Seven Days

Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS. If I did, Tony and Ziva would've broken Rule #12 a long time ago. Shouts to Shane Brennan though.

Author's Note: Be jealous. I have the best beta in the world. Thanks sandbar! I wouldn't be able to do it without you!

I've been searching for someone
but never looked before my eyes
there you were to my surprise

Things were difficult for Ziva after her return to Washington. Yes, everyone had welcomed her with open arms, but something was still off. She had a feeling as to what her problem was, but she didn't dwell on such thoughts. They were… impossible. The team knocked out case after case so she had a lot of time to herself. She hated being alone. Because when she was alone, she thought things, and when she thought things, she felt things, and when she felt things, she... well. It was moments like tonight that made her angry with herself. Nights where she knew she had to go home and be alone. Her new apartment was nice; nice neighbors, good parking, safe community… but something was missing. And then that thought hit her. And a voice nagged, 'You're lonely'.

"I'm not," she muttered. Violently shaking her head as if literally shaking the feeling, Ziva reached for her gun and badge from the drawer. Why did that voice always sound suspiciously like—?

Again she shook her head. She didn't want to think about him. It was bad enough he haunted her thoughts unconsciously, but consciously, while she was in control of her thoughts, she would have none of it. Somehow he remained on her mind, day in and day out. She'd been on a few dates here and there since she'd gotten settled, but none worth a second try. She searched and searched and was still searching. For what, she knew not. And how was she supposed to even try and figure it out when someone was staring at you, watching you from across the room. Ziva looked up, unsurprised to lock eyes with the Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo.

It was nothing new, locking eyes with Tony. It was their main form of communication, his and hers. But this time was different, very different indeed. Suddenly Ziva gasped. That was it. That's what was missing.

He was.

It was so obvious looking into your face
after playing a game of truth or dare;
I wanted to stay at your place.

About a week after her revelation, Ziva made a promise to herself to keep things normal. She couldn't understand why being home alone bugged her now when she was a trained assassin. She'd made being on her own an art form. She didn't trust easily and she wasn't exactly an open book so why wouldn't she be lonely? She never let anyone in. But looking in Tony's eyes that night made her see more than she ever thought she could see in someone. It was as if she could see his soul, and not because she was good at reading people, but it was almost as if he was forcing her to look. Like he needed her to see what he felt. She saw so much, but of everything, what she noticed more than anything was the look of longing in those sea-green eyes. It was easily recognizable because it matched the same longing she held in her own eyes. The whole time she had been holding back, pushing away, the thought that she may have feelings for her partner, but what Ziva realized was that it was obvious he harbored the same feelings; and she knew things could very well get unattractive. Or ugly. Or… whatever.

Just as she curled up on her sofa, her phone vibrated, indicating a text message. It was from Tony.

Let's hang. We never do anymore.

Ziva sat stock still for at least four minutes before shrugging slightly. What could it hurt to hang? 'If you're lucky, it won't hurt at all.' The voice was back. It only spoke when she was contemplating all things Tony; which is probably why the voice spoke like him. She responded a quick 'Sure' and quickly got out of her usual bed wear, boy shorts and a tank top. Fifteen minutes later, she was parked outside of Tony's in a simple pair of blue jeans and fitted v-neck tee shirt. She looked down and was confronted by her own cleavage. She smirked. She said she'd keep things normal. So what if she'd deliberately put on one of her best bras? If she had to suffer his good looks, he'd damn well do the same.

Turns out hanging wasn't that painful after all. They had pizza and watched a couple of black and white movies with a lot of action and not too much romance, which was just fine with Ziva. She needed to hear the constant flow of gunfire so she wouldn't get sleepy and end up leaning on Tony and falling asleep on his shoulder. That was a big no hoe. Or was it no go? It didn't matter. Either term applied.

"So…"

That was Tony. Ziva could understand his awkward tone. Movie was over, food was gone and neither of them was tired. She didn't want to leave. And if his intervallic looks to her breast with a look on his face of pure lust were any indication, he didn't want her to either. His face lit up suddenly, and Ziva immediately put up her guard. If Tony was excited about it, she definitely needed to stay away from whatever it was. At the sound of his chuckle she focused her gaze on him; big mistake because now their gazes were locked again and she couldn't look away. Tony, smart idiotic Tony, broke the staring contest and hopped up. Though Ziva knew the smart thing was to end it before things happened, she was a little disappointed for two reasons; one, because she wasn't the one with sense enough to look away and two, because Tony had the strength to. She envied him that.

"Let's play truth or dare," he said with a devilish grin. The same one Ziva dreamed about nightly. With raised eyebrows she blew her cheeks full of air, resembling a blowfish. She had to take a moment to hold her breath because she almost let a dreamy sigh slip out. Ziva David did not sigh dreamily. This wasn't the first time she had played the game; she had once played with Tony, Abby, and McGee in Abby's lab one night they had stayed late. She just didn't know how this would work with just the two of them.

"Look Zee, I'll go first."

And from there things went downhill. It was steady at first, Ziva kept choosing Truth and he'd tease her, but ask her a question anyway. In the beginning the questions were impersonal. Ranging from 'Would you buy a cat?' to 'Have you ever smashed a guitar?' Silly questions, but then he asked when her last sexual encounter was. She could already tell that he assumed it was Michael Rivkin; and he was right. So she told him as much. His expression looked torn between relief and disbelief. Ziva figured she'd had enough of being awkward tonight.

"Tony, where's the liquor?"

She didn't think she'd ever seen him move so quickly. Three shots of Captain Morgan's Rum later, Ziva felt much more relaxed. Not drunk, but more confident than she started out to be; which was saying something, because Ziva David was also confident, never intimidated. After Tony explaining a ridiculous dare for her to start a conversation with Gibbs about her personal life, Ziva was feeling extraordinarily bold.

"Alright Ziva, it's your turn."

"Kiss me."

She'd never seen Tony's eyes so wide before. She couldn't help the giggle that escaped. Tony shook his head like a dog with water in his ears.

"What'd you say David? I couldn't have heard you right."

"I said, kiss me," she said slowly with a smirk. "Unless you don't want to."

Trying to play coy, Ziva didn't want to think about the possibility that he really might not have wanted to kiss her. She was considering getting up, walking out, and turning in her badge in embarrassment when two large hands come down on either side of her face. Tony lips connected with hers milliseconds later. Shockingly, Ziva felt herself melt into him almost immediately. She felt his hands slide down to her waist and pull her atop him as he lay on his back. It wasn't long before their hips picked up a slow rhythm. The kiss changed in time from slow and sensual to needy and passionate. Just as Ziva's hand passed over his belt buckle, their cells vibrated simultaneously.

"Gibbs," they both said. Fire put out--for now.

I never thought that I
would fall in love with you
but since the day we kissed
I knew it had to be you.

Ziva could still remember her first day on the job at NCIS. She thought Tony DiNozzo to be childish, immature, and probably incapable of taking anything seriously--having a sexual fantasy, of all things, about his dead partner. He had a joke or a movie reference for any and every situation imaginable. Eventually though, he began to grow on her. Their shared time in Los Angeles made her reevaluate how she felt about him. By that time, she actually considered Tony a friend, someone whom she could tell almost anything. Could tell… but wouldn't. But it was the principle of the matter. Now she didn't know where they stood. That kiss was all she could feel. Yeah, she could still feel his lips on hers. Last night when she and Tony arrived at the crime scene at the same time—though, in separate cars—Gibbs looked suspicious, but said nothing. Tony was back to his childish tendencies. Ziva, however, said nothing. She'd had three shots of rum; she wasn't going to risk saying something that would get her into trouble. Bad idea, apparently, or so she thought as Gibbs walked past her towards the car then stopped abruptly. Ziva sniffed; she couldn't have smelled of alcohol, could she? She didn't smell any. Gibbs opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it, obviously, and continued to the Charger. Ziva breathed a slow, relieved breath and followed him. On the ride back to the Navy Yard, she thought about how she and Tony would act when they were back to the bullpen and away from Gibbs. She had accepted her feelings for Tony since the first time she'd felt them some time ago, but she never knew the depth and seriousness of her feelings until she kissed him. She ran her palm down her face let out a more harsh breath this time. Tony had just ruined every kiss she'd ever had and probably any one she'd ever have. If it wasn't going to be his lips she'd be kissing, she knew that she wouldn't be kissing any at all.

I never thought we would be together
I can't believe I just made love to you
After all the things that we've been through
Now what are we gonna do?

Case closed, now what? Ziva didn't have a clue. It was officially Sunday. 0100 hours; she was beat. Exhausted as she was, she still couldn't fall asleep so instead she stripped down to her tank top and boy shorts and lay in bed, deep in thought. Of course, she could only think of him. Tony had been playing with her head for the better part of the case, doing little things like standing very close to her in the elevator. Or staring at her, more intently than usual, while she worked at her desk. Or even going so far as letting her drive, just so he could hold her hand a second longer while handing her the keys. He was driving her peanuts! She rolled her eyes into the darkness. Tomorrow was a day off that she needed more than anything. Maybe she'd give her friend Special Agent Kensi Blye in LA a call and get some advice. Kensi was going through the same thing with a member on her team, one of their senior field agents, Sam Hanna, so Kensi would definitely understand where she was coming from. Maybe should text her now. Just as Ziva retrieved her cell from her nightstand, she heard a knock on her door. She knew it was Tony. No one else would come to her apartment at one in the morning. She opened the door and low and be whole—or was it behold?—there was Tony. With his supposedly 'charming' smile that allegedly made weaker woman 'melt', he pushed past her and into her apartment without invitation.

"Hey, Zee-Vah, love the place. Did you do something new? Has a little more… 'pah!' than the last place you had. I like it."

Ziva shook her head with a slight smirk, "Why are you here Tony?"

Tony spun around and looked at her from across her living room. He paused for a minute before crossing back over the room and grabbing her up in a heated kiss. Ziva responded almost immediately, placing her hands at the back of his neck and giving as much as she received. Tony turned them a full 360 degrees, pushing her backwards to her couch, but Ziva had different plans. She pulled him past the couch and down the hall into her bedroom. Once there, she threw him down on her already ruffled eggplant colored duvet.

"You don't know how long I've wanted to do that Tony."

"Well, Ziva, all you had to do was ask."

She started to laugh, but it was drowned out by her moan as Tony attacked her neck with his lips. His hands gripped her waist as she straddled him and he trailed down to the neck of her tank top.

"These boy shorts, Ziva? Sexy as hell, but I need them gone."

Ziva hummed in response, stripping out her tank top first and throwing it to the ground. Tony instantly went to reach for the elastic of her shorts, but she slapped his hand.

"Ah, ah, ah, Tony; it is your turn, I believe."

Grinning, Tony did as he was told and lost his tee shirt. His jacket and button down were long gone before they had even hit the hallway. Smirking, Ziva yanked his zipper down first. Tony started to say something that sounded like 'cheater', but it was lost as Ziva softly pressed her lips to his. She wanted to take this slow. This could be the only time they did this and she wanted to make it last, no rush. She slid her tongue across his bottom lip and felt, rather than heard his groan. He fingers gripped tighter just under her breast and she let out a groan of her own. With Tony kissing her all over, Ziva allowed herself to get lost in the sensations. This, by far, would be the best night of her life. This much, she already knew.

Ziva woke the next morning attempting to get up, but found that she had a few barriers holding her back. Looking down, she couldn't help but smile. Tony's arm was wrapped tightly around her waist, and even if she got past that, her legs would still be tangled with his. And even if she got past that, her legs would still be tangled in the sheets. She pushed her head deep into her pillow and sighed contently. Last night was… everything she could have ever hoped for. Tony wasn't romantic in bed like most men tried to be. He kept it sensual and slow, but also fun and challenging. He baited her into a game of cat and mouse, turning it into a game of who can pleasure whom the most. Then switched it up and made it so gratifying she couldn't think of a time when she'd been so in love. Ziva gasped.

In love?

She'd always known, and even accepted, but never had she actually made a complete thought about it. Most times she pushed the thought away, forbidding herself to speak of what she once thought was unrequited love. Just then, Tony stirred beside her. With a lazy smile he moved in closer to her and placed a sweet kiss on her lips.

"Morning, my ninja."

And, as usual, it hit her again. But it was different this time. Instead of feeling dread at not being able to act on her emotions, she felt… cheerful. She wanted to do flips and squeal and do all those other ridiculous things that people in love do. She couldn't believe that she had just made love to Special Agent Tony DiNozzo. After all it had taken for them to make it to this point, what were they going to do now?

Author's Note: So, how'd you guys like it? I hope you liked it a lot! This story will consist of two parts. Also, I strongly encourage everyone to listen to Mary J. Blige's Seven Days. It's a good song and you can hear a bit of Tiva if you close your eyes and listen. Yes, I made Kensi and Ziva homegirls! There will be a fic coming soon on how they met in my world. Oh, before I forget, review and let me know what you really think. Please?