A/N: Thank you for the reviews, alerts and favorites! Here's the last chapter of this little story! Hope you like it!

Chapter Six

Tony felt his insides freeze when Gibbs stayed quiet for a moment. The older man did, however, not avert his glance from him. Instead he looked right back at him, his brows slightly furrowed.

"What are you talking about?" he finally checked back and he suddenly sounded genuinely confused, which in turn made Tony feel puzzled inside, too.

"I saw it, Gibbs, when I went to change pants. You forgot to take the trash out."

"What trash?" Gibbs said and it seemed like he wanted to reach out a hand towards Tony's but then refrained after all.

"The condom wrapper, Gibbs. In your bedroom. It's right there on your nightstand."

Gibbs stayed silent for a moment or two and Tony felt sudden sickness wash over him as he realized that the older man apparently didn't have anything to say to that. So he really did have sex with someone else last night. With someone else and not Tony…

"I… I don't know what you're talking about," Gibbs finally said and if Tony didn't know that he had always been an excellent liar, he would have believed him.

"Don't play dumb on me. You've slept upstairs, too. You never do that."

"Tony," Gibbs started again and there suddenly was urgency in his voice that made Tony relax for some reason. "I slept up there because… because I hoped… I… anyway… I didn't have sex last night."

"Right and why would I believe you?"

"I… I swear, Tony. I slept up there because I hoped that maybe," Gibbs broke off for a moment as if to search for the right words before he continued even more awkwardly. "That maybe… It would still smell like you. That's the only reason."

"And the condom?" Tony asked but he couldn't help but fell himself get slightly less angry, less anxious.

"I don't know… Tony, I promise. Maybe it's still the one we used…?"

Tony blinked and then sat back in his chair. He tried to remember if he had actually thrown away the wrapper, too, in the morning after, but he couldn't actually remember it. He'd been crying, had hurried to get out of there and all… Was it possible? Was it really possible he had worked himself up over nothing? Still… Didn't it work out too conveniently?

"Tony, please."

Tony looked at the older man again and then felt the resolve not to trust the guy fade away. He was looking at him with a begging expression on his face and it wasn't just that that made Tony feel better. It was the sheer panic that seemed to radiate from Gibbs. Panic that he might lose this argument, panic that he might lose more than that, too.

"Why did you look so guilty before, then?" Tony finally asked in barely above a whisper.

"Not because I cheated on you," Gibbs said and Tony felt his stomach make a jolt at the sheer statement as he realized that Gibbs might actually be committed to him, otherwise he wouldn't have used cheated, would he? "But because I didn't call you last night. Or before that. I should have told you to come over last night to talk things out. I just didn't realize that we needed to. And I'm sorry for that. Really, I'm sorry."

Tony let out a breath but said nothing for a few moments. He needed them to collect himself, needed them to realize that Gibbs had actually apologized, needed them to realize that he actually believed the man, too. He felt it in the depths of his heart and he finally nodded. He watched Gibbs lean back against the backrest of the chair and breathe out.

"So, we're good?" the older man finally asked, apparently felling slightly edgy due to the silence, and Tony almost chuckled at that particular thought.

"No," Tony replied and he saw Gibbs stiffen up again, so he hurried to continue. "We're not good. But we're on the same track. I mean I want it – us – if you still want it. But I'm not over you not calling and then showing up here and playing it coy with me all afternoon."

"I'm sorry," Gibbs said again but Tony just shook his head.

"I know," he gave him a tentative smile. "I know you're sorry. And you should be. And I'm sorry for assuming you'd call. I probably should have known that, too. But you know…"

"Stop," Gibbs interrupted him, but his voice was so soft that Tony felt the last tiny bit of reluctance inside of him fade away. "No… you're right. I should have called and just because I'm good on my own doesn't mean that you'd be, too. I mean you obviously did well for yourself. The team is your team now and I'm happy it worked out. You deserve that. And you deserve somebody that looks after you, too. So I should have called and not just take what had happened for granted."

"Wow," Tony replied, grinning ever so slightly. "So many broken rules."

"I'm not at work anymore, Tony. They don't matter anymore."

"That's right," Tony replied and then reached out his hand and was relieved when Gibbs did the same.

He let his hand slip into Gibbs' and immediately felt the rightness of it once more. Just like that night when it all happened. This was just it. They fit and Tony was sure that Gibbs knew it, too. Maybe he shouldn't have doubted him like this.

They stayed like that for a few minutes with Tony absent-mindedly rubbing his thumb over Gibbs' hand. They didn't talk, just looked at each other and the younger man finally realized that it really would work out. He had no idea how they wanted to play it, how they would go on, but he knew that it would work, knew that everything was going to be okay.

"What can I do?" Gibbs finally asked into the silence, causing Tony to give him another smile.

"What do you mean?"

"To make you forgive me."

"No clue," Tony replied, but kept his tone light. "Just take me out to dinner sometime, okay?"

"I can do that."

"And promise me that you'll never pull something like this again."

"I don't think I'll go on another boat trip again. So that's easy."

"Not even with me?" Tony checked back and felt Gibbs squeeze his hand.

"That could be arranged," and now Gibbs was openly smiling at him. "I'd like that."

"Cool," he said and then stood up.

Gibbs did the same and then they stood face to face. Tony felt the long forgotten jitters inside of him again and for a fleeting moment he thought about why that was. What was so special about Gibbs?

"Hey Gibbs?" he finally continued.

"Think you should be calling me Jethro."

"Okay," Tony replied, moving even closer. "So, Jethro. Mind if I kiss you?"

"Nope."

And then they kissed.

Just like the last year hadn't happened. Just like the last four hours of agonizing over essentially nothing hadn't happened. They were right where they had left off. Back with each other. And this time, Tony wouldn't wait for the next morning to tell him. Wouldn't take anything for granted. When they broke apart, however, Gibbs beat him to talking.

"I love you."

Tony just stared at him, feeling like something had just locked into place for him. He'd been happy this past year, even with Gibbs being gone. He'd finally come to enjoy his life like he never had, but now that Gibbs had said it, he knew what had been missing until now.

Just this.

From a distance he heard Victoria giggle and Jimmy laugh, he heard Abby talk to Ellie and this was just suddenly it. He had everything he ever wanted right here, right now. Sure, he'd lost people along the way and each and every one of them had hurt him, would hurt him for all his life, would make him sad for all his life, but this was as good as it would ever get. He knew that.

"I love you, too."

##

"Thanks for the invite," Abby said as he hugged Gibbs goodbye a couple of hours later and Tony could see their long shadows on the green grass in Gibbs' garden. "I really hope we can get together like that again."

"I'm planning on it," Gibbs just replied, yawning ever so slightly.

"Good man."

Gibbs just grunted and then went to pick up Victoria from the ground to say goodbye to her. Tony watched them in awe from where he was standing as he let McGee's chatter wash over him. It had gotten rather late and he realized that he couldn't wait to have Gibbs for himself.

"So, what did you like best today?" Gibbs now asked Victoria.

"The ice-cream," she giggled and clapped her hands. "And you kissing Uncle Tony."

"What?" Jimmy said, chuckling ever so slightly. "I'm not sure that happened, honey," he continued as he took her from Gibbs' arms to take her to the car.

He was still chuckling when he turned around and caught Tony's eyes for a split of a second before Tony looked away, redirecting his eyes to Jethro. He had grown slightly pink in the face but besides that didn't seem to be too fazed about it. Why hadn't they heard the little girl sneaking up on them earlier?

Jimmy, apparently having realized something was going on, stopped grinning as he looked from Tony to Gibbs and then back to Tony. The others had suddenly grown silent, too.

"She imagined that, right?" he finally said, speaking out what everyone else was apparently thinking.

"Nah, she didn't," Gibbs said and Tony almost forgot to breathe at the sudden outing.

It was so silent you could hear a pin drop. It was like the world had come to a sudden halt. Tony didn't dare to look away from Gibbs, afraid of what the others might think, might say, but then -

"Well…," Jimmy said, smiling ever so slightly as he moved towards the small path that was leading around Gibbs' house. "Okay, then. Good for you."

Tony just let out a laugh and just like that the world started to spin again. He looked at the others and saw only smiles on their faces, so he relaxed and sent another grin in Gibbs' direction.

In the background he could see the sunset, but he felt like the sun had only just begun to rise for them.