Pepper carded her fingers through Tony's dark curls, her perfectly manicured nails scratching along his scalp. Tony's eyes fluttered closed as the elevator doors closed on the last of his guests.

"Privacy Mode please JARVIS," She instructed the AI.

"Right away Miss Potts," JARVIS responded, locking down the penthouse again and darkening the tint on the windows until only a soft glow of sunlight permeated the room.

Reaching out a foot Pepper snagged a pillow with her heel, pulling it closer. "Kneel, Tony." She commanded.

Tony slid gracefully to his knees on the floor next to her feet. Guiding him to rest his cheek against her thigh, Pepper continued to scrape her nails over his scalp. She wanted nothing more than to wrap Tony up in her arms and protect him from a world that seemed determined to tear him to pieces. There were limits to what she could protect him from, but what she could do was offer him love, support, and comfort.

Very few people knew that Tony craved praise and approval, things he never got as a child. Obediah Stane had used that knowledge against Tony, had doled out praise and the approval of a father figure to manipulate him. Until Tony had realized what Stane was doing and ended him. His fear of being controlled and manipulated was one of the reasons it had taken Tony so long to truly let Pepper in, even after they bonded.

"Such a good boy Tony," Pepper said softly. "I'm so proud of you for taking care of your friends." She continued to pet and praise him as Tony relaxed deeper and deeper.

The thoughts constantly swirling around Tony's head never gave him any peace. He was constantly consumed by thoughts of inadequacy. He was driven by the need to be faster, stronger, to do more for the team, for the company, for Pepper. He was haunted by thoughts of what could happen to the people he cared about or was responsible for. Always chastising himself for not doing more.

Sometimes Tony needed to be taken out of his head. And Pepper was the only one he trusted enough to do that. This was how she could take care of him, the most important way she could protect him. From himself.

"What's your color Tony?" She asked firmly.

"Green," he answered with a deep sigh.

Pepper stood. Hooking a finger through the D-ring on Tony's collar she gently but firmly tugged him to his feet. Keeping her hold on his collar, she led him across the penthouse to the bedroom.

"Stay," she commanded once they reached the center of the room. Pepper continued on to sit on the edge of the bed, crossing her legs and regarding Tony with a penetrating gaze. "Strip".

Tony obeyed the simple command. With deliberate movements he removed his shirt and sleep pants, folding them neatly an placing them on the floor at his feet. He stood naked, waiting for her next instruction, the arc reactor casting the room in soft blue light.

Pepper held his gaze as she removed her own clothing until she stood by the bed in only a burgundy lace bra and panties. "I picked up something new," she said as she pulled a slim box out of her bag and placed it on the bed. She crossed over to the trunk at the foot of the bed, taking out a pair of leather cuffs. Pepper fastened the cuffs to Tony's wrists, turning him until his back was to the bed and attaching the cuffs to a hook suspended from the ceiling. This position stretched Tony's body, pulling him up to stand on the balls of his feet.

Pepper walked a slow circle around Tony, trailing a nail over the lines of lean muscle. "Beautiful," she praised, admiring the sight. She crossed back over to the trunk, out of Tony's line of sight, and pulled a few more items out, placing them on the bed.

She returned to Tony. Standing in front of him, Pepper grabbed a handful of his hair in a tight fist. She pulled him forward to plunder his mouth with her tongue, forcing him to balance on his toes to maintain the contact. Her fingers ghosted from the arc reactor down to his already hard and leaking cock. She caged it in her fingertips, drawing her nails up his length with just enough pressure to ride that pleasure/pain barrier. Pepper then slid on the cockering she had been holding in her other hand. She gave his cock a few more strokes, smiling wickedly as Tony let out a whimper.

Pepper went back to the bed, opening the slim box to reveal an anal vibrator. She slathered the toy with lube, then approached Tony from behind. She placed a kiss at the nape of his neck, then bit down hard before soothing the spot with a swipe of her tongue. Pepper then ran her left hand slowly down his spine, parting his cheeks. She lined up the head of the vibrator and began to push it in with steady pressure. He tensed at the sudden intrusion, sucking in a lungful of air. Pepper steadied him with her left hand on the the small of his back.

"You can do this, Tony." She encouraged, "Breathe for me."

Tony gave a deep, shuddering exhale. "Slow, deep breaths, Tony." Pepper instructed. He took one deep breath, then another, slowly relaxing his muscles. Tony lost himself in it, his mind occupied by nothing more than the burning stretch and Pepper's voice. She continued to exert steady pressure with a constant stream of praise and encouragement, until the vibrator was fully and firmly seated.

"Good Boy, Tony." She said, coming around to brush sweat soaked hair from his face. "You are being so good for me, doing so well." Pepper placed a warm kiss on his lips.

"Tony, what's your color?" She asked, watching his face intently for any signs of distress. Tony was deep under, his eyes were glazed and unfocused, his voice slurred as he answered, "Green."

Pepper returned to the bed, picking up the remote control for the vibrator. She started by turning it on to the lowest setting. She watched as a shiver travelled the length of his spine.

Pepper took her time running through all the settings on the vibrator, observing Tony's reactions. Eventually she settled on a mid-range oscillating setting, loving the way that it made him shudder moan. She dragged her nails across his back, his abdomen, and his thighs, hard enough to leave red welts behind but not enough to draw blood.

Finally, having reduced Tony to a shuddering mess glistening with a sheen of sweat, Pepper lowered the vibrator back down to the lowest setting. She unfastened the cuffs from the hook in the ceiling, repositioning Tony's arms behind his back and securing them together. She instructed him to remove the rest of her clothing, using only his teeth, lips, and tongue - careful not to damage her favorite La Perla.

Once Tony had completed the task, she guided him down to kneel in front of her. "Make me come, Tony." She commanded. Tony went to work with his mouth on her. He licked into her core, curling his tongue around the pearl at the center. She fisted her hands in his hair with a tight grip, guiding him to achieve her own pleasure. Tony had a very talented tongue and it didn't take long for the wave of pleasure to build and crest, washing through all of her nerve endings.

Pepper pushed Tony's face away from her while she caught her breath. She ran her nails across his scalp almost gently, praising him for a job well done. A few minutes later, she directed Tony over to the bed. She unfastened the cuffs from each other, bringing Tony's arms back down to his sides. Then she directed him to climb up on the bed and lay spread-eagled on his back. She fastened the cuffs around his wrists to each end of the headboard, then attached leather cuffs around his ankles, securing them to straps connected to the footboard. The straps were just long enough to keep from putting too much tension on his joints, but not long enough for any real range of motion.

The new position shifted the vibrator to press firmly against his prostate, making Tony gasp. Pepper cradled his face in her hands, "You are not allowed to come until I say so, Understand?"

Tony nodded as her command penetrated the haze of subspace. Pepper straddled him, sinking down on his cock. She started by rotating her hips in a slow grind, causing the vibrator to press more forcefully against his prostate. As she sped up her movements, beginning to rise up before sinking back down on him, Pepper increased the setting on the vibrator. Soon she was riding him in earnest, chasing her own climax. She rose up, pulling off the cock ring then sinking back down until his cock was buried inside her. She worked herself on Tony's cock, setting a furious rhythm, rising up until he almost slipped out before slamming back down, jabbing the vibrator into his prostate. Pepper clenched her inner walls tightly around him as her orgasm crashed over her, her nails digging half-moons into his chest.

"Come for me Tony," she cried, dialing the vibrator to the highest setting. Tony's climax ripped through him, tearing a cry from his throat and whiting out his vision.

When they were both spent, Pepper turned off the vibrator and gently lifted herself off of him and releasing his wrists and ankles from the restraints. She padded into the bathroom, quickly cleaning herself off and throwing on a robe before dampening a soft washcloth with warm water and snagging a bottle of juice from the mini-fridge. She returned to the bed, gently removing the vibrator from Tony, setting it aside, then she gently and thoroughly wiped him clean with the cloth.

Pepper rubbed Tony's arms and legs, testing his shoulders and wrists to make sure there was no damage or stiffness in his joints. She lifted his head, cradling it in her hands and urged him to drink from the bottle she held to his lips. When she couldn't coax Tony to drink any more, she reached into the nightstand to retrieve a small jar of a soothing aloe cream. Pepper rubbed the cream into the welts left by her nails on his front before rolling him over to do the same to his back.

Tony was pliant and blissed out, conscious, but barely. Pepper curled up next to Tony, covering them both with a light blanket. She continued to lovingly run her hands up and down his spine and through his hair until they both drifted off to sleep.