Disclaimer: I mean no profits with this story. The show and its characters belong to their owners.
A/N: English is not my native language and this is my first Pepperony fic (I'm new in the incredible Marvel universe), so please forgive the mistakes…
The often clear Malibu sky is black and sprinkled with reddish orange clouds. Tony and Pepper are half lying on the deck chairs by the pool, sipping a smoky dark wine that leaves a tingling sensation in their tongues and makes their blood pressure go higher.
Her cellphone, an empty pizza box and a burgundy bottle lie forgotten on the small table that's keeping them apart.
After three of hours filled with shameless flirting, there's a comfortable silence hanging between them. Right now, all they can hear is the low jazz beat coming from the living room.
Running his eyes all over her silhouette, Tony takes notice of how his body always reacts to Pepper. Her toenails are painted red and she's wearing tight black trousers that makes his mouth water. She let go of her blazer as soon as she arrived, choosing to wear the white top that she normally puts on underneath instead; the one that emphasizes the shape of her breasts so sensually.
Blinking, he forces himself to return to reality. Tony thinks of the million things he needs to tell her. He wonders what's the best way to bring up his near-death experience and to brag about finding a new element that solved said issue. He wants to say he's a changed man — maybe not completely, but definitely better and all because of her. He's certain that she knows by now that he hasn't had real sex ever since Afghanistan — because no bimbo would ever do; not anymore. Because Natalie, despite being so undeniably hot, could never take even twelve percent of the part that Pepper plays in his life. Because masturbating almost every night to the endless fantasy list that he keeps of her is not enough. He needs to let her know that she's all he wants — nothing less, nothing more. But he doesn't know how or where to start. And so he watches her, who is so quiet and so absent-minded, enjoying the opportunity to catalog profile, her rare strawberry hair, every freckle, every breath she takes; all the things he already knows backwards and forwards.
Pepper is lost in her own little world, staring at the clouds reflected in the pool. There's so much going on that she feels tired, to say the least; asking herself if running a big company is finally taking its toll on her. She's also wondering what she's waiting for; how long it will take to finally let herself be swept off her feet by her former boss when obviously pleasuring herself with her fingers won't do no more. She feels her cheeks burn from all scenarios running through her mind.
Pepper thinks of what her mom would say —knows in fact what her mom already says— but forgives herself for falling in love with this man, who's sitting within reach, without knowing how affected she is (has always been) by him. Like every other woman who's crossed paths with him, she craves for his touch, almost faints to the smell of his aftershave, fangirls inside whenever he's paying attention to her, literally cringes when having to deal with his childish attitude and always always always comes back for more.
Pepper feels the thin hairs on her neck stand up and a shiver running through her spine. And when she turns her head to the side, she catches Tony watching her with an intense expression. His eyes are darker and solely focused on her, making her throat constrict to the amount of lust that's drowning her body cells. "I should go", she hums, sitting on the chair and putting her glass on the table.
"You're welcome to stay", Tony offers lazily, looking at her up and down. Pepper fixes him a dead glare in response and he holds his hands up in the air, defensively. "What? No sleepover?"
"I'm sure you'd like that", she replies automatically, as if foreseeing all along what he would propose.
"Your stuff are still in your bedroom", he shrugs, as if it's that simple.
Pepper rolls her eyes because he's hardly unselfish or reasonable. "I have an early start tomorrow…" The younger woman gets up, stretching out her limbs along the way. "And so do you", she says, matter of fact, and then reaches out to catch her phone on the table, planning to call a cab.
But Tony's reflexes are fast. He stops her actions by resting his hand on top of hers, moving his head from side to side. "Happy will drive you home."
Pepper lets out a tired breath, finding herself unable to argue with him. Ignoring her pair of heels, she walks barefoot towards the board of the swimming pool. And there's where she stays, over-thinking.
The part-time superhero follows her every step with his eyes, propping himself up on his elbows. And he frowns due to the change in the atmosphere… They were genuinely having fun so far. Things were light and playful and deliciously familiar. He thought she had forgotten the whole birthday party fiasco and even forgiven him for the apology that never came. So why the sudden silent attitude? He doesn't know. He's always been so good at charming women to get laid; has always known how to touch them and how to say the things they wanted to hear. But he has no clue how to truly understand them. (Especially when it comes to the greatest mystery called Pepper Potts.)
When the distance starts to bother him, Tony balances his own glass of wine carelessly on the ground and gets up. He walks to her, mesmerized by how undoubtedly gorgeous she is, studying her body language as if unveiling a complex equation. "Wanna take a dive?", he teases, not knowing what to say for once in his life.
She chuckles wryly, without taking her eyes off the hypnotic blue water, "I'm sure you'd like that too."
He doesn't reply; doesn't even try to deny the obvious. His mind goes blank, overloaded with images of his former assistant wearing nothing but a small bikini. And that's when his manhood hardens to an embarrassing point.
It's her melodic voice that pulls him out of his reverie, "It's just…" Pepper blushes and Tony gets even more interested in whatever it is that's clouding her mind. "I think the stress is finally catching up with me", she murmurs, hiding her face in her palms.
"Are you homesick?", he inquires, unusually sensitive to her feelings. He knows damn well that she hasn't taken a vacation in a long time, albeit conceding that he hated every single time she did.
She wants to tell him no. She wants to say that, even though she misses her family and the homemade food terribly, she only feels truly at home wherever he is. That she knows his house as the palm of her hand; that she spends more time there than in her own apartment. The smell of chlorine fills her nostrils and Pepper thinks of the countless Sunday mornings that she used to spend right there — typing away on her phone by the pool and ordering her boss to sign the reports he was supposed to while trying really hard not to look at him wearing an indecent and overpowering swim suit.
Pepper thinks of the poet who once said that perhaps home is not a place, but a person. And the thought hits so close to home that she can only be honest with him, "Isn't it strange that we want some things so much when we're kids and then when we grow up they don't seem so interesting anymore?"
Tony bites the corner of his lips in concentration, trying to understand exactly what she's talking about.
His lack of response is misread by Pepper, who becomes restless when she realizes that this is Tony Stark, the man who can only focus on a pair of boobs and engineering devices. She lets out a heavy sigh, dismissing the conversation, "You know what? Forget it."
With a shake of her head, she tries to turn around, planning to put on her shoes and head back home. But he holds her firmly by the elbows, making her stay where she is. "No." He wants to say he misses her and that they never get to talk anymore, ever since he named her as the new CEO of Stark Industries — but the speech sounds foolish and out of his element; so he gives it up. She looks at him straight in the eye and lets herself relax a little. "You're right", Tony agrees. "But there are also things we want when we're kids and we keep on wanting even when we grow up."
He sounds strangely wise and it's on the tip of her tongue to ask who he is and what he has done with her Tony Stark. But the possessive pronoun seems out of place and she's strongly invested in getting to know this side of him, ignoring the small voice in her head advising her to not walk that path.
"What?" He asks boldly, trying to force her to stay a little bit longer. He doesn't care how needy it may make him look — the truth is he misses her already. "Come on, Pep", he urges, raising an eyebrow in a clear sign of challenge. "You can't tell me there's nothing you've never done before and would still like to do."
"Kissing in the rain", she blurts out, without even thinking straight and blaming it on the suggestive heavy smell of ozone in the air. Pepper looks down self-consciously and that only makes Tony even more tempted to do something stupid. And then she holds her breath and winces, before addressing him with slightly unsure eyes — trying to make herself ready for all the teasing comments he's likely to throw her way.
She's taken aback, surprised by the way he's gazing at her —so deep and hungry and slightly dangerous—, as if devouring her whole.
They start the staring contest they are so famous for… And just because she's had more than enough alcohol in her system, Pepper throws back, "What about you?" She just intends to get away from the spot, without considering all the windows of opportunity that are about to be opened. "What do you want?"
Tony has to close his hands into fists to prevent himself from reaching out to touch her; from losing his mind. Without thinking twice, he replies, "I want for it to rain right now."
Pepper has always been the master of self-control, capable of ignoring every butterfly in her stomach while flirting with him. But it feels impossible to remain unaffected when they're like this: all alone and weary and horny. "Tony", she tries to reprimand him, but finds that she has no strength left, nor a valid plea.
Tony gets rid of the mask he usually wears to hide his true emotions, choosing to look at her deep in the eyes as if his whole soul is exposed; as if he isn't scared himself.
The silence is quickly replaced by the sound of wet drops ricocheting through the palm trees, disturbing the once calm swimming pool water.
Tony and Pepper open their eyes in surprise, feeling the thick and cold raindrops soaking their clothes, their hairs, theirs bones. They look at the sky in unison and then back to each other, silently communicating how surreal it all seems.
Pepper lets out a loud laugh, throwing her head back. "Is this one of your tricks?", she asks playfully and even begins to say, "I knew you're a genius—"
But his smug voice cuts her, "A genius, billionaire and philanthropist to be more accurate."
She rolls her eyes and ignores his pathetic intervention, "I didn't know you could make it rain."
Tony shrugs, letting his lips from a big grin that reaches his eyes. Looking at the wet working clothes that are now revealing the perfect shape of her body, he sees that she's shivering because of the humid wind. And that's when his mind gets hit by a brilliant idea. "You know what?", he admits unnecessarily in a low voice, "I don't know how to make it rain." Reaching out to wrap a hand around her hipbone, he gets closer, showing the frisky sheen in his eyes that makes her heart skips a beat every time. "But there's one thing I know…" He leaves the words to hang in the air, hoping to catch her curiosity. And when he does, Tony attaches her body to his, "The water must be so warm right now."
He puts some extra force until their intertwined bodies begin to drop on the overflowing swimming pool.
Pepper has only a fraction of seconds to in-breathe and, out of reflex, she wraps her arms around Tony's waistline in order to obtain a minimum sense of counterpoint. The gravity seems to gyrate over and over until they finally submerge in the water with a 'splashhh'.
They soon swim back to the surface to catch a breath. Tony's abs hurt from laughing so hard as he feels so unbearably pleased with himself — like a boy who just won his favorite toy. (He doesn't remember feeling this happy before, except for the last Christmas morning with his parents.) And the next thing he feels is a bunch of jabs hitting his chest.
"Are you out of your mind?!", Pepper bickers in a bad mood, letting go of trying to injure him to mend (as well as she can) her messy clothes and hair.
They are both a little bit breathless and Tony doesn't please her with a proper answer. He scratches his goatee and moves closer, dipping in the pool once more and pushing her by the ankle to join him underwater.
Enjoying that newly found source of stress relieve, Pepper decides to have some fun and compete with him. They start a playful fight under the water, coming up for air every once in a while and then going back down.
Tony's stronger and often gets hold of her body, but Pepper is surprisingly faster and finds out that he's ticklish, using his small weakness to her advantage.
It's only when their lungs beg for a proper intake of oxygen is that they decide to put on a stop. Struggling, they push themselves to stand on their feet, proposing a truce without exchanging words.
When Pepper finds enough composure to talk, she points a finger at him, "Don't think you're forgiven just because I played along, Mr. Stark."
Tony smiles at her flushed face and walks until he's almost pressing her body against the tiles. "It's not like you would have drowned". She gets distracted by the design of his muscles under the pair of black slacks and wife-beater. When he runs a hand through his face to take off some excess of water, she has to swallow back a sigh. "Even if you did, I'd have saved you. I'm a superhero."
"Oh really?"
"Haven't you heard?"
Pepper crosses her arms over her chest, fixing him a disapproving look. "So what? You would get your suit to save my life?" Licking her lips and starting to shiver from the cold raindrops, she teases him further. "Oh no, wait! Mouth-to-mouth resuscitation?" With that I-am-having-none-of-your-shit attitude of hers, Pepper belittles him, "You're so predictable."
He pouts and walks closer still, now definitely brushing his body against hers. Feeling all of his self-confidence gather on his chest and knowing she must be feeling the undeniable evidence of his arousal, Tony tentatively rubs the soft skin of her temple, her cheek, her ears, her neck. "Never kissed in the rain", he says softly, more to himself than her.
And she bites her lips, understanding that they are playing with fire. But she doesn't know how —doesn't really want— to stop.
"You have no idea how tempting that is." He whispers hoarsely, mesmerized by the shape of her lips, so close to his. Tony tangles his fingers through her damp strands of hair and holds her hips protectively with the other hand. "Wanna give it try?"
"Tony…", she lets out a shaky embarrassed laugh.
He finds himself addicted to her reaction and wanting even more. "Do you?"
Pepper begins to lose her temper, "Oh, shut u—"
And that's all he needs to make up his mind and close the distance between them. Finally getting to taste her —and oh God she tastes so good, like no other—, he loses himself in the feel of her.
Grabbing his face, Peppers opens her mouth almost immediately. He smells so good and so close and all hers… She brings him closer, pulling the silky small hairs on the back of his neck with full force. When that doesn't seem to be enough, she lets her legs float, putting them around his narrow hips.
His erection fits into her groin and she gasps, forcing him to insinuate himself between her legs. He groans simultaneously, devouring her mouth with even more hunger, pushing her against the tiles without reservation.
Their lips slide against one another, slipping easily because of the rain that's falling down. Grunting her name, Tony runs his hands all over her thin waist, her curvy hips, her luscious ass. He pushes up the thin cloth of her blouse, needing to feel the soft skin of her belly, her rib cage, her back… His fingers brush against her bra and he gets a glimpse of her stiff nipples, cursing inside of her mouth — she feels so heavenly good that only now he realizes he's never wanted a woman quite this much.
Tangling her tongue with his, Pepper claws his neck, leaving marks like she always dreamed of. Wanting more, she starts massaging his broad shoulders, the hard planes of his arms, his well-defined chest… Feeling her womb coil with desire, Pepper pinches his nipple just to provoke a reaction and feels a sharp tug of pain when Tony bites her bottom lip in response.
Tony breaks the contact between their lips — but only long enough to run his tongue against her smooth neck; often biting it, but mostly sucking the perfect skin in surrender. His hands keep on running against her curves, learning how she feels under his fingertips.
He's so good with his hands that it's no surprise when Pepper's trembles, completely turned on. And it's only when she starts to play with the hem of his shirt, sinking her fingers under it, that Tony strains his muscles unconsciously, thinking about how she would react once she saw the veins on his chest — the evidence of the Palladium poisoning he was going through. Though he had just discovered a new element to feed the core of his ARC reactor, the whole thing is still too soon and the traces of the Palladium are surely to be there. And that would only force them to talk about death and all of the other one thousand elephants in the room.
Sensing his unexpected reserve, Pepper flinches, remembering who and where they are and pondering what the hell they're doing. She forces herself to put a little distance between them; just enough to look at him in the eye. There's an unusual uncertainty in his dark chocolate pools that she can't quite comprehend. It's far from refusal and definitely not rejection. It seems like he's holding something back from her; something he's not ready to share just yet. And, apart from being slightly worried for not being able to read him after perfecting this art for so long, she doesn't feel exactly threatened or scared by it, because there's also an undeniable amount of trust in there — as if he's telling her without words that there's no way they'll ever go back to the status quo.
And that's enough… for now.
"I should go", she whispers, touching her forehead to his.
"Pep…", Tony clears his throat, tightening his grip on her waist to catch her attention. He grits his teeth, feeling his reason fight against his body's desires.
She shakes her head negatively, licking her lips before saying, "We've had a rough week, a fair amount of wine for the night and a more than likely busy tomorrow."
Tony wants to fight her, but she's right: they are both tired, partially drunk and there's the Expo coming up. Not the best timing to decide either their futures. Reluctantly, he holds her hips and helps her balance herself back on her feet.
They share one last look, before trying to straighten their clothes and recover some of their judgments. He stalks out of the pool first and reaches for her hand to help her out. Once they are facing each other, Tony tilts her chin up to hold her gaze. "You're really welcome to stay."
Pepper curls up her lips, "We both know better than that."
He takes a deep breath and walks towards the deck chairs where they spent the night. Grabbing her coat, her heels and her phone, he offers, "You can take a shower and put on some dry clothes at least."
She smiles once again and understands what he's trying to ensure — yes, they'll go back to this later. Reaching out to caress his characteristic goatee, she whispers, "Goodnight" and he only nods, watching her turn around to meet Happy outside.
When she's about to disappear from his view, Tony calls out, "Pepper?"
She looks suspiciously and inquires, "Yes?"
"Did you like it?", he asks, burying his hands into his pockets and smiling wastefully. She only frowns, not quite understanding what he means. His eyes are burning with excitement and full satisfaction when he makes it clear, "Kissing in the rain. Did you like it?"
Pepper snorts, but smiles nevertheless. She wants to punch him; wants to shut him up in the best way possible; wants to make love with him for twenty four hours straight. Needing to get the upper hand, she blinks, fitting back to the perfect employee role. "Will that be all, Mr. Stark?"
His heart seem to expand and he knows without a doubt that she's the one, "That will be all, Mrs. Potts."