Kate needed some male input, and currently, all of the men seemed to be out of the building. Gibbs was interrogating a suspect. Tony was out interviewing a witness. Tim was out getting dinner for all of them. Where was a man when you needed him?

"Palmer!" she called excitedly as she saw the lanky assistant walking by. Jimmy was young and male. He was perfect.

Jimmy turned and saw Kate running excitedly toward him. She looked to be smiling which was odd because he wasn't used to people at NCIS smiling at him. It was usually a smile or a look of indifference. He was so surprised, he actually stopped in his place, completely forgetting that he was supposed to deliver an autopsy report to Agent Malter regarding his dead Marine. "Agent Todd," he said in a markedly shocked tone. "How can I help you? Is Agent Gibbs looking for me?" Jimmy shuddered at the thought. He liked to have few confrontations with the surly special agent.

"No, Palmer, nothing like that. I just need a male opinion on something and you're the only male I can find."

If Jimmy was insulted by the fact that he was a last resort, he didn't show it. "What can I do for you?"

"Do I look sexy?"

The young ME Assistant was taken aback. Of all the possibilities which had run through his head, this hadn't been one of them. In fact, he was so shocked that Kate was talking to him outside of anything pertaining to a case—and with enthusiasm and a smile no less!—that he hadn't even taken the time to look at her. Now, though, he realized that her outfit probably didn't meet the dress code standards. Her top was a tube top which clung to her body as tight as a 19th century corset. It was pink and had "Sex Kitten" bedazzled on it with rhinestones along with a bedazzled picture of a lip-stick adorned, winking kitty. Her skirt looked as though it had come straight from Abby's closet as it was black and pink plaid and came almost up to…well…her lady parts, as Jimmy would blush to say. Her shoes were pink, lace-up heels which looked so uncomfortable they made Jimmy cringe. She had chosen to ornament the ensemble with larger-than-necessary hoop earrings, a silver choker with a pink rose in the center, and a charm bracelet with a butterfly dangling from it. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail with a pink ribbon, and as for her make-up…well, the words "Corner street whore" immediately popped to mind.

"Uh…well…that, uh, depends," he stammered. "Sexy in what way?"

"How many ways are there to be sexy, Jimmy?"

"Um…isn't that outfit a bit young for you?"

Her brow furrowed as she looked down at her ensemble. "Well…yeah. That's the point. So am I sexy or not?"

"Sure…in a teenage prostitute kind of way…"

To Jimmy's surprise, Kate had a positive reaction to her assessment. "Yes!" she exclaimed with a wide smile. "Just what I was going for!"

"Really?" he asked with uncertainty. "Why are you trying to be a teenage prostitute? You're not…um…"

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Palmer," she told him with a roll of the eyes. "This is strictly an undercover thing. Some guys has raped and strangled a few Marine wives and from what I can tell, this," she said, gesturing to herself, "is the guy's type. We've been tracking this dirt bag for a while and Director Morrow wanted me to see if I can grab his interest."

"Is that safe?"

"I've packing my Sig and a knife."

Jimmy's eyes widened as they roamed her body for any sign of a concealed weapon. Kate laughed in delight. "You're wasting your time, Palmer. I am the master of hiding weapons."

He blushed. "Well, you should get back-up before trying to take this guy down yourself."

"Thank you for the chivalry, but I can take care of myself, Jimmy." Kate pulled out a compact and examined herself in the mirror. "Thanks for the input, though! I definitely look sexy?"

"A rapist-murderer would be crazy not to go after you."

"Not sure if that's a compliment or not, but thank you either way." Her words of gratitude were coupled with a kiss on the cheek. "Time to attract a dirt bag."

"This isn't that guy who killed the young girl Dr. Mallards working on, would it?" Jimmy asked before she left.

"Yeah, that's the one. He's been working on all of the victims."

"Oh…" Jimmy thought back to the woman who looked fresh out of high school. In fact, there had been a slew of young women coming through autopsy, though with his medical classes taking up a bulk of his time, he hadn't taken much time to really notice. "Haven't they all been young?"

"They have," Kate said, not sure where he was going with this.

"I mean, like, really young?"

"Yes…"

"Well, wouldn't the Director want someone young to try and attract the guy then?"

When Jimmy recovered from Kate's irate blow, he changed his mind regarding his prior comment. That woman didn't need any back-up.

Hope you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading!