"Hey Gibbs, uh." The young doctor had called him, but was now pausing.

"Out with it, Palmer." Gibbs knew the kid could take some pushing occasionally.

"Breena and I would like to have you over for dinner. Victoria misses you. And I could use some help fixing the back rail, seems to be wobbly." Jimmy was offering food in exchange for help.

"So I help you and get food and time with Tor?" Gibbs was already going to say yes, even if he was going to give Palmer a hard time. "When?"

"Uh, tomorrow afternoon, if it works. No big deal if it doesn't."

"I'll be there." And with that, Gibbs hung up the phone, thinking about the young family Jimmy had.

When Gibbs arrived on Sunday afternoon, Victoria was taking a nap and Breena was reading. Jimmy had shown him the wobbly railing, looking rather confused while doing so.

"Just gonna need to replace that post, and screw it in tighter." Gibbs shared as he walked to the back of his truck.

"Um, thanks Gibbs. Don't know much about wood work." Jimmy was thankful that Gibbs was willing to take time to help him. After they measured the post, Gibbs informed Jimmy that they'd need to go pick up wood, and told Jimmy to get in the truck.

On the drive, Gibbs asked more questions than the younger man was used to. Questions about Victoria and Breena, about him, about his feelings, about fatherhood.

"Your anniversary is coming up. Are you and Breena making any plans?" Gibbs tried to make sure he stayed invested in the lives of his team, not too invested though. "If you need a babysitter, I can watch her. She's a good kid."

"I really appreciate that, Gibbs. I can ask Breena if she'd like that." Palmer was absolutely shocked to hear that Gibbs was willing to take care of his daughter so he could go out with his wife, and even more so that the man remembered his anniversary. "I didn't know you knew our anniversary." Jimmy thought aloud. Gibbs grunte in response, not really gratifying the statement with an answer or explanation.

"How is Victoria liking preschool? She'll be in kindergarten next year?" Gibbs struggled between loving all the babies his team had, and feeling sad in private that his daughter hadn't made it, but he still had his team and their babies. Since he couldn't change the past, he generally stuck with being happy with what he did have.

"She likes it, hopefully kindergarten challenges her more. She is too smart for her own good." Jimmy was grateful for his daughter's intelligence, but knew she could get into trouble when bored.

"Doesn't help all the trouble making agents she calls aunt and uncles." They shared a laugh. Jimmy appreciated this connection, this relationship was valuable.

After they fixed the wobbly railing, and Victoria had woken up, she played tag with Gibbs in the backyard. Jimmy was helping Breena with the recipe she had picked out, and they were watching their daughter play with the agent. She had managed to get Gibbs to go down the slide on her play structure. This was family, it meant a lot and it was something to cherish.

After dinner, Victoria said goodbye to go get ready for bed, and Jimmy walked with Gibbs outside, "Palmer, you're doing a great job with that kid, keep it up." With that, Gibbs got in his truck and left the young doctor speechless.