Knights of the NCIS Table—Tim's story Chapter 15
Tim's watching the rear view mirror and smiles faintly when he sees the other car turn away from his part of town. He escorts Holly up to her door and is turning to leave when she quietly asks him if he'll bring up Jethro and stay for a bit.
Tim nods his head and jogs back down the stairs. He whistles for Jethro and the big dog barks in acknowledgement. Touching the unlock button on his key fob, Tim opens the door and lets the dog out. Jethro stays by Tim's side, and two minutes later they're both up and inside Holly's apartment.
Holly's sitting on one of the kitchen chairs, staring numbly into space. Tim gently picks her up and carries her into the small living room and places her in her recliner. He motions to Jethro and the dog immediately comes over and places his head in her lap. Tim helps himself to some bottles of water out of the fridge and a light weight blanket off of Holly's bed.
He comes back into the living room and sets the waters on the table by the chair. He then places the blanket beside the chair before picking Holly up in his arms and sitting back down. He drapes the blanket over her and settles back in the chair, murmuring words that he knows won't mean anything to either of them.
Jethro lies down beside the chair, his ears perking up every now and then as if he's checking on his people. Tim snuggles Holly closer to him, letting her feel his presence, as he knows the emptiness that she's feeling. The warmth of Tim's body, the soft wuffs from Jethro, soon lull Holly into a restless sleep.
An hour later, Tim wakens from the slight slumber he'd fallen into. He gazes down at the blonde head on his chest and once again thinks about the dream he'd had prior to joining Gibbs team at NCIS. He realizes that the empty space in his chest isn't there anymore. It feels right to have this woman in his arms.
He sighs softly as he remembers that he can't call home and talk to his parents about this latest development in his life. There is one person he can talk to though and he dials Tony's number.
Hey you've reached the mighty Tony DiNozzo, leave a message and I'll get back to you.
Well, so much for that idea. Then again, he knows that Tony has been hit pretty hard by his parents' deaths too. Tony had been almost as close to the McGee's as Tim and Sarah. The older McGee's had taken to Tony the minute that Sarah introduced them. By the time that Donny had come along, Tony was a firmly established member of the McGee family.
Tim smiles faintly at the memories he's dredging up. The good memories are what he's concentrating on. He doesn't have many bad memories, unlike so many of his teammates. Tim's relationship with his family had been solid up to the day his parents died.
He sighs and Holly shifts slightly in his arms. He runs a hand down her back, soothing her back into sleep. He knows that she needs the rest and that he needs to rest too. Reluctantly, he shifts Holly so that he can stand up and carries her into the bedroom. He lays her down on the comforter and she pulls him down with her.
"Don't go, please, Tim stay for a little longer." She knows she might sound desperate but she really doesn't want to be alone. With the exception of Laurie, she has no family left to turn to.
Tim says nothing as he has Jethro bring in the blanket that is still in the living room. The German shepherd quickly comes back and nuzzles Holly's hand. She smiles at the contact and tells Tim that it's all right if Jethro gets on the bed. Tim gives the motion for up and soon dog and master have curled themselves around Holly, giving her the support she needs to make it through the day.
***
Two weeks pass and Holly smiles when she sees Sarah and Donny DiNozzo enter the newly opened Knotted C. Holly ushers them back to a corner booth and hands them both a menu. Donny's has everything that a kid could ask for, hamburgers, pizza, hot dogs, and other kid favorites. There is also a wide range of drinks available. Milk, including flavoring, water, and juices.
What surprises Sarah is that the menu is so diverse. While it gives kids a chance to eat fast food favorites, it also has dishes that adults like to eat or see their children eat.
"Aunt Holly, can you come visit us today? Uncle Tim has a cold and we need to take him some soups. I like chicken noodles. Do you have chicken noodles?"
Holly looks at Sarah who smiles, "Nothing major, just a head cold. They've had a stressful week at work, and it affects him this way sometimes."
Holly nods. She and Tim have started dating and he'd called to cancel a few times, due to the case that they'd been working on. She knows that Tim's afraid that she might not want to see him again, due to the many times he's called her saying that he can't make it.
"I get off in an hour. How about you two warm up a bit, and I'll get some soup set aside for Tim. We can take him a good dinner, how's that sound Donny?"
"Okay. Can we get cake Mommy? Daddy likes cake."
"How about we make a cake for Daddy this afternoon. We'll take Uncle Tim his dinner and bake the cake as a surprise for when Daddy gets home."
Donny nods at his mother's suggestion. Holly urges Sarah to sit down and brings them both out a cup of hot chocolate. Donny's even has extra marshmallows. By the time mother and son have finished, Holly is standing by the table with several containers in her hands.
"I hope you don't mind my coming over."
Sarah shakes her head no. "Donny has talked about you coming to visit for the past two weeks. It will mean so much to him. You and Tim are becoming his favorite people."
"Thank you, that's a high compliment from any parent."
They pull into the yard and Donny waits impatiently to be released from his seat. Once freed from the seat belt restraints, he darts inside, yelling excitedly for his Uncle Tim. the two women smile as he runs off. Holly touches Sarah on the arm.
"You are okay with me and Tim dating aren't you?"
"Actually, I haven't seen my brother this happy in years. You're very good for him, and I think he's good for you too."
"It's like we complete each other; does that make sense?"
"A lot. You two were both missing the one piece that made you whole, and you've managed to find it together. In a way it's almost ironic that our parents had to die in order for you two to meet."
"The Lord moves in mysterious ways. It's possible that we would have met later, but time and circumstances have managed to speed things up a bit. It's given us a chance that might not have happened later."
Sarah nods in agreement and as they step into the house asks, "So what are the chances of your boss and Gibbs getting together?"
"I'm not sure that even Tim could tell a tale to predict that outcome."
***
A/N: So, I'm thinking that for the moment Tim's story is done. Of course Donny could still come back and ask for one about Granpa Jefro. Reviews are always welcome, hint hint hint.
Just a quick note for those who are still reading, I realize that there is currently no such thing as a female Navy SEAL. Laurie is a character from another set of stories that I'm working on in which the non-combatant rule does not apply.