Steve appears in the penthouse shortly after Tony calls him about dinner.
'Hey,' Steve looks suitably charmed when Pete runs over to give him a hug. 'Did you get your work done?'
''Done' implies complete perfection and no future upgrades,' he tells him as he pours a beer. 'My work is never done.'
Steve laughs and comes over to claim his drink,
'Alright, do you have a working prototype?'
'It's fabricating now,' he admits. 'I'll run tests tomorrow.'
'What are we eating?' Steve follows him to the bar and lounges as Tony pours a scotch.
'Pizza,' Tony settles beside him. 'It should be here soon.'
'Was Pepper very angry?' he looks apologetic again.
'Nah,' Tony leans into his side, 'it's gone across well. Stocks have actually taken a small jump.'
'Well, I know how you love to keep your board members happy,' Steve is looking at him strangely but not moving away so Tony feels he can continue to soak up his warmth.
'I do,' Tony agrees with a smirk.
'When you referred to them as a pack of short sighted jackasses with all the forethought and technical knowhow of llamas I'm sure you meant it with the highest level of affection.'
Tony laughs easily,
'Alright you, what is this? Blackmail?'
'Yes, Tony, I feel that living in a tower controlled by an AI who's your best friend is a really sensible way of obtaining blackmail material.'
'I do have digital copies of many of sir's baby photos,' Jarvis tells him.
'I would love to see those,' Steve breaks into a grin.
'Traitor,' Tony shakes his head. 'You is now my favourite.'
'I bet you were a cute kid,' Steve smiles at him.
'See for yourself,' Tony waves a hand at Pete. 'I looked like that.'
'I know,' Steve shrugs, 'I meant how you were as a kid; obviously you looked cute.'
Tony bites his lip to keep from laughing as Steve pauses for a second and then blushes,
'I mean... because I can see Pete is cute.'
'Sure,' Tony just shakes his head with a grin.
'Shut up,' Steve laughs at his own expense and shoves Tony with his elbow.
'Mean,' Tony pouts at him.
'Sir, your food is on the way up.'
'Great, thanks Jay,' Tony claps his hands together and moves to the table. 'Come on, squirt,' he helps Pete into his chair as Steve fetches the pizza boxes.
While they eat they talk about what they did during the day. Steve, perfect specimen that he is, sits with rapt attention as Pete tells him all about using a real screwdriver to screw real screws into a scrap of wood in the workshop.
His bots are the best babysitters.
Steve also tidies up after they've eaten and puts the leftovers into a little plastic box in the fridge.
'How the hell are you single, Cap?' Tony blurts from his seat on the sofa.
'All the people Natasha tries to set me up with are either SHIELD agents or undercover SHIELD agents?'
He looks so honestly put out that Tony has to laugh at him,
'Nothing wrong with mixing business and pleasure,' Tony suggests with a smile. 'At least they'd understand what you do.'
'I guess,' Steve looks away awkwardly.
Tony is rubbish at this sort of thing.
'Not complaining though,' he grins. 'You can come round and clean up after us more often if you're single.'
Steve offers him a small smile,
'I'm feeling taken advantage of.'
'Can't have that,' Tony grins at him, 'tell me what I can do for you.'
Steve shoots him a strange look and then just laughs as he walks past Peter playing with his nerf gun and sits beside him,
'I should charge for my services.'
'I fed you,' Tony points out. 'And you live rent free in the middle of New York.'
'Yeah, but that was before I started cooking and babysitting for you so it doesn't count.'
'Umm, no,' Tony keeps a straight face as he disagrees, 'you're cooking because you lost a game. And do you really feel you can play the babysitter card when you just revealed my son to a pack of reporters?'
'I actually blame Pete for that,' Steve deadpans.
'Oh, sure, blame the kid,' Tony sighs dramatically. 'I'm going to start charging rent, Rogers. Don't you think that I won't.'
'Well, sure,' Steve nods, 'if you feel that you need to.
'Hey, Tony? Can I borrow some cash to pay my landlord?'
Tony grins easily,
'Will you pay me back with interest?'
'If you start paying me to babysit...'
'How about I quadruple your rate when Jim's born and we call it quits?' Tony offers.
'Hey, I may not be as smart as you, but I know being paid nothing four times is still nothing,' Steve pokes him in the side.
Tony laughs and gets up to refill his glass,
'Worth a try.'
'Weren't there people fitting a carpet today?' Steve asks him after a brief pause.
'Yeah, they did,' Tony agrees. 'A very tasteful light blue carpet. It, apparently, goes very well with the even lighter blue walls and the furniture that'll turn up tomorrow.'
'He'll be moving into his own room soon then?'
'Eventually,' Tony smirks. 'Why? You have intentions for my bed, Cap?'
Steve always flusters so easily but it's great how he soldiers on.
'Well, it will be a shame to have no reason to be in your room anymore; you're such a charmer in the mornings.'
'Damn right,' Tony agrees. 'You'll just have to make it your job to bring me coffee.'
'I'm guessing I'll be paid at the normal rate for that service?'
'You guess right!' Tony raises his glass in a mock toast.
'I'll pass,' Steve tells him with a small smile.
'Your loss,' Tony shrugs and returns to the sofa with his drink.
'Whatever you say,' Steve shifts in his seat as Tony sits beside him.
Tony tips his head to the side as he considers his companion.
To tease or not to tease.
He opts to just ignore it and slumps against Steve's side.
'Oh,' Steve makes a strange sound as Tony settles himself under his arm, 'hi?'
Tony ignores him,
'Jay, put something child friendly on.'
'Of course, sir,' the TV descends from the ceiling. 'Would Tangled meet with your approval?'
'Yeah, sure,' it's not like Tony has watched TV for anything other than the news or the stocks in years.
'We're... watching cartoons now?' Steve asks.
'I suspect,' Tony smirks up at him, 'that any minute now a small person will...'
He cuts himself off as Pete comes round the sofa, his eyelids at half mast, and clambers his way into his father's lap,
'Dada.'
'Hey, kiddo,' Tony press a kiss to his hair. 'Have you come to watch this film with me and Cap?'
His son doesn't reply but his eyes glue themselves to the screen.
'I'm a genius,' he tells Steve.
'Yeah,' Steve's fond look for Pete seems to be transferring to him too.
'If I fall asleep on you poke me until I make it to my room?' Tony requests as he settles himself and his son against Steve's chest.
'Sure,' Steve sounds strange.
'You're the best, Cap.'
'Tony?' his pillow is moving.
Oh. That's Steve.
He feels as he's shifted to lie on the sofa and then drifts off again.
'Tony?' the warm talking pillow is back. 'Pete fell asleep so I've gotten him changed and into bed. Do you... Umm. Are you asleep? Shall I carry you?'
Oh, why not.
Because he isn't stupid enough to encourage that sort of thinking when it comes to Steve.
'I'm awake,' he grumbles.
'Sure you are,' he opens one eye to see Steve crouching beside the sofa looking at him. 'Except for this little nap you've been awake for around thirty six hours.'
'Yeah, that's nothing,' he tells the sofa cushion. 'Ask Pepper; I've made it to fifty before and still been lucid.'
His eyes flicker closed again as a hand brushes through his hair.
'Come on,' Steve props him up into a seating position. 'I need to make sure you don't brain yourself on the way to bed.'
Perfect excuse to soak up more super soldier warmth.
Pull yourself together.
'Yeah yeah,' Tony gets to his feet and stretches. 'I'm going...'
'Are you ok from here?' Steve sounds conflicted from where he's trailed Tony to the doorway of his bedroom.
'I was going to strip to my boxers,' Tony turns to smirk at him. 'If that would meet with your approval? '
He starts unbuttoning his shirt.
'Yes, that'll be fine,' Steve blurts and then blushes. 'You know that's fine. I'm going now. See you at breakfast.'
'Goodnight, Cap,' Tony smiles.
'Goodnight, Tony,' he smiles back.
