Part 3

Disclaimers in Part 1

William, the therapist, drove Bud home and helped him into the house before driving off. Bud limped into the living room, thoroughly intending on going directly to bed, when he saw the hospital bed unmade and all of his stuff gone. Harriet walked out of the bedroom wearing a navy blue silk robe that he remembered from the first time they were together.

“Where is my stuff?” he asked dejectedly.

“In the bedroom where you belong.”

Bud, leaning heavily on his cane, walked down the hall but to her surprise, he stopped at the linen closet. Wordlessly, he pulled out a set of sheets and turned back to the living room leaving Harriet standing there in shock. Moments later, she rushed into the living room to see him trying to make the bed by himself.

“Bud, don’t you want to sleep in the bedroom with me? AJ is staying over at Ann’s tonight,” she said hopefully.

“Harriet, I can’t,” he said despondently turning his back to her.

“Yes, you can, Bud. I know you can,” she said slipping her arms around his waist. He let her lead him to the bedroom, still afraid to try to make love to her, but longing to just be held. He even let her remove his sweat suit but stopped her when she reached for his briefs.

“Harriet, no. You need a man who can take care of your needs. I can’t. Not like that.”

“You can,” she insisted as her hand slid down to cup him in her hand. She began to nibble on his ear, something he always liked. They could both tell that he still enjoyed it because he gradually became erect in her hands. Harriet tried to pull him over her but refused to move. “Bud?”

“I can’t make love to you Harriet. I don’t have a leg,” he said harshly.

“I don’t understand how one has to do with the other.”

“I can’t balance myself,” he murmured as he sat up on the edge of the bed. He was planning on going back to the living room, but before he could his tears over took him.

“I can’t even make love to my wife. What kind of man am I?”

Harriet felt as if her heart broke listening to him cry but she managed to get up out of bed and stood in front of him. He refused to meet her gaze though so she kneeled before taking his hands into hers and speaking.

“You are a wonderful man. That is what kind of man you are. You are my husband. I am so sorry I didn’t think about this.”

“Harriet. It isn’t your fault,” he said trying to make her feel better.

“Yes, it is. I should have thought about that.”

“How would you have thought of it? If anything, it’s my fault because I was afraid to say anything,” he insisted.

“No. I should have. It’s my fault. I never thought of that.”

Bud sat there looking at his wife, tears now streaming down her face, when he suddenly began laughing.

“So, Harriet. Are we going to have a fight about whose fault it is?” Harriet smiled and her tears dried as they both laughed at the thought. They sat there for a few moments and soon Bud spoke softly. “I still can’t make love to my wife.”

“Well then, let your wife make love to you,” she said as she pushed him to lie back in the bed. She had never been particularly aggressive before, but he decided to just give in to her. “Are you comfortable, Bud?”

He nodded as she reached her hands into his waistband and slowly slipped off his briefs. Harriet didn’t pay any special attention to the scars that she reveled. This wasn’t about his scars or injuries. She took his penis into her hand and stroked it several times, causing it to become more rigid. Harriet smiled up at her husband before leaning down and placing a kiss on the tip. Bud let his head fall back in pleasure as she moistened her lips then slowly wrapped them around him.

Harriet kept one hand circling the base of his penis as the other reached down to play with his balls. Bud moaned in pleasure as she took even more of him into her mouth before pulling back. She flicked her tongue over the head and tasted the fluid there. Harriet continued doing the things that Bud liked, but stopped suddenly when she felt his balls tighten, signaling his impending orgasm.

Bud’s eyes shot open when she pulled away and watched in muted pleasure as she straddled his waist and reached up to kiss him. No longer wanting to remain totally passive, Bud embraced her and pulled her closer to his erection as his tongue invaded her mouth. Harriet rubbed her clit against him as she broke the kiss and leaned back. Bud slid his hand from her back around her hip and slipped his fingers into her curls making her moan in delight. After just a few moments of this, she lifted her hips and grasping his throbbing penis in one hand, she then lowered herself again, spreading herself with his erection. She moved slowly trying to prolong their pleasure knowing that this was going to be over with quickly.

Harriet paused for a moment once he was completely inside her. She remembered once that Bud said he liked those first moments of her body gripping him. He had said it felt very welcoming. When she could no longer be still, she began to lift her hips only to lower herself again. Finally, she began to pick up speed and Bud began to thrust into her as he held her hips, lightly caressing her creamy skin. Harriet lost her rhythm, but shuddered in delight as Bud’s fingers found their way back to her clit.

Both of them began moaning more, lost in the pleasure of each other, and knowing that there was no child in the next room to overhear. They urged each other on with words unspoken for months when Harriet stiffened in rapture. Bud thrust a few more times when he too was overcome with pleasure. Exhausted, Harriet collapsed on top of Bud for a moment before sliding off. She grabbed the blanket from the foot of the bed in case they got cold during the night.

“I love you, Bud,” she murmured into his chest listening to his pounding heartbeat.

“I love you, too, Harriet. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

“That is something you will never have to worry about,” she said as she wrapped her arms around him and fell asleep.

The following Monday a much happier Harriet arrived at the JAG headquarters. The first thing she did was go to speak with the Admiral. She needed to take more time off and she needed to get his permission first. Tiner wasn’t at his desk yet, so Harriet lightly knocked on the Admiral’s door.

“Enter,” he said looking up to see who was in the office so early. “Lt. Simms. At ease. Have a seat.”

“Thank you, Admiral.”

“What can I do for you, Lieutenant?”

“Sir, you have done so much for Bud and I, but I have to ask you for one more thing,” she said somewhat embarrassed to ask for anything more.

“What do you need, Harriet?” he asked less formally, knowing that it was probably difficult for her to ask.

“Bud was doing okay with his therapy for a while, but then he got depressed. We finally talked about things this weekend and we’ve decided that it would be best for him to go into an inpatient therapy program.”

“Inpatient?” the Admiral asked.

“There is a facility in Charlottesville where the both of us can stay. It’s like an apartment, so Bud can learn to deal with everyday situations instead of just learning to walk again.”

“I’ve never heard of something like that before,” he said.

“It’s part of the University of Virginia. It usually focuses on people in wheelchairs but they also work with amputees. The thing is that I need to take another two weeks off.”

“That’s no problem, Harriet. I told you before to take the time you need and I mean it.”

“Thank you, sir. You really have done so much for us.”

“You don’t need to thank me,” he said gruffly. “By the way, did you take care of that problem?”

“Yes, sir. I did,” she blushed. Knowing that he didn’t want to hear any details, she simply said, “He was worried about that. That’s why he was depressed. He’s better now though.”

“Good. When do you need that time off?” he asked, changing the subject.

“We want to leave on Friday. My dad will be back to watch Little AJ for a week and then my friend Ann will watch him the next week. We were lucky to get a spot in the program this early. There is usually a wait. I think Clay had something to do with it.”

“Webb?”

“Yes, sir. He was the one that gave me the information about the program, so I think that he pulled some strings. I’m sure that he won’t ever admit it though,” she said.

“Sounds like him. Do you think that you can get Bud to stop by at some time? I have some paperwork for him to sign.”

“Not a problem, sir. By the way, sir, Bud told me about the job offer you gave him.”

“It just makes sense, Lieutenant. He already knows military law and there is no point in hiring a civilian who doesn’t. Has he made a decision yet?”

“No, sir. He’s actually had several offers, but yours and Clay’s are the only ones he is really considering,” she said.

Chegwidden looked at her carefully and didn’t see any reservations about her husband taking a job with the CIA. Chegwidden made a mental note to call Webb and have a talk with him just in case. He didn’t think Webb would cause trouble, but there was no harm in finding out any way.

“You have him tell me what ever he decides when he does.”

“Of course, sir. I think that he said that he will have his decision by the time we come back.”

“Very well. Is that all, Lieutenant?”

“Yes, sir,” she smiled at him, knowing that he would not want to hear her thanks again.

* * *

Early that Saturday morning, the Roberts arrived at the apartment in Charlottesville. They both thought that they were ready for this next part of Bud’s therapy, but neither really imagined the things that they would be working on. The therapist at Bethesda had gotten Bud up on crutches, then his prosthesis and a cane, but that was about all. Bud never realized the number of things that he needed to relearn. Mostly things that he took for granted, like taking a shower.

Saturday was spent finishing up all the paperwork, finding out exactly what he should be accomplishing before leaving and showing his new therapist what he could do. Bud and Harriet finally collapsed in bed that evening after a quick call to Little AJ. As they had done before, they quickly fell into a routine but it was a good one. Their days were full of learning and their nights were full of love.

During the day, Bud learned how to drive a car with hand controls and to drive a regular car. Bud was happy that he was actually going to be able to keep his old VW Bug. The therapist didn’t necessarily recommend that he drive a regular car all the time. Luckily, since his Bug was an automatic transmission and it didn’t have much of a center console, he could drive with his left foot instead of his right. He learned how to walk up and down steps and also how to simply sit on the floor. He was beginning to be truly sick and tired of the phrase ‘practice makes perfect.’ Every time he thought he had done well the therapists would make him do it over and over so that these things would be second nature to him.

During the night, Bud learned confidence. He and Harriet tried all the positions they used to have sex in and finding some didn’t work anymore, they spent lots of time inventing new ones that did. It wasn’t until their last night there, curled together, sated from their love making, when Harriet realized something startling. They had made love every night for two weeks without once thinking of birth control. She did a little mental math then called her sleeping husband’s name.

“Did you just think about birth control?” asked Bud smiling, not asleep as she thought.

“Yes. I haven’t been using any. I stopped taking the pill when you left.”

“I know. We said that we would try when I got home.”

“I know, Bud, but I was thinking that now you might want to wait a little,” she said.

“Harriet, I love you,” he said as he placed his hand on her lower belly. “We promised each other that we would try when I got home. We’ve already waited three months because of my leg. I don’t want to make you wait any more. Hopefully, you are pregnant but if not, well, you know what they say, practice makes perfect.”

Harriet smiled at her husband and thought about how very much she loved him more and more each day. She didn’t say anything as she leaned over to kiss him and encouraged him to practice one more time, just for good measure.

Bud and Harriet came back to DC in wonderful spirits. They hugged Little AJ and spoke to Ann for a short time, before Bud took him into his room to play. Harriet stayed out in the living room with Ann and caught up on all that happened in the past two weeks.

“How did the therapy go?”

“Very well. I’m so proud of Bud. How was AJ?” Harriet asked.

“An angel, of course. We had a lot of fun. We even had a lot of visitors.”

“Really?”

“I think everyone from your office stopped by. Even that yummy Admiral of yours,” Ann said with a wink.

“Ann! I hope you didn’t harass him.”

“No, I didn’t,” she sounded disappointed. “He came with someone.”

“The Admiral brought someone over?” Harriet asked, surprised that the Admiral would bring someone over to her house with out asking her.

“Yes, a very nice Italian woman. I believe her name was Marcella.”

“I met her in Italy, but I didn’t know that she was going to be in the US. Do you know if she is still here? I’d like to see her again and thank her.”

“Good. She’ll be here tomorrow,” said Ann.

“What?”

“We talked about having a little get together for you both tomorrow. I hope you don’t mind. Everything is taken care of, all you three have to do is show up at the Admiral’s house at 7:00.”

“You didn’t need to do that.”

“Don’t worry. I didn’t. It wasn’t my idea in the first place. I just helped a little bit with the planning.”

“Thanks, Ann,” Harriet said as she heard laughter from upstairs. “I better go up there and see what my boys are up to.”

“Don’t blame you. I’ll see you tomorrow night,” Ann said as she headed to the door.

“Okay. And thank you, Ann. This was such a huge help.”

“Not a problem, Harriet. I love spending time with AJ. Talk to you later,” Ann said as she stepped out the door. Harriet waved good-bye, and headed up the stairs to see her son.

For the rest of the day they simply enjoyed their time together as a family. They tried to take things a little easy though because Bud still got tired quicker than he used to, but he felt stronger every day. On Sunday, they all took a nap before getting ready to go to the Admiral’s house.

They actually arrived a little late and were greeted by the Admiral and Marcella. Harriet was a bit disappointed that she didn’t see the looks on people’s faces when they saw Marcella. The entire JAG staff was there; even Ron Katz managed to come as did Mikey Roberts. Bud greeted everyone before he sat down next to Ron. Everyone looked surprised when there was another knock on the door, so Harriet guessed that this visitor must be a surprise.

She certainly was surprised when Clayton Webb walked in the door, but not nearly as surprised as most of the JAG staff when Harriet hugged him. Clay returned her hug before shaking hands with the Admiral and greeting the rest of the room.

“Now that everyone is here,” called out the Admiral. “I would like to make a presentation. Attention to orders.” Everyone stood up and at attention as the Admiral read from a sheet of paper. “For wounds received in combat on May 21^st 2002 in Gaznea, Afghanistan, Lieutenant Bud J. Roberts Jr. US Navy Judge Advocates Corps is awarded the Purple Heart.”

Marcella handed the Admiral a long flat box, which he opened. He removed the medal and pinned it on Bud’s lapel.

“Thank you, sir.”

“So, have you thought about that job offer?” the Admiral asked with a smile.

“Actually, yes, sir. I have. Harriet and I talked and decided to take your offer.”

“Good. I was hoping you would,” the Admiral said as he handed Bud a folder. “Here’s a case for you. Rabb’s prosecuting and you’re defending.” Bud chuckled, along with several other people as the party continued.

A few minutes later, Harm caught Bud and spoke to him about the case. “Are you sure you are ready for this case Bud?”

“Yes, sir. I can do research on line and I’m sure that it will be alright.”

“This is going to be a tough case, Bud,” Harm said not wanting Bud to get discouraged.

“What’s wrong, sir? Afraid I don’t have a leg to stand on?”

As it turned out, Rabb was the one who didn’t have a leg to stand on. Bud found a new eyewitness that proved without a doubt that someone else committed the crime. Bud came into JAG headquarters to finalize some paperwork, both for his case and his discharge. He knew that once he signed the papers, he would be out of the service. It never occurred to him that it would end this way. Bud always planned on being career Navy, maybe someday even being the JAG, but now that wasn’t going to happen.

Bud no longer became depressed when he thought of it, just wistful. Part of him really wished that he could have an honorable discharge instead of a medical one. Bud knew that wasn’t possible though, if for no other reason than he would lose out on so many of the medical benefits that he was due to receive.

Bud looked around JAG HQ, and knew that things really weren’t going to be too different now. The only difference would be that he was a civilian. Before Bud could get lost in thought, Tiner spotted him and called out his name. Soon everyone was gathered around talking to him. People asked about how he was doing and how he managed to find that one witness in California.

Bud explained that he made use of the computer equipment that his friend loaned him. He was able to track down the witness that no one thought would be of any use. This, of course, caused quite a bit of good-natured ribbing at Rabb’s expense.

“Attention on deck,” called out Tiner as the Admiral walked into the bullpen.

“As you were. Lieutenants Simms and Roberts, front and center.” The both of them stood in front of the Admiral at attention. “First, I would like to apologize that this took so long to push through. I heard about it a few months ago and I had to do a little work to push it through. I hope you don’t mind the delay, Lieutenant Commander Roberts.”

“Lieutenant Commander?” asked a surprised Bud.

“Unless you don’t want it,” the Admiral said with a smile.

“I just didn’t expect this at all, sir,” Bud said as the Admiral handed him his oak leaves while the rest of the office cheered for him.

“Admiral’s privilege, Commander.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Now, if you care to step into my office, I have some papers for you to sign.”

Bud and Harriet followed the Admiral into his office and took the offered seats.

“Bud, I tried to see if there was a way for you to stay here at JAG but it really isn’t possible. Except as a civilian,” the Admiral explained.

“I understand, sir. You’ve done so much for us anyway. You were there for Harriet on her trip to Naples and I don’t think I can every thank you for that,” Bud said not noticing the Admiral’s glance at Harriet as he handed over the discharge papers. Bud took the papers and began to read through them, signing and initialing where necessary. In a surprisingly short period of time, the papers were finished and Bud was out of the service.

“I will send these papers over to be processed and it should be done soon,” said the Admiral. “We will have an office ready for you on Monday. I don’t expect you to be here full time yet though, not until you think you are ready.”

“I’m still testing my limits a bit but I’ll be fine, sir.”

“Good. Now, if you don’t mind, I need a word with the Lieutenant.”

“Of course. I’ll be in the bullpen.” Bud stood up and left the office.

The Admiral waited until Bud shut the door before asking, “Have you still not told him about us going to the Seahawk?”

“No, sir. I haven’t told anyone. Only you, Clay, my father and Ann know I was there. Bud has said several times that he is glad that no one he knew saw him before Naples. He said he would have been very embarrassed to be seen that way. I thought it was better to not tell him. Any way he says that he really doesn’t remember anything until he woke up in Naples.”

The Admiral paused a moment, thinking before he spoke, “Alright. Let me know if you ever change your mind though.”

“Yes, sir,” she said as she stood up.

“Since the day is almost over, you can go ahead and go home if you would like, Lieutenant.”

“Thank you, sir,” she said as she nodded, then walked out into the bullpen. She quickly spotted Bud speaking to Mac at the door of his new office. She walked up to them, but was shocked when Harm walked out of his neighboring office and called out to Bud.

“Hey, it’s Hop A Long!”

Harriet stood there in shock for a moment before she finally was able to speak. “Hop a long? You are calling my husband ‘hop a long’? How dare you?”

“Harriet!” exclaimed Harm.

“No! Don’t you even say anything. You’ve said enough,” Harriet cried out.

Everyone in the JAG bullpen stopped and watched in amazement as the usually quiet blond tore into the Commander. Harm stood there in shock. He knew that she had been upset with him once before when he was investigating Annie’s murder. Even then she wasn’t this vocal. He didn’t even understand why she was yelling at him.

Bud didn’t even speak; he just took his wife’s arm and pulled her into his office, shutting the door.

“Harriet, why did you yell at Harm?”

“He called you Hop A Long!” she exclaimed.

“No, sweetheart. He didn’t. He was picking on Commander Turner.”

“What do you mean?”

“Harriet, look outside,” Bud said as he gently turned her to the window.

Harriet peered out to see Commander Turner easing into a chair. The reason behind that was made obvious when she noticed his leg in a cast.

“What happened to him?” she asked surprised.

“Colonel MacKenzie was telling me that he fell down the steps this morning. She said that Commander Turner was calling himself clumsy and Commander Rabb started calling him Limp A Long but I guess he changed it to Hop A Long. It had nothing to do with me. Harm wouldn’t do that.”

Harriet looked up at her husband knowing that he was right. She also knew that some how she was going to have to apologize to the Commander. In fact, she guessed that she needed to apologize to the entire office. She couldn’t believe that she made a scene like that in front of them.

“Harriet, I appreciate you standing up for me, but that really isn’t necessary.”

“Bud, I will not have anyone saying things like that to you,” she insisted.

“He wasn’t saying those things about me,” Bud said gently.

“I know that now, but still…”

“I understand that you are just trying to protect me, but you don’t have to. Some day, I will have to learn to defend myself and the sooner the better.”

“I just don’t want anyone to hurt you, Bud,” she said while lightly touching his cheek.

“I don’t care any more what any one else says. You are the most important person to me. What you say is all that really matters.”

“Oh, Bud. I love you so much.”

“I love you Harriet. I don’t think that I can ever say how much you have meant to me. How much you will always mean to me.”

“You mean the same to me, too.”

“No, I don’t think you understand. I don’t think that I could have ever made it through these past few months without you. You were my strength.”

“Oh Bud,” she sighed with tears in her eyes.

“No. Seriously. Since you showed up in Naples, I felt your strength and that is what made me pull through,” he said honestly. “I couldn’t do it without your strength.”

His lips quirked into a smile.

“What?”

“Between you and my guardian angel, I knew I would be okay,” he explained.

“Your guardian angel?” she asked.

“Yeah, that is the only thing I can think of, my guardian angel. I saw her on the ship before I was sent to Naples.”

“On the ship?” Harriet asked wondering if he actually knew on some level she was there. “I thought you said you didn’t remember anything.”

“I don’t. All I really remember is the fact that she was there. I knew that I had to get home to you because I needed you. She gave me the one thing that I needed until I could get to you. She gave me her strength.”

The End

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