They were able to share the news later that afternoon when they joined the rest of the team at Ducky's for Christmas dinner. Oddly, none of the team were surprised, perhaps a little at the timing of his proposal, but not that he had. The bond between them was obvious to anyone that knew them.
When their co-workers at NCIS found out about their engagement the betting pools started. Some of them were in honest fun, like when they would actually get married and there was another betting on whether or not the happy couple would go to the altar armed.
Others were not so kind, one pool betting on if they would actually go through with it, and another betting how long it would last if they did, these were kept very hush-hush in the office and kept away from Gibbs and Ziva and their teammates. But Tony found out. And when he did, all traces of the playful frat boy disappeared and in his place was an angry Senior Field Agent. The two clods running those pools almost didn't know what hit them when Tony stormed over to their desks and without preamble told them to shut them down. No one had ever seen Tony that angry before and all they could do was nod. And they kept nodding as he stalked off back to his own desk.
He was in a foul mood the rest of the day, and the rest of the team kept looking at him with each new muttering and desk drawer slamming. Gibbs finally had had enough and his "DiNozzo, with me" was said in a tone that left no doubt it was an order. In the elevator the emergency switch was thrown and Gibbs asked him directly what was bugging him. When Tony didn't answer him and wouldn't meet his eyes, Gibbs asked if had anything to do with him loosing it over the betting pools. Tony's eyes still would not meet Gibbs', he should have known that Gibbs would have heard about the incident. Gibbs chuckled and reminded Tony that the reality was that Ziva would in fact be Gibbs' fifth wife, and that he should have expected some humor about Gibbs' issues with marriage to make the rounds and that although he appreciated it that Tony really didn't have to defend him. When Tony still didn't respond something clicked for Gibbs and his "unless it wasn't me you were defending" made Tony's head snap up and his eyes finally met Gibbs'.
Tony's only comment "this is important to her" made Gibbs pause. He realized that Tony wasn't just talking about the bad jokes in the office. He was watching out for Ziva, protecting her. If it had been any other man, Gibbs would have been concerned, would have wondered all sorts of things to make him seethe with jealousy. But not Tony. He knew that Tony cared very much for Ziva, she was his partner, his friend. And maybe in another time and place she would have been someone that Tony would have fallen for, but here and now he was her protective big brother. And no one was going to be allowed to hurt her, not even Gibbs.
He and Tony rarely talked about things they were feeling, it just wasn't something they did. When Gibbs' quietly stated "I love her, Tony" came out, he was surprised at the "like your ex-wives?" that Tony asked simply, honestly. Tony wasn't prepared for the hoarsely whispered "No. Like my first wife" that came out of Gibbs. Tony knew how much it cost Gibbs to make that statement out loud, and he wondered for a moment if Gibbs had ever admitted that even to himself before that moment. Tony's eyes softened and he nodded, acknowledging it all with the simple gesture, Gibbs' eternal grief at loosing his first family and depth of his feelings for Ziva.
Gibbs restarted the elevator and the doors soon opened. But before he stepped out ahead of Tony he dropped a serious "Tony, you keep looking out for her" that earned him back a sincere "you got it, Boss" that left both men grinning a little as they headed back to the bullpen.
Neither of them realized that their matching grins as they made their way bumped Tony almost to the top of the list in the "Gibbs' Best Man" pool, just a few points behind Ducky.
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Ziva's father knew about her relationship with Gibbs. He was not happy with it, but he did not interfere, he knew full well about Gibbs' track record with women, and knew that they would not last. Director David even knew the same day when Gibbs had purchased the engagement ring, and knew the to the penny what Gibbs had spent on it and even what he had inscribed on the inside. But even that did not dissuade his believe that the wedding would just never happen. Ziva would come to her senses long before it got to that point, and if she didn't, he would bring her to her senses himself.
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The discovery of a dead Marine Major in a locked underground room brought two people back into their lives that they would both have rather not had to deal with again. Hollis Man and Mamoun Sharif.
The scope of the case itself was terrifying, Sharif had the ability to kill countless. But somehow through it all, Hollis still kept trying to flirt with Gibbs, and to his credit he kept deflecting her advances. But she was setting Ziva's teeth on edge yet again. And when Gibbs left the bullpen to go think in his basement, Ziva knew that Hollis was going to follow. And sure enough she did. And so did Ziva.
Ziva arrived in time to hear Hollis asked Gibbs what he saw in her eyes and he said that she wanted him to kiss her, and when Hollis asked him if he were going to, Ziva paused on the stairs listening for his response. His gentle, but firm "no" stopped Hollis in her tracks, and he went on to tell her that he was seeing someone, and that they were in fact getting married.
Hollis stammered a bit and tried to compose herself but she couldn't hide the disbelief, and the "who" that escaped her lips dripped bitterness. Ziva's "me" was said simply as she stepped off the bottom stair with her expression neutral and her chin held high. Hollis' mouth gaped like a fish, and as Ziva went to stand next to Gibbs his hand automatically found the small of her back. Hollis took it all in, especially the engagement ring on Ziva's hand, which somehow made this real and not some sort of a joke or cruel brush off.
Hollis had grabbed her coat and left in a huff, and once she was gone Gibbs pulled Ziva into a tight hug and was teasing her that that went well when his cell phone rang, Sharif.
Things progressed at near light speed after that, the trip to see Ducky, the figuring out what Sharif was up to, and culminating in the chaos at the train station. And ultimately ending with Gibbs on the floor of the restroom with gunshots ringing out over him. He felt hands on his face that he would know anywhere and forced himself to focus on her face. And when his eyes finally focused, they met Ziva's that were full of worry and fear. She had been a few steps ahead of Hollis and the rest of the team and when she saw Jethro on the ground had unloaded her weapon into Sharif. And when one of the tears that she was trying to hold in slipped down her cheek, he willed his hand to raise and wipe it away with his thumb. Hollis had seen the intimate moment and with the flurry of activity around the medics arriving, slipped unnoticed out of the restroom to go oversee the rest of the cleanup of the contamination.
Later that night, long after he and Ziva had slipped into an exhausted sleep, he awoke to an empty bed. Slipping quietly through the house he heard her down in the basement. He watched her viciously sanding a section of the boat, and he winced as she attacked it without form or finesse. He made his way over to stand behind her and stilled the sanding block with his hands. Without a word she turned and started sobbing into his chest, all of the emotions of the day catching up with her. As he held her, he heard muffled things like "almost lost you again" croaked against his chest. Gibbs knew there was nothing he could say to make it any better, they both knew what the job was, but they didn't have to like it.
When she had calmed down, he scooped her up without a word and carried her upstairs and they proved to each other with their bodies that they were still alive. Little did they know that as a day so surrounded in death and hate ended, that a little spark of life grabbed hold with both hands that would soon turn their world upside down.
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tbc...
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