Rifiuto: Non Miriena

A/N: I may do little missing scenes or one-shots in the lives of Tim and Ziva's little family later on, but until then, this is the last chapter.

Thanks to Sazzita for reviewing 23.

Two Months Later

Ziva looked up, to see Tim enter the kitchen, Bracha in his arms. He cradled the baby at his shoulder, gently running his fingers through her curls. Wiping her hands on a dish cloth, Ziva went to them, taking their little girl into her arms. "Look who woke up from her nap. Good afternoon, sweetie." She pressed a kiss to her daughter's head, before leaning up and pressing a kiss to Tim's lips. As Tim poured a cup of tea for Ziva and a cup of coffee for himself, Ziva settled at the kitchen table. He set her tea in front of her and then headed back to their bedroom, whistling for Jethro, who bounded out when he heard Tim's voice.

Meanwhile, the baby had started to fuss, and Ziva, able to distinguish her daughter's cries and seperate them now, shifted the infant to her other shoulder as she pulled the strap of her tank top down. As the baby began to nurse contentedly, Tim came out of the bedroom, Jethro at his side. The dog was leashed, ready for a walk, but as soon as he saw Ziva and the baby, he moved to trot towards them. A smart tug on the leash and Tim's stern 'No,' told the dog to stay back, even though both Tim and Ziva knew the dog would do nothing to hurt the baby. He was just curious about the tiny human that had resided in Ziva's belly for the last nine months, and that had suddenly appeared when Tim and Ziva came home that day when their case and the birth of their baby had collided.

Ziva shot Tim a glare, before reaching out for the dog. The shepard glanced back at Tim, and then trotted towards Ziva when she whistled softly. "Honestly Timothy, he is just curious about her. He will not hurt her." Ziva said, as the dog leaned into Ziva's scratches and then rose slightly on his back legs to sniff at Bracha's feet, as she nursed contentedly at her mother's breast. "Jethro knows to protect her. Don't you Jet? Yes, you do?" Ziva cooed, scratching underneath the dog's chin. He panted before rising up and licking Ziva's face. As Tim pulled him down, she laughed, adjusting her grip on the baby.

"No, Jethro! You could have hurt Bracha!" Tim scolded, as Ziva quickly shifted their daughter to her other breast.

"Tim, she is fine. I am fine. I know you are protective, but she is okay. We are both okay." He sighed, going to her.

"I know. I just love you both so much, and I came so close to losing both of you, that-" She reached up, caressing his cheek.

"I know, Tim. Now go, enjoy your time with Jethro. Bracha and I will be here when you two get back." She kissed him quickly, wrinkling her nose in amusement, before he leaned down and pressed a kiss to their daughter's head. "I love you." He grinned, kissing her once more before leading Jethro to the door.

"I love you." He replied, before closing the door softly behind them. Once he was gone, Ziva turned back to her daughter. She watched her, staring into her dark eyes; unfortunately she had Ziva's eyes, not the beautiful green of Tim's that Ziva had hoped for. But either way, she was beautiful. She had Tim's dimples when she tried to smile, and Ziva's cheekbones, as well as her mother's slightly upturned nose. Yes, their daughter was beautiful in every way, and with a head of dark curls, and soft olive skin that Ziva couldn't get enough of caressing. Every moment she could, she'd place kisses on her daughter's tiny hands, reminding herself how lucky she was to have both Tim and Bracha in her life.

"Timmy?" He turned, the box of pastries and coffee in his hands, to see Sarah standing a few feet from him. Quickly, Tim set the treats down and went to his sister, wrapping her in a hug.

"Hey, Sarah! This is such a surprise. What are you doing here?" He asked, giving his sister one hard squeeze before pulling away. She shrugged.

"My school is on break, so I figured I'd come down and visit with my older brother and the mother-to-be of his baby." She said, hands in her pockets. Something sparked in Tim's eyes, and after a moment, he picked up the pastries and drinks and headed out of the cafe, motioning for her to follow.

"Take Jet's leash, would you, Sar?" He asked, leading them back to the apartment. They walked in silence for several minutes, before finally reaching the apartment building. Just as they stepped up to the stairs leading to the second floor, Sarah grabbed her brother's arm.

"Timmy, what aren't you telling me?" Tim sighed, and then turned, causing Sarah to follow. As they headed upstairs, he glanced back at his sister, saying,

"Ziva already had the baby." She stopped.

"What? When?" She cried, grabbing his coat sleeve. "Why didn't you say anything the last time I talked to you?"

"A couple months ago; in the middle of a murder investigation. In fact, Ziva was the killer's target. The woman was... planning on taking the baby once it was born, and disappearing to raise it by herself. She desperately wanted a child, and... felt like taking ours would make up for what she couldn't have."

"But it didn't happen, did it? I... I mean she... she doesn't have the baby..."

"No! No, she is... sitting comfortably in jail as we speak. And Ziva and Bracha are just fine." Sarah watched as he quickly unlocked the apartment door.

"Um... sorry... 'Bracha'?" Tim nodded, looking back at his sister.

"It's Hebrew, for 'blessing.'" He licked his lips, giving her a small smile. "Bracha is your niece, Sar." He watched his sister's mouth drop, and chuckled softly. "Come on in, I'll introduce you." He let Jethro head in first before following. The dog rushed to Ziva, who had laid the baby down for a nap after nursing her, and now knelt down, unhooking Jethro's leash. "We're back. I picked up pastries and coffee," Tim said, setting the food on the kitchen table and going to Ziva, stealing a quick kiss. "Oh, and I seemed to have picked up a stray at the coffeeshop. She says I'm related to her." Tim joked, turning back to Sarah, who had shut the door and followed her brother into the kitchen.

"Sarah, it's wonderful to see you again!" Ziva said, going to her and wrapping the younger woman in a hug.

"You too, Ziva." Sarah replied, pulling away to look at the Israeli. "The last time I saw you, you had a belly, a growing belly." She caught sight of Tim burying his face in his hands as he shook his head, and Ziva chuckled.

"Yes, well, not anymore. Tim and I have a beautiful baby girl now. Would you like to meet her?" Sarah's eyes widened, and she stammered for several minutes, but by then, Ziva had disappeared into the nursery, and returned with their daughter curled against her shoulder. "Sarah, this is Bracha." Gently, Ziva shifted her daughter to cradle her, and Sarah couldn't hide the gasp as she stared into her niece's dark eyes.

"Oh Ziva, Tim, she's beautiful!"

"Would you like to hold her?" Ziva asked, raising an eyebrow. Sarah looked up at her brother's lover, eyes wide in surprise.

"You... you would let me hold her?" She whispered, touched. Ziva nodded.

"Everyone but Tony." Tim added as he leaned against the counter, arms crossed. "Not that we don't trust him, it's just..." He thought a moment. "No, that's pretty much it." Ziva wrinkled her nose, but nodded in agreement.

"We do not trust him with Bracha when she is so little, because Tony has a habit of being reckless, but that is just us. It is just Tim and I being protective." Ziva said, helping Sarah adjust her hold on the baby.

"She's so beautiful. How much did she weigh when she was born?" Sarah looked up at Ziva with curiosity in her eyes.

"Six pounds, seven ounces." Tim replied, opening the box and setting the pastries on a plate. Slowly, Sarah settled into a chair, watching her niece. "It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen."

"What do you mean?" Ziva accepted the tea Tim had gotten her with a kiss and took a seat next to Sarah. She reached for a pastry, taking a bite. When she swallowed, she said,

"Tim delivered her." Sarah's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"Tim... Tim delivered her? Timmy? My... problematic older brother delivered..."

"Our daughter, yes." Ziva said, chuckling as Tim shot daggers at Sarah's back before taking a seat beside Ziva. He draped an arm around her shoulders, sipping his coffee. "It was... kind of the only option we had at the time."

"Because of the serial killer? Timmy told me." Ziva nodded. "And you were all okay?"

"Other than having to go through labor and delivery, yes, we were okay." They lapsed into silence for several minutes, before the baby started to fuss. Ziva set her tea down and took her daughter back from Sarah, heading back to the nursery to put her down for a nap. Once she disappeared, Sarah turned her attention to her brother, who had yet to take his gaze away from the hall leading to the back bedrooms.

"Are you happy, Timmy?" It took a moment for Tim to bring his gaze back to his sister, but after a moment, he nodded.

"Yes, Sar. I'm very happy. Ziver and I... we've had our rough patches, from the moment Bracha was conceived, but... that's all behind us now. We have a beautiful baby girl, and we're going to raise her, and do everything we can to protect her. And... yes, before you ask, Sarah, I love her. I love Ziva very much. I don't think I could love anyone else the way I love her."

Sarah nodded. "Does she love you, Timmy?"

"With all my heart." The siblings turned, to see Ziva enter. She'd been listening in the darkened hallway, her heart jumping into her throat at the pure love in Tim's tone, and she blinked back tears. "I cannot imagine my life without Tim in it." She went to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders from behind. He reached up and took her hands, pressing kisses to her knuckles. Sarah watched the pair, and she couldn't resist.

"When's the wedding?" The pair shared a look that Sarah couldn't read, before Tim said,

"Actually, Sar, I don't think there's going to be a wedding, not right now anyway."

"Because of my niece?" Tim glanced at Ziva, licking his lips.

"Paritally because of Bracha, but also because as far as Ziver and I are concerned, we're already married." He watched his sister's brow furrow deep in confusion.

"I don't... wait, so you're... you're not legally married, right?" The two nodded. "Then how can you already be married? Unless there's something you aren't telling me..." Ziva glanced at Tim, before saying,

"We are not legally married. Not by a priest or a rabbi or in a church, but... Tim and I... well... we consider Bracha's conception and birth our marriage ceremony."

"I don't understand." Sarah whispered. "You either are or you aren't married. There's no ring on your finger, Ziva, so how can-"

"It doesn't matter if you don't understand, Sarah." Tim cut her off. "What matters is that we understand." He glanced at Ziva, giving her a small smile. "Let's just say... that from the moment Bracha was conceived, our marriage started." He leaned forward, taking his sister's hand. "I don't expect you to understand, Sar. But for us," He licked his lips, taking a deep breath. "Ziva and I don't need a marriage liscense and a pair of gold wedding rings to tell us we're married. We have each other, we have Bracha, and that's all we need. That's all we'll ever need." Sarah nodded.

"That's a shame, because I was... kind of hoping to be a bridesmaid." She pulled something from her bag and set it on the table. Tim's green eyes flicked to the small box, and after a moment, he reached out, picking it up.

"Sarah, is this what I think it is?" She nodded.

"Penelope's engagement ring. She gave it to me yesterday when I stopped by to see her. Told me to give it to you so you could slip it onto the finger of the woman you love. Might as well tell her it's a pointless gesture." Ziva watched as Tim gently popped the lid. The beautiful white gold band with the simple pearl and diamond design on top took Ziva's breath away.

"It is beautiful, Sarah." She whispered, taking the ring from Tim.

"But you won't wear it, so it's pointless." A moment passed, before Ziva pulled away and set the box down. Then, she removed her Star of David necklace and took the ring from the box, sliding it onto the gold chain before clasping it back around her neck. Once she was done, she centered it and turned to the younger woman.

"Just because I will not wear it on my finger does not mean I will not wear it at all, Sarah." Ziva replied, laying a hand over it. "I will keep it here, on the chain with my Star, so that it is close to my heart." She went to Sarah, meeting her gaze. "Where it is safer, if that is all right with you." Sarah searched the older woman's eyes, before glancing at her brother, and returning her attention to Ziva. A moment passed, before she nodded.

"Yes. It's all right with me." Then she stood, wrapping Ziva in a hug. "So are we sisters-in-law now?" Tim chuckled softly, as Ziva gently took Sarah's chin in her hand.

"Of course. We have been sisters-in-law from the moment Tim and I conceived." She giggled, wrapping Sarah in her arms again.

"Thank you, Ziva, for loving my brother. He's lucky to have you." Sarah whispered. Ziva held tight to the younger woman, her eyes going to Tim as he moved to put the dishes in the sink.

"I am the lucky one, Sarah. Tim gave me Bracha; he gave me a family and a home. And the only thing I have ever truly wanted: love. He has given it all to me, and I could not ask for anything more." She glanced at Tim, a wicked smile on her face, before she whispered loudly enough for him to hear, "Except, for maybe more children."

The sound of plates shattering woke the baby, and Tim turned to the two as they pulled apart. "Ziva! Wait until Bracha's at least a year old!" He glared at the women before rushing off to comfort his daughter. Ziva laughed, leading Sarah to the nursery. Once there, she leaned against the doorway, watching the man she considered her husband comfort their daughter.

So their perfect plan hadn't gone as smoothly as they'd hoped. Friendship had turned into love, strings had attached themselves, and the baby they'd created to give her a family had ended up showing them both that the family they'd always wanted was right in front of them all along. They'd hit bumps, faced a serial killer, and argued over parental rights, but in the end, the only thing that truly mattered was right in front of them; the beautiful baby girl with the dark curls and dark eyes.

Sarah kissed all three of them goodbye before leaving. When Tim had told her of Ziva's convoluted plan nearly eleven months ago, she'd wished them well but secretly expected the whole thing to implode. But now that the baby was born, now that Tim and Ziva were settled comfortably- as comfortably as they could get with a two-month-old baby- into parenthood, she began to see why Tim had agreed. It had provided the one thing Tim had wanted since they were kids: a loving family. And Ziva and Bracha could provide him with that, just as he and their daughter could give Ziva the home she'd always longed for.

She chuckled as she left the apartment, thinking of Tim's words that long ago day: Have a baby together, no strings attached.

No strings, yeah, right.