“Did you really have to do that?”

Gibbs turned away from the steak cooking on his fireplace and looked towards his front door in surprise; he‘d figured Tony would have shown up earlier considering he’d taken a half-day after dropping Senior off at the train station. “Dunno what you’re talking about,” Gibbs replied simply as he turned back to the fire.

Tony glared at him as he hung up his coat. “No, Jethro. I think you do know.” He crossed his arms as he leaned against the entryway to the den, watching as Gibbs flipped the steak. “And make sure mine’s medium. You overcooked it last time.”

Gibbs smirked at the comment. “Maybe you shouldn’t have distracted me. Would have been fine if you hadn’t mauled me.”

“Hey!” Tony protested loudly as he walked towards the living room. “Don’t even start with me; you loved it. Especially when I started doing that thing with my tongue….”

Gibbs knew he was losing the argument at this point, and decided to shut Tony up with a kiss that quickly turned passionate. Pulling away, he poked at the t-bone on the left, looking up at Tony and knowing that this time, he had to be honest.

“ You really wanna know why I did what I did, Anthony?” Prodding now at the steak on the right, Jethro stared up at Tony. “It’s simple. You needed me to.”

Looking at him in disbelief, Tony blinked. “What the hell are you talking about, Jeth? You woke up when that call came, same as me. You knew I was a mess this morning. And then you encourage my dad, making the entire situation worse? Dammit Jethro, you KNOW what he does.” Disheartened, Tony plopped down on the couch, covering his face as he slumped over. “How bad is it, huh? How much ass-kissing am I gonna have to do to Vance for him to forget this snafu? Or have you forgotten what happened after the last time I fucked up big time? Guess I can count any chance of a raise for the next five years goodbye.” He looked beyond defeated at this. “Or am I just the laughingstock of the agency now?” He moved his hands quickly as he ranted. “The photo shoot debacle was bad enough; now not only is DiNozzo not good enough for the recruiting brochure, but also, his estranged father has to come in and save his ass and go undercover instead.”

Gibbs put the plate holding the now-done steaks on the coffee table and moved to sit next to Tony, throwing his arm around the younger man’s shoulders. Putting one hand on Tony’s knee, he spoke softly. “No, you won’t. Vance was standing there when I gave Fred the OK for the entire bill, including that tuxedo.” Tony looked up at him, curiosity in his eyes. “I told them it was worth every penny,” Gibbs added.

“But why would you do that? You know the crap he’s put me through!” Tony was shaking his head, and Gibbs couldn’t help but wonder whether or not Tony would punch him by the end of the night.

“Because it’s true. We wouldn’t have been able to get into that party without him, and it was a worthwhile investment. Not to mention, it distracted Ziva from chasing after you for a bit.” They both chuckled at this.

“You know what he said to me?” Tony asked. “He asked if the time was right, if it was ok if he made a move or not, Jeth. He’s reached a new low! He’s going after women younger than me now! I’m getting old; my own father won’t hit on women my age. Ziva’s younger than me, Gibbs! I never thought I’d have to see that happen.” Tony was dismayed at how Gibbs was clearly holding back his laughter.

Gibbs had to resist every impulse he had to keep from bursting into laughter at the dismayed look on Tony’s face. “I thought you were getting tired of using Ziva as a beard? You should be happy that she’s been getting a little grabby lately. Besides, you’re with an older man…. Thought we’d gotten over the generation gap.” He wasn’t surprised when Tony merely glared at him. Chuckling, he continued.

“You know why I tried to work with him? It’s simple, Tony. You’ve been pushing me to reconnect with Jack, but you don’t want to do the same with your own dad. I’m trying to return the favor. You know what Senior told me this time? He’s starting to like me. He even quoted Bogie in Casablanca.” Jethro finished that sentence with a grin.

“Really? What’d he say?” Tony clearly couldn’t resist being baited like that, and Jethro was more than happy to oblige.

“’This could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.’ You know, Tones, I think he has an idea about us.” The look of panic on Tony’s face was to be expected, considering what had happened when he was twelve and had been caught kissing another boy. “Regardless of that, I think he approves. Then again, having your son’s boyfriend cover your sorry ass when you rack up your tab sky high at the goddamn Adams House probably gets him some leeway, don’t you think?” Gibbs was clearly pleased at the knowledge his last sentence had provided.

“He said that? Wait, you did that?” Gibbs could only laugh at how Tony floundered.

“Babe, I had it ok’ed when he originally got set up with the suite. I was expecting it to be an expensive visit; I took your taste into account.” Gibbs smiled. “McGee told me before he briefed you and Ziva that your father was involved, and I knew you were hoping to patch things up with him…. I might have taken a few liberties.”

“Did any of those liberties involve telling my father about how I took care of his tab at the Adams House?” The accusatory look on Tony’s face stung a bit.

“I can honestly say that I had nothing to do with that one. C’mon Tony…. You know he’s a smart man. You can’t tell me you were going to hide that one forever?” He hated the destroyed look on DiNozzo - no Tony’s - face right now. They hadn’t been lovers long, but Gibbs hated seeing him upset; even harder was watching Tony go through the thought process on his own.

“You know, I really thought I’d be able to do this one alone,” Tony lamented with a sigh as he sank into the couch. “I thought it was enough that I covered his ass last time, but no…. He has to keep trying to score. Even worse, Jeth? He knew!”

“I know.” Gibbs looked him in the eye. “I don‘t think he was fooled for a second. I think going to Monte Carlo and talking to his buddy ‘Al‘ was all the proof he needed. You‘re not very good at hiding the truth when it comes to people you love.”

Tony looked up, shocked at that comment. “And what the hell is that supposed to mean, Jethro?” Gibbs wasn’t intimidated by the false bravado in Tony’s voice, and shook his head as he replied. “It means that Jack knew immediately how much you meant to me, and vice versa. It means that as much as Tim and Ziva tease you, they know that you’re involved with me. It means no matter how much of a hard time I give you, everyone knows the truth.” He swallowed hard at his last comment.

“And what, exactly, is that truth? You hiding something from me, Jethro? ‘Cause I gotta tell you, my dad mooching a ride off of Donald Trump totally exhausted my surprise limit for the day.”

Gibbs finally gave in to the urge to laugh at the exasperated look on Tony’s face. “No, Jackass, the part about me being in love with you. They know. I don’t have to say it; they just know. And honestly? No one gives a damn. So if you’re pissed off about that, you’d better let me know, so I can….”

Tony’s mouth had crushed down on his at this point, so he couldn’t talk anymore, just lie back and indulge himself in what he’d been looking forward to all day - the past two days, really - ever since Tony had rolled over and seen that missed call on his phone.

“I love you too, Jethro.” Tony smiled as he stated the obvious, straddling Gibbs as he made eye contact.

“Well, that’s good to hear.” Gibbs said with a smirk.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“Well, just because I pulled your steak off the fire doesn’t mean it stopped cooking.”

Tony froze. “What do you mean, it didn’t stop cooking?”

Smiling, Gibbs replied, “The heat in the meat continues to cook it until it’s eaten or it cools down. We’ve been talking for a while, it’s probably cool by now. And at the perfect medium-well, too.” He smiled smugly at the last sentence. “Oh well…. It’s too bad for people that like their steak undercooked and damn near bloody, but just right for me!”

Tony cuffed Gibbs upside the head and started eating his own steak. “Too bad for suckers like me…. Good thing I already have everything I want.”

Gibbs didn’t reply; he merely smiled as he took another bite.