No Matter What

Natalie tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for the elevator doors to open up. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she could feel herself getting a little woozy. She still had the option of backing out but couldn’t decide if she was going to yet.

The bell rang signaling that she had arrived at her floor and the doors slid open as she stepped through them, making her way over to where the agents were all sitting at their desks.

She stood a bit taller, walked a little prouder, and marched her way right up to Gibbs’ desk. He was deep in thought, staring at a magazine on his desk.

Natalie cleared her throat, gaining his attention as he look up in front of him.

“Yes?”

She swallowed hard. “Special Agent Natalie Brooks, reporting for duty,” She forced out with the most serious face she could. He watched her carefully, tilting his head to the side and eyeing her up.

“You sure you want to do this?” He asked with that fatherly concern.

“If you need someone and only have me, what other option do I have?”

Gibbs hesitated for a while causing Natalie to panic a bit as he wasn’t saying anything. He was just staring, blankly.

Finally, after what seemd like hours of silence from the silver haired fox, he spoke up. “Welcome to the team Nat.”

Hearing those words made her grin like a fool. She had so many emotions running through her body at the moment that she didn’t know which one she should feel first.

Without even thinking, she leaned over Gibbs’ desk and hugged him. “Thank you,” She mumbled next to his ear. Natalie soon let go and began hugging everyone who had crowded around her. They all told her the same thing as she leaned in close, they weren’t going to let anything happen to her.

But when she got to Tony, he wasn’t as excited as everyone else. She ignored his sour reaction to the news and hugged him instead, wrapping her arms around his waist tightly. Reluctantly, he put his arms around her shoulders and pulled her in close.

“I won’t let a bullet come near your beautiful face,” He said rather quietly. “And if one does, I will kill the guy who shot it.”

“Thank you,” She answered, smiling knowing that Abby was right about them all, especially Tony.

The two unlocked from their embrace, but still stood close to each other as Gibbs went over the plan of action that was all going to take place tomorrow night when the next drop off would happen.

Natalie would go in, hooked up with cameras and microphones secretly hidden so that the team would have eyes and ears on her at all times, and when the time was right, the team would move in and take over.

Of course, there were some other details mentioned as well, but Natalie was too unfocused to pay attention to anything but the big picture.

“And DiNozzo,” Gibbs called out at the end of his speech. “You’re taking Natalie home and staying with her tonight.”

Tony’s eyes got wide. “Wh-What?”

“Or Natalie stays at your place.”

Again, Tony still had the same wide-eyed look plastered on his face.

“This is her first time, she shouldn’t be alone,” Gibbs clarified. “So you’re staying with her.”

Tony gulped. “Okay.”

“Come on, I’ll grab my keys,” Natalie smiled, heading towards her desk.

After their goodbyes and a short drive later, Natalie and Tony pulled up in front of her apartment complex. She fumbled through her purse for her keys as the walked up the three flights of stairs to her floor.

“Are you hungry?” She asked, turning the key in the lock, opening the door.

“Look who you’re talking to,” He said gesturing to himself.

Natalie laughed. “Alright, I better get cooking then!” She chuckled, shutting the door behind them, locking the three locks on the doorframe as well.

“You cook?” He asked, a little surprised. “I didn’t think you’d cook much for how late you’re always there.”

“There are lots of things you don’t know about me,” She said slyly, pulling out all sorts of pots and pans down from the cabinets in her small kitchen.

Tony stood in the doorway, leaning up against the frame, watching her gracefully move about the kitchen as she prepared dinner. From the looks of it, she was making chicken and pasta, a good hearty Italian meal. This instantly made Natalie even more attractive to him than she already was. A woman who could cook deserved to be brought home to his father, even if they weren’t on speaking terms.

The two soon sat down and had dinner with very little conversation between bites, seeing as both of them were starving. Tony offered to help with the dishes, but Natalie declined, saying she would get to them in the morning. She told him that he was the guest and that he didn’t have to help.

“Are you coming to bed?” She asked after finishing cleaning up the kitchen, finding Tony on the couch flipping through the channels on her TV.

He turned his head around to look at her. “No, I’ll stay on the couch tonight.”

“Tony,” She sighed. “You don’t have to.”

“No,” He answered. “I can’t promise you I won’t try anything so I’m staying on the couch.”

She smiled softly, deciding not to answer just quite yet and instead went to her room, changing out of her work clothes into an old t-shirt and a part of yoga shorts from Victoria’s Secret. She ran into the bathroom and brushed her teeth before heading back out to the living room.

When she returned, the TV was off and the air was still in the room.

“Tony,” She called out, getting no response. Quietly, she tip-toed over to the front of the couch and found him laying on his back half asleep.

“Tony,” She whispered, poking him in the sides a bit. No answer. She chuckled a little before leaning down and placing a soft kiss on his lips.

“You’re more than welcome to stay in my bed. I promise I won’t let you do anything I don’t want,” She said quietly before kissing his cheek and heading back to her room.

Natalie was just about to climb right in to bed when a dark figure stumbled in to her door way.

“The couch is so uncomfortable,” He mumbled groggily.

“I knew you would say that,” She giggled. She scooted over in the bed and flipped over the covers, making a spot for him. “Come on.”

Still a little sleepy, Tony made his way over to her bed, but not before he removed his pants and his buttoned shirt first, complaining that they were a bit uncomfortable to sleep in too. Natalie just sat there and smiled, waiting for him to get himself all situated.

Finally, he crawled in next to her, laying on his side to face her, but instead she rolled on to her side to turn the light off on the table.

“Goodnight,” She whispered as the room went dark.

Next thing she knew, an arm was snaking its way around her waist, pulling her from her side of the bed, pressing her back up against his chest. She smiled at his actions, knowing that she could get used to this.

“Goodnight,” He whispered, lazily kissing the side of her head.