Contracts (P.Parker x OC)

Chapter 1

Tony Stark ushered the man in the cheap, worn-out brown suit into his office, after the man told the little girl that was with him to wait in the conference room. Everything on this floor of Stark Tower was made of glass, so the two men could clearly see the girl playing with her teddy bear as they sat at the desk. Tony leaned back in his seat, unimpressed with the interruption of this visit. Especially considering he wasn't given any details over the phone. He was a busy man and had many things to do.

"What did you say your name was?" Tony asked him.

"Gavin Daniels. I'm from children and family services." Gavin explained.

"And what can I do for you? You never explained on the phone. A donation? You didn't have to bring the kid to sell yourself. I'm a giving man Mr. Daniels. I'm a bit of a philanthropist, if you didn't know."

"Actually, I did know. We've done a thorough investigation before coming here and I can assure you, it's not for money." Gavin said as he opened up his briefcase and pulled out a file to hand to Tony, "This is a file from Maria Whitmores lawyers."

Tony took the file as he replied, "Maria Whitmore? God, I haven't heard that name in 7 ye-" He stopped and glanced at Gavin, then the little girl he could clearly see through the glass walls, then the file he had yet to open.

Tony was a smart man but it didn't take a genius to figure out where this meeting was heading. He flipped open the file and the first thing he saw was the death certificate of one Maria Whitmore. Car accident – typical. He flipped through a few more papers and found a birth certificate for a little girl born 7 years ago. Her name was Emery Stark – Whitmore and Tony is listed as the father.

Tony glanced at the little girl again, only this time she wasn't looking down and playing with her teddy bear. She was looking through the glass walls, right at him. He was going to get a paternity test done obviously, but looking at her now, he wondered if he even had too. Despite brushing the child off as insignificant earlier, he could see the resemblance between the two of them now. Dark hair, dark and deep eyes. She had the same nose as him for crying out loud. The thought scared him to no end and he turned back to Gavin.

"There must be some mistake. There is no way she's my daughter."

"Did you have sexual relations with Maria Whitmore 7 years ago?" Gavin asked him, leaning forward, place his elbows on the table.

"I don't know, maybe? I don't keep track of who I've been with and when. Do you?" Tony responded quickly. Gavin looked flustered at the question but Tony paid no mind and continued talking, "There is no way I have a kid. Sorry you had to waste my time. She'll just have to live with her grandparents or something."

Gavin shook his head after regaining his composure, "I'm afraid that's not possible. You're the last living relative listed. If you deny your parental rights, the girl will go into the system."

Tony glanced at the girl before looking back at Gavin with a serious look crossing his features. He was contemplating something as he looked deep within Gavin's eyes. It made Gavin nearly gulp under his intimidating gaze but he didn't really know why he felt that way. Of course, Ironman staring him down could be a good reason but he held his own. He wasn't the bad guy here after all.

"What happens to kids that grow up in the system?" Tony finally asked.

"Some turn out alright Mr. Stark." Gavin replied.

"That wasn't my question Mr. Daniels. I want facts and statistics. As an educated professional, I know you have them. Tell me." Tony demanded.

"I don't have all the numbers but I can give you some facts. There are studies that show that nearly one third of children in foster care reported being abused – sexually or otherwise – by foster parents. That doesn't include the abuse from other foster children within the home. Children in foster care that are over the age of 5, rarely get adopted. They are likely to bounce around foster homes until they get too old for families to want them and then they get put into a group home. Many children age out of the system with nowhere to go. No job prospects, no housing and potential history of abuse leads to criminal activity such as drug dealing, armed robbery, and prostitution. The system is broken Mr. Stark, the amount of children that come out unscathed and actually go to college is not as high as it should be."