A/N – Another chapter for this story. A happy chapter with a little bit of emotion thrown in. I hope you like it!
Washington, DC
It had been two weeks since the team had found out that Tony and Ziva were not only together, but also engaged now. Finally, Abby allowed the information to sink into her head. She sent out a text message. They were doing dinner tonight at her place. They were going to celebrate this Abby's way. Tony and Ziva both knew that it involved alcohol and Ziva was reluctant to go. She wasn't ready to tell the others the rest of the news yet. It was not only too soon for them to hear so much, but it was too soon for her to share, even though things were looking great so far.
Tony met Ziva in the break-room during their lunch. Ziva looked exhausted. She had her head down on the table and wasn't eating anything. He had seen this many times before. He was sure her stomach was upset and she was ready for a nap. He sighed and sat down next to her. He placed a gentle and caring hand on her back and rubbed it gently as she rested her head.
"I'm scared, Tony," she whispered, without picking her head up or looking at him.
"What are you afraid of?" he asked.
"Abby's party," Ziva said. "She's going to have champagne she told me.
"I could offer to bring it and bring sparkling cider instead?" Tony offered with a light smile on his face. "We'll figure it out."
Ziva nodded and sat up, looking Tony in the eyes. She was concerned about this and everything that was going on. She was really beginning to worry far too much. They both knew it. They were both worrying about the baby and the team finding out about the baby and how it was going to affect their lives. They had already started looking around at houses, even though they enjoyed Tony's apartment. They knew that there was a good chance that they were keeping this one and they needed a bigger space with an extra bedroom for the baby.
"I'm not going to be drinking either," Tony said. "I promise. If you're not drinking then neither am I. It's only fair."
Ziva smiled at him and pulled her chair closer to his. He wrapped his arms around her and held her in place there, with her head on his chest. They had been misbehaving horribly at work in the last week. Ziva's emotions were out of control and she was completely exhausted, and yet nobody dared to say anything to either of them about appropriate office behavior yet, though they both knew the conversation was coming if they kept it up.
"Something about work conduct," said Gibbs' voice with laughter following it. "How you feeling, Ziva?"
"Exhausted, if I am being honest. Not hungry. Sick to my stomach. Nervous. Scared. Terrified. Excited. Happy. You know," Ziva said with a smile on her face.
Gibbs laughed. "All the right emotions for a pregnant person," he said quietly and joined his two agents at the table. "You need a naptime?"
"I will be fine," Ziva said laughing at his words.
"I'm serious, Ziva," Gibbs said.
"So am I, Gibbs," she said just as seriously.
"You need to take care of yourself. If you're exhausted, you need to sleep. If that means I need to give you an hour for a nap, then that's what I'll do. If that means you need to spend three hours in the bathroom everyday, then that's what I'll do. If you need three meals during the day, then you'll get them. If you need to go home early, you'll go home early. But, honestly, Ziva, I'm not going to let you two go through that again," Gibbs said quietly and seriously. "You're carrying my grandbaby and I'll make sure you take care of yourself and him or her."
Ziva smiled and so did Tony. Their arms tightened around each other. They had had a talk with Gibbs not too long ago. They were wondering if it was alright if the child referred to him as "grandpa". He had smiled at the thought. He liked that idea more than anything in the world. These were his kids and they were having a kid. He was going to be the child's grandfather and that was that.
"Go on home, both of you. DiNozzo, get her a nap and then we'll see you tonight at Abby's. I volunteered to bring the champagne. I'll make sure I'm the one to pour it so you two get the sparkling cider," Gibbs said quietly. "I know you two are keeping this quite until you're sure it sticks."
They smiled at him. "Thank you, Gibbs," they both said at the same time and he smiled at them.
They returned to the squad room and grabbed their bags. They had spent every morning riding to work together now that they were no longer hiding their relationship from everyone. McGee gave them a confused look as Gibbs stepped back into the squad room.
"They're going home to get some rest, McGee," Gibbs said to them. "They've got to be lively tonight at dinner, I think. And, we've all been working really hard on this case. A lot of late nights. If you need the rest, you should go home too and Abby."
"I'm fine, boss," McGee said, his confusion growing a little more. Gibbs never usually cared whether his team was rested or not and certainly not for a night of fun. What was making him so soft about it now? McGee was not the only one who was wondering. There was the girl that was sitting on the other side of the dividing wall that had tried to get with Tony a hundred times at least, EJ Berrett that was looking curious too. But, it was her last day and she hadn't heard the conversation about Tony and Ziva being together. She shook her head and ran to meet them at the elevator.
They all climbed in. She needed to go down anyway. She looked over at them. They were standing close, but not touching each other. She watched for a moment and then decided it was time to speak.
"What are you doing tonight, Tony?" she asked.
"Going to a family dinner," he said quietly, without taking his eyes off Ziva. EJ had become somewhat of a problem the last few days and they wondered if she would ever heard the news that they were engaged to each other.
"Oh," she said quietly. "I was going to see if you wanted to go out for drinks. Maybe afterwards?"
"Not drinking," he said. "And, I'm busy afterwards. As a matter of fact, I can safely tell you I'm busy for the rest of my life."
"What?" EJ said with shock. "I took you for a player. Flirting. Going out. Drinking. You know?"
"Used to," Tony said. "Until I found where my heart belonged."
Tony's eyes were still trained on Ziva and she was smiling up at him. She took his hand and nearly sighed at him. She had known his past and she hadn't cared. He had known some of her past and hadn't cared. That was one thing that told them that they genuinely loved each other.
EJ's eyes flashed to the glint on Ziva's left hand and her eyes widened. "I would personally rather remain a free spirit," she muttered to herself. "No more going out. No more dating random people. No more having fun. No more exploring other people. You don't know what you two are giving up."
"You don't know what you're missing by commitment," Ziva retaliated. "Trust me."
"Says the girl who doesn't trust anyone," EJ argued. "How can you marry someone if you don't trust them?"
"Because she does trust me," Tony said quietly and pulled Ziva into his arms, without their eyes leaving each other. "You'll know what I mean if you ever find someone that is so right for you."
She sighed as the elevator opened and allowed Tony and Ziva to leave her alone to her thoughts and disgusted look. She shrugged and got out. Tony and Ziva walked to the car and climbed in, starting their journey home. They were both satisfied with the way they handled EJ and it wasn't the first time that they had handled her, but the first time since telling everyone at NCIS that they belonged to each other. EJ was tired of being let down by Tony and Ziva wasn't entirely sure why she kept trying, but she could see a glimmer of something in her eyes, saying that she was not done trying to make Tony less than reliable and prove Ziva's trust wrong. But, Ziva knew that Tony was not going to do anything like that.
Hell! Tony would hardly ever look at another girl in the eyes, forget flirt or stare like he used to. He was totally different from the man that she had met so many years ago. But, so was she. She was changed in so many ways and she loved this man with all her heart. She did sigh this time, happy that she had come to this life in this country to love this man. She could not have made a better decision right after they had rescued her from Somalia in becoming an American citizen. It was definitely the best decision of her whole life and she couldn't possibly ever regret it.
If it was not for that one decision they would not be sitting in this car together. She would not be pregnant with this child. She would not be engaged to Tony. And, honestly, she probably would not be alive to even think about what she was missing out on. She smiled and looked over at Tony.
"I love you," she said quietly.
He smiled, but looked confused. They hardly ever used those words randomly, but she was doing so now.
"I love you too," he said. "What's on your mind?"
"I am just glad that my choices have led me to this moment now," Ziva said quietly. "My choices were not always the best choices, but the more recent ones definitely were. They led me to you and all this. I'm happy, Tony. I am genuinely happy about everything."
He smiled and took her head. He kissed it lightly and gave it a squeeze. He was happy, too. He was even happier hearing her admit just how happy she was. Things had definitely changed with both of them. They were both far more open about everything than they ever had been before. And hearing emotions from Ziva's mouth was something that he would never get used to, after being trained for a long time to know that she didn't speak her emotions with words, only with her eyes. He smiled at her.
"I'm happy, too, Ziva," he said quietly and kissed her hand again. "More than happy."
They shared a smile as Tony parked the car and looked into her eyes. He then got out and went around to open up her door for her. He took her hand and led her into his apartment building and up toward the elevator. They needed to sleep, but perhaps it could wait. It was only noon and they had all the way until six before they had to be at Abby's for dinner.
Tony opened the door for her and she sank onto the couch immediately. She closed her eyes. He sat down next to her, laughing to himself at how exhausted she was. But, he wasn't going to laugh out loud, because he knew that she might get angry easily with those hormones running through her.
"You should nap on the bed. Your back will hurt," he suggested, taking her hand and pulling her to a stand to join him.
Her eyes opened and she pulled him back to her. He looked confused. She smiled at him and pulled him into a kiss. His arms wrapped around behind her back and she held him tightly around the back of his neck. As their lips parted and their tongues met, her hands became tangled in his short hair and his were roaming down her back and into her hair.
When they finally pulled apart, Ziva smiled at Tony mischievously. "I have other ideas as to what to do with our time off," Ziva whispered to him, her eyes meeting his and he smiled widely at her.
"I think I like how your mind works, Zi," he said back just as quietly.
She giggled a little and pulled him in for another kiss as he pushed her backward onto the couch and climbed on top of her, laying her lengthwise down the couch. They got totally lost in each other there and clothes were scattered from one end of the room to the other.
When they were both left in a sweaty, tangled mess of each other, panting for breath, they shared another kiss before cuddling up on the couch and turning on the television. They weren't sleeping at all and they had taken too long with each other to get any sleep. They watched a short film on television and then got up to get ready for their celebratory dinner at Abby's house that evening.
Ziva dressed in a red dress, which showed Tony that her body was definitely changing, something he already knew and hoped the others wouldn't yet recognize. Gibbs would see it, but he doubted the others would look close enough to see it as well.
Tony took her arm and led her downstairs toward the car and held her door for her. They drove in silence. They were nervous and excited about this. This was their family getting together and celebrating a happy moment for them. They both wished that they could tell everyone the full story and were glad that they had let Gibbs in on their secret, so that he knew to get sparkling cider as well as champagne for the others who were not pregnant right then.
Tony parked outside of Abby's house and noticed that they were the last to arrive. Oops, he thought. He glanced at the clock and realized that they were still early and everyone must be eager for a night out together with their coworkers, friends, and family.
"No matter what happens, Zi, we'll be okay," he promised her, feeling her nerves growing as he put the car into park.
"I know, Tony," she whispered. "I know."
He smiled at her and gave her hand a light squeeze. Tonight was about them and celebrating them. Tonight was about enjoying the moment. Tonight was about being happy together and showing off what they were to each other. Tony went around and opened her door for her, taking her hand and helping her out of the car.
He pulled her into his side and she laughed at the sudden change in direction. They were definitely not used to showing their coworkers this side of them, but they would get used to it. Tony wrapped his arm around Ziva's waist and led her to the front door of the house where Ziva held him back a little.
"One thing before we go inside," she muttered as he finally stopped.
He looked at her with question in his eyes and she pulled him close to her. She pressed her lips to his and he to hers. They shared a slow and long passionate kiss outside of Abby's house before breaking apart.
"I love you, Ziva David," he said quietly.
"I love you too, Anthony DiNozzo," she replied to him. "Let's go celebrate us."
"That sounds like a wonderful plan, future Mrs. DiNozzo," he said quietly, causing her to smile as he opened the door to Abby's house and led them inside.