I apologize for my very long absence.

It's been an extremely difficult year. Hell, it's been an extremely difficult few years, if I'm being honest. But 2021 took the cake for me, personally. I won't go into all the details, but there's just been WAAAAAYYYYY too much loss in my life, in way too short of a time period, and it left me feeling completely exhausted mentally. So there was absolutely nothing left in the tank for writing. SO much so that I'd considered several times just scrapping my stories, and abandoning my account. But I just couldn't bring myself to do it.

Because once upon a time this was my happy place. My little sanctuary. And I realized that without it, I've felt like an emotional nomad- disconnected from who I am, becoming more and more calloused against my own humanity each day. There really is nothing else that fills the void for me like writing, and I've had to relearn this lesson over and over again.

(By the way, I hope this doesn't sound too melodramatic! I am a writer, after all. And that's how I express myself, is with words. So just know I'm only trying to lay everything out on the table in all honesty.)

And in the spirit of that honesty, I have to confess that I didn't write this chapter recently. I actually wrote it quite a while ago. Before everything happened this year. But, with it being nearly Christmas, I felt I needed to update this story in whatever way possible. So, for whomever is left of my readers, I hope you enjoy it. Your support means the world. And I can't thank you enough for your patience.

*Smut Warning!* If you are not of legal age, be gone! All others? You know what to do...

Merry Christmas. Happy Holidays. And Happy Reading.

XxXxXxXx

As their kiss progressed, Pepper, almost instinctively, began to grind her hips against Tony's. He moaned in approval, and slid a hand over her behind, letting it come to rest there for a few seconds before giving it an affectionate squeeze.

Pepper then moaned in return. "Mmmmm, yessssss," she breathed into the kiss.

Tony smiled to himself at her reaction, and decided to take things a step further. So he gently rubbed her left buttock in a slow, circular motion, and then, without hesitation, swiftly popped it with his flattened hand. Pepper jolted and yelped, abruptly breaking the kiss. "Uh!" she cried, her lips curling into a soft, but excited smile.

Tony watched, giddy, as her expression went from one of startlement to arousal. She gave him a fiery look, and giggled deviantly, her chest heaving. He chuckled back in satisfaction that he'd made the right choice.

Pepper then lunged, kissing him hard in response, her tongue hungrily diving in and out of his mouth, her teeth nibbling his bottom lip. It was Tony's turn to react. He moaned loudly into the kiss, and smoothed his hands up and down Pepper's body, relishing the feel of her soft skin.

Pepper's hips began to undulate even harder against him, and her motions were peaking the attention of the key member of his male anatomy, again. So he reached down between his legs to position himself near her opening, and realized how lubricated she already was.

"Wow," he mumbled, though it was muffled, since Pepper's lips were still firmly locked with his. However, she noticed his attempt to speak, and broke the kiss, again panting.

"What? What's wrong?" she asked breathlessly, looking at him in curiosity.

Tony shook his head. "Nothing, honey. Not a damn thing. I was just noticing how wet you are."

Pepper smiled coyly, and then shrugged. "Well, it isn't all me," she admitted. "We have had sex quite a few times already, so..."

Tony frowned, realizing all too late that they'd forgotten to address an important aspect of their love making. "Uh-oh," he muttered.

"What? What's 'uh-oh' "? Pepper asked, with a slightly alarmed look.

He gave her a sheepish look. "Uh, did we...miss a step here, Pep? Was...this okay to do...like this?" he asked, with a wince.

"Was what okay to do? What are you talking about?" Pepper begged, her eyes searching his face for an explanation.

"This," Tony said, motioning between them. "Bare-back. No goalie. Without any..." he stammered. "Because I've..." he made an awkward exploding gesture with his hand before he went on. "...Inside you a lot, tonight, and..."

"Oh. Right," Pepper interjected with an awkward smile, almost embarrassed by the fact that she hadn't caught on right away to his meaning. Then she shook her head. "No, it's fine," she assured.

"It's fine," Tony parroted, with a confused frown.

Pepper nodded. "Yes," she replied.

But Tony didn't seem convinced. "So, you're...on something?" he asked cautiously.

"Well...no," Pepper replied simply. Then she went silent.

Tony cocked his head. "So...what then?" he asked.

Pepper pursed her lips, and took a breath, as she looked in to his eyes. "It's just that I...can't," she said softly, and with a wince.

Tony frowned, not understanding her meaning. "You can't...what?" he urged.

Pepper chewed her lip before speaking. "Get pregnant," she then simply answered. She smiled politely, and then shrugged dismissively and averted her eyes.

Tony settled back, propping himself up with his forearm. "Oh, I see," he replied. "Sorry. I...I didn't mean to..."

Pepper brought her eyes back to his, and gave him a sympathetic smile. She shrugged again. "You didn't know," she said. "And now, you do. No big deal. It's okay."

But Tony was still frowning. Pepper knew just by the face he was making that he wanted to know more, but wasn't going to ask. So she put a hand on his chest in reassurance. "If you want to know why," she said. "I have no problem telling you, I promise."

Tony shook his head in dismissal. "Pfft. No," he scoffed, trying to sound casual. "It's none of my business, Pep. Honestly. You don't have to tell me."

"I know I don't have to," Pepper replied. "But I wouldn't say it's none of your business. You're my boyfriend, now, after all. So, you should know."

Tony's brows were still furrowed, but he briefly smiled in acknowledgement of her words.

Pepper could see he'd relented, so she reached for his hand and intertwined their fingers. "The medical diagnosis is that I have some scaring in my fallopian tubes that won't allow for an egg to pass through to be fertilized conventionally. So, the odds of me conceiving in the..." she smiled bashfully and went on. "...Usual way are extremely low."

"Huh," Tony said, clucking his tongue in thought. "So, are you saying...unconventionally, then? If you wanted to, you could..."

"Via invitro fertilization, then perhaps. Yes," she answered. "Though nothing is ever guaranteed."

"No, of course not," Tony quickly concurred, shaking his head. Then he smiled graciously, and then stared lovingly into his girlfriend's eyes. "I meant it when I said you didn't have to tell me," he reiterated.

She smiled back. "And I meant it when I said that I wanted to tell you," she replied sweetly. "If we're going to be together, Tony, then you need to know about these things, don't you think?"

"Better than left wondering, I suppose," Tony agreed, shrugging and working his jaw in thought. Pepper nodded and smiled.

"Of course," she replied.

Tony gave her a loving smile, and leaned forward to softly kiss her lips. She smiled back just before their lips met, and she leaned into his kiss, gently laying a hand on his chest as their kiss progressed.

Tony wrapped his arms around her body, and then raised a hand to run his fingers through her hair, brushing it back over her shoulder, and then cupping the nape of her neck gently with his palm. He then moved his lips from hers, and began placing soft, wet kisses on her neck, making her skin erupt in pleasure-induced goosebumps all over her body.

Pepper sighed and smiled, her eyes closed as she relished his affection. She threaded her fingers through the hair on the back of his head, gently pulling him closer to her. Tony reached up to nibble her earlobe, and this made Pepper giggle and coo in approval. Tony smiled to himself at this reaction, and then moved his lips back to hers to finish with a soft, lingering kiss before gently resting his forehead on hers.

They both opened their eyes, and Pepper bit her lower lip and smiled coyly when their gaze met. Tony grinned back. "I love doing that to you. I can always tell when I've hit a home run in the pleasure department," he purred, smoothing his hands up and down her goose-pimply arms.

Pepper giggled softly. "It is an obvious tell, isn't it?" she joked.

Tony chuckled. He wrapped his arms around her torso, and let them rest on her hips. They both went quiet in thought, soaking in the love they felt for each other in the moment. Soon, however, Tony raised his head and placed a loving kiss on her forehead before pulling back to speak to her. He took a deep breath, and let out a sigh. "As much as I hate to break up the mood, I've gotta drain the lizard, I'm afraid," he explained.

Pepper smiled and nodded before moving to dismount from his lap. Once she was clear, Tony rolled to all fours, and then hoisted himself up to a standing position. "Back in a sec," he called out behind him as he proceeded to walk down the hallway toward the bathroom.

Pepper's eyes followed him as he moved, and she bit her lip as her cheeks blushed in reaction to watching his bared form walk away from her. She cleared her throat once he disappeared from view. "I could use a snack. How about some of that popcorn? I'll pop us some more. Shall I?" she called out.

She heard Tony inhale deeply, then yawn loudly, as the obvious sound of what he was in the bathroom to do began. "Yeah, whatever you want, Pep. Sounds great," she heard him yell back.

Pepper smiled and nodded to herself as she stood up to go into the kitchen. Once she got there, she got the kettle and lid she'd used before, put a little oil in the bottom of it again, and poured in a couple cups of the kernels she'd had left over from before. She then turned on her burner, covered the kettle with the lid, and waited.

She soon heard the toilet flush, and Tony emerge from the bathroom. She could hear him shuffling around in the living room. Her curiosity got the best of her, so she peaked around the corner to find him straightening the bed. He noticed her looking at him, so he looked up at her and smiled. "I thought I'd get things tidied up. Maybe restoke the fire?" he explained. She smiled and nodded in approval, and he smiled back. He gave her a playful wink, and went back to work. She smiled again, and went back into the kitchen, as it sounded like a few of her kernels were beginning to pop.

It wasn't long before it was all popping, and soon Tony had come in the kitchen to join her as she shimmied and shook the kettle. He moved up behind her and wrapped his arms around her middle, reaching up to gently squeeze one of her bare breasts affectionately, and to nuzzle her hair as she worked. "You're so sexy," he murmured to her, as he moved to slide her hair to the left side of her neck before bending down to kiss it and the top of her shoulder. She giggled coyly in reply, and tilted her head to the side as he worked.

"You don't mind this, do you?" he asked. "I just can't keep my hands off of you. I can't get enough of your body."

Pepper smiled to herself. "Why on Earth would I mind?" she asked him.

Tony smiled to himself in reply. "Good. Just making sure," he replied.

The popping sound of the kernels had started to slow, so Pepper gave the kettle one more good shake. A few more released, and then all was quiet. "Sounds like it's done," she remarked, as she moved to shut off the stove burner.

Tony stepped back so she could find something to put their snack in. She searched through a couple of the lower cabinets, and found a large plastic bowl in the back of one of them. "Ahh, perfect," she purred, and she dumped her kettle into the bowl. Then she reached for the little salt shaker that had been sitting on the back of the stove and shook it a few times while churning the popped kernels so they could get evenly seasoned. Once she was done, she let out a satisfied sigh, and smiled.

"Well, Potts, the snow shows no sign of stopping," Tony began.

"And I've brought some corn for popping?" she joked, with a smirk, playing along.

Tony chuckled and nodded. "Good catch," he remarked. Pepper giggled, and he continued. "The lights are actually turned way down low," he finished by saying.

"So...let it snow, let it snow..." she continued.

"Let it...uh," he began, but then frowned, pretending to not know how to finish the phrase, making Pepper chuckle again. "Ah, you know the rest," Tony teased, waving a hand in dismissal. They both laughed and Pepper shook her head.

"Can't have too much corniness, now can we?" she teased.

Tony waggled a finger at her, and gave her a knowing smile. "Ah, I see what you did there! Popcorn. Corniness. You know I always like a good pun," he teased back, making her laugh again, as they made their way back into the living room.

Pepper saw that the fire was back to crackling in the fireplace, casting its orangey glow on everything around them, along with the flicker of candles that he'd put around the room earlier. Paired with the lights they'd put in their tree in the corner, her vision of the scene once again struck her as positively cozy, even dreamlike. And absolutely romantic.

As if he'd read her mind, Tony spoke. "We've made ourselves a pretty cozy spot, here, haven't we, Pep?" he remarked. She smiled softly at him and nodded.

"That we have," she purred.

Tony watched in admiration as her eyes moved around the room once more, the sparkle in them making his heart flutter with nothing but love for this woman. Pepper caught him looking at her, and she gave him a bashful smile. He realized what had happened, and smiled sheepishly back.

"Sorry, I was just..." he began, struggling to find the words after coming out of this reverie so abruptly. He cleared his throat and tried again. "I was just...hoping that this night has been as amazing for you as..." he paused to gesture toward himself. "It has been for me," he finished by saying, his tone genuine and humble.

Pepper moved to set down her bowl of popcorn, and then she stepped to where he was standing. He watched as she slid her hands up his chest, and then she interlaced her fingers behind his neck. He lifted his eyes to meet hers, and rested his hands on her hips, giving her an inquiring, hopeful look. She gave him a sweet, loving smile.

"Tony?" she said softly. "This night has been more than I could have ever dreamed it would be," she explained. Tony let out a soft sigh of relief at her words, and grinned at her. She grinned back, and continued on. "And I want you to know how much I love you for it."

"Really, Pep?" he asked. She nodded, and continued.

"You know I've been pretty down about not being able to go home for Christmas," she went on to say. "But this night has been more fun, and more..." she took a minute to search for the word. "Romantic," she stated. "...than I ever thought it would be. So from the bottom of my heart, thank you for showing a girl a good time," she concluded, with a loving smirk.

Tony shook his head. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, trying to form words and Pepper chuckled.

"Tony Stark rendered speechless. Quick! Somebody get a camera. We need to capture this moment," she teased, and he spluttered out a chuckle at her teasing him.

"No, I just..." he tried to begin after a moment. "I just...I can't believe I could be this lucky," he explained. "I'm with a woman that I actually love, who loves me, and... it's Christmas Eve, and..." he went silent again, only able to shake his head in disbelief.

Pepper chuckled again, and he looked at her, still grinning, and then decided to abandon any further attempt to explain himself, save for what he said next. "I love you, Pepper Potts. I guess that's all I can say. I love you. More than you'll ever know, in fact."

Pepper beamed. "I love you, too, Tony Stark," she replied. "And I can't wait to introduce you to my family."

Tony spluttered sheepishly. "And I can't wait to meet them!" he said, his eyes sparkling with anticipation. "I just hope they like me."

Pepper gave him a reassuring nod. "Oh, they will," she told him. "Especially Mama. She'll take to you right away, I imagine."

Tony chuckled. "Don't you mean, 'you reckon'?" he joked. Pepper gave him a curious look. And he went on to explain. "I thought since you slipped a little farm girl in that statement with the 'she'll take to you' bit, you'd go the full Dorothy from Kansas, and go the distance." Pepper started to giggle. "Remember? You said it before! 'I reckon'. 'She'll take to you like white on rice, I reckon'," he teased, trying his best at a southern drawl. This made Pepper giggle even more. "Iieeeeee reckon'," he said again, trying even harder at the accent.

Pepper gave him a playful smack on the shoulder, and he jolted. "Hey! Give me a break! I'm trying my hardest here," he joked, and she shook her head.

"Come on, goofball," she said, still giggling. She reached down to grab her bowl of popcorn before reaching for his hand and leading him over to their make-shift bed on the floor in front of the fireplace. Tony had remade the bed, and Pepper waited for him throw back the blankets so they could climb underneath. Once he did this, he sat down, and leaned against the coffee table that had been pushed back against the sofa. He grabbed one of the pillows to put behind him, leaned back again, and then motioned for her to join him.

She sat down between his legs, and turned with her back to him. Together they rearranged the blankets over the top of themselves, and settled in, with Pepper balancing the popcorn bowl between her middle and her raised knees. Then she leaned back against Tony's chest.

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, and gave her a loving squeeze. She gathered a couple of pieces of popcorn between her fingers and reached over her shoulder to offer them to him. He delicately ate them out of her hand, and she smiled at the gesture. Then she ate a few herself, and laid her head back against his shoulder. They both smiled in enjoyment of the moment, watching the fire pop and crackle in front of them. They fell silent for a few moments as they munched, save for a soft kiss that Tony placed to the side of her head. Pepper closed her eyes, enjoying the affection.

The station the radio had been tuned to had continued to play Christmas music all evening. But, considering the night's turn of events, to the two of the them it seemed as if the music had, in fact, just started playing again. And, at this moment, the song was "Merry Christmas, Darling" by the Carpenters.

"Ahhh, there we go," Tony purred. "A Pepper Potts classic, I'm sure," he teased. Pepper giggled coyly in response.

"I...have been known to sing along to this one in years past," she admitted. She grapsed some more popcorn between her fingers to put over her shoulder again for Tony, and he gladly accepted it. Then she got some for herself.

"Uh huh, I'm sure," he agreed. "Like I said before, I pay attention more than you know, Miss Potts. You've let your Carpenters fanclub card slip out into broad daylight several times, and it hasn't gone unnoticed."

Pepper's cheeks blushed, and she giggled again. "Well, I hope you don't hold it against me, Mr. Stark," she teased back.

"Never," he cooed, nuzzling her hair before planting a soft kiss to the side of her head. "I find it...refreshing."

"Oh?" Pepper purred. "Why is that?"

Tony shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it's because it's so...wholesome. Very...girl next door, you know? In a sea of...plastic...overdone...shallow..."

"Barbie dolls?" Pepper interjected, knowingly.

Tony spluttered and chuckled. "Yeah! Exactly!" he agreed, nodding. "You're...pure, Pep. And I love that about you."

Pepper smirked and rolled her eyes. "I don't know how pure tonight was, but..."

"But it was, though," Tony countered. "Because even though we went at each other like..."

"Zoo animals?" Pepper offered, with a knowing smirk.

Tony chuckled again, "Ok. That's fair," he agreed. "We... still..." he paused, frowning for a moment while trying to find the words. "I mean, it was...real, you know? Not...filled with pretense and expectation. We just..."

"Made love," Pepper finished softly.

Tony exhaled softly. "Yeah," he breathed. "Exactly."

Pepper smiled to herself, acknowledging this sentiment, and agreeing with it whole heartedly. Tony was right. What they had done together that night was pure. Unfettered and wild, absolutely. But done in complete love, respect, and sincerity, she knew for a fact. And this warmed her heart more than anything.

She adjusted herself again against Tony's chest, and he wrapped his arms a little tighter around her as well. After they settled further in, they listened to the Christmas music in quiet contentment as the fire crackled and popped in front of them, bathing them in warm, glowing light.

And this is how they remained, quietly enjoying the ambiance, and each other, with Tony gladly accepting popcorn from Pepper's pinched fingers every once in a while, until, after a few minutes, she was no longer offering it to him. He'd been lost in his own thoughts, mostly about the evening they'd shared, and the love they both had clearly expressed towards each other before he noticed that she'd ceased feeding him popcorn. He also noticed that she had become a little heavier against him, and her breathing was more regulated, and relaxed, leaving him to conclude only one thing.

He smiled to himself, and reached to get the popcorn bowl off of her lap. He set it on the edge of the coffee table behind him, and Pepper stirred slightly. She moaned in her sleep, and her brows furrowed.

"It's ok, Pep. Looks like we wore each other out. So let's get a little shut eye, huh?" he asked.

In reply, she sleepily move to her side and laid her head on the remaining pillow. Tony climbed in beside her, and pulled the blankets over the top of them before spooning against her, wrapping his arm over the top of her. She wiggled farther up against him, and sighed happily. "Good night, baby," he murmured to her. "Merry Christmas."

"Mmmm, good night. Merry Christmas, Tony," she mumbled back, before drifting back to sleep. Tony smiled to himself, but he didn't close his eyes. Instead, he continued to watch the fire burn, and to listen to her quiet breathing, secretly wishing that this night to remember- that he couldn't possibly ever forget, in fact- would be the start of many nights to come that they would spend together. I want that forever. I want to wake up next to her every day for the rest of my life, he mused. Then he smiled to himself with happy realization at what he was saying. And then he smiled even more at the thought that this didn't scare him in the least. He was actually giddy at the thought.

As soon as we get outta here, he vowed. I'm going to figure out how to ask Pepper to marry me.