"DAZED AND CONFUSED," sequel to "Past Tense".

Chapter 3:

As Tony drove back to the office after packing, he tried calling Ziva's cell phone several times, but each time it went straight to her voicemail. He was convinced something had happened, and it had Gibbs written all over it. He was both angered and anxious at the same time. What business of Gibbs was it to interfere in their relationship, if that was the case? If it wasn't, what had caused Ziva to act so cool towards him? No one really cared about rule #12, least of all Tony and Ziva, and as far as Tony could tell, even Gibbs himself had violated his own rule with the Director. He slammed his hands against the steering wheel in frustration as he drove. A dull headache was looming and the humid, oppressive August heat did nothing for his mood. He had taken a shower before changing into his 'Roy' persona, and already he needed another one. He hated the heavy humidity in DC at this time of year.

After parking the car and on his way upstairs to meet Ziva, Tony wiped the sweat from his brow and took a swig from the bottle of water he carried. He had absolutely no idea what lay ahead and if they couldn't get the chance to be alone for at least two minutes before they went undercover, it would be another two days before they could talk privately. The heat induced headache started to pound in his head at the thought.

Exiting the elevator Tony immediately noticed Ziva and Abby laughing together over by her desk.

"Wow", Tony enthused as he walked towards them, taking in Ziva's appearance.

"Hey 'Roy', Abby greeted him, a huge smile on her face. "Nice shirt".

Tony was wearing an old blue t-shirt with a few small wear holes on the front, and a faded logo that was now unrecognizable. His washed out levis were worn in all the right places. The sweat marks under his arms completed the look. The real Roy would be proud.

Ziva was smiling, but looked away from him before he could say anything. Abby had done a great job of helping her look like Callie. The bright red lipstick contrasted with her naturally pale skin and her dark hair was piled up on her head in a twist. She wore a tight tank top with no bra, of that he was certain. Her jeans were so tight he doubted she'd be wearing anything underneath them either. He had to swallow as he thought about how much fun it would be to help her peel herself out of them.

Before either of them could break the silence Gibbs rounded the corner with McGee hot on his heels. "McGee will be driving you to the motel", he kept on walking, heading towards the elevator. "Today, people!" he barked without stopping. Tony and Ziva grabbed their bags and hurried over to the elevator, neither one making eye contact. This was exactly what Tony was afraid of.

Gibbs did however, make a pointed, brief eye contact with Ziva, the small interaction between lover and boss not going unnoticed by Tony.

It was going to be a very long two days.

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After a relatively quiet drive aside from small talk, McGee dropped both Tony and Ziva at the Empire Motel, where they were to check in. As Gibbs had insisted they already wear the com-links, conversation had been stilted and Tony began to resent the entire situation, responding to Ziva and anyone listening in with sarcasm.

Opening the door to their room, Tony could only sigh in frustration. It was small, the bed was a double but hardly big enough for the both of them in their present state of mind. Ziva wandered into the bathroom, shaking her head in disgust. Tony dropped their bags and sat on the bed, bouncing up and down to test the bedsprings, creaking in time with his movements. He grabbed the remote for the TV and switched it on, and as Ziva walked out of the bathroom she was met with heavy sighing as the couple on screen screamed "Oh yeah, baby. That's it! Ooh yes, ooh, ooh…"

"You really are a pig Roy" she grabbed the remote from him and attempted to change the channel, but all it did was change the movie, however the scenario remained the same. She threw the remote on the bed and moved to say something but Tony interrupted her, "Not my fault, sweet cheeks".

"Stop calling me that", Ziva protested.

Tony got up and walked over to the bar fridge, hoping for at least something cold to help ease the tension. Mmm, just as he thought, empty with the exception of local beer and cheap, white wine. He reached for one of the bottles of beer and opened it, taking a large gulp of the cool liquid before turning to look at Ziva, who was glaring at him from across the room. "What, you want one?"

"Nice of you to ask," she snapped, brushing past him to grab her own bottle from the fridge.

The room was stuffy and stale, and the old window box air conditioner whistled and thumped as it tried to cool the room. Tony stood with his head over it, closing his eyes as he willed himself to calm down as well as cool down. Ziva sat on the bed, taking sips of the beer, wincing as she tried to swallow the bitter drink. She was hot and sweaty, the make-up clogging her skin and the jeans irritating her legs and groin. "I can't take this any more!" She jumped up and tried to undo the zipper and rip the offending garment from her body. "Argh!" She screamed in frustration as she threw herself on the bed, trying to wriggle out of them but the more she struggled, the worse she made it.

Tony walked over and put his hands on her calves, "You could ask for some help you know" he looked her in the eye.

"Just pull while I push, OK," she was still angry.

"Interesting choice of words, Miss Callie," Tony smirked. This could be fun after all.

"Shut up before I kick you where it hurts!" instantly Ziva regretted what she'd said.

Tony let go of her legs. He put his hands in the air and uttered a single "Whoa", not at all amused.

He walked away from her. "Do it yourself then. I'm going to take a shower". Ziva along with the humidity was driving him crazy. He grabbed his bag and stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind him. He ripped his shirt off and threw the jeans on the floor, breathing heavy. He was angry. Hurt and angry. Without another thought he immediately opened the door and stalked right over to her, picking her up and pushing her up against the wall, kissing her hard as he pressed his body up against her. God, how her scent intoxicated him. The oppressive heat only served to intensify his senses. He wanted her, and wanted her now, Gibbs be damned. She had managed to get her jeans off while he was in the bathroom, and now his hot sweaty hands roamed frantically over her near naked body while he pushed his right knee up between her legs, all the while continuing to kiss her senseless.

She responded eagerly and locked her arms around him, deepening the kiss as her tongue tangled with his. Her hand reached down to rub him through his boxers. He groaned low in his throat as she continued to touch him. His knee pressed harder into her groin and he could feel her wetness on his skin as she writhed against it. He was right, she had not been wearing anything under those jeans. Their breathing was ragged and Tony didn't think he'd last too much longer, but in a split second Ziva abruptly broke away, pushing Tony out of the way. She stumbled to the bathroom breathless and slammed the door shut.

Tony was left standing there, panting and utterly confused. He ripped the com-link from his ear throwing it wherever it landed and purposefully headed to the bathroom, tearing the door open and banging it shut behind him. He turned on the shower to muffle any conversation and glared at Ziva, who was sitting on the edge of the bathtub, head in her hands. They were going to talk and they were going to talk NOW.

"Spill it." Tony demanded.

Ziva looked up at him, tears in her eyes. "I can't Tony, not here".

He punched the door, hurting his fist in the process. Ziva flinched. She could feel the intense, raw emotion emanating from his body, knowing she was the cause. She stood and tried to get past him, but he blocked her. He placed his hands either side of her head as she leant against the door. He looked her in the eye and asked her again, gently this time. "I need to know, Ziva", he swallowed. "I need to know why…"

He held back his emotions as Ziva shifted under his gaze, wriggling out from under his arms to open the door. Once again she had left him standing alone, no closer to the truth. The heat from the water in the shower was fogging up the small room and he reached to turn it off. He exited the bathroom to find Ziva curled up on the bed, holding her now luke warm bottle of beer. She was dressed in a pair of her own boxer briefs with the tank top she had been wearing earlier. The air conditioner had eventually clunked to a halt and the room was hotter than ever.

Tony tried to jiggle the unit to make it work but it had finally burnt out. The heat was too much for it too handle. The air in the room was stifling and he was covered in a fine sheen of sweat.

Ziva watched him as he tried to get the air conditioner working. She wanted nothing more than to drag him back to bed with her, and show him how she really felt. She had to tell him what was going on but not here and not now. If only she could wait it out without destroying the trust they had built between them. She was yet to think about how they were going to share the bed together. Neither of them had spent a single night in the same bed without making mad passionate love all night long. The sex between them had been explosive from day one. Standing there in nothing but his boxers, a rough 5-oclock shadow forming on his handsome face, and droplets of sweat running down his back, she found it hard to concentrate on the task at hand: they were on mission, and were here to work. She had to stay focused. Unfortunately the only person in the world who could make her become unhinged was standing right in this very room with her. She got up and walked to the door and headed outside into the warm night air. She needed to clear her mind.

After a few minutes, Tony joined Ziva outside. She was sitting on the step watching the passing traffic from the nearby highway. The air was still thick with humidity but somehow being outside seemed cooler than stuck inside with the tension in the confined space of their room.

He sat down next to her, handing her a cold beer from the fridge. He looked ahead, not really focusing on anything in particular. "My com-link is inside" he said, still looking ahead.

"Mine too", Ziva replied.

They continued to sit in silence until Ziva spoke "Gibbs knows about us" was all she said.

"I figured as much". Tony looked at her, brushing a strand of hair from her face and tucking it behind her ear.

"We can't stay out here too long, it will cause suspicion and then the team will come to see if we are alright". Ziva was still watching the traffic as she spoke.

"I know". Tony moved closer to her. "What did he say to you Ziva?"

"I was to quit or break up with you. Or one of us gets transferred. Words to that effect".

"Then we play it out like we broke up" Tony put his hand on her face, gently turning her to look at him. He looked her directly in the eye. "We get through this case, then we go back to being careful. Very careful. I won't lose you Ziva, not now. I can't." His voice was soft and low, barely audible above the din of the traffic. It made the hair on Ziva's neck stand up despite the summer humidity.

"Me neither Tony. But I don't want to be transferred back to Mossad or be responsible for you losing your job." Ziva was holding his hand as he continued to cup her face.

"Then we have to become better actors". He winked at her. "We can do it. Trust me, Ziva". Tony leant in to give her a kiss, a gentle, long lingering kiss.

The phone inside the room began to ring, breaking the moment. They stood to go inside, but before Ziva entered the room, Tony held her back "You had me worried there, sweet cheeks".

Ziva smiled, raising one eyebrow as she spoke, "I thought I asked you not to call me that".

"Ah but you love it, I know you do," he gave her one of his famous smiles. Tony was relieved, incredibly relieved. He may even sleep tonight.

Then again, he would be next to Ziva.

And under the watchful eye and ear of Gibbs.

Yes, the next two nights were definitely going to be interesting.

TBC…