He made some bad investments.

[letmetakeaselfie]

After working with her at the Battle of New York, Tony had come to respect Rescue -- and the woman behind the suit, of course. But to say they were friends was a gross overshot. Pepper and he could get along. They both had tough shells and were ready equipped with all sorts of sarcasm and wit to deflect any unwanted attention. Because they were essentially Iron Man and Iron Woman, however, the press had their own ideas about the relationship between the pair.

Nick had phoned earlier to tell them about a recent threat, and words came out of his mouth that Tony was pretty sure he misheard. So he made the other man repeat them like, three times. But they didn't change. SHIELD wanted Rescue and Iron Man to shack up, publically. "Officially" so that when the bad guys came they'd have two heroes to contend with, but also so they'd think they were each other's weakness. Since they were only teammates, what could be the harm?

Before he knew it, a press release was set for the morning and Pepper Potts was on her way over to the Tower to move in. He had about a thousand rooms in the place, but if Dr. Doom did find his way inside they should be together just in case. It's all very -- sudden for a man who's never even had a girlfriend. And he still doesn't, but he has to convince the world he does. #Awkward.

"Welcome to Stark Tower, Ms. Potts. And please..."

"Wipe your feet," Tony interrupts JARVIS and his big, sweeping introduction, lifting his eyebrows as he watches her arrival. Should he help her with her stuff...? Probably. After a beat's hesitation, he moves to grab the larger of her two bags.

"Enjoy your stay," JARVIS corrects steadfastly, much to Tony's chagrin. But he offers up a meek little smile for her all the same.

Comments

[efficacy]

Imagination, huh? Pepper has her suspicions about that.

She forges into the workshop with some careful caution, the glass door sealing shut behind her soundlessly. Glancing around curiously, she takes in the multitude of screens all over displaying varying information and the pieces of sophisticated machinery she couldn't hope to name. It's a tech geek's wet dream.

"I just thought I'd come see what you were up to, I guess. So, this is your playroom," she states rather than asks, eyes still roaming about the space. She wanders over to some of the screens to the side Tony isn't staring so intently at, touching one with a fingertip and watching the figures and sliders responding under her touch. She probably shouldn't touch Tony's stuff like this but she couldn't resist. "It's pretty impressive."

[letmetakeaselfie]

He freezes up when she touches the computer, but forces his way through it as he spins around in his chair. "It's also... very sensitive," he warns with a look, but doesn't try to remove her from the area. He trusts her, she's his partner -- that doesn't mean he's ever let anyone this close before. Especially a woman. In his inner sanctum? He would have balked at the thought before this mission. It's all a little... Beauty and the Beast for his tastes.

Dum-e rolls up behind her, weaving his pincer from side to side as though taking her in by scent or whatever senses robots have. Tony doesn't seem to find anything weird there and goes back to his bench before he can lose his place.

[efficacy]

Her lips pull into a smirk, torn between amusement and exasperation, as she pulls her hand away. "In other words, keep your hands to yourself."

She'd expected nothing less. She'd just been uncertain how long Tony would tolerate a veritable stranger (aren't they, really?) touching his stuff. Dum-e's soft whirring has her turning around, yelping a little in surprise at the sight.

"Oh--! God," she huffs, startled but not for long. Almost immediately, her lips start to twitch as she looks the bot up and down, a faintest trace of laughter in her tone when she finally speaks. "What... is this?"

[letmetakeaselfie]

The bot gives a little trilling sound, and Tony doesn't turn back around this time -- he's almost through. "He's a who. And his name is Dum-E." There's a beat, an audible smile. "I think he likes you."

[efficacy]

"Dummy?" she repeats a little questioningly, arching a brow even as she smiles at the robots reactions, reminding her a bit of a puppy. "He's very cute," she grins, reaching out to gently touch his pincer in greeting.

[letmetakeaselfie]

"Don't encourage him," Tony chides, though... okay, that's kind of adorable. He's just going to pretend he never saw that. "Did we want to... order some dinner?" He finishes up, shutting off the lamp on the benchand standing finally.

[efficacy]

Pepper acts like she didn't even hear Tony, continuing to interact with Dum-E without a care. Only when he wraps up his work and mentions dinner does she turn to regard him with a small smile, nodding.

"I could eat. Do you feel like anything specific?"

[letmetakeaselfie]

"Uhm.... How do you feel about Thai?" He ate too much pizza, and spicy noodles sounded like they could hit the spot for a change-up. Plus it made it sound like he was... cultured or something. Not that he cares what Pepper thinks of his pathetic bachelor life bc nah!!!

[efficacy]

She has to admit she is slightly impressed he didn't suggest pizza. Slightly. "I love Thai," she says promptly, her smile growing and gaining an edge of mischief, almost. "The hotter, the better."

[letmetakeaselfie]

"A woman after my own heart," he admits, gesturing for her to follow him back up the stairs. Now that he's over his initial awkwardness, it's almost... nice having someone else here. Like a little visit. As long as he forgot that this was a mission and that she didn't actually want to be here it wasn't quite as painful.

[efficacy]

Her lips twitch a little at the remark even as her heart gives an odd, tiny jump she puzzles over for a moment. She follows him without a protest a few steps behind, honestly a bit ashamed of herself to notice he has a really nice ass. Biting her lip, she quickly focuses on her own feet and hopes she's not blushing.

"We should probably talk about this whole... mission, at some point," she says, out of necessity as well as to remind herself why she's here in the first place.

[letmetakeaselfie]

Naturally, he's completely oblivious to the ogling, but her words send his heart plummeting straight through the basement. Could they just never talk about it? That would be better for his schedule.

"Yeah... you're right. Maybe after spicy noodles though." He's pulling up the menu on a tablet once they get to the kitchen.

[efficacy]

Pepper slides onto a high stool next to the kitchen island, idly drumming her fingers on the countertop. "All right," she agrees easily enough. Full stomach made for better mood, after all. "I hope you were serious about the spicy part." She arches a brow, maybe just a hint of a challenge in her voice.

[letmetakeaselfie]

"Three stars spicy...?" he puts out questingly, moving to grab himself a drink before he remembers himself. "Do you want a beer? Soda, water, juice, wine..." One thing he was well-stocked in was beverages. Not so much on everything else.

[efficacy]

"It'll do," Pepper says magnanimously after a moment, bobbing her head a little in agreement. She purses her lips in consideration at the offer; she's usually one to go for a glass of wine with dinner, but she's not opposed to switching things up every now and then. "Beer would be nice, thanks."

[letmetakeaselfie]

He nods, getting out two bottles of beer and opening them on the opener fridge magnet. Don't judge him and his life!! One is passed over to her as he scrolls on the tablet and slides that across the island for her to look at too. "I usually get this one." It's one with chicken and noodles and snap peas in a spicy peanut sauce.

[efficacy]

She hides a small smile. Sorry bro, she has to judge your bachelor lyfe!! just a little ok. Just a bit. Curling her fingers around the bottle and tipping the tablet her way with the other hand, she glances at his dish of choice and nods her approval. "Sounds good. I'll have the same." Pushing the tablet back, her lips curve into a faint smile.

"And I'm just going to assume my rich boyfriend will foot the bill," she remarks wryly, lifting the bottle to her lips to take a sip.

[letmetakeaselfie]

Freezing for a second, totally deer-caught-in-headlights, he realizes he's being ribbed and lets out an awkward laugh. "Yeah... Of course. Your rich... boyfriend." Just like that it really sinks in what they're doing here. It's more than weird, and he clears his throat to address JARVIS. "J, can you place that order for us?" He's still staring at her, perhaps a bit too wildly.

[efficacy]

Pepper looks slightly abashed at his reaction, but only for a moment. She waits silently for JARVIS' acknowledgement before speaking up.

"Too soon?" she asks with some of that same wryness in her tone, picking at the label on her bottle. She sighs a bit through her nose, lips thinning a little; this is why she thinks they need to talk about this. The assignment might be ridiculous, but if they're going to pull it off they should probably achieve some level of... familiarity with each other.

[letmetakeaselfie]

"No, it's not... that." His tummy keeps bottoming out every time her eyes snag his and he simultaneously wishes he knew what that was about and dreads finding out. Tony takes a brief sip to stall, wondering what the hell he thought this would be like. He doesn't have an answer; and it had seemed so simple in the planning stages. "I don't know how this stuff works," he admits after a beat, eyes flashing as the dam breaks, well-hidden vulnerability crashing through.

[efficacy]

"What, dating?" Pepper asks softly after a beat, before clearing her throat delicately. "Or, well..." she trails off a bit awkwardly. Pretending to date. She doesn't know why pointing out the distinction makes her feel so apologetic. She's just doing what she'd been tasked to -- they both are. But the evident vulnerability on his face gets under her skin and burrows deep, some knot of emotion lodging behind her breastbone. She hadn't expected any of this when she'd reluctantly went along with Fury's plan, and she's left feeling slightly adrift herself.

[letmetakeaselfie]

"Well, yeah, that too." He blinks a few times rapidly, trying to get a real grasp on the conversation so he can stop feeling like he's drifting away. There's a long pause despite his efforts, and Tony picks at the label on his bottle while he thinks. "And... living together? Sharing space." It's kind of sad in a way he never allowed himself to process before, and suddenly his house seems so very big.

[efficacy]

"Oh," she issues quietly. It's not until then that she stops to consider this. No, he's probably never had to split rent with a roommate. And his old habits were widely known and publicized; Pepper hazards a guess there's never been an actual girlfriend.

"If it's any consolation, I'm not very used to it, either," she finally ventures. "Not very recently, anyway." Which is true, but she's not sure if that's any help here. Probably not. Plus she can't shake the feeling that she's just a guest -- which is exactly what she is, in reality. Her manners are telling her to disrupt his life and living arrangements as little as possible, which goes contradictory to the assignment.

"Look, you don't have to... worry about all that. It's okay. I mean, you're not obligated to do anything you don't feel like while I'm here, or anything." She smothers a noise of frustration at herself, knowing she's not making any sense. She's also not entirely catching onto the underlying issue Tony has, here.

[letmetakeaselfie]

"Twenty years recently?" he can't help but counter, unbelievably self-deprecating. But then she goes on and he looks down at his lap, feeling like a jerk.

"Worry. I'm not... worried." He frowns, that last bit causing his gaze to bounce back up. "Okay, I'm... a little. But I just don't want you to feel -- obligated to do anything either." He somehow made that sound more suggestive than she did. Someone shoot him pls.

[efficacy]

"Well. Maybe more like ten... ish." She didn't date overly often and rarely had she gotten to the point of co-habitation lately.

"I'm not. Feeling that way," she clarifies, biting her lip and tapping her fingers against her bottle a little nervously. "It's just. I'm basically a guest, here, a visitor. And I can't shake that feeling off quite yet."

Sighing, she gives a wan smile. "So, I guess we both have some work ahead of us if we're going to pull this thing off."