Thank you for your all's patience as I update this at random daily. And thank you to those who leave reviews; I love to hear what you think.
jae
Patience
The moment small feet hit the floor, her eyes flutter open. She blinks slowly against the early morning sunrise peeking through the curtains, and her partner's face greets her in its glow. His face is relaxed with sleep, hair disheveled and his arm draped loosely over her hip, anchoring her close to him.
Soft footsteps make their way from down the hall, and Ziva smiles in anticipation for the early morning visitor.
His eyes blink open at the feel of Ziva's nails scratching lightly up and down his arm, and he regards her with a drowsy smile.
"Time to wake up." She murmurs, leaning over to brush a kiss against his lips. Tony hums against her in brief indulgence, before pulling back and turning his face into his pillow.
"S'early." He mumbles, brushing his hand down her hip and pulling away to wrap the sheets around him. "We told her to wait at least until the sun's up."
She laughs quietly, brushing her hand through his hair fondly just as the sound of their door pushing open greets their ears.
Ziva glances out of the corner of her eye, and sure enough, familiar, hazel eyes peer hesitantly from behind their bedroom door at the pair of them tangled in bed. The doorknob twists as she pushes it open slowly, wider, to better see them. Ziva finally turns her head in her direction, and the little girl's face lights up upon seeing her awake. She lets go of the doorknob, pulling her pacifier from her mouth, and gives her a toothy smile.
Ziva grins, pulling her arm away from Tony to pat the space beside her.
"Good morning, neshomeleh."
The toddler makes her way across the room, and Ziva rolls to face the side of the bed, reaching over to help their daughter as she scrambles to climb atop the mattress.
Once up, she drops her pacifier onto the bedside table, brushing the tangle of curls from her face and crawls over to climb on top of Ziva.
Ziva smiles up at her, reaching to brush her hair behind her ears. The little girl's glance falls across Tony, his face still buried in his pillow, and she points to his head.
"Daddy sleepin'?" She attempts to whisper, but Ziva can see Tony's jaw shift in a tell-tale smile. She reaches for her hand, capturing it with hers and regaining her attention.
"Yes," Ziva whispers back, "So we must be patient."
The little girl's eyes shift briefly toward her father again to observe him solemnly.
"Long time?"
She gives her a patient smile, drawing her hand to her mouth, pressing a kiss against her small fist.
"Soon." She murmurs, and the little girl heaves an epic sigh.
"Then we get Christmas tree?" She captures Ziva's other hand.
"Yes," Ziva chuckles, "And we will decorate it tonight."
Her toothy smile returns then, and she waves their hands together excitedly.
"And daddy do the colors?"
Her voice raises several octaves, and Ziva shushes her softly. The little girl immediately quiets, shooting a worried glance toward Tony's still figure.
"Sorry, sorry." She whispers, freeing her hand briefly and leaning over to pat Tony's shoulder with a feather light touch. She glances back at Ziva, who tries to stifle her laughter.
"Yes; maybe you can help your father put up the lights?"
She nods, grinning, her curls tumbling free from behind her ears.
"I help!" She glances over once more at Tony. "But patient?"
Ziva hums, nodding her head.
"But patience." She affirms, and the little girl frees her hand to pat her cheek.
"Maybe we make daddy coffee?" She asks seriously, "And he wake up and we can get da tree?"
Smiling, Ziva nods, and the little girl quickly untangles herself from Ziva's hands, crawling off her body towards the side of the bed. Ziva watches her carefully as she drops to the floor, her feet hitting the carpet safely with a soft thump.
"Come on, momma." She tries to tug at the sheets around Ziva, and she concedes to her daughter's demand, unearthing herself from the warmth of her bed.
Once Ziva swings her freed legs over the side of the bed, the little girl turns, letting go of the sheets and hurries down the hall in the direction of the kitchen. Ziva twists to regard her partner's form still obscured by sheets and pillows, and leans back to brush a kiss to his jaw.
"You owe me," She murmurs, and feels him grin.
"Twenty minutes." He turns his head, his voice clear now as his face is no longer hidden in his pillow. Ziva narrows her eyes at his sleepy grin, but doesn't curve her smile as she presses a quick kiss to his lips.
"Twenty minutes," She agrees, pulling back and getting up from the bed. "She won't be any more patient than that."
Tony closes his eyes, relaxing once more into the covers.
"I owe you." He murmurs, and she gives him one last, warm smile just as the faint sound of momma comes from far off down the hall.