Thank you to all of you for these kind reviews and support. You really deserve this epilogue! I hope you will like it.

Huge thanks to SilverHeart09 for the beta of this chapter. You are wonderful!

Epilogue:

More than 2 months had passed since the Chitauri's failed attempt at conquering the planet.

Pepper Potts was in her office at Stark Industries. She had just hung up the phone after a conversation with their partners in Tokyo. After 2 hours of conference calls, they had almost come to an agreement regarding the 5 million dollar contract that Pepper had been working on for weeks. It was a good end to a really busy day: 2 early morning meetings with different departments of SI, preparations for the conference call with Tokyo, personal meetings with some employees and finally the vaunted conference call. Evening had crept up on her and she was now exhausted. Her shoulders and her back were painful and she leaned back on her leather armchair and breathed deeply. Her eyes dropped to the clock and she decided that it would probably be a good idea to finish her day now. Today had been busy enough. She picked up her bag, grabbed her leather notepad and made her way to the door. As she was walking, her BlackBerry notified her of a new email and, trying to check it, her notepad fell from her hand. Papers spread out on the floor.

"Damn," she sighed as she knelt down to the floor to pick up everything.

As she gathered everything, her gaze stopped on an envelope. This envelope had been in her notepad for 2 months now. She didn't have the courage to simply put it in a drawer. Putting it in a drawer might mean that she'd forget it; that she'd forget him. And she didn't want that! She was not ready for this. Pepper finally sat on the floor and opened the envelope. It had been weeks now since she had last read it.

"I probably can't fix all the regrets in your life, but at least I could do something for this one.

Happy Birthday, Virginia.

Phil."

Tears started to fill her eyes as she gazed at the watch on her wrist.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

4 months previously, Pepper and Phil had just come out of the Jewelers.

"I'm sure she'll love it," Pepper said proudly, smiling at Phil.

"Yeah, hopefully," answered an unsure Coulson as they started to walk along the street.

"Stop acting so worried, Phil. I'm sure everything will go fine," Pepper said in a comforting tone.

"Maybe, but honestly I'm not sure that a relationship based on a lie can last for long," Coulson said.

Pepper knew that he was probably right, but she couldn't tell him. She was here to try to comfort him not to depress him more.

"Nobody knows my friend. Maybe if things became serious… Maybe, if you see that she is a reliable person…"

Phil shook his head. "It cannot happen. SHIELD is strict on this point. No civilian on the side!"

"But look, I'm a civilian and…"

Coulson cut her short. "… And you are dating Iron Man. Without you, Tony Stark couldn't even lace his own shoes."

She laughed at that last remark. "Yeah, probably!"

Coulson smiled at her answer. "Tony Stark is really a lucky guy to have you. I hope that he realizes it." Phil said that second sentence in a more serious tone and Pepper blushed. He added: "at least I realize that I'm lucky to have you as a friend."

Pepper stopped and stared at him. "And I'm lucky to have you." She smiled and added: "How many times have you saved my life now?"

He smiled. "That doesn't count. It's part of the job." He showed her the jeweler's bag that he had in his hand "But this counts! You didn't have to help me, but you did."

She put a hand on his arm. "Because I wanted to," she said smiling. "And also because I'm a woman and I like to go shopping," she added laughing.

"Yes, a woman who is running one of the biggest companies in the world."

"Each to their own."

They both laughed and after some more walking they stopped at the Japanese restaurant "Sugarfish" to have some lunch.

"Thank you for your time, I know that you're busy and it's really good to see that you still have some time for me," he said as their order arrived at the table.

"It's always a pleasure," she stated, smiling.

"Can I ask you a question?" he said suddenly.

"Yes of course," she answered, unsure as to where this was going.

"Before we entered the Jeweler's, you were watching a watch. I guess it's the first time that I've seen you unsettled like this. Since that moment, I've been wondering why? What is the significance of that watch?"

She smiled softly at him "I didn't think you'd figure it out." She paused, closed her eyes, breathed deeply and opened her eyes again.

"If you don't want to talk about it, it's okay, don't worry," he assured her

But she started to talk, paying no heed to his last remark. "I don't come from a rich family you know. When I got my college acceptance, all my family was so proud that I couldn't refuse to go. I was the first "Potts" to study. So I went to university, even though I knew that it would be hard for them to pay the fees."

Coulson watched her with a compassionate and understanding gaze.

"I had to take a student loan. During my last year of university, my dad passed away. He was the only one in the family to work and things became worst for my mum…" She shook her head, trying to get herself together. "Anyway, one day, as I really needed money, I was forced to pawn my watch. This watch wasn't any watch; it came from my father's grandmother. My grandfather offered it to her after their wedding. It was a ROLEX Standard 21 Jewel from the 40's with a leather band and a gold steel face. This watch was splendid; my grandmother loved it, so much." Tears started to fill her eyes. "My grandmother offered me this watch when I was 16… She told me that I was old enough and that it was better on my wrist than on hers." Tears rolled down her cheeks but she dried them away quickly with her hand. "This watch was really important to me but I couldn't do anything else. It is, I guess, the worst thing I've ever done in my life. I've lived with the regret all this time." She paused.

"I'm sorry…" Coulson said sadly.

"Don't be sorry, Phil, it's not your fault," she said, placing her hand on his arm. "So, yes, when I saw this watch this afternoon, it remained me of it. It was really unexpected to see how this model resembled my old watch." She paused, shook her head and added "Ahh, designers don't have imagination anymore, they just reuse old designs."

He was amazed by the superficial tone that she used to say that last sentence, as since the beginning of their small talk it had worked out that it was her way to simply drop the subject. Pepper Potts was not used to talking about her life.

"Yeah, you're right. Like in music as well," he answered in the same tone. She smiled as if to thank him. She didn't want to talk about it anymore and he understood.

They finished their lunch; making small talk about how fashion turned in a circle. Phil never mentioned the watch to Pepper again, but as soon as he dropped her back at Stark Industries, that afternoon, he started his investigation. It didn't take him long to find the pawnshop where she had left the watch 15 years ago. His position as a government agent helped him to get access to all sorts of details and history of the shop. Then he found the person who bought the watch. Finally, after a few weeks and 2 or 3 new owners, he finally found Pepper's watch. He gave the new owner hard cash, and bought back the watch.

''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Pepper was still on the floor when someone opened the door.

"Miss Potts? Are you okay?" said a worried voice.

She looked up to see her assistant trying to help her to stand. "Yes, Anita, I'm okay. I just knocked over my notepad," she said as she stood up and pulled herself together. "What are you still doing here by the way? It's late."

"I was waiting for you to finish your conference. I have some documents for you to sign," answered her assistant.

Pepper smiled. Sometimes she recognized herself in Anita. She was very professional and she never wasted her time. "Okay," she said, going back to her desk. Her assistant placed the documents on the table. She explained to her one by one what each paper was as she went through them, showing her where to sign on each page.

At the last document, her assistant added, "and this one is for the final booking of the hall for the wedding."

Pepper couldn't help but smile as she was signing this page. Yes, the wedding. She glanced at her finger to look at her second birthday present, a perfect diamond mounted in a white gold ring.

"Thank you, Miss Potts," the voice of her assistant woke her from her reverie.

She smiled at her. "Thank you, see you tomorrow, Anita."

Her assistant left the room leaving Pepper to tidy up her notepad.

It was only a quarter of an hour later that she took the lift back to the penthouse. She threw herself into the shower and then dressed in some comfortable clothes. She grabbed some food from the fridge and arranged herself on the couch with her tablet in order to prepare the schedule for tomorrow. After a few minutes, she was done with the planning and she started answering emails.

"Ding," the sound came from her BBM. She grabbed her BlackBerry and read it.

GBPP: Stop working, Pep…It's late!

She smiled.

Potts: How do you know I'm working?

GBPP: Because I know you. And I'm pretty sure you're on the couch, wearing my blue sweatpants. By the way, have I already told you how sexy you are in it?

She smiled and shook her head.

Potts: Where are you?

GBPP: Still in China

Potts: I don't believe you

GBPP: What, Miss Potts? Did you suggest that I'm a liar?

Potts: I'm just suggesting that you are probably somewhere around cause you know what I'm wearing.

"And you don't think that I could figure out what you were wearing from China?" a voice next to her said.

She smiled as he took her tablet and her phone from her hands. "When did you come back?" she asked as he lay down next to her.

He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Less than an hour ago."

She kissed him softly and rested her head on his chest as he hugged her. She closed her eyes and sighed with happiness. He was gazing at the ceiling, stroking slowly her hair.

After few minutes, he broke the relaxed silence. "You know what I was thinking?"

"No," she whispered.

"You will have to think about a new name for your BBM."

She smiled against his chest. "I really think that the paperwork for adding a name on the lease would be less time consuming."

He smiled "Because you're still thinking that I just asked you to marry me to avoid paperwork?"

She supported herself on his chest and looked up at him. "Do I have to remind you that it was your first argument?" She smiled. "How did you say that again?" She tried to mimic his voice, "yes, Pepper, see the sunny side of things, if you become my wife, no need to change the name on the lease, it means no paperwork… dream life, right?" She laughed.

"Yeah, that's true! I mean, I don't like the paperwork and you don't like the paperwork. But on the contrary, I like you and you like me, so a wedding was the best option," he said, smirking.

"Yes, fair enough," she said before placing a kiss on his lips.

He grinned. "How about: The Starkster's Wife?"

She looked at him in disbelief. "What?"

"For your name on BBM."

"No way," she answered, shaking her head

"Lady Stark?"

"No…"

"You're right, it does sound Asgardian, I spend too much time with Point Break! How about Mrs. Stark?"

"Noooo, Tony! Listen to me, everything with Stark in it, is not an option!"

"But why?" whined Tony.

"Because your ego is big enough!"

"Come on Pep, you will become Pepper Stark, it's a fact that you don't have any choice now!" he said, starting to squeeze her.

She started to laugh at his touch. "Be careful, I can still change my mind, Stark!"

She was ticklish and he knew it so he tickled her harder. "You think so?" he said, his tone implying a challenge.

Pepper laughed more and tried to struggle. After a few minutes, their little game ended in a make-out session on the couch. They eventually found their way to their bedroom and fell asleep in each other's arms.

It took him more than 10 years but he finally realized what Pepper really meant to him. He had never been this close to anyone, or anything. He didn't know how she did what she did but the only thing he was sure of; is that he was in love with her and he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her by his side. And he really knew how lucky he was that she loved him at least as much as he loved her.

So, here we are, this is the final point of this story, I'm little moved. I hope you liked the entire story and that I answered all the questions that I raised.

See you for the next fic, and don't forget, you are amazing, you guys! (and more amazing again when you let a review ^^)

ReikaJen