This is the sequel to my first fic, 'Knocked Up'. Definitely read 'Knocked Up' before reading this.
Summary: Sequel to 'Knocked Up'. This is the story of Steve, Connie and their unexpected arrival. How will they adapt to life with a newborn child and being first time parents? What happens when Steve is now a wanted fugitive? How will they protect their daughter and each other? Will the crazy madness ever stop for Steve and Connie? Steve/OC. :) R&R!
Be sure to let me know what you think. :)
'Love's Madness'
Chapter One:
"Do it again!" Steve told his fiancé while trying to contain his laughter. He was miserably failing at it.
Connie wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes. "Okay, okay, okay..."
Connie puffed her cheeks again and went cross eyed, making their little Sarah burst out in a fit of giggles. Sarah started to squeal and kick and laugh, in turn making Steve and Connie double over in laughter.
"She's so cute! My heart is melting." Connie ticked her daughter's tummy with a single finger and made some more goofy faces.
It was early July and four months had passed since the day they were able to take Sarah home. It had been a lot of sleepless nights and a big adjustment for the newly engaged couple. There was one time where Steve found Connie asleep underneath her grand piano and when he asked her why she fell asleep there, she couldn't even remember how she ended up there in the first place. There was also the time Steve had left for the gym and didn't come back for several hours. Connie called him and was greeted by a raspy and tired voice. He had fallen asleep at the gym.
But it was moments like this that made it all worth it. Steve planted a kiss on his fiancé's cheek earning a smile from her.
"I love you," he whispered into her ear.
Connie paused what she was doing and turned to look at him. Her eyes were big with excitement and a beautiful smile graced her face. "I love you too, Steve."
She turned her attention back to Sarah who still had a smile of her own plastered on her innocent face. "You are too adorable, little one. Steve, I'll never get over her eyes. They are exactly like yours. Color and lashes and everything. I'm so in love."
Steve pressed a gentle kiss on Sarah's cheek. Her arms started to flail so Steve picked her up. "I am too, Connie. With two beautiful girls," he chuckled, realizing how funny that sounded.
"As long as that other girl is Sarah then we're fine," Connie rolled her eyes. She loved when Steve held Sarah. She looked so small in his arms and not to mention it was just darn cute.
"Of course, sweetheart. Why don't you get ready for bed and I'll put Sarah to sleep."
"You sure?"
"I'm sure. I've got this, doll face," Steve assured.
"Okay," she answered blandly and got up.
Steve frowned at her tone. He knew her well enough to know that there was something bothering her. He decided not to press it for the moment. Tonight was a good and easy night so far. Steve glanced in Connie's direction just in time to see her pull her shirt off as she walked into the bathroom.
"Your mom is too beautiful for her own good," Steve told his daughter as he lay her down in her bassinet. "And you look just like her so I know guys are going to be all over you when your older. I'm just giving you a fair heads up," he bent down to kiss her head and smiled, "no guy will ever be good enough for you."
***
Connie wore her heart on her sleeve. That was no secret to those who knew her. Tony watched her work as she typed away, performing advanced upgrades for JARVIS. Sarah was sleeping only a few feet away from her mother in her portable bassinet.
Tony could see the dullness in her eyes. Something was bothering her and she was trying to mask it up by consuming herself in her work.
"So, I managed to make some tweaks to JARVIS's interactive system programming so we'll see how that turns out."
"Uh huh. Cut the crap, blondie. What's going on with you?"
Connie slowly breathed in, fighting the feeling of annoyance. "Nothing, Tony. Sarah keeps us up at night. I'm tired but nothing I can't handle," Connie told with a forced smile.
Tony didn't believe her one bit. He could see right through her. "Nope. I'm not buying it. I know 'tired' Connie. This is more like 'depressed' Connie. What's going on with you? We've been working together for months now, I'd hope you can trust me by now."
Connie looked over at her boss and frowned. She really wasn't interested in talking.
"Is it gramps? Wait are you guys fighting?"
"I...wouldn't say fighting..." Connie trailed off, sounding unsure.
"Yeah, that was convincing," Tony took a seat on her desk. "I'm right though. Are you and Cap not talking?"
"Umm..." Connie looked over at Sarah then back at Tony. Her face grimaced. "We're...just not progressing forward. Personally, I feel stuck. We love our daughter but we had her early. I wanted more time with Steve and I wanted to continue going to school. Is that selfish of me? I feel like a bad mother and a bad person for saying that."
"Didn't you and I have this conversation before? There's nothing wrong with being selfish. I mean, not for your reasons at least. Things are a little overwhelming right now and for you to feel this way, it's not wrong. It's completely normal."
"I just..." Connie cleared her throat. "I love them both but I wanted to do so much with my life. I know I can't have everything I want in life. But I want it anyway."
"What? Working with Tony Stark isn't all what it's cracked up to be? Not many people can say that, honey," Tony joked in an attempt to lighten the mood.
Connie snorted in laughter. "Not really," she laughed. "But I'm only 25, Tony. And I'm already tied down. I have to bring my daughter to work, for crying out loud."
"Things didn't work out the way you ideally wanted them to but that doesn't mean it won't work out. Just give it time and you'll see everything fall back into place."
Connie smiled at her employer. "Yeah...I'm sorry to be so overdramatic with all this. Everything is just too much. Steve has been gone a lot lately doing who knows what..." she rolled her eyes. "I'm not even allowed to know. He could be getting shot at for all I know."
"I know he wants to be here, Connie. But this is what he does. I know you know that so I'll save you the lecture."
"Thanks, Tony," Connie said with a heavy sigh. She snapped her head towards the lab doors when she heard them open. She looked over to Tony and gave him a questioning look. As far as she knew, she and Tony were the only ones to have access to Tony's lab.
To her surprise, she saw Director Fury and Natasha enter the lab and walked towards her and Tony. She hadn't personally met him but she knew it was Director Fury simply because Steve had told her about him and mentioned that he wore an eye patch.
"Hello, come in," Tony greeted in a less than enthusiastic tone. "A warning would have been nice. Director Fury? I must be in trouble if you're here."
Director Fury smirked. "Surprisingly not. We're here with a mission."
Tony winced. "Yeah, about that. Don't play well with others, remember that?"
"This mission will only involve yourself, Agent Romanoff and Miss Halloway."
Connie's eyes widened. She wasn't sure if she heard right. "I'm sorry. Did you just say my name?"
"You heard right. We'll need your expertise in this next mission. Yours and Stark's," Natasha answered.
"Um, care to explain?" Tony crossed his arms. "Why the hell would you send her on a mission? No offense. Not to mention Capsicle would flip shit if he knew you were talking to her right now."
Connie was completely dumbfounded. She opened her mouth to say something but the words didn't come out. Why the hell would they want me to go on a mission? Where's Steve? She thought.
"Captain Rogers isn't my concern right now. Introductions are in order. Miss Halloway, my name is Director Nick Fury. Director of SHIELD," he introduced.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir," Connie offered a small smile. Well, she lied. It really wasn't a pleasure.
"I'll cut straight to the chase. We need someone of your expertise working at SHIELD. I've spoken with Mr. Stark and we've concluded that you would be a valuable and ingenious asset."
"Yeah, to Stark Tower. Not as a SHIELD agent," Tony interrupted. "She's not going to work for SHIELD."
"Excuse me? Why don't we let her decide. Let me finish explaining. Your work with advanced computer engineering and computer hacking is astounding. I would like to have you working at SHIELD as one of our agents. You would be a non-combat cog, of course. Specializing in what you do best."
Connie caught herself with her mouth open and quickly regained composure. "Um, an agent of SHIELD? No, I can't. I appreciate the offer, Director Fury, but I just had a baby. You already have my fiancé doing lord knows what out there. Who is going to stay home to take care of the baby? That only leaves me," Connie said it as if it were a no-brainer.
"There are ways we can rearrange that, Miss Halloway. I would like to make you an agent of SHIELD, and you would only come in as needed. I understand Natasha has been training you the past couple of months?"
It was like he didn't give a damn about what she had to say. "I, uh...well, yes. Just self defense and how to shoot a pistol. That's really it, sir," Connie answered truthfully.
"She's a hell of a shot," Natasha chimed in.
"Look, Miss Halloway. I'm going to make this simple. When it comes to computer hacking, you're the best of the best. You would give all our current agents a run for their money. You would be a more than valuable asset to SHIELD and like I just said, you would only come in as needed."
Connie furrowed her eyebrows together. "That simple? Don't people go through rigorous training to become a SHIELD agent? And you're just giving it to me?"
"As I just said, you would be a non-combat cog. And with talent like yours, yes, I'll give it to you. You would be doing us a favor here. I've had Agent Romanoff here evaluating you the past few months."
"And I've concluded that you are fit for non-combat missions," she answered.
"You said you had a mission? For the both of us?" Tony crossed his arms impatiently.
Director Fury nodded. "Unfortunately, I'm not at liberty to discuss the details of this mission until you accept."
"Well that's stupid."
Silence embedded the room. Connie crossed her arms, deep in thought. SHIELD Agent? He said I would be a non-combat cog...but would I still be in danger? Of course I am! Especially if this mission involves hacking. I'm sure Steve would not approve of this. Who would watch Sarah? Wait, am I seriously contemplating going on this mission? This is freaking nuts...
"I don't have all day, you two."
***
"Secure channel seven," Steve ordered.
"Channel seven secure," came Natasha's raspy voice. "Do anything nice Saturday night?"
"Stayed home with my girls. Sarah is a handful, but she's worth it," Steve told with a wide grin. He loved staying at home with his girls, whether it was changing diapers or cuddling with his fiancé. Being with Connie and Sarah was perfect enough.
Natasha smirked. "That's adorable. Did you guys decide on a date for the wedding yet?"
Steve mounted his shield on his back. He winced when she mentioned the wedding date. It was a sensitive subject that he and Connie decided to leave alone for the time being. The STRIKE Team has kept him very busy. "I'm going to let her bring it up first. Guess why I don't ask?"
"Why? Getting cold feet, Rogers? Too shy or too scared?" Natasha teased.
Steve threw her a smirk of his own. "Too busy!"
With that, he jumped out of the plane.
***
Connie couldn't believe she was standing side by side with Tony, who was fully clad in his Iron Man suit, getting ready to hack into and extract intel from the Lemurian Star's computer database. She shifted uncomfortably in her black one piece uniform. A holster with a loaded pistol was attached at her hip and her long blonde hair was pulled back in a single French braid. If she was being honest with herself, she felt down right silly and out of place. The uniform was too tight and she felt exposed.
Her heart was also heavy at the thought of leaving her daughter in SHIELD's care. More specifically, with Agent Maria Hill, whom she had only met once at one of Tony's charity functions. Fury had reassured that her that Sarah was in the best hands. She also found some comfort in the fact that Steve had worked with Agent Hill and spoke highly of her. Only problem is that she hadn't talked to Steve in days and he was clueless on everything going on. The more time had passed, the more she started to regret her decision. What if Steve found out? He was good friends with Agent Hill but this was the first time Sarah was being babysat. And it was without Steve's knowledge. She felt sick to her stomach lying to Steve, but Fury seemed intent on needing her help, saying that this mission was critical and he needed both her and Tony because they were fast and efficient. She felt urge to help, so she agreed.
"Damn, who knew you had all that going on under those dorky clothes you always wear?" Tony leaned over her backside and checked out her ass. "Cap is a lucky guy."
"Oh, god. Please let's focus," Connie blushed furiously. She could literally feel the weight of his stare. "Give it another minute and we'll be able to hack into their system here..."
Tony noticed she was trying a little too hard to be focused. She was typing way too fast and at this point he was fearful she might make a mistake. "Try not to be so nervous, would you? Ease up. This is cake."
"If we are sneaking around this ship then obviously we aren't supposed to be here," Connie said in a hushed tone. There was no doubt she was nervous. She was a broken mess and she already regretted her decision coming aboard the ship. "And you relax. I know what I'm doing."
Tony rolled his eyes. "Fury chose us to extract this information because he knows with our badass-ness we'll be outta here quick, fast and in a hurry. Just do what we're supposed to do and we'll be outta here before we know it."
"Okay, we are in," Connie plugged in the thumb drive she had received from SHIELD and began extracting intelligence.
Connie's heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she saw Natasha make her way through the doors. "Time is limited. How much longer do you think this will take?"
"Three minutes, tops," Connie answered.
The door burst open and two men came tumbling in. Connie was terrified when she saw the man on top lay a knock out punch to the man under him. She gasped loudly when she saw who that man was. It was Steve.
"Well, this is awkward," Natasha smirked.
Steve looked up and Natasha, Tony...and Connie?! She looked shocked as all hell to see him. Things didn't seem to make sense until he noticed Connie was wearing a SHIELD uniform.
"Steve is here?" Connie panicked. She glared at Tony and Natasha.
Tony put his hands up. "I don't know any more than you. I swear. Natasha?"
Her silence gave it away. She knew this whole time that Steve had a mission of his own on this ship.
"Connie? What the hell are you doing here?" Steve snapped and ran over to his fiancé. He grabbed her arm forcefully and pulled her close. "Are you working for SHIELD? Where is our daughter?" He raised his voice.
"S-Steve! Let go! You're hurting me!" Connie winced in pain and tried to pull herself away from his grasp.
What the hell is going on? He thought frantically.Steve let her go and could only stare at her in shock. "Connie I...we'll talk later. Right now I have to get you out of here," he pulled her into his embrace.
"Not yet, Steve. We're gathering intel. And Sarah is safe. She's with Agent Hill," Connie pulled away and gave him a sympathetic look before going back to the task at hand.
Steve was at a loss for words. He could barely register the sight in front of him. His conservative and sweet fiancé, dressed in a SHIELD uniform, was hacking into the Lemurian Star's network database and stealing intel. This had Fury and Natasha written all over it.
"Natasha, what the hell is going on? Why is she here? Why are you here? Rumlow needed your help back there," Steve's voice was harsh yet more calm. He narrowed his eyes at the Black Widow.
"The three of us are here to gather SHIELD intel, as you can see. Fury needed someone who would be fast," she nodded over to Connie and Tony.
"But why?" Nothing was making sense to him.
"We're saving everything we can get our hands on. It's a good habit to get into," Natasha smirked.
"That's not our mission, Natasha. Our mission was to rescue hostages," he informed. Even though he was talking to Natasha, he couldn't keep his eyes off of Connie. He wanted her safe and away from all of this.
"No that was your mission," Natasha paused and smiled slyly at him. "And you've done it beautifully."
"You've jeopardized this mission and put my fiancé in danger," Steve snapped.
"I think you're overreacting."
"Steve," Connie didn't look up from what she was doing. "This was my choice, no one else's."
"I tried to convince her not to, in all fairness," said Tony.
Steve had forgotten Tony was there. "Yeah, great job, Stark."
From the corner of his eye, he saw Batroc get up and throw a grenade in their direction. Steve quickly deflected it with his shield and scooped Connie into his arms. Tony followed suit with Natasha in his arms. Natasha shot at the window, shattering it so the four of them would be able to jump through. The four of them made it to cover before the grenade went off.
Connie was stunned frightened and could only hold onto Steve while he shielded them from the fragmentation. She looked down at her hands to make sure she still had the thumb drive. She was terrified and breathing heavily. She looked up at Steve and saw that he was already staring at her. She faltered when she saw the look on his face. It broke her heart and tore her to pieces. The look on his face was one of anger, hurt and betrayal.
"Well I'm ready to get off this damn ship," Tony muttered, his mask lifting up to reveal his face.
"Okay," Natasha winced as she sucked in a breath of air. "That's ones on us."
Steve got to his feet and wrapped his arm protectively around Connie's waist. "Damn right," he snapped and slammed his shield in anger against the wall.
***
There we have it, ladies and germs! I was so nervous to get this first chapter up and running!
I'm dying to know what you guys have to say. Review, please!