Steve waved at the car pulling away from the curb, smirking when Sam raised his hand in acknowledgment. His visits were always too short. Sighing, he tipped his head back to look up at the Tower before walking back inside to take the elevator to their floor.

"I'm hurrying," Emily said when he appeared in the bedroom.

"Don't," he shrugged, collapsing onto his side of the bed and toeing off his boots.

"How's the party?" When he'd told Emily about Tony's plans for 'revels', she'd promised to try and make it. The history department was in the process of hiring a new faculty member, and it was her turn to take the candidate to dinner with two colleagues. She'd barely made it back in time to see Sam off, catching them in the atrium as they waited for the car service to take him to the airport.

"Lots of people I don't know. Saw some guys you might be interested in talking to - had World War II vet hats on."

"I'll have to make sure to get their information." He smiled, clasped his hands behind his head and closed his eyes, listening to the comforting sounds of Em sifting through her makeup in the bathroom. After hearing the spritz of her perfume, Steve waited a moment before moving to lean against the doorframe.

"You sure you want to go? We could call it an early night, catch up on some sleep instead." Meeting his gaze in the mirror, she scoffed.

"You're the one who agreed to go in the first place." When she reached for her necklace, he pushed off the door and took it from her, draping it around her neck to do the clasp. His lips were warm when they brushed against her neck.

"That was before I saw you in that dress." He gently turned her and tasted the wax of her lipstick when he kissed her, his hand on her back pulling her closer. Emily laughed against his mouth and shoved him away when he started to pull the zipper tab down.

"You're a menace, Rogers." Biting the inside corner of her lip, she looked down at herself and frowned. The black wiggle dress had been an impulse buy scrolling online one night and more likely to be seen in Natasha's wardrobe than her own. "You don't think it's too much, do you?"

"It's one of Tony's parties, so it's perfect. And you look gorgeous." She took a deep breath and nodded.

"You're one to talk. That blue shirt should be criminal."

"Really? My wife bought it for me."

"Hmm, she's got great taste."

"She's a bombshell," he said, his voice dropping. "Real class act. Not sure how she ended up with a bum like me."

"No." Em attempted to sound stern and held up her finger when his grin turned predatory. He knew what his Brooklyn accent coupled with 40s slang did to her. "You are not - no. That's not fair."

"This dame makes me dizzy. My sweetheart's a dish, 'specially when she's all dolled up for a night on the town." Without warning, he yanked her closer and kissed her until she was breathless, his fingers buried in the curls she'd just managed to style.

"Steven Grant Rogers," she gasped when he tilted her head back and started to trail kisses down her chest, cupping her breasts and running his thumbs over her nipples.

"Yes, Ma'am."

"We're already late."

"We have time."

"Menteur."

OOO

His hand was warm on her lower back as they walked to the bar before joining Thor, who enthusiastically motioned them over. "Ah, my friends! I was exchanging tales with these formidable men," he grinned, motioning to the veterans that Steve had told her about.

"You got a little something," one of the men said, motioning to the corner of his mouth. Quickly, Steve reached up to wipe away a smear of red lipstick that he'd missed. Emily blushed and shifted, taking a sip of her drink. Thankfully, her dress hadn't gotten too wrinkled while on the bathroom floor.

"These two were married just last year," Thor explained, clapping a hand to Steve's shoulder. "Emily finally chose to put the poor bastard out of his misery and make an honest man out of him. You should have heard him talk about her - "

"Alright, alright," Steve chuckled, shrugging off his teammate's hold while his wife laughed.

"I've brought something for you to try," the god said, glancing at Steve while reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out a small flask. One of the men held out his glass.

"I've gotta have some of that," the vet said.

"Oh no, no, no. See, this - this was aged for 1,000 years in the barrels built from the wreck of Grunhel's fleet." Steve shot a glance at Em and lifted the offered glass to his nose. "It was not meant for mortal men."

"Neither was Omaha Beach, blondie." She had to do a double-take - he looked like Stan, the Smithsonian night watchman but didn't have a flicker of recognition. "Stop trying to scare us. Come on." After exchanging a glance with his teammate, Thor poured a small amount in the glass and handed it back.

"Let me know if you would like more," Thor grinned, nudging Steve with his elbow. "I would be interested to see how it affects one like yourself."

"Me too," Emily smirked when they turned away, his arm wrapped around her waist. Raising an eyebrow, he held up his glass, and she tapped hers against it. "Cheers, mon coeur."

"Cheers." He knocked it back and shrugged when she asked how it tasted. "Sweet. I'm going to get another beer - you want anything?"

"No, I'm going to go say hello to Rhodey, though. Tell Nat and Bruce I said hi."

They spent the rest of the evening making the circuit, and she regretted switching to taller heels. Her feet and lower back were killing her, and her shoulder twinged for some reason. When Steve saw her rubbing it, he pulled her towards the window and gently massaged it, whispering what he wanted to do when they got home. Thankfully, the lights were dim enough to hide her blush, but his hazy gaze made her wonder what was in the liquor that Thor gave him whenever they passed in the crowd. When he was pulled into some shop talk with Tony and Clint, she excused herself and went to join the veterans who were more than happy to tell her about their war stories. Out of the corner of his eye, Steve watched her enter their numbers into her phone and smirked when Tony joked about Em clearly having a type.

When things seemed to be winding down around two in the morning, she made her way to the central seating area and kicked off her shoes to sit on the couch near where Dr. Helen Cho was curled up in a chair in front of Mjolnir. The two women nodded at one another before closing their eyes. It had been a long day between her classes, sitting in on a TA's lecture to give feedback, listening to the candidate's presentation, and dinner. All Emily wanted to do was go downstairs, wash her face, and go to bed. Slowly, the Avengers converged into the area, laughing and teasing one another. Steve sat beside her and pulled her knees over his leg, his hand resting on her thigh.

It was only half awake that she heard Clint's mocking tone and dragged herself out of half-consciousness in time to see him reach for Mjolnir. Steve glanced over and smiled before taking a swig from the flask and handing it back. His arm around her shoulders encouraged her closer and he pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. Em blinked tiredly when Tony stood and unbuttoned his jacket.

"Never one to shrink from an honest challenge. It's physics," he explained, wrapping the strap around his wrist. "Right, so if I lift it, then I rule Asgard?"

"Yes, of course," Thor agreed. Steve hid his smirk in his hand, his beer sweating against her knee.

"I will be reinstituting prima nocta."

"Boo," Emily rolled her eyes, making Steve bark a laugh and Tony roll his eyes. The grunt the latter let out when the hammer refused to move made her giggle, more so when he excused himself and stripped off his jacket, tossing it over a couch.

"You wanna go?" Steve asked her, and she shook her head. It was rare that they all hung out like this, laughing and enjoying one another's company, and they deserved the time to celebrate getting the scepter back.

Tony failed, and then so did Rhodey. And Bruce. When Steve handed her the nearly empty beer and pushed himself up, she rested her elbow on the back of the couch, meeting his grin as he pushed his sleeves up further. Settling his stance, he gripped the handle and pulled. Em blinked hard and widened her eyes when it looked like the hammer shifted slightly but stayed resolutely still when tugged again. Smirking, he held up his hand and returned to her side, taking the last swig of beer as Nat refused her turn. Thor looked at her and Helen, but they both shook their heads.

"All deference to the Man Who Wouldn't Be King, but it's rigged," Tony said.

"You bet your ass," Clint seconded.

"Steve, he said a bad language word," Maria smirked.

"Did you tell everyone about that?" Steve groaned when Emily laughed. He narrowed his eyes slightly at her before squeezing her knee.

"The handle's been imprinted, right? Like a security code," Tony ignored him. "'Whosoever is carrying Thor's fingerprints" is, I think, the literal translation."

"Yes, it's a very, very interesting theory. I have a simpler one" - he grasped the hammer and flipped it lightly in his hand - "you're all not worthy." There was a chorus of groans, which was interrupted by a high-pitched noise. Steve stood when one of the Iron Legion appeared in front of the elevators. When it spoke, it wasn't the automated voice she'd heard in the videos online of the deployed Legion. The team shifted, all traces of playfulness gone. Emily got to her feet, watching Steve move to stand in front of her.

The next moments blurred. More suits exploded from the wall, and Steve kicked up the coffee table to block the ones flying straight towards them while shoving her back into the couch as he was sent flying over it. The momentum tipped it backward, sending her tumbling down the three stairs to land beside him. Em just managed to get her arm over her face to keep from breaking her nose on the floor. The combination of his shove and the impact drove all the air from her lungs. "You alright?" He demanded and, when she nodded while dragging a ragged breath, looked around to see what was going on. "Stay low, get to the stairwell, and go down as far as you can go. GO!" Steve pulled her to her feet and pushed her towards the exit, nearly causing her to fall.

There were gunshots and repulsors and glass shattering. Emily gasped, trying to pull more air into her shocked lungs, but couldn't find Helen and had to duck as one of the Legionnaires flew towards her. Black spots danced in the corners of her vision, and she barely caught herself from cracking her head when she was thrown off her feet by the floor in front of erupting as two more Legionnaires joined the fight. Clutching her wrist, she pushed onto her elbows and crawled to one of the smaller bars. She'd just gotten her back against the wall in time to see Steve slammed against it, tiles raining down as he dropped to the bar top and fell to the floor. He didn't see her as he quickly got to his feet and ran towards Helen, trapped behind the piano by a Legionnaire.

When the shield destroyed the last of the Iron Legion, Em pulled herself up the wall to look at the last robot - Ultron - speak. "I'm sorry, I know you mean well. You just didn't think it through. You want to protect the world, but you don't want it to change. How is humanity saved if it's not allowed to evolve? With these? These puppets. There's only one path to peace - the Avengers' extinction."

Thor threw his hammer and smashed Ultron, and Steve looked at him. When he turned to sweep the room, his eyes landed on her. "Emily?"

"I'm fine," she said when he rushed towards her, his boots slipping on the shattered glass. His touch was gentle when he tilted her face up to look at him. His fingers lightly probed her hairline, and when he pulled them away, they were red with blood. "I'm fine, Steve."

"Anyone else hurt?" He asked, not looking away from her. When no one responded, he reluctantly turned to look at them, his eyes lingering on Helen. She shook her head. Without another word, Steve took Em's arm and draped it over his shoulder before picking her up. "Come on, let's get you checked out."

"Debrief in the labs in fifteen, Rogers," Maria called out as he kicked open the door to the emergency exit and started down the stairs.

"Are you okay?" she asked quietly once they'd gone down three floors. His mouth tightened and he nodded. "You hit that bar pretty hard."

"I'm fine, Emily."

"So am I." They didn't say anything as he shoved open the door to the infirmary and got her settled into an exam room. "I'll see you upstairs."

"I'm not lea- "

"You have a debrief, Steve. I'll see you upstairs." His gaze hardened before he pressed his lips to hers. The set of his shoulders when he turned away made her nervous for anyone who stood in his way.

"Just need to get your blood pressure and temperature," the nurse said, stepping into the room. "And then we'll get a urine sample while we're waiting for the doctor to get here."

OOO

Steve scrubbed a hand down his face and stepped off the elevator onto their floor. Hill had given them two hours before they needed to reconvene - enough time to eat something, shower, and change. But he was ready to forget that timetable when he walked into their bedroom. Emily was curled up in bed, her eyes open and staring out the window at the sun rising over the city. A compression wrap wound around her wrist, and he could see a hint of a tan butterfly bandage on her forehead.

Quickly, he kicked his shoes in the direction of the closet and crossed the room, pulling back the covers to slide between them. She was trembling and tensed when he wrapped his arms around her. "Just me," he said softly. She turned in his arms and pressed herself against him, burying her face in his chest as her fingers dug into his back. "I've got you, Sweetheart." Adrenaline crashes were hard, but Steve had a feeling that this was more. "Tell me what you're thinkin'."

Em was silent for a long time until she pressed her forehead to his sternum and exhaled a shaky breath. "Least it wasn't aliens or Hydra this time." He fought down the lump in his throat and crushed her to his chest, unwilling to let her go with her PTSD triggered. But he knew, as much as he wanted to stay in that bed with her, he would be pulled away.

"I want you to go up to your parents' place until this is over, alright?"

"No. No, I...I have to stay here."

"It'll be safer, Sweetheart."

"I can't. I'll be okay, Steve," she said, forcing herself to look up at him with a weak smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I promise you, I'll be okay. Why don't you shower, and I'll get breakfast going?"

"Join me?"

"No, I-I already showered. I just wanna stay here for another minute, and then I'll get up." Sighing, he leaned forward to press a light kiss to the bandage on her forehead, the tip of her nose, and finally, her lips.

"I love you." Tears welled in her eyes, and Emily blinked them back.

"Je t'aime aussi, mon coeur. Jusqu'à la fin des temps."

OOO

"Are you sure you don't want anyone here with you?" the nurse asked again, smiling kindly. "Your husband, maybe?"

"No, I, um…" Em closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I just want to get this over with."

"Alright, sweetie. I'll just go get the doctor, and we can get started." Hot tears leaked from the corners of her eyes when she heard the door close softly. Sniffling, her hands rose to cradle her stomach, reliving the heart-stopping excitement and confusion of being told that she was pregnant. Her scheming about how to tell Steve had been quickly brought to a halt by the concerned expression on the ultrasound technician's face.

The doctor quickly confirmed it - the embryo hadn't implanted in her uterus but in her fallopian tube. It wasn't a viable pregnancy. Any delay in terminating it could lead to the tube rupturing and ending her chances of becoming pregnant naturally. Or she could hemorrhage, which could be fatal.

So as much as she wanted Steve here with her, there wasn't time. Not with Ultron and the scepter gone. There would be time later for him to hold her and grieve for what could have been, but not now. Not when the world needed Captain America and the Avengers. Not when she needed him to concentrate on his mission objective so he could come home safely to her.

A soft tapping on the door brought her back to the present, and the doctor opened the door, a gentle smile on her lips. "Hello, Dr. Harthorn. Are you ready for me?"

"As much as I'll ever be." The other woman nodded, removing her stethoscope from her pocket while circling the table to stand beside her as the nurse assembled things on the silver tray. After conducting her own quick examination, the doctor took her hand and squeezed it lightly.

"I'm very sorry." A sob tore free from Emily's throat, and she clapped a hand to her mouth. The nurse took her other hand, holding it carefully to avoid aggravating her sprained wrist but firmly enough to ground her.

"I'm sorry," Em said through grit teeth, taking the offered tissue and cleaning her face. "I'm sorry, this is stupid. I didn't even know I was… that there was...the IUD…"

"It's not stupid, Dr. Harthorn. Miscarriages, naturally occurring or medically induced, are hard to face alone. There are support groups for women who have experienced this, which might help with processing everything. And pregnancy with an IUD in place is rare but not impossible, and given this pregnancy, I don't think it's the best birth control option for you. Not with your husband's… enhancements." Emily chuckled wetly and shook her head at the veiled reference to the possibility of Steve's super sperm. "I'd like to remove it, and we can talk about alternatives over the next week or two when you come back in for testing to confirm that the injection worked."

"I'm already going to be miserable, so why not get it all over at once?"

"Alright. We'll do one last ultrasound to confirm the placement of the egg and your IUD. Then we'll do the removal before the injection. You're going to experience some cramping over the next few days and some vaginal bleeding. Nausea, fatigue, and headaches are common, but if you feel faint or severe cramping, you come right here. No alcohol until we confirm that the methotrexate worked, folic acid or prenatal vitamins, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories for 10 days, or sex for the next two weeks. We'll check your hCG levels on days 4 and 7 to confirm the miscarriage, and your liver on the 7th day too."

An hour later, Emily stepped onto their thankfully empty floor. "Jarvis, can you let me know if Steve is on his way up?"

Silence.

Oh. That's right. Jarvis was gone too.

OOO

Steve was rarely home over the next few days, making it easier to hide what was happening from him. The destruction in South Africa led to protests outside of the building. Pepper texted that Stark Industries was sending the international support team in to help with the clean-up. Still, the internet was flooded with pictures comparing the Johannesburg destruction with 9/11. Em used a couple of her sick days to avoid leaving. As it was, she found it hard to do more than shuffle from bed to the couch and found herself sitting on the shower floor more than once when an intense cramp took her off guard. But her hCG levels were falling, and the doctor was confident that the injection worked.

The strain and worry were written across Steve's face when he gently shook her awake, "Sweetheart. Sweetheart, wake up, please."

"What's wrong?" she asked, sitting up quickly at the wild look in his eyes.

"I just…" he slid off the bed to kneel beside her and buried his face in her lap, his arms wrapped tightly around her. She grimaced when his head pressed against her tender stomach. Carefully, she kicked away the sheets and shifted in his hold to kneel beside him, her t-shirt bunching on her torso when it snagged on his uniform.

"What happened?"

"Nat's gone. Ultron has her." Her gasp was drowned out with his groan. "Wanda made me… I saw… promise me you're okay." His head shot up to meet her gaze when she tensed. "Emily - "

"I'm fine, Steve. I'm okay." Reaching up to stroke his cheek, she forced a smile. "I'm tired and scared and worried, but I'm okay. We're okay." Her hand drifted down to cover his heart. "Whose Wanda, and what did she make you see?"

"She's… her and her brother Pietro were the enhanced we saw in Sokovia. I saw… there was a dance hall and Peggy." He swallowed and shook his head, letting go of her to scrub a hand through his hair while sitting heavily. "That's not what I want anymore, not with you and our life here."

Biting her cheek to keep the tears from gathering in her eyes, Emily shoved Steve until he lay flat and straddled his stomach to point in his face. "Listen to me now, Steven Grant. I don't care who this Wanda person is, but I will fight her to make sure she knows that you promised me forever, not Peggy. Peggy had hers with James Falsworth, and we are going to have ours."

"Clint has a family." Emily blinked at the sudden change of topic and sat back, her finger falling. When Steve sat up, she slid into his lap, and his hand on her hip kept her there. "A wife and two kids, with a third on the way."

"But I thought he and Nat - " His face clouded at the mention of his missing teammate.

"No. I have to go, Clint's got a line on where Ultron took her, but Sweetheart - if he can have a family and do this…" Steve's hand drifted to press his palm to her stomach. "I know we haven't found Bucky, but - "

"We don't have time for this conversation right now," she said, forcing her voice to be steady. "Go save the world, and we'll talk when you get back." Cupping his face, she pulled him in for a kiss, and his grip moved to her ass while pushing himself off the floors with her held tightly to him. He planted one knee on the bed and slowly lowered her onto it, gently moving the hair from her face when they were finally forced to separate for air. "Be careful."

"I will. I love you."

"I love you too." She managed to hold herself together until she heard the elevator close before she fell apart, turning to stifle her sobs in the pillow while clutching her stomach.

As much as she wanted a family right now, it wasn't the right time. They would talk when he got back, but until they were closer to finding Bucky, Steve would be running himself ragged to find him.

But watching Sokovia fall from the sky and not knowing if he made it off of the city made her wish that she had some small part of Steve to hold onto. He came home to find her sleeping on the couch, wrapped in one of his shirts. And, when he wanted nothing more than to lose himself in the comfort of her arms to remind himself that he was still alive, Emily pushed him away and told him they couldn't.

Steve's hold was a shade too tight when he curled himself around her as they lay in bed, mumbling his apologies for not being there for her while his tears fell into her hair.

Author's Note: Dare we believe it? Two updates in a month? Wanted to get this out to celebrate putting in my two weeks notice yesterday (literally just changing programs I work with, not even a change in supervisors), and my birthday tomorrow! Sorry for the angst, but life is always a rollercoaster for these two. Pregnancy with an IUD is possible but rare - my youngest niece was conceived with one in place. With Steve's enhancements, I think it wouldn't be outside of the realm of possibilities that his partner would have an increased risk of pregnancy due to that. I apologize if this triggered anyone who has had an ectopic pregnancy. I've already got the next chapter mentally plotted out and it should be a relatively fluffy one. I hope you enjoyed this! And thank you all for the kind comments 3

Menteur – liar; Jusqu'à la fin des temps – I love you, my heart. Until the end of time.