In spite of his efforts to mask the shock of Sandy showing up at his doorstep, she knew she'd caught him by complete surprise. But he let her in and gestured to the living room as she walked past. "Take a seat."

He looked back at Kensi, now leaning against the wall by the door, who held something of a disguised glare in Sandy's direction. He squeezed her shoulder lightly and mouthed the words, "you okay?"

She nodded and smiled reassuringly.

Deeks retrieved Kensi's crutches that had been leaning against the couch and passed them to her. With as little clumsiness as possible she made her way to the single seat couch and took a seat. Deeks knew it was time to break the curious silence. "So what's going on?"

"Oh, uh…Callen invited me? Said we were hanging out at your place tonight and I should come along."

Deeks looked over at Kensi who looked as bewildered as he felt. "My place? Really?"

"That's what he said."

Kensi pulled her phone out of her pocket. "I have a text from Callen. Invited himself and the gang over here."

"Oh, good."

Good work, Callen. Real good work.

He'd been looking forward to a night with his partner. A night to talk about anything but work. Of course, he didn't mind having the team over. They were good company. But Sandy? She was not on this team. In spite of his words earlier today, he was completely convinced she'd never be one of them.

"Can I get you a coffee?" He asked her, mostly to diffuse the awkward silence in the room.

"Yeah sure. White, no sugar."

"Got it."

Deeks disappeared into the kitchen to make the intruder's coffee.

I'll get you back somehow, G Callen.

…

Kensi's ankle ached. And her head. And this chair was uncomfortable. And she was hungry. But she knew the real reason she was in a bad mood was that Sandy was here. The plus side was that she'd stopped Deeks from tickling her and carrying her around, not that Kensi had really minded that. So it wasn't a plus side really. In fact, if she was being honest with herself, she may have even enjoyed it. She mentally added it to the list of negatives about Sandy showing up.

But Kensi was a good person. She had pride and dignity. She'd take the high road and be nice. For a while. "You did a good job today, Agent Brookes. Got us some good leads."

Sandy looked surprised by the compliment. "Thanks. He's good to work with."

Kensi glanced at the kitchen, knowing very well that Deeks would almost certainly be eavesdropping on the conversation. "He is."

"We work well together."

Kensi forced herself to nod, unable to come up with a response better than, "hmm."

"You were lucky to have him as a partner."

Kensi blinked. Had she just heard that correctly? Did she say 'were'? Past tense. That was past tense, right?

She forced herself to keep her tone casual. "He is a great partner."

"So how did you sprain your ankle?"

"Uh," Kensi hesitated. "Deeks pushed me to the ground. He thought I was in danger."

"Were you?"

"I don't know." It was true. He'd pushed her to the ground in a moment of panic when he'd thought someone was going to shoot at her. No one had. But it was possible they would have had she not hit the ground. It didn't matter now.

"I suppose it will still be a while before you can get back on the field?"

"No," Kensi responded too quickly. "Should only be a few days."

"You're still on crutches. You'll need weeks of physiotherapy to get it back in shape." Sandy paused and her lips stretched out into a thin smile. "It's okay. You don't have to feel like less of an agent. You do a good job in ops. I'd never want you to feel bad that I'm doing your job now."

"Temporarily," Kensi added firmly.

"Deeks and I work well together, Kens."

Kensi smiled. Not a sweet smile. Not an understanding or agreeable smile. But it was an intimidating smile. A confident smile. A smile that says, "oh honey, you have no idea what I'm capable of."

"I'm glad to hear that. You'll probably miss working with him when I come back then?"

At that moment, Deeks interrupted, walking in and handing Sandy her coffee, then taking a seat as far from her on the couch as possible. "What time did Callen say everyone was getting here?"

Kensi looked down at her phone. "7:30. It's 7:15 now."

"Oh, I thought he said seven. Sorry, Marty."

Kensi decided to answer for him. "Oh, that's okay. Honest mistake, right?"

Sandy flashed a fake smile in Kensi's direction before turning to Deeks. "So you're really good at undercover work. You do it so naturally."

Deeks smiled politely. "Thank-you. Hear that, Kens? I'm a natural."

"Anyone would have believed we were married the last two days. We play it well, I think." She laughed airily. A sickeningly sweet laugh that Kensi despised. She wondered if Deeks would see through it.

"Actually a couple of months ago, Kensi and I went undercover as a married couple for two weeks. Fooled a lot of people. Even Hetty was shocked at how convincing we were. Isn't that right, sugar bear?" He said, looking over at Kensi. He wore a small, sideways smile and his blue eyes stared right at hers.

An idea dawned on Kensi. Deeks had given her a good opportunity to teach Sandy an important lesson – no one messes with her relatio—partnership with Deeks.

She rolled her eyes and leaned forward, crossing one leg over the other. "Ugh. Sandy, don't you get tired of all the pet names?"

Sandy looked down at her lap, then back at Kensi. "Pet names?"

"Yeah! Sugar bear, hon-bun, sweetie, baby. It never ends, right?"

Sandy laughed awkwardly, deliberately avoiding eye contact with Deeks. "Those are some creative names."

"And doesn't he make the funniest faces in his sleep? Those little twitchy things he does with his nose? And the way he insists on the right side of the bed."

"Uh," Sandy clasped her hands together, then released them, bringing one up to brush her fringe from her face. "We decided it would be more comfortable not to share a bed."

"Oh." Kensi feigned surprise. "You're probably lucky. He brings you the most amazing breakfasts in bed. Pancakes, coffee. Amazing! But so unhealthy."

Deeks is grinning at Kensi from his side of the couch. He knows exactly what she's trying to do. And he'll tease her for it later. But right now, she can tell he's thoroughly enjoying it.

Sandy shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"And then he gets all overprotective and concerned about everything you do."

"I do not!" He objected half-heartedly.

"Oh, really? You freaked out about me cutting my foot in the house."

"I saw blood and you didn't answer me when I called out to you. What was I supposed to think?"

Kensi deliberately ignored his question and turned to Sandy. "You probably know what I'm talking about, right? How he gets so protective?"

"Uh. Actually—"

A knock on the door sounded in that moment. Clearly grateful for the interruption, Deeks jumped up and opened it to Callen and Sam. "So I hear we're hanging out at my place tonight," Deeks remarked casually as they strode in and made themselves at home.

"You've got the biggest TV."

"Good point."

"You did good today, Deeks," Sam complimented him, walking past and taking a seat on the single couch opposite Kensi, the one with the best view of the television.

"Not so bad yourself, Sam. Too bad it didn't get us anywhere though."

"We'll get there," Sam reassured him, taking a sip of the beer that Callen had just handed him.

"Eric and uh… Nell, is it? Are they coming?" Sandy questioned, as the team subtly glanced at each other in shock that she didn't know their technical analysts name after a week of working with them.

"Yes, they're coming," Callen replied.

"Well, we've got pepperoni pizza on the way and a solid plan to watch Die Hard tonight." Deeks grinned at Kensi.

"Sounds good to me." Callen sat on the couch where Deeks had formerly been sitting, forcing Deeks to sit between Callen and Sandy.

"I'm up for that," Sam agreed.

"Good. We can take turns making sure Kensi doesn't try walking on her bad ankle."

Callen turned his head to her. "Really, Kens? Again?"

"Again?" Deeks questioned. "How often have you been doing it?"

Kensi shot Callen a sharp glare, then turned to Deeks. "I've been the perfect patient. Don't listen to them."

Callen and Sam erupted into exaggerated laughs before Kensi subtly changed the subject to the movie they were about to watch.

And half an hour later, the seven of them, including Nell and Eric who had arrived shortly after Callen and Sam, were engrossed in Die Hard. The only noises other than the movie were of Eric and Nell whispering to each other every so often.

But it wasn't the movie or the whispering that had Kensi's attention. It was Sandy. Slowly, in the last half hour she had shifted her way across the couch and closer to Deeks. She'd done it subtly – shifting to get 'comfortable', leaning forward to grab her drink off the coffee table and returning to her seat a little closer to Deeks than before. At forty-five minutes into the movie, she was sitting close enough to Deeks that their arms were touching. Then at some point, her hand had dropped to her side, now sitting between her right leg and Deeks' left. At one point, she'd actually placed her hand on his thigh and whispered something to him, which he laughed at.

As the movie grew more intense, she'd managed to grip Deeks' arm several times, and now the tips of her fingers were resting lightly on his arm. He wasn't comfortable with it. The expressions on his face had conveyed that much. But Sandy seemed oblivious.

The whole thing bothered Kensi way more than it should have. Both that Sandy had the audacity to show such affection to Deeks, and the fact that Deeks hadn't stopped her.

They'd completed almost two thirds of the movie when Deeks suddenly reached for the remote and paused it. Six confused faces turned to him for explanation.

"I'm uh, going to make a coffee. Anyone else want one?" He asked, standing.

His question was met with variations of "no thanks".

He looked straight at Kensi. "Coffee, Kens?"

The look wasn't just any look though. He was speaking to her in his silent expression. So she complied. "Yeah, sure. I'll help you get it right this time."

She picked up her crutches and followed him into the kitchen. As they entered he turned to her, standing so close she thought she'd have stepped backwards had it not been for her ankle.

"You need to help me!" Deeks whispered loudly.

Kensi raised an eyebrow. "With what, Deeks?"

"Don't tell me you haven't noticed. You've been watching us all night."

Kensi lifted her hands in surrender. "Hey it's none of my business if—"

"Switch places with me!"

Kensi pretended to think about it. "No, I don't think I will."

"She's…she's…she keeps…touching me."

"Touching you?"

"Kensi." His eyes begged. "Help me out here."

"Okay," she conceded.

And she did just that. But instead of switching seats with Deeks, she'd gone one up. Instead, choosing to sit directly between he and Sandy. She could feel Sandy's eyes glaring at her, but she ignored them. Eventually, Callen got up for another beer and returned to take the seat that Kensi had been sitting in before.

A successful game of musical chairs, Kensi thought to herself. But then there was phase two.

A few minutes after Kensi and Deeks had sat down again, she shifted slightly closer to Deeks. They weren't touching. Not quite. But she could feel his warmth next to her. Then she leaned close to him, letting her lips brush lightly across his ear as she whispered. "You owe me for this."

The corners of his lips turned upwards into a soft smile. He turned to her as she turned her eyes back to the movie, though she was beyond paying attention. He leaned into her, his nose lightly touching her temple, his warm breath dancing in her hair. "Thanks. I was worried for a while back there."

She waited several seconds after he turned his eyes back to the screen. Her skin was tingling around her ear and right down her neck, and she could feel butterflies dancing in her stomach – a reaction she would never, ever admit to. She turned back to him and whispered again, quoting the profound speech he'd prepared for her just a few months ago. "Everything is going to be alright."

He laughed at that. A soft laugh. But loud enough that the room could hear. And in her peripheral vision, Kensi saw Sandy turn and glance at them, an annoyed look cast across her face.

And Kensi's mission was accomplished.

But then it was Deeks' turn. Once again, he leaned close to her, and she fought to still the chill that threatened to run down her spine. He whispered so quietly, she almost didn't hear him. "Can I put my arm around you?"

Kensi's heart stilled momentarily, then began to beat rapidly. Her first thought was that the rest of the team would see. Imagine the explaining they'd have to do! We were trying to make Sandy jealous? No, that wouldn't do. We were trying to get her to back off of Deeks? They'd never believe that.

But the way he'd asked her… it was so cute and vulnerable. So not like the Deeks she normally saw. And part of her knew that he was doing this for her too. He saw her insecurities. Even the ones she wished were never there. He saw her defending their partnership, defending what she meant to him, and he to her. And he was fighting alongside her to let Sandy know that nothing could get between them. Not even a sprained ankle. Not even a snobby, overconfident agent who thought she was every man's dream partner.

She whispered her main concern back to him. "The others will see."

Deeks took a while to respond. And Kensi quickly began to regret her reply. But then he leaned back to her and whispered, "we can explain later."

Swiftly making up her mind, Kensi nodded at him with a smile, which he returned enthusiastically.

It took him a few minutes to make his move. And up until he did, she'd started to wonder if maybe he'd changed his mind. But then slowly, he'd lifted his arm and tucked it behind her back, reaching around till his hand sat lightly on her waist. She allowed herself to lean into him, nestling her head in the comfortable space between his shoulder and torso.

She noticed Callen's surprised expression when he saw them, and Nell's excited smile. She also noticed Sandy shifting in her seat, deliberately trying not to look at them.

And less then twenty minutes later, she felt her eyes slowly closing on her, as she fell into a peaceful sleep in Deeks' arms.

…

The rest of the night had been significantly less eventful. The movie had finished and Callen had driven the sleepy Kensi home. Sandy had stayed after everyone else until Deeks made an obvious hint for her to leave, which she'd done, thankfully.

And now he was lying awake, going over and over and over in his mind what it had felt like to have his arm around Kensi. The ache he'd felt for her when he'd overheard her conversation with Sandy. And the slight bit of pride he'd felt at knowing Kensi was just a little bit possessive of him, and maybe even a bit jealous of Sandy.

The bold move he'd made tonight was mostly for her. Sure, he didn't mind the idea of putting his arm around Kensi, even in front of the rest of the team, awkward as it may be. And yes, it would definitely help show Sandy that he wasn't interested in her advancements. However, mostly, it was to show Kensi that he'd choose her any day over Sandy. To show her that he was proud to have her as his partner and friend, and that he was willing to show Sandy and the whole team how committed he was to that partnership and friendship.

Unable to sleep, and unable to stop thinking about his partner, he rolled over and picked his phone up off the nightstand.

…

"You awake?"

"Am now. What's up?"

"Nothing. Just thinking."

"Sleep, Deeks. I'll see you in the morning."

"You're amazing, Kens. Hope you know that."

"Thanks, partner. For everything. Goodnight."

"Sleep well."

…

And the next morning, he woke up to another text.

"You're amazing too Deeks. Seriously. Don't forget it."

A/N: Hi everyone. I'd just like to say thanks for reading my work. And thanks for all the reviews, etc. They all mean so much to me. I'm thinking I may still get a couple more chapters out of this one. Let me know if you have ideas. Thanks again :)