Agent Potts and the Man in the Iron Suit

VII

They walked into the main gathering room for the event. It had a high, domed ceiling and large arched windows. There was a bar, tables filled with catered food, and a few round tables with dark blue tablecloths around the perimeter of the room to sit at. A live orchestra played soft classy music in one corner. Unsurprisingly, everyone was in similar attire to Virginia and Tony. The room was filled with high-class people mingling and sipping champagne.

As they waded deeper into the fray, a person popped up every now and then to greet Tony or have a quick in-passing conversation. Virginia understood what he meant with his description earlier. There was a certain look in the eye of nearly every person who stopped them. It was cold, calculating, sizing up Tony and his appearance, almost as if looking for any sign of weakness. 

The pair finally made it through the sea of people to the food area and grabbed a few snacks. They hovered at the edge of the gala while they ate. Virginia's gaze drifted over the room, finally landing on a small section to her left where people were dancing to the orchestra music. She smiled as she watched the couples glide across the floor. This felt like the most genuine part of the event. People were really smiling and laughing as they twirled, rather than the forced versions of those motions she saw in the conversations happening elsewhere.

"Do you want to dance?" Tony asked.

Virginia looked over to find him already gazing at her. "Oh, I don't know..." she began, but Tony had already grabbed her hand and started tugging her toward the dance floor.

Her heart leapt into her throat as he wrapped an arm around her waist. She placed a shaking hand on his arm, and allowed him to lift her other hand to the proper position. Tony gazed at her, unfazed, but Virginia found that she was having a much harder time than usual maintaining eye contact, which she did not typically shy away from. Each time she tried to keep her eyes trained on his, the heat in her face increased.

 Virginia was hyper aware of all micro-movements. A twitch of his finger, a readjustment of their clasped hands, even something as simple as the pace of his breath.

She finally managed to look him in the eye for more than a few moments, and realized that now she couldn't look away. The urge to draw closer came over her. She found that she could sympathize with the opinions of other women that she had always dismissed. She had to admit he was handsome, and his cologne smelled really nice...

Virginia took a step back. Tony looked at her, confusion written all over his face. "I need some water," she managed to say once she had finally somewhat composed herself. She didn't wait for a response, booking it across the room to the glass dispenser filled with lemon-cucumber water. She filled a little plastic cup to the brim and drank consistent, steady sips of water, hoping it would both clear her head and cool the warmth in her cheeks.

A few minutes later, Tony joined her at the dispenser. He poured a cup for himself and, in between sips, murmured, "I've located the target." He nodded in a particular direction.

Virginia changed her stance to casually gaze that way. Hammer stood near the middle of the room, engaged in what seemed to be light conversation with a few people. "How should we approach this?" she asked.

"Follow my lead?" Tony suggested with a grin, offering her his arm again. She took it and looked at him, noting that his expression seemed a bit more strained than it had earlier. She attributed it to the clear dislike for Hammer that he had expressed. They walked through the room, greeting more people as they took a slow, indirect path toward Hammer. Eventually they crossed ways. Tony took the opportunity to catch his eye and nod. "Hammer."

Hammer took the invitation. He nodded back. "Stark." His gaze shifted to Virginia. "This must be your plus one for the evening? I don't believe I've seen you around before, Ms...?"