The sun was already peering through the window, when Natasha woke up the next morning. Still a little disoriented, Natasha noticed two very important things right away. First, she was spooned up against Steve and his arm was draped over her waist, and the second thing she noticed was that her bed was missing one very small little girl.

She immediately jerked to a sitting position, waking her spooning partner in the process. "Jarvis, where is Nicole?"

"Little Miss returned to her bed three hours ago, Ms. Romanoff. She is currently asleep."

"Thank you, Jarvis," she replied, looking sheepishly at Steve. "Sorry. I just panicked."

Steve nodded. "I'm usually a light sleeper and you're a super spy, but our daughter managed to slip right past us." He grinned and stared at her. "Pretty sure she gets that from you."

Natasha rolled her eyes and self-consciously raised the comforter up a little to cover herself. What had she been thinking grabbing this particular nightie when Steve was still in her apartment. Immediately, she chided herself. You know exactly what you were thinking, Romanoff. You like it when he looks at you like this. Needing to ease the tension, she raised an eyebrow and looked at Steve, "You're staring, Rogers. First time you've woken up in bed with a woman since 1945?"

Steve turned red. "Sorry," he said, glancing away from her. "I guess I should go and change. Can I see Nicole when she wakes up?"

"You don't have to ask. She's your daughter, too. I'll call you."

Steve sheepishly left the bedroom and Natasha stretched back out on her bed. It certainly wasn't an unpleasant experience to wake up in Steve's arms, but it definitely made Natasha a little bothered. "I just need a quick fling," she assured herself then she murmured, "not that that's likely to happen anytime soon. What am I supposed to do? Ask Steve to take care of our child so I can hit the bar? That would win me mother of the year."

She didn't get to wallow in her thoughts long before there was a knock at her door. Grabbing the robe she realized she probably should have grabbed last night, she quickly went to answer the door.

Pepper and Tony were waiting on the other side. "Did I just catch Spangles taking the walk of shame?" Tony asked before Pepper elbowed him sharply.

"It wasn't like that. He just wanted to be near Nicole," Natasha replied as they entered the living room.

"Speaking of Little Red, we've got the prototype ready. I want to put it through a few more tests, but we should be able to put the bracelet on the princess by tomorrow."

"Thanks, Tony. That will be a relief."

"Well, I'm off to my lab. I'll let you and Pepper have your girl talk. Do me a favor and tell her how incredibly fulfilling motherhood is while your at it. It's been kind of a tough sell."

Once Tony was gone, Natasha and Pepper sat down with a cup of coffee. "So, Steve stayed the night," Pepper said casually.

"With his daughter," Natasha replied. "Nothing happened."

"Right, of course, nothing happened," Pepper grinned, "yet."

"Or ever. We're just friends."

"Right, just friends, very attractive single friends who share a child. Of course nothing is ever going to happen."

Natasha got a little flustered. "I'm serious, Pepper. Even if I wanted to, and I'm not saying I do, we cannot destroy our friendship over-"

"An incredibly passionate night of-"

"Pepper, it can't happen."

"Okay, whatever you say. I'll quit teasing. I actually came about something else. It's great that Coulson's team made sure Nicole had a few outfits, but she really needs more and I was thinking I'd take the morning off to help you shop."

"You heard Tony. The bracelet isn't ready yet. I can't take Nicole out of the compound."

"I was thinking she could stay with Steve."

"I don't know. I'm not sure she's ready for me to leave her."

"You'd be leaving her with her father, Natasha. Don't you think Steve needs a chance to bond with her alone, too? You've had her to yourself."

Natasha looked down at her mug pensively. Pepper wasn't wrong. "I'll have to talk to Steve, and I won't go unless Nicole is completely comfortable."

"Fair enough. Come get me when your ready to go."

Unfortunately for Natasha, Steve jumped at the chance to have Nicole to himself and Nicole didn't seem to mind her leaving as long as Daddy would draw with her. Out of excuses, Natasha reluctantly left Nicole for the first time. She and Pepper picked up the necessities for her little girl, and Natasha picked up more suitable sleepwear for herself. She figured there was no reason to tempt fate, and her morning encounter with Steve was still on constant replay in her mind.

The entire shopping trip really happened in record time, and soon Natasha was walking into her quarters. She fully expected to find Steve and Nicole drawing together, but they were no where to be found. "Jarvis, where is Steve?"

"Mr. Rogers has taken Little Miss to the common area on the 1st floor, Ms. Romanoff."

Natasha quickly made her way downstairs. Before she could see Nicole, she could hear her. "Get him, Daddy. Good job."

Natasha picked up her pace and soon found them. The sight in front of her made her laugh. Steve and Clint were obviously having some kind of competition to see who could balance the most books on their heads, and Steve was winning.

Natasha laughed, and both men lost their concentration. Books fell in every direction. "What's going on?"

"Mommy!" Nicole exclaimed, jumping into Natasha's arms. "Daddy like a princess. Uncle Clint, too."

The two men stammered a little before Steve grinned sheepishly. "We were watching Sophia the First, and Sophia was balancing a book on her head. There weren't a lot of books in your apartment, so we came down here. Clint was here and, well-"

"You two decided to show your inner princesses," Natasha finished with a smile. "Well, while you two mighty Avengers clean up this mess, I'll be taking this little princess up for her nap." As they were walking towards the stairs, Natasha couldn't resist teasing Steve one more time. "Rogers, if I'd known you wanted to be treated like a princess, I'd have been trying to set you up with an entirely different group of suitors." Clint laughed hysterically, and Steve's face turned red. "Mission accomplished," Natasha grinned as she went up the stairs.

Not surprisingly, Steve joined Natasha about the time Nicole woke from her nap. The three of them spent the rest of the day similarly to the previous day. At bedtime, Natasha changed into her considerably more modest new pajamas and tossed Steve his blanket and pillow.

This became their standard routine over the next several nights. Sometimes, Nicole would sleep through the night and sometimes she would end up in Natasha's bed with Steve on her other side. There weren't any more mornings where Natasha found herself cuddling with Steve, and she wasn't completely sure whether she was relieved or disappointed.

Coulson's team had gone, and Nicole proudly wore the bracelet her Uncle Tony made for her even though Natasha and Steve were content to keep her safely on the compound property for the moment. Nicole was flourishing. She had bonded nicely with all of the Avengers and Happy, who Natasha thought was probably her favorite person outside of herself and Steve.

When Thor arrived to meet the little girl, Tony decided to have a party. It was a small gathering with just the Avengers and a few of their most trusted friends, and Happy agreed to watch Nicole so Natasha and Steve could spend time with them.

They had a good time. Natasha had a little more vodka than she probably needed, and she got a kick out of Steve when he got a little tipsy on Asgardian ale. By the time the duo made it back to Natasha's quarters and sent Happy on his way, there really was no denying that they'd both had a little too much to drink.

Steve followed Natasha to her room to get his pillow and blanket, and Natasha stood on her tiptoes to pull the blanket from it's shelf in the closet. Her perfect balance failed her and she fell back into Steve's strong arms. One look into his eyes and she was lost. She grabbed his head and kissed him, and he enthusiastically returned the kiss.

Soon, they were exploring each other's mouths and Steve gently laid her on the bed, never relenting in his passionate exploration. And, she had accused him of needing practice, she thought as they continued kissing. On some level, she knew they really needed to stop but she just didn't have the willpower to push him away.

Steve had managed to unbutton the top two buttons on her blouse before they heard Nicole crying. She quickly sat up and fastened the buttons. They looked at each other, both a little breathless, and she sighed. "She needs us," she whispered as she stood to get their daughter. Steve just nodded in understanding and followed her to the child's room.

Nicole's nightmare had ended and she was back to sleeping peacefully when they arrived, so they gently closed the door and moved back to the living room. Steve put his arms around Natasha's waist and pulled her back into his embrace, but Natasha pulled away.

"Steve, this was a mistake. We can't-" she paused, "this can't happen."

Steve gave her a puzzled look. "Nat, I know you think it's the alcohol, but you've got to see this has been coming for awhile."

Natasha shook her head. "We can't. If we do this, it'll destroy everything. Nicole needs us."

"This has nothing to do with Nicole."

"It has everything to do with Nicole. I get it. The attraction is definitely there, but Steve, attraction is just attraction. If we sleep together, it'll destroy our friendship. We won't be able to do right by our daughter."

"This isn't just lust, Nat. I know how I feel about you. I want a life with you and our daughter. I love y-"

"Don't say it. You don't love me. You love the idea of a perfect little family for Nicole. It's not the same thing."

"You're wrong, Nat. I know how I feel."

Natasha steeled her nerves and sighed. "I don't, I can't, feel the same, Steve. It's too much. I'm sorry. I just can't do this."

Steve looked away. "Okay, you don't feel the same. I'll have to respect that. I'm going to my quarters. If she wakes up-"

"You don't have to leave, Steve."

"I think I do. I'll see you tomorrow, Natasha." He paused at the door. "I meant what I said. I love you, and I think you love me, too, or you could if you'd just let yourself. Think about that."

Natasha crawled into her bed, not even bothering to change her clothes and suddenly very sober. It was impossible to sleep. "Why did you have to say it, Steve? Why did you have to ruin everything?" she cried into her pillow.

I know. One step forward, two steps back. Natasha thinks it's just lust, but we Romangers shippers know the truth. I guess it is probably way past time to warn you guys that this is a slow burn, huh?