Seeing Gibbs leave early, act mysterious, put the seed of doubt in Jenny's mind. The missed messages from a woman, visits from the mysterious redhead, gave the seed the nutrients it needed. By the time she heard the secretaries whispering and some of the agents out and out gossiping about it, she was convinced. Gibbs was cheating. It was one thing when he was dating Hollis, rubbing her nose in the fact that he didn't need her, didn't want her anymore, since technically they hadn't dated in years at the time, technically it hadn't been cheating, technically either one of them could have dated whoever they wanted, but that was back then. Since Christmas, since they'd started dating again, it was definitely cheating. The problem then was not defining what he was doing, but figuring out what to do about it. She knew, in the back of her mind, that if she walked out again, there would be no third chance. If she walked out again, it would be the sort of painful goodbye that the last time hadn't. Last time, not only had she left him, but the country. She wasn't forced to see him every day and not be able to have him. Her decision back then hadn't been easy, but easier than watching him date right in front of her face, have to deal with the reminder day in, day out. There was always the option of sucking in her pride, of staying with him, but could she ever trust him again? Could she live with herself, with being a fool? There was no easy solution, no quick fix, and no one provide the answer.

Tony walked up the stairs slowly, his very stance signaling defeat. He'd gone over to prove himself and Jenny wrong. Of course Gibbs wasn't cheating. It was Gibbs. He bent the rules from time to time, but never that seriously, never hurt Jenny that badly. The whole team knew how he felt about cheating, he was just as vocal about that as he was about marriage, but yet when he'd been faced with the truth, there were no other alternatives.

He knocked on the door, walking in, seeing Jenny looking at framed picture that had made its appearance on her desk a few months back, one of her and Gibbs when they were still partners, on a boat somewhere. She took great care with the picture; it was obviously a very important memory to her. He started to turn around, come back later, but she put the picture back down and looked at him, her green eyes red with tears.

"Jenny?" His voice was gentle, almost affectionate with her, seeing her not as his boss, but a friend, family through Shelby.

"Hi, Tony." She didn't smile, but did give him her full attention. He looked at her, unable to tell her, unable to say the words, explain what he'd seen. Even he himself didn't understand it. "Is everything okay?"

"No." He shook his head. "I saw…I saw him." He paused. "I saw him…and the girl." He paused. "I'm sorry, Jenny. I…"

She felt like she'd been punched in the stomach, like she couldn't breathe, the worst pain she'd ever known. "Just tell me," she finally managed to say.

Tony told her everything he'd seen, the intimate dinner, the quiet conversation, the touches, until he thought Jenny would faint, be sick, or both. "Jenny?" She shook her head, sitting there in shock, not knowing what to say, not knowing what to do, her heart ripped out of her chest.

Shelby Gibbs walked into the office, not expecting, but not surprised, to see her two best friends there together. What she was shocked to see was how pale Jenny was, how she looked like she couldn't breathe. "Jen?" She rushed over, kneeling by her friend. "Honey, what happened?"

"Jethro…" was all Jenny could say.

Shelby felt a tightening in her own chest, looking at Tony, her worst fear, losing her family, surfacing again. "Tony?"

He looked away, not wanting to tell her, not wanting the fight that would inevitably come, but knowing he couldn't put it off forever, he looked back at her, staring into the blue eyes he loved so much. "I caught him cheating."

"What the hell?" She looked at him like he was crazy; she honestly thought he was. "What do you mean 'you caught him cheating'?"

"I was worried about him…because he was off this week…even for him…so I went by and I saw…" He recanted the story again.

"So basically, you spied on my brother, saw something that could have been completely innocent, couldn't give him the benefit of the doubt, came up here and upset Jen?" She rolled her eyes, got up, and slapped the back of his head. "Go downstairs. Go downstairs and wait for me."

"Shel…" He started, but knew that look in her eyes, the one he always obeyed, and did so this time as well, giving a final look at Jenny before letting the door close behind him.

Shelby turned around slowly, seeing Jenny, unable to yell at her friend. "C'mon. Let's sit. I'll pour us some coffee." She walked to the coffee pot, pouring a mug for herself, refreshing Jenny's, and sat beside her friend on the couch. "Jethro would never cheat on you."

Jenny wanted to believe that with all her heart. "How do you know?"

"Because I know my brother. I believe, with all my heart, that he would never hurt someone he loved…and he loves you, Jen. He always has. You should hear the way he talks about you…" She held her friend's hand. "Please believe me. You're the only woman in his life."

"He was just separated from Diane when we first got together. He married Stephanie two months after I left him. And the whole time he was still in love with Shannon, who he didn't even tell me about. Yeah. I'm the only woman in his life."

Shelby took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She knew that she wasn't the one Jenny needed to hear the words from. "Just don't do anything stupid, okay? Think about it. Sleep on it. Then, in the morning, if you still think he could hurt you like that, I'll support you in whatever you want to do."

Jenny squeezed her hand gently. "You're a good friend."

"You're a good sister." Shelby smiled, letting go. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go kill DiNozzo."

Shelby watched Tony ride up and down in the elevator a few times before getting in with him, pressing the button between floors to stop. He saw the look in her eyes and tried to deflect some of it. "You look so sexy when you're pissed off," he said with a patented smile.

"Shove it."

"Baby, I can explain…"

"Explain? Go ahead. This I'd love to hear." She crossed her arms, obviously angry.

"How come Gibbs is the one…" He grew quiet quickly, thinking better of finishing the sentence. "Jenny was upset about the rumors, so I wanted to convince her she was wrong."

"What's wrong with saying 'Jenny, he loves you, he would never cheat on you' and leaving it at that?"

"I didn't think…"

"Damned right you didn't think!" She studied him. "You know him. Sometimes I swear you act exactly like him. How do you think he could cheat on her? How do you think he could hurt the person he loves most?" Her anger settled and she looked at him with new eyes.

"What?" He asked, not able to read what she was thinking, but knowing it wasn't good. "What is it?"

She pushed the elevator button, feeling ill. "I have to go. I have to go now."

"Shelby…" She moved away from his touch. "Shelby, baby, what's wrong?" He held her, firmly so she couldn't get away, but not tight enough to leave bruises. "Baby, talk to me. Please. Whatever I did, whatever I said, I'm sorry…"

She looked down at the floor, anywhere but at him, no longer trying to get away, the elevator still moving. "If you're so much like Jethro, and if Jethro's cheating, then why I should I trust that you're not?" As the doors opened, she moved away from him, getting off the elevator and walking away. He stood there, totally in shock, her words moving through his head, scared of losing her, scared of hurting her, and scared that she was right.