Jenny glanced at her watch. Three thirty. Time to go. She grabbed her stuff and headed for the elevator. When the doors of the elevator slid open, she saw Gibbs, Ziva and Tony. Ziva and Tony were arguing as usual. Gibbs was startled to see Jenny. Ever since she'd told him he was the father of her child things had been awkward between them. He knew this was more his fault than Jenny's. She tried to act normally but he was still struggling to come to terms with everything. It didn't help that the only person he could talk to it about was Jenny herself. He definitely couldn't talk to Hollis about it.

"Good afternoon Agent Gibbs," Jenny smiled. "Ziva, DiNozzo."
"Director," Gibbs replied.
"How's your case?" she asked.
"Ducky found DNA on the body, Abby's testing against samples from our two main suspects as we speak," he explained. When it was case related, everything was fine. "Once we have the results we'll know where to go from here." Jenny nodded.
"Good," she replied. An awkward silence passed for a couple of seconds. Ziva and Tony looked at their feet, feeling out of place. "I should get going, I'll be late," she said, breaking the silence.
"Meeting?"
"Yes," she lied, taking his place in the elevator.

As they walked into the squad room Tony leant to Ziva and said, "Is it just me or is there something weird going on between the Director and Gibbs?"
"It is not just you," Ziva replied.

XOXOXOX

Jenny walked towards her car feeling confused. Why were things so awkward between them still? She just wanted everything to go back to the way they were, when Jethro annoyed her half the time, and the other half made her love him more. She sighed. Sometimes things were so complicated.

Her driver, Stanley, opened the door of the car for her and she slipped into the cool leather interior.
"Where to Director?" Stanley asked.
"Dulles," she replied.

XOXOXOX

Jenny tapped her toe impatiently and glanced at the arrivals board for what must've been the fiftieth time. It still said the same thing: British Airways flight 368 was twenty minutes late. The scheduled landing time was forty minutes ago. She'd been on time-for once-and the plane being late was irritating.

Eventually she saw what she'd been waiting for. A small, redheaded blur shot towards Jenny.
"Mommy!"
Jenny laughed and crouched down. Her daughter threw herself into her arms.
"Careful Lizzie!" Jenny said.
"Sorry mom. I missed you."
"I missed you too baby," she whispered into the little girl's hair. Jenny stood up to greet the brunette who was waiting patiently. "Hi Amee," she greeted.
"Hello Jenny," Amee replied, hugging her.
"Can we go mommy?" Lizzie asked impatiently. Jenny laughed again at the eight year old.
"Yes Elizabeth," she replied. "We can go now."

XOXOXOX

Gibbs was about to walk straight into Jenny's office when Cynthia called to him.
"She's not back from her meeting yet."
"When will she be back?"
The secratery shrugged. "She didn't say."
"Who's the meeting with?"
"I don't know."

Gibbs frowned. Why wouldn't Jenny tell her secretary who she was meeting with? It didn't make any sense. As he returned to the squad room he wondered if he should be worried. No, he decided. If anything was wrong Jenny would tell you. Things haven't changed that much.

XOXOXOX

In the car on the way home, Lizzie chattered away at one hundred miles per hour about school, her friends, what she'd done, what she wanted to do, anything and everything that popped into her head.
"Slow down Lizzie," Jenny said eventually. "The holidays are six weeks long! There's plenty of time."
"But you'll be working," Lizzie complained.
"Not all the time," Jenny said. Lizzie's face brightened.
"Will my brother or sister be born before I have to go back?"
"I don't know Lizzie," Jenny replied. "I doubt it."

XOXOXOX

As soon as they arrived home Lizzie ran inside to make sure her mom hadn't changed anything in her room. Jenny turned to Amee.
"Why don't you take the rest of the day off?" she suggested. "Go see your parents or your friends."
"Don't you have to go back to work?" Amee asked, in her almost English accent.
"I'm the director, if I want to take the day off I can," Jenny replied. "Go, enjoy yourself." The women hugged, then Amee returned to the car and Jenny followed her daughter inside.

By now Lizzie had raced upstairs, checked out her room and was waiting for Jenny in the hall.
"Where's Amee?"
"Taking a break," Jenny explained. "So it's just you and me kid. Now, what do you want for dinner?"
"Pizza!" Lizzie cried. Jenny smiled. It looked like her daughter's love for pizza hadn't dimmed any.
"Pizza it is then," she said.

XOXOXOX

Gibbs ran his hands down his face. It was late and he knew he should go home. But Jenny hadn't returned to the office. Despite his decision not to be worried he was. He picked up his phone and dialed her number.

Jenny was lying on the sofa watching a movie with Lizzie when the phone rang. Lizzie looked round at her mom.
"I'll just be a minute," her mom said, pulling herself up out off the sofa and going out into the hall.

"Shepard," she said, answering the phone.
"Hey Jen."
"Jethro?"
"You okay?"
"I'm fine," she replied. "Why?"
"You never came back after your meeting. Wondered if you were okay."
"I'm fine. After my meeting I decided to take the rest of the day off, relax for a change you know? There was no need for you to worry."
"Just checking," he said. "See you tomorrow?"
"Of course. I'll be at work like normal," she said. "Goodnight Jethro."
"Night Jen."
Gibbs put down the phone feeling reassured. He debated going over to Jen's house just in case. Stop it! he told himself. Jenny can take care of herself.

Jenny returned to the lounge at took up her position on the sofa again.

"Who was it?" Lizzie asked, turning round in her armchair to face her mom.

"No one sweetie," Jenny replied.