Sorry it's taking me so long to update. School is super crazy at the moment lol I hope you are enjoying the story! Thank you for all of the favs, follows, and reviews! :)
Chapter 4
Cassie woke to soft light filtering through the window by the bed. She stretched, careful not to bump Clint where he slept beside her. She smiled as she heard him mumble unintelligibly. Deciding that sleep was not going to come again, she got up from the bed placing her feet on the cool wood floor.
She padded softly over to the dresser and grabbed a pair of shorts, pulling them on as she made her way to the bathroom. She brushed her teeth to dispel her morning breath, then grabbed one of Clint's hoodies pulling it over her head as she walked out the door.
Cassie silently went down stairs, thankful that the living room was still dark and no sounds could be heard coming from up stairs. She poured water into the coffee maker, then dumped a few tablespoons of Folgers in before turning it on. Soon, the little machine bubbled to life and the smell of fresh coffee flooded the room.
This was her first morning back and she wanted breakfast to be special, so she decided to make a little bit of everything. She mixed up the waffle batter, cracked a few eggs, and fried up the bacon. She heard footsteps coming down the stairs and turned to find Loki coming into the kitchen.
Loki made his way into the room, not noticing the woman standing at the stove. He went to the fridge, looking for the milk jug. Then a voice spoke behind him.
"Looking for this", the woman said holding out the container filled with white liquid.
"Yes, I was", he said staring at the strange creature before him.
She was dressed in a worn sweat shirt at least two sizes too big, a pair of faded denim shorts, and a pair fuzzy lime green house shoes. Her brown hair fell in soft waves down her back, and her brown eyes bore into his with more intensity than he liked. He moved to get some bread and jam, but she stopped him.
"I'm making breakfast if you'd like some."
"Wouldn't your husband object?"
"Maybe, but it's just food. It's not like I'm offering to be your best friend", she said with a smirk.
Cassie watched as the man set down the bread and made his way to one of the stools at the island. She poured him a cup of coffee, then placed the cream and sugar with in his reach. She could feel his sharp blue eyes watching her as she finished her breakfast preparations.
Soon, she heard footsteps coming down from Tony and Pepper's room. She turned to find a bleary eyed Tony making his way to the coffee pot. The man either didn't see the guest or was ignoring his presence. After his first sip of the strong brew, the billionaire seemed to come alive.
"Good morning, Cas. You don't know how happy I am to see you this morning. A man needs more than donuts and quiches to live on."
Cassie laughed, "I'm happy to be cooking again."
"Where's Clint?"
"He's asleep. I think he's still running on island time", she said with a grin.
Before Tony could answer, Pepper came stumbling into the room. She also was in search of the coffee pot.
"Thank goodness you're back", the blond said as she inhaled the hot steam.
"Good morning to you too Pepper."
Tasha and Steve came down next, both taking a seat at the table and splitting the morning paper. Cassie heard her husband's footsteps on the stairs, and smiled as he entered the room. He looked warily at the black haired man seated beside Tony as he made his way to her side.
"Good morning, sweetheart", he said as he bent to kiss her cheek.
Cassie squeezed his hand before handing him his favorite mug filled to the brim with dark liquid. Soon, everyone was seated and eating the delicious breakfast they had missed while their chef was away. After everyone had finished, they helped with the dishes and then moved into the living room.
Loki watched the scene unfold before him as the Avengers settled on the couches and recliners. He slowly made his way to the stairs, hating the feeling of loneliness that swamped him. He took the stairs two at a time, rushing to get back to the solitude of his room.
Cassie settled onto the couch, snuggling against Clint's side. She couldn't contain the smile that spread across her face when his arm came around her and his thumb began to rub back and forth against her hip. The room was quiet for a time, but then Tasha spoke.
"Alright, Clint. Tell us about your trip", she said with a smile.
Clint looked down at his wife and found her eyes glued to his face and sparkling with mischief.
"Well we stayed by the beach, much to my wife's delight. We spent our mornings strolling along the shore, picking up shells and watching the sunrise. Then we would have breakfast in the hotel dining room. The rest of the day was spent sight seeing and enjoying the beach."
Pepper heard Cassie snort and quickly exclaimed, "Something tells me that you're fibbing just a bit."
Cassie giggled as her husband's cheeks turned slightly red.
"We never got up early enough to see a sunrise. After the past few months neither one of us had gotten enough sleep and we were beat. Clint refused to eat in the hotel dining room saying 'We need to get out and try new things'. I was all for that until I got food poisoning", Cassie said dryly.
"Sounds like you two had a blast", Tony said with a wide grin.
"It really was nice. I enjoyed it just being the two of us and getting my husband all to myself", Cassie said smiling up at Clint.
Everyone else in the room watched as Clint bent to quickly place a chaste kiss on his wife's smiling mouth.
"We really did have a great time. It was nice to just relax and not feel like I had to save the world every five minutes", Clint said as he looked around the room at the smiling faces of his friends.
"Well until we started home. You kinda had to save the day on the plane", Cassie said with a smirk.
"What happened on the plane", Steve asked curiously.
So, Clint regaled them of his heroics of saving his wife from a drunk. Pepper gasped, Tasha giggled, and Tony and Steve just shook their heads.
Soon, the men headed off to the roof while the women were left sitting in the living room. The enjoyed their girl talk for a while, and then the discussion turned more serious.
"How is Clint handling everything", Tasha asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I think he's doing ok. He didn't have any nightmares last night, so he slept pretty well. I think it's just going to take some time for him to get used to the arrangement. Some days will be better than others, but I'm confident we'll get through it."
"Good. We were all worried about how he would react", Pepper said.
"The night before we came home was hard. Neither of us got much sleep and nightmares plagued him most of the night. The plane ride home was a little better. We were both able to get a few hours of sleep, but he was still really tense through most of the flight. Then when we got home he kinda relaxed a little. I think he was worried that things at home had changed."
Cassie watched as both women nodded. Then they heard male laughter coming from the elevator, and all three smiled as they saw the three men walking in, light banter going back and forth.
Clint looked up to find Cassie smiling at him and it hit him. His wife was the most beautiful woman in the world! She didn't know a lot about his life, but she never questioned him. She just trusted him, loved him, and believed in him. He found himself gravitating to her.
When he reached the place where she was seated on the couch, he bent to kiss her on the temple.
"I love you sweetheart. Thank you for excepting me as I am and never trying to make me into something I'm not", he whispered into her ear.
Cassie could feel the rest of the room fading away, and all that was left was her husband's loving blue eyes. She felt her hands coming up to rest on his shoulders and then she was kissing him, slow and deep. She felt his arms come around her and she knew that there was no where on earth that she would rather be than in this man's arms.
A throat clearing pulled the lovebirds out of their reverie. They both turned to find Director Fury standing a few paces away. Cassie could feel her face heating, and she could see that Clint was trying to regain his composure. Then she watched as he took a deep breath and turned to face his commander.
Thanks for reading! As always reviews are much appreciated! :)
