"This is a bad idea," Kensi says, walking around to the driver's side of her car. Deeks follows her, but looks over to his sedan which is parked directly beside hers as he goes.

"Why can't I drive?"

She turns to him with lifted eyebrows and just laughs. "Get in the car, Deeks."

"That isn't an answer."

"I didn't think the question really required one." He stares at her and she stares at him. Eventually Kensi breaks into a smile. "Just get in the car, Deeks."

He watches as she maneuvers inside and pulls the door shut. Deeks thinks about arguing further, but seeing as this is his girlfriend who doesn't deal well with being told no, he doesn't even bother trying.

"This would be more fun if you weren't so bossy," Deeks mutters as he fastens his seatbelt.

She chuckles and puts the car in reverse. They aren't even out of the parking lot yet and he's already pouting. "As I see it, you're coming into my territory here, Deeks."

He grins. "I thought I'd already come into your territory?"

She without taking her eyes off the road, Kensi reaches one hand out and smacks his shoulder. "Okay, babe- you seriously need to stop doing that. I feel like it's becoming a habit and I thoroughly do not enjoy it."

"Deeks!"

"What?"

They come to a stop light and she looks over at him, both eyebrows raised. It only takes him a minute to catch on.

"We aren't at work anymore! I can call you babe if I want."

"We're still working."

He shakes his head profusely. "Doesn't matter. I'm gonna call you by nicknames when we aren't at OSP. And if you don't go along with babe, I'll choose something much more annoying. Like... sunshine, or sugarbear, or something." She glares at him and he shows her a gleaming smile. Kensi finds it nearly impossible to hold up the facade when Deeks flashes his pearly whites. "I'm allowed to have at least one thing of my own in this partnership, and I choose that."

She swallows down her pride and watches as he continues smiling for a long moment, then- "Green light, Kens."

Her cheeks turn pink and she hits the gas. They sit in silence for a moment, Deeks watching Kensi the whole time. She can feel his eyes on her and he's well aware of that fact.

"You're very... different at work, did you know that?"

"How do you figure?"

Deeks couldn't give her a more baffled look if he tried. "Really?"

Kensi doesn't seem to think the answer is that obvious. "What?"

"Well, for starters, we've been working together for all of twenty minutes and you've hit me three times."

As the words roll off his tongue she hears how bad that sounds, and finds it within herself to swallow down her pride. "Sorry."

He seems happy with himself, and finally turns to look at the road in front of him. "That's alright. It's good for me. Keeps me in check."

"Oh, so do you want me to keep doing it?"

He realizes how poorly that last sentence came across and shakes his head. "No, I'm good. I'll find alternate ways to deal with my own inflamed ego."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Your other teammates will probably pick up the slack."

"What are you talking about?"

Her naiveness is simultaneously adorable and unnerving. "I have ears. I heard that G dude call me your 'beau' back there."

"Aren't you?"

"Yeah, but you're missing the point. I have a feeling that's just the start of a long, torturous initiation period."

"They aren't that bad."

He doesn't look convinced. "Yeah. We'll see."

She snorts. "You're probably right."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Kensi shrugs. "They do have a track record of… terrorizing my past male counterparts."

His eyes widen and he looks as if he desperately wants out of the car. Not for any particular reason, just as a result of the ultimate ora of discomfort that currently surrounds him.

"Terrorizing? Why didn't you tell me that before?"

"Before what, exactly? Before this morning, when you were suddenly and without warning assigned as my partner?"

Her sassiness isn't lost on him. "Touche," Deeks mumbles, sighing.

She winks. "Thanks babe."

"Ohhhhh, so it's okay for you to say it but not me?"

"We're in the car, going to work. It's just like you said. This-" She motions between their two chests. "-isn't work."

Deeks sucks his lips into his mouth, thinking. "You sure?"

Wordlessly, she punches him in the arm. Again. He winces and grabs at his bicep. "Okay, yeah, that one was warranted."

As they roll into the driveway of their victim's house, she slows to a stop and then slams on the brake, just for maximum impact. Deeks is thrust forward but refuses to wince as she looks over at him, wearing a painted on smile.

"I believe it was," Kensi says, narrowing her eyes. "Sugarbear."