Disclaimer: Not mine

Chapter 20: Weekend at Riley's

McGee walked into the bullpen at 7:30 am and saw Ziva at her desk but noticed that neither Gibbs nor Tony had arrived yet. While that was not unusual for Tony, it was not a normal occurrence for Gibbs and he asked Ziva, "Where's Gibbs? With the director?"

"No," answered Ziva. "He is at the hospital with Tony. I am waiting for him to call me."

"The hospital! What happened? He was fine last night when you two left! You didn't hurt him, did you Ziva?"

"No! I did not hurt Tony! Why would I do that? I will tell you what happened but you should call Abby first. She will want to know and I do not want to explain things twice."

McGee called Abby and asked her to come up to the bullpen. "What's up guys? Where are Tony and Gibbs?" Abby asked. "If Tony's late again, Bossman is gonna headslap him into next week."

"Uh, Abby, don't get upset," Tim began but Abby interrupted.

"What's wrong? It's Tony again, isn't it? Is he okay? What happened McGee?"

"Abby! Calm down. Ziva said that Gibbs is at the hospital with Tony. I don't know why yet – Ziva wanted to tell us both at the same time." He and Abby turned to Ziva and she proceeded to explain what had happened the night before and earlier that morning. "Ducky and Riley took Tony to the hospital for x-rays and Gibbs was going to meet them there. As I told McGee, I am waiting for them to call."

As if on cue Ziva's cell phone rang. Seeing that it was Gibbs, she took the call, hoping for news about Tony. When she hung up, she turned to Abby and McGee. "Tony has been taken into x-ray but the doctor believes that he will be fine. Gibbs wants me to follow up on the attack since it appears that Tony was struck with some kind of weapon rather than a fist. He did say that Tony would most likely be released soon so there is no need for us to go to the hospital." Warning them to contact her as soon as they heard any news, Abby reluctantly went down to her lab.

Knowing that Gibbs would want an answer as soon as he came in, Ziva sat down at her desk and contacted Metro. McGee turned on his computer and checked his email, finding the revised report from Riley. He forwarded the document to everyone on the team and printed out a copy for Gibbs. They continued to work until Gibbs came into the bullpen around 9:30 am.

"Is Tony okay, boss?" asked McGee. "Ziva told us what happened."

"He's gonna be fine," answered Gibbs. "He has hairline fractures of his cheekbone and his jaw but they should heal on their own. He should be back in the office on Monday, desk duty for a couple of weeks. He looks like hell though."

"I'm going to go tell Abby. She's been calling every 15 minutes to see if we heard anything." Tim left the bullpen for Abby's lab and Gibbs turned to Ziva, "Anything on Tony's attacker?"

"I just heard from Metro," answered Ziva. "The man's name is Gary LaTour. He apparently hit Tony with a partially disassembled pool cue. The bartender found it tossed into a corner as he was cleaning up last night and contacted the police. The FBI has taken over the investigation and will probably want to talk to Tony."

"I'm sure he'll be thrilled about that."

Ziva's phone chimed, indicating a text message. She read it then told Gibbs, "Tony and Riley are staying at her house instead of his apartment. Apparently her TV is bigger. She says that Tony took his pain meds and is sleeping. She will call later."

"Ducky said that Tony may have met his match. If she got Tony to take his pain meds, then Ducky may be right."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Tony woke up disoriented. He blinked – well, one eye did, the other was swollen shut again – and tried to clear his head. 'Oh, yeah – I'm at Riley's.' He sat up slowly and the movement awakened Riley. "Hey," she said. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," Tony answered truthfully. "My head still hurts a little. And my eye won't open. But other than that I'm just sore."

"I'll get an ice pack." Riley got up and went into the kitchen. Checking the time, she realized that they had slept for over three hours and she was hungry. She hadn't had breakfast and she had also forgotten to take her morning meds. First things first, though, she got the ice pack and took it to Tony. "Watch your eyes," she warned as she turned on a lamp. "I just want to take a look."

Tony closed his eyes and leaned his head back. Riley gently turned his head to the side and examined the swelling and bruising. Unable to resist, she softly brushed her lips against his cheek, as she had done at the hospital. She then kissed his swollen jaw before tenderly placing the ice against his face. "My grandmother was a huge fan of 'kissing and making it better,'" Riley said with a grin.

"Not Mom?" asked Tony.

Riley's grin slipped. "No, Mother was not exactly the nurturing type. And Father didn't have a clue."

"Trust me, I can relate." Before either of them could elaborate, Tony's phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, Tony answered, "Hi, Abs!"

Riley could hear Abby's excited voice through the speaker. "I don't know, Abs. Why don't you talk to Riley?" Speaking to Riley as he passed her the phone, Tony said, "Abby wants to come over for lunch – wants to know if she can pick something up."

"Hi, Abby!" said Riley. "Sure you can come over. I was going to make a milkshake for Tony and a salad for me. I can make enough for you too if you want." She listened as Abby agreed then gave her the address of the townhouse. "I'll see you in a little while. Do you want to talk to Tony again? . . . Okay, I'll tell him. Bye." Disconnecting the call she told Tony, "Abby says she'll see you in a few and that she loves you. Oh, and to give you this." Riley leaned over and gave Tony a hug and a kiss. "The hug's from Abby but the kiss is from me. Now please use the ice pack so we can get the swelling down. Do you want anything for pain?"

Tony obediently put the ice against his face and answered, "Can I just have some Tylenol? The other stuff kinda knocks me on my butt. I'll take it tonight, but I'd rather stay conscious the rest of the day."

"No problem. But promise me you'll let me know if the pain gets too bad." She went to the kitchen and got two Tylenol and a glass of water. Before going back into the den, she took her own medication and used her inhaler. Seeing the inhaler, Tony was concerned, "Are you okay? Are you having trouble breathing?"

"I'm fine, Tony." Riley handed him the Tylenol and water and he swallowed the pills. "With all of the excitement this morning, I forgot my meds. This is just my daily maintenance stuff. So, Abby should be here soon and I need to make lunch. What kind of milkshake do you want?"

"Chocolate?"

"You got it!" Riley laughed and went into the kitchen to prepare lunch while Tony watched TV. It wasn't long before the doorbell rang. Riley started toward the door, but Tony stayed her with a gesture. "It's probably Abby." He answered the door and Abby rushed into the room like a red and black tornado. Grabbing Tony, she wrapped him in one of her breath-stealing hugs. "Tony, Tony, Tony!" she cried. She pulled back and looked at his bruises. "Oh, Tony – your poor face! Are you okay? Do you need to sit down? You have to take better care of yourself!" Riley laughed from the kitchen as Abby dragged Tony to the sofa and made him sit down. "Make yourself at home, Abby!" she called. "Lunch is almost ready. What would you like to drink? I have water, ice tea and soda."

"Soda's good as long as it's caffeinated," Abby replied.

Riley brought Abby her salad and soda and gave Tony his milkshake before going back into the kitchen for her own salad. There was a slight bit of awkwardness as she bowed her head to say grace, since Abby and Tony had already started eating (well, actually Tony was drinking) but the moment passed quickly. They enjoyed their lunch, Abby and Riley doing most of the talking, until it was time for Abby to go back to work.

"I'm making potato soup for dinner," Riley said. "Do you want to come over? The others are welcome to come, too. Maybe around 7:00?"

"I'd love to come," Abby replied. "I'll ask everyone else and let you know how many to expect. Do we need to bring anything?"

"I don't think so. I guess you could bring something to drink or dessert if you want."

"Okay. I'll talk to you later and see you at 7:00. Bye Tony – feel better!" Abby gave Tony a hug and kiss then headed back to work.

"I didn't even ask you if you liked potato soup," said Riley. "I can make something else instead."

"Potato soup's good," said Tony with a smile. "By the way, just for the record, your TV is not bigger than mine." He gestured to the flat screen on the wall. "It's exactly the same size."

Riley answered him with her own grin. "Not that one. Come down to the basement."

"You don't have a boat in there do you?"

Riley looked at him curiously over the comment but said nothing as she turned on the light and they walked down the stairs. "What do you think?"

"I think I just died and went to heaven!"

TBC

A/N: I know – weird place to stop but there are some other events that will be addressed next chapter that just don't fit here – getting back to the case hot and heavy over the next few chapters. Thanks for all the reviews and for your patience.