Pepper was in their quarters. Dressed casually, she was sitting at a sofa with her laptop and a cup of coffee when they walked in.

"You're not still working, are you?" Tony asked, well aware that she was, or she would have been in the lounge to eavesdrop on Peter's call with Shuri.

She had told him that she loved hearing the two teens flirt with each other – in Peter's case so awkwardly that it made her smile every time – and thought it was hilarious that they did it, knowing full well that T'Challa and Tony were both trying to figure out if there was any real connection or if they were just messing with them. Pepper was certain that they were just messing with the two men, pointing out that the two always made sure at least one of them – Tony or T'Challa – was handy when they called the other.

If there had been any romantic interest, they'd be sneaking around, hiding in a closet or something to talk to the other.

"I'm almost done for the night," she assured him, smiling at both of them when they crossed the room. "Did you call Shuri?" she asked Peter as he settled beside her.

The boy grinned.

"Yeah."

"He asked her what she was wearing and called her sexy," Stark said, going over to the bar in their quarters and getting a cup of coffee from the pot that Pepper had just made. "Then told me that she was his Juliet."

Pepper looked at Peter who only shrugged – more confirmation, really, that he wasn't interested in dating the Wakandan princess. If he was, he'd be blushing to the roots of his hair.

"Your Juliet, huh?"

"My Cleopatra?"

"Eh."

"You realize those are both tragedies, right?" Stark asked, coming over and leaning over the back of the sofa to brush a kiss against Pepper's cheek. "Everyone gets killed – probably by the suspicious older brother."

Pepper laughed, and brushed a hand against Tony's cheek as he straightened.

"I know you're read them."

"Just paraphrasing, dear. What are you working on?"

"Last minute things," she admitted. "Trying to get it done before I take a month off."

He knew that, which was why he hadn't been in to pester her, earlier. She was going to take a month away from the company – with only a few check-ins scheduled with the people who were going to be running things while they were gone – and being the ultra organized person that she was, she wanted to make sure the company didn't suffer from her not being there to hold the reins.

"Anything I can do to help?"

"You can take Cyrano here to get his hair cut this weekend."

"We already planned on it."

Peter smiled, watching the exchange and marveling – as he did, frequently – that they had allowed him into their lives, so intimately. They never left him feeling pushed to the side, even when they were so clearly focused on each other, like they were just then for the wedding. She proved it all the time with little comments like that, reminding him without doing it directly that he was very important to her. Tony was a little less subtle – like him telling Peter that he loved him, earlier – but Peter loved them both for it, and considered himself pretty much the luckiest guy in the world.

Pepper looked over at him.

"Are you ready for tomorrow?"

He nodded, but Tony spoke, first.

"What's to be ready for?" he asked, still leaning on the back of the sofa. "He takes your hand and hauls you down the aisle to stand beside me. He doesn't really need to rehearse that. A chimp could do it."

"I look better in a tux," Peter pointed out.

Pepper laughed, and nodded her agreement.

"Let me finish this and we can find something to amuse ourselves the rest of the evening."

"Okay."

Since Tony's workroom was close by, the two guys went there, closing the door to keep from disturbing her, but it took Pepper a moment before she turned back to her work.

OOOOOOO

"Rehearsal tomorrow at noon, right?"

Strange nodded.

"Yes. Are you coming?"

"It'll be interesting."

Which was Wong's way of saying yes. He didn't have a role in the wedding but had followed all the planning for it with interest. Of course, with Stephen being best man, it was easy to keep track of what was going on.

The wedding was going to be outdoors, because that was what Pepper wanted – and whatever Pepper wanted, that was what they were going to do, as far as Tony was concerned. Considering who it was that was getting married, the guest list was a modest one. Just Tony, Pepper, the Avengers, Thor, the magicians and two hundred of their closest friends.

Pepper and Natasha – who, as maid of honor was also in the thick of things when it came to planning – had scoured every possible option for a venue. Tony had told them that if they wanted it to be somewhere exotic – not Montana, thank you very much, but say, Fuji or Jamaica – he'd fly the entire guest list there for the big day, but Pepper wanted something much closer to home, and they had decided on a place only fifty miles north of the compound.

It had ample space outdoors for the ceremony, and an apple orchard that was just beginning to blossom in the late spring sun that would make a beautiful backdrop for the ceremony and all photos. There were plenty of indoor facilities that would be set up for the wedding ceremony as well – just in case the weather threatened the outdoor service. The reception was going to be at the same farmhouse that had been used for Tony's bachelor party, and for similar reasons. There was going to be an almost total media blackout, and security was going to be tight. Tony wasn't going to allow anything to screw up Pepper's conquest of him – as he called it – and that included a million cameras flashing in her eyes every time she turned around.

They were doing a media pool – similar to the time that they'd introduced Peter to the media when Tony had adopted the boy. There were going to be five reporters allowed. One from each major network and two who were from the newspapers. They would all share the photos from a single photographer and had already been warned any shenanigans from one would have all of them sent packing without a second chance. The air above the wedding and the reception was already set to be a no fly zone the day of the wedding, and the Avengers were set to use tech to make sure it was enforced with nonlethal, but extremely effective, means.

"The Wakandans are going to be here Wednesday or Thursday. If you want to be introduced, let me know and I'll have Tony do it."

Wong appreciated it, but shook his head.

"I'll rely on observations from a distance, and your own. Tony has enough on his mind, right now."

"True."

Of course, so did Strange. He could well understand, now, why Peter hadn't considered himself up to the task of best man. Especially for a wedding like this one, with so many people involved. There was a lot to do. Luckily, Stephen was very good at doing whatever he put his mind to, and he was as determined as Tony was that Pepper's day was going to go without any problems or glitches. They couldn't control the weather – although Wong had smirked and said he might have something up his sleeve if needed – but everything else was being handled with Strange's usual competence and finesse.

"I could pick up Ned for you, tomorrow, if you'd like?" Wong offered. "Save you the trip."

"I'd appreciate it. Natasha's going to bring MJ in for the rehearsal, but if you'd meet Ned at the safe house at nine and take him to the compound, that would be helpful. Tomorrow's going to be pretty busy."

One less thing for Strange to do.

"Sure."

Magic made things easier – by far – but there was still plenty on the sorcerer's plate. Wong was glad that he wasn't in the wedding. He'd learned a long time ago that watching could be just as educational as doing – and less exhausting, in most cases. Tony and Pepper's wedding was just proving him right.