A/N: Basically, this is just turning into Kensi and Deeks flirting on the job all day long.
Kensi was about to lean back in for a second kiss, when she heard the sound of footsteps and Eric popped his head through the doorway a few seconds later. Deeks quickly moved away from her, running his hand through his hair in a falsely nonchalant way.
"Hey, Callen needs you, Kensi," Eric said, jerking his thumb behind him. "Oh and Deeks, I almost have your ID ready. You can come by and grab it before you leave today."
"Great, thanks." Deeks said. "Nice shirt by the way. Are those cacti?" Eric plucked at his button down, which indeed featured tiny cartoonish cacti, and nodded enthusiastically.
"Yeah, it was limited edition. I think they sold out by now."
"Aw, that's too bad." Deeks turned to Kensi. "Don't you think I'd look great sporting a little desert greenery?"
"Actually, I think you're both ridiculous and can't that grown men would choose to around dressed like that," Kensi said, purposely not looking at Deeks. Eric didn't seem to notice the tension between them. "Did Callen say what he needs?"
"Something about a translation. He's waiting for you in the bullpen."
After Eric had left, she glanced at Deeks out of the corner of her eye. She wasn't sure what she would have done if Eric hadn't come along. Part of her was annoyed at the interruption and another, saner, part of her was infinitely grateful.
"That was close," she told Deeks who shrugged.
"I thought you said Hetty wouldn't have a problem with us having...whatever it is we have," he said and Kensi sighed.
"Hetty might be pretty forgiving, but even she's going to have a problem with us making out on the job."
"So, what I'm getting from this conversation is that if Eric hadn't interrupted us, we would be making out right about now."
"Ok, that was not..." Kensi pressed her lips together and tried to fix Deeks with a no nonsense expression. It was hard with his teasing smirk. "Let's just agree to try and stay professional while we're here, ok?" she requested.
"Fine. I will try and be a professional, as hard as that is for me," he agreed, but raised a finger dramatically. "However, I expect excessive amounts of making out later on to make up for this."
"You are ridiculous." Kensi gave him a shove and he let her push him across the room. "Now let me give you the rest of the tour before someone else comes looking for us."
"Explain to me again why I have to complete firearms training," Deeks said to Kensi. It was a few days since he'd officially accepted the liaison position and in that time he'd filled out numerous forms (some of which horrified the lawyer in him), been bored to death by agency policy videos, and received a mixture of helpful and not so helpful advice from Sam and Callen.
Kensi had been by his side through all of it, which was both comforting and distracting. They hadn't really discussed "the kiss" at all and it was simmering between them.
"Hetty's orders," Kensi explained simply. He'd already learned that the majority of Hetty's orders were followed without question.
"Yeah, but I'm just supposed to be consulting. There's no reason why I would need to fire a gun." He shifted the plastic safety goggles Kensi had given him, definitely stalling now.
Pushing them back into place, Kensi snapped a pair of noise cancelling headphones over his ears. She gave him a once over and then patted his hair back into place, rearranging his bangs over his forehead. She tilted her head, smirking at him.
"You look adorable. And you should know by now that Hetty always does things for a reason," she said. Deeks didn't hear Hetty come in behind them and jumped when she suddenly appeared near his arm. Most of the time he wasn't fazed by her, but he was accustomed to her apparent ability to apparate.
"It never hurts to be prepared, Mr. Deeks," she told him gravely.
"But..."
"You never know when you might find yourself in a dangerous situation that you need to fight your way out of." She gestured to Kensi. "Ms. Blye, why don't you give Deeks a demonstration?"
"Sure," Kensi said, throwing him a smirk as she snapped on headphones and goggles. With a level of familiarity that was equally terrifying as it was hot, she removed her gun from the waistband of her pants, sighted the target and shot several times in quick succession.
She lowered the weapon with a mildly satisfied expression as they all studied the paper target, now riddled with holes.
"Hm, not my worst," she commented with a shrug.
"You shot it in the groin," he said, gesturing to the target, which now had a massive whole where its non-existent penis had once been. "Who aims for the groin? And why?"
"It's always good to be prepared," Kensi replied calmly.
"Ok, now you're really scaring me." Hetty removed the target, ignoring his reaction and nodding at it appreciatively.
"It's also a good reminder to stay on Ms. Blye's good side," she added, giving Deeks a sideways glance.
"Is it too late to quit?" Deeks asked.
"Nonsense. Now enough stalling." Hetty gestured for Deeks to step forward. "It's your turn. Kensi will guide you through the process."
If Kensi was surprised by Hetty's order, she didn't show it. She placed a Sig in front of him, not her own he noticed, and then folded her arms expectantly.
"What's the first rule for firing a weapon?" she asked, reminding him of his 2nd grade teacher. Though he had been a lot less attractive than Kensi was.
"Aim for the groin?" he guessed. Kensi gave him an unamused smirk.
"Ha, very funny. Careful, or I might just practice on you."
"Well, it's seems you two have this handled," Hetty said, clapping her hands together in a satisfied way. "I will be in my office if you need anything."
Once she had left, Kensi picked up the Sig again and balanced it in the palm of her hand.
"Ok, since we're starting at the beginning let's talk about safety. The most important things to remember are to always keep a gun pointed in a safe direction, that's usually the ground, keep the safety on, and don't put your finger on the trigger unless you actually plan on shooting something. Or someone."
"That's it?" he asked, thinking that there should be far more rules for handling a dangerous weapon. Kensi shrugged.
"For now. As long as you don't shoot yourself in the foot, I figure you're on the right track," she said.
"It worries me that I can't tell if you're joking right now." Kensi didn't respond to that, but held the gun out to him with the muzzle facing down.
"Now it's time to talk about hold and stance."
Keeping his arms crossed, Deeks eyes it dubiously.
"I told you I'm not a big fan of guns," he reminded her.
"I'm not asking you to be friends with it, Deeks," she said scathingly, offering it to him again.
"I think I'd rather-"
"Just take the damn gun, Deeks," she snapped. Reluctantly, he reached out and gingerly grasped the grip. It felt heavy and foreign in his hand and he stared at it distastefully. Kensi was watching him avidly, but he didn't try to hide his expression. "Great, you still didn't shoot yourself."
When Deeks didn't laugh, she cleared her throat awkwardly and then nodded at the gun.
"Ok, using your dominant hand-so your right-hold the base of the gun like this." She demonstrated with her own gun, creating a V-shape with her thumb and forefinger. "Then wrap the rest of your fingers around the front of the grip."
Deeks followed her directions, a slightly heavy feeling growing in his stomach. He hadn't held a gun in years, he'd seen plenty in court and evident, but never actually touched one. Although he definitely wasn't enjoying the experience, it wasn't quite as bad as he'd been expecting.
"Now wrap your non-dominant hand around the front of the grip and support your dominant hand," Kensi continued, closely following his every move. After Deeks had copied her, she nodded. "Good, now we'll work on your stance."
"No, you're holding your hands to low again," Kensi said about 20 minutes later and Deeks dropped his arms, the weapon bouncing slightly against his thigh.
"Last time you said I was aiming to high," Deeks pointed out. "You nitpicking isn't helping." Normally, he found Kensi's dedication to detail to be an attractive quality. Right now it was just annoying.
"Just do what I say." She gestured for him to turn around and Deeks sighed, adopting the pose she had taught him. Kensi made a frustrated noise almost immediately. "Hold still," she ordered, coming up behind him. Deeks froze as she placed a hand under each arm and then nudged his left leg forward with her knee.
He could feel her warm breath on his neck, her torso just barely pressing against his back. It sent a shiver down his spine and a flurry of very work inappropriate images running through his head.
"If you wanted to cuddle, you could've just asked," Deeks murmured, turning his head slightly so their faces were just a few inches away.
"Shut up," Kensi said, her voice a little rougher than normal. She adjusted her arms again and then took a step back. "Ok, keep your arms at that level, sight your target and pull the trigger."
Pulling in a shallow breath, Deeks slid his finger over the trigger, hesitating. Blocking out the wave of memories that came with holding a gun again, he squeezed the trigger. The bullet ripped a hole through the target's shoulder, just inside the lines and he jerked at the kickback.
He glanced back at Kensi, whose eyes were on him rather than the target.
"Why don't you like guns?" she asked quietly. It was a blunt and unexpected question.
"I just don't," he said shortly. "I've seen all the damage they cause when in the wrong people's hands and I'd rather not be a part of it." That was certainly true, even if it wasn't exactly the answer to her question. Kensi squeezed his arm, her expression sympathetic.
"I'm sorry that this is difficult for you and I wish I could promise that you don't have to touch one again, but I can't. Hetty wants you to have firearms experience and a single shot isn't going to cut it."
He sighed heavily, tossing his head back.
"This is not what I expected when I signed on to be a legal consultant."
"What were you expecting?"
"A lot more arguing about chain of evidence, pissing Sam off by telling him all the laws he's technically violating," Deeks said, shrugging and Kensi smirked.
"Well, there's still time for that." She nudged his shoulder and suggested, "Why don't we call it a day on the target practice? That'll give you a little more time to get adjusted to the idea."
Deeks gladly handed the gun over to Kensi who returned it to the armory while he hung up his goggles and headphones on the wall. Peering in the plexiglass window, he fluffed his hair, pulling a face.
"I think I have headphone hair," he told Kensi as she walked back in.
"And how is that different from your normal hair?" she asked as he continued to fiddle with it. Giving up, he turned back to Kensi with a lofty expression.
"I will have you know that this look is carefully curated to appear disheveled and carefree." Kensi snorted at that.
"Well, you've certainly got that part down. It's very beach bum chic." She cackled at her own joke.
"Actually, I call it "Styled by Pillow"," he informed her. Tilting her head, Kensi reached out and ran her fingers through his bangs, rearranging them and then smoothed down the back. She paused, considered him again and nodded, apparently pleased with the result.
"Much better."
"I thought we were supposed to remain professional," he reminded her.
"I was just making sure you look presentable," Kensi said. "I mean, do you really want Sam to see you looking like you just rolled out of bed?" It was a good excuse, but Deeks didn't buy it.
"Or maybe you just can't keep your hands off me." Kensi's mouth dropped open and she fumbled for words for a few seconds.
"That is not-that is not true. I can totally keep my hands off you." She was so eager to prove him wrong, it was kind of adorable. Crossing his arms, he leaned close enough that he could whisper to her.
"I bet you can't go the rest of the day without touching me at least once."
"Oh I would totally win that bet," she said scornfully. "You aren't nearly as irresistible as you think you are."
"Really? Then how about another wager. If you touch me at any point today, we actually go out on a date," he suggested. "At a restaurant."
"And if I win? Which I will."
"I'll have Alejandro's delivered to your door for a week."
"And what exactly in your depraved mind constitutes as touching?"
"Anything that doesn't involve directly saving my life," he decided.
"That is too good to pass up," Kensi said happily as she pulled her phone from her pocket.
"You're pretty sure of yourself," Deeks said, smirking at her.
"That's because I actually have an ounce of self-control." She wiggled her phone at him. "And Eric says we have a case."
Deeks chuckled as she sashayed out of the room, singing about all the tacos she would be eating. As much as he wanted to take Kensi out, he was going to enjoy watching her try to win. He didn't plan to take it easy on her.
A/N: Deeks learning to shoot is partially inspired by a scene from the show Castle. And once again, I don't know how to shoot a gun. I googled it. It's probably inaccurate. You'd think after watching 11 seasons of a show, I might have picked something up, but I haven't.