Virginia "Pepper" Potts was having a headache. She stared out the floor-to-ceiling windows of her Stark Industries office, though she wasn't seeing the sprawling skyline. All she could focus on was the relentless, angry buzzing of her phone against the glass desk. The harsh, sterile chill of the air conditioning seemed to bite at her skin, and the mountain of files labeled Jericho Project sat on her desk like a ticking time bomb ready to detonate any second. Obadiah's assistant was calling. Again.
She pinched the bridge of her nose, squeezing her eyes shut, and exhaled. The knot of tension at the base of her neck throbbed in perfect rhythm with the buzzing phone. She had spent forty-eight hours smiling through gritted teeth, making excuses to the board of directors while Tony went completely off the grid at a casino in Vegas, and her jaw physically ached from the effort she was putting in those fake smiles.
Officially, she worked as Tony Stark's assistant, but if someone were to ask her for her job description, she would say a billionaire's secretary. In reality, she was the nanny of a man-baby.
Not only was it stressful to manage the company affairs in Tony's absence, but she also had to manage him. But whatever anyone tells you, she loved her job; that is why she was currently looking over the final touches of the presentation of Jericho Missiles instead of Tony Stark.
Having taken enough stress for the day, she decided to take a small break and go out for some coffee.
She snatched her purse, desperately needing a breather, and went for the door handle. Just as she was at the door, she hesitated and took the tablet with her that had the Jericho presentation files. Although she needed some time off, this was important work and could not be delayed, what with the Jericho demonstration coming soon.
She took the private elevator down to the lobby, stepped out into the city air, and hailed a cab.
"Where to, miss?" the cabbie asked as she slid into the backseat.
"Take me to Little Co—" Just as she was about to complete her sentence, a sudden thought interrupted her; she stopped midway and thought about it. 'Wasn't there a cafe that the girl in the PR team was talking about? It's also supposedly famous for its cozy atmosphere, where was it again? Ah, yes.'
"Please take me to xxx street, Cornerstone Cafe." After giving the destination, she just leaned back in the backseat and tried to relax.
After twenty minutes, the cab pulled up outside Cornerstone Cafe.
She opened the heavy glass door, and the small bell above it chimed as she stepped inside. She looked around. The first thing to greet her was the strong aroma of roasted coffee beans as well as aged wood. She found herself a window seat and sat down.
"Excuse me, waiter," she called out, dropping the tablet onto the table with a sigh.
As the waiter approached, she took a glance at him. She couldn't help but admire how handsome and cute he looked, with his blonde hair and clear eyes filled with a child's innocence.
***
"Yes, ma'am, what would you like to order?" Adam smoothly asked as he got to her table, but internally, he was having a meltdown. 'What is she doing here? I just talked about meeting her or Tony, did I jinx myself?'
'It could only be a coincidence, right?'
'... Right?'
Adam noticed how her shoulders seemed tense, how her jaw was locked tight. Her breathing was shallow. As she rubbed her forehead, the 'strings' of her emotional state were pulled taut. As he analyzed the scene, he came up with the verdict.
'She's stressed, overworked, and covering for someone. It seems Tony ditched his work on her.' As he continued to observe her, Adam felt a small trickle of cool sensation in his mind; his potion digested a bit more.
While his mind raced and he enjoyed the cool sensation of his potion digesting, he maintained the flawless, polite exterior of an ordinary waiter.
"Yes, I would like one cappuccino with added sugar, please."
"Very well, ma'am, your drink will be here shortly."
Adam took the order and headed to the counter. "Hey Max, one cappuccino with added sugar for table number four."
"Coming right up," Max replied, turning to make the coffee. Adam went on his way to get more orders as the afternoon rush was underway.
While Adam was away, Pepper unlocked the tablet. She lowered the brightness to ease her eyes and then continued scouring the Jericho presentation for errors. Just as she was busy in her own world, the waiter came back with her order.
Adam approached the table and placed the drink in front of her. "Here is your cappuccino with added sugar." As he was about to head back, he glanced at the tablet that was in front of Pepper and, with his enhanced mind and vision, processed what she was looking at.
It was the presentation for Jericho, and almost immediately, he caught an error in the file. "Also, excuse me for prying, but you are carrying a two instead of a three in the fourth column's payload variable. It throws off the entire supply chain projection by exactly 4.2 percent."
Pepper froze, her eyes going wide with surprise, and she stopped what she was doing and looked at Adam as if she saw some kind of ghost. "What? Wait… How do you know that? This is highly advanced information."
"Well, ma'am, let's just say I have an eidetic memory and a highly active analytical mind. I saw the encrypted numbers, recognized the supply chain formula, and spotted the anomaly," Adam offered with a small smile.
"Is that so?" Pepper still had her suspicions. With narrowed eyes, she spoke, "And why are you telling me this? I could have found the problem even if it had taken me some time. You clearly need something from me to approach me with your observations."
"What is it?"