The Devil With The Face of an Angel | Irondad, pepperony

Chapter 2

They both turned to the exciting child's voice. Peter sat up quickly, rubbed his sleepy eyes, and then, with a cheerful smile, ran after his father, who lifted him into his arms. The child stared at Pepper, who was watching him with a smile.

"That's my dad," he said, quite unnecessarily, and she had to laugh.

"Yes, I know that," she nodded in agreement. "Your resemblance is incredible. One day you'll be the same..." she paused for a moment, her smile widening. "I was going to say a great man, but given your father's height, that would be somewhat paradoxical."

Tony threatened her with his index finger, but his eyes laughed. "Well, Pepper, watch your words! Maybe I'm not that tall, but take off your heels and we can talk."

Pepper laughed and Peter frowned. "But Daddy, this lady's name is Virginia, she's not Pepper!"

"Tell me, Pete; what name do you like more? Virginia or Pepper?"

He didn't have to think long. "Pepper," he finally said, and the two adults laughed again.

"So you see, it's Pepper. Well, let's go, we don't want to bother Miss Potts too much, she certainly has a lot of work to do. On the way out, we stop to see Mom, what do you say? We'll see if she's done," Tony said, adjusting his disheveled hair. Peter nodded contentedly and snuggled closer to his father. Tony stood up and Pepper imitated him. She escorted the two of them to the door, then remembered something.

"Peter, your picture!"

"It's for you," he said, and she smiled emotionally. "For being so good to me and lending me crayons."

"That was a matter of course," she assured him. Tony smiled and kissed his son's cheek.

"You're a good boy. Let's say goodbye to Miss Potts and we'll go. Thank you again for taking him so quickly and watching him. It helped me a lot."

"That was a matter of course," Pepper repeated. In fact, she didn't mind watching him at all. She always liked children, but since she focused on her career, she didn't have her own yet. "If you had any trouble in the future, I'd love to take care of Peter. You don't have to look for another receptionist, Tony," she laughed and he nodded gratefully.

"Thank you very much. After all, would you ever want to have lunch? That's the least I can do for you. Sometimes we discuss it, okay?" Pepper wasn't even able to express her opinion, and he was already taking the handle.

"It was very nice here, Pepper. Just next time you have to buy those kookies," Peter told her with a scruffy glance. Pepper laughed and assured him that the cookies would soon be bought. They said goodbye, and as she closed the door behind them, she heard Peter whisper to Tony, "Dad, what does paradoxically mean?" She smiled to herself.

She had cookies by the next visit.

•••

"Did you get a babysitter?" she said, smiling. Tony swallowed his mouthful before replying.

"Peter is with his mom after some time again for more than half an hour, so I suppose they have a lot of work to make up for what they missed," he said, and they both ate some bites before he spoke again. "How are you even doing?   "

"I have nothing to complain about," she replied truthfully, and he smiled. "Sorry, Tony, if you find this somewhat personal, I just care... I am amazed that your girlfriend is working during maternity leave. I could understand if it was only occasionally, but you told me that she is almost always at work. I am surprised by that. The child needs to have a mother at this age along his side as much as possible."

"Hmm," Tony muttered, digging a fork into fried noodles. Pepper began to worry if she somehow touched him, or if she dared to say too much... "Believe me, I'm not too excited about that either. She was able to work calmly even a month before giving birth if I hadn't watched over her most of the time. During Peter's first year, she worked from home, but as soon as he began making his first steps, she began to leave for the lab. I could not talk to her out of it."

"Peter is a very good boy, but he needs a mother."

"Do you think I don't know?" he snapped, then paused. "Sorry, I know it's not your fault," he murmured apologetically, running his hand across his face. "She loves her work too much and often works on demanding projects. I'm just sorry she spends so little time at home. Peter won't even know his mom in a few months. And I wish... I really wish we were family. A real, normal family." Tony looked out the window on a busy street, and his father's memory flashed through his head. When he realized he was going to be a parent, he vowed to never be like Howard Stark.

Pepper felt really sorry for Tony. A lot of people described him as bloated and arrogant, but he was an ordinary man longing for love, happiness, and family. She didn't know how to help him. She really had no experience with this.

"Try to talk to her about it. Explain to her. Tell her exactly as you told me now," she said gently. Tony chuckled.

"I've tried this a few times, but I don't think it won't hurt if I try again. You know, I'd be happy if we, as a family, spent at least weekends together. But when it looks hopeful, they always call her from work that they urgently need her. Then she puts everything else to the sidelines," he murmured, returning to his meal with a sigh.

Pepper folded the knife and fork, pushed the plate away, and put her hands together in the canopy as if she was praying. She smiled sympathetically. "Maybe it's just some transition period. The projects at work will soon be over and she will have more time. You will see that it will soon be fixed."

He looked at her with his brown eyes that were hazy with memories. He studied her carefully as if trying to find out if she was lying. Then he smiled and nodded. "I sincerely hope you are right."