Tony woke up, startled, disoriented. It took him a moment to remember he was still at Kate's, on the sofa with her. They'd both been so exhausted and neither wanted to move, to let the other go. Now, however, Kate's sleep seemed disturbed. She was moaning in what sounded like fear. He tried to comfort her, gently stroking her back, whispering in her ear, Shh, Kate. I'm here. But the nightmare seemed to be too intense for his tender touches.

She thrashed once violently, screaming, Her eyes flew open, panic and fear evident, and she tried to push herself upright, shaking and gasping for breath.

Kate? Kate, honey, I'm right here. Tony's voice was gentle but insistent. His tender hands caressing her arms, his warm body pressing against her back, the weight of his enfolding leg -- all helped to bring her fully awake and back to the present.

Tony? Oh, God, Tony! She turned around and buried her face in his chest. She didn't want to start crying, she wanted to be strong. But the nightmare had been terrifying, so much so that she couldn't bear to think about it. She prided herself on being a woman who could take care of herself, but right now she would gladly admit that she was more than grateful for Tony's reassuring presence.

Slowly her shakes subsided, allowing her to pull back and look at her friend. She saw more than mere concern in his eyes. Then she became aware of the extent to which they had become entwined. Considering the mess her emotions were, it was probably a good thing they were both still fully dressed. With a small smile she brushed her thumb across his lips and said, Well, we just seem to be crossing all sorts of lines tonight, don't you think?

He smiled, I suppose so. But I'm always here for you, no matter what you need. He reached out to gently stroke her hair, brushing stray wisps away from her face.

Kate thought for a moment. I suppose it's playing with fire, but I don't want to be alone, and we both need a decent night's sleep.'

Tony watched the resilient woman in front of him. He was amazed at how well she was holding up considering how scared he knew she must have been. She hadn't even shaken that badly when she'd been held hostage. He saw her nod to herself as she settled some internal debate.

Look, it's quarter past two. Now I know I could send you home, but honestly, I'm too shaken up to want to be alone. And sleeping on the couch in our clothes just isn't going to cut it for me.

No problem, go on to bed and I'll... Tony started, but Kate cut him off.

I know this is going to sound like a monumentally bad idea, considering our current, uh, predicament, but, her voice faltered. She looked down, and then quietly continued, please don't leave me in there alone. She reached out a still shaky hand to him and met his eyes. I just need to know you're there, with me. Please?

Tony looked into her beautiful brown eyes until he thought he'd drown in their depths, as the Great Debate raged in his brain. The friend part of him knew he couldn't say . The male part of him knew spending a platonic night in bed with a woman he was having very un-platonic thoughts about would be pure Hell. In the end, however, he knew he'd say Yes' and take a cold shower or six before work.

Okay, Kate. I have a bag in my car -- now don't look at me like that! You know how many times we've been called out of town in the last six weeks? I'm tired of packing in a hurry. So I started keeping a bag in the trunk, just in case. Let me go down and get that, and I'll be all set. Tony smiled at her as they disentangled themselves and stood up.

she said, walking over to a corner cupboard and returning with two keys on a ring she'd extracted from a drawer. These are for the doors. This one's the outer door and that's my front door. She bit her lip and then continued, Keep them. She dropped them in his open palm and then closed his fingers around them, not meeting the surprised green eyes before hurrying off to the bathroom.

Tony put on his shoes and headed down to his car. The heat was unbearable, even at this hour. He found himself hoping it didn't cause a blackout. After removing his small bag from the trunk, he headed back upstairs, trying not to think about what was happening with Kate. If I think about it, I'll probably just screw it up. Better to just let it happen.'

Kate finished getting ready for bed, but as she slid between the sheets, the thought of falling asleep alone started her shaking again. She knew the vivid images, the actual feeling of dropping through the air, would plague her dreams. She could not understand why this incident continued to haunt her every moment. Frustrated and exhausted from being unable to escape this horror, even in sleep, she found herself driven from her bed, pacing through the unlit rooms to await Tony's return. Just as she reached the sofa, she heard the key in the lock. Her heart leapt to see him walk in the door; she saw the surprise in his eyes to find her waiting.

I'd've thought you'd be in bed by now.

Tried. Couldn't. She swallowed. Even talking about it was difficult.

Wanna talk about it? The concern was evident in his voice, as they moved through the darkened apartment.

No. Anything but! Kate shook her head. She'd gladly listen to one of Ducky's more gruesome stories than talk about her nightmare, and said as much.

Tony chuckled, I'll pass on the Bedtime Stories by Dr. Mallard', if it's all the same to you. Kate had followed him down the hall and as he flipped on the bathroom light, he got his first good look at what Kate was wearing. Her USC basketball jersey. And nothing else. He groaned. Jesus, Kate! Please tell me you're planning on putting something else on for bed!

Kate looked down at her jersey then back up at him. Why? It's what I always wear. It's not like you haven't seen it before.

Yeah, but I haven't slept with it before! I'm only human here, and you're not making it easy on me to keep this just a platonic... snuggle.

Kate's lips quirked into a grin. Snuggle? Did I just hear DiNozzo say

Tony warned, Don't. I swear, you don't want to push me.

Kate knew she should stop. The lateness of the hour and the intimacies they'd already shared, made her uncharacteristically reckless. She stepped closer to the tall, sleep-tousled man and asked, What happens if I push, DiNozzo?

She found herself captured by a long arm and hauled up tight against the body of her protector. Looking up she saw desire smoldering behind bright green eyes. She became aware of more than just the heat of his body, as he wrapped his other arm around her and pulled her even closer. She felt his breath caress her neck as he whispered in her ear.

If you push me, little girl, you may find you and that jersey have a certain effect on me. And if you keep it up, I might not be able to restrain myself from...

Kate's eyes closed of their own volition and her knees went weak from his huskily voiced intentions. It was a very good thing he was holding her as tightly as he was, otherwise she would be a puddle on the floor by now.

Now, what do you say you head off to wait in the bedroom while I finish getting ready for bed? That way we can both cool off. He set her on her feet and her eyes opened, looking dazed. She turned and headed off toward the bedroom and he closed the door.

He glanced at the tub. Too bad there isn't enough ice in the freezer to fill the tub. One of us should definitely be sleeping in there. And after that little stunt she pulled, I'm not sure which of us needs the cooling off more! I want to take things slow, and she's going to drive me positively insane!'

Kate stood in the bedroom in front of one of the air-conditioning vents. The cold air helped to cool her overheated skin, but not her embarrassment. I can't believe I just did that! What was I thinking? Well, that he's hot, obviously, and I wouldn't mind getting busy with him, but we talked about it. We agreed to wait. It's the right thing to do. If we push this too far too fast something bad could happen. Not just to us, but to the people we work with.'

Tony walked in the room to find Kate standing in the stream of cool air from the vent. He laughed and she turned to see him clad only in his boxers.

I was contemplating filling your tub with ice. He gave her a wicked grin and climbed on to the bed. Where do you want me?

Oh, baby, is that a loaded question!

He just continued to smile at her. Finally when a minute had passed with no response, he said, Kate, it's now after two thirty and we have to face all-seeing, all-knowing Gibbs in the morning. Wanna tell me which side of the bed you'd rather I sleep on?

Kate pointed to the side closest to the window, and he slid under the covers, making room for her. As she reached out a hand to throw back the covers on her side, Tony could see it shake. He reached out and captured it, gave it a squeeze of reassurance.

I didn't let you die, I won't let you down now. Come here, honey. And he opened his arms to her.

Fear still more than evident, she looked at the man in her bed. Strong, handsome, sexy. Gentle, caring. Friend. Knowing she could trust him with her life, helped her to hold the terror at bay. Still trembling, she slipped into bed and curled into his protective embrace.