Ziva grinned as she stood to answer the door and flicked a look across at McGee who was still asleep in the bed. He lay sprawled face down diagonally across the large bed with the white sheets rucked up across his middle. Ziva had to admit he looked very boyish and rather adorable with his hair all rumpled and his face relaxed in repose. She presumed he hadn't slept very well after being offered the operation by Fornell and after a long round of increasingly bawdy jokes, tickling, laughing and pillow fights she seemed to have exhausted him into actually getting a good nights sleep.
She swayed across to the door in her Pleasure State deep lavender silk and lace slip. She had purchased it especially for this operation. When you looked closely at the pattern it had Geek Goddess in small scripted gold writing across the material.
Ziva hoped McGee might find a moment to appreciate it when he woke up. Last night she could have been wearing a sack before he turned the light out and he wouldn't have noticed. So much for being HIS Geek Goddess.
"Room Service Madam. I have your breakfast here" Tony smiled and attempted not to leer as Ziva opened the door and leaned seductively on the frame.
"Oh lovely. Just what I need a hearty breakfast…after last night anyway." Ziva winked at Tony and he frowned as he wheeled the cart bearing their breakfasts into the room. Yeah right Ziva and McFarty pants.
Tony cast a quick look around and was surprised to see McGee, typically an early riser still asleep in the bed. Why was he sleeping upside down with his head at the foot of the bed? Why was there a pillow in the doorway to the bathroom? And what was a t-shirt doing hanging from the ceiling fan above the bed?
Ziva walked over to the bed and bending one knee on the edge of the mattress leaned over McGee and began placing little kisses on his cheek and neck. Well she needed to get him used to her attention so she might as well start before he was even awake.
Tim mumbled in his sleep happily and reaching out quickly pulled Ziva into his arms and with a twist rolled on top of her pinning her to the bed.
Ziva remembered Tony saying something about McGee doing wrestling at High School. Well well it was proving to be useful. She smiled up at Tim who blinked sleepily at her almost bemused at the situation he found himself in.
Bed. Ziva. Dreaming?
"Morning sleepy head. Breakfast is ready"
"Huh Hum"
Tony cleared his throat loudly and Tim looked up at him with a start with Ziva still underneath him. Tony gave him a narrow eyed look as Tim blinked rapidly, still with sheet creases on one side of his face and with his hair sticking up all over the place. No wonder he had to use so much goo to stick it down.
"The paper you requested Sir"
Tony held up the Financial Times and placed it next to the two covered cooked breakfasts on the linen covered cart.
Tim smiled gleefully at Tony
"You know it is a very smart uniform they have here, isn't it Damita? That cropped red jacket especially..with all the thick gold braid? Lovely."
Tony smiled back.
"Why thank you Sir. I hope you enjoy the start of the Convention today. I believe you are going to be one of the key note speakers later this week? I don't enjoy public speaking myself. All those eyes looking up at you, JUDGING you."
Tim's smile disappeared as he suddenly considered the day ahead of him. Ziva cursed under her breath and with a wriggle and a quick push slid out from underneath McGee. Then grabbing Tony by the elbow she steered him quickly to the door.
"No tip for you" Ziva hissed frustrated at her good work relaxing McGee being undone.
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Tim pushed up his glasses and pulled again at his tie which seemed to be doing its best to strangle him. A large awkward balding man in his 40's smiled at him in the elevator sympathetically.
"I hate those things too. But when you're trying to make a good impression it always seems like a good idea."
Tim agreed and tucked his folder of papers and notes under his other arm. When the doors opened both men stepped out and started crossing the lobby to one of the smaller ballrooms.
As Tim bent down to collect his badge from the sign in table he noticed that the friendly balding man was collecting one too.
"Are you attending the conference too?"
The man smiled and nodded and nearly knocked a vase over at the same time. One of the staff grabbed it before it tipped over and the man gabbled his apologies before turning back to Tim.
"Oh yes I'm Dr Bruce Lawrence."
Tim searched through all the names he had been studying.
"Fruit bats!" he said enthusiastically and Bruce smiled delighted.
"Oh I don't mean you ARE a fruit bat, just that I remember reading your work on their migratory impacts on seed dispersion for crop I'm Dr Toby Wilson." Tim apologized.
"Toby Wilson? Oh Wow. You're one of the reasons why I came to this thing. Genetically modified crops and how they are going to be introduced into standard production formats will certainly end up affecting my black winged friends. Normally I don't venture out much. I'm not very good around people you see. I get nervous and generally I find it easier to spend my time either in a lab or waiting for dusk in nice quiet caves."
Tim smiled at the rather endearingly enthusiastic man who was moping sweat from his shiny brow with a handkerchief.
"Well it's nice to meet you Dr Lawrence. I don't get out much myself and I am feeling a lot more nervous than I anticipated when I decided to accept the invitation to attend."
"Well how about we stick together then for a bit? I have met a few of the others coming when I attended a series of FAO lectures on the new amendments passed last year. Pretty nice fellows generally once you get to know them."
"That would be great Dr Lawrence. Thank you"
"Oh call me Batty…everyone does." And Batty laughed as he struggled to clip his name badge to the collar of his ill fitting jacket, tripping over the edge of a rug as he did so.
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"So there I am hanging out over the edge of this small cliff and the local guide who can't speak a word of English is waiving his hands at me. And screaming something….The ropes are tangled and I know that any minute thousands of bats are going to come pouring out of the cave. And then……my assistant….she has got my phone in her hand and she's standing in the raft waiving it around trying to get a signal…."
Tim just could not stop laughing. He hadn't laughed like this in a long time. Not just polite yes Tony haha's but real wiping tears from his eyes enjoyment. Batty who claimed not to be very good with people seemed to have an endless catalogue of stories rivaling great disasters. And each one was more hilarious than the other.
Wolverine, Reynolds, Buzzard, Batty and himself were sitting in the Hotel lounge having a drink. They had been assigned together for the final part of the day as a discussion group but after several drinks mutating genomes had dropped from the topic of conversation in favor of more simulating conversation.
Wolverine whose real name was Edward Logan, Reynolds whose real name was Burt Jenkins and Buzzard whose real name actually was Buzzard had joined their dynamic duo as Batty had named them.
Tim found he enjoyed their company. They were clever men but they weren't arrogant and they generally seemed happy to be out and away from endless funding grant applications and teaching useless research assistants how not to fall out of rafts. In fact they reminded Tim of older versions of school boys excited to be let out on an excursion to a museum. He was kind of hoping he might acquire his own nick name before the week was through.
They also seemed to completely accept without question that he was who he said he was. There had been the odd question but Tim had felt prepared and was able to answer easily. Lately there had been more discussion going on about what on earth they had been served for lunch and if it met the FDA protocols for human consumption.
Tim found himself feeling relieved as he started to settle into his role and actually enjoy what he was learning. This was certainly better then following up old cold case files. And Batty's stories were much better than listening to Tony's endless discussion and analysis of his so called wild weekends.
"Hello Boys" Ziva purred and slid her arms around Tim's neck giving his neck a nuzzle and little growl.
"Have you been having fun?" Ziva smiled at the men arranged around the table as she leaned into Tim, her arm draped possessively around Tim's shoulders.
Batty's jaw dropped and he seemed to completely forget what he had been saying. Wolverine managed to knock his drink over and spill most of it down Reynolds trousers and little Buzzard actually blushed.
Tim smiled at their amazement, pushed his glasses up onto his nose and pulled Ziva in closer.
"I would like to introduce you to my wife Damita. Damita this is Dr Edward Logan, Dr Burt Jenkins, Dr Jacob Buzzard and Dr Bruce Lawrence."
Ziva smiled dazzlingly at them and shook her finger at them "I hope you keep my Sweetie Pie out of mischief now. Otherwise I will know who to blame"
The four men shook their heads and earnestly muttered reassurances as they bathed in Ziva's beauty as she stood smirking in her brand new very short and very fitted fire engine red dress.
"When you have finished playing with your friends you must come back to the room and I will show you what I brought today. I have a little surprise for you."
Ziva teased running her fingertips across Tim's lips and leaning down over him flashing the deep plunge of her cleavage before sauntering away, her hands full of boutique shipping bags and her stiletto heels clicking on the marble floor.
"Oh my GOD! That's your wife?" Reynolds finished moping up his trousers while Batty simply sat back and watched her walk away.
Tim grinned "Yup"
"You lucky Bastard." Batty smiled at him admiringly.
"I have a wife, lovely woman. I think she is around here somewhere. Always getting lost but she always turns up eventually. Timid little thing, brown hair? You might have seen her? Maybe I should get her to wear something red like that. Might help me find her." Wolverine sighed and ran a hand through his thinning salt and pepper hair as he peered through the lounge as if his wife would suddenly appear to.
"How on earth did you meet her?" Buzzard asked
"We got stuck in an elevator together. Damita is claustrophobic and I helped calm her down. Afterwards she thought I was her savior and well…"
Buzzard grinned "Well damn. I'm spending every spare minute in the elevator. Maybe I could rig the cables?"
"Well gentlemen if you don't mind, as much as I have enjoyed this conversation there could be trouble if I don't go pretend to admire my wife parading her latest purchases"
Tim bowed and waived farewell as they hooted and laughed at his 'reluctance'. Tim walked away with a bounce in his step promising to see them tomorrow. So this was what it felt like to be the popular kid in the class? Perhaps this case wasn't going to be quite so dreadful after all.