Lovegood. A cozy bakery that Tony had discovered purely on accident - well, one of the only good accidents that had happened in his life. An accident that led to him finding the beautiful green-eyed, messy-haired man that he falls in love with.
[1]
Tony was drunk. Totally wasted, as he stumbled around the streets. He managed to stick to the shadows, his alcohol-addled mind telling him that it probably wasn't the best idea to attract attention. He walked around - well, more of tripping every other step - down the street, gaining a few concerned or curious glances from strangers walking past him. As he was walking, neither he nor the person walking towards him noticed each other and they collided, resulting in both of them on their asses, on the sidewalk in front of a bakery.
"Oh Merlin, I'm so sorry!" The man he collided into exclaimed as he scrambled up, his voice carrying a faint British accent. Tony didn't reply, taking some time to study the man he collided with, his eyes skimming from his shoes, up past his knees, to his chest - was that abs he saw through the thin white tee-shirt? - to his mouth - perfect pink - to his eyes. Green eyes. Beautiful green eyes that held so many different emotions, even if most people could only see the first layer of mild guilt.
Under the first layer, there was worry and concern. Under that, curiosity and confusion - after all, why was Tony Stark, the Iron Man, stumbling around drunk? Tony could see through every emotion in the stranger's eyes - it was like peeling an onion - layers and layers. Or even a book - pages and pages of emotions and thoughts, all tumbling together and barely organized. And under it all, were faint traces of pain and anguish.
Over the years, Tony had gained the ability to read people extremely well, which helped a lot when making deals with people.
But, A little voice in Tony's mind spoke, your reading people ability didn't save you from people like Stane. Tony pushed the voice away, focusing back on the situation at hand, where the stranger was looking at Tony with an odd expression on his face. Tony realized that the stranger had been holding out a hand to help him up, but Tony had been to focused on reading the stranger and too involved with his own thoughts. Tony took the stranger's hand, letting the stranger help get him on his feet.
"I'm so sorry for running into you!" The stranger repeated, this time quieter and adding a few more words. His eyes, twin pools of green, were like open books, showed Tony the sincerity of his words. Tony was surprised that the stranger hadn't even mentioned the fact that he was Tony Stark, but refrained from letting those words escape him, instead, he gave the stranger a roguish smirk and words formed on his lips, spoken in the next few seconds.
"It's alright, sweetcheeks. You know, if I wasn't taken by Pepper, I'd be a lot more inclined to find out how you like it - and how loud you'd moan or scream my name." Tony smirked proudly as his flirting paid off, a dark blush conquering the stranger's cheeks as the stranger refused to meet Tony's eyes.
"Mister Stark." A new voice cut into the conversation and both heads turned to face the newcomer, Tony's eyes confident, hiding the confusion and tucking it away like it didn't exist, while relief was displayed openly on the attractive stranger's face. "I'd very much appreciate it if you stopped flirting with my worker." Tony surveyed the newcomer quickly, noting that she was the stranger's boss, had dreamy blue eyes, pale skin, golden-blonde hair that fell in loose curls, and her height at five feet and three inches, before returning his gaze to the (handsome) stranger's ass.
His drunken mind reminded him that of Pepper. The fiery redhead he was planning on proposing to, and with a great deal of reluctance, he removed his gaze from the stranger's behind and turned back to face the blonde, who looked genuinely annoyed at the celebrity.
"Mister Stark, I'd also greatly appreciate it if you wouldn't leer at Harry's ass. Don't you have a girlfriend?" The blonde frowned, disapproval glinting clear as day in her blue eyes.
Tony was about to quip back, but his drunkenness and exhaustion from lack of sleep from the days before that he had spent working on projects finally caught up with him and he collapsed onto the cold floor in front of the bakery.