Author's Note: Hello Everyone, I am so sorry this took as long as it did. I just, had a really hard time writing this chapter. I hated it and deleted pages and pages of things I wrote because I just didn't like how it came out.
I also spoke with my husband and I finally have decided that there won't be a second story and that this one will just be a little longer than what I usually do as I don't feel like I have enough to have a whole second story arch and make it feel well rounded. I would rather have one slightly longer story than two shorter ones that I'm not completely happy with.
On that note Please enjoy Chapter 11!
I do warn you there is an erotic scene at the end.
Chapter 11
"Own, geez." Zaria hissed as she pushed the Emergency Medical Technician's hand away from her first. "I think you plucking the splinters out is making them hurt worse than leaving them there."
"Ms. Barnes, if you can just hold still a little longer I almost have them all out." Was the response from the Emergency personnel. He held her chin lightly as he plucked another wood fragment from the cut that went through her eyebrow.
The response to the burning building had been quick, but the firefighters were still working on putting out all the flames. Her floor had been evacuated and the collateral damage appeared to be minimum, which was a blessing, but her landlord didn't look all that pleased even if it was.
Zaria's injuries were minimal, smoke inhalation had her holding an oxygen mask to her face on and off while the EMT worked on her face and she had a split lip to match the slice on her face, but outside of those a few wood particles stuck to her were all that could be seen. Steve on the other hand was awash with injuries ranging from burns on his back to gauges in his arm and hands from when he dove to catch her; not to mention the smoke inhalation.
With the last splinter out of her face the EMT slapped on some butterfly bandages and claimed she was as good as he could get her without taking her to the hospital for a more thorough exam, which she had declined.
Zaria scanned the crowd of people that had gathered wondering if she would see a familiar face, and she did, except it wasn't the one she was expecting to see; Jimmy sneered at her from the crowd. The whole world seemed to fade away as she stared at him, shocked by his presence in the crowd, and wondered if maybe, just maybe, he had been the one to rig her apartment to explode.
Jimmy's gaze went to where Steve was sitting and for a moment Zaria could see the unbridled loathing he had for the other man making Zaria really wonder if this wasn't about Jimmy's new employer at all and more about the fact that he couldn't possess her anymore. It was chilling to think that this incident had nothing to do with her grandfather and everything to do with a jealous ex-boyfriend.
She stared at him until the press of bodies blocked him from view and she continued to scan the crowd. Somewhere during her staring at Jimmy Samantha and Clint had made their way to the front and were arguing with the police. Eventually two cops came over to her and Steve.
"Well looks like we've been asked to release you two. Seems like you have friends in high places." The older cop with the grayed moustache said as he eyed them critically.
Zaria hated cops for a number of reasons, one of them being how they always looked at her as if it was always her fault, even when it honestly wasn't. She huffed under their glare and crossed her arms. She knew the shtick and she didn't want to get into today.
"Ms. Barnes, could you give us a number that we could get in contact with you at? And if you wouldn't mind not leaving the state while we're investigating this."
"Well seeing as my apartment blew up and I don't own a cellphone I don't have a phone number you can reach me at. And where in the world would I go? Clearly I have no car or money to move anywhere else." She snapped.
The cops gave her a rueful expression. They obviously didn't like her response. "Then maybe you wouldn't mind coming down to the station and giving us a full report there?"
She rolled her eyes, she knew the routine. "Not in the back of one of your squad cars. I don't need to be vilified by the press. Besides, I know what happens when I get there. I'll be stuck in an interrogation room and interrogated for hours until I either "break" or give you false information just to get out of there."
"We could just take you down there as a suspect in the destruction of your apartment."
"And why in the hell would I want to blow my apartment, with myself and my friend included?" Zaria threw her hands up in the air. "You know what, I'm through. You can talk to me again after I get a lawyer."
"Now Ms. Barnes, that's not necessary if you're innocent." One of them chided.
"Shove off," she snapped. "I refuse to talk anymore without a lawyer."
"But until then we will still need to get in contact with you."
"You can have my number." Steve said. Zaria turned to look at him, he looked exhausted.
"And you can promise that if we call we can get in contact with her through you?"
"You can contact her through me until she gets a lawyer, then you can contact her through her lawyer." To Zaria he said, "I think Tony has some good lawyers on payroll that he can get you in contact with."
Steve exchanged his phone number with the cops as a few more uniformed officers made a hole to the car that was idling, waiting for them. The windows were heavily tinted in the back, a perfect way to not be seen by the newscasters that were prowling around the edges. Sliding off the gurney she had been sitting on, Zaria watched Steve as his movements were careful and deliberate so he didn't pull any of the tender skin on his back, but even with the slow movements he didn't reveal how much pain he was probably in.
"We'll be in touch." One of the cops said from behind them but Zaria resisted the urge to turn around and say or give them something rude, instead she moved ahead of Steve and got to the car first, pulling open the door and letting him in before she slid in and slammed the door shut quickly.
Sighing she sunk into the car's seats before she glanced over at Steve. Her mouthed opened to say something but Clint from the front seat cut her off.
"I've already told Fury that your placed was bombed. I assume we're all on the same page when we say that it was clearly the Winter Soldier that did it."
"No..." Zaria said, defeated by the whole conundrum, "it wasn't him. Not directly anyway, and I doubt he even okayed the plan to blow up my apartment, not really his style."
"Then who was it."
"My possessive, crazy, psychotic ex-boyfriend. James Rickshaw."
Clint caught her gaze in the rearview mirror. "You're going to have to explain all of this."
"Yeah, sure fine, whatever. Now or...?"
Clint hit a button on the car's console and the whole car started ringing.
"Fury." Nick Fury's voice shouted from all directions of the car.
"Fury, its Barton. Zaria claims she knows who blew up her apartment."
"We're already under the assumption that it was the Winter Soldier."
"It's not him." Zaria answered with exacerbation. "It's not something he would do."
"You're telling me that he wouldn't blow up something if it got him what he wanted?"
Zaria shrugged and realized that he couldn't see it. "He might, but he's an assassin, what good would it do him to blow something up? That's too obvious. All his other hits have been subtle, so subtle in fact that some of them are attributed to natural causes." That earned her a look from everyone in the car. She fought the urge to fidget. "Look, I know it wasn't him. It was a man named James Rickshaw who works for him. His criminal record is probably triple what mine is."
"And how do you know it was him?"
"I dated him. Or more like he decided we were dating and he made sure I stayed under his thumb and did whatever he wanted me to do. I saw him in the crowd when we were down with the EMTs. In a nutshell, the look on his face wasn't pleasant. It was him. I'm sure the Winter Soldier had no idea what was going on, he probably doesn't even know what Ji - James did." She stopped, considering something, and then paled.
"What?" Clint asked he was still watching her, quick glances in the rearview mirror.
"The cops are all this case. If, no when, he, my - the Winter Soldier finds out what happened he's going to take it personally. He's going to kill Rickshaw."
"Do you think he'd really do that? He did try to kill you himself."
"Yeah, but that was him taking control. I'm his blood, his property pretty much; he can do what he wants with me but if someone else does something to me against his wishes... It's not going to be pretty."
There was a long pause that made Zaria feel like Fury had hung up on them.
"Come back in and we'll discuss this."
"Actually, Nick, I think what would be best is for Steve to return to his place and rest. He has some minor burns and will need time to rest, and I also wondered if I might take Zaria shopping for clothing, a lawyer, a cellphone, undergarments..." Samantha cut in.
"Did you just say a lawyer?"
"Ah you heard that." Samantha sounded embarrassed although she didn't look it. "Well you know how law enforcement is, always looking at the victim as the suspect. So I just thought that it might be best if she had a lawyer the next time they try to get in contact with her."
Another pause and Zaria wondered what Nick Fury was thinking. "Barton, give Davenport the card. Rogers, go get some rest before you return to the ship. Davenport, I expect to see Barnes up on my ship in an hour."
Zaria nearly groaned, just barely suppressing it enough so that Fury couldn't hear her. She didn't want to be back on that ship, she had spent nearly a month on it as is and she wanted to get back to work as she was clearly behind on paying her bills.
"I told the officers that they could get in contact with Zaria through me so it might be best if she stays with me, at the very least until she can get a lawyer and give the police their number instead." Steve spoke up in a slightly strained voice.
Fury made a noise that sounded like displeasure, but since the logic was solid there wasn't much he could do. "Very well, see it done," then he clicked off the phone.
The rest of the day was a blur. After dropping Steve off at his classically beautiful and highly expensive apartment building, Samantha dragged Zaria around to several stores in search for "hip and mod" clothing. Several stores, and several very large bags later Samantha dragged both a very uncomfortable Clint and awkward feeling Zaria into a undergarment specialty store for perfect fitting bras and matching panties; she even bought some for herself.
Evening found Zaria hauling the bags of clothing into the elevator and up to the private entrance to Steve's apartment where she used the key that he had left with the doorman to unlock the front door, stepped in, shut the door and was stunned by the look of the apartment.
To her right was a long closet, or pantry is what she assumed since to her left was the large L-shaped kitchen. The kitchen itself was done in a modern design with an old classic feel. It was reminiscent of her kitchen but everything was high end making her wonder if Steve even really used it. Ahead there was an island that separated the kitchen from the large, expansive living room that was decorated in modern minimalistic furniture and decor. The living room itself was the size of her entire apartment and she felt a stab of jealousy before she wondered what she would do with so much space. This living room didn't feel like it was actually lived in, it felt staged for selling, her home felt lived in. Stepping further into the luscious apartment she sat her bags in a corner and glance down the hall to the left of the kitchen. There were three closed doors, one was the bedroom, one was a bathroom and one was a linen closet; or so she assumed. Since she hadn't seen Steve she guessed he was behind one of those closed doors. Turning back to the living room she finally noticed that the large bank of windows held a glass door that led to a wide balcony.
Passing quickly through the cold living room, Zaria tugged on the huge sliding door, it stuck. Scrunching up her face she examined the door and, realizing it was locked, flipped the latch before tugging on it again; it glided open in silence. Cold air rushed in making her shiver but giving her a feeling of exhilaration. It was almost like the wind that blew in brought life into the comfortless apartment. She breathed deep of the wintry air before stepping out onto the chilly cement balcony and gazed at the city. It was evening, the sun sinking behind the buildings and lighting up the glass towers around her with gold, red and orange light, making them sparkle like jewels in the industrial heart. Here, on the balcony, she was high enough that most of the ambient light didn't block her view of the stars that began to appear in the ink-black sky above. She sighed forlornly. The city would always be beautiful to her in its glittering industrial grime, it shone like gems stuck in muck of cave rock before it was polished to a bright sparkle, but nothing compared to the endless beauty of the sky over her childhood home that was buried deep in what felt like a forgotten part of the world. She had forgotten how much she missed those sky dusted skies living in her apartment but here on Steve's balcony she felt a tug to be living in the wild where she could stare the sky for hours as the dawn came and painted a true rainbow in the heavens.
Suddenly all thoughts stopped as the wheels in her brain finally caught up to information that it had apparently glossed over earlier. She wasn't at her apartment, she was at Steve's. This was Steve's apartment, not her's. Suddenly she felt completely embarrassed. She was staying with Steve, at his place, his refuge. Even if it was purely for the fact that the police would need to be in touch with her about the destruction of her apartment, she suddenly felt nervous, like she did when she was young and waited for the boy she liked to pick her up to go to the movies. She had the overwhelming urge to change into something nicer than the grubby track pants and tank top that smelled of smoke and burnt oil she still wore from earlier in the day. Quickly she stepped back into the living room and shut the balcony door before hurrying to the pile of bags in the far corner of the room to find something decent.
Rummaging through the clothing produced a sweater dress, knit tights a matching set of bra and panties, and a toiletry set that she hadn't realized Samantha had gotten for her. Silently thanking Samantha for being level headed enough to get her the toiletry set, Zaria quickly set off to figure out which of the closed doors was the bathroom. Four doors, left, center, and two on the right, stared at her as, with pursed lips, she tried to decipher them. She ruled out the middle one quickly as, under the view of the layout she could see, that was the best bet for a bedroom that fit the size of the rest of the apartment, leaving the right ones and the left for the bathroom. One of the doors on the right and the left one were the matching split doors that folded in the middle so it was easy enough to assume they were either closets or a washer/dryer set and a closet so that left the only other door on the right.
Opening the door revealed a fairly large bathroom done in black and white. The floors were done in black porcelain tile; the walls were in a white marble veined in silver/gray. One wall sported a double vanity in a black colored wood topped with a long rectangular white basin with two faucets that were a stainless steel while the other wall housed the separate tub that was a chic white porcelain square that butted up against the corner glassed in shower with a black backsplash. The opposite corner of the shower was the white toilet. It was modern and just as impersonal as the rest of the house. Even the towels seemed impersonal somehow. The only thing that felt like Steve was the small toothbrush holder that housed a toothbrush and razor.
Shivering at the cold feeling that she got from the room, she set her clothing on a hook on the back of the door before she turned a faucet on and searched for a wash cloth as she didn't really want to climb into the shower and run the risk of waking Steve up. Finding one, she set it under the now warm water issuing from the faucet to soak as she peeled off the dirty clothing and tossed them into the trash. Quickly she scrubbed herself with the washcloth, repeating several times before she felt that she was as clean as she could get while not taking a full shower. Finished with the sponge bath she rinsed the cloth out several times before hanging it on one of the bars on the vanity and letting herself air dry as she rummaged through the bag of toiletries. Pulling out a hair brush she ran it under the faucet, wetting the bristles, and ran it through her hair; repeating the process a few more times.
Eventually she felt clean and satisfied with her appearance so she pulled on the matching underwear set that was colored a soft powder blue then struggled into the knit tights, all the while wondering why women wore them when pants were much easier. Last was the sweater dress. It was cashmere with long sleeves and a cowl neck done in a rich peacock blue that made her eyes more blue than green. It tried around the waist with a matching strip of peacock blue cashmere. She had paused to look at it in the store for just long enough that Samantha insisted to the point of annoying that she try it on. Once it was on Samantha had decided Zaria would get it and set out getting items to pair with it, so the little peacock blue sweat dress had a full ensemble that she wasn't planning on putting on tonight.
Stepping back she looked at herself in the mirror. The dress clung to her, not in the way some of the outfits the girls wear that go to the bars on the weekends, but in a way that made her feel slim and tiny. She looked slight, feminine even in the cashmere dress and wondered if maybe she shouldn't have dressed up at all. She pouted at herself, she hadn't dressed up, and she was trying a new style, as Samantha had put it. So, she packed up her stuff and took it out of the bathroom, dropping it all into one of the bags before she padded quietly out onto the balcony again. Leaving the door open she braced herself on the balcony railing, closed her eyes, and breathed deeply the wintry air of New York.
"You're going to catch a cold." Steve's voice startled her enough that she jumped as she whirled around. He leaned against the open door frame of the balcony's sliding glass door. He was wearing a clean button up shirt and brown slacks with bear feet and hair that was tousled from sleep.
"You startled me." She said a little breathless, her heart racing.
"Sorry about that." His voice was gruff; from either sleep or the smoke she wasn't sure which. "You should come inside; you don't want to get a hole in those..." He waved his hands at her cream colored knit stockings.
"Stockings." Zaria helped. She pushed away from the railing and joined him at the door.
"Stockings." Steve repeated as he stepped aside to let her in. He shut the sliding door and locked it again. "You look nice."
"Thanks." Zaria answered nervously. "Samantha picked it out. Well, I guess actually I picked it out when I looked at it but Samantha made me buy it and she picked out everything else that's supposed to go with it. And... I'm totally rambling." She finished, her cheeks flushing.
"It's alright."
She wrung her hands in the silence that followed before she turned around to look at Steve. She was almost shocked again by the closeness to him and his appearance. That clean-versus-rumpled look made her heart stutter. "I, uh..." She cleared her voice. "I wanted to thank you."
"For?"
"Everything really." She paced away from him towards the couch, running a finger over the plush backing. "For saving my life, for sticking with me, for offering me your haven as a place to stay. I mean, I don't really know what you're thinking, but you've done so much for me." She turned around, splaying her hands before she clasped them behind her back. "So I wanted to thank you for it all. I also wanted to know what you've been thinking this whole time. You don't need to be so stoic about it with me. I can handle a little bit of bluntness you know."
Steve stared at her, seemingly surprised by what she said before he sighed, placing a hand on his hip and running the other through his hair messing it up even more; she had to resist the urge to run her own fingers through it. After a moment he sunk into one of the wingback chairs, resting his forearms on his knees. Silence followed his movement causing her to feel uncomfortable sitting so she perched on the sofa.
"I never agreed with Director Fury about what he wanted to do with you and B- Winter Soldier." He finally said as he looked over at her. "But when your leader says something, you do it. Whether you agree or not. I didn't think it was smart to use you as bait when clearly the last meeting didn't go so well."
Zaria bit her lip, she wasn't sure if she was supposed to agree or not so she kept her mouth shut and let him continue.
"I still can't believe that that man that I saw there trying to... trying to kill you is the same man I knew for so long. I think if there's a way to help him we should do it. Killing him is not the solution to this and I can't agree with your driving need to do so, but I also don't know your history outside of what Director Fury told everyone." He pushed himself up and started pacing. "I don't understand why someone could blow up your apartment; I don't get your hatred for the law enforcement. I don't know why you didn't tell me the truth from the beginning. Were you just trying to use me or was there more? I don't know which is the real you, the one who seems to hate the world or the one that I knew before the kidnapping. Why do you have to be so adamant about things being the way you see it versus the way Director Fury sees it or even the way it is? Why does no one want to believe that you're really not working for y- for Winter Soldier. Nobody seems to trust anyone and no one cares what anyone else thinks. This isn't working, it' can't keep going on like this!"
Zaria watched him pace and vent as she sat silently on the couch. She stood slowly and moved to the side as she wasn't sure if it were better for her to stand or to sit, even though he didn't appear to be paying attention to her anymore.
Steve noticed she moved and stopped pacing as if her movement made him aware of his own. He looked frustrated, flustered by everything he was ranting about. "I just don't un-"
Zaria cut him off as she all but jumped at him, pressing her lips onto his. She had no answers for his questions. No way of helping him deal with all of this confusion. So, she did what she could, she gave him a way to escape it. She had her hands on his chest, as she held her body at that moment just before falling against him from chest to legs.
He was stiff, surprised by what she had just done, and there was a moment where she wondered if he would push her away, but finally he softened. His lips melded to hers as his arms wrapped around her, pulling her that last inch where they were flush against each other. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she all but melted into him. This wasn't just an escape for him; this was an escape for her. All the emotions, the tensions, everything boiled to a head and bubbled over in the physical need to touch him. One of his hands tangled in her hair, the other held her waist tight against him and she tried not to moan, but she wasn't sure if she was successful as the feeling of him holding her so close was more amazing than anything she had felt in years; maybe even her lifetime. Hesitantly she run her tongue against his lips, wanting more, hoping for more, and when he parted his lips for her, she was ecstatic.
She was up on her toes, trying to delve deeper, their tongues dancing, clashing, with each other as they explored each other. Steve made a noise in the back of his throat before he pulled his hand from her hair, moved his arm to cup her backside, and hoisted her up, her legs around his hips, their lips still attached. It was more intimate now, her dress pooling around her hips, leaving her lower half all but bare and pressed into his hips. His belt buckle dug into her thigh and she shifted her weight, freezing almost instantly when she settled up against a very obvious bugle. Her mind started working again as she realized what was happening. Did she want to go that far? Did she want to push the boundaries of their fragile relationship? Everything in her screamed for more, cried out for that completion before total release, but what about Steve? What would it do to Steve if they left it up to the more animalistic hunger that was driving them. Would he allow himself to give in to that base need that she knew he felt just as much as her?
Slowly, unwillingly, she pulled her lips away from his. They were nearly panting, breathless from the driving need for more and the wonderful exhilaration that was coursing through them. She stared into his eyes, heavy with desire, and struggled to form the words she needed to say.
"Steve..." His name ended in a moan as his lips brushed across her neck. He was distracting her, maybe not on purpose, but suddenly she couldn't think of what was so important to say to him. The sensation of his lips on her skin washed all thoughts from her head.
"Zaria..." He rumbled against her collarbone in response. His lips found hers again and she was lost in the taste that was all him. He held her tightly, keeping her tight against him as he suddenly began navigating the living room, down the hall, opening a door, stepping inside and kicking the door shut behind him.
She was only partially aware of the fact that they were in his bedroom now. It wasn't until he climbed on the bed and laid her down gently, his weight settling against her, pressing her body down into the bed. Hips to hips, chest to chest, they were as close as they could get without the removal of clothing. Tugging, she pulled his shirt from his pants and ran her fingers up and under, shuddering at the feeling of his skin against her palms, but it wasn't enough, so she undid the buttons and stripped him on it.
Steve pulled back far enough to pull the tie on her dress as his hands snaked up under it to push it up her body. She lifted her hips to let the dress past and his palms brushed the bare skin of her sides. He lifted her up, breaking their contact to pull the dress from her body before he dropped it to the side. He laid her back on the bed as he moved down the bed, his hands skimming her skin, before they stopped on her stockings. His eyes caught hers as his fingers slipped around the hem of the stockings and slowly rolled them down. She shivered under the intensity of his gaze, biting her lip at the sensation of his knuckles brushing down her legs. He moved to the side as he finally freed her legs from her knit stockings and gazed down at her. Suddenly she was nervous, laid nearly bare before him, letting him see all her imperfections and scars, it made her feel like she wanted to cover up again.
"You're beautiful." He murmured as he undid his belt and shucked his pants before he moved up to her, laying on his side to run his fingers over her bare skin, her muscles twitched as he touched more sensitive spots. Desire burned in his eyes and he was suddenly on top of her again, his lips crushing hers. He pulled her hips flush against his as he gently lifted her up and unhooked her bra. Now they were bare chest to bare chest, this light dusting of golden chest hair scraped her sensitive nipples lightly in a pleasurable way causing her to moan softly against his lips. She rocked her hips against his almost unconsciously and he groaned sending pleasant shivers through her body, tightening things low in her belly.
Suddenly she needed more, now, fast, and as much as she wanted to explore everything there was about him she knew that if she didn't have that completion, that deep pulsating satisfaction that would only come from a full merging of two bodies. So she took control, changing the kiss to something more primal, as she shifted her weight and pushed Steve back onto the bed. She pulled her lips from his for a moment as she pulled her panties off and carefully removed his boxers. Her lips were back on his before he could process what was happening as she settled her weight to either side of his body.
Then he was there, everything that made him male poised at the point where if she just settled her weight into his hips he would be flush inside her. She needed it, craved it, desired it, and wanted it more than she had wanted, desired, needed, craved anything else before, but her mind roared back at her. She couldn't do this to him, not if it might make him regret it later, so with great pains she held herself from that last moment, that last drive, and pulled her lips from his.
"You can tell me no." She whispered breathlessly. "You can tell me to stop. We don't have to do this if this wasn't what you wanted."
Instead of answering he put his hands on her hips and thrust into her, sheathing himself deep inside her body in one full, hard movement and she cried out in ecstasy. Her body convulsed around him as if it were having a mini orgasm, making her realize how long it had been since she had a true release, a true melding of bodies in that moment of pure joy, and she wondered how long she would last before she lost herself to the pure, raw, animalistic ecstasy that this moment was giving her. "If there was any doubt in my mind I would have stopped." His voice was gruff against her ear.
"Then let me show you what I want." She answered as she nipped his ear and moved her hips against his.
It wasn't long just as she knew it would be, he was just so filling, he thrust so deep, and her body had wanted him for longer than she was aware of; she was sure it wouldn't be long for him either as there was clearly something driving their need higher than she had ever felt it go before. His hands held her hips, rocking her against him as she came down and their hips met. He groaned, pulling her down tight as he swelled and filled her more than she ever thought he could.
"Zaria." His voice was gruff with need as he lifted her off and thrust in as deep as he could go, deeper than he had before, to the point where he butted up against the end of her, in a moment of release. She cried out in both pain and pure rapture, the world all but shattering around her as she herself rode a release that was better than anything she had had before.
She fell against him, breathing heavily as the tremors subsided. He held her to him as they enjoyed the moment. They laid there silently, resting as they struggled to bring the world back to normal. He kissed her forehead before he rolled her over, laying her gently beneath him, pulling himself from her body slowly; she shuddered.
"This time." He murmured. "I want to take it slower."