Gibbs had been driving for about an hour when he got to the cemetery where his daughter had been laid to rest. Megan Stephanie Gibbs, lost more that fifteen years ago at the age of nine in a drive-by shooting. She had been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Parking the sedan at the edge of the drive, he sat in the car, hands gripping the wheel tightly as he worked up the nerve to exit the car. His gaze scanned his surroundings out of habit, taking note of the gray day and how well it suited the situation.

With a sigh he exited the car and walked towards the headstone of polished marble with an angel perched atop it. Carved into the pink speckled marble was her name, the dates of her birth and death and the words AN ANGEL TAKEN HOME TOO EARLY.

The last time he’d been there to visit his daughter had been the first time he’d met Tony. Oh, God, the irony of it all. It was in this godforsaken city that he’d lost the only person he’d ever loved with all his heart…until now. He remembered thinking during that last visit that he would never love again. How wrong he’d been. It had been on that very day that he’d met Tony, hiring him on that same day. And while it was a different kind of love he felt for Tony, it was still a heartfelt love.

That last time he’d been here to pay his respects to his daughter. Now he was here to ask her for a sign. He wasn’t the most religious person, but it seemed there had to be more to it, him finding the man he wanted to spend the rest of his life with after visiting his daughter. Surely there was more behind it since he didn’t even question his love for another man.

Now that man had been asked to look after a child, a daughter about the same age as Megan. A child his lover only knew casually but was great with nonetheless. But he could see Tony being good with just about any child since at times he thought Tony had never grown up and was just a big kid himself. It was part of Tony’s charm and part of the reason why he loved him so much.

He was still standing in front of her headstone but eventually knelt down on one knee. Images flooded his mind of trips they’d taken as a family. They’d gone to Disney World once and various other places around the US. They’d been happy.

But then that day had happened, that horrible, awful day when his daughter had been taken away forever. It was why he and his first wife had divorced. There had been problems beforehand. They had, in fact, been separated a week before the drive-by. But rather than bringing them together again, the death of their daughter had been the final nail in the coffin of their marriage.

Flooded with memories of his precious angel, he started to well up. But he didn’t let the tears fall. He couldn’t. Not yet. He’d erected a dam against his emotions years ago, a barrier to keep others from getting too close. The second B was, after all, for bastard. Only Tony had found his way around those barriers.

"Meg, I’ve met someone. His name is Tony. I love him with all my heart, and I know you would have loved him, too. And I told him, Meg. I finally told him I love him."

Unable to completely hold back the tears, a single droplet tracked down his face.

"I let him in, Meg, into my heart and into my life. I haven’t done that for a lot of people. He managed to find his own way past the walls. Now I’ve let him know I love him and already he’s turned my life upside down."

One corner of his mouth lifted momentarily as he thought of Tony.

"I want to be there for him, angel. I’m GOING to be there for him. But it’s not just him, Megan. There’s a little girl, a little girl who lost everything and only has Tony. And if she has Tony, then she has me."

He reached out and lightly traced her name on the headstone.

"I just needed you to know that I’ll never replace you. Yes, I hope Jenny will want me in her life. She’s a great little girl. But she will never replace you. No one can ever replace you. You are my special angel, and you’ll always be my beautiful daughter. But now there’s a little girl who needs someone to love her, to be there for her, and I want to do that. I hope you can understand that. Can you understand that?"

The dam on his emotions finally broke. He was now fully crying, the first time he’d cried this wholeheartedly since he’d lost his Megan. He never would have guessed he’d have another child, especially since falling in love with another man. He knew he was being premature about having a future with Jenny, but he’d felt the need to talk to Megan, to let her know he would always love her and she would never be replaced in his heart. No one would ever take over the part of his heart that belonged to her. But he was hoping there would be a new part opened up for Jenny, right beside the biggest part that belonged to Tony.

The sky had darkened even further since he’d been there, and thunder rumbled around him. But he didn’t move. He had to be with his daughter, even after the rain began to fall, soaking into the earth around him, cleansing the air the way his tears were cleansing him.

But Gibbs didn’t move. He continued to kneel there in front of his Megan, hand pressed against her name on the headstone. The wind picked up, and the rain became a steady downpour, but he didn’t care that he was being soaked. He continued to kneel there for a good half hour, grieving for the daughter he’d lost and asking for her approval.

"Give me a sign, Meg, let me know one way or the other how you feel."

It was still raining, not straight down but at an angle because of the wind. It was that same wind that blew a pink ribbon in front of him. Despite the fact that the wind continued, the ribbon came to rest against the headstone, unmoving.

Gibbs saw the ribbon, and a smile flashed across his face as he picked it up, brought it to his lips, then put it into his pocket. Pink had been Megan’s favorite color, and she’d loved wearing pink ribbons in her long blonde hair. This, he knew, was his sign.

"Thank you, Meg."

He stood and walked back to the car. Tony would be up by now, and if Gibbs knew his man, he knew Tony would be hurting. Too many people had left him in his life. His father had even left him in a hotel in Maui for two days before even realizing he was missing. Tony would think he had run, that he’d changed his mind about them being together.

He had to get back to the hospital, had to tell him nothing could drive him away.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Tony didn’t even know Abby was there. He was still sleeping, but it was a restful sleep rather than the fitful sleep of illness. He didn’t awaken till around 1:00 PM when a particularly loud clap of thunder seemed to rattle the windows. He felt a hand holding his, but he knew it wasn’t Gibbs’ hand. That banished any sleepiness left over.

"Gibbs!"

"Nope. Will I do?" Abby asked, looking at a newly awakened Tony.

"Where’s Gibbs?"

"He had to run an errand," Abby said. Seeing the hurt in Tony’s hazel eyes, she added, "He’ll be back soon, I’m sure. He said he’d only be gone a couple of hours."

But Tony was shaking his head. "He’s left me already, Abby." Tears began to streak down his sleep-flushed face. "He got scared because my life sucks."

"Don’t you dare say that," Abby admonished, hitting his arm lightly. "Your life does not suck. And you know Boss-man isn’t like that."

"Then why didn’t he wake me up before he left, Abby, if he was only running an errand? Hmm?"

"You need your rest, Tony, and Gibbs knows that."

"Abby, I love that man more then life itself."

"I know, honey, I know, and so does Gibbs. He loves you, too, Tony. You know that, right?"

Physically stronger now, Tony sat up. "Why wouldn’t he wake me up?"

"I swear sometimes you’re as dense as Gibbs. He LOVES you, Tony. He didn’t let you sit here alone. He called me, and I came right over. He made sure someone was with you the whole time."

Her words were punctuated by another loud clap of thunder, as if the heavens themselves were agreeing with her.

"How long has it been raining?"

"About two hours. So, Boss-man said you’re like a father now."

"He told you that?"

"Yes."

"So that’s why he ran. He’s scared about everything I’m bringing with me into this relationship. This almost-relationship. It never even got a chance to get off the ground."

And Tony knew why. He knew about Gibbs’ past. He’d done some good old-fashioned detective work when Gibbs had first offered him a job. What had surprised him was finding something about the man right there in Baltimore. He’d done his research, then had gone to the library and pulled up the newspaper article about the shooting from their archives, then he’d gone to the PD and pulled the file.

He’d never told Gibbs about the background search he’d done on him.

He just sat there, tears silently slipping down his face. Gibbs had bolted, and he hurt, he hurt so badly. Abby said nothing else, just continued to hold his hand, squeezing it in sympathy, the only sounds the rain against the window, the low murmurs from the TV and the beeping of the heart monitor. After about twenty minutes Beth came into the room.

"Honey, the little girl is waking up. Would you like to go down to her room?"

Tony’s eyes widened. "Yes, please." He let go of Abby’s hand and swung his legs around till he was sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Abby, I have to do this alone, okay?"

Abby knew he was still hurting, but she knew he needed to do this alone, needed to see this little girl who had lost her mother.

Tony was a lot stronger today and was able to get from the bed to the wheelchair without help. Beth was there just in case, standing close if needed. She smiled when he made it to the chair, then disconnected the wires to the heart monitor and once again hooked them to the portable box and hooked the IV bag over the pole on the back of the chair.

And once more she checked his temp, making sure it was safe to visit the little girl. It was down to 98.9, the first time it had been below 100 since he’d been admitted. That was a comfort, knowing he was healing.

"You ready, cutie?"

"With a chauffeur like you I’m always ready for a ride," he said, tears finally drying. Right now Jenny was all that mattered. His own drama would have to wait.

Beth laughed as she wheeled him out of his room. "You’re just looking for an excuse to show off that chest to the nurses and other patients," she said as she rolled him down two doors, into the room and next to Jenny’s bed.

Tony smiled at Beth as she left the room, then took Jenny’s hand. Jenny felt the warmth against her own skin and instinctively tightened her small fingers around the larger ones holding hers.

"Mom," she said groggily.

"No, honey, it’s Tony."

"Tony, where’s Mom?" the little girl asked, trying to sit up.

"Relax, honey, okay? You’re hurt and can’t move around much."

"Where am I?" she asked, looking around.

"In the hospital, honey," he said. Her bed wasn’t elevated much, so he used the controls to raise it so she wouldn’t hurt herself trying to sit up.

"Where’s Mom, Tony? Where’s my mom?"

"Um, Jenny…"

Jenny heard it in his voice. She might have been only ten, but she still heard something not right in his voice, something sad, and Tony was hardly ever sad.

"My mom."

"Honey, she passed away," Tony said softly, holding back his own tears and trying to be strong.

Jenny wasn’t strong. Her tears began to fall, and she tightened her hold on Tony’s hand as she cried.

After about ten minutes of crying she asked shakily, "Did she suffer?"

"No, honey. They said she died instantly. Do you remember the crash?"

"Yeah. Mom screamed and put her arm over me, and that was the last thing I remember." She was crying again.

Tony was tearing up as well, almost unable to hold them back. He let her cry, holding her hand in both of his.

"Tony…" She was crying harder, unable to say anything other than his name.

"Honey, go ahead and cry. It’s okay to cry." Tony was losing control of his own emotions. At that point he wanted the strength of Gibbs with him, to help him through this. But Gibbs was gone.

"What’s going to happen to me?"

"Well, honey, your mom asked me to look after you."

"You and Mr. Gibbs?"

"Well, me at least," Tony said, having not heard the squishing from wet shoes coming into the room.

"What about me?"

Tony’s head snapped around at the words. Jenny was looking at Gibbs as was Tony. Losing what little control he had left, Tony began crying. Gibbs went to his side and crouched down till he was at Tony’s level. That was when Tony noticed he was soaking wet. Even the pink ribbon tied around the neck of the stuffed bear he held was wet, as was the single red rose he carried.

"You came back."

"Tony, never doubt that I love you and will always be here for you."

"But you left."

"Yes, I left, but I came back. I had someone I had to see."

Gibbs placed the teddy bear in the crook of Jenny’s arm and the red rose in Tony’s lap, then took her hand in one hand and Tony’s in the other. The older man’s hand was cold, but Tony didn’t care. Gibbs was there, holding his hand, giving him his strength, and that was all that mattered - that and the rose. It was perfect, beautifully formed and fragrant. But best of all was the meaning behind it, for a red rose was the symbol of everlasting love.

"I’m sorry you thought I left, Tony. I had to talk to someone who was special to me a long time ago and was taken from me."

"I know, Boss," Tony said, understanding now just where Gibbs had gone.

"What? What do you know, Tony?"

"I know about your daughter."

Stunned, Gibbs could only blink. Not once had Tony ever let on that he knew about his loss.

"You have a daughter, Mr. Gibbs?"

"I did, yes," Gibbs said, looking into Jenny’s eyes, "but I lost her a long time ago. If you say yes to Tony and I raising you, then one day I’d like to call you our daughter." Saying the words had Gibbs tearing up as well. His talk with Megan had brought down the walls surrounding his emotions.

"Boss, I’m sorry for doubting you."

Gibbs kissed Tony lightly, not a kiss of passion but one of love and tenderness.

"It’s okay, honey, go ahead and cry," was all he said to Tony.

Eventually the tears dried and they all just sat there, each holding a hand of the other’s. Gibbs had felt the tears welling but he hadn’t let them fall. He knew he could have now, but instead he’d wanted to be strong for Tony and Jenny. Tony’s and Jenny’s tears eventually dried up as they sat there together, a new, fragile family unit.

"I think I’d like that," Jenny said finally. "I’d like living with you two."

"Good," Gibbs said. "I’ll call Mr. Cline after I dry off and change out of these wet clothes." He stood up and kissed Tony’s forehead. "Why don’t you stay till Beth kicks you out?"

Tony smiled.

"Thank you for the teddy bear, Mr. Gibbs," Jenny said.

"You’re welcome, honey," he said, leaning over and kissing her forehead as well before leaving the room to return to Tony’s room and his dry clothes.

Abby was still sitting there next to Tony’s bed, chewing on a thumbnail.

"Boss-man," she said in relief.

"Thanks for staying with him, Abby."

"That was not nice, leaving without telling him where you going."

"I know, Abby, and I told him I was sorry, but I had someone I had to see."

"Next time give him a head’s up."

"I will, Abby."

"So…"

"So what, Abby?"

"Are you both going to be daddies?"

Gibbs smiled. "Yes, Abby, we are. Now let me get changed. McGee call about the plan?"

"Nope, but he should be here about 7:00 with everyone else."

"Good."

Gibbs grabbed dry clothing out of his bag, everything down to boxers and socks, then went to the bathroom to dry off and change. If his hand was shaking, he put it down to caffeine withdrawal rather than nerves.

After he was once again dry he went back to the room and picked up the card Mr. Cline had left, calling the lawyer to start the paperwork. He wasn’t sure what the lawyer would think, but he asked if his name could be added as legal guardian as well. Mr. Cline said he would have to ask permission himself from Mr. DiNozzo but that from a legal stand point it shouldn’t be difficult.

Abby left to grab something to eat, bringing back something for Gibbs, including an extra large coffee. She even managed to sneak something in for Tony. She was just returning to the room when Gibbs came in, pushing a smiling Tony in the chair and helping him back into bed while Beth reconnected his wiring. He’d wanted to stay longer with Jenny, but Beth had reminded him that he was a patient as well and needed his rest.

Tony teased Beth some more about her just wanting to get him into bed, never once letting go of the rose he held. But Gibbs didn’t even notice. His nose had sniffed out the coffee.