NCIS 1. Chapter 1

Title: The Right Thing To Do  
Author: CJ aka WritinginCT  
Fandom: NCIS  
Pairing: Gibbs/DiNozzo  
Rating: 13+  
Warnings: None  
Categories: Romance, Drama  
Disclaimer: I don't own the recognizable characters I'm just inspired by them. Hopefully they've had fun playing in my sandbox.  
Summary: Gibbs and Tony take in a wayward pregnant teenager, it may have been the right thing to do but are they prepared for the consequences?  
Status: WIP

* * *

Tony wheeled the trashcan down to the curb on his way out to go for a run. The March air dry and cold and stinging on his face. He did a few quick stretches and took off at a warm up pace. He ran until his lungs burned, his route through the neighborhood brought him around full circle and he had slowed to a cool down pace when he turned that final block to head home. The street was dark, Tony couldn't wait for spring to come so that it wasn't dark so early in the evenings. It was only seven thirty, but the dark made it feel much later. Movement down the block near his house caught his attention, he paused and realized that someone was going through their trash.

Tony bobbed and weaved through parked cars and trees and was able to come up unaware on the person digging frantically through the trashcan. Dressed in a dark overcoat with a hot pink knit hat, Tony assumed that it was a homeless person. Not unheard of in the city, but not often seen in this neighborhood. He was observing from a few feet away when he got a shock, it was a teenager, a teenaged _girl_ to be precise. She didn't have the look of a junkie, but there was still a desperate air about her. When he saw that she was about to eat a half a sandwich out of their trash he exclaimed, "Don't eat that."

The girl looked up in horror and Tony could see that she had been recently crying. She didn't say anything and without her eyes leaving Tony's, she scrambled around with a hand to try and find the knapsack that she had put on the ground when she had started rooting through the trashcan. She was looking to bolt.

Tony stepped out on to the sidewalk with his hands outstretched, trying to be non-threatening, "I just don't want you to get sick, that sandwich was sitting out for a while and the mayo's bad. My name's Tony, what's yours?"

Her eyes were now fixed on his NCIS sweatshirt, and he looked down and then back up at her, and before he could explain what NCIS stood for, she asked in a little voice, "You're a Navy cop?"

Lightly Tony replied, "Hey! You know what NCIS stands for, I have to spell it out for most people. Yeah, I'm a Navy cop, well sorta, actually I'm Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo."

"I didn't steal anything." she said quickly.

Tony said gently, "I know. Look it's okay." He was able to take another step towards her, now that she realized he wasn't some deranged pervert. She stepped out from behind the trashcan and he was shocked to see that she was pregnant, her coat barely buttoning over the baby bump.

Tony would be the first to admit that there were many things in life he knew, and many things he didn't, but he was dead sure that he wasn't leaving a desperate, hungry, and pregnant teenager outside in the middle of March on her own. It just wasn't happening.

"When did you eat last? I mean a real meal." he asked.

She dropped her eyes, "Three days ago."

"Why don't you come inside? Gibbs was making a chicken pot pie big enough to feed a Marine platoon when I left to go running. Something hot'll be good for you. Okay?"

Her stomach growled at the thought, and she nodded. As they walked up the driveway together she asked, "Is Gibbs your wife?"

Tony chuckled, "Not exactly."

* * *

When they entered the back door, Gibbs was pulling plates out of the cupboard to set the table. He saw the girl and his eyes flashed to Tony's, the question obvious. Tony said lightly from behind her, "We've got company for dinner, Jethro."

Gibbs didn't question, he could see that Tony was handling the girl with kid gloves, and that the girl looked spooked enough. He nodded and grabbed another plate and finished setting the table.

Tony winced as the girl took off her coat and saw that she only had on a thin turtleneck underneath. Winter was lingering this year and it had been well below freezing at night all week. He showed her where the bathroom was so she could use it, and quickly headed back to the kitchen.

Gibbs asked, "What's going on?"

"I found her eating out of our trashcan." The grimace on Gibbs' face matched Tony's own. "She hasn't really eaten in three days. That's about all I know. But I think there's something else going on, and I just couldn't leave her outside like that."

"She say anything about her family or where she's from?"

"No, I haven't even been able to get her name."

A quiet voice answered, "It's Elizabeth. But everybody calls me Betsy."

The forlorn, broken look on Betsy's face and deep in her eyes made the father in Gibbs just want to pull her in and hug her until it went away. No child should ever have that look in their eyes. He tried to give her a little smile as he said, "I'm Jethro, Betsy. C'mon let's have supper."

As they ate Gibbs and Tony were able to pull things out of Betsy, finding out that her father was in the Navy, a submariner. And he had just gotten home from a six month deployment and found out that Betsy was pregnant. From the way she described their home life her parents were very strict and very religious, and having an unmarried, pregnant seventeen year old daughter wasn't acceptable. Her dad had simply blown a gasket and thrown her out of the house.

"I used up the last of my money on the bus to get here, there was supposed to be a shelter for girls like me over by the church, but it wasn't there."

Gibbs sighed, he had heard about that, "Yeah, it closed a few months ago, they ran out of funding." He stood and went to clear the table with Betsy jumping up to help, and he let her. Tony was oddly quiet, observing Gibbs with Betsy. He wondered if Gibbs saw his own lost daughter in her. And he wondered what they were going to do, because adding to that list of things in life that he knew, he could guarantee that Gibbs wasn't going to let this lie.

Betsy brought the plates to the sink and as she ran the water to rinse them she dropped her chin to her chest and couldn't stop the tears from coming. Gibbs turned off the water and didn't hesitate this time to pull her into a hug. He squeezed her tightly and let her cry. He stroked her hair and murmured soft, comforting words, and promised her that they would figure it out. Tony watched Gibbs with awe, he was so good with kids, fathering just came naturally to him, and he always seemed to know just what to do.

* * *

When she had cried herself out, Gibbs had snagged paper towel for her to blow her nose on, and looked at the time. It was getting late, and he could tell that Betsy was exhausted. They would deal with her parents tomorrow, which thankfully was Saturday and a Saturday that his team had off.

He crooked a finger under her chin and made her eyes meet his, "Tomorrow we're gonna go talk to your folks. But tonight the guest room's yours. Okay?"

She nodded gratefully. Tony approached them and said hesitantly, "Um, Betsy, there is something you should probably know about us. We're not, um, roommates, we're..." he stumbled trying to find the right word.

"A couple?" she asked brightly, with the first real smile they had seen on her face.

"Yeah. That. That okay with you?"

She nodded, "Don't tell my mom, but the youth minister that was at our church last summer was gay, and he and I are good friends."

Tony let out a big breath, "Okay, cool. I just didn't wanna freak you out or anything."

* * *

Gibbs showed her to the guest room and pointed to her knapsack, "You got a change of clothes in there?"

She shook her head, a little embarrassed, she knew that she didn't smell particularly good. Gibbs diffused her mortification with a light touch, "Tell you what, I'll grab you some sweats and after a hot shower you can throw those in the washer. They'll be good to go for tomorrow."

He slipped into his bedroom and pulled a clean t-shirt, sweat pants and sweatshirt, and a pair of thick woolly socks out of the dresser. His next stop was the linen closet for a towel, wash cloth and spare toothbrush for her out of the stash they kept on hand. Gibbs handed her the stuff and said with a little grin, "Bathroom is all yours. Tony's got more hair care products than most women I know, so he should have something in there that'll work for yours. We'll be downstairs."

She looked at the pile he had handed her and said quietly as he was turning to leave the room and leave her to her shower, "Jethro?"

"Yeah?"

"Why are you both helping me?"

"Because it's the right thing to do."

* * *

Gibbs found Tony in the kitchen finishing up the dishes. He stepped up behind Tony and placed an affectionate hand on the small of his back and leaned in for a quick kiss. Then he said seriously, "You realize you are going to have to keep me from shooting her father tomorrow, right?"

Tony shook his head, "How could he just kick her out like that in the middle of winter? No money, no where to go, no nothing. I just can't get a handle on it, Jethro. I can't."

"I know."

Tony finished the last of the dishes and wiped his hands, and turned to face Gibbs with a very sad look on his face, "I can't get the image of her getting ready to eat a three day old sandwich from our trash out of my head."

Gibbs knew that behind his comic, frat boy image, that Tony had a big heart, and that things stuck with him, and bothered him. It was one of the reasons why he was a good agent, a good cop. He wanted to make things right, and to do the right thing. But sometimes the things that stuck with him ate away at his soul a little, and Gibbs knew that this would be one of those things. He pulled Tony into a tight embrace and whispered against Tony's neck, "I know. But she's safe and we're gonna fix this tomorrow."

Tony took the reassurance from Jethro, their relationship one of love and support. And it was an equal partnership, some days it was Tony that needed the shoring up, other days it was Jethro, and they both did it willingly and accepted it just as willingly.

Tony said half seriously with his chin still tucked on Gibbs shoulder, "Think we should call Ducky and tell him to have bail money handy?"

* * *

A little while later, Gibbs had headed down to the basement to work on the boat and Tony was sitting on the edge of the couch waiting for his turn in the shower when he heard Betsy making her way down the stairs with her little bundle of dirty clothes. He stood up and gave her a little smile, "Feel better?"

The little grin she gave him in return made _him_ feel better about the whole situation and she said, "Yeah. A lot. Um, Jethro said I could put these in the washer."

"Oh, yeah, sure. It's in here." he led her to the laundry room, "Although I gotta warn you, in this house Jethro is the master of all things laundry. He's got some sort of formula for what gets washed with what. He claims it's some sort of Marine thing, but I'm not really buying it. Me? I toss everything in together and hope for the best."

She chuckled, "Me too."

They got the washing machine started and Tony left her to pick out a movie while he ran through a quick shower of his own. He was pleased that she had picked out a silly comedy, silly was something they could both use. Halfway through the movie they paused it and rotated her laundry to the dryer. They were raiding the freezer for ice cream and Tony stuck his head in basement doorway and asked Gibbs if he wanted any. Gibbs' sarcastic response from downstairs sent Betsy into a fit of giggles, "I thought you said we weren't gonna have any more ice cream because we're getting fat."

Tony made a face and replied, "I went running earlier. Besides, we have company, I don't want to be rude."

The two men's bantering was playful and familiar and Betsy could tell it wasn't an act that they were putting on for her, this was who they were all the time.

Gibbs had declined the ice cream, teasing that he had more willpower than Tony. As he and Betsy made their sundaes Tony whispered conspiratorially, "Has more willpower my foot. See that package of cookies over there, I'll bet you another sundae that half of them are gone by breakfast. He comes up here for a coffee refill and grabs a couple. He comes up to use the john, he grabs a couple more on the way back down. His sweet tooth is just as bad as mine. He just hides it better."

It was a good thing a little while later that they had finished their sundaes already because the sight of Gibbs in the doorway to the living room with a coffee in one hand and a cookie in the other set both Betsy and Tony off into snorts of laughter.

* * *

After the movie was done, Betsy's eyes just wouldn't stay open and she headed up to bed. Tony slipped downstairs to hassle Gibbs with a yawn, "Betsy went to bed, and I'm thinking that's not a bad idea. You planning on staying up much longer?"

Gibbs chuckled, Tony was so transparent at times. After the two years they had been sleeping together, and the year of practically living together with Tony's apartment kept just for appearances, Tony still didn't like to go up to bed alone here in Jethro's house, it was like he was invading Jethro's personal space. Gibbs knew that the only way for Tony to get over that was for him to move in officially. And they couldn't do that without opening up a whole other can of worms. So until they could, he let Tony have the facade of dragging him off to bed.

Gibbs shut off the light and they headed upstairs. He made a beeline for the kitchen and set the coffee pot up for morning, and without hesitation flipped the lock on the back door. Tony was in the living room putting away the dvd and turning off the television and saw Gibbs head for the front door and heard the click of the deadbolt on the front door. It was a little, innocuous thing that most people wouldn't think twice about, but Tony recognized the significance. Gibbs protected what what his, and right now that included the sleeping teenager upstairs.

* * *

As they got into bed and got comfortable, something that generally involved Tony sprawling on his back with Gibbs splayed on top of him like Tony's own personal teddy bear, Tony started chuckling to himself and had to share, "You realize this is the first time we've ever slept together with clothes on?"

Jethro chuckled, they had both by an unspoken consensus decided to wear sweatpants to bed. As Tony massaged Gibbs' head on his chest he said softly, "You're really good with kids, Jethro. Have you ever thought about maybe adopting or something?"

Jethro let out a little sigh but answered honestly, "Yeah. But not for a long time. What about you?"

It was Tony's turn to hesitate, "I think it would great to have a kid but I'm petrified that I'd screw up the fatherhood thing."

Gibbs lifted his head and met Tony's eyes, "You'd be a great father, Tony. You have a big heart and that's what important. Kids'll forgive anything as long as they know you love'em."

Tony crooked his neck and kissed Jethro deeply but gently, and it was the type of kiss that was generally followed by making love at a slow, leisurely pace. But they broke the kiss with a little groan, part of their unspoken consensus was that they behave themselves tonight. Gibbs dropped his head back to Tony's chest and Tony turned off the bedside lamp and they settled in to go to sleep.

* * *

tbc...


	2. Chapter 2

When Tony's eyes opened in the morning, he knew he was alone in bed. He could smell coffee and cinnamon wafting upstairs and he would be willing to bet that Jethro was downstairs puttering around the kitchen making breakfast. And probably humming to himself as he did it.

As Tony slipped on a t-shirt and brushed his teeth, he thought about their short conversation about kids from the night before and he realized that it was a conversation they needed to have in much more detail. Lately they had been having more and more little conversations about the future, their future. Jethro had talked about retiring for good and how that would allow them to formalize their relationship. There was also an opportunity for him to get out of the field and move over to a training role, sharing his experience and knowledge with new agents, a move that would also allow them to formalize their relationship since Tony would no longer report to him. But in all their little conversations they had never really discussed children, never talked about having a family together. And as Tony thought about how Jethro was with Betsy, and how he was with any of the other kids Tony had seen him with, he knew that no man ever deserved a child of his own more than Jethro. And if he admitted it to himself, Tony also had more than an inkling of desire to be called "dad".

When Tony made way to the kitchen and saw the spread that Jethro had on the table the sheepish little grin he gave Tony when their eyes met simply confirmed Tony's decision about that conversation, yeah, he thought to himself, they definitely needed to continue that discussion. Breakfast for them normally consisted of coffee, and maybe some quick toast and eggs, not the poured juice and milk, and the french toast, and the bacon and eggs that were gracing the table this morning.

Tony noticed that Betsy was inhaling breakfast almost as fast has she had inhaled supper and he felt a flicker of rage again that her parents would just toss her out without a thought. But he tamped it down and gave Betsy a smile as he headed for the coffee pot.

She was dressed in her own turtleneck and pants, but had kept Jethro's big baggy sweatshirt. She had admitted to Tony after her shower last night that she was sure that she'd never feel warm again. The two nights outside in below freezing weather had been brutal.

They ate a big, leisurely breakfast, then Tony got dressed so they could go deal with her parents. Tony was really hoping that this went well, for Betsy and the baby mostly, but also that Jethro didn't completely lose his temper and do something that they would all regret.

* * *

All three of them were quiet in the car on the way over to her parents on the other side of the city. And when they parked in front of the house Tony could tell that Betsy was scared. And somehow he was expecting what Jethro said next to Betsy as he turned around in the driver's seat, "We're gonna go talk to your folks. I don't know how this is all going to turn out, but I don't want you to worry. If I can't make your father see reason, we _will _figure something out. You are not alone and you have someplace warm and safe to stay if it comes down to that. Okay?"

She was chewing on her bottom lip, but she she gave him a little nod that earned her a playful little wink from Jethro that actually made her smile a little.

As they made their way up the walk, the front door opened and a short, stocky man emerged to stand with his arms crossed over his chest, his entire demeanor was adversarial. Tony groaned inwardly, knowing that this was just not going to go well. He subtly handed Betsy his cell phone and said sideways through gritted teeth, "If this gets ugly, call speed dial number 4." Ducky.

Gibbs flashed his id, "Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS."

The man snorted, "Whatever she's done now isn't my problem, I kicked her out four days ago."

Gibbs was really struggling to maintain his temper and swallowed back a sarcastic reply, instead saying, "Actually, Mr. Fontana, you kicking her out is what we need to talk about. May we come inside?"

"No."

The irritation building in Gibbs had to be released in some way or else he was just going to deck Betsy's father, so he let the sarcasm flow, "Fine. Then we'll just stand here on your front porch in front of all your neighbors and you can explain to me how you justify kicking your pregnant, seventeen year old daughter out on the street in the middle of March with no money and no place to go."

It was only Tony's quick hand on Gibbs' wrist that kept him from knocking Fontana's teeth down his throat when he said, "I figured the little whore would run to whichever boyfriend of hers got her drunk and knocked her up at that Halloween party. Let him take responsibility for her."

Surprisingly it was Betsy that found her voice to yell at her father even as the tears streamed down her face from his cruel words, "I told you it wasn't like that. It wasn't my fault. I don't know who the father is."

Tony was trying to figure that statement out, she hadn't told them anything about the baby's father last night, it just hadn't been relevant to their conversation. He squeezed Jethro's wrist before letting it go and asked Betsy, "What do you mean you don't know who the father is?" He had a sneaking suspicion he wasn't going to like what she had to say, and he was right.

Betsy took a deep breath and locked her eyes on Tony's, "I offered to be a designated driver on Halloween for a couple of friends that wanted to go to this party at some guy's house. There was this kid in a mask that was running around with these fancy cupcake things that he said his mom made for the party. He wasn't acting drunk or stupid or anything really but before I could say no he stuffed half of one in my mouth. It was really dry and I couldn't stop choking and he got me a bottled water. I didn't even think I just drank it. And that was the last thing I remember until I woke up the next morning. There were people passed out everywhere and I just grabbed my clothes and went home." She turned towards her father and said sadly, "I was a virgin until then, Dad, whether you believe me or not."

Tony's eyes met Gibbs' and he said flatly, "Sounds like Rohypnol."

Gibbs turned back to Fontana, his expression stony as he pointed behind him to Betsy, "What she just described was a sexual assault. Someone slipped her a rophy and raped her. Didn't you listen to what she tried to tell you before you jumped to conclusions?"

"She shouldn't have been there in the first place. I didn't raise her to be out partying and drinking with boys. How do I this isn't just some story she cooked up? I'm not buying it. And I'm not having a whore under my roof."

Tony caught Gibbs' wrist again, barely. And he said through gritted teeth to Fontana, "Mr. Fontana, if you call her that again, I won't stop him a third time. And trust me, you really don't want that."

"What I want is all three of you off my property, now." He focused on Betsy, "Your mother packed up your room, it's on the back porch in boxes. You want any of it, you take it now or else it's going out with the trash on Monday." And without another word he turned and went back in the house.

Gibbs was fuming. Tony tried to remember the last time he had ever seen Gibbs this angry and he couldn't, and that was a little scary. And he thought for just a second that Gibbs was going to follow Fontana into the house. But all it took was one deep racking sob from behind them to switch the gears in Gibbs who turned sharply, and without a word, pulled a heartbroken and sobbing Betsy into a tight hug. As he murmured soothing things as he stroked her hair, his eyes were fixed on Tony. And Tony could see the fury still burning down deep in them. Deciding that Gibbs had Betsy well in hand, he said lightly, "I'll go get the boxes and meet you at the car."

Tony's own rage was simmering as he made his way to the back porch. He could see the two big boxes and sighed. He was just about to bend down to pick them up when the back door quietly opened and Mrs. Fontana slipped outside. She was a bone thin woman, with a what Tony could only describe as a haunted expression on her face. She was also sporting a black eye that appeared to be a couple days old that she was unsuccessfully trying to cover up with makeup. When her eyes met Tony's he could see the overwhelming sadness in them and he said quietly, "We can help you. You can press charges."

She shook her head and whispered, "It's too late for me. But help her. Please? It's not too late for her, or my grandchild. And give her this? It was my mothers." She put her hand into her pocket and pulled out a little gold locket that she quickly pressed into Tony's hand before she slipped back into the house without another word.

Tony sighed again, feeling even worse about the situation. He tucked the locked away safely in his pocket and hesitated only a second before slipping one of his business cards in the screen door. He hoped for her sake and Betsy's that she would call. But his gut was telling him that she wouldn't.

He carried the boxes to the car, and was glad to see that Gibbs had gotten Betsy inside where it was warmer. Gibbs popped the trunk from inside and he put the boxes in and closed it behind them. He allowed himself one last look towards the house and he thought he saw someone peeking out of the curtains upstairs. But the thin fingers quickly let the curtains fall and Tony got in the car.

* * *

It was a quiet ride back to their house, both Gibbs and Tony trying to figure out what to do now that they had effectively taken in a pregnant teenager. Betsy was trying hard not to just keep crying, she didn't know what to do. And her father calling her a whore in front of Tony and Jethro and the entire neighborhood had hurt more than anything. She had always prided herself on being a "good girl", someone with pride and respect for herself, and to be called a whore like that by her own father broke her heart.

When they pulled in the driveway and got out, Jethro said to her, "Why don't you go on in and wash your face and chill out, we'll get the boxes."

She nodded gratefully and went inside. Tony's mind was a million miles away as he watched her go and he said distractedly, "She needs a bigger coat."

Jethro sighed, "Yeah. And some maternity clothes too, those pants she's got on aren't gonna cut it much longer."

Tony turned to face Jethro and asked, "We just got ourselves a kid without even trying, didn't we?"

Jethro shrugged, and added, "Two kids."

Tony winced at that a little, "I wonder if she's seen a doctor at all for the baby."

"I don't know. I doubt it though. And I also doubt that she got any sort of counseling for the sexual assault either. God, I wanted to strangle her father." Gibbs said as he scrubbed his face with his hands.

Tony teased, "Couldn't tell."

Gibbs looked at Tony, his expression serious and he asked, "This is all sort of happening fast, Tony. We didn't really get a chance to talk about any of this. Are you okay with all this?"

Tony dropped the frat boy act and answered honestly, "You and I both knew going over there today that this might happen, even if we didn't actually talk about it. I think the three of us all need to sit down and have a long talk about things, we need to know what she wants to do, you know, with herself, with the baby. We can't make those decisions for her. And then we'll figure it out from there. Making it up as we go along is what we do best."

Jethro gave him the sheepish little smile that Tony loved so much and agreed, "Yes, it is."

As they each grabbed a box out of the trunk and headed for the house a particularly frigid blast of wind whipped through and Tony frowned and said under his breath, "And I'm buying her a coat tomorrow."

* * *

tbc...


	3. Chapter 3

They got the boxes in the house, and Gibbs headed into the kitchen to make coffee and some hot chocolate for Betsy. Tony, meanwhile, headed upstairs to check on Betsy.

He heard muffled sniffling coming from behind the door to the guest room and he knocked lightly. She acknowledged him and entered the room. Her face was a wreck from crying. Taking a cue from Gibbs he simply sat down on the bed next to her and pulled her into a hug. He rubbed her back gently and said, "Don't cry, we're gonna figure this out, okay?"

It took a while but eventually she nodded against his chest. Tony had held his fair share of girls in his life, but none like this. And he wasn't quite sure if the emotions that Betsy's clinging was eliciting were more paternal or fraternal. Either way they were protective and strong and totally unexpected. And when they hit him all at once he simply squeezed Betsy a little tighter. They sat that way for a while, until Betsy sniffed hard and pulled back.

Tony grabbed the tissue box from the nightstand and held it out for her and said, "C'mon, let's go downstairs. Gibbs is making hot chocolate. We're probably out of luck on cookies though, you saw how he is."

That got him the little grin he was looking for before Betsy quickly blew her nose and they headed downstairs.

When they reached the kitchen and saw the plate of cookies on the kitchen table Betsy giggled and turned to tease Tony with her eyes. But before she could say a word Tony held up an index finger and said, "Ah, don't even say it."

---------------

The conversation at the table was as non-embarrassing as Tony and Gibbs could make it. Yes, she had seen a doctor a couple of times and everything had been fine but then the doctor wanted to talk to her parents and she stopped going. No, she hadn't had any counseling about the sexual assault. No, she had absolutely no idea who the father was. And no, she really, _really_ didn't want to pursue that any further.

Both Gibbs and Tony were trying to figure out how to ask her what she wanted to do about the baby when Betsy offered up, "I want to give the baby up for adoption."

Tony caught the way Gibbs swallowed hard at that statement but the rest of his face masked his emotions. When neither man said anything right away Betsy added, "I'm not ready to be a mother. And the baby needs to be with people that really want a baby. People that are ready to be parents."

Gibbs responded gently, "I guess you've been thinking about all this."

"Yeah. I haven't thought about much else for a while actually."

It was Tony that asked, "Betsy, before all this, what did you want to do after high school?"

Betsy grimace slightly but answered, "I wanted to go in the Navy and train to be a nurse. I thought it would make my dad proud of me." She couldn't stop her eyes from welling back up though at the thought of her dad.

They talked for a long while and tried to sort out where to go from here. Gibbs was a little concerned about her father making trouble for he and Tony. Two men taking in a seventeen-year old girl that they weren't related to would look a little odd from anyone looking at the situation from the outside. Betsy also needed to finish high school. She only had a few months to go and was a good student.

When the conversation lulled they decided to table any further discussion for the time being. They all had a lot to process and sort out. Gibbs took his coffee and headed for the basement while Tony took Betsy shopping. She insisted that she would make do with the clothes her mother had packed in one of the boxes but Tony wouldn't take no for an answer and they headed for the mall.

---------------

Gibbs didn't reach for a tool when he hit the basement. Instead he leaned up against the workbench and let all the events of the past twenty-four hours swirl around his brain as he sipped his coffee. He thought of Kelly and how it he would have reacted if she had found herself in Betsy's situation. He could guarantee that it sure as hell wouldn't have ended with him throwing her out into the street. His anger flared at the thought that someone raped Betsy and it burned even brighter remembering her father calling her a whore. Betsy and the baby both needed to be protected. And though he could protect them both physically and give Betsy and the child she was carrying a safe place to live, he couldn't protect them legally. As he tried to figure out exactly what to do about that, his mind kept locking onto one person that could help him. But _would_ she?

---------------

Gibbs rolled his head on his shoulder trying to alleviate a little of the tension in his neck as he raised his hand to knock on the door in front of him. The last time he had been at the Jackson it had been for a case, this time he needed a favor and he wasn't entirely certain what his reception would be.

The door swung open and the sight of the redhead standing there in an old paint spattered oxford shirt with her hair twisted up into a haphazard bun held with an artist's paintbrush him took him back to another time and place. He couldn't help but grin. She was still beautiful as she had been the day he married her.

"Hi, Annie."

It only took a moment for her to register who was standing at her door and she rolled her eyes, "I knew I shouldn't have let that restraining order lapse."

"Oh, come on now, you were the one with the Louisville slugger. And besides, I brought cheesecake."

She squinted at him almost, but not quite, playfully and asked, "The good cheesecake?"

He held up a paper bag from her favorite bakery. "With that fancy raspberry stuff that you like."

"What do you want, Jethro? And you can save your "can't a guy just visit his ex" crap for one of your other ex-wives. How many are you up to now by the way?"

He sighed and shook his head sheepishly. "Still just three. And I'm here because I need a favor."

She rolled her eyes again and said, "Why am I not surprised? Well I guess you better come in then. I'll make coffee."

---------------

Tony was starting to see red. He and Betsy had gone into one of the popular maternity shops in the mall and started browsing for things she liked. He had been making little jokes here and there, trying to get Betsy to smile and lighten her mood just a little. It had been working too, until the saleswoman had come over to them. She took one look at Tony and Betsy and instantly got the wrong idea about them, and her distaste was evident in her every expression and laced into every word.

Tony saw Betsy looking down at her shoes looking completely forlorn and he had had enough. He nudged Betsy with his elbow and said, "C'mon let's go check out Macy's."

Betsy's chin came back up and she nodded. Tony gave the saleswoman an evil little grin on the way out and said icily, "I hope you don't work on commission."

Macy's turned out to be a much better choice. The friendly black woman with a touch of gray at her temples that was working in the maternity section took in the quality of Tony's coat and clothing as well the badge and gun she could see under his open coat. The protectiveness rolling off of him in waves made her simply take things at face value without judgment. That being that there was a sad, pregnant young woman that needed "everything" according to the man and that she had thankfully had someone looking out for her. She pulled out a measuring tape and very matter-of-factly told Tony to come back in an hour.

And when he did he found the two of them giggling over a huge pile of items near the register. Betsy tried one more time to argue that she really didn't want him to pay for all that and that she would make do with what she had. He just flashed a cheesy smile at her as he handed the saleswoman his credit card.

When everything was rung up and bagged, except for the new wool overcoat that Tony insisted Betsy wear out of the store, the saleswoman handed Tony the last of the bags and gave Betsy a quick hug and said, "Now you have my phone number, if you need somebody to talk to you call me you hear?"

Betsy smiled and nodded.

As they were walking out Betsy told Tony, "I told her a little about things. Miriam is really nice. She's got two daughters and three granddaughters and she said to call her if I have any questions about anything."

"That's really nice of her. And look at you just making friends everywhere you go."

Their walk out of the mall took them past the first store they tried and the rude saleswoman. She was near the store entrance and Tony couldn't help but hold up the multitude of bags and say, "To quote the lovely Julia Roberts, "Big mistake. Big. Huge.""

Betsy snorted back a laugh beside him but completely burst out laughing when Tony said, "Sucks to be her," once they passed the store.

---------------

Annie listened intently to Jethro over coffee and cheesecake as he told her about Betsy. And she got nearly as angry as he did. It was one of the reasons she had gone into family law all those years ago.

She could see Jethro's hands fisted tightly as he told her about the confrontation with Betsy's father and without thinking she reached over and placed her hands gently on his and said what he needed to hear. "She's safe, Jethro. And that's what matters. You did the right thing."

Slowly his fists uncurled and he turned his hands over to hold hers. He paused a moment before speaking, "There is something else you need to know. About me and... Tony."

Her eyebrow raised and she asked gently, "That there _is_ there a you and Tony?"

"Yeah."

She nodded but didn't say anything and he couldn't read her expression. Finally he blurted out, "You don't seem surprised."

She chuckled, "I lived with you for a long time, Jethro. I remember you talking about the interesting people you'd met on the job. Men, women, it didn't matter. And I could always tell when you were talking specifically about someone you were attracted to, even if _you_ didn't know it. So, no, I'm not entirely surprised."

"Does that have any bearing on Betsy's situation."

"No. Let me think this through for a minute though." She got up and grabbed the coffeepot and refilled both their mugs while she was thinking.

Sitting back down her brow was furrowed and she said, "This is going to require a little underhandedness, Jethro. I don't have a problem with it personally, but you might."

"I'm listening."

---------------  
tbc...


End file.
