Gibbs wondered why Agent Todd would be calling him at this hour of the night, but he didn't hesitate to unclip his cell phone from his belt.
"Hiii." The slurred, trailed-out word made him frown. There was some kind of commotion in the background, pounding music and the murmur of raised voices.
"Who is this?" - "Is this Gibbs?" They spoke together, and then he set the sanding block down on his workbench.
"You've reached him. Who is this? Where is Kate?" He pushed now, his voice gruff, to mask the worry he couldn't keep from rising in his throat.
"She's fiiine. Man, she was right. You are a hard-ass. She stilll-llikes you though." The female caller was likely drunk, and he just hoped Kate was in a better state.
"Does she need a ride?" It might not have been strictly professional, but their job had forced them into more 'unprofessional' situations, and he didn't give a damn when it came to the safety of his agents.
"Nope." The caller popped the 'p'. "She's m' ride."
"Why are you calling me? And why do you have her phone?" He enunciated each word.
"She's not gonna tell you she llikes you. But you gotta be blind not to see it. She gets a li'l bit red when she starts talkin' about you an' it's so cute !"
He swallowed, heavily, forcing the next words over his tongue. "I'm her boss."
He regretted that job offer, in his moments of weakness, when he thought she would look far better sprawled on his bed than sitting at her desk, and hearing that she might actually want to be there made his skin feel tight.
"Who the hell are you, anyways?"
A giggle. "A friend. Name's-heyyy!"
The whine of protest grew fainter as the phone was obviously taken away and Kate's voice came over the line, raised to be heard above the music. "I'm so sorry, Gibbs. I have no clue what she said to you-what the hell, Jess, calling my boss!-but please ignore her. She's drunk."
"Yeah. I got that." He allowed himself a small, private smile. "You should really pay more attention to who has your phone."
"She was just-come on, Jess-I asked her to hold my purse while I used the restroom. I had no clue she would call you. What did she say even say?"
The din subsided, replaced by the sound of tires on wet pavement, and then that was gone, too. "I told him you llike him." Jess hadn't adjusted her volume accordingly.
" What?! " He winced and held the phone away from his ear. Kate murmured a quick "Sorry, Gibbs," and then must have lowered the phone, since her voice wasn't quite as loud in his ear but still raised.
" What the hell , Jessica Katelyn Roberts! This is the last time I spend time with you anywhere with alcohol!"
"But I would've done it without the alcohol." Another giggle. "And you love me anyways, Katie-Cat."
"Just-the car is this way."
An exasperated sigh echoed over the line as she lifted the phone to her ear again. "Please just ignore her, Gibbs. I'm really sorry."
"So you're admitting that you failed to keep your phone on you and accessible at all times, which is part of your job?" He suppressed the smile on his face to make sure it didn't come through in his voice.
"I-" She swallowed, then tried again. "Yeah, I really would have answered it while on the toilet or washing my hands."
So she had chosen sarcasm, and he loved the banked fire in her voice. "If you really needed me, you would have called again in five minutes, and she would have either picked up for me, or let me know someone had called. I did not neglect my job."
"So who's this Jessica?"
"A friend from college. She's staying with me for a few days while she sees DC."
"Was she, by any chance, with you on a certain trip to Panama?" He would never say it, but he might have been grateful for Tony's childish tendencies the moment that popped up on his screen.
"Oh god . That picture was never meant for your eyes. Remind me to kill DiNozzo when I see him tomorrow."
There was the faint clack of heels on the pavement in the background, and he pushed away the thought of her in a dress and heels and just a bit of smokey eyeshadow in favor of what she would likely do to DiNozzo with one of those heels at some point. He couldn't tell if one image was any better for his sanity than the other.
"What're you two talking about? You're going all red, Katie!"
Her voice through the phone was muffled. She must have put her hand over the receiver. "Technically, this would be the second time you've gotten me into trouble at work. Remember that 'contest' on the beach in Panama?"
"Oh my god! " Another fit of giggles. "An' he's seen that?"
"Thanks to my asshole coworker."
"An' he still hasn't jumped you? Dammnn, Katie-Cat..." The rest of the other woman's reply was unintelligible.
It wasn't like he hadn't thought about it. He took a swig of his bourbon. Make that two long gulps.
"Now you get it," she scoffed before lifting the phone to her ear again. "I'm so sorry, Gibbs." She paused, inhaled, then continued somehow both more and less self-consciously. "I hope she didn't wake you. Good night."
She was doing what she should have done a while ago-cut him off and control the situation. Bad girl.
"Good night." He waited to hear her hang up, resisting the urge to add a teasing "Katie-Cat ".
Author's Note: Just for reference, I have no experience with drunk people. My apologies if something seems off.