Intervening Love
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: I don't own them. I am merely taking them for a spin
Author's Note: I'd like to thank my muse, Kate who has been a fantastic help and a source of some great ideas
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Gibbs sat down and frowned at the television. He still couldn't see the appeal in watching other people live in a house. People had their own lives to live, didn't they? What was so interesting in seeing other people swim and talk…about sex…Gibbs raised his eyebrows and shook his head. He turned to Tony and watched the younger man watch the TV with a grin on his face.
"Why are you here, Tony?" Gibbs eventually asked
Tony turned to face him, "You told me I could stay here whilst they fixed up my apartment,"
"That's not what I meant. It's Saturday night, why aren't you out?" Gibbs prompted
"To be honest, I didn't really feel like going out to any clubs tonight, boss," Tony answered
Gibbs sighed, "I didn't say anything about clubs, Tony," Gibbs looked briefly at the TV before looking back again, "Kate's not doing anything tonight,"
Tony frowned and looked at Gibbs, "Ah, yeah she is, she's going out with Simon. And anyway, I don't think of Kate that way," Gibbs snorted and grinned. "No, really, I think of her as more like…a sister,"
"Tony, it's illegal to think of your sister the way you think of Kate," Gibbs looked into Tony's eyes, "And don't give me that crap about you not liking her. You two have been attracted to each other like magnets since the day you met,"
Tony scoffed, "Please, boss, we're just good…"
"Friends? Don't insult my intelligence, Tony," Gibbs replied, "You know, she feels the same way about you,"
"Gibbs, I don't need your help with my love life," Tony replied, then raised his eyebrow, "What makes you think she likes me?"
Gibbs grinned, "Whilst my eyesight might not be as good as it could be, my hearing is just fine. Kate was telling Abby about how she felt about you," then added before Tony could say anything, "And, that she broke up with Simon a few days ago,"
"So you were eavesdropping," Tony commented
"No, I don't eavesdrop; I was just listening to what they were saying" Gibbs replied,
"Without them knowing you were doing it, Gibbs that's what eavesdropping is," Tony responded
"I hear a lot of things, Tony, including what's not being said. You're attention is not unwanted," Gibbs informed him
"Gibbs," Tony said, then sighed, "Why are you telling me this? What about rule 12?"
Gibbs frowned, then stood up and walked to the bench to pick up his bottle of bourbon, "Rule 12 is…In this case, it wouldn't make any difference anyway. Mainly it's to prevent situations where you're unable to take a course of action because of the possibility of injuring you're …coworker. But you both already have those feelings, so actually being together would hardly make any difference to how you do your jobs," Gibbs sighed and poured two cups of bourbon, handing one to Tony, "Besides, it was mainly meant for me…"
"To protect yourself?" Tony interrupted
Gibbs chuckled and dipped his head, "Yeah, something like that,"
Tony frowned, then looked at the tv, taking a sip from the cup
Gibbs sat on the arm of the couch, gazing at his coworker, noting the strange look on his face, "Tony?"
Tony turned around and his frown deepened, "I thought you liked Kate,"
"I do," Gibbs replied, taking a sip from his cup
"No," Tony said exasperatedly, "I mean, I thought you wanted to…"
Gibbs grinned, "You know Tony, for somebody who's job it is to notice things, you're really unobservant,"
"What do you mean?" Tony asked
"Kate is a fantastic agent and a great person, but I don't love her. I love Abby," Gibbs replied
"Abby?" Tony asked, raising his eyebrows, "I thought…What about McGee?"
"Abby and I weren't involved when she was seeing McGee. I think it was just after they broke it off, that I realised how I felt for her," Gibbs replied honestly
"Huh," Tony responded, absorbing the information
Gibbs grinned and stood up, as his cell rang. Tony watched the tv again as Gibbs took the call. The housemates were in the middle of an argument and it seemed to be getting really heated…
"You ready?" Gibbs asked, putting away his cell
"For what?" Tony responded
"That was Abby, she wants us to meet her and Kate at some bar 10 minutes away from here," Gibbs told him, walking up the stairs
Tony watched Gibbs disappear from sight, then saw his head reappear, "DiNozzo, what are you waiting for!"
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Tony and Gibbs walked into the smoke filled bar, waiting for their eyes to adjust to the lighting. Gibbs smiled when he saw Abby and Kate sitting in a booth at the back of the bar. Leading the way to the booth, he watched as Abby noticed them and her eyes lit up.
"Took your time," she grumbled
"Road-works," Gibbs shrugged with a grin
Abby smiled and gave Gibbs a big hug, then turned back to Tony and Kate, "We'll go get you guys some drinks, come-on my silver-haired fox,"
Gibbs grinned and let Abby lead him away from the others. Tony and Kate watched the pair make their way to the bar, before looking back at each other.
"So, Kate…" Tony said, leaving the sentence hang
"Tony," Kate responded
"How's Simon?" Tony asked
Kate rolled her eyes, "How am I supposed to know?"
"Well, I thought you two were dating," Tony replied
Kate looked back to the bar, watching as Gibbs hugged Abby whilst she ordered the drinks.
Tony sighed and followed her gaze as Abby turned around and kissed Gibbs, "How long have you known they've been going out?"
"A few months," Kate replied casually, looking back at Tony, "They're cute together, don't you think?"
"'Cute' is not a word I would associate with Gibbs, or Abby for that matter," Tony replied with a grin
Kate smiled, "Yeah,"
Tony broke into a grin, "God, I love spending time with you,"
Kate raised her eyebrows and watched him, "Okay,"
"Sorry, that was a bit premature, wasn't it?" Tony asked
Kate laughed, "Not at all. I mean, considering that we've been dancing around each other since I first joined NCIS,"
Tony grinned again, "Yeah, Gibbs mentioned that earlier,"
"So, Gibbs was trying to make you ask me out?" Kate asked, raising her eyebrow
"Yeah, he said rule 12 was only meant for him and didn't apply to us," Tony replied
Kate chuckled and looked towards the bar again, "Abby was doing the same thing before you two arrived,"
Tony looked to the bar and met Gibbs' gaze, who just smiled back at him. Looking back at Kate, Tony said, "Well, I guess we shouldn't let them down, if they wanna play 'match-maker', let 'em,"
Kate tilted her head at Tony, with a sly grin on her face, "And what do you mean by that, Tony?"
"Do you wanna go out with me, Caitlin Todd?" Tony asked
Kate smiled, "Of course I do, Anthony DiNozzo,"
Tony stood up with a grin, and held out his hand to her, "Will you dance with me?"
Taking the offered hand, Kate stood up and allowed Tony to lead her to the dance floor.
"Told you it would work," Abby said smugly to Gibbs, watching as Tony held Kate close whilst they danced
"Mmm," Gibbs hummed into her hair, glancing at the couple on the floor
Abby turned around in Gibbs' arms and looked at him, forcing him to look down at her.
Noticing the mischievous glint in his lover's eyes, Gibbs frowned slightly and tried to keep his smirk at bay, "Abby?"
"Why don't we get out of here? Give the new couple some space," Abby asked seductively
"Why do I think the 'new couple' is the last thing on your mind?" Gibbs replied with a smirked
Abby chuckled and said with a grin, "Because you know me too well,"
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That's it ... I hope you like it! Please review, please!