A.W.O.L

Tony DiNozzo was confused. Two days ago, he'd woken up with Leroy Jethro Gibbs in his bed. Sure, there had been a good deal of alcohol involved in getting them there in the first place, but Gibbs hadn't exactly run away, had he? Quite the opposite, in fact; they'd spent most of the weekend together.

This morning, he'd gone out to check out a lead with McGee straight away and hadn't got back until lunchtime. When he'd arrived at NCIS, however, Gibbs had barely said two words to him outside of giving him his assignment. He'd had tried a couple of times to talk to him but he'd got the brush-off each time. Tony could have kicked himself for even allowing this to bother him; one weekend and he was acting like a teenage girl with a crush. That didn't stop him from hoping that Gibbs would remember that they had planned to go out for a drink after work, however.

He made his way down to Abby's lab to ask her about the results from a trace she had been running. He told himself that it was just a coincidence that was also the last place Gibbs had been heading. When he got there, there was no Gibbs, just Abby. She was dancing around the lab to the sound of whatever metal music was blaring from her stereo and she came skidding to a stop when she noticed Tony in the doorway.

"Hi Tony."

"Hey, Abbs." He asked about his results and then casually mentioned Gibbs. "Have you seen him recently? Someone said he was down here."

Abby shook her head. "Sorry, Tony; he left already."

"It's OK, I'll just catch up with him upstairs," he said, turning to leave.

"No, I mean he left. You know, went home."

She saw the look on his face, the dismay in his eyes, and grabbed him by the arm to lead him further into the lab. Turning down her music, she hugged him.

"Aww, Tony! You want to talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about," he insisted.

She smiled. "I know you better than that but if you don't want to talk then that's fine. How about if I talk and you just tell me if I miss anything?"

Taking his silence as a yes, she sat him down, taking a seat next to him and linking her arm through his. "So, Friday night, at the party, you have a little too much to drink. So does Gibbs, and it means that you both get up the nerve to do something about the fact that you fancy the pants off each other. So, anyway, after you leave you end up at either his or your place and, well, I won't go there, even though I'm getting some really interesting visuals to go with that thought…"

She glanced at Tony, saw the flush in his cheeks and his wide eyes, and relented. "Sorry. So, everything's going fine until today. He's acting weird and then he leaves without telling you- I'm guessing you had plans?- and now you're thinking, what have I done?" She paused. "Am I close?"

Tony nodded. "Scarily so," he confirmed. "How'd you know?"

She smiled. "I've been watching you and the boss-man tippy-toe around this forever. Oh, and he told me once, even though he tried to deny saying anything afterwards. He wants you, so don't let him acting like an ass- it's not like he's ever going to change and you know it- end this before you've had a chance to begin."

"He left, Abby," Tony told her. "It's obvious from the way he's been acting today that he thinks the whole thing was a mistake."

Abby sighed, sounding frustrated. "Tony, he doesn't think it's a mistake. Look, if I tell you something, you have to promise that you didn't hear it from me, OK?" He nodded. "It's nothing you did. Gibbs hates having everyone knowing his business, in his private life, right? Well, I happen to know that a certain Director gave him an earful about inter-office relationships this morning. Apparently, she saw you together on Saturday."

That would make the man mad alright, having to discuss his love life with his boss and former flame.

"Hang on a minute, how'd you know about that?"

Abby grinned. "I have my ways," she said. "Now, go and find him. If I know Gibbs, he'll be in his basement, brooding."

--------

Half an hour later, Tony knocked on the door to Gibbs' house. There was no answer, nor to the phone when he rang that instead. Thinking back to what Abby had said, he let himself into the back yard and headed for the back door. As it was open, he let himself in and went down the steps to the basement. Sure enough, Gibbs was there, with a beer bottle in one hand, scowling at the skeleton of a boat that was currently taking up most of the space.

"Wondered where you'd gone," he said as he descended the stairs.

Gibbs looked up and immediately his expression softened. He stood up from the counter he was leaning on and went to the small cooler in the corner.

"You want a beer?"

Tony shook his head.

Gibbs sighed. "About earlier; I shouldn't have just left like that."

"It's OK," Tony told him. "I know about Director Sheppard's little chat, about how she's got her panties in a bunch about you and me."

"How?"

Tony smiled. "I have my sources." His expression sobered. "Look, if you want, I can just go. I mean, we could just pretend that nothing happened, go back to how we were."

Gibbs frowned for a second and then shook his head. He put down his beer and strode over to Tony.

"You could really just go back to that?" he asked, "Because I couldn't. Dammit, DiNozzo, I waited too long for you just to let you back out now."

Tony suddenly found himself pressed against the wooden hull of the boat behind him, with Gibbs' face only inches from his.

"You really want to leave?" he asked.

Tony shook his head, feeling more relieved that he would ever have admitted to, and slid a hand around Gibbs' neck to pull him in closer for a kiss. Gibbs' hands began to wander, slipping under Tony's jacket to push it of his shoulders.

--------

The following morning, Tony opened his eyes and looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings then he smiled. Gibbs' arm was draped possessively over his waist, the older man still asleep, his breath warm against Tony's shoulder. Tony gently lifted his arm and turned to face him, trying not to wake him but it was too late. The movement had disturbed him and Gibbs opened his eyes.

"Planning on running out on me?" he joked.

Tony smiled. "Never crossed my mind," he replied. "You?"

Gibbs shifted them suddenly, pinning Tony to the mattress and leaning down for a kiss.

"Now what do you think?" he asked.

Tony wriggled a little below him, making Gibbs suck in a breath. "I'm thinking that you need to convince me," he said.

And Gibbs did just that, leaving it very clear in Tony's mind that there were no second thoughts.

When Tony got into work later that morning, he had a note on his desk from Abby, asking him to go to the lab ASAP. He frowned, wondering what could be so important, and headed down there.

"So?" she asked, the minute he set foot though the door. She must have made an early start on the Kaff-Pow because she was hopping about like a kid on a sugar high, he thought.

"'So' what?"

That earned him a sharp smack on the arm. "You know exactly what I'm talking about."

As much as he wanted to draw this out, to leave her wondering, he couldn't stop the smile that tugged at his lips.

"Everything's great," he told her, telling her a heavily censored version of last night's events. "Thanks for giving me a shove in his direction."

Abby let out a delighted squeal and hugged him.

"What is going on?"

Tony pulled out of Abby's embrace and turned to see Ziva in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe. "Nothing," he said, smiling innocently.

He could tell that the woman didn't believe him, turning her questioning look to Abby. Tony caught Abby's eye and shook his head minutely.

"Oh, Tony and I just couldn't keep our love a secret any longer," Abby said, planting a kiss on his cheek and then smiling at Ziva.

Ziva just glared from one to the other and sighed. "Fine. Do not tell me."

"Something you wanted, Ziva?" Abby asked, going back to her desk. Ziva ignored her, looking to Tony instead.

"Tony; we have to go," she said, turning on her heel and leaving, glancing over her shoulder in the hopes that Tony was following.

"Thanks Abbs," Tony said before hurrying to catch her up. It might not be the wisest move, but teasing Ziva was fun sometimes. He wondered how long it would be before she figured out the truth.

When they reached the car, Tony got into the passenger seat.

"Where the hell have you been, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked as he started the car and pulled out of the parking lot as break-neck speed.

"He was flirting with Abby," Ziva interjected helpfully from the back seat.

Tony saw Gibbs raise an eyebrow in question and shook his head. "Not true, Boss."

"I think, if you look closely, there is still lipstick on his cheek," Ziva pointed out, making Tony check. Sure enough, there was.

He sighed. "Sorry, Boss."

"You will be," he heard Gibbs mutter under his breath, just loud enough for his ears only.

The possessive look in Gibbs' eyes sent a shiver down his spine. He grinned; he had the feeling that he was going to pay for it later, and what fun that promised to be.

-------

End