Penitence (For dirtyenough4u and loveshisbow)

[ayeayecap]

Bucky would be lying if he said he was completely over his guilt. The reason he’d offered to make dinner, after all, was for penitence, and even if the others hadn’t said anything, he suspected they knew. He was grateful for this, and grateful to them for not saying anything. This would be that final necessary push, the last thing needed to push

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[redinmyledger]

Her heels clicked as she moved around the table, her black dress accentuating her curves and drawing attention to the strip of pale skin shown off by the deep cut down the front.

Natasha smiled back at James, and gave a nod before she went back to humming along to the music and straightened the cutlery quickly. "All done, sweetheart."

[loveshisbow]

"I have the wine," Clint called from the kitchen as he carried the chilled bottle and three wine glasses carefully by the stems into the dining area. Clueless though he might be most of the time, even he knew this impromptu dinner was something more than just a dinner between friends and had tried to class up his act a little with some nicer clothes and had brought along a very nice bottle of Bordeaux.

[ayeayecap]

Bucky himself was clad in black slacks and a blue shirt with the first button undone and the sleeves rolled up to the elbow. It wasn't anything fancy, but a little nicer than what he might normally wear.

"You can put it on the table," he called before heading to the table himself with the bowl of pasta and plate of steak.

[redinmyledger]

Natasha paused for a moment to admire her two boys. She always did like it when they wore those tailored shirts. The blue always brought out James' eyes and when Clint when dressy it always showed off his physique. Not that either of them were slouches, her boyfriend especially.

She grinned as she came up behind Clint, wrapping her arms around him as she kissed his cheek before pulling away to give James' ass an appreciative squeeze. "Smells amazing, darling. I love that I have a man who cooks."

[loveshisbow]

Not too surprisingly, Clint's shirt was purple. Instead of the rich royal purple of his costume though, it was something a little more toned down and lighter but it went well with the dark gray slacks he was wearing.

Smiling back at Natasha, he nuzzled her cheek affectionately before setting the wine down on the table. "No groping the cook when he's carrying our dinner, Tasha!" Clint teased with a laugh. The archer righted the glasses with an expert twist of his wrist and started to pour the wine into their glasses.

[ayeayecap]

That squeeze to his ass caused Bucky to yelp, jumping slightly. But then, he laughed, setting down the food. "Yeah, Tash, geez! I coulda dropped the food and then this woulda all been over!" It was said with a good-natured smile and wink.

[redinmyledger]

"Does that mean a part of me would have in the dog house?" Natasha laughed herself before kissing him on the lips and taking her seat. "It really does look amazing, sweetheart. You did good. Shall we?"

[loveshisbow]

The easy affection displayed by the pair of lovers made Clint feel a little ill at ease. As though he were some voyeur looking in on an intimate scene. Studiously, he concentrated on pouring the wine before setting them down at their various place settings around the table. "Yeah, looks really good, Buck. You outdid yourself."

[ayeayecap]

"Thanks. I really didn't outdo myself, though." Which, of course, was a total lie. All he needed to do was ask Tasha, who had witnessed him fretting over the meal for hours. But Bucky knew his girlfriend wouldn't "out" him- or at least, he hoped not. He pulled out her chair for her with a polite smile before she took her place. He pulled Clint's chair out for him, too, an action he knew the other man would probably scoff at. But Bucky was determined to be a gentleman, dammit! Besides, he was making reparations to both of them.

[redinmyledger]

Natasha just smiled at his answer before rolling her eyes playfully. It was a complete lie, but she was happy to let him play the modesty card. She pulled the chair a little closer once Bucky had moved onto Clint, waiting for the archer to be seated before her foot sought out his in some of that easy affection she felt with him as well as her boyfriend. It wasn't anything Clint needed to feel like he wasn't a part of.

But she gave James another look, his attempt at reparations more than successful already. "Well, regardless of who outdid themselves doing what, I would just like to say that I am feeling pretty content right now. I have my boys, this delicious food, and knowing Clint's palette we've got some pretty good wine too. So thank you both."

[loveshisbow]

Clint's eyebrow shot up when Bucky unexpectedly pulled out his chair for him but politely refused to comment on it. Normally, he would have come up with something snarky and teasing along the lines of Bucky treating him like a girl but Clint had decided to put a lot of his natural defense mechanisms on the shelf for tonight. Including his trusty 'make a joke when you're feeling uncomfortable' habit.

"Smells really good. Can't wait to dig in. Dunno about the rest of ya'll but I'm famished." Feeling Natasha's foot slide against his underneath the table, he shot a questioning look her way but let his briefly brush against her's as well.

[ayeayecap]

Bucky didn't miss that questioning look and raised a questioning brow of his own, but didn't say anything. Instead, he took the other man's plate and started piling pasta onto it. "Tell me when."

[redinmyledger]

Natasha just kept smiling as she looked at both boys, not really feeling like there was anything to be questioned. She did pull her foot back though as she watched Bucky and the way he treated Clint. It was sweet, and James really was pulling out all the stops. The dinner was starting to feel more and more like a three-way date.

[loveshisbow]

Clint waited until the appropriate amount of alfredo noodles had been spooned onto his plate. "That's good, thanks." He was a little bemused at the other man insisting on serving him. Call Clint old fashioned but he wasn't used to people treating him like he generally treated his dates. The archer was the one who pulled out the seats and helped serve the food so finding himself in the other person's shoes was a queer sensation. Still, not wanting to offend the other man, he tried to accept the treatment graciously

[ayeayecap]

Bucky grinned, nodding, and moved on to Tasha. "Tell me when, sweetheart."

[redinmyledger]

"If it wasn't for you still needing some I'd say leave me the bowl," Natasha teased with a soft laugh. Her hand came up as she wiggled her fingers. "When, darling."