"Was it something I said?" Gibbs asked as Abby rushed past him and out of the morgue.

Ducky shook his head. "No Jethro, you're quite innocent. Abby is just feeling a little... alone."

"Alone? Abby?" Gibbs looked unconvinced.

"It is Valentines Day, and while it seems everyone else has plans, Abby is rather without them," Ducky explained, as he pulled in his jacket, and straighten his bow-tie.

"I don't have plans," Gibbs said, his brow creasing.

"No, but you have three ex-wives. However if you are free, might I suggest you offer Abby a little company."

Gibbs seemed to consider it for a moment. Abby had looked pretty upset, and Gibbs hated to see Abby upset. She was too bouncy and alive, she should never be upset.

"I could ask her to dinner I guess, nothing wrong with two friends spending a little time together," Gibbs agreed.

"Quite right, now if you'll excuse me, I a dinner date myself."

Ducky extracted himself from Gibbs and the morgue, and Gibbs was left for a few more minutes wondering about Ducky's suggestion. It made sense... sort of... but Gibbs didn't think Abby was the French restaurant type somehow, and he was sure he wouldn't fit in at any of Abby's haunts, wherever those might be.

He could cook, he supposed it was the most sensible idea. Abby wouldn't be alone, and would hopefully cheer up a little, and Gibbs would just have to leave working on the boat until the next night.


Abby was located easily enough in her lab. Her hands were dancing over the keyboard, but what she was doing Gibbs didn't have a clue.

"Hey Abs," Gibbs greeted.

"Oh... geez... are you trying to give me a heart attack, you know part of my plan is not to die young," Abby growled at him.

"It's okay, I know CPR. What you doing?" Gibbs asked.

"Working. I figured I might be able to..."

"Join me for dinner?"

"Huh... why? Oh God, Ducky put you up to this didn't he, look Gibbs I'm fine okay, just fine, perfectly happy to sit her and work, and be on my own," Abby said.

"Well I didn't suppose otherwise. I just thought... it's valentines day Abby, let an old man pretend to have a life, for just one night," Gibbs twisted his words around. Abby was going to do him the favor of her company.

Abby looked skeptical, she didn't believe him Gibbs knew.

"Come on, what'll it hurt? I promise not to poison you with my cooking," Gibbs joked.

"Your cooking? Well why didn't you say so! What time?" Abby asked, brightening up.

Gibbs glanced at the clock, it was a little after six. "Around 2000hrs, eight pm?"

"I can tell military time Gibbs. And that sounds good, I can go home and change first. Should I bring anything?"

"Just yourself Abby," Gibbs told her with an affectionate smile.

Jethro Gibbs... the second B stands for bastard... had actually cheered Abby up, just by offering a simple dinner invitation. It wasn't often Gibbs felt this good about anything but a case, and he found it was a nice feeling to have.

~~~~~

Gibbs stopped at the grocery store, and the off-license. He didn't take Abby for the kind of girl who like foods she couldn't pronounce either, so he'd settled on fish. And knowing Abby as he did, cookie-dough ice cream for desert.

Showered and changed... twice... and then changed back to the first choice, because he reminded himself, it was just Abby, and she wouldn't care what he was wearing as long as he was wearing something.

Salad tossed together, fish under the grill, sauce made, and wine chilling in the fridge. Gibbs almost had to laugh as he reminded himself for the tenth time it was just Abby. But his 'old-fashioned' nature, or at least that’s what Abby would probably call it, insisted that he'd asked her to dinner, and he should treat her with the same care he'd treat any other woman under the circumstances.

*knock, knock, knock*

Gibbs was sure you could have knocked him over with a feather when he saw Abby.

She was in a dress. Gibbs wasn't even sure she owned a dress that wasn't either incredible short, black, or made out of crushed velvet, but he was looking at compelling evidence that suggested she did indeed own another dress.

"Gibbs... it's cold," Abby reminded him.

"Sorry, Abby, come on in, you look..." Gibbs couldn't come up with an adequate word.

The dress followed all the way down to her ankles, deep red, with thin straps over her shoulders. When Abby twirled dramatically for him, he could see the crisscross design across her back.

Her hair was down, and she was wearing a silver choker, that while distinctly Abby, could easily fit in at any of the fanciest restaurants in town.

"You look wonderful Abs," Gibbs finally settled on saying, because he shouldn't go calling Abby gorgeous, even though that’s exactly how she looked, and simple saying nice didn't even half cover it.

Abby smiled brightly.

"So when we gonna eat boss man?"

"In a few minutes, and if you promise not to tell Tony... call me Jethro."

"Oh... first names. Why can't I tell Tony? Torture is fun." Abby grinned.

Gibbs smiled affectionately, and placed a kiss in Abby's hair before leading her through to the dining table.

He honestly didn't know why he even had one, it wasn't like he entertained often. Call it the remnants of his last marriage. At any rate he was glad he had it tonight.

"Wine?"

Abby nodded, as Gibbs poured.

"Dinner will be ready any minute," Gibbs told her, going back into get the fish from under the grill.

~~~~~

As dinner went on, Gibbs was immensely glad it was Abby, because it was so easy to just talk to her. She's seen him at his best, and his worst, and she was quite willing to take him down a few pegs when he needed it. It was the most relaxing dinner Gibbs had spent with a woman in a long time.

"Why, Special Agent Gibbs, are you trying to get me drunk?" Abby asked with a grin as Gibbs poured the last of the wine into her glass.

"Yes, Abby, that’s exactly it, so I can have my wicked way."

"Well you don't have to get me drunk for that, just buy me a new tat." Abby gave him a winning smile.

"Only if I get to choose what, and where it goes." Gibbs smirked, and Abby coughed, and flushed red.

Gibbs was suddenly very aware that they were flirting. Sure they teased each other, constantly even, and occasionally, well maybe they'd flirted, but they were at work, and it was just fun. This wasn't work, and Gibbs was sure the reaction he was having to Abby was more than 'just fun'.

"So do we get to dance?" Abby asked, breaking the silence.

"Dance?"

"Yes. You know, people do that sometimes," Abby informed him with a grin.

"I... sure, but I don't think I have anything quite your speed," Gibbs said.

"Well I'll find something, even your taste in music can't be THAT bad," Abby said, giggling when Gibbs glared at her.

Gibbs let her have free reign of his hi-fi, while he cleared away the dinner plates.

He heard music start playing in the other room, and listened wondering what Abby had found.

Gibbs smiled when he realized what was playing. Somehow, it was an appropriate song where Abby was concerned.

/She's sun and rain, she's fire and ice
A little crazy but it's nice.../

~~~~~

"Not really dancing music... is everything you own country?" Abby asked when he came back into the living room.

"Mostly. Look in the drawer over there, there might be someone you'll like," Gibbs directed her attention to the drawer on his desk.

"Huh... no label. Well it can't be any worse than Garth Brooks, " Abby teased.

"You're the one who wanted to dance," Gibbs reminded her with a smile.

Abby stuck her tongue out, slipping the CD into the hi-fi and hitting play.

The music was slow, and Gibbs bowed lightly.

"May I have this dance Miss. Sciuto?"

"Of course, kind sir." Abby scrunched her nose and grinned at him.

Gibbs wasn't really listening to the words, trying instead to find the rhythm, but as he found it, he was able to concentrate less on his movements, and more on the song.

/What if I told you what if I said that I love you
How would you feel what would you think
What would we do
Do we dare to cross that line between your heart and mine
Or would I lose a friend or find a love that would never end
What if I said/

Gibbs shook his head, trying to clear it of the thoughts he'd been having all night, that resurfaced as he listened to the music.

Abby was pressed close against him, and he could smell something that was vaguely like coconut and cinnamon, shampoo he assumed. It felt... comfortable... to have her in his arms.

"Abs..." Gibbs was going to offer her coffee, but his voice didn't seem to be working.

Abby looked up, hair falling forward into her eyes. Before Gibbs was aware of it he was lifting his hand to gently tuck the stray locks behind her ear again.

Abby shivered in his arms. Gibbs wasn't entirely sure he wasn't shaking himself.

"Abby..."

"Ssshhh... you think too much," Abby told him, a gentle smile on her face.

Gibbs let out the breath he'd been holding, and carefully, like he was afraid he might break her, or that any sudden movement would snap him out of the dream he was in, he kissed her.

Gibbs figured if this was some big romantic movie, time would stand still about that point, until they finally broke apart where they'd kiss, and cuddle and confess and undying love, but this wasn't a movie, and it wasn't really Gibbs style anyway.

"Wow... boss man, who knew you had it in you?" Abby asked, her face flushed, with a lop-sided grin directed at him.

"My three ex-wives, they didn't marry me for my money." Gibbs said, his voice husky.

"Well obviously, I mean what is this suit? Three seasons old?"

Gibbs laughed. Any other woman would have been very uncomfortable of the reminder that Gibbs had been married, not once, but three times.

"Two, according to DiNozzo." Gibbs told her.

It seemed like entirely the right time to kiss her again, and again, and again, until Gibbs realized that they were on the sofa, and Abby was straddling his lap, and it felt really, really good, but he really, really, really didn't want to do anything they'd regret the next morning.

"Abby... God don't do that." Gibbs moaned, trying to redirect her attention from where she was placing gently bites along his jaw.

"Abby, please... oh... hell... this isn't fair, how am I supposed to stop you when you're doing that?" Gibbs asked, and it was rhetorical but Abby answered anyway.

"You're not supposed to stop me." She told him, shifting to be more comfortable on his lap.

"Abby... believe me, I'd really like to keep going with this but..."

"It's okay Gibbs I..."

"No Abs, I don't think you do. I care about you. More than I realized as it turns out. I don't want to rush into something and have you regret it in the morning."

"I won't."

"You don't know that. And I won't risk it. Lets just... take our time okay, there's no rush is there?" Gibbs asked.

"I guess not." Abby agreed, pouting.

"We'll figure it out Abby, just give an old guy time to adjust."

"You're not old, stop calling yourself old! You're always doing that why..." Abby might have said more but Gibbs cut her of with another kiss.

"Abby. Cab. Home. And tomorrow, well we'll just see where it leads us." Gibbs said as he released her from his kiss.

Abby nodded, seemingly... accepting... of Gibbs idea, if not entirely enamored with it.

~~~~~

Abby spent the entire time waiting for the cab trying to convince Gibbs to cancel it and let her stay. She came very close to succeeding too, but finally the sound of the cab's horn gave Gibbs that final little bit of staying power to say no.

"We could just sleep," Abby suggested.

"No Abs, we couldn't. I'll see you tomorrow." Gibbs said, pulling her in for one last kiss, before the cab's horn honked again, and he was forced to let her go.

"Night Abby." Gibbs murmured against her ear.

"Night... hehe... Jethro." Abby giggled, and Gibbs glared.

Gibbs watched her go with a smile, and a shaking head, sure she'd be the death of him if she behaved like that in work tomorrow... but no, Abby was a professional, Gibbs was sure, tomorrow no one but them would be aware of what had happened here.

Gibbs found that idea a little sad, he wanted to tell someone, anyone, everyone, what he was feeling, but of course he could barely put a name to it himself.

*beep, beep*

Gibbs recognized the sound as a text message on his cell phone.



Gibbs flipped the phone shut with a smile on his face, and it was the same smile he knew he was wearing in work the next morning, when he took Abby her big gulp just like always, and smacked Tony up the back of the head for asking Abby if she'd gotten any last night... yup, it was a perfectly normal February 15th, or whatever passed for normal in Gibbs world anyway.

Fini


Notes(2):The songs are Garth Brooks 'She's Every Woman', and Anita Cochran and Steve Warner 'What if I told you'. Both songs are pretty much country, but I like them, and I especially think parts of 'She's Every Woman' fit Abby really well. Lyrics can be found on 'cowboylyrics.com'