Author's note: SelenitaLunar, this one is for you, per your request. Hope you enjoy it.

#20 – Exhausted Parents Kiss

"Please stop crying, buddy," Tony said as he bounced his son in his arms. "It's gonna be okay. I promise." A.J. quieted for a minute, his crying going from a red-faced squall to a pitiful snubbing. "I know," he said, holding the baby close. "It's been a hard evening for me, too. If I knew it would do any good, I would cry, too." Tony paced the floor, gently rocking A.J. back and forth. "I'm pretty much flying blind," he admitted. "I have zero experience in the dad department and your Grandpa didn't exactly leave me a sterling example to follow. I know you're hungry, but, that's one area where I can offer no assistance. All we have to do is hang on until Mommy gets home. She's been taking care of me for years, so, we will both be in good hands then." At the mention of his mother's name, A.J. screwed up his face and went off on another crying jag. Tony wrestled his phone out of his pocket and managed to use it to turn on some music...instrumental lullabies meant to soothe babies. He'd laughed when Pepper first mentioned it, but right now, he would hire the London Philharmonic if it would get his son to calm down. "Shh shh shh," he cooed. "C'mon now, A.J. Be a sport and help Daddy." He laid the screaming child on his shoulder and looked at his watch. It had been three hours since Pepper called saying the negotiations weren't over and they intended to stay until they were done. She told him he needed to get his own dinner and she would see him and as A.J. as soon as possible. It was shortly after the call ended that everything fell apart. While getting to the leftover take-out from the refrigerator, Tony accidentally dropped the last container of milk Pepper left for A.J. before leaving for work that morning. By the time he finished cleaning it up, A.J. was ready to eat. When Tony had nothing to give him, he wailed like a siren. That was what he'd been doing for the better part of two hours. The music was Tony's last resort.

He continued walking, covering every square inch of the main floor of the mansion while patting the child's diaper. Either the music was working or A.J. had cried himself into exhaustion because he was getting quieter. "I'm sorry, Champ. It's my fault you're hungry, but, I'm over a barrel here," Tony whispered, hoping his voice would help. "If you don't stop crying, you will make yourself sick and we don't want that." Mopping up breast milk was one thing. Cleaning up baby vomit was something else completely. He shuddered at the thought. Halfway through the third trip around, Tony heard the sound of a car engine. "I think the cavalry has arrived." Tony met Pepper at the door. "Thank God you're home." He took her purse and handed her the baby.

"What's going on?" she said, looking from her husband to her crying son. She moved A.J. into the crook of her arm. "Is he sick?"

"No. He's hungry. He's been crying for two hours."

"I left him..."

"Yes, and I spilled it. Well, the last of it about three hours ago," Tony said in exasperation. He told her the complete story.

"You poor thing," Pepper said, cuddling her little boy close and walking to the sofa.

"I tried everything I could think of," Tony confessed. "I gave him a pacifier and he saw through that particular deception after about three sucks."

"Most new dads wouldn't have thought of doing that. Plus, you didn't panic. That's what helped keep him calm."

"If this is calm..."

"Trust me. It can be much worse."

"I hope I never see worse."

"But, we are okay now, aren't we, A.J.?" She wiped the last remaining tear from his cheek. "Can you get me a pillow?" she asked, unbuttoning her blouse.

"Sure." Tony grabbed one of the overstuffed pillows from the love seat across the room. By now, A.J. had stopped crying. Pepper got him settled in and he was nursing greedily. Tony collapsed on the couch beside them.

"You look tired."

"I'm exhausted." He looked over at the pair. "Whose idea was it to have kids anyway?"

"It was a mutual decision."

"What were we thinking?"

"At that particular moment, I'm pretty sure you were thinking, 'How fast can I get Pepper naked?'"

"Why didn't you try and stop me?"

"Because I liked the idea."

"Of a baby or me getting you naked?" he asked with a sly grin.

"Both," she smiled back.

Tony touched the back of A.J.'s hand. "Looks like we have our happy boy back."

"Yep. I don't think he's slowed down yet." Pepper brushed the little cheek. "I haven't said it enough, but, you've been great about everything."

"You do realize that I starved our child for the majority of the evening, right?"

"You didn't starve him," she said with a chuckle. "Accidents happen, even to the great Tony Stark. But, your support in me going back to work, pitching in to help take care of A.J...in everything you've been wonderful."

"Look at you, though. Running a company and a household and being a mom. You're amazing."

They sat in silence for a while. "You know," Pepper began, "after he eats, he will be ready for bed."

Tony caught her tone. "I'm listening..."

"And it is Friday after all."

"True."

"I think we deserve a reward for being amazing people and good parents."

"Totally."

"What do you say we unplug the phones, hide the alarm clocks, and sleep as long as we possibly can?"

"I do believe you read my mind."

"You go take a shower and..."

"Shower?"

"Yes. I love you, but you smell like spit-up."

"Oh, yeah. We had an, uh, incident at lunch. He's had his bath, by the way. He screamed like a banshee the entire time, but he's had his bath."

"Good to know. So, you take a shower. I will finish feeding A.J. and put him to bed. By then, we should be ready to enjoy that custom-made mattress you simply had to have."

"Deal." He kissed his first two fingers and placed them on the top of A.J.'s head. "I love you, little wild man. You don't have to answer. It's rude to talk with your mouth full."

Pepper laughed. "I will bring him to say goodnight is you want."

"Nah. Just let him sleep." Tony got up as easily as possible. "I will see you in a few, all squeaky clean and not smelling like baby spit."

A little while later, Pepper made her way to the master bedroom. His appetite satisfied, A.J. was changed and sleeping peacefully in his crib. "He's out like a light," she said, walking in. "He fell asleep while..." She stopped when she saw her husband. Tony made it out of the shower and into his pajamas. He sat with his back against the headboard and was sound asleep. Pepper changed clothes and finished the rest of her nighttime routine before returning to the bed. She couldn't help but notice how much the sleeping infant she just left in the nursery looked like her sleeping husband. Despite the events of the day, she had no reservations about leaving their son in Tony's care. He was absolutely crazy about A.J. and the feeling was mutual. "Tony," she said gently shaking his shoulder. He opened his eyes slowly.

"I...I was waiting on you," he said sleepily.

"Uh huh," Pepper answered with a smile. "I can tell." She ran her hand through his hair. "Let's go to bed."

"Okay," he mumbled. "I call big spoon." He grabbed her around the waist before she could stop him and rolled them both toward the middle of the bed. With Pepper partially pinned under him, Tony took advantage of their position and kissed her. "Ready for bed, Mrs. Stark?"

"Absolutely, Mr. Stark." Tony moved so she could settle comfortably in his arms. In short order, they were fast asleep...a well-deserved rest for them both.

Author's note: Special thanks to SelenitaLunar for requesting this prompt. In my mind, there was something both hilarious and endearing about Tony Stark and his crying child. Pepperony will be great parents, I believe. This "project" is becoming great fun. Again, feel free to request a prompt. They all have to get done eventually. :-D Thanks to my BFF for help with the ending. You rock! As always, reviews are great! Let me know how you like this little experiment. Happy reading and PEPPERONY FOREVER!