While his daughter and future son-in-law frolicked in the Caribbean, Leroy Jethro Gibbs stayed in California with his wife. The longest he left her side was to get coffee. He was feeling claustrophobic from the flowers, cards, and other sentiments of well wishes in the room. It hadn't helped that the man hadn't picked up a piece of sand paper or seen unfinished wood in weeks. He missed his boat, his dog, and his work. Gibbs would keep quiet. Jenny had never left his side when he'd been injured. The team continued to check in with their two fearless leaders on a daily basis. Acting Director Vance would call in from time to time.
Jethro returned from a coffee run and smiled at Jenny. She waved at him since she couldn't speak. It was time for her respiratory therapy. He took a seat in the corner of the room and picked up a magazine, sipping his coffee and flipping through the pages.
When Jenny finished her therapy, she glanced over at her husband and waited for the nurse to leave. "You've got to be kidding."
"What?"
Her eyes were fixed on his choice of magazine, Bridal Guide.
"I might find something useful for Lizzie." He marked the page and put the publication away.
"Jethro, you hate weddings."
"Not all of them," he answered, getting up and walking to her. "I loved ours."
She looked up at him with a smirk on her lips. Of course, he'd say that if he wanted to stay in her good graces.
"Jen, I got an idea for your lung therapy."
"You do?"
He nodded his head, putting a knee on the bed and crawling towards her. She grinned at him as she scooted back. He smirked. It was useless for her to play hard to get. "Hi," he said as he rubbed his nose against hers.
"Hi yourself," she whispered, slipping her arms around his neck as he kissed her.
Jethro cursed under his breath when his phone began to ring and ignored it. As he felt her slender fingers slide down his body and to his belt, he thought she was feeling frisky. Jenny unsnapped his phone and flipped it open. He put his face into her good shoulder with a disappointed groan.
"It might be important."
"Jen, this is."
She shoved the phone at him. How much could they do in a hospital? Typical male. He'd gotten his hopes up. She rolled her eyes at him. He took it from her, grumbling and answering.
"What?"
Jenny covered her mouth as she laughed.
"Hey, Boss. Did I interrupt anything?"
Gibbs glared at Jen as she giggled. "You did. What is it?"
Tony cleared his throat. "Lizzie and I are going to stop by before we go back home."
"Is that it?"
"I think so."
He hung up the phone and looked at Jenny. "Where were we?"
"Who was it?"
"DiNozzo."
"And?"
"He and Lizzie are going to stop by before going home."
Jenny nodded her head, and Jethro realized the therapy session was over from the look on her face. He'd have to thank DiNozzo later. He watched Jenny scoot closer to him. She straightened his watch and bracelet.
"Jethro."
"No."
She sighed. "Yes."
"No, Jen."
"You should."
"I'm staying with you," he said defiantly.
"You've stayed with me long enough. You need to go back to work. The team needs you. Katie has gone back home. You need to also."
She would be stuck in California for two more months. There was no flying for weeks after a collapsed lung. Her therapy needed to be continued also. Jenny didn't see the point of everyone putting his or her lives on hold because of her. Her daughters had school and plenty of work to finish even though their professors had been lenient and understanding of the situation. Jethro had cases to solve. She couldn't see him staying in the same house with Helen either. There was no amount of square feet to prevent a world war happening if those two lived under the same roof for an extended amount of time.
"Is it what you really want?"
"No…what I really want is to be out of this hospital, back in D.C., in my home, running an agency, and back to normal."
"We can't have it all, Jen."
"I know, Jethro. I don't care if you fly out here every weekend or every other weekend, but one of us has to be normal. Please, go back to work. For me."
He stared at her and nodded his head. He leaned in, kissing her forehead and lingering. "Alright."
By the end of the week, she was released from the hospital and settled into her mother's Mediterranean styled Bel Air estate. She was not looking forward to being mothered by Helen. The woman could be overbearing and suffocating, but she loved her only daughter unconditionally. Maybe solitude could be found in the over 7,000 square foot home. Jenny never understood why her mother purchased such a large home. Gibbs couldn't wrap his mind around a house needing ten bathrooms.
He knocked one time before entering the bedroom and handed Jenny a mug of honeybush vanilla herbal tea.
"Is she still mad?" Jenny asked as she took the cup.
"Uh huh," he replied, making a face as she took a drink. He didn't know how she drank tea, especially those crazy herbal infusions.
"She'll get over it. I'm perfectly fine here." Jenny had chosen the rarely used separate hotel style guest apartment.
"Yeah. Separate from her."
"That wasn't," she stopped, noticing his look. "Okay, that's partially the reason. The French doors lead out to the garden with the fireplace. I can read, Jethro. And swim. Reading and swimming and sitting around. Trust me, I'll have plenty of quality time with my mother." Jenny set her cup onto the bedside table.
He sat down on the bed and pulled his wife into his lap. "Jen, I don't have to leave."
She ran her fingers through his silver hair. "I know you don't. Jethro, there's no reason for both of us to be unhappy. Besides, I've survived a standoff. I don't think I could survive living with you and my mother."
Jethro smirked. He knew she was right. He hadn't told her he'd walked through the Bel Air Crest community. It was secure thanks to being gated. Helen had gone through the security system with him. To double check, Gibbs had called McGee and asked the tech savvy agent questions about the system. McGee had been impressed. Helen Shepard didn't cut corners on having the best of the best. She never did anything halfway.
When she removed herself from his lap, he popped her bottom. "How much time do we got before Lizzie and Tony get here?"
"A few hours."
He nodded and walked to the French doors, opening them. She watched him walk outside and start a fire in the fireplace. Jenny shrugged her shoulders and continued to unpack. Katie had received a long list from her mother and shipped it to her. She was more and more curious as Jethro came in and out of the house. When she finished, she walked outside and smiled at him.
He had moved the outdoor sofa in front of the fireplace and had brought out the fixings for s'mores. She quickly walked to him.
"Did you remember the raspberries?"
Jethro held up the package of fresh raspberries. She groaned in delight as she sat down and took her shoes off. He laughed at her, shaking his head. It didn't take much to make her happy sometimes.
"You know, raspberry s'mores are better in the oven."
He looked at her. "Jen, I can improvise."
"Okay," she answered with a lack of confidence. If she was in charge, she would break the graham crackers in half, put them on a cookie sheet, and arrange marshmallow halves on top of each square. They would be put into the oven to broil for a minute, and the chocolate bars would be broken into pieces. Chocolate and raspberries arranged on the other cracker halves. The marshmallow topped crackers, chocolate, and raspberries would be gently pressed together to create the gooey goodness she loved so much. She opened the package of raspberries and began eating them, watching Jethro with interest. He had a different way of operating than she did.
"Hey, we aren't gonna have any left if you keep eating them."
Jenny smirked at him and closed the package, nestling into his side while he made the treats. The two enjoyed the company of each other for hours until Helen interrupted.
"I'm leaving for the airport," she told them.
"We'll be here," Jethro replied.
Jenny shook her head at him, removing herself from his arms. She walked over to her mother. "I love you," she said, kissing her cheek.
Helen smiled. "I love you too." She caressed her daughter's face before leaving.
She turned around to Jethro with a wicked grin and hint of playful in those green eyes. "I think I'll go for a swim."
"Okay."
As she walked to the pool, articles of clothing began to fall away. Jenny looked over her bare shoulder to her husband. "Coming, Jethro?"
He stared, momentarily taken aback by her. He followed after her to the pool. She hadn't lost her sense of adventure. He wasn't certain of how adventurous they could get considering she was still recovering, but he knew her body. The man wasn't known for a gentle touch, but he had one when it came to certain ministrations.
A late afternoon skinny dip was what she needed. She'd missed skin-to-skin contact with her husband. He put his hands on her waist carefully and kissed the healed smooth skin of the bullet wound to her shoulder. He trailed down, kissing the place on her arm. Her breath hitched when his thumb grazed over the area of her abdomen. As he took care of her healed wounds, she felt self-conscious.
"Jethro."
He looked into her eyes, putting his index finger over her lips. "Still beautiful."
"Thank you." She nipped at his finger, giggling when he pulled it away. She slid her legs around his waist and kissed him. The two cautiously and gently disobeyed doctor's orders.
Jethro didn't want to move from his spot on the chaise lounge. He had his wife in his arms, sleeping on his chest after playtime in the pool. He smirked as he toyed with the thought of telling Helen the pool would need to be cleaned. Jenny would kill him if he did. He twirled her red locks around his finger and watched her dream. It was safe to say he wanted to freeze time. He didn't want to go back home without her. On Sunday, he'd be getting on a plane to D.C. with Elizabeth and Tony. From experience, he knew the day would approach all too quickly. It did.
Sunday came and goodbyes were made. He had taken the latest flight he could. Jethro wanted to spend as much time with Jenny as possible, and he didn't want to share a flight with the lovebirds. Jenny was a phone call away, and he'd be back in California within two weeks. It wasn't enough; he wanted his wife home with him.
He stepped into the townhouse and dropped his bags in the foyer. The house was quiet. Too quiet. Jethro flipped on a light and stared into the study. He hadn't been in the house since the night he took care of Jenny's loose ends. He walked to the doorway of the study and leaned against the doorframe.
After receiving a phone call on the phone he'd taken from evidence, he readied himself. She was coming to him. He was calm as he poured a tumbler of bourbon. Gibbs heard her heels on the hardwood floor.
"Hello, Natasha," he said, putting the decanter down. His sidearm was on the desk. "Or do you prefer Svetlana?" He turned to look at her.
The blonde Russian, Svetlana Chernitskaya, stood in the middle of the study with a gun pointed at him.
"Not business. This is personal," he continued to speak.
"It was you who killed Alatoly."
"What was he to you?" Jethro asked as he watched her features.
"Everything," she answered, bottom lip quivering. She held the revolver firmly in her hand.
"Why now?"
"Because it took me until now to find you."
"The night he died a woman came to kill you. What happened?"
"She couldn't do it." She smiled.
Jethro glanced to his Sig Sauer on the desk. He knew why Jenny couldn't make the kill. He had rehashed the dates in his mind. The kill had not been made out of weakness. It had been done out of humanity.
Svetlana knew there was no way for him to reach for the weapon. She had the advantage. He would be dead if he took a step towards it.
He nodded to the gun. "Can you?"
She confidently cocked the revolver. Jethro waited for the shot to be fired.
A gunshot came from behind. The Russian cried out and fell onto the ottoman. Gibbs looked to Mike Franks standing in the doorway of the house. The older man walked into the study.
"You were gonna go for that. Weren't you, Probie?"
He stared at his mentor for a few moments before taking the revolver out of Svetlana's hand and checking her pulse. She was dead. He unloaded the gun and took his sidearm off the desk, putting it back into the holster on his hip.
Jethro shook himself out of his thoughts. He still didn't know what Mike had done with the body. He didn't want to know. The mess had been cleaned up and off the books like everyone wanted. Gibbs took a deep breath and walked over to the light switch, flipping it off. He couldn't stay in the house. It wasn't home without Jenny. Tonight, he'd sleep in the hull of his boat and with a bottle of bourbon for comfort.