Kate and Gibbs emerged out on the still busy sidewalk after speaking with the wife of a dead Lieutenant.
“ Well she didn’t do it” Kate said as she placed her hands in her jacket pocket and walked alongside Gibbs, who gave her a quizzical glance.
“ And how do you know that?”. He brought her along as she was a profiler and that is exactly what she had done, so he had no doubt that she was wrong, he just wanted to hear her logical explanation as to why.
“ She wasn’t at all concerned about the money left to her. She was heartbroken” she told him as they continued their walk back to their car.
“ People are good actors”
“ Not that good”
“ We’ll see” he said with a grin and a little humour to his voice.
“ Is it so hard to believe that a woman of her age could actually love a man of Stevens’ age?” she asked him. Why was it that whenever a man was killed the first suspect would be the much younger wife.
‘If Hugh Heffner was murdered they wouldn’t suspect the bunnies’ Kate thought to herself.
“ Are you speaking from experience Agent Todd?”. Kate was brought out of her thoughts by is questions. Of course she was madly in love with the man but she wasn’t just going to admit it.
“ What? No, I just…just a feeling I got from Mrs Stevens” she quickly said before he could push the subject.
“ You’re right” he agrees with her earlier statement.
“ So what’s next? We ruled her out pretty quick and there are no living relatives that we know of” she asked him with a quick glance.
“ Except the ex-wife” he pointed out.
“ You think she would kill him?” she asked surprised.
“ Possibly” was all he said as he looked at the road and saw the zebra crossing up ahead.
“ Reason being?”
“ Jealousy, Revenge” he simply said, like he had dealt with it before. Kate stood next to him as they check the road was clear before stepping out onto the zebra crossing.
“ Should we worry about your ex-wives?” she asked with a playful grin on her face.
“ Nah, they’ve done their damage” he said with a shy smile.
“ Good to know” she replied. She looked over at him and saw the small smile on his face. Gibbs looked over at Kate, and that’s when he saw it. The car did not look like it was going to stop and Kate wasn’t paying any attention.
“ Kate” he yelled before pushing her out of the way and taking the full force of the speeding car. Kate hit the ground hard. She heard the impact and then the screech of the tires. She sits up and takes in her surroundings.
The car has stopped just behind her, the driver still in the car. Gibbs lying motionless on the road. On lookers coming to help and just standing there watching.
“ Gibbs?” she called out as she crawled over to his body. She sat down next to him. He was on his back. Grazes covered one side of his face, both his hands and there was a nasty gash on the back of his head. The rest of his body looked ok, but there would still be internal injuries. She knelt beside him, making sure his body stayed straight and still.
“ Gibbs look at me” she said, trying to keep her voice from shaking. She then felt another body join them. She looked up to see a young man kneel the other side of Gibbs.
“ Are you alright?” he asked looking at Kate.
“ I’m fine, him not so much” Kate turned her attention back to Gibbs. She grabbed Gibbs hand in hers.
“ I’ll call an ambulance”. The man pulled out his phone and was quickly giving the operator details. Kate was then joined by a passing police officer.
“ What happened?” he asked kneeling down next to Kate. Kate turned to face him.
“ Uh, we were crossing when this idiot cam racing around and Gibbs pushed me out of the way and took the full force” she said quickly. She could feel her emotions starting to come to the surface, but she had to keep them bottled in. She had to stay calm in this situation.
“ Ok, well I’ll take care of them, you take care of him” the officer told Kate as he got up and went towards the car, the occupants still inside. Kate once again turned her attention to Gibbs.
“ Come on Gibbs, I know it hurts but please just look at me. Gibbs open your eyes, that’s an order” she was almost yelling at him. She felt him squeeze her hand gently and saw his eye lids fluttering. He wasn’t opening them but it was still a sign that he was alive and could hear her. The sirens of the ambulance soon filled the night air.
“ That’s good enough. The ambulance is here Gibbs, you will be ok” she told him as she ran a gentle had over the side of his face to reassure him, or herself. She stood up and moved away from him as the officers came in and took over.
“ Are you his wife?” one asked looking back up at Kate. She shook her head.
“ No, he is my boss. We work for NCIS”.
“ Oh, so would you like us to take him to Bethesda?” the other ambo asked her. She nodded her head, afraid her voice wouldn’t work. The ambulance officers loaded Gibbs onto the stretcher and into the back of the ambulance.
“ Do you mind if I ride with you?” she asked quickly.
“ Not at all” with that Kate jumped in the back and just watched the ambo take care of him. All the way to the hospital Kate was praying that he would be ok. Her feelings for him have never been stronger then what they are now. She didn’t want to lose him without him knowing how she felt, but she could never bring herself to tell him.
Kate jumped out of the ambulance so they could get Gibbs out. She followed them into emergency but was told she would have to wait in the waiting room. She was about to object but decided now was not the time.
“ Are you his wife?” she is asked again, this time by the nurse sitting behind the desk.
“ No, he is my boss” she says with a sigh. She ran her hand through her hair trying to calm herself down.
“ Do you know who his next of kin is?” the nurse asked her. Kate made her way over to the nurse’s desk.
“ Uh, no sorry. The only person I can think of is his close friend” she informed the nurse. She was going to explain more but didn’t feel the need.
“ That’s good enough. Could you fill these in as best you can?” she asked hand Kate a clip board of paper.
“ Sure” Kate took the clip board and headed towards the plastic, uncomfortable hospital chairs.
“ Would you like me to call that friend?” the nurse asked before Kate reached the seat.
“ No, it’s ok I’ll do it”. Kate sat down and pulled out her phone from her pocket.
“ Dr Mallard” Ducky answered.
“ Ducky, it’s Kate” she greeted in a soft tone.
“ Caitlin what are you doing calling me at this hour?” he asked, concern present in his voice. They hadn’t told Ducky, or anyone that they were going to question Stevens wife tonight. So Kate’s ate call was very unexpected.
“ It’s Gibbs. He’s in the hospital” she tells him in the same flat tone that she answered him in. Ducky could hear the worry in her voice, even though she tried to hide it.
“ Oh my what happened? Are you ok?” he asked concerned about her wellbeing to.
“ Yeah I’m fine. We were crossing the road when a car came out of nowhere. He…” she couldn’t control her emotions anymore. Her voice began to shake and she could feel her throat tighten and the sting of tears behind her eyes.
“ It’s ok, I’ll be right there” he said in a reassuring tone, which made Kate feel that little bit better.
“ Thank you” she said in a small voice. She closed her phone and put it back into her pocket before she got to work on the papers in front of her. She could fill most of it in. Except for the date of birth, address and next of kin. She knew a little of his medical history. Basic knowledge of the injuries he sustained while she had been working with him and the s couple of things in the past, such as being injured in Desert Storm. She stopped writing when she heard footsteps getting closer to her. She looked up to see Ducky coming towards her. She got up to greet him.
“ Thank you so much for coming Ducky” Kate said hugging the older man.
“ Not a problem. Have you heard anything?” he asked as he pulled away to look at her.
“ Nothing. I had to fill these, could you check them for me” she asked showing him the forms. He took them off her hands.
“ Sure”. Ducky quickly read over what Kate had written.
“ I hope you don’t mind but I put you as the emergency contact” she told him as she made her way back to the seats.
“ That’s fine. Now have you called the others?” he asked her as he joined her on the plastic seats.
“ No you’re the first one I called” she told him. She had completely forgotten about the others. All she could think about was Gibbs.
“ Do you want me to call them?” he asked. He could see she wasn’t herself at this moment.
“ Do you mind?” she asked softly. Ducky gave her a small smile.
“ Not at all”. He got up and started to make the calls. Kate sat back in the chair and closed her eyes. Her mind kept going back to the seconds before the accident. She remembers looking over at Gibbs as their conversation had made a different turn, one that she kind of liked. It then dawned on her. It was her fault that he was in the hospital fighting for his life. It was all her fault. If her attention wasn’t focused on him she would have noticed the car and been out of the way. She was all of a sudden woken out of her thoughts by a familiar voice.
“ Kate are you ok?” her best friend asked running up to her. Kate got up and embraced Abby.
“ Yeah I’m fine” she told her as she hugged her tight.
“ And Gibbs?” Abby asked pulling away from her. Kate looked at the floor then back up and saw the others now standing behind Abby.
“ I don’t know. He wasn’t too good when we arrived” she told them. McGee came up beside Abby.
“ He’ll be ok, he’s Gibbs. He always pulls through” he said with a small smile. Tony and Ducky soon joined them.
“ God I hope so” Kate said in a small voice. The others had noticed in the change in Kate, Tony more so. He watched her intently before it hit him. She loved Gibbs. He wasn’t going to tell anyone he felt it was her place to do that.
They all stood around waiting for news. Ducky, Abby and McGee were sitting down on the plastic chairs while Kate couldn’t keep still. She had been pacing the waiting room for the past half an hour. Tony stood by watching her. He didn’t interrupt her for fear of being met by angry Kate.
“ Donald Mallard?” they heard someone call. Ducky leaped of his seat and made his way over to the man in the blue scrubs.
“ Yes”. The man looked at him then at the others that had soon joined him.
“ I have news on Jethro” he announced. Abby was the first one to speak.
“ Is it bad?”. Kate held her breath waiting for him to speak.
“ Well it’s not good. He was in a bad way. Broken ribs, an internal bleed, dislocated knee, small fracture to the clavicle, bruising and minor cuts” he informed them, reading from the sheet he had in front of him.
“ And the good news?” McGee asked intently
“ Well he is very lucky there is no spinal injury, we stopped the bleed and he is in a stable condition. We still have to watch him very closely in case there is another bleed and monitor his concussion. He should make a full recovery” he said with a soft smile as he saw all the worried faces.
“ Can we see him?” Ducky asked for the group.
“ Of course, right this way” he lead Ducky, Abby and McGee to Gibbs’ room. Tony started after them but noticed that Kate wasn’t following them. He walked back over to her and stood in front of her.
“ Are you ok?”. She finally looked up at him. She let go of the breath that she had been holding the entire time.
“ Yeah, fine”.
“ You sure, ‘cuz you seem pretty zoned out” he said studying her.
“ Tony really I’m fin. I’m just glad he is ok” she said with a small smile. Tony returned her smile.
“ I told you he would be. Come on, let’s go see how bad the damage is” he said as he put a hand on the small of her back and lead her in the direction of the others.
“ That’s not funny” she said in a serious tone. He muttered a sorry as they made their way down the hallway and found Ducky, McGee and Abby in a room. They stepped inside and heard Abby’s voice.
“ Gibbs you have to get better real soon. I have no one else to buy me Café Pows”. Everyone gave a little laugh.
“ We’re just glad you’re ok Jethro. Take your time to recover” Ducky said in a sombre tone as he looked at his frail friend.
“ I’ll visit you every day Gibbs. Wake up soon ok, so I have someone to talk to” Abby said rubbing the back of his hand. It was then that Tony and Kate got a better look at him. Kate gasped.
“ Oh my god. He…he looks so” she couldn’t find the right words.
“ Fragile” Tony finished for her. Kate just nodded her agreement.
“ That he does, but you heard what the doctor said he will be fine. I’ve got to get back home to mother. You should all do the same. It’s been a long night” Ducky said as he headed for the door.
“ Come on Abs, I’ll take you home” McGee offered taking Abby’s hand.
“ I think I’ll stay, but thanks anyway Ducky. Night Abs, get some sleep” Kate said as she gave Abby a hug.
“ I’ll try. Goodnight guys” she waved then left with McGee and Ducky. Tony and Kate were the only two left in Gibbs’ room. Kate made her way over to Gibbs’ bedside. She looked at his sleeping form and she couldn’t help the guilty feeling that overwhelmed her body.
“ Gibbs, I am so sorry I got you hurt. Why didn’t you just let it hit me, then I would be lying there and not you. God, why do you always have to be the hero” she said as she grabbed his warm hand. She ran her eyes over his face, hoping for some sign that he could hear her. Tony stood on the opposite side of the bed.
“ Boss don’t listen to her, just get better” he said in a soft voice. He looked up to see Kate’s face break. She had tears rolling down her face. She let go of his hand and ran out of the room. Tony followed her out and found on one of the seats outside his room with her head in her hands, her hair falling over her face. Tony knelt down in front of her and rested a reassuring hand on her back. She took a few deeps breaths before sitting up in the chair.
“ I’m sorry, just seeing him was so” she could finish her sentence without more tears rolling down her face.
“ Overwhelming” he suggested looking into her big, wet brown eyes.
“ Yeah” she croaked out.
“ Just seeing him like that. I just feel like it’s all my fault” she continued.
“ Kate this isn’t your fault. You weren’t driving the car” he said taking her hands in his.
“ But if my focus had been on the road I would have seen it coming” she said cutting him off, not looking at him.
“ What were you focusing on?” he asked trying to get her attention.
“ I…Gibbs” she said with a sigh. Still avoiding Tony’s eyes.
“ Why would…You like him?” he asked as it finally hit him. She didn’t reply.
“ Kate?” he asked again. She then finally met her gaze.
“ Yes I do” she said in a small voice.
“ Tell him” he told her. There was no smile on his face. He pinned her eyes with his.
“ I can’t” she started.
“ Kate, if you don’t tell him I will and I don’t think it will quite mean the same coming from me” he said with a small smile trying to lighten the mood. She smiled at him.
“ Ok I’ll tell him. Just one question” she said wiping her face.
“ Shoot”
“ Why are you being like this?” she asked leaning forward a little.
“ Like what?” he asked completely confused. Kate smiled and sat back in the car.
“ This. Caring and serious. It’s just not you” she said with a just a gesture of her hand.
“ I can be caring and serious, it just takes a lot for it to surface” he said with a grin. Kate nodded.
“ And Gibbs almost getting killed did that?”
“ It did. Now I should get back to work. Can you email Mrs Stevens statement to McGee?” he asked as he stood up.
“ Sure. Thankyou Tony” she said as she stood from the seat.
“ For what?” he asked, confused once again.
“ Caring” she simply said with a small smile.
“ Anytime” he said returning her smile. He stepped forward and gave her a gentle kiss on her cheek before leaving. Kate watched him go before returning to Gibbs’ side. She took his hand in hers and ran her thumb slowly over his knuckles.
“ Please wake up Gibbs so I know you’re ok. Plus I need to tell you something. Well it would be easier to tell you like this even though you can probably still hear me. At least it will give you time to think about it” she took a deep breath before continuing.
“ Gibbs I know it’s one of your rules but I really like you. You’re the reason I didn’t see that car, you’re the reason I come into work every day and the reason I stay back. Please wake up”. She pulled a chair closer to the bed and sat down. She sat starring at Gibbs’ face for ages, just waiting for those beautiful blue eyes to open. She eventually gave in and fell asleep, her head resting on the bed by his leg.
She woke the next morning to one of nurses coming in and doing another check. She looked up at him, still not awake. She sighed then stood up to stretch her cramped muscles. She sat back down but was interrupted by the smell of coffee and a welcoming voice.
“ Did you get any sleep last night “ he asked handing her the second coffee cup.
“ I think about two hours. Thanks for the coffee Ducky” she said as she took a little sip of it.
“ Anytime. Why don’t you get some fresh air, stretch your legs. I’ll keep an eye on Jethro” he said pointing to the still sleeping man. Kate couldn’t refuse. She knew she needed some fresh air to clean her head.
“ Thank you. Call me the second he wakes” she said.
“ You’ll be the first to know” Ducky replied taking up Kate’s old seat by the bed. She gave him a smile before leaving his room. She gave a little laugh at the thought of Ducky telling Gibbs story after story.
Kate walked out of the hospital and found an empty bench in the front garden. She sat down with a sigh and looked up at the blue sky. It felt like ages since she had seen day light. She was brought out of her thoughts by a soft female voice.
“ Excuse me, but do you work with Tony DiNardo?”. Kate looked up to see a woman, about her age, maybe younger, dressed in scrubs. She looked familiar but she couldn’t remember where she had seen her before.
“ You mean DiNozzo?” Kate asked finally. The woman gave her a smile then sat on the bench opposite her.
“ Oh yes. I really only knew him as DiNardo”. Then it hit Kate.
“ Oh, your Jeanne Benoit?”.
“ Yes”.
“ I didn’t know you worked at Bethesda” Kate said looking at the clothes and name tag she had on.
“ Only recently. I got transferred after everything that happened. How is Tony by the way?” she asked in a softer voice, not looking up at Kate. Kate could still the hurt on her face when she said his name, but she heard the real concern in her voice.
“ Yeah he is good, for Tony” she replied with a laugh before continuing.
“ For a while he just wasn’t himself, but he is slowly coming back” she told Jeanne truthfully.
“ He isn’t the only one” Jeanne said with a small smile.
“ You know he really did love you. I know it’s not my place to say this but he isn’t going to do it. You changed him. It may have only been a mission to our director, but to Tony it was more than that” Kate told her truthfully. Jeanne looked up at Kate.
“ I always wished things had worked out differently. I tried for months to forget him” Jeanne told her playing with the lid of her coffee cup.
“ Do you still love him?” Kate asked, not really meaning for it to come out that fast. Jeanne gave her a soft smile.
“ I try not to but I can’t help it. I thought after everything with my father dying I would forget but it never happened”.
“ If you had the chance to work things out and start again with him would you?”.
“ I’m not sure. I want to say yes but I don’t know if I can trust him again”. Kate nodded her head. She knew what Jeanne was talking about and luckily she had never had to go through it. But she also wanted to see her partner and this woman happy.
“ It must be hard, but I can assure you if you really want to try you will get the real Tony” Kate told her with a smile.
“ I might need a few days to think about it” Jeanne said turning her attention back to her coffee cup.
“ Of course. I’m going to be here for a while anyway” Kate said looking back at the hospital and hopping that Gibbs would be waking up soon.
“ Just out of curiosity, who is here from NCIS?” Jeanne asked, hoping that it wouldn’t upset Kate too much.
“ Special Agent Gibbs” Kate said in a small voice.
“ Oh, I remember him. Is he going to be ok?” Jeanne asked sounding concerned.
“ I’m told he will be. I’ll believe it when he wakes up” she said.
“ I’m sure he will be. It can take a while for people to wake” Jeanne said trying to make Kate feel better. Just then there was a beeping noise and she pulled out her pager.
“ I’m sorry I really have to go, but I’ll get back to you” Jeanne said as she got up from the bench.
“ Whenever you’re ready” Kate replied with a smile. Jeanne left in a hurry. Kate stayed seated for a while longer. She starred up at the blue sky and thought about everything she had just told Jeanne. She smiled to herself at the thought of what Gibbs would have said if he had been sitting there. She smiled to herself then looked at her watch. She decided she had been out long enough and headed back to his room.
“ Any change Ducky” she asked as she walked up beside him.
“ Not yet. I can say this though, he is definitely catching up on his sleep” he said with a little chuckle. Kate looked to Gibbs’ sleeping form and smiled.
“ That he is. You will never guess who I just ran into” she said changing the subject.
“ Elvis?” he guessed with a little laugh. Kate shook her head and laughed.
“ Not quite. Jeanne Benoit” she told him.
“ La Grenouille’s daughter?” he asked a little bit surprised.
“ Yes. Also the woman who Tony fell head over heels for” she reminded him.
“ Oh yes, now I remember. How is she after everything?” he asked concerned.
“ She seems ok. She told me she is still in love with Tony” she told him.
“ What did you tell her?”. They were now having a full conversation about Tony and Jeanne in front of a sleeping Gibbs, who could hear everything.
“ The truth. Its written all over his face and the sooner they sort things out properly the better” she told him. Ducky nodded.
“ I agree. Now I should really be getting back. Let me know of any change” he said grabbing his coat from the back of the chair.
“ Thank you once again” she said giving him a gentle hug.
“ Not a problem”. Kate took up her place back in the chair and took Gibbs’ hand back in hers.
“ I think it’s about time you woke up Gibbs. I’m getting really lonely talking to myself. Please wake up, we need you, I need you” she said. She starred at his eyes and could see them twitching. But nothing. She let out a sigh. She closed her eyes in a silent prey. Her eyes shot open when she felt his hand squeeze hers.
“ Gibbs?” she said standing up over him. His eyes fluttered opened.
“ Oh my god your awake. I’ll go get a doctor” she said then ran out of the room. She looked down the hall and saw no one. She turned the other way and saw someone in scrubs coming out of another room.
“ Excuse me” she called out. The doctor turned around and she was surprised who she saw.
“ Jeanne, he is waking up” Kate said quickly. Jeanne followed her back into Gibbs’ room. Kate rushed over to his side and looked into his eyes. Jeanne was around the other side of the bed.
“ It’s ok Gibbs, just relax. I know it feels uncomfortable just bear with me” she said as she took the tube out of his throat.
“ There we go, that better?” she asked.
“ Much” he croaked out. Jeanne smiled, then placed an oxygen mask on his face.
“ Now keep this on, it will help you breath. I’ll come back and check on you later” she said, sent Kate a smile then left the room. Gibbs turned his head and looked at Kate who had a big smile on her face.
“ I bet you didn’t expect to see her here” she said. He gave her a small smile, cleared his throat and took his mask off to speak.
“ I didn’t expect to see you here”.
“ I haven’t left” she told him.
“ What about the case?” he asked before going into a coughing fit. Kate leaned over and put the mask back on his face.
“ Tony and the others are handling it. Oh I have to go call them and tell them the good news” she said then left the room. After her calls she returned to his bed side. She looked down at him and smiled. He removed the mask again so he could speak.
“ Why did you stay?” he asked in a soft tone. She had hardly heard him use it.
“ So you had someone when you woke up” she simply said with a smile.
“ You didn’t” he started, but Kate cut him off.
“ I know, but I wanted to” she replied in a tone that matched his. She tore her eyes away from him and he could see the guilt all over her face.
“ Kate, this wasn’t your fault”.
“ I” Kate started but was interrupted when Tony walked into the room.
“ It’s a miracle, he lives” he said dramatically. He was followed by Ducky.
“ Tony. Good to see you finally awake Jethro” Ducky said coming to stand next to Kate.
“ Feels good to be awake Duck” he said cracking a smile.
“ Gibbs, Gibbs, Gibbs are you ok, cuz you kind of look awful. I was so worried” Abby came running into the room and made her way to the other side of the bed and tried her best to hug him without hurting him.
“ I’m fine Abs” he grunted under the impact of her. Jeanne walked back into the room and was met by a full room. She saw Tony at the end of the bed. She couldn’t help but look at him. He had a shocked expression on his face and she couldn’t help but smile.
“ Ok Jethro, I’m just going to check your I.V. How’s the pain?” she asked.
“ Ok” he said gruffly.
“ On a scale of 1-10?” she asked noticing the pain in voice and could see little twitches in in his facial expression.
“ Ah, 7” he said truthfully. He hated admitting he was in pain but this was not bearable.
“ Ok well I’ll get you more pain medication” she said with a smile then turned to head out of the room.
“ How about some food?” he asked as she stood at the end of his bed.
“ I’ll see what I can do, but it won’t be much” she said with a softy smile.
“ Great” Gibbs said as he placed his head back on the pillow and rolled his eyes. Jeanne left the room and Tony ran out to catch her.
“ Jeanne” he called. She turned back around to see him standing just out of the door way. She started to walk back to him.
“ Tony”.
“ I didn’t know you were working here” he said trying to start a normal conversation, which they haven’t had in a long time.
“ I got transferred not that long ago” she told him with a small smile. Tony looked down at the ground.
“ Oh”. Jeanne stepped closer to him.
“ Tony I’ve been thinking a lot about what happened” she started.
“ I’m sorry for hurting you Jeanne, if I could have told you I would have” he said now looking up into her eyes. He had missed those eyes.
“ Was it all a lie? Tell me the truth this time” she almost pleaded.
“ No. Everything I said I meant” he told her in a small voice. Jeanne nodded.
“ Ok” she said tearing her eyes away from him.
“ Jeanne?”.
“ Yeah” she looked up at him.
“ Would you have dinner with me?” he asked. He didn’t anything from her but he thought he should try anyway.
“ Tony I” she started but Tony interrupted her.
“ I understand if you can never trust me again but…your all that I think about and I can’t stop” he couldn’t stop the word from spilling out of his mouth. But he was glad they did as he saw the smile on her face.
“ I finish at 6 o’clock. Pick me up?” she asked him. A big smile broke out across his face.
“ Sure”. Jeanne returned his smiled.
“ See you then” she said in a happy tone.
“ Bye” he waved as she continued up the hall. Tony turned and walked back into Gibbs’ room with the same smile on his face.
“ What was that about?” Kate asked with a small smile. She already had a rough idea but she wanted to hear it from him.
“ I have a date” he said proudly. Gibbs rolled his eyes and settled back down on his pillow.
“ With Jeanne?” Abby asked with a delighted smile.
“ Yep”.
“ Congrats” Kate said with a small smile. Tony gave her a small nod.
“ Thanks” he replied.
“ So when do I get to go home?” Gibbs asked changing the subject.
“ Jethro you just woke up, you have another two days of observations before they even think of sending you home” Ducky told him. Gibbs tried to sit up a bit more but Kate was right onto him and stopped him. He looked up at her and sighed.
“ Oh come on Duck, can’t you speed things up?”.
“ Gibbs you were hit by a car, you’re staying here until the doctors say so” Kate said, raising her voice a little.
“ But I” Gibbs started. Tony jumped in before he could continue.
“ Boss I don’t think it’s a good idea to argue with her”. He looked at Kate. She didn’t stare at him, instead gave him a smile for taking her side. Ducky sighed then moved away from the bed.
“ Well I best be going, duty calls. Glad your awake Jethro, don’t give the doctors and nurses a hard time” he told Gibbs. He gave his old friend a small smile.
“ I’ll try not to”. Tony took Ducky’s lead.
“ We should head to, not quiet finished the case yet”. Abby and McGee started to follow the others out of the room.
“ Get going. Don’t stop because of me” Gibbs told them.
“ Yes boss” Tony and McGee both said and left with Abby and Ducky. Gibbs turned to look at Kate who was still standing by his bed looking down at him with a sweet smile.
“ That means you too Agent Todd”.
“ I’m not going anywhere” she told him.
“ Kate” he started but she cut him off.
“ Gibbs”. They stared into each other’s eyes and he knew he couldn’t win this conversation. He gave in, laid back and closed his eyes. Kate smiled at his relaxed face. She memorized the lines on his face and the outline of his lips. She grabbed his hand again with hers and ran her fingers lightly over the back of his hand. She watched the rise and fall of his chest in his relaxed and care free slumber.
“ You know this wasn’t your fault” he said softly. Kate looked at his face as he opened his eyes.
“ I thought you were asleep” she said a little embarrassed. He gave her a little smile.
“ I was”. He looked at her. She couldn’t take it anymore. She diverted her eyes before she spoke.
“ Gibbs it is all my fault. If I had been paying attention to the road and not” she stopped herself before she really said to much. But it was too late He wanted her to continue.
“ Not what?”. She looked at him then shook her head and looked up to the roof.
“ Kate?” he pushed. She took a breath then finally came back to looking at him. She could see the confused look on his face.
“ You” she finally said.
“ My focus was on you Gibbs, and I’m sorry”. She finally let go of his hand. She was so nervous she didn’t know how Gibbs would react.
“ For what?” he asked in a small voice. She looked at him.
“ For this. Your just one giant bandage” she said in a tone that was not like her, gesturing towards his body.
“ I like you to Kate” he said. He smiled at Kate’s stunned expression. She took a while to gather her thoughts before she spoke.
“ What? You heard what I said?” she crossed her arms over her chest. She was so confused.
“ Every word” he nodded. Kate stood up straight and put her hands by her sides again.
“ Oh” she said in a small voice. Gibbs looked at her. He couldn’t read her thoughts like he normally could.
“ What?”.
“ Nothing, it’s just…whenever I look at you I feel so guilty for what happened” she explained, using her hands to help with her explanation.
“ Well don’t” he said as he started to sit up. It didn’t hurt him to much so Kate let him do it, she stood even closer to the bed just in case.
“ It’s not that simple. I almost got you killed and I” she started but he interrupted her. He grabbed her hand and spoke in a stronger tone then before.
“ Hey, look at me. I’m here, with you so you can stop feeling guilty. Please”. Her eyes shot to his voice at the sound of the last word. She smiled at him.
“ I still remember the first time you said that to me” she looked up at him. He had a confused look on his face.
“ Please. I couldn’t resist then and I still can’t now” she said looking down at their hands.
“ Good” he then pulled her down to him and captured his lips with his. She was shocked at first but then relaxed, cupped his face and deepened the kiss.
“ Well it’s about time. I just wish that you didn’t have to get hit by a car for it to happen, boss” Tony said as he stood in the door way to Gibbs’ room. Kate let go of Gibbs and took up her previous position next to his bed.
“ DiNozzo, what the hell are you doing here?” Gibbs barked, clearly annoyed that he had ruined his and Kate’s moment. Tony smiled and made his way further into the room.
“ Come to tell you that we wrapped up the case earlier today. Stevens’ son, a lawyer found out he was left out of the will so he killed him. Well along those lines anyway” Tony said with a triumphant smile.
“ I thought he didn’t have any children” Kate said.
“ One with the first wife, changed his last name. They hadn’t spoken in years. Mrs Stevens didn’t even know” he informed them. Gibbs sighed, getting inpatient.
“ Anything else?” he asked.
“ Abby said she would be in soon with McGee and Ducky later on tonight”. Kate was also getting inpatient.
“ Don’t you have a date to attend to?” she asked raising an eyebrow. Tony smiled at her.
“ I sure do. Well as long as you two are ok, I’ll be off”. He looked at them and could see he was not wanted. He nodded and turned to leave.
“ Good luck Tony” Kate called after him. He stopped in the doorway.
“ Thank you, but won’t be needed” he smiled then left the room in search of Jeanne. Kate sighed and looked at the ground and felt Gibbs take her hand again. She turned slightly.
“ That was all you’re doing, wasn’t it?”. Kate looked at him. He looked relaxed, like when he slept. But this time his eyes were on her.
“ What?”.
“ The date” he said motion to where Tony was last standing. A smile spread across her face.
“ Yep”.
“ How? Last time I saw Miss Benoit, she wanted Tony put in jail. What’s changed?”. Kate shrugged, not really knowing the answer.
“ Time. She approached me this morning and is still in love with him”.
“ So you played match maker” Gibbs said, a small grin coming over his face. Kate had done something similar to this, with Tony and Paula.
“ No that was the director. I just helped fix what was broken” she said rubbing his hand again.
“ Are you going to fix me?” he asked. Kate was a little shocked by his question, but she could tell by his eyes that he was serious.
“ If you let me” she said in a soft tone, starring into his eyes.
“ Of course” he said with a smile. Her heart was beating so fast it felt like she was going to explode.
“ Well, ok then” was all she could say before she leaned downed to him and kissed him again.
Kate stayed with Gibbs for the rest of the day. She went and got something to eat when Abby, McGee and Ducky came to visit. It was now 9pm and she was sitting in the seat pulled up close to his bed. Their fingers entwined and her head resting near his thigh. She felt him squeeze her hand.
“ I love you” he said, only loud enough to hear. She smiled to herself.
“ I love you too Jethro” she told him, then kissed his hand. Tony was right it was about time that it happened, if only he wasn’t lying in a hospital bed.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Gibbs is hit by a car.Kate blames herself.Tony gets a second chance.