assassin

dangerous man

natasha romanoff
chapter three: dangerous man

I rummage around through Cap's closet. Well, the one he has here at the tower. My hands shift through assortments of Steve-style clothes that don't exactly fit Bucky's character. I'd almost lost hope in finding anything even close when I spotted the metal safe at the back of the closet. Not sure why anyone would need a safe in their guest room closet, but instead of marveling in it I open the safe. Steve's passwords are always the same, 07 - 04 - 76. You'd think as an operative that's friends with both Nick Fury and Tony Stark he'd be more careful, but being trusting is just in Cap's nature. Whoever knows his password he assumes will do no harm to whatever's inside.

I open the safe to reveal a pile of clothes in black, green, navy, and charcoal grey. So Cap's big secret stash in his closet is just incognito clothes? Sounds about right. I snatch the clothes from their position and shut the closet door, proud of myself for having found what I needed so quickly.

I told Bucky to hop in the shower while I go get his new ensemble, to which he obeyed silently. I open the door to the room he's staying in, expecting to be able to simply set his new clothes on the bed and leave peacefully. However, what I'm met with instead is a half naked, steamy, freshly bathed Bucky Barnes. He hasn't seen me yet, at the moment he's fidgeting with something on the bed with his muscular back to me. I clear my throat, capturing his attention.

"That was quick." He muses as he turns to face me. Instead of his toned back it is now his abs that I have to avoid looking at.

"Ditto." I reply, tossing the clothes in his direction. He catches them with ease and sets them down on the dull grey comforter behind him. Bucky chuckles, noticing my refusal for my gaze to meet either his eyes or his body.

"It's not a crime to look, Natalia." Bucky quips, still only wearing the white towel tied around his waist. I shake my head, but no words escape my mouth. I decided after my meeting with the rest of the Avengers that it was a bad idea to restart anything romantic with James. My mission at the moment is simply to regain his trust and teach him to be an Avenger. And while I can reason myself out of romantic thoughts for the soldier, my body's physical magnetism for him isn't so easy dissuaded. Thus, looking at his toned body would only make things more complicated than they have to be.

"Business and pleasure don't mix." I say simply, turning on my heel to go. "Change and get some rest, we'll meet in the tower's gym tomorrow at five am to begin your training. If you're late, you'll regret it." I turn on my boss-woman voice as I relay him his commands. The more disconnected I seem the better.

"You're leaving?" He asks, his voice stopping me in my tracks. I turn back to face him, promising myself I wouldn't fall into the trap.

"Yes. You need sleep and I need to plan what our training will consist of tomorrow." I stand my ground, never taking a step closer to the barely covered man in front of me.

"Who's room was this before it was mine?" He asks, completely ignoring my previous statement. I debate whether or not to just leave the room, but then I remember that part one of this mission is to gain his trust. Meaning, I can't be too cold and detached yet. I lean against the wall, signaling that I'll stay for a bit. However, the question remains unanswered. "Can't be Stark's, his would be more lavish and I'd never be allowed to sleep there. Isn't Cap's because that's where you just retrieved the clothes from. I'm betting not a guy's room at all, too organized and smells much too nice. Plus," He pulls out a pair of black, lacy panties from behind his back and smirks, "These don't belong to any of your male Avengers." I lunge for my underwear, but Bucky was clearly anticipating that reaction. He tossed them to his other hand whilst flipping me over his metal arm and onto the bed.

Turning to look at me, he chuckles and tosses the panties into the corner.

"This is eerily familiar." He purrs, letting himself fall almost completely on top of me, but catching himself with his arms on either side of my chest.

"This is in no way funny, Barnes. Tony would kick you out in a heartbeat if he knew you were trying to get in my pants." I threaten. I admit, being captured and brainwashed for years can't have allowed Bucky many if any sexual partners at all, but that doesn't mean he gets to have me. Especially on the first night.

"That's exactly why you're not going to tell him." He reasons, knowing my thought process first hand. "I know you want me here, Nat. Why else would you have fought for me to stay?"

"Yes, I do want you here. I want you here because I owe it to my friend that deserves his second chance. So use it wisely, and don't squander it on your first day here." I huff, glaring at the still half naked soldier. "Now get off before I make you." Knowing that I could very well make him, Bucky releases me from his hold. I dismount the bed and walk out of the room as quickly as my legs will let me. He calls something from his room once I've gone, but I can't make out what it was. Instead of turning back and risking another fiasco, I decide to ignore it and walk to my new room in the tower. The room that Tony graciously awarded me so that I could stay comfortable while also keeping an eye on the subject.

Once in my room, or Tony's if we're being technical, I change into an oversized black t-shirt with small cotton shorts. As soon as I'm in my pajamas I jump onto the bed and situate myself underneath the covers. I exhale an unsatisfied and exasperated breath as I finally allow myself to relax.

"Friday, dim the lights please." I call into the void. The lights obey, lowering to one notch from completely off. I can never sleep fully in the dark anymore. It takes too long for the eyes to adjust in case of a real emergency. With the lights barely on, I can sleep comfortably while also giving myself better likelihood for clear vision in an attack. Always sleep with one eye open, as they say.

Or, if you're really committed, just don't sleep at all.

———

yay chapter 3!!
ya idk why i just love the
idea of bucky being like
a flirt but only w nat
so u'll definitely be seeing
more of that side

keep reading to see how
their training goes and how
their story progresses

dont forget to
vote/comment/follow me

k