Here is the part all of you have been waiting for! I'm breaking it into two parts however – a chapter for Ziva and a chapter for Tony. Hope you enjoy this first instalment. To trixie111 who asked how long this story will be, I plan on doing a chapter or two for Tony and Ziva after they have told each other their "news", a part with Ziva in Israel, (still deciding on Kate's funeral – let me know on that please?) and then a piece for when she is back in America. Five chapters more? Maybe eight? I'll see where it takes me. I might write a sequel if you want.

Anyway… On with it!

Disclaimer: I thought we discussed this?

Tony's thoughts ran rampant after Ziva had told him that there was something she needed to tell him. He was terrified for a second, but at least it wasn't those dreaded four words of 'we need to talk'. He relaxed a bit at that. Looking at her face, he saw she was nervous, but there was a small smile playing on her lips and she had hope in her eyes. He tried to convince himself that this would be okay, but didn't manage entirely.

"Okay. Shoot."

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused. "Why would I shoot you? I do not even have my weapon!"

Tony laughed at her confusion of the English language. She had been speaking it remarkably well, sometimes even better than him, but now he could see she is not a native born speaker.

"No, it means to continue," he informed her.

"Oh. American slang."

"Something like that," he said, glad that the atmosphere of worry around him had been broken down a bit. He just hoped he wasn't setting himself up for disappointment. "You had something to tell me?"

"Yes, I do," she began, taking a deep breath and looking into his eyes very seriously. "First of all, I would like to thank you very much for the past few days. I can honestly say that I do not think I could have made it through this ordeal without your support. You helped me while I was not much more than a stranger to you. Even though I was basically an enemy to you because I was protecting Ari. I would like to apologise for that." She paused, looking down at her lap and finding the seam of his t-shirt very interesting for a second. She was glad Tony stayed quiet too, as she was not sure she would be able to continue had he spoken. She looked back up into his eyes before she went on. "I cannot even begin to imagine how you must have felt towards me because of it. I truly believed in his innocence, but now I know better. So thank you, Tony. Thank you for caring for me, for finding me that night in the rain. Thank you for providing a place to stay and for comforting me when I needed someone to tell me that everything was going to be okay eventually."

Her heartfelt speech had almost driven Tony to tears, even if he would never admit to it. It took him a second to gather his thoughts before he could speak, which caused Ziva's nerves to go crazy, but when he spoke, she relaxed at his gentle tone.

"Ziva, it was my absolute pleasure to do all those things for you. I did not mind in the least. You are a beautiful, wonderful woman, even if I did not see it in the beginning. We all wear masks, and we all have our reasons for keeping them on. I do not judge you for protecting your brother – you did what you thought was right and I cannot condemn you for that." She smiled when he told her that and he lifted his hand to stroke her cheek. She leaned into his palm and urged him to continue. "These past few days have been some of the best I have had in my life. You made me smile more than I have in a long time. I thank you for that."

He then leaned in and captured her lips with his. He kept the kiss short, because he knew they still had some things to talk about. She smiled when they broke away from each other. Then, she got right to the point of the conversation.

"I spoke with Gibbs today," she paused to take a deep breath again. "And with Director Shepard. I do not want to go back to Mossad – not after what happened with Ari. I do not think that I will be able to trust my father again when he sends me out on a mission. It is time for me to break away and go in my own direction. Tony," she waited a beat to make sure she had his absolute attention. "I want to stay in America." She paused again to gauge his reaction. His face stayed blank, so she continued. "I have requested a position at NCIS and both Jenny and Gibbs have given their permission. Now, I want to ask yours."

Tony was silent for a moment before he answered her. He wanted to make sure he understood her correctly before he began to hope for their future.

"You want to stay in America?"

"Yes."

"At NCIS?"

"Yes."

"On our team?"

"Yes, Tony," she answered, getting very nervous because he did not give any indication as to his thoughts about her decision.

Tony looked into her eyes a second more before his face broke into a radiant smile. The next thing she knew, she was thrown back onto their bed of pillows and kissed passionately. Her hands automatically wrapped around Tony's cheeks as she kissed him back. She had to make sure she read his reaction right though, so after a moment or two she pulled back to look into his eyes. Tony beat her to speaking, however.

"Oh, Ziva!" he exclaimed. "You're staying!"

"I take it you approve?" she asked smiling brightly.

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes!" he answered her, planting kisses all over her face – on her forehead, her brow, her eyelids, each cheek and finally again on her mouth. "I'm so happy, Ziva. But I have to ask something."

"Shoot," she quoted him.

He smiled at that, but his face turned serious again at his question.

"Where do I fit into this plan of yours to live the American Dream?"

"I want to be with you, Tony. I want to see where we can go."

"And Gibbs? You know romance between agents is forbidden."

"He knows. And he gave his permission," she assured him, though he knew that already, even if she was not aware of that fact, but she soon will be.

"So you want to continue this. Us?"

"Yes. I would like to do that very much."

"I'm glad, because now there is something I need to tell you."