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As you returned to the second floor, the music reverberated through your entire body, and you took a brief moment to steady yourself, straightening out your suit jacket. Even after almost six months, it still took a fair amount of concentration to keep control of your abilities in this atmosphere. This mission had ended up being quite helpful for practice; it did feel as though you had made significant progress in controlling your ability to differentiate between sounds and block out unnecessary ones.
You were currently running the club and the drug operation it was a cover for while Klein was away on business. You were usually placed in less desirable positions, often the target of capture—the exact opposite of your current mission—and you had to admit you found yourself enjoying the power.
You were here because, even the drug operation was somewhat of a front, Klein was working with someone you knew only as ‘The Pedlar,’ funneling top-secret information to criminal organizations across the globe. Although Klein had not yet brought you fully into that aspect of the work, your abilities had allowed you to gather a fair amount of information, and you were sure that this was a kind of test that would result in your being brought further in upon his return.
Everything had been going well so far; the most important part of the weekend, a large cocaine delivery, had progressed without issue last night, and now you just had the evening to relax until his return tomorrow. Marcus, the club manager, approached as you walked along the rail of the balcony. He was young, barely out of high school, and honestly too innocent to be taking up this kind of life, but he did what he was told.
“Jeremiah is here again. He’s insisting on speaking with you.”
“Couldn't handle it yourself, Marcus?”
you tilted your head in return, and as he replied, your attention shifted to the main doors as a group of about a dozen young women entered. Not an uncommon sight, of course; however, it was the bright red hair that had immediately caught your attention. A smirk spread across your face as you wondered what kind of trouble Natasha Romanoff was inevitably bringing with her.
“It’s fine, Marcus. You can bring him up, and while you're down there, find out about this group of women that just came in for me, would you?”
“Yes, boss, of course.”
You kept your eyes on the women as they made their way to a set of tables in the corner, and Natasha positioned herself in the booth between the tables, an easy exit and good vantage point for the room as she conversed with the others, her eyes subtly taking in the surroundings. She was wearing a simple black asymmetric dress, with her left shoulder fully exposed and the hem falling just below the knee, a reasonable length aside from the drastic slit running nearly the full length of her right thigh.
Whatever the issue was, it must be serious; otherwise, they would have simply waited until your weekly check-in. Yet of all the agents they could have sent, it just had to be her. At least you could take advantage of your abilities; you just hoped that the benefit would outweigh the distraction she always managed to cause within you.
Marcus returned with Jerimiah following closely behind. He was in his early 40s with a disheveled appearance.
“If you are hoping to get any special treatment because Klein is away, you are very, very mistaken.”
“No, no, of course not, Jayce. I, ah, I know you run a tight ship. I, ah, I’m just here to, like, apologize. I know I messed up, but I can make it up. I can, if you just give me a chance.”
“Ahhh, you want MORE,”
you respond as you walk closer to the man.
“We are not in the business of supplying to people who like to sample the product, and by the looks of you right now, that is still a problem.”
“No, no. Jayce, I swear I’ll pay full. I will. I just can’t survive off 200; I need to bring in more. Please, I can do it. I can.”
Reaching out, you grab him by the shirt and move him against the nearby wall before continuing,
“Clean yourself up, and you'll make more by actually selling what you’re taking for yourself. Three months at 2, and then I’ll consider it. But if you show up here again asking for more before then, it will be the last time you get anything. You hear me?”
He only nodded as you released him, and he made his way back down the nearby stairs. You turn to Marcus.
“You don't have to do much, you know, Marcus, just be firm and always follow through.”
“Right, got it, boss. Also, those women you asked about? They are from the local sorority—semi-regulars—but have a couple of new members with them, apparently. No red flags, though.”
“Good. Send a round to their table from me.”
“I’ll get right on it.”
Grabbing your drink from the table, you returned to the railing. You knew it wouldn't take Natasha long to spot you, yet you figured it would be better to make it as easy as possible. Marcus approached the table, and after divvying up the drinks among the women, he gestured to you above, and they all cheered in your direction.
You and Natasha locked eyes as you shared a small smile and raised your glasses before you rested your forearms on the railing, holding your drink in front of you. She raised her glass to her lips, pretending to drink as she spoke,
“Long time no see, Jensen. You good to hear me from up there?”
You nodded and tugged at your ear to signal her to go ahead.
“Sorry to intrude, but we have a problem that they wanted relayed ASAP. Klein was taken in by the FBI yesterday, and it sounds like he’s making a deal. Fury wants to know if you are able to access the record system so we can get the data out before they take this place down.”
You stretched your neck out and downed the rest of your drink, pointing at the dance floor before turning around. Heading down the stairs, you stopped at the edge of the bar and advised the VIP waitress to send some champagne up and to be ready to supply full service.
Natasha is easily spotted on the dance floor as you approach, offering her a hand and immediately pulling her in close. Her arms wrap around your neck as you take hold of her hips and move your head above her shoulder to speak into her ear.
“Aren't you getting a little old to be taking the role of a college student?”
You find yourself overly aware of just how close your bodies are as you move to the music. You both pull away slightly to face each other, a smirk on her face as she raises an eyebrow and responds,
“Maybe. But it sure caught your attention pretty quick.”
You raise a hand and run it through the hair flowing over her shoulder as it runs halfway down her bicep.
“Your hair is longer.”
“It does that. But I have been thinking about cutting it short.”
“Well, either way, you always look stunning.”
“You clean up pretty well yourself.”
Her hand moves down the lapel of your suit jacket slowly before she turns, pressing her back to your front as you continue to dance.
“We can do it, but it has to be tonight, and it will break my cover.”
“We suspected it might. We have the go-ahead to break if you're sure we can get it, but Fury says we can have four days.”
“I'm head of the house until Klein gets back tomorrow, and once he does, it will be much harder. Do you have a USB on you?”
“I do.”
“Good. Then let's party. Introduce me to your new friends.”
You spend the next hour or so back up on the second floor with the dozen college students as they continue to drink and dance. Settled into the corner of one of the couches with your arm around Natasha, your fingers running along her bare arm while hers rest on your thigh, playing your parts.
She continues to play up her intoxication, switching between conversations with the others and whispering in your ear. With anyone else, you're sure you would have had to actively remember to keep up with the ruse even to simply look relaxed in this position. However, with Natasha, it wasn't even really a ruse; the positioning, the physical closeness, the movements just felt natural.
The thought of which causes you pause, you had hoped that perhaps some more significant time away from her would have diminished some of these feelings, but it seemed as though they were as prevalent as ever. Shifting slightly, Natasha moves her hand up to the base of your neck, drawing your attention back to her.
“So when are we gonna get out of here?”
“Soon,”
you reply, moving your own hand up to tuck her hair behind her ear and slowly pulling it back across her face. Staring into each other's eyes, you can't help but find yourself drawn to her. Unsure if it was on purpose or not, her gaze quickly jumps to your lips and back. Causing your breath to hitch slightly as you both look away, and you bite your lip.
Considering the play you were trying to put on, it would have made sense for you to have kissed her by now, probably more than once, and yet you just couldn’t bring yourself to do it. As you try to sort through the thoughts of why you are holding back, the announcement for the last call rings out. You shift to get up, seeing Marcus against the wall nearby.
“Come on, Marcus, let loose a bit! You did well this weekend, so have a bit of fun to celebrate. I know I'm going to.”
You wink at him as you turn to Natasha, holding out your hand. She takes it and rises to her feet, adding a slight stumble for dramatic flair. You lead her to the elevator doors and make your way up to the third floor. It’s slightly more narrow and runs around the perimeter of the building, similar to the second; however, it is fully enclosed with one-way glass, the sound of the music greatly diminished.
You head down the hallway, stopping briefly at the security room. You open the door, and multiple screens fill the wall with two people seated inside. The older of the two has already turned to face you.
“James, I'm going to the office for a while, and I DO NOT want to be disturbed, got it?”
His eyes flicker between the two of you with a satisfied grin.
“You got it, boss.”
Closing the door behind you, you continue on to the final room, reaching your hand up to glide your ring over the access panel light, which turns green before you enter the code and it clicks open. Once inside, you release Natasha and direct her to the desk at the center.
“This is the only room in the building not monitored. Everything is in there. I only have access to the primary system; however, it shouldn't be hard to break into the rest, so have at it.”
You finish entering your login information and gesture to Natasha toward the computer as she pulls a USB drive out from her clutch.
“Admitting that I'm better than you, Jensen?”
“Maybe. But then again, faster isn't the same as better.”
“I suppose that depends on who you ask.”
As she works her way through the computer, you take off your suit jacket and toss it onto one of the chairs, then swipe your arm along the edge of the desk, causing some papers and office supplies to fall to the floor. Natasha shoots you an amused look while you untuck your shirt.
“Might as well make it look convincing,”
you muse as you remove your ring and toss it in the garbage can.
“Okay, I'm in, but it's a lot. It could take up to 15 minutes to download. Think we have that?”
“Should be fine. Just one wildcard.”
She moves to the front of the desk and leans against it as you look on from the window.
“Certainly not the kind of place I usually find myself extricating you from.”
“It certainly is not. It has been an interesting change of pace.”
“The power looks good on you.”
“Careful, Romanoff; I might start to think you actually like me.”
You share a look before you turn your attention back to the window.
“We will be able to walk away from here with no issue. They won't even notice anything, not until Klein gets back, and we are hopefully long gone so we can stop at my apartment and collect the relay supplies before we head out. It will also be good for the car tracker.”
“Sounds good. I'm set up at a hotel downtown and can contact HQ when we arrive to arrange travel.”
“When did you get in?”
“About this time yesterday.”
“And still took you this long to come visit?”
“Well, I did expect to have a few more days to plan after contact, but I also didn't expect it to be quite this easy.”
“Yeah, me too. I mean, they will mess you up, but if you're in, you're in. Honestly, I think the Pedlar might have picked them as an access point because the operation is just so- average no one would expect big things from them”
Then you see Allison talking with Marcus on the second floor, her typical irritating self, asking where you are.
“Well, of course there's the wild card. How much time do we have left?”
Natasha leans back to look at the screen as you walk towards her, listening to the pair reach the top of the elevator.
“87%. Should only be a couple of minutes, max.”
“Okay, we should be able to handle that then,”
you finish as you approach her space, smirking as you lift her onto the desk to sit just in front of the computer, positioning yourself between her legs. She subtly places her left hand at your waist, within easy reach of your holster.
“Don’t get trigger happy; it’s just the second in command. I had her taking care of distribution downstairs. She's annoying but won't cause issues unless we do. Trust me, Natalie , I can talk us out.”
“Don't worry, Jayce , I’ll follow your lead.”
You look into each other's eyes again, bodies against each other, face so close you can feel her breath on your lips. You find yourself having to focus on controlling your breathing as she raises her right hand to your face. You can hear James arguing with them as they approach the door, and you brace yourself to move.
Hesitating for a moment, you begin; however, instead of a forward motion, you move drastically to her left and lay your lips on her neck. She stretches away from you, looking at the ceiling as she moves her hand past your ear to grip the back of your head. You find yourself a little lost in the taste of her skin as you slowly move, then hearing the security panel activate, you move your right hand to her exposed thigh.
As your fingers slide under the fabric of the slit, you notice her breath catch, causing you to tighten your grip. The sudden hum that escapes her throat immediately elicits the same effect in yours, taking you by surprise as the door opens. You glance at the USB, still glowing red, before you turn your head to the right, remaining in the same position and speaking towards the wall.
“I recall specifically telling you that I did not want to be disturbed, James.”
It’s Allison who responds, irritation lacing her voice.
“Maybe you shouldn’t be fucking around on the job.”
“I’ll fuck around when and wherever I want.”
You turn your head back towards Natasha’s shoulder, taking a glance at the computer just as you see the glow turn green. You plant another kiss on her shoulder, continuing to speak as you move your right hand from her thigh to her hip and lean forward slightly so that you can remove the USB from the computer.
“But there is no need to be jealous, Allison.”
As you turn to face the trio, you run your hand up Natasha’s back and tuck the USB into the band of her bra before running your fingers along her hair.
“Excuse me for a moment here, darling.”
You walk across the room towards the three standing at the door. Marcus and James have slight concern etched on their faces while Allison continues to look at Natasha.
“James, I find myself disappointed in you, and trust me, you will not like what happens if you do that a second time. Get back to your post.”
“Yes, boss. Won't happen again.”
He turns and leaves the room as you turn to the others.
“Might you please remind me who Klein left in charge?”
“That would be you, Jayce,”
Marcus responds with a clearing of his throat as Allison turns her gaze back to you. You move to stand in front of her, only a step away.
“But of course, you think it should have been you.”
“I've been here for over a year; I should have been next in line when Alaris left.”
She raises her arm, and you quickly catch her wrist in a firm grip.
“Perhaps you should have done a better job of proving yourself then, mmm?”
She moves to pull away from your grip while attempting to strike you with her free arm, and you easily block her. Quickly, you strike an elbow into her jaw and spin her in your grip before pinning her to the wall, one arm behind her back, with your knife now pulled from your belt and pressed into the wall beside her head.
“You really need to learn to keep your attitude in check.”
Moving the knife down to her shoulder, you slowly press in until drawing blood and slide back, leaving an inch-long cut.
“Truly Allison. You should think about how to better prove yourself, because when Klein returns and finds out that you gave Jerimiah another 200 after I specifically told him no, well, let’s just say he’s not going to be very happy with you.”
“How did you…”
Before she finishes, you pull her back from the wall a couple of inches before pushing her back into it with force and kicking out her knee, letting her fall to the ground.
“I, unlike some of us here, am actually good at my job.”
You turn around, sheathing your knife, and throwing Natasha a roll of the eyes as you walk back towards her.
“It was, ahhh, Niomi?”
She stands from the desk.
“Natalie.”
“Right, Natalie, sorry. What do you say we take this back to my place, where we won’t get so rudely interrupted?”
She simply nods coyly and takes your hand, both turning to leave as Allison stands from the floor.
“You think you can do better? Have at it. Close up for the night, and if I find anything out of place come morning, I'll show you what a real scar looks like.”
Walking back out of the club and heading down toward the garage, you notice Marcus coming down behind you.
“Just close up and head home as usual, Marcus. She shouldn't give you any trouble.”
“I was just wondering, was there anything I could — I mean, should — have done differently, Jayce? I know I shouldn't really ask. I'm just really trying, and I want to do better. Be more like you.”
You share a quick glance with Natasha as you approach the car.
“Honestly, if you want to be more like me, then you're in the wrong place.”
You open the passenger door for Natasha and close it behind her before turning to the young man.
“Why do you even want to be in this business, Marcus?”
“Well, I mean, you know I'm good with the books, and it's lucrative, so why not?”
“Look, kid, I'm going to be straight with you for a minute, okay? You have some good skills and potential, but those can be put to good use in a lot of different areas, and you could do some good out there. So I'm just saying, if an opportunity presents itself, you should seriously consider it.”
You placed a hand on his shoulder briefly before heading over to the driver's side and opening the door.
“Oh, and Marcus?”
“Yeah, boss?”
“This conversation never happened.”
He nodded, and you entered the car and drove away.
“Getting soft spots for criminals now, Jensen?”
Natasha smirked as you drove.
“I wouldn't call it that. But I would be lying if I said I didn't see a bit of myself in him.”
It didn't take long to get to your nearby apartment. Upon entry, you began to strip down, tossing articles of clothing onto the floor as you walked to the bedroom and removed the blanket. You pulled off and reset the sheet in a more disorganized position, and before removing your pants, now only in your underwear, Natasha spoke from her position leaning against the doorframe.
“Always putting on a show.”
You shrugged as you made your way to the closet, noting her gaze lingering on you.
“Why not? They will look here eventually; might as well keep up the act as much as possible. You know, you could take that off and add to the ploy.”
You sent a wink her way as you donned more casual attire.
“I could. But I think you would enjoy it too much; best to keep free of distractions.”
“You say that as if just being here isn't a distraction.”
You purposefully avoid looking at her during the exchange. This style of banter is not out of the ordinary, but it was getting more difficult to keep a straight face. She simply watched as you finished your task, collecting the relay equipment from its hiding place inside the vent before emptying the gun magazine and leaving it on the counter with the knife, phone, and keys. You left through the fire escape in order to avoid the front door security cameras and walked a couple of blocks before hailing a cab and heading to the hotel.
Once you arrived, Natasha went to change and called to arrange transport back to DC while you made some tea. She exited the washroom wearing jeans and a simple red tank top, her hair tied up in a ponytail and cell phone tucked against her shoulder. You handed her a mug, and she nodded with a smile as you passed by, heading to the balcony with your own in hand.
The early morning stillness was always something you enjoyed, as long as it was the end of a day and not the start of one. You realized you must have gotten quite used to standing on a balcony from your time at the club, as you naturally leaned against the rail.
After a few minutes, Natasha joined you, advising that they had been able to reroute a nearby Quinjet, which would arrive in just a couple of hours. She stood a few steps away from you, leaning her back against the rail as she drank. You stood in silence for several minutes, simply breathing the fresh air before she spoke.
“Can I ask you a question?”
“You know you can, but whether or not I answer is another story.”
You turned your head to look at her as you replied with curiosity, wondering what it would be, as you could tell her tone was more serious in nature. She broke eye contact, looking up at the sky briefly before continuing to look forward.
“I was just curious. Earlier in the office. Why didn’t you kiss me?”
You couldn't help but release a small huff of amusement as you looked down.
“It ah, certainly would have made sense.”
“It would have. Probably even before the office.”
“Maybe I wanted to minimize distractions.”
“So my lips are a distraction, but my neck isn't?”
She smirked as she looked at you this time, and you turned to face her, leaning a hip against the railing as you returned the look with a shrug of your shoulder.
“Well, I guess you've got me there.”
You paused for a moment as you considered your thoughts and took a breath.
“I was going to, and then I, ah, I had a thought, and so then I didn't.”
“What was the thought?”
“Natasha…” You took another deep breath as you shook your head. “Why do you want to know so badly?”
She crossed her arms and turned to face you, mirroring your position, hip against the rail.
“I, ah, had a thought too. When it seemed like you were going to.”
“Ah, I see, so you'll tell me if I tell you.”
You gestured with your hands as she shrugged.
“Only seems fair.”
You continued to shake your head and turned again to face the room, leaning your back against the rail and taking a drink, looking up at the sky for a moment as you thought.
“Because it was just a mission. An act we were putting on; something that had to be done. And I knew we needed to do something, but I couldn't shake the thought that I just... I didn't want our first kiss to be that—to be just a part of a mission.”
“Our first kiss?”
You tilted your head to look at her again.
“I said what I said.”
You watched her chest rise as she took a deep breath and then spoke, barely above a whisper.
“I wanted you to.”
She looked up at you, and you locked eyes as she continued more clearly.
“The thought that I had when it seemed like you were going to—it was that I wanted you too.”
“mmm, in the moment or in general?”
She didn't respond at first; you just looked at each other for a couple of seconds before she pushed away from the rail, putting her cup on the table beside you and moving to stand in front of you.
“Is this just a part of the mission?”
she asked, her face stern as a flash of confusion crossed over yours.
“What?”
Her demeanor broke as she scrunched her features slightly.
“Right now. Here. Do you consider this a part of the mission?”
You felt your heart beating as you realized what you thought she was implying, and as she ran her tongue along her lips, you found yourself having to swallow before you responded.
“No. It isn't.”
You only managed to stand up from your lean before she closed the distance between you, running her hand across your cheek as she leaned forward, pausing for only a second before making contact.
Her lips moved slowly against yours in the moment before you reacted, your free hand reaching for her hip and pushing harder against her. Tender yet fierce you moved firmly against each other, the tension of the last few years finally released.
Lost in the heat of the moment for only a minute before the need to touch her overtook you, you pushed your body forward a step, causing her to stumble back slightly, gripping your hip to stabilize herself. You pulled away for air and leaned to place your cup onto the table, finding yourself distracted enough that it tipped to its side rather loudly, causing you both to smile and huff.
Your attention turned back to her as you raised your now free hand to her face, running your thumb along her jawline. Silent for a moment, you simply took in her features in a way that you had stopped yourself from doing since you first met. As your hand completed its trip across her face, you moved it to the back of her neck and lightly pulled her back towards you.
You wouldn't even be able to estimate the number of times you had thought about this moment. Yet it was like nothing you could have imagined—the feeling of her body against yours, her lips smooth and full, the softness of her skin and hair in your hand, her grip as her hand slid up your back. You found yourself completely lost in the moment, hearing only the rapid thumping of your hearts.
Unsure how many minutes passed before the sudden ringing of the phone startled you. Pulling apart, your foreheads leaned against each other to breathe, she was the first to speak.
“That's probably the notice that our car has arrived.”
“Yeah. We should probably get it.”
“Yeah. We probably should.”
You pulled away enough to look into each other's eyes again as you moved a stray hair behind her ear and softly declared,
“First kiss?”
She smiled and nodded.
“Yeah, The first one.”