"Hey." Tony said as I opened my door and found him on the other side.

"Shalom." I said as I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and stared at him. He simply stared back at me making me uneasy under his intense green gaze. "Is there something you needed, Tony?"

"Just wanted to say hi." Tony shrugged as he shifted uneasily. "Hi."

"Hello." I smiled and we fell back into another awkward silence. "Did you want to come in?"

"Sure." Tony said and I stepped aside to let him in.

"Um, make yourself at home." I offered as I headed into the kitchen. "Would you like anything to eat, drink?"

"No, I'm good thanks." He said as he sat on the couch and watched me pour myself a glass of wine. 'Great, I come over and she immediately goes for the alcohol.' He thought as he rubbed his hands over his face.

"So, what's up?" I smirked and he lifted his hands from his face and gave me a shocked look. "I know a contraction and slang. I've been practicing."

"I'm very proud of you." He smiled as he leaned back into the couch and angled his body towards me.

"Thank you." I smiled as he placed his arm on the back of the couch. "I am proud of you too."

"I didn't do anything." Tony shrugged and I placed my arm along the back of the couch and gently ran my fingers up and down his warm forearm idly. I smiled as the hairs on his arms stood up. "So, what did Prince Charming do to you?"

"Ugh." I said and twitched as if I got the chills. I thoroughly despised that man. The way he hit on me made my skin crawl. "Lets just say he and I did not get along as well as you and he did."

"Who said we got along?" Tony asked with scrunched up eyebrows.

"He, uh, lassoed you up with that girl, yes?" I smiled as I took a sip of my wine and watched him over the top of my glass.

"Lassoed me up?" Tony laughed and thought about what I was trying to say. Honestly, sometimes I just liked to screw with him. Being around Tony for so many years I new the term 'hooked up'. "Hooked me up? You think I had sex with that girl?" he asked genuinely insulted.

"I was just kidding with you." I said looking away from him.

"No you weren't. You really think I'd do that?" he asked seriously as I continued to lightly stroke his arm with my fingertips in spite of him yelling at me.

"Tony, you are very stressed. It makes sense and your handcuffs were on her wrist." I said calmly and he just shook his head.

"I'm passed that, having sex for stupid reasons. He asked if he could use them. Since at least one of us was having sex I figured he should make the best of it." Tony explained or rather defended.

"Okay, Tony, I did not mean to upset you." I said as I withdrew my hand and took a sip of my wine then placed the glass on the coffee table. "I'm sorry for thinking you had sex with that girl, but she was pretty."

"Yeah, well believe it or not I've changed and I'm not just after pretty any more." He grumbled as he stared at the goose bumps on his arm created by my touch.

"I believe it." I said as I patted his thigh and relaxed back into the corner of the couch. "You have changed, do not think everyone hasn't noticed."

"Woo another contraction." He joked with an attempt at a real smile.

"But some things never do." I mumbled and he glared at me.

"I see you got your necklace." He nodded to the gold chain hanging around my neck.

"Do you like it? Abby and McGee gave it to me." I smiled brightly as I toyed with the Star of David pendant. "A new start for the new year."

"McGee gave you jewelry?" Tony scowled as he thought of the velvet box sitting on his dresser, 'I never could think of a way to give it to her and now I never will' he thought.

"And Abby." I clarified and noticed he still had goose bumps. "Are you cold? I can turn the heat up."

"I'm good." Tony said and I gave him a skeptical look and shrugged. "So, what did you think of my father?"

"I finally learned the saying 'the pineapple does not fall far from the bush'." I smiled. "Which does not make any sense. Why would a pineapple be in a bush?"

"The saying is 'the apple does not fall far from the tree'." Tony laughed and I nodded understanding.

"That makes much more sense." I agreed as I titled my head and studied my partner who was obviously expecting more. "I see where you get some of your qualities but I did not see you interact with him very much. But I saw and heard enough to know you are different in many ways, in good ways."

"Yeah." Tony said with a shy smile. "He got divorced and married and divorced again."

"How many times has he been married?" I asked already knowing Tony's father was not exactly a one-woman type of man.

"I don't even know." Tony laughed as he cocked his head to the side and ran his fingers through my hair catching me off guard. "I really like your new do, and I like your hair down. Not just because he does, I always liked-." His ramble was cut short by my finger against his lips.

"You have told me you like my hair down before." I smiled. "After our undercover mission, when we were the married assassins, you were out of it and after you broke your nose when you were enjoying your painkillers."

"I don't remember that." Tony smirked as he thought. "God, that was so long ago."

"It really was." I agreed as I ran my finger down his arm once, barely even touching him, yet the goose bumps ignited again.

"Why do you like that?" Tony asked as he shivered.

"I do not know." I said as my mouth curved slightly into a smile. "I like to see the effect. It is quite strange how you react to such a simple touch."

"Not really." He said softly as he watched my finger trace various objects on his arm.

"Do you want to tell me what happened between you and your father?" I asked not quite sure exactly why Tony had come over to my place.

"Nothing, that's the problem." Tony shrugged. "My mom died when I was eight and after that I went from boarding school to summer camp and back and forth."

"I am so sorry, Tony." I said as I rested my hand on his arm. I had not expected Tony to be so open. I could have sworn Tony had said his mother dressed him as a sailor until he was ten. I guess he just rounded up.

"Not your fault." He said with a weak smile. We finally fell into a comfortable silence and I continued tracing patterns on his arm, trying to soothe him. "Do you ever think of having kids and trying to make right what our dads did wrong?" I could feel my eyes go wide and my breathing hitch. Anthony DiNozzo Junior was talking about children and him having them.

"Not as much as I think of finding the right guy to be a father to my children that we never had." I offered surprising myself as much as I surprised him. "If I have children, that is."

"Do you want to?" he asked. This vulnerable boy that was sitting on my couch was making me quite nervous. I wanted to honest and open with him but at the same time I did not want the truth to scare him away. "Have kids, I mean."

"Yes," Was my simple answer. "with the right man." I said as I looked into his green orbs. "What about you? Are you planning on having an Anthony III?"

"Yes." He smiled brightly as he dropped my gaze to look at my finger run along his arm. "with the right woman." And I knew that was as far as we would get on the subject before either of us got uncomfortable. He laughed as he continued to watch my finger.

"What?" I asked not getting what was funny.

"You keep writing your name on my arm." He laughed as his normal mischievous eyes met mine.

"Sorry." I said as I withdrew my hand and placed it in my lap.

"Don't be." He said. "I got to use my knife tonight. The one you gave me for my birthday last year."

"Were you practicing your throwing?" I asked and he just laughed and shook his head.

"No." He smiled. "I had dinner with Gibbs. Did you know he cooks his steaks in his fireplace? Like legit in the fireplace."

"It does not surprise me." I laughed as I noticed at Tony's boyish grin. "Was it good?"

"It really was." Tony laughed as he itched his now stubbled cheek. Tony viewed Gibbs as a father figure, I knew that, as did most other people. I was fairly positive Gibbs viewed him as if he was one of his own, but with Gibbs you could never be sure.

"And your father went back home?" I asked trying to fight back my yawn.

"He's probably on his way to Monte Carlo." Tony said with a different type of smile, one I did not recognize.

"I thought he was broke."

"He is." Tony said.

"Okaayyy." I said and decided I did not want to play his game so I changed the subject. "So where are you cruising to?"

"What?"

"McGee, he said you were going on a cruise this spring." I said as I covered my yawn.

"Oh yeah, changed my mind." He said with a simple shrug and I eyed him curiously. If he wanted to tell me he would, we were not back to the point where I could push him for such personal details. "I should let you get some sleep." He said as he got off my couch and headed towards the door.

"Goodnight Tony." I smiled as he opened the door and walked out bidding a good night. I thought for a second and grabbed his arm turning him around.

"Yeah?" he laughed. "Do I get a goodnight kiss?"

"Do I?" I joked and he blushed slightly. "What I wanted to say was when you have your Anthony III you will be a great father. And if you have a daughter, well, I would very much like to see that."

"Why? You don't think I could handle a little girl? Women love me, regardless of age." He smirked as he stepped closer to me.

"That is debatable, but I would like to see you the day your daughter has her first date." I smirked as his face fell.

"Over my dead body will she date. I know boys, I know what they want." Tony said with his face all scrunched up and I could not help but laugh.

"Oh, I know you do." I laughed as I released his arm. "I will see you tomorrow."

"Good night, Ziva." He smiled as a blush settled on his cheeks. "And thanks, seriously."

"You are welcome, seriously." I mocked and he laughed and walked towards the stairs. I closed the door and went to turn off the lights when there was a knock at the door. "Yes, Tony?"

"You'd be a good mom too, Zee-vah." He said as he rubbed the back of his neck again. I loved when Tony was nervous and out of his element, it was when he was most honest. "Son or daughter."

"Thank you, Tony." I smiled as he took another step foreword and cupped both of my cheeks as he pulled me close and placed a lingering kiss to my forehead. I sighed as I inhaled the scent that was purely Tony.

"G'night." He smiled as he pulled away then after another moment dropped his hands and walked away into the night.

A/N: So this is only a two parter. The next chapter will rated M and about their time in Paris. And it will be up before January 26th.