A/N: Part 2 of my Valentine's Day story. Next week, something entirely different. An angsty Civil War related story. According to fanfiction dot net, it will be my 100th story, which is bogus, considering my anthology A Very Good Team has more than 70 chapters, most of them individual stories, but it's my choice to write anthologies, because it makes the stories easier to find. But for now, Valentine's Day sweetness.
Cupid 2
Maria Hill left Avengers Tower first. Steve Rogers stopped to pick up a Valentine's bouquet of white daisies and magenta English roses — an antique style of rose, less formal than the tight buds of hybrid teas. It looked like something he might have given Peggy in the 1940s, if he'd had the nerve. The arrangement came in its own pale green glass bowl, so no one would have to run and find a vase for it. Making sure he wasn't being followed, Steve left the building and met Maria at a heliport. Pepper had given her permission to use one of Stark's fastest helicopters to make the trip to D.C.
From the airport in D.C., they took a cab to the nursing home where Peggy Carter lived.
"I'll just wait in the lounge," Maria offered, thinking Steve would like to spend time alone with Peggy.
Steve gave her a peck on the cheek. "I appreciate the offer, but it's not necessary," he said. "She wants to meet you. I think she wants to tell you how to manage me," he said ruefully.
"I'd be glad to see Director Carter again,' Maria acquiesced. To Steve's questioning look, she replied, "We met once when I was a young agent. I doubt she would remember, even without …" She didn't need to say "without the Alzheimer's." "But if it's a bad day, I'll fade away, as if I was one of the staff," she suggested.
But the nurse told them it was a good day. The new medication was doing wonders for Peggy's short-term memory. "She remembered that you promised to come, captain, and that you were going to bring a friend." She gave Maria a bright, friendly smile.
Still, Maria lingered by the door, giving Steve a chance to greet his first love. It was sad to see the once vibrant woman faded and wrinkled and weak, but it comes to all of us, Maria thought. You either die young or get old. There's no other choice — well, unless you're Captain America.
"Steve!" Peggy greeted her friend. "You brought me flowers?"
"Hello, Peggy. Couldn't forget my best girl on Valentine's Day." He kissed her cheek then set the bowl on a table near the foot of her bed, where she would be able to see the bouquet without straining her neck.
Peggy smiled at the sentiment, but scolded, "That's no way to talk in front of your date. Please come in, dear. I don't bite, even though I still have all my teeth."
Steve introduced them as Maria joined him.
"I don't mind sharing Steve with you," Maria said. "There's enough to go around." She poked his muscular abs playfully. "Thank you for allowing me to visit, director."
"You may call me Peggy. My directing days are long past. I understand you were a director, too?"
"Assistant director," Maria amended. "And those days are past, too," she said ruefully. "Now I work for Stark Industries."
"Howard's company," Peggy identified, and then frowned at herself. "No, his son Tony's company now. He remembered me for Valentine's Day. Sent me a bottle of schnapps. My favorite. The doctor said I'll even be allowed a sip or two — if I'm good," she said dryly.
"That sounds like Tony," Steve laughed.
"Like Howard, too," Peggy agreed.
"Trust Tony to remember someone's favorite liquor," Maria said.
"I'd like the see Tony again," Peggy said wistfully. "I remember just flashes of him as a clever, but rather sad boy."
"I'll tell him," Steve promised.
Peggy was studying Maria's face. "I'm sorry to stare, dear, but I'm sure we've met before."
"Yes, ma'am, but only once."
"This new medication is helping my short-term memory, and I've always remembered the old things — like Steve," Peggy teased.
"Hey!" he protested good-naturedly.
Peggy continued, "But the middle years, the SHIELD years, are just blurry fragments." She bit her lip, thinking. Her memory was shot, but her deductive abilities were still tolerable. "Judging by your age, it must have been an awards ceremony," Peggy decided. "That's when they dragged out the old war horses."
"Yes, ma'am," Maria agreed.
"Medal of Valor, no doubt," Peggy continued, because that was the sort of woman Steve would appreciate. Maria blushed, but nodded.
Peggy frowned and finally shook her head. "No, it's all muddled. I have the oddest impression of bending down to talk to you, as if I were speaking to a child."
"I was in a wheelchair," Maria blurted, anxious to validate the old woman's scattered memories. "I was still recovering from the injuries I received on the mission. The doctors were still waffling about whether I would walk again without crutches, but you said you had no doubt that someone as stubborn and brave as I was would work hard until I was back in the field. I remembered your words every time the PT seemed too excruciating. I suppose you kept an eye on me, because the day I was cleared for duty, you sent me a note of congratulations — and a pistol."
Maria reached through the slit of her knee-length denim wrap skirt and pulled a semi-automatic pistol from her thigh holster. It was a long-nosed, World War II Luger, a chrome-plated special model with a cursive M engraved on the grip.
Steve caught his breath.
"I remember that," Peggy said decisively. "I don't remember giving it away, but I remember that pistol."
"So do I," Steve said fervently.
Maria offered it to him and he studied it carefully, before handing it back. "I didn't know you had that," he said.
"I don't usually carry it, because it's so identifiable, and because it was a special gift."
"Peggy got it on a mission," Steve said. "It was supposed to be a simple meeting with one of Peggy's informants from the French Resistance, but the man had been betrayed. The tavern was surrounded by a full company of German soldiers."
"Fortunately, they had been expecting to capture Resistance fighters, not the Howling Commandos and Captain America," Peggy said. "There was a massive gun battle that became a brawl when ammunition ran out and no one was given an opportunity to reload. When everyone else was fully engaged, the German captain saw me and decided I must be important, so he wanted to capture me."
"I could see the whole thing," Steve said. "But I had my hands full fighting six guys."
"Seven," Peggy corrected. "The German pulled his Luger, then set it on the bar, saying 'I don't need this to capture a pretty Fraulein like you.'"
"And Peggy said, 'So very kind of you,' in that cold English way that means just the opposite," Steve contributed. "And she attacked him. She kicked him back against the bar, then grabbed him in a headlock and flipped him over her body. Then she grabbed his Luger, but she didn't need it to shoot him, because his neck had been broken. Instead, she shot at me!"
"At you!" Maria exclaimed.
"And not for the first time," Peggy muttered to herself, with a twinkle in her eye. "Actually, this time I shot past him."
"She killed a Kraut who was about to plant an ax in my skull," Steve explained.
"I told you there were seven," Peggy reminded him. "You were always terrible about watching your back."
"In my defense, seeing you in action was pretty distracting," Steve answered.
"So naturally, I claimed the Luger as a war prize," Peggy told Maria.
"It had an embossed coat of arms on the grip," Steve told Maria. "Howard didn't like that. He stole the pistol, had the grip refinished and engraved with that M for Margaret."
"And then I was afraid to fire it for a week," Peggy complained. "I was afraid Howard had tinkered with it so it would explode or fire backwards or some other nonsense."
"He finally had to shoot it himself to prove he hadn't changed anything except the decoration," Steve finished.
Maria was fascinated to hear the history of her pistol. In return, she told Steve the bare outlines of the mission where she had rescued six hostages, despite injuries to one leg that left her unable to walk.
"I couldn't stand, but I could still drive," she said.
Left for dead, she crawled into the cab of a Humvee and used it to run the enemy jeeps off the road. "A car is considered a deadly weapon by police," she said. "I used mine to run down the enemy, which gave the hostages a change to turn on their captors. Then they jumped in the Humvee and we floored it. A clean getaway," she said, leaving out details of the pain involved in driving the bouncing, jolting Humvee. But Steve and Peggy could imagine the details.
Peggy asked about their plans for the day, then wondered why they had to sneak away from Stark.
"Would the teasing be so bad?"
"It would be bad enough," Steve said. "It would make it hard for Maria to work with the Avengers, if Tony kept bringing up our relationship."
"And then he'd want to manage us," Maria said. "He really is a romantic at heart. He'd make suggestions for romantic weekends. Tahiti for two, it's a magical place," Maria said with a dryness that Steve didn't quite understand. Maybe she didn't like Tahiti. "He'd push us to do more than we were ready for and I'm afraid he'd push us apart," Maria finished.
Peggy nodded. "I think I understand. Stark's seem to be happy in the spotlight. Howard had no boundaries when it came to romance, no problem starting a movie company just for the starlets and 'production assistants' it attracted. You two are more private people. You deserve to have privacy while you figure things out."
"Pepper knows. She understands because she's Tony's significant other as well as the CEO of Stark Industries. Technically she's my employer, though I coordinate for the Avengers most of the time," Maria explained.
"I'm pretty sure Natasha knows, too," Steve said.
"Really?" Maria asked.
"She's stopped trying to set up dates for me."
"Oh. She hasn't said anything … yet. Well, if she knows, I wouldn't be surprised if Clint knows. But I'm pretty sure they'll keep my secrets. I know enough of theirs," Maria said. "Sorry, Steve, but we are never going to be one of those couples who tell each other everything and have no secrets from each other." She thought about Clint's family and Coulson's survival as she said that.
Steve laughed. "I didn't expect that. I'm not sure I believe there are any couples like that, anyway. People lie."
"Surprisingly cynical for Captain America," Peggy said primly.
"I've been through a lot since I woke up," Steve said sadly.
They chatted for a bit longer, and Maria coaxed the old woman to tell about the time she shot at Steve.
"Boy, was I glad the shield worked," Steve said fervently.
Eventually Peggy admitted she was getting tired. "You'd better go before I spoil this lovely day by forgetting you both," she sighed. "Thank you for the flowers, Steve. They're beautiful."
They exchanged kisses and goodbyes, then Peggy asked for a moment with Maria.
"Take care of him, dear," Peggy told the younger woman. "No matter how strong he looks, he can be surprisingly fragile."
"I understand," Maria said quietly. "I'll look after him." She offered a handshake as a promise.
Steve and Maria left. They walked for a while in silence, then Steve plunked down on a park bench. "It's always hard," he apologized.
Maria leaned her cheek against his shoulder.
"I haven't told you that I was engaged once," she said. "His name was Rene. He was an agent, but he wasn't afraid of Maria 'Chill,' which was nice. We liked the same music and the same awful cop movies. When we dumped all SHIELD's secrets on the Internet, I found out he was Hydra."
"Maria!"
"He never had a chance to betray me," Maria assured him. "He died bravely, heroically even, on a rescue mission in the Sudan. I found a letter of condolence from Pierce to another Hydra commander, John Garrett, commenting on the loss of one of Hydra's best. I have to wonder, did Rene really care about me, or was he just getting close, so he could assassinate me. If I'd died, Jasper Sitwell would have been next in line to take the assistant director position."
"I'm sorry," Steve said.
"So am I, but he died five years ago, so it didn't hurt as much as it would have if he'd still been alive. So, we all have regrets, Steve. You don't have to be sorry that you still feel for Peggy. I think it's beautiful."
They sat deep in thought for a few minutes more, then Steve heaved himself off the bench. "Come on, I promised you a lavish Valentine's lunch. Pepper recommended the perfect place."
When Steve said lavish, he meant every word. They started with a big plate of appetizers. Maria took one of everything (two of the mushrooms and three of the shrimp), then a luscious salad. For her entry, Maria chose silky chicken Alfredo over perfectly cooked fettuccini. Steve picked the biggest steak on the menu with a red wine and mushroom sauce. That was as much wine as they had, because Maria was flying and Steve thought it was rude to drink when she couldn't. They traded bites of food, grinning at each other like kids, while they took bits off each other's forks. Maria leaned over once to kiss wine sauce off Steve's lips. He reacted by kissing Alfredo sauce off hers.
They dawdled over the last scraps, considering the merits of the dessert list.
Outside, the clouds shifted away, letting bright sun reflect through the front window to hit Steve right in the face. He squinted into the sudden brightness.
Maria chuckled and said, "I'll ask them to draw the blinds."
She looked toward the offending window, which was next to the front door. Her eyes widened and, with a yip of alarm, she dropped beneath the table. Steve was reminded of a documentary he'd seen about prairie dogs.
He looked to see what had alarmed his date, just as Tony Stark and Pepper Potts came through the door.
The waiter deferentially guided the billionaire and his Valentine's date toward a private room on the opposite side of the restaurant. Steve might have gone unnoticed, except for the sunbeam that spotlighted him. Pepper saw the soldier first and tried to distract Tony's attention, but he'd seen Steve, too. Pepper slapped her forehead in frustration, but Tony didn't notice as he made a beeline toward Steve. The Super Soldier ran a frantic glance across his table. Tony would never, ever stop teasing them if he found Maria cowering under the table.
Steve decided the only thing he couldn't explain was the trace of lipstick on Maria's coffee cup. Without hesitation he picked up the cup and sipped the cold coffee, wiping away the lipstick with his own lips, then he dabbed his mouth with his napkin before greeting his friends.
"Tony, Pepper. I didn't expect to see you in D.C. today."
"Same here," Tony answered.
"This was my Valentine's surprise," Pepper said, with an apologetic grimace behind Tony's back. "Tony brought me to see a new exhibit at the National Gallery of Art — paintings from the Romantic Era."
Distracted, Tony made a face. "And they weren't romantic at all!"
Art lovers Pepper and Steve shared a smile. "No," Steve agreed. "Big landscapes and heroic military actions."
"One was about a massacre, Steve. A massacre!" Tony said in aggravation. "What's romantic about that?"
"It's all right, Tony," Pepper consoled him. "You know I love art museums and the landscapes were lovely."
"Some of them were huge," Tony remembered. "I liked that one of the stormy sky."
"And now we'll have a nice, romantic lunch at my favorite restaurant," Pepper said, trying to draw Tony away. "With no stormy skies."
Tony refused to be drawn. "But I haven't asked Steve what he's doing here," Tony argued. "My spies tell me you left the Tower with a Valentine's bouquet. Now I find you at a romantic restaurant. Where's your date?" Tony craned his neck in the direction of the ladies room.
"The flowers were for Peggy," Steve said with undeniably honest sadness. "Then I walked for a long time until I got hungry. I remembered Pepper mentioning this restaurant and I figured I deserved a treat."
Tony eyed the table with diminishing skepticism. There was a lot of food, but Steve could easily eat a steak and a plate of chicken pasta by himself. Steve was glad that the waiter had cleared away the appetizer platter that he had demolished.
Pepper moved past Tony, toeing Maria's purse farther under the table. A hand snaked out to pull the purse deeper into concealment.
Pepper gave Steve a hug. "Eating to drown your sorrows?" she said sympathetically. "I'm sorry that you have to spend Valentine's Day that way. But I guess it won't hurt you," she added, patting a muscular arm.
"Tony scratched his head in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Steve."
"It's OK. I know you just want to see me get back in the game," Steve said. "Peggy would like to see you sometime, Tony," he passed on the old woman's message. "But she did like the schnapps."
"I hope they let her drink some," Tony said. "I promise, I'll go soon, but it's hard when she calls me Howard half the time."
"I know."
"We'd better go, Tony, before the restaurant gives our table away," Pepper said, claiming Tony's arm. "Try the mousse cake for dessert, Steve," she said over her shoulder. "It will make any day brighter."
As soon as Tony and Pepper disappeared into the private room, Steve gestured to the hovering waiter. "Bring the check and a piece of mousse cake to go, please," he said, as Maria resumed her seat, patting her disheveled hair back into place.
"Double tip to not say anything to Mr. Stark about Steve having a date," Maria said.
"That's not necessary, miss," the waiter protested.
"You can share the tip with everyone else," Maria suggested. "I don't want Steve teased because he's dating Pepper's assistant."
Everyone knew Tony liked to tease and it did get old.
The couple paid quickly and left with their dessert. They walked briskly until they were two streets away, then they went to the National Mall where Steve spread his jacket under the tree where he'd first met Sam. They ate their cake and told each other funny stories about their lives, eventually turning back to their Valentine's Day adventures.
Steve shook his head, chuckling. "I can't believe Tony Stark showed up at the same restaurant today."
"We're in a rom com," Maria said ironically. "High drama and low comedy."
"Sorry. That's the story of my life. You didn't know what you were getting into."
"You're worth it," Maria said.
"Well, Cap…"
Maria gripped his chin and turned his face toward her. "Not Cap. Steve Rogers is worth it." She gave an impish smile and poked his abs. "Cap is just gravy."