Title: Sacrifice

Chapter: 10

Disclaimer: I do not own ANY of the original characters from the show, they belong to the writers of NCIS.

Author's note: Okay... I am glad that you all liked the last chapter so much. Your reviews made me smile so much! They even made me update faster than I had meant to. :P Again, thank you for reading my story and I hope you enjoy!

Tony opened the door and his breath caught at the sight before him.

Ziva was wearing a long purple dress that perfectly complemented her curves, making Tony's heart speed up.

He looked up at her face, and couldn't help a smile from spreading across his face at he beauty. She had simply brushed her hair and let it flow freely over her back, the naturally wavy hair only making Tony wonder if he even deserved to have ever met her, let alone love her. She wore a smile on her face, but it was quickly disappearing when Tony simply stood in front of her.

She began tapping her foot impatiently, snapping Tony out of his daze and bringing a grin to his face.

"Come in?" He offered and she nodded.

"Sure."

Tony stepped to the side and Ziva slipped past him into the hallway. She looked around, confused. "Where's Maria?"

Tony's eyes widened, he had been so busy planning his perfect night with Ziva, he'd forgotten that she might find it weird she was suddenly alone with Tony, and they were to have a romantic dinner by candlelight.

He grinned and swallowed nervously, he'd just have to improvise. "She… uh… She said she's sorry and she knows her timing couldn't be worse, but she had to go see someone."

It sounded believable enough, so Ziva nodded, even though she sensed Tony was hiding something.

"Why are you wearing a tuxedo?"

Tony looked down at his tux, searching for an answer and completely missing the look Ziva gave him.

He returned his gaze to her face and grinned, "Well…I felt bad that Maria had to bail on you so I thought I'd make us a nice dinner, then I figured you'd be dressed up, I should too."

Ziva looked at Tony uncertainly, "You made supper?"

Tony rolled his eyes, "Yes Ziva, I made supper. And relax, there's nothing wrong with the food."

He flashed her a grin, knowing he had read her thoughts. Ziva simply smirked at him, she wasn't sure why, but she decided not to ask any more questions and just enjoy her time with Tony.

"Fine. Dinner sounds nice."

Tony gave her a huge smile. "Right this way…" He said, gesturing for her to enter the living room.

Ziva smiled at him, then opened the door. Tony bit his lip as he waited for her reaction.

Ziva took in the sight before her and let out a small gasp, which Tony took to be a good sign. "Tony…"

Ziva turned around to face Tony, her eyes wide with surprise.

"You did this?" She asked, gesturing to the room before her.

Tony nodded and bit back a smile, it was good to see that he could surprise Ziva every once in a while.

Ziva seemed to know what she was thinking as she elbowed him lightly in the stomach, then turned serious and looked him in the eyes. "Thank you Tony."

Tony gave a barely perceivable nod to signify he heard her, too busy staring deep into her eyes to do anything more. They stood that way for what seemed like both eternity and yet not long enough, each staring deep into the others' eyes and soul, both searching the other for answers to unasked questions, until Tony broke the spell they were both under.

He walked over to the table and pulled out a chair for Ziva to sit in. Ziva simply smiled as she passed him and sat in the chair. She wasn't used to such acts from Tony, or anyone, but as much as she would deny it later, it felt good to be pampered—especially from Tony.

Tony grinned as he practically read her thoughts. He noticed the way the candles shed their light on her face, creating a soft glow that made her look even more like an angel.

He took the other seat, set up across from Ziva and looked at her. "So…. You trust me enough to try my food?"

Ziva bit her lip playfully, "I don't know…." She looked at Tony and smirked, "I suppose I could try some."

Tony nodded and grinned, then pulled the lid off a fancy dish to reveal what Ziva guessed to be an Italian dish. "Looks delicious." She said, looking up, her eyes met his and both of them froze, seemingly unable to move at all.

This time it was Ziva who broke away first, taking the serving utensil out of Tony's hand, electric shocks running up both their arms when their fingers brushed. Ziva blushed slightly and Tony looked to the ground, unsure why he was suddenly so shy.

Ziva managed to stop herself from blushing anymore as she served herself some of Tony's cooking.

Tony watched as she raised a small piece to her mouth, she didn't even notice the genuine smile he gave her when she closed her eyes in order to enjoy it better.

"Mmmmm." Ziva swallowed and licked her lips, then looked at Tony. "This is delicious! I had no clue that you could cook like this."

Tony grinned, "Well… to be fair it took me two tries, but I wanted to cook it without Maria's help."

Ziva nodded, silently wondering if Tony's story was true. If Maria was able to help him cook the dish, her leaving wouldn't have been so abrupt. Where was Maria really?

Ziva shook her head, she was being ridiculous. Tony was merely doing a nice thing for her and she was simply being too suspicious, after all, why would Tony lie?

Tony got out his most expensive bottle of wine and poured himself a glass, motioning the bottle to Ziva as a way of asking if she would like some too.

Ziva nodded slightly and smiled. "This is wonderful Tony, I cannot even begin to wonder how much work you put into this."

Tony simply smiled, muttering "You're worth it" under his breath. He retook his seat and took a deep breath. "Ziva…"

Her eyes met his and all the words fled from his mouth. He froze, suddenly unable to do anything but stare at her.

He finally found his voice back and decided he'd put this conversation off long enough. "Ziva I think we need to talk."

Ziva looked at him curiously, unsure of what he meant but, by the look on his face, certain that it was important. "Sure."

Tony swallowed, trying to calm his nerves. "I…. I… I love… this dish." He mentally cursed himself for backing out. Ziva looked at him oddly, and what Tony thought to be a little sadly.

"Wait Ziva that's not what I meant to say."

Ziva looked at him, confusion evident in her gaze. "Okay???"

Tony took a deep breath, then decided to go for it. "Ziva… I love you."

His words dropped like a bombshell on the room, the seconds that passed felt like hours as Tony waited for Ziva's response.

Ziva's heart raced Tony's words, could it be true? Could this really be happening?

She began to break out into a smile. Tony had just said the words she'd been waiting to hear for three years, and they felt even better than she could ever imagine.

She opened her mouth to tell him that she loved him too, but she shut it again when a scene from the previous week flashed in her mind.

Ziva turned around as she saw something move out of the corner of her eye. "Stop right there!"

The dark figure slowly emerged from the darkness, Tony's mouth dropped open as he saw her. "Jeanne?"

Jeanne smirked at Tony, "Yes. It's me Tony, it really is too bad you had to choose your NCIS team over me, we could've done well together."

Tony kept his gun trained on the two men, but focused his attention on Jeanne. "Wait, Jeanne. It doesn't have to be like this."

Jeanne laughed cruelly, "Yes it does Tony, you know as well as I do that it does."

Tony shook his head, "No it doesn't Jeanne. I…" Tony's eyes flickered to Ziva and the predicament she was in if he didn't act soon. "I still love you."

The painful memory stopped Ziva from telling Tony she loved him back.

He doesn't really love me! I am simply his fall-back because Jeanne rejected him! I mean nothing more to him than a good night in bed and a quick recovery into the 'playing field!'

Ziva fought back her tears as she pushed her chair back. "I am leaving now."

Tony stood up quickly. "Ziva wait!"

Ziva stopped and turned around despite herself. She saw a desperate-looking Tony, his eyes begging her to stay with him, but she now knew that it was all an act.

"I can't stay here any longer Tony." She turned once again to leave, but before she knew it Tony was in front of her.

"You can't leave. I love you Ziva, say you love me too." Tony pleaded, his eyes begging her to return his love.

He couldn't live without her, he didn't want to live without her, he needed her. She was breaking his heart as she stared at him with all emotions hidden. "I can not do that Tony."

Tony closed his eyes in pain, "Please Ziva. Please…. I love you."

"NO YOU DO NOT!" Ziva snapped, unable to control her emotions any longer.

"I do Ziva, believe me I do. I love you with all of my heart and mind. I love your smile and your laugh. I love the way you threaten me. I love everything about you!"

Ziva fought back the tears that were quickly building inside of her. "No you do not Tony. You love Jeanne. You said so at the warehouse last week."

Tony ran his hands through his hair as he recalled the incident. "Ziva!" Ziva looked away, unwilling to meet his gaze with her own. "Ziva listen to me. I do love you. I only said that I loved Jeanne because she was going to shoot you if I didn't do something. I don't love her, I love you! You mean everything to me and I'd do anything for you! I took a bullet for you!"

Ziva still refused to look at him as she fought back her tears. "Goodbye Tony."

She began to walk away, but Tony raced after her and pulled her against him, kissing her as passionately as humanly possible. He was desperate to show her how much he truly did love her, if only she would let him.

He kissed her with everything he had, doing his best to show her how much he cared. He pulled her closer to him, needing to hold her closely by his side forever.

He felt his heart shatter into a million little pieces as Ziva pushed him away and quietly left his house. "Goodbye Tony."

Every step she took broke him down a little more, until there wasn't even enough of him left to notice the tears streaming down the face of the woman he would always love.

So.... please don't hate me and definitely don't give up on the story. Just remember, it's not over so there's more to come. :) I hope I didn't disappoint you too much and promise not to keep you waiting much longer. Please review! :)