She looked up and saw Eric standing to one side and apart from the throng; standing alone and shifting awkwardly from one foot to the other. There was something subtly different about him she realised, something she could not quite put her finger on at first. It was Eric – and yet it was not Eric. It was most peculiar, Nell thought. And then she realised what was different. "Eric – you're wearing jeans!"

He gave her a bashful smile. "I thought we might go out to lunch today – and I didn't want you to be embarrassed by me."

"Why would I ever be embarrassed by you?" Nell disentangled herself from Kensi's embrace and went over to speak to him. "And I'd love to go out to lunch with you. Any time at all. And it doesn't matter what you're wearing."

"I know I gave you a hard time at first," Eric said in a low voice. "I could have been nicer – more welcoming. My mom always said I was never too good at sharing my toys with other kids and I guess things haven't changed much. But everything seemed wrong when they took you away the other day. It was like they'd taken away my left arm, or something like that. Nothing seemed right and I realised how well we work together. It made me realise a whole lot of stuff about you and me, made me realise that we're partners, just as much as any Kensi and Deeks, or Sam and Callen. We're a team and we work best when we're together." He'd never thought this would happen – being willing to share his work. But working with Nell had opened up his mind to so many possibilities, so many different approaches. She was the ying to his yang, the salt in his marguerite.

"You and me against the world," Nell confirmed. "Together, there's no system we can't hack into, no data we can't uncover." She held out her hand. "Partners?"

"Partners." Eric shook her hand and smiled at her. "Welcome back, Nell."

Standing on tiptoes, she kissed him on the cheek. "And thank you for the welcome back. It was amazing."

"Don't tell anyone – but I've got a few party poppers put by – I'm saving them for the next time I have to summon them up to Ops. Aren't they going to hate that?" Eric knew just how much his method of announcing alerts kept the team on their toes and tried to keep ringing the changes as often as possible.

"Sounds perfect." Real life was scary sometimes, Nell realised – but she now knew that the team were looking out for her and that she was not alone. And so what if she was not going to be working in the field, doing all the death or glory stuff? The scary stuff… the stuff that could get you killed – or worse. There were other jobs to do, jobs that were vital to support the agents. Nell had first-hand experience of just how important it was to have proper back-up. Without research and fact-finding, she wouldn't be standing here right now, after all.

Hetty?" Her voice rang clearly above all the noise. "I've decided."

All Hetty needed to do was to look at the shining expression in Nell's eyes to know. For once, she had no rejoinder to offer, no pithy phrase with which to punctuate the conversation. A nod and a smile were perfectly sufficient.

It fell to Kensi to put the shining crown on the day. Pulling Nell aside, she looked around furtively. "What are you doing in six weeks time? On the Saturday?" Her voice was low and urgent, and her fingesr tightened around Nell's wrist.

"Nothing – I don't think. Is there something planned?"

"You could say that." Checking that nobody could possibly overhear her, Kensi whispered, "After what seems like months of planning, we've finally settled on a date. For our wedding," she amplified, somewhat unnecessarily.

"Really? That's so exciting!" Nell squealed.

"Not so loud," Kensi pleaded. "We're trying to keep it low-key."

"Yeah. Good luck with that."

"You're not filling me with confidence here."

"Well, we've all been waiting for long enough. You really have kept us all dangling on the end of a string."

"Excuse me? This is our wedding, it's about me and Marty and it's got nothing to do with anyone else."

Nell tried hard not to laugh. "Kensi, from the moment I started work here, you and Deeks have been the main topic of conversation – all the 'Will they? Won't they?' has been discussed in mind-blowing detail. And you wouldn't believe the amount of betting that went on. "

Great, my personal life is now a topic for conversation at the water coolers and the powder room. And probably even at the urinals. Now, that's a picture I really don't want to think about in any detail. "Betting?" There was a dangerous edge to Kensi's voice, but Nell was too caught up in her story.

"Oh yes. Would you two ever get together – and if so, how long would it take? And then, once you actually were together, they started betting on how long would it last. And lately it's been 'will they ever get married'?" Nell caught sight of the expression on Kensi's face. "I've probably said too much, haven't I?" Oh boy. I've really put my foot in it this time. I wonder if Eric fancies an early lunch – before I take an early bath.

"Who's running this betting syndicate?" Because they are dead meat. It has to be either Callen or Sam.

Nell shrugged her shoulders. "You didn't hear this from me."

"Of course I didn't." Kensi's fingers tightened painfully and it was all that Nell could do not to whimper aloud. "Tell me."

"Hetty. It's Hetty, alright? She announces the odds and takes in the bets."

Of all the unlikely answers, that one was about as predictable as either the Pope running off with Kate Perry or Justin Beiber's voice finally breaking. Kensi mulled the possibilities over in her mind.

"What are you going to do?" Nell was getting nervous now.

"Do? Nothing. Absolutely nothing." A smile crept across Kensi's face. "Not at this particular moment anyway." What's the saying? Oh yes – 'revenge is a dish best eaten cold'. And in this particular instance, it's going to be very cold indeed. Almost frozen, in fact.

"You've got a plan though, haven't you?" I wonder if I should tell Hetty that Kensi knows?

"Oh yes, I've got a plan. And I've also got something to ask you." I almost forgot, what with that little bombshell you dropped back there. Kensi smiled ingratiatingly at her friend.

"I think I've said enough already. More than enough. I refuse to say anything more on the grounds that I might incriminate myself." If she'd learned anything from her unfortunate encounter, it was when to keep her mouth shut.

"All you have to say is 'yes'. Just one word," Kensi wheedled.

"Not till I hear the question." Nell was determined to hold her ground.

"Will you be my bridesmaid?"

"Will I? Oh, won't I?" It was all Nell could do not to start jumping up and down on the spot.

"That's a 'yes' then, is it?"

"Definitely." If there had been any lingering doubts in Nell's mind, they were completely dissipated now, blowing away on the soft breeze of confidence, floating as nebulously as dandelion spores in the wind, trembling for an instant and then disappearing. She belonged. Never again would she doubt that this was where she was meant to be. She truly belonged, and more than that, they belonged to her. All the disparate lives of the team had knitted together into a tightly woven fabric, comprised of many different hues and numerous textures, but which somehow managed to work together in a seamless harmony. Each component of the fabric was unique and distinctive, but the pattern they created together was beyond measure. Warp and weft fitted into one another, strengthening, stabilising and creating a new unity. And Kensi was wrong – the wedding was not just about her and Deeks – it was about the whole team. Because they were all emotionally involved. It was just that in this case, two of the threads were going to be tied together more tightly than ever.