Pepper knows exactly what Natasha looks like in many different scenarios. When she's angry, she purses her lips slightly and she enunciates harder. When she's happy, it shows in her voice, lilting as she finishes a sentence.
But Natasha also knows how to pretend to do all those things, an expert on expressing the wrong tell. Sometimes Pepper worries that she's lying again, like she did as Natalie, but has to shove her worries aside. There wasn't a reason for Nat to want this otherwise.
So Pepper begins to learn the look Natasha gives her when she sinks to her knees, looking up at Pepper as if she was a goddess to be worshiped. The look that came with Natasha's hands behind her back, and the look when Pepper stroked her fingers through her hair.
It's a look of quiet reverence, and she unravels, no questions asked. It's calm and quiet in her eyes, a safety Pepper's glad to give her.
Natasha leans into her touches, after she moves her hand away from her hair and across her cheek, over her jaw. A murmur of encouragement from Pepper makes her smile softly. She cups Natasha's face and strokes her thumbs over the apples of her cheeks, gently turning pink. Sometimes Pepper notes the tears welling in her eyes, especially after she comes back from a mission.
Pepper helps her up, usually bringing her to the couch and having Natasha lay across her lap. She strokes a hand over her back, soothing her further. Nat makes the tiniest noise, worries slipping away as she slides further into her own headspace. Pepper isn't sure what that's like, outside of meditating, but Natasha says it feels warm and gentle.
Usually, Pepper starts working on something while Natasha lays across her. Sometimes Natasha falls asleep, but typically she is wide awake, responding eagerly to her name. Pepper draws patterns on her back with her fingers, even if she's completely clothed. It's rare Natasha does anything unsexual completely nude, and Pepper doesn't bother to ask her.
Another gentle hand through her hair signals her to move, and Natasha moves onto the floor, sitting at Pepper's feet eagerly. She places her forehead on her thigh and smiles, sometimes grinning, firmly in her own space.
Natasha sometimes kisses her thigh, a silent thank you for trusting her again, trusting her instincts and knowing Pepper knows what she wants. She didn't have to ask Pepper twice to take on this role, though Pepper is probably not the strongest dominant personality in the world.
She's loving, or at least that's what people tell her, a good contrast to Tony's abrasiveness. A gentle hand in a company full of rough ones. The same gentle hands she touches her girl with, reminding her she's always got a safe space when they're together.
Sometimes Natasha will talk, at length, about a mission she had just finished, or about any of her other teammates. Less classified information, she's said before, so Pepper hears more about them. Typically, however, they talk about good things. Things they'd like to do together, a story Natasha's heard from Maria or Sharon, something funny Pepper saw at work. Warm things that keep Natasha away from the explosions and violence of her normal job. The last thing she wants is for her girl to slip back into Black Widow mode, more out of panic than anything.
Somehow, they make their way into bed and Natasha quietly watches Pepper change into her pajamas, usually an old shirt and shorts, or her workout gear. She looks small and delicate under the blankets in Pepper's California King bed. She watches without an ulterior motive, simply looking at her body as if she was admiring a statue.
Pepper slips into bed and Natasha makes a small, eager noise, nuzzling up to Pepper as they both lay down. Natasha's arms pull her close and Pepper adjusts them both so they're spooning, Pepper being the big spoon. Having Natasha cradled against her is calming within itself, and she lets her face fall into her hair, smelling softly of orange blossom.
Pepper's not sure when she falls asleep, but Natasha always does first, her breathing even under her arms.