A/N: Thank you so much for all the reviews! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! I got a t-shirt with Gibbs on it and ten of his rules. I was in heaven :) This chapter is a touch fluffy and a touch angsty (not at all what I had planned for this story…but it happened anyway!). And forgive me- I do love ex-wife bashing :)
Jenny was steadily finding that telling her daughter things about her health was incredibly difficult.
She knew that she had to tell Fiona about the tremors, but every time she got close to telling her daughter, she couldn't get the words out. Maybe it was because it still didn't feel real to her.
In the week following the first experience of the tremors, Jenny had had to take her medication three times. Which, after calling Dr. Taylor, was apparently relatively good.
Jenny wasn't so sure.
"Mom, what's on your mind?" Fiona asked, frowning at her mom, who was sitting on the couch with her as they watched a movie. She could tell that something was wrong, but she couldn't figure out what it was.
"Nothing sweetheart." Jenny said, still distracted.
"Mom, you're a terrible liar." Fiona said, raising her eyebrow as her mom turned to face her.
Jenny chewed on her lip, still internally debating. Oh well, she might as well get it over with now.
"Do you remember how you were with Logan and Lauren last weekend?" Jenny asked, voice still quiet. Fiona muted the movie, frowning.
"Yeah, I remember. Why?"
"Well, something…happened. With my illness." Jenny said, taking a deep breath.
"Mom! What do you mean, something happened?" Fiona asked, her voice rising in pitch as her fear crept forward.
"Well…the tremors started." Jenny answered, sighing. She decided not to tell her daughter about how she'd thought she was going into labor. There was no need to frighten the teenager even more. "So I have medication that I'll take now. All we have to do is focus on getting to a healthy marker for the baby to be born."
"But…but is everything okay? Are you okay, is the baby?" Fiona asked, eyes still wide as she processed. "And what does 'a healthy marker' mean?"
"The baby and I are fine, I promise. And Dr. Taylor said that the earliest she'll allow a C-section is thirty six weeks. So that's what I'm aiming for." Jenny said, worry tingeing her tone as she caressed her baby bump softly.
"Oh Mom…I'm so sorry. Why didn't you call me?" Fiona asked, slipping her hand into her mom's.
"Last weekend was bad. We lost two agents, then this thing happened and she wasn't moving…I just needed to be alone for a little while." Jenny replied, squeezing her daughter's hand. "Thank you for your concern though."
"Is…is she moving now?" Fiona asked quietly, looking at her mom carefully.
"Yes, she is. Dr. Taylor said that it was just the shock of the tremors that distressed her at first, but she'd fine now. She's still using me as a punching bag, I assure you." Jenny said, laughing weakly as she tried to interject a small amount of humor into the conversation. Fiona joined in quietly, sighing.
"How's Dad? Is this why's he's been so overbearing and protective?"
"Yes, that would be why. I'm surprised he's let me out of his sight at all." Jenny said, eyes flashing slightly. "I love him, but he hasn't given me an inch of space recently."
"He just cares and worries about you Mom." Fiona said, smiling at her. "He really does love you."
"I know he does sweetheart." Jenny said, patting her hand. "And he should be home any minute. What do you feel like for dinner?"
"Noemi left lasagna yesterday. We could heat that up.' Fiona suggested, and Jenny nodded, standing up slowly.
"Sound good. You set the table and I'll start the oven."
Half an hour later, Jethro walked into a house that smelled delicious.
"Jen, Fiona, I'm home." he called, hearing a response from the kitchen. Depositing his keys in the dish and hanging his coat on the rack, he walked into the kitchen. Jenny sent him a small smile from the stove, and Fiona grinned from the island.
"Hey Dad. How was your day?" she asked, swinging slightly in her chair as she spoke.
"It was filled with paperwork. Not the most enjoyable Friday." Jethro replied, smiling at her before walking over to Jenny. She was putting lasagna on plates, and she glanced up at him quickly before returning to her task without a word.
It had been like this for the past few days. Jenny was distant, she was unresponsive.
He missed his wife.
Instead of pushing the issue, he merely kissed her hair before walking over to Fiona, sitting in the chair next to her.
"How was your last exam?" he asked, relaxing into the chair.
"I think it went well." Fiona said, tapping the counter with her fingertips. "I'm just glad I'm done."
"It'll be nice to be home." Jethro answered, nodding.
"Dinner's ready. Wash your hands you two." Jenny said, taking the plates over to the table. Both Jethro and Fiona slipped out of their chairs and Fiona walked off to the bathroom, but Jethro stayed, touching Jenny's arm gently.
"Jen, you okay?" Jethro asked, his eyes crinkled in concern. "You seem quiet."
"I'm fine. I'm just tired." Jenny said, shrugging off his hand. "I told Fiona."
"Jen…I thought we agreed it'd be better if she didn't know." Jethro said, sighing.
"She's our daughter Jethro. I'm not going to keep secrets from her." Jenny said, eyes turning hard as she turned away, turning on the sink. "She deserves to know what's going on."
"Jen…" Jethro started, but stopped when Fiona walked back into the kitchen. Instead walking to the sink after Jenny had moved, he washed his hands and sat at the table across from Jenny.
Dinner was quiet, with small conversations and the clink of forks against plates. Fiona could feel the tension between her parents, and it worried her.
After they ate, Jethro offered to clean up while Fiona went up to her room and Jenny went into her study. He desperately wanted to fix things between himself and Jenny; he would not let her slip away because he was an idiot.
Jenny sat in her study, going over the plans for her Op in MTAC tomorrow.
She knew things needed to change between herself and her husband. They were tense, unhappy, and not at all making her feel any better.
She knew that he was being overprotective because he loved her, and he cared about her. But he should have learned by now that she also needed space. Yes, there were moments when she needed him to be there to hold her and comfort her, but there were also moments she needed to deal with by herself.
She groaned quietly, putting the file back on the desk and slipping her glasses off, rubbing at her tired eyes. Looked like she'd be going to bed early tonight.
"Jen, can we please talk?" she looked up at the sound of her husband's voice, her stomach tightening nervously. Damn what was happening to her? She was never nervous with Jethro.
"I think we have to." she said softly, pushing herself out of the chair and sitting next to him on the couch. They didn't touch, but she did turn to face him.
"Jenny…I don't know what's going on." Jethro said, running a hand through his hair in frustration. "It seems like everything I do is wrong. And I don't know how to fix it."
"Jethro…you're smothering me. I know you're worried about me, and I love you, but I also need some space to myself." Jenny said softly, touching the back of his hand with her fingertips. "And you cannot expect me to keep secrets from Fiona. She's our daughter, and it isn't fair to keep this from her."
"Jenny I just want you safe and I…if I'm with you, I know you are." Jethro replied quietly, his eyes tight as he looked at her. "I couldn't do that with Shannon and Kelly. But I can with you and Fee. And…I know Fiona deserves to know. I just felt like…like if she didn't know, she'd be safe too."
"Oh Jethro…I know you want me safe. But you are here, and even if you aren't with me twenty four seven, I'll only ever be a phone call away." Jenny said, bringing her hand up to cup his cheek. "And Fiona's a big girl. She really can take care of herself Jethro."
Jethro covered her hand with his, relishing the warmth her palm provided. It had been too long since they'd been this close. He kissed her palm gently, closing his eyes.
Jenny scooted closer, burrowing into his warmth, tucking herself against his chest. His arm wrapped around her, keeping her close as he could. His nose rested on the crown of her head, the scent of her shampoo filling his head.
She tilted her head up, meeting his gaze. She leaned up and kissed him softly at first, her lips gentle against his. Slowly, he took control of the kiss, deepening it as his fingers curled into her hair, tugging her closer.
They had to break for air, and Jethro trailed his lips down her neck, kissing her pulse point gently. She sighed contentedly, tilting her head back for him.
"Let's not fight, okay?" she said, pushing his head up gently with her shoulder to meet his gaze. He nodded, kissing her again.
"I hate when we fight Jen." he said, cupping her face in his hands. "I love you Jenny."
"I know." she said, covering his hands with her own. "I love you too."
And with that, one crisis was solved.
That Sunday found both Jenny and Jethro off, giving them the perfect opportunity to go nursery shopping. Fiona was eager to come, so just after lunch they found themselves in the very large Babies-R-Us store.
"This place is huge." Fiona said, eyes wide as she looked around.
"I second that opinion." Jethro said, nodding as he held Jenny's hand. She laughed, rolling her eyes.
"I take it you don't journey here often." she said, looking at them.
"No, Jen, not really. You do?" Jethro asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I happen to have quite a number of friends that have had children. Lots of baby showers." Jenny said, shrugging. Jethro nodded, squeezing her hand gently.
"So what are we looking at first? Cribs?" Fiona asked, twirling slightly as she walked.
"How about this. You can go look at cribs, find a few that you like, while Jethro and I look at car seats." Jenny said, raising her eyebrow at her daughter.
"Sounds good. I'll come find you guys in about twenty minutes?" Fiona suggested, shrugging her shoulders.
"We'll see you then sweetheart." Jenny said nodding.
"Don't get lost." Jethro quipped, laughing when Fiona stuck her tongue out at him.
"Funny Dad." she said before turning and walking toward the crib section while Jenny dragged her husband over to the aisles of car seats. They were browsing through the selections when a familiar voice spoke behind them.
"Well look at this. I never thought I'd see the day. Jethro Gibbs is looking at car seats."
Jenny's eyes widened at the feminine voice, squeezing her husband's hand nervously. They both turned, coming face to face with a redheaded woman who looked anything but happy.
"Hey Diane." Jethro said, swallowing heavily as he nodded to his ex-wife. She merely glared, hands on her hips. "Fornell, what are you doing here?"
"Well, Diane has a baby shower to go to, we were looking at some stuff for her friend." Tobias Fornell said, stepping forward with his daughter holding on to his hand.
"Hi Uncle Gibbs!" Emily said, smiling as she waved at him. Jethro grinned at the little girl, waving back with his free hand.
"Hey Em, how are ya?" he asked. "Have you met Jenny?"
"Yeah, Daddy introduced us. Hi Miss Jenny."
"Hello Emily. How are you?" asked Jenny, smiling at Emily. She couldn't help but think about how if she hadn't left Jethro, her daughter would be about Emily's age.
Diane did not look pleased that there had been a meeting between her daughter and her ex-husband's wife.
"So I see you succeeded in getting someone pregnant, Jethro." Diane commented, her tone nasty. "I'm surprised it didn't happen when you two were sneaking around behind my back."
"Diane, for the thousandth time, I never cheated on you, with Jen or anyone else." Jethro said, eyes narrowing. "I believe you were the unfaithful one."
"I detest that accusation." Diane said, eyes burning.
"But you aren't denying it." Jenny couldn't help but point out, the hint of a smirk playing on her lips. Diane glared furiously, not saying a thing.
"So Jenny, when are you due?" Fornell asked, obviously trying to steer the conversation onto something else.
"Early November." Jenny answered, one hand resting on her bump. Fornell had just opened his mouth when he was interrupted.
"Mom did you find…anything." Fiona said, finishing her statement after a pause, eyes wide at the people in front of her. "Sorry, Mom, Dad, am I interrupting?"
"No, it's fine sweetheart." Jenny said, nodding to her daughter. "This is Fornell, Diane, and their daughter Emily."
"Hi, I'm Fiona." she said, waving one hand hesitantly.
"You're their daughter?" Diane hissed, eyes wide in disbelief. "But you must be at least sixteen. How is that possible?"
"I'm not their biological daughter." Fiona replied icily, her eyes narrowing. "They've adopted me. I'm technically my mom's niece, but my mother died from breast cancer about a year and a half ago."
"Oh, I'm sorry Fiona." Fornell said, frowning as his eyes tightened.
"It's okay. Mom and Dad are good parents." Fiona said with a shrug, smiling at them. "I'm happy now."
"Well that's all that really matters." Fornell said, nodding. Diane said nothing, her lips pursed as she studied the teenager.
"You're pretty." Emily said, smiling up at Fiona. "I'm Emily."
"Hi Emily. You're very pretty too." Fiona said, smiling down at the little girl. Emily beamed, twirling slightly.
"We should go, Tobias." Diane said stiffly, taking Emily's other hand.
"It was nice seeing you, Jethro, Jenny. And it was nice to meet you Fiona." Fornell said, nodding to them.
"Bye Uncle Gibbs and Miss Jenny!" Emily called, smiling. "Bye Fiona!"
After they'd left, Fiona turned to her parents, eyebrow raised.
"You actually married her?"