Chapter Nine: The Night is Not My Friend

Tony tried not to stare at the small alarm clock next to his bed. He knew that would only make time pass slower but he couldn't help it. He hadn't been able to sleep a wink. Despite the sheets and blankets covering him, he was cold and lonely and his room was far too quiet. He missed the subtle sound of Gibbs' breathing and the persistent thumping of his heart beating beneath his ear. He missed having a warm body pressed up against his and a strong hand moving gently across his back. He missed running his fingers over the other man's chest while his head was peppered with kisses between conversations about life and fate, love and loss and other topics the two would normally never bring up. Tony discovered it was actually nice to have someone he could share everything with.

He rolled over onto his belly, hoping that would help but it wasn't long before he was on his side again and then his back. He'd tried hugging a pillow, surrounding himself with pillows and even pretending Gibbs was there but it was no use. Pillows and imaginary friends didn't help the loneliness at all. His room was quiet, his bed was empty and he was alone and it was only a quarter past one in the morning.

How on earth had he gotten so attached in such a short amount of time? It actually hadn't been a short amount of time. He'd had a thing for Gibbs for awhile now and now that he'd gotten a taste of the possessiveness of Gibbs' kiss and the warmth of his touch he never wanted to go without again.

He rolled out of bed and absently dressed himself then headed down to his car. He didn't care about the consequences or the message it would send; he had to get to Gibbs' house. He made the short journey on autopilot, not thinking about anything except getting there. When he arrived he found the house dark. He entered silently and made his way upstairs, doing his best not to wake Ducky.

Tony paused in the doorway to Gibbs' bedroom. He knew if he went any closer the man would sense his presence and wake up and that wasn't what he wanted. Gibbs hadn't been sleeping all that great. Somehow just being in the same house with Gibbs made Tony feel better.

The streetlight offered just enough light for Tony to be able to see Gibbs. He could hear Gibbs' deep, even breaths and was satisfied that the man was okay so he snuck downstairs and headed to the basement. Maybe a little black and white TV and some sanding would help calm him so he could get some sleep as well. It always seemed to work for Gibbs. He'd do anything to avoid going home to his lonely, cold apartment.


Gibbs woke from his first good night of sleep in weeks feeling like he could take on the world. Home—that was what he needed to help his recovery, not doctors and nurses and pills. He got up and showered then brewed a pot of coffee, his first since he'd boarded that helicopter a couple weeks ago. Just opening the container of coffee was enough to make his water.

"You're going to have to take it easy on that stuff, Jethro," Ducky said.

Gibbs turned and smiled at the doctor. "Morning, Duck."

"Good morning," Ducky replied. "How are you feeling?"

"Great," Gibbs answered happily.

"I'm glad you're feeling better, Jethro, but please do try to take it easy or you'll end up feeling worse than before."

"I know, Doc," Gibbs said. "When can I go back to work?"

"Six to eight weeks," Ducky answered.

Gibbs narrowed his eyes at the doctor, not liking that answer at all but he could see Ducky was going to stand his ground. He shrugged it off, deciding they could argue about it later.

"Anthony's here," Ducky said, gladly changing the subject.

"He is?"

"He got in early this morning," Ducky said. "Is there something you want to tell me?"

"About?" Gibbs asked, grabbing a coffee cup from the cupboard.

Ducky just looked at Gibbs with a knowing smirk. There could only be one reason Tony wasn't home sleeping in his own bed after such an exhausting adventure.

"What's that look for?" Gibbs asked, barely resisting the urge to chug the freshly brewed coffee.

"Something tells me you two returned with a closer relationship than you had when you left," Ducky said.

"Stay out of it, Duck," Gibbs warned gently.

"Oh, don't worry, Jethro. Your secret's safe with me," Ducky said. "Why don't you go check on him? He's in the basement. I'll make us some breakfast."

Gibbs grumbled under his breath as he headed for the basement stairs. He didn't like Ducky being able to read him so easily. He and Tony were letting things happen gradually and progress naturally. They hadn't talked about what was happening between them and he didn't want anyone getting the wrong impression or trying to pressure them into anything.

The black and white TV was flickering and the bare bulb hanging over his boat lit up the basement. Tony was curled up under the boat, covered in sawdust with a sanding block still in his hand. If Tony's intent was to turn him on, it was working. Gibbs moved over next to him and looked over his prone body.

"Tony," he said, resisting the urge to reach out and touch him. Between the sawdust and just knowing Tony would be receptive to his touch, he knew if he got started that he wouldn't stop.

Tony whimpered and whined as he stretched his body out. "How do you even move after sleeping down here?" he groaned.

"There's a sleeping mat on the shelf," Gibbs said, pointing in the general direction. "That helps a little. I don't sleep down here as much as I used to."

"Sorry, Boss."

"Rule six," Gibbs said before taking another big gulp of his coffee.

"I know but I don't know how this got so complicated," Tony confessed. "I couldn't stop worrying. What if you needed help getting to the bathroom? What if you needed a glass of water? What if you needed something to eat? Then I couldn't stop thinking about sharing a bed with you. My apartment felt so empty and my bed was so cold. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me."

Gibbs ran his fingers down the side of Tony's face as he listened to what he was saying. "I may not be able to move very fast yet but I can get around on my own," he said gently. He didn't want Tony worrying constantly whenever they were apart.

"I know and I know you're perfectly capable of taking care of yourself," Tony said. He paused and rested his hand on top of Gibbs' hand that was still on his face. "I don't know what's happening to me, Boss," he confessed quietly.

"It's called falling in love, my dear boy," Ducky said from the stairs. "Breakfast is ready."


After breakfast, Ducky headed off to work leaving Gibbs and Tony alone. Tony had the rest of the week off to recuperate and Gibbs couldn't return until Ducky cleared him. Tony cleared the breakfast dishes off the table and ran some dishwater. He usually hated doing the dishes but it was a good excuse to get him out of talking to Gibbs. He didn't have a clue what to say. He felt weak for ending up at Gibbs' house in the first place.

He was about halfway finished when he felt two hands come to rest on his hips. His breath hitched and he froze when he felt the warmth of Gibbs' breath on his neck. The warm, moist lips suckling on the sensitive skin of his neck drew a moan from deep inside him.

"I missed sharing a bed with you last night too," Gibbs said softly.

Tony let out a strangled whimper in response. He could feel his dick getting heavy which was making his face flush. His hands were still in the dishwater, mainly because he didn't know where else to put them at that point.

Gibbs kissed Tony's neck again and wrapped his arms around Tony's waist. "Is this okay?" he asked as he nibbled on Tony's ear.

Tony didn't have a clue how to answer that. His mind was telling him they really needed to talk but his body was telling him continue to let things progress naturally. He trusted Gibbs and knew him well enough to know he wouldn't risk their relationship for a little fooling around.

He dried his hands then turned in Gibbs' arms so they were facing each other. He wasn't expecting the look of love and admiration he saw on Gibbs' face. The normally hard expression had softened into one Tony had never seen before. There was no way he could resist the man when he was looking at him like that.

He brought his hands up to Gibbs' head and drew him into a passionate kiss that ended in nipping and sucking as passion and hunger replaced fears and insecurities. Gibbs took Tony's wrist and tugged his hand down to the front of his pants. Feeling how hard a little kissing and their close proximity had made Gibbs lit a fire inside Tony. He immediately latched on and started tugging and rubbing and squeezing Gibbs' erection through his sweatpants.

Gibbs' breathing turned to heavy panting and his head fell back. He wanted to encourage Tony to keep going but he couldn't form any words. Years of secret admiration and hidden lust were turning into reality and it was overwhelming. He stepped closer and pushed his hips out towards Tony's. Tony pulled his hand out of the way and could feel Gibbs' cock rubbing against his through his jeans and Gibbs' sweats.

"You feel so good," Gibbs moaned.

"I'm not hurting you, am I?"

"No."

The two moved against each other, rubbing harder and moaning louder as they got closer to release. Tony grabbed onto Gibbs' ass and held their bodies tightly together while Gibbs kissed and nipped at his neck.

"So close," Tony whimpered.

Gibbs reached down and squeezed Tony's ass as he quickened the pace. He was close too and really wanted to finish together. "You ready?" he asked, hoping Tony would understand.

"Yes," Tony cried as he pulled them even closer.

The two buried their faces in each other's shoulders and let themselves go. The kitchen was filled with moaning and groaning as they moved against each other until they couldn't move anymore.

"Wow," Tony breathed.

Gibbs decided against the 'that's what they all tell me' comment and kissed the top of Tony's head instead.

"What're we doing, Gibbs?" Tony asked, still nestled in Gibbs' arms. "I need to know what you want from me." It was a question he probably should've asked before they got each other off but Tony hadn't been thinking with the head on his shoulders when Gibbs had seduced him.

"What are we doing? We're letting things take their natural course," Gibbs said. "What do I want from you? I want you to be yourself. Tony, it's you that I feel in love with—happy, loving, goofy, compassionate, funny, loyal, intelligent, you. I don't want you change to try to please me. You're not gonna be able to make me love you anymore."

The honesty in Gibbs' eyes made Tony's heart melt. "No one's ever understood me before," he said with a smile. "People usually write me off as a screw up who uses humor to hide my stupidity."

"That's their loss," Gibbs said. He leaned in and kissed Tony again then rubbed his thumb across Tony's lips. "I'm not very good with words. If it's some long, verbal declaration of my love or a promise of a perfect future you need, I can't give you that. I can tell you that I know you… the real you that you try to hide from everybody and that I love you. I'll give you everything I've got, Tony, do everything I can to make you happy."

"Thought you said you weren't good with words," Tony said. "I really couldn't ask for anything else. I know if you're by my side, we can do anything we want. I love you, have for a long time."

They knew they needed to get cleaned up but for the time being they were content to just hold each other and continue kissing and touching and finally being together after so many years of denying what they really wanted.


After an excruciatingly long day at NCIS, Abby got in her car and headed straight for Gibbs' house. Her driving would've put Ziva's to shame but she hadn't seen Tony in over a week and Gibbs in almost a month. She didn't know if she was relieved that they were back or angry that they'd disappeared.

She hoped Gibbs would be home. Neither he nor Tony had been answering their phones all day. She figured she'd be more likely to catch Gibbs at home than Tony but when she turned onto Gibbs' street she found Tony's car parked next to Gibbs'.

"Hinky," she said as she pulled into the driveway. In her excitement to get inside, she almost forgot to put the car in park before getting out. She headed into the house and was met by Gibbs in the entryway with his finger over his lips.

"Shh," he whispered. "Tony's asleep."

Tears formed in the corners of Abby's eyes as she wrapped her arms tightly around Gibbs.

"Easy, Abs," Gibbs said, moving her arm away from his bruised kidney. He wrapped his arms around her and squeezed tightly as he kissed the top of her head.

Abby cuddled in close for a moment then pulled back long enough to smack him in the chest. "Don't ever do that again! I was so worried about you," she said before immediately cuddling back in.

"I missed you, Abs," Gibbs said softly.

Abby's arm found his bruised kidney again making him flinch. It didn't go unnoticed by Abby. "What's wrong?" she asked. "Are you hurt? Is that why you were at a hospital? What were you doing for almost a month?"

"Slow down," Gibbs said as he took her hand and led her into the kitchen. "I couldn't tell you where I was going and I can't tell you what I was doing."

"Did you get hurt?" Abby asked.

"A little," Gibbs answered hesitantly.

"A little? What does that mean?"

"Just a little bruise," Gibbs said. "You wanna eat with us? We're having beer can chicken." He knew if he didn't change the subject, the questions would keep coming.

"Sure, that sounds good," Abby said. "Why is Tony here and how come he's asleep at 5:00 in the afternoon?"

"He hasn't been sleeping well," Gibbs answered, getting the chicken out of the fridge, "and he's here because… he and I got close while we were gone."

"Close? As in close close?"

"Yes, Abby. Close close."

"Aww—"

"Ah-ah," Gibbs grunted, cutting her off. "Don't start."

Abby pulled her fingers across her mouth as if she were zipping it closed. Gibbs got started on their dinner while Abby filled him in on all the office gossip, case developments and everything else he'd missed over the last several weeks. The smell of dinner cooking over the fire and the quiet conversation woke Tony from his nap. He rested quietly with his eyes closed and just listened until he felt Gibbs' fingers on his feet.

"Stop," he mumbled tiredly.

Gibbs sat down and pulled Tony's feet into his lap and the tickling turned into a foot rub. "Dinner's almost ready. Abby's gonna eat with us."

"Hey, Abs," Tony said, opening his eyes and smiling over at her. He sat up and Abby was at his side in an instant. Tony wrapped his arm around her and kissed her temple.

"You know, I should be really mad at you," she said.

"But you love me too much, right?" Tony asked hopefully.

"I hear I have to be careful about declaring my love for you now," Abby said with a mischievous grin. "I don't want Gibbs getting jealous."

Gibbs looked over at Tony and winked at him. They'd only decided that morning to take their relationship to the next level but Gibbs didn't see any point in lying about it. He doubted Tony would care if he told Abby and knew Abby would keep their secret.

The three of them enjoyed a lively dinner full of fun and laughter. It was nice to spend time together again after being apart for so long. Tony filled Abby in on the extent of Gibbs' injuries when she heard the garbled moans coming from the bathroom. Gibbs glared at her when he returned and she punched him in the arm but he only ended up getting lectured for lying to her about his 'small bruise'.

After dinner was cleaned up, Abby headed off to meet the nuns at the bowling alley with promises to return for another visit soon. He knew his hopes for a quiet, peaceful recovery were dashed but he realized that wasn't what he wanted after all. He would rather be surrounded by loved ones.


Two Months Later…

Gibbs traced an invisible line over Tony's arm and across his chest. It was still very early in the morning but for the first time in months Gibbs had somewhere to be that day. Ducky had come over the night before and cleared him to return to work and he was so antsy to get back he couldn't sleep so he figured he and Tony could have a little fun before they had to leave.

Once they'd both decided to jump in with both feet, their relationship had progressed quickly. They spent almost every night together either at Gibbs' house or Tony's apartment. Tony was learning the art of woodworking and Gibbs was starting to quote movies and both found they really enjoyed each other's activities.

Their intimate relationship had progressed quickly too. They'd gone from grinding against each other with their clothes on to hand jobs and blow jobs before going all the way and once they'd started there was no stopping them. That was one thing Gibbs would miss now that he was returning to work; hours of making out, kissing and touching until they couldn't take it anymore and went at it like horny teenagers. Yes, he would definitely miss that.

He leaned over and twirled his tongue around Tony's nipple before nibbling on it.

"Oh yeah," Tony groaned in his sleep.

Gibbs smiled before surrounding the raised nub with his mouth and sucking hard.

"My days go much better when I wake up to your tongue instead of the alarm clock," Tony moaned sleepily.

Gibbs suckled and kissed Tony's chest while his hand explored lower. He bypassed Tony's straining cock and rolled his balls then continued lower. Tony reached under the pillow and grabbed the lube as he raised his legs to give Gibbs easier access. He drizzled some lube on himself and over Gibbs' fingers.

Gibbs' lips traveled up Tony's neck, across his cheek and over to his mouth. He pushed a finger inside and Tony easily accepted him. When Tony opened his mouth to moan, Gibbs took advantage and deepened the kiss. He thrust his cock against Tony's hip as he eased another finger inside.

Tony nearly came unglued when the tip of Gibbs' finger brushed against his prostate. It was exquisite torture and quickly becoming one of Tony's favorite ways to make love. Gibbs would touch him everywhere but his cock until he couldn't take it anymore then Gibbs would pump him hard and fast to a mind blowing orgasm.

After Gibbs had opened Tony up, he lubed his cock then settled between Tony's legs. He leaned over and took Tony's mouth in another demanding kiss as he rubbed his cock against Tony's. Tony let his body relax as Gibbs' lips moved down his neck and across his chest to his nipple. Gibbs lined himself up at Tony's entrance then bit down on his nipple as he pushed all the way in.

"Shit!" Tony grunted.

"Good?" Gibbs grunted, already rocking his hips.

"That'll never get old," Tony moaned, moving in sync with Gibbs.

"Glad to hear it." Gibbs kissed Tony again before sitting back on his knees. He rubbed his hands all over Tony's body while listening for the subtle changes in Tony's breathing and watching him squirm and writhe beneath him. He drizzled some lube over Tony's cock then played with Tony's balls until he heard and saw the telltale signs of his impending release.

Gibbs angled his thrusts upwards to hit Tony's prostate as he grabbed Tony's cock and started squeezing and pumping. Tony was crying out in pleasure as he rolled his hips, thrusting into Gibbs' hand and then impaling himself on Gibbs' dick.

Tony's eager, enthusiastic movements were quickly pushing Gibbs towards the point of no return. He let himself go and moments later they were both crying out in ecstasy together.

"More effective than a cup of coffee," Tony said as their bodies stilled and their breathing and heart rates returned to normal.

"It'll tide me over till I get to the coffee pot," Gibbs said.

Tony ran his hand down Gibbs' chest as his lover leaned over to kiss him again. Gibbs pulled out gently and sat on the edge of the bed. Tony rolled over and sat next to him.

"Still kinda early," Tony said. He chuckled as he continued, "even for you."

"Why do I have the feeling you're gonna be begging for a head slap all day?"

"Can't help it," Tony said. "I'm addicted to your touch."

Gibbs smiled over at Tony and ran his hand across his thigh. "Let's get a shower then I'll buy you some breakfast before work."

Tony didn't have to be asked twice. Gibbs watched him disappear into the bathroom with a smile still on his face. His life was finally starting to feel complete again. He'd been sent overseas to breach one of the biggest terrorist organizations in the world and Tony had chased him down and unwittingly breached the walls of his heart. If it hadn't been for the selfless sacrifice of his second, their relationship probably never would've moved past a tight friendship. Now he was home, healed up enough to return to work and he had a reason to go home every night. Life didn't get any better.