By unspoken agreement, Kensi was paired with Deeks as his partner/handler. Although they'd worked with non-federal liaisons in the past, she'd never been responsible for one before. At least Deeks seemed perfectly at ease with the situation.

For the sake of time and efficiency, they'd decided Deeks would tag along for any interviews Kensi conducted, but would stay back if the situation turned more dangerous. Deeks had rolled his eyes at that stipulation, pointing to his battered forehead in an apparent reference to the dangers he faced on a daily basis, but didn't verbally protest.

As she'd noticed at the fire sites, there was an easy confidence about Deeks that spoke volumes. He let her take the lead, but wasn't afraid to speak up if he had a relevant question or piece of information. She liked that. Liked that he was sure enough in himself and his skills that he wasn't intimidated by working with federal agents or trying to out show them.

"I bet this isn't quite what you expected when your captain offered you up to us," Kensi guessed as they left their third interview of the day, taking the long walk back to road where they'd been able to park her SUV.

Jason McHenry appeared to have gone to ground so they were hoping family and old acquaintances might be able to shed some light. So far, they'd learned little aside from confirmation that McHenry liked to keep to himself and was mostly self-taught.

"I mean, every day can't be filled with shootouts and fire engulfed buildings, can it?" Deeks said with a sardonic grin. "It's ok. Since I'm on restricted duty, I'd probably be stuck in admin. At least this way, I have the chance to accomplish something."

"Oh, well I'm glad that it's not all terrible for you."

"The company is pretty good." Deeks winked, the twinkle in his eyes making Kensi blush. If he stared at her like that much longer, she might just spontaneously combust. She cleared her throat and made a vague sweeping gesture with her arm.

"So, now that you've seen what we do, you think you might make the jump, become a federal agent?" Kensi asked Deeks with a confident grin. "We're pretty amazing, right?"

"You are," Deeks agreed. "Especially one agent in particular." He paused a beat. "I'm speaking of Agent Hanna of course." He dodged her elbow, grinning, and shrugged. "No, I have no desire to leave the LAFD. I love what I do now. And, I'd say I'm pretty damn good at it most of the time."

"Modest," Kensi commented, but didn't disagree.

"I don't have any reason to leave," he reiterated.

She expected as much, but still was curious if he saw any elements of NCIS that appealed to him. Outside of present company.

"I wouldn't mind working with you every day, but I would miss the suspenders."

Deeks' eyes widened, his head tilting as he considered her. His mouth curved with that teasing, half-grin Kensi had grown to love in an amazingly short amount of time.

"So the, uh, gear really does it for you, huh?"

"Maybe." She brushed a stray curl off his forehead, eyeing him playfully. "Among other things."

He nodded like he was tucking that revelation away for later. The thought made her stomach tighten pleasantly in anticipation.

"Oh? Do I get to hear about these "other things"?" he inquired.

Kensi looked him over, taking her time to study the fit of his button-down shirt and the jeans he'd swapped out for his usual slacks or overalls. She adjusted the collar of his shirt and took another glance at his remarkably tight jeans. "Mm, I think that'll have to wait for our makeup date," she decided.

"Which can't get here fast enough." He sighed, slipping on a pair of shades as they reached the SUV again.

Kensi's phone beeped in her pocket and she pulled it out, scanning a text from Callen.

"Callen and Sam recovered several items from McHenry's apartment," she told Deeks. "We're meeting them at the boat shed again."

Deeks tilted his head, watching Sam Hanna methodically lay out a collection of mechanical and electrical pieces on the table.

"We found a hidden compartment in Jason McHenry's apartment with this, a thumb drive, and a whole lot of cash in it," Sam explained. "He either didn't have time to clear everything out of didn't come back at all."

"Those look like—"

"The components of an incendiary device," Deeks finished softly for Kensi, picking up a small electrical board. He builds his own."

"You sound impressed," Kensi said, observing his movements closely.

"It's a sophisticated device." He slid several components together, talking as he worked. "This lets McHenry control when the fire starts, he can set it for a specific time, and with the accelerants he uses, most of the components of the device are destroyed in the fire." With a little flourish, he held up a finished example.

"That was hot," Kensi said in a hushed voice.

Deeks glanced at her in amusement, catching Sam shaking his head.

"Glad you approve."

"That doesn't tell us where McHenry is hiding out," Callen said. Deeks nodded in agreement, carefully replacing each piece in its former designated spot.

"True. But it does answer some of the questions we had about the fire," he pointed out.

"You said there was a thumb drive too," Kensi reminded Sam. "Was there anything on it?"

"Eric and Nell are looking at it now. All the files are encrypted, so it's going to take some time for them to access the data," Callen spoke up.

"So far, all they have is a communication between Jason McHenry and an unknown party." Sam inclined his head. "The wording's too vague to determine the topic."

"Alright, it's going to take a while for Eric and Nell to finish the decryption," Callen said. "You're welcome to stay if you want Deeks, but there'll probably be a lot of down time and you've had a couple rough days."

"I have the sense I'm being dismissed," Deeks said wryly.

"Only because we care," Sam drawled, drawing a snort from Deeks.

"Ok, I'll go. Text me when you find out anything new though."

"Sure thing." Callen glanced at Kensi with a smirk. "Kens, you want to drive him home?"

"Of course," Kensi said quickly, like he might change his mind.

"Be back in an…hour and a half," Callen added. "Is that enough time for you two?"

"Not really," she answered, blithely resting a hand on Deeks' back. "But we'll make do."

A/N: No, I know nothing about incendiary devices. And yes, I am warping investigation procedures to suit my needs.