Looking back at sunsets on the Eastside
we lost track of the time
Dreams aren't what they used to be
some things slide by so carelessly…
The Killers – Smile like You Mean It
Chapter XI – Night Out
"Could you open the door, Jon?" The younger woman called and made the final touches on her swept-up hairdo, glancing in the mirror one last time to check her face for make-up smudges. She decided to do something else with her deep auburn curls than tying it in a ponytail like she usually did it for more practical reasons.
"Hey Jenna come in, I guess Kate and Emmett will be down in a minute." She heard Gibbs greet Lisa´s younger daughter and went over into the boy´s room to get the five-year-old boy ready to leave. The child was sitting in front of the window and watched the snow falling down on the ground once again. The snowfall didn´t stop for already three days now and Brady´s hope that the school would be closed for a day grew again.
"Hey Brady, Jenna is here to pick you up, are you ready to leave?" She asked but the five-year-old didn´t show any reaction at all. Kate furrowed a confused brow and slowly walked over to the blond child, sitting down next to him, but still he didn´t move. "Is something wrong? Do you want to stay at home?"
"Do you think momma and dad knew how snow looks, Kate?" He asked and Caitlin saw the upset and at the same time really sad look in his blue eyes when he finally glanced up at her. The redhead didn´t really know what to say and just stroke his back, trying to offer him some comfort. The kid seemed to be content with that while his eyes wandered back to the window gaze into the snowy darkness again.
"I´m sure they knew how snow looks." The former NCIS agent replied and Brady nodded slowly, acknowledging her answer. He sighed heavily and turned around to lean into Kate. She just held him for a moment until they heard Jethro ask if they were coming from downstairs where he was waiting with Jenna. "Do you want me to stay here? If you want we will stay at home tonight…"
The five-year-old shook his head vehemently and he pulled away from the red-haired woman. Caitlin grabbed his small overnight bag and a moment later they joined Gibbs and Jenna in the kitchen.
"Alright, we are ready to go." The profiler said with a small smile directed at the girl and the group left the house. Brady followed Jenna to the house next door while the adults crossed the street and rang the doorbell at Lisa´s house.
"Ah Kate and John, welcome to a party only for people of age." Lisa greeted cheerfully and it was obvious that she wasn´t completely sober anymore. The two wished her a happy birthday and handed over the present they bought for her. Finally they entered the large living room where almost all of their neighbors were gathered and a second later Lisa was back, carrying a tray with champagne for the women and beer for the men. "Here you go."
"Thanks." Caitlin said politely and the two accepted their beverages. Lauren spotted the two almost immediately and waved them over to sit with her and her husband James. Like the boys they became quite good friends and didn´t care about Gibbs being much older. The Smith´s other neighbors were avoiding Kate because they thought she just married her husband only for the money, but the redhead just ignored them as well. A few hours later the men went out on the porch because some of them wanted to smoke and others just wanted to get out of the stuffy room. By now Lisa wasn´t caring about who rummaged through her kitchen and sat on the sofa with Lauren and Kate.
"So spill it Kate, what´s your secret? Jon absolutely adores you even after seven years of marriage…" The blond woman asked boldly and Lisa was looking pretty curious as well.
"Well, there isn´t a huge secret. It´s just us…" The redhead stated and shrugged her shoulders, keeping a straight face. She felt like DiNozzo was sifting through her Blackberry and just discovered that she had a date and was desperately trying to get the information she was denying him. Lauren let out a laughter and exchanged a meaningful glance with her black-haired friend, leaving Caitlin to look confused from one to another. "What? What´s wrong with you?"
"There is no point in beating around the bush, Kate. We already figured it out." Lisa spoke up and grinned at the other two women. Lauren just let out a giggle and the raven-haired woman went on. "There is a secret but you don´t want to tell us come on we all know it, you just have to say yes."
"It´s not the whole secret…" Caitlin finally admitted and took another sip of her champagne. It was just after midnight and by now everyone inside the house and on the porch had a good amount of alcohol in his or her blood.
"What is a secret?" A male voice from behind them asked and an at first slight blush crept up on the redhead´s cheeks, quickly turning in a deep crimson shade. Lauren and Lisa just winked at her playfully and left the couple alone, leaving their friend alone to answer her husband´s nagging questions. "Did I just chase them away?"
"Obviously you still have this effect on people, but it´s okay." The red headed woman replied and the gray-haired man sat down next to his `wife´. He laid his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple. Kate eased into his touch and emptied her glass of champagne, by now she had lost count but she was sure that she could still walk a straight line.
Jethro leaned even closer and started whispering into her ear. "Do you want to leave?"
"Yeah, the crowd is slowly getting way too drunk for my liking." She heard his low chuckle and accepted his hand to help her stand up from the sofa. He didn´t let go of her hand until they closed the front door behind them.
"So what was the secret?" The gray-haired man asked and his blue eyes were sparkling dangerously. Caitlin just shrugged and busied herself with hanging her coat onto the rack but the older man easily spun her around. He locked his arms around her and raised a questioning brow. She knew that look she had seen him use it on their suspects like a billion times, but she promised herself that it wouldn´t work on her. "I think I know it…"
"How could you know it?" The redhead replied hastily and he just smirked at her. It had been a test and by her slightly embarrassed look he could tell what it was, while she had to accept the fact that he won.
"You just told me, Katie…" He just mumbled and leaned in to capture her lips, ignoring the confused look on her face. By this new direction she let go of the question burning on her tongue, but decided to ask him about it later. For now she just wanted to enjoy the situation and forget about all their major and minor problems. Within a few moments the two were upstairs, going on with their little game in a more secluded place than the hall.
"So how did I tell you what the secret is?" Kate asked and shifted so she could look straight into his face. Jethro just chuckled and cupped her cheek with his large hand.
"You blushed like you always do when someone is talking about that…" He stated curtly and the redhead huffed. "I think it´s cute."
"Ugh… Cute, yeah very." Kate replied and shook her head. Gibbs just smiled at her and caressed the soft skin of her cheek.
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A/N: So finally some uninterrupted Kibbs ;) I hope you liked this Chapter and I´m really looking forward to some reviews. =)