Among the Asgardians: The Goddess of Love

Marked

I stood beneath the Stark tower, staring up at it. In moments, I would be inside, starting my new job. Somehow, I'd been given the privilege of being appointed Tony Stark's personal secretary. I hadn't met him yet, but it had blown my mind when Pepper told me I'd gotten the job. I guess wearing tight clothing that showed lots of skin was the perfect thing to wear to a job interview that involved Tony Stark. Pepper, the one who interviewed me, hadn't been impressed, but obviously I'd gotten the job. For that, I felt extremely fortunate. Out of Tony’s last two secretaries, one had ended up becoming his CEO and the other went by the name of Black Widow and had been in the battle of New York.

Taking a deep breath, I stepped inside. The lobby was dead quiet. I walked up to the receptionist. "I'm Tony's new secretary," I announced.

"Stark's expecting you," she said. "Go on up. Level 32."

As I stepped into the elevator and pressed a button, I thought about what an awesome feat of engineering Stark Tower was. It was powered by the arc reactor that rocked headlines months ago. It could run for one year off its own clean energy.

"Level 32," said JARVIS, Tony's computerized butler. "Mr. Stark will be with you in a moment." I stepped out of the elevator to the sound of arguing behind a closed door next to me.

"Pepper, I can't handle this. This needs to be taken to SHEILD. Not me," said the one and only Tony Stark. He sounded pissed. I heard Pepper's soft voice say something indiscernible in return. "I don't care what he did. Bruce needs to see Fury about this. What happened in Shanghai isn't cause for imprisonment, no matter what SHIELD deems best!"

I gasped. Bruce? As in Bruce Banner? Bruce Banner, the Hulk? I heard JARVIS's monotonic voice in the next room. "Sir, your new secretary is here."

"God damn it, JARVIS!" shouted Tony. "I'm trying to transfer a situation here!"

Then, Pepper was yelling, "Tony, listen to me! Banner came to you because he trusts you!"

"Be that as it may, Pepper, I'm on a very tight schedule. Now please. Get Fury on the phone and explain the situation to him."

"But-," Pepper protested. Then the door crashed open, and when Tony saw me, his face grew pale.

"How much of that did you hear?" he asked.

"I just got here," I lied, my face carving itself into a bright smile.

"Okay. Kathryn Coulson," he smiled. "Pleased to meet you. Pepper's told me lots about your

interview." He settled into a chair and kicked his feet up on his desk.

"Tony," Pepper hissed.

"Pepper, shoo. You have things to do," he replied. Once she was out of the room, he turned to me and extended his hand. I smiled as my skin made contact with his, initiating my link with his mind.

I groaned inwardly, instantly wishing I hadn't. Tony Stark's mind was swimming with impure thoughts about me. I was a little taken aback. He only cared about himself.

He thought about himself, dreamed about himself, and treated himself like a king. Furthermore, he thought himself to be the most important person in the world.

According to what I saw, the only bright spots in Tony’s life consisted of Pepper, Bruce - whom he loved like a brother, the Avengers, his deceased father’s memory, and his knowledge of both math and science. Too bad the rest of his head was pure gunk. I giggled.

"What's so funny?" he asked. "Seriously, Kathryn, you should learn never to laugh at your employer. It's bad for your job."

I felt a blush rise in my cheeks. He was thinking about my ass. In his mind, he called it "juicy".