Budding Romance (November 2004)

Steve and Kate had been together now for several months. Isabella had been shocked to hear that Steve was dating a SHIELD agent, but was pleased when she found out it was Kate Blackwell. She liked Kate quite a bit and thought highly of her. Kate continued to work for SHIELD but spent as much time with Steve as she could. For their first real date they drove outside of the city and took a day hike. It had been an incredible day and since then they had gone to the movies, out to dinner, to the theater, and had even started working out together. Kate didn't have the super soldier serum in her blood and so she didn't have quite the stamina that Steve did, but she was able to keep up with him better than most.

Nick had been quite angry with Kate when he found out that she hadn't gotten the plans. She had not lost her job, but she could see that his faith in her was rattled. Phil was quite pleased to find out that Kate was dating Captain America. He had remained a big fan of his and took any opportunity he could to talk to him. Even though Kate was an adult now and didn't need a guardian he continued to look out for her and they had remained very close.

Kate and Steve had not yet slept together, but they did enjoy kissing. She was over at the Tower and they were alone in the living room on the couch. A movie was playing in the background but they had lost interest and were much more interested in each other as their kisses deepened.

The last few months were like a dream for Steve. Kate knew alot and she didn’t seem to mind teaching him what he dodn’t know about this modern world. She still worked for SHIELD but fir the most part when she wasn’t working or he wasn’t, they were together. Steve enjoyed her company and the kissing and they had been on several dates. Each one very different than the last one. Kate had a great sense of humor and she spent more time at the tower than at her apartment.

Today the Starks were out visiting Isabella’s family and Bruce was attending a science conference in Italy. Steve and Kate were getting pretty hot and heavy on the couch and Steve was finding it difficult to keep his hands in respectful places. He wanted to touch Kate in places that he never had. His heart was beating fast and he could feel her breaths coming fast into his mouth as her soft, amazing lips attacked his. His right hand rested high up onto her thigh and hip and his left hand moved from her waist to very near her breasts.

Kate felt Steve's hand move from up her thigh and hip and his other hand shifted from her waist and moved up near her breasts. In all the times they had kissed he had never touched her like this before and she was starting to wonder if perhaps he wanted to move their relationship forward. Kate was fine not rushing into anything and was letting Steve dictate the pace of their relationship.

She could sense that he wanted to touch her, but was hesitating. She didn't want to embarrass him by saying something so, instead, she shifted her body slightly so her breast brushed up against his hand.

Steve was warm, really warm and the heat he felt increased tenfold when he felt Kate’s breast shift into his hand. That and the sounds she made were driving him crazy. His large hand gently squeezed her right breast and she shifted toward him as if she was eager for his touch. His right hand shifted to her butt and he could feel her lips curl into a smile as she kissed him. Using a bit of his strength he shifted her up onto his lap to straddle him. He felt her soft hair on his cheeks as she kissed him and both of his hands kneaded her tight butt and pressed her into him. He knew he was very hard already but he wasn’t certain how to tell her that he wanted her. He thought that maybe she wanted him too but he had no experience in this and so he just continued to kiss her, taste her tongue and feel her butt and back with his hands.

Kate couldn't help but smile when she felt his hand squeeze her breast and then shift down to her butt. The feel of his hands on her was driving her crazy with desire. She couldn't stop the soft moans that escaped her throat and as he pulled her up to straddle him she did not stop him. She knew they had reached a point where they had both decided that this was the right moment. This being Steve's first time she didn't want them to do this on the couch. She wanted it to be more comfortable for them both. She slowly began to stand up while still kissing him and encouraging him to stand up as well. She led him back to his bedroom...

Sometime later she lay in his arms amidst the twisted sheets of his bed. Their clothes were strewn about the room and they lay together in the darkness just listening to each other breathe. Kate lightly ran her fingers down Steve's chest and then kissed it gently a few times before looking up at him.

"I love you Steve."

Making love to Kate was nothing like he had ever experienced before. Her body had hardnesses and softnesses in all the right places. Time seemed to go so fast and his heart still beat quickly as they lay amidst tangled sheets. One pillow and the comforter were on the floor. Hearing her say ‘I love you’ was a mirror of how Steve felt about her and his heart swelled. He smiled at the feel of her lips on his chest. “I love you too Kate,” he said as he looked down at her.

Kate smiled happily when Steve told her he loved her too. She couldn't believe how far they had come so quickly. She had never fallen for a guy this quickly and she had fallen hard for Steve. She felt connected to him in ways she had never felt with any other guy she had ever been with. Steve knew how to make her laugh and smile and made her feel incredibly special.

She shifted her body to lay comfortably against him and rested her head on his chest. "So, now what?"

Steve thought about what Kate said and he already knew what he wanted. He had wanted her to leave SHIELD when they had begun to date but he wasn’t certain she would. She had so much history there and Phil was like a father to her, But he intended to be honest with her regardless. ‘I’d like you to stay here, with me. I’d like you to be an Avenger. I’ve wanted to ask you this since we started dating but I know how important SHIELD is to you Kate. But I am being honest, I do want you here, with me,” Steve said,

Kate was shocked by what Steve said. He was asking her to leave SHIELD and move into the Tower and become an Avenger. She wanted to be an Avenger and to be in the Tower with Steve, but leaving SHIELD entirely was going to be nearly impossible. She slowly sat up and pulled the sheet up around her as she did.

"Doesn't the whole team have to vote to decide if I can join?"

“Yes but when have you ever not gotten something you really wanted Kate? I can’t imagine you failing at anything you put your whole heart and mind into. And now, you can add my heart to your own,” Steve said. “I want to be with you. I want us to be closer. Ultimately, SHIELD will ask you to keep things from me. Secrets. And I don’t want the woman I love keeping secrets from me,” He said.

The thought of leaving SHIELD completely was...scary for Kate. It was all she had ever known and Phil was like a father to her. He had done so much for her and she felt like just leaving him like that would be betraying him in some way. Kate sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she tried to come up with a solution.

"I want to be with you too Steve and I want to be here," she told him honestly. "But I can't just leave SHIELD entirely like that. Phil relies on me and after all he's done for me I can't just do that to him. I will be here Steve and I will be an Avenger, but if Phil needs me I need to be able to help him. Can we make this work? Please?" Kate was honestly terrified that her new relationship with Steve was going to come crashing down in front of her eyes in the matter of only a few seconds.

Steve sighed. He was afraid this might happen. Kate was trying to hang onto what she knew. He couldn't blame her for that. Steve shifted to get up. If they were going to have ‘this’ conversation now he wasn’t going to be naked and in bed with her. He knew her eyes were on him as he got up but he quickly moved to his dresser and put on a pair of gray jogging pants.

“Im not asking you to sever your relationship with Phil Kate. But you doing things in the capacity of an agent might put you at odds with what we’re doing. With what I’m doing. I like Phil but he works for Nick,” he said. He kept his voice calm but butterflies as big as bulls fluttered around in his stomach. The thought of losing Kate made him feel sick. "I trust you Kate, if I didn't we would not be here I think. I will take you in any capacity but I don't want you to have to choose but I'm worried that that's where it might lead," Steve said.

Kate watched Steve as he got up and out of bed. She tried to remain as calm as possible, but the thought of losing Steve right after they had realized their love for each other was almost too much. However, it sounded like Steve was willing to compromise and that caused her to breathe out in relief.

"Steve, as I promised I will be here. I will live here with you. I just have a few things I need to take care of there and find a replacement for myself for a few other things."

Steve couldn’t hide his relief and he stepped back up to the bedside. He felt that she understood what he meant and he could only trust her not to put herself into any kind of conflict of interest. Kate looked sexy with her hair mussed and the sheet covering her body. This conversation had worried him and he wanted to come back to where they were before they started talking. He removed his jogging pants and climbed back into bed. Her pleased smile was infectious and he settled the sheet over him as he laid down upon her and began to kiss her again.

A considerable amount of time later they both sat at the main kitchen table. It was late morning and Steve had loaned her his white shirt. It hung down around her mid thighs as they sat together and drank coffee. Logan came in just then and he was surprised to see what he saw. WIth a very wide grin he moved into the kitchen and got himself a cup of coffee. He didn’t say anything as he stepped around the table. He did look back at them once more though as he headed toward his room.

It was difficult for Kate to leave Steve, but she needed to head back to SHIELD HQ and talk to Phil and pack some of her things. She was so happy that she felt she was nearly floating and she couldn't stop thinking about Steve. She had thought she had been in love before, but this she knew was real and true and it made her feel incredible. She couldn't stop smiling as she walked down to Phil's office and knocked on the door.

Meanwhile, Isabella and Tony were surprised when Steve told them that he wished to speak to the team. Bruce wasn't there, but they were able to conference call him in. Isabella suspected what this might be about, but she kept her mouth shut as she sat next to Tony. They had spent a relaxing evening at her parent's house, but as soon as they had gotten back to the Tower things had heated up. They were both relaxed and happy and still very much in love.

"So Steve, what is this all about?"

Steve wasn’t really nervous about this, he had worked with these people for years. They trusted him and he trusted them and their judgement. Serena watched him interestedly and Tony crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ve asked Kate to try out for the Avengers. We’ve...become closer and we want to be together. She won’t be quitting SHIELD immediately but she is tying up loose ends and wants to be an Avenger,” He said as he looked around the room.

“Steve she’s a SHIELD agent,” Tony said. “Her father was involved in trying to bring me in Steve,” Bruce said on the conference phone. “She grew up around that life, I don’t think she’ll give it up,” Tony said. Oddly Logan stood up. “You can’t know that Tony. You’re all thinking Nick pulls her strings. Perhaps when she’s working but not as a person. If Steve says she’s going to commit, then I say we give her a shot,” Logan said then looked at Isabella for some help.

Isabella kept her expression neutral as Steve began to speak. It was exactly what she had suspected. She listened quietly to both her husband and Bruce and then glanced at Logan as he stood up and spoke on Kate's behalf. She saw him look her way for some help and she was quiet a moment before speaking up.

"I agree with Logan. Kate isn't her parents or Nick or even Phil. She's her own person and if Steve believes she will commit then I say let's give her a chance to prove herself. We could use another person on the team and it would be nice to have some more estrogen to balance out all of this testosterone," she teased with a little smile.

Tony was still dubious to all of this. He was suspicious of the timing as well. And Tony stepped up to him. “This isn’t like a sports team Steve, we don’t hold open tryouts. We ask people to join us because we see something in them that could make the Avengers better,” Tony said. “If you two want to set up house you can so that. You don’t need to be in the tower to be an Avenger. There is sensitive, secret equipment being worked on here and I think we all know how dangerous it could be if SHIELD got their hands on it,” he added.

“Not everyone in SHIELD is Nick Fury Tony. And if she did that Steve would never trust her again. I saw how she looked at him. She wouldn't jeopardize her and Steve’s relationship,” he said. “I think she should be allowed to join!” Serena said and Tony turned toward her. “You...girlie, out, this is a convo for the adults,” he said commandingly toward her and pointed toward her room.

“I asked her to tryout. She’s a mutant, a telekinetic and I believe she will make a great addition to the Avengers or I’d never had made the offer,” Steve said.

Serena sighed and thought about just staying, but she saw the look in her father's eyes and knew she would be in serious trouble if she did. She got up and left and went to the kitchen to make herself something to eat.

Isabella looked at Tony. Bruce was being decidedly quiet on the phone. "Three months. Let's just give her three months to prove herself and we don't have to give her access to the lab. She has no reason to go in there. Tony, you've been talking about only giving certain people access to that area so set that up. Just three months and then at the end of the three months we can all hold a more official vote."

Logan didn’t think she needed anyone’s permission since Steve invited her but since the Tower was Tony and Isabella’s he didn’t bring that up right then. “I agree,” Logan said. Tony looked at Isabella and considering disagreeing with her but he decided that 3 months was reasonable and not worth an argument. “I agree,” Tony said and then they waited for Bruce. “Alright but we all need to keep an eye on her,” Bruce said then hung up on the call.

Later that afternoon Steve called Kate. “Hi Kate, are you busy or do you have a minute to talk?” Steve asked. When she said she did he smiled and relaxed. “Ok so everyone is in agreement to do like a 3 month trial. So you can train with us, go out on missions, the whole deal. And you and I can be together here, if that’s want you really want,” Steve said.

Kate’s talk with Phil had gone pretty much as she expected. He was happy for her but clearly had some hesitations about her leaving SHIELD entirely. She did her best to reassure him but she could tell he was sad at the thought of her leaving. He agreed to talk to Nick for her. She wondered how that conversation would go.

Later on she was sitting in her room when Steve called. She was happy to hear from him and was excited to hear the team had agreed to give her a trial. She began to wonder if Steve had stuck his neck out for her.

“That’s great to hear. I promise I won’t let you down Steve. I do want us to be together.”

After Steve finished talking to Kate, Isabella stopped by his room. “I have a logistical question for you regarding Kate. Will she be needing her own room? I only need to know so I can set one up for her if she will be requiring it.”

Steve looked up at Isabella and put down the phone. He smiled at her as he listened to what she said. “Well, thats a very round about way to ask if we’re...together,” Steve said. “Kate and I are in a relationship,” he said but when she just looked at him he sighed. “Yea, we will be sharing a room,” he said. “And I wanted to thank you for speaking up. I appreciate it,” he said

Isabella smiled. “Well I figured you were in a relationship. However, I did not want to assume you were going to be sharing a room. I’m very happy for you Steve. You deserve love and happiness and you’ve waited so long for it. If I can do anything to help please let me know.”