Hello, fellow fan fiction readers! I have decided to attempt my own Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier romance fan fiction after reading so many on this very website and being inspired. This first chapter starts off with an introduction to the main character, Iva Presley, and a brief interaction between her and one of the Avengers. Hope you enjoy!

- Chapter 1 -

Timing was never on Iva's side. Looking down at her watch, she cursed under her breath, realizing she had only three minutes to reach a destination that was still a taxi cab ride away on the other side of town. This was going to be Iva's third night not arriving on time. At the rate she was going, she would be lucky if she still had her job by the end of the night.

Iva reached the curbside just as a taxi pulled away. She took a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm. Letting her emotions get out of hand would not be the best option for her right now. Looking down the street, Iva eagerly waited for another taxi to arrive. She paced, going over some song lyrics in her head to keep herself busy. Finally, a taxi turned the corner. Iva waved him down, immediately hopping in when the taxi pulled over to the curb.

"I need to get to Angie's, and quickly!" Iva urged the driver, stuffing a wad of cash in his hand so she wouldn't have to worry about paying him later. Angie's was a bar in the center of Manhattan where Iva sung at on weeknights. She had been working there for three years, ever since the day she turned twenty-one. Iva had to admit, it wasn't the best job in the world, but it paid the bills.

"Come on, come on, come ON!" Iva murmured to herself, jostling her feet impatiently as the taxi took a right onto Fifth Avenue, Angie's coming into view. As the taxi gradually slowed down, she hopped out before the driver had a chance to pull up to the curb. Iva put her hand up in thanks as she jogged in front of him, heading into the alley towards the back entrance. She was lucky this time, seeing as there were no "alley lurkers' around today to pose any type of threat. Pulling the door open, Iva put on as guilty of a face as she could, dragging her feet towards her boss, Butch. He turned immediately when she opened the door, a look of both frustration and worry in his eyes.

"Where the hell have you been? The customers are getting impatient. You know that this is your third night in a row coming in late, right?" Butch questioned, leaning against the doorframe as he wiped his hands on a towel.

"Aw, come on, Butchie! You know I would've been here on time if I could have! I love my job, and I hate seeing that handsome face upset!" Iva exclaimed as she slipped through the doorway to stand in front of Butch, squeezing his face affectionately as she did. She knew that using her special nickname for him and laying on the niceness would slowly, but surely, crack through that hard heart of his. Having worked here as long as she has certainly didn't hurt, either.

"Alright, Iva, this is the last time I'm letting you off so easily. Since you are the only form of entertainment I have that can also make a damn good bloody mary, I have to keep you on. However, if you get here late one more night this week or next, I'll have to cut your check by ten percent for the next two weeks. Have to find some way to punish you without losing my best worker." Butch winked as he said this, heading back into the kitchen. Iva sighed in relief, knowing she was super lucky to have such a lenient boss as Butch.

Iva practically ran into the back room, going towards her locker. Upon reaching it, she frantically put in the locker combination, knowing that if she took much longer, Butch's bad mood would come back. Iva yanked her black performance dress and stiletto heels out of the locker, hurriedly stripping her other clothes off and putting those on instead. One part of her and Butch's deal for her singing performances was that she must wear something form-fitting in order to attract more men during the evening hours. Iva gained much unwanted attention because of it, but in order to keep her job, which she actually enjoyed, she had to follow Butch's orders.

Tugging on the ankle straps of her heels, Iva walked quickly out of the back room and towards the small stage, mentally preparing herself for the next two hours of singing, dancing, and karaoke with the customers.

-Later on-

After a tiring couple of hours of performing, Iva was ready for her switch over to bartender. Wrapping an apron around her waist, she wiped her hands off on a towel and leaned against the counter, waiting for a drink order. As Iva looked around at the tables, she noticed a fifty-something year old leering at her over a tall glass of beer. She gave him an icy glare, almost causing him to choke on his sip. If she had had the opportunity, Iva would've happily given him a nice kick in the balls with her stiletto heel.

Iva heard the bell over the door jingle, and she looked over to see a tall, handsome blonde walk in, wearing a Dodgers cap and sunglasses. She watched as he walked up to the bar, taking a seat at the counter right in front of where she was standing. He was rather attractive, very muscular, most likely a soldier at some point in his life. Most soldiers that came into Angie's sat a certain way that Iva recognized immediately. Realizing that she was staring, she gave her head a little shake and put down the towel.

"Good evening. What can I make for you tonight?" Iva asked, reaching for one of the cocktail shakers.

"I'll just take a glass of water, thanks," he said with a little smile, glancing out the window.

Iva gave him a questioning look. "Not to be blatantly rude or anything, but most people don't come up to the bar just for a glass of water. Are you sure I can't make you something else, because your basic water order is hurting my feelings," Iva stated with a small, teasing pout.

The blonde laughed, his bright white teeth almost blinding Iva. "I probably shouldn't, but since you insist, I'll take whatever you make best."

Remembering Butch's comment from earlier, Iva immediately began grabbing ingredients for her Spicy Bloody Mary, adding all of the liquid items and a couple of ice cubes into the shaker. Turning it over a couple times, she poured the contents into a goblet-like glass, adding some black pepper around the rim, a sprinkle of cayenne pepper into the drink, and then a lime wedge on the side. Iva scooted the glass across the counter, leaning her arms against is as she did. "My special Spicy Bloody Mary. Hope you enjoy."

The blonde leaned down and took a sip from the glass without lifting it from the counter. Iva watched his face intently, waiting for a reaction. After swallowing the sip, his lips turned upwards, stretching into a big grin. Iva internally sighed with relief, happy to know that Butch's compliment from earlier was true.

"That's really good! No wonder you work here, you're a master at what you do!" the blonde stated, followed by him taking up the glass and eagerly gulping down the rest of its contents. He then stood up, reaching into his back jeans pocket to grab a five dollar bill, placing it directly in Iva's open hand. She grinned at him, saying thanks as he began to walk towards the door. Noticing his sunglasses were on the counter, Iva called out for him to wait, grabbing them up and jogging to him. He turned around, giving her an appreciative grin.

"I never got your name. I'm Iva Presley," Iva said, offering her hand to him for a handshake. He looked at her hand for the briefest second before he took it, his hand completely enveloping hers.

"The name is Steve. Steve Rogers," the blonde replied, giving Iva one last smile before he put his sunglasses back on and walked out the door.

I hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter! The next chapter will involve the Winter Soldier and will give you some insight into how Bucky will be introduced into Iva's life. Just so you guys know now, I'm a busy girl, so it may take me a little while to update since I haven't even started writing Chapter 2 yet. But, anyways, I'd love to hear what everyone thought about the first chapter, what could be better, and any ideas on what you would like to see in future chapters! Also, if you guys would like, please follow! Have a great day! :)