“Oh. Em. Gee.” Darcy said.
“You love it?” Brock asked.
“I love it!” Darcy nodded.
They were stood in the middle of the big cafeteria. It was Darcy’s favourite place to get lunch. They had a Starbucks.
“Where did you get it?“ She asked.
“I know a lot of important people.” He said. He didn’t want to admit that he’d camped out overnight to get his hands on it.
She beamed at him.
“I love it.” She said again.
“I knew you would. Jack said you might hate it.” Brock said.
Darcy held the cake pan protectively. “What? Why would I hate it? It’s great! I’ve wanted to make an octopus cake since I saw that one on Instagram!” She said.
“I know.” Brock said. He was smirking.
He kept a list on his phone of things Darcy mentioned she liked/wanted. Octopus Cake Pan has been right at the top — underlined.
Brock put his arm around her waist. “You gonna make me eat cake?”
“Um. Yeah.” She said. He grinned. Darcy hated how strict his diet was. “I wonder whether I have any red velvet mix in the apartment.” She said.
“I’ll get you some.” Brock offered. He was guiding her toward Starbucks. There was always a goddamned line.
She was giggling to herself as she examined the cake pan.
“It’s so pretty.” She said. “Do you want to come over tonight?”
“I wish I could, baby.” He said. He was frowning. “I have a work thing.”
“Strike assignment?” She asked.
“Yeah.” He said. “I’ll be gone three weeks, maybe.”
“Ohhh.” She said. “That’s okay. We can do something when you get back.” She said. She waved the pan in-front of his face. “It’s non-stick!” She said.
Brock was still frowning. “You don’t mind that I have to go away? It’s last minute.”
Darcy was still ogling her gift. “Why would I mind?” She asked. “I’m going to Asgard next week.” She told him.
“You are?” Brock asked. He had one eyebrow raised. “You get invited to another birthday party, baby?”
“Fandral has a lot of kids.” She said. She was smiling. Brock knew she loved all of them like they were her real nieces and nephews.
“That sounds fun.” He said, guiding her forward. “You want a cake pop?” He asked. They were in-front of the food display. “Or a sandwich?”
“Cake pop.” She said. “Wait, no. I shouldn’t.” She said. “I don’t fit into my jeans anymore.” She told him.
“Baby, do you want a cake pop?” He asked.
“Yeah.” She admitted. “Life’s batter with cake.” She said.
He laughed.
“Alright then.” He said. He held onto her a little tighter. “Birthday cake or chocolate?”
She blinked at him.
He adjusted her little red beanie that he knew she was using to keep her wild curls tamed. “You want both?” He asked. “One for now, one for later?”
“Maybe.” She said. She was biting her lip.
“I’ll buy you new jeans, baby.” He said. “You can get the ones you said you liked. The, uh,” he racked his brain. “The flowery ones.” He said.
“Those are so expensive.” She said.
He nudged her forward a little. They were almost at the front of the line now.
“I know, baby.” He said. “You still wanna go to Paris?”
“Yeah.” She said. She was smiling at him.
“Welcome to Starbucks. What can I get for you today?” Jodie asked. She worked the counter every Tuesday and Thursday.
“Venti americano, a grande mocha cookie crumble frappucino, a birthday cake cake-pop, a chocolate cake-pop, and a chickpea bites and avocado protein box.” Brock said. “For Rumlow.” He said.
Darcy bounced on her toes with excitement.
He kissed the top of her head.
“We’ll get you those jeans, baby.” He murmured. “You want some new sweaters too?“
“I don’t need any.” She said.
They stepped aside to wait.
“We can go shopping in Paris.” He said. “I like spoiling you.” He told her.
“Brock!” She said. She was blushing. “You sound like a sugar daddy.”
“I’m Italian.” He said. “We take care of our women.”
“I’m your woman?” She asked. She was grinning.
“Of course you are, baby.” He said. “Hey.” He nudged her. “You wanna meet my Ma?” He asked.
“Totally.” She said. She beamed at him. “You wanna meet my dad?”
“Yeah, baby.” He said. He kissed her forehead.
“Awesome.” She said.
“Rumlow!”
They went to the counter to get their order.
“Gonna miss you, baby.” He told her. “I’ve been thinking about stepping down. Getting Jack to take over as Commander.”
“Really?” She asked. Her eyes were wide.
“Yeah.” He said. “I don’t want you worrying about me.”
“I never worry about you.” She told him. “Should I be worrying about you?” She asked. She was starting to fret.
“No, no. I’m good at my job, baby.” He told her. She exhaled a long breath of relief. “You’re perfect for me.” He said. He kissed her forehead. “You don’t mind if I stay on as Commander?”
“Of course I don’t mind.” She said. “You can step down when we start having babies.”
“Yeah?” He asked. He smirked at her.
“Yeah.” She said. “Now gimme my cake pops.”
He handed them over to her. “You want me to carry your cake pan?”
“Yeah.” She said. She handed it to him. “Love you.” She told him.
“Love you too, baby.” He told her.
She took a happy bite of her chocolate cake-pop.
Mm, so yum.