The drive from Woodbridge to Dulles should take forty minutes, but, during the evening rush hour on the Monday before Thanksgiving, it took Jack nearly that amount of time to go only half the distance. As the traffic inched forward, Jack struggled to keep her frustration under control. Through several slow, calming breaths, she chastised herself for the poor planning that led to her being stuck in a traffic jam while simultaneously congratulating herself for having the foresight not to schedule the trip for Wednesday.

From the back seat, Faith said, "Mom?"

Jack flicked her gaze upward and aimed a weak smile at Faith through the rearview mirror. "Yeah?"

"Why didn't Gibbs come with us?"

"I thought it would be best to wait until tomorrow to introduce him to your great-grandparents."

"Why?"

"Well, your great-grandparents are getting off of a long flight and I want them to have a chance to rest. That way they'll be in good moods when they meet Gibbs and, hopefully, they'll like him as much as we do."

"Why wouldn't they like him?" asked Faith. Her brow furrowed as she tried to make sense of Jack's explanation. She couldn't imagine anyone not liking Gibbs. Except the bad guys he caught. She was pretty sure bad guys hated Gibbs, but her great-grandparents weren't bad guys, so there was no reason for them not to like him. Confident she was right, Faith proclaimed, "Only bad guys don't like Gibbs. Nana and Papa will like him."

Jack nearly choked on a laugh. "I'm sure they will. I just want everything to go perfectly."

NCIS NCIS NCIS

After picking up her grandparents at the airport, Jack took everyone out to eat at a nearby restaurant. While they waited for their food, Jack casually mentioned, "Jethro's going to have dinner with us tomorrow."

"You hear that, Charlotte? We get to meet Jack's mystery man."

"Be nice, Daniel."

"I'm nice. To people I like."

"Don't worry, Papa, you'll like Gibbs."

"Is that so?"

"Uh huh." Faith sucked in a deep breath and began to ramble. "He's really, really nice. He took care of us when mom broke her arm and he came to Field Day at my school and did all the games with me. He always remembers to put lots of sugar in Mom's coffee and, last Christmas, he baked cookies with us. Oh! And he likes to build things. He's got a boat in his basement and he made me a dollhouse. It's really cool."

"That's quite the sales pitch, Princess."

"Thank you," Faith replied, beaming with pride. "I worked on it in the car 'cause Mom really wants you to like Gibbs."

Jack felt her cheeks grow warm with embarrassment. Burying her face in her hands, she mumbled, "Oh, God."

Charlotte snickered. "Don't worry, Faith. If you and your mom like him, I'm sure we will too."

NCIS NCIS NCIS

That night, after Faith put on her pajamas and brushed her teeth, she insisted that Charlotte be the one to tuck her into bed. In Faith's bedroom. Charlotte picked up a hairbrush off the dresser and sat on the edge of the bed, gesturing for Faith to sit on the floor in front of her. As Charlotte gently untangled the knots in Faith's hair, she said "At dinner, you told us a lot about Jethro. You didn't leave anything out, did you?"

Faith thought about it. "Did I tell you he taught me how to ride my bike? Or that we have tea parties sometimes? Or that he always takes me fishing when we go to his cabin?"

"No, you didn't tell us any of that. Those are all very nice things. Are there any not so nice things you forgot to tell us?"

"Hmm, you mean like how he forgot Valentine's Day?"

"Yeah, like that."

"He did. I think it made Mom really sad and a little mad. It was okay though 'cause he said he was sorry."

"Anything else?"

"I don't think so."

Charlotte tugged lightly on Faith's hair until she tilted her head back to look up at her great-grandmother. "You really like him, huh?"

"Uh huh. That's why I asked him to be Mom's boyfriend."

Laughing, Charlotte handed Faith the hairbrush. "Put this away, grab your book, and get in bed."

NCIS NCIS NCIS

Jack spent most of Tuesday cooking with Charlotte and fielding questions about Gibbs. As the day wore on, she became increasingly desperate for an escape, so, when Gibbs called to say he was on his way, she put on her shoes and coat and went outside to meet him.

When Gibbs arrived, Jack barely gave him time to get out of his truck before she asked, "Are you ready?"

"It's not gonna be that bad."

During the short walk to the house, Jack warned him, "You're not the one they've been interrogating all day. They are ready to pick your life apart looking for any imperfection, no matter how small."

Gibbs thought she was exaggerating until they stepped inside and he was greeted by the sight of her grandparents standing shoulder to shoulder in what could only be described as a united front against him. The ensuing discomfort was temporarily alleviated when Faith pushed past her great-grandparents to fling herself at Gibbs. He swung her into the air above his head, then brought her in close to his chest. "Hey, Little Doc. How's it goin'?"

"Goooood. Did ya meet my nana and papa?"

"Not yet. I think your mom was just about to start the introductions."

"Oh, right, um," Jack stammered, wiping her sweaty palms on her jeans. "Gibbs, these are my grandparents, Daniel and Charlotte Easton. Grandma and Grandpa, this is Leroy Jethro Gibbs. My boyfriend."

Daniel scowled at Gibbs. "So, you're the man who thinks he's good enough for my girls."

The accusation made Gibbs feel like he was twenty-two again and meeting Shannon's parents for the first time. Using a slight variation of the answer he'd given Mr. Fielding, Gibbs stated, "No, Mr. Easton. I know I'm not good enough for them, but I promise to treat them the way they deserve and to do my best to never deliberately hurt them."

"You better," growled Daniel. Out of deference to Faith's presence, he let the threat of violence remain unspoken. When he was certain Gibbs had gotten the message, his surly expression transformed into a welcoming smile. "Now that that's out of the way, it's nice to meet you, Jethro."

Jack rolled her eyes at her grandfather's antics. "This is why I don't introduce you to people."

"It's important for a man to understand where he stands."

Shaking her head, Charlotte pretended to be unamused, but she was grinning as she teasingly admonished Daniel. "Be nice. I let you have your fun, so you have to behave for the rest of the evening."

"Yes, dear."

NCIS NCIS NCIS

Dinner seemed more like a formal job interview than a casual get-together, which Jack concluded was better than the interrogation she'd been expecting. Nonetheless, when she walked Gibbs out to his truck at the end of the evening, she felt the need to apologize for her grandparents' behavior and reward his good-natured tolerance with a long kiss.

After Jack released him, Gibbs brushed his lips across her forehead, then got into his truck and drove away. Jack watched his taillights until they disappeared around the corner at the end of her street. She used those few moments to decompress before going back inside to face another round of questions and opinions on her relationship.

Upon reentering the house, Jack almost hit Charlotte with the door. As Charlotte took a step back, Jack evaluated the situation. Her eyes flashed with irritation when she realized Charlotte had been spying and didn't look the slightest bit guilty about being caught. Turning to close and lock the door, she groused, "Did you enjoy the show?"

"I was just checking to see if you'd gotten lost and needed me to send out a search party," Charlotte joked.

"I wanted to give you and Grandpa plenty of time to talk about Jethro behind my back," retorted Jack.

"That was thoughtful. Thank you."

"What did you decide?"

Charlotte's light-hearted mood quickly dimmed. "Why don't we talk in the kitchen? I'll make some hot chocolate." She looped her arm around Jack's waist to guide her toward the kitchen.

"That bad, huh?"

"He's very nice," offered Charlotte in a conciliatory tone.

"But?"

"We have some concerns."

In the kitchen, Jack dropped into a chair while Charlotte began rifling through the cupboards. It didn't take her long to locate the items she needed and get to work. A few minutes later, the hot chocolate was ready. Charlotte poured it into two mugs and carried them over to the table where she handed one of the mugs to Jack. Sitting down on the opposite side of the table, she inquired, "Why does Jethro call Faith 'Little Doc'?"

Jack blinked in surprise. Out of all the ways she had thought Charlotte might start the discussion, a benign question about a nickname hadn't even crossed her mind. To give herself time to process the unexpected tactic, Jack took a lengthy sip of her hot chocolate. When she was finished, she still wasn't sure what point Charlotte was trying to make but answered the question anyway. "It's an inside joke," she explained. "It started the first time we met. He had come looking for me in my office, but I wasn't there and Faith was sitting at my desk. He pretended he thought she was me and asked her to provide a profile for a make-believe case about a missing teddy bear."

"That's a sweet story. He's obviously good with her and she's clearly quite fond of him."

"I take it Jethro's relationship with Faith isn't one of your concerns."

"No. Merely a curiosity," Charlotte admitted. She paused to take a drink of her hot chocolate. "Did you know that when you started dating Jethro your grandpa used some old Army contacts to check him out?"

"No, but I'm not surprised."

Charlotte set her mug back on the table but kept both hands wrapped loosely around it. She hoped focusing on its warmth would help her control her reactions throughout the impending conversation because the last thing she wanted to do was put Jack on edge by appearing confrontational. Keeping her voice carefully neutral, she said, "You might be surprised by what he learned. How much do you know about Jethro's past?"

"Everything."

Tightening her grip on her mug, Charlotte drew it closer to her as she leaned forward to challenge Jack's assertion. "Really? Do you know that he's been married four times and divorced three? Or that his first wife and their daughter were murdered?"

"Of course, I do. I never mentioned it because it's not my story to tell."

"Doesn't it bother you though?"

Jack bristled. "It doesn't thrill me, but I appreciate that he was honest with me."

"Honesty is important. Still, between his marital history and the age difference, your grandpa and I are worried this relationship might not be the best thing for you."

"I get that. I really do. I was worried about the same things. Then, I got over it because he's the first man I've felt safe with since I was nineteen and, other than Faith, he's the best thing that's ever happened to me."

Charlotte's eyes went wide as she was struck by the depth of Jack's feelings for Gibbs. "You're in love with him."

"He makes me happy," Jack confessed. She ducked her head to hide the blush coloring her cheeks.

"And you're in love with him. And you haven't told him, but you should."

The suggestion horrified Jack. Her head snapped up and her jaw dropped. "I can't do that."

"Why not? Is it because you're afraid. I've never known you to let fear stand in your way."

"It's not that. Or, at least, it's not just that. I don't want to scare him. He doesn't want to repeat the mistakes he made with his ex-wives by moving too quickly, so we've been taking it slow to really get to know each other. I'm waiting for him to be ready."

"Haven't you been dating for over a year? Might be time to think about either moving forward or moving on."

"Maybe," Jack agreed noncommittally.

"Okay, I'll let it go. For now."

NCIS NCIS NCIS

On Wednesday, Jack had dinner with Gibbs and his dad. It was her opportunity to officially meet Jackson as Gibbs' girlfriend before their families celebrated Thanksgiving together. Unfortunately, the evening was marred by the uneasiness Jack exhibited whenever she interacted with Gibbs. Her behavior confused Gibbs and caused him to withdraw into himself. Jackson overcompensated for the awkwardness by flirting shamelessly with Jack and telling embarrassing stories about Gibbs' childhood.

Somehow, they all made it through the meal, but, shortly after they cleared the table, Jack claimed she had to leave because she had promised to be home in time to tuck Faith into bed. Once she was gone, Jackson slapped Gibbs upside the back of the head.

"Hey!" Gibbs yelped. "What was that for?"

"What did you do to that girl, Leroy?"

"Nothin'!"

"You must have done somethin'. She wasn't actin' like that for no reason."

"She was fine the last time I saw her."

"Well, she wasn't fine tonight. If you didn't do anything, maybe you forgot to do somethin'?"

"Don't think so."

"Say you're sorry anyway. If that doesn't work, keep saying it until it does. Maybe throw in a few 'I love yous' for good measure," recommended Jackson. Upon seeing Gibbs' jaw clench and his gaze turn steely, Jackson added, "You have told her how you feel, haven't you?"

"She knows."

"People need to hear the words, Leroy. You need to tell her before it's too late."

Struck by the sudden need to talk to Jack, Gibbs didn't waste any time following his dad's advice. He was out the front door before Jackson had even finished speaking.

NCIS NCIS NCIS

A combination of a little luck and an extreme willingness to violate traffic laws resulted in Gibbs arriving at Jack's house just as she was getting out of her car. He swung his truck into her driveway, slammed it into park, and jumped out. "Jack, wait!" he called as he hurried toward her, even though the urgent request was unnecessary since Jack was already waiting for him next to her car.

Once he was standing in front of her, Gibbs realized he had no idea what to say. "I, uh, I," he stuttered. He thrust his fingers through his hair to the back of his head to rub at the spot where Jackson had slapped him. "Are we okay?"

Jack crossed her arms over her chest. "Why wouldn't we be?"

Sighing, Gibbs let his arm drop to his side. "I don't know, Jack. Things were weird between us tonight. After you left, my dad said some things. Got me thinkin'."

"About?"

"Words aren't really my thing."

"Try, Gibbs. Please."

"No, I mean, that's what I've been thinking about. Words aren't my thing. I try to show people how I feel. I thought you knew. Now, I'm thinking that sometimes the words are important."

Jack's exasperation turned to hope. "Which words?" she asked, taking a tentative step closer to Gibbs.

"I love you."

A wide smile spread across Jack's face. "I love you too," she declared as she threw herself at Gibbs, trusting him to catch her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and lifted herself up onto her toes to press her lips to his. When she broke the kiss, she dropped her heels back to the ground and relaxed into Gibbs' embrace. Snuggling close to his chest, she murmured, "You know, for someone who claims they're not good with words, you always have the right ones when it matters."

Gibbs kissed the top of her head. "I try."