so special to me. And I’m so glad you are here to share this 
day with us. I know I’m a marine. But I’m scared. And I’m going to need all of you to 
get through it.” They all wiped tears away and raised their glasses.

“To us.” Harriet said. 

***


“So,” Keeter said, “Harm, your bride to be is stunning.” He smiled, and 
said, “What’s she like out of that uniform.”

Harm laughed. “No way, man. I’m not drunk enough to reveal any secrets about Mac.”

“Come on, Harm.” AJ said. Harm gaped at his former CO. “Oh, don’t give 
me that look. Bud, Turner, Tiner, Webb & I have been dealing with all that 
sexual tension between you guys for years. You owe it to us to tell us what 
it was like when it was FINALLY released.”

“No.” Harm smirked and sipped his beer. “You guys couldn’t handle it.”

“Couldn’t handle it!” Turner exclaimed. “Rabb, I’m sharing a bed with Bobbie. 
She’s viscous and power hungry. I think I can handle it.”

“Come on Rabb.” Webb said. “Some of have wanted a chance with her, but 
because of you, that was denied. You can at least give us some insights.” 
He sipped his drink. “Besides. What do you think they’re talking about right 
now. I doubt they’re trading recipes for potato salad.”

***


“25 minutes.”

Bobbie almost spit out her drink. “25 minutes!” She exclaimed. “That’s 
Harm’s idea of a quickie!”

***


“It’s amazing.” Harm said simply. “Without a doubt, the most amazing, 
mind blowing sex you could ever imagine.”

AJ & Webb looked at each other and exchanged what some would consider a 
pout. Considering the men they were though, it wasn’t mentioned. 

Tiner sighed. “Talk about amazing sex. Caroline, she used to be a dancer. 
Not a dirty dancer. A ballerina.. That girl can get in positions you could 
never imagine.”

Turner spit out his drink. “Damn. I used to date a dancer. It was pretty 
phenomenal.”

Webb smiled. “So. What’s the weirdest place you’ve ever done it?”

***


Mac grinned. “Probably… Grams, I can’t talk about this in front of you.”

She laughed. “Don’t be shy, darling. I plan on telling my weirdest place.”

“Ok then…” She smiled at the memory. “In a tanning bed.”

“Who with?” Harriet asked.

“Harm. It was right after Bora Bora. He wanted to keep his tan, so we 
went to a tanning place downtown.”


***


“Under the Christmas tree.”

Frank nearly chocked on his beer. “Please tell me this happened years 
ago.”

Harm smiled. “Sorry. Just 4 months ago.”

He groaned. “I can’t believe we opened presents under that tree the next 
morning.”

***


“Ok, Harriet.” Bobbie said. “Your turn.”

A blush spread over her cheeks. “I don’t wanna play.” 

“Sorry. I told, you have to, too.” Mac said with a grin. “Details, 
girlfriend.”

Harriet continued to blush. “The Surface Warfare Ball. Bud and I… 
in one of the elevators.”


***


“My dad’s office.” Turner said with a grin.

“Did you have a death wish or something?” AJ couldn’t help but ask.

***


Wedding Day

“HELP!” 

Trish and Chloe nearly collided to see what was wrong. “What’s wrong, mom?” 
Chloe said sitting down beside her.

“I’m getting married in an hour and 23 minutes.” She held out her hand. 
It was trembling like a leaf. “I’m scared to death.”

Trish picked up the trembling hand and held it tight. Steadying it. “Sarah, 
it’s ok to be nervous.”

“What if I hurt him?” Her voice was barely more then a whisper. “I couldn’t 
live with myself.”

“Everyone out.” Sarah Rabb said. “I need a word with my granddaughter.” 
Trish, Chloe and Harriet left, and Grams sat next to Mac on the sofa. 
“First of all, don’t cry. Second of all, its okay to be nervous.” She 
took her granddaughters hands. “Is it because of your previous marriage?” 

Mac looked at her and nodded. “Uh-huh. I’m so scared.”

“Sarah, honey, I’m going to tell you something that absolutely no one 
knows about me. Peter wasn’t my first husband. I had a brief marriage before 
him. I was very, very young. And he was handsome, and made me feel special. 
We fell in love, and married. The marriage was a disaster from the start. We 
were married 6 months when I found out about his affair. We divorced, and a 
few months later I married Peter. It was absolutely wonderful. He loved me, 
and always treated me like the most wonderful thing in the world. Honey, I 
don’t know all the details on your first marriage. But I’ve watched you and 
Harm together. My grandson worships you. He’ll never hurt you. And I know you 
love him too much to ever hurt him. Have faith in what the two of you have. 
Thank God for it. And pledge to God that you’ll always love one another. Make 
him proud. Show him that some loves do last a lifetime.”

Mac teared up again and hugged her grandmother. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” She wiped her eyes and smiled. “Lets get you married.”

***


AJ looked at Mac and smiled. “You look so beautiful.”

She smiled and hugged him. “I’m sorry my uncle couldn‘t be here for this. 
But I’m so glad that you are here. You’ve been more of a father to me then 
my father, even Uncle Matt.”

“I feel like a father. You, Harm. Bud, Harriet; you guys are my kids. And 
I have never been prouder of you then I am today.” They shared a tender 
hug and he wiped a tear off of her cheek. “The JAG isn’t supposed to cry.”

Mac smiled. “The SecNav doesn’t make the rules today.”

Trish smiled at them. “Ok. Everyone ready.” Mac looked at her and nodded.

“Lets go.”

Tiner was going with Trish down the aisle. Traditionally it was the mother 
of the bride who went down the aisle, but in this special case, Trish was 
more then happy to play the role.

Chloe made her way down the aisle first. Webb escorted her, a smile on his 
face. He couldn’t believe it was finally happening. They got to the altar. 
Webb lifted the young woman’s hand and kissed it gently, before moving to 
his position. Frank and Sydney were next. They smiled at each other. The 
two older couples had become very close since Bora Bora. Once they reached 
the altar, Frank gently kissed her cheek. He took his place in front of Webb, 
while Sydney took hers in front of Chloe. 

Turner and Bobbie shared a quick kiss before heading down the aisle. Bobbie 
couldn’t help but wish she was the one being married. She looked at him and 
smiled. Maybe they could fix that little problem sometime soon. They took 
their places in front of the other members of the party and looked at the 
door, anticipating Bud & Harriet.

Harm smiled at them, as they walked down the aisle. He remembered him and 
Mac at their wedding. He couldn’t believe how long it had taken to get to 
this point, but the fact she would be walking down that aisle in a matter 
of seconds, made it all worth it. Harriet broke precedent and kissed his 
cheek before taking her position. Then, the wedding march cued up. Harm’s 
posture straightened and his eyes were glued to that door. One look at her, 
and the simple task of breathing became difficult. ‘Harm, if you think she 
is breathtaking now, wait till you see her on your wedding day. You heart 
may very well stop.’ His mother’s words to him at AJ & Syd’s wedding rang 
in his ears. She was so right. Once she reached the altar, they were both 
smiling, looking at one another as if they were alone in this crowded room. 
AJ kissed her hand and gently placed it in Harms. They twined their fingers 
and took a step forward. 

“Who gives this woman to be married to this man?”

AJ looked up. “I do, on behalf of her friends and family.” The minister 
smiled at him, and he took a seat next to Trish.

Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the sight of God and in 
the face of his company to join together this man and this woman in holy 
matrimony; which is an honorable estate, instituted by God, signifying 
the mystical union between Christ and his church, which holy estate Christ 
adorned and beautified with his presence and his first miracle at the 
wedding at Cana of Galilee, and is commended of Saint Paul to be honorable 
among all men: and therefore is not by any to be entered into unadvisedly or 
lightly, but reverently, discreetly, advisedly, soberly, and in the fear of 
God. Into this holy estate these two persons present come now to be joined. 
If any man can show… wait. I have been informed by Mr. Chegwidden, Mrs. 
Burnett, Lt. Commander & Mrs. Roberts, and Miss Madison-Rabb, that if I ask 
this next part, I best have my affairs in order. So we’ll skip this part.” 
The audience laughed gently. “Please, will you go with me in prayer, as we 
ask God to bless this couple. Eternal God, creator and preserver of all life, 
author of salvation, giver of all grace, Bless and sanctify with your Holy 
Spirit Harm and Sarah, who come now to join in marriage. Grant that they may 
give their vows to each other in the strength of your steadfast love. Enable 
them to grow in love and peace with you and with one another all their days, 
that they may reach out in concern and service to the world through Jesus Christ 
our Lord. Amen.” At the congregations, “Amen”, he continued. “At this point, Harm 
and Sarah will share readings with you, as will their friends. Harm.” 

Harm pulled looked into her eyes. “I was looking up stuff that I could say. 
And I found an excerpt from a letter Winston Churchill wrote to his wife.” 
He breathed in, and began. “My greatest good fortune in a life of brilliant 
experiences has been to find you, and to lead my life with you. I don’t feel 
far away from you out here at all. I feel very near in my heart, and also I 
feel that the nearer I get to honor, the nearer I am to you.” He kissed her 
hand and smiled as she teared up.

Mac smiled. “I found this on the internet. I’m not exactly sure who wrote it.” 
Harriet handed her a card, and she looked into his eyes and began.

“Because to the depths of me, I long to love one person,
With all my heart, my soul, my mind, my body...

Because I need a forever friend to trust with the intimacies of me,
Who won't hold them against me,
Who loves me when I'm unlikable,
Who sees the small child in me, and
Who looks for the divine potential of me...

Because I need to cuddle in the warmth of the night
With someone who thanks God for me,
With someone I feel blessed to hold...

Because marriage means opportunity
To grow in love in friendship...

Because marriage is a discipline
To be added to a list of achievements...

Because marriages do not fail, people fail
When they enter into marriage
Expecting another to make them whole...

Because, knowing this,
I promise myself to take full responsibility
For my spiritual, mental and physical wholeness
I create me,
I take half of the responsibility for my marriage
Together we create our marriage...

Because with this understanding
The possibilities are limitless.”

The minister smiled. “Harm and Sarah have decided to write their own vows.”

Harm inhaled deeply, and brought his hand up to stroke her cheek. “I’ve been 
up most nights for the past two weeks. I wanted to write something more then 
beautiful. I wanted to write something to make you fully understand the depth 
of my love for you. No one can understand it though, because I really don’t 
understand it. Mac, you are everything to me. I have loved you, almost from 
the moment I met you. I was scared of it. I ran away from it, I fought it, 
I did just about everything I could to push you away. But you didn’t listen. 
And I thank God every day that you wouldn‘t give up on me. On us. I love you 
Sarah Elizabeth MacKenzie. And for the rest of my life I plan on making sure 
you know how loved and cherished you are. You are my heart, my life my soul. 
I love you, Sarah. Always.”

Mac sniffled, trying to hold back her tears. “I love you. I love you so much. 
I know it sounds simple, but everything in me is in love with you.” The effort 
to hold back the tears was futile, because they began to roll down her cheeks. 
“This past year has been the most amazing year of my life. Everyday I’ve found 
myself falling more and more in love with you. I can’t wait to grow old with 
you. To have children together. To become grandparents. You are the most amazing 
man I have ever known. Harmon Rabb Jr. You are my everything. And I will do 
everything I can to make you as happy as you have made me. This is forever. 
I will love you till the end of time.”

The minister smiled at them. “The giving and receiving of the rings is very 
symbolic. A ring is a perfect circle. It has no breaks. Its continuous. It 
doesn’t have an end, or a beginning. That’s how your love shall be. It has 
always been there, and it will never end.” Bud took the ring off of the pillow, 
and handed it to Harm. “Harm, place the ring on Sarah’s finger, and repeat after 
me. “With this ring, I thee wed. “All that I am, all that I will be, is promised 
to you. This ring is a symbol of that solemn vow.” 

“With this ring, I thee wed. “All that I am, all that I will be, is promised 
to you. This ring is a symbol of that solemn vow.” Harm slid the ring on her 
finger and squeezed his hand gently.

Harriet picked up Harm’s ring off the pillow and handed it to Mac.

“Sarah, place the ring on Harm’s finger, and repeat after me. “With this ring, 
I thee wed. “All that I am, all that I will be, is promised to you. This ring 
is a symbol of that solemn vow.”

“With this ring, I thee wed. “All that I am, all that I will be, is promised 
to you. This ring is a symbol of that solemn vow.” She smiled at him as she 
slid the ring on. Their fingers twined and they looked up at the minister in 
anticipation.

“It is my great pleasure, to announce that you are man and wife.” he smiled. 
“Who God has joined together, let no one, pull asunder. Harm, you may kiss 
your bride.”

Harm smiled and pulled her close. “I love you.” He whispered and gently touched 
his lips to hers. Fireworks went off over the castle. Trish, Sarah and AJ wiped 
the tears from their eyes and stood up to applaud. 

The Naval officers made their way outside, to set up the processional. Mac 
and harm made their way outside. AJ, who technically wasn’t an officer anymore, 
still was at the head. As the couple stepped beneath the swords, his voice 
boomed.

“Announcing for the first time in public, Commander and Mrs. Harmon Rabb 
Jr.” Mac grinned at Harm and they kissed again. As their lips parted, 
Turner’s saber smacked her on the butt. 

“Go NAVY.”

The End