Tequila Sunrise

A/N. This is a one shot written for #HettyAppreciationWeek on the NCIS:LA Magazine's website.

I hope you all enjoy it and as usual I own nothing.

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><p>Tequila Sunrise.<p>

**_Quote. "Hetty plus mechanical bull plus tequila equals bar fight." in NCIS:LA Season One Episode "Past Lives"._**

Hetty watched as Sam, Mike and Eric unpacked a few more of the boxes that they had taken to the mission from the warehouse in their hasty move after Lara Macy's departure.

A skeleton support staff were helping with the paperwork, Eric Beale was in his element setting up Ops, Kensi Blye and Dominic Vail were on a training course and that left Sam Hanna and Mike Renko helping Hetty organize the area in which her top team was to work.

She put up a few more pictures on the wall in the area she had decided to make her office in, it was snug and cozy and she would be able to keep an eye on her top team from there.

She smiled as she turned away from them to unpack a box with her favorite tea set and she placed it on the shelf in front of the partition that looked their way watching Renko and Sam try and decide how to have the desks set out.

"G'll hate his desk facing that way!" Sam said as Mike moved it round, "He likes to be able to see all around him." He said.

"Maybe, but he's not here Sam, he isn't going to be back for another two months so what does it matter." He sighed collapsing into what would be Callen's chair. He laughed, "I'll bet he's pleased that he doesn't have to do this."

Sam rolled his eyes at the man, had anyone but Renko said that he'd have gone for him, but Mike and Callen had been friends for years so he knew there was no malice.

"Probably, but right now he's resting, and you know how hard it is to make him do that." Sam pointed out.

Renko nodded and they both got back to their tasks and trying not to think how close they had come to losing a good friend.

* * *

><p>Hetty sat at her desk listening.<p>

She had been horrified when she had heard about Callen's shooting, she had history with his family and she had not found the right way or the right time to tell him. After all how do you tell someone that you have known for a years that you knew his mother. That you should have been the one to save her, to extract her from her trouble, but you did not turn up and she was shot and died…and the life that her children had lived was directly because of your actions.

She felt unsettled and went to make a cup of tea. All thought of unpacking had fled.

It was late in the day anyway, Eric had already been down to ask permission to camp on the floor in Ops overnight as the final checks needed to be done on the new computer system and the defragging and new firewall protocols would probably take most of the night.

He had stuttered a bit while asking her and this had touched her.

She knew she was not a person who could or should be taken lightly. The team was still reeling over the shooting of Agent Callen and the sideways promotion of Lara Macy. Something Hetty herself had suggested to Director Leon Vance, as she herself could no longer stand by and watch as the boy she had watched grow into a man, go through his life without; it seemed to her, any regard for his own life.

In addition, she felt she had a debt to repay, and she was not one to leave a debt unpaid.

* * *

><p>Renko grabbed his bag as Nate Getz the resident team psychologist jogged down the stairs from his new office; Sam nodded a short goodbye and headed towards the gym as Mike waved to Nate and headed out of the building.<p>

Nate came to rest on the supporting pillar by Hetty's office and watched, as she was lost in thought.

"You regretting taking this on?" Nate asked with a small smile.

Hetty shook her head, "On the contrary Mr. Getz, I am exactly where I need to be, I was wondering however if you had heard any complaints about my appointment as Operations Manager over Ms. Macy?"

Nate looked towards a chair for permission to come into her office, Hetty nodded and gestured that he should sit down.

"Not really a few people have wondered if Macy was demoted because of Callen's shooting, a few are wondering about you, you know where you were transferred from, no one is actually saying that you can't do the job…you know because of…"Nate trailed off.

"Because of my size?" Hetty said resignedly, she'd heard that her whole life.

"Someone picking on you again Hetty?" Callen said as he walked slowly up to her office.

"Callen!" Nate said getting up and letting him sit in the chair.

Callen stepped up into the office as Hetty gave him a small hug, "How are you feeling Mr. Callen."

Callen smiled, "Still sore Hetty, I'm not coming back yet, I was looking for Sam." He said looking around.

"I think he said something about checking out the new gym before Mr. Renko left."

"I'll get him." Nate said not wanting Callen to move too much and split his stitches.

"So why are you here?" Hetty asked.

"You don't wanna see me?" Callen asked mock affronted.

Hetty smiled, "Mr. Callen I am always pleased to see you, I just worry about you."

"You worry too much…Sam and I were going out to a bar, it's a nice one, not far from here. I'm going stir crazy at my motel room, so figured I'd have a night out. Do you want to join us?" Callen asked.

"It would be nice to get to know Mr. Hanna a bit better, maybe Mr. Getz would like to join us?" she added.

Callen looked at her, "Ok?" he said warily, he liked Nate but wasn't in the mood to be psychoanalyzed.

"Oh relax Mr. Callen, it's a Bar…What's the worst that can happen?" She said.

* * *

><p>Four hours later, he was regretting her decision to do this.<p>

It had started innocently enough, walking into the bar on Sunset and ordering a bottle of tequila to share and a round of beers for him, Sam and Nate.

Callen had taken a seat in the back as Hetty sat with him as Nate and Sam brought the beers over to the table, and Callen poured Hetty her first glass of Tequila.

"Ah I remember first having this with Che in Nicaragua…1953. It was a…_**Interesting**_ time." She said smiling enigmatically.

Callen laughed, "You know when you say it like that I'm never sure you're telling me the whole truth."

Hetty looked affronted. "Mr. Callen there are times when I do not tell the _**whole **_truth as it were but I _**never**_ lie." She said taking another drink.

An hour later after numerous stories about meeting Che Guevara and tequila Hetty was a lot more relaxed.

The lights went down in the bar and the owner switched on the mechanical bull, which until that moment had been unnoticed in the rear of the bar.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this here is Bessie, our mechanical bull; there is a prize of $100 for anyone who can last a full three minutes with her." The bar owner announced.

Sam laughed, "That's money in the bank, and I'll do it." He said and strode confidently if not a little crookedly towards the bull.

The others watched as he climbed on, Hetty smiling in the most knowing way and Callen knew that look.

"You don't think he'll do it?" he said looking over at his partner.

Hetty shook her head, "Too much upper body strength, you need to relax and balance."

"I could do it!" Callen protested with a laugh as 20 seconds into the ride Sam was thrown off and landed on the air bags that surrounded the bull.

Sam stood up and dusted himself down.

"No you couldn't!" Nate and Hetty said as Sam walked over to them.

"He couldn't what?" Sam asked.

"Ride the bull, you are still healing Callen, or did you want to go back into the hospital?" Nate asked.

Callen shrugged, "One day we'll come back and I'll show you."

Hetty took another drink, "Well right now Mr. Callen I'll show you." She stood up and walked to where the staff member was taking names for the competition.

He looked down at the smaller woman and grinned, "And your name lil lady?" he asked.

"Hetty Lange." She said with a smile.

The man handed her a Stetson and helped her climb aboard the mechanical bull. "You hold on tight ma'am." He smirked and helped her up.

"Three minutes and the prize money is all yours." He grinned and turned to work the controls.

Hetty held on as the bull started spinning, the tequila in her system making her head spin slightly.

Having done this before, admittedly not on a mechanical bull but on a real one she moved expertly with the motions of the bull, which started slowly to speed up.

She started counting in her head, she knew the moment the three minutes were up and allowed herself to fall.

"Awww, Never mind there little lady!" the bar owner said condescendingly.

"That my lad was exactly three minutes." She said dusting herself down and putting her shoes back on.

"I'm sorry we have it at 2 minutes fifty five seconds." He said showing her the stopwatch.

Hetty turned and poked him, "That was exactly three minutes." She swayed as she stood toe to toe with the large man.

"Ma'am I'm sorry, it was only two minutes and fifty five seconds." He said.

She turned and went to walk back over to her team when a drunk man nearby turned and said, "Maybe you should go back to riding reindeer."

Hetty stopped and felt her blood boil, she was already annoyed at being cheated by the bar owner she was not going to let it stand, after all she was the operations manager of a federal agency.

"Excuse me?" She said turning to the huge hulk of a man.

Callen walked up behind her, "Give it a rest man, how about you get a drink on me hey?" he said.

The man looked at Callen, "You with her? That's nasty man…or is she your momma…you that sad you're taking your momma out coz ya can't get a girl…or don't ya swing that way?" he slurred.

"You need to leave," Callen said putting a hand on his arm trying to steer him away.

The man snapped and turned to hit Callen straight in the chest. He winced as he felt a few stitches pop and his shirt got warm as his wounds started to bleed.

"Get your hands off him!" Hetty snarled and she Karate chopped the hulk of a man in the back of the kneecap. He fell down and as he did he knocked into a server who through a tray of drinks over another man.

Within moments, there was a huge bar fight.

Callen slid back as the 'hulk' punched him in the jaw. Sam and Nate, spotting what was going on waded in, Nate moving a dazed Callen to safety and calling reinforcements in. "We need to get out of here!" Nate called to Callen maneuvering him into a corner so he wouldn't get hurt even more.

"Where's Hetty?" he asked worried.

Nate looked around and stopped in awe. Hetty had 'the hulk' on his stomach as she subdued him in a headlock.

"How on earth did she do that?!" Nate exclaimed.

Callen shrugged as Sam dragged her off the man.

"We need to go!" Sam said he dropped some bills on the table to cover their share of the damage and went outside Sam holding up Callen and holding back Hetty from going back inside as the cool air and the full force of the liquor hit her.

"I have fought revolutionary army's, he doesn't scare me!" she argued trying to fight her way back inside.

"I know Hetty, but we need to leave."

"LEAVE!" Hetty snapped looking back at the bar, "I have never backed down from a fight."

Callen swayed as the pain from his reopened wounds hit him again.

"Callen needs up now, he's been injured." Sam said.

This instantly calmed Hetty down as she turned to look at Callen, "We will get you home and I will restitch your wounds." She said.

Callen paled at the thought of needles but nodded at Hetty.

Piling into a cab they all arrived at Callen's motel room.

Hetty walked in the door, "First aid kit?" she asked.

Nate found one and passed it over.

"Take your shirt off Mr. Callen." Hetty said swaying on her feet.

"Sam…Stop her?!" Callen begged.

Hetty threaded a needle and looked menacingly towards him, swayed again and landed face down on the bed.

Nate took the needle as Callen sighed, "Medical tape and gauze will work just fine." He patched up the few torn stitches and he was right, they'd hold till he could get to a doctor.

Sam removed Hetty shoes and gently laid her on Callen's bed, covering her gently with a blanket he found a chair to sleep in.

Nate found another chair and Callen unrolled his bedroll, set the coffee machine for the morning, placing some Tylenol nearby and finally he fell asleep.

* * *

><p>Five hours later Hetty awoke to the sunrise streaming in the window, finding her head pounding and herself in a strange room.<p>

She sat slowly up and looked at her bruised knuckles.

"Oh, bugger." She swore realizing she was in a room with Callen, Sam and Nate.

She got up maneuvered around the sleeping men, smiled as she noticed that along with the coffee, Callen had found some tea bags, not up to her usual standards, but needs must. She thought as she boiled the kettle.

She gratefully took two Tylenol and sat back on the bed watching the boys sleep. Her smile softening even more as she gazed on Callen sleeping.

One day, she knew she'd have to tell him the secret she held but not today, today she was going to ask them to keep a secret.

She watched as they woke, one by one, stretching and yawning. She handed each a coffee and a dose of Tylenol as they woke up.

"Good morning Gentlemen," she said,

"Urgh…Hetty Shh!" Sam said holding his head.

Callen groaned and he took the coffee she held out with a small and softer than usual nod.

"I think it is safe to say two things," she said as they all focused on her.

"What's that?" Callen asked.

"One, we will _**NEVER **_mention this again." Hetty said, "And two NEVER will we go to a bar with Tequila and a mechanical bull again." She ordered.

They all gingerly nodded their heads.

* * *

><p>A month or so later Callen and Sam are discussing the idea of a team outing with Kensi and Dom.<p>

"So what about bowling?" Nate asked. "You know you all go…they have those little shoes…."

"NO BOWLING!" Sam and Callen said together.

"What are we discussing?" Hetty asked as she walked into the bullpen.

"Team bonding night." Callen said.

"What about that Cowboy bar on sunset?" Nate asked completely forgetting the incident a month earlier.

"Ooh that sounds nice!" Hetty exclaimed.

Callen looked at Sam who winced.

"They have a mechanical bull…." Callen smirked.

"Oh No!" Hetty snapped and turned to walk away catching the grin on her team leader's face as she went.

She sat down in her office and looked over as Callen walked into the kitchen area and then walked out with a paper cup of tea, the tag dangling down as if to remind her of her fall from grace that night.

He smirked as he sat down getting ready for her day and she looked up as her email dinged.

"Oh bugger."


End file.
