A/N: WOW. The response to the last chapter was amazing, and we were thrilled! Thanks to all who reviewed! Keep it up!

There was too much that Ziva wanted to say and too little that she knew how to. As she struggled to find the right words, to find something that might make him stop looking at her like that, Tony wrenched his arm from her grasp and backed toward the door.

"Tony, please." Ziva said softly, defeated. Her anger was gone, and with it went her arsenal. She had nothing left to throw at him. "We should talk about this."

"I can't right now Ziva!" He stormed back to where she sat; picked up the photos he had shown her and thrust them toward her. "I can't look at you without picturing you looking like this, and I really need that out of my head, so no, right now, we should not talk about this!"

He may have been mad as all hell, but nothing short of an explosion was going to send Tony out of that house if she was still inside. Still, the thought of going downstairs and facing anyone was almost as out of the question, so he stormed up to the roof, and left her to be the one to explain the shouting and slamming of doors.

Ziva stayed on the counter in the men's room just long enough to go over the battle that had just happened and wonder how things had changed so drastically in one night when Gibbs opened the door.

"That probably could have gone better Ziver." He said, using her old nickname to comfort her, and surprising her when it worked. "And you two usually do so well in the men's room."

She dropped her eyes to the floor and began studying the tiles. "I am not sure how to fix this." She admitted. "I have never seen him this angry."

"Hey," Gibbs said, walking over and nudging her, "He's not angry Ziva."

She looked up at him incredulously. "Do not tell me your hearing is going." She quipped with a small smile.

"He's a little angry," Gibbs conceded, putting a hand on Ziva's shoulder, "But he's mostly scared. Not something he handles too well."

"I know I should have told him. He is my partner, and I should have told him, but I do not like discussing my father or Mossad. I do not want to see the pitying look I get from everyone else come from Tony."

"He's more than your partner Ziva." Gibbs said quietly, ignoring everything else she said because he knew she already had the answers to those questions.

She nodded, even though what he said was purely a statement; there was no question or doubt in his voice. "He told you?" she asked. Gibbs wasn't fooled; her voice was even, but her eyes told him everything was hanging on that question.

"He didn't exactly have to, but he did anyway. Apparently, you're heading somewhere serious. And I can't stop you."

That coaxed a real smile out of her. "And he is still alive?" she asked.

Gibbs gave her a mock head slap, his hand barely connecting with her hair. "Give me some credit David. I wasn't surprised to hear him say it. He changed for you Ziva."

"He went to the end of the earth for me." She murmured more to herself than to Gibbs.

"You think he would have done that for anyone else? Trust him, Ziva. Because you two only get one chance to bend the rules. Don't screw it up."

Ziva pushed herself from the counter. "Thank you Gibbs." She said. He jerked his head toward the door, and watched it close as she left. He smiled and found himself thinking of Jenny. He had taught her the rules, but she had taught him the lesson that allowed him to do what he had just done for Tony and Ziva.

Some rules are, simply and inevitably, made to be broken, Jethro.

Tony was immensely grateful for one thing right now, and that was the strange architecture of their borrowed building. Half of the roof was open, and the other half was another floor, providing him with something to lean against. No, slump against. Because if there was ever a time for slumping, this was it.

He was expecting her before she appeared, he wasn't expecting her to take his breath away when she did. She looked positively ethereal in the moonlight, surrounded by inky black sky. She sat next to him, close enough for their arms to brush like she always did.

And there they sat side by side, staring at the sky, neither of them speaking.

"I hate rooftops." Tony finally said. In his experience, nothing good ever happened on rooftops. You fall off of them, or you jump, or you watch your partner get shot by someone who turns out to be the half brother of the focal point of your life.

She remained silent for awhile before sighing in resolution. "I am sorry, Tony."

He twisted slightly to look at her, missing the glaring, white hot anger he felt earlier. It was an easier emotion to confront than the all consuming fear slowly spreading through his entire body. He looked down, and sensing an opportunity, Ziva turned toward him and placed a hand on his cheek. After a few seconds of stillness, Tony lifted his gaze to meet hers, and Ziva swore she could feel the tugging of her heartstrings when she saw unshed tears in his eyes.

Without thinking, Ziva wrapped her arms around him and pulled him to her, and somewhere in the fluidity of her movements, he reciprocated, slipping his arms into her embrace and leaning against her. They were a car that couldn't start, an engine that almost roared to life before dying again in the way they started talking, and then froze so much they couldn't move.

It was unclear how long they sat there, wrapped in each other, Tony's head against Ziva's chest. He listened to her heartbeat, the constant reminder that she was here and she was safe. What could have been hours or minutes later, he finally spoke.

"I am so scared." He muttered. He moved his arms out from around her and shifted out of her embrace, but as he leaned against the wall again, he moved himself so close to her that his shoulder was practically behind hers. "Even in Africa," he started, feeling her tense at the words, "I was never this scared."

"I am not going anywhere Tony." She said, moving her hand next to his so their fingers were touching. She almost took his hand but thought better of it; they weren't out of the woods yet, so to speak.

"You can't control that." He replied in a tenset voice, trying to control the tightening in his chest and the rising panic that threatened to form a lump in his throat and more tears in his eyes. "I know you don't like to be anything but invincible and invulnerable but you're not. I know how good you are, Zi, but no one is infallible."

She had nothing to say to that. She knew it was true; even when she was trained to behave like she would live forever, to take big risks for big rewards, she had known that. In her former life, it was a comfort of sorts, and certainly an excuse. There was no need to get too attached, to get involved in anything complicated, because life could end in the blink of an eye.

Next to her, Tony shook his head. "No." he said out loud, straightening his back enough so he could look down at her. "No. We're not doing this anymore, Ziva. No more silence, no more secrets, and no more lies. Both of us. From now on I want to know everything."

He didn't specify the context of his demands, but it was clear to both of them he wasn't just talking about Varnaz. Tony held her gaze and continued. "I'm tired of pretending," he murmured, repeating something she'd always questioned the meaning behind. "Tell me everything."

"Give me a moment." Ziva said. Tony looked at her sharply, wondering if she listened to anything he just said. She saw the blend of emotions playing across his eyes and face and summoned her courage. Fall, she told herself. Fall and he'll catch you. "I feel as though the world just skidded to a halt." She admitted.

Tony looked surprised, but recovered quickly. He slid a few fingers over hers, urging her to continue. "I have never been in a real relationship before, at least not like I want this to be and…"

Tony nodded, stopping her. "I get it. Me neither." He paused. "But I'm not backing down. We're not going to keep doing this." It was the thing that killed them each time. The secrets, the fear of letting down, of driving away.

"I know I should have told you earlier, but Tony, what did you want me to say? I'm terrified of what Varnaz Terizan is capable of, but please don't change the way you look at me or behave toward me?"

Tony considered saying he wouldn't have, but she was on a roll now. "Let me tell you about the mission that destroyed my relationship with my father? Hey, DiNozzo, want to discuss the only thing that might be worse than Somalia? Or perhaps, would you like to know something that will distract us from preventing a terrorist attack?"

He laced his fingers through hers now and squeezed. He wasn't a hand holder, and he'd bet all the money in Varnaz's bank account that she wasn't either, but this moment called for it. In that gesture, she felt like he was reassuring her that she could, and should, trust him.

"My father thinks I only found out the details of that mission recently, but I knew all along. He was Deputy Director then, and removing me caused the mission to fail. I had surprising success gathering information but after my departure, there was nothing."

Tony separated their hands and put that arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to him this time. To Ziva's surprise, she actually felt safe.

"Removing his daughter from a mission on track to be successful almost cost my father the directorship of Mossad." She said flatly. "He acted like a parent protecting a child, and he was punished for it. And that was the last time he behaved like a father. After that, he saw me as a soldier, and I always thought that if I was good enough, strong enough to protect myself, he wouldn't worry about me anymore."

Tony felt her leaning closer into him, but to his surprise she wasn't tense or on alert. She actually seemed to relax as he pulled her closer.

"I was naive enough to convince myself that if he didn't worry, I'd be his daughter again. I only succeeded in being the most effective weapon in his arsenal. The sharp end of the spear, he called it. But still just a soldier."

"I wish I could erase all of that." Tony said after awhile, meaning it more than he meant anything else in his life.

"In a way, you are." She told him. Five words that put everything in perspective for Tony. Any doubts that may have been lingering in his subconscious disappeared; this was right. "You saved me, after all. And not just from…him," she said, referring to Saleem, "But from Mossad as well."

"I always wondered." Tony admitted as she drew her legs to her chest. "Where was your father was while you were…" he swallowed hard, "In Somalia."

"Now you know. In Israel, lamenting the loss of one spear. Probably sharpening another." He detected a little sadness in her voice, but not bitterness. Anger rose in Tony again, this time towards Eli. Right. Eli.

Ziva was surprised when he gave a slight chuckle. "I said some things to your father I doubt he was too pleased with."

In spite of herself, she smiled, picturing Tony facing off against Eli, and unloading on him the way DiNozzos did when they got angry. "He already does not like you. I do not think you could have made it much worse."

Tony had started saying something about meeting the parents when she interrupted him. "Since we are being honest there is something else I need to say."

His calm nod was a ruse to keep her comfortable as every fiber of Tony's being erupted with hope.

"You said something to me. In Somalia. And last year, things were…" she trailed off. Giving herself a mental kick in the ass, she forged ahead. After all, Tony had gone there with her, even if he was pretending it was a movie.

Deep brown met bright blue as their eyes locked, and Ziva gave herself the final push from solid ground to an Anthony DiNozzo induced free fall. "I can not live without you either. And I do not want to try."

She stopped, wondering if she would end up crashing into the ground after all when a heart stopping, life changing grin spread across his face. In contrast to the anger, apprehension, and sadness that had plagued his features tonight, Ziva swore that grin was the biggest and most genuine she'd ever seen.

"DiNozzo, rule number one." He said, sounding slightly dreamy, and a little dazed. Ziva chuckled as he amended himself. "No, rule number two."

"What is?"

"Always take the bad news first. I used to be the other way around, but as of this moment, I've decided the best news always comes after bad news."

"And DiNozzo rule number one?" she inquired.

"Never give up on who you love. And never let them go." He said, serious again, his eyes boring into hers.

"I think that is David rule number one as well." She whispered. She wanted to kiss him, she wanted to slowly undress him right here and let him make love to her under the stars, because unless she was confusing her English, Ziva was quite certain he just implied he loved her. And she had implied right back. It was an unconventional way of saying it, but it was them.

The chain of events that got them to this moment re-entered her mind and she knew instantly that no matter how much she wanted to, this was a bad time for either of them to undress. It was still unclear what she was expected to be to Varnaz and she didn't want to taint things with Tony.

"I am not a fan of the state of the relationship discussion." Ziva declared suddenly, earning a smile from Tony.

"This may shock you, Zeevah, but neither am I."

"I am walled." She shot back sarcastically.

Tony blinked twice. Whatever she was trying to say she really mangled it. Finally it clicked. "Floored. You're floored, not walled."

She scrunched her nose the way she always did when she made mental notes of the mistake and tried fleetingly to work out how the correct expression made any sense at all, and Tony couldn't help laughing. He dropped a kiss to her head and she spoke again.

"Perhaps we will need to discuss the details when we get home, but for now, all I need to say is that this is real, and it is serious,"

Tony cut her off. "This is…it. For me anyway."

"Which is why I don't want to…celebrate it yet." Her lips twisted into a smirk, and Tony frowned.

"Please tell me that's a breakdown of your English skills."

"We are still undercover. I don't want…" she trailed off. "I would obviously prefer that…" Tony smiled watching her struggle for the words for once before shaking his head.

"You're going to be the death of me, David." He said. To prove that point, Ziva tilted her head up and kissed him, a long, intense kiss that spoke volumes to Tony. That was a great kiss, and it came with a promise.

His hand slid into her hair and she pushed him back against the wall without breaking the kiss. She pulled back just long enough to swing one leg over his lap to straddle him before crushing their lips together again. Tony's hand slid quickly to her hips, pulling her closer to him, and she kissed him for a few more minutes before pulling back and leaning her forehead against his breathlessly.

"See what I mean?" Tony asked. "The death of me."

"Are you complaining?" Ziva asked, pulling back to reveal the teasing smirk on her face.

Tony kissed her forehead, her nose and her lips. "Wouldn't have it any other way." He looked around, remembering where they were. "Eventually we should talk about you overcoming your outdoor fetish and move this inside."

She ignored him and stood up, watching him as he followed suit. "Do you still hate rooftops Tony?" she quipped.

He rubbed his chin in an exaggerated pondering gesture. "Hm. I don't think I hate them anymore, but I would advise caution when venturing on one. You never know when you're going to suddenly get over your paralyzing fear of commitment, or get accosted by some crazy Israeli chick with impulse issues."

"Your commitment phobia is no longer paralyzing?" Ziva asked, pretending to be impressed.

"Not anymore. At least not from the waist down." Tony shot back wriggling his eyebrows at her. Ziva snorted and threw a light punch at his arm.

Tony gazed at her, practically enraptured. That was one of the things he appreciated most about Ziva. He could joke about the serious stuff and she took it as just that, a joke. In a way, he thought it was easier for her too, a light approach to the serious stuff. She wasn't the Jeanne type who used any and every opportunity she could find to start a serious discussion.

If commitment was this, trusting each other's feelings without talking them to death, and punches that didn't leave bruises, he was quickly going to forget why he was so resistant to it in the first place.

Gibbs sent McGee and Sacks out for coffee. Normally, this wouldn't surprise McGee, and he wouldn't even mind. But tonight, he was confused. He had no idea what was going on, why Tony and Ziva were shouting, or why it had suddenly stopped.

"Boss it's almost midnight," McGee blurted out. "Isn't a little late for coffee?" His curiosity was rewarded with the Gibbs stare. "I mean, uh, even for you?"

"We're all going to need coffee, McGee. That's why you're taking Agent Sacks. By the time those two knuckleheads sort themselves out, Ziva will have come up with a plan."

"How do you know?" McGee asked. Another Gibbs stare, with a touch more are you really asking this question thrown in this time.

"Right," McGee continued hastily. "You're Gibbs, you always know, we're going for coffee now. Six coffees."

"And snacks!" Fornell called after them before turning to Gibbs and crossing his arms over his chest. "What the hell was that Jethro?" he said, pointing above his head to indicate Tony and Ziva.

"Minor disagreement." Gibbs said with a shrug.

Fornell rolled his eyes. "Minor disagreement? That was a battle, Gibbs. That made the worst fight you ever had with my ex-wife look like a minor disagreement."

"My ex-wife," Gibbs corrected. "And they're working it out."

"You're sure?" Fornell pressed. "It's been a while."

"I'm sure, Tobias. They haven't invested this time waiting just to screw it up as soon as they have permission."

"You gave them permission to what? To date? Geez, Gibbs, you gonna let DiNozzo borrow the car to take her for milkshakes after the sockhop?" Fornell asked with a smirk.

Gibbs chuckled to himself. "It's DiNozzo and David. They're not dating. Not in the conventional sense anyway."

"So they got around a Leroy Jethro Gibbs rule to be what exactly?" Fornell asked.

Gibbs shrugged again, uncomfortably this time. "DiNozzo and David!" he exclaimed, exasperated, as if Fornell should have known that already.

"Mr. and Mrs, Dinutso." Fornell muttered to himself. He narrowed his eyes. "They better show some restraint making up, Gibbs. If they fight that loud, I can't imagine how loud they-"

"Fornell!" Gibbs exclaimed, cutting him off. Tobias laughed and shook his head.

"Sorry. Couldn't resist."

"Resist next time." Gibbs advised sternly. He was going to add something about firing them both if anyone heard anything ever, but he was cut off by the unmistakable sound of machine gun fire. Coming from above them.

They were still standing up there. Starry skies, warm tropical air and blanketing darkness have a way of captivating you, especially if you've just gotten the one thing you really wanted. Tony's eye caught movement on a nearby roof. A few figures were moving around, which wouldn't have been so alarming if something wasn't simultaneously setting off his inner alarm bells.

He turned slowly to the roof opposite the one four people had appeared on to see there were a few shadowy figures there as well. And he and Ziva were right in the middle of them. His arms reached around her waist and pulled her to the ground with him in the instant before machine gun fire shattered the tranquil evening.

"Why are you on top of me?" Ziva asked, winking. "Impressive reflexes." She commented easily.

"God, Ziva, talk about cool under fire." Tony observed. "Think they're shooting at us?"

"I doubt it," she said, "And I'm not sugar covering either. This looks more like a dispute between cartels than a hit."

"Sugarcoating." Tony said.

"What?" she asked looking confused.

"It's sugarcoating."

"That's what I said!" she argued.

"You said sugar covering." He smirked down at her, and she felt the urge to rip his clothes off.

"Are covering something and coating something not the same thing?" she insisted.

"Well, yea, but the expression is sugarcoating…" Tony trailed off and paused. "In the many times I've pictured being on top of you, not once were we talking semantics."

"Tony!" Ziva exclaimed. "Drug cartels, smuggled weapons… that is the answer!"

"You're leaving NCIS to go a crime spree?" Tony asked, sounding disappointed. "I thought we agreed on art heists."

"I have a plan!" Ziva said excitedly. She pressed a kiss to his lips and patted his cheek in her teasing way. "Get off of me will you?"

"That hurts Ziva."

"Just for now." She said with a wink as he shifted off of her, scanning the rooftops around them. Save for one body lying on the ground they were empty. "Although I will want my turn on top of you."

She started to sit up but he stopped her. "Stay down." He said quickly, thinking of Kate. "Please? I don't want to hate rooftops again." She nodded and crawled toward the door, with him behind her, enjoying the angle of her ass.

He gave a low whistle and grinned. "Hey Ziva? You can have as many turns on top as you want."

She responded by coughing loudly. Tony rose as he crossed the threshold of the door with a sinking feeling in his chest. "Of the pyramid we're going to build later." He said, knowing his face wasn't selling his lie as he looked at Gibbs and Fornell.

He reached behind him and gave his own head a generous smack. "Saved you the trouble there boss. Two groups, four to the south of us and three shooters on the other side. They fired a few rounds, one casualty. More likely the work of cartels than a hit." Tony said proudly.

"What else did Ziva tell you?" Gibbs asked dryly.

"That she has a plan, boss."

"Yea, I thought she might." Gibbs said. "Let's hear it, David."