The White Queen (S.Rogers)

Chapter 92

The door to the house slapped open, and Brooklyn jerked away from Steve, reaching up to wipe at her face while sniffing hard.

"Hey, Cap? They are gonna put us up. Do you want-" Stark stopped, looking at the three of them, standing in the driveway. "Wait... I know you, don't I?"

He pointed at Brooklyn, while skipping down the stairs.

"Yeah, at the Gala." He nodded, before tilting his head. "The prostitute, right?"

Steve choked, before turning. "Tony! She's not-" he took a deep breath, bringing his free hand up to cup the back of Juliana's head, as if trying to keep the words from entering her ears. "This is my fiancee."
"Maybe." Brooklyn automatically corrected, narrowing her eyes at Stark. "Prostitute? You propositioned me! I gave no indication I was for sale, whatsoever."
"What?" Steve jerked his head between Stark and Brooklyn. "You... What about Pepper?"

"It wasn't like that!" Stark waved his hand as he came closer. "I was asking for you. I figured a nice girl could loosen you up. And you had been staring at her all night. You told me you had a man."

"I do." She nodded, reaching up and stroking Steve's arm. "I wasn't lying."

"You tried to hire someone to sleep with me? Really, Tony?" Steve voice was angry, in a way she hadn't heard before. Not even when she had denied him at the same Gala they were discussing. There was a level of danger of it, that made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. "When are you gonna learn? After everything in the past few days? When?"

"It wasn't like that!" Tony defended, loudly. "I was trying to help you out! I didn't know she was already your girlfriend! Wait... is this Babydoll?"

"He knows..." Brooklyn looked at Steve. "Really?"

"He saw my phone! When you were sending messages to me!" Steve took a step back. Juliana wiggled, and he sighed, letting her down on her feet, keeping her in front of him. "I didn't offer the information."

"So, what." Brooklyn turned back to Stark. "You knew he had a girlfriend, and still tried to hire a hooker for him? What level of twisted is that?"

She wanted to be mad. She wanted to be furious. Instead, she was... sad. The little boy she knew was truly gone.

"I thought he was..." he sighed, reaching up to rub his face. "Look, lets... just go inside. I don't know how Barton and his wife are going to react to your girlfriend/maybe-fiancee showing up with her kid, but that's on your head, Cap."

"Tony...." Steve sighed, looking down at Juliana. Brooklyn watched, her fingers twitching, itching to reach for a gun, a knife, a baton... anything to make the sound of... what was the word for giving up... giving in? That sound, in Steve's voice. As if he had finally been beaten down.

She took a deep breath. "I wouldn't worry about that. I'm pretty sure they knew I was coming."

"I was wondering about that." Stark looked at her, as if appraising her. "Former SHIELD?"

"In a past life." She allowed. "I'm not, anymore. I haven't been, for a while."

He snorted. "Once an agent, always an agent."

"Maybe." she tilted his head.

Juliana went to pull away from Steve, causing him to tighten his hands on her, and Brooklyn watched as her sister wiggled.

"She's been in the car, almost this whole time, Steve." Brooklyn informed him, softly. "We're safe now. It's okay."

Steve flushed, but let go of Juliana. The little girl approached Stark, a finger slipping into her mouth.