A/N: Well this is it, the last chapter, thanks again for reading and all the wonderful reviews. And one last lot of big hugs to Gosgirl for all her help, pretty sure I'd never have got to those final last words without her :)

Chapter 22 – A New Start

Lifting a leg over the side of the bathtub and into the water, Gibbs felt himself instantly start to relax the second the rest of his body followed and gently eased down into the warmth. A sweet honey smell flooded up through his nose from the dense covering of bubbles that surrounded him, and he smiled at the thought of how it would taste on Abby's skin.

"Where'd you get that from?" He asked her, looking at the small bottle on the wash basin.

Standing beside the bath Abby bit the corner of her bottom lip, trying to hide her smug grin. "I got Ziva to pack it with the things she brought over for me."

Gibbs couldn't hide his own grin at her confidence. "Like that you're planning ahead...I'm gonna smell a bit girly though."

"Lucky there's only you and I here then...and I wouldn't say you'll smell girly, good enough to eat maybe."

"Was thinking I could test that theory out on you later."

He hoped a soak in the bath would give him time to rest a little and get some of his strength back, because now that he knew what it was like to be with Abby he wanted more.

"You're supposed to be resting remember," she playfully scolded him.

Abby had made him promise to stay in bed until she'd filled the bath and put some Epsom salts in, which Gibbs assumed had come from in among the medical supplies Ducky left. After looking through the cupboards in the kitchen she'd also managed to find enough candles to light the small room to set the mood.

Gibbs watched from his place in the bath as her soft curves were revealed to him again when she lifted one of his baggy t-shirts over her head. The flames from the candles flickered behind her, making her pale skin appear like it was glowing.

Unable to stop himself, Gibbs reached out to run his hand down her hip and the outside of her thigh. "Think I could have a problem, Abbs..."

"What?" Abby asked worriedly.

"Not gonna be able to stop touching you."

She let out a relieved sigh and took hold of his hand. "Well then we both could be in trouble, though I'm not sure I see it as a problem," she smiled at him coyly.

"Not at home..." Gibbs admitted returning her grin, "work's gonna be a challenge though."

When it came to them spending time together after work they wouldn't need to try and refrain from physical contact, but Gibbs was adamant that while they were at work they would have to try and keep it to a minimum to avoid anyone trying to discredit them.

"Scoot forward a bit," Abby told him and Gibbs slid up in the bath, the water swishing around him.

Placing her foot in behind him, she held onto the side of the bath as she climbed in and sat down behind Gibbs. Her legs slipped down on either side of Gibbs' and he fought to hold back a moan as Abby's body nestled around his, her inner thighs cradling his hips.

Her feet slid up and down his calves, her hands dipping into the water to smooth over his stomach. She'd seen the scars from the knife wounds enough to know exactly where they were and where she could move her fingers to avoid hurting him.

"Lay back," she gently urged him, their bodies snuggling together in the warm water.

"You sure I'm not too heavy?" Gibbs mumbled, doing as she asked and letting his eyes close as Abby's soothing touches over his skin continued to calm him.

When his head came to rest on her chest, Abby lifted one of her hands out of the water, gently framing his face so she could kiss his temple. "Like feeling you against me like this," she whispered next to his ear. "Reminds me that you're here, that we're both here...together"

Gibbs' eyes reopened at her words, her hand dipping back below the bubbles and water to tenderly glide over his chest and abdomen. Gibbs ran his own hands up and down the length of her legs, the water mixed with the scented liquid she'd put into the bath adding to the smoothness of her skin. "Like having you against me too."

They laid back in the bath, comfortable in the silence as Abby started to move her fingers slowly up his arms, paying close attention to his biceps as she massaged him gently. Gibbs hummed his appreciation when she reached his shoulders, her thumbs circling as her hands travelled over him.

Abby gasped when he sat up, his backside moving more snugly between her thighs. Although their earlier activities in bed had given her some relief, she still found herself wanting him again. The way their bodies were so closely embracing, every move Gibbs made heightened her arousal, making it more difficult to control herself.

Trying to refocus her attention back on him, Abby lowered her hands from his shoulders down over his back. The combination of the water and bubbles that had covered him just moments ago aided the ease with which her fingers slid across his muscles. His sleek contours and the pure masculinity of him made her heart race.

"Where do you think this is going, Abby...us I mean?"

Startled by his question, Abby's fingers stopped moving over his back. "Gibbs?"

He didn't miss the nervousness in her voice and realized he needed to explain himself more before she got the wrong impression.

"I was thinkin'...not sure I like the idea of not having you here once we go back to work...thought maybe tomorrow we could pick up some more of your things from your apartment...if you wanted to stay a bit longer."

Abby felt excitement and nerves rush through her all at once. As much as she'd tried not to think about having to go back to her empty apartment and getting back to the way things had been before Gibbs had been abducted, it had been impossible not to. A lot would be different now that she and Gibbs were together, but after spending so much time with him the last several days, Abby didn't want to have to let go of that. She wanted to be with him every spare moment and fall asleep with him every night.

"You want me to stay?" She asked quietly, resuming her light touches over his back.

"Only if you want to...we can just try it for a while, see if you can live with me in full bastard mode and then..." he trailed off, unsure whether he should let her know just how much he had been thinking about their future.

"And then what?" Abby prompted.

She leaned forward against him, the front of her body pressing into his back and her cheek resting against his neck. Abby lifted her legs to cross over his, her hands sliding under his arms to gently cross over his chest so she could wrap herself around him as much as possible. She wanted to give him the strength to say what he needed to...what she hoped he was going to say.

"I don't wanna risk losing you again, Abby...want you here with me."

"I'm not going anywhere Gibbs, and you forget I've already seen you in every stage of bastard mode...I'll still love you, that won't change...even if we're living together."

"So...you want to try then?" he asked hesitantly.

Gibbs was sure he wanted her to move in with him, but he wanted to give her some time to get used to living with him when he wasn't injured. He had no doubt he'd changed in the time since his abduction and he hoped Abby had seen the changes in him too. He found himself willing to adjust to the developments between them, all he cared about was that she wouldn't leave him.

Abby sat back from him and began kissing the back of his neck and along his shoulder. "If you're sure," she breathed against his skin.

"I'm sure."

"Okay," she said softly, smiling and nuzzling into the side of his neck. "We still have tomorrow off before we go back to work, we can drive over to my apartment and bring some more of my things over."

Angling his head, Gibbs drew Abby into a sensual kiss, their lips pressing together, tongues sliding and searching. He groaned into her mouth when her hands started to wander again, his own reaching around to roam up the outside of her thighs and hips.

They slowly broke apart, Gibbs gently nibbling on Abby's bottom lip before their foreheads leaned into one another.

"I'm not perfect either," Abby admitted, referring back to Gibbs saying he was a bastard. "So you need to tell me if I do something wrong or upset you."

"You're pretty close to perfect," Gibbs grinned.

Abby couldn't hide the blush that colored her cheeks, even though she knew he was teasing her. "And you're a sweet talker."

"We'll work through whatever comes up, Abbs...we've both been through a lot, feel like this is the next step for us."

"It is," Abby agreed, "and if I have you to come home to at the end of the day, pretty sure I can get through anything."

She was all too aware of the apprehension both of them would feel in being separated so soon after Gibbs' abduction. They were both slowly dealing with their issues, but having the other close by gave them the support and comfort they needed to do that. Abby wasn't sure, but if they went back to living apart it may actually slow down the process of them healing mentally and emotionally.

They also wouldn't have to worry about the other's safety as much, and while Abby figured that anxiety may in time start to lessen, she realized going back to her apartment could do more harm than good.

With both of their strong personalities it wouldn't always be smooth sailing living together, but they had learnt a lot from being confronted with the intensity of their feelings for one another. For the first time in her life Abby felt settled, and in the few days they'd spent together while Gibbs was recovering she knew they had gotten closer. The danger they'd faced had brought their feelings rushing to the surface, but keeping those emotions there since had been completely natural.

Gibbs moved his face back from Abby's and relaxed against her. "If we're gonna do this at the end of every day, you won't hear any complaints from me."

She let her hands travel across his shoulders and along the smoothness of his arms as they disappeared under the water, her fingers sliding between his as he continued his touches along her legs."You talking about the bath...or the sex?"

"Both," Gibbs answered huskily, the confidence clear in his voice.

"Here was me thinking I'd be the one to wear you out," Abby giggled.

"If someone hadn't promised me a wash and massage I think I could've given you a run for your money," he teased.

Abby shook her head, if she'd been convinced Gibbs wouldn't injure himself somehow she'd have let him prove his point right there in the bath. But she had plenty of time to explore that train of thought once he was fully recovered.

"I did promise you that didn't I?" She wriggled slightly underneath him, trying to sit up fully. "Lean forward a bit," she whispered next to his ear.

Sitting up, Gibbs' backside was once again nestled snugly between Abby's thighs and she struggled against the urge to circle her hips and rub against him. Now that she knew what it felt like to have him inside her, to have his fingers stroking her, her instinct to be joined with him would take a lot more to keep under control until he was fully healed.

Returning her attention to Gibbs, Abby picked up the small jug on the side of the bath and filled it with water to wet his hair, threading her fingers through and making sure his head was covered with water. Squeezing out some shampoo into the palm of her hand, she gently started to work it through his hair, massaging the short bristles on the nape of his neck.

Gibbs groaned as her fingers massaged the soapy suds into his soft silver hair. Abby had no doubt that from his reaction this would be something they would do on a regular basis, not to mention her wanting to wash every other part of his body. Every inch of him was just waiting for her to run her hands and mouth over, to feel, to taste.

"Feels good, Abbs," Gibbs murmured sleepily.

His eyes drifted shut, giving in to the contentment that washed over him. It was only early days in their relationship and in having to deal with the consequences of the chaos that Hastings had brought to their lives, but with Abby beside him Gibbs felt as if he'd come out the other side of the ordeal with a lot to be grateful for.

Abby had always kept him grounded, and having her in his life on a more permanent basis would give him the meaning he'd spent so long looking for. Gibbs' failed marriages had been an attempt to somehow bring back Shannon, his way of trying to replace a part of him that he'd lost...a part of him that he'd never found, until now.

"Everything about you feels good," Abby said softly.

Her fingers continued to massage his head, pushing gently through his hair even though Gibbs was certain it would be well beyond clean now. He didn't want her to stop, but the way his body was relaxing and soaking up her caresses he was worried he would drift off to sleep before long.

"Gonna be asleep soon if you keep going," he smirked.

Abby pressed a kiss to his shoulder. As much as being this close to him excited her, she couldn't deny she was starting to feel increasingly tired too. Between waking up early with her nightmare and the welcome ache in her muscles from their physical activities, she was ready to curl up in Gibbs' arms and fall asleep. "Must be time for bed then."

Dropping her hands away from him, she then rinsed the shampoo from hair, letting the water run down over him several times as her fingers ensured all the soapiness was washed away. She finished washing down his face, neck and chest and lightly massaged the rest of his body that she could reach. Had Gibbs been more awake she would've focused on his groin more, but she didn't want to get him too worked up and then him end up being frustrated if he couldn't follow through on what his body wanted to do.

There would be plenty of time for that later, it was more important that he rested now.

Once they'd climbed out of the bath and dried each other off, Gibbs put on a pair of boxers and a t-shirt while Abby slipped on some panties and one of Gibbs' NIS t-shirts.

She held back the covers as he sat on the edge of the bed, his hands sliding around her hips and drawing her closer to him. Gibbs gently pushed up her t-shirt, far enough so he could press his lips to the bare skin of her stomach.

"Wanted to taste every inch of you with that smelly stuff on your skin," Gibbs mumbled sleepily against her.

Abby couldn't help but grin. She had no doubt once he was physically back to normal their sex life would tilt her world off its axis, and she couldn't wait. "Guess we'll just have to try all this again tomorrow night then."

She tangled her fingers through his hair as he continued to kiss across her abdomen. "Or tomorrow morning?" Gibbs suggested.

Abby framed either side of his face with her hands, bending down to tenderly brush her lips over his. "Told you at the hospital...no negotiations needed for me to share your bed with you, that includes sleeping and more physical things as well."

Lying down on his back, Gibbs urged Abby to follow him and she settled beside him on his side of the bed. For the first time since he'd been rescued...the first time since they'd been together, Gibbs was able to pull Abby tightly to his chest and not wince in pain.

His tired eyes fought to stay open as he carefully pushed several tendrils of hair back behind her ear, smiling contentedly at how she molded perfectly to his body in every way.

"So I guess this is serious then," Abby said quietly, entangling her legs with his. "Me moving in...what we just did, in bed and in the bath..."

"Never been more serious, Abbs...if you think you can put up with me, want you to be mine...always."

"I want that too." Abby nuzzled her face into his neck, sighing as she let her body finally relax.

Closing her eyes and resting her hand over Gibbs' heart, Abby let the steady rhythm start to lull her into a state of slumber. After all this time, she felt like every part of her was at peace. Physically she was satisfied, emotionally and mentally both she and Gibbs were on the mend. There would no doubt be tough times ahead as well, but for the first time in what seemed like an eternity, she was happy.

This is where she knew she belonged, where they both belonged...together. The last week had been about recovery and healing, the future was about them growing and moving on.

They could've lost everything, could've seen their world shattered into a million painful pieces, but instead they'd found something they'd both been searching for, something they'd had all along...each other.

The End.