This story is set between Iron Man 2 and Avengers…and Tony is not involved with Pepper, they are good friends, that's all…

Oh, and I own nothing but the story-line, Boo for me…

Tony slid past a young woman in skintight black pants and matching top who was doing something that she considered to be dancing, but he wasn't quite sure. The loud pulsating beats were throbbing through his chest, and he wondered briefly if the tight black shirt he wore with the glowing arc reactor in his chest shining through was his brightest wardrobe move. The club was hot, the women hotter, and he was disappointed to realize that he wasn't having a better time. Maybe Pepper was right and he was finally growing up and was getting bored with the whole dating-a-different-random-woman-everyday-thing…Nah, it couldn't be that. He was just not recovered from the meeting he had just left up in the VIP room of the club. The owner wanted to do a special event and was practically begging for the playboy to make an appearance in his Iron Man suit. Tony was tired of being used and thought of as a toy…well, unless he was being used by a woman in bed.

He stopped between two women on the dance floor and started moving with them, enjoying how both girls automatically began moving together, ensuring his body was in permanent contact with at least one of theirs throughout the entire song. His trademark smirk was all he left the girls with when the song switched over and he moved on to find a new partner or two. He felt like he was finally getting back into the rhythm of his regular life when he noticed a girl sitting beside a large brute of a man in a circular booth, the other occupant sat across from the pair in a dress shirt and jeans with an evil grin as he eyed the uncomfortable woman.

Tony wandered closer to the group's table, it took him three songs to finally end up dancing with a woman near enough to the table for him to hear an occasional word and get a better reading from the body language of the occupants. The woman never spoke, her eyes stared straight across the room at the far wall until the man next to her tensed his arm, his hand was on her knee and he was squeezing it roughly, she finally looked at the other man across from her and swallowed visibly. Tony felt his body temperature rise as his stomach lurched in a way that was becoming familiar to him, he would always react in that way when someone was in danger, and he was never wrong about the situation when his gut felt as heavy as it did at that moment.

The woman looked back out at the crowd of dancers, her eyes quietly searching for an escape, but there was no real hope behind the brown gaze, she looked completely resigned to whatever fate the man beside her had planned for her. When the man in the dress shirt stood and extended his hand toward the woman, she shrank back reflexively. The brute next to her squeezed her knee again and she reached for the other man's outstretched hand unsteadily. He pulled her fully up to his body and sneered as he whispered in her ear. The look on the woman's face caused Tony's blood to boil with rage, she looked terrified.

She was dragged down onto the dance floor and made to move with the other man's body. The woman took a breath and smiled tightly at the man as he spoke to her in low tones. She turned to put her back against his chest and moved her hips to the music robotically. Every time the man leaned forward and spoke in her ear the woman would cringe and dance in different ways. At one point, when Tony thought he would either have to throw up or punch the smarmy bastard in the face, he finally formulated a plan.

Tony smiled invitingly at the woman he was currently dancing with and leaned down to speak into her ear. "Hey, there's Jason Brody…the computer tech that just left Stark Industries and started up his own huge IT Corporation; he just made millions over night!" He knew that the gold-digger would willingly trade him for the other man, knowing that Tony was only a one-night stand and that 'Jason Brody' may be able to be trapped into a relationship.

Tony inched closer to the other couple, watching the woman's full hips roll. She wasn't built like his usual type, but Stark found himself oddly attracted to and intrigued by the woman's full body. While she wasn't over weight, she was possibly an actual size four-to-six, and her hip bones were just slightly defined, a shadow rounding out where her toned abs slowly worked as she danced, the shirt she wore rode up a bit every time she raised her arms, the metal fasteners that held the red fabric together glinted in the strobe lights. Tony mentally shook himself, focusing on getting the woman out of whatever situation she was in. He sidled up beside and slightly behind the man in the dress shirt and blonde hair, he watched as his partner predictably moved to be dancing half in front of each man, pushing the other woman over so that her body was only against half of the man's chest and one leg. Tony waited a few moments and turned to circle behind the blonde man and ended up in front of the brown-haired woman. He checked on the man still sitting at the table as he flirted with the waitress, who looked completely nonplussed by the attention. Tony smirked to himself. He turned his attention to the small brunette in front of him, slightly surprised to find that even in her heels she only came up to his nose, if that. He smiled at her genuinely, and was happy to see it returned. The smile faded as she glanced back to her partner, but his attention was on the girl Tony had tricked into dancing with him.

Tony danced closer to the girl, he put his hand on her left hip to scoot her fully in front of him and put his lips to her ear. "Okay, I am going to turn us both around so they won't see…I hope to god you can run in those shoes because we'll have a thirty second max of a head start before they start to look for you…we'll head out the side door."

The girl's chocolate eyes widened in shock as she asked in a breathy whisper, "What do you mean?"

"It looks as if you aren't here of your own free will, and if that's the case, let's get you the hell out of dodge."

The girl nodded unsteadily, warily glancing back to the man that had brought her into the club as he leaned in to touch his waitress' shoulder. She prayed that this new guy didn't work for him, just trying to see if she'd run away if given the chance. But she had no other choice. She nodded more firmly, her eyes steeling themselves with resolve. Tony smirked and moved his hips closer to hers, at her instantaneous recoil he held her firmly to him and leaned down.

"I've gotta make this look natural; I'm no threat. Just move with me, on three." The girl blinked in time with Tony, on the third blink she felt him step back on his left foot and she countered by stepping forward with her right, suddenly Tony spun and his back now blocked the other men's view of the pair, he whispered, "Now!"

The girl turned without hesitation and took off through the dense crowd. Tony kept his body close to hers, hoping he would be able to conceal her until they reached the exit. "Go-whoa-kay…" The words melded together as he spoke, his eyebrows drawing together in confusion as he watched the girl rip the sleeves of her shirt off and heard her quickly working at the four metal fasteners that held the shirt on her. He was amazed at the speed at which she had yanked herself free of the shirt and put it on inside-out, making the shirt black. She was yanking the hem of her skirt, pulling the scrunched sides down flat, as they reached the door that was being watched by a rather large black man. When the man saw Tony he instantly pushed the door open and allowed the couple to slip out quickly. Tony found himself amazed again with the woman in front of him as she pulled her hair up and used a piece of black string she had procured from somewhere unknown to tie her hair up on the top of her head in a messy ponytail.

"Wow." He stated blandly, and then turned to speak on his phone hurriedly. "Happy? ETA…East alley." He slid the phone closed and turned back to the woman. "So, we'll have a ride in about eight minutes, we need to find a place to duck—" His words were cut off by angry voices behind the club.

"The boss said she's in a red shirt and black hiked-up skirt…stilettos, too. FIND her!" The voice was commanding.

Tony stared at the woman's face as it filled with fear. He made a quick decision and shoved the woman's back to the wall of the club; he pressed his lips to hers to silence her shriek. He moved his lips to her ear as if he was kissing her there. "Just go with it, you're dressed differently, just kick the shoes behind that trashcan." He moved his hand up her thigh a bit and kept the other tangled in her hair behind her ear as he went back to kissing her mouth. She did as he suggested and kicked her heels behind the trashcan that was to her left. She was being held up off the ground by Tony now that the four-inch heals were gone, and in an attempt not to fall she wrapped the leg he was not holding around his waist. The angry men rounded the corner into the alley and whistled as they passed the couple making-out. Tony felt the woman tense and smiled into the kiss, he enjoyed how shy she seemed to be, and how muscular her leg that held them pinned together was.

He knew the moment the men had headed around the front of the club, but continued to kiss the woman he had pinned to the bricks anyway. She wasn't complaining and he wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. When she did start to pull away and dropped her leg they were both breathless. She stared at Tony wide-eyed and he knew she had no idea what to say.

"You okay?" He asked with a wicked grin.

The woman nodded, and then looked at the blue that was shining through his black shirt. "That is definitely the strangest club-wear ever."

Tony stared at the woman in shock. "You…do you…you have no idea…do you not recognize me?" He sputtered, actually at a loss for words.

"Should I?" She asked, plainly confused. Tony's look of utter amazement at her response told her the answer. "I'm sorry, but no. I don't know who you are."

"Wow." Tony repeated in the same tone as before, just as Happy turned the limousine into the alley.

"There's no way to open the doors." Happy stated dryly to his boss.

"Open the Sunroof, Hap." Tony said as he lifted the woman onto the hood of his limo. He smiled at her shocked expression and took her hand, leading her quickly up onto the roof of the long car and helping her slide through the opening in the top of the car. He followed her through the gap and the car took off into the more open back alley. "So, I didn't catch your name." Tony lounged back in his seat comfortably.

"Sasha." The brunette replied, "And you are…"

"Tony." He replied, enjoying the anonymity for the moment.

Sasha nodded quietly, staring at her spacious surroundings thoughtfully. "Thank you, Tony."

"You're welcome, Sasha." There was silence for several minutes and Tony took the time to study Sasha more carefully. He noted that her skin was slightly tanned, though it seemed faded, so he knew she had not been in Malibu for very long. He also took the time to appreciate the legs that had been wrapped around his waist just a short time before; they were toned and he knew that she must have been a runner or something to have the strength and shape she did.

Sasha shifted uncomfortably, having noticed Tony's ogling. She had really enjoyed kissing him and had been much more aggressive with him than was usual for her. She did not know what to think of that, seeing as how she did not know who he really was.

"Are you going to turn off the little light-thing in your shirt?" She finally asked.

"Uh…no…" Tony drew the word out, not knowing how to explain that if he did he would die. "It's…uh…so how did you get mixed up with Mr. Brute back there?" He asked, hoping to divert her attention. It worked a little too well as he watched Sasha shrink back into the seat diagonally across from him.

"I…I don't really…um."

"So where are you from? I love the accent." Tony smirked; Sasha had a slight southern drawl that he considered to be rather endearing.

Sasha blushed and looked at the floor of the car, "Texas. A smaller town outside of Dallas."

"Ah, a little country girl, then?"

Sasha rolled her eyes at the man, "Not quite…I was not raised on a farm or anything."

"Aw, too bad." Tony smiled, happy when Sasha returned the expression. "I hate to ask…" Tony really did feel badly for having to return to the subject, "But what's the story, here?"

Sasha sighed and considered lying, but then found the truth tumbling out. "I was out with a…friend…a guy I had met at a coffee shop, we…well I thought we hit it off, and he invited me out to a club. We were dancing when he turned me toward another guy and introduced me…it was 'Mr. Brute' as you put it," A weak smile crossed her lips fleetingly. "Suddenly it was like a bad dream, I ended up in a bunch of different cities, lots of clubs like the one back there…it's been…it hasn't been a nice time."

"What's Brute's name?" Tony asked, offhandedly—or so he hoped that was how it sounded. Inside he was boiling with rage again, but on the outside he simply flicked some lint off of his dark-wash jeans.

"Uh…Harrison…Harrison Lease." Sasha replied uneasily.

"Has he…did he ever…never mind." Tony realized they were pulling up to the mansion and he straightened his jacket. Happy opened the door beside Tony whom gestured Sasha out first. She slipped from her seat and out of the door across from her and stared at the beautiful house.

"Wow." She breathed. "This place…is gorgeous!"

"Thank you." Tony nodded as he slipped his arm around her waist and led her up the few steps to the door.

Sasha was amazed by the décor, it was extremely modern, and the open floor plan was stunning, the view out of the long bay windows across the living room elegant. She began to wonder about her…new friend, as she decided to deem him. He was wealthier than she would have imagined, but with his air of confidence, and his cocky grin she could see him being rich. Suddenly she felt extremely out of her depths.

"I…I don't know what to say…do…uh—"

"Come on, I'll show you to a guest room. You can rest there for the night, and we'll see about getting you back to Texas in the morning." Tony didn't want to dwell on the reasons why he didn't want to think about sending Sasha back to Texas. He led the awed woman to a room next to his own and told her that if she needed him he would be there. He also informed her of the extra toothbrushes and things that he had stocked in the bathroom across the hall.

Sasha felt like she had been on a roller coaster for the past hour. She had brushed her teeth and washed her face and was lying down on the extremely comfortable queen-sized bed thinking over the events of the night. She kept returning to thoughts of Tony, only a wall's-width away from her; she remembered how handsome she had thought he was when he first appeared in front of her at the club, she had momentarily forgotten her reasons for being there and been able to smile a real smile. She thought about his rough voice when he had told her he was going to help her escape, and about the kiss outside of the club. She realized that they had probably been kissing long after the men looking for her had turned to search the streets in front of the club. It was a little frightening and a lot exciting to her that she had been so lost in Tony's arms that she had forgotten about the men, it said a lot about his technique that he'd been able to rob her of her common sense, too.

She felt her stomach tighten as she lay there thinking of the man in the next room, and it surprised her when she named the feeling: desire. She was lusting after a guy she had just met and didn't even know the last name of, she felt like she'd been thrown back into high school. She groaned and turned onto her side to sleep.

Tony was up, just listening to the silence of the house, he was thinking about Sasha, about their heated kiss, and how much he just wanted to go into her room and find out if she wanted to continue where they had left off. He sighed, knowing it wouldn't be right to do that to her, not knowing what all she had been through with that Harrison guy. He spoke in a whisper, "JARVIS…"

"Yes, sir." The robotic voice replied in an equally soft volume.

"I want everything you can find on Harrison Lease. He was at the club tonight where I had that meeting, the second booth from the end on the west wall. Sitting with a woman and another man. Run facial recognition against the security footage from the club."

"Very well, sir."

Tony settled onto his back and fell asleep. He was awoken by JARVIS some time later. "Sir, it seems your guest may be in need of some help."

"What the hell?" Tony muttered as he climbed from the bed and walked to Sasha's darkened room. He could hear her whimpering and saw her thrashing about on the bed. She screamed before it became a strangled sound, scaring the hell out of Tony and spurring him from his spot in the doorway to her side. "Sasha, shh." Tony slowly touched her shoulder, rolling her onto her back as she tensed. "Sasha. You're safe. It's Tony. Wake up." He whispered worriedly.

Sasha pulled herself from her dreams and was staring into Tony's dark eyes, illuminated by a bluish-white light, seeing his concern for her. "Tony…" She cleared her throat. "I must have been dreaming, I'm sorry if I woke you."

"Are you…going to be alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sasha turned back over and Tony shrugged. He headed back to his room after a moment and climbed back in bed.

It was only an hour later when JARVIS again woke Tony, alerting him to Sasha's distress once again. He rushed back to her room to find her huddled in the middle of the bed in a fetal position. He turned her to him and spoke to her softly, "Sash…wake up, it's Tony."

"Tony?" Sasha sounded frightened, and Tony scooped her up into his arms and walked from the room.

"You were having a bad dream…I think…uh—" He placed her in his bed, where he climbed in behind her. "I…I want you to feel safe…uh…don't worry about anything…I'm here." His soft tone was comforting, but had Sasha been able to see his face, she would have named it comical. Tony had no idea why he was feeling so protective over a woman he had never met before the previous night. He was also wondering how in the hell he was supposed to keep from ravishing her when she looked so sexy in his bed, wearing one of his old MIT t-shirts that he'd given her to sleep in.

He tried to clear his head of all thoughts of Sasha, but she suddenly rolled over in his arms and lay her head on his bare chest. 'Damn it all to hell.' Stark thought as he sighed and settled in for a long, sleepless, night staring at the ceiling.