Natasha put on her earrings and looked at the clock above the tv. It was 6:48, twelve minutes before the time her escort was supposed to arrive. She was really out of her element here, but it wasn't as if she could skip the Christmas party at her job. Being one of the top attorneys at Stark, Carter and Barton meant that she had to be there.

Dear God, please don't let him be a weirdo was the ongoing mantra in Natasha's head. She had a difficult time keeping still and she kept looking out of the window every couple of minutes. It was a good thing Wanda wasn't up, or she'd never let Natasha live it down.

Of course, hiring a male escort to go with her to the Christmas party at her firm had not been on Natasha's agenda. She refused to put up with the horrible jokes, the constant teasing, the humiliating hook-ups that her co-workers at Pym, Stark and Barton would send her way. After the last four years of going to the parties stag, she'd had enough.

It wasn't that Natasha couldn't get a man. She was simply too busy with her career to go out looking for one. Wanda, her roommate, told her that she needed to take a vacation and get away from the office before she became an automaton. Even though Wanda was prone to exaggerate, Natasha knew that she was right. Her work had taken over her life.

Hell, she couldn't even remember the last time she went out and had a drink or went to the movies. Then the Christmas party started getting closer as did Natasha's feelings of dread. Wanda had been well-aware of the predicament her roommate would face if she went there alone, so she proposed that Natasha hire an escort to accompany here to the party.

A handful of minutes later, the doorbell rang and Natasha stood up, donned her coat and opened the door. When her eyes took in the sight before her, she nearly gasped. The man standing at her threshold was very handsome. From the top of his blonde hair to the bottom of his black shoes.

Natasha smiled pleasantly and held out her hand. "Hi, you must be Steve. I'm Natasha."

"Hi, Natasha. It's nice to meet you." He smiled in return and shook her hand.

Oh, God, he has a strong grip. What does he do? Work out twice a day or something?

"I, uh, I hope this is an acceptable outfit. You said I needed to dress up, so..." He looked a little nervous and a bit like a fish out of water.

"You look great, Steve. A classic tuxedo is the way to go, and you match my dress, so we look like a matching pair."

"Thank you, and you look amazing, too. I can't remember the last time I saw pearl buttons on a dress." He gave her a dazzling smile that made her heart loud against her chest.

"You're very sweet. Thank you."

"Not at all." Steve gestured to the motorcycle in her driveway. "This is my ride, but if I remember correctly, you requested that you drive us in your own car, right?"

"Yes, I did. That's not a problem, is it?"

"No. I'm pretty sure we would look a little wild if we showed up at your job after being on my bike. Shall we go?" He held his arm out to her.

"Of course. Just me a second. This is actually such a nice neighborhood, that some people like to leave their doors unlocked." She closed the front door and locked it quickly before depositing her keys into her inner purse pocket.

"Wow. Really? I thought people stopped doing that around the fifties."

"I know. It's crazy. The way people are these days, I wouldn't leave my door unlocked for anything. Especially since I have a roommate." They reached her Camry and she hit the unlock button on her car key.

Steve's eyes softened a bit and he opened the door for her. Once she was inside, he closed the door and went to the passenger side, opening his door and closing it before replying. "A roommate, huh? And here, I thought you lived alone."

A surprised chuckle came from Natasha's lips as she started the engine. "Is that your masked way of saying that you wish I did live alone so you could ask to come in for a nightcap after we get back from the party?"

"I would never be so bold."

"Maybe you should. I like a man who knows what he wants." Good grief, she just met him and already, she was flirting with him.

"And I like a woman who knows what she wants and says it." He smirked. "...If you don't mind my asking, are you dancer?"

"Yes. How did you guess that?"

"Your legs. The way they're shapely and toned, not to mention the way you walk. You see, my mom was a dancer. I grew up learning the foxtrot, the salsa, the meringue, the waltz, the quickstep. Mom loved to dance and she owned a own dance studio, too. As you can imagine, I spent a lot of my days there."

"Sounds like your mother is an amazing woman."

"She is." A beat passed between them before he spoke again. "So what kind of dance is your specialty?"

A small smile spread across her lips. "Ballet."

"Ballet. That's great. You must be very graceful at it."

"Well, yes. I am, but...how did you know?" She sent him a side glance.

Steve chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "You keep your legs in great condition."

Natasha blew out a small breath of air. "You're something else, aren't you, Steve?"

He grinned and observed her closely. "I try my best. Is it showing?"

Instead of giving him a worded response, she just laughed and kept her eyes on the road in front of her. Tonight was certainly going to be an interesting evening.

When Natasha pulled up to the firm, she parked the car and turned to her escort. Under the bright yellow lights in the parking lot, she could see him as clear as day and she was surprised to notice that his eyes were a brilliant shade of blue. It took a minute for her to get a hold of her bearings after that sight.

God, he was gorgeous, and it certainly didn't help that he kept looking at her the whole time she was driving. Natasha had a feeling that he liked her and that made her pulse quicken. She liked him, too.

She cleared her throat before speaking. "Alright, now look. Once we get in there, people are going to be surprised that you're here with me."

Steve furrowed his brow. "Why is that?"

"Because for the last four years, I've always gone stag to the employee Christmas party. Each time was annoying since everyone was either trying to set me up with someone, hit on me or express their pity and condolences that I didn't bring a date."

"I understand. You don't want people meddling in your business, but...if you don't mind my asking, why choose an escort service?"

"My best friend, Wanda, told me about the place you work for and said that you guys were great She's hired an escort from your employers. She's even dating the guy, now."

After carefully reading the pamphlet Wanda gave her about the business, Natasha realised that, like many escort agencies, the one Steve worked for had a 'don't ask, don't tell' policy regarding their employees.

The primary service of an escort was for said escort to accompany a man or woman to a social event. However, if the escort and his or her client chose to engage in sexual activities, they merely looked the other way. Wanda referred to it as the 'unspoken rule' of all escort agencies. "Tipping is always allowed, Natasha," she'd said with a laugh.

It had already been embarrassing for Natasha to actually consider an escort, but when she finally made the arrangements and met Steve, she realised that maybe hiring an escort for the Christmas party had been a very good idea after all.

On the twenty minute car ride from her home to her workplace, she and Steve had chatted amicably the entire time. Silly as it may have sounded, in that short span of time, Natasha felt like they'd already formed an attachment.

"I've never used an escort service before, so I'm a bit new to this, but I just wanted you to know that I'm not going to tip you." There. She said it.

Steve cocked his head to the side. "What do you mean? You already paid me."

"Oh, I know, but I'm not going to tip you."

"I still have no idea what you're talking about, Natasha."

Was he trying to be humorous? "I'm not going to have sex with you!" She blurted out.

He blinked at her, confusion riddled all over his features before understanding dawned. A small smirk spread across his face as he said, "Well, I'm not that kind of escort. You have to really work at it if you want to get in my bed."

Natasha felt a blush coming on again and covered her face. "I'm being serious..."

"Okay."

Natasha frowned and got out of her car. Steve did the same and she continued. "I know how escort agencies work. Anything extra, like a night of...carnal pleasure, is kept off the books and no one is the wiser. Well, not me. No sir. I paid you to accompany me to this party and that's all we're going to do. Got it?"

"That's an interesting way of saying lovemaking. How long has it been since you experienced a...carnal pleasure?" Steve stepped closer to her so their faces were mere inches apart. The sexual tension radiating from the both of them was intense beyond reason.

The scent of Steve's aftershave and the light leather smell on his person permeated Natasha's nose. She felt her heart beating and struggled to respond to his inquiry. "I...don't see how that's any of your business."

"So it's been a while. That's a shame. A woman like you should be cherished and touched on a regular basis." Steve's hand slid around her waist and rested on her hip.

Just standing up was hard because Natasha was afraid that she was going to pass out from the intoxicating scent of this man and his words. She could tell he meant them honestly by the look he gave her and it made her feel weak at the knees with desire.

"I have a question," he said.

"Um...shoot."

"Since you've never brought a man with you to these parties, people are going to want to know who I am. Something tells me that you wouldn't want it getting out that you hired an escort for this evening, so why not just tell them that I'm your boyfriend?"

"...it does make sense." She thought for a moment. "We can say that we've been dating for a couple of weeks, which is why we don't know each other very well, but there is an obvious attraction between us. I think we can pull that off."

"I agree, and if you ever get uncomfortable, we can always leave early..."

She looked at Steve, hoping she wouldn't sound strange for asking what she was about to ask. "Do you mind if I...hold your hand when we walk into the building? If we're going to fake a relationship, we have to make it look convincing and handholding is just the thing to sell it."

"No. I don't mind at all." He took her hand in his - God, he was warm - and laced their fingers together while keeping his eyes locked on hers. "But maybe we should practice one other thing first."

"Alright, what did you have in mi-"

Steve tugged her into his arms and pressed his lips to hers passionately. A small, surprised squeak came from Natasha's mouth, but as the seconds passed, her eyelids fluttered, closing and she slid her arms around his neck.

Holy cow! Where did he learn to kiss like that?

A tiny moan escaped from her lips and she felt a buzz in the back of her mind. Steve was experienced when it came to kissing. Natasha felt like he was making love to her lips with his own!

Eventually, he pulled away from her and gently - much to her chagrin - brushed a strand of hair away from her face. "Now, let's go and impress these stuffy lawyers."

All Natasha could do was nod her head and follow him. That kiss had rendered her speechless.

"Steve is a darling, Natasha. You're so lucky to have such a handsome friend."

"Girl, he is fine. I hope you keep him on a short leash, otherwise, I might just steal him from you!"

"I'm glad that you've finally decided to stop burying yourself in all that godawful paperwork and found a good man. Natasha, I have a feeling about this one."

These were just a few of the things people said to Natasha in a span of the two hours she and Steve joined the party. It was amusing and annoying at the same time. Surprisingly, there wasn't a barrage of questions sent their way as most of the people were just happy to see her with a man for once.

Hell, even her best friend, Clint, took a shine to Steve. "It's good for that you're finally going out and dating, Natasha. I know how hard it is to start all over again, but you've taken the first step. I'm proud of you." He beamed at Natasha and she felt a blush coming on.

"Thanks." She smiled and nudged him with her shoulder.

"How did the two of you meet, anyway?"

"Oh, through a friend, actually. It was about a month ago and kind of a set-up of sorts, but we hit it off right away. We've been dating for a couple of weeks, so our relationship is still new, but I see good things in our future."

"I believe you..." Clint's eyes glanced at something behind her. "But you might want to keep him close. It seems as if some of the ladies are taking a shine to him. Especially one in particular."

Natasha's eyes widened and she turned, looking in the same direction Clint was. Immediately, she squeezed the neck of her champagne glass in agitation. Sharon Carter was practically all over Steve, trying to get him to eat a chocolate covered strawberry. He was clearly trying to refuse, but the woman wouldn't stop hounding him.

A rush of irritation flowed through Natasha and she gave Clint a nod. "I guess you're right." Swiftly, she strode forward and made her to Steve, inserting herself between them. "Hey, hon. Is everything alright? You looked a little troubled." Then she turned to Sharon. "I hope you haven't been trying to steal my man, Sharon."

The young woman laughed, but her smile didn't reach her eyes. "Oh, I would never dream of doing that to you, Natasha. You're lucky. Steve is a wonderful guy. If he weren't your boyfriend, I would have snatched him up. If you'll excuse me." Sharon scurried away like her heels were on fire.

Steve smirked at Natasha. "Thank you for coming over. She's sweet, but she doesn't understand the meaning of no."

"Well, that's Sharon, all right." Natasha yawned and leaned her forehead against Steve's shoulder.

"Are you ready to go home now?"

"Mm, yes. We've been here for over three hours. I'm getting a little bit sleepy."

"Alright." They made a few quiet goodbyes to Clint, Natasha's bosses and a few other people Steve had connected with during the party, then they took their leave.

Within fifteen to twenty minutes, they were back at Natasha's home. Steve opened her car door and walked her to the front of the house, waiting patiently as she unlocked the door. Once it was open, she turned to look at her escort.

"Thank you for tonight. I know you were just doing your job, but I still appreciate you going the extra mile and pretending to be my boyfriend so I could save face at the party."

Steve brushed a loose strand of hair behind Natasha's ear and he gave her a charming smile. "I was happy to do it, but I have to confess...I didn't just do it for you."

She kept her expression guarded, but inside, she was freaking out. "Oh?"

"Yeah. I did it for me because I'm selfish and I like you."

"Really?"

"Yes, and it's not just because you're a knockout. You see, I've been an escort for a long time, but I've never met someone quite like you."

"Never slept with someone like me. Is that what you mean?"

Steve shook his head. "No. Although, the thought has crossed my mind. You're a lovely person with a witty sense of humor and a man would be out his mind if he didn't say he wanted a woman like you."

"You want me?" Her voice came out breathy and she gripped the doorpost tightly.

"From the first moment I met you. I know that I'm moving too fast. After all, wearily know each other-"

"No. It's fine. I don't sleep with strange men on the first date or ever, but I'd have no problem having sex with you. " Natasha's eyes widened. "Did I actually just say that?"

A light chuckle escaped Steve's lips and he nodded. "Yeah, you did, but don't worry. I think you're great regardless."

"Well, in that case, would you like to come inside for a nightcap?"

The joke she made earlier about him trying to invite himself into her apartment came back to his mind. "No. You said that you were getting sleepy, and I don't want to keep you awake any longer than necessary. if I came inside with you now, I'd end up making love to you and I don't want to do that...yet. I want to get to know you better, and this is the first time I've ever really that way about any woman."

Natasha's eyes widened and she just stared at him with her mouth open. "You say that you want me to just go to bed without having you there beside me?" She pouted.

"Yes. Have wonderful dreams with me in every one of them. It'll prepare you for our second date."

"You don't know what kind of dreams I'd have about you. They wouldn't be very innocent...wait. Did you say our second date?"

"Yes. I mean, I have to get to know the woman I'm lusting after before we share one of those...carnal pleasures." He leaned down to her when he said this and she giggled a little.

"So...this was our first date?"

"Mm-hm, but the next one will be even better."

"Mm, I love confident men."

"I expected nothing less. So will you go out with me, Natasha?"

"Of course."

He smiled again. God, he had a nice smile.

"May I kiss you good night, then?"

Natasha didn't hesitate to slide her arms around his neck. "I thought you'd never ask."

Steve's hands circled her waist and he pressed his lips to hers gently. It was the opposite of the hot, passionate kiss they had hours earlier. This kiss was slow and soft, like a rose brushing against Natasha's cheek.

When he pulled back, it took her a bit of time to open her eyes. Just from the way he kissed her, she knew that she was in trouble, but she welcomed it with open arms. One thing was for sure. Natasha couldn't wait for their second date.