Author's note:

This was originally written as an 'unbirthday fic' for a fellow author, and is not to be taken seriously at all.

It is an AU, falls halfway between crack!fic and flap, and I trust you will enjoy it.

"It's risky."

"You haven't heard the risky part yet."

"Hold the thought," Director Vance said as his intercom buzzed. "Yes?" He exhaled sharply as he listened to his assistant relay the message. "Tell her I'm in a meeting. I'll call her back as soon as I can. Thanks."

He looked up as he replaced the receiver.

"You know anythin' about horses?"

"Some," Gibbs replied. Not particularly disconcerted by the radical change in topic.

Vance considered his options for a moment and then pulled out his wallet.

"It's Jared's birthday this weekend," he explained as he slipped a business card out of it and slid it across the table. "Jacqui's taking the kids up here tomorrow afternoon. I'll be joining them on Saturday morning. I said I'd check the place out. Last week," he added with a small raise of his eyebrows.

Gibbs stared at him impassively.

"Do I need to tell you she's breathing down my neck?" Vance added when nothing was forthcoming.

"If it'll make you feel better," Gibbs replied with the faintest hint of a smirk.

"Need to know if the horses are safe, Jethro. This is a big deal for him."

Gibbs stared at him a moment longer before leaning forward and picking up the card.

"It's an hour's drive from D.C." Vance said as he watched him turn it over in his hand. "Your team's on call this weekend," he said as he pulled up the roster on his computer. "Do this for me and I'll make sure they get the weekend off."

Gibbs angled his head slightly and then nodded.

"Now, about that other business ..."

Later ...

"Okay, you're all signed up. Now if you just follow the markers they'll lead you right out to the stables. They should be starting in about five minutes," the young man behind the desk explained pleasantly.

"We'll find it."

"Great. Have fun," the man said as the mother and her child turned to go. He looked to the left and right of Gibbs before asking, "name of child?"

"Lookin' for your boss," Gibbs replied.

"Oh. Sorry. It's homeschoolers morning. I thought perhaps you were a father or ..."

He trailed off when Gibbs didn't smile.

"Your boss?"

"Um .. out back," the man said nervously. "Just follow .. "

"The markers," Gibbs said as he turned to go.

As he walked along a gravel path, the sounds of a restless horse in a barn to his left attracted his attention.

"Whoa Rebel," someone was saying placatingly.

Gibbs smiled as the sound of children talking excitedly among themselves drifted through the air at him, but it was an adult voice that arrested his attention. He squinted in the sunlight as he drew nearer to the enclosure and watched a woman lead two horses out through a wide doorway. The sun's rays seemed to bounce off her red hair, and the overall effect was little short of ethereal.

"Here you go," she said to the children waiting for horses. "Now, lets see what you remember from last week shall we?" she asked as she stepped up to her own horse.

She was about to mount when she caught sight of Gibbs leaning against a fence post.

"Can I help you?" she asked as she walked towards him.

"Looking for a J. Shepard?"

"You've found her."

"Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS" he said, showing her his badge.

"What can I do for you, Special Agent Gibbs?"

"There some place we can talk?" he asked, looking round.

"Am I being investigated?" she asked suspiciously – and he didn't fail to notice that the warmth had seeped out of her address.

"Checking the school out for my boss, ma'am."

"Does your boss want riding lessons?"

"His children will be here tomorrow and I'm .."

"On a recon mission?" She finished for him, amusement lacing her tone as she looked him up and down. "I didn't know tax dollars ran to this kind of thing these days. What's your director's last name?" she asked when he didn't respond.

"Vance."

"Wife and children arriving tomorrow, if I'm not mistaken" she said a few seconds later. " Private riding lessons and a birthday party for eight on Saturday afternoon. Kind of late to think about cancelling if we don't measure up, isn't it?"

Gibbs shrugged.

"Well, Special Agent Gibbs," she enunciated slowly, "I have to do some work. But I'll give you the grand tour myself as soon as I'm done. And answer any questions you might have. You can even interrogate me if you want." He wasn't expecting her hand to brush his as she leant in and whispered "so don't go away" - and the graze sent a shiver running through him.

He watched as she placed her toes in the stirrup, and as her legs stretched apart all he could focus on were her riding pants – because they only served to highlight her distinctly separated cheeks. He found himself holding his breath as she hopped onto the piece of metal and threw her other leg over the saddle – the brief glimpse of her crotch sending his mind in directions it had no right to be going.

"Good job," she said to the children. "Now dismount, and then mount again."

This wasn't go to do his blood pressure any good, he decided as he watched her take them through the motions over and over. He looked at his watch before addressing one of the parents standing a few feet away.

"How long does the lesson last?"

"The first part lasts about ten minutes. Then they split into groups and her assistants take over for the rest of the hour."

"Thanks," he said as he ambled towards the office.

"Steady, Rebel. Whoa boy, whoa."

The voice floated out of the barn again, and this time Gibbs followed it. A young man about McGee's age was holding a stallion by the halter; evidently trying to keep him still as he whinnied and bucked.

"Hey .." he said as he spotted Gibbs.

Gibbs tossed his head in greeting, but before he could say anything another voice was heard.

"Jason!"

"Yeah?"

"The mare's here."

"Shoulda guessed. This boy's got a nose on him like you wouldn't believe. Bring her in. Guess you're not Gracie's owner then," Jason said to Gibbs as he clipped a lead rope to the halter and led the horse past him into an enclosure at the far end of the barn.

"Nope."

"You here to watch?"

"Watch?"

"Rebel's a prize quarterback," Jason explained as he closed the gate behind him and sat on the railings. "People bring their mares from all over the state to .. ya know .. have them put to stud."

"Uh-huh."

Gibbs watched as another man led a mare in from the other side of the barn. Another four or five people trailed in behind them.

"This must be Gracie," Jason said as he lowered himself down.

"Buddy Morris," an older man said, holding his hand out to Gibbs. "Jenny around?"

"Giving a lesson," Jason answered for him.

"Any reason not to get the show on the road?" Buddy asked as he shifted his attention to the younger man.

"None at all, Mr. Morris," Jason said as he took the mare's lead up short and petted her nose. "No need to be skittish, Gracie," he said in hushed tones. "Rebel's got plenty of experience. You'll be fine."

Gibbs looked round him to find that the barn had filled up with people. They huddled around the enclosure as Jason ushered the mare into it. Rebel snorted once, and then again as he pawed the ground. But a fraction of a second later he caught the mare's scent and his head jerked upwards. The atmosphere in the barn turned electric in a way Gibbs couldn't even begin to describe as the stallion reared up and took off at a run towards the mare. He came to a shuddering halt by her side - sending dust up in a cloud that made it hard to see them for a moment. He nudged her flank slightly as he drummed the ground around her with his hooves, and instinctively Gracie flicked her tail. Gibbs knew he was as guilty as everyone else of staring the moment the stallion unsheathed himself. There was something primal about the way his member slapped against his stomach and about the way he whinnied, and he was pretty much holding his breath as the stallion rose up on his hind legs and plunged forward. He missed the first time he thrust his haunches forward, and snorted in frustration. But the way he embedded himself in one full thrust the second time sent a ripple through everyone present.

The musky scent that permeated the enclosure wove itself around him and went straight to his head, but the breath teasing his ear as the words, "I take it this is your first time" were whispered at him sent all sensation rushing to his groin. His awareness of her as a woman intensified as they watched the stallion lunge over and over until he found his release with a loud grunt, but it wasn't till it was all over that he realised she was leaning against him.

"Show's over folks," Jason said with a grin as he made his way over to the horses and led the stallion away slowly.

Gibbs watched as Jenny conversed with Buddy Morris for a while. Noting that the man was having a hard time keeping his hands to himself. He smiled at the way she manoeuvred him out of the barn, but made no move to follow.

"So, Agent Gibbs. Grand tour?" she asked a few minutes later when she returned to find him still standing by the railings.

He couldn't remember the last time he'd relaxed so much in the company of a woman, and he certainly hadn't been expecting to stay for the rest of the day. But it was evening now, the bottom of the bourbon bottle looked a lot closer than it had a few hours earlier, and as they loitered by the door of her study trying to say goodbye they were both reluctant to let go.

"Scout's honour," he said, holding up his fingers as the conversation continued to flow.

"No way you were a scout."

"You're right, I wasn't. Was a Marine though."

"You're not serious ..." Jen said as her eyes widened.

"Want me to cross my heart?"

Jenny threw her head back and laughed, and the sound made Gibbs smile.

"You are serious .."

"Uh-huh."

"You'll be telling me next that you were a sniper."

Gibbs smiled and Jen's eyes widened a little more.

"Leroy Jethro Gibbs, you are a strange man" she said as she leaned her body against the door jamb and watched him.

"Hey! A good investigator doesn't sit around. He assumes everything he's been told is false until he checks it out. He checks every possible lead, every possible ang - "

"And is that what you're doing now? Checking me out?"

He looked at her and suddenly wasn't sure which one of them had moved. The only thing he was sure of was that the space between them had diminished considerably. He was still wondering if he should do anything about it when he felt her palm caress his cheek. For a moment the gentle touch made the loneliness of his existence well up inside him, and he almost recoiled. As though she sensed his indecision she dropped her hand – but the moment she did the loss of contact made him reach out. A wave of yearning for her flooded his senses as he pushed her back against the jamb, and his hands swept up and down her body almost as though he thought could absorb her essence through them in some way. But he was unsure as he closed his eyes and sank his head into her shoulder. He took a deep shuddering breath as the feel of her skin under his lips inflamed his senses.

Until suddenly he became aware that she'd stopped pressing against him. Had completely stopped touching him in fact.

"If I ask you to stay I won't take no for an answer," she said gently.

Gibbs took one look into her eyes and the understanding he saw made him reel. He wasn't quite sure why a woman he barely knew could read him so well, but apparently she could and was giving him an out.

"If you want to stay the night you're welcome to use one of the cabins" she said when she had seen what she needed to see. "It's late. You may want to sleep over and get an early start."

He nodded once and extricated himself without a word. Following her out into the night as she led the way to lodging a short walk away from the main house. He wasn't sure what to say when they reached their destination, but she beat him to it.

"Goodnight Jethro," she said simply before turning and walking away.

Gibbs stared at her retreating form. He knew exactly why her gentleness had unsettled him, even though he refused to accept it. He took one look round the cabin and decided that since sleep was unlikely to come anytime soon he might as well be outside.

He wasn't surprised when his feet led him back to the barn. As he looked over into his stall, Rebel sensed his presence and walked up to him; nosing the extended hand warily but allowing himself to be petted. Gibbs stood there for a while, communing silently with him. Letting the stallion's regular breathing wash over him even as he appreciated the fact that the animal was tolerating him at all. When tiredness began to creep over him he headed for the enclosure, planning to catch a few hours of shut eye before he drove home.

Only he hadn't counted on the smell having lingered. He remembered absently that when the stallion had dismounted he had brushed the bales of hay – no doubt leaving droplets behind him. The muskiness assaulted his senses. Bringing all the things he'd just worked out of his system to the forefront again with a vengeance. In some ways he felt the way he had when he'd catapulted headfirst into puberty. Emotions, sensations, the intoxication of female presence. The feeling of anxiety that came with being sexually frustrated.

His thoughts strayed to Jenny and to what he might be doing with her if he'd taken her up on her less than oblique offer. If he read her correctly she was a study in basic contrasts. Control on the outside, unbridled heat on the inside. The kind of woman who didn't hold back once she went after what she wanted - no matter the trail or the outcome. He felt himself tighten unbearably as visuals of being consumed by her rose in his mind one after the other. Each one more stimulating than the one before it. His eyes drifted shut. He'd barely started to touch himself and the pressure was already threatening to undo him. He was all for the few brief strokes it was going to take to get him there - until he became aware that he was being watched.

He opened his eyes to find her sitting on the railings of the enclosure, a smirk her on her face.

"I make the boys use a bucket," she said as she hopped down and sat on the bale next to him. "Because in spite of the fact that it's ninety percent protein, Rebel doesn't like it in his hay. And he certainly doesn't like it when other men indulge themselves in his spot. Although," she added as she looked over at the stallion, "he seems to have taken a shine to you. So perhaps he'll make an exception in your case. You know, Jeth -"

He reached for her before he could give much conscious thought to the matter – cognizant only of the fact that he wanted to wipe the smirk off her face. One hand held her by the neck as he tugged her mouth to his. He breached the defences of her teeth easily as he pulled her onto his lap. There was no gentleness this time as his hands caressed her back and slid down to her bottom. He clenched his fingers, pulling her more tightly against him – which she responded to by circling her hips in a sensual grind. As his lips moved to her throat she flung her head back. Purring as his fingers fumbled with the buttons of her shirt; moaning as his tongue followed the path of exposed skin. She growled slightly as his hand closed over one of her breasts and squeezed gently. He tumbled them both onto the ground as he undid the last button and pulled the shirt off her shoulders. He nuzzled the juncture between neck and shoulder, resisting the urge to bite down on the pulse in her neck. She squirmed beneath him before slipping a hand between them and stroking him. As his head dropped forward she pressed her advantage - rolling him onto his back and straddling his thighs. The feral look she gave him robbed him of breath but she gave him no chance to respond. Hooking her fingertips in the loops of his pants she drew them down slowly. Pulling his boxers along with them. Teasing his newly-exposed flesh with the tip of her tongue as she did so. He registered her insinuating her big toes into his socks and pushing them off him with practised ease, but by then he was too wrapped up in the sensation of her body against his to care.

He watched avidly as she removed what remained of her own clothing, but it never occurred to him to move. The view was just too good from where he lay.

"Am I going to have to put you through your paces, Jethro?" she asked in amusement as she crawled back up his body and teased him through her wetness. The only response was a muted growl. "I'll take it that's a yes?" she asked as she positioned herself gingerly over him and braced her hands on either side of his head.

"That's a no" he said as his hands came up suddenly to grasp her hips and he pulled her down onto him roughly and without preamble. He almost lost his control at the sensation of her tightness around him, but the desire to watch her unravel was too great.

"Taking your cues from Rebel now?" she whispered as the preliminary shock wore off.

Gibbs laughed harshly and gripped her a little harder. From the way she was pressing down on him with her hips in search of closer contact he doubted she cared much if he bruised her. He focused on the escalating whimpers coming from her as her walls tightened around him, and fought her as long as he could. But as the willful contraction her muscles morphed into spasms he surrendered to the exquisite torment and met her halfway for one last hard thrust.

As she collapsed on top of him he drew the hair out of her eyes and stroked it tenderly as she laid her head on his chest.

Dropping a kiss onto it for good measure.

In the background Rebel neighed loudly, causing Jenny's head to snap up.

She fixed him with a look that he was sure made her stable crew quiver in their loafers.

"If we've traumatised my stallion I'm going to have your ass."