Battle Scars

Chapter 13

Your gaze followed her until she disappeared behind the door then you sat on the end of the bed and dropped your head back into your hands.

***

Tony and you needed to finish your conversation, but you weren't about to head back to his floor without calming down first. It took a couple of hours before you felt like you wouldn't explode if he said the wrong thing. Your teeth worried at your lip as you took the elevator up.

When you stepped out in Tony's apartment, your gaze ran around the room taking everything in. The lights were dim and some nature documentary played on the TV though the sound was muted. Tony sat on the couch with a half full glass in his hand and a nearly empty bottle on the table in front of him. Whatever he was drinking, he'd hit it hard. His gaze was empty as he stared off into space.

"Tony?" you said quietly to get his attention as you stepped closer to him.

His eyes darted over to you then back to the glass in his hand. "I thought you left."

"I left the room, Tony, not the tower. We weren't getting anywhere yelling at each other." You wrapped your arms around your waist like a shield. This man had your whole heart whether he wanted it or not. You weren't certain what you would do if he turned you away.

He draped his arm across the back of the couch and met your gaze. That fake half-smile you hated so much—the one he wore when he wanted everyone to think nothing bothered him—twisted his lips. "Is there something I can do for you?"

You closed your eyes and clenched your teeth as you counted in your head. You hated this mask he wore and loathed that he felt the need to do it with you. It made your heart physically ache in your chest. You sucked in a deep breath through your nose and moved over to sit on the table in front of him. His eyes followed you as you settled yourself, pressing your knees together so they fit in between his without touching him. Your palms together, you wedged your hands between your thighs to keep from fidgeting.

"When I was a kid, a teenager I guess, I didn't care that I had a soulmate." You kept your eyes locked on the soft glow you could see beneath his t-shirt as you spoke. If you were going to do this, you couldn't risk seeing annoyance or indifference in his eyes. He deserved to hear your side even if he never wanted to see you again. "My mom was thrilled, but I just wanted to live my life."

You huffed a laugh. "It's kind of hard to do that when you've constantly got love bites on your neck. I had to either let the boys think I was easy or admit that I had a soulmate. That puts a damper on a relationship, let me tell you." You fell silent as you thought back to those days. "Honestly, I didn't care much. It wasn't until I was older and in college that I really wanted a relationship and well, I guess you know how well that went."

He cleared his throat and placed his glass on the table beside you. "I'd seen some bruises before. Not anything major, just enough to make me wonder but I was always in the lab, running into things. I couldn't be sure it wasn't just me. But that morning...the only other time I can remember feeling so empty was the day my parents died." You looked up then to meet his eye. He'd shed the fake smile and was just gazing at you with those intense, dark eyes of his. "I couldn't believe that I had a soulmate. And suddenly I knew you were out there, and that you were hurt, but I couldn't do anything about it. I had all this money and it didn't do me a damn bit of good."

"Did you quit sleeping around because of what happened to me?" It was a question you'd wanted the answer to for years.

"I didn't know exactly what happened, but I could guess. I didn't think you needed to be dealing with the evidence of my activities while you were recovering."

The corner of your mouth kicked up into a smile. "I might have fallen a little bit in love with you when you did that. It made me feel cared for, important." He gave you a small smile in return and you reached one of your hands out to grasp his. Relief flooded you when he linked your fingers together instead of pulling away. "Nothing happened. Not really. My roommate came home and interrupted him."

He breathed out in relief. "Thank God. I always assumed the worst."

You shook your head, your gaze shifting to where your hands where tangled together. "Once I realized it was you, I started digging. None of this tabloid where you went with who crap. I told you I like my research. I found the obscure articles about your charitable activities. The posts where people contemplated whether or not you were the one that gave that donation to save the children's hospital." You glanced back up with a half-smile. "It was fairly easy to determine that you did. You also renovated facilities nearby for the kids and their families."

"Maybe you should have been a journalist," he teased.

You laughed. "I would be horrible. I don't care about the drama." You paused slightly before continuing. "It was never about your money, Tony. In fact, that only made it harder to talk to you. The media circus that surrounds you is intimidating to say the least. You think I don't know that everyone is going to be sizing me up, deciding if I am worthy of Tony Stark." The thought was depressing. You'd seen the women that Tony dated and you were under no illusions that you would be modeling any time soon.

He squeezed your hand. "You got that backward, sweetheart. It's me who's not worthy. Never have been, never will be. I know you don't give a shit about my money. You could have emptied at least three accounts and disappeared by now." He stood abruptly, grabbing his glass and the bottle to carry them over to the bar. "I come with a lot of baggage. You don't deserve any of it."

You stood and moved over to stand behind him. "I'm a big girl, Tony. I can decide for myself what I deserve or don't." You wrapped your arms around him and pressed yourself to his back. His hand found one of yours and lifted it to his mouth to kiss the back of it. "Personally, I think you're worth the hassle."

His hands rested on your arms to hold you in place as he turned to face you. "I'm sorry I overreacted. I just had this moment where I was certain you were only here because I was your soulmate. And that you'd decided to accept me because of my money and fame."

The undercurrent of pain in his voice broke your heart. "I'm sorry, too. I should have told you the truth right away. Honestly, I would have if it hadn't been for Pepper. I didn't want to get in the middle of a relationship."

He didn't comment beyond an arched brow. "There is something else I think you should know."

"What now?"

That startled a laugh from him and he kissed your forehead. "I was curious about this connection between us. I'd heard a lot of stuff about soulmates over the years but nothing about being able to feel the each other's emotions. Jarvis, you want to tell hot stuff here what we found on the topic?"

You shook your head at that stupid nickname then leaned against his chest, his arms wrapping around you to hold you tight as if he'd done it a million times before.

"It would appear that this phenomenon between soulmates only occurs when they are truly in love with one another. It signifies a connection of their souls at the most basic level." Despite the analytical tone of the AI's voice, your heart raced at the information.

You pulled back only far enough that you could see those dark eyes. "You love me?"

He tilted his head slightly and shrugged one shoulder while giving you a lopsided grin. "I would have thought that obvious by now. And you love me."

You grinned and nodded in answer. "Guess you're stuck with me."

"I think I can deal with that."

His lips found yours, soft at first, questioning. It didn't take long for the two of you to find your rhythm. And for the first time, there, wrapped in his arms, you were whole.