Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Late January, the Caribbean

Tony stretched in the sun, relishing the warmth on his skin. "You realize if we were home right now, we'd be wading through all the snow that fell last month, and I'd be bundled up to my eyeballs," he said. "This was one of your better ideas, Tim." He leaned over and kissed his partner until the beeping of the alarm on his watch interrupted them. "OK, time for more sunscreen. Don't want you getting burned, McIrish."

Tim stuck his tongue out. "Much more sunscreen and Major Mass Spec will find it's become part of my body's basic chemical composition."

"Yeah, yeah," Tony said. "Just like Gibbs is made of coffee and sawdust. C'mon, turn over."

Tim rolled onto his stomach and reached his arms over his head. "I think you just like to torture me: first you massage me until I'm primed for all sorts of other fun things we could be doing, and then you insist we stay out here on the beach where we can't actually do any of them."

Tony leaned forward so his breath was hot on Tim's neck and his chest came into contact with Tim's back causing him to tingle with the electricity that always seemed to erupt between them. "Oh, believe me, we'll get to all those things." He kissed the base of Tim's neck, causing him to shiver despite the heat, before pulling back. "But for now I want to enjoy the beach. It's warm. And I can breathe. Besides, you know you like my tan." His hands smoothed the lotion across Tim's back.

"True. But we have to leave tomorrow afternoon. And then it's not only back to work, but we'll be on call every weekend for the next month as a trade-off for these past two weeks of vacation."

"Yes, but for today, Tim, we're still on vacation. So shut up and enjoy." Tony's fingers dug into the muscles around Tim's shoulders before gliding down his back. At a faint moan from Tim, he smirked.

Later that afternoon, the two men sprawled on the bed in their hotel room, half asleep, long limbs tangled together. Tony's thumb rubbed the platinum band on Tim's left ring finger. He felt Tim's touch against his own band and pulled back to look at Tim's face. While the younger man's hair had been bleached by the sun, the regular application of sunscreen had done its job. His skin looked even paler than normal next to Tony's dark tan - the result of two weeks in the tropical sun. "You realize how much ragging we're going to get Monday?" Tony asked. "They've been dealing with snow and ice and single-digit temperatures, and we look like we're coming off two weeks of beach debauchery."

Tim snorted. "Tony, we are coming off two weeks of beach debauchery. And nobody's going to begrudge you time in the warm weather. In fact, everyone in the office has probably appreciated not having to hear you cough for 10 minutes every time you come in from the cold." He sighed.

"I'm fine, McWorry. This is the worst winter DC has seen in years, but before we left Brad said I was doing better than he expected. As long as I can keep the germs at bay, he's planning to cut me back to monthly visits when the weather warms up." Tony pulled his partner close. "Your dad's doing fine, too," he reminded Tim. "He's not getting any worse, which is a pretty big accomplishment. Brad even gave him the OK to teach this semester.

"But only if he wears a mask," Tim retorted. "I know, I know. And it's great that the commandant has been supportive and the midshipmen have worked out a way to help cut down on his exposure by handing out masks and hand sanitizer to Dad's students." He sighed. "I'm just worrying. I can't help it. I hate to see Dad struggling. And I'm afraid that we'll go home and all the benefit you've gained from our time here will evaporate before you see Brad on Monday morning-"

Tony rolled onto his side and silenced the other man with a kiss and kept kissing him until he responded in kind. Pulling back, he looked into those sea-glass eyes he loved so much. "What you need is a distraction."

Tim's mouth turned up in a smile. "What kind of distraction?"

"Let me show you." And he started placing kisses down Tim's chest.

"Agent Gibbs? It's Eileen McGee."

"It's Jethro, Eileen. Everything all right with the guys?" Gibbs put down the sandpaper and leaned against the workbench. "They're not due back until tomorrow evening, right?"

"The boys are fine as far as I know. It's Sean."

Gibbs frowned. "He all right?"

"He's at Bethesda with pneumonia. Brad said he's going to be there at least a week."

"Anything I can do?"

"I was looking for advice. I don't want to disturb the boys - not when they're going to be home tomorrow anyway. They can't get home any faster, and Tim will just spend the entire time worrying. But I'm afraid he'll be upset if he finds out I've been holding back."

Gibbs rubbed his forehead with one hand. "Does Sarah know?"

"Yes. She came home last night because she wanted to spend time with Jethro. Sean and I have been keeping him while the boys are on vacation."

Gibbs looked at his watch. "Give me an hour, and I'll come pick up Jethro and take him off your hands. It'll be one less thing for you to worry about. And hold off on calling Tim; we can talk when I get there."

"Thanks, Jethro. I appreciate it."

"That's what family does."

"Still, I appreciate it. I'm sure you have better things to do."

"Eileen. Nothing is more important than family. See you in a bit."