The usual disclaimer that I don't own nor did I create these folks applies to this story.

A/N Just a short something that came into my head last night. The phrase "A man possessed" came to me for some reason and I wanted to apply it to my favorite character so here it is.

A Man Possessed

Kate Todd pulled into the familiar driveway and parked near the back door. Taking the bags from the back seat she closed the car door and entered the house. It was still early in the evening and summertime so it was light in the house even though no lights were turned on. The only sound was the repetitive scraping of sandpaper floating up the basement stairs. Kate smiled to herself as she put away the few groceries she'd purchased. She ran upstairs and quickly shed her work clothes putting on a pair of shorts and a tank top. Then she made her way back downstairs and into the basement.

She stopped halfway down and leaned on the railing taking in the scene before her. Jethro Gibbs was in his element. In the middle of his basement sat his pride and joy; the almost completed hull of his latest sailboat. He was dressed in a pair of very old, very worn shorts that sat invitingly low on his hips. Other than that all he had on was a pair of old tennis shoes. His bare chest was coated with a thin sheen of sweat and fine sanding dust. His hair was wet with perspiration and his face was streaked with sweat and dust. Kate thought she had never seen a more perfect specimen in her life.

She watched as he sanded, cleaned and sanded again. She knew the boat was already as smooth as the proverbial baby's butt but she also knew it had to be perfect which was why Jethro kept on sanding long after most people would have been satisfied. It never got old, this watching him work. Kate never tired of watching him concentrate, seeing his muscles flex and ripple beneath his tan skin. She especially liked it when he didn't wear a shirt. Just that much more to admire and appreciate. Those shorts he's wearing are a particular favorite of hers too. They are really soft, kinda baggy but the way they sit down low on his hips gives Kate goosebumps. Or maybe it's the fact that she knows he's going commando that gives her the goosebumps. Either way she likes it.

All the while Kate is watching she doesn't speak and Gibbs keeps on working. He knows she's there and she knows he knows. Her ability to just be there and not have to talk is one of her best qualities according to Gibbs. Kate is content to watch for a while but eventually she has to touch so she descends the remaining stairs and steps behind her lover, her very favorite man. He finally stops sanding when her hands lightly graze his shoulder blades and her nails begin their magical dance up and down his back. She feels him suck in his breath when her nails sneak around to the front and the dance moves up his very firm abdomen and into the soft hair on his chest.

Now Kate is standing as close as she can get behind him. She leans into him and he can feel her breasts nudging him in the back. Her hands are skimming up and down his chest and on a few happy occasions they drift just below the waistband of his shorts. Gibbs leans back just a little bit and she kisses him on the shoulder; a soft, wet kiss that holds the promise of more to come. Some soft moans have escaped him by now and as Kate kisses from one side of his shoulders to the other and her hands are playing in the pockets of his shorts he finally speaks.

"Hello beautiful. I'm glad you're home."

"Hello to you. I'm glad to be here. I missed you today."

"Are you looking for anything in particular in my shorts?"

"I think you know very well what I'm looking for." She kisses him on the neck and withdraws her hands to wrap herself around his midsection.

Gibbs pulls one of her hands up and kisses her palm. Then he turns them around and the very next thing Kate is aware of is being pressed against the hull as Jethro's mouth descends greedily on hers. He tangles his hands in her hair and pushes against her letting her know that what she was looking for in his shorts is definitely there. The kiss is relatively short and when he pulls back he takes her face in his hands, looks her in the eyes and says, "I love you Katie." Then he kisses her again. He kisses her like a man possessed.

And in fact he is possessed. Gibbs would be the first to admit that Kate Todd owns him lock, stock and barrel. She has his heart, his mind and his soul all wrapped around her little finger. No one has had as much power and control over Jethro Gibbs since he was nineteen years old and completely spellbound by his beloved Shannon. Kate knows what makes him tick. She refuses to let him be cold and angry and closed off from life. Kate keeps the darkness away. She holds on when every other woman, even Jenny, has let go of him. She lets him be alone but he knows she will never leave him. When the past comes calling with its rage and its painful reminders of perceived failures, Kate is always there to soothe the hurt and kiss away the bitterness.

Yes, Jethro is a man possessed. Possessed by a young, beautiful, sensual woman. And he wouldn't have it any other way. He asks himself almost every day how this happened and every day the answer is the same; he hasn't got a clue. He was smitten from the first time she threatened to shoot him and it hasn't gotten anything but better since then. Ducky says he should stop questioning it and just enjoy the ride and that's what he tries to do. Sometimes though, like when she's sleeping all tangled up with him and he's watching her, he gets very afraid. Very little in this world frightens Jethro Gibbs but the thought of coming home one day to find Kate gone scares the very life out of him. He tries not to think about it and he doesn't really all that often but every now and then he worries. Lately when he starts to worry he just pulls her a little closer and kisses her a little more often and that makes her smile which in turn makes his worries go away.

Some men might not want a woman to have so much power over them but Jethro doesn't mind even a little. He gladly gave all that over to Kate the first time she kissed him and whispered his name while her hands roamed over his body. He traded control for the glorious sensation of her touch on his bare skin, her scent and the way her mouth could reduce him to begging. He knew he was truly and forever lost the first time they made love. From the first kiss that night until he collapsed beside her hours later, Jethro was mesmerized by Kate. She took all his passion and need and matched it with her own. They had fun; something that hadn't happened for Jethro in bed in a very long time. When she looked at him with those big brown eyes so full of love and desire all Jethro could do was give her what she wanted. It didn't matter that he would never understand why she wanted him.

Yes, Jethro Gibbs is a man possessed. And very happy to be so.

END