Tony pushed the wheeled tray away, deciding he'd eaten enough. Reconsidering, he grabbed the dish of pudding and a spoon. He spoke around his gooey mouthful, "Is it wrong that I've really cultivated a taste for hospital food?"

"Yes," Ziva replied without hesitation, watching him with a mixture of disgust and jealousy. "Tell me again why my father is out getting sandwiches for the two of you?"

He rubbed the back of his hand quickly over his lips and licked off a small streak of sticky chocolate. "We were both hungry and I only have one useable arm, so how could I carry two full grown men's meals?"

"Tony, you just ate the guest meal they brought for you and the full meal they brought for me in spite of the fact I can't eat anything right now and all my nutrients are coming from the banana bag on the IV pole. And don't say a word – that's what they really call it."

He set the empty pudding dish on the tray and traced the outline of a band-aid on her forearm. "I was just gonna say you've only been here for a few hours, but you already…"

"Stop."

The flash of anger in her eyes indicated that he was running into dangerous territory. Of course she knew the random names of medical paraphernalia after spending so much time hospitalized. It hadn't been much fun for him either, although, all other things being equal, he wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else. "Bad memories."

"Yes."

"I meant me. I can only imagine how you feel." He gave her a goofy grin. "If you'd prefer, we can stick to discussing my eating habits. We're lucky we got these meals, considering it's late on a Sunday evening. I, for one, am not going to complain after the crackers and canned, pressurized cheese on which it was my privilege to dine while caged. This is the first time I've had real food since we were at the Embassy in DC."

"That was yesterday afternoon."

He could hear the annoyance in her tone and tried to lighten the mood. "Yeah, well, that's more than twenty-four hours, you know, and I did burn a whole lot of calories with you during the first flight. While I was playing Tigger, I was starving. I couldn't even get a plate of spaghetti and meatballs. In Italy!"

"Please, just…" Her expression tightened, her teeth digging into her bottom lip. She subtly depressed the button on the small device in her hand and closed her eyes for a moment. When they opened, she was clearly more relaxed. "Have they found Juan yet?"

"Not yet."

"Maybe he'll just go home and keep his head down."

"Yeah. He wasn't such a bad guy. And by not a bad guy, I mean he didn't try to kill us or hurt you." She smiled and nodded and Tony was relieved to find that her snippiness had disappeared. "How's the pain?"

"Better now." She stretched her fingers toward him and he took her hand. "At least the nausea hasn't come back."

"Uh-huh. Next time, don't wait until it hurts enough to piss you off before you press the button."

"This is the third time I've been in the hospital taking opiates for pain in the past year. I prefer to keep the doses to a minimum."

He stood and leaned over her, whispering as the tip of his nose brushed hers, "Want me to kiss it and make it better?"

"How unoriginal." She made a quick move forward to press her lips against his. The kiss pushed almost everything Abraham had said about keeping his hands off out of Tony's mind. Lips weren't hands, after all. His tongue, however, met resistance and she drew back into her pillows. "Let's not go crazy."

He sat on the edge of the bed, supporting himself on his good arm as he leaned over further. "Not even a little?"

"I may be drugged, but I'm not that drugged." Her eyebrows went up invitingly. "Unless you promise to be very, very gentle and keep it above the neck."

The contact he made with her lips was feather-soft. "Mmm…like that?"

"Mmmm."

He could feel her smile as he deepened the kiss, wishing he could do more but knowing that this would be the extent of their physical intimacy for a while. He enjoyed the taste, texture and sound as her responses came in light pressures and happy sighs. She eventually turned her face. He made his way along her jaw, stopping when he reached her ear. "Enough?"

"No. And yes." Her hand on the side of his face held his attention. "We just got engaged. We should be naked in a hammock on an isolated beach somewhere, but we're stuck in a hospital. I wish we could celebrate, but I…I'm sorry. I just can't."

He forced his mind off the image created by the words 'naked,' 'hammock' and 'beach' only with some effort. "Hey, it's fine. Once you're better you'll be tying me up just so you can get some sleep. I promise."

She looked at him happily. "Can I tie you up anyway?"

"Like me saying 'no' ever stopped you."

"'No' isn't the safeword."

The kiss was quickly interrupted. "Stop that! You haven't changed a goddamn bit, Tony DiNozzo."

He willed his eyes to stop popping out of his head before straightened and turned. Ziva had warned him, but he'd been hoping that avoidance would be the best medicine in this particular case. "Pam. Hi."

"Are you all right, Agent David?" Ziva nodded, but Kim had already crossed the room and was tugging Tony to the door by the shoulder of his injured arm. "She nearly died and you're in here making out with her? Does her fiancé know you're taking advantage of her while she's high on painkillers?"

"Uh, yeah," Tony said, mentally kicking himself for the unconscious surfer drawl he'd used.

"He must be either very open minded or a complete schmuck."

He finally managed to escape her grasp, yanking the tray between her and himself as he circled to the other side of Ziva's bed. She was looking at Kim curiously. "You know, I have heard someone call him a schmuck before, although I'm not sure the suspect knew the Yiddish…"

Having previously gotten the lecture while detaining the guy in question, Tony interrupted, "Yeah, maybe not the best topic to bring up right now, Ziva."

"Sorry." She giggled. "Pressed my button again by mistake."

"If you'll just let me explain," Tony tried, using what he hoped was his most disarming smile.

"You really are a schmuck." Kim made an exasperated noise. "You need to come with me before I call security."

"And why will it be necessary to call security?" Abraham stood in the door, holding a cardboard box from which a couple of sodas and various paper wrapped item were protruding. Tony wasn't sure this was the best rescue he could have hoped for. "Is there some kind of problem?"

"She wants to talk about his penis," Ziva stated, making a grab for the front of Tony's pants that caused him to step back so quickly he nearly went through the window. Her hand remained outstretched. "I'm helping. I'm not the one who keeps saying schmuck."

Tony stayed back, wondering if a fall from the second story into the medical waste dumpster below would kill him, while Abraham introduced himself to Kim, "Abraham David, I'm Ziva's father. Now, what is the issue?"

"Lt. Pam Kim. I was one of the nurses on Ziva's surgery. We'd met once before during an NCIS investigation and I just came to check on her. I entered the room and saw him kissing her. Unfortunately, I'm also acquainted with him." The way she kept spitting the word 'him' caused Tony to ready himself for impact.

"Tony…" Abraham set the box on the tray beside the empty dishes as he approached. The hand he laid on Tony's shoulder was heavy. "Did we not discuss this very subject prior to our visit? Not until she's well."

"Sorry. But it was just a little kiss…"

"Little?" Kim asked sarcastically. "You were performing a tonsillectomy!"

"Yes, Nurse Kim, and your concern is duly noted, but if you would leave our family matters to us, it will be most appreciated."

Abraham tried to usher her out the door, but she was fixed to her spot, staring at Tony. "Family matters? You're the fiancé? She's engaged to you?"

"Ooh, show her the ring," Ziva urged, still trying to reach him. He remained close to the window and pointed to the ring on her necklace, which was not the most likely cause for his difficulty breathing at the moment. She smiled blissfully. "We got engaged this afternoon. Then I threw up."

Kim nodded mutely and left the room without another word. Abraham indicated the box he'd brought to Tony, who reluctantly left his main escape route. The path was still clear, at least. He mumbled a thank you and unwrapped a sandwich.

"A former girlfriend?" Abraham inquired in a way that made Tony think he already knew the answer.

Ziva laughed. "Can I tell this one?"

Tony swallowed the bite in his mouth and looked at her seriously. "Cactus."

"Fine." She found the remote and turned the TV on.

Abraham chewed his food serenely, leaning back to watch the news channel Ziva had selected. Tony had reached the point where he was at ease that the little scene would go unquestioned when Abraham cleared his throat and said, "We use safewords during Moussad interrogation training between peers as well."

Tony groaned and leaned forward onto the foot of Ziva's bed, allowing his face to sink into the sheets and blanket. She poked him with her toe through the bed linens. "Are you okay?"

"My stomach…"

"I told you that you'd eaten too much."

"Oh, it's not the food."