Thank you for your kind reviews! :) This chapter is a little scattered, but I hope you like it!

Chapter 3

Pepper woke to the smell of freshly brewed coffee. She crawled out of bed, put on her robe, and made her way to the kitchen. She stood just outside the doorway and smiled as she heard Clint chuckle. In the three days that they'd been home, she had noticed a change in the serious man. He laughed and smiled often, and was never far from the small dark-haired woman.

This morning Cassie appeared to be wearing one of Clint's sweat shirts. The woman seemed to always have something of his, whether it be a t-shirt, sweats, sweatshirt, or even socks for goodness sakes! Pepper had never known Natasha to wear Clint's clothes and they were best friends. She'd also never seen him stare adoringly after the assassin as he did the young professor.

She made her way into the kitchen, talking as she went "Cassie, you're spoiling us."

"Good morning Pepper, would you like a cup of coffee?"

"Of course, and I'll have some of those pancakes too if you please."

Cassie laughed as she poured the coffee and served Pepper her pancakes. The last few days had been wonderful. She loved Pepper and Bruce, Tony was taking some getting used to, but she enjoyed being with the rag-tag group. They were a comical bunch, always laughing and joking. Clint had been right her first night there, she did have friends now.

Without being asked, Cassie set a plate of eggs and sausage in front of the quiet archer. She knew that he didn't like sweets for breakfast, so she'd made his preference. She poured his orange juice and set it beside his coffee then went back to cooking pancakes for the others.

"I don't know how we ever made it without her", Clint heard Pepper whisper beside him.

"I know, I think we must have starved or something", he said with a smirk.

Soon Tony and Bruce came dragging in, groaning at the smell of the freshly made pancakes set before them as they sat down beside Pepper. All three watched as Clint got up, kissed Cassie on the top of her head, and spoke quietly "I've gotta get going, I'll see you later." Cassie blushed and nodded.

"I think we've got a little inter-office romance on our hands", Tony said wiggling his eyebrows.

He gave a soft grunt as Pepper elbowed him in the ribs, "What! I was just making an observation."

After everyone had finished breakfast, Cassie put the dishes in the dishwasher and cleaned up all the sticky syrup spills. She made her way to her room to shower and change for the day. The warm water felt wonderful as she washed her hair. She cut the water off, wrapped up in a towel, and walked out into her bedroom. Just as she was about to get dressed, a knock sounded at her door.

"Hey Cas, it's me Pepper. Can I come in?"

"Uh, just a minute Pepper", Cassie called as she quickly pulled one of Clint's t-shirts over her undergarments.

"Ok, come in."

Pepper came in dressed in a white business suit with her purse slung over her arm. She sat down on the bed, and simply stared at the other woman. Her long brown hair fell in soft, wet waves down her back and she was again wearing something belonging to Clint.

"How many of his t-shirts do you have?"

"Only three. He gave them to me along with the sweats and socks before my clothes arrived and I just haven't given them back yet", Cassie said sheepishly.

Then her pretty face colored with alarm, "He doesn't need them does he? Oh, I knew I should've given them back right away!"

"No", Pepper all but yelled, "I think he likes that you wear them, it makes him feel close to you I would imagine. Has he told you anything about Natasha?"

"Very little. He just says that they used to be close."

"Tasha saved his life, and I think he thought that she loved him as much as he loved her. She started dating Steve several months ago, and it tore Clint apart. At first he acted like everything was normal, but soon he became withdrawn and distant. We were all afraid he was going to leave the team."

"Poor Clint. He didn't say a word about any of that."

"I think something's changed for him."

"What do you mean", Cassie asked looking confused.

"I just mean, that you're good for him Cas. He's opened up again and he's better than his old self. I wanted you to know about Natasha because she and Steve are coming home tomorrow, and that may be hard for Clint. I wanted you to know, so you could help him."

"Thank you Pepper", Cassie said hugging her friend.

She watched as Pepper left, and she quickly got dressed. She began to braid her hair as she walked out of her bedroom. She knew Clint was training, had been for about an hour.

"JARVIS, where is Clint training?"

"Training room two, Miss."

"How do I get there?"

JARVIS gave her directions. She stopped by the kitchen to grab a bottle of water then headed up the stairs where she found a row of numbered doors. She went into door number two, and smiled as Clint turned around. He put down his bow, and slowly made his way over to her.

"I thought you might be getting thirsty", Cassie said looking embarrassed when she saw the two bottles of water sitting on the floor at her feet.

Clint laughed and took the bottle out of her hand, downing its contents.

"Thank you Cassie."

"I wanted to tell you that I'm making your favorite for dinner tonight."

"Meatloaf? I can't wait", he said with a warm smile.

Dinner that night was a success. Everyone loved Cassie's meatloaf, and the kitchen was full of laughter as they cleaned up clean up was finished they all decided to watch a movie. Tony and Pepper stretched out on the couch, Bruce took one recliner, Clint took the other one, and Cassie sat at his feet with her back against his legs.

They all laughed, Cassie and Pepper cried a few times, but soon it was time for bed. They all went their separate ways deciding they wanted waffles for breakfast the next morning. Clint gave Cassie a peck on the cheek before leaving her at her door, and making his way to his room.

Cassie woke slowly, rolling over to look at the alarm clock by her bed. The green numbers read three-fifteen. She lay there for a moment before the dryness of her mouth drove her to the kitchen for a drink of water. She pulled down a glass, and was just about to head to the fridge when the elevator doors opened casting an eery glow over the living area before closing again.

She froze when she heard the loud footsteps, and flinched when bright light flooded the kitchen. There before her stood a tall blond man and an angry red-headed woman. The woman turned when she saw her, and spoke with an icy tone.

"Who are you?"

Cassie gasped and dropped the glass she was holding. The sudden noise caused the red head to pull her pistol. Cassie did the only thing she knew to do; she ran. She ignored the stinging in her feet, running for the elevator to safety, to Clint. He was the only thing keeping her moving, the only thing her mind was focusing on.

Clint woke up to a loud banging noise. He got up and made his way to his door, not bothering to grab the t-shirt laying on his nightstand. He opened the door and found a white faced Cassie sobbing on the other side. He quickly pulled her into his arms, and then happened to glance down at where she was standing. Blood smeared the place where she stood.

"What happened Cassie", Clint asked as he picked her up in his arms.

"A man and woman came out of the elevator. They startled me and I dropped my glass. I guess I must have started them too because she pulled a gun on me. I didn't know where to go, so I ran to you."

The last of her story ended on a little hiccup that wrenched his heart. He knew there had to be glass in her feet, so he decided to take her to Bruce. He waked across the room, and had her grab his shirt off of the nightstand, and then spoke to JARVIS.

"Wake up Banner and have him meet me in the med-bay."

"Yes, Sir. Shall I tell him it's an emergency."

"Yes, tell him to hurry."

Clint was was just about to make his way to the door when his it burst open. His friends came rushing into his room, but stopped when they saw he and Cassie.

"Tasha said that an intruder was headed to your room", Tony said seriously.

"If by intruder, she meant Cassie. Then yep, I've got an intruder."

"Wait, you all know her", Natasha said in disbelief.

"Yes, we all know her. Now if you'll excuse me, Cas needs medical attention", Clint said in an aggravated tone.

"How are you so sure she isn't here for nefarious reasons", Tasha asked skeptically.

Just then Steve cleared his throat loudly, "Nat, I don't think she's here for nefarious reasons. Look at what she's wearing."

They all looked at the t-shirt she had on with the pair of grey shorts. Cassie saw everyone looking at her. She looked at Clint, begging him to take her somewhere else.

"We're going to let you guys settle this", Clint said as he shifted Cassie in his arms.

He felt her bury her face in his neck, and heave a little sigh. He walked past his friends, and down the hall headed for med-bay. He could feel her shivering in his arms, and his neck was becoming wet with her tears.

"It's ok sweetheart, Banner is a pretty awesome doctor he'll take good care of you."

"Please don't leave me", came her muffled plea.

"No sweet pea, I'll be with you the whole time."

Back in Clint's room, Pepper was explaining to Tasha and Stave about Cassie.

"She came when we were all gone. She and Clint were here alone for about a week when we got home. We noticed the difference in him right away. He actually smiles now, not to mention that she has more of his clothes than he does."

"So that explains why she had the shirt Tony gave him for a gag gift last Christmas", Steve said in wonder.

"I still don't know about her", Natasha said stonily.

"Well you better get to liking her, or you will lose him. I'm telling you, I've never seen him like this and with your reaction to the whole thing, I don't think you have either", Pepper said quietly.

"Fine, I'll make an effort tomorrow."

Clint and Cassie finally made it to the med-bay to find Bruce waiting for them. Cassie was placed on the cold metal table, as the bespectacled man examined her feet. He wiped them off with alcohol, which made her hiss in pain and grip Clint's hand tighter. It took about twenty minutes to pull out all of the glass and get her feet bandaged up.

"We'll keep an eye on that to see that it doesn't get infected. Try not to walk more than you absolutely have to", the kind man said with a smile.

"Thank you, Bruce. I'm sorry to wake you up at such an early hour."

"That's what I'm here for. I'm glad I can help."

With that, Clint lifted her off of the cold table and into his warm arms.

"Feel better", he asked as he made his way to the elevator.

"Much better."

He watched as her face colored, and her eyes dropped from his face.

"What is it?"

"This whole escapade is my fault. If I wasn't such a klutz, and not dropped the glass none of this would have happened. You and the others would be getting a night's sleep and my feet wouldn't feel like I walked on a bed of nails."

"Hey", he said capturing her eyes with his own, "None of this is your fault. You couldn't help being frightened, you didn't know who they were. No one will blame you for this."

"Natasha does."

"Who cares what she thinks? She shouldn't be pulling her gun on pretty professors in the middle of the night."

Cassie giggled. Clint had a way of making her feel special. He had single-handedly made her feel better about waking the whole tower. She looked up into his sparkling blue eyes and knew that she was falling for the archer. What would come of it, she didn't know. All she knew was that in his arms she felt safe and loved, and that was something she had not felt in a very long time.

Soon they reached her room, and Clint laid her down on the bed. He bent to kiss her on the nose, then looked into her velvety brown eyes. She had a way of looking at him that made him feel needed. Not for his abilities or skills, but for him. He stroked her cheek, and felt her mouth pull into a smile.

"Good night Clint", she said sweetly.

"Good night sweetheart, I'll see you in the morning."

Cassie watched as he straightened his tall frame, and walked gracefully out of her room. She smiled to herself, and fell asleep dreaming about a life spent with Clint Barton.

Thank you for reading! Please review and tell me what you like, or maybe what you don't like? Also, if you have any ideas I would love to hear them :)