Chapter Twenty-Two
Gibbs swallowed hard at Tony’s hopeful, little-boy tone of voice and his expectant look. Dante was standing so close that Gibbs could feel the shiver that ran through Dante’s body and how he snapped his muscles taut. If Gibbs hadn’t been so close, he wouldn’t have heard the small sob that the elder DiNozzo let out before sucking his breath in.
Gibbs canted his head toward Tony’s father. “Slow and easy, Dante. Don’t you hurt him,” he said in an undertone. Gibbs felt rather than saw Dante’s nod and shifted his weight so that Tony’s father could edge into the room.
“I came as soon as Jet-Agent Gibbs got me on the phone, Tony.” Dante’s voice was soft and tinged with sadness, quavering with emotion.
Gibbs broke away, moving to the bed and Tony. He looked so damned vulnerable, as if he would break if his father said the wrong thing. “You okay?” he asked, relying on how well he could read Tony to get the true answer. DiNozzo’s eyes were glassy with tears, his emotion clear on his face, but there wasn’t any panic or fear evident.
“Yeah,” Tony whispered, nodding. “He can come in, Gibbs.”
Gibbs gestured for Dante to come closer, meeting the other man at the bottom of Tony’s bed. “You push him, you go. I don’t care what he thinks he wants. My word is law. Understand?”
Gibbs flicked a glance to Tony. “I’m staying, DiNozzo,” he said, resting a hand on Tony’s leg.
“Good,” Tony replied, his voice still a blend of hope and uncertainity.
Gibbs nodded, stepping exactly two paces away from the bed, and crossed his arms, standing sentry. He had to make sure Dante didn’t hurt Tony.
“Dad?” Tony said again and Dante moved forward, hand clasping Tony’s leg right where Gibbs had touched it. He sat in a graceful motion at the edge of the bed, staring at his son. Gibbs couldn’t begin to catalogue all the emotions he could see on Tony’s father’s face, but the few tears that spilled over were easy to follow down chiseled cheeks.
“Right here,” Dante said, pulling in large gulps of air. “Tony…I…I don’t know…”
“You have to go?” Tony asked in a tone that shattered Gibbs. Barely below the surface was that little boy afraid to ask his father to stay, who was so used to his father leaving. That little boy who still had hope, despite countless disappointments.
“No, Tony. No! I’m here…I’m here with you. I came to see you.”
“But…work.”
“Work doesn’t matter. You’re hurt…you could have died.”
“Should have,” Tony admitted, turning his eyes to Gibbs. “Can you…sit with us?”
“Ya sure?” Gibbs asked Tony. He didn’t much care what Dante wanted.
“Yeah. Need you.”
“Right here, Tony. Right here…” Gibbs pulled up a chair to “his” side of the bed, rubbing a hand across Tony’s collarbone. Tony relaxed into the touch, his body sinking back into the pillows.
“You know what happened? Why this happened?” Tony asked.
“Yes, Son.”
“You know…what I am.” Tony tried to keep his voice calm, but Gibbs felt him tensing.
“I know what you are,” Dante replied, tears freely spilling over now. “You’re my son. A man I damaged so damned much. A man who has made himself a successful career, good friends.”
“I’m gay, Dad,” Tony said flatly. There was no reaction to his father’s speech and Gibbs knew this was gonna be the test. Dante was either gonna step up to the plate or strike out.
“And?” Dante said, locking his gaze on Tony’s. “You’re my son, Tony. Flesh and blood, Son. That is all that matters.”
“The DiNozzo heir,” Tony continued, a snarl Gibbs had never heard in his voice before. He was dangerously close to shutting this thing down. “The legacy.”
“None of it matters, Tony. You…you’re who matters. The rest is all smoke and mirrors, glass, steel, paper. You’re what matters, Tony. Not who you’re attracted to or who you choose to have a life with. I don’t care about any of that. What I care about is that you’re alive and that you’ll heal.”
Tony pressed upward, reaching for Gibbs in body when he couldn’t with his hands. “You mean that?” Tony asked, and the anger left his voice.
“I do. I accept you. I accept you, Son. I accept your career, your sexuality, your life choices. I don’t care who you’re intimate with, Tony. That doesn’t matter.”
“And even if it did, you lost your right to have an opinion,” Tony shot back.
“I never earned it, did I?” Dante asked quietly. “The specifics can wait until later, Son. But I need you to know how sorry I am. We treated you…”
“Yeah, you did. Why? Why did you hate me so much?”
A look of horror came across Dante’s face and his torso moved backward, though he continued to grip Tony’s leg. As recoils went, it was mild, and Gibbs was glad to see that. Tony didn’t need anything that he could perceive as rejection. “I never hated you, Tony. Not one minute of one day. You’re my only child, my only son. I…”
“How do I know you won’t hurt me again?” Tony asked, breaking in.
Dante opened his mouth to speak, closed it, opened it again and then leaned back, confusion and despair written all over his face. He suddenly looked a decade older and the emptiness in his eyes was startling.
“I don’t know,” Tony’s father admitted. “I don’t deserve your faith, Son. Not for the hell I put you through. I haven’t earned your trust either. All I can give you are the facts and hope…hope…” He seemed unable to continue.
“Hope I’ll sit down and get kicked again, Dad?”
“Hope that you have your loyal St. Bernard at your side, Tony,” Gibbs put in. “Someone who’ll be there for you and be on your six.”
Tony looked at Gibbs, his eyes wide, confused, hopeful. “What did he tell you? How did he excuse my childhood?”
“He didn’t,” Gibbs admitted. “Owned up to it. Said I probably had a sanitized version. But he explained it in a way I understand, Tony.”
“You do?” Tony asked.
Gibbs studied Tony’s eyes before answering. “Yeah. And from that suspicion in your eyes, you think he pulled one over on me. Told ya he was getting checked out. Never would have let him get close to you if he didn’t.”
“And you think I can trust him, Boss?”
“I do, Tony. Willing to take responsibility if anything gets screwed up, too. You willing to put your trust in me? He might not deserve your faith. Do I?” Would Tony blame him for not knowing, for not being there while Tony was tortured?
“You do, Boss.”
“You think you want to try with your old man? With me by your side? Watching your back?”
Time seemed to slow down. Tony closed his eyes, pulling his lower lip into his mouth. Gibbs could only sit there stroking Tony’s collarbone in gentle motions, soothing him as much as he dared right now. Dante was completely still and silent.
“You won’t leave me.” It wasn’t a question.
“I won’t leave you,” both men said in unison. Tony’s eyes opened and he looked from one man to the other.
“I’ll try. Dad…I’ll try. But only if Gibbs is watching out for me.” Tony glanced back and Gibbs and Gibbs could see the complete faith Tony had in him. It was humbling. Gibbs wasn’t exactly sure he deserved it, not when Tony had been hurt and he hadn’t even known how Tony felt about him.
“Thank you, Tony.” Dante turned to Gibbs. “Thank you, Special Agent Gibbs.”
“Jethro, remember?”
“Jethro.” Dante nodded, falling silent for a few minutes. When he spoke again, his voice was gentle. “How long have you been in love with Tony?”
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