Tony smiled as he finished the last of his paperwork. He loved working as a PI; the cases weren’t nearly as exciting but they were still interesting and there was less political BS than in DC or the police force. He still missed NCIS sometimes, but he couldn’t deny that living in Vegas had been good for his health. His coughing had virtually stopped and he didn’t feel heaviness in his chest like he had in DC. Plus, he liked Vegas, the lights and beat of the city was a welcome change after DC. Plus he had other reasons for loving Vegas, namely one Gregory Hojem Sanders.
Thinking of his lover made Tony smile, he’d met Greg Sanders at a forensics conference that he’d been roped into attending shortly after Gibbs had come back from retirement. He and Greg had ended up sharing a room and they’d hit it off right away, in more ways than one. After the conference, they’d exchanged phone numbers and emails and stayed in touch, so when Tony moved to Vegas he’d called Greg and the two of them had picked where they’d left off. It was a wonderful relationship, even though there were times they didn’t see much of each other because of the crazy hours their jobs caused as well as Tony’s part time teaching job, but they made it work. Now, as he was finishing his paperwork, Tony was looking forward to a class-free week due to spring break and a few days off with Greg; that is, if he didn’t have a huge case.
Tony put his signature on the last piece of paperwork, gathered his things and headed home. As he left the office, he smiled at Cassie, the secretary, “See ya in a few days Cass.”
The pretty brunette smiled sweetly, “Bye Tony. Enjoy your days off.”
Tony grinned as he headed out, he liked Cassie and in another life, he would’ve made a pass at her. But his confession in his goodbye letter to Gibbs had turned out to be a confession to himself as well; yes, he was bi-sexual and enjoyed sex with women, but he preferred men. His relationship with Greg and the fact that he hadn’t done any more than flirt with any woman that he came into contact with, was a testament to that. As he headed for his car, he pulled out his cellphone and dialed a familiar number.
“Sanders.”
Tony smiled at the tired, but beloved voice, “Hey, it’s me. You off yet?”
“Tony! Yeah man, I’m off and I’m free for the next two days. Grissom checked the books and I’m maxed out on overtime so, no being on call for me. What about you?”
Tony’s smile grew, “I finished my case this afternoon and I don’t have another class until next week. So, it looks like we’ll have no interruptions this weekend. What’ll we do with all that free time?”
He could almost hear Greg’s smile across the line, ”I’ve got a few ideas, but they’ll have to wait ‘til we get home.”
Tony laughed, “I’ll bet. Do you want me to pick anything up on my way home? It’s my turn to go to the store.”
“Hang on a sec.” he heard Greg walking around and the sound of cabinet doors being opened and closed, “Uhm, we need cereal, milk, juice, eggs, soda, hot dogs, lemons, pasta, butter, Parmesan cheese, chicken and bacon.”
Tony nodded, making a mental list in his mind, “Okay, I’ll be home in a little bit. Bye.”
He hung up and climbed into his car and headed for the grocery store. With any luck, he could beat the stay-at-home moms with their screaming kids and get home in a reasonable amount of time.
****An hour and a half later****
‘So much for getting home in a reasonable amount of time,’ Tony thought sourly as he pulled into the drive way of the townhome he shared with Greg. A shopping trip that should’ve taken twenty minutes at most took twice that long because he’d gotten stuck behind a woman with not one but three screaming kids and the inability to see that her cartful of groceries exceeded the twelve items or less limit at the express lane. Then, he’d had to wait because the cashier had just come on shift and the woman in front of him had cleaned her drawer out. But, finally, he was home and he was looking forward to spending the next couple of days with his lover.
As he walked into the house, he smiled at the sight of Greg sacked out on the sofa, an action movie playing on the television. He carefully toed off his shoes and padded into the kitchen to put away the groceries. Once that was accomplished, he knelt by the sofa and pressed a kiss to Greg’s forehead, “Wake up, sleepy head.”
Greg stirred and blinked sleepy chocolate eyes up at him, “Tony! You’re home!” He sat up and rubbed his eyes, “Do you need me to go grab the groceries?”
Tony shook his head, “No. I already got everything. I thought maybe you’d like to go to bed. It’s gotta be easier on your back than laying on the sofa.” He grinned, “Plus we need some alone time. I was thinking of popping in a movie of the James Bond variety.”
Greg smiled, “That’s the best idea I’ve heard all day.” He got up with Tony’s help and followed him into the bedroom. They managed to watch about ten minutes of the film before their kissing became heated and the movie was forgotten in the flurry of kisses and flying clothes.
*****Three Days Later*****
Tony was in a good mood as he left the house. He’d managed to enjoy his days off with Greg without worrying about grading papers or preparing a lesson. Plus, Greg had enjoyed not worrying about his boss calling him in, so they’d managed to have a good time lounging around the house and just enjoying being together, but like all good things, their time off ended and they had to get back to work. Greg had been called in to help with a multiple homicide on the Strip.
As he climbed into his car, Tony didn’t notice the Chevy Escalade parked across the street or the piercing blue eyes that followed his every move.
*************************
Gibbs sat in the car, watching Tony drive off, feeling something he hadn’t felt since Shannon and Kelly had died; heartbreak. After a lot soul searching, he’d finally screwed up the courage to go to Vegas and talk to Tony about the letter, only to find that Tony had moved on to someone else. Oh, Gibbs had tried to convince himself that the young man he’d seen with Tony was a roommate, possibly a good friend, until he’d seen the two exchanging a kiss while washing their cars.
Realizing that Tony had moved on to someone else hurt more than he’d ever expected it to. Sure, he’d always been attracted to Tony, he didn’t know of anyone who had ever met Tony that wasn’t attracted to him. But it wasn’t until he saw Tony with his boyfriend that he realized that his feelings were deeper than just simple attraction; he loved Tony as more than a friend, only now he had no chance. The kisses he’d witnessed between Tony and his boyfriend said it all; Tony wasn’t waiting around, he’d moved on.
Gibbs sighed and waited for Tony to leave before starting up his rental car. He’d come to Vegas hoping to, at the very least, repair his friendship with Tony and at most, maybe see if there was any chance of giving a more intimate relationship, but those hopes were dashed. Now he had to go back to Washington and try to forget about Tony and whatever they could’ve had.
The End
Story Notes:
Since I don't remember posting it here, let me make a clarification. This is the next part to 'The Consequences of Caring'. After a lot of thought, I decided to end the original story after chapter six since the rest of the story doesn't fit the original.
Author's Chapter Notes:
What has Tony been up to since he left NCIS
Chapter End Notes:
Since I don't remember posting it here, let me make a clarification. This is the next part to 'The Consequences of Caring'. After a lot of thought, I decided to end the original story after chapter six since the rest of the story doesn't fit the original.