So this chapter was a LOT of fun to write and I thought it was pretty funny. I also like my own personal twist to the encounter with Justin Hammer...admit it...everyone wanted to do this to him when they saw the movie. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the chapter! Please Read and Review!

Chapter Twenty-One

Tony

There were many people in the world I hated, but the amount of hatred I had towards them paled in comparison to this annoying little prick that called my name. I would give anything to just take his head into one of my armored hands and squish it. Given that he talked like it was full of helium, I doubt I would even need the Iron Man suit to pop his little pimple of a fucking head!

"Tony!" he said, holding out his hand and snatching mine to shake. "Looks like I'm not the only rich guy in Monaco anymore!"

I wondered if this guy actually heard himself speak, I thought as I put a charming smile on my face. Perhaps it was more or less just a loud roaring in his ears. That had to be it… there was just no way in fucking Hell that a person like this could stand himself. If I had the personality this guy had, I would do the entire world a favor and jump off a click. My brand of arrogance was witty and charming…his made people want to vomit.

"So do you know Christine Everhart from Vanity Fair magazine?"

I gently slung my arm around April and gave her a sideways glare as she slurped the last of that scotch that bad been in my glass. Jesus, if I ever needed a drink it was now. She smiled at me and motioned for a second and just as Christine glided around another customer, I slid the glass straight down to the other end of the bar.

"Roughly." I said, smiling.

"Roughly…" she repeated and smiled back.

"Hey," Justin said, pointing his finger towards my April. "Front page story…April Stark overshadows dad at Stark Expo."

A sour look crossed my features as Justin smiled flawlessly at my daughter. A cord snapped there…I didn't like how he looked at her. There was something in his eyes that didn't sit well with me. A sort of animalistic look that just set my temper off in ways I couldn't describe. Was he plotting something against my baby, or undressing her with those disgusting, beady, eyes. I swear to God I would fucking kill him if he even accidentally bumped into her.

"I would love to get a quote from you, Miss Stark," Christine said with a smile. "My editor will kill me if I don't."

"Uh, she's actually doing a spread on me…aren't you Christine?" Hammer chirped.

And here it was, his entire ploy. Justin was the most pathetic attention seeker in the world. He made Britney Spears look fucking shy. I had to resist rolling my eyes and just took to moving my gaze to another space in the room. April was still politely listening to Justin, which surprised me to no end. I guess she didn't know him like I did…or she was patiently waiting for me to blow up.

"Didn't she do a spread on you, dad?" she asked.

"Yeah…and she wrote quite an article too."

April gave me a look of slight horror and I had to smirk. Sometimes being a parent rocked…when it came to traumatizing my kid or embarrassing her, it was like Christmas in July.

"I've never actually…done an interview…" April said, clearing her throat. "How does it work?"

"Oh that's right…" Justin laughed. "Your dad…what? Sent you to a boarding school or something? To keep people from knowing you existed…I guess it kept the cameras at bay."

April's face went stony and I could see that comment hadn't sat well with her. For a moment I thought she was going to open her mouth and put him in his place, but instead I got to witness the most kick-ass thing my little princess could have ever done. She balled up a fist and, as if in slow motion, punched Justin Hammer right in the chops. Before I could say anything to April, she stormed off, the furious color of her hair whipping around as she turned the corner.

"Oh my God!" Christine shrieked.

I smirked and mumbled, "That's my girl…"

"What the FUCK, Stark!?" Justin yelled.

"Wow…I did not see that coming," I said grabbing a drink. "She's got her daddy's arm, huh Hammer?"

Justin didn't look too amused by my lack of sympathy, but this was just so damn funny. His lip was bleeding and I knew that the thin tissue was going to swell. It was going to be a great picture for the spread for Vanity Fair. That was an article I was going to frame for my office. As much fun as I had watching Hammer gawk and whine like a little bitch, I decided that I needed to go and find April.

"I think that's a good enough quote for your magazine, Miss Everhart." I said before leaving the bar.

It turned out April had gone to the suite I had gotten for us. Since Pepper was now CEO, she didn't want people to know we were seeing one another. So out of respect for her…I let her get her own suite and decided that April and I could share a royal. I went into the room and found April sitting in the center of her bed and staring at one of the walls.

"Princess-

-I am NOT making a public apology to that no good ass monkey!" she snapped.

"I wasn't going to ask you to," I said sitting beside her. "I thought it was freaking awesome."

April turned to face me and it warmed my heart to see her smile slightly. April had a face that glowed when she smiled, but when she was upset or angry…her face could break a heart. It was my fault…us Starks were too damn good looking for our own good.

"Really?"

"Absolutely!" I laughed. "You did exactly what I have wanted to do since I've known the little putz."

I was glad April wasn't mad anymore. We didn't have time to spend fighting and I didn't think she deserved to be punished. I would have done it too if she hadn't beaten me to it. And it was just so awesome that my baby girl hit like a man. Kissing her temple I reached forward and gently took her hand. Her knuckles were red and would probably bruise, but they weren't fairing nearly as terribly as Justin's jaw.

"You might want to put some ice on these baby." I said, running my thumb over them. "So they don't swell."

April nodded and got up to get some from the mini fridge. Leaning back against the bed I sighed and closed my eyes. I needed to check my blood toxicity again before going down to the race. I don't know why I bothered. I knew that it was just going to keep going up until I figured out what the Hell I was going to do. Still…it would due well to know how far from death I was…in case I needed to tell April just how much I loved her before going off into the next world.

"I'm going to the bathroom baby." I called to her on my way down the hall.

"Kay…remember to put the toilet seat down please," she called back. "I don't want to fall in again!"

I smirked lightly and closed the door to the bathroom as I walked inside. Releasing a sigh, I undid my tie and took the blood monitor out of my pocket. Pressing my finger hard against the needle, I hissed softly in pain as I felt it jab and then read the numbers that appeared on the black screen after a shrill beep.

I frowned…It was getting dangerously high. It felt like it was only a couple days ago it was at twenty-two percent…now…it was at thirty-seven percent. What was I going to do? I needed to do something. I needed to make my life matter…I needed to do something crazy if I was about to die. I looked up into the mirror across from me. Since when did I start looking so old? I needed to be young. What did young people do? Why was I asking that? I knew what young people did…I WAS young after all.

Pepper was going to kill me when she found out I was doing this. I had no doubt in my mind that I would be in the dog-house for quite a while. Oh well…at the moment I was more interested in just the sheer awesome that was going to be driving my own racecar! I tightened my gloves as I began walking towards the track and pushed through all the flashing cameras.

Stopping when I got to the car, I turned and said, "What's the point in owning a racecar, if you don't drive it?"

The applause was drowned out in my mind by a small voice that was scolding me about this choice. If I crashed I doubt April would EVER leave my side again and I was setting a bad example for her each time I made a stupid decision like this. I knew that if I saw her jump over the track partition like I did…suited up and ready to go…I'd beat her ass to Malibu and back…but…I wasn't her…so that meant I was going to do this stupid stunt anyway.

They handed me my helmet as I sunk into the small car and I turned to give the thumbs up. I stopped when I saw April running towards the car. I could not speak to her right now. Knowing her she would convince me not to do this and then I would look like a fool on live television. So, just as she was getting close to the car, I blew her a kiss and drove into the line with the other racers.

"Got any other bad ideas?" I asked as I revved the engine.

Nope…at the moment, this one pretty much seemed to take the cake.

So I know I said I wanted to write the action part from Tony's POV, but I think it would be really cool from April's POV. Especially since we already know Tony's thoughts as the movie relays it to us. Sorry if you are disappointed by the sudden change, but I promise it will still be a good chapter.

(Please Read and Review...but no flames :) )