Chapter 47
Tony and Gibbs had returned to D.C. the day after their diner with Kevin. Now, in Gibbs' basement, they found themselves discussing the young man.
"So, what do you think, Tony?" Gibbs asked.
"Well, he's clean, no priors, last speeding ticket was about 3 months ago." Tony replied.
"That's not what I meant."
"I know." Tony sighed.
"What?"
"I liked him." Tony admitted.
"And that's a bad thing?"
Tony just looked at him and shrugged, looking deflated.
Gibbs smiled. "You're not the typical Italian, bad-ass, father-in-law."
Tony grinned. "Not even the 'sleeping with the fishes….'"
"No." Gibbs stated. "And I think that was implied…by me."
Tony nodded and smiled.
"What?" Gibbs asked, seeing Tony struggle.
"She's going to graduate, get married and have kids." Tony lamented.
"It's not happening tomorrow."
"No," Tony agreed. "But it is going to happen…sooner than later."
Gibbs sat down on the steps beside him.
"She's not ready for that. I'm not ready for it." Tony said, sounding perfectly miserable.
"Girls are practically born dreaming of their wedding day. What they'll wear…all that." Shannon had been cutting out pictures from bridal magazines for years. She…it's what girls do." Gibbs replied. "I was just the last piece of the puzzle."
"What if I'm not ready for all this?" Tony asked.
Gibbs put his arm around Tony's shoulders. "You don't have to be. Olivia will be ready enough for the both of you. She has a good head on her shoulders. She'll pick the right man to share her life with. All we have to do is be happy for her and support her in that."
Tony didn't look convinced. "He answered all my questions. He was nice, polite. I just…."
"You were expecting a kid."
"Yeah." Tony admitted.
"And you got a young, mature adult."
"Exactly." Tony replied. "I was so wanting to do the 'good cop,' 'bad cop' routine." Tony said, grinning.
Gibbs shook his head and smiled.
NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS NCIS
"So, what did you think?" Olivia asked.
Tony smiled even though Olivia couldn't see him over phone. "I liked him."
"That surprises you?"
"Well…yeah." Tony admitted. "The first guy you…."
"I've dated other guys." Olivia stated.
"I'm your dad. I don't need to know that."
Olivia laughed.
"And I was going to say the first guy you introduced me to."
"I like him too, Dad. He means a lot to me." Olivia admitted.
"I can tell."
"So…."
"He answered all my questions. I didn't even get to do my Godfather impression or play good cop/bad cop." Tony replied.
Olivia laughed again.
"He seems like a good guy."
"He is, Dad." Olivia replied.
"So…do I start calling him 'son-in-law?'" Tony paused. "Mrs. Olivia Burke?"
"Hey! Whoa! We aren't there yet. I still have to graduate, get a job." Olivia said. "I'm in no hurry, trust me."
"That's good to know, Baby Girl." Tony said, breathing a sigh of relief.
"I will always be your Baby Girl. No matter how old I get, who I marry, or how many children I have." Olivia declared.
"This is hard."
"I know, Dad. I know." Olivia stated. "But you have to let me do this. You have to let me grow up."
"I love you, so much." Tony said. "You're already hundreds of miles away. Isn't that enough?"
Olivia smiled, even though Tony couldn't see her. "I need to grow up. I need to have my own life."
Tony sighed. "I know you do. But it doesn't mean I have to like it."
TBC
END NOTES: Hey, everybody. This chapter came out to be a lot shorter than I thought it would. I will try to post another chapter again soon. Thanks for your continued support and reviews. Jackie
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