It was 6 p.m. when Tony opened the door of the Stark Mansion.

"Hi everyone, I'm home," he said enthusiastically. Even if 'everyone' only included Pepper, JARVIS, and maybe Rhodey, he liked to say it. No one answered him. The house seemed empty. Strange.

"Pepper?"

No sign of his red-headed woman. Where could she be? Didn't she know that her boss -but more important, her boyfriend- was coming back home today? Hey, maybe she was hidden behind the sofa to surprise him? He ran there, jumped behind the huge sofa, and shouted 'Boo!' No one answered him, he was definitely alone.

"JARVIS?"

"Hello sir," answered the AI. "It's nice to see you home."

Ha, finally someone who was glad to see him…

"Where are Pepper and Rhodey?"

"Mr Rhodes is not here, and Miss Potts is in the workshop."

Okay, his best friend didn't take the trouble to come, and Pepper was in the workshop. Wait. What was she doing in the workshop while he was there, alone, and a bit upset that no one was there to welcome him back properly? At least, she was in the house…

"Sir, before you go there, I have to tell you that Miss Potts seems irritated."

"Come on JARVIS, she should be happy, her man is back!"

And on that note, he descended the stairs leading to the workshop two by two.

XXX

When he arrived in front of the glass door, he saw her. She was turning her back on him. He couldn't see her face, but yeah, JARVIS was right, she looked angry. She was holding a notepad, and the way she had twisted it showed she was in a bad mood. Very bad mood. Hum, that was new.

He nearly never saw her angry, because Pepper was someone who could control herself. And in spite of everything he had done since she became his PA, she was always calm, and she knew how to deal with delicate issues.

So, when he saw her like that, he began to worry. What was she going to do to him? Maybe she was dangerous?... Hey, there's no need to dramatize the situation, she was still Pepper Potts after all. Or wasn't she?

Tony opened the door carefully, walked in and just said:

"Hey Pep, I'm home!"

She didn't move.

"Are you okay?"

Still no answer. He went towards her, and put a hand on her shoulder. Something was wrong with her, and he wanted to know what. But when his hand touched her shoulder, she suddenly turned over, and hit him with her notepad.

"Ow, careful Pepper, I'm a wounded man who comes back from a war."

And she hit him once more. Finally, she spoke:

"Do you have any idea of how scared I was?"

"Scared? But hey, I'm alive! There was nothing to be scared of."

Pepper opened her eyes wide.

"Nothing? Seriously? I saw you jump into this bloody intergalactic portal with a nuclear warhead on the back, and you dare tell me there was nothing to be scared of?"

And the notepad hit his chest for the third time.

"Are you kidding me? I thought you were dead when you hit the ground."

"Come on, if it had been that serious, I would have called you. Just a few aliens, and-"

"But you… you did call me!"

"And you didn't answer. By the way, thanks for ignoring me. I tried to call you six times since yesterday."

By saying this, he wanted to change the subject. He didn't want to think about this moment, and he didn't understand why Pepper was insisting.

"Oh, sorry, I was too busy watching you die on TV," she answered sarcastically. "And what would you have said, 'I'm going to be late, don't bother preparing dinner for tomorrow', something like this?"

"I wouldn't have said that, I know you don't like cooking."

When he said that, she had her do-you-think-you're-funny face. Okay, she wouldn't laugh to any of his jokes tonight... It was time to be serious, now. He sighed, and sat on the floor. So did Pepper.

"The moment I decided to 'jump into this bloody intergalactic portal', I was only thinking about two things: saving the world, and you. I tried to call you because I didn't want to die before you knew how much you're important to me, and how much I love you."

Pepper's notepad escaped from her hands.

"What did you just say?" Her voice shook with emotion.

He wasn't looking at her, afraid of her reaction after he said those three little words.

"Tony, look at me. Please."

He raised his eyes, and stared at hers. They were beautiful, and filled with tears.

"I said that I love you, Virginia Potts. You made me become a better man, and every second spent near you is wonderful."

Pepper smiled. They were together for a few months, and he waited until he nearly died to tell her that. She put her hands on his cheeks, and whispered something into his ear. Something that made him smile too. And then, she looked at him.

"Welcome back home, Honey," she finally said before kissing him with passion.

Yes, Tony Stark had this girlfriend who knew his true identity, and who was always worried he was going to die, yet so proud of the man he's become.

THE END.

Hi everyone! I hope you enjoyed this OS :)

I was thinking of writing this for a few days now, and here's the result! I'm sorry if there are mistakes, I did my best, but English isn't my mother tongue...

Did you recognize the last sentence of this OS? I took it from the end of the first Iron Man movie. And when Pepper whispers something into Tony's ear, you all guessed what she said ;) (yes, something like 'I love you too')

By the way, did you watch the Iron Man 3 Superbowl trailer? Because it's just amazing! When I heard Tony apologizing, I was thinking : 'Maybe he's saying this to Pepper?'. I think we're all sure something bad will happen to her in IM3... :(

Thanks for reading this story!