The First Redhead
Author's Note: Thank you all for your comments! I hope you all continue to read. Please let me know what you think. Enjoy
Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or Major Crimes or any of the ideas and characters associated with either show.
Together Again
Sharon looked at the man sleeping next to her and smiled. His hair was a bit messed up from lying on the couch pillow and he had one hand behind his head and the other was around her waist. The TV was still on and an old western movie was playing across the screen. She used to wake up all the time like this with him. They would curl up on the couch at either of their houses and watch old westerns while talking. 9 times out of 10, they would end up asleep and the other one time they would have to say goodnight and part ways.
She heard his breathing change as he begun to wake up, and she placed a soft kiss on the tip of his nose. He smiled and tightened his arm around her, slowly opening his eyes. She smiled back at him and gently kissed his lips, which he instantly responded to, and they were soon making out on the couch like a couple of teenagers. Her arms wound up and around his neck as his hands caressed her back. She rolled all the way on top of him and moaned when his hands traveled south and grabbed her ass.
"We should probably stop before Rusty wakes up," she panted against his lips, "I don't want to scar him for life."
"I think you are a little late," he chuckles against her lips.
She pulls back and looks at him confused and goes to ask him what he is taking about when movement out of the corner of her eye makes her turn. Rusty is standing there with a look between amusement and horror stuck on his face.
"Rusty!" she yells and quickly jumps off of Gibbs and the couch, "I-I didn't know you were up."
"Obviously," Rusty says sarcastically, "I'm just surprised it took you two this long. The way you two were looking at each other last night, I thought I was going to have to like…lock you in a room together or something."
"Rusty!" she scolded and tried to hide the slight blush she could feel starting.
"It's fine, Sharon," Gibbs chuckled and got off the couch, "I have cereal and I think some pancake mix that may or may not be bad," he said as he made his way into the kitchen.
Rusty helped him look through the cupboard and they found the pancake mix that was still good. Rusty offered to cook and Gibbs began making the coffee for everybody. When Sharon asked what she could do, he asked her to get cups out of a cabinet he pointed to. She nodded and opened the door, but stopped when she saw two letter carved into the wood. Lightly tracing the two letters, she couldn't help the sharp inhale of breath that escaped her.
"What's wrong, Sharon?" she heard Gibbs ask from behind her.
She just shook her head as he placed his hand on her shoulder. When he saw what she was staring at, he squeezed her shoulder and grabbed three cups from the cabinet before closing the door. The "KG" carved into the door was one of the reasons he kept his mugs in that particular cabinet. He liked to be reminded of his little girl every time he went to grab a cup of coffee. Gibbs felt a hand in the center of his shoulder blades and turned to see tears in her jade eyes.
"Sharon, are you okay?" Rusty asked as he set down the spatula and stepped closer to his foster mother.
"I'm fine, Rusty," her voice hitched when she said his name, which only made him step closer.
"Sharon?" he asked again.
Gibbs pulled her to him, and held her close, "She saw my daughter's initials carved into the cabinet door," he explained.
Rusty seemed to think for a minute before turning back to the pancakes and asking him the question Gibbs new was coming, "Do you mind me asking what happened to her?"
"My wife and daughter were killed in car accident by the man my wife was testifying against," Gibbs said calmly.
Rusty was taken aback by the specifics, and he realized why Sharon would be broken up by the initials. How many times did she worry that he would be killed by Stroh? How many nights did she stay up making sure that every door and window was locked and secure? How many call and text had he gotten from her checking in to ensure that he was safe? Seeing those initials reminded her of not only Gibbs' loss, but what she might lose if everybody isn't careful.
"I'm sorry, Gibbs," he said softly, "I didn't mean to like, make-"
"Rule number 6, never apologize, it's a sign of weakness," Gibbs said and handed him three plates.
Sharon pulled away from his chest to scoff at him, "You have rules now? Where were those when we were dating?"
"You taught me that one actually," he smiled and helped Rusty set the table.
Rusty brought the food to the table, while Gibbs brought the coffee, and Sharon helped Rusty plate everything. Gibbs pulled out Sharon's chair and then sat across form her so that Rusty was at the head of the table.
"I taught you not to apologize?" Sharon laughed.
"Remember when you punched Ed after he hit on you at the football game?" he saw Rusty turn to Sharon with a look of awe on his face, "And when the principal asked you to apologize, you explained what happened and said that you would never apologize for not being weak and putting up with pigs like Ed? Rule 6 was born, but I only started using them when I worked for NIS."
"Do you have a rule for everything?" Rusty asked, barely hiding his laughter behind his mug.
Gibbs smirked and started to cut up him pancakes, "I'm sure Dinozzo will be happy to tell you all of them."
"Which one is Dinozzo?" Rusty asked.
"The one that told you to spy on me and figure out how I get the boats out," Gibbs said calmly.
"How did you know about that?" Rusty looked shocked, and then he turned to Sharon, "Did you tell him?"
Sharon threw her hands up and shook her head, "I didn't tell him anything."
Rusty looked back to Gibbs and stared at him for a bit, "Is there any way I can watch you interrogate somebody?"
"That would be a question for her," Gibbs motioned to Sharon, "but I don't have a problem with it."
"Of course you wouldn't have a problem with it," Sharon rolled her eyes, "You don't have a rule against children watching interrogations?"
Gibbs shrugged, "I figure if I let Dinozzo watch, I might as well let Rusty learn something."
Sharon laughed and watched as Rusty smiled and continued to ask Gibbs questions about interrogations and anything else he could think of. He was never this interested in any of the Major Crimes team except for when he asked them why they joined the force. It was nice to see him so happy instead of trying to act as if he wasn't worried about Stroh. She caught Gibbs staring at her, and she gave him a small smile before excusing herself from the table to freshen up for the day.
She took a quick shower and used what little makeup she had in her purse to get ready. After staring at the clothes that she slept in, she decided to just wear them over to the condo and then change there. She wouldn't admit it, but she really wanted to keep at least the shirt for as long as she could. She could always hide it in her purse, but he would surely know that she took it when he couldn't find it later. If she wore it home he couldn't do anything about it. By the time she made it down stairs, Rusty was already showered and dressed in his clothes from yesterday and Gibbs was wearing his usual collared shirt, slacks, jacket and boots.
"Is it casual dress day at the office, Sharon?" Rusty laughed at her attire.
This was the first time he had ever seen her dressed like this with her hair and makeup done and still wearing something like sweats.
"No," she smiled, "but my clothes are wrinkled and I figured since we are stopping by the condo to change, I could-"
"Pack," Gibbs corrected.
"Pack?" she looked at him confused.
"I wasn't joking when I said that I was going to make sure that you and Rusty were safe," he said, not looking away from her, "You guys aren't going back there until we catch this guy."
"Jethro, we can't stay here the entire time he is free. We haven't been able to catch him, and it's been months since he escaped!"
"Trust me, Sharon," he grabbed his keys and wallet off of the table next to the door, "You won't have to wait that long."
"You don't know what he is like," she argued.
"And he doesn't know what I am like either. How about we make a deal?" Gibbs offered.
"Trust me," Rusty interrupted, "you do not want to make a deal with her. She always wins and you're stuck wondering how that happened."
Gibbs chuckled, "If we don't catch him in 4 days, I'll let you guys go back to the condo."
Sharon thought it over for a second before she nodded, "Deal."
With that they were all out the door and headed for the condo. Gibbs got them to the condo and parked in the garage before helping Sharon out of the car.
"I'll wait down here," Gibbs said as he helped her retrieve her bag from the back seat.
"You don't have to stay down here," Sharon took her purse from him.
"You two go ahead," he assured, "I have a few phone calls to make any ways."
"Okay," she placed a soft kiss on his cheek, "We shouldn't be too long."
Gibbs nodded and sat back in his car as Sharon caught up to Rusty at the elevator.
"So you and Gibbs, huh?" Rusty teased as he pressed the button for their floor.
Suddenly, Sharon got serious, "Rusty, I swear that I didn't know this was going to happen. If it makes you uncomfortable, let me know and we will stop."
"Sharon," he sighed, "I was only teasing you. I like Gibbs so far and you two obviously like each other. It does make me a little uncomfortable, but isn't that what is supposed to happen when you see your mom making out on the couch?"
Sharon smiled at the word 'mom' and pulled him into a side hug, "I promise you, it will not be going anywhere until we figure this thing with Stroh out."
The elevator dings and they step off and onto their floor and head to their home and quickly go in.
"I know that you are worried about Stroh," Rusty said, stopping her in the hallway, "but I told you that I am not going to let him ruin my life, and you shouldn't let him ruin yours either. I'm not saying that you should like go out and marry Gibbs, but you should at least be happy with somebody else. He makes you happy, Sharon, and you make him happy."
She had to fight back the urge to pull him into a hug and hold him, so she just settled for placing her hands on his shoulders, "I will try to keep that in mind, but remember that I will never stop worrying about you."
"Aren't we supposed to be packing or something?" he laughed and went off towards his room.
Sharon smiled at her son and went into her room to start packing. As she entered her bedroom, something felt off. She stopped in the doorway and surveyed the room. The books on her bedside table were wrong, and the jewelry box on top of the dresser was moved. She continued to look around the room, but nothing else seemed out of the ordinary. She brushed it off and went into her closet to find a large suitcase before she began loading it full of everything she would need. Once that was done, she headed into her bathroom to get the last of her makeup and any other toiletries.
She pushed the door open and was suddenly grabbed around the waist as a hand came up to silence her scream of surprise. She was dragged into the bathroom as the door was closed and locked. She was spun around so that she was facing the mirror, and she stopped moving all together when she saw Phillip Stroh staring back at her. He had a menacing look in his eyes, and she noticed for the first time that the hand around her waist was holding a knife.
"I bet you thought you were safe when they spotted me and came rushing over to check," he chuckled into her ear, "The thing is, it really isn't that hard to get past a police detail when they are busy searching the whole city for you."
His arm tightened, and she could feel the handle on the knife digging into her ribcage. She tried to pull away, but he simply shook his head and pulled her further into him. Reaching into her pocket for her phone was impossible without him noticing in the mirror, otherwise she would have called Gibbs and gotten Rusty out of the condo. She opened her mouth to see if he would let her talk.
He leaned in, "If you try to warn Rusty, I will not hesitate to kill you,'' he said sternly.
"You know that I am not going to let you anywhere near my son," Darth Raydor appeared.
He grinned at her, "I'm sure you won't, but Rusty would do anything for you."
"What's that supposed to mean?" she tried to pull away, but he brought the knife higher.
"Your son," he sneered, "Would willingly give his life to save yours, and I intend to capitalize on that."
Sharon elbowed him in the chest and reached for the hand holding the knife. Twisting his wrist, she got the knife away from him and punched him in the nose. Unfortunately, it was not enough to catch him off balance, and he lunged for her as she turned to pick up the discarded knife. She was thrown against the vanity and lost her hold on the knife, but it was far enough away that Stroh couldn't reach it either.
Suddenly, there was a banging on the front door to her condo, and Sharon knew it had to be Gibbs. She felt Stroh push her to the floor and jump up to run out the bathroom door. She got up as quick as she could and followed him into her bedroom. She stopped and grabbed her gun from her purse before cautiously walking out into the hallway. Gibbs was still banging on the door and calling her name, and before she could get to the door, she heard the lock turn and he was in, gun drawn. She came around the corner to see him scanning the living room, and pointed to the right so that he could clear the kitchen while she cleared the rest of the living room. They both made their way to the balcony and saw a rope ladder leading to the balcony below.
"Damn it!" Sharon yelled, "I can't believe I let him get away!"
"We'll get him, Sharon," Gibbs said as he holstered his gun.
"Where's Rusty?" she suddenly panicked when she realized that he was nowhere to be seen.
"He heard something going on and didn't know what to do so he called me," Gibbs said before calling him into the condo, "I told him to wait outside for me."
"Sharon?" Rusty asked as he walked into the condo.
"Rusty!" she walked to him and pulled him to her.
"What happened?" Rusty hugged her, "I just heard a door slam and figured something was wrong when I couldn't hear anything else."
"Stroh was here, but he's gone now," she ran her hand through her hair, "Wait, how did you get in here?" she asked Gibbs.
In answer, he held up a small black pouch that had several small metal instruments that Sharon recognized as tools to pick a lock. She raised an eyebrow at him and watched as he simply tucked them back into his jacket.
"Let's get back to the station," Gibbs said as he looked them over, "I have somethings I need to check out and I want the two of you safe."
Sharon shook her head, "Jethro, I am not going to just sit back while you take my case from me. Phillip Stroh is mine."
"I promise you that I am not going to go after Stroh without letting you know," Gibbs picked up the bags that were piled up in the hallway, "but until then I am going to make sure that you are safe."
"I can take care of Rusty and myself, Agent Gibbs," she said channeling Darth Raydor.
"Having Rusty followed by a security detail that can be spotted from a mile away is not keeping him safe," Gibbs threw back as he turned to face her.
Based on the look of shock on her face, he knew that she thought he hadn't noticed them. When they had pulled up to pick up Rusty, he had clearly seen three younger men scan the area for potential danger, and that was a dead give-away.
"You were having me followed?" Rusty scoffed.
"If the events of today are anything to go by, you needed that protection, Rusty," Sharon said gently, hoping to ease his outrage.
"Why didn't you tell me, Sharon?" Rusty began grabbing his stuff, "I told you that I didn't want protection. I didn't want to be followed around all the time. Stroh is not going to be in charge of my life!"
"I couldn't just let you go around without protection while Stroh is free," she argued.
"But I told you that I didn't care, Sharon! I'm tired of not being able to live my life," Rusty yelled, "But you had to go behind my back and put protection on me. Why are they only following me? Why not you, too?"
"Rusty," Sharon stepped towards him, but he backed away, "I was worried about you, and the protection was the only way to make me feel as if I was protecting you."
"But I don't want the protection, Sharon!" he turned towards the door and yelled over his shoulder, "And you couldn't live with that because you always have to get your way."
With that, Rusty walked out the door, slamming it behind him. Sharon went to go after him, but Gibbs stopped her.
"Give him some time," he said softly.
"He's right," she shook her head before sitting on the couch, "I did what I wanted and not what he asked of me."
Gibbs came around the couch to join her, "You did what you had to do to protect your son."
Sharon moved closer to him and leaned her head onto his shoulder, "We need to go after him."
Gibbs let out a quick puff of air that she assumed was a chuckle, "I called Dinozzo earlier and he is downstairs ready to grab him."
Sharon looked up at him and placed her hand on his chest, "Thank you."
He nodded and pulled her into his chest, "I'll drop you off at the station and then take him back to the college. I'll have Bishop and Dinozzo keep an eye on him."
She hugged him and laughed, "You always did know how to take care of me."
Gibbs just held her for a bit before his phone rang, "Yeah, Gibbs."
"Hey boss, I got the kid and he seems to have calmed down a bit," Dinozzo's voice came through the phone.
"We'll be right there," he hung up and gently ran a hand through Sharon's hair.
"I know that we have this case," Sharon sat up, "but I want to talk to you tonight."
Gibbs tilted his head and gave a curt nod. She smiled up at him and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek before pulling away and standing up.
"Your team is already on their way to process your condo again," he said as he helped pick up her things.
Sharon let out a small sigh, "I think they are seeing more of my condo than I ever wanted them to."
With that, they left the condo and headed down to the car and Rusty.
TBC…