Author's Note: I couldn't recall or find any reference to any of Jen's drivers mentioned so I made up names, but if someone has this info please let me know so I can make this story more accurate. I also couldn't recall if SecNav's name was given in season three, so I used the name of the real life SecNav at the time. Unfortunately all I know about former SecNav Gordon England comes from the content of his Wiki page. All usage of him in my story is done with deepest respect. I only own Pavel Lyamin and the coffee drink I created for this... although after writing this story, I'm craving it, so if anyone knows of a place that actually serves it, I'd be extremely appreciative.
Jen woke up at about 02:30 confused, "What...where?"
Hearing her voice, Gibbs woke. "It's ok Jen," he said softly while rubbing her back to calm her. "It's just me. You stayed here last night."
"Oh... that's right," Jen replied sheepishly. "I'm sorry... I do want to be here, I just woke up disoriented."
"It's ok," he reassured her, rubbing her back tenderly under his NCIS shirt that she was borrowing. "Yesterday was quite a whirlwind for you. I understand."
"That it was," Gibbs felt Jen smile against his chest as relaxed and whispered, "Thank you," and sleep tugged at her again.
"Dormez bien, Jenny" Gibbs whispered into her hair as she slept.
Once she went back to sleep, Jen slept soundly until her the alarm on her phone started ringing at 04:45. Not wanting to wake Gibbs, she scrambled to shut it off quickly.
She pried herself from Gibb's grasp and watched him sleeping peacefully for a few moments before kissing him on the lips softly.
"Jethro, wake up," she whispered, stroking his cheek with her fingers softly, not wanting to startle him.
"Huh? What time is it?" He looked around confused.
"It's just before 05:00. You can sleep for a while yet, but I need to get going since I need to go back to my place to get ready for work. I wanted to make sure you were awake and knew I was leaving so you didn't think I was abandoning you again..." a sudden look of sadness and regret flashing across her face as she finished speaking.
"Oh, Jenny," Gibbs stroked her cheek lovingly. "I know you're not leaving again, but I appreciate you letting me know anyway. I wanted to give you a proper goodbye. After we get dressed, I'll walk you out," He kissed her softly before rolling to get out of bed.
Quickly dressing in their clothes from the day before, Gibbs and Jen walked down the stairs, their arms around the other's waist.
When they got to the door, Gibbs pulled her close and whispered, "Thanks for staying last night."
Jen just looked up at him and grinned. "I'll come back tonight. Before I leave my place for work, I'll grab some clothes so I don't need to keep making an early exit in the morning."
"Sounds like a plan," he eagerly agreed. "Je t'adore beaucoup."
"Je t'adore beaucoup aussi," she replied before kissing him softly and walking out the door of his... their... house.
As Jen arrived to NCIS headquarters, she couldn't help but think about how different she felt from the day before. She wasn't nervous at all, although she probably should be. It wasn't going to be easy keeping her romance with Jethro a secret, but they should be able to manage until he needed to be her detail for a formal function. Being out in public together would be much more difficult than being in the rather sheltered environment of the NCIS building. It would be hard to not think of him as her date, but she'd have to force herself because there was no other person she'd want to be her detail for such events.
Jen was still lost in her thoughts when the elevator doors opened. Thankfully the only people present were Team Gibbs.
"Morning Director!" Tony and McGee said in unison followed by Ziva's "Shalom!"
At hearing his team, Gibbs tried to suppress a smile. He knew he couldn't turn around or he'd lose his composure. He cleared his throat.
"Good morning, Director."
Jen could hear the smirk in his voice and she smiled, "Good morning Agent Gibbs!" Jen replied as she walked up the stairs, her voice so enthusiastic it was almost sing-song and an obvious spring in her step.
A few hours later, Jen was knee deep in paper work when she heard her assistant Cynthia's voice on the intercom. "Director Shepard, someone just dropped off a delivery for you. May I bring it in for you?"
Jen was puzzled. What kind of a delivery could it be? "Yes, Cynthia. That would be fine. Thank you."
Moments later, Cynthia appeared at her office door carrying a beautiful bouquet of red roses. Jen looked up speechless as Cynthia placed them on the desk. Jen opened the standard envelope to find a simple, "Congratulations on your first day, Madam Director."
Cynthia, who couldn't help but be curious, stayed as Jen opened the card. "A secret admirer, Director?" she asked, fishing for information.
Jen smirked to cover the grin threatening to spread across her face, "Oh no. Just a former co-worker," Jen explained, thankful that their past had allowed this statement to be true, even if there was more to it. "Oh, while I have you here Cynthia, could you please tell Special Agent Gibbs I'd like to see him in my office as soon as is convenient for him?"
"Yes ma'am," Cynthia replied as she left.
As soon as Cynthia left, Jen broke out into a huge grin as she smelled her flowers. There was nothing in the note to give away the identity of the sender, but she was certain she knew who it was.
As she was lost in her thoughts, she was interrupted by Cynthia once again. "Director, Special Agent Gibbs is just coming back from a case. He said he'll be up as soon as possible."
"Thank you, Cynthia," she replied, her heart increasing in speed at the thought of seeing him soon.
Before long, Gibbs entered carrying two cups, not bothering to knock. "You wanted to see me, Director?"
"That," Jen said pointing to the door he just entered, "is a door. It deserves to get knocked."
"You don't mean knocked up?" he asked seriously.
At his corny joke, Jen lost all hopes of professionalism and broke out into a fit of laughter, nearly falling out of her chair as she doubled over, her stomach muscles spasming. "Very... funny... Jethro..." she gasped between breaths.
As her laughter died down, she looked at him square in the eye and said in her most professional voice, "Special Agent Gibbs, I promise you that you'll get to knock up that door in due time." Both knew she was not talking about the door.
Seeing that a change in conversation needed to be made fast, Gibbs pointed to the flowers on the desk, "Nice flowers."
Jen smiled, "You wouldn't have had anything to do with them, would you?"
"Depends," he said emotionlessly. "Just how tight lipped do I need to be?"
At his round about admission, Jen rose from her desk and walked to him.
"Thank you," she said before kissing him softly, "but I told you yesterday that I hate being called 'Madam.'"
At this, Gibbs just shrugged, "Thought it would throw people off. Here. This is for you," he said, handing her one of the cups.
She looked at it, puzzled that hers was light blue in color, not white with a green logo and a mermaid on it like his.
Seeing her confusion, Gibbs explained, "There's a great little French café I know of. This is kinda like those salted caramel maki-whatevers, but this place uses French pressed espresso, French vanilla, crème caramel, and fleur de sel instead. It's way to fru-fru for me, but I thought you'd like it."
"Oh Jethro!" Jen was touched that he wouldn't just buy her roses and coffee, but that he'd get her something to remind her of their days in Paris. She took a sip and sighed, "That's the most divine thing I've ever tasted!"
Gibbs snuck a quick kiss and smirked, "You're right. Not bad."
Returning to business, Jen asked, "So, Cynthia said you were on a case."
"Yep, dead marine found in an alley. Looks like the murderer was interrupted. The knife was left at the crime scene. Hopefully there will be prints and it'll be a quick solve," Gibbs explained.
Jen nodded and was going to say something before she was interrupted by Cynthia for a third time that day. "Director, SecNav needs you in MTAC in 15."
"On it, Cynthia," Jen sighed.
"Back to work. Je t'adore beaucoup." Gibbs said before kissing Jen quickly and leaving.
In MTAC, Jen flipped on the plasma and the image of SecNav Gordon England appeared on the screen. "Good day, Madam Director."
Jen smirked, "'Director Shepard' please, Mr. Secretary," she corrected respectfully.
"As you wish, Director," Secretary England replied. "How has your first day and half gone?"
Jen thought carefully about her answer before replying honestly, "Very well sir. I admit that yesterday was a very long day and I was quite nervous, but today has been considerably better."
SecNav smiled, "Good. Glad to see you're settling in. I wanted to speak with you because I've decided to add another member to your detail. While there's been no reason to be concerned as of yet, it's been decided that one car will be watching your house at all times, whether you're there or not. I've already hired a man named Pavel Lyamin. He's currently at your house."
"Very well sir. Is there anything else you need?" she asked.
"No, that's it. Enjoy the rest of your day, Director," SecNav replied.
"Thank you sir. I will," Jen returned as she disconnected the call.
Looking at her watch, she decided it was time for lunch, after telling Cynthia she would be out of the building for an hour; she left to grab lunch and run some errands.
Back in her office, Jen took another look at the flowers on her desk before settling into the mound of paper work on her desk. She had to get her act together if she wanted to go home at the same time as Jethro. If he needed to have a later night, that just might happen. Jethro was a hard worker and he deserved some time off, but she didn't like the idea of not leaving with him either.
Surprisingly, the afternoon brought no interruptions from Cynthia, who she sent home early, or Gibbs which allowed her to make a surprising dent in her paperwork, although she wondered if she would ever see the beautiful mahogany wood that was covered by the pile.
About 18:00, Jen heard a knock at the door, but the person walked in before she could reply.
Jen smirked. "You're getting better Jethro, now you just need to wait until I tell you to come in."
"Why? Cynthia is gone and I knew that was all the more reason you'd let me in," he stated.
Jen sighed, "I hate when you have a valid point."
Gibbs just laughed, "Cases are all wrapped up, so I told my team to head out. They've been working hard and deserve it. When are you coming home?"
Jen couldn't help but smile at the phrase "coming home", but knowing it wouldn't be immediate, she sighed, "It'll be a couple hours yet, but not as late as last night."
Gibbs was disappointed, but at least she was coming home to him, "Ok, I'll see you later. Je t'adore beaucoup."
"Je t'adore beaucoup aussi," she replied before kissing him softly.
Two hours later, Jen decided she had enough. Walking to her car, she called Jethro. "Hi, have you eaten dinner yet?" she asked when he answered.
"No, I was waiting for you," he replied sweetly.
"Then I'll pick up some take out. I'm just leaving work now," she told him.
"Ok, I I'll see you soon. Je t'adore beaucoup," Gibbs' smile was audible.
"Je t'adore beaucoup aussi," she replied before hanging up.
Arriving at Gibbs'... their... house, she let herself in. Not seeing him, she set the bags of food down in the kitchen and walked down the basement stairs.
"Hi, honey, I'm home!" Jen called to her fiancé.
Gibbs looked up from his boat and laughed, "You have no idea how good it is to hear you say that, but you have to admit, it was pretty cheesy."
Jen laughed in return, "You're right it was. Would it be better if I said it in French?"
Gibbs just smirked as he kissed her softly and whispered in her ear, "Everything's better in French..."
When they got upstairs, Gibbs scanned the food. "Chinese, French wine, and profiteroles?" he asked.
"I went to that French café you were telling me about on my lunch. I thought we could use a little trip down memory lane," she winked. "That, and a certain very Special Agent may or may not have gotten me hooked on a very delicious coffee today."
Gibbs just shook his head and kissed her cheek as he hugged her from behind before pouring the wine while she divided up the food.
The pair settled on the couch with their food, Jen resting her back against Gibbs' chest and were just enjoying being able to have a quiet dinner together when Gibbs finally spoke, "So have you thought about logistics and how this is actually going to work?"
"I have...," she began as she leaned her head back on his shoulder. "I think it's best if I stay here rather than you coming over to my place. I don't need anyone noticing a strange car at my place. No one cares who's at yours." They both laughed at that last part.
"Well except for my team," he laughed, thinking about all the times his team, especially DiNozzo, had fished for details about his love life.
"I'm going to try to be here as many nights as possible, only staying at my place if I need to bring massive amounts of work home with me. I know you'll say that I can stay here anyway, but I know I'll be able to concentrate at home much better which will benefit us in the end. I'm going to try not to bring home work, but it'll happen. Unfortunately, probably quite a bit 'til I get settled." Gibbs ran his hand down Jen's arm as she spoke.
"As much as I want to be with you every waking moment, and non waking moments, I want all of you when I'm with you. It doesn't pay to be together if you're distracted, so if we need to do this for a while so we can devote ourselves fully to each other when we are together, I'll agree to anything." Again, Jen was overwhelmed and she turned to face him.
"You know you're wonderful, don't you?" she asked, not letting him answer before she kissed her.
As the kiss broke, a thought occurred to Gibbs, "What if someone notices your detail not in front of your place?"
Jen laughed softly, "SecNav's making that one easier on us."
Gibbs was baffled, "How the heck does SecNav make something easier? Especially when that something is keeping something from him?"
"SecNav decided he wants someone at my house at all times so he's hired another person for my detail. His name is Pavel Lyamin and he's at my house now— Better safe than sorry."
Gibbs nodded in agreement. "What about telling people? Is there anyone we'll tell or are we keeping us completely secret?"
Jen thought a moment before responding, "Well, we probably should tell Ducky since he caught on to us back in Paris, and I actually confided in Ziva a lot when we were partners so I feel obligated to tell her. I never mentioned your name, but she was there for me every time I collapsed under the guilt of leaving you, which was about every day and a half."
As much as it hurt when Jen left him, he didn't want her hurting over the decision either. It didn't change anything at the time, and it would only damage their new relationship now. "It's ok, you're here now. That's all that matters," Gibbs pulled her close.
Not wanting to think about it anymore, Jen changed the subject. "I would like to wait a year before we become public, but after that we can have a rather short "official" engagement," Jen emphasized the word, loving that she and Jethro were already engaged. It didn't matter that she wasn't wearing a ring or they'd told no one. They had promised themselves to each other, and that was enough. "I do think we can tell some family before everyone else though. Heather can keep her mouth shut and can help me get wedding planning going before we go public so we can get married faster once we become public. Since I'm going to tell Heather, it's only right that you should tell your dad then, maybe in 9 months. I've never met him, but he doesn't seem to be the kind of man to gossip and being in Pennsylvania I don't think great damage would be done even if he did, but maybe you could leave out the fact that I'm your boss until we go public."
"Sounds like you've really thought this out," he grinned, finally confident that this just might work.
Jen yawned, the last two days catching up with her.
"Time for bed?" Gibbs asked.
"Yeah, I think so. I'm beat," she relented.
"Why don't you go up and I'll clean up and bring your stuff up?" he offered.
"Thanks. I'll just call Tom and let him know you're coming to the car. Maybe he'll even help bring the stuff in," Jen kissed him softly.
About a half hour later, Jethro quietly entered the bedroom with one of Jen's bags, "Are you awake?" he asked softly.
She rolled toward him, wearing the NCIS shirt she wore the night before, "Yeah I am. I waited up for you."
"Here's all the stuff you'll need for the morning, everything else is downstairs," he pointed toward the bag he brought in.
"Thanks, I'll deal with it later," she replied.
Gibbs quickly stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed. Noticing Jen's big grin, he asked what she was thinking about as he pulled her close, her cheek resting on his chest as it had the night before.
"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking what a difference a day makes."