A/N: Sorry about the insanely long wait between chapters. Gah. I was on a roll when I started posting this here and that's WHY I had started posting, otherwise I had stopped posting WIPs here until I finished them. Again, sorry. Hopefully it won't take so long so update again.
Chapter Twelve
McGee found himself taking in the striking gold and tan of Tel Aviv as Ziva sped through the streets of the city with ease. It was obvious she was very familiar with the city, and also obvious that she was in a desperate hurry to reach Michael's residence and check on the children. He reached a tentative hand over to rest on her thigh, and that seemed to relax her and she eased up on the gas pedal.
"So," McGee started, attempting to make some kind of conversation to pass the time, "what did your father mean by expecting to see Tony?"
Ziva stiffened and pressed down on the gas pedal again, flattening McGee against his seat as the Mini lurched into motion. "Can we talk about something else, please?"
McGee frowned. "Sure. I was just trying to make conversation . . ." He looked over at her, studying how her hands were clenched around the steering wheel as if it were the neck of one of her targets and she'd been ordered to kill via choking. There was definitely something she wasn't telling him. He didn't want to push the issue, but he felt he had a right to know. He didn't want her to keep secrets from him, and he was going to ask her again. When they got to the hotel. The last thing he wanted to do was piss Ziva off while she was driving.
Ziva noticed McGee's silence and gave him a glance. She needed to tell him. He had a right to know. It made her feel absolutely awful to see him pouting because of something she had done, and while she was sure he wouldn't like what she had to tell, she could hope that he could at least forgive her and they could move on. Because if there was one thing she was sure of, it was that she wanted to move on -- with McGee.
She reached over and placed a hand on his knee, causing his head to pop up in surprise. She gave the most genuine smile she could muster and said, "We can talk tonight, when we're alone."
He nodded and looked out the window, noticing they had stopped in front of an apartment building. He returned his gaze to Ziva. "Is this it?"
Ziva nodded and turned off the ignition. "It is." She faced forward again, her hands still gripping the steering wheel tightly. "And it is time to say goodbye to Michael."
McGee sensed her emotions about to overwhelm her and reached over to take her hand. She turned her gaze to him and found his eyes shining as he spoke to her.
"And hello to our future."
…
Gibbs and Tony sat in silence in the team's Charger, their eyes trained on a house across the street from where they were parked. Ever since Tony's blow-up at Abby -- if that was even what it was; Tony made it a habit to simply be bitter and raise his voice a little, something he'd picked up from Gibbs -- the senior agent had said only the bare minimum to anyone. Gibbs had a feeling he knew he was in trouble and that's why he wasn't talking. And while he generally wasn't big on talking himself, he had to soothe things at least a little bit before McGee and Ziva returned, otherwise the resulting fallout would be twice as bad.
"We gonna talk about this or are you gonna sulk for a month?" Gibbs asked, his voice low and as deadpan as always.
"Thought you didn't like talking," Tony responded, his tone as icy as earlier.
Gibbs shrugged a shoulder, taking a sip of coffee before saying, "No, not usually. But this whole Ziva thing is bothering you and I don't want it affecting how you work." Not to mention she doesn't deserve it, he added in his head.
"I'll get the job done," Tony said, still staring at the house they were staking out.
"DiNozzo, as much as I like the silence, I kinda like the idea of my team being able to work together."
Tony rolled his eyes, but when he spoke, his voice was filled with as much sadness as it was sarcasm. "Then maybe you should have stopped me from loving her."
Gibbs let out a heavy sigh. "Aw, geez, DiNozzo . . ."
"I know," Tony said. "I deserve a whole body slap for that."
Gibbs shook his head, his eyes closed in disbelief. After a moment of silence, he said, "You never could keep out of trouble, could you, Tony?"
Tony sighed, staring down at his hands. "Not when it really mattered, no." He looked up at Gibbs. "What are the odds she's in it for a Porsche?"
Gibbs remained staring out the windshield. "Not very good, DiNozzo."
Tony let out another sigh. "That's what I was afraid of."
Gibbs didn't say anything in response, just continued to watch the house, and the car was bathed in a tense, thoughtful silence once again.
As Tony and Gibbs remained sitting in their car, McGee and Ziva exited theirs, ready to see Sari and Micah.
The elevator ride to the apartment was silent and seemed to take ages, but they finally arrived on the correct floor, five floors up. Ziva held her head high and walked from the elevator, heading right for Michael's apartment. As she reached it and raised her hand to knock, McGee noticed she was shaking. Not much, just a tiny tremble, but the meaning was the same. He laid a hand on her back and she tensed, then relaxed, reaching a hand behind her to grasp his other hand. She knocked on the door.
After a few minutes, they heard the scrabble of someone unlocking locks and the deadbolt. The door opened to reveal a tired-looking Israeli woman, who smiled at seeing Ziva. "Ziva," she breathed. "I am glad you are here." She looked past Ziva then, having noticed she wasn't alone. "You brought a friend?"
Ziva gave her a small smile. "Yes, Carmela. This is Tim McGee. He is . . . my partner."
McGee waved. "Nice to meet you," he said genially.
"How are the children?" Ziva asked into the somewhat awkward silence.
Carmela looked at Ziva with somewhat sad eyes. "I do not think either of them realize what has happened quite yet."
Ziva nodded. She had expected that to be the case. "I assume you are aware of Michael's wishes."
Carmela gave her a bittersweet smile. "It will be . . . not easy to see the children leave, but Michael knew what would be the best for them." She gave Ziva a concerned look. "Are you ready for this?"
Ziva smiled at her. "I am a trained assassin, Carmela," she said lightly. "Surely parenting cannot be much more difficult."
The bittersweet look remained on Carmela's face and a few tears escaped and flowed down her cheeks. "Michael was a good man. This should not have happened."
"I know, Carmela," Ziva said softly, and McGee must have been able to hear the tears in her own voice, because he placed a comforting hand on her back. She shot him a grateful smile, then turned back to Carmela. "May I see them?"
Carmela nodded, wiping away her tears. "Of course," she said, and turned to lead Ziva to their bedroom.
Ziva started following Carmela, and McGee held back, but then Ziva turned to him, extending a hand in invitation to join them. He gave her a soft smile and took it, following the two women through the apartment to a small bedroom in the back, where the sounds of the children playing could be heard.
Carmela knocked softly and then poked her head inside the room, speaking in Hebrew. "Shalom, babies. Look who is here."
The children looked up, their faces brightening when they saw Ziva, who gave them a look of mock surprise, her mouth wide and a smile in her eyes. She dipped down to their level, holding her arms open, and McGee couldn't keep the grin off his face as Sari and Micah rushed to her, babbling excitedly in their native tongue as Ziva gave them both a protective squeeze.
The whole scene was just so unlike Ziva, but at the same time, it seemed perfectly natural for her, and McGee felt a small twinge of something (love? sadness?) upon seeing the scene. These children were about to become a part of his life, a really big part, and they had no idea.
As Ziva continued to speak with the children, McGee swallowed a lump in his throat. He knew he cared about Ziva and wanted to be with her, but he hadn't really realized the depth of his feelings. He really cared about her. He might even say . . .
At that moment, Ziva looked up and turned to ask McGee a question, but stopped short at seeing the expression on his face. A different question came to mind. "Tim? Are you okay?
McGee snapped out of his thoughts on hearing Ziva's voice. He looked down at her, the feelings coming to the surface again as he met her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I just got distracted."
She stood up then, slowly, keeping her gaze on him. "Tim," she said softly.
He shook his head. "We can talk later. You need to be here for your family now."
Ziva looked down for a moment, then placed a hand in one of McGee's and looked up at him. "You are my family, as well. Do not forget that." Her fingers tightened briefly around his.
He smiled at her. "Never, Ziva." They continued to gaze at each other for a few more moments until Carmela's voice reminded them of where they were.
"Ziva?" Carmela asked softly, and Ziva and McGee broke their gaze, looking to the nanny. "I am sorry to interrupt. I have this for you." She presented an envelope to Ziva. "It is a letter from Michael. I found it in his study, in the safe." She bowed her head. "I was told, if anything happened to him . . ."
Ziva reached a hand out to Carmela's shoulder. "Thank you, Carmela. She took the letter from the nanny and looked up at McGee. He nodded in understanding.
"I know," he said. "I'll stay here."
She smiled at him and reached up on tiptoes to give him a small kiss on the cheek, then stepped back, her hands on his face. "Thank you," she said almost inaudibly, then stepped away and out of the room, leaving McGee alone with Carmela and the children, who weren't paying attention to the adults.
McGee watched the children playing, a soft smile on his face that was as much for the innocence of the situation as it was thinking about Ziva. Carmela seemed to be able to read that, because her voice soon broke into his thoughts.
"She cares for the children a great deal, Mister McGee," she said. McGee looked up and met her gaze. She smiled at him and continued. "You are more than her partner, yes?"
McGee returned the smile. "She's incredibly important to me," he confirmed.
Carmela nodded, satisfied with the response. "You will take good care of her?"
"Only the best," he said, and that was no exaggeration -- his feelings for Ziva . . . they ran so much deeper than anyone could have imagined. He looked Carmela in the eye and admitted to her what he had only just realized himself. "She's everything to me."
Carmela's smile widened. Finally, it looked like Ziva would be happy. She opened her mouth to speak again, but Ziva appeared in the doorway then, looking distraught.
McGee immediately grew worried. "Ziva? Are you okay?
Ziva found she couldn't say anything, and she simply held the letter out with a shaking hand . . .
* * *
