Locked, Loaded, Loved ✔️ COMPLETE | UNDER EDITS

Chapter 13.4--Steve

"Tony, I don't think Natasha wants pole dancers at her engagement party!" I tried to reason with him. He'd stopped me the next morning before I even had my coffee. Damn the 21st century and it's caffeinated beverages!

"Yeah, but it's your engagement party too, Cap. C'mon, it'll be fun!"

"And Natasha will kill you if you go through with it. I'm just saying."

Tony sighed. "Unfortunately, you are right."

I smiled. I enjoyed being right, especially when it was after winning an argument against Tony. "What other ideas do you have?"

"Fondue fountain—the chocolate and cheese kind, not the other kind"

"For the love of god, it was one time, Stark!"

"—open bar, music, a toast to the happy couple—that's you and Natasha—and some other surprises I have up my sleeve. Don't worry—I'll run them by Clint and Bucky first since they are your and Natasha's right-hand people for this wedding."

I groaned. "Tony, you know I hate surprises. And I want to approve these 'surprises' of yours before you go through with them, ok?"

"Then there won't be surprises," he protested.

"Tony..." I warned.

Tony put his hands up in surrender. "Ok, ok. Fine. I give up, you win. You can approve all of the surprises before the party."

"Party planning before breakfast?"

I turned to see Natasha standing in the doorway of the kitchen wearing my t-shirt from the night before.

"Hey, I thought you were still sleeping." I walked over and kissed her.

"And I thought you were bringing me breakfast in bed." She smirked at me.

"You can blame Tony for the lack of breakfast in bed. He cornered me to talk about the engagement party."

"Sure, blame it on the genius in the room," he muttered under his breath.

Natasha laughed. "Genius? Says who?"

"Um, try my degree from MIT at the age of 16? Anyway, I'll leave you two lovebirds alone while I go call the agency."

Natasha stood up straighter. "Agency? Tony, I hope you don't mean what I think I mean."

"I meant modeling agency. Obviously."

Nat lunged forward and I quickly wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her back before she could hurt him.

"C'mon, Nat. Let's go back upstairs," I said.

"Coffee first?" she asked, starting in the direction of the kitchen.

I laughed. "Coffee first."

Once we were back upstairs—coffee and breakfast in hand—I decided to ask Nat about the night before.

"How are you doing after last night?" I asked.

Natasha took a bite of her bagel. "Well, I'm certainly glad we delegated roles for the wedding." She glanced at me. "But that's not what you were asking."

"It can be." I focused on my coffee.

Nat smiled and rested a hand on my arm. "It's ok, Steve. I'm just not ready to talk about the dream yet. I sort of want to figure a few things out first."

I nodded. "That's understandable. I don't want to push."

She kissed my cheek. "Thank you for understanding." She got off the bed and stripped out of her pajamas before walking over to the closet.