A/N: Thanks for your patience. Real life just keeps getting in the way. Thank you to everyone still reading and leaving reviews. I hope you know how much I appreciate it!

***JIBBS***JIBBS***JIBBS***

It was early Monday morning. Even though she was able to sleep in since she was taking Sam to school, Jenny found herself wide-awake at 0430. Mother's Day had been a rollercoaster of emotions, culminating in great sex with her husband despite being utterly exhausted. Now she was wired by thoughts of her upcoming confrontation. She hadn't confided her agenda to Gibbs, not wanting him to talk her out of it. But she was incensed and determined to make sure nothing so traumatizing would happen again in a place where Sam was supposed to feel safe and nurtured. It had broken her heart when he recounted what happened and exclaimed his intention to not return. She knew what she had to do and having to wait until she could – well, patience was never one of her strongest virtues.

She tried to keep her restlessness at bay, not wanting to wake up the marine she had stashed in her bed. Her thoughts amused her as she watched him sleep – the moonlight barely making that possible. She felt a presence in the room and wasn't surprised to find Sam staring at her. She placed her finger to her lips before she slipped out of bed, taking his hand as they walked back to his room. "What's going on, monkey?" she asked as she lifted him onto her lap.

"Scary gream, Gummy." He leaned his head down against her chest as she rubbed his back.

"I'm so sorry to hear that. Do you want to talk about it?" He shook his head lightly as she threaded her fingers into his hair, trying to soothe him. "OK. Do you want to try going back to sleep? Or do you want me to just hold you like this for a little while?"

"Like this," he mumbled, already nearing sleep.

Jenny smiled as she held him close and kissed the top of his head. "I love you, sweet boy. I love you so much," she whispered.

"I know," he whispered back, a faint smile on his face.

Later that morning, Gibbs took Julia into work for Jenny so she could concentrate on dealing with Sam's situation. She purposely arrived early so she could have a word alone with the teacher. She spotted the young woman. "Miss Evelyn?" The younger woman nodded. "Can we have a word with you in private?"

The woman tensed up but nodded her head and led them into the back room where she kept the supplies. "Hi, Sam."

He pouted before he went to hide behind Jenny's leg. "Hi Miss Evelyn," he said quietly.

"We're having a bit of an issue after what happened on Friday," began Jenny. "Sam was a little nervous about coming in today."

"Oh no," she exclaimed as she bent down on one knee to get eye-level with the boy. "I'm sorry about what happened."

Jenny put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed, trying to comfort the boy. "Can you tell me what you witnessed?"

Evelyn looked up at the older woman with trepidation as she stood back up. "I wanted to help the kids make a project for their moms for Mother's Day."

"That's very sweet of you," acknowledged Jenny. "Did you remember he had just lost his mom? Did you give any thought to what he might be going through because of that?"

The teacher could see the other woman was trying to control her anger, and it made her even more nervous. "I… I'm so sorry. It had slipped my mind. And I didn't understand what he meant by Gummy's Day."

Jenny sighed. "That is what he calls me. My husband had come up with Gummy's Day as a way to not upset him. Reminders of her often sadden him as you saw."

She looked at Sam and grimaced. "I wish I had known."

"But how could you not stop the other kids from laughing at him!? Surely you had to see that was traumatizing him!"

Evelyn was a little put off by Jenny's escalating irritation. "Are you sure you don't want to have this conversation in private?" she asked, motioning to Sam.

Jenny's eyes flared with even more anger. "Absolutely not!" she insisted, reaching down to pick Sam up in her arms. "My son needs to see that I'm willing to stick up for and protect him. I want him to see that I will do everything in my power to make him feel safe, and I'm appalled that his school doesn't operate under those same guidelines. Why didn't you step in? Why didn't you stop those kids from laughing?"

Sam held on tightly to Jenny as he turned to watch his teacher's reaction.

"I'm so sorry. You're right. I think I was too stunned by what happened. But I should have. I can promise you both that if there is a next time, I will do just that. Please know that he's safe with me." She turned her eyes to Sam. "I am so sorry, Sam. Can you forgive me? Will you come back to class?"

He looked at Jenny and saw her encouraging smile.

Jenny kissed his forehead. "If anything happens, Sam, you can ask them to call me or your dad, okay?"

He nodded. "Okay. I'll try," he managed.

The teacher smiled. "I'm so glad to hear that. I have to get back into the classroom to finish getting ready. Thank you for speaking with me, and I'm glad we were able to work this out."

Jenny smiled and nodded as the young woman quickly slipped past them out of the room. "Are you really okay with it all, Sam?"

He nodded before he threw his arms around her neck to hug her. "I love you, Mommy," he said without even thinking but then stiffened when he realized what he said.

Jenny closed her eyes and smiled, hugging him tightly to her. She pulled back to look at him and saw the shocked expression on his face. "It's okay. Honest. Don't feel bad, all right? You can call me Mommy anytime. I loved hearing you say that," she said, trying to smile reassuringly. "It doesn't mean you love your mom any less. I know that." She watched him carefully but couldn't read his expression.

"Let me gown, Gummy."

She nodded and kneeled down to let him out of her arms. But before she let him go, Jenny held him in front of her, smoothed his hair out with her fingers and caressed his face. "You going to be okay, sweet boy?"

He managed a small smile and nodded. "I'm big boy brave."

Jenny was beaming. "I know you are. Be good for Miss Evelyn and Noemi later, okay?"

Sam nodded and scampered off.

Jenny stayed where she was for a moment and took a deep breath, completely overwhelmed by what had just happened. "Wow."

Firmly ensconced on Cloud Nine, Jenny headed into the bullpen, hoping to find her husband. She spotted Jethro and motioned for him to follow her to the elevator. Once inside, she flipped the switch and told him about what transpired earlier. His eyes widened as a smile crept across his lips. "What about after? Did he freak out that he'd said that?"

"A little," she admitted. "But I can't even begin to tell you how it made me feel," she said, completely astounded.

He took her in his arms, holding her tightly against him. "I bet."

She leaned back to look at him. "I wanted you to know. But I need to go play catch up now. I'll send you your new probie shortly. I think they're waiting in my office."

"Your Mother's Day present has been hung up," he said smugly. "I'm a full service operation."

Jenny smiled from ear-to-ear. "Can't wait to see it." She kissed him on the lips before she exited the elevator. She watched as the doors, with him still inside, closed behind her. She walked into Cynthia's office area and smiled at her trusted assistant as she took what she had to hand her. "Did you see my present?"

Cynthia smiled. "I sure did. Looks like someone had a pretty great Mother's Day."

Jenny nodded. "The best. So where are the probationary agents?"

The younger woman reached for the ringing phone. "In the conference room, whenever you're ready."

"Thank you," she said before walking into her office. She stopped short upon seeing her present hanging over the couch.

Mildred saw her and nodded approval. "That is an amazing gift."

"Isn't it? Can't be in a bad mood when I see that. Or when I see the munchkin!" she exclaimed, dropping her stuff on the desk before she headed over to scoop her daughter up into her arms. "Who is the most loved baby girl on the planet?" she asked, holding a smiling Julia over her head before she showered her with kisses. "Let me send the new agents to their assignments and then I'll come back and feed you. Is that okay, Miss Julia?" she asked, snuggling her daughter to her. "I'll be right back, Mildred," she said, handing the baby off.

Jenny gave all of the probationary agents their assignments, with the last one being for Jethro's team. She looked at Agent Julie Truelove's file and closed it so she could concentrate on the young brunette. "You're working with the Major Case Response Team this week. Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs is the lead."

"He's your husband, right?"

Jenny smiled. "Yes, but feel free to hide the fact that you know that. It may create amusement for you along the way."

The agent smiled. "Interesting."

The director placed a call, asking for Gibbs to come upstairs to meet his newest team member. When he arrived, he remained his usual gruff self. "We just caught a case. Marine was found murdered at an Internet Café."

Jenny raised her eyebrows. "Interesting. Agent Truelove, you're in good hands. Use this time wisely."

The younger woman smiled. "I will, ma'am. Thank you for this opportunity."

"You earned it," she insisted. Jenny exchanged a smile with her husband before she watched them go.

Once in the bullpen, Gibbs motioned to the cube Julie would be using and then introduced her to the team.

"Truelove? For real?" joked Tony.

The young woman rolled her eyes, obviously used to hearing comments about her last name. "Yes."

The very special agent snorted.

"I think it's neat," managed Tim, a bit overwhelmed by the new recruit. He found her very attractive and was trying not to be too tongue-tied around her.

"Thank you, Agent McGee," smiled Julie.

Gibbs rolled his eyes. "Gear up."

Later that evening, Gibbs was entertaining Julia while Jenny was giving Sam his bath. He held the 5-month-old in his arms as they stood outside, enjoying the night air.

"I can't believe how big you're getting, Jules," he said lovingly as he kissed her on top of her head. "We haven't had one of our heart-to-hearts in a while." He smiled as she stared at him, enthralled by the sound of his voice. "Do you have any idea how much your mom and I love you?" The baby smiled, and it warmed his heart. "You really are magic, you know that? There isn't anything in this world that isn't made better just by looking at you."

With Sam getting into his pajamas, Jenny stood by the open screen door, watching her husband dote on their baby girl. It filled her heart with such love.

Gibbs caressed his daughter's head. "You were so worth the wait, Jules."

"She sure was," added Jenny as she stepped outside. "It's time for bed and her last feeding."

He smiled as he handed the baby over to her. "Sam picking out a book?" She nodded. "Good," he sighed as he placed an arm around his wife. "I still can't get over that this is our life now. I'm almost scared to say how happy I am."

Jenny understood. "We are so lucky. But we earned this. Both of us."

Gibbs knew she was right. He followed her to the nursery, where Sam joined them. Jenny opened her blouse, allowing Julia to latch on. She then motioned for Sam to climb up onto her lap. She was grateful that the "slipup" of him calling her 'Mommy' earlier hadn't caused him to avoid her now. Instead, he clung to her even more, ready to hear his nightly story. He held the book open, eager to do his part as Jenny embodied the characters of the story, animating the tale to his delight while Julia continued to nurse.

Jethro watched the scene before him unfold – his family. He always knew Jenny would be an incredible mother. Sam obviously adored her, and for that he was incredibly grateful. Julia was such an easy, happy baby that he felt tremendous gratitude. He took a deep breath, realizing Jenny was right – they had earned the joy they now had in their lives. Yet he always worried when the other shoe would drop, and that fact made it hard for him to enjoy most moments. But looking at the sheer joy in his wife's eyes as she looked into the little faces of their kids, he realized he needed to draw on her strength, her faith – that they deserved every ounce of happiness they were experiencing. He needed to live in the moment. Because in the end, right now is all anyone has.