Ziva didn't even have to look at the caller ID to know that she wasn't going to like what she was about to hear. There were only a handful of people who had her new cell number, and if any of them called at this hour, it could only mean bad news. Seeing Tony's name on the screen comforted her in her theory that her evening – their evening – was about to be ruined. Sighing heavily, she dropped her book and took the call.

"Please tell me you're running late because you couldn't find a parking spot." she half-joked, half complained.

"I wish. The New Orleans office called, they have a situation there and Vance kindly offered to send me to help so I'm flying out in an hour." She could hear the annoyance as well as his silent apology to her in his voice and she knew enough about the system to understand he wasn't given a choice.

"It must be quite the situation if they requested your help…" her tone was light and humorous, and she hoped he would take it as an understanding that she wasn't angry at him for bailing on her at the last minute. They had been taking things slow ever since she had come back a few weeks before - suitcase in her hand and her heart on her sleeve - both of them wishing to do this right this time around. That being said, she always welcomed their time together with a feeling of longing and excitement she didn't even know she was capable of. Waiting for him after work felt like a painful eternity and finally feeling the warmth of his arms enveloping her every night was her heaven on Earth. Having such precious moments taken away from her was something she just couldn't bear.

He chuckled half-heartedly at her teasing and that alone told her he must have sensed her disappointment anyway.

"Look, I'm sorry Ziva. I promise I'll make it up to you."

His defeated tone broke her heart.

"It's okay Tony, I know how this job can be sometimes. We'll do this when you come back." Her voice was soft and reassuring and she could feel his relief through the sigh he let out almost instantly. "So, what did you say this situation was again?"

He laughed at that for real this time and it made her smile. God, she had missed his laugh.

"Nice try, David, but you know I can't say anything, it's confidential."

"And you know I could make you …" She knew the not-so-subtle hint wouldn't be lost on him and he would give in. He had no willpower when it came to imagining how exactly she could make him…

"Well, they found that guy who apparently died of the bubonic plague, and since I had it before, I'm –"

"Wait a minute. Did you say the plague? As in the plague you almost died of a few years ago?"

"Ziva, it's fine." His tone told her she was probably overreacting and she was being unreasonable. "That's the great thing about being a plague survivor. Can't get it twice. I would have joined the Facebook page but it seems there's not that many of us. I always told you I was a rare breed."

Ziva breathed heavily and rubbed her temples to try and calm herself down. All humour was gone now. She didn't like this and Tony making fun of the situation only made things worse.

"Could you PLEASE not joke about this? This is serious, Tony! You can't go there and risk your life again. What were they thinking? " She was on the verge of panicking now and she couldn't keep her voice down. She needed him to come home, not go to Louisiana and catch a deadly disease. Again.

"Ziva, calm down, I'll be fine. I'll get myself a nice little protection suit and a mask and everything. There's a chance I won't even be in contact with it at all. I'm going there to investigate, not to be a lab rat."

"I know, I know, it's just that….." Ziva raised from her seat on the couch and walked towards the window. She leaned her head on the window frame and let the fresh autumn night air blow softly on her face.

"It's just that what?"

" I…. I do not want anything to happen to you. I just got you back Tony." The admission made her eyes fill with tears. She couldn't imagine having to live without him again, not when things were falling back into place at last, not when they were so close to finally getting there.

"Ziva." His voice was soft but confident. Strangely enough, that's all it took to ground her. "I promise you, nothing 's gonna happen to me. And I'll be back before you even had time to miss me."

"I doubt that." A stray tear escaped from her treacherous eyes as she let out a chuckle, and she wiped it away with the back of her hand. "Just be careful okay? Do not do anything stupid."

"I'll try to stop myself."

She could practically hear his full-on Dinozzo charm smile on the phone and she laughed.

"Good."

It was almost too easy for him to know exactly what she needed to hear and that was also one of the many reasons why she knew she couldn't let him out of her life again. He was her solid ground when her world was crumbling down and her way back to sanity when she was about to lose it. How she could make it alive and unscathed without him was a true wonder.

"I have to go. You're gonna be okay?"

She took a deep breath.

"Yes. Go. Don't worry about me."

She knew she didn't sound as convincing as she wished but she couldn't help it. What if he had underestimated this mission? What if something went wrong? What if –

"And Ziva?"

His voice – thankfully - interrupted her train of thought.

"Yes?"

"I love you."

The words were as tender as they were in the dark of night, when she lied in the tangled sheets of her bed, in the safe embrace of his arms and he whispered in her ear as she was falling asleep, and her heart skipped a beat.

"I love you too."

And he was gone.

Going to work after a sleepless night wasn't something Ziva was very good at. The lack of rest and the concern for her former partner and actual boyfriend didn't do well on her mood. She was cranky, easily annoyed and her tolerance level was dangerously low. Tony sent her a selfie in a white protection suit giving her the thumbs up in the early hours of her working day and even though it did make her smile, the lack of update was starting to get on her nerves. So was the man currently harassing her to please find that book he had ordered two weeks ago and never came to claim. She briefly wondered if her silencing Mossad techniques would still work.

She checked her unhelpful phone for what seemed to be the millionth time of the day and threw it back in her bag in frustration. Back before you had time to miss me, my ass. The impatient customer tried to get her attention by waving a hairy and wrinkled hand in front of her eyes and she never wanted to rip someone's arm off so much in her entire life. She started opening her mouth to give him a piece of her mind when the doorbell announced a new visitor. She turned her head towards the door with a heavy sigh, not quite ready to face whatever new source of annoyance today had decided to bring.

And there he was.

"You're back." She said almost in disbelief, as if the fatigue of the past hours had finally got to her and she had now started to hallucinate.

"Miss me yet?" His cocky but loving smile and the twinkle in his eyes, combined with a highly attractive casual outfit she loved so much on him made her feel like bursting into tears with relief and happiness. Leaving a pissed off and perplexed old man behind the counter, Ziva ran towards Tony and crashed into his open arms with so much force that they both staggered backwards a little.

"Well I guess that answers my question." Tony took her face between his hands and kissed her.

"Hi." Tony stared deep into her tired eyes while he stroked one of his thumbs against the soft skin of her cheek and with his other hand, pushed some stray hair away from her forehead. At that moment the old man, his lost book and the entire bookshop were suddenly forgotten. All she could see, feel and think about was him. His scent was intoxicating, his hands burnt on her skin and his eyes were so light and shiny that she felt a little dizzy.

"You look like you could use a break."

"You have no idea."

She rested her forehead under his chin and breathed him in. He put his arms around her and kissed the top of her head and she buried herself a little deeper into his embrace.

A few minutes went by and they just stayed like this, soaking in each other's presence, until the old man cleared his throat loudly, reminding them of his presence.

"Let me get rid of him and we can leave." she mumbled into his t-shirt.

She somehow managed to draw back from him and with all the patience she had left, showed the old man out despite his heavy protests and threats of having her fired. She turned off the computer and the lights of the shop and locked the door behind Tony and herself.

Tony extended his hand to her and she hooked her arm to his and laced her fingers with his, snuggling against his side in the process. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt so good, so at peace. Coming back after almost a year of being away had been nice but stressful. Wondering how Tony would react or whether she had taken the right decision at all had made her so nervous that it had taken over everything else she should have been feeling. However, reuniting with him now felt different, almost better, even. After a few weeks of tiptoeing around in this new life together, something had finally clicked in her mind.

And that's when he asked her if she was ready to go home that she knew.

"I am home."