Appreciation

"He does not appreciate me, there."

Tony felt a lump catch in his throat. For Ziva to feel that the man she was with did not appreciate her, it made Tony want to sit her down and tell her how much he didn't deserve her.

Still all he said was, "If I had a dollar for every time a woman said that to me," hoping she'd crack a smile.

She just sighed and continued on, "While he was overseas, you know, we stayed connected as best we could, trying to make whatever we had, you know, just work. And now he was finally back and uh," she swallowed, blinking back the tears, "we planned this, - this, lovely dinner," she paused looking up at Tony, "but he never showed."

Tony felt her heart breaking as if it were his own and all he wanted to do was pull her into his chest and hug all of her broken pieces back together. He looked away, worried she would see how he felt.

"I waited in that restaurant, alone, for three hours," she told him, "no text, no call, nothing."

He looked back at her, his body aching just to reach out and comfort her. Still he stayed put, not wanting to interrupt her story.

"When I saw him next it was just, the following morning, and he just said he got caught up with work," she told him, looking up at him again, tears glistening in her eyes.

Tony wanted to say something, anything, just to take her pain away.

"Well u-," he started but she cut him off.

"Look, it just brought me back to when I was young, how my father could be," she told him. "There was always something more important and I was always left waiting for...." She drifted off and Tony knew she was trying not to cry.

"Ziva," he touched her arm gently and her eyes glanced up to meet his, a single tear rolling down her cheek, "no man should ever make you feel like you're not enough."

Tony reached up and gently cupped her face, wiping away her tear with his thumb. She smiled softly and leaned into his hand, closing her eyes and feeling his warmth. Tony studied her face, wanting so badly to say anything to make her feel better. He wanted to tell her that if she was his, he would tell her every day how much he loved and appreciated her, and that he would never make her feel anything less than royalty.

Ziva opened her eyes to Tony studying her face and quickly stepped back causing Tony to drop his hand. She appeared flustered and embarrassed for allowing herself to be caught off guard.

"I am sorry," she said turning away from him, "You should not have to listen to my relationship problems."

Without thinking Tony reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her back to face him. They both glanced down at their hands before Tony released his grip.

"Sorry," he muttered – now he was the one who was flustered and glanced down at his shoes.

They stood in silence, mere centimetres apart, neither one willing to move. Tony felt as though they were breathing the same air and was sure that she would be able to hear his heart pounding through his chest.

"It is okay," she said softly, taking his hand back in hers, "I am sorry to have lumped this all on you."

"Dumped," he corrected automatically, "And I don't mind," he assured her, smiling down at their hands, "I'd rather this than listen to McGee's relationship issues."

Tony winked and Ziva laughed softly, knowing that he was trying his best to cheer her up.

"Thank you," she said sincerely, placing her other hand lightly on Tony's chest.

Tony looked at her, then to her hand on his chest and placed his own hand over the top.

"Just so you know," Tony told her, "If I were him, I wouldn't let a minute go by without you knowing just how loved you are."

Ziva just stared at him, almost shocked, before he added in a more playful tone, "And I'll kick his ass if he breaks your heart."

And then she was back to wondering if everything he'd just said and done was in a "big brother" kind of way, or if there was something else there. This was how she always felt after a conversation with Tony and she didn't know if or when she'd ever find out what his true intentions were.

"Come on," he said, breaking up her thoughts, "We should get back."

And with that he turned around and started trudging back to the car, leaving Ziva to fall in step behind him.