Mountains and valleys, and all that will come in between

Desert and ocean

You pulled me in and together we're lost in a dream

Always in motion

So I risk it all just to be with you

And I risk it all for this life we choose

Hand in my hand and you promised to never let go

Tightrope by Sara Bareilles

Emily smoothed her hands down her front, fingers catching on the crystal belt before gliding across the organza silk, and swallowed hard against the lump that rose in her throat. Turning, she looked over her shoulder at the crystals that trailed down the back and train that puddled at her feet. She'd forgone a veil, much to her mother's disappointment.

"Beautiful." She looked over at Caroline, who had tears gathered in her eyes, and swallowed hard.

"You don't think it's too much? It's just going to be us and -"

"No," Lauren cut her off. "It's gorgeous, Em. Steve's gonna die when he sees you, which has to be soon because we're running late."

The last few days had been a whirlwind. Juggling her responsibilities to her students and Smithsonian was foremost in her mind. Still, the Senate hearing and everything that came with it kept intruding. Gabe Jones had been kind enough to talk to them for an hour about what it would look like, as had the Stark lawyers. Pepper had also set them up with a public relations team to coordinate the interview that would out Steve as Captain America and thrust her into the public spotlight as his wife. But before that happened, Emily had to let her friends, extended family, and her jobs, know who they were. Organizing a wedding had been low on her list of priorities and dropped further every day as the stress mounted.

Realizing this, Caroline had assigned Steve and Em tasks to complete and, with Lauren as her right-hand woman, tackled the rest. Immediately after lunch on the day they arrived, the Harthorn women piled into the car to search for a wedding dress while he tried to find someone to perform the ceremony and a bakery that would make a wedding cake quickly. Emily added finding a hotel for them because she'd be damned if she would spend her wedding night trying not to wake her family.

In her mind, Em thought that finding a dress would be a matter of going to the mall and picking something white that she didn't hate, but Lauren drove them to a boutique. Caroline explained what they needed - something that could be bought that day and quickly altered for a weekend wedding - and they spent two hours going through the store. She'd felt foolish, trying on dress after dress when all she wanted was something simple. When Jessica pointed out a tea-length dress with lace sleeves, Em had to turn away and close her eyes, pushing away the memory of an October London morning. And when she'd found the one, the cost made her pause and call Steve who just laughed when she asked if it was too late to elope and encouraged her to get it if she wanted it. "We're doing it once, so we're doing it right."

The photographers were a requirement from the PR team. Emily would have been happy to have her brother snap pictures of them. Still, they wanted professional ones that they could use, which was why there was a woman discreetly tiptoeing around the edge of the hotel room, documenting everything from the dress hanging up to Jessica helping her style her hair with soft curls and a pearl and crystal sprig ribbon headband. Steve's mother's earrings seemed to be of particular interest to her. She'd also asked for Em's engagement ring and the sixpence that all the Harthorn women used at their wedding going back four generations.

They'd passed the night before separately, with each going on their family-friendly bachelor and bachelorette parties. Steve had gone with her dad, Tucker, the boys, and Carter to get dinner and had beers and a bonfire at the lake house. Em and the Harthorn women had gone to the hotel, passing the evening watching singing along to Grease and playing card games while quaffing champagne and sparkling cider. Before saying goodbye for the evening, they'd agreed that they would have a conversation with the younger children and let them know who Steve was.

The room itself was gorgeous, with French doors opening onto a balcony that faced Kennebunkport. She'd been positioned for the requisite shots in front of it when getting ready. Below, she could hear the staff setting up for an event and tried not to pay attention. When she was younger, her family would drive by this hotel, and Em had always wanted to look inside. The fact that Steve had picked it probably wasn't a coincidence but yet another guiding push from her mother.

"Auntie? Can I have my flowers?" Mackenzie asked. Upon hearing that they were getting married, her youngest niece had declared that she would be the flower girl even though they hadn't been planning on that. Which had made Jack and Brandon argue over who was going to be the ringbearer. Things had quickly spiraled to the point where both boys were going to carry a wedding ring, and Jessica was going to serve as the Maid of Honor to make sure that all the kids had a role to play.

"They're with Steve," Em replied, crouching to meet the six-year old's eyes. "In case I forget later - we both wanted to say thank you for doing this." Her gaze darted up to meet Caroline, Lauren, and Jessica as well. She could hear the clicking of a shutter. "All of you. I don't think... I know that we couldn't have pulled it all together without you guys."

"Happy to," Lauren replied, pulling her sister-in-law in for a hug while Caroline swiped at her eyes. Jess hesitated a moment before hugging her as well. They'd come to a tentative peace agreement after Steve pulled her aside and had a frank conversation about everything and had answered as many of her questions as he safely could.

"Honey, your dad's downstairs," Caroline said after checking her phone. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be," she replied. There was a moment's flurry before Jessica picked up the train of her dress and helped her into the hallway. The Harthorn women slowly made their way to the grand staircase, the photographer dashing ahead to snap more shots. Matthew stood at the bottom of the steps and blinked away tears when he saw his little girl.

"You look beautiful, Emily," he said gruffly before clearing his throat and tucking her hand into his arm's crook. "Let's get the show on the road."

The hotel's beach was only a few hundred yards away, where the sloping lawn gave way to sand. They walked towards the stone jetty that marked the opening to the small harbor, where they could see Tuck trying to keep the boys from undoing their bow ties and chatted with the Justice of the Peace.

Steve stood on the shore, hands in the pockets, looking out at a sailboat moving past with Carter at his side. He must have heard them because his shoulders tensed under the grey suit coat she'd helped him buy before they traveled to DC all those months ago. Cart turned to grin at them before clapping a hand to Steve's shoulder and saying something. The photographer had given them strict instructions that he wasn't to turn around and look at her until given the go-ahead. She pulled Em away from her family and led her towards the water.

"Looking good, Harthorn," Carter grinned as he passed them.

"You too, Falsworth," she grinned and grabbed his arm to pull him into a hug. "I love you, Cart."

"I love you too, Em," he said, swallowing around the lump in his throat. When he pulled away to press a kiss to her cheek, they both heard the camera's snap. "Don't keep him waiting any longer unless you want to do a runner." She chuckled and blinked back tears.

"I think I'll stick around. See how it plays out."

"Good. As the best man, I'd feel obligated to try and talk you out of it while we drove away." Emily grinned and shook her head when he winked before moving away.

"If you could stand right here," the photographer motioned for her to stand behind Steve and crouched to fix the train of her dress before gently maneuvering him to face the jetty. "Mr. Rogers, I'm going to have you turn around on the count of three, okay? One...two… three."

He'd shaved. That was the first thought she had as she saw his broad smile before her eyes darted up to meet his watery blue ones. He closed the two steps between them and just stared at her for a long moment before cupping her face and brushing his lips against hers. "You look so beautiful," he whispered. She gave him a shy smile and reached up to brush away a tear from his cheek.

"Hey stranger," she sniffled and shook her head before clearing her throat. "Nope, not gonna cry. I'm not going to cry because if I do, I'm going to ruin my makeup, and I refuse to have red eyes in my wedding pictures." Steve laughed, one hand dropped to her waist to pull her against him as he tilted her head up to press a kiss to her forehead, his thumb stroking along her jaw. Sighing, Emily closed her eyes and wrapped her hand around his wrist. Her chest pressed against his as she took a deep breath, tasting the salty air, and blew it out slowly through her mouth. When he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, his fingers scraped her earring backings, and she heard his breath catch when he noticed the familiar diamond studs.

"Are those…"

"I wish they were here - your parents and…" Em saw his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed hard

at the unspoken name.

"Me too, Sweetheart."

"We can wait - "

"I've waited - patiently, I might add - for over a year for this, and I'm not leaving this beach without you as my wife."

Emily planted a hand on Steve's chest and took a quick step back, blowing out a breath and tipping her head back. "Nope. Not doing it. Damn you, Steven Grant, I am not crying off my mascara before the ceremony." When he laughed, she shoved him. "Not funny...ooh, I hate you a little bit right now."

"Let's get the show on the road, love birds!" Caroline yelled, and Em turned to see her family grinning at them.

"What'd 'ya say, Dr. Emily Rose Harthorn...Rogers," Steve said, giving her her favorite crooked grin. "Will you marry me?" She rolled her lips together and gave him a tight smile when he reached over to brush away her tears.

If asked later, Emily wasn't sure she would be able to recount most of the ceremony. She could remember parts, like Makenzie flinging her flower petals and pausing her walk down the makeshift aisle to kick off her heels when they kept sinking in the sand. Her dad kissing her cheek and shaking Steve's hand. Jessica arranging her train. Lauren signing the words of the ceremony so Brandon could follow along. Laughing when, in a moment of excitement, Jack accidentally dropped Steve's wedding band. The feeling of her wedding band sliding onto her finger and placing Steve's on his finger. How happy he looked at those final words - "I now pronounce you husband and wife" - before she threw her arms around her husband's neck and kissed him while their family cheered. Of signing the marriage certificate with Carter and Tucker witnesses. Her mother hugging Steve and officially welcoming him into the family.

And pictures. So many pictures.

More clear were the promises they exchanged to one after the photographer left them on the jetty when their family retreated to the hotel to get changed before they went out for dinner.

Promises about making sure he'd try to make sure his shoes made it into the closet, and she'd be better about her work/life balance. That he would do the same. They'd prioritize their relationship and set aside one night a month for just them, even if it was only eating pizza on the couch.

That she would do her best to stay safe even if it meant going contrary to everything she wanted to do. That he would take better care of himself out in the field. They'd support one another even if they disagreed with the decision. That they would be equal partners in raising their children and put their safety above all else.

And, when the time came, he would walk away from the shield and not look back.

Eventually, a family wandered down to the beach, and the happy shrieks of kids in the water broke the solitude. Steve helped gather her train, which she draped over her arm so she could navigate the rocks. They paused long enough for him to pick up her heels and accept the congratulations from the strangers before making their way up to the hotel. He helped her put on her shoes as they hit the sidewalk, and seemed to get nervous the closer they got.

Steve stopped in front of the closed ballroom doors, where they could hear music playing, and his free hand darted to the back of his neck. The two attendants grinned at them. "Sweetheart, I know that you, uh... wanted this to be for us, but…"

"What did you do?" Em sighed, her eyes darting to the doors. He nodded, and the attendants quickly pulled them open. There was a shout, and then the music cut off only to be replaced with the roar of a cheering crowd.

Emily clapped her hands to her face and took a step back when she saw her family and friends. Steve wrapped an arm around her waist and gave her a nervous smile when he saw that she was crying. When he led her into the room, she was able to pick out her best friend Christine with her husband Eric and her goddaughter, Alethea. Her grad school officemate Brock and his husband Mike with their friends Jan, Phillip, Meg, and June occupied a different table. Pepper, Jane, and Darcy sat with Tony, Thor, Clint, Natasha, and Phil Coulson. But most of the room was filled with her family on both the Black and Harthorn sides. And there was Tim and Pearl Dugan, and Gabe Jones with his daughter Cora, and Sharon sitting with Carter. And sitting in the corner, clapping and crying, were Garrett's parents.

Blinded by tears, she turned and buried her face in Steve's chest. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head and asked, "Is this okay? We can go if you -"

"How...?"

"Had a bit of help," he grinned and shrugged. "And when people heard we were getting married, they wanted to be here." There was a clinking on glasses, and Em laughed and wrapped her arm around Steve's neck and pulled him down to kiss, which caused another round of cheering. They slowly made their way up to the empty dance floor at the front of the room. As they neared, the opening notes of 'La Vie en Rose' began to play. "You sure you're okay with this?" Steve asked after he spun her before pulling her in to sway.

"Mon coeur, you… babe, I just… I don't know…" she sniffled before laughing. He let go of her waist and reached up to wipe away the tears on her cheeks. "This is… you gave me a wedding I didn't have to plan."

"A reception," Steve grinned. "We had our wedding to ourselves, but we can celebrate with our friends."

"Best of both worlds," Emily chuckled before tilting her head up expectantly. He grinned and leaned down to kiss her. "Thank you." She was vaguely aware of the DJ inviting others to join them, and people joining them on the floor.

When the song came to an end, there was another round of glasses clinking, encouraging them to kiss. A grinning Carter appeared beside them, offering champagne flutes and a microphone, "Time for the opening toast."

"Did you do this?" Em asked, taking the flute from him. He shook his head and melted back into the crowd. Steve glanced at her and grinned as a hush fell over the hall.

"Anything you want to say?" he asked, offering her the mic and wrapping an arm around her waist.

"Um, hi," Emily chuckled before licking her lips. "As you may have been able to tell, I had no idea that any of you would be here." Their friends and family laughed, and Steve leaned down to press a kiss to her hair. "Steve… my husband" - she paused to savor the word - "somehow managed to pull this together in four days. I have no clue how he accomplished that with everything else we've got going on, but I am so happy he did. I really… thank you." Unable to hold back her tears any longer, Em turned and hid her face in Steve's chest.

Thankfully the DJ took that as his cue to turn on the music again. Steve gently took the microphone from her and handed it to someone before swaying with her again. "Are you okay?"

"No," she sobbed. "My mascara is definitely running." Laughing, he leaned back and looked down at her to see that she was right.

"Still beautiful," he said, letting go of her to run his thumbs under her eyes.

OOO

The night was a blur as family members kept pressing drinks into her hand after dinner. There were celebratory toasts drunk in their honor, loud laughs, and dancing. The party spilled out of the ballroom and onto the patio lit with Edison bulbs draped over a pergola. When her dad claimed her hand, she had to ask him to talk about his most recent legal case to keep from crying again, but it was a near miss when Steve led her mother onto the floor. When Larry Elgart's 'Hook on Swing' started to play, Carter appeared beside her and took her for a spin. When her great aunts and uncles joined, they continuously switched partners. During a line dance with Christine, she caught sight of Steve with Dugan and Gabe, and the stricken looks on their faces gave her a good indication of what he was telling them. When he came back to her, he buried his face in her neck, and she stroked his back as they danced to a slow song.

Emily made it a point to seek out Garrett's parents to thank them for coming and blinked away tears when they hugged her and said how happy they were for her.

Later, her great-uncles took a shoe from each of them and passed them around for the dollar dance. The bride and groom were obliged to take a quick spin around the floor with anybody paid. When they finally retrieved their shoes and emptied the bills into Steve's coat pocket, she could see they had a few hundred dollars.

Pleasantly drunk, Em grabbed Steve's hand and pulled him out of the ballroom and towards the front door. The night air was cool after the heat, and they could hear the crash of the waves mingling with music and their guests laughing. She dropped his hand and lifted her skirt. Glancing over her shoulder, she winked before taking off running. Startled, it took him a minute to take off after her, but he quickly caught her with one arm and spun her around, staggering slightly but managing to keep them upright.

"What are you doing," he laughed.

"Having fun," she replied, flexing her toes in the grass, her heels long since abandoned. "Je t' aime, ma moitié."

"I love you too."

"An' I want'd a minute to talk to you." Emily slurred.

"Alright."

"Je pense que… je pense...you know that email that I'm drafting?"

"Which one?"

"The one to everyone in that room," she jerked her chin towards the hotel and bit her lip. "What'd 'ya think about telling them?"

"Telling them?"

"About you." His eyebrows shot up.

"You want to tell them tonight?"

"I mean," she shrugged and took a step back, running a hand through her hair and knocking her headband askew. "They gotta be wondering why" - she looked around before stage whispering - "the Avengers are here." Unable to stop himself when he saw her adorably scrunched nose, Steve kissed her, tasting whiskey as he licked into her mouth. Humming, Em grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer.

"You sure you want to do that?" he whispered against her mouth.

"They should know 'fore it's in the news, right?" she pouted.

"I guess. We should, uh, probably let your parents know what we're going to do. The team, too, in case they want to leave before all hell breaks loose."

"'Greed." The corner of his mouth tipped up.

"You're not going to regret this when you sober up, are you?"

"Excuse you! 'M not drunk," Emily said, holding up a finger and then squinted at it. "I need my glasses." Laughing, he pulled her in for another kiss and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"You're drunk, Sweetheart. You wanna go tell them 'em together?"

"Not really. I need a minute." He frowned and then sighed.

"Don't go too far."

"I promise, Mr. Doctor Captain Harthorn-Rogers." Steve threw back his head and laughed.

"We're going upstairs after, and you're going to bed."

"After wedding sex."

"We'll see."

"I - we are," she shook her finger and laughed before whispering. "We are totally having sex because… I want to. But I'm not gonna put on the lingerie I bought 'cause I don't think I can do the garters. Or the bustier. Already have the panties on." Feeling a bit hot under the collar, he tugged her closer and ran his hand down her back to cup her ass. She stood on her toes to curl her leg over his hip. Steve shifted his grasp to her thigh to stabilize her and, without thinking, rocked his hips against her.

"You drive a hard bargain, Mrs. Doctor Captain Harthorn-Rogers."

"Not too hard, 'parently," she smirked, her free hand snaking between them to stroke his dick through his slacks. Flushed, he shook his head and pulled away, lowering her to her feet and pressing a fleeting kiss to her lips.

"Let's wait until we get upstairs. Telling everyone is going to be hard" - he sighed when she smirked - "difficult enough without worrying about that." When Emily laughed, he rolled his eyes and kissed her again. "I'll be back in a minute," he promised before jogging away.

The pull of the shore was too much, and she walked a few hundred yards to watch the moon glinting off the water. Smiling to herself, Em twirled and sat quickly, laughing as her skirts billowed around her. Growing up, the beach had always been her refuge.

The world spun as she gathered up her hair and twisted it into a bun before laying down and looking up at the stars. And Emily… simply existed. Her mind, usually running through a list of things that she needed to do or that could go wrong, was strangely blank as she curled her toes in the sand.

"Sweetheart?" Her eyes drifted open to see Steve looking down at her and smiling softly, his jacket over his arm and her shoes dangling from his fingers. "You alright?"

"Mmhmm," she hummed and held out a hand to him. He tried to pull her up, but she shook her head and tugged him down to lay beside her.

"What are we doin'?"

"Shhh… enjoy it."

"What?"

"This." He stayed still though she could feel his restlessness and sighed, reaching to touch his arm.

"This was our first date." Frowning, Em rolled her head to look at him. "Stargazing. In New Mexico."

"That was a date?" Steve snorted and shook his head.

"Apparently not. What was our first date?"

"Wicked."

"We barely knew each other then."

"Fine. Coney Island."

"That was the first time we had sex. I'd say Old Orchard with the kids," he countered.

"Hmm, maybe. But this… this is a big moment."

"We're married."

"It's the last moment we're just us," she sighed and closed her eyes, folding her hands on her stomach. "Just a girl from Massachusetts and a boy from Brooklyn." A tear leaked out of the corner of her eye and rolled down her temple. They lay silently for a long time until she blew out a breath and opened her eyes to see her husband watching her. He leaned over her, trailing his fingers from her temple to her chin as his eyes bore into hers.

"I love you. So much. And you're never 'just' anything, Emily Rose. You are...everything." Unable to meet the intensity of his gaze, her eyes slid off to the side, and she shook her head, digging her nails into his arm to keep from moving away. He sighed and leaned down to kiss her, "One day you're gonna be able to look at me when I tell you that."

"I'm trying," she sighed, looking up at him through her eyelashes. "It's just… it's hard, letting myself…"

"Be happy?"

"Feel." Steve frowned. She put her hands up to cover her face. "For a while, it was easier not to because then I didn't have to open myself up to being hurt or disappointed. I didn't think I was ever going to be happy - genuinely happy - again. And I was okay with that until you kept pushing."

"Sweetheart – "Her chest moved against his as she pulled in a deep breath and lowered her hand, even though her eyes stayed shut.

"And it's… letting myself feeling again is terrifying and exciting and… I don't know how to explain it."

"Sweetheart, look at me, please?" Reluctantly, Em slowly opened her eyes and forced them to stay open when she saw the tears in his. "You think it was easy for me to let myself feel anything again after I woke up? But you pushed me too. And look at where we are." Sitting up, Steve took her left hand in his and brushed his lips against her knuckles before threading their fingers together so their wedding bands rested against each other. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"You can't – "

"I promise you, Emily." She bit her tongue and knew that, given their lives, it would never be a guarantee. So instead, she smiled and took a deep breath before letting him help her stand. Raising an eyebrow, she motioned for him to turn and brushed the sand from his back, her hands linger on his ass which made him chuckle, then held up his jacket for him to shrug on and straighten his tie. Grinning, he crouched behind her and did his best to remove the sand from her dress, his fingers trailing along her spine while gently biting the juncture of her neck and shoulder. After helping her into her heels, Steve took Em's extended hand and guided her arm over his shoulders to lift her off her feet.

Their guests were mostly still inside the ballroom, but a few turned and smiled at them when Steve walked through the front door. He set her on her feet just outside the room. "Ready?" she asked, retaking hold of his hands. When he nodded, she squeezed gently and turned to lead him inside. She'd thought that the Avengers would have left, but they were still sitting at their table, watching them retrieve the microphone and ask the DJ to lower the music. Her liquid courage was quickly fading, and she began to tremble. Feeling this, he draped an arm over her shoulder and pressed his lips to her forehead.

Everyone looked at them expectantly when the music stopped. Glasses clinked, and they kissed to appease the crowd. With a glance at his wife to make sure this is what she wanted, Steve cleared his throat. "Hi everyone, we um… first, Emily and I want to thank you all again for coming out tonight and helping us celebrate. We haven't had the easiest time getting to this point, but" - he glanced down at her and smiled - "it was a hell of a ride." His eyebrow rose, asking if she was ready for this, and she nodded. "But I - we - have an announcement."

"That was quick!" one of her cousins shouted, and there was a wolf whistle that made everyone laugh. Steve flushed and shook his head.

"No, not that." Em bit her lip and ducked her head, resisting the urge to touch her stomach. "In the next few weeks, you're going to hear some stuff about us, and we wanted to make sure that you heard it from us first before it hit the news. In the meantime, if you could, erm..."

"Please keep this in the family," she said, tilting the microphone towards her. Silence fell over the ballroom as their family and friends exchanged wary glances, eyes darting over to where the team sat. When Steve raised an eyebrow, she sighed and took the mic from him and tried to adopt her lecturing mindset. "As you know, I moved to New York after I graduate, but I didn't take a job at NYU. That was a cover. I, uh...I actually took a position with SHIELD." A murmur went through the crowd, and she looked over at her grad school to see their startled looks. In just a few words, she'd revealed that not only had she lied to them, but she'd worked for a now publicly discredited intelligence organization with terrorist links.

"They brought Emily in to help me," Steve said, taking back the mic and dropping his arm to rub his neck. "I...uh… I'd just… I was in a plane crash, and SHIELD'd just found me, and they were looking for someone to help bring me up to speed with what I'd missed." His wife let out an exasperated sigh and nudged him. "I'd missed about seventy years." There was a nervous laugh, and Emily wrapped her arm around his waist and squeezed. He looked down at her and saw her encouraging smile. "I'm… uh… Captain America."

The silence was deafening.

Emily looked around the room, her eyes landing on her dumbstruck best friend. Their late night laughs at her dating a man named Steve Rogers seemed so long ago. Her family gaze shifted to her family, who tried to give her a reassuring smile, and Carter did the same while Sharon sat stone-faced.

Suddenly it was loud with the buzz of conversation in both English and French. A few people took out their phones and looked between the screens and Steve.

All eyes turned to Tony when he stood up and made his way towards them, grinning. When he stood in front of him, he quickly pulled her into a hug before shaking Steve's hand and taking the microphone with a wink. Turning to face the crowd, he stood slightly in front of them and waved a hand. "Captain and Mrs. - Doctor - America, everyone! Give 'em a round of applause." A few people clapped before others picked it up. "Get out of here," Tony said softly as the loud discussion started again.

OOO

Steve unlocked the door to the honeymoon suite and paused, his shoulders rounded. Sighing, Em reached around him to push open the door and rested her forehead on his back, curling her arms around him. His hand came up to cover hers before he turned and leaned down to kiss her. When she tried to back him into the room, he stood firm and swept her off her feet again.

His expression was tense as he sat on the bed with her in his lap, heedless of the scattered rose petals, his unseeing gaze fixed on the wall. When the silence stretched too long, she sighed and cupped his cheek, her thumb rasping on the prickling hair. "We did the right thing, mon coeur."

"We shoulda stayed. It's not fair for your parents to -" he stood and put her back on her feet, but her hold on his shirt kept him from walking away.

"It's not going to be any better if we go back down. We can deal with it in the mornin'." There was a determined look in his eyes, and his hand came up to cover hers.

"Emi -"

"Fine," she sighed. "But I'm stayin' here." To prove her point, she let go of him and walked to a small table where a champagne bottle sat in a silver ice bucket. She lifted it out and peeled away the foil, squinting in preparation of taking out the cork. A hand reached around her and lifted the bottle from her hand.

"Let me, Sweetheart." Smirking, she reached for a chocolate-covered strawberry and relaxed in the circle of Steve's arms, jumping when there was a loud pop! Instead of filling the glasses, he set the bottle down and grasped her hips, pulling her back against him. Laughing, Emily leaned back to grin up at him and offered her half-eaten strawberry. His eyes darkened when, as he bit it, she bending unnecessarily to pour them a drink.

"One drink an' then bed," she teased, turning to hand him a champagne flute. He raised an eyebrow when she tapped her glass against his. "What? You said you didn' want wedding sex."

"Never said that," he smirked. "Said we'd see. And you seem to have sobered up pretty well, so I don't feel like I'm taking advantage." Em hummed and quickly finished her champagne and set the glass down. Steve watched as she reached between them to remove his tie before unbuttoning his shirt. After placing his glass on the table, he kissed her hungrily. He ran a hand down her back to knead her ass before pulling her up against him, encouraging her legs to wrap around his waist.

Steve laid her on the bed and grabbed her skirt, pulling it up as he kissed the hinge of her jaw before trailing kissed down her throat to nip her breast. He rocked against her, letting her feel how much he wanted her, and grinned when she rolled her hips to meet his. When Emily reached to undo his slacks, he stood and smiled when she whimpered. Her eyes raked down his chest as he stripped off his shirt and knelt, wrapping his hands around her thighs to pull her closer to the edge. Meeting her heated gaze, he wrapped his hands around the seams of her navy blue panties. He tore them, tossing the offending material away before guiding her thighs over his shoulders.

"Those were new," Em whined as he kissed her inner thigh. "Part of your present."

"Pretty, but I'll buy you more," he chuckled and nibbled the sensitive skin. His grin turned feral when she gasped and gripped the blanket as he leaned down to lick her open. She buried her hands in his hair when he sucked her clit between his lips and flicked it with his tongue before drawing tight circles around it. His arm held her hips down while taking her apart with teeth and tongue before adding fingers. Her thighs gripped his head when she came with a muted scream, and Steve kissed her hard once she let him go, fumbling with his zipper.

Emily followed him when he stood to shove his boxers down and sank to her knees, taking him in hand. Her eyes met his when she licked him from root to stem before sucking him into her mouth. He groaned loudly, his fingers tangling in her hair when she swallowed around him. The sight of her on her knees, white skirts billowed around her, made him choke off a gasp as he hit the back of her throat. "Sweetheart, gotta -" Steve managed to shuffle back a step and pulled her up by her elbows. Kicking away his pants, he hauled her against him, the crystals on her dress scraped against his lower stomach. "You're overdressed," he said, pushing down the straps of her gown.

"After," she whispered against his lips and turned them, encouraging him to lay on the bed. The feeling of silk against his naked skin made him gasp as she settled over him. He cupped her breasts and stroking his thumbs over her nipples, unable to free them from the dress. As she sank onto him, Steve groaned, her wet heat pulling him in inch by inch as her fingernails raked his chest. It took everything in him not to fuck up into her. He'd expected hard and fast, but Emily slowly circled her hips and grinned at him when he let out a strangled moan.

It wasn't until they stumbled into the bathroom that she let him take off her dress. After another round in the shower, she put on the bustier and garter belt that had matched her panties.

Steve preferred the outfit without them.

Author's Note: I'm sitting here, crying while watching the Chadwick Boseman special, and knew I needed to push this out to say that I hope you're okay. This is rough. We lost a great man too soon.

I hope this gave you a moment to escape. If you'd like to look at the dress, it's the Kyle dress from Maggie Sottero. The headband is 3lC0n30 - just remove the spaces by the hyphens.

French to English is: mon coeur/my heart; Je t' aime, ma moitié/I love you, my other half; je pense/I think.

I know I said that this is the last story that I was going to post, but I've been toying with the idea of ending this in a few chapters and starting a new story to keep the episodic nature of dealing with the MCU movies. The next one would cover Ultron to Endgame and be the end. Any input on this would be welcomed.

Take care of yourself 3