A/N: Okay, so there didn't end up being as much Pepperony in this chapter as I'd expected, but there is plenty more to come, so you should all be able to get your fix soon enough. :D

Chapter Six

"Yes, sir, Mr. Stark, I understand, but Ms. Potts doesn't wish to leave the building."

Pepper blew out a vaguely annoyed breath as she watched her chief bodyguard communicating with Tony. Lewis Martin was an ex-Navy Seal who had finally been one of three men to make it through the exhaustive selection process to make up Pepper's security detail. The other two men, Cody Matthews and John Michaels, an ex-Ranger and Marine respectively, rounded out the crew. Tony had wanted Pepper to have ten bodyguards but she'd told him he was being ridiculous and she couldn't possibly work with a swarm of people around her day and night. In the end, the men they'd chosen had turned out to be very discrete and the intrusion in her life hadn't been anywhere near as bad as Pepper had originally feared. She'd actually grown quite fond of them.

She looked over at the blonde-haired, blued-eyed and chiselled jaw Lewis and shook her head. "Tell him I'm going to meet with Justin Hammer and everything is perfectly fine." Pepper glanced over at the monitors which showed that Justin was now in the foyer of the building, being patted down by Cody as Lewis communicated her wishes to Tony. Justin was holding a large bunch of white roses in a glass vase which were also being closely scrutinised by John.

Lewis' expression didn't change. "Mr. Stark is expressing reservations, ma'am," he said steadily.

Pepper rolled her eyes. "Hang up, Lewis, otherwise he'll drive you crazy."

Lewis obeyed her without hesitation and Pepper couldn't help but smile a little bit. It drove Tony insane that her security detail followed her instructions over his, but that had been the proviso of her actually going along with the security detail in the first place. She had to be the one in charge of them otherwise it wasn't going to work. Pepper suspected Tony had only agreed because he assumed he'd be able to get the other men to do whatever he wanted, but as it turned out, her detail really understood the whole concept of hierarchy and the fact that Pepper was at the top.

"We're on our way up." Cody's voice came over the intercom to tell them the three of them were travelling to Pepper's office via the elevator.

Her phone rang and Pepper knew it was Tony. She quickly answered. "I'm busy right now, Tony, and don't think we're not going to have a conversation about how it was you knew that Justin was coming to see me." Before Tony could answer Pepper hung up and went to stand in front of her desk and assumed a calm, unreadable expression as she waited for Justin to be escorted to her office. Pepper wanted to know what Justin had to say for himself and she particularly wanted him to know that she wasn't afraid of him. Lewis settled himself a little ways to her left, far enough away to not crowd her, but close enough to take control if Justin was stupid enough to try anything.

The elevator doors slid open and Justin stepped out, grinning at her over the large vase of roses. "Well, hello, Pepper, don't you look lovelier than ever," he said brightly.

Pepper just regarded him steadily. "What are you doing here, Justin?" she asked coolly.

His smile didn't waver at her icy reception. "I'm here to make amends and beg forgiveness." He held out the vase of exquisite white roses which still had droplets of water clinging to their perfumed petals and making the arrangement almost seem to shimmer. "You see, I'm waving my white flag and hoping we can go back to being friends again."

Pepper didn't move to accept the offered flowers and folded her arms in front of her chest. "I wasn't aware friends tried to kidnap and kill each other."

Justin made a regretful face as he sat the vase of roses down on her coffee table when it became clear Pepper wasn't going to take them. "All I can tell you is that I was in a dark, dark place when that happened, Pepper," he said sadly. "I'd been wrongly imprisoned for a crime I didn't commit and-"

Pepper made an impatient sound. "There are no cameras on you now, Hammer," she said tersely. "We all know you did exactly what you were imprisoned for and you've scammed your way out of prison on false pretences. So, don't stand there playing the victim card to me. Your alliance with Ivan Vanko got a lot of innocent people killed and injured and from what I can see, you have absolutely no remorse about that."

"I was Vanko's victim as much as anyone else," Justin protested.

Pepper's lips tightened. "Why are you here, Justin?" she asked impatiently. "Why would you care if I thought you were innocent or not?"

Justin took a step towards her and looked very earnest. "I care a lot, Pepper. I feel like things all went wrong when my friendship with you and Tony broke down and that's where I want to start to make things right again."

Pepper stared at him in disbelief. "What are you saying exactly? That you want us to all take a vacation in Belize together or something? Is that it?"

Justin looked at her hopefully. "Would that be so awful?"

Pepper just stared at him. "You're insane."

"Why, because I want to soak up some sun with old friends and just unwind a bit?" he asked innocently. Justin made a sweeping gesture at the mess of broken buildings and smoke covered cityscape which was on view outside of Pepper's high-rise office view. "It seems to me that Tony could be in need of a little R&R. Today looks like it was a stressful one."

Pepper's eyes narrowed. "And yet, here you are, turning up on my doorstep on a day where New York was almost destroyed by giant bugs as though it was any other day."

Justin looked shocked. "You can't think I had anything to do with this?" he asked in disbelief.

"You don't seem very fazed by it," said Pepper dourly.

He gave a little shrug. "Prison hardens a man to seeing unpleasant things on a regular basis, but that doesn't mean I don't care. Hammer Industries has already thrown itself into the relief effort and is working on getting power out to hospitals and other emergency services while helping with the cleanup effort. The last of those creatures hadn't fallen from the sky before I had my crews in the trenches fighting to help all those poor unfortunates affected by this latest crisis."

"You're a real saint," said Pepper laconically.

Justin didn't seem to hear the sarcasm as he gave her a modest look. "I do what I can with the resources God has given me, like any patriot would."

It was all Pepper could do not to laugh in this man's delusional face. He really seemed to believe the story he was trying to sell her. There wasn't any part of Pepper that believed Justin Hammer had reformed in any way, but she just couldn't quite work out his angle.

A red and gold blur flashed by her office window just then and Justin's face sported a small smirk. "Uh oh, daddy's home."

Pepper wasn't really surprised that Tony was about to show up but it did mildly frustrate her to think he didn't think she could handle herself against Justin. She knew Tony was still a little fragile about what had happened to her at the hands of Justin's goons, and she tried to cut him some slack. The thing was, Tony didn't seem to understand that she'd just had to sit through an agonising wait knowing he was in the direct path of a nuclear explosion and had been forced to find a way to deal rather than simply ordering him back to the safety of the nuclear bunker with her. It was all Pepper had wanted to do, but she knew she couldn't ask that of Tony and that was alright, it was her own personal cross to bear and she did it willingly. It just didn't seem to register with Tony that having faith in the other person you love should cut both ways and that sometimes he just had to let her go at these things alone.

Justin was looking at her with interest. "That bugs you, doesn't it, Pepper? The way Tony always sees you as a damsel in distress needing big strong Iron Man to save her all the time?"

Pepper arched a cool eyebrow. "The idea that you have the first idea about our relationship is laughable, Justin and I'm not going to dignify that with an answer."

Justin just smiled. "Those pretty blue eyes tell me all I need to know. I can read you like a book, Pepper Potts."

Pepper's eyes narrowed menacingly. "Can you read what they're telling you now?" she asked sharply.

Justin chuckled. "I don't think I'm that flexible to be able to do that, Pepper, no matter how much I want to prove to you that I'm on your side."

"You underestimate yourself, Justin," she said sweetly, "snakes are very flexible creatures."

The elevator doors slid open and an annoyed looking Tony stalked out, minus his Iron Man suit. He glared at Justin. "What the hell are you doing here, Hammer?"

"Tony," said Justin happily, "it's so good to see you, pal."

"I'm not your pal," Tony bit out, "and you've got some nerve coming here and expecting not to be thrown out on your ass."

Tony came to stand beside Pepper and she could feel the waves of protectiveness rolling off him. She was torn between finding it unbelievably sexy and incredibly annoying. Such was the lot of loving Tony Stark.

Justin looked unruffled. "Fortunately for me, Pepper is a lot more of a gracious hostess then you, Tony." He looked over at Pepper. "We've been having a lovely chat, haven't we, my dear?"

"I mentioned you were delusional, right?" she threw back at him.

Justin laughed too loudly at that. "I can see why Tony adores you the way he does, Pep." He waggled his finger at her teasingly. "That wicked sense of humour of yours."

Tony scowled. "The only one grinning like a loon is you, Hammer, and I can't imagine what you have to be happy about."

"I'm a free man, Tony, a free man looking to make what is left of his life count."

Tony and Pepper exchanged looks. Tony looked sceptical. "And what does that mean?"

"It means I have a proposition for you," said Justin simply.

"No," replied Tony without hesitation.

"You don't know what it is," Justin pointed out mildly.

"And yet I'm still feeling pretty good about that no," Tony shot back.

The elevator opened yet again and this time it contained Steve, Thor and rather surprisingly the Hulk.

Justin's face lit up like a kid on Christmas day. "Oh hey, the gang's all here, how exciting!"

Pepper fought not to roll her eyes. This was getting ridiculous. Tony was bad enough, but in the other men it was like she had another three, overprotective big brothers on standby as well. There were now seven men in her office all there intending to 'protect' her against an idiot who came armed with roses. It was the very definition of overkill. Pepper kept her voice even as she looked them over. "Are you all alright?" she quizzed them. "No one is hurt?"

"We're fine," said Steve quickly and then gave a pointed look at Justin. "Are you okay?"

"I'm feeling a little claustrophobic," she deadpanned, "but I suspect that is just how things are going to be from now on. I might have to get a bigger office."

Justin was looking between the other three men with obvious admiration. "I can't believe I'm standing in the same room as Thor, Captain America and the Hulk – a god, a legend and a marvel," he said, looking very happy about that fact. Justin's gaze lingered on the Hulk. "I've only seen you on TV before and they say the camera adds ten pounds, but can I say, it does not do you justice." He stuck out his hand for the Hulk to shake it. "I'm a huge, huge fan."

The Hulk scowled at him and gave a low growl from somewhere in his massive chest.

"Hulk doesn't like when people touch him," Tony advised him, "or look him in the eye, or even talk to him. He's got pretty defined personal parameters you might want to consider respecting."

Justin took a step back and held up placating hands. "Of course, of course," he said cheerily, "I don't want to crowd you, big guy." He rubbed his hands together. "But I have to say, it feels like fate that you're all here because my proposition involves you all."

"You mean the proposition that I already said no to?" Tony asked darkly.

"But you haven't heard it yet," Justin reminded him, "and I think it's only right that you allow your colleagues to make up their own minds." He gave the others a sideways look. "Unless you're all in agreement that Iron Man is your leader who can't be questioned or challenged in anyway?"

Pepper frowned slightly, knowing the fragility of the group's dynamics and hating that Justin was using it to his own advantage. The others didn't show it, but she knew he'd hit a nerve.

"Tis hard to imagine what the Avengers would need from a coward such as you, Justin Hammer," replied Thor steadily.

"I've done things in my past," said Justin regretfully, "bad things, things I wish I could take back." He looked at them all in turn. "But then, I suspect that I'm not the only one in this room that feels that way." Justin's face became more animated. "See, I understand you guys, I know how you think and feel, and that's why I think you should really listen to what I have to say."

"Say what you've got to say quickly," Steve advised him, "and then we can just get on with the business of kicking you out of here and back into the gutter where you belong."

Justin inclined his head and then regarded them all steadily. "It's simple really. I want to join the Avengers."

There was a shocked silence in the room as everyone just stared at him in disbelief at the confounding statement...

A/N: So, Justin Hammer as a member of the Avengers – what do you guys think? Are you for or against? ;) And if it happens, will Tony be forced to come up with extra hammer jokes to share between Thor and JH? LOL