My head spun when I woke up the next morning. All I could think about was last night at the pool. Had Natasha been flirting? With me, of all people?

We'd grown closer over the years despite her motive to keep her work and personal life separate. We had a connection that the other team members didn't seem to share. I kinda liked that. My heart fluttered just thinking about her. And I hadn't felt this way about anyone since Peggy.

I shook my head as I got up to get dressed, dismissing the thought. Natasha and I had been nothing more than friends for the past three years. Why would anything change now?

But there was just something about her that intrigued me—maybe I wanted more. She was beautiful, smart, sassy—everything I loved. But the chance that she could ever feel the same way about me? Slim to none.

True to my word about another race, I quickly scribbled out a note and took the stairs two at a time to deliver it under Natasha's door before returning to my room.

Sam dropped by a few minutes later. "Heading down, you coming?" Since our rooms were next to each other, we usually rode the elevator together in the mornings.

I nodded. "Yeah, just give me a sec." I ran my fingers through my hair before joining Sam at the elevator.

"So where'd you go last night?" Sam asked once the doors closed and we were safe in the confines of the metal box.

"To clear my head," I replied. It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't exactly the truth. I just wasn't ready to tell Sam how I felt about Natasha. Not yet. Since there wasn't anything to tell him. Probably.

"That's it?" Sam asked. He didn't sound convinced.

I crossed my arms over my chest. "What are you implying, Sam?"

"I heard two voices outside last night," Sam said.

The elevator doors opened onto the main floor and we stepped out. It looked like most of the group was already gathered on the couches.

"Look, it's not a big deal," I told him.

He glanced at me. "Was it about Natasha?"

"How di–"

"Oh, come on, Steve. I've seen how you look at her. It's the same way you looked at her in DC three years ago." Sam crossed his arms over his chest. "Plus, I've learned a thing or two about you over the years and subtlety is not exactly a quality you possess."

I swallowed. "That was different. We were just...you know, let's just talk later."

He nodded and left me as I scanned the room for Natasha. There was no sign of her red hair. Since her newest assignment, she'd dyed it a darker color but red all the same.

Unfortunately, Tony caught my wandering gaze.

"You ok there, Cap?" Tony asked. "Do you want some coffee?"

"Coffee would be great," I said, glad that was all he was asking about.

Tony pointed to the kitchen and I left the group. Once in the kitchen, I grabbed a mug from the cabinet and turned to the coffee pot...which had been replaced by a completely different machine thing.

I stared at it confused. What the...

"Need a hand?" Natasha asked from somewhere behind me. I turned. She stood leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest and a smirk on her face. Her tousled, still wet hair as if she'd just showered, hung loosely on her shoulders.

"Yeah, thanks. I didn't realize Tony had replaced the normal coffee pot."

Natasha laughed. She took my mug and pressed a few buttons on the machine to get it started.

"What flavor do you want?" she asked.

I stared at her confused. "Um, the coffee flavor?"

Nat stifled a laugh with a cough. She opened the drawer just below the coffee machine thing and pointed. "These are flavored coffees. You can pick whatever you want."

I shifted from foot to foot. "Is there one for normal coffee? Sorry, I'm just not used to all this new technology."

"No worries." Natasha picked one of the little cups called "French Roast" and put it in the machine. A minute later she took the mug of freshly brewed coffee and handed it to me.

"Fascinating," I said.

She laughed and put a new mug under the device for herself. As she started to walk toward me, she slipped on a spot on the floor.

With my quick reflexes, I reached out and put my arm around her waist to catch her. We locked eyes for a moment, and I hoped she couldn't hear my heart. Her petite frame fit so perfectly against my arm that I almost dropped her from the shock.

"Nice catch," she said, not taking her eyes off me.

"And I didn't even spill my coffee," I added without missing a beat.

Natasha laughed. She didn't leave my embrace, despite having regained her balance. Her fingers rested delicately against my arm, tickling the invisible hairs. "Steve, I—"

Before she could say anything more, the kitchen door burst open.

"C'mon Cap, how long does it take—oh Nat. Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt," Tony said. The grin on his face said otherwise as he looked between us, the unspoken question hanging in the air.

"Sorry, Tony. I came down the back way," Natasha replied, pushing off my chest. With a quick glance at me, she made her way out of the kitchen to join the rest of the team.

I turned to Tony who was staring at me. "What, Stark?"

Tony raised his eyebrows. "Nothing. Just...you and Nat—what was that all about?"

I sipped my coffee. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Tony cleared his throat. "Uh huh. Sure. Anyway, the team meeting is about to start."

"Thanks. Now that I've done battle with the new coffee machine thing, I will happily join everyone."

Tony grimaced. "I forgot to tell you I got a new machine. I'm sorry, Steve."

I laughed. "No harm done." Truth be told, as much as the serum had enhanced my muscles and stamina, my body still required caffeine and I kind of enjoyed that. It made me feel less of a science experiment.

Tony held open the kitchen door. "Oh, before we go back out there, I need to tell you something about Natasha."

"Tony," I warned. What was it with everyone today? "Nothing is going on between me and Nat."

"I didn't say there was," Tony said, putting up his hands defensively. "But you should know that the seductive reasoning she does, it's meant to mess with your head."

"Seductive reasoning?" I asked with raised eyebrows. "Don't you mean deductive reasoning?"

Tony leaned against the counter. "Why would I mean deductive reasoning? No, look—before the Avengers, I knew Natasha a little differently. I was dying at the time, Pepper and I weren't involved and—"

"Wait a minute, you and Natasha?" I pinched the bridge of my nose with my fingers, trying to clear the mental image from my brain. "Wow, that is hard to imagine."

Tony laughed. "No, not me and Natasha. Nothing happened between us besides some harmless flirting—mostly from her. Which brings me to the point I'm trying to make here. Natasha has a way about her that makes you want to know what's under that badass exterior."

I raised my eyebrows. "Does Pepper kno—"

"Geez, not like that, Cap. Not anymore anyway."

"Then get to the point." I crossed my arms over my chest.

"The point is that this is what Natasha does. She reels you in, makes you want to know more, makes you want her more. That's what makes her a good spy. That's what makes her a good member of this team. She does her job well."

"I know she does," I said, a little annoyed. "I'm not interested in her like that and even if I was, nothing can happen because she's otherwise involved with that guy Devin albeit for a mission."

"I get it, I do. All I'm saying is, if you go down that road, be careful."

"Thanks, Tony," I said, not fully certain what his point was. Did Tony think Natasha was flirting with me? Was I really going to take dating advice from the world's most arrogant playboy?

He nodded, and we made our way to the couches to rejoin the group. In the main room, I found Natasha sitting next to Clint.

We locked eyes for a brief second before I went to sit next to Sam, who gave an odd look in Natasha's direction and then back to me. He raised his eyebrows but I shook my head. This wasn't the time to get into anything.

"Alright everyone, let's talk strategy," Tony said.

All conversations stopped and all eyes focused on Tony as he pulled up the task spreadsheet on the projector.

"I'll be in the lab working on the prototypes for new armor. Sam, I need you and Rhodey to talk with our team in Wakanda and see if they have any updates for us. The kid is out there with Shuri, probably causing all sorts of trouble, but he is one of our best and youngest assets. And he gets high school credit so I guess that's a bonus too. Clint, you're going to be leading archery training this afternoon, so you have the morning free. Nat, you know your undercover assignment. Cap, you're with Wanda in the training room."

"And what about your brilliant wife?" Pepper asked.

Tony smiled at her. "You get to help manage the arrival of Thor and Jane this afternoon."

Pepper consulted a tablet device. "Oh! That reminds me. Jane called and said she won't be joining Thor after all. There was some sort of scientific convention in Vienna that she wanted to attend at the last minute with Darcy, so it'll just be Thor."

"Let's just make sure he keeps his hammer on the first floor. We don't need any more holes in the wall," Tony said.

Once the projector was off, everyone got up and dispersed to go their separate ways. That is, everyone except for me.

"Nat, wait up," I called after Natasha, looking around to make sure no one else was listening.

"What's up?"

"Did you get my note?" I asked. "About the rematch?"

She nodded, her eyes focused on a spot somewhere behind me. "Yes. Hey, can we talk about this later?" Her fingers clasped my arm gently. "I'm sorry, but I really need to go."

"Yeah, sure thing." The look in her eyes told me she was mildly distracted by something, and I knew Natasha well enough to let her be when her mind was working like that. I knew very little about her current assignment as was protocol. We only knew what we needed to know so Natasha could keep her cover.

And what I knew is that most nights while Natasha stayed here, she had an apartment a few blocks from downtown purchased in an alias of hers. A new alias, from what I could tell. Any time she answered to the name Isabel, her nose scrunched in annoyance.

Then there was Devin, the boyfriend. I was surprised she told me as much as she did about him, but it seemed like she was keeping him at arm's length. I wondered if that was maybe so she didn't feel like she could get attached.

Or deep down maybe you want her to feel the same way about you as you feel about her.

I shook away the thought. Devin wasn't really her boyfriend, but he was one very dangerous reason that Natasha and I could not work right now.

***

After the team meeting—and confirming with Nat about our evening arrangements—I changed and took the stairs down to the training room. Wanda was already waiting for me.

"What are we learning today?" she asked, pulling her hair into a ponytail.

"Basic combat procedure," I replied. "You remember what Nat taught you?"

She nodded. "Let's go."

We stood on the mat facing one another. I swung out my left fist, and she countered, twisting my arm. I took that opportunity to flip her onto the mat.

Wanda grunted. I helped her to her feet.

"Go again. This time, plant your feet," I instructed.

We reset. She did a roundhouse kick, and I ducked. I swung out my arm again, and she ducked, swiping her leg and catching me off guard.

"Good." I sat up. "Remember to keep your eyes on me. If you take your gaze off of your opponent, they can easily counter and get the upper hand."

Wanda nodded. "Got it."

We repeated the exercise. Again. And again. And again. Each time, Wanda slowly improved. She kept her powers at bay, which was the point of the exercise. We didn't have the resources to train her in using her powers more effectively for combat here in San Francisco.

"One more set and then we can call it," I told her an hour later. "Try keeping your hands out of your line of sight. It'll help with anything coming at you in your peripheral vision."

She nodded. "Bring it on."

I swung my fist, and Wanda dodged out of my way. She swept her leg to try and catch me off guard, but I sidestepped and kicked my leg up. She ducked, I countered.

"Come on!" I urged.

Another swing at me—I grabbed her fist and flipped her. She groaned and thrust her arms out toward me, red energy spilling from her fingertips.

My mind went fuzzy, my hands responding to her attacks as if underwater. I blinked, and an image of a girl with red hair running flashed into my mind. The girl laughed then turning to me, she smiled.

Tell me how you feel about me, Steve. Her voice floated over me, every bit as teasing and taunting as I would expect. The image of Natasha walked forward and cupped my face in its hands. Tell me you love me.

"End!" I called out, signaling her a time-out motion. "Wanda, what did I say about your powers?"

"Sorry. I lost control for a second." She paused. "But, can I ask you something?"

"What?" I picked up the boxing tape and wrapped my hands.

"Why were you thinking about Natasha just now?"

I snapped to attention. "What?" She could hear that? Or maybe that was the result of her powers. We knew she could show us our desires. Except, Natasha wasn't exactly a desire.

Wanda took a step back. "I just—you were—uh, never mind. Back to the mat?"

My nostrils flared. "Stay out of my head, Wanda. Next time, I won't go so easy on you."