It had been a long night. I sat on my stool at the bar, tapping the toes of my shoes against the surface in front of me as I downed another shot. A pleasant numbness seeped through me and I smiled, knowing I was going to need it to get through the rest of the party.
My friend, Tony Stark, had insisted on my presence this evening though I didn't know why. He'd greeted me when I arrived and I hadn't seen him since. This was typical of his parties and was why I made it a habit to rarely come. Earlier I'd kept myself occupied by talking to Dr. Banner but he'd left long ago. Lucky bastard.
A presence came up behind me, hovering far too close for my liking but I did my best to ignore it. "Hey, sweetheart. Can I get you a drink?"
I didn't turn to look at him. "It's an open bar. Pretty sure I can get my own."
A large moist hand landed on the part of my back that was exposed by the cut of my dress. I clenched my teeth together and twisted my head to the side as I tried to rein in your temper. Tony didn't like it when I made a scene. "Please don't touch me."
"Why are you pretty gals always such bitches?" His hand slid down to my ass and he moved half a step closer.
I turned my head to take in his sneer. With one deft movement, I grabbed his arm and twisted it while driving my other hand into his face. He didn't even have time to make a sound before he was on the floor. I turned back to the bartender and motioned for another drink. The man pulled himself to his feet and stumbled off through the crowd.
After a few minutes, another presence came to stand beside me but this one was familiar, warm. My lips twitched into a smile.
"Hello, Amber."
"Hello, Tony."
"So the oddest thing just happened. The deputy mayor just hurried out of here with blood pouring from his nose. I don't suppose you know anything about what might have caused that?"
I smirked but didn't look at my friend. "He's an idiot."
"Last I checked that didn't cause spontaneous bleeding." He motioned the bartender for a drink.
Shrugging my shoulders, I turned to face him. "Don't know what you want me to tell you, Tony."
He shook his head and lifted his glass to me in a toast. "Well, I'm sorry you had to deal with him but I'm fairly certain half the females in the room are eternally grateful to you for doing so."
"If you know he's handsy why didn't you deal with it?"
Tony's gaze sharpened. "What do you mean by handsy?"
I arched a brow at his tone. Surely, this wasn't news to him given what he'd just said. "Well, first he touched my back with his sweaty palm. When I complained, he moved south to my ass."
He slammed his glass down on the bar. "I'll kill him."
I put a hand on his arm to stop him as he started to storm off. "Calm down, Iron Man. I think he got the point already."
His furious scowl turned on me. "No one touches my girl but me."
"Your girl? Since when?"
He ducked his head and his cheeks flushed. After a moment his eyes darted up to meet mine. "Since always, Amber. Don't tell me you haven't noticed how I am around you."
A thrill went through me at his declaration. I've had a crush on him since the day I met him, but I was still confused. "Notice what? That you invite me to parties and ignore me all evening? Yeah, I noticed that."
He stepped closer and pressed his forehead against mine. "Actually I was referring to the fact that I haven't brought another woman home in months. That I don't even look at anyone else when you're around. You're it for me."
I sucked in a breath as butterflies fluttered around in my belly. Tony Stark liked me. Things were certainly starting to look up. Before I could think too much about it, I pressed my lips to his. The kiss started gently at first as we found our rhythm but quickly progressed into something much hungrier, needier.
Finally, I broke away and looked at Tony with wide eyes while I caught my breath.
His eyes stayed locked on mine. "All right. Parties over. Everyone out," he yelled.
He left Pepper to make sure everyone left as he took my hand and led me down the hall to his bedroom. It was late the next day before either of us emerged.