Where the spirit meets the bone. (Book 1 of the Illicit Affairs Series)

Chapter VI

By the time the two of you reached the diner, the sun was setting. Bucky had taken a few unnecessary turn just to keep you on the bike a little while longer. He couldn't help but let his gaze stray from the road from time to time, fascinated by your reflection in the side mirror. You were laughing with your head thrown back, the wind messing up the hair the helmet didn't cover. Bucky wasn't exactly a romantic guy, though he had enjoyed his fair share of women, but he felt a fluttering feeling in his stomach just by watching you and feeling your body pressed up to his. He felt other things lower than his stomach too, but he chose to ignore that.

He parked the bike in his usual spot, just around the corner, and waited for you to climb down before he did. You pulled off your helmet and shook your hair like Sharon had done, though you suspected you didn't look half as graceful as her and you thanked god James was placing his helmet in the under seat and wasn't looking your way. "That felt..." you breathed out, struggling to find the words to describe it. He turned around and flashed you a cocky grin. "Liberating?" he suggested, taking the helmet you were holding and putting it in the trunk. You nodded, still quietly laughing, exhilarated.

Bucky had changed clothes and wore jeans and a red henley instead of his work uniform, but he was now pulling out a black leather jacket from the under seat. He  placed a hand on the small of your back, gesturing for you to follow him. Even through the light jean jacket you were wearing, his touch felt warm. As you rounded the corner, a bright red LED sign which read "Connor's" in cursive caught your attention. While it was on the ground floor of a classic Brooklyn building, the all-around windows let you see the interior, which was decorated in full 50's fashion. On a corner table, Steve and Nat were laughing while a black guy you didn't know, but looked familiar, was talking animately while gesturing wildly with his hands. You couldn't help but notice how their leather clothing and tight jeans matched, while you were wearing a light pink sweater tucked in mom jeans. You didn't notice how you had stopped walking until Bucky stopped beside you. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, rubbing your back with the hand he had place there and looking down at you. "It's just, those guys look like that and I'm wearing... this." you murmured, looking down at your clothes. Bucky's free hand gently held your chin and made you look up at him.

"You look perfect," he whispered, grazing your cheek with his thumb, "and even if you didn't, they wouldn't judge you." Truthfully, he wanted to tell you that, if someone did, he wouldn't let it slide, but you didn't need that right now. You looked in his eyes and nodded. Maybe you would have to borrow something from the closest high school production of "Grease" next time. Bucky smiled softly and lead you towards the entrance. As soon as you opened the door, a bell ringed above you. So cheesy and stereotypical, you thought. The place was almost empty, though it didn't surprise you, since it wasn't the weekend. Steve and Nat saw the two of you and waved you over, while the other guy turned his head to look at you.

"Hi, guys." James said as you awkwardly waved. The booth had two three-seats sofa's, one on each side. Steve and the stranger sat opposite of each other in the furthest seats, while Nat was at the blond's side. "Y/n, this is Sam." Bucky said, gesturing for you to take a seat next to the guy and then sitting down beside you. "Oh, she's the girl!" Sam said, holding out a hand for you to shake. While you turned to him to return the greeting, Bucky shot a warning gaze at his friend, who gave him a knowing smirk in return. He wanted to avoid Sam making you uncomfortable by teasing him about you.

"Do you work at the shop, too?" you asked, oblivious as to what was happening between the two. Meanwhile, Natasha grinned like a madwoman and Steve rolled his eyes. Children, he thought. His friends were children.

"No, I work for your dad, actually. Well, for Rhodes, really, but same difference." Sam replied. "That's where I knew you from! You work with Uncle Jim!" you exclaimed with probably too much enthusiasm for someone who just recognised someone else. When Bucky giggled behind you, you blushed. You acted like a kid, sometimes. You hated it, but you really couldn't help it. "You call him "Uncle Jim"?" Sam groaned, but his expression was playful, so you relaxed. "He kinda is my uncle." you said, shrugging. "Yeah, but he's my boss!" Sam squealed, throwing his hand up. "Yeah, bosses suck!" Natasha hollered. While you and Sam laughed, Steve elbowed her side and James mumbled something. "C'mon, it's funny." you whispered, placing a hand on the one he was resting over his knee. He groaned and rolled his eyes, but didn't make a move to shrug away your hand. "Let's just order, shall we?" he said, waiving his other hand. When you followed Bucky's gaze you found Sharon standing behind the counter in a yellow waitress outfit that really looked like something from "Grease". Maybe you really weren't wrong about the high school production thing before.

"Comin' right up!" she called out, turning around to get a pen and a note pad. You looked the table for a menu, but you didn't find any. "Buck," you said, testing out how the nickname felt on your lips, "I don't have a menu." James looked at you, his eyes soft. God, that stupid nickname sounded so sweet in your hushed voice. "Do you eat meat?" he asked you. You nodded. "Then I know just what you'll like." he said, turning his hand under yours. You frowned and went to retreat yours, but once his palm was up, he intertwined your fingers with his. Thankfully, Steve asked him something and got his attention before he could see you look down at your joined hands and blush, lightly biting your bottom lip. Sam, though, saw all of that, unbeknownst to you, and grinned.

You resisted the temptation to squeeze you fingers because James was holding your hand. You chewed the inside of your cheek in thought. Was that okay? Was it too far? He didn't say anything about it, though. And it felt nice. It felt... right.

You decided not to question it further. 

When Sharon got to your table the conversation that you weren't following died dow. She placed a hand of Natasha's shoulder and wicked at you in greeting, then she asked, "The usual?". Everyone at the table nodded and she began jutting down their orders, while you looked up at James. "Do you want a beer?" he asked you. "I don't really drink." you said, screeching your nose while thinking back to the taste of the drinks Tony had let you try, "I'm not even allowed."

Once again, James was reminded of your age and cringed internally. He felt awful about liking you, like one of those old guys who catcalled teenagers down the streets or had twenty-something years old mistresses. Steve, who had overheard the conversation, shot a pointed look at Bucky, which reminded him of the conversation they had about you. He wasn't that old and you weren't that young, he tried to tell himself. You also weren't together, so it was nothing like that.

Your voice shook him out of his thoughts. "I'll have a water." you said. He nodded, still a bit too out of the loop to speak, and cleared his throat. "She'll have the same as me, but no beer." he told Sharon, who nodded while still focused on writing. "Alright, it shouldn't be too long of a wait." she said before checking to see if anyone was looking before pecking her girlfriend's lips. You suddenly felt jealous of them, of how connected to each other they looked. You wished you and Andrew were like them.

The conversation picked back up and the food got there in a matter of minutes or, at least, that's what it felt like. Bucky had gotten you a cheeseburger with a side of fries, which made you look up at him skeptically. "Trust me on this one." he winked. You were a slight insecurity about eating in public but you pushed it down and took a bite, and, Jesus Christ, was it good. The taste made you moan, and Bucky felt his jeans getting tighter. He needed to stop with that.

"This is glorious." you mumbled while chewing, fully aware of how disgusting that was and not caring one bit. James smiled triumphantly. "Best you've ever had, right?" he gloated before diving in on his own burger.

Once it was time to pay, you went to get up and realised Bucky was still holding your hand. You excused yourself to go to the bathroom and headed for the cashier instead. You hadn't payed for the repairs on your car, so it felt right to cover the bill and leave Sharon a nice tip. The guys protested, but you insisted it was the least you could do. You had the money, after all. At least, that's what you'd told them. The truth was, you really liked them. Maybe doing nice things for them meant they would let you stick around.

"Fine, but I'm taking you home." Bucky grumbled and looked at you like he was challenging you to say you could call an uber. Instead, you nodded and let him lead you to the bike.