A/N: so to my own surprise, I managed to get another chapter of this little story done a couple days ago :D hopefully this will serve as a nice distraction for all the angst that I've been dumping on Life After Death readers for the last two months or so lol. The next chapter is planned out and will be focusing on Loki and Aemilia, continuing the tradition of shifting between the two couples with each chapter :) hope you guys enjoy, and I'll try to update soon! :D
It was a sunny and almost warm late morning in New York as Summer headed to her favorite little coffee shop, her laptop in tow and a number of ideas swirling through her head as she debated what to write for her latest article. It wasn't due for another week, but she had woken up that day in the mood to write and she knew herself well enough to take advantage of such a mood when it struck. Thus coffee shop, people watching, and hopefully a few hours of productive writing.
There was just nothing like New York City when it came to this sort of thing, and it was one of the reasons why Summer was hooked on the city. Some days she felt like Carrie Bradshaw, flitting about the city with her fabulous friends and building her writing career, and well, what more could a modern woman hope for?
Once she arrived at her favored coffee shop, she set up her laptop in her usual little corner booth and then headed up to the counter with her purse to order her coffee. She was third in line, so she texted a handful of friends while she waited. Aemilia had already been up for several hours, workaholic that she was, and after making tentative plans for lunch with her, it was finally Summer's turn to order her usual iced cinnamon latte.
It only took a few moments for her drink to be made, and once it was up, she grabbed the cup and then turned around with her eyes still glued to her phone. Not watching where she was going, she then proceeded to smack face-first right into someone rather tall and firm, dropping her phone to the floor upon impact but luckily saving her drink from spilling. Or maybe not so luckily.
"Frick!" She exclaimed, backing up as quickly as she could as her face reddened in embarrassment. "I am so sorry, I wasn't looking and I -"
"... Summer?"
She blinked and then looked up, eyes widening when she realized just who she had literally run into. Cheeks heating up even more, she all but squeaked, "Bucky?"
"Hey," he smiled, looking a bit embarrassed too but as handsome as ever. He was dressed a little too warmly for the weather, in jeans and an unnecessary dark blue jacket, and his hair was a beautiful mess on top of his head. Then he glanced down at the floor where her phone still was and instantly frowned. "Oh, shit."
She watched as the man who had been her two closest friends' last "birthday present" to her reached down and picked up her phone, the screen of which was now unfortunately shattered. She gasped when she saw the screen and then groaned in dismay, "Aw, crap! No," she whined, taking the phone from his hand and examining it as if she could will the damage away. "This thing is only like three months old and I don't even have insurance on it..."
"I am so sorry," he said sincerely, looking at her phone in mild horror. She looked up and then upon seeing the sad, slightly panicked pout on her face, he asked, "You don't have insurance for it?"
She shook her head and groaned, "No, because I was trying to be cheap. Frick me,"
He chuckled at her wording and then said, "Well, shit, I feel awful. I'm sorry. Look, let me make it up to you. Why don't I go ahead and call and make an appointment to get the screen fixed, and I'll foot the bill?"
Her jaw nearly hit the floor. She was still in shock that he was even there at all and that she was talking to him, and now he was offering to pay to fix her phone? What?! "Oh, you don't have to do that. It's fine, I'll... I'll manage, I'll figure something out."
He tilted his head to one side a little and chuckled, "Summer, no. I insist."
"But it's gonna be expensive," she argued.
He shrugged. "Don't worry about it. I feel awful, and doing this will make me feel a lot better."
She fidgeted a bit on her feet and bit her lip, torn between taking him up on his incredibly kind offer and refusing like the idiot she was. He made the decision for her by plucking the phone from her grasp and smiling, then pulling out his own phone from his pocket to call the Apple Store. She opened her mouth to protest, but he hushed her right up by telling her, "You look gorgeous today, by the way."
Just that one sentence made her feel entirely too many things at once to be acceptable. Blushing yet again, she smiled back at him and then tried not to squirm when the other line picked up and he started talking and making the appointment. She was still in shock, and he was literally the last person that she had expected to run into that day or really any other day. It was a big city after all, but fate sure had humorous ways of working sometimes.
The last time that she had seen him had been a few months before that, when she had met up with Bucky at a bar to set up Aemilia's little birthday present of her own. It had been all business until the very end, when they'd each downed a few drinks and started flirting and making small talk, which led to him offering to walk her home and, once they'd arrived at her building, escorting her to her door. That in turn led to Summer being gutsy and pulling him in for a whiskey-tinged kiss goodnight, and that, of course, inevitably led to both of them stumbling through her door with hands moving everywhere and lips moving frantically together. She joked on their way to her room that she'd still pay him for his services if he wanted, and he told her that this one was "on the house" before pushing her against her bedroom door and sinking down to his knees in front of her. Just like their first night together, it had been quite a night to remember.
But she hadn't heard much from him since then, and that was mostly because neither one of them really knew how to interact in ways that didn't end with their clothes off and bodies tangled together in bed. She didn't feel like she knew him well enough to just text him a friendly hey what's up, and for his part, Bucky had no idea how to even begin to pursue any kind of relationship with a woman that he'd first met as a client. He found her fascinating and absolutely incredible, but he very much doubted that she wanted anything to do with a man of his profession beyond what they had already done.
But now here they were again, brought together by coffee, a broken phone and one hell of a coincidence, and Summer watched in lingering disbelief as Bucky thanked the Apple employee for their help before hanging up his phone.
"Okay," he said, turning back to her and slipping his phone back into his pocket, "they're gonna look at your phone in a few hours. The guy said they'll probably be able to have it fixed by tomorrow morning, so you'll only have a day without your phone."
"Seriously, you don't have to do this," she said, trying one last ditch effort to refuse his generous help. "I've got some savings. I can pay for my own phone. I'm the one who dropped it."
"But I'm the one who caused you to drop it in the first place," he told her with a grin. "It's already done. I won't take no for an answer."
She sighed and muttered, "But it's not gonna be cheap and..."
He laughed a little bit. "Well, I've got a pretty well-paying job, so... I think I can afford to fix something I helped to break."
The mention of his job made her cheeks heat up all over again, and that also happened to be the moment that she gave in and realized that there was no use in trying to refuse his help. He was just impossible like that. "Okay, fine, but... then at least let me buy your coffee."
"Deal," he chuckled. Less than ten minutes later, they were both sitting in Summer's favorite little booth and having a chat over her closed laptop and their cups of deliciously opposite sorts of coffee. Hers was ice-cold and sweet, and his was extra hot and black, and somehow both choices seemed strangely fitting for each of their drinkers.
This was the first time that they had ever sat down and spoken with nothing relating to his work bringing them together, whether for her sake or for that of her friend, and while at first Summer had been worried that the conversation would be awkward and strained, it was nothing of the sort. In fact, she found that she could possibly talk to him all day long and not feel the slightest sense of unease.
"I really am sorry about the phone," he chuckled, both of them about halfway done with their drinks. "I'm useless before I've got caffeine in me and I honestly didn't see you."
"No, no, it was my fault," she insisted with a smile. "Apparently I'm one of those idiots who would end up getting hit by a bus because I'm too busy trying to text or read a stupid Facebook post to watch where I'm going."
"Well, I'd much rather you run into me and not a bus," he replied with a grin. "I gotta say, aside from the phone incident, I'm glad I ran into you today. Literally."
She giggled a little bit, mentally scolding herself for letting such a sound escape her lips but she just couldn't help it. "Really?"
He nodded and took another sip of his slightly less-scalding hot coffee. "Yeah. Why do you look so surprised?"
She smiled and shrugged. "I don't know, I guess I just... um... well, I'd assumed you'd forgotten about me a long time ago, so..."
He made a face and set down his coffee cup with slightly wider eyes. "Are you kidding me?"
She blushed and shrugged again, a bit more jerkily this time. "Well, what I really mean is... you probably aren't used to seeing your, um... previous clients outside of... a, um... work environment."
He laughed at her choice of words, finding her utterly adorable. "Well, to a degree, yeah, that's true. But you're hardly my typical client."
"Really? How?" She asked, curiosity piqued.
"Well, for one, you're younger than me," he chuckled.
"Oh," she replied, eyes getting a bit bigger. "So most of your ladies are older?"
"Most of them," he nodded. "I'm not talking bingo night at the senior's club old," he added, making Summer laugh and almost choke on her coffee, "but yeah, older. Not a lot of younger women have the money or the desire to pay for an escort."
"Yeah, that makes sense," she nodded. "So these older clients of yours... do you get a lot of, um... regulars? Or is it new ones every week? And please stop me if I'm being rude or you don't want to answer any of my ridiculous questions."
"No, no, it's fine," he smiled. "Yeah, I've got a couple of 'regulars', I guess. But I get a decent amount of new clients, too. I stay busy."
She couldn't imagine doing the sort of job that he did, and her mind was suddenly swirling with questions that she just couldn't hold back any longer. "Okay, I've gotta ask. Because on the one hand, I bet a ton of guys would love to have your job, but then on the other, like... what do you do and how do you, um... perform... if you get a client that you're seriously not into?"
He laughed again. "Oh man. Well, yeah, I mean... not every situation is ideal, I'll admit, but... we all have our ways of getting through it. The thing is, I can always find at least one beautiful thing about any woman, no matter how young or old she is. And no matter what my preferences are, I'm a firm believer that every woman deserves to feel good and be treated well, so... I make it work."
God, was this man even real? "Wow. That's... that's good to hear. Really, I mean that. Not a lot of men would say what you just did."
He grinned. "Well, thanks."
She smiled back, and then her next question all but flew out of her mouth. "So do you only cater to women or do you also see men, too?"
"Oh, only women," he quickly answered. "Yeah, definitely only women."
"So you draw the line at dudes?" She chuckled.
"... More like I draw the line at what would be expected of me by the vast majority of potential male clients," Bucky replied, and Summer couldn't help but crack up laughing. He laughed with her, finding the sound utterly contagious. "Now, I have been hired with other guys before, but... that comes with the territory in my line of work."
"Oh, so you mean like..."
"Threesomes, foursomes," he shrugged casually, as if he was discussing a recipe or something else equally mundane. When Summer's eyebrows shot up and all but disappeared into her hairline, Bucky grinned and then added, "Those are always fun."
She felt like she might spontaneously combust if he kept talking about these things. "They are?"
"Oh yeah. My first one was with this one lady in her lower 40's who had just finalized her divorce from her jerk of an ex-husband, and she used his first alimony payment to pay for two of us to spend a whole weekend with her in the Hamptons."
Summer's eyes just kept getting bigger. "Holy... crap." The wheels turned in her head for a moment before she suddenly half-gasped and asked, "Did you ever get, um... hired with Loki?"
"... Yeah, he was the other guy she hired," Bucky chuckled. "She had a girlfriend of hers who showed up the second night, so it was... yeah, it was interesting."
"Oh my gosh," Summer groaned, dropping her head down into her hands and letting out a strangled sound that made Bucky smile so widely that his cheeks hurt. Then her face flew up and she said, "So that's why you were going on and on about what a good kisser he is! You have firsthand knowledge."
He shrugged rather than denied it. "Gotta do what it takes to make the client happy. You know that."
Indeed she did. She smiled and looked down, avoiding the playfulness and slight flirtatiousness of his gaze, and after she took a few more sips of her drink, one more question came to mind. "You don't have to answer this if you don't want to, and if it's rude then just ignore me, but... can I ask how you got started doing this? Because you don't really seem like a... uh... like a... I guess what I mean is -"
"I understand," he said, still highly amused. "And yeah, no, I didn't wake up one day and say man, looks like a great day to start a successful new career as a whore."
Her jaw hit the floor again. "For the record, I did not use that word."
He laughed again. "Yeah, well, it's kind of what it is, though. Can't really deny that. But yeah, it started out as a way to get some extra cash to pay for my school and medical bills for a friend of mine who didn't have insurance at the time."
"Oh," she said quietly.
"My best friend, he's a lot healthier now but a couple years back it got pretty bad and he was in the hospital with all kinds of things wrong with him. I barely had money to eat and he had even less, and he needed all of these expensive medicines and treatments and I just had no idea what to do. They were gonna kick him out of the hospital and make him go to this run down clinic instead, so I had to do something. Loki - I've known him since I started college - told me he could throw some... business my way to help pay for the hospital bills, and since I had literally no other options, I did it. And by the time they released my friend, everything was paid for and we weren't even in debt to them for a single breathing treatment."
"Wow," Summer marveled. "That's... wow."
He nodded. "After that I figured I'd quit, but then I started thinking, you know... I could stop taking loans and pay my way through school, get me and my friend a better place to live, save up and have something to fall back on if he got sick again..."
"Right, makes sense," she nodded.
"So that's what I did," he finished with a slightly humorous grin. "I'm working on my Master's right now, and once I've got that and a job doing what I've actually gone to school for... then I'll quit. For real this time."
"Oh wow. What's your degree in?"
"Linguistics," he replied. "I've also got a Bachelor's in Mathematics."
Her eyes shot wide open. "Ew. I mean, that's great and wow holy crap you must be like extremely, disgustingly smart, but math - ew."
He laughed out loud, and the sound made her feel a lot warmer inside than she knew it should have. "It's not for everyone. I've just always liked numbers. And language. Thus the degrees," he grinned. "Problem is finding an actual job with either one of those."
"Really? I mean, I could see linguistics being a little bit limiting, but I bet you could do a lot with the math one."
He squinted and grimaced. "I could, in theory, but you know the whole dilemma of most jobs wanting experience and therefore it being almost impossible to get your foot in the door anywhere. I've hit that wall more times than I can count."
"Oh yeah, I know exactly what you mean," Summer nodded. "With my writing, it took me a couple years of working two or three jobs at once before I finally found somebody willing to pay me decently to write."
"Your column?" he asked.
"No, Buzzfeed," she laughed, and then he laughed as well. "I know what you're thinking and yes, I know that makes me kind of a sellout, but it paid the bills and it was a stepping stone to my current job. And I still write for them occasionally for extra cash, so..."
"Well, I'm literally the last guy in New York who'd ever judge you for how you pay the bills," he said wryly. "Besides, Buzzfeed isn't that bad. It once told me that Matthew McConaughey was my soulmate, so how bad can it be?"
She laughed so heartily that she got a few looks from a handful of other patrons. He was so funny and she got on so incredibly easily with him that it was easy to forget how they'd first met and how awkward she'd felt only a matter of moments before. She felt like she could talk to him for hours, and his natural charm that radiated off of him was even better than the sexually charged persona he displayed on both nights that she'd spent with him. She wondered what the real him was like underneath it all, despite the fact that she knew she should probably not be wondering about such a thing.
"By the way," he told her after her giggles died down, "I looked up your column online awhile ago. It's good. You're good."
As was becoming her habit whilst speaking to him, her eyebrows shot up on her forehead. "Really? You read it?"
He nodded casually. "Yeah, I was curious. And you're funny. Like some of your topics are pretty heavy and you still managed to make me laugh a couple times. That takes some real talent."
She blushed and humbly thanked him, having not expected that at all. He simply smiled at her and then let a comfortable moment of silence pass before he asked, "So, any more questions for me? Might as well get them all out while you can."
She took a deep breath and looked at him in contemplation. "Hmm... okay, yeah, I've got one more. Have you ever had feelings for a client?"
Something about that question made him look down at the table and smile to himself before looking back up to her. "Well, I've never fallen in love with one or anything, but... yeah, there was one who really... stood out. Made me want to get to know her better."
"Really?" She smiled.
He nodded, looking at her in a way that was a bit different from before, but she couldn't pinpoint how. "Yeah."
"So did you?"
"Maybe," he mused. "I'm having coffee with her right now."
Oh. Oh.
Speechless, Summer stared at him as she let those words and the accompanying realization sink in. This was... unexpected, to say the very least, and she had absolutely no idea of how to react.
Bucky, meanwhile, was very possibly mistaking her silent shock as a negative reaction. He looked at her carefully, eyes flitting over her features and trying to gauge what she was thinking, and he had a moment of sheer panic where he was sure that he'd said the wrong thing and that she was about two seconds away from running for the hills. And he couldn't blame her if she did, because what woman would be interested in getting to know a guy like him in any significant, not purely sexual way?
"Um..." she finally squeaked out with a little smile, cheeks on fire, "I, uh... wow."
He immediately started backtracking. "I'm sorry if I - I probably shouldn't have said anything. Just... forget I said that."
She blinked in confusion, her own heart threatening to sink. "Why?"
"Just..." He shook his head and then laughed in a poor attempt to play it off. "I understand."
She was now thoroughly lost. "Understand what?"
"I probably overstepped just then," he muttered. "And I know that with what I do, it's... let's just forget I said anything and..."
"Oh gosh, wait a minute," she insisted, suddenly feeling horrible for how she had accidentally made him feel. "I was just speechless, that's all. I wasn't... I didn't think what you're thinking, trust me. I want to get to know you, too."
The look of surprise that dawned on his features was as adorable as it was saddening. Clearly, he didn't think that a man of his profession had any hope of a meaningful relationship, maybe even friendship, with a woman outside of his work. "... You do?"
"If I didn't, do you think I'd be sitting here for the last hour talking your ear off and asking you every annoying question under the sun?"
He chuckled, looking as relieved as he was surprised. "Yeah, fair enough. I just thought... I don't really know what I thought, but... okay. That's a relief. I thought I'd just made a huge ass of myself."
"No, no," she assured him, "and anyway, I beat you to that punch already by breaking my phone like an idiot."
"Speaking of that," he said, checking the time on his very much non-broken phone, "we should probably start heading to the phone place soon. It'll be about time for your appointment by the time we get there."
"Okay," she nodded, grabbing her computer bag where it laid next to her on her seat so that she could load up her laptop and get ready to leave.
When he saw this, Bucky frowned and said, "I didn't keep you from getting work done, did I?"
"No," she quickly answered before pausing and smiling. "Well... kind of, but that's totally okay. I've got plenty of time before my deadline. Kinda. But I'll be fine. I write fast."
"Shit, I'm sorry," he said sheepishly, looking genuinely stricken at the thought of delaying her getting work done. "You should have said something."
"Oh no," she scoffed as she zipped up the computer bag. "Trust me, I regret nothing. I can write later."
"You sure? Deadlines can be a bitch," he remarked as she finished up gathering her things.
"Totally sure. I've got a week, so I'll be fine," she said as she stood up and grabbed her cup to throw it away. "Ready?"
He nodded and stood as well, smiling and telling her, "After you."
Feeling like her smile was stuck on her face like duct tape, Summer turned then and led the way, tossing her empty cup on the way out. Once they walked out of the coffee shop, Summer looked to the street to wave down a taxi, but a soft tug on her arm directed her to a small black car parked next to the sidewalk.
"Over here," Bucky said, pulling car keys from his pocket and guiding her towards the car.
"You have a car? Here? In NYC?" she asked, even more impressed than she had already been.
Sliding on a pair of dark sunglasses before he opened the passenger side door for her, he grinned and said, "Well, like I said, my job has its perks, and money is one of the big ones."
"I'll say," she chuckled as she slid into the car, which wasn't the newest model available but was clean and well-kept from what she could see of it. That was in stark contrast to the truck she'd owned back home in Virginia, which had been a veritable pig sty of empty fountain drink cups and fast food bags.
Once he had gotten behind the wheel, they were off and headed to get her phone fixed. Summer still wasn't sure how this had even happened in the first place, but she definitely wasn't complaining in the slightest. As broken phones went, this was by far the best case scenario that she could have imagined.
After dropping off her phone to be repaired and getting a loaner phone in the process, Summer found that she couldn't turn down Bucky's offer to grab lunch before he took her home. On their way to a place that he loved and that she'd never been to before, she texted Aemilia from her temporary phone and quickly filled her in on what had happened so far that day.
Aemilia's reply brought an instant smile to her face. Are you serious? Omg and now you're having lunch with him? How utterly scandalous :D
Smile plastered on her face, Summer quickly typed a reply and Bucky glanced over and took note of the silly grin she was wearing. "Something funny?"
"Oh, I'm just talking to my friend," Summer replied. "Same one I needed your help to, um... pick out a present for."
"Right," he grinned. "You know, she left a pretty big impression on Loki. It's been a month or two and he still can't stop talking about her."
"Really?" Summer all but gasped, eyes as wide as saucers.
"Oh yeah," Bucky nodded as he waited at a red light. "I mean, he doesn't go around broadcasting details or anything, but it was definitely one of the highlights of his career. And usually, you know, he's a tough guy to impress, but from what I can tell, she definitely got into his head a little bit."
"Oh wow," Summer grinned. "Well... don't tell him this, but... the feeling is definitely mutual. Like... yeah."
Bucky grinned at her and then chuckled as he turned back to the road. "You know, from what you told me about her and what I know about him, which is a lot, they'd seriously make a good match. His job aside, man... I think he'd really go for it if he had the chance."
Summer smiled almost excitedly, unable to help but feel a little giddy just at that very suggestion. "Well... I mean, I think they should at least talk and get to know each other. Because why not?"
"I agree," Bucky nodded, unable to think of a single reason why they shouldn't.
The question was how to make such a thing happen. Surely if the two of them were so enamored with each other, all they'd need was a little push...
"Ooh! I have an idea!" Summer suddenly chirped. "Aemilia has this big show coming up with the Met - like huge, she's playing the Queen of the Night and it's gonna be awesome and yeah, whoa and I can't even pronounce the name of the opera - but anyway, so here's what I'm thinking. If you wanted, you could come with me to see it, and you can just casually invite Loki along, too. I'll get the tickets and take care of everything. If you want. And if you think it's a good idea."
Having just arrived at the cafe and parked just outside of it, Bucky took off his sunglasses and turned to her with amusement etched plainly on his face. "Did you just ask me out on a date?"
Summer stared back at him with wide, suddenly nervous eyes, then stuttered, "I, uh... maybe?"
"Relax," he chuckled, turning off the car and taking the keys out of the ignition. "I'd love to go with you."
Summer smiled happily, feeling little flutters in her belly from the way that he looked at her before he opened his door and then got out to lope around and open her door. She took a deep breath, telling herself to keep steady and not lose her head, because after all... this was still a fairly complicated situation and there were quite a few things to consider.
But she didn't dwell on those potential issues as they sat down to have lunch together, and soon she was laughing and lost in conversation all over again. The more that she and Bucky talked the more they clicked almost effortlessly well together, and she didn't think that she'd ever gotten along with a man so well as she did with him. For someone who always stressed out about talking to people she didn't know well and not making a fool of herself, she felt shockingly comfortable with him and was incredibly disappointed when the meal came to an end and they had to leave.
By that point, she had spent nearly four hours with him and yet she still wasn't ready to part ways with him. He seemed to be on the same page, and when they left the little cafe and he drove her back to her place, he once again offered to walk her to her door even though it was broad daylight and his gesture was pretty darn unnecessary. But she accepted his offer while her belly continued to flutter almost madly, and then they were once again making the short trek up to her third floor apartment.
"So if you want," Bucky said as they walked up the stairs, "I can pick you up and take you to get your phone in the morning."
"Oh, you don't have to do that," she replied, turning as they took the last flight of stairs up. "Really, you don't. You've already helped me way more than you should have."
He shrugged like it was absolutely no issue and replied playfully, "Well, I got to spend almost the whole day with you in return, so I think I made off pretty well."
She blushed and looked away, biting her lip and trying to stop smiling before her face froze that way. Before she knew it, they were standing in front of her door, and she was holding her keys in her hand and looking up at him a bit shyly as she tried to figure out a way to say goodbye.
"So, um... I'll text you the details about the opera and everything," she told him, trying not to fidget too much. He, on the other hand, looked like the picture of casual calm, hands in his jean pockets and shoulders back as he nodded and smiled.
"Yeah, I look forward to it," he replied, watching her fingers play with her keys in an attempt to do something. Then he met her gaze again and told her, "I had a good time today."
"Me too," she smiled. "Aside from the broken phone and all."
"Yeah, you should be more careful," he teased. "Try not to run into any other guys. And definitely don't let them talk you into spending the whole day with them after."
"Why not?" She asked him playfully, unable to handle the irony of him perhaps not wanting her to entertain other men when he literally entertained women for a living. Then again, the situation was quite complicated, and she had a feeling it was only going to get even more complicated if they continued seeing each other more.
"Just don't," he murmured before leaning in close and nearly making her heart stop. Her breath hitched when he placed a small, almost innocent kiss on her cheek, and after he let it linger for a moment, he drew back just enough to look her in the eyes as her heart nearly pounded out of her chest.
She should let him go, she knew. They didn't need to do this again. She should stop and take a breath and try to just be friends with him and see where it led. That was the smart, logical thing to do.
Then again, she never claimed to make decisions based solely on logic.
She leaned up on her toes and kissed him softly on the lips, making his eyes close and body drift closer to hers with the small, sweet touch. He kissed her back just as softly, and then when she felt his hand on her cheek and fingers brush her hair back behind her ear, she kissed him again, and she let him gently tilt her head to the side so he could kiss her a little more deeply.
They kissed like that for a few moments, standing outside of her door and getting caught up in each other even though they had both been trying to resist the physical pull between them. But the problem was that Summer had never felt the way that she felt with Bucky with any other man ever before, and for his part, Bucky hadn't felt so genuinely passionate about a woman since... well, it had been a very long time.
Bucky broke the kiss first, turning his head and mumbling against her hair, "I swear I didn't walk you up here to try to come in. I'm trying to do this right but you're so fucking beautiful..."
He kissed her again then, as if he just couldn't help himself, and Summer tried not to gasp. "It's okay," she said in between breathless kisses, free hand now buried in his hair while the other still clutched her keys. "I was trying to control myself, too."
He groaned and kissed her again, tongue sliding perfectly and needy against her own and making the butterflies in her stomach rapidly multiply, and she suddenly forgot why she'd been trying to resist in the first place. She blindly reached behind her and tried to get her apartment key in the correct hole, but with him kissing the hell out of her and her barely able to focus on anything but the heat of his mouth and the slight press of his hips against hers, she didn't have a popsicle's chance in hell of unlocking the door. Once Bucky cracked an eye open and caught sight of what she was trying to do, he broke the kiss and covered her hand with his, easily helping her finally get the key in and get the door unlocked. Then as the door swung open, he asked her slightly gruffly, "You sure?"
She nodded and answered him further by pulling him down and kissing him again, dragging him inside. He kicked the door shut behind him, and she broke away and said, "Unless you've got another appointment somewhere."
He shook his head and quickly shed his jacket, letting it drop to the floor and then putting his hands back on her waist as he kissed her again. "It's my day off, actually."
She couldn't help but giggle against his lips and then yelp with surprise when his hands slid lower and grasped her hips so he could pick her up, carrying her the rest of the way to her bedroom. He kissed her the whole way there, groaning hungrily and then slamming her against the door long enough to hold her there and fumble around for the doorknob. Once he found it and opened the door, they stumbled inside and thus began a rather long and blissful - not to mention unexpected - afternoon in bed.
There were definitely a lot of questions still swirling through her mind - and his - and matters to be addressed and settled at some point, but it was far easier to leave all of that for another day and get caught up in each other. They didn't know what exactly they were starting and what it meant, but one thing was for sure - whatever it was, they both wanted it badly.
Later that night, long after Bucky had gone and Summer had thrown together a quick dinner for herself and fed the stray cat who liked to come to her window and meow until he got what he came for, she found herself wearing a cute little dress and drinking cocktails with her two best friends at their favorite bar. It wasn't their usual night for drinks, but, well, both Aemilia and Natasha very much wanted to hear about Summer's big day with her... friend.
"So he paid to fix your phone and paid for your lunch, and then he took you back to your place and went down on you until you literally begged him to stop?"
Summer choked on her drink and sputtered, "Natasha!"
"Oh, relax," Natasha rolled her green eyes, looking as elegant as ever in a black dress with her red hair straightened and tumbling down just over her shoulders. "Anyway, all I have to say is clearly this guy's clearly a keeper."
"I have to agree," Aemilia nodded, sipping a glass of merlot. "Honestly, I'm dying to meet this man."
"Well," Summer said, trying to regain her composure, "you're going to get a chance to really soon, because I sort of... asked him to be my date to your show."
Aemilia's eyes widened and sparkled with surprise and a hint of glee. "You did? Oh my - who are you and what have you done with Summer?"
Laughing and blushing, Summer reminded herself to keep the part about also inviting Loki under wraps - that was meant to be a surprise for Aemilia - and replied, "I don't know! Literally I just don't even know why, but I'm so comfortable around him. I don't know what it is, but... you two know how I usually am around guys."
Natasha let out a burdened groan and Aemilia nodded sympathetically.
"I'm nothing like that around him," Summer went on. "I've never asked out a guy in my life, and yet I just... did it. Seriously, there's just something about him that makes me feel like I've known him forever. Which is really weird considering how I met him and... all of that."
"Speaking of that," Natasha said, "not to rain on your parade or anything so don't take it like that, but... are you sure that you're okay with dating someone of his profession?"
Summer hesitated only for a second before replying, "Well, I've thought about it, and... I'm just not gonna overthink it for now. I mean, it's only one date. I don't know where this is gonna go, so I'm just gonna figure it out as I go."
"I don't think that you should let what he does get in the way of a relationship if that's what you both want," Aemilia told her. "He told you that he's looking for other jobs and doesn't want to be an escort forever, so you know that it's temporary. You also know based on what he told you that he got into it for very pure-hearted reasons, so I think it would be silly to let it stop you from getting to know him better."
"Oh, I agree," Natasha nodded at Aemilia before looking back to Summer. "I just wanted to make sure that you thought the same thing."
"Well," Summer sighed, "it's not like I like the idea of him being with other women, but... I know it's his job and I'm gonna have to accept that if I'm gonna be dating him."
"And you're sure that you can accept that?" Aemilia asked her, wanting to make sure as best as she could that her best friend knew what she may be possibly getting into.
"... I think that if he's half as amazing as he seems," Summer replied with a cute little smile on her face, "yeah. It'll be worth it for sure."
"Well, good for you," Aemilia said before taking another drink of her wine. "And I mean that, too. It's been far too long since I've seen you smile the way you have been all night."
Summer couldn't help but smile even wider and stifle a small squeal. "He's just... he's so sweet and he's so so hot. Like I can barely even stand it, and the way that he kisses me and the way that he... y'know..."
"Oh, we know," Natasha grinned.
"He's just... frick," Summer said dreamily, resting her cheek on one hand and lazily twirling her finger along the rim of her glass. "I don't think I should be feeling as much I am for how little time I've spent around him."
"Enjoy it, darling," Aemilia urged her. "You don't have to second-guess yourself at every turn. Just have fun with him and feel what you feel. You deserve it."
Summer smiled warmly at Aemilia and then Natasha before telling them both, "Gosh, I love you both so much. Seriously, I don't know what I'd do without you two."
"Well," Natasha replied, "you never would have met him, that's for sure."
"That's true," Aemilia giggled. "Well, you might have met him one way or another, but certainly not in the way that you did."
"True," Summer nodded, blushing a little at the memory of that first night. "Well, I guess now I just get to wait and see what happens."
"That's the fun part," Natasha noted. Then she glanced at Aemilia and asked, "What about you? Ever run into your own little escort after your long night of sin awhile back?"
Aemilia laughed softly at her friend's terminology before shaking her head. "No, no, I haven't. He left me his number, actually, and told me that if I ever wanted to chat or get a drink with him to text him, but... I don't know."
"You don't want to see him again?" Summer asked, suddenly worried that maybe her secret plan was going to backfire and was highly premature. "But you still talk about him sometimes and say how he... uh... definitely made an impact."
"Oh, and he did," Aemilia replied, nearly shivering at the thought. "But I don't know... I suppose I've been so busy and distracted that I just sort of let myself put it off."
"But you would like to see him again?" Summer asked her, trying not to appear too obvious. "... Hypothetically?"
"Well, if I were to run into him at a coffee shop as you did with Bucky today," Aemilia replied with a grin, "I certainly wouldn't mind it. He was a very intriguing man. And certainly very good at his job."
Natasha sighed and downed the rest of her drink, then said, "I'm about two drinks and one bad decision away from calling that number myself and getting my own escort to find out if these guys are really worth all the fuss."
"They are," Summer and Aemilia said in unison before glancing at each other and laughing.
"Seriously though," Summer added, "I'm starting to wonder where they find these guys."
"I've no idea," Aemilia replied, signaling for another round of drinks, "but I am certainly not complaining."
Summer grinned, having a feeling that Aemilia would continue to have zero complaints following her next encounter with Loki. If all went well, Summer planned on taking all the credit for it. "Me either."
She couldn't wait for her date, and she couldn't wait to see Aemilia's reaction when she saw Loki again. It was gonna be one heck of a surprise.