She spends the rest of the night dodging puke, and trying to comfort a sick little girl. Eventually the puking stops, and they both pass out on the couch with all of the lights in the living room on. She jerks into consciousness hours later. She lays Izzy on the couch, and runs out of the room. She manages to make it to the kitchen trashcan. She heaves into the trashcan.
Hours later when the alarm rings she calls the office, and informs them that she won't be in. She crawls back into Izzy's bed with her, and falls back asleep. She is awakened by the sound of someone knocking on her door. She slips out of the twin sized bed, and heads to the door wearing a grey t-shirt and a pair of purple pajama bottoms. She checks the peephole, and pulls the door open.
"Don't come in," she warns.
"Ebola?" He guesses.
"Stomach virus. It is contagious, and vengeful."
He holds out a bowl.
"I couldn't be hungry if I tried."
"Jello," he reveals.
"Thank you. I will invite you to come in, sometime after I disinfect the whole place with Lysol."
"I just thought that I would stop by, and see if you needed anything."
"That was so thoughtful. I am sorry that I ruined your dinner."
"I ate my dinner."
"I would love to hear about it some other time."
"Is Izzy feeling any better?"
"She'll be running around like a terrorist the instant her feet hit the floor. She stopped puking a while ago."
"What about you? Are you going to make it?"
"I certainly hope so," she nods.
He studies her appearance, "You still look a little green around the gills."
"I still feel pretty green."
"I should get going."
"Right, you've got to go to work. Thank you for the Jello."
"I'm going to hold you to your promise," he adds as he turns to leave.
"I am a Marine, I always keep my promises."
That afternoon she finds herself in Izzy's room picking piles of toys up off the floor. She tosses them into her toy box, and proceeds to Lysol all of the surfaces in her daughter's room. Izzy naps soundly in her bed. She leaves the bedroom with hopes to get to sit on the couch and read a book in peace for a few minutes before her daughter wakes up. She's halfway down the hallway when she is forced to deviate from her course. She makes a detour in the bathroom. After fighting, and losing to the stomach virus once again she manages to retire to the couch.
That evening he's at home working on his boat when his phone begins ringing. He pulls the phone out of his pocket, and glances at the caller ID. He flips the phone open, and presses it to his ear.
"Gibbs," he answers.
"Hey, it's Mac."
"Are you feeling better?"
"We have both successfully managed to keep down some jello."
"Anything I can do?"
"No. We're fine."
"Mac, you don't have to do this."
"Do what?"
"Let me down easy," he responds.
"Who said that I was letting you down easy?"
"The look that was on your face earlier today."
"I thought that I was ready to move on, but…"
"You just lost your husband, and you have a little girl who needs your undivided attention. I understand."
"I'm just not ready, yet," she admits.
"That is okay."
"Rain check?"
"Rain check," he agrees.
"Talk to you later," she hangs up.
He tosses the phone on the work bench, and turns towards his boat. He shakes his head, and mutters under his breath, "Until you realize you could do better."
The following afternoon she's sitting on a park bench watching her daughter play. She hears footsteps moving towards her. She keeps her eyes locked on Izzy who plays on a slide twenty feet away.
"I am surprised to see that you aren't up there with her, hovering like you usually do."
"I am too tired to chase her up and down the slide today, Harriet."
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, just tired."
"What's the story behind the silver fox who dropped you off last night?"
"He was the NCIS agent who was trying to put me away for murder."
"Why were you with him?"
"We went to grab a bite to eat."
"Is he the one who interrogated you?"
"Yes," she confirms.
"And you agreed to go to dinner with him?"
"I am the one who asked."
"You have a thing for him?"
She shrugs, "It doesn't really matter."
"Why not?"
"Now is not the time for me to even consider any sort of relationship. I have other priorities. I am a single parent now, and it consumes every second of my free time. I can't sacrifice my time with her for something that is probably never going to go anywhere."
"Just because you are a parent doesn't mean you have to give up on having fun."
"She just lost her dad. It's not fair to her."
"You don't cease to exist."
"For now I do. Everything I do is for her. I can't…"
Harriet cuts her off, "You do get to have time for yourself now and then. You don't have to feel guilty about that."
"I already do."
"What do you have to feel guilty about?"
"I should have gone straight home after work last night."
"Mac, life doesn't stop because her father died. I know that she was his world. I know that you still loved him, but your life didn't end the day he died. You have needs too."
Her cheeks turn red, before she can do anything to stop it. Harriet arches an eyebrow.
"Unless you've already had some of those needs met."
Mac breaks eye contact. Harriet elbows her.
"Did you already have some of those needs met?"
Her cheeks burn, "Maybe."
"By whom?"
"Can we talk about something else?"
"You slept with the NCIS agent who interrogated you, and tried to put you in prison for murdering Harm?"
"It was stupid."
"When did this happen?"
"Weeks ago."
She squeals, "Why didn't you tell me?"
"There is nothing to tell," she insists.
