The Tattoo

E-mail: astridz55@earthlink.net

Summary: Mac talks about her tattoo and the memorable weekend and the man that inspired her to get it.

Notes: This is my first NC-17 fic so please be gentle. This was written in response to the July Challenge on Dog Tags.

Disclaimer: These characters belong to DPB Productions. I am just borrowing them.

 

 

Mac, Harriet, and Francesca were at the Admiral’s house having a bachelorette party for Francesca. She was going to become Mrs. Harmon Rabb in a week. While the women were rather calm and were just hanging out at the Admiral’s place the men got together at a bar. Harriet refused to let Bud go if it was a strip club, Francesca agreed when she heard the story of Bud’s bachelor party. So the men simply went to the bar and had a couple of drinks and told stories. Harriet pulled out a book called The Book of Questions. She started to ask some of the simpler questions then when they were all having a lot of fun and were more relaxed, she pulled out another book. The Book of Questions: Love and Sex. At first Mac and Francesca were surprised but then they laughed as Mac picked up the book and asked Harriet the first question she flipped to. They all had fun laughing about the questions and even some of the answers. No one was sure how serious and honest everyone was being but no one really cared.

Finally Harriet asked, "What was your most memorable sexual experience?" They looked at each other and smiled. "I would say it’s a toss up between my wedding night and the first time Bud and I made love."

"I have a feeling that after next weekend I will have a new one," Francesca said with a mischievous grin.

Mac just smiled and sighed. "So how often do you think of him, Mac?"

"Every time I see my tattoo."

Harriet and Francesca looked at each other and knowing it had to be good they said at the same time, "Details."

"I don’t think your father would like it if he found out I was telling you about this."

"What does Papa have to do with this?"

"You’re his little girl."

"Who is getting married in seven days. Besides what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him or you."

"Start at the beginning," said Harriet.

Mac knew she had lost so she started, "I was at a bar about to get drunk…"

 

Flashback

Mac was sitting at the bar, staring at her drink. She didn’t notice the man who sat down next to her. He ordered a scotch and drank it before he noticed that she still hadn’t touched her drink. He looked at her then said, "You look like I feel." He signaled the bartender for another shot. Mac looked up to see an attractive man sitting next to her, "What do you mean?"

"You look like you just lost your best friend."

"No. Tonight is a celebration of sorts and everyone I know is with their family. I don’t have any."

"Yep." He stared at his glass again. "I do know how you feel. I don’t have any family either." He paused for a few moments then said, "Are you going to drink that?"

"I’m an alcoholic." He was surprised, she looked rather young to be an alcoholic.

"Then why are you here?" he asked gently.

"Forgetting."

"Forgetting what?"

"The reasons I sobered up."

"You want to talk?"

"Not really."

"Let’s go sit in a booth. We’ll both be more comfortable. We don’t have to talk about anything you don’t want to talk about." He stood up and waited for her, she followed with her drink. They sat in silence for a while when she spoke up, "So what’s up with your family?" She saw the somewhat lost look in his expressive eyes.

"My parents are gone, died when I was out of the country. Car accident. I didn’t even find out for another two months. I was on a mission. No contact with anyone for three months. I had always been very independent and just when I was realizing how much family meant I was told that they were dead."

"I’m sorry," she said sincerely.

"It’s okay. It was a long time ago. But it does make me remember how important some things can be and how quickly things can change." He watched her for a moment then said, "Life throws us enough unexpected curves, we don’t need to add to it ourselves."

"What do you mean?" she said mildly annoyed.

"Life is tough enough as it is, why choose to make it worse? And you know very well that taking that first drink will make it worse. I didn’t realize how important my family was until I lost them, don’t lose your sobriety. You said you had reasons for being sober, well don’t forget them. They might not seem as important as you think until you lose them." He smiled as she silently pushed her glass away. They sat for a while in silence before he said, "Well, I probably had better head back to my hotel."

"I hope you aren’t planning to drive." He pulled out his keys and handed them to her without complaint. "Where are you staying?" she asked, not sure what this was leading to.

"The Holiday Inn. It’s just a couple of miles down the street. How will you get back?"

"I’ll take a cab. I can take care of myself," she said with a knowing smile. They got up and he paid the tab then walked out to his car. She drove him to his hotel and when she got there she said, "Do you mind if I use your phone?"

"Of course not." They walked up to his room. He opened the door and gestured to the phone as he started a pot of coffee. He let her use the phone as privately as possible. A few minutes later she walked back to where he was and said, "Thanks again. For the phone and the things you said. It really does mean a lot to me." Impulsively she leaned up and gave him a quick kiss. Both were surprised that she did that but were more surprised by the electricity that jumped between the both of them. She stepped back and looked into his eyes, just as surprised as her own. Their arms seemed to move with a will of their own as she wrapped her arms around his neck as he pulled her into his arms and kissed her again. Their kisses soon became more and more passionate. He picked her up and carried her to the bed. She didn’t resist until he started to unbutton her blouse. She stiffened then he pulled back and said, "I’m sorry. I usually don’t do anything like this."

"Neither do I," she admitted. "It just feels right. No one has ever made me feel like this."

"Then let me make you feel even better," he said as he started to kiss her again. She ran her hands around his waist and started to pull his shirt over his head as he removed her blouse. Soon their clothes were flung across the floor. She stiffened again when he reached for his boxer shorts. He left them on and continued to kiss her until she relaxed again. His hands explored her body and she was amazed by his touch. His hand soon found its way between her thighs. He claimed her mouth with his as his fingers learned what she liked. "Do you like this?" he asked huskily. She nodded. "Tell me what you like," he asked.

"What ever you are doing, don’t stop." He smiled a bit as he kissed her lips again. His lips left hers to begin to nibble on her neck. He found an especially tender spot at the base her neck and he gently bit before he sucked on the spot to ease any pain. He gently slipped one finger inside her as his thumb continued to caress the spot she told him not to stop touching. Abruptly, she tensed again then he said, "Just let it happen, sweetie. Just let it happen." He continued to work his fingers over her sensitive skin as she suddenly came undone under his hands. When she finally regained her composure, she looked at him and said, "My God. What was that?"

"That, my dear, was an orgasm," he said with a smile.

"I’ve just never had one like that," she said with an answering smile.

 

Present Day

The Admiral’s house

"Now that sounds like a good start to a great weekend. What was the next weekend like?" asked Harriet?

"The next weekend I got the tattoo to remember him by," Mac said with a smile.

"And what is the tattoo of?" asked Francesca.

"Something I saw on his T-shirt."

"Why did you get the tattoo?" asked Harriet.

"So I could always remember what he said to me that weekend."

"What he said and not what he did?" asked Francesca mischievously.

"Both, I guess. The things that Uncle Matt told me to keep me sober usually keep me away from alcohol. But every now and then, I would forget. Then I would look at my tattoo and think about what he said to keep me from taking that first drink that night in the bar. The only time I forgot what the man that weekend said was when Dalton was killed."

"How often do you think about him?"

"Every time I see my tattoo."

"You never did say what it was," commented Harriet.

"Well after I finally caught my breath…"

Harriet and Francesca let her change the subject, the story was just too good.

 

Flashback

"Oh just wait my dear, just wait," he said, his smile growing larger, as she shivered in delight. Her stomach suddenly growled. "Hungry?" She nodded. He rolled out of bed and picked up the phone and called room service. "What do you want?"

"Do they have burgers?"
He smiled and ordered her a burger and one for himself with all the fixings and dessert.

"When will the food get here?" He climbed back into bed.

"About an hour, sorry. How about I take your mind off your stomach?" He rolled over on top of her and started to kiss her. She turned her head away. He pulled back think he had gone too far. She asked before he could say anything, "And just how do you plan on doing that?"

"Well, let me see." He started to kiss his way down her neck. His hands found her breasts and he tenderly caressed them. She was amazed at how wonderful that felt. All the other men she had been with, both of them seemed to think that her breasts were knobs of some sort, they kept twisting them. But not this man, this man knew what he was doing. His fingers soon started to tease her nipples into hard little nubs. Soon his lips found one nipple and he was pleased with her moaned reaction. She reached for his head and held it in place. She ran her fingers through his dark brown hair. His tongue swirled around her nipple before he gently sucked on it. He lightly bit down on her nipple then lapped his tongue across it to ease any pain. He pulled back just far enough to lightly blow on her wet nipple, which hardened even more, with the cold. He gave that nipple one more lick and turned his attention to the other one. He paid equal attention to that nipple as the first one. She was amazed with the things he was making her feel. He noticed that she seemed to be having problems breathing so he worked his way down her body. His hands lightly raked down her sides causing her to twitch. His hands reached down her legs as far as he could then he ran them back up the inside of her legs. She instinctively parted her legs for him. His lips found her knee and he kissed the back of her knee. He then kissed his way up her leg along the inside of her thigh. One hand found the sensitive place between her legs as he kissed his way closer. She tensed up once she realized what he was going to do. "What’s wrong?"

"I’ve never," she couldn’t continue.

"Then let me show you, trust me."

"Trust you? I don’t even know your name."

"It’s ok," he mumbled just before his kissed her. Her breath seemed to catch in her throat as she saw him look up at her with his beautiful eyes. He put one hand just above her pelvic bone to hold her in place and with the other hand he tenderly parted her moist folds. She didn’t think about breathing when his tongue found the sensitive bud that he was searching for. His tongue kept flicking across her tender flesh and she was soon writhing on the bed. He took her into his mouth and as he slipped one finger inside her he wrapped his lips around her most sensitive spot and gently sucked. He was very pleased with her reaction as she almost screamed in orgasm. He took her into his arms and simply held her. After she caught her breath he said, "See I told you it got better." She just smiled at him, not having enough energy to say anything. Before she could speak some one knocked on the door. He jumped up and grabbed a T-shirt from his suitcase and answered the door. It was room service. He signed the ticket and added a tip then pulled the cart inside the room so that the waiter couldn’t see her in the bed.

She sat on the bed and watched him. She thought that he had a magnificent body, she had always liked tall men, and he was several inches over six feet. He had an impressive physique, she could tell that he worked out but he wasn’t over muscled. He turned to see her watching him, stretched out on the bed and propped up on one elbow. "Why are you staring at me?" he asked amused.

"Because I like what I see," she responded.

"Me or the food?"

"Both. Bring me my burger, mister."

 

Present Day

The Admiral’s house

"You always have to think about food don’t you Mac?" asked an amused Harriet.

"What can I say? I had to keep my energy level up for the rest of the weekend."

"There was more?" asked Francesca.

"Much more," Mac said with a smile. "You know, I’ve always enjoyed a good meal but I never realized how much fun food could be."

 

Present Day

The Admiral’s House

 "Hold on a minute Mac. Did I hear you right? He never told you his name?"

"No. That’s why I don’t want either of you to tell anyone about this. Bud, Harm, and the Admiral know enough of the mistakes I’ve in my life, I don’t want them to know about this."

"You think the weekend was a mistake?" asked Harriet.

"Not really."

"Well then what was the mistake?" asked Francesca.

"Not finding out his name. I am a bit embarrassed about that. It’s not like I enjoy telling people that I had a weekend fling and never found out his name."

"Well if they are upset about it that’s their problem. Men can be such hypocrites. It’s accepted for them to sleep around, they’re macho that way, but show them a woman who enjoys sex and she is considered a slut," complained Harriet.

"It’s a double standard. Harm’s told me he’s been with other women. I knew that but he couldn’t tell me all their names." Harriet was looking carefully at Mac and thinking.

"Maybe he just wouldn’t," suggested Mac.

"I don’t think that’s the case, Mac. When I asked about it, he got embarrassed. So I would say that he knows how you feel. So if he ever hears about this, not that I will tell him, but if he ever does find out, question him about ‘his’ weekend fling."

Mac noticed Harriet was watching her so she asked, "What is it Harriet?"
Not wanting to admit what she was really thinking, Harriet responded, "What happened after the food got there?"

Mac smiled, knowing that Harriet was trying to put two and two together, "Well…"

 

Flashback

He brought the food over and set the tray on the bed. He took off his shirt but still kept his boxers on. Mac thought that he was being very considerate by not pushing her, even though she knew very well how this evening was going to end. She was going to question him about his T-shirt but as she opened her mouth he popped in a french fry. The smoldering look in his eyes nearly made her choke on her food. She had never thought of food as sensual. Maybe he was going to teach her yet another new experience. She smiled as she reached for one of his fries to feed him. After eating some fries he finally picked up one of the burgers, she couldn’t help but wonder how he was going to feed her the burger. She didn’t need to worry he ate own. After he swallowed he commented, "You going to eat yours? You can’t have dessert if you don’t eat your dinner." She smiled as she picked up her burger, wondering exactly what dessert was going to be. While they ate their dinner in silence he couldn’t help but think that she was rather bold for someone so obviously inexperienced. He wondered just how inexperienced she was. Mac was wondering what he was going to do next but before she could continue that thought a giant blob of catsup squirted out of her burger and down her front. Without any hesitation he put down his burger and before she could reach for her napkin he lowered his head to gently lick the catsup off of her. He took his time gently lapping the catsup off her skin but finally he stopped and eventually her mind turned back to her food. She couldn’t help but laugh when his burger squirted catsup all over him. Before he went to reach for his napkin he quickly glanced at her. She was putting her burger down and crawling across the bed to him, she licked the catsup off of him. He watched in delight as her tongue flicked out and lightly ran across his thigh catching a small drop of the catsup. She could tell that she was having an effect on him when she looked at his shorts. She bypassed the area that obviously wanted some attention and leaned up to run her tongue along his bottom lip. He caught her face in his hands and kissed her properly, tongues dancing in each other’s mouths. He could taste the catsup on her tongue. Finally, to his regret, she broke the kiss. Before he could pull her back to his lips hers slipped lower and she began licking the catsup off his well-muscled torso and abdomen, gradually working her way down to his waist. Once she had removed all the catsup she suddenly stopped and leaning back she picked up her burger again. After she took a bite she noticed that he hadn’t moved yet. She smiled a little Mona Lisa smile as he finally gave his head a noticeable shake and turned to look at her. "Well you didn’t let me use a napkin. You think I was going to let you use one then?"

"Well since we now have catsup all over us how about we take a shower?"

"Together?" she asked.

"It might be more fun that way." She put her burger down and walked to the bathroom, he followed after grabbing his soap and shampoo. She reached into the shower and turned it on. He handed her the soap and shampoo as she stepped into the shower. She turned her back to him and she let the water run over her. She closed her eyes and leaned her head forward to wet her hair. She opened her eyes when she heard him step into the shower. He stepped under the spray with her and took her in his arms. He ran the bar of soap across her slick skin and lathered her body. He paid particular attention to her breasts and the delicate tangle between her legs. She leaned back against his chest and felt his hardness against her buttocks. She suddenly realized that he had pleasured her twice and she had not even touched him yet. She pulled the soap out of his hands and turned to look at him. "Your turn," she mumbled. She ran the soap against his chest to lather it. She continued to lather all of him that she could reach. He stood as still as possible so that she could get used to the feel of his body. She was delighted to be able to touch him as much as she wanted to. She had never really had the opportunity to do that before. She reveled in the feel of his muscles under his taut skin and the way his chest hair curled around her fingers. She wrapped her arms around his neck then pulled him close to give him a kiss. She ran her hands over his back and down his spine pulling his hips closer to hers. His erection pressed against her belly as she squeezed his butt. She took a step back, pulling him with her and let the water rinse the soap off of the both of them. She pulled away from his lips and kissed her way to his ear. He moaned and gripped her waist tighter as she lightly bit on his earlobe. She tugged his ear with her teeth then ran her tongue across it to make him moan again. She left his ear to kiss her way down his neck and across his collarbone and down towards his chest. He let her lips wander to his nipple before he tried to pull her back to his lips. She pulled his hands away from her and continued to kiss her way down his chest. Before he could stop her she kneeled in front of him and kissed his flat stomach. He flinched as her tongue twirled around his navel. His breath caught in his throat when one of her hands grasped his erection. He finally found his voice and said, "You don’t have to."

"I know but you’ve already taught me so many new things. Teach me this too." He looked down at the beautiful woman kneeling in front of him and thought ‘What man can refuse a request like that?’ He reached out and delicately stroked her cheek. "Tell me what you like," she asked.

"Just do what feels right." He gasped as her tongue flicked out and tentatively licked the tip of his hardness. Taking that as approval, she stroked him more determinedly with her tongue. She slid her hand down and circling the base of his shaft she took him into her mouth. He touched her hand and showed her how to stroke him in time with her tongue. Once she picked up that rhythm he took her other hand that was resting on his hip and led it to his testicles. She cautiously cupped them in her hand as she took even more of him into her mouth. Her unpracticed tongue, lips and hands created such surprisingly pleasurable sensations that he knew that this would be over with too soon if she didn’t stop. He ran his fingers through her hair as he tried to pull her away. She tightened her hand around his erection and wrapped her other hand around his hip to grasp his butt cheek. "I’m going to-" She just looked up into his eyes, nodded and continued. He leaned his head back as he moaned and lost control. He unconsciously thrust deeper into her mouth before she pulled away. Her hand kept stroking his now ultra-sensitive skin until he pulled her back up to a standing position in front of him. He stepped back so they were back in the spray of the water and let the water further relax them. She eventually spoke, "That was kind of fun."

He embraced her and said, "You, my dear, have a gift for stating the obvious." Finally, he made sure they were both rinsed off then turned off the shower. He reached for a towel and wrapped it around her and began to dry her off. When she was mostly dry he reached for a towel for himself. She held out her arms for the towel and she dried him off. "If you can do it for me, why can’t I do it for you?"

"You have a point there. Come here, let’s go back to bed." She smiled and taking his hand let him lead the way.

 

Present Day

The Admiral’s house

"Mac, you can’t stop there!" cried Francesca.

"Well I had a question. Why didn’t you have the chance to touch a man before?"

"Oh I had touched men before. Remember I had been married. I just never really had the chance to explore their bodies as much as I wanted to. My first boyfriend and I were usually in the back of the car or hurried so that no one came in on us. And Chris," she took a breath to think, "He had a pretty good body when we were married, but I guess I was too drunk most of the time to appreciate it. This man taught me to appreciate it, among other things."

"After that shower, I’m kind of surprised he led you straight to the bed."

"Well he was tired. We both fell asleep."

"Oh," said a disappointed Francesca.

"You know, I’ve heard about these studies that a 20 minute "power nap" can really rejuvenate you." Harriet and Francesca looked confused, Mac continued, "That power nap certainly rejuvenated him."

 

Flash Back

She rolled over and pressed against him. At first finding a man in the bed with her startled her, then she remembered. She looked up at him he was watching her. He had such beautiful eyes. He leaned down and claimed her lips with his. "Sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep," he said.

"That’s okay," she said as she pulled him closer. They kissed passionately as their hands wandered over the other’s body. His hands found her breasts as hers wrapped around his waist. Her hands soon move their way back to his hips. She reached for his erection as his hand slid between her thighs. They both just touched each other for a while letting their arousal build. Finally, he pulled away and got off the bed and pulled something out of his suitcase. Thinking that she had done something wrong she apologized. He gave her a quick kiss. "No reason to apologize. I just thought we could use these," he said as he tossed a handful of condoms on the nightstand. He picked one up and ripped the package open. He started to put it on but her hand stopped his as she reached out to unroll it over him. He kneeled on the bed over her and leaned down to kiss her. He eased her legs apart with his knee and she urged him into her. He braced himself over her with his elbows as his erection nudged against her belly. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"My god if you stop now, I’ll hurt you!" she cried as she thrust her hips into his. He smiled and pulled away and gently began to slowly slide into her. When he was finally completely inside her he paused to let her body adjust to his. She met his eyes with hers, my god his eyes, she could get lost in his eyes. Instinctively, she thrust her hips against his. Someone groaned, neither was too sure who it was. He carefully started to move not breaking eye contact. She braced her feet against the mattress so that she could have some leverage to thrust back herself. They both lost track of time as they thrust against each other’s bodies. He knew that he wasn’t going to last too much longer inside her tight flesh so after they continued for a while, he balanced his weight on one elbow as he slipped the other hand between their bodies. She moaned when he started to play with her tender flesh. Suddenly she thrust up as hard as she could as her head fell back and nearly screamed. He could feel her muscles clutching at him and he gave one final thrust as he climaxed inside her. He paused a moment then gently pulled out of her. He rolled over, disposed of the condom, then took her in his arms. Within minutes they had both fallen asleep again.

 

Present Day 

"I know I hadn’t been with many men before then and some since but go, I’ll never forget the way he made me feel."

"He must have been pretty special."

Mac simply nodded.

"So he was that good?"

"He was even better the next time," Mac said with a mischievous smile.

 

Flashback

She woke up a couple of hours later. She began to run her hands across his chest enjoying the feel of his body. Even though he was asleep his body began to react to her explorations. He woke up when she reached across him to the nightstand. He smiled when he realized what she was reaching for. She picked up a condom and opened the little foil packet. He wondered how far she would go before asking for his help. She didn’t ask for any help though as she reached for him with one hand and wrapped her hand around his erection. She smiled as he leaned back and took a ragged breath. She took her other hand and rolled the condom down his shaft. She rolled back over and tried to pull him over her but he wouldn’t let her. He pulled her over top of him to straddle his hips. She lifted herself up and with his help she lowered herself on to him. She leaned back and he pulled his knees up so that she could lean against them. He reached out and began to caress her breasts. She leaned back as she took all of him inside her pulling moans from each of them. His hands slipped to her hips and helped to guide her rhythm before moving back up to her breasts. Her strong legs soon carried both of them closer to their climax. She could feel her climax beginning and she raked her fingernails across his chest as she climaxed around him. He grasped her hips and pulled her closer as he thrust his hips up as he climaxed with her. He almost blacked out from the intensity of his orgasm. She moved off of him and stretch out beside him. He removed the condom and again took her into his arms. "My God, I don’t know what you do to me? No one has ever made me lose control that totally." She just smiled at him.

 

Present Day

"The first time he seemed like he was holding something back, the second time he didn’t hold anything back. It makes me feel so powerful when I can make a man lose that much control." Harriet and Francesca both nodded knowingly.

"So you never found out who he was?"

"No. I woke up in the morning and I couldn’t believe what I had done so I quickly got dressed and left. Okay, I think I’ve talked enough. Time for you two to start talking." Trying to change the subject Mac took the book from Harriet and asked a question, that proved even more embarrassing. "Do you prefer your partner to be your age, younger, or older?" Harriet answered immediately, "My age." Mac and Francesca both knew that Bud was just a year older than she was.

Francesca said with a mischievous smile, "Younger men are not too bad but older men certainly have more experience." Mac unconsciously nodded in agreement.

Harriet noticed, "What about you, Mac?"

Before she realized it she answered with total honesty, "Older, of course." Once she realized what she said she flushed.

"Oh, really, Mac? Does this have anything to do with-"

"Don’t even suggest it Francesca," Mac said shocked.

"Suggest what?" Francesca said innocently.

"I think she was talking about Colonel Farrow," said Harriet knowing full well that wasn’t who Francesca was talking about but Mac jumped on that excuse.

"Actually, I’ve always liked older men. Men my age just didn’t seem to, um, pay enough attention to me."

"Really? Do explain," said Harriet.

"My first lover was in high school. We were both drunk and neither really had a clue as to what we were doing. My next lover was Chris, my husband. He wasn’t bad but he wasn’t too gentle either. And we were usually drunk then too."

"So when did you realize older men were better?"

"The weekend before I got the tattoo."

"What?"

"Did I forget to mention that he was older?"

"And it wasn’t Farrow?" asked Harriet. Mac shook her head, wondering how she got into this conversation.

"So it was before Farrow? How old were you?" asked Francesca.

"Nineteen. Like you think any man that age would have cared to give me that many orgasms?"

"And he was?"

"I’m not sure. Mid-thirties I think," Mac said sheepishly. Harriet and Francesca looked at Mac in surprise. Mac couldn’t but help laughing at the looks on their faces. "I learned a lot from him," she said nostalgically. "As you said Francesca, older men are definitely more experienced."

"Yes, Mac. I can certainly see why you got the tattoo to remember him by but you still haven’t told us what it is."

"You can’t ever, and I mean ever, tell anyone what it is, is that understood?"

They both nodded. "First question. Where is it?"

Mac pointed to her left butt cheek. "But you said that you think of him when you see the tattoo. How often can you see it?"

"I have a mirror," Mac said dryly. "Besides there are other things around that remind me of the tattoo."

"Ok now you have us real curious. Just show us. Mac finally agreed, she stood and walked into the spare bedroom, just to be on the safe side.

"So if you met him now what would you do, Mac?" asked Harriet as they went to the other room.

"I doubt that he would recognize me. I’ve changed a lot since I was nineteen. And I’m sure he’s changed too. For all I know he could be bald with a beer belly."

She unsnapped her jeans and pulled the waistband down on the one side. She turned her back to Harriet and Francesca, they looked and Harriet said, "Now I understand why you have that-"

"Nice tattoo, Mac."

"Harm!"

All three women spun around and saw Harm and the Admiral standing in the doorway, Bud was behind them. "Mac, I think you need to explain why a kick ass jarhead like you would have that tattooed on your ass."

Mac was mortified when she saw the glint of humor in the Admiral’s eyes when he said, "Yes, Mac. I think you do." He led everyone else back to the living room and kindly let her have some privacy so she could resnap her pants. Maybe she could just sneak out the window, she could be quiet enough. The men managed to drive up without them noticing so why couldn’t she drive away as quietly. She finally decided against that. It would be even worse trying to explain it on Monday in the office. She finally walked into the living room. Mac looked at the three men and noticed that Bud looked confused. Maybe he hadn’t seen it. But she had no doubt that Harm would tell him. She might as well tell them. "One night after OCS, I was at a bar planning on getting drunk. I met this nice guy and he convinced me that getting drunk would be a mistake. I drove him back to his hotel and called a cab. I never heard from him again. I only forgot what he said once, when Dalton was killed, before that and since then I would always think about him and what he said when I see the tattoo."

"But why get that as a tattoo?" asked Harm.

"Because he was wearing a Seal T-shirt."

"It’s a seal?" asked Bud.

AJ answered for her, with a smile. "No, Mr. Roberts. It’s a SeAL trident. Just like on my uniform, only smaller." Mac blushed even redder.

"So that explains the poster in your office, doesn’t it?" asked Bud.

"Yes. I figured that I would get teased a bit about a Marine having a poster of a cute little seal pup on her wall but better that than a picture of the trident or something that said SeALs on it."

"Well if it helps to keep you sober, I guess that is all that matters," said AJ.

"Thank you for understanding, sir. Now I think it is time for me to leave. I’ve been embarrassed enough."

"Stay. We won’t say anything about the tattoo. I promise, right guys?" said Harriet.

"Right," they all responded somewhat reluctantly.

"Well, it’s getting kind of late so I really should be going. See you all on Monday."

"Good night, Mac."

She left and the rest of them settled down in the living room. Harm finally commented, "There had to something more to that story. I don’t think she would have been that embarrassed just by us finding out what her tattoo is."

"Well if there was any more to that story, you’ll never find out," said Francesca.

"That just leads me to believe that she left a lot out of the telling," said AJ.

"Well, we should probably go rescue the babysitter. Bud?"

"Sure. I had a good time. But I’m glad your bachelor party was less exciting than mine," Bud said to Harm.

"Me, too," responded Harriet, Francesca and AJ.

They all said good night and soon left. The Admiral was so lost in thought, ‘It couldn’t have been her. Could it?’ that he never noticed that Bud leaned over to Harriet and whispered, "I hope you didn’t show them your tattoo." Harriet just smiled.

 

The End

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