Archive of Our Own

“Well, look who got here first.”

Tony glanced past Rhodey to see the members of the fire department on the far side of the bar, making a huge ruckus. Not that they hated each other; the police department and fire department have had a friendly rivalry since forever, especially with their stations being right next to each other. The pub was frequented by both teams, with each often trying to claim it as their own territory. Still, everybody from one side knew everybody else from the other, and they were all close enough to consider themselves friends.

As his group gathered at their usual table, Tony looked over to see who was on the other side. On one end of the table was James Barnes, the only fireman Tony ever knew to have a prosthetic arm. Challenging him to shots was Sam Wilson, an ex-air force pilot. The two of them always acted like they hated each other’s guts, but virtually everybody in both departments knew they were friends with benefits.

Next to Wilson was Thor Odinson, who the entire police department was sure was a real life Viking, if his blue eyes, blond hair, and great height were anything to go by. Despite being a giant of a man, he was a real softie at heart. Everyone had a crush on him, but none more so than Bruce, the police’s resident forensic scientist. (In fact, Thor was very obviously trying to pretend that he wasn’t staring at said scientist, who was taking his seat next to Tony.) 

And of course, right in the middle, was none other than Steve Rogers, the captain of the team. Steve fucking Rogers. He looked good tonight (not that he ever not looked good), with his tight button up shirt, his blond hair combed perfectly. Tony would have kept on staring if he hadn’t noticed Steve staring right back at him.

Tony immediately turned away, pretending that he wasn’t just caught staring, that those blue eyes didn’t make him feel some type of way, a feeling that he hadn’t felt since their one-night stand two years ago. They were drunk, and when Tony woke up the next morning, the first thing he said was that they should pretend like it never happened. Not because the sex was horrible - Tony might have been drunk, but he was lucid enough to know that it was one of the best fucks he had ever experienced - but because… well, Tony didn’t know why. Not even now.

Keeping those memories repressed, Tony turned back to his friends. There was Rhodey, their sergeant and Tony’s oldest friend; Bruce, his partner in all things science related; Natasha, a fellow detective and the most badass woman Tony has ever known; and Clint, detective and best marksman in the entire history of the department. They were the best team Tony could ever ask for. 

It was Tony’s turn to treat the team, so after getting all their orders, he headed over to the bar. As he waited, he could feel someone walk up next to him and when he looked up, the blue eyes that were staring at him from across the room where now right in front of him.

“Stark.” Steve smiled, and goddamnit, why was he this cute?

“Rogers.” Tony could only hide behind a smirk, trying to flirt his way out of the awkwardness. “What are you doing here? Want to buy me a drink?”

“Unfortunately, no. I’m here to help someone buy a drink for someone else. Although, if you wanted me to get you a drink, I definitely wouldn’t mind,” Steve said, flirting right back.

That was what things were like now between the two of them. The first couple of months after that night, things were extremely awkward, with neither of them even being able to say more than three words to each other. After that, with the help of the others, they eventually got over it, going back to being friends. But now, they’ve reached a point in their relationship where they do this playful flirting thing with each other, and as comfortable as Tony was with all of it, a small part of him couldn’t help but wish that the flirting would lead to something more.

“Who are you helping then?” Tony continued, attempting to get those thoughts out of his head.

Steve gestured back towards Thor. “The big guy. He wanted me to let you know that he wants to pay for whatever Bruce wants.” Steve then leaned forward to whisper, “If I’m being honest, if you wanted Thor to pay for all your drinks, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind either.”

A shiver ran down Tony’s spine at the feeling of Steve’s warm breath against his ear. Mentally calming himself down, all he said in response was, “He just ordered a beer.”

Pulling back, Steve handed him more than enough money to pay for the drink. “In case you guys go for a second round.” With that, he headed back to his table, but not before saying, “I’ll see you around, Tony.”

Once he was out of ear shot, Tony let out a huge sigh. He hated the effect that man had on him. He couldn’t understand why he was still feeling this way after everything. Again, by the time the drinks came, he had pushed all these emotions to the very back of his head. It had been a long day; now was the time to drink and relax.

Getting back to the table, Tony placed the beer in front of Bruce. “One large beer for you, courtesy of the Viking from the fire department.”

Bruce’s instantly blushed. These two, on the other hand, were, despite all their denials, pretty much a couple already. And while it was getting annoying seeing the two of them being so lovey-dovey towards each other, Tony was more than happy for his friend.

As Tony sipped on his own whiskey, Natasha said to him, “Saw you flirting with Steve.”

Tony rolled his eyes. “If you thought that was flirting then you obviously don’t know me. We were just talking.”

“Oh really?” Natasha had her eyebrow raised, her voice in a tone that told Tony that she already knew everything. “About what?”

“Work stuff,” Tony said, hoping to change the subject. “You know, like colleagues.”

“But you work in different departments though,” Clint said through a mouthful of chips.

Fuck you Barton, Tony thought. “As friends. We were talking like friends. All he said was that Thor wanted to pay for Bruce’s drink.”

“He really shouldn’t have,” Bruce said softly. “I can pay for my own beer.”

It was Rhodey’s turn to roll his eyes. “Yeah well, whatever it is, next time, just tell him to bring you the damn beer himself. What kind of roundabout way is this?”

They went on to discuss Thor and Bruce’s relationship, and Tony was more than grateful that the attention was no longer on him. He sipped his drink and laughed with his friends, all the while feeling those blue eyes constantly on him.

*

A few days later, as Tony and his team were walking back to the station after lunch, they noticed a huge crowd gathered outside the fire station. People had their phones out, trying to snap pictures or record videos.

Must be that time of the year again. Every year, the fire department would release a calendar that they would sell to raise money for charity. It was immensely popular, especially since all the photos were of the firemen, shirtless and holding cute little baby animals. Sure, Tony and the others made fun of them the first year, but after seeing how much money was donated, the entire police department considered doing their own.

Tony had never actually seen the photoshoot before, always opting to escape the noise and crowd, but since they had some time left, they decided to stop for a while to watch.

Right now, Thor was the one being photographed, standing tall and huge in front of one of the fire trucks. On each of his shoulders and in the crook of his arm was a small kitten, with all three and him looking just unbearably adorable.

Tony wasn’t blind. Thor was attractive as hell, the number of people screaming his name and taking his picture attesting to that. Tony just wished they could be a little quieter, because they did still need to do work next door, and there was legitimately one time the station almost went into a state of emergency because they heard hysterical screaming, only for it to be the fangirls reacting to Thor flexing.

Tony looked over to Bruce, who was currently sipping his coffee, pretending that he was unfazed by all of it, when in reality, it was only because he had private access to such a view back home (minus the cats of course).

Once Thor was done and returned all the cats but one, he walked to the crowd and the screaming just got louder. Being the friendly guy that he was, he stopped to take selfies and have a quick chat, really hamming it up for the fans.

But the smile he had on became a million times brighter when he spotted Bruce. Making his way over, he greeted everyone else before turning to Bruce. “Hi,” Thor said shyly, as if he wasn’t shirtless and didn’t look like an actual god.

“Hi,” Bruce said back just as shyly, blushing.

“Okay, I’m out,” Rhodey said, heading back to the station. “The two of you are too much.”

“Me too.” Clint called out as he caught up with Rhodey. “Any more of this cheesy romantic shit and I’m gonna puke.”

So, Tony and Natasha were left, watching as Bruce played with the kitten in Thor’s arms, and Thor looking at Bruce as if he was the only thing that mattered in the world.

There was another round of screams, and Tony turned to see that it was Steve’s turn. And Jesus Christ, if Tony was any weaker, he would have had a nosebleed.

As handsome as Thor was, Tony had always felt more attracted to Steve and this was a perfect example why. He had a broad chest and shoulders, which tapered down into a much smaller waist, making him look like what was essentially a triangle. His huge biceps flexed as he waved a small little wave to the crowd. Leading into his jeans were those stupid pelvic muscles, the “v” that Tony had no idea how to achieve. And even though his legs were covered, all the jeans did was to accentuate his ass and his thighs. After all the years of only seeing it in pictures, actually seeing this image of Steve in real life was almost too much for Tony.

And it didn’t just end there. As he waved, Steve had a slight flush to his face, clearly feeling awkward and self-conscious about having so many people look at him, which made him just as endearing as well. Not only that, but when he saw the golden retriever puppy that he was going to pose with, the smile that appeared on his face made him all the more adorable.

So, Tony watched as this perfect specimen of a man played with the puppy, carrying it in his arms. Given instructions by the photographer, he started posing, and Tony was perfectly content just watching until Steve glanced over and they locked eyes.

In that moment, Tony felt warm all over. Fuck being self-conscious; Steve knew exactly what he was doing. The look in Steve’s eyes was one of the things that Tony vividly remembered from their one-night stand, and it was that look that Tony liked to recall when he touched himself, the one that would always get him hot and bothered. He could feel his blood slowly making its way down south, which would be the last thing he wanted to happen because a) he’s in public and b) he didn’t need Steve to see the effect he had on him. Playful flirting, that’s all, Tony tried to convince himself, but those blue eyes looking right at him made it incredibly difficult to turn away.

“You guys should just bone already,” Natasha said out of nowhere, completely breaking Tony’s concentration and startling him until he almost dropped his coffee.

“Fucking hell, Nat!” Tony said, just barely managing to stabilise his cup. “Don’t do that!”

“Do what? Stop you from staring?” Natasha had that smirk on her again.

“You know that’s not what I meant,” said Tony. “Besides, we’ve already boned.”

Natasha scoffed. “That was two years ago, when the both of you were too drunk out of your minds to realise that you had feelings for each other.”

Tony opened his mouth to respond, but closed it, knowing full well that Natasha could find a crack in whatever excuse or explanation he came up with. Instead, he walked away. “I need another coffee.”

From behind him, Natasha said, “Too thirsty?” Tony flipped her off, only to hear her laughing.

Turning back, he stole one last glance at Steve, who was now talking to the puppy. That one image alone made Tony’s heart beat ten times faster.

*

A few days later, Tony arrived at work to find a bouquet of flowers on his desk. Convinced that the flowers had been delivered wrongly, he carried the bouquet over to Bruce, sure that they were meant for him.

“Nope, they’re for you.” Bruce flipped over a tag that was hanging at the bottom of the bouquet, showing Tony’s name written on it. “See?”

Even though he saw his name, Tony couldn’t believe that someone would give him flowers. “Do you know who did this?”

Bruce shook his head, while Clint said from his desk, “Looks like someone has a secret admirer.”

“Very funny Barton,” Tony said dryly. “Why would I have a secret admirer?”

“Who knows?” Natasha said as she walked over. “Maybe someone finds you cute. And whoever it is, they definitely did their homework.”

When Tony gave her a confused look, Natasha just said, “Flowers have meanings, don’t they?”

Immediately, Tony sat down and started searching. After a while, he found out that the white flowers were gardenias.

Gardenia: symbolizes purity and sweetness; indicates secret love; tells the receiver “You are lovely.”

*

Over the next few weeks, Tony received even more gifts.

The next thing he got was a box of chocolates, and attached to it was a card that read ‘Like chocolate, you make everything better.’ Tony rolled his eyes at the cheesy pickup line, and after picking a few pieces for himself, he offered the rest to whoever was in the station.

After that, it was coffee, which, although weird, Tony greatly appreciated. Written on the cup was: ‘I like you a latte’, which again, was a lame pickup line, but Tony did enjoy the pun. The coffee was made to his own specific preferences, which made Tony sure that someone in the station was behind all this.

Next was a box of donuts, attached with a card that said: ‘I donut know what I would do without you.’ “This is stereotyping,” Tony had said in response. “Yeah, but don’t you like donuts?” Rhodey asked. Tony kept quiet after that.

However, it was the next gift that changed everything. Instead of a box or bouquet, Tony found a large envelope on his desk. Opening it up, inside was a beautiful sketch of the park nearby, with the trees in full bloom. This time, instead of another pickup line, there was a note that said: ‘Hope you like something more personal.’

Tony genuinely smiled at this. This was the one that finally convinced him that it couldn’t be someone within the station that did it, because as far as he knew, all their art skills were pretty bad. (Except for the sketch artist, but Tony was ninety-nine percent sure it wasn’t her, but only because she already had a girlfriend.)

Then again, because the next few gifts were all sketches, Tony knew there had to be a contact inside the station, telling the secret admirer that Tony finally liked something.

Not that he minded; Tony really did like the drawings. They were well done and incredibly detailed, with the subjects ranging from the city skyline to a stray cat and its kittens. If he was being honest, it did feel a little stalker-y, and as a detective, he should have tracked down who this person was, but every time he tried, one of the others would just stop him, which only made him all the more suspicious.

So yes, Tony realised that he should have insisted, but hey, he was a cop. If anything happened, he had a gun. Hell, the whole station was full of people with guns. He would be fine.

Besides, he thought, I’m pretty sure this is just a fun little thing someone is doing. It’s not going to go anywhere.

*

The mystery behind the secret admirer was finally solved on the day of the joint fundraiser, held by both the police and fire departments. Small stalls were set up, where anybody from either department could sell their goods, whether it be old clothes or handmade trinkets. The fundraiser was open to the public, so the small little road between the two stations was packed.

Tony actually had his own stall where he sold metal jewellery and figurines that he made himself in his free time, back home in his workshop. During one of his breaks, Rhodey took over manning the stall, allowing Tony to do a little window shopping of his own.

As he walked along, he stopped by one of the stalls selling artwork. There were sculptures and paintings, but what really caught Tony’s eye was a drawing of the nearby boardwalk. Picking it up, he stared at it for a long while before realising that it had the exact same style of the sketches sent to him.

Confused, he looked to Wilson, who was the one at the stall. “Are these yours?”

“As if I’m that talented.” He then cocked his head over to the fire station. “They’re Cap’s.”

Tony turned to see Steve sitting on a chair, with a long line of children in front of him, waiting to get their face painted by him. Seeing Steve with the paintbrush in his hand, it finally all made sense. How the secret admirer knew exactly what Tony liked, how Tony never saw any strangers hanging around the place, how they could so easily get the help of Tony’s teammates.

Tony ran over to Bruce, who was just a stall over. “The secret admirer… it was Steve!”

“Obviously,” Bruce said, but then saw the look on Tony’s face. “Wait, you didn’t know?”

Tony shook his head. Now that it was laid out in front of him, he couldn’t understand how he didn’t realise it earlier.

Bruce laughed at how oblivious his friend was. “Everybody else knew it was him the second we saw the flowers. Only he would be that big of sap to do something like this.”

Tony didn’t know what to think. What the hell was Rogers trying to do? Was he trying to make a fool out of him?

Tony marched over to where Steve was. Noticing him, the blond looked up, and the sight of those blue eyes and warm smile almost broke Tony’s resolve. “We need to talk.”

“Now?” Steve asked as he finished up the stars on a little boy’s cheek.

“Yes. Now.” Tony walked away, towards the side of the fire station that was away from the fundraiser. A couple of minutes later, Steve appeared, but before he could say anything, Tony turned on him.

“What the hell, Rogers? Why the fuck are you giving me stuff? And why are you acting like some sort of secret admirer?” Tony was mad, seeing no reason why he would do such a thing unless he was trying to make fun of him. “If this your idea of a joke, you have gone too far, because-”

“Tony.” Steve’s voice cut through his ranting.

Tony could only glare at him. “What? What excuse are you going to give me?"

Steve hesitated a moment before sighing. “I did it because… because I like you.”

“What?” Tony wasn’t sure he heard him right.

“I’ve liked you for a while now,” Steve said, a shy smile on his face. “Way before we slept together. But after that night, when you told me what you wanted, I respected it. That was until recently, when I felt things were changing between us, so I thought…”

“So, the gifts, the flowers, the sketches…” Tony looked at him incredulously. “Were you trying to… court me?”

Steve rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “I’m old-fashioned, what can I say?”

Tony couldn’t help but scoff at how ridiculous all of it was. “Steve, you can’t be serious.”

The blond continued. “That day, during the photoshoot, I saw you staring, and the way you were looking at me, I just thought-”

“Have you seen yourself?” Tony asked incredulously. “You were shirtless! And yes, while I find you unbelievably attractive, it wasn’t just me. Everyone was staring, even Nat! And you had a freaking puppy in your arms! How could I not look at you?”

The change in Steve’s expression was drastic. It was as if a literal cloud had appeared over his head. The pain in his eyes was so intense that Tony’s heart ached, made only worse by the fact that he was the one who caused it. “I guess I was wrong then.” Steve couldn’t even look him in the eye. “I’m sorry.”

The defeat in his voice was so palpable that it took Tony aback. It was only then that he realised just how cruel he sounded. “Steve-”

“I was being stupid… I’m sorry,” Steve repeated before forcing a fake smile, one that only worked to highlight his pain. “Let’s just pretend this never happened, okay?”

Tony almost choked at hearing his own words thrown back at him. Hearing those words come out from Steve’s mouth, Tony finally understood what it must have been like for Steve, to have the chance to sleep with the man he liked only to be rejected before he could even say anything, to have the slightest bit of hope that his feelings might be reciprocated only for that hope to be torn to pieces.

Tony wanted nothing more than to take everything back, but before he could, Steve just said, “I’m gonna go” and walked away.

Now left alone, Tony collapsed with his back against the wall, tilting his head back and staring up at the sky. What have I done?

*

A few minutes later, when Tony finally recovered enough to walk back out, he spotted Steve back at his post, painting the faces of the children with a forced smile.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Natasha coming up to him. “Now’s not the time, Nat.”

“What did you say to him?” she asked, arms crossed. “He looks like a kicked puppy.”

“I know.” Tony pinched the bridge of his nose. “I fucked up.”

“At least you admit to it.” Natasha glanced between the two. “Are you going to do something about it?”

It took a moment, but Tony decided that yes, he was. He wasn’t going to let Steve go just like that, not after everything they’ve been through.

Waiting for the face painting session to be over, Tony headed over once the last child was done. As Steve was turned away, Tony sat down in the opposite chair.

When Steve turned back around, the shock and confusion was clear on his face, but he still forced a smile. “I never thought of you as a person who liked face paint.”

Tony shook his head. “Steve, I need to explain.”

“It’s fine,” Steve said, his smile becoming more pained by the second. “I was being dumb, and-”

“No, it’s not fine, and no, you weren’t dumb. It was me.” As Tony said this, he reached out to touch the back of Steve’s hand, to which the blond stared at him.

“It’s not that I don’t like you,” Tony continued, trying to find the words. “I do like you. Very much.”

“Then why did you...?” Confusion had completely taken over Steve’s face, and Tony could see that he was trying to figure out this one-eighty change in reaction. “Are you… afraid of commitment?”

“God no. I have fantasized about my wedding, so no, it’s not that.” Steve was about to say something, but Tony stopped him. “And before you ask, no, it wasn’t the sex either. I… nothing can describe how great that night was. I might have been drunk, but I remember everything.”

It was an attempt at levity, but Steve still appeared just as serious. Looking at how handsome he was, hair perfectly styled, wearing his fire department t-shirt, it finally dawned on Tony what he had been so afraid of this entire time.

“The two of us… we’re in dangerous lines of work, and I’m just afraid that… one day, something bad might happen to us,” Tony said, voice shaking. “Remember that big fire that sent all of you to the hospital after?”

Steve nodded, and Tony continued. “You were all in there for weeks, and you were there for almost a month. I was so worried, and that was just an injury! I can’t imagine what it would be like if you had actually…” He couldn’t say the word, but it was understood. “The same goes for you too. There are bad guys out there, who have guns, weapons, who do horrible things. It’s not often, but they still pop up every now and then. If something ever happens to me, I don’t want to put you through that.”

Tony sighed, at how he failed to realize any of this, and at the reality of their situation. “That’s why I pushed you away. I thought I should put an end to this before either of us had the chance to hurt each other.”

Silence followed as Tony waited for a reply, taking the time to process his own emotions. He didn’t have to wait long though, because Steve soon said, “You were worried about me when I was in the hospital?”

“Of course I was worried! I even visited you and everything! Don’t you remember the care package I gave you?” Tony looked up to see a smile on Steve’s face. “Wait, was that all you got from what I just said to you?”

“No, it wasn’t, but I’m just happy that I had someone looking out for me when I was hurt,” Steve said. “Wouldn’t you want that too?”

“Yes, but that’s not it. It’s just… I don’t want to lose you,” Tony said, surprised at how heavy this was all getting. But it was the truth. Sure, after a long day at work of catching bad guys and solving crime, Tony would want nothing more than to be able to go home and have Steve there, a warm presence waiting for him. Similarly, Tony knew that Steve would want him there for him as well, a source of comfort at the end of a gruelling day. But as much as Tony wanted that, he was afraid to think of how great the loss would be if they had that, if they got to experience all of that only to lose it. “And I’m sure you don’t want to lose me either.”

“I don’t, but that doesn’t mean we should pretend like we don’t feel anything, or that we should push people away.” Steve moved to hold Tony’s hand in his. “Isn’t there that saying: ‘It’s better to have loved and lost-’”

“‘-than never to have loved at all.’ Yeah, I know, but it doesn’t mean it’s going to hurt any less.” Tony felt the warmth of Steve’s palm against his own, focused on it to drown out the noise going around him. “I’m just scared, you know?”

“I do.” Steve looked at him with nothing but pure fondness, and Tony wanted nothing more than to kiss him silly, but they were outside and there were kids around. So, standing up, he pulled Steve with him as he jogged over to the police station. Making sure that no one was looking, he went in, dragging Steve along with him. Ignoring Steve’s questions, Tony brought him to the bullpen.

Letting go of his hand, Steve stood in the middle of the room, looking around. “Why did you bring me here?”

“Thought we should get a little privacy,” Tony said, leaning against the edge of his desk. “Come here.”

Smiling, Steve walked over, standing in front of him. With both hands, Tony touched Steve’s face, his fingers slowly tracing the hard line of his jaw, the few wrinkles that had grown in the two years that he had last touched him like this. As he did this, Steve stared at him with such a tender look that he could barely breathe, hardly able to understand how he was lucky enough to have such a man.

Tony cupped the side of Steve’s face, to which the blond reached up to hold it in his own hand, turning to kiss Tony’s palm. Turning back, he smiled and said, “I’ve missed you.”

“I've missed you too,” Tony said before pulling him in for a kiss. Once their lips touched, it was like a spark ignited inside him, and Tony wondered why he had pushed Steve away, why he wasted all that time when they could have been like this from the start.

Steve took a step forward, crowding Tony against the desk, pressing their bodies together. Feeling that solid, warm body on his, Tony couldn’t help but moan. Steve pulled away at that. “We’re in the open, we probably shouldn’t…”

“Nobody’s going to come up here.” Tony ground his hips up against Steve, causing the blond to shudder. “Besides, we’ve waited long enough, don’t you think?”

Grinning, Steve moved back, kissing Tony like there was no tomorrow. Putting his hands on Tony’s waist, he lifted the smaller man up until he was sitting on the desk. This sent a wave of thrill down Tony’s spine, his own hands reaching up to ran through Steve’s hair, legs spreading further apart to pull him in closer.

Just then, Steve moved away again, leaving Tony breathing hard, staring at him in confusion.

“You bought the calendar?” Steve asked, and Tony turned around to find the offending object, open to the very picture that Steve was posing for that day.

“Yes?” Tony replied, still confused as to why Steve would stop in the middle of what they were doing to point out such an obvious thing. “Everybody in the department always gets one.”

“I know, but why do you have it on me?” Steve asked with a smirk. “It’s not my month yet. It’s Thor’s.”

If it was possible to become any more flushed, that was what Tony did, aware that he had just been found out. “Well, you see, Bruce’s desk is right there, so as his friend, it felt weird to have a picture of his man, you know? And the puppy you were holding was really cute!”

Steve raised an eyebrow, that smirk growing bigger, clearly not believing any of it.

“I’m serious! I-” Tony was cut off by Steve’s lips crashing onto his, now his turn to grind their hips together. The friction between their growing erections had Tony moaning, throwing his head back only for Steve to attack his neck, pressing kisses and biting marks onto the column of skin. His hands went down to undo Tony’s jeans, pulling them down along with his briefs, hand then coming up to palm his now fully erect cock.

Tony couldn’t control the sounds that he made at this contact, trying his best to focus on kicking off his shoes and jeans without hitting Steve. Once that was done, he reached forward to pull on Steve’s shirt. Steve broke the kiss, tossing his shirt on the floor, followed by his own pants, briefs and shoes. Tony watched this little show, staring at the perfect body in front of him, getting impossibly more aroused when he saw Steve’s large cock, remembering how full he felt when it was inside him those two years ago.

Those blue eyes now looked at him with a deep hunger and desire. “Do you have…”

“Condoms and lube are in the bottom drawer.” Steve bent down to get them, giving Tony a questioning look. “What? I like to be prepared.”

Standing back up with two packets in hand, Steve opened the lube packet, spreading a generous amount over his fingers. Slowly, with one finger, he pushed into Tony, moving the digit in and out to get him used to the feeling before adding a second, opening him up for what’s to come.

All the while, Tony was just trying not to come right there and then. A hand in Steve’s hair, he pulled him forward for a kiss, trying to get as much of Steve as possible, as if to make up for all the lost time. By the time Steve added a third finger, Tony felt like a complete mess, his body flushed all over. He just wanted Steve to hurry up already, but he knew that Steve was going to make him wait, just like he made Steve wait for two years.

Steve’s fingers, long and thick, were brushing past his prostate, leaving Tony fidgeting and shuddering. “Come on, Steve. Stop with the teasing already,” he whined, squeezing one of Steve’s biceps.

Steve smiled against Tony’s temple. “Just want to make sure you feel as good as possible, sweetheart.” Honestly, Tony would have hated that nickname if he wasn’t in the position he was currently in, but his body involuntarily shuddered, his cock beginning to leak pre-cum at the mere sound of Steve’s voice alone, rough and husky against his ear.

Finally, Steve removed his fingers, and while Tony did feel a loss at the emptiness, he was immediately filled with anticipation as he watched Steve put the condom on. Holding Tony’s waist, Steve positioned himself and in one fluid motion, he pushed himself all the way in until he was fully seated.

The feeling was so overwhelming that Tony felt like he was dreaming. He gripped hard onto the edge of the desk, knuckles turning white as Steve started to move. When he felt his hands slipping, he called out, voice now just a breathy moan. “Steve…”

The other man knew exactly what to do. “Don’t worry, I’ve got you.” One large hand moved up from his hips to the desk, fingers splayed out to brace himself as he began fucking Tony in earnest.

With every thrust, Tony just wanted more and more. He pulled Steve into another kiss, one hand back in his hair, the other gripping his muscular back, legs wrapped loosely around his waist. It was as if he couldn’t get Steve close enough, as if his whole life depended on being in as much contact with the man as possible. His body was starting to ache, but he didn’t care. All he could think about was how Steve’s thick cock was moving in and out of him, filling him up perfectly, hitting spots that he couldn’t reach himself, even with all the toys he had back home.

Too caught up in these sensations, Tony didn’t even realize Steve had shifted him slightly until one thrust had him seeing stars. Every single thrust now rubbed directly on his prostate, and Tony knew it wouldn’t be long before he reached his climax, the heat and tension already building up deep inside him.

He knew Steve was close too, the blond’s movements becoming more irregular, the hand on his hip now gripping hard enough that there was sure to be bruises.

Tony was getting ever closer; he just needed that bit more to push him over. It was at this point that his inability to form words turned into an inability to control the words coming out of his mouth, his brain-to-mouth filter completely turned off. “Oh my God, Steve, I’m so close - Fuck, you’re so big, I feel so full - We should have done this so much sooner - Only you know how to fuck me so good - Harder, I want to feel it tomorrow.”

With each word, Steve sped up, driving harder and faster into Tony. With one final thrust, Tony came with a gasp, the sensation completely taking over his body. His whole body tensed, and Steve followed soon after, reaching his own climax as Tony clenched around him.

It took a while for both of them to get back to their senses, panting hard as they came down from their high. When they finally looked at each other, they couldn’t help but smile and laugh a little at how dishevelled the other was.

“I don’t remember you being this good the last time.” Tony said, pushing back the hair that stuck to Steve’s forehead.

“Well I’m glad that I managed to exceed your expectations,” Steve replied, a goofy smile on his face.

Playfully rolling his eyes, Tony pulled him for another kiss, one that was full of pure affection. Sure, Steve was completely naked, and Tony’s shirt was stained with his own cum, but for Tony, the moment couldn’t have been more perfect.

*

A few weeks later, Tony was at work when he saw Steve step into the bullpen. After handing a few files to another officer, Steve walked over, a bright smile on his face. “Hi.”

“Hi! What are you doing here?”

“Had some details on the arson case a few days back that you guys needed. Also, I wanted to make sure you had your coffee for the day,” Steve said, placing a cup of coffee on the desk.

“Thanks babe.” Tony pressed a kiss to Steve’s cheek, but when he moved away, he noticed the entire room had gone quiet. He looked around to see that the everyone was staring at them.

“What?” Tony glanced at his friends, wondering what the hell they were doing. Then, when it dawned on him, he looked back up at Steve.

“When the hell did this happen?” Clint shouted from across the room.

Steve’s face was flushed red, self-conscious about all the sudden attention. Tony, on the other hand, stood up. “If you all must know, Steve and I have been together for almost a month now. We reconciled our differences during the fundraiser.”

Silence, and then…

“I knew it!” Tony turned to see Rhodey with a huge grin on his face. He looked at everyone else in the room. “Time to pay up!”

A collective groan filled the room as detectives, officers, and staff alike fished out their wallets. Steve and Tony looked at each other in confusion before turning back to Rhodey. “Wait… you guys made bets on us?”

“Yup!” Rhodey said proudly as he went around the room collecting money. “We made bets on when you two would finally get your heads out of your asses and get together.”

Tony watched as Bruce pulled out a fifty. “Even you?”

“Of course I did. I had to, seeing how I was Steve’s contact,” Bruce sighed as he handed over the money. “Don’t look at me like that. If I didn’t help, would the two of you have ended up together?”

“Everyone stop whining and just be happy for these two lovebirds.” Natasha was by her own desk, one of the few who didn’t lose the bet.

“That’s easy for you to say,” Clint mumbled as Rhodey collected the money from him.

“Well, how about a new bet?” Natasha asked, a devious smile on her lips. “When do you think these two will get married?”

Instantly, people were throwing dates around as if the two people concerned weren’t there. Tony tried to ignore it, because they had only just gotten together weeks ago, and now people were discussing their wedding? They haven’t even said those three magical words to each other.

But when Tony looked up at Steve, a part of him knew that he wasn’t going to let go of him that easily, and neither would Steve. He wondered what it would be like if he actually married Steve.

At that moment, Steve looked at him, and with those bright blue eyes and warm smile, Tony knew, deep down, that this was the man he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, that those three words would come naturally sooner or later.

So, what if his colleagues earned money off it, as long as he ended up with Steve, he didn’t really care. Maybe he would place in a bet himself; he could always use the extra money for the honeymoon.