On Wednesday Tobias took Abby to the National Museum of Natural History to a new exhibit examining bones from the 17th century, a forensic investigation of America's past. Abby pulled him in every direction to look at the exhibit and explain the bits that he didn't quite understand.

Thursday they decided on a tour of a local brewery and dinner afterward. Fornell realized that with Abby's mind occupied with all the new things they were doing, he found their relationship less strained, almost enjoyable. Unlike Monday, Abby wasn't sulking or hiding up in her room when he got home. She was dressed and waiting, and depending on whether they were eating before they left for the evening, she even cooked dinner one night.

Friday evening Fornell took Abby out for a nice dinner as a change of pace from the past few days. They ended up at a small Italian restaurant, a place Fornell frequented often. They were seated towards the back, in a booth against the wall. Now that they had settled into a comfortable working relationship, their living arrangements were no longer a source of stress for them.

"So, tell me about your relationship with Jethro."

Abby looked taken aback. "My relationship? Come on now, Tobias."

"I don't mean to imply that something is going on, but it's no secret that you two are close. I know you've called him just about every night."

"Actually, I haven't talked to him at all this week." Abby tried not to blush. "But he's worried that I'm in danger, and he's my best friend. I usually see him every day at work, and now I haven't seen him in almost a week. I haven't gone a week without seeing Gibbs since he left for Mexico." Abby frowned at the thought.

"I've spoken to him a few times myself, and you're right, he is worried. A little more worried than I would think he should be. It makes me want to ask him the same question."

"What question?" Abby smiled up at the waitress as she placed their dinners down in front of them.

"About your relationship."

"Tobias! You know he lives and dies by his rules. There is no 'relationship,' don't be silly."

"Rule 12. You aren't a fan?"

"I think rules are meant to be broken. I think they should be considered, but not concrete, you know?"

"To prevent random flings, but yet not hinder a true romance."

"Something like that. Why are you asking me this?"

"I'm just curious."

Abby reached out and swatted at him with her cloth napkin in a playful gesture. "Well take your curiosity elsewhere."

Fornell held up his hands to protect his face and then changed the subject.

----

Surprisingly, Gibbs found himself offering to pick up dinner on Friday night for his team. They had been forced to stay late in hopes of finding that one little piece of concrete evidence to convict their suspect in the string of murders they had spent the past week working on. If they could swing an arrest, they could hand over the case and wouldn't have to spend the weekend in the office.

Rather than opt for delivery, Gibbs decided he could use the air and offered to pick up the Chinese food they ordered. He found that he had to park a few blocks away due to construction, and walk the rest of the way. He walked slowly down the sidewalk, his hands tucked in his pockets to protect against the cold evening air.

A quick movement caught his eye as he passed the window of a small restaurant. He almost didn't recognized Abby as she sat across from Fornell. She was dressed up, by her standards, wearing dark wash jeans and a nice blouse. Her hair was pulled into a ponytail rather than the typical pigtails or braids that she usually wore. He watched as she playfully swatted at Fornell with her napkin, laughing about something he had said. He watched as her face lit up when he said something after deflecting the napkin.

He was tempted to go in and say hi - he hadn't seen Abby since the drama of the previous weekend, and he didn't like that things were left on a sour note after their last call. He knew he should walk away, go get the Chinese food, go back to the Navy Yard and forget about it, but he just couldn't do it.

----

"We've got to slip up somewhere. Make this guy think that he can get me." Abby looked up from her dinner.

"We already have."

"Well, besides last weekend. We need to set a trap for him."

"I'm not talking about last weekend. I didn't want to say anything about it, but we've been leaving little hints about the charity dinner. We're hiring extra servers and we're hoping he'll sign up."

"But I know what he looks like."

"There are ways to change your looks." Tobias shrugged. "A wig and a little creative work with makeup and he could slip right past us."

"Is that why I'm not able to work with… Gibbs!"

"Gibbs?" Before Fornell could finish, Abby was out of the booth and had Gibbs in a tight hug.

"What are you doing here? Gibbs, I missed you! How did you know we were here? You should've said you'd be around, we could've had dinner together."

"Good to see you too, Abbs." It was all that Gibbs could manage through her tight hold. He gently pried her arms off his neck and held her back slightly.

Fornell leaned in a bit. "Abby, you've got to settle down a little. In case we're being watched."

Abby nodded and stepped back to stand next to Fornell. "Will you stay for a little while?"

"I can't, I'm picking up Chinese and then heading back to the Navy Yard. We're trying to wrap up our case, so the team is waiting. I just saw you through the window and thought I'd say hello. I'll talk to you soon. It was good to see you." Gibbs ran his thumb across her cheek, and then looked at Fornell. "Tobias." He turned and walked away.

Fornell directed Abby a few steps back toward their table and sat down to face her. "I know you would've liked to spend more time with him, but really, I'd hate to draw him into all this if we're being watched."

"I know." Abby nodded. "I just want this all to be over with."

Fornell noticed that Abby picked at the rest of her dinner. She made an attempt to continue their friendly chit-chat, but it was half-hearted. He filled her in on the details of the FBI formal, the people who were likely to attend, the menu, the location, but never managed to draw her attention fully back into the conversation.

---

"Jethro, what a pleasant surprise!" Sister Rosita greeted him warmly. "You look exhausted; can I get you a cup of coffee?"

Gibbs nodded and followed Rosita into her office. The team had worked well into Saturday morning before they managed to find the evidence they needed. Gibbs was able to catch a few hours of sleep but had too much going through his mind to rest completely, so that's why, at nine on Saturday morning he found himself drinking coffee with Rosita.

"What brings you in on this fine Saturday morning?"

"Abby said you mentioned that it's been awhile since I've been in. NCIS has been keeping me busy, but we just wrapped up a big case, so I had some free time."

"Ah," Rosita leaned back in her chair. "And it has nothing to do with Abby's involvement with Mr. Fornell?"

Gibbs frowned. "She told you about that?"

"We've had quite a bit of fun bowling together the past two weeks. He's a good man, takes care of her, and watches out for her. He's got to be something special if he puts up with all of us at bowling." Rosita watched Gibbs closely, noticing the way his jaw clenched and his hand tightened around his coffee mug. "Abby is playing a part, Jethro. Just like Shannon was when she was involved with the local theater. I seem to remember you jealous then, too."

Gibbs closed his eyes and remembered the first time he met Rosita.

--

Shannon was part of the cast in the musical Sleeping Beauty at the local theater and the man cast as Prince Charming fully exploited the fact that they would kiss toward the end of the play.

Gibbs watched from the lighting booth during the final rehearsal and was nearly ready to put his fist through the wall, when a much younger Rosita walked in. She immediately reminded him of his mother, her comforting presence putting him at ease. "That Charlie, he thinks he's such a ladies' man, but from what I hear, all the women ignore him backstage."

"Charlie?"

"Yes, the man that plays Prince Charming." Rosita smiled at him warmly. "You're Shannon's husband, right?"

"I am."

"She's told me lots about you. It must be hard to watch another man kiss your wife, but it's just a part she's playing. Nothing more."

"I'm not jealous." Gibbs pouted.

"I understand." Rosita patted his arm.

--

"Abby told you that she was undercover as his girlfriend?" He was surprised that Abby had said anything - very few people knew about her role.

"Well, no, I had to drag it out of her, and she wouldn't give me any other details. I must admit though, I thought it was quite obvious that she wasn't in love with him."

Gibbs tilted his head, wanting to ask why she thought it was so obvious that Abby wasn't in love with Fornell. He tried not to think back to the evening before when he ran into them while they were out having dinner. They looked pretty convincing to him.

"Jethro, you have no reason to be jealous." Rosita reached out and rested her hand on his arm. "It's been awhile since you've both been around here together, but she lights up whenever your name is mentioned."

Gibbs felt a slight flush rise on his cheeks but ignored it.

Rosita knew him well enough to know that she couldn't push him too hard or else he would stop listening. It had been the same after Shannon and Kelly died. She watched as his friends tried to force him into voicing his feelings and watched as he shut them out one by one. He had come to her, a year later and ended up spending an entire day talking about the two people he had loved most and how losing them had nearly pushed him over the edge. As with Shannon and Kelly, she would wait for him to come to her to talk about Abby. "I won't pester you about Abby, but I've seen you like this before. You might be a little riled up with this Abby and Tobias work situation, but there was still a little spark when I mentioned Abigail to you. Don't ignore it."

Gibbs handed back his empty coffee cup and stood to leave. When he reached the door, he turned back toward Rosita. "I'm not jealous."

"I understand." Rosita smiled. "And I never said you were, Jethro."

---

Gibbs lit two candles before he headed home. I really miss you guys.

-----

TBC…