Glass Heart

There were just about a thousand different scenarios that Tony expected to run into when he arrived at the GPS coordinates that Jarvis had programmed into his car once the Aston Martin Scarlett had stolen had been located. He’d spent the hour long drive through the barren desert highway pondering over which one he’d stumble upon and what she’d possibly done in his house the night before while he’d slept.

The betrayal he’d initially felt was quickly shifting into a mixture of concern and anger. There was no chance that he’d been simply fooled into bed by a pretty face. It wasn’t in his nature to be deceived by women, regardless of their intelligence. No, it was usually the other way around in his case. Tony was definitely not used to being on the receiving end of the morning after. Never once had he been left alone in bed and regretted it before. He’d always had Pepper around to send his date for the previous night home in the morning and he’d never thought anything of how it would impact anyone’s life except for his.

In fact, he’d always thought of it as doing his dates a favor. He’d given them what they wanted, and more, and he of course had gotten what he needed so what else was there to be had? Shaking the confusing feelings from his mind with a grumble and pressing his foot down harder on the accelerator, Tony considered instead what he would find when he got to the coordinates a few miles ahead of him.

The scenario that Tony considered would be most likely would be he would find the car abandoned on the side of the road. Scarlett would have likely taken whatever work she’d stolen from him to recreate and sell to less than nefarious people and run where he’d never find her. He had to consider that it was a huge possibility she was a thief, but his gut was telling him it wasn’t the case.

She’d seemed like she’d had such benevolent intentions. Tony had dismissed the idea several times but couldn’t help coming back to it. He’d been betrayed before and his first impressions of people wasn’t exactly what he’d call stellar considering someone he’d once referred to as family for his entire life had betrayed him at the turn of a dime and had even hired someone to kill him.

Once again, Tony rejected the idea of Scarlett selling his ideas for a profit. She had to have had other motives to break into his systems. The speech she’d given him when they’d been working on recreating the element about doing the right thing hadn’t been a lie. There was something dark and dangerous lurking inside of Scarlett, but he was guessing it was threatening to destroy her not him.

Maybe he’d find her walking on the side of the road with her thumb held out, trying to hitch a ride. The scenario that followed the idea in his mind was both amusing and terrifying. Scarlett could get into serious trouble if the wrong person picked her up on the side of the road. Then again, considering what her job had been before he’d met her it was possible that she’d cause more trouble for whoever picked her up than they would cause for her. Still, it was in Tony’s nature to think up every possible ending to what could happen and he didn’t like either option.

Then there was the very distinct possibility that Tony wouldn’t find the car at all. If she was clever enough to get through his security, it was possible that she was clever enough to disable the GPS tracker in the car or reprogram it so he would find nothing but the mechanical remnants of his system and a second middle finger from Scarlett. What had he done to deserve such treatment? There was a laundry list of perverted and selfish things he could think of, but he pushed them to the back of his mind. Of course, she could’ve sold the pieces of the car as well. Perhaps he’d find a sad shell of what used to be his beautiful sports car.

What Tony actually found on the side of the desert highway surprised him. It was the one scenario that he hadn’t played out in his mind but now that he saw what he was up against, he was starting to consider it. Turning the Bugati sharply in a u-turn on the abandoned looking highway Tony parked behind the Aston Martin and looked to the computer system in his dash while he considered this new situation.

“Jarvis, keep the car running while I talk to Scarlett.”

“Is everything alright, sir?” Tony stared at the car in surprise.

“Jarvis, you do realize she disabled you and you’re still concerned about her well being? How could you possibly still have a crush on her?” Scoffing, Tony was partially amused and annoyed by his computers reaction.

“With all due respect, sir I am not the one chasing after her in the desert. I also most certainly didn’t put on my nicest suit and cologne to do so.”

“I didn’t think computers could be defensive, good job Jarvis.” Tony unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door of his car. “And this is not my nicest suit.”

“Of course not sir, my mistake.” Tony closed the door before Jarvis could respond further, straightened his tie and then started toward the parked Aston Martin. Scarlett hadn’t moved since he’d parked his car, despite the dirt he’d kicked up in the process. Sitting on the hood of the Aston Martin she was sipping out of a cardboard cup, what was presumably coffee.

Walking around the car to the front of it, Tony pulled off his expensive sunglasses, straightened his sport coat and then put his hands in his pockets. Having to remind himself he wasn’t trying to show off he cleared his throat. He was going to wait for her to say something or offer an explanation for her behavior but she didn’t seem to have much to say to him. Instead he stared at her legs that were simply sitting there, basking in sunlight for him to enjoy. Sometimes he hated his libido, though he reconsidered that thought as quickly as it came into his head.

“I bought you coffee.” Scarlett reached to her right and grabbed the second cardboard cup that she’d gotten before the car had warned her it was turning off. She’d never wanted to escape him. She simply had to create a reason for her actions that would keep Tony off the trail of what she was really up to. Seeing him standing now in front of her the guilt she’d been fighting all morning returned at full force. She had to remind herself that she had to keep her walls up until she knew the truth about his involvement with MedCo. If he ever forgave her for what she’d put him through, then perhaps things would work out but she had to act like it never would for the sake of her heart.

Something told her it was too late to prepare her heart to break if she couldn’t fix the mess she’d made. She was already much further down the rabbit hole than she’d ever intended to go.

“What?” Tony shook away the thoughts of having sex on the hood of his car and glanced at the cup in her hand. When she hadn’t made conversation he’d instead taken to fantasizing about possible outcomes of the situation again.

“I wasn’t sure how you took it so there are some things for you to add into it in the car if you want.”

“I don’t want coffee.”

“You look like you could use some coffee.” A smile curled on Scarlett’s lips as she held the cup out for him to take. Tony walked closer and placed the sunglasses in his pocket but still ignored the cup she held out for him. Pulling it closed and sitting up straight she waited for him to respond to her but he didn’t seem to know what to say. Silence, minus a car here or there passing by followed until Tony finally found his words.

“What the hell were you thinking?”

“I was thinking that you were probably in need of an energy boost.” Scarlett looked puzzled and then held the cup of coffee out for him again. Much to her surprise, Tony knocked it out of her hand and the contents spilled all over the sand, the cup rolling onto the highway then blowing quickly away in the wind.

“You know what I’m talking about.”

“Then why are you beating around the bush, Stark?” Tony actually let his mouth hang open to hear her once again calling him by his last name. He then turned away and ran his fingers through his hair.

“I should’ve listened to Pepper.”

“She’d probably agree with you on that.” Scarlett sighed, but her chest was stinging in agony to see him so upset with her. Once again she had to be reminded to keep her defenses on high alert.

“So what is it you were doing, huh? Are you stealing ideas in progress or without a copyright? Were you trying to figure out the arc reactor technology so you can sell it underground?” Tony blurted out accusations without thinking. The last hour spent in the car had filled his mind with nasty words.

“Why would you ask that?” Scarlett took a sip out of her coffee cup nonchalantly.

“I don’t know, you’re the spy so why don’t you tell me why I’d jump to those conclusions?”

“You think that I broke through your complex security system to steal your ideas?” Scarlett’s playful smile disappeared and her defenses finally kicked in. “I told you what I thought about your company and its motives many times and you still think that’s what I’m after? That I’m trying to pull the wool over your eyes to make a quick buck? Are you that stupid? All that genius in there and that’s the best you can come up with?”

“My company?” Tony let his tongue brush over his bottom row of teeth and rubbed his fingers over his beard. “You mean the one that you signed legal papers to work for? The one that’s wildly successful and working toward making a difference? What is it you do again? You destroy lives and you destroy ideas. You do nothing but destroy and you’re giving me a hard time about what I do? I’ve had enough of it!”

“So nice to finally hear what you really think of me, Stark.” Scarlett didn’t let it show that it had upset her to know those dark opinions of her had been lurking in his mind, but she wondered if this was now a blessing in disguise. Would he have eventually turned on her if she’d pursued her romantic interest? If she could keep thinking like that maybe she’d stop hurting so deeply.

“Don’t try to turn me into the bad guy here. You crashed my computer and let a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent into my house while I was sleeping! Anyone could’ve walked in and stolen anything from me! Not to mention god only knows what you actually stole from me.” Face turning red, Tony tried to think rationally, but at some point rationality had flown out the window.

“That’s it, isn’t it? I must be jealous of the genius that is Tony Stark.” Scarlett spoke coldly, though she didn’t honestly feel a word of what she was saying. If he was going to say things to hurt her then she would return the favor. “No one could possibly come up with ideas as good as yours! I mean, that has to be why I did it. I couldn’t possible have other reasons or other motives up my sleeve. I couldn’t possibly just want to prove that I could take down your security system or have reasons more two dimensional than that. You’re the only genius around Tony, the only one with any brains so I guess you must be right.”

“Why the hell would you want to prove that you can take down my security system? That doesn’t even make sense!” Tony curled his lip in annoyance. “You bear your soul to me, you take care of me when I’m hurting and then you roll around in my sheets just to break into my private files and disappear? You’re sick. There’s something wrong with you. Somewhere along the line something broke inside that pretty little head of yours!” The angry words kept dripping from Tony’s lips like venom.

“Oh, so I was wrong then. This is about something totally different.” Scarlett stood up and set down her cup of coffee on the hood of the car behind her. “You think I used you.” Tony didn’t answer immediately but instead looked taken aback by the accusation.

“Used me?” His mouth hung open and for the first time since she’d met him, he was completely speechless.

“How does it feel to have a taste of your own medicine?” Scarlett looked away from him, then started walking toward the back of the car. Was he right? Was she broken beyond repair after years of turning off her emotions and needs? “To have someone lure you to their lips, draw you into bed, take you to the moon and back… And then leave you… alone. How does it feel, Stark?” Before Scarlett could turn back around to face him, Tony caught up with her and placed his hands on her hips and swiftly pulled her close.

“That’s not what you did. You didn’t use me.” He tilted his head to the side. Despite her angry words, her body language was telling him a completely different story. She was being defensive, like she’d been wounded. But who had hurt her? She’d been the one to lash out at him not the other way around.

“What if I was? Shouldn’t you know? You’re the expert.” Scarlett didn’t stiffen up or lean into his touch but instead stared out into the desert.

“If you used me then turn around right now and tell me…” Tony brushed her hair back and tucked it behind her ear, tilting his head to the side to whisper in her ear. If she would apologize and explain what she’d done maybe they could go back to the way things had been that morning. There was a method to her madness, he knew it. There had to be a good reason for her to go through his things or she wouldn’t have done it. Closing his eyes he saw the look on her face from the night before in his mind’s eye and knew it hadn’t been faked. She’d really trusted him and what they’d done had been more than what she was claiming it was. “Face me and tell me that it was meaningless sex. Tell me it was a one night stand. Turn around and prove to me that when you quivered underneath my touch and lost your breath with me that it meant nothing.”

Scarlett couldn’t answer him, not honestly and not falsely. It hadn’t been a one night stand as much as she had wanted it to be. No matter how many times she had tried to convince her own mind that it would mean nothing, it had meant far more than that and it was killing her, festering inside of her like a cancer.

“You can’t say it, can you?” Tony purposely made the scruff of his goatee brush against her neck, recalling how it’d made her react the night before. That hadn’t been an act. Even if she had set out to use him originally, he’d gotten the best of her in bed. Scarlett gritted her teeth and had to repeat over and over in her mind that she couldn’t get in any deeper with Tony than she already had, not until she’d straightened out her mess and that meant getting to a computer off of his network to go through what she’d stolen.

“No.” Scarlett pushed his hands off of her hips and turned around to face him. “You’re unbelievable, you know what?”

“See, that’s all I wanted to hear.” Tony couldn’t help but smirk as he spoke but Scarlett scowled in response.

“It’s still all about you, it’s amazing really.” Scarlett took a step away from him when he reached out for her again. If she could just keep his hands off of her then the fog he created would be lifted and she could fight this battle and win. But when would she be able to stop thinking this was a war? Would she ever be able to let things happen for the sake of happening rather than coming out on top?

“Of course it’s about me.” Tony held his hands out in front of him, clearly confused on how it could be about anything else. “You left me alone in bed this morning and you broke into my things and stole my car. If this isn’t about me then I don’t know what is. You can’t say that’s just my ego talking.”

“You are the most selfish person I have ever met in my life and that is really saying something because I have worked for some real self obsessed assholes in my life.” Scarlett swallowed the guilt at last. “It’s not about you, not this time. You could’ve been anyone last night and it wouldn’t have mattered! It was about adrenaline, danger and alcohol.”

“That’s not true.” Tony frowned. Was he really so wrong to think this was about him? What else could it be about? No matter what train of thought he went down it all started and ended with him being the root cause of the matter.

“Are you upset?” Scarlett stepped closer, feeling braver than before now that she’d built up her nerves. If she could make him angry with her then maybe it wouldn’t be such a conflicting emotion she felt. She’d expected him to have sent the cops after her, not to come after her himself and to tell her she’d run scared after having a night with him. On top of that, he’d shown up looking pretty remarkably handsome. Instead of turning her over to the police like she’d expected, he’d been trying to lure her back. “Waking up alone in bed, naked and ashamed of yourself for falling for some woman’s scheme. Did you build all these preconceived notions of what the morning would be like when you woke up only to have them shattered?” Scarlett had clearly struck a nerve.

Tony had expected her to be in bed with him when he’d got up that morning. He’d expected to hold her and kiss her and go for a second round of what they’d enjoyed the night before and instead he’d woken up to this nightmare. Was this what he put women through over and over again through the years? Feeling used and more alone than they had before giving up their bodies to him in the night? His eyes flashed dangerously and he grabbed for Scarlett’s wrist. She dodged his sloppy grab and took another step away from him. Letting him touch her was out of the question.

“That’s it isn’t it?” Scarlett egged him on, trying to push him to get angry with her.

“That’s not it.” Tony stood his ground, too stubborn to admit what he was actually feeling.

“That’s it. You don’t like when the tables are turned do you?”

“Stop saying that, it’s not why I’m mad.” Tony was practically stomping his foot in anger like a child throwing a tantrum

“Then why are you so mad?”

“Because you put your grubby little spy hands all over my stuff!”

“Oh, you’re so full of shit.” Scarlett laughed but was taking no joy in what she was doing. She had to be hurtful to push him away. The sex had been nothing but that and a means to an end and it wasn’t the orgasm she’d been looking for. Though she had to admit, that had been a pleasant surprise.

“You didn’t use me!” Tony stomped his foot again and this time managed to grab her wrist in his frustration. “I saw you and you can hide behind this angry mask all you want but I saw you last night and you wanted me as much as I want you. You got goose bumps! You practically screamed my name in pleasure.”

“Stop it.” Scarlett hadn’t expected him to fight back quite like that and tried to wriggle her wrist free from his so she could step away.

“When you came you saw stars.” Tony continued onward, tightening his grip on her wrist so she wouldn’t run.

“Stark, enough!”

“You left marks on my back because you couldn’t help yourself. You dug your nails into my skin because you had no other choice.” The anger in his eyes was mixed with something else that Scarlett couldn’t make out or perhaps was too afraid to define.

“Tony, stop it!” Scarlett tugged her wrist away from his, her stomach reeling with guilt. Much to her surprise, a smile spread over Tony’s lips even if it was just for a twitch of a second. He needed to push her because he needed to know what she was lying about. Maybe she’d run away scared that morning. It was possible he’d never find out what she’d really done that night or why she’d done it, short of her being honest with him and that didn’t seem like it was in the cards.

“Get in the car.” Tony walked back to his Bugati and got into the driver’s seat without another word. Scarlett stood perplexed next to the Aston Martin as he walked away. She started toward the car she’d stolen after a long moment of hesitation. Tony rolled down the window to his Bugati and leaned his head out. “Wrong car.”

Scarlett walked back to the far more expensive Italian car and got into the passenger’s seat. Her stomach was reeling and she was completely exhausted. She’d considered not getting into the car with him but was too startled to truly fight.

“Jarvis?”

“Yes, Mr. Stark.”

“Auto pilot the Aston Martin behind us please.” Tony shifted the car into gear and then started back onto the desert highway. Scarlett stared out the window and contemplated her next move. What had she seen in Tony’s eyes when they were fighting? Had she played right into his hands instead of the other way around? What if she found what she was looking for when she went through those files? What if Tony already knew what she’d taken? She could be heading back into a trap and end up dead before she knew the truth.

At this point Scarlett was so mixed up that she wasn’t sure which would be worse: if Tony were innocent or guilty. If he was innocent then she’d done horrible things to hurt him and could’ve really ruined any chance she had at the many opportunities he’d offered her, not to mention the annoying tug that she was feeling in her heart strings. If he was guilty then she’d been fooled by his mask of kindness despite having known his intentions were impure from the get go. Not to mention there was that annoying tug again.

What was wrong with her? Why did she have to develop these pesky feelings for the man who could potentially be responsible for her imprisonment and the death of her lover? That was the one thing she wasn’t supposed to do in her line of work and she’d fallen prey to it.

Scarlett was starting to feel like she was stuck in some pesky romance film. Well she wasn’t going to roll over and swoon, not like the many women before her had done for Tony Stark.

The anger in the car was palpable. Tony was driving too fast and making dangerous merges left and right through traffic. Scarlett seemed to be able to ignore the rage he was exhibiting and didn’t seem worried about him crashing the car. The Aston Martin sped along more safely behind them, Jarvis clearly in control of that.

Tony had seen the surprise and panic she’d felt when he’d started to fight back. She’d expected it to be a one night stand for him. What if he’d been wrong about her motives from the very beginning? What if she was right and it wasn’t about him for once? Maybe it was about her. He hated to admit it, but that made much more sense than anything else he could come up with. Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to accuse her of what he was sure was true. Scarlett was scared. At least, that’s what he was guessing.

When the cars pulled into the garage and parked in their designated spots, Tony turned off the engine of the Bugati. As he turned to speak to Scarlett she got out of the car before he’d opened his mouth. Curiously peering at her through the windshield, he watched as she headed toward the door that would lead her back upstairs.

“I thought we were past this.” Tony opened the car door and leaned against the roof of his car.

“Past what?” Scarlett didn’t turn or stop walking away from him.

“You sneaking around and acting like a spy.” Tony folded his arms on the roof of the car and leaned his chin against them. His anger had faded considerably since he’d decided that the problem was with Scarlett and not with him. Of course, he was still on the defensive after what she’d done but he wasn’t exactly growling at her anymore.

“Oh, really? Because I thought that I was just going around destroying lives and stealing your stuff.” Scarlett rolled her eyes and continued toward the door but stopped when she couldn’t open it. It seemed as though the house no longer trusted her and it had good reason not to. Her heart sunk. She’d gotten what she wanted. She was all alone.

“That’s not what I said.”

“It is what you said which I still find funny because you’re the one with the company that’s done way more bad than good over the years.” Scarlett leaned against the door and turned to face Tony. He didn’t respond but merely batted his eyelashes at her. “Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what? I was just looking at you. I can’t use anything but my eyes to look at you. That request is ridiculous.”

“You’re ridiculous.” Scarlett shook her head. Despite how playful Tony suddenly was she could feel the tension in the room still hanging unpleasantly. She’d hurt him.

“Real mature, Scarlett.”

“What happened? You were ready to kill me out there.” Scarlett narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.

“I was, but not in the way you’re thinking.” Tony grinned and wiggled his eyebrows comically.

“God, you’re such a pig.” Scarlett sighed heavily and walked away from the door.

“What was the point of this? Breaking into Jarvis, turning him off, rifling through my things… stealing my car.”

“You have one of the most high tech computer systems on the planet, arguably the most high tech of them all and I needed to know if I could break it.” Scarlett lied and even as she spoke knew her answer wouldn’t be accepted.

“Why would you need to do that? Did I not tire you out enough last night? We could’ve kept going.”

“I did it because I could.” Scarlett knew that Tony could see through her lies but it didn’t mean she had to come clean. Still, the guilt was kicked up far enough already and she was struggling to keep a straight face. She walked away from the door and leaned against the desk. The computer immediately locked itself and she laughed under her breath, but not in amusement.

“We both know that’s not true.” Tony tapped his fingers on the hood of his car as he walked around it. “I think you’re scared.”

“Scared of what?” Scarlett smiled, this time she was amused. “Scared of you? Fat chance, Stark.”

“I think you were too scared of what would come next. I think you wanted to hurt me before I got the opportunity to hurt you.”

“I think you’re delusional and should possibly get checked for a concussion. Those robots through you around an awful lot last night.” Scarlett’s defenses kicked into high gear again. How could he read her like an open book?

“You want me to think that you’re some cold hearted bitch who did this for the sake of doing it and I don’t buy it. That’s not you.” Tony was slowly approaching the desk, he didn’t want to push her boundaries too quickly

“You want me to be a damsel in distress for you to save and I’m not that kind of girl. There’s nothing for you to save me from, hero.” It seemed as though Tony knew the game she was playing and the pot shots she was trying to take weren’t working.

“I think you need to be saved.”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah, but not from those guys out there. You can handle them just fine.”

“Yes, I can. Trust me I’ve been doing this a long time Stark and I don’t need some asshole in armor to come and keep me safe from the big bad men with their big bad guns. I’ve dealt with way worse.”

“I think you need to be saved from yourself.” Pointing a finger at her knowingly, he folded his other arm across his chest.

“Wow, your hero complex is far worse than I thought.” Neither one of them had noticed the sound of the door opening at the other end of the room.

“Hero complex? I’m the one with the hero complex in this room? Who’s in denial now?”

“Denial? Do you think at all before you talk, because sometimes you come across as stupid.”

“Now you’re just taking cheap shots.”

“No, I think I already won here.”

“You won? What did you win exactly? I saved you from dying out in the desert and I brought you back here to safety. Yeah, I’ve been a complete dick since the moment we met I’ll admit that. But I showed you hospitality, I took care of you and you trusted me and that bothers you. I fed you, I clothed you, and I took care of you and you still think this is a game?” Tony’s face finally turned to anger again.

“What do you want me to do? Why don’t you leave me a bill for your damn services? How much do you think last night was? A hundred bucks maybe?” Scarlett was gritting her teeth.

“Two hundred at least.” Tony’s amused smile had faded entirely. “Is this really a game to you Scarlett?”

“Tell me that it isn’t to you! You’ve been trying to get me undressed since I woke up and you’re saying this wasn’t a game? You’re just mad because I did to you what you do to women all the time. And to make matters worse, I did it better than you.”

“This is not what I do.” Tony clenched his fists.

“It’s not? What part of making women feel like cheap sluts and then tossing them out on the curb like garbage isn’t like what I did to you? Are you hurt, Tony? Can you even be hurt? Do you feel anything when it comes to sex anymore? Anything at all? Or did you just make yourself so numb to it that you’re more upset that I took control of your computer than used you?” Scarlett practically snarled at Tony who was surprised to hear the hurt in her voice. Why was she the one who sounded hurt when he’d been the one who had woken up alone in bed? Was that what she truly thought about him? Those last few words had turned the dagger in his back and made him lash out.

“You’re right! I don’t feel a damn thing. You’re just another easy bitch I wanted to take advantage of. You think that because you waited a handful of days to give it up to me it makes you any better than the rest of the women before you?” Tony slammed his hands down on the desk he’d approached without realizing it.

“I think that you’re trying desperately to turn this around so you don’t have to admit that I got the better of you when you hoped it’d be more than what it actually was.” Scarlett felt numbed and hollow.

“You did not get the better of me! You’re wrong. The only thing you took advantage of was my hospitality. If you hadn’t walked out of my bed I would’ve thrown you out like trash the next morning. You were nothing! It meant nothing!”

“Well, I’m sorry then. Is that what you want to hear, Stark? I’m sorry that I was just like everyone else.”

“You’re sorry for the wrong reasons.” Tony shook his head, doubting she was sorry for anything that she’d done.

“Excuse me.” Pepper interrupted in a meager voice, forcing Tony and Scarlett to turn their attention to the woman at the other end of the room. She was scowling disapprovingly at Scarlett with her arms folded over her chest. Initially she’d wanted to find out what the hell happened when the house had been shut down, but their fighting had painted a pretty clear picture for her. “Tony, I have some paperwork from Nick Fury that you need to sign and take a look at.”

“Not now Pepper.”

“I think it’s important.” Pepper didn’t look away from Scarlett.

“I said not now!” Tony yelled which surprised Pepper entirely. The redhead looked at her boss, then at the woman sitting across the room and then left while shaking her head and muttering something about trusting the wrong people. Left in the tense and awkward silence between them Scarlett and Tony didn’t make a move to talk or leave the room. Tony yelling at Pepper had been the first real sign of anger he’d shown since they’d gotten back to his home.

“If you’re that upset then I should leave. I’ve overstayed my welcome.” Scarlett finally broke the awkward silence in the room. Neither one of them believed what the other had said was true but the words had stung nonetheless.

What it came down to was that relationships, of any kind, were complicated and two people who weren’t used to having them were bound to spit words before admitting they were wrong or actually sorry for the wrongs they’d committed.

Maybe Tony should kick her out. It would put an end to the madness that had erupted in his head ever since he’d laid eyes on her. There would be no more confusing and conflicting emotions about her if she left. Better yet, he could call the police and report what she’d done. He was sure that once she was arrested and her history was brought to light she would spend more than a lifetime in prison. She’d told him personal and damning information, he could use it against her if he had to.

Then again, if he let her leave he might never be able to track MedCo down without her insider information. He was sure that MedCo wasn’t going to stop pursuing her either so he’d have her blood on his hands in the long run if she was captured and he was sure she would inevitably be taken down by them. No matter how strong or stubborn she was, she was horribly outnumbered in the battle she’d found herself the center of.

“I do owe you.” Scarlett shook her head when he didn’t respond to her. She hadn’t expected anything to hurt this much. Emotionally she’d never been quite this torn before in her life and wasn’t sure how to handle it. How she had ever expected this to be easy was beyond her. Playing with fire and getting burned was one thing but wanting to jump back into the flames was another. Maybe Tony had been right and she needed to be saved from her herself. “I’ll pay you back for everything you’ve given me. If I can just… get the things you found me with I’ll go. You won’t hear from me again other than to return what I owe you. I don’t have my bank card or anything on me anymore and it’s not in this country anyway.” Scarlett pushed her hand through her hair, finding herself rambling on about what to do next. She needed a computer. That had to be what she kept thinking of. At this point, she was avoiding having a nervous breakdown and couldn’t begin thinking about her next move.

“No.” Tony shook his head and exhaled deeply. “Scarlett, cut it out. You’re not going anywhere.”

“I don’t want to stay here.” Scarlett had spoken before she’d thought and hung her head. Was that really what she wanted to do? Was revenge for Scott worth what she was suffering through? She wasn’t sure it was worth what she was putting Tony through even if he was behind the entire ordeal.

“You signed a contract.” Tony walked over to the door that led upstairs and nodded toward it. “You’re my partner now for this project we started, remember? If you want to break that contract it’s going to be a ton of legal trouble so… you’re stuck here either way. If you want to leave then I’ll hire some lawyers.”

“Stark…” Scarlett started. She’d been expecting him to throw her out, but as she was finding out Tony wasn’t exactly what she had expected.

“Besides, I know you didn’t mean any of that garbage.” Tony forced a confident smile to mask the confusion in his thoughts.

“What?” Dumbfounded, Scarlett merely stared stupidly at him.

“It wasn’t like that for you. It wasn’t a game you were playing.” Tony started up the stairs and didn’t turn back to face her, afraid of what he’d see. “Trust me I’ve been doing this for years and I know what the game looks like. It wasn’t like that for you.” Clearing his throat, he continued on. “On the other hand, you did break through my security system and tamper with my files. You have lost your privileges here with Jarvis. As much as he likes you I don’t know what you’re up to because you won’t tell me. So you’re going to have to deal with me being annoyingly around you all the time in order to get anything done that requires clearance.”

“You want me to stay here after all that?”

“I told you, we have a contract.” Tony sighed and stopped on the staircase. Thinking carefully before he spoke again, he closed his eyes. “And it wasn’t a game for me either.”

“I don’t know what to say.” Scarlett hesitated and started toward the door that was being held open for her by Jarvis.

“You could, you know, confess what’s really going on and then let me carry you back upstairs to do things the right way.” Scarlett stopped on the stairs and shook her head, finally able to smile again. She’d get the proof she needed either condemning Tony or vindicating him but either way she’d confess the whole truth after she got it. “Nothing, huh?”

“Go upstairs, Stark.”

“I didn’t mean it about you being easy by the way. You’ve been unbelievably hard.” Tony pouted but didn’t turn back around. “You could stand to be easier. It would be much more fun for the both of us.”

“I’m going to push you up there if you don’t move.” Scarlett was still surprised that he was trying to ease the tension between them.

“I like it when you take charge, remember?”

“I’m pleading the fifth on that one.” Scarlett pushed at his back but then stopped herself. “I can’t believe you’re letting me stay.”

“You know, after this week together Scarlett… you continue to be very interesting.”

“Together? Right, interesting.” Both Tony and Scarlett had a thousand things on their mind, but neither one of them had found resolution. Something had changed in the Stark Mansion but it hadn’t been what they’d expected it to be. Scarlett had expected Tony to treat her like dirt and Tony had expected her to lash out far worse than she had. Neither one of them had gotten what they’d wanted.

It was a delicate waiting game and they were almost to the end. Now all Scarlett needed was a computer of her own. She’d purchased some of the parts she’d need to build her own but hadn’t had time to get to the remaining stores on her list before Tony had shut down the car and cut her adventures short. She had very little money left from the cash she’d had on hand, so if she couldn’t buy the parts remaining, she’d have to get creative.

Still, progress was progress even if it was heartbreaking.