The next day, the bullpen was empty for after an entire week of working tirelessly on this case, Gibbs made an exception for his exhausted agents and made them go home. With it being Friday, they would be rested for the weekend which was the club's busiest time, as well as the most likely time frame for the Colonel to strike since it would be easy for him to slip away with his unsuspecting victim—in all other cases, of course. Being alert was now top priority and so much as Gibbs hated to admit it, sleep was needed for that.

Tony and Ziva were both relieved they had set alarms for before dinner the next evening because after such a stressful week, they were exhausted and would have slept right through the time Gibbs had set for them to be back to work.

After the partners had woken up the previous morning, they laughed together as they stayed in each other's arms, listening to their phones ringing off the hook. They knew Gibbs would get at them for breaking his rule of never being unreachable, but they wouldn't change a thing about last night for anything. Still ignoring their phones going off with missed calls and texts, not in the mood to explain why they were MIA, they relaxed in each other's arms for a bit longer—feeling the warm sun on their skin as it shone through the car's window.

The two held hands as Tony drove Ziva back to her apartment and once he had dropped her off with the promise to see her the next night, he smiled the rest of the way to his own apartment because he knew something had finally changed in them and their hearts. The fact that he didn't have to go on pretending that being "just partners" was enough for him gave him an even bigger outlook not only on the next couple of years, but quite possibly the rest of his life—and their life together.


Rolling out of bed to the sound of yet another alarm, Ziva trudged into the shower, giving herself the opportunity to have a fresh start on this op. After putting together a quick dinner for herself, she stuck it in her backpack then drove back to NCIS.


It wasn't until the elevator's doors almost opened when Ziva remembered that unless Tony had called, Gibbs still didn't know what was going on with his top two agents. Taking a deep breath, Ziva stepped off the elevator, looking to Tony's empty desk first and then to Gibbs', where he was currently sitting, momentarily immersed in following up a lead.

Dropping her gear carefully down on the side of her desk as she sat down, turning on her computer, she carefully looked over to her Boss. Turning her eyes back to her monitor after not getting a response, she bit her lip knowing he must really be mad.

Just minutes later, McGee took his place in the bullpen and, to Ziva's relief, Tony followed shortly. As her partner situated himself across from her, he looked to Gibbs who was still busying himself with the work in front of him, seemingly oblivious to what was going on around him.

Sharing a glance, they both wrinkled their brows from their boss' strange behavior. Shrugging their shoulders, Tony and Ziva began to occupy themselves with the work that had to be done before tonight.. After a few more minutes of uncomfortable silence, Gibbs looked to both Tony and Ziva briefly then returned his eyes to his work, "Nice of you two to join us—David, DiNozzo."

With their cheeks flushing, they both turned in their chairs to face their boss. "We uh..had a er…" they both stuttered, not having had enough time to think up a valid excuse for their absence."

"Save it," Gibbs cut in, not expecting to get a valid or truthful reason for their absence.

Not knowing what else to say and knowing how Gibbs felt about apologizes, they kept quiet along with their boss, figuring this was their "get out of jail free card," but they would have to be more careful next time so their personal lives wouldn't interfere with their jobs—not the other way around anymore.


Before heading out for the op that night, Gibbs stopped Ziva under the stairs on her way back from the bathroom. "Ziver," he said, trying to focus her attention on him for the time being. "Are you ready for tonight?"

"Yes," she spoke quickly. "Why?"

"The Colonel is known for sticking to a very tight schedule—by being a Colonel, that trait is in his blood. If our timeline is right, he will strike soon and possibly tonight."

Nodding, she smiled encouragingly, "I will be fine, Gibbs. Tony will have my back."

"I know that," he said, always one to have the utmost trust in his agents. "It's not DiNozzo I'm concerned about. I don't want you getting ahead of yourself and becoming overconfident. This guy is dangerous and isn't to be underestimated."

Letting her brave front slip away right before the man she now considered to be her father, she pinched the bridge of her nose, finally concentrating on what he was saying. "Two nights ago I questioned my judgment of what I could handle and what I couldn't. Tony…he talked me out of that and, at least for now, I can handle this because of what he said. Please, trust me on this."

Smiling at her determination and that her and DiNozzo had gained an even deeper of amount of trust in each other, he squeezed her pinky and whispered a few words of encouragement before walking back to the bullpen.

Ziva stood alone for a few moments, so thankful for the men that were in her life. Having that comfort was unexplainable, but also something she knew that she wouldn't give up for anything. They were the few people in her life that brought joy to her heart.


She couldn't believe how fast he was moving tonight. Ziva had only been on her shift for an hour now and for the past forty-five minutes the Colonel had been flirting shamelessly with her while resting his hand on her thigh, kissing her cheek whenever he so had the inclination. He talked to her about his job, previous relationships, and even his golden retriever, Lucy. With the freedom that he spoke with, Ziva knew there could only be two reasons for this. One being he really did trust her, or he knew soon she wouldn't be saying much of anything.

Though, as another half an hour turned into another hour and he still hadn't run out of things to say, much less trying to get her alone, she began to wonder what was holding him back.

Remembering Tony's previous comments on how the Colonel must have a jealous side—simply looking for someone for himself in the wrong place—and his jealous expression when Michael came into the picture, Ziva reluctantly decided their plan B was the only realistic plan left.

Kissing the man's cheek, she excused herself to the kitchen to make sure dishes weren't piling up, but with the promise to return momentarily.

Once she reached the kitchen and made sure there wasn't anyone around to even unintentionally eavesdrop, Ziva let out an audible sigh, seeing if Tony was awake or not.

"What is it, Ziva?" Tony commented with a tired tone but also with a hint of playfulness, knowing what she was doing.

"He isn't showing any signs of wanting hurt me," she said blatantly. "He may be creepy but something is holding him back."

"He must really like you," Tony commented facetiously. "I guess that means plan B is taking effect?"

"It is the only thing I think would make a difference in his demeanor."

Rubbing a hand down his face, Tony nodded to himself, "Okay."


Walking back the Colonel with a big smile on her face, Ziva resumed her previous position right next to him. Leaning over, he kissed her cheek yet again then lifted her hand to meet his lips. "I'm glad you weren't away for too long."

"Me too," she smiled, leaning against the booth to rest her back. "Thankfully the dishes were not piled up. I could tell you stories, that is for sure."

A smug expression crossed the Colonel's face. "We've got all night."

Cocking her head the side, she let a grin cross her face, "Very true. I remember a couple months back at my previous job, I was waiting tables and once I had the chance to take a break and went through the kitchen to sit down, I found that the designated dish-washer of the night had decided that going to her boyfriend's basketball game was more important and she did not even think to call in a replacement. I do not think I got off work until midnight that night."

After laughing over her misfortunes, the Colonel was about to ask why she was the one to stay over instead of someone else when Tony walked in, clearly supposed to be mildly drunk. Ziva's face flushed as she watched him walk around, shouting "Jasmine" at the top of his lungs.

Quickly excusing herself from the Colonel, Ziva elbowed through the weekend crowd, walking as quickly as she could towards him. Upon reaching him, she looked at him curiously. "What is it, Michael? You have to calm down."

"I've been trying to call you for the past hour. Why is your phone off?"

"I am at work. The manager does not like interruptions nor does he think it is polite to his paying customers and I would have to agree."

"What are you saying? That I'm an interruption now?" Michael shot back.

Ziva let out a deep breath. "I never said that. The phone ringing would be an interruption, but not you."

"Who's more important? Me or the guys around here who don't have a life?"

"Michael!" she exclaimed, "shhhh!"

"Hey," he said, putting his hands up in defense. "I just want the truth—to see where I stand because I honestly don't know anymore."

Her features immediately softened as she placed a hand on his cheek, directing his gaze to meet hers. "You know I love you." She smiled, leaning in for a kiss while he wrapped his arms firmly around her waist.

"Working here is something I have to do," she tried to explain softly.

Nodding, Michael pulled her in closer, kissing her forehead, giving them both flashbacks to when they were protecting Gibbs. "I'm sorry I overreacted."

Standing on her tiptoes, she nuzzled his ear, "It is okay."

After spending a few more moments in each other's embrace, Tony's phone rang. Ziva's eyes quickly flashed to Tony, silently scolding him for not remembering to turn his phone off, but a second later, she reverted back into character. "Who would be calling you at this hour?"

"It's nothing. I mean—no one important," Michael said cryptically, not even pulling his phone out of his back pocket.

Ziva swiftly moved her hand to pull the phone out for him, discreetly patting his butt in the process. She smirked as Tony gasped quietly then quickly resumed Michael's worried face, eyeing her briefly.

Checking the phone, she saw that it was McGee and figured she may as well answer it—make things more interesting. "Who is this?" Ziva asked suspiciously, nearly laughing at McGee's embarrassed tone as he began to say it must have been the wrong number. Taking the phone call to her advantage, she continued, "Jolie? What are you wearing? Pink fluffy slippers too?"

At the sound of Ziva's voice and the code work "pink," McGee caught Gibbs' eyes and they knew something could be up.

Clearing his throat, McGee decided to take a chance. "Is everything okay?"

"What do you mean who is this? I happen to be Michael's girlfriend and there is not a thing that could bring me down from that thank you very much," Ziva said confidently.

Before she hung up, a look of shock crossed her face then she shook her head, letting her whole demeanor change. "I'm so sorry," she said apologetically. "I wish you the best of luck."

After hanging up the phone, having let McGee know they were okay in the process, Ziva looked to Michael. "How could you do this to me?"

"What about her? Jolie? She's nothing—just someone I work with," he said, trying to make excuses for himself.

"Oh so getting a co-worker pregnant is nothing?" she said, shaking her head as her eyes began to well up.

He tried to take her hand but she pulled it away, taking a step back from the man she thought she knew.

"Don't walk away from me, Jasmine. You can't."

"What do you mean I can't?" Ziva said, raising her voice as she turned around.

Michael quickly grabbed her arm tightly, turning her back towards him. "Where do you think you're going?" he spat with fire burning in his eyes.

"I thought I knew you, but this crossed the line," she cried, tears now streaming down her face. "I am done, Michael,"

Tony's heart so badly having to yell at the woman he loved, but with having quite a few people's attention by now, including the Colonel's, he had to keep going. "I don't think so."

"Yes. I do think so," she shot back. "How do you make love to me knowing that you have already made someone else pregnant? I cannot forgive you for that."

As they argued, Tony continued walking towards his partner, forcing her to continue walking backwards until the wall stopped her from moving any further.

When Ziva realized what he had done, Tony took Ziva's face in his, showing her he had to do something to continue his character. Her eyes shone to his as she carefully mouthed "I trust you." She soon felt all of his weight come crashing down against her, pinning her whole body against the wall. Even though she was struggling to breathe, they both knew this had to be done.

"We can fix this," Michael spoke softly as he claimed her lips roughly, despite her hitting his chest, struggling to break free from his strong grasp.

"There is nothing left to fix," Ziva said, looking to him clearly.

Putting his hands around her waist, he looked at her firmly. "Yes there is, there's us."

"Let me go, Michael. I'm done," she said, still trying to free herself.

"Come on, at least one more night," he begged, kissing her neck.

"No," she shouted. "Get off of me!"

Suddenly, his weight was lifted off of her body not only the Colonel, but a couple other men that were still sober enough to do something about it.

Michael didn't have enough time to say anything before he was promptly thrown out of the club but Tony's eyes briefly met his partner's—filled with worry and care, near to tears not only for everything he had to put her through, but for what was bound to happen next.

Once Michael was out of the picture, Ziva hardly had time to process the emotions they were both going through before the Colonel took her hand and led her into the private room. "There, that's better," the man smiled, sitting Ziva down on the bed. "A lot less drama in here, huh?" he asked with a forced smile.

"Yes," Ziva sighed, seemingly relieved.

Handing her a glass of wine from the in-room bar, he took a seat next to her. After she took a small sip, knowing she had to be as alert as possible, she looked at the Colonel curiously. "What is it?"

Taking her hand, he searched her eyes. "You loved him."

Shrugging, she shook her head. "I guess I'll never know," Ziva responded out of instinct, not being able to get the image of Tony lying on the cold ground beneath her with her gun barrel pressed to his chest.

"I can be here for you," the Colonel spoke softly, leaning in for a kiss.

Putting her hand to his chest, she tried to push him away but he just pushed harder, forcefully pulling her whole body onto the bed.

Knowing that this was it, Ziva had to do everything in her ability to get away but his strong grasp was holding her back. She was about to comment on how pink the man's cheeks were to alert Tony as to what was happening when there was a knock at the door.

Ziva was relieved when the Colonel got off of her but confused when he answered the door. To her horror, Chuck, the manager stepped in, dragging a beaten and drugged Tony along with him, holding him gruffly by the collar. Looking to Ziva, the short man smiled devilishly, "We knew your partner wouldn't want to miss this."