"So let me get this straight. You're going to jump out of a plane. For fun?" Steve asked incredulously.

Tony wrapped an arm around his shoulders with a huge grin on his face. "I love this guy. Don't you just love this guy?" He patted Steve loudly on the back. "Not just me. Us. We're going to jump out of a plane for fun."

"I don't see why you feel the need to go skydiving when you can fly, Tony," Natasha said.

"Well, my therapist suggested finding thrill-seeking activities that don't put whole cities in danger," Tony explained matter-of-factly. "So strap on a chute and let's get moving!"

"Yeah, well my therapist suggests staying away from situations like these," Bruce said. "I'll watch you guys jump and meet you at the landing site."

"That's not very team spirit like," Tony whined.

"I kind of vote on him not jumping too," Clint offered. "You want to get adventurous? Let's barbeque at your place after and have Banner fire up the grill," he added with a chuckle.

Natasha nodded.

"Not very thrilling. I've seen him cook and he's actually pretty good," Tony replied. "Although I do like the idea of having an after-party at my house…."

"Great, then it's settled," Bruce said with relief. "Now who's jumping first?"

"You know in my day, when we jumped out of an airplane, it was during-"

"Oh, save it Cap. Why don't you be a good team leader and lead team?" Tony said with a playful shove. "After you!"

Just as he slid out of the exit, he grabbed Tony's arm, who then grabbed Natasha's ankle, who took Clint's hand at the last minute. In a fit of laughter and shouts, they were airborne.

Tony could hear Natasha's exhilarated squeals and he reached out both arms to her as far as he could. She thrust her body forward so she could take his hands and he flipped them over twice before letting her go.

Almost as soon as it had started, it was over and they prepared for landing in the same order they had jumped, with Steve and Natasha landing gracefully and Tony and Clint landing not so gracefully.

"Man, you're right that was fun!" Clint shouted, and Tony looked up to see that even Steve was smiling.

"Alright. I really could use a burger now," Tony said, catching his breath. The others nodded in agreement.

XXXX

"So. You and Stark, huh?" Clint said as he sat back in a loungechair next to where Natasha was sitting watching Tony and Steve race in the pool.

She pushed her sunglasses up on top of her head. "Spare me the lecture, Clint."

"Come on, Nat. You're really going to be happy with him? The guy's a total maniac!"

"Oh, he is not."

"Yes, he is," Clint insisted. "He's manipulative, selfish, impulsive to the point of being a danger to himself and everyone within a ten mile radius, totally conceited, borderline alcoholic, plus he's way more messed up in the head than he'll ever be willing to admit."

"You forgot loyal, generous, and compassionate," Natasha pointed out as she took a sip of her iced tea. "Give him some credit. He's trying to change and he's actually doing pretty well."

He snorted.

"Are you jealous, Clint? Cause you know you had your chance," she retorted with a smirk.

"Please. I'm quite happy in my current low maintenance relationship. You enjoy your high maintenance one."

She rolled her eyes.

"Hey, I'm only looking out for you here. Do you seriously have feelings for this guy?"

"You know, I really don't think that's any of your business, Agent Barton."

"So that's how it is, huh? And what do you think's going to happen, huh? You think he's going to marry you and put you next to his high and mighty throne?"

"Please, this isn't a fairytale," she said, brushing him off with a wave of her hand.

He moved his chair closer to hers so he could look her in the eyes. "Seriously. How do you think this is going to end? How long do you really think you'll be able to placate him?"

"Clint…"

"Hey, Barton!" Tony shouted from the pool. "Romanoff! Get in here!"

Natasha rose up, adjusting her swimsuit as she stood.

"Just be careful, Nat. If you're going to be in a relationship with him, make sure you're both standing on the same ground."

She didn't look back as she took a running jump straight into the pool, squealing as Tony lifted her up onto his shoulders.

"What's the matter, Barton? You coming in or not?" Tony shouted.

"Nah, I think I'm gonna get going. It's late," Clint said apologetically.

"Yeah, I've got work in the morning," Bruce agreed.

"Me too," Steve said.

"You coming, Nat?" Clint asked.

She shook her head. "You guys go on ahead. I think I'll hang back here."

Tony nodded. "I'll take you home later on."

Clint gave her one last meaningful look before walking out of the yard with the others.

XXXX

"I think that went well," Tony said happily once they were settled inside.

"Yeah, everybody really liked the skydiving thing," She agreed.

"We should all get together more often."

"Maybe not so much high adrenaline next time though," Natasha said with a smile.

Tony laughed. "I guess that was a little over the top. So what do you think? Movie? I've got Charlie Chaplin."

Natasha grinned as she settled back on the sofa. "That's three silent movies so far. Since when did you become such a couch potato?" She asked, tugging on his collar to pull him forward for a kiss.

"Since around the time you refused to sleep with me to be precise," Tony said teasingly before engulfing her earlobe with his tongue. "Although I do like your idea better," he added as he moved his mouth down her neck.

She ran her fingers roughly through his hair, tugging his head back so she could press her mouth more firmly against his. He leaned back into the cushions, his arms linked around her waist to effectively pull her on top of him.

After a few minutes of passionate, breath-taking kissing, Natasha settled her head against his chest, burying her hands under his shirt and idly dragging her fingers across his bare sides.

"Hey, Nat?"

"Mmm?"

"There's this charity banquet thing next month," he said, running his fingers slowly through her long curls. "It's pretty fancy. There will be dinner and dancing, so it should be fun, if you'd like to go."

"Okay," she said with a bright smile.

"I mean, I understand if it's too public."

"I said okay," she replied. "I'd love to go. What is that, like our sixth date or something?"

He laughed. "I'm glad you're keeping track. But whatever this thing is, with us?"

She tilted her head back to look at him. "Hmmm?"

"I like it."

"Me too," she said, lazily nuzzling his neck.

"Are you falling asleep?" he asked, gently caressing her arm.

"A little," she admitted. "Do you want to take me home?"

He shook his head. "Why don't you stay here tonight?"

"Tony…"

"In whatever room you like? Come on, I promise I won't try anything weird." He leaned his head back against the arm of the couch and closed his eyes. "Besides, I'm way too tired to drive you all the way home."

She groaned.

"How about this?" He asked, pushing something into her pocket. "I'll give you the keys to the Bentley. If you still want to go home in a little bit, you can drive yourself home."

She grinned. "You trust me to drive your Bentley?"

"I trust you with a lot of things," he said quietly.

"Okay," she said, snuggling into his chest. "Then I'm just going to rest my eyes for a second before I go."

"You do that," he said, smiling into her hair as he wrapped his arms more tightly around her.

"Just for a second…" she murmured.