Disclaimer, A/N & Summary: I don't own NCIS, Gibbs or the rest of the characters at the bull pen; I just wanted to use them for this story... and probably many more. Sasha the Barman belongs to me.
If you have reviewed and followed this story from when I started thank you, it really does mean a lot to me, take these words as the truth! Okay, this is the flashback in the pub continuing. Stick with it, I have, I've carried on writing and loving this story, I just hope you have been reviewing and loving too. ;)
On a dark and dreary night in DC Gibbs has an unexpected visitor, from his past, a past he's never forgotten, soon his night doesn't look so dreary, but why is she here? Who is she? Gibbs/OC maybe Gibbs/Abby Gibbs/Jenny Tony/Ziva I'll try & cover all bases, keep ya all happy!
Cold Case Love
Chapter Four
The new comer had found herself a comfortable position on an awkward barstool a seat away from Gibbs and had taken off a shoulder bag; shed a small leather jacket; uncovering a tight and revealing short tribal print dress that stops just above her knees. Putting the bag on the black tiled flooring, she crumpled the jacket on top of it, when she received her drink and paid for it a silver haired man seemed to talk to her.
"My kinda gal..." Gibbs mumbled under his breath.
"I'm sorry, what did you say?" The brunette, whom held a quizzical expression on her face turned to in the direction of the voice, to look at the man who was seemingly talking to her whilst tending his glass of whisky.
"I said 'my kinda gal.' We drink the same thing." Gibbs spoke a little higher then raised his half full tumbler. Jethro looked hard in her direction and noticed there were black mascara lines down her cheeks, unnoticeable to the other punters in the bar, but to Gibbs' marine sniper trained eye, he couldn't miss. "Boyfriend?" Gibbs asked. This got another quizzical look in her eyes.
"Broken up with your boyfriend?"
The brunette let out a small giggle and wiped away the black marks under her eyes, embarrassed as she looked in a small compact mirror she got out of her jacket pocket, "No, no boyfriend." She locked eyes with his. "Girlfriend."
"Oh." Jethro snapped his gaze away and let out an audible sigh and downed the contents of his glass. Jethro Gibbs was well and truly embarrassed. The only woman in the bar was a lesbian. She was pretty, liked whisky and by the way she talked was intelligent; he would by lying if he said he didn't want to sleep with her already. But now he well and truly couldn't.
A small tinkling sound then met his ears. He turned to the mysterious brunette who was laughing behind the full glass in her hand.
"No, hell no, it's not what you're thinking! My best mate and I broke up; we weren't in love or anything!" She then grinned ear to ear showing her incisor teeth, taking a sip of her Jack Daniels then rather seductively pressing her peach lips together obviously liking the taste, the giggling brunette then stuck out her hand, "Ruby Valenti."
Jethro Gibbs looked at her then at her hand and back again, had he scored? Does she feel the same? Oh, please let her feel the same, he really didn't want to go home to an empty house and then wake up in an empty bed. Gibbs tried a smile, feeling it tugging on the corners of his mouth, before putting out a calloused hand. "Jethro Gibbs."
"Jethro? Wow, that's an unusual name, nice to meet you Jethro." Ruby Valenti shook his hand smiling, he was really very hot to the touch, his skin felt like it was on fire yet his hand felt oddly strange, rough. Ruby then turned his rough hand in hers, looking at the hard skin that clung to his knuckles and the heel of his hand, running the pad of her thumb over them.
"Thanks, nice to meet ya too and ah, thanks for the massage." Jethro ducked his head, trying to catch her eye line as her focus were on the lines and grooves on his hand, her brows slightly furrowed as it seemed she was deep in thought. Her attention then snapped to him, Ruby's eyes noticeably widened as she realised he was watching her give an observation on his hand Ruby reluctantly released her grip.
"They're calluses from working on my boat. I have a lot of 'em, calluses, yeah. They're pretty nasty." Jethro informed Ruby as he gave his own hands a glance, turning them over then interlinking his fingers, leaning his elbows on the wood topped bar.
"You have a boat? That's awesome, you must have some skill!" Ruby exclaimed utterly amused showing it with another toothy grin.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs found out she was more than just amused and intelligent, Ruby Valenti was unlike no one he'd ever met before, first of all she had bright blue eyes exactly like his own.
After they'd introduced themselves Gibbs eyed up an empty booth where one of the many old men had been sitting, Ruby immediately took up his offer of going over and sitting together. He'd gone over with her drink to reserve the booth as Ruby picked up her bag and jacket, smirking slightly at Gibbs as she came over and shifted inside the booth in-between Gibbs and the red leather seated booth and sat down, patting the seat next to her, silently beckoning him in.
She mesmerised him, by her dark sense of humour and her interest in him and his life. Apparently she'd never been on a boat before or an aeroplane and her trip to America had been the first flight she'd ever taken, apparently she was so scared she ended up bribing a business man next to her to buy her a bottle of pink champagne that they both ended up sharing. Ruby then confessed that he must've done it because he fancied her, Gibbs added,
"Well, it's not a crime, I'm sure lots of guys find ya attractive." Jethro spoke, intending to give it to her as a compliment but it just came out sounding like an attempt at flirting.
Ruby cocked an eyebrow at him before taking in his compliment and seriously replying, "Maybe, maybe... but not at the moment it seems, I'm... I'm single, sadly."
Gibbs tried to hide the fact that that last comment made him quite happy with a spreading of warmth spreading throughout his chest, but he just told himself it was his fourth bourbon working its way through out his system, hiding his half smile by sighing at her relationship status.
"What about you, are you taken Jethro?" She asked downing her whisky then grimacing, immediately regretting her action.
"Right now, no. I'm single too." Jethro declared, his gaze dropped to his glass, seeing there was no amber liquid within, he contemplated getting up and getting another or clicking his fingers like an annoyed drunken punter demanding to be served, yet neither of these decisions seemed right to Gibbs, he'd just finished his fourth bourbon of the night, and he was really wanting to be able to see and to be capable to walk back home instead of being escorted by a Sherriff for drink driving and running over a guy's dog. "How old are you?" Gibbs blurted out without thinking; it was the alcohol wasn't it? He then looked into her eyes, wanting to see if she was lying when she gave him her answer.
Ruby gave him a warm smile, shifting closer to him, "I'm seventeen, Jethro."
Seventeen? Son of a bitch, she's too young for me. Jethro thought and felt as if his heart had actually sunk, down into the pit of his stomach where it lay broken and bruised. She's really beautiful, clever and warm-hearted; I'm just too old for her. She wouldn't want someone like me, wouldn't she? "I'm too old for you." Gibbs admitted.
Ruby Valenti sighed resting her palm against Gibbs' cheek, he was still quite intensely hot to the touch, "No, you're not, Jethro, you don't act it anyway."
Gibbs' eyes searched hers for an emotion as he spoke, "Of course I don't, well not in public, anyway, I'm not like the rest of these old guys, but Ruby, you need to know my-" Gibbs was cut off by her hand over his mouth, it smelt like coco butter. She then spoke into his ear
"No, I don't need to know your age, Jethro. Excuse me if I sound a little rude but... I don't need to know your life's history and why you're drowning your sorrows in a secluded, dingy little pub in the bloody back end of beyond! Jethro." Ruby Valenti paused a little. "Right now I need you to kiss me."
End of Chapter Four
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