Gibbs knocked back the last of his coffee. There was now only one small problem. How the hell to persuade Tony to get back into his life and into his bed.
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[Part 3]
Gibbs was no closer to a solution by the time he'd cleaned up his mug, leaving it to drain ready for his first coffee the next morning. Best to sleep on things, he finally decided. Normally he would spend time in his basement working on his boat, letting his hands move over the wood while his mind was free to concentrate on whatever problems were bothering him. But he couldn't do that with his hand all bandaged so he decided to sleep on his problems and hopefully come up with a solution by morning.
With that in mind, Gibbs was heading for the stairs when the sound of breaking glass stopped him in his tracks.
Seconds later he was crouched beside the door to his kitchen, cursing himself for having left his gun in the basement. The only weapon he had been able to find was a bright pink umbrella - property of one of his exes, which he had never bothered to throw out - and which was now clutched firmly in his uninjured hand. The glass sounded as if it had come from the back door and now Gibbs could hear somebody moving stealthily through the kitchen.
Gripping the umbrella firmly, Gibbs waited until he heard footsteps coming towards him, then with a loud yell, he stood and swung the umbrella towards the shadowy form in front of him.
"Hey, take it easy, Boss!" yelped Tony, as he narrowly avoided the blow.
"DiNozzo! What the hell are you doing here?" snapped Gibbs. Lowering the umbrella, he flicked on the kitchen light.
Tony blinked as the lights came on.
- - - - - - - - -
Half an hour earlier Tony's phone had woken him out of a restless sleep.
"Anthony my dear boy, I'm really rather worried about Jethro." Ducky's voice came over Tony's mobile.
"Yeah? Good for you Ducky," mumbled Tony, sleepily. "What'd he do, switch to decaf?"
"No, but he managed to injure himself while working on that damned boat of his, and he refused to let me bring him to hospital for proper medical treatment. Stubborn fool. I tried to make him see reason, but you know Jethro. Anyway, I'm really worried for his health and well being. He really shouldn't be alone right now, not in his condition."
It hadn't taken much persuading for Tony to promise that he'd go and check on Gibbs. Hearing the worry in Tony's voice, Ducky did feel a little pang of guilt over his deception. Technically he hadn't lied. Gibbs really *shouldn't* be alone...but it was for his emotional well-being and not physical that Ducky was concerned. "I'm sure Tony will forgive me," he told himself as he put away the phone.
- - - - - - - - -
"Ducky said you'd been hurt," replied Tony. It was starting to dawn on him that maybe Ducky had been exaggerating a bit. "I said I'd see if you were okay. Guess I had a wasted journey so I'll be leaving now."
He made as if to turn away only to stop when Gibbs took a step towards him.
"DiNozzo, wait..."
Gibbs watched as Tony eyed him warily. He knew that the next words he uttered would have to be more carefully thought out than anything he'd ever said in his life. This was his one chance to make things right with Tony. If he screwed this up, he knew he'd never get another chance.
"Why the hell did you break in instead of knocking?" For the second time Gibbs cursed himself for saying the wrong thing.
"Because you never trusted me enough to give me a key," snapped Tony. "The way Ducky told it made it seem like you'd be passed out on the floor or something and I didn't want to waste time knocking, okay. Anyway, if you've finished giving me the third degree then I'm out of here. I can see it was a wasted journey." This time he did turn to go. "You can send me the bill for the glass," he added as he walked away.
"Tony, don't go...please." It was that single word...the word that Gibbs hardly ever used...that stopped Tony in his tracks.
He turned around slowly, his face full of uncertainty. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just keep on walking."
"Because..." Gibbs knew what he had to say, the truth that had been staring him in the face but that he had been too blind to see until Ducky had pointed it out to him. "Because I love you."
Tony's face was expressionless for a few seconds and then it creased up and he laughed bitterly. "Good one, Boss. You been practicing? Cause it sure sounded like you meant it."
"I do mean it, Tony." Gibbs took a step closer to Tony, half afraid that if he got too close the younger man would bolt like a frightened animal, but aching to get close enough to touch Tony one more time. "I've been a fool, a blind fool. I love you Tony and I don't want to let you go, not like this. I swear that I'm not just saying this to get you back in my bed. I mean it, and I'll do whatever it takes to prove it to you. Just please, *please* give me a second chance."
"Why should I believe you?" Tony didn't move any closer, but he didn't move any further away, which Gibbs judged was a good sign.
"Have I ever lied to you? I know I sometimes haven't told you what's going on, but have I ever flat out lied to you?" Gibbs took a step closer. "Tony, look at me, I mean it. I love you. Now if you want to walk away, then that's fine, that's your choice and I'll respect it...just like I respect you. I know that what I said to you before hurt you and God, if there was any way to unsay it then I would. I *do* respect you. I respect you as an investigator, I know I don't give you as much credit as you deserve because you're a damn good NCIS agent, one of the best I've ever had on my team. And I just wish I'd treated you with the proper respect outside of the job as well. Frankly I wouldn't blame you if you just walked on out, but I'm asking you...no, I'm begging you, please stay."
"You don't have to beg," said Tony softly as he stepped closer to Gibbs and allowed himself to be pulled into a warm embrace.
For a few seconds neither man moved. Tony's head was resting on Gibbs shoulder, his arms wrapped tightly around his boss.
"I love you, Tony," Gibbs whispered into the top of Tony's head. "Whatever it takes, I'll do anything to show that to you."
Tony lifted his head and looked Gibbs straight in the eye. "Anything?"
If Gibbs mind had been able to process the evil grin on Tony's face then he might have responded differently, but all he could see were Tony's eyes on him so he said, "Anything."
-------------------
"Anything," muttered Gibbs under his breath as he fiddled with his bow tie. "He was supposed to ask for lots of sex, or maybe a formal apology in front of the whole office. Heck, I'd have smashed up the boat with a sledgehammer if he'd given the word. But no, he has to ask for this."
Finally getting the bow tie to sit straight, Gibbs smoothed down his hair and headed for his car. Two minutes later he returned to pick up the large bouquet of flowers and box of chocolates that he'd forgotten to bring with him the first time.
Half an hour later he was knocking at Tony's door. Tony's request had been simple. Their relationship had started when they'd been forced to share a double room while on their way back from an investigation. Since then most of their time together had been spent in bed or on the way to it.
"I want to be courted," Tony had said. "Flowers, chocolate. Dinner in a fancy restaurant. Maybe a movie or two. I don't just want to fall back into your bed, I want you to seduce me back into it."
Well Gibbs had promised and by God he was going to keep his promise. DiNozzo wasn't going to know what hit him...by the end of the night he'd be begging Gibbs to take him to bed. And if not tonight then tomorrow night or the night after. Gibbs could be a very patient man when he wanted to be, especially when he knew the prize was worth the wait.
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The End
Author's Chapter Notes:
Gibbs has never been great with relationships, and his fling with Tony has been no exception. Will he get the chance to make things right?
Chapter End Notes:
Yes, I know that Gibbs usually leaves his door unlocked, but that doesn't work for this fic, so let's pretend he's changed his policy, okay?