Dear Diary,

We all had a good time that night catching up with Harm and learning more about Renee. While it is true that we once had plenty of differences, our mutual concern for Harm actually made us friends, when once it had made us enemies. Our friendship came as a surprise to a lot of people, but there was one more big surprise that night for us.

We all sat down again and ate dinner. Harm and Renee both ate the meatless meatloaf but Harriet and Bud avoided it, as did I. Surprisingly, the Admiral even tried some. I think that he just didn’t want to offend me. I couldn’t help but think that was rather nice of him. Dinner was nearly finished when my mind started to wander a bit when I registered Harriet speaking.

“So, sir. Do you have any surprises for us this time?”

Renee looked confused and noticing this the Admiral explained. “Once when I went to dinner over at Harm’s I surprised them by telling them that I had been married. The next dinner party, I introduced them to my daughter.”

“So you like surprises, sir?” asked Renee.

“Well, they just seem to happen.”

“At least, I was able to pull the surprise this time,” said Harm with a smile.

I saw a gleam of amusement creep into the Admiral’s eyes as he said, “I’m not so sure about that Rabb.”

“What do you mean, sir?” asked Bud.

“I wasn’t planning on telling you all tonight but I might as well. I’ve thought about it for a few months now and I have decided to turn in my request for retirement.” Silence fell over the table. Finally, the Admiral turned to Renee and said, “See what I mean. It just happens.”

Suddenly, the table erupted in conversation. Everyone else tried to talk at once, but I was too stunned to say anything. Part of me was sad to think of him leaving JAG, he was the best CO I had ever had. Of course, a tiny part of me was, well happy wasn’t the right word. Curious. That was the right word. I was curious about what I had seen in his eyes that night three months ago. And I was curious to see what might happen because of that.

“Mac?” the Admiral asked.

Startled, I looked up into the concerned eyes of the Admiral. “I’m sorry. What did you ask?”

“Did you need any help with the dishes?” he asked kindly.

“Ah, sure. If you don’t mind, sir.” We both stood up and gathered the now empty plates. After depositing them into the sink, we silently walked back into the living room to see Bud and Harriet gathering their coats.

“We’re sorry that we have to eat and run, but we need to get back to Little AJ,” Bud said.

“Ma’am, if it is okay with you, we can swing by tomorrow and pick up the dishes,” said Harriet.

“Of course, Harriet. Why don’t you bring Little AJ with you? I’m sure Harm would love to see him,” Renee suggested. Harm smiled at her then at Harriet.

“Could you stop by after lunch, Harriet?” asked Harm.

“Sure. We’ll see you then. Glad to see you home, sir,” Harriet said.

The Robert’s soon left and Harm got up with some help from Renee and excused himself into the bedroom. The Admiral followed me into the kitchen with more dishes. I could feel him standing behind me for a moment before he finally spoke.

“Mac, are you okay?”

I took a deep breath before I turned to look at him. “Yes, sir. I’m fine. There’s just been a lot of surprises tonight.”

“I really wasn’t planning on announcing my retirement tonight. I actually was going to tell you before I mentioned it.”

“Why?” I was asking why he wanted to tell me first but he misunderstood me. That misunderstanding showed me much more than I ever expected.

“Because it’s time. I know my duty and it’s time I did what I should,” he said softly as he looked into my eyes. I looked into his deep brown eyes and I saw just a touch of what I had remembered from before. We stood there in silence both lost in thought. I know that he could tell what I was thinking.

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