Victoria moved a hand to her forehead, the light streaming into the bedroom despite the curtains being closed. Groaning, she peeled her eyes open and wondered just when she had gone to bed. She didn't even remember getting changed. Opening her eyes, she propped herself onto her elbows and her hair tumbled behind her as she shook it from her face. Looking around, she wondered where Homelander was. She didn't have to wonder too long. He moved into the bedroom from the bathroom, towel around his waist.

"How's the hangover?" he asked from her.

"Can Maeve get drunk? Because those cocktails were probably far too strong for a human."

"She has a higher tolerance, but I don't think she took that into account when you were with her," he said and she sat up fully, crossing her legs on the bed and tugging the duvet up to cover her lap. She played with the cuffs of her shirt and looked down into her lap.

"So…how pissed off with me are you?" she wondered and he shrugged, his hair wet and hanging into his face slightly.

"I'm not going to say that I'm not annoyed," he said to her. He wasn't going to sugar coat it. He didn't enjoy being challenged. He didn't enjoy disagreeing with her. "You came to me with good news and then decided to ask me if I would ever cheat on you after we had a slight disagreement over our future."

"Yeah, I know, but perhaps you could have told me in the first place?" she asked from him and his gaze narrowed slightly, his jaw tensing. Victoria peered up to him and shrugged. She wasn't going to let him get to her with just a cold look in her direction. "I don't think it would have been too much to tell me why you really split up."

He rolled his eyes and Victoria huffed, arm flapping in his direction.

"What?" she snapped at him. "What was that for?"

"Nothing, just that I don't get why you're making such a big deal out of this. We broke up because things just didn't work out. I don't know what more you want me to say."

"That things didn't work out because you cheated. You left that part out," she declared and he shook his head. He wasn't going to do this. He headed into the walk-in wardrobe and Victoria groaned. So he was pissed off.

Moving from the bed, her feet were cushioned by the dark grey carpet. She headed to the doorway of the wardrobe and watched him slipping into his pants.

"So you're not going to say anything?" she asked from him.

"What do you want me to say?" he asked from her. "You want me to tell you about everyone who I slept with? Is that what you want?"

"No, that's not what I want," she snapped back at him. "I just thought that we were honest with each other, you know? I thought that we told each other everything, no matter how bad it might be."

"Well, you can see why I didn't bother telling you this, can't you?" Homelander asked from her and pulled on his top, reaching for the cape and attaching it to the golden eagles on his shoulders. "Because I knew that this would happen. I knew that you would act like this."

"Act like what?" she demanded.

"A paranoid girlfriend," he hissed and Victoria looked startled at that. She shook her head and he finally added the belt around his waist, finishing off getting dressed. He brushed his hands through his hair and stood in the middle of the room, slicking it back from his face.

"Seriously?"

"Well, that's what's happened, isn't it?" he asked and she folded her arms, chin jutting out. He almost found it adorable how she thought she could stand up to him. She hadn't seen him truly angry and he didn't want her to. He wanted to keep that from her. "I had to spend last night telling you that you had nothing to worry about. I don't want anyone else, but it's not enough."

"Yes, it is," Victoria snapped, her cheeks warming up and her arms flailing around. "It is enough, but I just wish that you had told me the truth."

"Why? So every time I go out you can wonder if I'm doing the same to you?" he wondered. "Because that's what would have happened, isn't it? You would have been like that because it's who you are. You're insecure."

"You're turning this round on me?" she demanded from him.

"Well, you're the one who brought it up and won't let it go," he replied. "I told you why I didn't tell you. I didn't tell you to protect you…to protect us…but you just won't accept that."

"That's not fair," Victoria said to him with a firm shake of her head. "I get that you want to protect me, but I thought that we agreed not to keep things from each other. I opened up to you. I told you everything about me and you accepted me. I would have done the same, but it just hurt that I had to find out from someone else."

"You're hurt?" he asked from her, hands on his hips. "Seriously? You're hurt about something that happened years ago?"

"I'm hurt that you just didn't tell me," she retorted, hand going to her chest. "Can you not understand that?"

"No," he said and looked to the ceiling before moving from the walk-in wardrobe. "And I need to go because I can't spend all day going round in circles here. I haven't cheated on you. I'm not going to cheat on you. Just get that into your skull and get over this."

Her mouth hung open and he stormed past her. It took a moment to comprehend what he had just said in the tone he had used. His footsteps stomped down the spiral staircase and into the sitting room. Victoria was right on his tail, however, shouting after him.

"You know, there are better ways to talk to me than as if I am one of your lackeys," Victoria snapped at him. "Who do you think you are?"

"I am the fucking Homelander," he snapped back at her, turning around and looking at her as she came to the bottom of the staircase. He moved his arms out by his side and the look on his face was like nothing she had ever seen before. "I am the man in the sky who protects America. I am the one who saves people, exactly like I saved you. Without me, what do you think would happen to this country? Do you think that it would be like it is today? No, it fucking wouldn't be, so that's who I am, Victoria. That is exactly who I am and so excuse me if I don't have time to continue going over my past to try and reassure you. You either trust me or you don't, so make up your fucking mind and let me know."

He stormed off then and Victoria watched him go. He had never spoken to her like that. He had never yelled at her with such a wild look in his eye. It wasn't him. He didn't behave like this. Victoria let him go, the soft closing elevator doors not having the same effect as slamming a door behind him.

…

He knew that he had probably over-stepped the mark. He knew that he had maybe upset Victoria much more than he had intended to. But he was tired. He didn't need to explain himself to her. He didn't need to tell her that, at one point, he had actually thought that him and Maeve would be endgame, but he had still cheated on her. But he didn't have it in him to continue going over how different the situations were.

After spending the day going about his business and doing what he had to do, including an appearance on the Today Show with Maeve to discuss the new recruit, Starlight, he had gone back to the penthouse. He walked in and half expected to find Victoria sat on the couch. But she wasn't there. She was nowhere to be seen.

He let out a deep breath and headed on up to the bedroom. He noticed how his bed was neatly made, but all of her things seemed to have gone. There were no pyjamas folded up at the bottom of it. There were no books on the nightstand. All her toiletries had gone from the bathroom. There was nothing of hers. He sat down on the end of the bed, flopping onto his back and convincing himself that she would come back.

This was an over-reaction. She was just doing this because she wanted him to come and find her, but he wasn't going to do that. He wasn't going to find her because she would come back. She couldn't stay away. He knew that was, probably, childish, but he didn't care. He had so much on his plate that he didn't need her paranoia following him round.

But he knew she would come back. He would make sure of it.

…

"Every couple has arguments," Daniella said to Victoria.

They were sat on Victoria's bed, Daniella in the desk chair to the side of her. Victoria was perched against her pillows, her hands stroking down the ears of her stuffed bear. She needed to do something to stop herself from fidgeting.

"Yeah, it's normal," Michelle replied. She had one of Victoria's throws around her shoulders, the green material swathing her and covering her gym gear after she'd gone to a spin class and gotten home to Daniella spooning Victoria in her bed. "I'm amazed it has taken you this long to have your first argument."

"I think me and Georgina argued within a month."

"I don't even know if it was an argument," Victoria replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "Well, I mean, yes, it clearly was an argument, but I don't know how it really started. Do I have a right to be annoyed with him? Annoyed that he kept this from me?"

Daniella shrugged. "I guess I would want to know if Georgina had cheated in the past," she confessed.

"Yeah, but would you worry that she would do it to you?" Michelle was the one to ask and Daniella tilted her head to the side, her teeth chewing on her bottom lip. She drummed her fingers on the arm of the desk chair, folding one leg over the other and letting her grey pencil skirt ride up her calves.

"I don't know," Daniella confessed. "I suppose it might be a thought early on in the relationship…wondering if she might stray…but it was a different relationship, wasn't it? People can change. They don't always stay the same."

"Don't they?" Victoria was the one to ask, thinking back to everyone in her past. None of them had ever changed. But she had. She wasn't the same as the teenager who had once lived in England. "I don't know."

"I can't say I'm surprised that he has cheated," Michelle said, fingers running through her blonde hair in a ponytail. "But I don't think that he would ever cheat on you, Vic. You're worrying about hypotheticals here. You're worrying about what might happen and you know that you could risk what you have right now by doing that."

"I know and it annoys me too," Victoria said, flopping against her cushions once more, a hand going to her forehead. "And I do understand that he shouldn't have to constantly be reassuring me of everything. It's not fair on him, but I just…I just wish that he had told me because we agreed to be honest with each other."

"And I get that," Michelle said and Daniella pulled her feet up onto the bed. "But he probably didn't want this to happen and you can appreciate that, right? He doesn't want his past to define his future."

"And I know all about that," Victoria said. "He just…he can be so infuriating…like he won't listen to my point or even try and understand it like you both have. And the way he spoke to me was just…even if we're arguing, he has no right to speak to me like that."

"I won't disagree with that," Daniella agreed. "It doesn't matter what you're arguing about, he shouldn't insult you."

"Amen," Michelle agreed. "And he should apologise for that."

"Well, he can," Victoria said. "Because I'm not going back tonight. I don't want to see him until we've calmed down and can perhaps talk more rationally."

"Well, I wouldn't leave it for too long," Daniella said. "Georgina and I made an agreement never to go to bed on an argument. It's served us well so far."

"So you're saying I should call him?" Victoria checked.

"I'm saying that you shouldn't stew in this. You don't want to dwell for too long."

Victoria sighed and knew that they had a point. She folded her arms behind her head and laid back, looking to the ceiling and knowing that she would have to reach out eventually. But then why should she? Why could he not make the first move? Why did it have to be her? But, then again, she guessed one of them had to do it.

…

He flew to Victoria's building when the clock had struck eleven at night. He had paced the entire evening in his penthouse, waiting to hear the elevator doors open, but there had been nothing. There had been nothing but silence and he knew that it would make sense to go to her and sort it out. He would just sit and listen to her speak. He would let her tell him how she felt. He would give her what she needed and then this would be over with. He wasn't as interested in resolving things as just getting them swept to the side so it could go back to how it was.

As he flew over to her building, he looked down and spotted a familiar figure leaving the apartment. He landed quickly, causing her to startle, hand going to her chest. She jumped back and he saw her hair shake down her back with the movements. She was bundled up in her red coat. It hung loose on her body as the evening wasn't entirely too cold for once, winter in New York coming to an end.

Looking to her, she stared back to him. He was amazed that the large bouquet of flowers he had picked up on the way had survived the journey. He held them in his hands and Victoria folded her arms over her chest, looking over to him and wondering who was going to talk first. She stepped towards him, looking down and pushing at her hair.

"I was just on my way to the Tower," she said to him and he nodded.

"I was just on the way here…obviously," he said to her.

There was a silence then.

"I don't want to-"

"I just want to-"

They both spoke at the same time and went quiet as soon as they realised they had done it. Victoria laughed softly and his lips quirked. Nodding his head slowly, he gestured to her with a hand.

"You go first," he urged from her.

"Okay," she said, trying to recall what she had vowed she would say to him when she saw him. She'd had a speech prepared, but now that she was stood in front of him, she was struggling to remember what it was. "I wanted to say that I am sorry for this morning. I didn't want to fight with you. I…what happened with you and Maeve was in the past and I trust you. I do, honestly, trust you, and I've spent the entire day wanting to see you and sort this out because I do love you. I don't want to dwell on what happened in previous relationships."

"I don't want to do that either," he said to her.

"And I do want to apologise if I made you feel like I didn't trust you because it's not that. I do trust you. It's just…it's just who I am…and you shouldn't have to constantly reassure me. That's not your job. But…how we handled the argument this morning…that's not what should happen."

"I confess, I did get angry," he said to her and she held her arm in her hand, clearly nervous with what he was going to say. "I just felt as though you didn't trust me and I need you to trust me, Victoria. I have people around me, using me constantly…wanting something from me…not trusting me to make my own decisions. You're the only who truly does believe me and I felt as though I'd lost that when I hadn't even done anything."

"And I never wanted to make you feel that way," Victoria said. "So I am sorry for that."

"I know," he said.

"But you also made me feel like I wasn't your girlfriend," Victoria said and he wanted to groan, but he had promised himself that he would see this through. He was going to get this done. "The things you said…the way you wouldn't even try to understand me…that also hurt my feelings."

"I know," he said, humouring her. He just wanted to get this out of the way with and he would. He would say the right thing and they would be fine. They would be how it was. "And I am sorry for what I said to you. I shouldn't have said it and I never want to hurt you. You know that. You know that I never want to hurt you…I just want you to accept me, just as I accept you," Homelander said. "You're everything to me. You know that, Victoria."

"And you're everything to me too," Victoria confirmed to him and he moved towards her, his hand stretching out towards her cheek and holding it softly in his gloved palm. She leaned into his touch and he felt relief at that. She didn't pull away, not like Maeve had before.

"Then we're good?" he asked from her.

"We're good," Victoria said. She wasn't going to hold onto this argument. She wasn't going to let it fester and ruin what they had. She would never let that happen. But a part of her did think about what he had said that morning and the way he had said it. It wasn't like him. She just hoped that it was the heat of the moment kind of talk and nothing else. She wanted to believe that was the case.

"Good, because I bought these for you and, honestly, I would rather you take them than throw them at me," he said and he saw the smile form on her face once more, his own lips quirking upwards as he handed her the large bunch of roses. She looked to them as she cradled them with both hands, smelling them and closing her eyes for a moment.

"They're lovely," she said.

"Well, next time I'd prefer to buy you flowers for a happier occasion."

"I'd prefer that too," Victoria said and then motioned back to her apartment. "Do you want to come up?"

"Yeah," he said and she began to turn back to the door, but he grabbed her wrist before she could make the move. He hauled her back to him, his lips descending onto hers and the flowers falling to rest by her side as she used one hand to grab onto his shoulder. His lips moved against hers firmly and he felt her moan against him, her lips soft against his and her tongue sweeping onto his bottom lip. He groaned then and pulled back, forehead against hers and nodded firmly, the confident smirk on his face enough to make her stomach flip. "Inside. Now." He said and she didn't disagree with him on that point.

…

Victoria was still panting for breath as he pulled out of her and slowly let his grip around her waist slacken, gradually lowering her to the bed so that she was resting on her stomach, turning her cheek to press against the pillow. Her forehead was covered in a sheen of sweat and her hair was a mess. He looked at her as she laid beneath him, moving so that his chest was against her back but he kept his weight on his forearms that were either side of her and kissed her neck tenderly, hearing her hum contently beneath him.

"You're staying tonight, right?" Victoria asked and he nodded against her skin, finally moving so that he was off of her, falling onto the bed by her side. She remained on her front, picking her hand up and running it along his forearm as his hand settled on her hip.

"Yeah," he confirmed for her. "But I do have to go early tomorrow morning. We have a meeting and it's Starlight's first one."

"I saw her introduction on the news while I was making dinner," Victoria said, fingers tickling along his bare arm. "She looks sweet."

"Don't worry, Vought will soon get that out of her," Homelander said and Victoria didn't want to tell him that was what concerned her. She wasn't going to bring it up because it would only cause another argument and they'd just gotten over one of them. "Anyway, it will be fine. She'll get used to being part of the Seven. Besides, I have another meeting with Madelyn as well."

"What about?"

"Well, I was going to mention it yesterday, but we never really got a chance to talk," he said to her and she rolled onto her side, her hips and thighs protesting at the movement. He let her finish moving and he took her fingers into his from his arm. "She's planning some documentary looking at our childhood and it means travelling out of town for a while…a few days while it's filmed. I have to talk about my fake family once again, but whatever, I don't give a shit."

Victoria wasn't entirely certain if that was true, but she said nothing and let him continue talking.

"I was hoping that you might come with me," he confessed and she nodded.

"When is it?"

"Not until next month," he said. "But I know you have this new job and you've just handed your thesis in."

She shook her head firmly. "The job doesn't start for another four months. They need to get the paperwork sorted and I need to have my thesis completely done…including the examination. So, I've got time and you know that I'd have made time anyway."

"Perfect," Homelander said, grabbing her hips and bringing her closer to him once more, kissing her firmly on the lips once more and then pulling slightly back. "Because I don't think I'd want to go without you," he whispered to her and kissed her again.

"Well, you won't have to," she said and hooked one of her legs in between his. "I'll come and we can talk shit about your fake family and do what we need to to make the trip bearable."

"Why did I not fake date you years ago?" he wondered from her and she laughed as he let her roll him onto his back, hovering over him and kissing him chastely.

"You know, we really should thank the guy who tried to mug me that night," she said to him.

"I'll see if I can find him, send him flowers," Homelander said and Victoria laughed, kissing him again and then climbing from the bed.

"Speaking of flowers, I need to put these in water," she said and motioned to the roses that had been tossed onto her desk, completely forgotten as soon as they had gotten into the apartment. She tied her blue, cotton robe around herself and picked them up. He moved on the pillows, arms behind his head against her steel headboard. "I'll be back in a minute. Do you want anything?"

"Just for you to get back here quickly," he replied and Victoria gave him a smile before leaving with the flowers in her hands.

He chuckled as he watched her go and stood up. He stretched his arms above his head, completely naked and wandering around her room. He moved to the window, peering into the darkness and onto the street. He saw a group of girls walking past, clearly heading on a night out. But then he swore he saw something. His eyes were great. He had perfect vision, but it was pitch black. The figure was under a streetlight, but it went as soon as he spotted it. He frowned, narrowing his gaze and using his x-ray vision to look behind the building it had disappeared into.

He could only see his back. He was wearing a long, dark coat and his hair was a mess of black curls on the top of his head. He continued staring, distracted entirely by that and not noticing Victoria coming back into the room. Her arms went around his waist, her cheek pressed in between his shoulder blades. He moved his hands onto hers.

"What you looking at?" she questioned and he shook his head, cheeks puffing out.

"Nothing," he said to her. "Come on, let's get back to bed."

She hummed her agreement and he closed the curtains after one final look outside, knowing full well that something wasn't quite right.

…

Victoria sat on the grass just outside of Vought Towers, the sun beating down on her. She was perched on the wooden bench, her hands holding a book as she read through it, flipping the pages slowly. She'd been cooped up in the penthouse all day due to the rain, but then the sun began to break through the clouds and she headed outside for fresh air. Once she had finished her chapter, she headed back on up to the penthouse, wondering if Homelander would be finished with his business for the day.

Moving into the elevator, she pressed the button for the penthouse and entered the access code. Moving on up the floors, it stopped on the meeting room floor and the doors opened, revealing the blonde-haired young woman Victoria had only seen on the television. Her eyes widened at the sight of her and she stepped aside as she came into the elevator.

"Starlight?" Victoria checked.

"Oh my God," Starlight replied, looking up and to Victoria. "You're Victoria Anderton, right? Homelander's girlfriend?"

"I mean…yeah…but it isn't that impressive-"

"-I read your paper that you wrote while you were interning at the UN about the need to change international law concerning the definition of asylum. Honestly, it was so interesting."

"You've read my paper?"

"I mean, only after I heard you were dating Homelander, but I was interested in your work."

"Wow," Victoria said, genuinely amazed. That paper, when she had last checked, had only just about eight hundred views. She wondered what it was up to now. "That's really nice of you to say. Honestly, I wasn't sure anyone bothered reading my academic work, but it's nice to know some people are looking into it and not just reading the interviews I do for Housewives Monthly."

"Was that real? That Christmas interview?" Starlight wondered, her voice a low whisper.

"Oh, that interview was all fabricated," Victoria said to her. "We took it in turns answering questions and ended up in an unspoken competition to see who could give the most sickly sweet response. I think he won. He was pretty good at it."

"Does it get tiring?" Starlight wondered as the elevator stopped on her floor to her new apartment.

"You want the truth?" Victoria asked from her. "I'm not a supe. I'm never going to be a supe. I just happen to date one and yeah, it exhausts me. But I never wanted this. I never wanted to be in the limelight. I'm not saying that you do, but you are probably better equipped to deal with it compared to me. I mean, I've seen the pageants you used to do."

"God, they were so embarrassing," Starlight complained.

"No, they were just what you had to do," she replied. "But, you looked great yesterday at the launch event and you handled the press like a pro. I don't think you have anything to worry about."

"I hope not," Starlight replied. "And do you like…live here?"

"Technically, no," Victoria said. "I have an apartment downtown. I live with two of my friends, but I'm here quite a bit during the week. I've just handed in my PhD and have a job lined up in a few month's time, so I'm kind of having some downtime…in between writing a few papers."

"Right," Starlight said. "So I might see you around?"

"Yeah, definitely," Victoria said and Starlight gave her a soft smile before stepping out of the elevator and towards her apartment's door. Victoria watched the back of her and then shook her head. She moved forwards to stop the elevator door from closing. Grasping hold of it, she slipped out of it.

"Hey!" she called out to her and Starlight turned her head over her shoulder. "I can give you my number if you want? You can call any time you want or if you ever want to hang out. I get that it might be a bit lonely here, what with the majority of the Seven being men."

"Really?" Starlight asked and Victoria felt herself warm at her tone. She just wanted a friend. Victoria could give her that. She knew how it felt to be a fish out of water.

"Yeah, of course," Victoria said to her. "I mean, I have no idea what you're going through really but if you ever just want someone to talk to…moan about stuff printed in the press…talk about anything…well, I'm game and I usually have a bottle of white wine in the fridge upstairs."

"That would be great," Starlight said and Victoria handed her phone over. She took it and began typing her number in. She saved it and handed it back to Victoria. Looking down, she noted her name.

"Annie?"

"Yeah, I figured it would be a bit weird to save it as Starlight," she replied. "Wait…do the others go by their superhero names?"

"Well, I don't really know. I've only really spent time with Maeve and she doesn't insist I call her Queen so that's something," Victoria said and Annie laughed at that, nodding her head and then biting her lip. Victoria watched her, seeing that there was something there. Her smile dropped, almost like she was remembering something. "Hey, you okay?" she asked from her and Annie nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she promised, smile coming back onto her face.

"You sure?"

"Yeah," Annie said. "I should get in. I've got a meeting with Crime Analytics later. I think I'm going on my first patrol."

"Good luck with it," Victoria said. "And just call whenever you want."

"I will," Annie said, nodding her head. "Thank you."

"No problem," Victoria replied. "I'll see you around, Annie."

…

Victoria was cutting onions up in the kitchen. She'd placed two on the chopping board and began peeling and cutting. She was making a homemade pasta sauce and currently had garlic peeled along with peppers de-seeded with them. She looked up when she saw Homelander walk in, peeling his gloves from his fingertips. He tossed them down onto the worktop and noted that Victoria had put on the apron she had bought online after the last time she had spilled tomato sauce on herself.

"Hey," Victoria greeted him and he walked into the kitchen, hand going to hold onto her hip before he bent down to kiss her. "How did everything go today?"

"Fine," he said. "We had the meeting earlier. I thought that Starlight might have not come. She was late."

"I bumped into her in the elevator," Victoria said. "I think this is a big thing for her…it must be daunting, going in front of all of you. I know that I was pretty nervous when I met them all at the Christmas Party, but I had you. She has no one."

"Your heart rate was pretty high that night," he recalled and Victoria rolled her eyes at his comment, lips tugging upwards. "But, it usually does increase whenever I'm around."

"Talk about flattering yourself much," she said and he kissed her neck softly, tugging her hair over her other shoulder to give him access. She put the knife down, knowing that she was likely to get distracted.

"Just stating facts," he defended himself. "Anyway, what did she have to say to you?"

"It was just a quick chat," Victoria said. "I gave her my number and told her to call if she ever wanted to hang out with someone who doesn't recite the Vought ethos to her at any minute."

He chuckled and Victoria turned around to face him, moving her hands to squeeze his shoulders, looking to his chest.

"Just look out for her, please?" Victoria asked him. "I'm not asking for you to coddle her because she's strong enough to handle herself…but just at meetings and stuff…"

Did she not know that he had enough on his plate without babysitting Starlight? She would need to learn to toughen up or just leave the Seven. There was no other option and the sooner she got that into her head then the better it would be for her. But just saying yes would appease Victoria and make her happy. That was what he aimed to do because it made his life easier.

"You're too nice, you know that?" he asked from her.

"Oh, I'm as sweet as cherry pie, remember?" she replied, reciting his lines from that Christmas interview back to him. Tilting his head back, he moved his hand back to the edge of her skirt, crouching down slightly to be able to grab the hem and tug it up her legs.

"Yeah, I should have told them the truth," he replied and moved his fingers along the inside of her thigh, pushing her up against the ceiling height cupboard and feeling the edge of her panties under her tights.

"And what's that?"

"That you're anything but sweet in the bedroom…the curse words that come out that pretty mouth of yours…the housewives would be scandalised," he taunted her and she tried not to moan as he played with the elastic waistband of her underwear. She tried to form a coherent response back as he bent down and kissed her neck.

"Well, I think they'd be positively blushing if they knew what your mouth was capable of," she said and he finally gave her the friction she had been craving, her moans echoing through the kitchen and he moved so that his forehead brushed hers.

"That's a secret between us and us only, my darling," he said hotly against her ear before kissing her once more and, yet again, forgetting dinner.

…

"I need to head out tonight."

After their kitchen escapade, as Victoria had called it, they had gone to shower before she had insisted on finishing dinner. She had changed into a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt before cooking, the two of them eating bowls of pasta in the living area, the TV playing some reality cooking show that neither of them were really watching. Victoria had her legs crossed, bowl in one hand and fork in the other. Homelander had set his food down, Victoria looking over to him.

"I thought that you had tonight off? You're not on patrol, are you?"

"No, I do believe Maeve and Black Noir are taking that duty," Homelander said to her. "But this is something else. It's nothing to worry about. I just got this tip off about some criminal activity that we've been keeping an eye on. Vought are picky about me doing off the books stuff."

Victoria frowned. "Even if it is to try and help out?" she checked with him.

"Yeah," he said. "If you didn't boost my ratings that night then they'd have been on my ass for saving you. It wouldn't have been 'sanctioned'."

"You're kidding?" she checked.

"I wish I was," he replied to her.

"Just when I think I can't hate this company anymore," Victoria mumbled and he nodded his head, not entirely agreeing with her, but he kept his mouth closed. She picked up another piece of pasta, stabbing it with her fork.

"Well, that's why I'm heading out tonight," he said to her. "But I won't be late. Don't wait up though."

"I can manage," she assured him. "Be careful."

"Always am," he said and leaned across the couch to kiss her before sweeping off.

Victoria watched him go, waving to him as the elevator doors closed behind him. She finished her dinner and went to put the dishes in the dishwasher, cleaning the surfaces and then making a mug of tea. She turned out the lights before heading off to the living room again and flipping through the TV stations. She drank her tea and checked the clock. It was almost eleven and he still hadn't come back. She laid down on the couch, hoping he wouldn't be too long. She closed her eyes when an ad break came on and then felt herself dozing off.

She tried to stay awake, but failed miserably. She startled when Homelander woke her up at about twelve at night, crouched down on the floor next to her and hand going to her cheek, stroking it softly. "Hey," he whispered.

"Hey," she replied. "When did you get back?"

"Just now," he said. "Come on, let's get you to bed."

"Did it go alright?" Victoria asked, letting him haul her up from the couch, pulling on both her hands. She stood up and he nodded, an arm around her waist as she looked up to him, checking that he was fine.

"Fine," he assured her. "I did what needed to be done and came straight back. Nothing to worry about or discuss."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure," he said, kissing the top of her head. "We're off to bed before you collapse."

She chuckled and he reached for the TV remote and turned it off as Victoria began heading to the staircase. He smirked at the screen as it delivered the breaking news of the Mayor of Baltimore's plane going missing just as he went to turn it off. Tossing the remote down, he followed Victoria up the staircase and they got ready for bed, brushing teeth and Victoria washing her face. She stripped out of her sweatshirt and pants and pulled her cotton pyjamas on.

"So tomorrow, there's a charity event for Samaritan's Embrace. I told Madelyn that we'd be there."

"Sure," Victoria said. "You haven't forgotten that I'm out on Saturday though, have you? It's Michelle's birthday and she's still insisting on us going to this nightclub. We've tried to change her mind, but you know what Michelle's like."

"I haven't forgotten," he said to her and she pulled the thick quilt back and climbed into the bed. She wasn't going to deny that his bed was far comfier than hers. She never had a bad night's sleep in it. "But just try and be careful. I don't entirely like the idea of other men trying to dance near you…I know what they can be like."

She smirked as he finished stripping from his suit and got into bed, once again wrapping Victoria into his arms and brushing her hair with his fingers.

"So possessive," she said teasingly. She didn't entirely hate it. She knew that she should. She knew that she was a strong woman and could handle herself, but it felt nice for someone actually to be like that with her after a childhood of feeling like she wasn't wanted.

"Well, you're my girl, right?" he said to her, seeing that her eyes were already closed and her lips tugging up in sleepy smile.

"Guess so," she whispered teasingly and he chuckled, kissing her forehead.

"Get some sleep," he urged from her.

"Best idea you've had all day," she said and rolled onto her other side, his arm remaining around her waist and holding onto her. He kept a hand underneath her pillow, his other hand moving along her waist to her hair, brushing his fingers through her soothingly. She fell asleep in record time and Homelander closed his own eyes, trying to get some rest himself, knowing that they had a busy day coming up.

...

A/N: AND WE ARE IN THE SHOW! I have one of my fave chapters I've written come up soon, but in the meantime, I'm sorry for building it up, but still some twists etc. to come! Thanks as always to my lovely reviewers, nizem8, .Venus, MadisonJM, HomiesLazer and Phantomtea18. Love reading your reviews and you keep me going! Let me know what you think as always!