This takes place at roughly the same time as the epilogue from "Ever Fallen in Love With Someone?", link is found on my profile

There will be a lemon-y thing in here, so if it's not your thing please feel free to skip. I know plenty of people who don't do the sex, it's totally okay - I am one of them :)

Pepper eyed her new assistant as he approached, trying to keep the scowl off her face. Her hand had been forced once she realized Natalie was gone and she'd chosen the first resume in the stack of people she'd tried to get Tony to hire. The man (Thomas Madden) was soft-spoken with beautiful hay colored hair that curled delicately across his ears. He had honest eyes and a soft jaw, almost pretty.

Pepper hated him the moment she laid eyes on him.

"Ma'am?" Thomas chirped "The reports."

"Thank you, Mr. Madden" Pepper took the stack from him.

"Is there anything else I can get for you?" he inquired, tablet cradled in the crook of his elbow.

"That will be all for now" she assured him, thumbing through the top report to find better developed plans for Stark Tower self-sustenance. Tony must've worked out his anger at S.H.I.E.L.D. if he was working on the clean energy angle again. After his talk with Fury he'd burrowed down into the lab for three days, she'd finally gotten him to go visit Empire State University and present them with their grant. She barely cared for those kinds of runs anymore, but that's why she'd made Tony agree to help.

It still hurt. Her heart was still a raw mesh, her nerves were fried, and she still couldn't go one day without thinking about her. It had stopped being unbearable after the first few hours, beyond that time had decided to move at a crawl. Every morning she woke up like she'd been buried in sand, and every night she'd sit with her wine and stare out the window like the woman would just show up there.

Pepper slammed her fist on the table, the assistant jumped at the sudden sound.

This was ridiculous! She was a grown woman, she'd gone through a dozen break-ups with men she'd been with for months. This was a random fling with a woman she'd only kissed twice. A woman who had lied and snuck around behind her back, a woman who had purposely fooled her. She did the unforgivable. It was a cruel human act to trick someone's heart into loving you, only to leave.

"Miss. Potts, may I say you look lovely today" Thomas said sweetly.

Pepper shot him a glare, "Remember your place, Mr. Madden."

Thomas shivered at the icy tone, "Yes, ma'am, I'm sorry."

The woman rubbed two fingers across her forehead, a headache building up in the base of her temple. Her tired mind conjured up an image of Natasha...no, Natalie. It was Natalie laying down two pills and a glass of water for her, silent but reassuring nonetheless. Silent but sure, she'd always known exactly what she needed when she needed it.

A heavy weight settled in Pepper's chest, she opened her eyes to find only the obnoxiously pretty face of her new assistant.

"Go home, Thomas" Pepper breathed, dragging the edge of her nails across her hairline "I'm leaving early today."

The blonde lifted his tablet and started pecking at it, "Do you want me to move your meetings tomorrow morning to-?"

"I said, go home!" the woman barked, he jumped and she lowered her voice to a rolling growl "I don't want to look at you anymore."

"Miss. Potts?" he whispered.

"Your face. It hurts my head" Pepper spat "Get out of my office or I'll fire you."

Thomas skittered out of the office, hair practically white in fright. She tossed a scowl in his direction, head falling back against the back of the chair. She didn't have the patience for this. A new assistant, her old job as a Vice, and now no beautiful woman to organize her life. On top of all that she had to live with the overwhelming sense of shame that came with being seduced by a female agent of a secret weapons organization.

Pepper turned in her seat, looking out the wide window at the city below. The night she'd cried in Tony's arms had been the last time she'd dealt with this festering rage and hurt inside her. She wasn't the kind of woman to whine and wail over a broken heart. She wasn't even the type to admit she had a broken heart.

Pepper twisted her fingers in her necklace, the metal links cutting into the skin of her neck.

She needed to release some steam or she was going to end up destroying this entire Tower from the inside out.

xXx

Pepper's building was better guarded then it had been a month ago. Natasha was sure the older woman wouldn't appreciate her killing/incapacitating her hired help so she had to get created. She needed to see the ex-CEO at least once before she left. She had no idea when the call would come but her cell was tucked deep into her pocket in anticipation. Natasha had been watching the woman for the past week and she was not pleased with what she saw. Her replacement, some men called 'Madden', had quickly fallen in love with Pepper. Her old desk was still bugged so she'd decided to listen in, learn his character, only to find out that behind that angel face was a lusty demon. Between his texts (which she'd illegally hacked into) and the chatter with his co-workers, this Madden was positively infatuated with his boss.

And that's why Natasha found herself crawling through filthy air vents, face pinched up and curls fathering dust as she drug herself along on her belly. It was dark but the schematics she'd memorized earlier were still burned in the back of her mind. The thought of that air-headed pretty boy trying to seduce Pepper drove her on. Like that idiot could ever be good enough for her!

Natasha bumped her elbow on a corner and she hissed at the jolt of pain. Sneaking into non-hostile territory was more of Barton's thing, she was more of an infiltrate-undercover-and-rip-out-the-core type of girl.

After what felt like hours crammed into the small space, Natasha found the panel she was looking for. She gave it a swift punch and it gave, swinging open on a hinge with a creak. The agent dropped down silently, eyes sweeping over the living room for any sign of danger. Her fingers closed around the knife strapped to her thigh and her senses went on high alert when she spotted how wrecked the home looked.

The cushions from the chairs were scattered across the floor, the ones left on the couch were split open and spewing fluff. All the little glass trinkets from the mantel were shattered and littered along the wall. Knickknacks and books were strewn about as well, one bookcase even sporting broken shelves. It looked almost like a struggle. She could hear soft sounds coming from down the hall, probably the bedroom.

A dozen scenarios played through Natasha's mind, a few in particular turned her sight blood red. Anyone could be in there but her mind supplied a burly man, one who could easily wrap his large hands around Pepper's delicate throat. It could be an assassin in there, smothering her or-

Natasha's lips curled into a snarl as she abandoned her knife for her pistol. That strange man could easily be after something darker. She closed her eyes for a moment and she could see it perfectly. Pepper pinned under the man's weight, a hand clamped over her mouth while another ripped through her shirt. Those sounds could be muffled sobs and pleads for mercy.

The thought made her sick.

Natasha moved quickly through the condo, gun aimed tight and steady ahead of her. She stopped outside the bedroom, silently counting to three before charging in. All those scenarios dissolve, what she found was different and more difficult to handle. She couldn't save Pepper from this.

Pepper was sitting cross legged on her bed, dark panties and top pulled tight across her hips and chest. She had a frosted bottle cradled between her bare thighs, an empty glass clutched in her hand and pressed against her cheek. She looked defeated, the crimson liquor staining her mouth and fingers in her sloppy haste to devour as much of it as she could. There were bruises blooming across her knuckles along with little nicks from the trinkets. Those crystal blue eyes were wet and stained as red as her drink at the edges. The woman was slow to notice she was there but once she did some panic cut through her buzz.

The two stared at one another for the longest time, Natasha lowered her gun and set it on the table to show she meant no harm. She must've looked intimidating bursting in with a weapon like that, especially in her leather S.H.I.E.L.D. suit.

Pepper picked up the frosted bottle and poured herself another glass, "It reminded me of your hair. Thought it was appropriate."

"You're a pretty articulate drunk" Natasha winced as the words slipped out, that had not been what she had planned on saying.

Pepper took a long drink, staring at the agent like she wasn't exactly sure of her presence.

"Pepper" Natasha began slowly "They told you who I am, didn't they?"

The younger woman didn't even flinch when the glass whizzed by her head, a spatter of liquor landing across her sleeve. She looked to it then back at Pepper, the woman had the rim of the bottle to her mouth now.

"Nice throw" she tried to smile "Softball?"

Pepper nearly drained it, wrenching away when the burn became too much and she gagged. She tossed the bottle over the foot of the bed and screwed up her face, head swimming dangerously. She wasn't nauseas but she was numb, and that was all that mattered. Was she hallucinating? She felt like it.

"I know I shouldn't just barge in like this, but we can't ignore what happened" Natasha hated how old she sounded, like she was the responsible one "Just talk to me."

Pepper took a long, slow breath, "Did you have a good laugh?"

Natasha's brows knitted, "Pep, you're drunk. I don't know-"

"Did you tell all of your little secret agent friends about me?" the ex-CEO ran her knuckles over her lips, her smile so wide it felt like it was cracking her face "Did you make it a good story?"

Natasha stepped closer, ready to protest.

"Did you tell them how you completely fooled Stark's CEO?" Pepper was on the verge of a ramble, a few tears slipping from the corners of her bright eyes "How you swooped in and just...ruined everything? Did you tell them how perfect you were? How flawless?"

Natasha's hands balled into fists at her sides, "What do you want me to say?"

"I want you to tell me how hard you laughed!" Pepper roared, springing out of the bed and snatching the bottle off the floor. She hurled it at the agent, the toss accurate enough to make the woman dodge.

"Calm down" Natasha urged her, reaching for the woman's hands in hopes to calm her with a touch "I know you're hurt, I know you're upset, but if you just listen to me-"

"Listen to you?" Pepper ripped away from the other's smooth hands "How can I listen to you when all you've ever done is lie to me?!"

The agent paused, "I know. Almost everything I've ever told you is a lie."

The older woman made a sound between a sob and a growl, swinging at Natasha as if to smack her. The shorter red head acted on instinct, ducking and catching Pepper around the middle to tackle her back on the bed. Pepper thrashed and screamed at her to get off of her, sharp nails digging at any piece of flesh she could find. Natasha grabbed her wrists and pinned them easily, straddling the woman's waist to avoid the kicking legs. The ex-CEO wasn't nearly as strong as her but she was practically bucking, it was hard to keep her pinned.

"I should've known, I shouldn't have been so stupid!" Pepper raged, fighting tooth and nail to wrench her hands back so she could scratch out those knowing eyes.

"You're not stupid."

"You were too perfect" Pepper sounded wrecked, heart-throbbing frustration bleeding through her anger "Everything was too perfect."

Natasha sat up, managing to catch the other's gaze and hold it, "I was paid to be perfect."

"Oh I know what you were paid to do" Pepper spat "If Steve hadn't been there you would've done it just fine."

Realization was starting to bloom in the agent's mind, "Are you talking about Stark?"

"Of course I'm talking about him" Pepper glared, the heat of it dulled by the tears in her eyes "Your job was to get into his life, right? What better way than through me. God, my whole damn life revolves around him!"

Pepper screwed her eyes shut, voice lowering to a self-deprecating murmur, "Why did I think this would be any different? That's stupid."

"I wasn't supposed to sleep with Stark" Natasha gasped, getting distracted by the feeling of the woman's slim waist squirming between her thighs "If my CO had found out about our encounter, he would've pulled me out of there. I wasn't supposed to seduce you. That kiss...it was a mistake."

Pepper made a sound like she'd been punched in the gut, Natasha felt her heart drop into her stomach.

"Well I'm glad to have been an accident" Pepper snarked, hiding her hurt behind a mask "I must've been a God-send, I made your job ten times easier."

"Easier?" Natasha bit out, the harsh edge of her tone sending goosebumps up the older woman's arms "You almost made me break cover. Do you have any idea how hard that is? Do you know how many people would envy you for getting so far under my skin?"

Pepper faltered, anger fading out just enough to reveal a glimmer of hope, "Some of that was real?"

The younger woman released her charge, sitting up just a moment to control herself. Natasha found herself overflowing with a breathless mixture of anger and lust, her heart racing in her chest. A part of her wanted to calm down and explain but another part, a darker part, just wanted to pin her down and kiss her senseless. Didn't Pepper understand she wasn't the only one hurting from the mission?

Nails caught her across the cheek, barely breaking skin. She snarled and struck hard, wrapping a hand around the woman's throat and raising her up just enough to cut off some air. Pepper gasped sweetly and grabbed the agent's wrist, a surprised touch but not one to fight the assault.

"Do you think I wanted this?" Natasha demanded "I didn't want to kiss you. I didn't want to be at your side all the time, and I certainly didn't want to like it so much. I didn't plan to hold your hand...and I didn't know it would feel so right. I wasn't supposed to tell you about Clint and how much I could've loved him. I didn't want to! Don't you understand?"

She eased Pepper back onto the bed, the older woman's hand stayed on her arm. It grounded Natasha, giving her something to focus on.

"Do you really think I wanted to jeopardize my cover like that?" her tone softened "To undo months of planning just to share a bit of my life, my real life, with you?"

"Why did you do it?" Pepper searched the younger woman's face, that raw need for touch and comfort bubbling back to the surface "If I was just a slip up...why did you make me fall in love with you?"

Natasha dipped down, tilting her head as if to deliver a kiss, "You're the best mistake I've ever made."

It was like an audible crack, the tension collapsed and swamped them in a terrible want neither had felt before. Natasha pulled her up into a kiss, long fingers tangling into her curls and gripping tight. It was messy and it tasted like raw cinnamon liquor but it was what they needed. Pepper bucked up and rolled them, their mouths still fused while the agent's fingers crept under the other's dark shirt.

"You're an ass" Pepper growled when she pulled away, yanking her shirt off impatiently "You can't just kiss me like you did and leave. I had this whole night planned for the two of us, there was wine and I had a whole plan to get you into bed."

"I'm here" Natasha panted, hands working up the woman's body. After months of fantasies she was finally here, the skin beneath her palms just as soft as she'd imagined. Cinnamon colored locks fell beautifully across her freckled skin, it was almost too much to have this kind of beauty straddling her hips.

"Yeah, now" Pepper snapped, the bite of it dying when finger skimmed just beneath her breasts. She moaned, eyes falling shut as she gave into the sensations. Pleasure sizzled across her nerves, her hips rocking in a subconscious need for friction.

"Nat..."

The desperate plea had Natasha sitting up and wrapping her arms around the woman, the slide of leather and flesh getting another moan out of her. She mouthed hotly at Pepper's neck, the hand in her hair twisting almost painfully.

/That's it, edesem/ Natasha raked her teeth across the jut and curve of her lover's collarbone, the taste of cinnamon liquor bursting across her tongue /Let me close./

Pepper couldn't look, she could barely breath. After two weeks of constant moping and silent self-pity she finally had what she wanted. Natasha's hair was like silk between her fingers, the woman's mouth searing a path down to her breasts. Teeth and tongue teased the tender skin, a stuttering whine escaping her throat at the contact. How long had it been since someone had held her like this and laved such sweet attention upon her? Natasha's finger stroked up and down her back, nails grazing the skin and sending shivers along her spine.

Natasha snagged a hard nub between her teeth, biting just hard enough to get the other to moan. Two hands settled on her shoulders and pushed her to lay flat, she allowed it with a small grin.

"You better have a hot body to make up for those shitty morals" Pepper uttered, reminding them both just how drunk she was. She grabbed the zipper on the woman's suit and pulled it down, biting down on her lip as the plump curves of the younger woman's chest was revealed. They were larger than her own, an ideal body to model and seduce with. She was too drunk to feel any shame about her slighter body. How could she complain when she had this goddess underneath her?

Pepper found herself flipped on her back and it was all over from there. They huffed and sighed as more flesh was revealed, the S.H.I.E.L.D. suit eventually found itself on the floor along with the other more intimate articles of clothing. It was desperate and graceless, their grip was too hard and their kisses were too sharp, their breath came too fast.

Pepper was starting to fade in and out, he alcohol ruining her vision but enhancing her sense of touch. Every kiss and brush of fingers felt like fire, every groan rumbled through their chests like thunder. It was intoxicating and upsetting, her mind was erasing and fast forwarding through something she'd been wanting oh so desperately.

Pepper cried out and arched up high off the bed, coming back to reality full force when two fingers slipped inside her. Natasha's strokes were firm and sure, her mouth kissing at the soft skin of her flat belly. She tried to tell the younger woman to stop, to wait, she wanted more time – but all that came from her lips were pleads for more. It was maddening, the heat building up in her chest and along her thighs signaling she was close to losing everything.

Too fast, too much...

Natasha's mouth closed over one of her nipples, biting down again and sending hot sparks up through her head and down into her groin. It was enough to send her over. The way the woman's fingers crooked and filled her, the insistent suckling on her most sensitive parts, and then the brush of a soft thumb across her clit. A dam broke in her heart, emotions soaring as high as her pleasure.

Pepper kept her hand buried in her lover's scarlet ringlets, whimpering her name over and over between soft pleas to stay.

"Nat...Nat, oh, please...don't go, can't take it...Natasha, it's so..."

xXx

It was hours later in the prime of night when the phone rang. It was only three beeps but it was enough to make green eyes snap open, a soft gasp escaping the younger woman as she was ripped from the depth in sleep. Natasha rolled over to the side of the bed and reached down to her suit, digging the cellphone out of her pocket with the least amount of effort possible. She checked the number, rolling her eyes before answering it.

"I'm here" was all she said, listening to Coulson's voice with as much attention as she could muster "Great. How's New Mexico?"

Natasha vaguely paid attention to the situation down there, something about a hammer and mythology. She rolled over until she was propped up on her other side, finding her bedmate still fast asleep. They were both bare from last night's activity's, reeking like sex and and spoiled cinnamon. The encounter had been sloppy but the passion had more than made up for it. She hadn't wanted their first time to be under the influence but the option to wait was off the table. Natasha knew she came with the intentions to make things right between them...and it wasn't if Pepper had said 'no' or anything.

The more she tried to rationalize it the worse it sounded.

"How soon until I'm expected?" Natasha inquired quietly, cradling the phone between her ear and shoulder. She laid one hand along Pepper's warm back, slowly stroking the sleep-warm flesh. There were little marks visible along the older woman's shoulders, a mix of hickies and scratch marks decorating the length of her neck. Natasha smiled, satisfied that Pepper's mark on her own heart was now reflected on the woman's skin.

Though more than a little drunk, Pepper had kept going far longer than she'd expected. The woman had been relentless about touching every inch of her, and for someone who hadn't been with a woman before she knew how to give as good as she got. Pepper's mouth had been hot on her lips, forcing a hard climax out of the agent after just a minute.

Natasha must've moaned because Coulson suddenly sounded uncomfortable, "I'm fine. Are you sending the jet? Good. I'll see you an hour."

Natasha closed the phone and set it down, figuring out just what to say. She curled her fingers in that beautiful cinnamon colored hair and opened her mouth to call to her, but the phone went off again. Natasha let the woman go to pick back up the phone, finding a simple text from Fury that told her to leave without contact. The mission was time and cover sensitive, she needed to be on that plane and briefed within fifteen minutes.

Natasha looked to Pepper's sleeping face. This was wrong, this was so wrong, but it would take too long to calm the woman down. She cared about Pepper, maybe more than she'd like to admit, but the job came first.

"I'm sorry, edesem" Natasha dropped a kiss on the woman's shoulder blade before sliding out of bed, struggling to keep quiet as she dressed. She caught sight of herself in the mirror and stopped. Her cheek was marked with four lines, two showing signs of blood while the others were merely stained red. That's right, Pepper had struck her...it was the catalyst that had gotten their clothes off.

It seemed fitting to start out their relationship with bloodshed.

Okay, so...here's...something. The next chapter will be written better, I promise, and it should be up soon. I know, I made you wait a week for this, but unforunately this is all I have. It takes me forever to write lemons, not to mention I've never written femslash so this is a little harder for me.

edesem = Hungarian for 'sweetheart'