A/N: There probably will be more... anything's possible :) Enjoy :)
Kate sat alone on the couch, checking and rechecking the placement and security of her towel. She shivered slightly under the merciless combination of a blasting air conditioner and of pool water slowly drying on her skin. Her hair hung in damp, messy strands around her face as she stared at the darkened hallway where Gibbs had disappeared.
She held the towel tight and secure to her chest with one hand, as the other fingered the small hem of terry cloth that draped over the middle of her thigh. With her knees pressed firmly together, she lightly bounced her legs off the balls of her feet; from nerves, and the slight chill that ran through her. Cold…? How could you even possibly be cold. She quietly laughed at her own irony.
"What's funny?" Gibbs walked into the room with two cups of coffee, looking at her intently as he slowly came to stand in front of her.
Kate shook her head with a chuckle and a smile. "Nothing— I… I was just thinking, about how it was kind of cold in here." She looked up from the floor to glance at his face, taking a careful reading of his eyes. He smirked and nodded his head as he looked away from her for a second.
"Isn't that what you wanted?" He said slowly, bringing his gaze back to hers as he handed her a cup of coffee. He sat back in the arm chair that faced the couch. Gibbs studied her, grinning in amusement as a slight fluster passed across her face. Kate took a sip from her cup to try and hide it.
She nodded and brought the mug down to her lap. With a sudden look of confusion, her lips pursed and formed a small "o" as she glanced up to him. "Where are my clothes?" He smiled silently. "No.. Gibbs… where are my clothes?"
Gibbs took another long swig of coffee before nodding to the mug in her hands. "Finish." Kate opened her mouth to say something quick-tempered, but she closed it; her lips formed a firm line. Which turned into a slight scowl as she fully realized the fact that she was sitting in front of Gibbs in nothing more than a towel. The frown quickly became a fierce blush that spread swiftly across her cheeks.
He grinned as he downed the rest of his strong coffee with a quick motion of his wrist and stood up. "You can stay. If you want." A gleam in his eyes dared her, calling her on. He nodded and turned, heading back to what she imagined was the kitchen. He called back to her, "I left a pile of clothes in the downstairs bathroom."
Kate smiled and continued her coffee, finishing it fast. She got up and headed to what could have been the way to the bathroom, but she stopped. She instead followed his direction to the kitchen and stood in the door frame, watching him wash out the empty coffee pot. He looked over his shoulder at her, catching her off guard; she wrapped her fingers around the mug in her hands.
"You decide?" He asked, looking at her with raised eyebrows before turning back to the sink. She walked into the kitchen, having tied a careful knot in her towel, and snaked an arm around him, placing her mug in the sink. She carefully withdrew.
"Why aren't you mad..." Kate leaned against the counter and squinted at him. He gave her a side glance before returning to the dishes. "Why aren't you mad that I'm trespassing into your private life at 4 o'clock in the morning..?"
Gibbs finished washing and dried his hands with a dish towel. He mirrored her; leaning against the counter, his hands gently gripping the edge behind him, his arm softly brushing up against hers. There was the humidity again.. Kate swallowed her thoughts and waited. He turned his head to look at her.
"Should I be?"
She stared at him suspiciously before her expression slowly softened, her eyebrows rose to delicately crease her forehead. They stared at one another for what must have been several minutes before Kate looked away and sighed. As she was tracing the tiles on the floor with invisible outlines, her head gently snapped up. She pushed herself away from the counter and turned her body to face him, crossing her arms across her chest. Her head tilted softly to the side as she smirked and squinted her eyes in skeptical amusement.
"How long did you know…"
The indescribable flash that passed across his face gave him away to her. He shook his head slowly, his eyes still on her. "What do you—"
Her smirk broadened into a full fledged grin. "How long did you know I was out there, Gibbs…"
He knew that she knew, and his face of confusion turned into an open-mouthed, laughing smile as he looked away from her and chuckled. She gasped and feigned her angry, unsuccessfully, as she chuckled right beside him. Kate took several quick steps towards him, beginning to cross their silent boundary as she gently poked her index finger to his chest, punctuating her words, "You knew!" She laughed and smiled, an eyebrow raised and she poked him again him lightly in the chest.
He swiftly clasped a hand around her wrist, causing her a sharp, unconscious intake of breath. She swallowed, but couldn't find any cognizant reason to protest this sudden closeness, especially when he began to lightly rub his thumb against the soft inside of her wrist. He could feel her breathing hike up a notch, could see the tips of her ears turn red, could feel her other hand come up and rest on his forearm for steadying support. And she could feel the knot in her towel slowly coming undone. She yelped softly in an awkward protest, as she knew she'd never be fast enough to wrestle out of his grip and catch her towel simultaneously. But before any visual damage could be done, Gibbs released her and slid both of his hands to either side of her underneath her arms, gently brushing against her breasts through the terry cloth. He expertly held her towel in place.
He looked down at his fast save and silently, subconsciously cursed at himself for doing such a stupid, stupid thing. His fingers flexed against her covered skin as she visibly and heavily swallowed; his jaw clenched vaguely as his thumbs brushed the soft area of skin delicately exposed beneath her arms. She unconsciously moved her body millimeters closer; her eyes flitted to every vacant point on his chest before his harmless shoulder became her new site of fascination. Even completely doused in chlorine, he could still smell her: sweet and heady. His grip on her tightened ever so slightly.
"Thanks." Kate whispered hoarsely, faintly hanging her head. She swallowed her pride, her embarrassment, her desire, and looked up to him, seeing his eyes already focused on her carefully. He gave her a nod with a calm "No problem."
His face was definitely closer than she had anticipated.. Her hands trembled slightly against his chest, her mouth opened in response, but she just couldn't— …and cue the adrenaline, she thought silently.
Kate wet her lips as she quickly closed the small gap between them, pressing her lips to his with a soft, swift impulse that he had secretly hoped for. But before he had a chance to physically respond, she pulled her lips away and began her careful, silent, apologetic retreat. He let out a soft grunt as he tugged at her towel that he still had in his hands; he twisted it in such a way that he now held each corner in a hand, with the opening of her towel precariously drifting down the middle of her body. She looked to him, wide-eyed with a sense of "what-the-hell-are-you-doing," before he pulled the edges of the towel closer, Kate being drawn along with it without a choice. He tugged her body flush against his; her now naked front dangerously pressed up against him; a stifled groan escaped her as she balled her fists on top of his chest.
"You decide yet, Kate..?" he gruffed lightly into her hair, as his lips brushed her temple while he waited. She absently rubbed her cheek against his with an indecipherable murmur. Gibbs smirked into her hair, pressing the towel against her back; he figured he'd at least attempt to keep her somewhat covered... but something told him she wasn't as concerned.
Kate suddenly leaned back slightly in order to look at him head-on. Her eyes flickered with an easing suspicion and something he would have normally categorized as heavy lust. But he wasn't so sure that it was that simple. Not with her. This was a mixture— a dangerous, heady fusion of lust, warmth, fear, affection, and want. Something Gibbs could taste thickly on his tongue, even in their negligible distance.
And he went that small distance and hotly locked her lips with his, softly searching and maneuvering, pressing his hand firmly against her lower back. The subdued moan that seeped from her and drifted into his mouth only urged him on; swiping softly at her bottom lip with his tongue, he urged her on in turn.
Kate smiled and mumbled a soft endearment against his mouth before engaging in a full blown session of lips, lust, love, and something else inexpressible. Gibbs trailed his lips down her neck, murmuring his own sweet nothings as a hand ran up the length of her thigh, lifting it slightly and hitching it up against his own. She chuckled deeply with an entangled groan. She went to press her lips against his, her hands resting on either side of his neck.. and the power went out. The kitchen was instantaneously engulfed in a slowly ebbing cool darkness.
Her hands fell to his shoulders as she mumbled against his lips. "Sonuvabitch."
A chuckle deeply resonated in Gibbs' chest. He let the towel drop.