Tony leaned back on a lounge chair in the laboratory, and Pepper placed her hand on his chest.
Practice makes perfect.
With the experience of replacing Tony's arc reactor for the first time, Pepper quickly installed the second-generation electromagnetic arc reactor for him.
The laboratory lights were so bright, yet Tony felt his surroundings were hazy.
Even though no music was playing in the laboratory, a strange melody echoed in his ears.
The bright lights reflected their slightly flushed faces.
They gazed at each other, their eyes revealing an indescribable emotion.
Pepper bit her lip lightly, her captivating smile, full of allure, seemed to entice Tony to take further action.
Tony's fingers gently brushed through Pepper's hair, not hiding his inner excitement.
For Tony and Pepper, time seemed to stand still as they stared at each other, their eyes filled with an ambiguous intimacy.
Tony felt his heart flutter; he felt that he was no longer a flirtatious playboy, but a big boy experiencing his first crush, responding to Pepper with a slightly shy smile.
They didn't need many words to understand each other's feelings.
However, neither dared to take a step further; they were bound by the ambiguous atmosphere, both anticipating and fearing this love.
An ambiguous relationship is like a strong liquor, brewing intense emotions, yet unable to be poured out due to certain uncontrollable factors.
As time passed, perhaps influenced by gravity.
Pepper gently brushed her hair with her hand, closed her eyes, and lowered her head, the distance between them growing smaller and smaller.
Tony also closed his eyes, imagining Pepper's next move.
However, "crunch, crunch" and "sizzle, sizzle" sounds echoed in their ears, forcing them to realize that there was an outsider present.
Pepper's peripheral vision caught sight of a short figure holding popcorn and drinking cola standing at the laboratory door, forcing her to halt the impending R-rated scene.
She quickly stood up, tidied her slightly disheveled collar, wiped the corner of her eye, and pretended nothing happened, inspecting various instruments in the laboratory.
Tony also had to sit up, casually picking up the shirt placed on the lounge chair and putting it on.
"Looks like I came at a bad time?"
Seeing that they had noticed him, Chen Yu walked into the laboratory, placed the popcorn on the table, and continued to drink cola through a straw, making "sizzle, sizzle" sounds.
"What do you think?"
Tony glared at Chen Yu, annoyed. He was so close, just a little bit more, but Chen Yu, this "meddler," had ruined it.
Chen Yu admitted that he wasn't being careless; he was doing it on purpose.
If he hadn't deliberately made noise while eating this time, they might have just started an XXX-rated passionate scene right there in the laboratory.
MK3 Iron Suit parts were scattered on the laboratory floor. Tony stood up from the lounge chair, stepped over the MK3 Iron Suit parts on the ground, and continued to glare down at Chen Yu.
Clearly, he was in a very bad mood right now.
"You... you two talk, I'll go check things out."
Seeing Tony glaring at Chen Yu with an annoyed expression, and recalling her momentary impulse, Pepper felt her face flush with embarrassment.
She planned to leave to calm herself down.
Pepper knew she liked Tony, but she didn't dare to openly express her feelings to him.
She was afraid that after he had her, he would treat her like the cover models of Maxim magazine, losing interest in her after getting her.
After all, Tony's playboy image was too deeply ingrained, and she couldn't be sure if his feelings for her were genuine, or if they were the same as with other women.
"Wait a moment, take this."
Chen Yu pulled out two suitcases from the Serenitea Pot and handed both to Pepper.
"One is for you, and one is for Dr. Yinsen. Be careful not to let Natasha know when you give it to Dr. Yinsen, or it will be very troublesome!"
Seeing the two black leather suitcases that Chen Yu suddenly produced, Pepper was first a little puzzled. Then, recalling that she and Yinsen had also wanted suitcases enchanted with the Undetectable Extension Charm in Chen Yu's Serenitea Pot, she immediately felt incredible: "This is the suitcase you mentioned before that can hold many things? It's actually finished?"
She took the two suitcases Chen Yu handed her, examined them carefully, and then excitedly hurried out of the laboratory.
"Hey, Chen Yu, what about mine?"
After seeing Pepper run off with the two suitcases, Tony no longer bothered to complain about Chen Yu and quickly asked Chen Yu for his own.
Chen Yu pulled out the last one and handed it to Tony.
"Originally, I came here to inform you that the suitcases you've been longing for, enchanted with the Undetectable Extension Charm, are ready, and to give these three suitcases to you. Who knew there would be so many messy things happening after I arrived?"
Tony took the suitcase Chen Yu handed him and eagerly opened it. Looking at the internal space, which was as large as a whole room, Tony was very satisfied.
With this suitcase, he could carry his Iron Suit with him, greatly improving his safety.
"Given that you came here to deliver good stuff this time, I won't complain about you interrupting my good time. Get me a beer; seeing you drink, I feel a bit thirsty too. You're right, today's events have indeed been a bit messy."
Tony picked up the MK3 Iron Suit parts from the floor, put them into the suitcase, and then closed the case. Remembering what Chen Yu had said to Pepper, he asked with some doubt: "You told Pepper to avoid Natasha when giving the suitcase to Yinsen, have you met her before? Where did you meet her? Did you feel there was something wrong with that female employee named Natasha?"
"Just now, when Pepper pulled you into the laboratory to replace your arc reactor, Natasha appeared. But how did you know she was problematic?"
"Then her timing was really quite coincidental. As for how I knew, you see, a man as excellent as me, no female employee would refuse my invitation, unless she had another purpose for joining the group..."
Watching Tony start spouting nonsense again, Chen Yu waved his hand, telling Tony to quickly tell the truth: "Don't be so narcissistic, you definitely discovered something to confirm Natasha's identity is problematic."
Tony opened the can, took a sip, and retorted: "Then tell me, what problems did you, the little detective, find with her?"
"Perfectly timed appearances, a capable and alluring appearance, and extraordinary physical fitness. She doesn't seem like an employee looking for a job; she's more like a 'super spy.'"
Chen Yu didn't directly point out Natasha's true identity, only giving Tony a slight hint.
"Whoosh~" Tony whistled, not surprised by Chen Yu's answer: "Not stupid, are you, to actually figure that out. Natasha is clearly sent by some shady organization that's 'envious' of my latest inventions, to steal secrets. This is normal; only mediocrities are not envied. I'm used to 'corporate spies.'"
"In fact, not just her, I've had jarvis secretly monitor all the new employees recruited by the company in the past few months. Currently, it's confirmed that seven of them are spies sent by other companies. Although they usually disguise themselves very well and their resumes are perfect, their chat records and phone signals don't lie."
"Only this Natasha, her phone's encryption system makes jarvis unsure of silently cracking it successfully. I'm preparing to upgrade jarvis's system to see who Natasha's organization behind her truly is."
"Then you know Natasha is problematic, yet you keep her in the company, are you perhaps fishing?"
"Of course! Otherwise, why do you think I haven't fired Natasha immediately? It's not too late to fire her after I figure out who her organization is."
Listening to Tony's explanation, it was clear he regarded Natasha as a commercial spy sent by a competing company to steal secrets, and he hadn't realized Natasha's true identity.
Chen Yu no longer exposed Natasha's identity, but instead looked at Tony suspiciously: "Are you sure it's not because she's attractive, and you're coveting her body!"
"Cough, cough, cough... What nonsense, that's just a tiny part of the reason."
Tony quickly glanced at the laboratory door, saw that Pepper was no longer in the laboratory, and let out a long sigh of relief.
"Remember to keep this a secret; don't let a third person know."