Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS or any of their characters, plots ect… If I did, Twilight would never have happened. I am in Twilight Denial…. I do however, own Tiana…
Chapter Fifteen:
The following Friday afternoon, Tony was leaning back in his chair, tossing his pencil in the air as he waited for more information about the 'Three of Eight' case to be emailed from the FBI. The photo of Tia on his desk caught his eye and immediately a goofy look settled on his face as his thoughts turned towards her. Across the bullpen Kate rolled her eyes at Tony, and he just ignored her. Almost the whole working week had passed since the night Tia had come home from work with a black eye, and Tony thought he'd actually behaved himself quite well about it. He hadn't jumped up and down and demanded that she get another job or anything stupid like that, because Gibbs had done all that for him. All Tony did was pass Tia a bag of frozen peas for her eye and then had settled back and watched Tia and Gibbs yell at each other. It was still a bit scary, working with your fiancé's father and then realizing exactly how alike father and daughter really were. Not that Tony would ever mention that to either of them because it all came down to one vital point: Tony did not have a death wish.
Tia popped her head through the door of the lab, looking for Abby and immediately grinned. Her friend was obviously feeling better, judging from the way she was wrapped around McGee. "Helloooo?" Tia called and giggled to herself as the parents-to-be jumped apart guiltily "Oh Tia, it's just you. You gave me a heart attack" McGee spluttered "How did you get in here?" he asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously and Abby elbowed him sharply in the ribs "McGee, Tia is here to see me so I cleared her through security" Abby informed him as she wiped her lipstick from his cheek "You'd better get upstairs, Gibbs'll be looking for you soon" Abby nudged him gently towards the door and Tia breathed a sigh of relief as he quickly exited the lab. "So how did you really get in here?" Abby asked cheekily.
Five minutes later Kate wandered into the lab and found Abby examining an official NCIS identification badge under the microscope, a familiar intense look on her face. Tia was sitting behind Abby's desk with her sneaker clad feet on the desk, filing her nails and looking bored "I mean it Tia, this is excellent work. You're only missing one of the security layers and I can only tell because I'm looking for it" Abby ran her hands admiringly over the slightly worn leather case and jumped when Kate peered over her shoulder "What have you got there Abby?" Kate asked playfully and when she realized what Abby was analyzing she spun around and glared at Tiana "Where did you get this Tiana?" Kate demanded angrily, snatching the ID pass from under the microscope and waving it in the air. Tia sighed and stood up, walking over to Kate, plucking the identification from her hands "I got sick of always having to be cleared just to get into the building so I called in a favour from a friend. Not Tony, just a guy I know at the Department of Defence. Tony doesn't know I have it, and if he did he'd probably be freaking out about it too" Tia admitted and sighed again before she handed the badge back to Kate "Here, you can hang onto this one if it freaks you out that much. And if Gibbs knew then he'd be a hundred times worse" Tia said and felt the little hairs on the back of her neck stand up "I'd be a hundred times worse about what, Tiana?" a now familiar voice asked slowly from behind her "Oh crap" Tia muttered as she turned around to face her amused looking father.
A very unimpressed Gibbs hauled Tiana into the bullpen by the back of her neck and gently pushed her into the chair behind his desk, not saying a word and ignoring the surprised look on Tony's face. He dropped Tia's backpack onto the desk and began rummaging through it, thankful that the office was almost empty "What's going on boss?" Tony asked and Gibbs shook his head before tossing Tia's fake identity badge in Tony's direction "I'm going to assume you didn't know anything about this, DiNozzo" Gibbs said over his shoulder as he pulled a stack of files out of Tia's bag, followed by two pairs of handcuffs and a can of defense spray "I'd be careful with that, I've seen that stuff drop a 300 pound biker in just a few seconds" Tia warned as she swung her feet up to rest on the desk, earning herself a glare from Gibbs and a look of respect from Tony who just leaned against the edge of the desk, arms folded casually as he examined the fake ID badge. Gibbs continued to pull stuff out of Tia's bag: a makeup case, several road maps, a battered notebook and several pens "Do you have a gun?" Gibbs asked as he felt himself nearing the bottom of her bag "Yeah, but not in there. If I got busted for carrying a concealed weapon, my boss would kill me" Tia admitted reluctantly and Gibbs winced "I'm sure Tony and I would also have something to say about it too, Tiana" Gibbs said as he pulled the final item out of Tiana's bag. He dropped it on the desk as though it had bitten him, and he poked it suspiciously before gingerly picking it up. It was a thick book, titled 'What To Expect When You're Expecting'. Tia had bought it for Abby and hadn't had a chance to give it to her yet, but Gibbs didn't know that. "Is there something you want to tell me, Tia?" Gibbs croaked and glanced at Tony, who was staring at Tia with his mouth wide open, his face suddenly as white as a sheet "It's not what you think" Tia began as she sat up and quickly began to shovel her belongings back into her backpack "Oh I think it's exactly what I think, Tiana. DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked and Tony just stared at Tia, then at the book, then back at Tia, mouth gaping open and his breathing suddenly uneven. Tia swung her backpack onto her shoulder and reached up to stroke Tony's cheek "Come on baby, let's get you home" Tia said softly as she glared at her father for a minute before she picked up Tony's backpack and gently led her awestruck fiancé to the elevator and out of the building.
Gibbs watched them leave and a look of pure fear settled across his features "I'm going to be a granddad" he mumbled and sat down in his chair to stare blankly into space.