³Were you watching me sleep,² Mac asked.
³Yea,² he smiled.
³Why?²
³Because you look like an angel when you are sleeping,² he told her. ³Harm,² Mac swatted him on his bare chest then sitting up.
³Where do you think you are going,² he asked pulling her back down towards him.
Their lips were just inches apart and slowly they were coming closer to each other has he held her close. Suddenly out of nowhere a loud explosion made Harm turn her around on his bed so she was safe.
³Sailor, get off of me,² Mac yelled minutes later.
³I donıt want you to get hurt,² Harm said holding her securely underneath him.
³I am a Marine, Commander, now move,² Mac ordered pushing him off of her.
³Mac, what if itıs not safe,² Harm asked jumping out of bed following her to the bedroom window where the explosion came from.
³The only thing not safe is your car,² Mac pointed out showing him that his SUV was now in pieces still in flames.
³Do you think this has to do with what happened at headquarters?²
³I donıt think it has to do with the Easter Bunny, if that is what you are asking,² Mac snapped grabbing a pair of pants out of one of her bags and running out of the apartment.
³Where are you going,² Harm yelled chasing after her quickly grabbing a pair of jeans and a shirt.
³It looks like an explosive of some sort. Probably set off at an exact time,² the Fire Marshall told them an hour later after the flames were extinguished. ³Colonel, it seems someone is out to scare you.²
³It looks that way, doesnıt it,² Mac snapped walking back up to Harmıs apartment.
³What are you doing,² Harm wondered.
Ten minutes later Harm entered his apartment to see bags on the couch and Mac folding clothes on his bed.
³What are you doing, Mac,² Harm asked.
³Iım leaving,² she answered grabbing another bag.
³No, you are not,² he told her taking the clothes out of the bag. ³Donıt, the cab will be here in twenty minutes.²
³I donıt care if they are here in five, you are not going anywhere.²
³You canıt stop me, Harm.²
³Mac, please, donıt do this,² he begged.
³They know where I am. I canıt risk you getting hurt,² Mac told him putting the bag of clothes on the couch.
³I canıt risk you getting hurt either, so that is why you are staying here,² Harm said grabbing onto her arm.
³Harm, donıt. If you care about me at all, let me go.²
³If I care, Sarah, you have to be kidding. I care to much to let you go, please stay.²
³Harm, Iım a Marine, I can handle it,² Mac told him.
³You are much more than a Marine to me and you know it,² Harm replied taking her in his arms kissing her passionately.
Pulling away from him seconds later she turned her back on him not wanting to deal with their relationship once again.
³I have to go,² she mumbled not looking him in the eye grabbing her bags she walked out the door.
³Mac, I love you,² he said aloud knowing she didnıt hear him.
He didnıt go after her knowing she would just push him away, but he wasnıt giving up either. Harm knew he had to keep her safe and he knew exactly how he was going to do it.
Several hours later Mac was swimming a lap in the hotel she was going to be staying in until she found another apartment to lease. She was hoping the laps would release some of her frustrations about Harmon Rabb Jr. What was he thinking by kissing her like that? Did he realize what the effect was on her with that one single kiss? Sarah Mackenzie dreamed of kissing those lips, his lips every night for the rest of their lives, but that would not happen. She couldnıt let that happen. She had given him so many chances to express his feelings for her, but he never did. Actions may speak louder than words, but it didnıt when it came to Harmon Rabb Jr.
Finally opening her hotel room door wrapped in a towel and her new bikini she brought on the way to the hotel, she wanted to relax the rest of the night. She had spent most of the day going over old cases trying to find some clue on who was out to hurt her, but with no avail she gave up for the day to take that swim.
Once she stepped inside of her room she switched on the lights and was shocked to find that someone was in her room.³How did you find me,² she asked.
³If I can find you, anyone can,² he answered.
He was laying across the queen size bed with a picnic basket in front of him.
³Harm, I told you I didnıt want you with me,² she stated grabbing another towel from the cabinet.
³And I told you I wasnıt going to leave you alone,² he replied taking out the food from the basket. ³Are you hungry?²
³Harm, please.²
³Are you hungry?²
³Yes, what do you have,² she peeked into the basket noticing the wrappings of where he had stopped.
³You caught me, Mac. I stopped at Beltway Burger just for you. Now sit down and eat,² he ordered.
³Can I change first?²
³I donıt mind the bikini,² Harm smiled.
³We need to talk,² she told him grabbing some clothes shutting the bathroom door.
³We sure do,² he mumbled putting his hands in back of his head leaning back against the pillows. He was hoping they would finally define their relationship, and express their true feelings.
³So what do you have to say, Sailor,² Mac asked a half an hour later biting the last bit of her double bacon cheeseburger with everything on it.
³I made a mistake,² Harm started to say.
³That is comforting,² she mumbled.
³No, I made a mistake in Sydney by letting you go to Mic. I made a mistake by leaving JAG to go back to full status. I made a mistake by going to do my Qualification just days before your wedding.²
³Go on.²
³Mac, you are not going to make this easy, are you?²
³No, Harm, I am not. Do you even realize how I felt about you when we were in Sydney? Do you realize that the one person I could always count on to tell me the truth stood there and lied to me? I cannot risk getting hurt again.²
³Sarah, I would never hurt you.²
³Donıt,² she yelled standing up from the bed moving across the room.
³I donıt know what to say to get you to realize how I feel about you.²
³Tell me the truth, Harm. The one thing I have realized after all this time is the truth is all that matters.²
³You want the truth about this for the truth. Sarah Mackenzie, I love you, and I believe I fell in love you the moment we met at the Rose Garden.²
³No, you didnıt, Harm. You thought I was Diane then, and donıt try to deny it. You still donıt get it do you? The night Mic left me you asked me to come to you. You told me that I knew why. And I did. I knew deep down how you felt because I felt the same way. But someone or something was always in our way to stop us from being together. If it wasnıt Diane, it was Jordan, then Dalton, finally it was Mic and Renee.²
³Nothing is in our way now. We can be together, Mac. Nothing and no one is stopping us.²
³Except one thing, Harm. I have come to realize who has been trying to hurt me.²
³Who,² he asked putting his hands on her shoulders looking into her eyes.
³Itıs Eddie,² she murmured putting her head down not wanting to look at him.
³Eddie,² Harm stated.
³That night we were in that accident I was almost burned alive in that car. I couldnıt get out, but Eddie did. He was thrown from the car and died instantly. Harm, we are getting to close and he knows it.²
³You are not making any sense,² Harm told her.
³I am making perfect sense. He was the only one that knew I was afraid of fire. All these accidents have been done with fire. Itıs him giving me a warning,² she cried.
³Eddie is dead, Mac. He canıt stop those feelings in your heart. I love you and I know you feel it too.²
³I love you, too, but I canıt do this,² she sobbed leaving him again alone in the room.
TO BE CONTINUED...