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“What a day.” Pepper’s designer jacket missed the chair's backrest, sliding down and pooling on the breakfast nook seat. The silk would wrinkle, a $3000 casualty to her exhaustion, but she couldn't bring herself to care. The setting sun streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows cast long shadows across the penthouse's marble floors as she made her way to the sectional. She sank into the plush cushions with a groan, the cool material a balm against her overheated skin.
“Can say that again.” Tony’s tie hung loose around his neck as he shrugged off his own jacket. Dark circles shadowed his eyes, matching the weariness in his voice. His business suit landed atop Pepper’s jacket before he dropped onto the sectional beside her, the leather creaking softly under their combined weight. “I’m just glad it’s over with.”
Pepper took the opportunity to lean into his side, closing her eyes. She had been so overworked that Tony had volunteered to attend several meetings on her behalf. Despite Pepper’s initial concerns that Tony would screw things over in the most Tony Stark ways ever, the meetings had somehow gone flawlessly, including a board meeting where Tony had not only completed her entire agenda but also managed to convince the company’s budget-conscious CFO to sign off on additional funding for the SI prosthetics program. Overall, it had been an incredibly productive day.
Except the meeting with General Thaddeus Ross. The mere thought of his name made the air around them shimmer with heat waves, the temperature rising enough that Tony loosened his collar further.
She could still see the General’s smug expression as he’d deliberately walked past her extended hand, the way his shoulders had squared with false authority when he’d demanded Tony’s attention instead. It had made her fingers twitch with the urge to show him exactly why crossing Pepper Potts was a terrible idea. General Ross should be thanking Tony right now, in Pepper’s opinion. If Tony hadn’t called in Happy to kick Ross out of the building, Pepper would have handled it herself. (She also made a silent vow to never let Tony be alone in a room with Ross again, even if it meant blowing off a board meeting across the country.)
“Pep, love of my life, you are a firecracker and I love you for it — but can you please try not to set me on fire?” Tony’s humored commentary, accompanied by a gentle squeeze of her hand, brought Pepper out of her spiralling thoughts. She realized that the temperature around them had been rising steadily, and a shimmer of orange danced across their entwined fingers as a faint but distinct smell of ozone hung in the air. Tony’s thumb traced soothing circles on her wrist, his touch grounding despite the heat radiating from her skin.
“Only if you let me set Ross on fire next time,” she responded, taking a deep breath and trying to calm her inferno of emotions.
He turned his head to look at her, eyebrow raised in mirth. “Honey, why hadn’t you offered that in the first place? We could have solved half the world’s problems before he’d even stepped into the tower.”
“My apologies, I’ll keep note of that,” she responded, unable to stop the fond smile that tugged at her lips. “Will that be all, Mr Stark?”
“That will most certainly not be all, Miss Potts,” he quipped, pulling her closer against his side, which earned him a small giggle.
They shared a moment of comfortable silence, broken only by the soft hum of the arc reactor and the distant rush of New York traffic far below. Pepper kicked off her shoes, letting them thump softly against the plush carpet, before shifting to snuggle against Tony’s side properly. Her head found its familiar spot against his shoulder, fingers automatically seeking out the subtle blue glow of the arc reactor beneath his dress shirt.
Then, Tony spoke again. “We should have a date night,” he declared.
“Now?” Pepper asked, well-accustomed to Tony’s spontaneity.
“Is there a better time for it?”
Pepper pursed her lips, holding back a smirk. She knew Tony could be bullheaded about his impromptu ideas, but unfortunately for him, it wasn’t a trait that was exclusive to just him. “I’ll consider your request, Mr Stark,” she said, a light smirk forming despite her best efforts, “but you should be aware that we do not possess sufficient budget for leaving the penthouse. Or this couch, for that matter.” To highlight that, she rolled onto him, pinning him so they were face to face.
Tony watched her, eyes darkening a shade, gaze approving. His voice dropped to that particular tone that never failed to affect her. “Then what do you recommend, Miss Potts?”
She adjusted more of her weight onto one arm so she could use the other to gently cup his chin, her skin warm and covered with a soft lingering glow. “I think I already have everything I could ever want, right here,” she whispered.
When Tony took too long to respond, she kissed him — slowly at first, but when his hand ended up tangling with her hair, she gave in to what they both wanted.
Not that the universe planned to be kind to them.
“Boss, the Rapunzel Protocol has been activated.” FRIDAY’s voice cut through the moment like a splash of cold water before Pepper could get around to unbuttoning Tony’s shirt.
Pepper reluctantly pulled away from Tony, the glow fading from her skin as she propped herself up. “The Rapunzel Protocol?” The words tasted of confusion on her tongue. It was never a dull day with Tony Stark around.
Tony had the decency to look mildly abashed. “Could you, ah—”
Pepper shook her head fondly and rolled off of Tony, letting him sit up properly. Whatever that protocol meant, it was at least mildly important, else Tony would have muted FRIDAY and left it at that. (And if it was important, it was either Avengers business, something involving one of their friends, or something involving a certain teenage intern.)
“Alright, FRI, tell us what’s going on,” Tony asked, hand reaching back to rub at the worried tension building at the base of his neck.
“It appears Mini Boss is on the receiving end of verbal hostility and passive-aggressiveness within the Tower.”
Tony’s expression was half-way between a storm of anger and a fog of confusion. “What day of the week is it, again?”
“Friday, Boss. Same as my name.”
“And Peter is in the Tower on a non-lab day because…” Tony moved to get up, worry written across his features. Pepper stood up, too. Last time Peter had shown up uninvited, Tony had been the one to pick him up from the front desk. Tony had then discovered that Peter had been hiding three gunshot wounds under his jacket, which Peter had revealed only after they arrived in the lab. The experience had shaken Tony hard, and as much as Pepper loved the teen, she was going to have some words with Peter if he kept trying to give them a heart attack.
“I am uncertain, Boss,” FRIDAY admitted.
“If I may interject, Sir,” JARVIS piped in, the cultured British tones in the older AI’s voice holding a hint of concern, “It appears that Midtown High has booked a twelve-room block in the Tower hotel under the Academic Decathlon team, which Mr Parker is part of.”
Tony was about to ask for further clarification, but the realization hit Pepper first. “His field trip! Tony, remember the field trip Peter mentioned, the overnight one to celebrate the team winning nationals?”
“The one he never told me where they were going?” Tony asked.
Pepper considered his words. Why would Peter not have told— no, no, it made perfect sense why Peter hadn’t told Tony. The teen struggled with accepting recognition, and Tony was someone who liked to go over-the-top. “I think,” Pepper started carefully, “he was worried you would cause a scene.”
“Well now he’s—”
“I never said I agreed with his decision, Tony,” Pepper cut in, wisps of ideas combining into a plan in her mind. Her voice carried a familiar flame of determination when she offered, “In fact… petition to delay our date night in favor of checking on Peter?”
“Yes, gosh, I’m really sorry Pep, I—”
“Don’t apologize.” Pepper stepped closer to Tony and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Come, help me drag my kid out of trouble.”
Pepper took great pride in the way she managed to shock Tony silent for several seconds. “You— wait—”
Pepper couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out as she stepped away and went to grab her and Tony’s suit jackets again, tossing Tony’s jacket over to him. “Technically, he works for the company, so I’m his boss,” Pepper pointed out.
“But he’s my kid!” Tony argued, then paused and blinked, realizing exactly what he’d said. Pepper smirked, knowing that both Rhodey and Happy owed her quite the bet pool now, with two AIs as her witnesses.
“Then I’m glad you’ve finally accepted you’re a dad, Tony. Ready?” She smoothed her hands down her jacket, the fabric warm as if it had been just ironed from her elevated temperature. She stepped over and helped Tony with his tie, her fingers lingering perhaps a moment longer than necessary on his chest.
“You sure I won’t need the armor?” Tony’s words came out distracted; Pepper knew his mind was already racing through scenarios.
A dangerous smile curved Pepper’s lips, orange light dancing in her eyes. “If it comes down to it, let me have some fun this time.” She leaned closer, voice dropping to a whisper. “I can always use the secret suit you told FRIDAY not to tell me about.”
After all, though Tony had ordered FRIDAY to keep the secret, he had never forbidden JARVIS from telling.
But that was a matter for another time.
Now, it was time to help their kid. (And embarrass their kid, as all parents must.)
“FRIDAY, where exactly is Peter right now?” Pepper helped Tony into his jacket, her movements efficient despite her lingering exhaustion.
“Mini Boss is currently in Hotel Conference Room C on the thirty-eighth floor, Lady Boss. He appears to be with his academic team, which includes two vocal individuals who are questioning his internship status.”
Tony’s jaw tightened. “Vocal how?”
“The term ‘liar’ has been used approximately seventeen times in the past four minutes, Boss,” FRIDAY reported, her usually cheery tone carrying an edge of disapproval. “Mini Boss is trying to de-escalate the situation, but his vitals are reporting significant distress.”
“Right,” Pepper commented on an exhale. Once Tony’s jacket was looking presentable and smoothened out by her warm hands, she took the chance to put her shoes back on. Her heels clicked sharply against the marble floor as she strode towards the elevator. “Tony, dear, would you like to handle this as CEO Stark, or should I step in as CEO Potts?”
Tony fell into step beside her. “Why choose? I vote we tag-team this one.” His fingers drummed against the arc reactor, a telltale sign of his growing protective anger, his fingers shimmering subtly with the carefully-controlled heat of his variant of Extremis. “After all, what kind of parents would we be if we didn’t show up for our kid’s field trip?”
The elevator doors opened before they reached them. As they stepped inside, Pepper caught their reflection in the polished walls — Pepper Potts and Tony Stark, looking every bit the power couple they were, mildly rumpled clothes somehow only enhancing their aura. They were ready for another battle, albeit a different sort of battle than one that required the Iron Man armor.
“FRIDAY, honey?” Pepper called out as the elevator began to descend. “Make sure the conference room cameras are recording. I want evidence when Rhodey asks why the bet pool doubled.”
“Already done, Boss Lady,” FRIDAY replied cheerfully. “ Would you like me to inform the Forehead of Security that his services might be needed?”
Tony and Pepper shared a look, years of partnership negating the need for words between them.
“No need, Fri,” Tony answered, a hint of mischief in his tired eyes. “I think we can handle this one ourselves.”
The elevator slowed to a stop, and Pepper straightened her jacket one final time and quickly reached over to fix Tony’s tie. “Ready to go save our kid?”
“After you, Miss Potts.”