A/N: This is a New Year's sequel to my Christmas story "Of Berts and Beagles" that a lovely reviewer requested! "Hotshow", this is for you!
I thought back over the story for an idea, and after about ten seconds I decided to answer the question: Why exactly did Palmer have to leave the NCIS Christmas party early? You do not need to read the Christmas story to understand this one.
There be smut here for sure, folks! You have been duly warned! Enjoy!
"New Year, New Beginnings"
It was noon when Tony hung up the phone and got back to work tidying up the house. Gibbs had called to report that he had just left Stillwater and would be home in time for dinner. Tony wanted Jackson to stay and celebrate New Year's Eve with them, but Jackson informed Tony that he had a date with Lorraine Martin, the lonely 68-year old widow he had been "spending time with" over the last couple of months. She had recently moved to town from Chicago and worked part-time as a seamstress at the dress shop down the street from his store. They met while playing Wednesday Night Bingo in the basement of the Methodist Church and hit it off immediately.
The team was coming over for a New Year's Eve party later that night, and Tony had a lot of work to do. Several boxes containing his vast movie collection and CDs were stacked in the middle of the living room. Tony set to work unpacking the boxes and filling the matched pair of walnut barrister bookcases he had recently purchased from a Georgetown antique store.
Probie, the Beagle puppy Gibbs had given him for Christmas, was proving to be no help at all; twice grabbing DVDs and running off with them making Tony chase him all over the house to get them back. After a second lap around the house and another DVD case with the corner nearly chewed off, Tony decided that Probie needed to spend a time out in the backyard.
Gibbs had built a custom doghouse for Probie, which was almost an exact miniature replica of their house right down to the color of the paint. Tony was touched by the love Gibbs put into building it and marveled at his attention to detail. It was well insulated with a shingled roof, a small tiled front porch, hand-crafted miniature lap siding, and a couple of small windows. Probie loved his house especially the thick, warm built in doggie bed in the "bedroom" of the two-room doghouse.
Once the DVDs and CDs were finally unpacked and arranged to Tony's satisfaction, he broke down the empty boxes and added them to the growing pile of cardboard neatly stacked in the garage waiting to be bundled and recycled.
The majority of his belongings had found their way to the house – their house – over the course of the last week. Tony was still a bit in shock that Gibbs had signed a deed to add him as joint owner on the title to the house. The two of them spent most evenings after work at Tony's apartment eating takeout while they packed. Tony sorted out what to keep and what to donate to charity while Gibbs dutifully and efficiently packed the appropriate boxes. Each night they headed home with both of their cars packed full in the hopes of cutting down on the number of trips they would have to make. The boxes marked for Goodwill and other charities were left neatly stacked against one wall to be dealt with at a later date. Tony had no idea how he had accumulated so much stuff, and Gibbs wondered out loud on more than one occasion, "Where the hell are we going to put all of this shit, DiNozzo?"
Gibbs grumbled tiredly as he carried the second of two big boxes of Tony's precious shoes into the house and kicking the front door shut. "DiNozzo, you're worse than all three of my ex-wives put together when it comes to shoes!" He walked over to Tony and dropped the box at his feet with a loud bang earning a gasp and a pointed glare.
"Dammit, Gibbs! They may just be shoes to you, but they cost me a damn fortune," Tony barked as picked up a loafer that had tumbled out of the box to inspect it for damage, wiping off a tiny smudge he found on the heel. Tony's glare turned to a warm smile, however, when Gibbs rolled his eyes and leaned in and kissed his cheek.
"I'm sorry, Tony. My bad," Gibbs murmured apologetically. With the undamaged loafer clutched in one hand, Tony flung both of his arms around Gibbs' neck and pulled him in for a proper kiss. The loving and lingering kiss Gibbs received was proof enough that he was forgiven for disrespecting Tony's designer Italian shoes.
Tony still had a few months left on his lease, so there was no need for a major no holds barred moving day. At some point they would need to recruit help to move the furniture since it would be replacing most of Gibbs' older furniture, but for now they had plenty of time. Abby had already been pestered into helping Tony with the cleaning once the apartment was empty. After all, there was a $1,200.00 security deposit at stake.
By 4:00 Tony was getting hungry and decided to start dinner. He turned the dial on the oven to 350˚ then pulled two marinated thick cut pork chops from the fridge and put them in a baking dish. After adding his own unique blend of seasonings and a cup or two of white wine, Tony covered the dish in aluminum foil and put the chops in the oven to bake. He washed and wrapped a few potatoes and put them in the oven next to the baking dish. He rinsed and snapped the ends off of a pile of green beans that he would steam when everything else was nearly done. He set the oven timer for one hour and grabbed himself a bottle of beer from the fridge, deciding that Gibbs could make a salad when he got home.
Tony plopped down on the couch, picked up the remote and began searching for a football game to watch. Halfway through the hundreds of channels Tony's phone rang, playing the "Imperial March" from "Star Wars".
"Hey Gremlin," Tony chirped cheerfully into the phone. "What's up, man? Huh? You wanna bring a date tonight? Sure, no problem. Everyone's bringing food and we have a ton of beer, so we will have plenty. … Say what? …You're bringing who?"
After a couple of minutes of listening to excited babbling coming from Palmer on the other end of the line, an utterly stunned Tony jumped to his feet and shouted, "Wait, wait, wait! Hold on a sec Palmer! Are you fucking kidding me? You and … oh my God … FORNELL? FBI Special Agent Tobias Fornell? He's your date? You're shitting me, right?"
Tony, with his mouth hanging wide open, listened attentively for another minute before interrupting. "That's why you left the office Christmas party so damn early, because you had a secret date with Fornell?," Tony asked with a disbelieving chuckle as he pinched the bridge of his nose, trying like hell to wrap his head around this unexpected bit of news. "I swear to God Gremlin, if this is some kind of weird New Year's joke I will have Gibbs kick your ass for me!" When the call finally ended, Tony lost it and began laughing uncontrollably.
Twenty minutes later Gibbs came in from the garage, turned off the buzzing oven timer and pulled the baking dish and baked potatoes from the oven. He looked over and saw Probie scratching at the back door, so he let him in and was instantly greeted with a series of excited barks and a lick to the face as crouched down to scratch Probie behind the ears.
"Tony, I'm home," he called out before standing, wondering how just long the buzzer had been going off, "Tone, where are you?" He shrugged out of his coat on the way to the living room and stopped short when he saw Tony sitting on the couch with a very strange look on his face.
"Tony, you okay," Gibbs asked cautiously after hanging his coat on the coat rack by the front door.
Tony looked up at Gibbs and shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind. "Oh, uh hey! Yeah, I'm fine. I just had a very bizarre phone call." Suddenly back to the present, Tony jumped up and declared, "Shit! I forgot about dinner! I'll just…," he trailed off as he went to make a break for the kitchen.
Gibbs grabbed his arm and cocked his head, looking at Tony warily. "I just took it out of the oven. Dinner is fine. Tony, what the hell is going on?"
Tony scrubbed his face with both hands and sighed heavily. "Oh, it's nothing serious. I'll tell you about while we eat, though you may lose your appetite when I tell you."
Gibbs threw a salad together while Tony set the table and brought the pork chops and potatoes to the table. Gibbs grabbed the necks of two bottles of beer from the fridge with one hand on his way to the table with the bowl of salad clutched in the other. They were both hungry and dug into their dinner while Probie circled the table, sniffing his way along waiting for a tasty treat to accidently fall to the floor.
"This is really good, Tony," Gibbs said halfway through his dinner while pointing at the food on his plate with his fork. "Now, you wanna tell me what the hell had you all freaked out when I got home?"
Tony put his silverware down on his plate, looked Gibbs dead in the eye, and burst out laughing again. "You are never gonna believe this, Jethro." After another minor fit of the giggles, Tony continued. "Palmer called and asked if he could bring a date tonight. I'm like, sure no problem, and then he tells me," Tony pauses trying to hold back more giggles from bursting out, "He tells me his date is none other than the one and thank God only … Tobias C. Fornell!"
Gibbs dropped his fork in stunned disbelief and gaped at Tony, who nodded dramatically. "What," Gibbs barked out, earning a growl from Probie who sat at his feet. "What the hell do you mean Tobias is Palmer's date?"
"I shit you not, Jethro! Remember how the Gremlin had to leave the office Christmas party "early"," Tony asked adding air quotes for emphasis. When Gibbs nodded he continued, "Well, apparently he had a date with Fornell that night. The Gremlin told me they've been seeing each other for about a month now."
They finished dinner in relative silence letting the Palmer/Fornell romance shock wear off, and together they got the kitchen cleaned up in short order. Their guests would begin arriving at 8:30, which gave them a little over two hours to get everything ready. Tony declared that a joint shower to save time not to mention hot water, he added helpfully, would be a good idea. Gibbs smirked knowingly at him, like a joint shower with Tony was ever a bad idea!
Tony's teeth were chattering by the time they finished their shower; the hot water having run out while Gibbs drove Tony wild. As soon as they had gotten under the spray, Gibbs dropped to his knees and took Tony's cock in his mouth, swallowing him down all the way to the base. Tony tried to hang on and savor the sensations associated with one of Gibbs' amazing mind-melting blow jobs, but the heat and suction on his aching cock drove him over the edge far too quickly in his estimation. Once Tony came back to his senses Gibbs spun him around, and using the baby oil Tony kept in the shower as lube he slicked up his cock and slid home into Tony's always welcoming hole. Only a cursory stretching was necessary since he was still fairly loose from Gibbs having taken him first thing that morning.
Gibbs kept his thrusts slow and deliberate completely ignoring Tony's moaned pleas to fuck him harder. Gibbs was on a mission to see how many times he could bring Tony to the brink again before pulling him back. Tony moaned and panted in a combination of relief and ecstasy when Gibbs started pounding into him with deliberate intent. Tony's vocabulary was reduced to chanting a litany of curse words and knowing that meant he was right on the edge, Gibbs slowed things way down repeatedly denying Tony a second release. It wasn't until the water began to cool that Gibbs finally relented and pounded almost brutally into Tony until both of them exploded magnificently. The water was nearly ice cold by the time they came down from their orgasms, both of them too blissed out to consider simply turning the water off.
"I'm freezing, Gibbs! You promised me we'd get a bigger water heater," Tony grumbled as Gibbs lovingly wrapped him in a big fluffy warm towel and towel dried his hair for him with another. "At least you got the towel heater installed."
Gibbs stepped back and smirked at Tony, whose hair was now sticking up in every conceivable direction. "It's on the long 'Honey Do' list you gave me, Tony. I'll get to it … eventually." With a grin, a chaste kiss to Tony's pouting lips and a firm swat on his ass, Gibbs wrapped a towel around his waist and headed into the bedroom in search of clothes while Tony applied some fancy designer brand gel and styled his hair.
Twenty minutes later, dressed in a new pair of dark blue jeans and a butter soft light blue sweater, Tony joined Gibbs in the kitchen to help get things ready for their guests. Tony stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of Gibbs moving gracefully around the kitchen pulling out glasses and serving bowls from the cupboard while decked out in some of the designer clothes Tony had given him for Christmas. He was dressed in a sinfully tight pair of black jeans and an un-tucked dark grey Zenga button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Missing for a change was the ubiquitous white undershirt. Gibbs left the top couple of buttons undone and Tony's eyes wandered up to the smattering of grey chest hair that he loved running his fingers through. A jet black Hugo Boss belt with a brushed nickel buckle and black dress shoes completed the outfit. Seeing Gibbs looking so drop dead damn sexy made Tony's mouth water and drew an involuntary moan out of him.
Gibbs shot him a questioning look and watched as Tony licked his lips while continuing to leer at him. "What," Gibbs barked breaking the spell he had over Tony.
"Damn Jethro," Tony muttered seductively as he sauntered over to where Gibbs was standing by the sink. Running his hands up Gibbs' chest, Tony waggled his eyebrows and purred in his ear, "You look positively yummy. Mmmmm…maybe we should cancel the party." Unable to resist temptation, Tony put his arms around Gibbs' waist and pulled him close for a passionate kiss, groaning as their denim-clad cocks met. So lost were they in each other that they didn't hear Probie bark to announce that they now had an audience.
"Oops! Sorry Bossman … Tony! Guess we should have knocked," Abby said teasingly as she mock covered her eyes. "I gotta tell you though, that was pretty smokin' hot!"
Tony immediately released Gibbs and jumped back like a kid caught with his hand in the proverbial cookie jar. Gibbs rolled his eyes while Tony blushed furiously and did his best to hide his growing erection. "Um, hey Abs. Probie," he managed to squeak out before nervously clearing his throat, unable to look McGee in the eye.
As he placed several grocery bags and a case of beer on the table, McGee stated dryly, "It's not like I haven't caught you two making out before, DiNozzo." After winning a brief stare down with Tony, McGee announced flatly, "We brought food."
"Yeah, we can see that McGee," Gibbs retorted with a chuckle as he walked over to investigate and help Abby unload the groceries. Tony and McGee pitched in and soon the dining room table was a veritable smorgasbord of chips, dips, veggies, cocktail weenies, meats and cheeses and, much to Tony's delight, an assortment of bakery fresh cookies.
By 9:30 the party was in full swing. The sexy silver dress Ziva had worn to the office Christmas party in an attempt to entice Tony had apparently earned her the admiration and attention of Todd Miller from Accounting. He had finally gotten up the courage to ask Ziva out, and tonight was their first official date. Tony didn't know Todd all that well, having never socialized outside of work except for an occasional impromptu game of basketball with some of their other NCIS co-workers. Todd was a good-looking guy in his mid-30s. He was tall and had curly black hair and blue eyes, and together he and Ziva made quite a striking pair. Tony kissed Ziva on the cheek and shook Todd's hand before taking their coats and leading them into the living room.
Ducky was over by the fireplace chatting up Gibbs over tumblers of Cognac and bourbon respectively. Ducky's dearest friend and date for the evening, Dr. Jordan Hampton, stood by his side and sipped on a glass of Moscato.
McGee and Abby acted as servers passing around trays full of appetizers and making sure that everyone had their drink of choice in hand. Probie worked the room like a pro, whimpering and using his sad puppy dog eyes to his advantage as he begged for handouts. Gibbs snapping his fingers, tersely saying "Probie", and pointing in the direction of the kitchen, where his full food and water dishes resided, was all it took to put an end to the shameless begging.
All eyes were suddenly on the last of the guests to arrive - Palmer and Fornell. Jimmy announced their arrival with a very loud and cheerful "Happy New Year everyone!" Gibbs patted Ducky helpfully on the back as his last sip of Cognac apparently went down the wrong pipe when he saw the new arrivals' joined hands. Ziva, McGee and Abby stood and gaped at the new couple as they hung up their coats, completely oblivious to the state of shock they had created. Todd and Jordan just looked around the room wondering what the hell was going on.
Tony quickly jumped into host mode and with a knowing smirk cheerfully directed Fornell and Palmer into the living room. "Look who's here everyone! It's, uh, well I guess we'll just call them … Pornell!"
"Shut it, DiNozzo," Fornell growled threateningly through clenched teeth before fixing Tony with a glare.
"Oh come on Tobias, lighten the hell up! What did you expect? One minute you're all Mr. Serious No Bullshit FBI guy, and now you're banging the Autopsy Gremlin, which I assume is what you've been doing seeing as how you guys are late," Tony said teasingly with a smirk and a well-aimed elbow to Fornell's ribs.
"I swear to God, DiNozzo, if you don't …," Fornell began heatedly before Gibbs grabbed his collar and dragged him into the kitchen. Palmer meanwhile scampered off to find something, anything alcoholic to drink and a safe place to hide.
McGee blinked repeatedly as he slowly strolled over to Tony with his mouth hanging open. Tony had broken out into another fit of laughter at Fornell's expression as he was dragged away. McGee punched him in the arm Tony instantly stopped laughing and turned to glare at McGee.
"What the hell, Probie?" he demanded while rubbing his sore arm.
"Fornell? And Palmer? Jesus Tony; am I the only straight guy left," McGee asked incredulously. "How long have you known about the two of them?"
"Believe it or not, I just found out this afternoon. Palmer called and said he was bringing a date. I nearly fell off the couch when he said it was Fornell! I told Gibbs over dinner, and man, you should have seen the look on his face! It was priceless," Tony said with a chuckle. "And no, by the way, you're not. By the way Todd is drooling over Ziva he's obviously straight. Man, I bet Gibbs is giving Fornell a truck load of shit right now."
Meanwhile in the kitchen, Gibbs was doing that very thing. "Tobias, have you lost your damn mind? Palmer? Seriously? Jesus, he's just a kid! What the hell were you thinking, and which head were you thinking with? Ducky just about had a stroke when you two walked in!"
Fornell sighed in defeat and ran a shaky hand down his face. "Just get me a fucking drink will 'ya," he barked in frustration. Gibbs shook his head ruefully as he poured a generous amount of bourbon into a rocks glass. Fornell tossed it back then proceeded to tell Gibbs about "the best night of my whole goddamn life".
Tobias and Jimmy had both shown up at the Marriott Hotel to attend the bachelor party of a mutual friend at the FBI. As is typically the case as such gatherings, a large quantity of alcohol was consumed by all of those in attendance. Tobias could hold his liquor just fine, but Jimmy was proving to be a lightweight of the highest caliber. An impromptu game of Truth or Dare midway through the evening of drunken debauchery led to Tobias and Jimmy being locked in a dark closet together. Tobias received a knowing wink from the guest of honor as Palmer willfully led him away, and he knew right then that he had been truly busted.
Tobias thought his covert leering at Jimmy from across the room all evening had gone unnoticed, but it was apparent that he had been sorely mistaken. Getting locked in the closet with the current object of his desire was not exactly a hardship, but even though Tobias was sexually attracted to the much younger man he had no intention of acting on it. The light automatically went out when the door was closed on them, plunging them into darkness. Tobias was relieved since he was sporting a major hard on now that would be impossible for him to explain.
Jimmy, however, was feeling rather brave after polishing off a couple of strawberry margaritas. He figured if he said or did anything stupid he could just blame it on the alcohol. Deciding to throw caution to the wind he blurted out into the darkness, "I want you, Agent Fornell."
Tobias' shocked expression went unseen in the dark, but his gasp did not go unheard. He swallowed hard as he replayed the words in his head to make sure that he had heard them correctly. He reached out and managed to find Jimmy's hand in the dark. Tobias grabbed his hand and pulled him close before leaning in and whispering in Jimmy's ear, "You want me to what, Jimmy?"
Tobias nearly came right then and there as Palmer described, in graphic detail, exactly what he wanted Tobias to do to him. Thankfully Tobias was still wearing his long jacket to cover himself because he did end up coming in his pants when Jimmy finished his recitation with, "I really want you to fuck my virgin hole and take my cherry."
Gibbs just blinked at Fornell, who downed two more shots of bourbon as he waited for Gibbs to say something. Finally, Gibbs asked impatiently, "Well … did you?"
"Dammit Jethro, what was I supposed to do," Fornell asked in frustration. "Hell yes I took his cherry! I mean, Jesus, how many times does that kind of opportunity present itself?"
Gibbs initially laughed then nodded thoughtfully and asked, "And now?"
Fornell sighed and looked Gibbs dead in the eye before stating with sincerity, "I never expected to fall for him and sure as hell didn't plan to, Jethro, but I have. I know I'm a bastard for taking advantage of him that night, but the next morning we talked, I mean really talked. I don't know if it will last, you know how I suck at relationships, but we both want to try and see where it goes."
Seemingly satisfied with Fornell's explanation, Gibbs nodded and extended his hand. "Well then, congratulations. I hope it works out, Tobias. New year, so anything is possible."
While Fornell was busy regaling Gibbs with a detailed summary of what happened later that night at his house, Palmer was getting the scolding of his young life from Ducky in the adjoining dining room.
"Mr. Palmer! To say that your arrival with Tobias Fornell as your date tonight is a bit shocking is quite an understatement! What on earth is going on and just when, may I ask, did you start dating men? Not that I mind, as you well know, but this is quite a surprise as I'm sure you have surmised," Ducky stated before sighing and taking another sip of his Cognac. "I must say, finding out about this new development in your life, in this fashion, is a bit disconcerting. Have I not been a friend to you, Mr. Palmer? Do you not trust me as your confidant any longer? I just assumed that something as momentous as a new love in your life would at the very least warrant a bit of a heads up, as they say."
Palmer looked up at Ducky and frowned at the hurt evident in his eyes. "I'm really sorry, Dr. Mallard. I wanted to tell you, but, um, you see, uh, Toby is my first. My first man, I mean. I didn't know how to tell you," Palmer said softly. "Please don't be mad at me?"
Ducky smiled and patted Palmer's shoulder. "Tut, tut, Mr. Palmer! Of course I am not mad at you, but I can assure you I will be speaking with Tobias about his intentions," Ducky whispered before winking. "If you are happy my dear boy then I am happy for you. Cheers, Mr. Palmer!" Ducky exclaimed as he clinked his crystal tumbler against the neck of Palmer's beer bottle. Palmer answered with a relieved and genuine smile.
When Gibbs and Fornell stepped into the dining room from the kitchen, Ducky scowled at Fornell and demanded, "Agent Fornell. A word, if you please." Gibbs chuckled and shoved a nervous and wide-eyed Fornell toward Ducky before leveling a grin at Palmer, who looked like he was about to cry.
As he stepped past Palmer to join the others in the living room, Gibbs said with a chuckle, "I just hope you know what you're getting yourself into Palmer."
Palmer let out a relieved sigh and seemed to immediately relax. His relief was short lived, however, when he turned to go to the kitchen for a beer and ran smack into Tony's chest. He stammered out an apology as Tony crossed his arms and glared at him before dragging him into the kitchen.
Palmer seemed to shrink before his eyes as Tony continued to glare at his friend while apparently at a loss for words. "Fornell? Gremlin, what the hell?" Tony suddenly barked out.
"God Tony! I never knew..." Palmer trailed off as a far away dreamy look crossed his face.
FLASHBACK:
Luckily, Palmer had the good sense to take a cab to the bachelor party. Knowing he would be expected to drink a lot, he thought it best not to drive. His earlier bravery while locked in the closet was beginning to fade during the drive to Fornell's house. Palmer was inexplicably attracted to the much older FBI agent; no other man had ever caused such a visceral reaction by simply walking into the room. Palmer had never considered the possibility that he might like men. It wasn't until a look passed between them over the body of a dead FBI informant that a mutual attraction was sparked.
Palmer was still looking out the window when he was starlted by Fornell opening the car door for him. He looked at Fornell with wide eyes and swallowed hard at the smouldering look leveled at him.
Fornell ran the back of his hand down Palmer's cheek and asked, "You having second thoughts, Jimmy?"
Palmer tried to clear his dry as dust throat and managed to croak out, "Uh, um, n...no. Um, just a litlle, um, nervous. Sorry."
Fornell smiled and said, "Nothing to be sorry about. Jimmy, we don't have to do anything tonight, and we probably shouldn't. Come on, let's go in and have drink and talk. Just relax; I'm not expecting anything."
Half a bottle of wine later, Jimmy was starting to relax a little bit. He appreciated Fornell's patience, but as his apprehension melted away Palmer decided he didn't want to wait. He placed his wine glass on the coffee table and looked at Fornell. He took a deep breath and leaned in to brush his lips over Fornell's. When he pulled back, he opened his eyes to see Fornell looking at him with concern.
"Jimmy, are you sure?"
Palmer swallowed hard and nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. It's just ... I don't know what to do."
Fornell placed his wine glass next to Palmer's and turning to him said, "It's okay. We'll go really slow. I know you said you wanted me to fuck you, but I'd really rather make love to you. I need you to promise that you will tell me to stop if it's too much. I won't get mad. I want you to enjoy your first time ... OUR first time."
Hearing that, Palmer practically launched himself at Fornell and kissed him with extreme prejudice. Between long, hungy, passionate kisses shirts were removed and cast aside. The skin to skin contact ignited Palmer's desire so he reached for the button on Fornell's pants. He whimpered when his shaking hands were grabbed by the wrists and held fast.
"Not here," Fornell groaned as he stood and pulled Palmer to his feet. After another kiss, Fornell took Palmer's hand and led him down the hall to his bedroom. Palmer closed his eyes and let the more experienced man take charge. Palmer shivered in anticipation tinged with a bit of fear. He melted into the arms wrapped around him from behind after a husky, "Just relax and let me take care of you," was whispered in his ear.
Fornell turned Palmer around and began the slow, torturous process of stripping him out of his remaining clothes. "Jesus," Fornell muttered appreciatively, "you have a gorgeous body, and I want to make love to all of it."
Palmer didn't leave out a single graphic detail as he dreamily told Tony about Fornell gently but passionately making love to him until he felt like he was shattering into a million pieces. Palmer waxed poetic about their bodies becoming one as Fornell's cock slid in and out of him "touching something so deep in my soul that it was magical."
"Jesus, Palmer!" Tony exclaimed impatiently. "So you and Fornell had sex … he fucked you. Okay, so now what? Are you officially "boyfriends" now," Tony asked, adding air quotes for emphasis.
"Yes we are!" Palmer answered with a proud smile. "It's a dream come true. It's not just amazing sex either. We have a lot in common. I … I think I really love him, Tony."
Tony shook his head and clapped his hand on Palmer's shoulder with a sigh. "Well, then I'm happy for you. Come on, getting close to midnight."
It had been half an hour by the time an absolutely stunned Tony appeared at Gibbs' side. Without saying a word, he took the half-full tumbler from Gibbs and tossed back the drink in one go. He pulled a face, coughed and gasped as the amber liquid burned its way down to his toes then handed the empty glass back to Gibbs.
Gibbs shot a concerned but amused look at Tony and asked, "You okay?"
Tony blinked a few times and stated, "Fine, except I need a gallon or two of brain bleach to get the images of Fornell banging Palmer out of my head."
Gibbs' eyebrows shot up. "Palmer give you all the gory details," he asked with a smirk. "Trust me; I already heard it all from Tobias." Gibbs noticed the time and jerked his head toward the kitchen. "Come on; time to bust out the champagne."
McGee, still looking a bit shell shocked, appeared in the kitchen just as Gibbs and Tony were pulling bottles of champagne from the fridge. Tony snickered at his befuddled expression and elbowed Gibbs in the ribs.
Gibbs turned to look at McGee and chuckled. "You okay there, McGee," he asked.
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Fine, everything is … fine," McGee muttered, not sounding very convincing.
Tony laughed and shoved two bottles in McGee's hands and nodded toward the dining room table. "Here, open these will you. I'll bring out the glasses."
Abby turned on the huge plasma screen TV so they could all watch the celebration taking place in Times Square. Tony, Gibbs and McGee distributed crystal champagne flutes to everyone and broke into a fit of the giggles when he got to Fornell, who looked like he'd rather be anywhere else.
Fornell knew he had payback coming for all the shit he'd given Tony over the years, but right now he just wanted to get through the next hour until he could take Palmer home. "Don't start, DiNutso," he threatened.
Tony beamed at him and nodded. He knew that coming out to this group was a major, life-altering event, having been through it himself, so he decided that Fornell had dealt with enough grief for one night. That didn't stop him from making a New Year's resolution to pester him about Palmer every chance he got. He stared at Fornell for a moment then said sincerely, "Just be good to the Gremlin, okay? He's crazy about you. Don't let him down."
Fornell replied with an understanding nod and a weak smile. "You have my word … Tony. Besides, Dr. Mallard already threatened me, and frankly … he scares me more than you do." Tony laughed as Fornell pushed off of the wall he was leaning against and went to stand by Palmer.
Tony made his way over to where Gibbs was standing in front of the fireplace, and was joined a minute later by Probie who sat proudly next to him.
"Ooh, ooh," Abby stood and announced. "They started the countdown!" Probie barked in apparent excitement and trotted over to Abby who was sitting on the floor in front of the TV with McGee.
All eyes were fixed on the crystal ball as it slowly descended amid cheers from the enormous Times Square crowd. At the stroke of midnight, the room erupted in a loud chorus of "Happy New Year" before celebratory handshakes, hugs, and kisses commenced. Tony turned to Gibbs and murmured "Happy New Year, Jethro," before planting a chaste kiss on him. Gibbs responded by taking Tony's champagne flute and placing it on the fireplace mantel next to his. He then pulled Tony in close for a proper kiss, one full of all of the love and passion he felt for the man in his arms. They only broke apart when the room suddenly got quiet. Tony blushed seeing that all eyes were now trained on him and Gibbs.
Gibbs laughed then took the opportunity to make a toast. He handed Tony his glass then raised his own. He cleared his throat to get everyone's attention, and when he had it announced, "We made it through another year. May the coming year bring you everything you want." He then turned an eye toward Fornell and Palmer and said, "To the new year, and new beginnings."