"No Rhodey and no Obie to help you out that year," Tony recalled.
"Nope," Pepper replied. "They were both out of the country at the time. So, I was left to wrangle you all by myself, lucky me," she joked.
But Tony frowned. "Well, for what it's worth, though? It was you who got me through a lot of rough Christmases over the years. None of them were my finest hour, but..."
Pepper smiled kindly at him, knowing exactly what he meant. Tony continued.
"You were there for me. And that's what means the most. That's what counts. You know?" he said, looking deeply into her eyes.
Pepper's smile grew and she scooted up onto her knees to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck. She nodded. "I do know. And despite it all, it was my pleasure," she said, before tilting her head to kiss him. Tony let out a soft moan, and pulled her further into his embrace. He brushed her hair behind her ears with the tips of his fingers before cupping one of her cheeks in his hand. Pepper pulled her arms back from around his neck to run her fingers through his hair on the back of his head, and he moaned again in approval. She smiled to herself at the sound. And as the kiss wound down, and the embrace broke, they slowly pulled away, and smiled lovingly at each other. Tony brushed the tips of their noses together, and then gave her lips one more soft peck before pulling back to look at her.
"I love you," he murmured.
Pepper smiled, though it was traced with trepidation. She nodded. "I know," she murmured back.
"Then, that's all I need right now," Tony reassured her. He looked into her eyes for understanding, and Pepper nodded.
"Thank you," she murmured back. "For understanding."
Tony smiled, and raised his lips to hers one more, flicking his tongue playfully into her mouth as he kissed her. Pepper did the same, and they continued for a few moments longer, enjoying each other.
Once the kiss broke, Pepper rested her forehead on his for a moment, until they both opened their eyes. When they caught each others gazes again, they chuckled softly.
"Gotta say, I'm not minding the way this Christmas is turning out," Tony murmured. "All things considered."
Pepper looked at him in thought before she slowly shook her head. "Neither am I, actually. All things considered," she replied in agreement.
"Sure, it would be better if we were here voluntarily, and not because of what happened, but," Tony said. He shrugged. "I'm just glad we're together. That you're okay, and we're together."
Pepper smiled in agreement.
Tony gazed at her in thought for a moment before he spoke again. "You know, I wasn't sure I could save you," he revealed. "Last night, I mean. It keeps replaying over and over in my mind. I just...I was scared I'd lost you, Pep. Right there. On the river bank. And I..."
"Tony?" Pepper said. She could see the residual anxiety of his recollection start to flood back into his mind, and that he was about to get carried away with it. She cupped his cheeks in both hands, and made him look at her. "Listen to me," she urged.
He did as she asked, staying silent as he trained his eyes on hers. She continued.
"You saved me. I'm only here because of what you did," she reminded him. "God knows what would have happened if I'd been alone. So, I'm eternally grateful to you, believe me," she told him.
Tony gave her a smile in acknowledgment of her words, and she smiled and nodded in satisfaction before turning back around to lay against his chest again. "There's no use in worrying about what could have happened," she explained, settling back in and pulling the blanket back over them. "The fact is you prevented it from happening. And that's what's important." She raised her eyes to look up at him. "Like I said. That makes you my hero, Tony Stark," she cooed teasingly, trying to lighten the mood.
He chuckled. "Just missing the mask and the cape," he joked back. They both laughed. Then, Pepper shrugged.
"Who knows? Maybe you could make a career out of it someday," she teased. "If the munitions market ever goes belly up, at least you know you could become a..."
"What? Some kind of caped crusader? A super-hero?" Tony interjected, cocking a skeptical eyebrow. He scoffed. "Yeah, not sure I'd be the best candidate for that, Potts. Plus, this might come as a shock? But I'm not a giant fan of spandex, so..."
Pepper laughed at the visual image that suddenly popped into her brain of Tony being clad in a head-to-toe, lycra body sock.
He chuckled at her, instantly guessing what she was imagining. "Yeah, see? Even you can't handle that mental picture," he teased. "And you've caught me in some pretty precarious get-ups in the past." He inhaled sharply through is teeth at the recollection. "Yikes. Not good."
Pepper laughed out loud even harder, and Tony smiled, enjoying the sound of it. "Well, nobody said it has to be spandex. The man makes the suit, Tony. The suit doesn't make the man. Figuratively and literally, in this case. So I'm sure you could engineer...something that would suit you better," she offered.
Tony shrugged. "I 'spose I could, yeah," he agreed. "But the good news is, I don't have to. That is...unless you want a super-hero boyfriend?" he asked.
Pepper turned her eyes up to look at him.
Tony gave her a curious look back. "Wait. Are you... are you trying to tell me you're...into role play or something, Ms. Potts?" he asked cautiously, but his tone very suggestive. "Cuz' I'm down, if that's what..."
Pepper scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Oh, give me a break," she replied, not being able to help the blush in her cheeks, and the sheepish smirk spreading over her lips.
"Ah! See?!" he hooted smugly, pointing at her embarrassed expression. "That's it, isn't it?! You get off on the make-believe stuff, don't you?!" He gasped at his perceived sudden discovery. Pepper giggled at him teasing her.
"Well, why didn't you say so?" he crowed. "You know, I never would have pegged you for the kinky type, but I'm game, honey! Spandex it is!"
"God, no!" Pepper begged.
"God, yes!" Tony countered, his eyes wild with giddiness. "I've got your number on this, Pep! And that settles it! When we get back home, I'm heading straight to the costume shop and finding you the loudest, spangly-iest...OOOOH! Sequins! Yeah, something with sequins, and...maybe purple? I dunno. Or fluorescent pink?" he teased.
"Fluorescent pink?!" Pepper chirped, still giggling.
Tony nodded emphatically. "Yeah! Or what about traffic-cone orange? Now that's an attractive look. Or..." He gasped, his eyes going wide again with a sudden epiphany. "Red. Yeah. That's a hot color, right? Gets the blood pumping?"
Pepper spluttered in a giggle, during which she just smacked him playfully in the chest. He flinched, and then chuckled at her embarrassment. She waved her hands in surrender. "No spandex, no role play," she retorted, still chuckling. She shook her head. "You're are just...too much sometimes."
Tony raised his hands in defense. "Hey, all I know is I could probably out and out rock a red unitard. So, you change your mind? The offer's on the table," he joked.
Pepper tried to stifle her amusement. "I'll, uh, I'll keep that in mind, Tony," she replied, before giggling at him again. He chuckled back at her, admiring the light in her eyes.
He took a moment longer to gaze at her, and Pepper noticed, just as she had when they were in the kitchen. She gave him a bashful smile again, and looked at him curiously. "What?" she asked.
"You're beautiful," he murmured softly.
"Tony," Pepper cooed. She watched as he grasped her hand in his, and brought the back of it to his lips, giving it a tender kiss before putting it to his chest, over his heart. The butterflies in her stomach fluttered feverishly at the gesture, and it made her cheeks flush. She flicked her eyes to his, and saw he was smiling her, his eyes sparkling with delight at the obvious effect he was having on her.
Pepper quickly averted her eyes, and bit her lips together, shaking her head. She spluttered with a giggle. "C'mon. Stop looking at me like that," she warned teasingly.
"Like what?" Tony teased back.
"You know," Pepper countered. "Like...that," she said, gesturing to the mischievous grin he was wearing.
"No, I don't know. Like what, Pep? Like...like this?" he said, making a goofy face at her. She spluttered again, and laughed out loud.
"Or...like...this?" he said, making his most menacing mean face. Pepper just closed her eyes and shook her head, trying not to smile.
"Or, was it...this," he said, pouting seductively and giving her a smolder.
"Oh that definitely..." she started to say. Tony's eyebrows shot up in thrilled anticipation.
"Wasn't it," she said, continuing. "Though it's a familiar look, I have to say. I've seen it many, many times before. With countless other female..."
"Alright, now you're just busting my balls," he interjected. They chuckled at each other.
"No, I believe it was...this face," Tony said, smiling at her adoringly, his deep chocolate brown eyes gazing intently into hers, making her suddenly, and once again, feel like the more important person on the planet to him. And Pepper felt the butterflies flutter madly again, followed by the same flushing of her cheeks. She gave him a coy smile back in reply.
"Ahhhhhh, there we go. We have a winner," Tony murmured. "And for the record, I am loving what it does to you."
Pepper's coy smile slowly turned sly with arousal. She cocked an eyebrow, and smoothed her hands up his chest, then wrapped her arms around his neck. "Well, as long as we're on record," she murmured, her voice smokey, her breath steamy, as her mouth was now millimeters away from his.
Tony's eyes flicked to her lips, and he hungrily bit his own bottom lip. He swallowed hard, his breath becoming ragged. "Uh-huh?" he urged hoarsely, his mind whirling with the possibilities of what she might reveal to him.
Pepper smiled, delighted that she was getting under his skin as much as he was getting under hers. "It's clear I can play that game as well as you can," she said, sitting back and exchanging her sexy smirk for a triumphant smile.
Tony's face fell in defeat, as he realized he'd been beaten at his own game. "Oh, you are a...minx, Pepper Potts," he pouted.
Pepper just chuckled at him.
XxXxXxXxXx
Rhodey stared at the screen of his phone, dreading having to dial the number and make the call he never, in a million years, wanted to make. He'd tried both Tony and Pepper several more times before he'd gone to Stark HQ to find out if anyone had heard from them that day. And, to his disappointment, no one had. So, needless to say, his worry, along with everyone else's, had grown exponentially. And it was at that point that he and Obadiah Stane came to the decision that he should be the one to head up the search efforts for his lost friends. "I'll gladly do what I can to help. But Search and Rescue is your department, Colonel," Obi had told him.
Obi had led Rhodey to his office where they could make the call in private, away from speculative employees. Rhodey took a deep breath, and dialed the number for the police department of the town surrounding the resort where the Gala had been held, figuring it was as good a place to start as any. He scrubbed a hand over his face as the phone rang. He then put his phone on speaker, and Obadiah looked on with a grim frown as they waited for someone to pick up.
"Gammon County Sheriff's Department?" a cheerful female voice eventually answered on the other end.
Rhodey frowned. "Sheriff? I thought I dialed the police department," he said.
"Oh, you did, Sir. But when the officers are out, it transfers to us, lucky you. So what can I help ya' with?" she answered pleasantly.
Rhodey just shook his head and shrugged. "I...guess we need to file a missing persons report? Two of them, actually," he replied. He looked at Obi, and Obi nodded in agreement.
"Oh, that's gonna be hard ta' do, I'm afraid," the woman said.
The two men frowned at her statement. "What?! Why?" Rhodey exclaimed.
"Well, because, Sir! The reports have to be filed with our Chief! And, well," she paused to awkwardly chuckle. "He's one of our two officers out tonight, so..."
"You've only got two officers?!" Rhodey cried.
"Well, in a town of only a few hundred people, there isn't much need for more than..."
"Okay, listen," Rhodey said, closing his eyes and shaking his head. "Just...take the information, and give it to the Chief when he gets back in, alright?"
"You betcha'!" the woman replied happily. "I tell ya' what! With this blizzard coming in, it's got us running from dusk till dawn around here! It's like people forget how'ta drive in this stuff! Accidents all over the place! You know, I was just telling Officer Severenson the other day that we oughta'..."
Rhodey huffed impatiently, and steeled himself against blowing up on the well-meaning lady. "I'm sorry to interrupt, ma'am, but could we just..." he interjected, trying desperately to keep his composure and be polite as he spoke.
"Oh! Right! I'm sorry! You'll have to excuse me! I like to gab! But who can blame me, really? It gets to be pretty boring sitting here all by my lonesome waiting for the phone to ring, I'll tell ya' that!" the woman explained.
Hopefully, she's not the 911 dispatcher as well, Rhodey thought.
The woman chuckled. "Now, then. Let me see..." she said into the phone.
They could hear rustling of papers in the background.
"Now what the heck happened to those missing persons forms?" she muttered into the phone. "Golly, I guess it's been so long since we've had a missing person here that we just don't..." her voice trailed off for a moment. "Keep them on hand, so..." she muttered. They heard more rustling, and Rhodey let an audible, exasperated sigh escape his lips.
Obi spoke up. "Ma'am?" he asked.
"Hmmm? Yes, sir?" she said, followed by more rustling.
"What's your name, may I ask?" he inquired, trying to sound pleasant.
"Oh! Genieva, Sir. Genieva Montgomery. Yep. Third generation, born and raised, here in good old..."
"Okay, Genieva," Obi said, interrupting her before she could launch into her life story, and eat up more of their time. "My name is Obadiah Stane. I'm the COO of a company called Stark Industries. In Los Angeles? I don't supposed you've heard of us?" he asked.
"Mmmm, no? Can't say as I have?" Genieva replied.
"That's okay," Obi assured her. "At any rate, I'm, uh...I'm joined by Colonel James Rhodes. Of the United States Air Force? He's also our military liaison for the company, and he's the one who'll be communicating with you on the two people we're trying to locate. Mmmkay?" Obi informed her.
"Well, pleased to meetcha', fellas!" Genieva crowed into the phone.
They both smiled at her innocent cordiality, despite their need for urgency. "Likewise, and thank you, Ms. Genieva," Obi replied. "Now, let me tell you why we're calling. We're trying to find our company's president and his assistant, who were attending a symposium in the neighboring city, and were supposed to be home earlier today but no one has seen or heard from them since the evening before last. They were attending a Gala at the ski resort there, last we'd heard?"
"Oh sure! I know the one!" Genieva replied. "Real fancy affair. Lots of big wigs around, yeah. My brother helps with the security every year. He has since..."
"Genieva?" Rhodey said, interrupting.
"Hmmmm?"
"The reports?" Rhodey replied.
"Oh, right! Sorry," Genieva said, chuckling. "Anywho, I'm all ready for you fellas, if you want to give me the info? You say you're looking for your company's president and his assistant, is that correct?"
Rhodey looked at Obi in relief that they were finally making progress. And Obi gave him an approving nod. "Yes. By the names of Anthony Stark and Virginia Potts," he replied. He then proceeded to give her the details of Tony's and Pepper's ages and appearances, and their last known communication with anyone before they went missing. Obi patted Rhodey on the back in approval as he spoke, and then motioned that he'd leave him to it. Rhodey nodded in the affirmative and continued his conversation as Obi made his way out of the office, softly closing the door behind him.
He checked to make sure he was alone, then leaned against the door, and let out a sigh. Slowly, a very satisfied, deviant smile spread over his lips. But he only allowed himself this small indulgence for a mere moment before he stifled it once more. He then smoothed a hand over his beard, and straightened the cuffs of his sleeves. He cleared his throat and put on a concerned scowl before walking back into the reception area, where Tony's long-term, and very loyal secretary, Bambi Arboghast was seated at her desk. She immediately stood up upon seeing Obi approach, her eyes filled with deep concern. She stood wringing her hands as he neared.
"Any word, Mr. Stane?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Obi smiled at her sympathetically as we walked over to the woman. He smoothed his hands down her upper arms, as she looked up at him. "Now, Bambi, I know you're fearing the worst," he told her.
She gave him a weak, sheepish grin. "It's hard not to, Sir! It's so unlike Mr. Stark, or Ms. Potts to go this long without..."
"I know, Bambi, believe me. But...just have faith," Obi said.
"Faith?" she asked, searching his eyes.
Obi moved to wrap an arm around her shoulder. "That's right, my dear. Have faith. I have a good feeling it will all work out."