AN: Thank you for the reviews/PMs/support on this story so far. I'm enjoying the thoughts/guesses on the upcoming/ongoing plot.
Kensi goes into work happy Monday morning. She's feeling good after a really good weekend.
The boys are already at their desks. She greets them all with a "good morning," but otherwise does not interact. She does, however, notice when Sam narrows his eyes at her and then exchanges a look with his partner as she takes her seat. She pretends not to notice.
"How was your weekend?" Sam asks.
"Fine. Yours?"
Sam and Callen exchange another glance. She continues to pretend not to notice.
"Just fine?" Callen prods.
"Just fine," she responds.
"Cause, it kind of seems like it was more than just fine," Sam pushes. Beside her, Callen chuckles. So does Sam and Renko.
Kensi huffs at Callen and then levels a glare across the bullpen at Sam and Renko.
"Why are you still here?" She asks Renko, trying to change the subject.
He holds up his hands. "Don't be mad at me, partner. I didn't say anything about your weekend."
"Yeah, well, you laughed."
Renko smirks. "I laughed because you can literally pull off any cover while undercover and convince anyone of anything, but when it comes to your personal life, you can't hide a thing."
She forces herself not to react to Renko's words. They remind her of just how good she is at hiding parts of her life. Now that she is getting close to Marty, she is starting to wonder if that is really a good thing.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Renko chuckles. "Okay, partner. I'll let it go."
"I'm not your partner," she shoots back at him.
He jokingly clutches at his chest. "That's hurtful. I'm not looking for a long-term commitment, Kensi. I'm just looking for acknowledgment."
She smiles and rolls his eyes at him. "Well, partner, if we're partners aren't you supposed to be on my side?"
Renko considers her for a moment before mock-glaring at Callen and Sam. "Leave her alone. If she doesn't want to share details of her romantic weekend, she doesn't have to."
Both Callen and Sam laugh.
Kensi glares at Renko again. "You didn't answer my question before. Why are you here?"
Renko sits back in his chair. "I'm a valued member of this team."
Sam scoffs. "We're using him to do the paperwork from last week's case."
"Ouch, not feeling to love today," Renko shoots back.
"Do you normally feel the love?" Callen jokes.
Kensi laughs along with the team. In actual fact, she enjoys working with Renko when he's active with the team. He may only be her part time partner, but he's the best partner she's ever had. She'll never admit it to him, but she likes when he is working with them.
Eventually, the conversation settles as the agents get to work on their paperwork.
Just before lunch, Kensi's phone chimes to announce an incoming text. She pulls it out of her pocket and bites back a smile when she realizes it's from Marty. She can feel the team's eyes on her as she unlocks her phone.
Is it too soon to plan my next date?
Ignoring the team's attention and still biting back a smile, she responds.
No.
Marty responds quickly.
You free tonight?
In the few cases where she has allowed contact to go beyond the first date, Kensi has always kept her distance. She's independent and likes her space. It's new to her to want to spend so much time together. With any other guy, four dates in the week since she'd met him would be three dates too many. But not with this guy.
Yup.
I'll pick you up at 7?
Looking forward to it.
So am I. ;)
She finally allows her smile to filter through her defenses as she returns her phone to her pocket. Callen and Sam quickly go back to their paperwork, but Renko meets her eyes and offers her a warm smile. The team may enjoy poking fun at each other, but she knows she has a ton of support here. They are happy that she is happy.
She smiles back.
00
For his next date, Marty takes her to dinner.
Later in the week, she takes him to a movie. She lets him pick the movie, half-hoping he'll pick the new action movie she's seen on commercials. She drops several hints on the way to the theatre, which she is pretty sure he picks up on.
When they arrive, he picks comedy, despite her hints. She wonders if it's because he's still trying to make a good impression. It's another few weeks before she finds out she's wrong.
On Friday, he takes her out again. And then takes her home. She spends the night with him. In the morning, while he makes them breakfast, she snuggles with Monty on the couch.
"I saw her first, Monty," Marty calls towards them as he sets the plates down on his table.
Monty is sprawled across her lap, upside down, as she rubs his belly.
"This is the problem with two good looking men such as ourselves sharing a house," Marty explains as he walks over to her. "Always competing for the same girls."
Kensi snorts a laugh and gently prods the canine off her lap. Monty curls into the corner of the couch with a sigh. "I don't know how you get any of the girls with Monty around to compete with you."
He smiles and then ducks forward to peck her on the lips after she stands. "He takes pity on me sometimes."
She laughs as she follows him to the table and allows him to pull out her chair for her.
He has warned her about his limited cooking skills, so she is cautious as she takes her first bite of the frittata he has presented her with.
"You totally lied to me!" She exclaims after she swallows the bite. "This is amazing!"
He smiles at her. "It's part of a short list of things I can cook."
She points her fork a him. "Are you sure you're not just being modest? You'd have to cook me something bad for me to believe your food isn't always this good."
"I can't cook you something bad," he tells her with a playful huff. "I'm still trying to impress you."
She smiles at him and feels her heart flutter ever so slightly. It's a feeling she's starting to get used to. The man across the table from her is an unusual lawyer who doesn't comb his hair and drives an old pickup truck. But he became a lawyer to help those who need it the most. And he likes to do outdoorsy things like surf. He's kind and funny, and has a strange dog. And he cares. His eyes are deep blue and sparkle when he's happy. And he makes amazing frittatas.
"I'm already impressed, Marty," she says softly.
He smiles affectionately at her for a long moment. She watches as he takes a deep breath and then releases it slowly. "I'm glad," he tells her.
Her heart swells in her chest and she knows she could be in trouble. He's already walked right through her normal defenses in ways she doesn't truly understand. But having spent time with him, she knows she could really fall for him.
She hasn't risked her heart in a long time. She had actually thought she never would again. But now she's presented with an opportunity to dive in with Marty. And she's pretty sure he's worth the risk.
00
They trade dates back and forth for a few weeks, but as they become more comfortable with each other and time spent together is often at his house or hers, they begin to lose track of whose turn it is.
"Want to go out tonight?" He asks on a Saturday morning.
Kensi is exhausted after a long week at work. She had begged off going out the previous night, so instead they curled up on the couch and watched old movies. "I'd like that," she says. "But not too late?"
He presses a kiss to the side of her head. "I'm sorry you had such a long week," he sympathises. "Those scientists you work with need to get their act together," he jokes.
She buries her face into the crook of his neck and hooks her arms around his waist, using a hug as a way to avoid looking him in the eye. She hates that she has to lie to him about what she really does. She thinks they could really make this work, but can't imagine keeping her job from him indefinitely.
"They're doing the best they can," she finally answers, standing up for her fake-coworkers. "Sometimes things just happen."
He hugs her back and runs a hand up her spine. "It's okay if you're too tired to do anything tonight."
"No, I want to," she insists. "How about dinner and a movie?"
He pulls back and meets her eyes. "Falling back on the tried and true cliché. I like it."
She smiles at him. "Do you remember whose turn it is?"
He squints his eyes as he thinks and then shakes his head. "Nope."
They decide they don't need to be trading back and forth anymore.
She pays for dinner. He pays for the movie. It's another comedy.