It's early the next morning when Bucky feels Tony's breath at the nape of his neck. He glances at the red glow that's assaulting his eyes and fuck he's sore. Bucky's always laughs at the idea of sex hurting but realizes that's only because he's probably never had such amazing sex before. Right now his knees and elbows are sore, and not to mention his ass, and he just wants to go back to sleep but he realizes that it's the sound of thunder that wakes him. He sits up on his elbow, watching out the large windows as a flash of lightning splashes across the room. He flops back down and feels Tony shift against him, his breaths coming through his nose in soft puffs.

"Time's it?" Tony whispers, only to glance over Bucky's head at the clock on the bedside table. He settles back into the covers, his arm draped protectively over Bucky's thin hip. He doesn't miss being able to spoon with Steve because Bucky's small hip is a reminder of how much bigger Steve is. Sure, Bucky is taller than Tony by 3 inches, but he's lean for the most part and Tony loves the feeling of Bucky's hip bone pressing into his forearm.

Bucky isn't entirely coherent when he rests his hand over Tony's and interlaces their fingers. Tony refuses to hold hands in public, and for a very good reason, but in the privacy of the bedroom Bucky is more than welcome to hold Tony's hand and Tony finds it endearing that Bucky makes the choice to do so.

Tony feels a light shiver pulse through his body and scoots impossibly closer to Bucky and rests his forehead against the back of Bucky's head, his nose buried in the dark messy hair. He inhales deeply and a mixture of spice and musk and sex fills his nostrils. His cock twitches with interest and Tony's slightly irked because he was planning on going back to sleep. He inhales again, his instincts overpowering his intentions when he pulls his hand free and trails it down Bucky's bare torso.

Bucky's almost asleep again so he doesn't protest. His only reaction is to whimper softly when Tony's calloused hands brush against his flaccid cock. Tony takes it into his grasp delicately, his thumb pressing against the underside of the head, and his lips attach to the side of Bucky's neck. Bucky presses his ass back against Tony and groans, his muscles sore from hours ago, but the aching need is flaring again and he wants it. He needs it.

"Tony," Bucky murmurs, turning his face into the pillow, and it's a desperate plea that Tony can't ignore.

"Yeah," Tony mutters in compliance. "Okay."

He grunts as he reaches for the lube, cold and slick, and his fingers probe Bucky's tender hole. He's growing impatient and he should probably work a little longer at prepping but they're both growing impatient. Tony scoots down a little and angles his hips. They're both so sensitive when Tony pushes in and he wraps an arm around Bucky's torso, pressing kisses to his bare skin as he begins to thrust lazily. Soft moans fill the bedrooms and their shadows project on the wall with flashes of lightning.

Tony moves just a little so he can kiss the shell of Bucky's ear, breathing softly against his hair as they build a slow, steady rhythm together. "You like this?" he murmurs, biting at his earlobe lightly.

Bucky nods and cranes his neck for a kiss, breaking away only to whisper, "Love the way you fill me." And Bucky wishes he could just tell Tony how he feels but he isn't sure if he would be overstepping boundaries because he's sure Tony probably doesn't feel the same way. Or maybe he does but even if he does it's not like Tony would ever vocalize such a thing.

Bucky's fingers wrap around his thick cock and he breathes out slowly at his own touch because it's firm and he knows exactly what to do. Within a few strokes he's there and Tony's thrusts speed up with his own climax reaching. Blunt fingernails dig into Bucky's torso and Tony's there, coming in short spurts against the hot walls of Bucky's ass. His movement stills and Bucky is the first one to move. He pulls away from Tony and rolls over so that they're facing each other. He presses a soft, thorough kiss to Tony's mouth and breathes him in. Their breath smells horrible but they couldn't care less.

"Tony?" he whispers as he breaks the kiss.

"Hm?"

Bucky's chest swells and his heart is racing because he wants so badly to say what he's been holding in for a few weeks now but he can't. He just can't. He's tried and the words literally refuse to leave his mouth. "Uh…"

"Hm?"

"It's nothing."

"Tell me."

Bucky clears his throat hesitantly. "I was just gonna ask if you know when Steve's coming home." It's a lie because that is the last thing that Bucky wants to know about.

"Sometime this week."

He nods and scoots a little closer to Tony, resting his head on Tony's shoulder and his hand over the soft blue glow of his arc reactor.

Steve comes home on a Tuesday morning. He notices a change in Bucky's demeanor from the time he left but doesn't mention anything yet. Steve is downstairs in the lab with Tony and he's so glad to be home in familiar settings with his familiar husband when it's just the two of them.

"How did things go while I was away?"

Tony shrugs, spinning around in his office chair to look at Steve. "It was okay. Busted through a wall or two. Got it fixed, no big deal."

Steve sighs. "That's the third time in two months."

"It's fine!" Tony groans. "It's fine, Steve, no big deal."

"How much did it cost to fix this time?"

"Money isn't an issue."

"Okay but it matters because I asked you to stop engaging in activities that would result in you busting through walls."

Tony groans. "You're not even home for an hour and you start nagging me."

"Well I'm sorry, but I've asked you time and time again to cut that shit out."

"Steve, okay!" he says, exasperated. "Can you just chill?"

Steve isn't sure whether Tony is making jokes intentionally but the slight hint of a smirk on his face tells Steve that the joke is definitely intentional. Steve stands up and walks out of the lab despite Tony's begging pleas not to.

It's long past midnight and Tony is still awake and, of course, Steve is in bed by now but Bucky is still up, too. He comes down to the lab and approaches Tony at the work bench, wrapping an arm around his shoulders briefly and kissing his hair.

Tony acknowledges the gesture with a soft grunt and Bucky makes himself comfortable sitting on top of the table. "What's up with Steve?"

Tony shrugs and spins around in his chair. "He say anything to you?"

"Hardly anything. That's why I'm asking you if you know."

Tony shakes his head, pursing his lips. "Nope. No idea."

"Maybe something happened?" Bucky shrugs.

"Maybe."

There's a short pause before Bucky clears his throat. He sounds sort of nervous and unsure but Tony isn't really doing anything anyway, so Bucky says, "I ordered pizza. It should be here in a minute. Wanna play Xbox?"

Tony's thin lips curl into a smile and he allows Bucky to take his hand and drag him upstairs.

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" Steve asks when he strides into the living room dressed for a workout. The empty pizza box sits on the floor and Tony is sprawled across the sofa with his feet in Bucky's lap.

"Past midnight?" Tony guesses, judging by Steve's state of dress. He doesn't really know because they played Xbox for a few hours and then settled down to watch TV.

"It's six in the morning. Have either of you been to sleep yet?"

"Did you wake up to either of us next to you in bed?" Bucky quips. He regrets it as soon as it leaves his mouth because Steve doesn't look amused to say the least. He rolls his eyes and doesn't say anything else until right before he reaches the door.

"You two need to cut out the bullshit."

Tony groans but doesn't really pay much attention to his husband because he's actually tired now and wants to sleep with Bucky. He turns TV off and stands up, pulling Bucky to the bedroom with him.

They flop down without bothering to strip from their clothes and Tony fits behind Bucky so perfectly that he's convinced he was made to be there. He noses Bucky's hair and presses a soft kiss to the back of his neck, sliding an arm around Bucky's hip as if they could be any closer. And Tony is beginning to wonder why this feels so natural and why he prefers spooning with Bucky these days. Maybe it's just because Steve has been gone and Bucky is what he's used to now. Maybe it's because when Steve is home, all he does is nag Tony about things he needs to do or things he's already done. He doesn't think about it too much because the sleep is pulling him in just as intensely as Bucky is.