A/N: First, sorry this has taken so long to post, my work/life balanced has heaved over to work and when I do have free time, I'm generally too exhausted to think much less write.
Second, OMG thank you all so much for the likes, comments, and follows. I am so gobsmackingly honored by the response I damn near cried.
Although that could just be the exhaustion.
Well, maybe not JUST the exhaustion.
Third, I have plotted out the remainder of the story and now just have to write it. (assuming the characters don't decide to surprise me with spontaneous changes, 'cause we all know that never happens)
. . .
"So Sam tells me you have a girlfriend."
Bucky jerked his head up and smacked it into the underside of the table being used as a desk where he'd been trying to find the bad wire that had caused the wi-fi signal to be intermittent at best and nonexistent at worst. Sam had been spending enough time here that he needed the connection to be flawless, especially when it came to work. And by work he meant Captain America being called upon to assist in situations that required a more… delicate touch. If Sam could complete a mission without a single injury he considered it a job well done.
Oh, Sam would defend himself and innocents without hesitation, but if he could talk a situation down he would. This last time around the bad guys had used that to their advantage, team A keeping Sam distracted and thinking negotiating would work, while team B kept the plan moving. Luckily, Bucky had been along and remained more than a touch cynical and distrusting and had spotted the ruse and acted accordingly. He had done what he excelled at and punched his way through them and stopped the trucks they were intending to transport the stolen weapons in, while Sam had dealt with the distraction. Granted he'd been trying to negotiate the release of the supposed hostages, who turned out to be in on the whole deal.
Bucky had managed to take the high road and not snark at Sam about being too trusting, the bruises he still sported pretty much said it all better than words ever could.
Bucky came out from under the desk wincing and rubbing the spot on the back of his head that had connected with the solid wooden surface. "Sam would be wrong," he grumbled, wondering if smacking the router as hard as he'd just hit his head would convince the damn thing to work.
"So you haven't been spending your evenings with some girl that is probably way too young for you?" Sarah huffed out, fisted hands on her hips.
"Uh, technically that is true," he responded, shifting to sit on his tailbone with arms wrapped about his knees as he looked up at Sarah. "We hang out and talk a few times a week. Why?"
"Why?" Sarah nearly shouted, appearing to be all kinds of indignant and put out. "What about us?"
Bucky had to take a moment to absorb the question. "What about us?" he finally asked, and it took less than a second to realize his mistake.
"Are you telling me you've been leading me on all this time? That everything you said to me was a lie?" Her voice rose on every word.
Bucky sat there baffled. Yeah, they'd flirted, but Sam had made it eminently clear that any actual moves being put on his sister would result in Bucky's formerly living body being used as chum for the fishing trawlers. And his arm most likely converted into a table lamp.
A snigger of laughter from the next room clued him into what was actually going on here. "Sam, I hate you," Bucky growled more than loud enough to be heard by the troublemaker in question whose response was a full-throated cackle. "And you," he glared up at Sarah, "I can't believe you went along with it."
She grinned at him and shrugged. "You like her?"
Bucky nodded. "I do, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna stop flirting with you."
She smiled. "Good. I like watching my brother squirm."
"Hey," the brother in question complained as he came around the corner. "I don't want to have to arrange his disappearance, it might tarnish the whole Captain America thing."
"You'd still be better than Walker," Bucky muttered then ducked back under the desk to continue his efforts to fix the wifi.
"You should bring her by sometime," Sarah suggested.
Bucky sighed softly. "Too soon," he stated, hoping that would be the end of it.
Of course, it wasn't.
"What's wrong with her? Is she ugly?"
"I asked the same thing," Sam stated.
"Why would you ask that, and more why would it matter?"
"Uh, okay I may have overstepped there, but you've got us curious as to exactly how she managed to get you out on a first date, never mind the dozen or so you claim to have been on." Sam came across as both contrite and curious, not wanting to stick his nose into Bucky's life while at the same time most definitely wanting to stick his nose in.
"Do you want this wifi fixed or not?" Bucky groused from his position on his back on the hardwood floor under the desk.
"You can't do both?" Sarah questioned, but sounded as if she knew the answer.
Bucky knew he'd been forced into a proverbial corner so decided that it probably couldn't hurt to get their opinion on the situation. "Her name is Nienna Grace, she lives in Brooklyn, she's smart as a whip, twice as pretty, and I enjoy spending time with her."
"And she apparently enjoys spending time with you," Sarah didn't ask as the answer seemed to be obvious.
"Seems so," Bucky agreed.
"You… you're dating Ni Grace? Nyte Visions? That Nienna Grace?" Sam questioned sounding more than a touch stunned based on the pitch of his voice.
Bucky carefully slid out from under the desk to look up at Sam. "I guess?" He vaguely recalled that being the name on the business card she'd given him for when he needed a job reference. "Why?"
Sam had his phone out, tapping and swiping furiously on it. Eventually, he spun it about. "Is this her?"
On the screen was a photo of Ni that had clearly been taken by some professional for some article or something based on the stylish business suit she wore. Every inch of her screamed corporate honcho. "Yeah."
Sam showed the pic to Sarah, whose eyes went wide as she whistled. "She's gorgeous." Her head twisted about. "Aren't you too old for her?"
"Technically I'm too old for everyone. She's in her thirties… her profile wasn't specific."
"Neither was yours, I imagine." Sarah pointed out.
"Thirty-four, by birth year, provided she wasn't Snapped," Sam supplied as he scrolled through whatever page he'd ended up on that had her relevant details.
"Wasn't," Bucky confirmed.
"And how old are you really?" Sarah asked. "I mean, I've heard the stories, you spent a lot of time cryogenically frozen, right?" Bucky nodded. "So, how many years did you get to actually live?" She frowned as if saying the words out loud made it all just a bit too real.
"Thirty-five or thereabouts. Best guess anyway. " He sat up slowly. "She knows how old I really am and doesn't seem concerned."
"That's 'cause you're pretty," Sarah answered matter of factly, which made Sam's face go dark, brows coming together, forehead wrinkling in clear irritation.
"No. He's got a girlfriend, remember."
This time Bucky laughed. "Doesn't mean she can't window shop." He shifted to stand. "The router and modem are fine, the cables in here are fine. I'll need to take a look at the box outside, see if the issue is at that end."
Sarah frowned. "God, I hope not. Getting one of them out here to take a look at it is worse than pulling teeth on a cranky gator."
"Let me take a look at it first; before you start worrying."
"Do you actually know how to fix this stuff?" Sam asked.
Bucky shrugged. "Enough."
"What does that mean?" Sam questioned.
Sarah snickered. "Enough to know when he's reached the limit of his knowledge," Sarah answered, getting a nod of agreement from Bucky.
"That doesn't really answer the question," Sam groused, but trailed after Bucky as he walked out the front door and around the side of the house where all the utility cables were attached.
One glance at the box where the cable and internet were attached to the house told him all he needed to know. "You have any thunderstorms recently?"
"Uh, this time of year, pretty much daily, why?"
Bucky waved at the gray box, which looked more than a touch singed around the edges, especially the connectors where the cables entered the box. "From the looks of it, lightning hit the line somewhere nearby and fried your cables. Fair bet anyone nearby is experiencing the same issues."
"So, you can't fix it," Sam stated.
"Oh, I could, but the cable company would probably bitch and cancel your sister's contract."
"Ah, let's just call and let them handle it then," Sam said with a slight frown. "Sarah's right, it might be weeks before it gets fixed properly." Clearly not looking forward to giving her the verdict on the equipment.
"So install a satellite link-up. Seems like being able to contact Captain America when needed would justify the cost of installing one." Bucky stated as they made their way back around, but instead of going inside, they remained on the porch. Sam settled into one of the chairs while Bucky leaned back against the rail. It groaned ominously, which meant it might not last all that much longer. He mentally added it to his to-do list. They let him stay here, with their family, the least he could do was help out now and then.
An afternoon of carpentry was a worthwhile price to pay for having been welcomed into their lives.
Sam stared at him. "I'll mention it to Torres, but I doubt they'll cough up that kind of money without wanting me to re-up." He shook his head. "I still agree with Steve, we… Avengers should remain outside direct government purview."
"But do the Avengers still exist? Has Fury contacted you at all?"
"No, which is weird since the Avengers were his baby working for the government or not." Sam ran a hand across his face. "I don't think anyone knows what's going on."
"Which means, as of right now, we're it."
Sam nodded slowly as if only now realizing this. "We have Sharon," he reminded, though he sounded uncertain about that.
"Who, thanks to that pardon, is back working for that government you want to stay separate from."
Sam sighed heavily. "So what do we do? I mean, I'm not rich, are you?"
Bucky shook his head. "My pardon included money… a decent amount considering."
"Considering?"
"Well, I am officially the longest POW on record. It has been suggested I could have sued them for an excessive amount of money due to their lack of giving a shit."
"But you settled for enough to live on."
Bucky shrugged. "More than enough, given I might live to see two hundred. But it's not enough for what we need."
"Wakanda?"
"They're still kind of pissed about Zemo, so they're out for the time being."
"Then we'll just have to do it ourselves."
"If you two think running a fishing boat will pay for all the toys your superheroing will cost you are sadly mistaken," Sarah said from behind the screen door. She stepped out into the muggy air with glasses of sweet tea for each of them which they took with thanks.
After quenching his thirst Bucky contemplated his… their options. "I still have some contacts. I'll see what I can arrange to get you that uplink here."
"What kind of contacts?" Sam asked with all appropriate suspicion.
"If you're thinking less than legal, you'd be correct. How do you think I managed to stay off the grid for two years? "
Sam sighed. "Like how you somehow had a plan to break Zemo out of prison right when we needed it? How long had you been planning that anyway?"
Bucky snorted. "Long enough. Look, I kind of fell into this hero gig. I had intended on living in obscurity for the rest of my life, but then you went and gave up the shield…"
"And the rest is history," Sarah interjected to end the recap of still too recent history. "But Sam's right you shouldn't have to compromise what you've gained. You're a good man, Bucky, and we won't let you think or act differently, not even if it helps us."
"Then how?" Bucky asked in irritation. "Sell Captain America calendars?"
"Naked ones," Sarah suggested with a laugh. "The shield and wings placed just right."
Sam shook his head while grinning. "Captain America doing endorsements. Steve would never-"
Bucky cut him off. "Steve isn't here. He had Stark. And the world is different now. That might actually be something worth considering. Mods or repairs for your wings aren't going to be cheap."
Sam frowned deeply. "You have a point, but I don't think schilling some beer is how I want to pay for things."
"So, pick what you do want to promote," Sarah suggested. "Set up a charity for any excess funds and only use what you need to get the job done."
Bucky nodded in agreement. "Now that Steve would approve of."
Sam rolled his shoulders as if trying to release built-up stress. "I have no clue how to do that."
"Maybe ask the boss at Stark Industries? What's her name? Pepper Potts?" Sarah settled into one of the other chairs, warming up to the topic.
"I can't ask her for money," Sam stated, his tone not leaving an opening for an argument.
"Not for money," Bucky said, "for suggestions. I suspect she might know a few more honest companies who'd be willing to assist in exchange for showing up at corporate parties and fundraisers."
"Huh. That might just work. Think your girl might have some similar connections?" Sam asked, sounding only a touch facetious.
Bucky hadn't quite yet started thinking of Ni as 'his girl'. "Maybe? I honestly don't know what kind of contacts she has. I just know she worked for the government pre-Snap, but no longer does." Bucky explained, not overly certain they had reached such a point in their relationship he could ask for major favors, but if Sam was willing to contact Pepper, the least he could do was the same with those he knew.
Sam snorted. "Worked for the government is putting it mildly. She was part of one of those think tanks, technically a subcontract, but still. The rumor mill includes places like SWORD, black ops research, and Hydra."
Bucky stiffened. "She's not Hydra."
"I didn't say she was, but that she worked for them. Keep in mind a lot of us did without realizing it. Including Steve," Sam reminded.
The memories of those events had become the turning point in Bucky's existence, little chance he would forget. "Yeah, okay."
"You seem awfully protective of her," Sarah observed with a smile. "You like her."
Bucky ducked his head for an instant. "I do. More than I expected."
"Then don't screw it up," Sam mock ordered then finished off his glass of tea, leaving the swiftly melting ice cubes behind to clink in the amber-colored glass. He turned to his sister. "Refill?"
"Sure as soon as you tell me what's up with the wifi," she told him deadpan.
Sam groaned.
. . .
"Sorry, I'm late; had some car trouble." Ni sounded more than touch flustered and kept glancing over at the door as she took off her jacket. She had clearly come straight from a meeting or something, which seemed odd given today should have ended early for her. "How was your trip?"
Bucky stood and took her jacket, tossing over the back of the couch that had become theirs since they'd begun visiting the brewpub. The servers all recognized them at this point and often asked if they wanted their usual to begin. He'd already had a beer but had patiently waited for her arrival, knowing she would have texted or called had she been unable to make it "Fine. Goal accomplished. Wait. What kind of car trouble?"
He encouraged her to sit even as she continued to warily look about the pub, especially towards the main entrance which instantly made him even more wary than usual. "The unexpected kind," she responded, voice shaking only slightly on the words. Clearly, this incident did not fall under part of her normal routine.
Instead of in his usual spot, he sat right next to her and waved to the server walking past for a couple of drinks as he had a feeling they, mostly she, were going to need them. "Tell me what happened."
"I went into the office today, I go a couple of times a week for in-person meetings and such. No big deal." The drinks arrived and she took hers with a painfully fake smile for the server. She took a beat to drink half of the tall glass before coming up for air. "When I went to leave my car wouldn't start. Just those clicking noises that mean a dead battery or alternator." She drank more, finishing off the rest, and set the empty glass on the table in front of them.
Bucky handed her his, which she took with a shaking hand and nod of thanks. She didn't drink yet. "I've worked on a car or two, the basics, can't swap out an engine or anything, but can definitely handle a jumper cable when needed."
"Okay." He didn't want to push as whatever had happened had clearly upset her enough to leave her shaking some time later.
"So I pop the hood to see if maybe there's a loose cable or anything I can fix on the spot or if I need to call a tow. And I saw this." She pulled out her phone and tapped it a few times before handing it to him. She picked up his beer and sipped it while he looked at the picture.
"That's a bomb," he hissed.
"Is it?" she snarked. "I never would have guessed."
"Ni, that's not what I meant."
She sucked in a breath and blew it out to a slow count of ten. "I know. I'm still a bit freaked out." The distinctive sound to the door opening caused her to jump and snap about to see who had come in. "Shit," she muttered.
Bucky leaned in closer to her. "Were you followed?"
"I think so, but I'm pretty sure I lost them. I didn't take any of my usual routes to get here just in case."
For an amateur, she'd done everything right, but it still might not have been enough. Bucky went instantly on alert, everyone in the building now suddenly a potential danger to Nienna. "Good." He handed her phone back to her. "What did you do?"
She blinked at him. "Called building security. Disarming bombs are a bit outside my wheelhouse."
"And they called the cops, and the bomb squad, I presume."
She nodded. "They were kind enough to question me on site instead of at the police station, not that I had a whole lot of answers for them. They were able to check the CCTV in the garage and determined that the bomb had not been planted there."
"So, where? When?" he asked, already putting a timeline together in his mind.
"Best guess?"
"If there's no other option right now."
"My car sits at home when I don't use it. Lower level of the building is all garage with designated spots for the tenants. I happen to own the entire top floor, so I have four spots allocated to me. I haven't driven my car in three or four days at this point. They could have planted it anytime. The bomb squad thinks it was connected to my starter wrong. Instead of blowing my ass to pieces when I headed into the office this morning, it drained the battery so when I left for the day..."
"Your battery was dead. Probably saving your life." She nodded in agreement and drank more of the beer, her skin going pale as the reality that she'd almost died struck her again. "Hey, you're okay. I won't let anything happen to you."
"My hero," she responded snarkily. "Sorry. I know you mean it, but what can you do?"
"Well, to begin with, I'll be walking you home tonight."
Her eyes widened at his tone, there would be no options for her. He liked her enough to keep her around for a while longer and see where this... relationship might lead. "And then what?"
"See about upgrading your security. Do you have cameras or similar at your place?"
She shook her head. "Building has some security, of course, which did me a fat lot of good. And my car alarm should have gone off, but they clearly managed to override or bypass both." She dropped her face into her hands. "I have some basic security in my apartment, but it's mostly focused on my home office. I never expected to need it in my apartment."
"You receive any death threats?" He wanted to get an idea of how her work affected her personal life. He still only had a vague idea of what she did and, to be honest, she'd implied that her work prior to the Snap had been dramatically different than the current.
"Threats, yes. To the corporate address and email. I make certain to keep work and personal life far apart from one another for just that reason. I don't need to be confronted on the street by someone who came back and figured out I was the one who made his job obsolete."
"That happens a lot?"
She shrugged. "I get angry letters and emails blaming me for stealing their jobs, but none have been overtly threatening. I promise if they had been I would have passed them on to the proper authorities."
He reached out and set a hand on her forearm and gave a gentle squeeze of reassurance. "I'm not questioning you, just trying to see if there might be an obvious trail to follow."
She patted his hand. "I know, James, I'm just... completely confused by this. I mean, it's a weird escalation from my point of view."
He couldn't disagree with her. "No one plants a bomb for no reason, doll."
Her eyebrows went up. "Doll?"
Bucky cringed inwardly, knowing that it could be construed as borderline catcalling even though he hadn't meant it that way. He'd simply become comfortable enough around her to permit some of the leftovers from his past to be seen, or in this case, heard. "Sorry," he mumbled.
She managed a soft laugh. "Don't be, I like it."
His head came up quickly. "You do?"
"Yep." she finished off his beer. "We need more alcohol."
He grinned. "I think we can arrange that." He waved for the server, ordered a couple more drinks, and asked her to keep them coming when they ran out. She didn't question why, but you could tell even she understood that something different was going on between them tonight.
"Want some appetizers as well?"
Bucky looked over at Ni, who nodded. "Your favs, if you would."
The server gave them a huge smile and headed off to place their order.
Ni met Bucky's eyes and he squeezed her arm again, his hand not having moved from its place since he'd set it there as she clearly needed the contact. "Where do you work when not at home?"
"Offices in the former Avengers Tower if you can believe it."
Bucky shook his head. "Why am I not surprised. Which explains the above-average security there."
"Yeah, they were not thrilled I drove a bomb to work. They've arranged a car service for me until it gets sorted out."
"Uh, who do you work for that they can afford that?"
She blinked at him. "You know I sub-contract, right? The great city of New York pays for the office space as well as most of my contracts."
"Ah. And why does that make them so generous?"
"Well, basically everyone I wrote a control program for needs me for maintenance, updates, etc."
"So, without you, the systems could potentially fail."
"Yes. Which is why my newest task is a training program to teach others, but it's a work in progress, so although I'm not cheap, they need me to keep the systems running until others can take over."
"And that will give people jobs," Bucky added, following the train of thought to its obvious destination.
"Exactly. You'll still need to be familiar with the overall system, so former employees of, say, ConEd would be first in line for rehire once the training program is ready. None of the jobs affected would be considered entry-level."
"Which means that once this info leaks out there should be less anger towards you."
"In theory. They still won't ever require the massive workforce that used to be needed to monitor the systems. Boots on the ground to fix broken hardware will always be required and really weren't affected. A lot of those people got their jobs back as soon as they were ready to reintegrate. There were a lot of buildings that went dark during the Snap years that are only now being restored." Ni shrugged. "There was no one to live in them, so why fix them."
She spoke the truth. When you looked at the Manhattan skyline you could see it had been drastically changed during those five years. Every time a building came back to life it was celebrated on the evening news. "Okay. Could... could whoever's targeting you be from before the Snap? Your AI work?"
"I honestly don't know. I admit I was approached and asked to return, but I told them no for now."
"Why?" Bucky asked, intently curious.
"Because I don't like leaving a project unfinished, and while the government contract I'd been working on is technically in that state, it also hadn't gone all that far overall. The job was compartmentalized, so while I know how far I've gotten I have no clue where it stands as a whole. Though I have my concerns as to why they want it completed."
She didn't often speak about her job pre-Snap, other than vague references now and then and for some reason, it now seemed to be of vital importance. Before he had the chance to ask, their server returned with the selection of snacks, more beers, and a carafe of water. He thanked her then urged Ni to eat before she drank any more of the beer. She'd been perfectly coherent but suspected the alcohol would kick in soon enough and he still had more questions if he had any hope of figuring out who had decided to target her. Next time it might not be a poorly designed bomb, but a high-speed bullet from far enough away they'd never even hear the crack of it leaving the rifle.
He might have once been considered the most deadly assassin on the planet, but he had never been the only one.
Once she settled back into the cushions, appetite currently satisfied he asked, "What did you do before the Snap."
She glanced about her brow furrowing. "James, I signed some serious NDAs that are very much still in effect as I get reminded via email every month."
Urf. That did not bode well for her work being something innocuous as he had hoped. "I know it involves AIs, since you've mentioned that, but I'm guessing it's something more."
She nodded and proceeded to hide by drinking a fair portion of her beer. He could see she was thinking hard about how to answer as she clearly had come to the conclusion that he needed at least some of the information to better understand. "You remember Arnim Zola?"
How could he forget? "Uh, yeah." He forced his mind to not bring up a variety of less than happy images that involved the crazed scientist. The man who had quite literally turned him into the first Winter Soldier.
She nodded, not so much in response but to acknowledge the trauma even mentioning his name would cause him. She dropped her voice to just above a whisper knowing he would be able to hear her without a problem even over the ambient noise in the pub. "My job was to duplicate his algorithm."
"The Insight targeting program?" he asked in surprise, but she shook her head.
"No, the one that permitted him to store himself in a computer system."
Now that... that was both interesting and terrifying. "Fuck," Bucky muttered. "Don't say any more right now. This is not the place to discuss it."
She pressed her lips into a thin line but didn't argue with him. "James-"
He shook his head, just trying to imagine the horrors that might be visited upon the world should Arnim Zola be resurrected in any form. Though she hadn't mentioned bringing him back, just attempting to duplicate the algorithm that had done so. Which opened up a whole new can of worms. Who else could she bring back had she succeeded? Without knowing the details, he knew the possibilities could include... literally anyone. Anyone of importance, anyway. And he had no way of knowing whether those who had hired her were those with good intentions or bad, an offshoot of Hydra perhaps. Exposing them had not destroyed them completely. Cut off one head, two will grow back. Nazi's still existed for fuck's sake, absolutely anyone could be out there following Hydra's tenets and trying to cause continued upheaval.
Just look at the mess the world remained in. Seemed to be one hell of a case for them still being around in some, if currently minor, form.
"I will presume that your intent was for the greater good." He failed to keep the rage out of his voice, wondering how anyone could even think of trying to duplicate any of the work Zola had done.
"For my part, yes. Imagine being able to save Mr. Stark, even if only as a program. One of the greatest minds of this century preserved in a computer, able to interact with the real world at least to a degree. He had the technology to access memories, converting them into a simulacrum would be an obvious next step."
Bucky ran his left hand across his face, the metal cool against his skin, understanding her point, but also seeing the inherent danger to the technology itself. "How much harm could be done though? What if... what if they literally wanted to resurrect Zola, Hydra ideals and all."
She shivered. "I would never knowingly do that."
"It's the knowingly that worries me." Bucky picked up his beer and downed it, wishing, and not for the first time, that he could feel the effects even for a short time. "How close were you?"
She stared at him wide-eyed, which told him the answer she did not say out loud.
"Shit. Do they know?"
She shook her head. "Post-Snap," she told him.
He nodded. Which meant after she'd moved on from whatever government think-tank she'd been assigned to. "You're certain?"
"I haven't tested it if that's what you're not asking, but yes, I'm sure."
He groaned softly. "Okay. What are you doing tomorrow?"
She eyed him a touch warily. "Working from home, why?"
"Because I want to get some real security set up at your place." It took a second but he realized how gruff he sounded so he paused for a moment then made certain to moderate his tone when he spoke again. "If that's okay. If you don't want me to know where you live I'll understand and talk you through it on the phone or something."
She frowned slightly. "Your offer to walk me home is off the table then?" she asked, tone stiff and a touch upset.
"What? No. But knowing where your building is, is not the same as seeing your apartment. If you don't feel comfortable having me inside, I'll understand."
She shook her head. "I owe for this. What time? I'll provide food and libations, and we can even watch a movie after you're done if you like." She winked. "You'll get to ogle my first edition book collection."
He managed a smile for her. "Now, how can I refuse that. Ten am?"
She nodded. "Perfect." Then she set about changing the subject, most likely so she'd be able to sleep just a little tonight. "Did you finish the prequels yet?"
He had to admire her gumption of nothing else. "Almost. So no Lord of the Rings movies tomorrow."
She sighed in obviously feigned disappointment. "I suppose."
"You have no patience."
I have plenty of patience," she argued with a grin, which faded after a moment. "James, thank you." Much to his surprise she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.
"No problem," he responded, refusing to permit his astonishment at her show of affection to be heard in his voice. "Just one of the many services I offer to friends."
She snorted. "I can't wait to see what the others are."
He suddenly realized she was flirting with him, how seriously he had no clue, but he also had no idea how to respond, which, thankfully, didn't seem to bother her. "Eat, doll. I'm not carrying your drunken ass home."
She laughed, but grabbed one of the slider burgers and took a pointed bite out of it.