ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴏᴡᴇʀ ᴏғ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍs

He leans into her kiss instead of trying to answer the question, sure she knows he'd do just about anything for her when prefaced that way. An involuntary sigh leaves his lips when the second kiss breaks, watching her go and smiling a little goofily when she looks at him. Once she's in the bathroom, he gets up to slip his robe back on and retrieve their bottle of wine, pouring some into a glass left nearby and meandering back to the phone with his drink in-hand. His conversation with reception goes smoothly, ordering two identical steak dinners and just barely remembering to thank the person on the other side before hanging up. He can hear Pepper's bare feet on tile as she moves about in the room adjacent, wishing silently that she doesn't take too long. He's become almost codependent in the way he watches her leave a room, even knowing she has to return eventually. How can he miss someone less than ten feet away? He takes a long drink as he contemplates that.