McGee got back to work Monday. He knew the holidays were going to be coming soon and he was going to need his friends to help him if he was going to continue making this a year that Stacy would never forget. They were all more than happy to help him with what he needed.
Tim had BIG plans in store for Stacy. He just hoped everything went off the way he was planning it in his head. Now that he had his memory back, he appreciated her even more. He knew now more than ever; SHE was THE ONE.
Thanksgiving was upon them. It was time for their annual "family dinner" at Ducky's house. The team was gathered around the table. Tim made the toast this year.
"I want to thank all of you for being there for me through all the hard times this year. I don't know if I would have made it through without all of you." He turned to Stacy. "I am mostly thankful for you. You came back into my life when I was going to need you the most. You stood by my side, even when I couldn't remember our past. You gave me a second chance that I didn't deserve. I will always be grateful to you for that. I love you." He then turned back to the rest of the group. "I love all of you too. Happy Thanksgiving."
They had a great dinner. They were all so grateful to have McGee back to himself. They were happy that Stacy was in his life. She made such a difference in his life. They all knew what McGee had planned for Stacy. They were eagerly waiting for the moment to come.
They made their way to the sitting room. Tim led Stacy over to the fire place. He sat her on the ottoman and handed her a glass of wine. Everyone just watched as they saw him reach into his pocket and pull out a ring box. Tim made a quick glance around the room at his "family". They all smiled reassuringly at him. He knew he had to do it now before he lost his nerve.
Tim looked at Stacy. She got the feeling something was up just by how everyone was watching them. "Stacy, you know I love you very much. I can't begin to imagine my life without you in it. You've done so much for me. You bring out the best in me. You always have. I don't know if there will ever be a way for me to repay you for all you've done for me over the years. You are and always will be my best friend. The years we were apart; it always felt like something was missing. I didn't know what it was until I got you back." Abby could see that Stacy was starting to shake and grabbed the glass out of her hand. Tim then got down on one knee. "I don't want to risk ever losing you again. We lost too many years already. You stole my heart the first time I ever saw you. You've had it ever since. I will be yours forever if you, Stacy Reid, would do me the honor, of becoming my wife." He opened the ring box revealing the most beautiful ring she had ever seen. It was a 1 carat princess cut pink tourmaline with a diamond on each side. It was the ring she had always imagined.
Stacy was speechless for a moment. She looked at the ring; then at everyone else in the room. It was as if EVERYONE was holding their breath, waiting for her answer. She then looked at Timmy. She looked deeply into his eyes. She saw the boy she fell for so many years ago. She saw the man he had grown up to be. She saw her EVERY dream, NOW coming true.
Tears started to stream down her face. "Yes, Timothy, I will marry you!" She wrapped her arms around him. By now everyone had at least a tear in their eye.
Tim put the ring on her finger. It fit perfectly. They kissed and the room erupted in applause and congratulations from everyone.
Stacy walked over to Abby and hugged her. "Oh my god Abby! Thank you!" Abby was so happy for her friends.
"Why are you thanking me?" Abby wasn't quite sure why Stacy was thanking her.
"You brought us back together, Abby. None of this would be happening if it wasn't for you. Will you be my maid of honor?" Stacy knew it might be a conflict of interest because Abby was also Timmy's best friend.
"Stacy I would be honored to stand up for you and Timmy. You two belong together. I'm glad I was able to be a part of all of this." The two girls hugged and giggled as Abby took a closer look at the ring on Stacy's finger. She had seen it in the box, but on her finger; it REALLY sparkled.
While everyone was congratulating Stacy and looking at her ring; McGee pulled Gibbs aside. "Boss, can I talk to you for a minute?"
"Sure Tim. What's up?" Gibbs wasn't quite sure what Tim wanted. "Congratulations. I'm really happy for the two of you. If I've ever seen two people that belong together, it's you and Stacy. I wish you the best of luck."
"Thank you. That really means a lot coming from you. I need your help. I want to pull off a surprise Christmas wedding. I actually have two favors to ask of you. First, can it be at your house? If you were to ask for everyone to come over for dinner, you know they would. Second, could you build an archway for us?" He really hoped Gibbs would go along with this.
"Tim, it would be my honor to help you with this. As far as the archway, it's already done." Gibbs pat Tim on the shoulder.
"Wait, what do you mean the archway is done? How did you…never mind. You had a gut feeling, right." Tim was relieved that Gibbs was going to help him. He knew everything would be fine.
Gibbs just smiled at McGee and they went back into the room. Stacy looked over as they came in and wondered what Tim could possibly be up to now.
"Where did you sneak off to?" Stacy smiled and grabbed his hand.
"I didn't sneak anywhere. Boss needed me for a minute." He hoped she bought that story, but somehow he knew her better than that.
"Ahh, I see." Stacy didn't believe it for a minute; but she let it go.
Tim and Stacy went back to her apartment that night. After they made love, Tim was holding her and decided he already got one answer he was looking for tonight, he may as well try for another.
"Stacy, if we are going to get married, I think it's time we look for a house. Neither of our apartments is really big enough." Tim looked down at her, waiting for her response.
Stacy had her head on his chest. She heard what he said, but it seemed to take a second to really register. He wanted to buy a house together. "I think you might be right. My place is a little bigger than yours, but not by much. What did you have in mind?"
They spent some time talking about the kind of house they wanted. Of course, they had very similar taste, so it wouldn't be too hard for them to find something they would agree on. Stacy got up and grabbed her laptop. They looked on a few real estate sites and pointed out houses they liked that they would be able to afford. It started getting really late, so they put the computer away and went to sleep.
The following week, Stacy showed up at NCIS. "Hi everyone." She was practically beaming. Gibbs especially noticed a difference in her, but he kept it to himself.
"Stacy, what are you doing here?" Tim got up from his desk and walked over to her. He gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"I was hoping you might be free for lunch. I have something to show you." Stacy seemed really eager.
Tim looked at Gibbs. "Well, Boss. Is it ok if I take lunch? We are kinda slow right now."
Gibbs looked at the two of them. He could see by the look on her face that she had something big going on. "Go on you two, get out of here. I'll see you in about an hour or so."
"Thanks Boss." Tim gave Gibbs a nod.
"Thank you Jethro." Stacy smiled.
Stacy told Tim in the elevator that she would drive. She had a surprise for him. They pulled into a driveway of a house for sale. Actually there was a Sale Pending sign on it. They got out and Stacy took Tim by the hand. She led him into the house and showed him around. It was a cute little house. The kitchen was a decent size, it had a dining room, living room and a den on the first floor as well as a half bath. The upstairs had a nice size master suite and two smaller bathrooms, and another full bath as well. Downstairs off of the dining room was a good size deck that led out into a good size yard. The whole property was fenced in.
Stacy looked at Tim after she finished showing him around. "Do you like it?" She HOPED he would say yes.
Tim took a minute. It was pretty much exactly what they had talked about the other night. How did she pull this off? He looked around and then at Stacy. "I do like it. Can we afford it?"
"Yes. It is right in the price range we discussed. I saw it one day and made an appointment to look at it. I really hoped you were going to like it. I kinda put a down payment on it already." Stacy hoped he didn't get mad at her for that.
Tim's eyes widened when she said that. "Well, if you like it that much that you already put the down payment on it, I guess it's ours." He smiled at her. This really was the perfect house for them.
"Yay! I knew you would like it!" Stacy was jumping up and down. She put her arms around his neck and pulled him down to kiss him.
Tim thought it was really cute how Stacy was so excited. He kissed her back and picked her up. They kissed for a few more minutes before they decided they needed to get going. Timmy did have to go back to work. He told her to call the relator so they could make an appointment to do all the paperwork.
They went back to NCIS. Stacy dropped Tim off. "I love you, Timmy. I'm glad you like the house." She kissed him before he got out.
"I love you too. I'm glad that you are glad." Tim kissed her and headed back into work.
The team looked at McGee as he walked back toward his desk.
"So, how was lunch?" Abby was sitting at McGee's desk.
"It was…productive." McGee smiled as he answered Abby.
"Productive…or maybe it was Reproductive. Getting in a little McQuickie over lunch?" Tony couldn't help himself.
"Grow up Tony. Even if that is what he did it really is none of your business." Ziva was also curious about his lunch date, but didn't need any details.
"We bought a house. Well, we looked at it. Stacy saw it the other day and put a down payment on it. It just so happens to be exactly what we both wanted." McGee had a huge smile on his face.
"McGee that's great!" Abby jumped up and gave him a hug. They were all happy for him.
McGee knew he was going to need Abby's help if he was going to pull off the wedding for Christmas. Since Stacy had asked Abby to be her maid of honor; he had to find a way to get Abby to help her get a dress; without Stacy knowing they were shopping for her dress. Abby had a plan and was more than happy to help out. Of course, this now meant she was going to have to keep this secret from Stacy until Christmas. This was going to be torture for Abby. These next few weeks were going to be very busy.