Sense of Security

            In the days following the failed Anatoly op everything changed a bit. Jenny had a tighter security detail and she had also assigned a detail to Jaylyn. Jenny thought that her sister would protest the whole security detail since it was in a way a waste of agency resources, but much to Jenny’s surprise Jaylyn didn’t protest at all. In Jaylyn’s mind the protection detail wasn’t just for her, it was also for her daughters. Jenny also sent a small contingency of agents to Drexel University to be the protection detail for her own daughters. Now Delilah, Arabella, Emiliana and Madison were the ones who protested the detail. Jenny even took it a bit further when she assigned an agent to protect Kelly. Kelly detested the whole thing just like her sisters did and Shannon did. It was to the point where Jethro was getting nonstop phone calls from all five of his daughters and his ex-wife about the whole situation.

            Jethro was trying to be understanding and supportive, but he had to agree with his daughters and his ex-wife when it came to all of this; it was overkill. But confronting Jenny on this whole thing was also a touchy area, one that he necessarily didn’t want to tread into. Jethro was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

            Dad; you have to do something about this. Your wife is being absurd

            Mom is over doing this whole detail thing, Dad. We can’t even breathe without the protection detail thinking that there is something wrong.

            Dad; you have to get Mom to easy up. I haven’t seen Parker in days cause of her freak out.

            Maybe there’s an upside to Jen overreacting like this.

            While he dealt with his daughters’ unhappiness and having them on constant repeat in his mind, Jethro was always on the phone with Shannon whether it was his desk phone at the agency or his cell phone.  He never got use to hearing any of his wives shrieking at him as he called it.

            “Jethro, you better do something. Jenny has crossed a line with assigning an agent to OUR DAUGHTER!!!!!!!!!!!!”

            “Relax Shannon; Jen isn’t trying to take your place as Kelly’s mother.  She just doesn’t want anything to happen to Kelly and she doesn’t want you to lose a daughter. Anatoly is a smug bastard that will resort to killing Kelly or her sisters.”

            “HALF SISTERS, Gibbs, HALF SISTERS!!!!!! AND JENNY BETTER NOT FORGET THAT SHE’S KELLY’S STEP MOTHER AND NOT A DAMN THING MORE THAN THAT!!!!!!!!!!”

            “Half sisters by my half.”

            “Semantics.”

            “You need to calm down just like Kelly has to and let me handle this. I will talk to Jen.”

            “Don’t tell me to calm down.”  Shannon said as she hung up on Jethro.

            “Something wrong, boss?”  Tony asked.

            “Go back to work, DiNozzo.” Jethro said as he went to talk to Jenny.

            Jethro was up in Jenny’s office in.

            “What do you need now Jethro?”

            “We need to talk.”

            Meanwhile back down in the squad room after Ziva had stepped away to bring the files they had on the Anatoly case to archives Tony was on the phone within seconds of Ziva’s departure, Tony was telling Noemi when Madalyn and Asher were done with school. Jenny and Jethro had agreed to watch the kids for him while he made a romantic Italian dinner for him and Ziva. He knew that Ziva would be at the agency later than he would be that night since Jenny had strategically assigned Ziva the task of disposing of all the confidential papers from the Anatoly case.

            Back up in Jenny’s office.

            “Usually when somebody says they want to talk…”

            “Director of NCIS.”

            “Yes?”

            “That’s a job I wouldn’t want.”

            “Don’t worry, no one is offering.”

            “You know why?”

            “You mean besides your impatience, total lack of respect to authority, and the fact that you still haven’t learned to play nice with others?”

            “Yeah, besides all that.”

            Jenny knew why Jethro was sitting before her, and it sure as hell wasn’t to discuss what they would do with Madalyn and Asher when they got home later.

            “Let me guess the girls are complaining about the protection detail I assigned them.”

            “Not just the girls.”

            “I expected some resistance from Kelly.”

            “You know it’s not just Kelly and our girls that upset with whole set up you have going.”

            “Shannon chimed in. That I wasn’t expecting. I would’ve thought that she would be thankful.”

            “She thinks you are encroaching on her territory.”

            “I’m not and you know that.”

            “I do and that’s what I told her. Believe me Jen, I completely understand and support what you’re doing. Considering the history you and J have with Anatoly, don’t take this the wrong way; but you have to remember that Kelly is mine and Shannon’s daughter. Not yours and mine. We have ours.”

            “You can leave now.” Jenny said dismissing Jethro.

            When they got home later on they saw Kelly helping Madalyn and Asher with their homework while Noemi made the kids chicken nuggets and fries for dinner. After dinner Jenny and Jethro played with the kids for a bit until the kids fell asleep in the living room.  While Kelly cleaned up from dinner with her father and step mother, she figured that she should share her news with them while it was just the three of them.

            “Dad, Jenny; there’s something I have to tell you.”

            “You’re pregnant.” Jethro said jumping the gun.

            “Jethro.”

            “No I’m not pregnant, dad. I’m engaged.”

            “Name.” Jethro said being all fatherly.

            “Jethro give it a rest and be happy for your daughter.”

            “Thank- you Jenny and his name is Charlie Grant.”

            “Despite your father’s gruff response to your news, we are quite happy for you and wish you as much happiness as we have had over the years. Congratulate your daughter, Jethro.”

            “Congratulation, Kelly. Have you told your mother yet?”

            “Yes Dad, I told her the night that Charlie proposed.”

            Over at the DiNozzo-David household the romantic dinner that Tony had planned for them was going as planned. Before Tony served desert, he pulled out a ring box and got down on one knee before Ziva who was completely taken aback by Tony. Unlike the time he proposed to his ex-fiancé; Wendy, Tony kept this proposal simple and keyed down.  He was going to propose to Ziva in Hebrew but he changed his mind. Since they both spoke and understood Italian, Tony opted to propose to Ziva in Italian.

            “Ziva David, will you marry me?” Tony asked in Italian.

            Ziva didn’t answer right away. The last time she was proposed to, things didn’t turn out so well for her. But she knew that Tony wasn’t anything like Ray. Something just kept her from giving Tony her answer.