Glass Heart

Tony Stark slept soundly in his large and comfortable bed through the whole night. While most people might not have thought it was that big of an accomplishment to stay asleep for an entire night in one’s bed, it was definitely a significant achievement for Tony. Ever since he’d returned from his harrowing time in captivity he’d had trouble sleeping. And who could blame him? After waking up with an electromagnet in his chest attached to a car battery in some cave in the desert, it was hard to learn how to trust the sweet surrender of sleep. There were times when the irrational fear that he’d wake back up in that dark and torturous cave and his freedom and heroism were merely a figment of his subconscious would keep him up for days at a time.

The few and rare times he’d actually managed to make it through a solid eight hours of rest had been when he’d had a few too many drinks and even then it was likely a result of passing out rather than a natural fitful slumber. Rolling over in his bed and onto his back, the already knotted sheets wrapping tighter around him as he did, he yawned loudly and stretched his arms high above his head, the soft caress of his silk sheets soothing his sore body. His left shoulder stung and ached as his stitches pulled as a reminder to what he’d been through so he placed it gingerly back at his side before slipping his right arm behind his head with an incredibly content sigh.

Opening his eyes at long last he discovered that his room was filled with the light of the morning and quieter than he remembered it ever being in the past. A smile thick with the fond memory of what had led him to such a pleasant night’s sleep spread wider across his face.

It had been quite a long time since he’d spent an intimate night with anyone, contrary to what his reputation would have the populace believe. While he still fit the role of the playboy in personality and in the public eye, when it came to his personal life, his romantic endeavors had stopped nearly cold turkey after he’d returned from Afghanistan. There had been attempts at flings and the same cavalier lifestyle he’d once been the master of but it had never satisfied him the same way it had once done. Sure, he’d the tried a more serious relationship with Pepper Potts but that hadn’t lasted for very long and had never been quite right for either of them. He still hadn’t figured out what had led to their downfall. Either way, this was the first time in a very long time that he had truly felt at home after a wild night with a beautiful woman.

The media had consistently continued to report on his more social excursions, obviously animal magnetism, and sexual prowess despite how he hadn’t brought any of the women who hung on his arm home with him. Being as fond of the attention as he was Tony decided to let the world continue to think that he was the notorious playboy with loose morals that he’d been for most of his twenties and thirties.

But the truth had become far removed from that. Having a near death experience had changed everything about his life, including his sexual appetite and desires. It wasn’t that the urge and lust wasn’t there, it definitely was as he’d proved in simple conversation. But echoing right behind that appetite were the wise words that Yinsen, the man who had saved his life in the desert, had spoke to him during his time in captivity. He was the man with everything and nothing.

So when his need for sexual gratification had consumed him and he considered continuing to sleep his way through the western coast as he once had done on a regular basis, he remembered just how little those encounters actually meant. When it came down to it, Tony didn’t want to waste his time with something meaningless anymore. He used to do it because it felt good and it was a way to show off. In more recent days he’d felt empty at the idea of it. Of course, he was no saint by any stretch of the word but he was certainly not the party animal he appeared to be in the eye of the media.

Brushing his hand through his short and stylish hair lazily, Tony rolled his head to the side to look over at the woman who had been his companion for the night. Leaning up on his elbow when he didn’t see the tangled mess of brown curls that he’d expected to find scattered close by, his eyes scanned around the room in search of her. He half expected to find her coming through his bedroom door with a cup of coffee she’d made. Well, it wasn’t really what he had been expecting but it was what he had been fantasizing about.

If she’d done that for him, dressed in nothing but his t-shirt shirt, he would’ve practically died with happiness and very likely would’ve stolen her attention until her coffee ran cold. Instead, there was nothing in his doorway, nothing in his room and he was all alone. Peeking under his sheets to confirm that he was still naked and hadn’t imagined what had happened the night before with Scarlett he saw what he’d expected to see. The room still smelled like sex, despite how his partner was nowhere to be found.

Groaning from the soreness and ache tensing in his muscles, Tony couldn’t help but crack a smile at his discomfort. Even if it wasn’t from his late night extracurricular activities with his houseguest and was more than likely caused by the intense fight he’d been in with the ruthless drones at the charity event, he couldn’t help but want to blame it on the former seeing as that was far more entertaining.

“Jarvis, where did Scarlett run off too?” Speaking nearly incoherently through a yawn, Tony waited for his house to respond in a sarcastic manner as it always reliably did. When there was no audible reply, Tony swung his legs lazily out from beneath the sheets and off the side of the bed. “Jarvis, has Pepper shown up yet? What time is it? I must have overslept.” There was still no response from Tony’s makeshift butler. His heart dropped into his stomach and his back stiffened. Looking around his room in search of some sign of what happened he realized that absolutely nothing was responsive. Usually there were little signal lights from electronic devices, the hum of the air conditioning system and the constant beep of his phone to fill the silence. The power had gone out out which was peculiar considering Tony had a private power supply built just for his house. The only way he’d lose power was if it’d been turned off purposely.

Hurriedly Tony slipped on a pair of boxers, nearly tripped as he wiggled them up and rushed out of his bedroom. Somehow he knew in his gut exactly what had happened. He’d been had.

Walking barefoot through the hallway that was so quiet it was almost like a scene from a horror movie, Tony stopped at the guest room he’d been allowing Scarlett to stay in. Her dress from the night before was lying on her perfectly made bed, discarded. He’d been hoping to find that she’d returned to her bed but there was no other sign of her. Cursing loudly underneath his breath, he smashed his fist hard against the wall. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath to try and calm himself down, he tried not to feel betrayed but was finding it impossible. Sitting on the edge of Scarlett’s bed, Tony rested his head in his hands and grumbled under his breath more curse words.

How hadn’t he seen it coming? She’d been so convincing the night before! Something deep down inside of him was trying to convince him that it wasn’t that she’d been lying to him at all. There wasn’t an actress in the world who could fake the sort of reaction he’d gotten out of her in bed the night before. She’d been as into what they were doing as he had been and while he was sure she would argue against it if he ever saw her again, he already knew the truth. Now he wondered why she’d bothered to turn off his computer systems and where she’d gone to. There was only one way to find out. Part of Tony didn’t want to know. Part of him wanted to go back to sleep and forget about it, but he knew it was impossible.

If Scarlett thought that Tony was going to give up and roll over that easily then she had another thing coming.

“Tony?” Pepper’s voice echoed from the main level of the mansion. He’d never realized how cold and sterile his house seemed until it was devoid of the warmth Jarvis and his other advanced technology provided. “Tony, the power’s out down here and Jarvis isn’t responding to me. Is everything okay?” Worry was thick in his assistant’s voice. After what had happened at the charity event Tony couldn’t blame her for feeling paranoid. He should’ve listened to Peppers’ instincts about Scarlett. She’d told him days ago that he was getting in over his head with the woman and Tony had ignored her.

Still bruised, scratched up and half naked Tony started out of Scarlett’s bedroom. Stopping in the doorway to glance back at the dress he’d stripped off of her the night before, Tony sighed heavily. Steeling his nerves, he stormed out into the hallway and hurried down the stairs. He’d use the feeling of betrayal to fuel his anger.

“Tony? Tony, what’s going on in here?” Pepper had her phone in her hand when she saw her boss appear on the staircase. Pressing a few buttons to end the call she was making she hurried up to him in the living room once he’d descended the stairs. “You didn’t take care of yourself at all last night, did you?”

“I don’t have the energy for that right now so don’t bother.” Tony’s voice was haggard and tired.

“Why is the power out? That’s never happened before. Wait, can that happen?” Pepper’s face was wrinkled with concern and confusion.

“Does it look like I know what’s going on?” Tony rushed toward the staircase on the other end of the room that led to his garage and his lab. He was partially afraid of what he was going to find there. What had Scarlett done to his security system? Maybe he’d been wrong about her from the beginning and she’d simply been doing her job as a spy. Had she been flaunting her goal in his face all along by telling him what he wanted to hear?

Suddenly every move she’d made since she’d woken up in his lab seemed like a ploy and he’d played right into her hands. But what about the tension he’d felt when he was with her? Not to mention the smiles and the laughter she’d shared with him. What about the pain and the doubt he’d seen in her eyes when she’d made her confessions? What about her panic attack on the sidewalk and then again when they’d been working. There had been nothing but fear in her eyes then. Was she simply that good? There was no way.

“Tony what’s going on? Are you okay? Where’s Scarlett? I need you to answer me, I’m worried!” Pepper grabbed Tony’s arm before he could leave the room when he’d insisted on giving her the silent treatment. It wasn’t like her boss and friend to simply ignore her quite the way he was doing. He had, of course, ignored her on many occasions but Pepper could feel that something was different.

“Just… go about your day for now, okay? I don’t know what happened yet. When I figure it out, I’ll tell you.” Tony offered a reassuring smile then waved Pepper off and when she moved to follow him he turned to look at her sharply. Pepper, surprised by Tony’s agitation with her, backed off and headed back into the living room despite her concern. He clearly wasn’t in any danger so she’d let him come to her in his own time.

Tony rushed downstairs and through the wide open door to his laboratory. The garage that doubled as his personal workspace was dark and foreboding with the exception of the light that was flooding in from the open garage door at the far end. Walking over to his central computer desk he flipped on the screens of his computer upon realizing that the power wasn’t turned off but rather everything was disabled. Next to his high tech computer that controlled everything in the house was the laptop that he’d used the morning before when he’d woken up to do some upgrades to Jarvis’ system from his bedroom.

Cursing loudly once again, he realized that must have been how Scarlett had accessed his systems. He’d never bothered to log off of his laptop after his work was completed considering that he had never really had the need to be that defensive in regards to his things before. Leaning his elbows on top of his desk, Tony rested his head in his hands and tried to erase the fog of sleep from his mind. If Scarlett thought that Tony was going to simply sit back and let her take control completely from him, then she obviously hadn’t been paying enough attention when they’d been playing the night before.

Touching the power button on his computer he, once again, let out a long string of curses when it didn’t respond to him. Pushing his computer chair out of the way he crawled beneath his desk and saw the mess of wires unplugged from the back of his computer’s tower. The amount of trouble that Scarlett had gone through to delay him was astounding. If he hadn’t been so angry with her then he would’ve given her a pat on the back. No one had ever pulled the wool over his eyes so severely before.

“Excuse me, Mr. Stark?” Tony jumped at the sound of an unfamiliar woman’s voice behind him and smacked his head on the bottom of the desk. “Oh, I’m so sorry! Are you okay?” The cautious and tired face of a woman in a suit peeked at him underneath the desk. Her cheeks were pink and she was making every effort to make eye contact instead of looking elsewhere. Tony only had to wonder why for a moment before recalling that he was walking around half naked.

Sneaking out from beneath the desk, Tony wondered who the hell this new woman was and how the hell she’d gotten into his lab. The fleeting worry that perhaps Scarlett had been taken in the night graced his thoughts then was quickly rejected. She was far too stubborn to be taken quietly.

“What the hell are you doing in here?” Tony spat his words far more severely than he’d meant to.

“I’m from S.H.I.E.L.D. and I’ve got some paperwork from Director Fury for you that needs signing. He’s requested as a consultant that you take a look at some new documents as well.” The woman was trying to keep her professional demeanor but found that she was doing her utmost best to avoid looking at Tony Stark in general considering the situation. This morning couldn’t have gotten any more awkward and confusing than it had been already. Between her legal troubles, the rude brunette and now the bruised and nearly nude Tony Stark, she wasn’t sure how the day could get any weirder.

“I’m a little too busy for that bullshit right now so… if you don’t mind.” Tony ignored her request and then crawled back underneath his desk. Lying on his side he started reconnecting the wires from his computer so he could make it functional again. It was the only place he could think to start. Without his technology to assist him, he was practically useless. Mickey stood awkwardly next to the desk, this clearly not being the answer that she needed. After realizing that was all that he had to say to her and there would be no follow up request, she wondered if he’d forgotten she was there. He was clearly preoccupied with his computer.

Mumbling something incoherently about betrayal and sexy under his breath, Tony slid out from underneath the desk and smashed his hand against the computer to turn it on. As it hummed to life he sighed with relief and leaned against his desk, waiting for the processes to finish booting up.

“Mr. Stark I’m afraid that it’s not as simple as me coming back later…” Mickey cleared her throat and did her best to sound polite, but Tony refused to acknowledge her presence, still clearly focused on his computer.

How had Scarlett gotten past his defenses even with the laptop that had been logged on? His computer system was designed not to respond to anyone outside of himself and a restricted amount of commands that he’d assigned to Pepper! Had Jarvis betrayed him? Tony didn’t think so. He’d watched her in action with computers a handful of times and then working with his hardware and wondered if he’d underestimated Scarlett’s abilities from the very beginning. She’d been fascinated with his technology but he’d written it off to curiosity. It was in his nature to assume that he was better than everyone else because ninety nine perfect of the time he was better.

Even after Pepper had convinced him to strike a business deal with Scarlett and he’d learned more about her credentials Tony still hadn’t considered her to be on the same intellectual level as him. Tony had three different doctorates before most people had been accepted into college and was considered, by far, the most skilled technological genius of his time. He’d never considered that he might meet someone who could give him a run for his money in his generation. But now he was definitely considering that he’d been wrong. It was rare, but it was known to happen.

When the computer had finished its boot up process at long last, Tony logged in past the password protected screen and immediately started typing away and restoring power to his house. The lights in the garage snapped on one by one overhead, machines around the room came to life and filled the room with the familiar and comforting hum, robots powered up and started to go about their business and most importantly Jarvis’ systems came back online and his holographic grid scanned the garage and presumably the rest of the house.

“Jarvis, what the hell happened last night?” Tony shouted in annoyance, not looking away from his computer screen. Just when Mickey thought the day couldn’t get weirder, Tony had started yelling at his computer like it was a person.

“Mr. Stark, I just have some paperwork I need you to go over for Director Fury. Please, it will only take a quick moment of your time.” The woman who had finally gotten over her embarrassment held a manila folder and brought it close to where Tony was typing in hopes of catching his eye. Glancing over at the woman in the suit like he was seeing her for the first time he blinked in confusion.

“You’re a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent? How the hell did you get into my house?” Brow furrowed, Tony turned his attention back to the computer in front of him.

“Some woman let me in a little while ago.” Tony froze when she responded and finally turned away from the computer to pay attention to the agent. “Agent Mickey Pierce, Mr. Stark. We’ve met before but I doubt you remember. I was with my fiancé. He was one of your biggest fans actually…”

“Some woman let you in? What did she look like? Tall, pretty? Brunette? Sneaky blue eyes that are apparently up to no good?” Tony gestured to his face for an example, interrupting the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent in her introduction speech.

“Yes that sounds about right. She told me that you were asleep still and I could wait for you upstairs.” Mickey hesitated, wondering what on earth she’d gotten herself into. She should’ve listened to her gut and used one of the sick days she had piled up.

“I see you listened well.” Tony rolled his eyes and then stood up straight, hearing his back crack uncomfortably. “Jarvis, locate Miss Potts for me so I can speak to her.” Clearing his throat numerous times, Tony waited until a small holographic screen popped up in front of him. Mickey audibly gasped and stumbled backwards. She’d seen Stark technology at work, but those unfamiliar with the way he ran his house were always astonished by Jarvis’ capabilities. “Pepper!”

“Oh Tony! The house suddenly came back to life. Everything’s okay now, right?” Pepper looked concerned on Jarvis’ screen.

“There’s a S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent something or other down here that I need you to deal with for me.” Tony turned off the communication with Pepper before she could respond and yell at him for not having answered her questions. He didn’t need her to ask what had happened again considering he still had no idea what the hell had happened. “Miss Potts will deal with any paperwork Captain Cyclops has for me. Next time tell him that there’s this thing called email and it’s pretty efficient.” Tony waved Mickey off and when she didn’t move, he acknowledged the door leading out of his lab and up to his living room. He felt like there was something important about the agent standing nearby that he was supposed to remember but his thoughts were consumed with what Scarlett had done.

Mickey stared skeptically at Tony, unsure if she should be insulted or not, and then started toward the doorway which opened automatically for her and led to the staircase. She decided that it wasn’t worth talking to Tony when he was as preoccupied as he currently was.

“Jarvis, what the hell happened last night?” Tony asked again while he started pulling up files on his computer. He was trying to figure out if Scarlett had stolen anything from him or destroyed any of his information.

His bank accounts seemed to be untouched and in order, none of them accessed over any part of the morning or night. Even his files hadn’t been altered in anyway. It looked like she hadn’t actually done anything except for turn off his house and give him one of the worst scares of his life. And of course, leave him alone in bed after what he thought had been a fantastic night. Bitterness turned in his stomach and he licked his lips in an attempt to get the taste out of his mouth to no avail.

“I can’t honestly answer that for you, sir.” Jarvis took a moment to scan his memory to try and figure out what had transpired the night before. “My systems were disabled within the night so there is no data until you booted me back up.”

“Damnit. What about my files? Was anything accessed or altered in the last twelve hours?” Tony hung his head and furrowed his brow, trying to think clearly. There had to be something he was missing.

“Not that I can tell, sir. It appears that all your information is untouched and intact as it had been before my services were disabled.”

“Why would she do this to me?” Tony wiped his hand over his face and held his palm over his mouth as he considered what Scarlett had done. Glancing toward the open garage door, he considered that maybe she was playing a game with him.

“Sir, your Aston Martin V12 Vanquish appears to no longer be in its assigned location at the far end of the garage.”

“What?” Tony looked around frantically only to realize that his car was not where he’d last parked it. Narrowing his eyes he considered what that meant. Scarlett had gone through the trouble of turning off his complex security system to steal one of his cars? There was no way that had been what she’d set out to do. Besides, she had to be smart enough to know that he’d be able to track her in one of his vehicles after having seen the technological advancements he’d installed into the other cars. She wanted him to find her and for some reason this made his heart leap in his chest.

“Your Aston Martin V12 Vanquish…”

“Oh don’t be a smart ass.” Tony scoffed but couldn’t help but finally smile. “Really Jarvis?”

“My apologies.” The computer immediately continued. “Would you like me to alert the authorities of the theft, sir?”

“No.” Tony contemplated reporting his stolen car to the police. He didn’t think Scarlett was really out to hurt him. He had to consider that she was far more troubled than she had been letting on. The night before had been a trial of trust and faith and if it had been him sharing that much about his past with someone he wasn’t sure he could entirely trust to begin with he wasn’t sure he would’ve acted any differently than she had.

“What action would you like me to take?” Jarvis repeated once it was clear Tony wasn’t sure what to do.

“I need you to power the car down safely and get me GPS coordinates to its exact location. Program it into the Bugati and get it ready to go.” Tony glanced down at himself before marching back upstairs. He’d get changed quickly and go after Scarlett. Maybe she didn’t think that he’d want to chase after her after having gotten her into bed considering his reputation. Well, he was about to prove her wrong and look damn good doing it.

Mickey watched Tony march past her up the stairs and wondered what the hell she’d just been witness to. Honestly, if she had worked for any other agency she would’ve been surprised by the confusion in the Stark household. But Tony Stark running around half naked when some mystery woman had apparently stolen his car had been one of the most normal things she’d seen through the entire week; though the crazy talking computers had thrown her for a loop. The computer Tony had referred to as Jarvis spoke to her again and this continued to unsettle her so she shifted uncomfortably.

“Right this way ma’am. Miss Potts awaits you in the living room.” The lights of the stairwell came to life one by one, guiding Mickey up the stairs. Slowly she headed along her path, taking in all there was to see in the beautiful Stark mansion. Once at the top of the stairs she could see Pepper Potts approaching her, hand extended politely to shake. The mansion was beyond lavish and it was taking all of Mickey’s willpower not to let her eyes wander around the room.

“Hello, I’m Pepper Potts.” Pepper had a few minor scratches here and there but otherwise looked her usual chipper self. Apparently the odd goings on in the Stark Mansion hadn’t been too out of the ordinary considering how calm she seemed. Either that, or Pepper had gotten used to dealing with chaos.

“Special Agent Mickey Pierce.” She smiled politely and shook Pepper’s hand. “We’ve met a few times before in the past. I doubt you remember me considering everything you have to deal with whenever you’re with your boss.”

“Oh no, that’s right. I do remember you actually… You have the cute dog right? You brought him in one time. Very sweet thing…” Pepper snapped her fingers in remembrance, nodding her head.

“Yes, that’s me. Everyone seems to remember me because of Pluto.” Mickey smiled, but Pepper could see the weariness on the woman’s face.

“Mickey and Pluto, yes that’s right. I remember. How could I forget? Sorry that things are obviously kind of crazy right here now.” Pepper watched Tony as he slipped on a leather sports jacket, slid on a pair of designer sunglasses and marched back down to the basement. She could smell his cologne despite the fact that he seemed like he was in a hurry. Still curious as to what was going on and why Tony was so angry at everything it took all of Pepper’s available professionalism to keep from running after her boss and friend to find out what the problem was. She trusted that Jarvis would update her if necessary and turned her attention back to Mickey and the manila folder she was holding.

“I can see that and don’t worry about it. I’m used to it in this line of work. Is it anything I can help with?” Mickey didn’t actually have the time to help sort out someone else’s problems but felt rude not offering.

“To be perfectly honest I have no idea what’s going.” Chuckling under her breath, Pepper turned her attention away from the staircase once Tony had disappeared and looked to Mickey. “So, Agent Pierce what is it that I can do for you today?”

“You can call Mickey to start with. Agent Pierce was my father.” She smiled pleasantly, but still those lines of stress near her eyes betrayed her kind smile.

“Well then Mickey, why don’t you have a seat on the couch? Can I fix you a cup of tea or coffee? Perhaps something a little stronger, maybe? It looks like you need a drink as much as I do.” Pepper attempted to calm the woman’s nerves.

“As much as I’d like that I think I need to keep my wits about me. I have a court hearing to go to after this and I probably shouldn’t lower my inhibitions.” Mickey finally frowned. “But I have some papers from Director Fury that Tony needs to look over and sign. Something about billing, I don’t know. There might be information on a new target in there too. I wasn’t permitted to details. All I know is that I was told that coming here to the Stark mansion was loads harder than it actually was except for when I got road blocked by Tony Stark himself. Half naked Tony Stark at that, which I definitely was not ready for.” Mickey managed a sincere laugh as she spoke. It had been more than startling to see him walking into the garage in nothing but his boxer shorts and then proceeding to ignore her once he’d done so.

“Tony likes to mess with the agents that come here sometimes. It often makes it an entire day’s experience trying to get his signature.” Pepper smiled apologetically. “Next time you need to talk to him, call me instead. I know how to deal with Tony so… it will save you some of your valuable time.”

“Thank you so much. These just need to be faxed back to Coulson by the end of the week if you don’t mind.” Mickey handed the manila envelope that she’d tried to give to Tony earlier in the garage to Pepper who took it with a smile.

“I’ll get them back as soon as this madness is sorted out.”

“Thank you, I really appreciate it.” Mickey nodded with a sigh then looked toward the staircase. “I guess I should get going. I’m being sued so I should probably you know… go talk to my lawyer before the hearing begins.”

“I honestly think you could use a cup of coffee at the least.” Pepper sat down on the couch and started looking through the familiar S.H.I.E.L.D. paperwork that she’d dealt with a thousand times. “Jarvis can you get Miss Pierce a cup of coffee?”

“Yes, Miss Potts.” The computer responded overhead. Mickey hesitated and then sat down on the couch.

“I guess that I’m already running late so a few more minutes wouldn’t hurt. It’s not like they can proceed without me considering…”

“What are you being sued for? You’re so young! Doesn’t S.H.I.E.L.D. take care of that legal stuff for you?”

“Yes, they would be assisting me if it was work related but this is more of a personal matter.” Mickey glanced down at her hands and grimaced. The grief was still settling in a knot in her stomach that didn’t know how to loosen. “Not even twelve hours after my fiancé dies and his bitch of an ex-wife is already suing me for everything he’s left me.” Pepper stayed silent for a moment.

She hadn’t stayed in the hospital with Leonard once he was admitted considering she’d taken it upon herself to be responsible for Happy’s wellbeing as well as her own. Guilt flooded through Pepper and tears burned immediately behind her vision. She knew that Leonard hadn’t been doing well when he was taken away in the ambulance but she had been so certain that he would recover.

“I’m so sorry.” Pepper offered an apologetic smile, her voice breaking as she spoke. “Leonard was really brave you know…”

“Kind of stupid though from what I heard, wasn’t he?” Mickey took the cup of coffee that Jarvis offered her hesitantly and took a sip of it. It felt bizarre living in such a lavish manner, even as a guest. “Jumping into danger that he shouldn’t have been a part of at all to begin with? People told me what he did. You know he’s… he was such a huge Iron Man fan that he probably felt like a super hero just getting to be around Tony.”

“I really am sorry. I know Tony will be too when he finds out. We were fond of him, he was a really nice guy and very brave.” Pepper furrowed her brow and bit back her upset. “It was such a mess last night in that place. I should’ve stayed at the hospital to make sure he was alright. Please forgive me for not recognizing you as his fiancé at first when you came in.”

“It’s really okay.” Mickey shrugged her shoulders. Leonard was much older than she was so she’d been mistaken for someone other than his fiancé many times before and it no longer upset her. She’d spent most of the night mourning but first thing that morning she’d been served papers by Leonard’s ex-wife’s lawyers as well as papers from the lawyer in charge of Leonard’s vast estate.

“So why are you being sued? She can’t possibly think you’re responsible. There would be no case anyway.” Pepper sipped her own cup of coffee, eyeing the pretty agent over the top of it.

“Well, Leonard was rather wealthy and we were going to be married soon. He left me his money. I honestly hadn’t expected that. He has kids so I thought it would be left in a trust for them.” Mickey scoffed. As nice as it had been to know that Leonard had cared enough for her to leave her with his fortune so she’d be well taken care of, it seemed like more of a burden than it was worth. She’d loved Leonard enough to marry him, but felt guilty that he’d left her everything in his will when he’d had a wife and kids before they’d started dating.

“That’s a wonderful thing, isn’t it? It’s almost a confirmation that he loved you and trusted you.” Pepper couldn’t shake the guilt and wondered if she should tell Tony. Surely Tony would feel guilty and responsible for Leonard’s death when it had really been beyond his control. The older gentleman had made his choices and had paid the ultimate price for them.

“Well, it was a blessing until his ex-wife immediately sued me for his fortune.” Mickey chuckled but there was no amusement on her face as she took a sip of the perfectly brewed coffee. She’d never been a fan of the drink but wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“That’s rough.” Pepper shook her head in dismay. It didn’t seem like the day was going well for anyone.

“You know, it’s pretty remarkable how little attention she would pay to things that didn’t benefit her but the moment that Leonard died she tries to make a claim for his money. I’m not looking forward to the list of names she’s going to call me when I get to that hearing.” Sighing heavily, Mickey set the cup down on the end table and stood up. Straightening her suit jacket she looked around. “I’ve burdened you enough for the day, Miss Potts. Thank you for the coffee.”

“Pepper, please and it’s no burden at all. To be honest your visit is the most normal thing that’s happened to me today and was welcomed.”

“Good luck with that by the way.” Mickey looked sincerely amused by the situation Pepper had to deal with.

“Thanks, I think I’m going to need it by the look of things.”

“So should I… go out the front door this time instead of the garage?”

“Yes, yes most definitely. You came in through the garage? Never mind it’s not important.” Pepper laughed awkwardly and got up from where she had been seated, leading Mickey toward the front door through the meandering halls of the Stark mansion. Exchanging goodbyes with the woman from S.H.I.E.L.D. Pepper closed the door behind her and leaned against it wondering what sort of mess Tony had gotten into. “Jarvis make sure to send flowers to Agent Pierce with our apologies for Leonard, will you?”

“Yes, Miss Potts.”

“And let me know what’s going on with Tony as soon as you know.”

“You will know as soon as I do.”