Hey guys, I'd like to dedicate this fic to my girlfriend. I love you xxx

Stark Industries

It's 8:30 in the morning and you know you're already late. You're eyes snap wide open in panic as you throw yourself out of bed and into the shower. 'Why today?!' You think to yourself angrily as you gather your work clothes and head for the kitchen. Having second thoughts about breakfast you get dressed, ready and leave the flat by 9:15.
It's review week at work and you've only been there for a couple of months so you really need this to go well, and it's not off to a good start. You ride the subway and make it through the employee's entrance of Stark tower with minutes to spare before the presentation starts. Mr Stark is giving a short speech about the last working year and the goals for when you come back after Christmas, 'If I'm still here by then' you think as you slink into the back of the room relatively unnoticed. Thankfully, David has saved you a seat next to him at the end and he motions for you to take it. For the next 15 minutes your boss talks on about company things but eventually gets bored and goes on to the imminent staff Christmas party which you are all obviously invited to. Naturally you're smiling and laughing at the correct moments but you're not paying a great deal of attention to what Mr Stark is saying.

You notice how his brown eyes skitter across the room, never remaining on one thing for more than a few seconds. You can see the light from his ark reactor escaping through the spaces between the buttons of his shirt when he leans forward to rest his head on his hand. You notice the smirk that tugs the corner of his mouth when he mentions last year's party. Then David notices you staring a little too intently and nudges you with his elbow so you don't draw attention to yourself. It would have worked if the sharp jab in the ribs hadn't made you yelp like a wounded puppy. Naturally everyone turned to see what just happened, and you dip you head in an attempt to hide your face from the onlookers. Suddenly Tony clears his throat authoritatively, "I seem to remember I was talking people," he says sternly prompting everyone to return the right way "Thank you. And if anyone locates the Chihuahua, please escort it from the building" he finished the sentence with a smile and the crowd chuckles slightly. Just as you finally lift your head hoping that the coast is clear, you see him looking right at you, holding that smile. You smile apologetically in return before he continues what he has to say then releasing everyone back to their respective work stations.

You make it through the next four days in relative ease. Your review comes back more positively than you dared to hope and apart from the occasional puppy joke from David and the Chihuahua mug you got from the office secret Santa the incident on Monday seems to have been forgotten. As you arrive home on Friday night you see that the shoes you ordered for the party on Saturday have finally arrived and they aren't total murder for feet so things are looking up. You spend the evening working out what to do with your hair and breaking in your shoes. Meanwhile your mind is whirring at the thought of Tony.. Mr Stark you correct yourself quickly, being there. Of course the last time he actually attended one of the staff parties was around five years ago. And to be honest it was less of an attendance and more of a gate crash type of thing, but not because he wasn't invited, he literally managed to crash through the doors of the hotel it was held at. The company doesn't use that one anymore.
As the evening draws on, you begin to consider more and more outlandish scenarios in which your boss shows up at the party and leaves with you in some way or other. Of course you know how he is with women and as far as you're concerned he'd never go after you. But a part of you is still hopeful.

The day of the party arrives and you go about your day as usual for the first few hours. Around 4:00 you decide to shower again to style your hair properly and start to prepare. The invites said 6:30 so you've got more than enough time.
At 6:10 your taxi arrives to take you to the venue across the city. It's a fancy hotel on the waterfront and the boss has rented out the whole bottom three floors which include the bar, pool and some guest rooms in case some people are a little worse for wear at the end of the evening. After twenty five minutes you pull up outside and walk gracefully through the front doors into the lobby where a number of your colleges have already begun to congregate. As per usual, the giant Stark Industries tower is immortalised as an ice sculpture in the centre of the room. The large roman style pillars have been draped with festive wreaths and there are several Christmas trees adorning the room. You mingle with various colleagues for about two hours, during which you discover from one of the PR staff that Mr Stark may actually show up this year. You appear vaguely interested so as not to draw attention to yourself but you find yourself scanning the crowds every now and again hoping to see him.

As the evening drew on, most people collected in the main ballroom for dancing or just picking at the remains of the Buffett. You decide to look around, partly to escape the awkward small talk and mostly because you want to see what the guest rooms are like. After ascending the main staircase, you opt to turn right, hopefully towards the rooms. On stepping through the door you realise from the echoing voices and decoration that you've actually ended up on the balcony above the ballroom itself, you hadn't actually noticed it from the floor and neither had many other people. It was nice though, a few seats arranged in what would normally have been a small orchestra for playing to guests and some tables and chairs scattered around. As your eye scans along the space you notice some people at the other side of the balcony. You suddenly feel a bit self conscious and think about leaving, but they haven't noticed you yet. There are two of them, both men; one is tall and fairly slim while the other is slightly shorter, and a little wider than his companion. They both have dark hair but while the larger mans is tamed and organised, the taller mans is slightly spiked, with strands sticking up at odd angles. But it still looks good, and somehow familiar.

Suddenly you realise, it's Tony Stark! He's actually here! At this point you realise that the inward gasp had become rather more outward than you had thought, causing Tony to turn his head towards you. He looks a little bemused at first but then smiles and motions his drink in your direction. It takes you a moment to register the gesture but you begin to walk towards the man. As you near the table, the other man who is actually Tony's personal bodyguard Happy starts to make a move to stop you. "It's ok Happy si'down big guy" Tony tells him casually. You walk up to the table and stand slightly awkwardly on the left of your boss. "G-good evening Mr Stark." You say a little nervously. "Please, it's a party, call me Tony. I've never liked formalities." He replies in a friendly tone. "Yes Sir..er.. Tony" you inwardly cringe at the mistake but he doesn't seem to mind. "Sir Tony, I like that." He says with a slight chuckle, "Might have to accept one of those knighthoods they've been threatening me with." He smiles again and you start to relax. "But any who, where are my manners, Happy pull up a chair for the lady will you. And while you're at it, go check the door for any other stragglers and re-direct them back downstairs" he turns to you "Drink?" He says gesturing to the bottle of Bourbon, "No thanks I'm not a spirit drinker." You reply politely, "Ah smart girl, this stuff is poison," he looks at the golden liquid in his glass before drinking the last of it, "But that doesn't seem to stop me." He smiles at you, then suddenly as if he has come to some sort of a realisation, he sat up slightly straighter from his more leisurely position, "Hey, I hope you haven't brought your purse dog with you tonight " his eyes glinted in amusement. It takes you a moment to realise what he's talking about and then it dawns on you. The presentation. He remembered. 'Ooh god' you think to yourself before answering. "No I haven't actually" you say trying to remain casual, "Mm, shame. It sounded cute." He says amusedly.
You can feel your cheeks turning pink at the compliment, obviously sensing your embarrassment he continues, "You do look lovely this evening" he says with a broadening smile, trying to catch your eye as you look at your hands. "Thank you," you reply trying to meet his eyes, "You look good tonight too" he raises his eyebrow, "There's no need to polish my ego but compliments will get you everywhere." He winks at you before pouring himself another drink. "You know I wasn't sure if I should even bother coming to this thing, but I'm glad I did now" you smile at him as he leans back into his seat causing his shirt to open a little as the first few buttons are undone. "To be honest I didn't think that you would turn up tonight, but you've surprised me" you reply, feeling more and more at ease around the man and forgetting about his reputation and wealth. "Well I am full of surprises" Tony replies leaning towards you slowly, he places one hand on yours and puts his glass down on the table. Your mind races and you find yourself subconsciously mirroring his actions, you can feel his breath on your face as you look up to his deep brown eyes. Your lips press against his softly as your eyes close and your fingers entwine with his.

Thank you for reading, I hope you all liked it. I have a horrible feeling that it went a bit south at the end there but whatever :/ review if you enjoyed