Natasha was leaning her back on the up-going elevator's wall with Steve standing just on her left. The top of her red sundress was mostly covered with a hoodie of his that she had grabbed before heading out of his room. He was wearing a navy blue button down shirt with a pair of tight jeans. They were headed to the hotel's restaurant to join the others for dinner, but had to get their mission report to Maria before hand, thus Steve holding a file in his right hand. The left one was dropped next to his body, occasionally brushing Natasha's.

She smiled as his hand, once again, brushed hers. Natasha wasn't the type to get physically clingy, including wanting to hold hands all the time, but she could tell Steve was the exact opposite. He was the type who wanted to be physically attached to his partner, even as friends or teammates she already knew that and now that they were going to start something serious, she had to get used to this side of him. It didn't bother her though, she wasn't one to express her feelings in words, she'd rather get physical too. Not in a clingy way, in a more passionate manner of course, and she knew it was going to be hard for Steve to get used to that, if ever.

Natasha was pulled out of her thoughts when Steve moved slightly away from her. Natasha frowned and turned her gaze on the now open doors to see what had gotten into him. To her surprise, she was met with Tony, Pepper and Maria standing there.

"Hey there Capsicle, didn't see you at the beach." Tony nonchalantly stated while stepping inside the elevator next to Pepper and Maria.

Steve smiled and turned his focus on Maria "I was gonna bring the file to you." Maria nodded and reached her hand for him to hand her the file. "It's fine." She gave him a lopsided smile.

"You know, I've never really seen her smile like this much before." He whispered to Natasha who only smirked "Oh she's got a whole other side to her.". She gave him a side glance.

Tony caught Steve's attention with a soft cough "Barns isn't so bad, I think I can learn to live with him." He was staring straight at the doors that were about to open in any seconds "he can move in the compound, if you want." He finished just as the doors moved aside and walked out whilst holding Pepper's hand.

Steve's lips formed a wide smile, showing his white teeth. Natasha couldn't help herself but smile at his sight as Maria walked out. She hadn't been paying much attention to the little chitchat as she'd been going through the file Steve had handed her.

Natasha pulled Steve's hand and walked him out before the doors would close again. He was just too happy to notice anything. They followed Maria to were the rest of the team, including Tony and Pepper, was seated, to find a round table with only three seats available, one between Sam and Pepper which Maria walked to and sat down, causing Sam to grin. The other two were next to each other, the only problem was they were between Sharon and Wanda. Natasha didn't want to sit next to Sharon, but she also didn't want Steve to take that seat either. So when Steve pulled out the chair next to Wanda for her to sit down she was reluctant to take it. She sighed as she sat down, feeling Sharon's gaze on her. Steve sat next to her while greeting Sharon.

Wanda took Natasha's hand and gave it a soft squeeze and leaned closer to whisper in her ear "She won't say anything rude about you to him, she's smarter than that." Natasha gave her a confused look "I saw how you were ignoring him last night, so I looked into your head." She smiled victoriously.

"I thought you weren't supposed to do that!" Natasha smiled.

"Well, I'm nosy, watcha gonna do?"

Both of them let out a soft laugh and Steve turned to look at them, "What's going on?" He asked them with a smile, his eyes fixed on Natasha's face as she laughed and her eyes sparkled. The two shook their heads and turned their focus on the menus as Clint started to nag about being hungry. Lila and Cooper were seated between their parents, both looking a bit sleepy.

They all put down their orders and Natasha turned to look at Clint and Laura who seemed to be relaxed but also tired. "Clint, you guys not gonna go sightseeing?" She asked him. "I kinda want to, but Laura says it's a bit chilly for the kids.". "The beech is fine but the woods seem to be a bit cold for the kids, I don't want them to catch a cold." Laura explained, looking at Clint with an apologetic expression. He really wanted to have some alone time with her and had suggested to take the kids to their grandparents before the trip but Laura had felt insecure with leaving them, and now they were spending all their time with the kids. Clint, as tough as he was in the battles, he was a romantic softie when it came to his family, meaning he really wanted some alone time with his wife. "You can leave them with me." Natasha offered them a sincere smile. Lila and Cooper who had been only listening to their conversation let out happy squeals. "Really? You'd be ok with that?" Laura asked her with joyful eyes. "Sure, we'll have some fun of our own and you guys have some fun of your own." She winked at them with a playful smile.

"Steve, would you like to join them?" Natasha turned to see Sharon's hand resting on Steve's forearm, her head tilted to a side, looking into his eyes. Steve was giving her a confused look, unaware of the redhead's clenched jaw. "I think this is more of a couple's thing Sharon, I mean they'd rather be alone."

Natasha smiled while Steve gave Sharon a shy smile and turned to Bucky who was sitting next to Sam and laughing at the banter between him and Maria as she continuously teased him "I think you're the best thing that has happened to me since I reunited with Steve." He laughed and received a punch to the shoulder from Sam. Sharon seemed to be a bit off but Laura soon started a conversation with her, pulling her focus away from Steve. This didn't go unnoticed by Natasha. Laura was always bright and smart, no one could really hide anything from her and Natasha's reactions to Sharon hadn't been an exception. Not to mention she was already aware of Steve's affection for the redhead, so she knew better to let Sharon get to Natasha's jealous side, it was truly scary.

Clint on the other hand was becoming impatient. It was nothing emotional, he was just hungry and bored. "Ok, that's it! Where's my food?" He growled, starting to stand up. Tony pulled his arm to make him sit "Keep it cool hawkguy, it's on its way." And Clint followed Tony's gaze to see the waiters bringing their food and grinned like a small boy who'd just been allowed to eat cake before bed.

Natasha was eying everyone of them as the waiters settled their foods in front of them. She looked at every single one of them, from her left, Wanda, Vision, James Barns, Sam, Maria, Pepper, Tony, Clint, Cooper, Lila and Laura. She looked at them with a deep smile, each one of them felt like a family member, well, James was different, but he didn't know that, neither did anyone else and she intended to keep it that way. Her eyes skipped Sharon as they finished the circle, resting on Steve who to her surprise, was staring at her as well.

He moved closer to her "You look happy." He whispered to her "like really happy." She smiled and leaned closer to him "I really am." She purred.

They were distracted with a light scream. "Don't eat my fries!" Lila was swatting Cooper's hand away from her plate. Clint sighed as he put his hand on Cooper's shoulder, trying to get his attention while placing his own fries on his son's plate. "Come on Coop, leave your sister alone." Cooper happily sat back on his chair.

Steve turned back to look at Natasha who was smiling at the two siblings, all he could think was what a wonderful mother she could've been if she'd been given the chance to decide herself. She had ordered pizza and was taking a bite of a slice, her free hand resting on her lap. Unconsciously, Steve grabbed her free hand with his, startling her a little. She turned to look at him, but he wasn't looking at her, he was even talking to Tony who had just suggested a game night at Pepper and his suite.

"Tony I think the kids need to sleep." He told him while sending a soft smile to Lila and Cooper. "I'm sure Barton here can manage, can't you?" Tony asked Clint who was looking at Laura for an answer. "Well we're on vacation, so they don't really have a bed time here. We'll join you but I won't be able to play, or drink." She smiled at Clint.

"I'm pretty much sure I won't be joining them either." Pepper chimed, making Tony pout. "Pepper, come on. We're on vacation!" He whined. "I know honey, but I'm just not a fan of your games." She gently stroke his cheek before going back to eating her dinner.

Natasha was silent, for the rest of the meal. Wanda and Vision had been talking with each other since the beginning of the dinner and no one really seemed to pay much attention. They'd all got a feeling that the two were closer than they'd primarily thought and the only one who wasn't really onboard with the idea was Clint. Well, now there was two of them, Steve and Clint were both close to and protective of Wanda, and not too pleased with the idea of her dating someone, yet alone Vision! It was just to complicated for both of them. They would throw glances at them every now and then but even that didn't caught Natasha's attention. She was slowly and silently eating her pizza, her mind only focused on Steve's fingers intertwined with hers.

"!"

She was pulled out her thoughts with Sam's loud voice. "What?" She gave him a confused look. "Tasha, you ok?" She turned her gaze on Clint. "Yeah, what's wrong with you people?" She asked with a rather harsh tone, she didn't know why they were being weird.

"I called you a couple of time, you got us worried. Is the medicine from your mission not wore off yet?" Tony asked her with a hint of worry.

"Oh! No I'm fine, just a little tired." She hadn't realized it yet, but as she looked at them, she saw a hint of worry in their expressions. Except for Wanda and Laura who were smiling at her, well that was even weirder! Then she looked at Steve who was smirking ever so lightly.

Jerk!

She thought to herself, a smile plastering on her face. She turned her focus on Tony. "I'm sorry, what was it you were saying?" Tony had suddenly forgotten all about his worries "oh I was just making sure you'd be joining us for games." He said with excitement. Natasha wasn't sure if she was going to join them or not. Her main concern was Steve, if he had said he wasn't going then she'd rather spend her time with him as well.

"Actually, never mind." Tony said "everyone is coming so you don't really get a choice, just be at our suite at ten." He told her and stood up, holding his hand out for a confused Pepper to help her up. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm taking miss Pots for a walk." She smiled and took his hand gratefully, walking side by side.

"Captain, would you mind going through the mission report with me before Stark's game night?" Maria spoke with a soft tone.

Wanda didn't let Steve answer "Maria, will just drop the Captain? We're on vacation for gods sake." She mumbled and turned to Steve. "And as for you Steve, she's got a name you know! It's Maria!" The rest of them agreed with soft hums. "It's just a little hard, or awkward maybe." Maria justified herself. She had great respect for Steve and it wasn't that easy for her to get on first name bases with the Captain.

Sharon turned to Steve "and you? You're fine with calling everyone here by their names, everyone but Maria. It's kind of weird for us."

Natasha hated to admit but she actually agreed with Sharon. She really wanted them to get closer, if there was any opportunity for Steve and her to be in an intimate relationship, which Steve had clearly mentioned that there was, she wanted Maria to know. She was one of the few who could help her keep it away from Fury, and then to get him to accept it when he'd find out. Which obviously was something she was going to ignore for as long as she possibly could, if Steve or Clint thought they were protective of Wanda, they had no idea what Fury would do to keep Maria and Natasha safe. He had kept this a secret, even from Natasha who had to force it out of Maria, but he'd started a search for Bruce, not to bring him back but to teach him a lesson on how to treat Natasha Romanoff.

She was once again pulled back to reality with Sharon's voice "I think you two can manage to be like normal friends, at least while you're on vacation." And there it was again, her hand was once again resting on Steve's arm. Steve gave her a nod and a polite smile before turning to Maria "I think we can, Maria." He smiled at her and she smiled back. "And yes, I don't mind checking the paperwork before meeting with the others at Tony's suite."

Then he turned his focus on Natasha, he hadn't thought about it but maybe she'd rather him to spend the time with her "you're ok with that, right?". Natasha smiled "I think I'm gonna take Cooper and Lila to the little playground outside, I think the lights are on."

The kids immediately jumped of their chairs and ran to her while screaming and squealing with excitement, they didn't seem to be tired or sleepy any more. Steve smiled as they both grabbed her hands and pulled her up from her chair. "Wow easy there kids!" Clint called out to the kids and gestured for them to walk back to their parents so he could check their shoelaces while Laura checked their faces to be clean. "You sure Tasha?" As much as he wished to get some time with Laura, he didn't want to be a burden on others.

"Yeah, you two go get some exercise for the hike" she smirked and winked at a blushing Laura. "We'll join you." Vision said as he helped Wanda of her chair.

Bucky and Sam were just watching in confusion, Steve's sudden question from Natasha to see if she was ok with him working with Maria was weird on its own, then there was the whole hike thing with the Bartons. What was so especial with that? Before anyone could ask anything, Natasha was pulled away by the kids followed by Wanda and Vision and the others got up to walk to the elevator.

Sam patted Bucky on his shoulder "you up for a game or something?". Bucky nodded, looking at Sharon "you'll join us, right?" He gave her his charming smile, something Steve hadn't seen in a long time and Sharon smiled back "Can't think of a reason why not". Steve was a little shocked, he hadn't realized the two had grown that close together, but the idea of Bucky adjusting to all this was really pleasant for him. The three got of the lift on the fifth floor, deciding they were going to watch a movie in Bucky's room. Then on the sixth floor, Clint and Laura parted from them as they walked to their room, leaving Steve and Maria in silent.

The two walked to Maria's room and as they got in, she pointed to the sofa "I'll need to change to something more comfortable for the games, it'll just take me a couple of minutes." Steve nodded and walked to the sofa and sat down. Maria pulled out her clothes from the room closet and walked to the bathroom. Steve sat there, wondering what would be more comfortable than a t-shirt and pair of jeans for Maria Hill, the first thing to come in mind was her cat suite. Then his mind went to Natasha who'd most certainly choose her catsuit over any girly dress. It didn't take Maria a long time to walk out the bathroom, wearing another t-shirt with yoga pants. She took a seat next to Steve and they both turned their focus on the file. Maria had a few questions, if they'd felt anything was suspicious, if they'd ever felt followed or being watched.

"Steve, are you sure you were never followed?" She asked once more. "I've already told you, no." He answered her but the look on her face told him there was more to it, more than just this mission. "Can you tell me what's with all the concern? We've done this before, you know? We were Avengers, Shield, then we had to stop and now we're back. What's wrong?" He was trying to push her to get answers.

"Capt-Steve," she sighed and looked down to her hands "it's just after what happened with Accords, everything was out there, specially Natasha's. Fury is worried that someone will come after the team, but most importantly he's worried about her. He thinks there may be a weaker version of Hydra or Red Room that will come after her. That's why he only sends her on undercover missions. He hasn't sent her on any field mission for ages and she's going to snap any time now." She looked at Steve "That's actually why he's been sending you on this missions, you're not a spy, he knows you want to be on the field, but when it comes to Nat, he trusts you and Barton the most." Steve was lost for words. He'd been furious for having to go on only undercover missions, but he'd grown used to them whilst he got to spend time with Natasha. Learning that he was actually send to watch after her was big news.

"So you're telling me, Natasha has been in great danger all this time?" He was starting to feel agitated "Couldn't he just keep her away for a while?"

Maria took a deep breath and exhaled loudly before responding "look, you and I both know this isn't how it works, not with Nat. She'd get furious, angry and probably sneak into other's field missions, causing a lot more trouble for herself. This was the only way to keep her of the radars."

Steve was listening, he didn't even try to cut her off once, she was reasoning with him and he wanted to be logical. "So, what now? We get another undercover mission?"

She shook her head "no, not really. She's starting to get suspicious. We need to send her in the field, that's why I needed to make sure nothing fishy has happened on this last mission." Steve nodded his head. "Fury doesn't want anyone to know, but I needed you to know. I know you'll do anything to protect her."

Steve was shocked "Fury didn't tell you to tell me this?" He asked and she only shook her head. "You're going against his order?" Steve could have never imagined this. Even when Hydra was after them and they all believed he was dead, after seeing how it affected Natasha, she hadn't spoken a word of his plans to anyone.

"You don't really understand how I feel about Natasha." Maria looked at him again, deep in his eyes "for so long, Nick and Nat have been the closest things-people I've had to a family. I need to protect her, and I know for that to be possible, I need you to know there's a slight chance of her being in danger." She gave him the softest smile he'd ever seen from her.

He had no words to offer her so as a reflex, he wrapped his arms around her. Maria was a bit shaken at first, but then she reached her arms to his sides and hugged him back.

He pulled away and gave her a bright smile as he spoke.

"We'll keep your stubborn sister safe."