Prove You Have A Heart

Chapter 31

Harry groaned into Tony's shoulder when his alarm went off, keeping his eyes squeezed shut. "JARVIS, turn it off," Tony growled, lips by Harry's ear.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, sir. You need to get out of bed," the AI replied, making Tony curse quietly. Harry reluctantly cracked an eye open, squinting in the bright light that filtered through the large window. "Lieutenant Colonel Rhodes is in the living room." Harry was dislodged as Tony sat bolt upright, instantly awake.

"Rhodey's here?" he exclaimed, jumping out of bed and reaching for the jeans he'd left on the floor the night before. Harry sighed; so much for a nice relaxing morning. The day before had been a nightmare - Luke's first day back at school since the press conference - and he'd been looking forward to a calm, lazy morning before having to face the mobs all over again. Still, he dragged himself out of bed, placing his hands on Tony's shoulders.

"Calm down," he murmured, voice husky with sleep, kissing Tony's neck softly.

"You don't understand," Tony insisted, fumbling with his zipper. "I didn't tell Rhodey you're back." Harry's eyebrows rose; they'd been back together five months and Tony had failed to mention it to his best friend?

"Oh, love, he's going to murder you." Tony nodded emphatically, hunting for a t-shirt, and Harry grabbed some clean clothes for himself, running his fingers through his hair in an attempt to tame it as he followed Tony out of the bedroom. Rhodey was stood in the living room, leaning against the back of the couch, dressed in civilian clothes, and he folded his arms over his chest when he saw them both.

"I can explain," Tony started, but Rhodey cut him off.

"You can explain? Go on, explain how not only are you back together with Evan - who is actually Harry Potter, what the fuck? - But you've moved him in and are adopting his kid, and you didn't think to maybe mention it to me?" he asked sharply. Tony winced.

"I haven't seen you in months, I haven't had the chance," he attempted hastily. Rhodey snorted, raising an eyebrow.

"Tony, you live in a giant super computer," he pointed out flatly. "You could've called, or sent an email. God, man, I'm your best friend! How do you think it felt to get the news from the tabloids?"

"Honeybear, I'm sorry," Tony murmured, taking a tentative step forward. "I'll never leave you out of the loop again, but I thought- I thought you wanted space after... everything." Rhodey's frown deepened, and he rolled his eyes, pulling Tony into a hug.

"I did, but I didn't want you to stop talking to me altogether," he muttered, sounding somewhat fond, and Harry smiled; they'd be fine. "For a genius, you can be such an idiot, you know that?" Tony made an offended sound, and Rhodey laughed, shoving playfully at Tony's head.

"I missed you, too, sourpatch," Tony said with a grin, before glancing at his watch. "Wanna meet my kid?" Rhodey spluttered, and Harry smiled, kissing Tony on the cheek as he walked past.

"I'll go get Luke up, he's going to be late for school. It's good to see you again, Rhodey," he added with a smile, heading for Luke's room. When he returned to the living room, Luke sleepy but dressed and walking by his side, it was to find Tony and Rhodey sat at the breakfast bar, both of them drinking coffee and making tentative conversation. Rhodey's eyes went wide when he saw Luke.

"Damn, Tony, he really does look like you," he remarked, making Tony grin.

"Yeah, well, we might have lied to the media a little. Luke really is mine," Tony explained. Harry didn't bat an eyelash; he hadn't expected Tony to keep Luke's parentage a secret from Rhodey. The pilot looked confused, and Harry smiled to himself, summoning the cereal from the cupboard to make a point. "Harry's a wizard. With a womb."