Gibbs headed down to Abby's lab feeling his stomach rolling. A purse and man's wallet had been fished out of the Anacostia, the military ID inside had led the homeless man who'd done the fishing to turn it into the authorities. They local's had called it into NCIS and the items were currently in Abby's lab. On his pedal to the metal drive from Haven to Abby's lab he'd arranged a warm bed and hot meal for the man who'd been hungry enough to consider eating anything he caught from the Anacostia. He stepped off the elevator instantly blasted by Abby's music.
"Gibbs! You remembered my caf-pow." Abby leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.
"Wouldn't forget Abbs." Gibbs heard the sound of Tony and McGee entering the lab apparently they had run into Ziva on the way in.
"Gotta say Ziva you're mystery man sure knows how to treat you right." Tony saw Gibbs and Abby watching their entrance and smirked before continuing. "Just watched Ziva step out of a chauffeur driven car." He whistled and waived his hand at Ziva.
Ziva glared at Tony but smiled when the other three laughed. "It was a date Tony."
McGee snorted briefly and made his way over to Abby. "Heck of a date Ziva."
Tony followed behind McGee missing the look that passed between Gibbs and Ziva.
Abby caught the look and forced herself to look away, sipping on her caf-pow instead. "Behave you guys."
"Hey I was just saying he knows how to do things right." Tony raised an eyebrow. "Wait we didn't interrupt a proposal did we?"
Ziva's smile froze on her face, her stomach tensed and across from her she watched Gibbs react much the same way. The team was watching her and not him which was the only positive in the moment. She had to swallow hard before she could answer, especially when she saw Abby's eyes widen and briefly glance to Gibbs. "No Tony you did not interrupt a proposal."
Tony felt the tension radiating from Ziva, heard the awkward quiet from the rest of the room and felt like an ass. It had been a careless comment but he knew instantly from Ziva's forced smile it had been the last thing he should have said. What bothered him the most was the faint hint of pain that flickered in her eyes. "Sorry Ziva I'm a jerk, please no paperclips." he saw the sadness in her eyes ease a bit but before she could comment he felt the hard smack of Gibbs' hand against the back of his head. "Thanks boss, I deserved that."
Ziva managed a real smile she knew was expected, felt Gibbs watching her but glanced to Abby instead. Abby winked and turned back to her computer.
Gibbs wanted to do more than smack Tony, yet he knew his anger was directed at himself. In his pockets his hands were clenched tight, trying to stop from reaching for Ziva and wrapping her in his arms for his comfort and hers. With much effort he turned to Abby's computer. Behind him Tony and McGee were discussing various things they had caught while fishing themselves. Ziva beside him was silent her eyes flickering to his then away again. He wanted to ask her about that look but Abby clicked on the big screen and the moment was lost.
"So, the purse and the wallets definitely belong to our dead couple. For the most part it's the typical stuff. Make up for her, some receipts I'm trying to recover, birth control that type of stuff. Our Lieutenant had some credit cards; I'm running those and some business cards. But what is really interesting is what they both had in their wallets."
Gibbs stood behind her, hairs on the back of his neck standing at attention. "What is it Abbs?"
"That's the thing Gibbs I don't know what it is. Well I'm guessing it's an ID card of some card but I have no clue for what."
Next to him Gibbs felt Ziva tense up, it wasn't noticed by anyone else but he felt it all the same. "Let's see."
Abby was already pulling out the tray that she'd laid the drying laminated cards on.
Gibbs felt his blood run cold as confirmation of what they had suspected slammed into him. A simple card standard sized each bearing a photo, one for Lara and one for Simon. That in and of itself wasn't what had him and he was sure Ziva feeling the danger that was their world creeping in. It was the symbol embossed on the paper. An eagle wings stretched upward in flight crossed by a carpenters compass. The freemason symbolism couldn't be missed; in the space between the two symbols was a scrolling H. In a similar script a Latin phrase surrounded the whole thing, post haec moenia est sanctuarium .
Gibbs had to stop himself from reaching for Ziva's hand through sheer force of will as he spoke. "Behind these walls there is sanctuary." He recognized the words easily he and Ziva carried the same identification.
"Pays to have been an altar boy I guess." Tony took a sip of coffee when Gibbs didn't smile or comment on his joke.
"Figured you would know what that said but I searched it anyways. What's hinky is that no matter how much I search I can't find anything linking these symbols, nothing that gives me any clue to what these ID cards are for. In this day and age with all the social networking I'm surprised to say the least. This is high-grade stuff. The paper is top of line, the lamination done professionally yet I still can't link the card to anything."
Tony leaned in looking at the symbols closer. "My conspiracy spot is itching Boss. It's like we stepped into a Dan Brown novel."
Ziva pretended to think for a minute. "Perhaps it was something between the two of them, a promise of some kind. After all they were having an affair, maybe the quote is in reference to the time they spent in her home." It was a lousy theory Ziva knew it, she even saw Gibbs' lips twitch slightly as he took a sip of coffee.
Abby thought about that for a second. "Not likely, I could see if it was on a keychain or jewelry of some kind, but they wouldn't need the photo if it was just the two of them."
Ziva nodded "Of course you are right, I did not think about that." Ziva felt her head beginning to throb. The long day, lack of rest, and growing baby were testing her endurance.
"You okay Ziva?" Abby saw her grimace and wince.
Ziva felt Gibbs' anxiety. "Just a headache, I think I need to eat. I did not get to eat before I was called here. I am fine."
"Anything else useful Abbs?" Gibbs could have kicked himself, he knew Ziva hadn't eaten since lunchtime.
"Again not much more, I'm going to try to pull something up from the receipts but I think our best bet is anything we can find out on this ID, or whatever it is." Abby took a sip of caf-pow and pointed to the ID. "I almost just told you guys what was found over the phone, but this was something that really needed to be seen. I've got some searches going cross matching the symbols but frankly it's leading me a lot of nowhere. Seriously Gibbs when was the last time we had a case that led us to so many dead ends."
Gibbs stared at the ID's on the big screen hating that he had to lie, cursing the giant mess everything had become. Running a hand through his hair he turned to face his team. As he did Abby handed Ziva a protein bar and he almost hugged her.
"Abby you keep searching on any connection between what we found in her laptop and her wallet." Looping his fingers through his belt he watched a puddle of sawdust fall to the ground. He grinned to himself and saw Ziva look at him in surprise.
"New project Gibbs?" What she really wanted to ask was how he'd managed sawdust as part of their cover.
He threw her a smile, "always working on something." sighing he stared at the screen. "With as little as we have to go on at this point we're left with waiting. Hopefully more evidence will come from somewhere."
He could feel the surprise from his team, but he knew he was right. Nothing new had come up in the past few days and the leads they were working would likely exhaust themselves quickly. He was caught between pushing to find more evidence and stepping back as was needed for what they were trying to achieve undercover. If the person taking and murdering the couples believed they had no leads mistakes might be made. Add to that at this point it wasn't far from the truth.
"I'll keep plugging away at these ID's. If I find anything you'll be the first to know." Abby gave Gibbs her best smile thinking he might just need it in that moment. He smiled back but she saw turmoil in his eyes. She wondered if it was about the case or about Tony's earlier comment.
"Sounds good Abbs. Everybody go home. Tomorrow I 'll let Vance know we're available for another case should one come up." He had to work to keep his gaze from finding Ziva. Something was off in the way she held herself, he wanted to pull her aside and find out right in that moment why she was so unsettled. Gripping the edge of Abby's desk he suspected he knew what it was.
Tony saw the frustration on Gibbs face glanced at McGee and saw he recognized it too. He nodded at McGee knowing what he was thinking.
McGee cleared his throat gaining Gibbs' attention. "Hey boss we'll figure it out we always do."
Gibbs managed a grin even though he didn't feel it. He watched the guys mill around for a bit chatting with Abby. He risked a quick look at Ziva and saw her eyes were carefully fixed on his. Something about her look forced him to look away.
GZGZGZGZGZG
That look in her eye was still haunting him as he stood outside her back door. They were trying harder than ever to maintain the cover of hiding their relationship and there was a risk in coming to her tonight. Tony hadn't failed to recognize that she had been hurt by his comment and it was always possible he would try to stop by and apologize again. He was still wrestling with his thoughts when the door opened and he was face to face with her. Her beauty slammed into him like an aftershock from a bomb. She had changed, the long black nightgown was made of peeka-boo lace that flowed over her. The silver flecked lace covered while revealing at the same time. Her hair fell in long loose curls dancing in the night breeze. Her feet were bare but standing on the step above him gave her a slight height advantage that had him looking up at her.
"Took you longer than I thought to get here Jethro." She smiled; he was holding himself in check, holding back from her. She'd seen the way he'd watched her earlier and had known that he would come to her tonight. It hadn't been part of the plan to spend the night together, it had made the teasing at Haven earlier all the more tempting but after Abby's lab she had known he would come. She also knew why.
Gibbs still made no move to enter her house instead he watched her hovering there in the doorway looking very much like a night fairy, if there was such a thing. He wasn't a fantastical sort of man, reality was absolute but watching her standing there so gracefully beautiful he wouldn't have been at all surprised if she had cast some spell on him. "Glad you knew, wasn't sure I should."
Ziva held out her hand, "Come inside Jethro."
He stepped in shedding his jacket and shoving his hands in his pockets. She didn't offer him coffee as she normally did, didn't do anything other than take his hand and lead him to the bedroom. The need to take her right that second was difficult to push past but somehow he managed. The struggle must have shown on his face because she reached out and touched his jaw.
"You are not the only one who needs Neshama yet you deny us both. I see it in the way you are holding yourself." She was waiting for him to take the first step.
"Wasn't sure you'd want me to." Running a hand through his hair. "At Abby's lab you looked…when he asked about a proposal."
"I know what you think you saw Jethro, why you think you have to hesitate in coming to me." His eyes snapped to hers revealing the faintest hint of fear. He was letting her see it; a man like him was far too good at hiding his emotions for it to be anything other than intentional. The enormity of that had her swallowing hard.
"Tony's question is reasonable Ziva. From where he stands it would be a normal progression." He watched her hike a brow and laugh softly.
"Jethro nothing about our relationship has been normal, not since the start. I would not want it any other way. I have done the typical relationship and it has never made me feel the way being with you has. I think you believe that I was hurt by Tony's question." She watched his hand link with hers and they sat on the edge of her bed. Leaning back against the pillows she felt him tense.
"You are wrong Jethro, which is shocking because you are rarely wrong." She saw that despite himself he almost grinned. "Save the smug for later, I was upset because I knew the comment would bother you."
He looked at her searching to see if she was just saying what she thought would ease his mind. All he saw was truth. "It bothers me that they think the things they do or have. That the man in your life is married, or ashamed of you or that you are not worthy of marrying."
"Do you think me weak Jethro?" The low rumble in his throat could only be described as a growl, it almost made her laugh.
"What the Hell Ziva? You're one of the strongest people I've ever known."
Ziva shifted until she was lying in his arms looking up at him. "Then you know I would never be with a man who is any of those things. If I felt anything other than cherished by you I would not be with you. I love you with everything I am, with all of my soul but even knowing that,… if I felt for even a moment that you did not feel the same I would not be with you." In her hand his fingers tightened almost roughly.
Gibbs felt his breathe whoosh out of him, the stark truth of her words as strong as they were voiced a vulnerability that was equally startling. They came out strong but the barest whisper and towards the end there was the sadness she couldn't hide. "Thank you Ziva." He saw her look at him like he was crazy and stroked back a strand of hair. "For reminding me why I love you, that I have a woman that is my equal. I love you Ziva, more than I can say."
"And I love you Jethro, but I do not need you to marry me to prove it. If and when we both feel that marriage is a step we want to take we will talk about it then. But as I told you before I never want more then you can give." She let her hand rest against his chest feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath her palm. "You are the man I have chosen, it was the easiest choice I have ever made and yet the hardest. I knew you would want all of me that I would never be able to hide anything from you all I ask is you give me the same. That is what I need, that is what I must have from you. I need you the man you are nothing less." As she spoke she let her body slide upwards against his until she was straddling his lap. His instant reaction had her moaning out a sigh.
Gibbs wrapped an arm around her waist as she slid onto his lap. It took his body only seconds to respond to the warm heat pressing against him. As he pressed hard and urgent against her nearly bare skin through his slacks he saw her head fall back into his palm. "It's like this all day Zi, all you have to do is look at me a certain way and I get hard for you. Sometimes I have to think about football plays, count to ten anything to get you off my mind long enough to control myself."
Ziva rolled her neck leisurely till her mouth made contact with the edge of his jaw. "My reaction may not be as visible Jethro but it is just as strong. There are times I think about going into an empty office and taking the edge off until I am with you again."
Gibbs could easily picture her leaned back against a desk, skirt riding high on her thighs hand between her legs. The image burned and ignited his skin taking what was left of his control and throwing it to the wind. He wrapped a hand in her hair and drew her up along with him into a standing position. The movement was slightly rougher than he intended but as he looked in her eyes he saw a flare of pleasure nothing resembling fear. It turned him on ever further the way she responded to his touch even when it wasn't gentle. She stood there silently waiting without having to be told as he undressed.
As always Ziva felt her body hit overdrive when his control slipped. When his dominate nature showed through his movements, her body clenched in anticipation. As he removed his clothing she had to work to even her breathing. She hadn't needed to be told to wait quietly for him to finish, had known from the way he looked at her that he wanted her to watch him.
Gibbs saw in her eyes the way she wanted him, saw the way her eyes hungered across his body. A long slow sweep of lashes down his body scorched him in heat. Moving the half step to close the distance between them he again tangled a hand in her hair, tugging he teased her head back placing a string of kisses down the column of her neck. For a long moment he swirled his tongue in lazy circles along the hollow in her throat. The sweetness of her skin as he slid across to her shoulder forced the gentlest bite on her collarbone. He'd known from the beginning she loved the edge, the sting of his mouth and teeth. Drawing his mouth back up till his lips found hers he thrust his tongue into her mouth. He took her mouth as he intended to take her body. He didn't hold back, didn't soften the need he felt just took with long silken strokes. As he pulled away she was trembling, he could see the way her body shook with need. Just how much that turned him on he could never have verbalized.
Ziva thought for certain she was falling until she felt the surface of the wall behind her. Her mind and body were dizzy from the strength of his kiss. Possession had been stamped in every second of that soul stealing meeting of their mouths. Even as the kiss had ended she had felt the rough bump of the wall behind her, it was rough and cool even through the thin fabric of her gown. Blue eyes fixed hers as she went to touch him, stilling her hand. His hands on her shoulders had the gown puddled at her feet. She was pretty sure she'd heard a tear but couldn't find it in her to care. Her eyes had drifted shut at some point but they flared open when she felt him turn her abruptly. Suddenly his back was against the wall and the hand in her hair was tugging her down towards the ground.
"I want you on your knees Ziva, need your mouth on me." He watched desire rush into her felt the way her skin heated beneath his touch. His demand so blatantly stated had her eagerly lowering herself in front of him. There was a beauty in her submission in the way her eyes never left his, the beauty that she was the one in control even though he'd been the one to command. He'd thought she might tease him but he was left breathless when her mouth slid over him in a glide of satin. His hands tightened on her shoulders, there would be marks tomorrow but the thought barely registered. The long slow slide of her tongue swiping him from base to tip had him questioning if he could hold himself up under the gentle assault.
Ziva savored the heavy weight of Gibbs' hands on her shoulders the way he guided her while thrusting against her mouth. He was so uninhibited hiding nothing he wanted from her. The way his body trembled beneath her touch made her feel powerful. Her own body shook, his taste earthy and spiked with spice she couldn't hold back a moan of pleasure at the feel of him in her mouth. A less than gentle tug on her hair had her rising back up to meet him. She was torn between the loss of him between her lips and the anticipation of having him inside her.
Gibbs nearly lost his war against his control as he stopped her. He'd almost lost himself down the silken path of her throat but he wanted more, didn't want it over that quickly. Her muffled sound of disappointment had him clenching his fists even tighter in the long dark length of her hair. He turned her toward the bed, but with a hand on her hip directed her to remain standing. Reaching into his pants pockets he pulled out a small bundle of satin. It was the softest he could find a brilliant shade of blue and as he unrolled the long strip of fabric he saw her eyes fixate on it. He waited for her to recognize what it was to see her acceptance or denial. She didn't even need to look at him for him to know her answer. The rough rasp of her breath grew even shallower the need nearly shouting at him. When her eyes did find his he wanted to bet his chest in pride at the absolute trust, anticipation even he saw there.
Ziva felt his mouth capture hers and again he poured everything he was into the kiss. It demanded her need, forcing out a cry of desire. He broke the kiss gently, leaving her standing as she knew he wanted her. He circled behind her and ever so carefully grasped first one wrist and then another. Clasping her hands together she heard another low rumble drawn from him. Only a heartbeat after her fingers linked together she felt the delicious whisper of satin wrapping around the delicate skin of her wrists. The fabric was warm still from being in his pocket, and it warmed further as it was woven around her skin.
Gibbs watched his hand shake from the amount of control required to work the fine fabric around her wrists. With deliberate movements he anchored the fabric with a knot. The satin locked against her skin with an abrupt bump on her skin. From behind her he watched her head fall back, a gasp fall from her mouth and her breasts sway from the deep breath she took. Pulling less than gently on her hair his mouth found the sweet spot just behind her ear. "Mine"
Ziva felt her whole body shake with passion, barely able to stand, a tear forced its way from her eye streaking down her cheek against her will. The strength of that word so intimate, so theirs, told her everything about how much she meant to him. That starkly uttered word was better than any sonnet, any declaration of love, even more than any vow. When she again opened her eyes he was standing in front of her, watching her.
Gibbs didn't question the tear that silvered its way down her cheek. He felt the same soul deep sense of rightness. This woman was his, would always be his, it amazed him every time he felt the truth of it. They didn't need to speak the moment spoke everything for them. Stepping forward he let his body slide against hers his hand reached behind pulling on the length of satin left loose and pulled gently. She bowed against him and with a hand on her waist he slid inside her sinking fully inside her in one full stroke.
Ziva wasn't sure how she managed to stay standing; perhaps he was holding her up and she didn't even know it. She'd expected him to work a tease of touches, dragging the moment out in a sensual torture. Instead he'd claimed her body with dominating finesse with only a shift of hips. She called out and it wasn't quiet bordering on a scream she felt him continue with a series of strokes that speared deep. Her body contracted around him snaring tight, dragging silken muscles across his cock. His own desire ripped from his throat against her neck. Somehow she found the support of the wall behind her but she couldn't remember moving. It should have been uncomfortable her hands behind her the wall pressed up against her. Instead all she felt was the satin around her wrists the steel of him inside her and the rush of heat flaming across her body.
Gibbs watched a thin layer of sweat sparkle across her skin and kissed at the salty sweetness of it. He guided her legs around his hips, pressed his palm against the flatness of her stomach. The secret between them, the secrets they kept every day made the moment so much more and when she shattered around him he couldn't help but follow. White hot fire streaked around them, he felt it beneath her skin, racing under his, her lips whispered Neshama again and again as though a prayer. Finally it was all too much and the collapsed together on the bed. Pressed together, hearts beating in time they simply breathed.