There was some question in the reviews about how Ziva dresses for Gibbs. It's not always the same outfit all the time. In my head she favors off the shoulder blouses and full skirts, more like something a gypsy would wear. Definitely nothing cult-like .
Ziva woke up before Gibbs for a change. For a long moment she watched him, last night he'd said the words she'd never thought she'd hear from him. It hadn't needed to be said he cared for her the time they'd shared together had made that clear enough. But, she'd never believed he'd actually say the words. Her heart clenched as she watched the softened lines of his sleeping face. Her life had become so intertwined with his, over the years it had been work that had joined them together now it was so much more.
Letting her eyes close for a moment she savored being next to him. Just being near him was enough to feel his strength. Unerringly her hand reached the short distance between them and found his. She traced the callouses on his fingers. Secretly she loved the feel of his work roughened fingers moving across her skin.
"I meant what I said last night Ziva, I love you." Gibbs watched her eyes flutter back open, the depth of emotion there was almost tangible. "Not sure when it happened didn't think I could." He took her hand in his. "Didn't think I could fall in love again."
Ziva felt the seriousness in his tone. "I Love you Gibbs and before you even suggest it, I am not saying it because you did. You have to have seen it by now. I just did not verbalize it because I did not want you to feel like you had to …"
"Say something back?" Gibbs grinned when she blushed. "That's why I said it first."
"Sometimes this feels so fast and other times it is like." Ziva let her words trail off.
"Like we've been this way a lot longer." Gibbs tucked her head into his chest and nodded slightly "Yeah I know what you mean."
"When do you think they will contact us?" Ziva let her fingers dance across the skin of his chest.
Gibbs felt his body harden at even her simplest of touches. "Dunno, soon if I had to guess. With what we know now."
"That is what I was thinking. " Sighing she pulled herself from bed. "Work is not going to wait for us. I have to get moving. " she laughed when he snagged her hand and pulled her back down beside him.
"Soon we're going to take some time off together, more than a few hours together would be nice. " Gibbs knew the surprise on her face matched his. He hadn't thought about what he was going to say but he meant it all the same.
"I would like that, maybe after we get into Haven we can find the time." Frowning she was reminded of the serious nature of what they were trying to do. "Sometimes I forget how we ended up here."
Gibbs sighed letting her once again slide from bed, trying to ignore the fact she was naked and he was already responding. "Zi, we didn't happen just because of this. It might have been the catalyst but it could only happen because there was already something there we've established that."
Ziva nodded. "Right."
Ziva leaned back in her desk chair hours later trying to stretch the kinks out of her neck. Filing paperwork on a case was never her favorite part. Three Navy Lieutenants killed because they looked like another man's wife that had betrayed him had taken far too long to wrap up. The paperwork was taking even longer. Glancing at Tony and McGee she saw them wearing the same looks of frustration as her.
"I think I want pizza for lunch anyone else in?" Ziva saw McGee and Tony look up and grin at her
"Sounds good" McGee pulled out his wallet and Tony did the same.
Ziva watched Tony pause and cock his head, out of the corner of her eye she saw Gibbs stiffen. Following Tony's gaze she saw what both of them were looking at. For a moment she wondered just how many surprise visitor's she and Gibbs were going to have, deciding not to tempt fate she instead braced herself for what she was about to endure.
Gibbs looked up and had to work damn hard not to look from his visitor to Ziva. Standing, he tried to hide his frustration as Colonel Mann approached.
Tony didn't bother to hide his surprise as the now very tanned and casually dressed Colonel Mann approached Gibbs, what did surprise him was the not so carefully hidden annoyance on Gibbs's face. Taking the heat for a moment he stepped up to greet her "Colonel Mann, long time no see. Looks like Hawaii is treating you well."
Mann tried not to notice the way Gibbs was watching her and focused instead on Tony "Retired Tony, so Just Hollis or Mann if you prefer and Hawaii is beautiful as you can imagine." She nodded when McGee smiled and waved and turned to say hello to Ziva.
Ziva had taken the opportunity to be on the phone, ordering the pizza she had mentioned so she just nodded and waved as well. She was far too thankful when Mann turned her attention back to Gibbs.
"Hey Gibbs." Hollis stood in front of his desk feeling more awkward then she had planned.
"Hey, surprised to see you here." Gibbs took a swallow of coffee and shuffled some papers. He was still working hard not to look toward Ziva. She was a confident woman, still the relationship was new and this could get sticky.
Mann cocked her head and tried to ignore the wall she felt him putting up. She'd come back hoping they could rekindle what they'd had before she'd retired. "I was hoping we could have lunch, I'm even buying."
Ziva bit her lip hard, it hadn't been hard to guess that Mann would want to see Gibbs outside of his work, she'd known there was a chance that she'd be coming here in the first place. Still the sight of the two of them standing close again wasn't exactly comfortable.
Gibbs was between a rock and a hard place, he had no logical reason to say no. Feeling his phone vibrate, he looked down at it and read the text. It was from Ziva and he had to bite back both a smile and a sigh.
Go, it's ok, we knew this might happen. Love you.
It bothered him but he deleted the message after reading it and returned his attention to Mann.
"Sure but we'll need to keep it short, I have a meeting this afternoon with the director." It was the truth; he'd scheduled a meeting with the director to inform him that they'd received the invitation to Haven.
Ziva pretended not to notice as they left. Instead she focused on her paperwork. She heard Tony snicker and braced herself for what was coming.
"Should be interesting to see what happens with those two." Tony crumpled up a piece of paper and shot it across his desk and hers into her trash can.
McGee cocked his head again "I didn't think they had parted on good terms. "
"Yeah that's why it should be interesting." Tony made another shot and leaned back in his chair. "What do you think Ziva."
"I think we should mind our own business. Gibbs personal life is just that." Ziva saw the pizza guy approaching and was grateful for the interruption.
Tony harrumphed and then helped himself to pizza. "Of course you would say that, you won't even tell us the name of your mystery man, where he works, nothing about him." It frustrated Tony to no end that Ziva would tell them nothing about the man she was seeing. He harassed her constantly and still she gave him no hint as to who he could be. "He's not married is he?" Tony heard the thunk and felt the swish but never saw her grab for her ever present knife that was now embedded in the cubicle beside him. He knew she was harassing him because it came nowhere close to hitting him but still he had to swallow carefully. "So that's a no and I'll apologize for even asking."
"I would never date a married man Tony. We just choose to keep our relationship very private." Ziva met McGee's gaze and saw him glaring at Tony and then grinning at her.
Tony swallowed some more pizza "I really was kidding Ziva"
Ziva nodded and walked over to grab her knife, " was not really aiming for you Tony, just wanted you to get the point." She sheathed her knife and turned back to her desk just as a messenger arrived at her desk.
She stared at the small plant that was dropped on her desk and thanked the guy that left it. It was just a small potted plant, small green leaves in a simple terra cotta pot. Cocking her head she pulled out the small plastic stick identifying the plants name.
"It's Ivy right?" McGee watched as Ziva looked curiously at the plant. "Not the poisonous kind."
Ziva looked up at him and laughed "yes, that is what is says."
Tony watched her face. "You look confused Ziva, your mystery man throwing you for a loop?"
Ziva frowned at him "I just was not expecting something like this from him."
"Ah Ziva maybe it's more about the meaning, like the flowers. I looked it up." McGee pointed at the computer screen in front of him. "It says here it means Fidelity."
Ziva audibly sucked in a breath, she couldn't imagine how he'd found the time or what he'd had to do to get this delivered in such a short time. Her eyes burned as she worked to hold back tears. Smiling even as she worked to control her emotions she sat back down pulling her little plant just a bit closer. She knew the guys were watching had questions. "He did not do anything wrong if that is what you are thinking. It is more of a promise."
Tony glance at McGee and then back at Ziva, she hadn't needed to say a word. It had been clear from the look on her face that whoever the man in her life was he was treating her well and had just made her very happy.
"Didn't think for a minute he had, wouldn't imagine he'd live long." Tony smirked and laughed when she did the same.
Gibbs sat across from Mann wishing he was anywhere else. She had filled the ride to the restaurant with conversation about her time in Hawaii, he'd listened but only because he'd had no choice. Now after ordering he found the silence awkward.
She reached for his hand across the table and he pulled back "Hollis, we didn't exactly part well, why are you here?"
Hollis had been hoping for a warmer greeting. She shouldn't have been surprised though. "I missed you, I know I pushed you and I thought maybe we could give it another shot."
Gibbs thought for only a moment about what she was saying about how he and Ziva could use it to their advantage. As soon as the thought came he dismissed it. "Hollis I'm seeing someone."
Hollis paused in the middle of taking a bite. Setting down her fork she eyed him cautiously. She took a sip of her beer. She didn't want to ask, his tone told her the answer but she found the words slipping out anyways. "Is it serious?"
Gibbs paused before answering her. "Very." He saw the carefully hidden shock in her eyes. "It was unexpected, but she's …" he stopped there unwilling to say more. He couldn't share how he felt about Ziva with her.
Whatever words Gibbs couldn't say Hollis could see the emotion warring in his eyes. "I see."
"I would have told you at NCIS but I prefer to keep things to myself." Gibbs saw her flinch.
"As if I could forget that." Hollis suddenly wasn't hungry anymore.
Gibbs sighed and pushed back slightly from the table. "I didn't ask you to come back Hollis, you knew where things were at when you left."
Hollis couldn't ignore the truth in his words but it didn't make her any happier. "Apparently I made a mistake in coming to see you." Pushed her plate away not hungry anymore, reaching for the bill she found Gibbs already holding it.
"Got it. I can at least buy lunch." Gibbs didn't apologize, he felt bad but he hadn't encouraged the meeting "I drove you here, let me pay for this and then I'll take you…"
"I think I'd prefer to take a cab." Hollis left before Gibbs could say anymore.
Ziva watched Gibbs make his way to the Directors office. He'd come back from his lunch with Mann without comment. Tony and McGee had given him a questioning glance but she'd just handed over her finished paperwork. Hiding what she felt for him was becoming more difficult with each passing day. Still there was far too much at stake to take any risks.
Glancing back to the small green plant on her desk, she smiled. Somehow he always knew what she needed. On any other day or night perhaps Hollis Mann's appearance might not have been as difficult but they weren't going to be together tonight. As agreed they would spend the next few days apart. If she remembered correctly Tony had mentioned something about dropping by Gibbs's house for a beer. Perhaps she would see what Abby was up to or maybe just catch up on her sleep. Looking up she caught Tony watching her and flushed lightly.
"I'd say penny for your thoughts but I'm betting they're worth a lot more." Tony watched her flush an even deeper shade of pink and laughed.
"Just thinking how thoughtful he is." Ziva paused for a minute "He's different than I'm used to."
Tony leaned back and watched her for a moment. "That's easy to see. He makes you happy."
"Yes he does." Ziva smiled mostly to herself. "I'm very lucky."
Tony, "Well I'm biased but I think he's the lucky one. Maybe someday you'll tell us who he is, even let us meet him." He glanced to McGee saw him nodding in agreement.
Ziva bit her lip not knowing how to answer that. "I hope so too."
Gibbs sat across from Vance waiting for him to comment. He'd brought him up to speed on the invitation to Haven, the fact they should be meeting with someone shortly. Vance had remained quiet and Gibbs was beginning to wonder if he knew something.
Vance sighed deeply, "You know I'm not entirely comfortable with this mission, right?"
Gibbs nodded. "Yeah, figured."
"I don't like inevitabilities that come with this type of case." Vance looked at the floor for a long moment then back at Gibbs "As ashamed as I am to admit it it's not just the two of you I'm worried about. It's my reputation as a director I'm worried about as well. If this goes bad, I approved it, that's just all kinds of ugly."
Gibbs laughed, saw Vance raise an eyebrow and laughed some more. "That's not going to be a problem."
"You can't know that Gibbs." The director nervously chomped on a toothpick and stared at him hard.
"Yes I can but you don't want to know why." Gibbs gave him a pointed look and almost laughed again when the director almost seemed to blush, if such a thing was possible. "I would never do anything to threaten Ziva's reputation or her career. As I said before if it came right down to it I would retire."
"How are you doing with keeping this from the rest of the team?"
Gibbs shrugged "It's part of the job, don't like it but for now it's how it has to be."
Vance nodded. "Keep me in the loop wherever you can. Be damn careful I don't want the two of you disappearing."
Gibbs stood up "Not our intention, we want to figure this out, get the job done." Stepping out of the office and shutting the door behind him he wondered how many more times he'd have to remind himself that. Looking down at Ziva talking to Tony and McGee he had no doubt they'd find they're answers, he just hoped it didn't take too long.
Tony spotted Gibbs walking back to his desk "Hey boss we still grabbing that beer tonight, I've got steak to go with it?"
Gibbs had almost forgotten about the plans he'd made with the guys a week earlier until Ziva had reminded him that morning. He'd almost canceled until she'd made him promise not to. "Sure, I should be home by seven or so, any time after that is fine." Glancing at his watch he looked back at them "You might as well head out now though, slow day."
Tony looked at McGee in mock shock "The boss man is letting us off early!"
"Tony, he just wants us to pick up the beer." McGee laughed good-naturedly, glancing at Ziva he stopped as they headed out "Hey you wanna come?"
Ziva smiled up at them "I appreciate the offer, but I am going to enjoy a quiet evening alone." She laughed when all three men looked at her in surprise, even Gibbs. "What? I have to sleep sometime."
Ziva filed away her paperwork, cleared her desk and gathered up her backpack. She moved toward the elevator and found Gibbs following her.
"David mind if I walk you to your car?" Gibbs played it casual for the remaining people in the office, but he wasn't really asking.
"That would be nice thank you."
They didn't speak in the elevator, the short flight of stairs to the parking garage or the short walk to her car. But the brief glance around the garage and his knowledge that she parked just out of sight of the security cameras had him pressing her against her car. His mouth pressed roughly against hers, tongue thrust deeply in her mouth, hands at her waist she was lost. His knee pushed between her thighs rubbing none to gently till she was moaning low in her throat. One hand steadied itself in his hair holding tight to the soft silver strands she loved so much. Part of her wanted to pull away to look and make sure no one was near, the rest of her didn't give a damn as his hands slipped beneath her shirt.
Gibbs hadn't been able to resist the urge to follow her; he'd needed to feel her against him. The slide of her skin underneath his palm was just barely enough to temper his need. He'd only intended a taste. A quick kiss to quench his thirst and then he'd let her go. Now with his mouth on hers and her legs wrapping around him he found he couldn't stop. Reaching between them he reached for the edge of the denim skirt she'd risked wearing today and wondered how far he dared go.
"Gibbs..you wouldn't" Ziva, felt her whole body shudder as he let his hand move beneath her skirt to skim her thighs, pushing aside her thong and slip inside her. Hissing she swore she stopped breathing altogether.
Gibbs chuckled, while covertly taking a brief look to make sure they were still alone. Gently he lifted her skirt and in the same moment unzipped his pants. Seconds later he was slipping inside her as he watched her face morph into ecstasy. She was gripping his shoulders so tightly he was almost certain there would be marks within hours and damned if he cared. Slowly he began to move and with every thrust he heard her gasp out her pleasure.
Ziva couldn't have told you in that moment she was in the slowly fading light of day surrounded by the harsh façade of concrete. All she knew was the sight and feel of Gibbs. His scent and strength took over. Pulling her into him in every way, his body moved her to his rhythm the pleasure driving her to a fever pitch. It wasn't long till his mouth was catching her cries of pleasure as they echoed through the evening air.