Tony had prepared everything for his family before his death. He had set it up to where Kate would never have to work again. However, six months after baby Anthony's birth she was starting to miss the job she loved.
Kate put out an ad for a nanny. Of course, with her security clearance, she did a thorough background check on each candidate. She finally came across one that caught her attention. The name was Brooke Lewis. Her dad was a retired NCIS agent in the Norfolk office. That put Kate's mind at ease. She knew Brooke would have learned how to watch herself from her dad. It was instilled in each agent. She knew the 23-year-old recent college graduate would be the perfect fit for her darling son. Heck, who was she kidding he was the spawn of Tony. This poor girl was going to have her hands full.
Brooke arrived at the DiNozzo house at 7 a.m. Monday morning. Kate was just finishing feeding Anthony when the doorbell rang. Kate put Anthony down in front of the tv in his bouncer and headed to the door.
"Hi Brooke, please come in." Kate said when she opened the door.
"Thank you, Mrs. DiNozzo." Brooke said as she stepped inside.
"Please, call me Kate."
The young girl had her brown hair pulled back. Kate had to smile because the young girl had the same style as she did, a light sweater and khaki pants.
"Let me warn you, Anthony may be a little shy. He hasn't really been around anyone except for our NCIS family since he was born." Kate said as she led Brooke to the living room.
Brooke was a little taken back and Kate was embarrassed. She shook her head when they found ladies on the tv and Anthony had his little mouth on the tv.
"Awe he is a typical little boy!" Brooke smiled as she patted Kate's shoulder.
Kate laughed. "No, he is a typical DiNozzo. He is just like his father."
"Your husband was a legend. My dad would tell me stories of Tony. Like what kind of person gets the plague?" Brooke laughed.
"Leave it to Tony." Kate sadly smiled.
Brooke lifted Anthony from his bouncer. Unlike what his mother had warned, Anthony warmed up to his nanny right away, putting Kate's mind at ease.
"I better be getting to the Navy yard. My number is on the fridge. If you need anything..." Kate was cut off by Brooke.
"We will be fine Kate." Brooke smiled.
Kate grabbed her purse and keys before placing a kiss on Anthony's forehead.
"Mommy will be back in a little bit. Be good for Miss Brooke." Kate smiled.
Kate went out to the car. She felt like she couldn't move. It is the same feeling she had the day Tony found out he had cancer. She couldn't leave him. She had already lost Tony. She didn't want to part with the only piece of him she had left. Her phone ringing is what brought her out of her daze.
"Todd-DiNozzo." Kate answered her work phone as she ran a hand over her face to wipe away the tears.
"Hey Kate, Gibbs just wanted me to call you and see if you were coming in today. We have a case." McGee said.
"Yeah, I am on my way in." Kate getting her bearings.
She hung up and started out of the driveway. She wasn't even a block away from the house and she was already wishing it was time to get off so she could go back home and hold her son.
Gibbs did something he normally wouldn't do…he questioned himself. Kate was a good investigator, almost as good as Tony was, but she had been through so much in the past several months he wondered if it would cloud her judgment in the field. He couldn't risk Anthony becoming an orphan. He decided he would deal with Hurricane Kate when she came in.
Kate rushed into the office and grabbed her go bag and was heading to the elevator when she realized Gibbs and McGee weren't behind her.
"I thought we had a case?" Kate asked.
Gibbs nodded. "We do." He took the backpack off her shoulder. "But I need you here. There are some phone calls I would like you to make."
Kate looked at him strangely. This wasn't the Gibbs she remembered. Stone-cold stares, grumpy old Marine. This Gibbs had concern for her in his eyes. In the whirlwind of things, she almost forgot that when she lost Tony, he lost what he felt like was a son.
"I will get right on it." Kate softly smiled.
"McGee put the list on your desk. Find out who had a grudge against our Petty Officer." Gibbs said as he and McGee started for the elevator.
Kate sat down at her desk and stared at Tony's. She never realized how lonely his desk would look. She remembered all the pranks, his laugh, and mostly that megawatt smile. As she worked, she could have sworn he was there. She could smell his cologne again. She smiled at the fact that Tony would go with her on her first day back to work. She pulled out her phone and called Brooke for the first of many calls that day worrying about her baby boy. On about the 5th call, Brooke had to laugh as she told Kate that Anthony was getting sleepy but tried to fight it by rubbing his little face against her. If this would have been any other man's baby, Kate would have been concerned. But seeing as his father was Tony, it made so much sense for his son to find comfort in boobs before falling asleep.
It was around noon when Ducky came up to the bullpen.
"Dear Caitlin, has Jethro and Timothy not made it back yet?" Ducky asked.
"Not yet Ducky. McGee said that they had a lead on the killer and the girlfriend was spilling some juicy secrets." Kate smirked.
She knew if Tony was there, he would have been able to get the girlfriend talking long before now.
Ducky cocked his head and looked around. "That's rather odd. My dear, are you wearing Tony's cologne?"
Kate stood up and whispered to Ducky "You smell that too?"
"Yes. It is quite strong." Ducky walked over behind Tony's desk. "Especially over here."
"I thought I was going crazy. I have been smelling it all morning." Kate ran a hand over her face.
Ducky walked over and put his hand on Kate's shoulder. "It is just a reminder that he is never far away from you my dear."
Tony put his feet up on the desk and watched Kate. He was glad that Ducky could sense him too. He wanted to keep an eye on Kate and Anthony. Even if he couldn't be there in person, he still wanted to be there for big events in their lives. Even if that meant being there in spirit.