#Sweeter Than Honey | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

foreverindreamlandd · 2 years

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Sweeter Than Honey • 3

Pairing: Mechanic!Bucky x Fem!Personal Assistant!Reader

WC: 8.2k

Summary: It all started with a failed attempt to buy your boss a new phone, and then suddenly you're in the middle of nowhere Ireland crying your eyes out in front of a handsome mechanic who would do just about anything to make you smile again...

Note: That's all, folks! Thank you so much for reading this mini series of mine. I had WAY too much fun thirsting over our favorite Irish mechanic. If I were a famous children's author with all the money in the world, I would by you all plane tickets to Ireland to find yourselves a hunky bae <3 Banner photo taken by *moi* ;)

You woke to the feeling of Bucky’s hand cupping your face, thumb stroking your cheek.

“Come on, love,” he whispered, and though your eyes hadn’t yet opened, you could hear the smile on his face as he spoke. “We got a big day ahead of us.”

God, his morning voice might actually be the thing that killed you.

He kissed your forehead and you let out a small, content sigh, eyes slowly fluttering open.

Bucky was, in fact, smiling. Eyes looking at you as if you were everything good in the world.

The sun was just beginning to rise across the vast fields before you. Bucky had originally offered to drive you back to the hotel as the late evening transitioned to early morning, but you were so happy, so lost in this magical little bubble the two of you had created together, that you said you wanted to stay in the back of the truck and watch the sunrise.

So, here you were, safely secure in the arms of the man who made your chest ache and your head spin, your leather jacket from the night before replaced by one of his flannels he kept in the truck as backup. The air was a bit chilly this early in the morning, but you barely registered it thanks to the furnace that was Bucky’s body and the blanket wrapped around you.

His smile grew as he watched you wake up, and he leaned forward to give you a slow, chaste kiss.

“Morning, love,” he murmured into your lips while pulling away.

Another happy sigh. “Morning, Buck.”

“Ready to see the sunrise?” You nodded and he kissed your nose before pulling you up to sit along with him. “Right then, we need to get moving then.”

You let out a soft whine and he chuckled, rubbing his hands up and down your arms at a quick pace and then caging your face between his calloused palms to pull you in for a deeper, hungrier kiss.

That woke you right the fuck up.

He guided you down the bed of the truck, then grabbed a few bottles of water from the cooler and you smiled as he handed one to you. Never in your life had you had someone who was so attentive to your well-being, and Bucky seemed to do it so effortlessly.

His cheeks turned pink as you continued to stare at him fondly. “What?” he asked.

You shook your head. “I’m going to be really fucking sad when I leave tomorrow,” you responded, your voice light but coated with bitterness.

Bucky frowned, then pulled you in for a tight embrace, his chin leaning on the top of your head. “Can I be honest with ye?”

Your heart skipped a beat as dread spread through your body in an instant. He was going to say that he couldn’t wait for you to leave, or that you leaving wasn’t going to affect him at all.

You braced yourself and nodded against his chest and he sighed, hand running up and down over your hair.

“I know it hasn’t been a full day since our paths crossed, and I don’t mean to startle ye,” he said, “But I’m pretty sure that the second you’re not within arms reach of me, my heart is goin’ to cleave in two. Colors will be less bright, the air will be less sweet, everythin’ will be dim because you’re not there.” He chuckled. “I must sound like a nut, don’t I?”

You squeezed him tighter before pulling away to look into his eyes, moving a hand up to trace along his jaw and cup his cheek.

“No,” you said softly. “I think you described it perfectly, Buck.”

He smiled, moving forward for another deep kiss, a light breeze pushing the tips of his hair into your face and you reveled in the feel of it, soaking up as much of the experience as you could.

After another passionate makeout session that made you breathless, Bucky took your hand and led you down the field and up a small hill that ended up providing a perfect view of the sunrise. You sat there between his legs, back leaning against his chest as he wrapped his arms around you. He kept his cheek pressed against yours, moving only to press his lips to your temple, your forehead, your jaw, every spot of your skin he could get to.

You turned to look at him once the rays began warming your body, admiring the way his skin glowed in the light. The way the orange/yellow hues mixed with the blue of his eyes made your breath hitch, and with the way they sparkled when he looked at you, you knew he felt the same.

As much as you would’ve liked it to, the moment could not last forever. You still had a job to do and Bucky had one more stop planned before dropping you off. He took you to a cafe, where you had the best coffee and soda bread of your life, the two of you sharing stories of your childhood, your friends and family back home, learning as much as you could about the other person.

Then, your time was up, and suddenly his truck was pulling up to the hotel. His hand was interlaced with yours, and he lifted it up to kiss your knuckles.

“See you tonight?” you asked with a smile.

He nodded. “I’ll be countin’ down the hours, love.”

You scrunched your face and he scrunched his back, the two of you giggling as you got out.

When you reached the door of the hotel, you turned around to find him still parked, eyes locked on you, smiling.

You pulled open the door and winked at him, and you could hear his chuckle perfectly in your mind as he shook his head, switching his focus to the road and driving away.

A small groan escaped you as you noticed Quentin standing against the wall by the door to your room, his arms crossed in front of him. The sound caused his head to shoot up, and he scoffed.

“Where the hell have you been?” he chastised, standing straight.

You rolled your eyes, digging through your bag for your key. “I was out.”

His hands waved around in the air as he let out an even more dramatic scoff. “Out where? With that mechanic Tony said you met yesterday? Are you even capable of doing your job, Y/n?”

You whipped your head at him, eyes filled with rage and momentarily startling Quentin.

“Quentin,” you said in a cool, calm voice. “Was there an emergency last night involving Tony?”

He huffed. “Well, no but-”

“Did Tony ask you where I was at any point last night or this morning because he needed me?”

“No but-”

“Then I don’t understand what the problem is.” You held up a hand, pressing one finger at a time as you listed off facts to the brat in front of you. “I got him his phone, I got him to his event last night, I got him back to the hotel, and now I’m here an hour before his press schedule begins. And had Tony called me at any point last night, I would have dropped whatever I was doing and taken care of it. Now unless you have some actual constructive criticism about my job performance, I would ask that you let me change and get ready so that I can get Tony where he needs to be, alright?”

He clenched his jaw, stepping toward you and you narrowed your eyes in defiance, showing no fear as he leaned down to meet your eye. “Listen here, you little-”

“Y/n,” Tony said, voice slow and questioning as he watched you and Quentin jump back from each other, eyes both on your boss with much lighter expressions. “Beck…everything okay with you two?”

Quentin let out a chuckle, seamlessly switching into his Tony’s in the room time to schmooze mode. “Of course, Tony, just making sure Y/n here got in okay. Looks like she had a wild night.” His hand patted on the flannel Bucky told you to keep covering your shoulder and you flinched.

Tony nodded slowly. “Right….uh, Y/n, can I talk to you for a sec?”

Knots formed in your stomach and you nodded, forcing yourself not to look over at Quentin’s smug expression as he walked away.

This was it, you were actually going to get in trouble for being out with Bucky last night.

He walked over to you and smiled. “So, I take it you had fun last night?” His eyes went down to the flannel covering your arm.

You grimaced, wrapping your arms around yourself. “I’m sorry boss, I should have come home and been here if you needed anything. This was so unprofessional-”

He shook his head. “No no no, Y/n you’re fine.” He smiled. “I’m glad you had a good time! I love that giant bastard. Pretty sure I got lost in those sweet baby blues of his a couple of times yesterday.”

You laughed. “They are quite hypnotizing.” Your eyebrows furrowed. “So, you’re not mad at me? And I’m not fired?”

His eyes narrowed, head jumping back in confusion. “Absolutely not. Why on earth would I fire you?”

Biting your bottom lip, you explained to him the reason for your panicking. “Cause of the fiasco yesterday with the phone and the car, and I’ve just spent the night galavanting off with some random guy I just met.”

Tony cocked his head to the side. “Was Quentin just giving you shit for all of that?”

You blinked, not wanting to put yourself into a deeper hole with Quentin or causing Tony any unnecessary stress.

It was enough of an answer for him though and he rolled his eyes. “Clearly he never told you about his first year on the job. Kid forgot to convert my international tour schedule to the appropriate time zones. I don’t even want to talk about the number of flights and events I missed because of that.”

Your eyes widened and you breathed out a small chuckle as Tony continued. “Y/n, you are seriously doing a fantastic job. Yes, yesterday got a little crazy, but this whole job is fucking crazy. And you handled it like a champ! As far as the Bucky thing goes, you’re an adult! And though the hours for this job get a bit nutty, I hardly expect it to be a 24/7 gig. In fact, I would hate that for you. So if you meet a cute guy in a foreign country and decide to get safely swept away by him during the time I’m not asking you to buy me a new phone that I dropped off a cliff, who am I to get in the way? I am the cool boss, after all.” He winked and you laughed again.

“Thanks Tony. For this job, this trip…everything. You’re seriously probably the best boss I’ll ever have.”

He grinned. “Damn straight.” Then, he lifted his arm to check his watch. “Alright, I should go back to my room and let you get ready.” Walking backwards, Tony made a peace sign with his fingers and went back into his room.

A small smile lingered on your face as you walked into your own, checking the time yourself.

Technically, you should start getting ready for work now so that you didn’t have to scramble to meet Tony on time.

Or….you could scramble and still make it on time….after laying in bed and pressing your face against Bucky’s flannel for five more minutes.

Yeah, that would be a good idea.

When Tony first told you about the fancy dinner you would be attending to raise money for child literacy programs, you had originally gone shopping for fancy gowns and sparkly dresses. It wasn’t everyday that you got to attend such a high society event, so why not go all out with the glam and live out your Princess Mia Thermopolis dreams?

But then, two weeks into your job you worked your first event, and you were glad that you hadn’t bought an outfit yet because you were hit with a sudden realization.

There was no way you were going to wear a dress while running around every which way for hours on end. Your thighs would never forgive you.

So, you went with pants.

A green sequin jumpsuit, to be precise (you were in Ireland, after all).

It was now the greatest thing you owned. So sparkly and chic, yet incredibly comfortable. The quarter-sleeve piece hung loosely around your body making it easy to move around without fear of anything ripping or tearing, and its tie belt wrapped around your middle to give your figure shape.

In this outfit, you felt hot as fuck even as you were lugging stacks of chairs across the large ballroom, a thin sheen of sweat forming over your brow as you hustled to put everything together.

You had thought that Quentin had set everything up last night, seeing that he used it as an excuse to skip Tony’s event. It turns out that he had set up the tables….and rolled the racks of chairs into the room.

That was it.

So when you showed up an hour before showtime to a half-empty room, you asked one of the servers setting up the bar for a free shot of scotch before getting to work, scrambling to decorate the tables and put up the seating cards and make the fundraiser that was supposed to raise millions for children’s literacy program into something that looked worth investing in.

Luckily, after a month of working for Tony, you had grown used to the chaos and you were able to shift to total work mode and get things done quickly. Within thirty minutes, the tables were dressed and decorated. You were so focused that you barely noticed the stack of chairs being lifted from your hold for a moment until you realized that you were walking towards a table with empty arms.

You stopped short, staring at your hands confused until you heard a soft chuckle behind you. And then Bucky was walking past you toward said table, chairs in hand. You took a moment to ogle at the giant irishman, dressed in a tux that fit his body extremely well. So well, in fact, you felt slightly concerned that if he turned too quickly he might tear the fabric. The thought made you instinctively run your fingers over your mouth to make sure you weren’t drooling.

“Ye gonna stand around all day while I get this place situated, love?” he asked, giving you a side smile as his eyes looked you up and down hungrily. “Not that I’m complainin’ if ye do. Ye look too gorgeous to be doin’ any work, in my opinion.”

You grinned, running forward to give him a quick kiss before grabbing another stack of chairs. “I love the flattery, Barnes, and I owe you many more kisses for coming to my rescue to help set up, but we have twenty minutes before the big wigs show, and this place needs a lot of work.”

He nodded, expression going serious. “On it, boss.” Then he smiled again. “Ye look beautiful, Y/n. Just gotta make sure ye know.”

Your smile grew. “And you look devilishly handsome, Bucky. Now let’s get this party started so it can be over that much faster and I can finally rip that bowtie off of you, undo a few buttons, and mess up that gorgeous hair of yours.”

This time, when Bucky nodded, he stayed silent as you watched his Adam’s Apple work.

By the time the first round of guests arrived, the room looked stunning, as if an entire team of workers spent hours making sure everything was perfect, instead of two now very exhausted people running around last minute in a panic. As soon as the final napkin was placed on the table, the head bartender of the evening placed filled glasses of whiskey in yours and Bucky’s hands, congratulating you both on achieving the impossible.

The two of you made eye contact as you downed the drink, laughing in complete shock that you had finished the job.

Tony and Quentin were one of the first to show up, Tony looking around the room in awe as they walked up to you.

You pulled on Bucky’s arm, silently asking him to lean down until his ear reached your lips and you whispered, “That’s the deck I was telling you about. Quentin.”

Bucky let out a low, almost silent growl in the back of his throat and his jaw clenched. When he stood straight, you saw him roll his shoulders back and puff his chest out, looking larger and more intimidating than ever before.

You knew he was trying to look frightening, but to you, he had never looked hotter as the Irishman went into full protective mode.

“I gotta say Quentin, you really outdid himself with this one…I swear it’s never looked this good before,” Tony said as they approached, patting his employee on the back.

Bucky furrowed his brow, opening his mouth to argue but you elbowed him in the gut and smiled, nodding at your boss.

“Just doing my job boss. You know I’ve always got your back!” Quentin narrowed his eyes as he looked Bucky up and down, sizing your date up (even though your date towered over him easily). “So,” Beck said, “You must be Bucky…”

Bucky nodded, one hand reaching around to rest on your waist as the other extended out to shake Quentin’s. “And you’re Y/n’s colleague. Heard a lot about ye.”

Quentin cocked his head to the side and shook his hand, fighting back a groan as you watched his fingers get crushed within Bucky’s tight grip. All he could do was bob his head in response, desperate for his hand to be free. When Bucky finally let go, Beck’s fingers flexed a few times to allow the blood flow to move once more.

“Anyways,” Quentin said, forcing a smile, “I should start chatting with some of the investors. You should do the same, Tony. You know they love ya.” He patted your boss on the back and Tony rolled his eyes.

“I know how to talk to people, Beck. You do your thing and I’ll do mine.”

You and Bucky exchanged glances as soon as the two of them left, then burst out into a fit of giggles.

“Bucky, you’ve done a lot of stupidly hot things over the past 24 hours. But the look on Quentin’s face as you crushed his hand? That takes the cake, babe.”

His eyes lit up and he winked. “Listen, that deck has to know that as long as you’re my girl, he better be on his best behavior. Even if ye weren’t my girl, he should respect ye as the fierce, hard working woman ye are.”

You bit your bottom lip, fighting back the urge to kiss him senseless in a room full of people that weren’t his closest friends like at the Golden Elixir. “Well, Buck, ready to meet Dublin’s elite?”

He stayed by your side the majority of the night, chatting with various investors with so much charm and wit that you had to force yourself to stop staring at him and make eye contact with the other people you were chatting with.

It worked out for Bucky as well, because everyone you spoke with took a liking to him immediately, and as soon as he mentioned that he worked at Wilson’s, most of them remarked that they would be willing to check the shop out, complaining about the shit work “high end” mechanics did around these parts. Bucky was overjoyed at the idea of potential new business, and you beamed when he offered free tune-ups to anyone who contributed more than five thousand dollars for the fundraiser.

“Bucky,” you whispered, hand wrapping around his forearm.

He shook his head, smiling. “It’s alright, love. It’s for a good cause. Plus, we’re good at what we do, so if we can lure them in with free work, we’ll most likely get guaranteed business forever. It’s all about the investment, right?” He winked again, and you couldn’t stop yourself as you stood on your tiptoes and kissed the now blushing man on the cheek.

“Oi! Barnes!” a deep, rumbling voice echoed through the room and you saw a blond head bobbing through the crowd. “Is that you, mate?”

Yesterday, you had first thought that Bucky was the tallest man you had ever seen in your life.

Then, you met Steve, who managed to stand over Buck ever so slightly.

But now, as the blond man stood before you, you were certain that he was an actual giant, a literal skyscraper next to anyone who ever crossed his path.

Bucky smiled from ear to ear, moving forward to pull the large man in for a hug. “Thor! It’s so good to see ye, brother! How are ye?”

Thor grinned back, shaking Bucky’s hand when they pulled away. “Absolutely grand! Even more so now that I know someone fun is at one of these things.”

Bucky turned to you. “This is Thor Odinson, part of Asgard Electric. His family’s company lights up almost all of Ireland. We went to primary school together. Thor, this is Y/n, she’s Tony’s assistant.”

You extended your hand to shake Thor’s, only to let out a small yelp as he wrapped his arms around you, lifting you in the air as he hugged you with a hearty chuckle.

“Y/n! Lovely to meet ye!” He lowered you to the ground and you stumbled back to Bucky’s side. “Ye sure have a lovely woman on your arm tonight, Barnes.”

Bucky shook his head, smiling as his arm made its way back around you. “Aye, she is lovely, but I feel as if I am her arm candy for the evening. She’s quite an impressive woman. Practically put this whole thing together.”

Thor’s brows raised and he nodded. “Well, you’re lucky to have such an impressive lady.”

Bucky nodded back, squeezing you against him. “That I am.” He looked at you with a fond smile before turning back to Thor. “So, are ye here alone or is the rest of the clan here? I’ve been meaning to talk to yer mother to see how her car’s been holding up since we changed the battery last month-”

His words were cut off as the two of you were jostled by a figure bumping against your arm. Quentin.

He let out an incoherent apology as he worked to stand up straight, alcohol sloshing around in his glass and he gave you a mischievous grin.

“Well, Y/n,” he slurred, completely ignoring Bucky and Thor as his arm waved around to gesture at the crowd. “Welcome to your first party filled with the dumb, snobby rich folk. Now I know you came here with your own date or whatever,” Bucky pulled you closer to him and out of Quentin’s reach, “But you should really consider hitting up some of the old crones who are looking for a fun time. I’ve managed to add a few extra thousand dollars to a donation thanks to my generous attention to some of the guests who are looking for a little something extra.” You looked over to Thor and Bucky who were both frowning, clearly uncomfortable with what your trashed coworker was saying.

Quentin, completely oblivious to their being upset by the conversation, kept going, and he whispered loudly in your ear, “I think I’m gonna go for the wife of the electric company guy. That hag Freyja looks like she hasn’t had a good time in decades-”

Thor roared, grabbing Quentin by his jacket and lifting him up in the air, face red with rage. “What did you just say about my mother?”

Quentin whimpered. “I’m sorry, I didn’t- I wasn’t-”

“What is going on here?” Tony emerged next to you, brows knit together in anger.

Bucky jumped to action, moving to Thor’s side and whispering something in his ear. Thor grumbled back, but then lowered Beck to the ground, his hands still clenching his suit. He looked the terrified man in the eyes as he responded to Tony. “This little maggot just disrespected my mother, Stark, and I’m half inclined to rip his mouth from his face so that he never gets to speak ill of her ever again.”

Another whimper from Quentin. “Tony,” he pleaded, “Ya gotta, ya gotta believe me man I was just joking around of course I would never-”

“Are you drunk, Beck?” Tony asked, crossing his arms.

“N-no,” Quentin stammered, hands out in an I’m innocent manner. “I mean, I’ve had s-some drinks here and there-”

Thor let go of Beck and stood back as Tony stormed over to him, silencing his employee and you heard him murmur. “I want you out of here, Beck. Don’t pretend like you’ve been acting like a real piece of shit these past few months. I thought the new role would give you more responsibility to finally get your head out of your ass, but looks like I was wrong.” He gave Quentin a long, cold stare before saying, “Pack your bags, you’re fired.”

Quentin stared at Tony, horrified for a few seconds before he regained composure, standing straight and buttoning his suit jacket. “Fine,” he said, feigning nonchalance. “I’ll go, and see how long you last without me.” His glassy eyes bore into yours and you glared at him. “Good luck with this incompetent loser managing everything on her own-”

He yelped as Bucky’s hand grabbed him by the back of his hair, the seething Irishman now dragging him by the scruff toward the exit. Nobody had noticed the scene playing out before, but now all heads were turned to the two of them as they cleared a path to the exit.

Bucky was back by your side in less than a minute, his hand interlacing with yours and squeezing it as he leaned down to whisper in your ear. “You okay, love?”

You nodded, squeezing back. “Thank you…for being here and taking care of that.”

His jaw worked. “Believe me, I’ve been wantin’ to do that ever since I realized he was the root cause of ye cryin’ yesterday. It was a pleasure to toss him around a bit.”

At that, you let out a small giggle, and Bucky finally smiled for the first time since the whole ordeal.

Afterwards, you went into damage control mode, starting with politely asking the servers to hand out a new round of drinks to everyone and escorting them to their seats so that speeches could start to hopefully prevent gossip from spreading too far. Then, you, Tony, and Bucky went to issue a formal apology to the Odinson family (Bucky, of course, had nothing to actually apologize for, but he still offered to do a full detail of each of their cars for free). Per your suggestion, Tony offered to donate five signed full sets of his books for the libraries at the schools of their choosing.

Thor gave both you and Bucky a big hug for dealing with Beck. “Barnes, the way ye dragged him out with his tail in between his legs was just grand! Wish it could have been me doin’ it, but I probably would have done way worse and for everyone’s sake, I’m glad I didn’t.”

Bucky nodded, shaking his hand and you smiled up at the man at your side, grateful to have him here to keep you grounded after feeling you were going to pass out from the panic racing through your veins.

You were definitely still in shock, not totally believing that Quentin had just been fired.

Thank fucking God.

The rest of the night was a roaring success. Tony went up to the stage shortly after the chaos died down, being his usual charming self and completely winning the crowd over. Bucky kept his hand in yours for the rest of the night, never wanting to leave your side.

There was one moment that the two of you had to temporarily part ways at the end of the night – much to both your disappointment – when you had to square away payment for the bartenders and caterers.

When you returned, you noticed that Bucky was standing in a circle with Tony and a few of the investors that were heading out, smiling and laughing as Bucky shook one of their hands. He turned to you as you approached and his smile widened, excusing himself to head your way.

“Making friends, Barnes?” you asked, tilting your head to the side questioningly.

He wiggled his eyebrows up and down. “What can I say, love? Everyone wants a chance to talk to the handsome mechanic who can get them a deal on good-quality service.” He leaned closer and whispered, “Becca and Sam are gonna shite themselves when they start getting calls from some of these folks.”

You laughed, rolling your eyes. “Alright, Mr. Hotshot Mechanic, how about the two of us get out of here?”

His eyes lit up in excitement and he extended his arm out, the other finding its way back around your waist right where it belonged. “Lead the way, love.”

You both bid your goodnights to Tony and then Bucky went to grab the truck, leaving you and your boss outside the venue by yourselves.

“I’m so sorry you had to deal with all this shit, Y/n,” Tony mumbled, face apologetic. “I should have fired him long ago. I guess I never realized how much he sucked until I actually hired a good assistant.”

You gave him a small smile, nodding. “No worries, Tony. I’m just sorry he wasn’t who you thought he was.”

He shrugged. “Well, I’ll be much more mindful of that when I look for a new Brand Manager. Until then, your workload might get a little nutty. That okay?”

You laughed. “If it was anything other than nutty I’d honestly be a bit concerned.”

Tony laughed with you, resting a hand on your shoulder. “Ain’t that the truth.” Headlights hit his face and you turned to see Bucky’s truck pull up. “So….are you two like, officially a thing now?”

You turned back to Tony, smile turning bittersweet. “Who knows. Kind of complicated, you know, living thousands of miles apart and all.”

“You never know. Sometimes things change.” He paused for a moment, then grinned. “Speaking of change, I got asked to go to breakfast with one of the investors from tonight right before our flight home. It’s right by the airport and it would honestly be a waste of time for me to go there and then pick you back up at the hotel.” His eyes flickered to the truck then back to you. “Do you think you might be able to find a ride to the airport and just meet me there?”

You fought back a gasp, eyes widening. Not having any morning obligations with Tony, nor driving with him from the hotel to the airport meant so much more time with Bucky. It wasn’t much, but any amount you could get with him was now a precious gift. You nodded, seeing the knowing look in his eyes and feeling like you’d never be able to adequately express your gratitude.

He nodded back, patting your shoulder before stepping away. “Right then, go have a good night and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

You grinned. “Have a good night, boss!”

His fingers moved up in a waving motion as he walked toward the valet pickup area, and you wasted no time turning and running to Bucky’s car.

The first stop was to the hotel so that you could both change into sweats and pack up your things. You nearly squealed with delight when Bucky let you remove his bowtie in between kisses, and then nearly dropped all of your toiletries when he removed his shirt, finally getting a peak at the hardened muscle all those terrible layers of clothing had been hiding all this time. Bucky let out a soft chuckle when you pouted as he threw on his red henley before he began to help you pack.

Helping turned out to be more like a series of constant derailments caused by him wrapping his arms around you from behind and kissing your neck every five minutes.

Once that was done, you checked out of your hotel and Bucky put your belongings in the truck, and then it was time to drive to your new favorite spot: a field in the middle of nowhere Ireland where the stars shone brighter than the streetlights in New York.

In the arms of the man you had fallen for before you even had a chance to stop yourself.

There were many moments when you wanted to crumble and burst into tears, as his hand cradled your face, or when his lips brushed against yours so tenderly. But you knew that as soon as you started you wouldn’t be able to stop, and you didn’t want anything to ruin this perfect moment.

Still, there were a few tears that managed to slide down your face, but Bucky kissed them away before they could leave streak marks on your skin.

You held onto each other, through the stories you shared, the silence that lingered as you stared into each other's eyes, the desperate kisses that made you wish you could stay in this moment forever.

Forever wasn’t an option, but the emotions you had felt the last two days would at least last you a lifetime.

You tried to stay awake all night, arguing that you could just sleep on the flight home. But the work from the last few days left you completely exhausted, and your lids grew heavy as Bucky’s hand moved along your arm in a hypnotic motion.

What really did you in was the moment he started humming an unfamiliar ballad, his perfect, soothing voice coaxing you to sleep.

When your eyes opened back up, the stars were gone, replaced by a purple sky.

You turned your gaze to the side to find Bucky awake, staring at you, a small, sad smile on his face.

“Morning, love.”

Things moved by in more of a haze the rest of the morning. You watched the sunrise, but your focus was more on the feel of your cheek against Bucky’s shoulder. The green fields passed you in a blur as you passed them on your way to the airport, your attention solely on the profile of Bucky’s face as he stared out at the road ahead, the way his fingers wrapped around the steering wheel of the truck, the way his hair blew in various directions from the wind.

Everything you could memorize about him, to paint the clearest picture in your head so that no matter where he was in the world, you could find him in your daydreams.

When the airport finally came into view, you felt knots form in your stomach, bile rising in your throat, dread puncturing your heart. Bucky noticed your distress and took your hand, giving you a comforting smile as he parked the truck.

You both sat there for a moment in silence, looking out at the crowds of people moving about outside, unable to make eye contact.

“We never spoke about it,” you finally whispered, taking a deep breath and turning to look at him. “About the after. After I leave…and what happens then.”

“Well,” Bucky started, clearing his throat, “I’m probably going to go to the pub and drown in my sorrows for the day after I make sure you’re settled and kiss ye senseless. And then, I’m gonna sit by my phone and wait for ye to call me when ye land and tell ye how much I miss ye.”

You smiled, tears welling in your eyes. “I know you said that you don’t have plans to visit New York anytime soon, but if you ever find yourself with a free week or something and feel like taking a trip across the pond…I would really like that.”

He bit his bottom lip, grinning. “That sounds grand.”

“And I definitely have to go back to the Golden Elixir to hang out with the hot redhead,” you said with a wink.

Bucky groaned, a low chuckle rumbling in his chest as he shook his head and you laughed along with him.

Your phone buzzed and you looked down at it, smile dropping from your face. “That’s Tony. He just got here. Guess I should go meet him.”

Bucky nodded somberly, then reached out to grab the back of your neck to pull you in for a sweet, tender kiss.

The two of you moved slowly as you grabbed your bags and made your way to the airport entrance, Bucky’s hand around your waist, thumb stroking your side.

Once you got to the double doors, you stopped and Bucky followed suit. You could see Tony through the glass windows scrolling through his phone, the one that you had been so desperate to get for him only two days ago.

The memory of Bucky’s small smile as he handed you the small rectangular box, as if he was truly so excited to do something that would make you happy. To fix whatever was going wrong in your life.

Oh how you wished he could fix this moment for you.

You turned to him, tears starting to fall. “I-”

“I have somethin’ for ye,” Bucky said nervously, lowering your bag to the ground and reaching into one of his pockets.

You breathed out a laugh. “If it’s another phone Bucky I might slap you.”

He shook his head. “No, it’s not that, love. Although if you want one let me know and I’ll give Sarah a call.” You lightly shoved his left shoulder and he grinned. “It’s nothin’, really, and if ye hate it you’re more than welcome to toss it in the bin as soon as I turn my back. I erm,” he shifted on his feet, “That day we met, I was finishin’ up a job near ye, and as I was walkin’ back to my truck Becca called asking me to head over to BHOD to help a panicked American lass out.” He smiled fondly at the memory, then pulled something out of his pocket, holding it out to you.

It was an Irish penny, a circular piece of metal punched through it and attached to a black leather cord.

“As I was talkin’ to Becs, I saw this coin right by the front tire of my truck. I don’t know what the custom is in the states, but it’s good luck to find a penny on the ground, so I took it. I never realized how much luck I was going to get from the blasted thing, but it led me to ye, and now I feel like the luckiest bastard on the planet for getting to spend these last few days with ye. They’ve been the best days of my life, and no matter what happens when ye walk through those doors, I’ll cherish the memories forever. I just want ye to remember that.”

You took the necklace, brushing your fingers over the coin, more tears falling down your face. You looked back up at him with a smile.

“I love it.” I love you, you thought, but couldn’t find the courage to say it. You figured he knew, though, and you figured he might feel the same.

“Grand,” he said, beaming. Then he moved behind you to tie it around your neck, leaning down to brush his lips right above where the leather rested along your skin.

When he was back in front of you, his hands caged your face between them, and he wiped away your tears with his thumbs.

“This isn’t the end, love, okay? I reckon we’re too good together for that to be the case, aye?”

You nodded. “And miss a chance to see this pretty face again? Never.”

He scrunched his nose with a smile, then pulled you in until your mouths found their way home.

No matter how long it might be before you crossed paths again, you knew you’d never forget the mesmerizing taste of Bucky Barnes’s lips.

They were sweeter than honey.

He pulled away to envelope you in his arms, embracing you to the point of almost crushing your body, and you still felt like it wasn’t tight enough.

“Until the next time, love,” he murmured into your ear. “I’ll be counting down the seconds.”

You nodded, moving back until you locked your eyes on the beautiful cerulean ones before you.

“Remember what you said to me that first night? About your lips being mine as long as I’ll have them?”

He smiled, eyes glistening. “I do.”

“Remember what I said after?”

A tear fell down his cheek. “That ye’d have them forever.”

You kissed him again, then whispered into his lips, “I’m holding you to that, Barnes.”

His smile widened. “Sounds like a plan, love.”

You smiled back, rubbing your nose against his and running your fingers through those soft, gorgeous chestnut locks.

Then, you grabbed your bags, took a long, deep breath, and moved to the double doors.

As soon as you got inside the airport, you looked over your shoulder.

Bucky was still there, smiling at you with tears in his eyes.

With one small wave, you turned and kept walking, heart cleaving in two.

FOUR MONTHS LATER

“Listen Y/n, are you sure you can’t come with us to D.C.? We’re meeting the President and everything!”

You chuckled, looking both ways before crossing the street. “I know, I know, but it’s my best friend’s wedding this weekend. I know the President is a big deal, but he wasn’t there with a sewing kit when I had a wardrobe malfunction at junior prom.”

Tony sighed. “That asshole,” he joked and you both laughed. “Well, I hope you have fun this weekend. Maria and I will sing all the karaoke without you.”

You nodded, even though he couldn’t see the movement through the phone. Maria Hill was Tony’s new Brand Manager. At first, she terrified you, her seemingly tough and serious demeanor incredibly intimidating. But then Tony took the two of you out to a karaoke bar after the first event she worked, and you realized that she was actually just the coolest, funniest person ever. She even helped with setup and breakdown, and complimented you when you did your job well. Basically, she was awesome, and you did feel a tinge of disappointment that you were missing a chance to hang out with them this weekend even though you saw them almost everyday. “If y’all sing any Spice Girls I will be devastated, you hear?”

He gasped, acting as if you had just accused him of murder. “I would never.”

“That’s what I thought, Stark.” You checked the time on your watch. “Has your car picked you up yet? They should be there within the next five minutes.”

“Not yet,” he said. “I’m bringing my bags down right now though so I’ll be ready when they do.”

“Do you have everything? Wallet, laptop, boarding pass, Invisalign-”

“Y/n, you have to let the Invisalign thing go. I forgot it one time-”

“And then I had to overnight it to Texas for you, where it got held up at some warehouse and took twice as long to redirect it back home. I’m sorry boss, but until those pearly whites are straight and no longer need a fancy retainer, it is permanently on the checklist.”

He sighed. “You know, sometimes it’s annoying how good you are at this job.”

“Just trying to make it impossible for you to fire me.”

“Well, you already nailed that one. If you ever threaten to leave me I might actually get on my hands and knees and beg you not to. Or I’ll make Morgan give you her best pouty face.”

“That’s not fair. You know I can’t resist a Morgan pout.”

“Neither can I.” He paused, then continued. “So…the wedding. Got a date or anything?”

“Nah, I usually go stag to these things. Besides, the only person I’d want to go with is thousands of miles away.” Though your tone was joking, you felt the familiar ache return in your chest, and your free hand moved to grab the penny resting on your chest.

You and Bucky had talked non stop since you left Ireland, either texting almost 24/7, late night phone calls, FaceTiming, or sharing funny TikToks with each other. You had wished that the two of you could have reconnected in person by now, but with your chaotic schedule and him focusing on applying to schools, there didn’t seem to be enough time for it to work out. Nor did it seem like it would anytime soon…

“Gotcha,” Tony replied, “Probably for the best, anyways. I bet you’re going to be too busy making sure the bride doesn’t have her own wardrobe malfunction.”

You giggled. “Exactly.”

“Oh, car’s here. What are you up to right now?” Tony asked.

“Almost home. Why? Do you need something?”

“Well, I did have something delivered to your place that should be there by now. Just want to make sure you get it.”

You furrowed your brows in confusion, rounding the corner to your building. “What is it-”

You stopped short, mouth agape as you stared wide-eyed at the door of your apartment.

At the ocean blue irises that were now locked onto yours, the sheepish smile just below them.

“Bucky?” you breathed out.

“Oh, good,” Tony said, and you could hear the smile on his face. “Delivery got there. I’ll leave you to it then. Have a great time, Y/n.” He hung up, but you couldn’t move the phone away from your ear. You couldn’t move at all.

Bucky walked slowly down the stairs and toward you, hands buried in his pockets.

You finally lowered the phone to your side. Your heart was pounding, head dizzy.

He stopped when he was a few feet away from you, and you noticed a pink hue form along his neck and up to his cheeks.

“Hello, love,” he said softly.

“W-what…what are you doing here?”

His shoulders moved up and down as he released a deep breath. “Well, I kind of live here now.”

Your face scrunched in confusion. “Wait, like in New York?”

He nodded. “Classes start in a week, so I just moved into my new flat.”

Your brain felt like it was moving 100mph and yet the idea of forming a coherent sentence seemed impossible. “You- classes? You do school here?”

He grinned at your words. “Columbia. Studying engineering. Also managed to snag a job as the personal mechanic for some rich author or whatever.”

Bucky was here. He was in New York. And he was staying? “I..”

“Listen, love. I know this was sprung on ye and I’m sorry I didn’t tell ye sooner. I had actually been wantin’ to apply before we even met, but I didn’t want to say that in case it made you feel any kind of pressure between us. And I honestly didn’t think I’d be able to get in because this school is so damn nice and I didn’t want to get yer hopes up. But Tony introduced me to some people in Dublin who knew members of the admissions team and..well, here I am.”

You tried to speak again, but there were too many words trying to push themselves up and it caused what could only be described as a traffic jam in your throat.

The silence made Bucky uncomfortable, so he continued. “We can talk about what this means. Obviously this is a very different scenario than what ye first imagined all those months ago. If ye wish our paths didn’t cross while I’m here, that’s…” he took another deep breath, “That’s fine. But I’d love to take ye out on a proper date if you’re interested. Many dates, if possible. Of course, I don’t know any of the places around here to eat so ye’d have to tell me what place ye like to-”

Without warning, you had finally regained control of your motor functions, and you jumped to close the distance between you, lips crashing into his.

He let out a gruff moan, arms wrapping around your waist and pulling your feet off the ground as he held you tightly to him.

And just like that, it felt like you were back in Ireland, surrounded by fields of green as the light of the sunrise kissed your face.

His lips were just as you remembered. Soft, tender, hungry.

Sweeter than honey, and all yours.

Forever, just as you wanted.

The End 🍀

No pressure at all, but if you'd like to support me for my writing, please consider buying me a Kofi!

#bucky x reader #bucky x you #bucky x y/n #sweeter than honey #sth #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes fanfic #james bucky barnes #bucky barnes imagine

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foreverindreamlandd · 2 years

Text

Sweeter Than Honey • 2

Pairing: Mechanic!Bucky x Fem!Personal Assistant!Reader

WC: 5.4k

Note: No warnings for this one except I'm pretty sure I've lost my damn mind LOL

Series Masterlist

Once the event had ended, Sarah brought her two sons over to meet Tony, and the light in their eyes as they met their favorite author caused you to completely melt.

Seeing the look on Bucky’s face witnessing their joy was the only thing that could top it.

As the group was still mingling, you handed the new phone over to Tony, and his mouth hung open for a second before he gave you an impressed look.

“I’ll be damned, Y/n,” he said, opening up the box and taking out the phone, “You managed to do the impossible.” He checked his watch and smiled. “I bet if I set this up as soon as we get back to the hotel I can call Pepper and Morgan in the next hour or so.” He looked up at you again. “Thank you. You really outdid yourself with this.”

You beamed. “Thanks, boss, but I gotta say, Bucky was the one to really pull through with this.” You looked over to the tall Irishman at your side and your smile grew. “I wouldn’t have been able to survive this day without him.”

Bucky gave you a side smile and a quick wink, the two of you completely forgetting that you were surrounded by others for a few seconds.

But then you looked back at Tony whose eyes were now narrow, gaze flickering between the two of you and you felt heat rise to your face. Looking over at Bucky, you saw that he was blushing.

“Right…” Tony said, nodding his head slowly. “Well Bucky,” he held out his hand and Bucky shook it, “Thank you for all of your help today. You and Y/n sure make a great team.” He paused for a second, then said, “You know, we’re hosting a big fundraiser dinner tomorrow night. Great food, expensive drinks, stupidly rich people to mildly poke fun at. I’d love for you to attend as one of my guests as a thank you for getting us through today.”

Bucky’s eyebrows shot up and he cleared his throat, looking over at you for approval.

You bit your lip, giving him a sure, why not look. Of course, you would love to have him go for a multitude of reasons. The only other person you would know at this event besides Tony was Quentin, and there was no way you were going to get stuck with his grumpy ass for the night.

It was more than that, though. You really wanted any excuse to spend more time with Bucky before you had to go back home. And the idea of seeing him in a suit? Yes..yes, he could come.

So with that, Bucky looked back to Tony and shrugged. “I mean, if it’s no trouble….and for a good cause-”

“Great!” Tony said, clapping his hands together. “It’s settled. I’m sure Y/n can fill you in on the details and arrange a seat next to her at our table. Sound good?”

You bobbed your head up and down. “Great.”

Just like that, you had two upcoming dates with Bucky in the books.

Now, it was time to get the first one in motion. You and Tony drove back to the hotel in the newly-repaired rental. Bucky said he would pick you up in an hour or so to give both of you time to freshen up.

You ran to the shower as soon as you got to your room, washing off the sweat from running around Dublin and beyond all day.

Bucky said that the pub was a casual spot filled with regulars, so you figured you didn’t need to dress to the nines like you would for tomorrow evening. Instead, you went with jeans, an army-green crop top tee and black leather jacket. The shirt left a bit of your midsection exposed, something that you hardly ever felt comfortable allowing.

But hell, you were in Europe going on a date with a man you’d probably never see again, so if he for some reason was repulsed by your stomach, it wouldn't really matter in the end. Why not further put yourself out of your comfort zone and have a little bit of fun?

Plus, in the short time you knew Bucky, you had a strong feeling that this was the farthest thing from an issue.

Said dashing Irishman was waiting at the entrance of the hotel as soon as you stepped out onto the cobblestone sidewalk, leaning against the door of his truck with both of his hands in his pockets, smiling at you sheepishly. His smile grew tenfold as he looked you up and down, taking in your outfit and you felt heat coursing through your body from his gaze.

You also felt a sense of jealousy that he had something to lean on as you took in his appearance. No longer in the henley, Bucky had thrown on a pair of dark blue jeans and a black knit sweater that clung to his body in all the right places. His baseball hat was gone, allowing his wavy chestnut locks freedom to flow around his smiling face, and all you wanted to do was rake your fingers through them.

After standing there a few moments too long, both ogling one another, Bucky stood straight and walked toward you. You figured he was just going to just escort you to his car, which is why you let out a surprised gasp when he enveloped you into his arms and hugged you.

His sweater was so soft, so warm, and he smelled faintly of sandalwood. It worked out with your height difference that your cheek rested perfectly against his chest, and his chin landed right on the crown of your head.

He held onto you, not too tightly to make you feel like you were suffocating, but with enough strength to bring a sense of safety, as if nothing could touch you while you were in his arms.

When he pulled back, you gave him a wide-eyed grin.

“Three hugs in one night, Buck? People are gonna start talking…” you joked, feigning nonchalance as if your heart weren’t beating out of your chest.

He shrugged, running his fingers through his hair. “Look, love, ye started it with the first one earlier. And I gotta admit, it was so grand, I don’t know if I can ever get enough.”

You bit your bottom lip, rolling your eyes at the level of charm. “Oh really now?”

He chuckled. “Yes. Really.” His arm reached out and you grabbed his hand as he led you to the passenger side, opening the door and closing it once you were settled.

The Golden Elixir Tavern basically fit every bar sitcom stereotype you had ever seen on television. The tiny establishment was completely packed, and yet it seemed like everyone there was each other’s best friend.

As soon as you and Bucky walked in, everyone turned and erupted into cheers, beer glasses sloshing around in the air.

They - for obvious reasons - spotted the massive man that had walked in first, but when they saw your shorter form following behind, hand in his, the place went eerily quiet, and suddenly there was a sea of confused, inquisitive faces before you.

You could have sworn you heard a cricket chirp somewhere in the building.

Bucky turned his head to you with an apologetic expression and huffed before turning back to the crowd and shouting, “Aye! Fuck off ye nosy lot!”

And just like that, the silence ended as everyone else yelled profanities back at him, and returned their attention back to one another.

He squeezed your hand and gave you a wink. “Come on, let’s get ye a drink.”

The two women running the bar had to be the most gorgeous people you had ever laid eyes on (aside from Bucky, obviously). They both had their own uniquely fierce, fiery red hair that glistened under the soft glow of the bar, and though they were smaller than most, you could tell by the way they carried themselves that they were not to be messed with.

One of them walked up to the end of the wooden bar as the two of you approached, looking at you up and down and then giving Bucky a narrow-eyed smile.

“Barnes,” she said, her voice smooth as butter, causing your immediate girl crush to increase tenfold. Her accent was American, you noted.

Bucky nodded. “Romanoff.” He looked down at you and smiled. “What’ll ye have?”

You pursed your lips, contemplating. “Whiskey?”

His brows shot up, but then he let out a small laugh before turning back to the redhead. “Ye heard the lady. Two.”

Romanoff grinned, moving her gaze to you with an impressed look. “Coming right up.”

Your eyes swept the pub as she poured the amber liquid. The walls were lined with high top tables and massive wooden barrels to sit on, with various random art pieces, signets, and photos covering every square inch above. In one corner, a small stage was set up with a few mic stands, piano, and an acoustic guitar.

“Do they have live performances?” you asked Bucky.

He shrugged, clearing his throat. “Every once in a while. Ye like music?”

“I mean, I’m not a stellar performer, but I was a music and theatre geek in high school. That’s one thing I love about New York. They have live music practically everywhere. It’s great when it’s intimate like this.”

Bucky was about to speak when the redhead returned. “You’re from New York?” You nodded and she looked to Bucky. “Barnes, that’s-”

“Thank you, Natasha,” Bucky interrupted, grabbing the glasses and handing one to you. Before you would wonder what had just happened, he was giving you another dazzling, boyish smile, tilting his whiskey toward yours. “Cheers, love.”

You gently tapped your glass to his. “Cheers, Buck.”

With a wink, he knocked his glass back in one gulp, no trace of a wince on his beautiful face as he swallowed it down.

Alright, tough guy, you thought. Two can play this game.

You sent a silent thanks to your grandma in the U.S. for introducing you to scotch and whiskey the moment you turned 21, then mimicked Bucky’s movement as you downed the glass in one go.

When you brought your eyes from the ceiling back to his ocean irises, his mouth hung open in shock.

You winked back.

“I like her,” you both turned your head to Natasha, who was giving you a side smile as she wiped off a glass. Then she extended a hand to you for a formal introduction. “I’m Nat.”

You shook it. “Y/n. Sorry if this is, like, super rude to ask, but are you American?”

Her grin widened and she cocked her head to the side, eyes flickering up to the ceiling for a second before returning to you. “Technically I’m Russian. My family and I moved around a lot, and I spent a lot of time in D.C.” Suddenly, she switched to an Irish brogue out of nowhere as she said, “I can basically speak in any accent. I guess it would be easier to talk like this while I live here, especially with the hair and everything making it so easy to fit in.” She switched to American again. “But I just love keeping people on their toes.”

You shook your head in awe. “I think I’m in love with you.”

She blew you a kiss before sliding over two newly filled glasses in front of you. When had she even refilled those? “Most people are.”

“Alright, alright,” Bucky groaned out, hooking an arm around your waist to guide you to the other end of the bar. “Let’s go meet the much less flirtatious Wanda.”

Nat smirked as you were whisked off. “Let me know if you need anything,” she joked, shaking her head in amusement as Bucky’s feigned annoyance.

Wanda was the other redhead behind the bar, who was surprisingly also Eastern European, her accent more pronounced than Nat’s. One smile from her made you feel like she was the type of person who was really good at hugging and listening to others. Like you could unload all of your problems on her and she would happily take them with open arms.

The next person you met was Steve, the one you recalled Bucky speaking on the phone to earlier that day when you were dealing with the flat tire - had that really only been today? Feels like it was weeks ago, you thought.

Up until now, you were positive that there was no one on this earth larger than Bucky Barnes. Steve Rogers was the exception, and you took a step back as the giant blond man barreled into the bar, wrapping Bucky’s neck into a headlock that seemed to be an affectionate greeting between the two.

“Alright, ye blimey bastard,” Steve said, blue eyes glistening, “I was promised all the pints in the world, so let’s get goin’.” His eyes shot over to you and then he grinned. “And who’s this?”

Bucky groaned, removing himself from Steve’s hold and moving to your side. “Steve, this is Y/n. Y/n, Steve.”

Steve’s eyes bounced between the two of you, grin widening. Then, he extended out his hand, which you took thinking he was just going to shake it. But then, he was leaning down, bringing your hand up until his lips softly pressed against your skin.

“Pleasure to meet you, Y/n,” he said smoothly, and you weren’t sure if you wanted to laugh or roll your eyes.

“Jesus, Steve,” Bucky muttered, taking your hand out of his best friend’s hold and bringing it to his side. He didn’t let go, just interlaced his fingers with yours. “Can ye not be an arse for like, five seconds?”

“Perhaps if I had a pint in my hand, I could consider it,” Steve said, and you giggled.

Bucky just shook his head, looking over at Wanda. “Wan, can ye please help me out?”

“On it,” she responded with a smile, giving you a knowing look as she grabbed a glass and worked on getting Steve a drink.

More people followed in after that, all of them dying to meet the person Bucky refused to stay more than a few inches away from.

During that time, they opened the stage to performers, and various members took their turns singing, reciting poetry, playing piano, guitar, everything. Some songs were jovial tunes, others more somber, all of it was beautiful, and there were moments that you found yourself lost in the performance. Then you’d come to and see Bucky smiling at your dreamlike expression.

Eventually, two of them were introduced to you as Sam and Becca. Becca, as in Bucky’s sister.

You lept forward and pulled the short woman with unruly brown curls in for a tight hug and she let out a small laugh.

“Well hello to ye too, darlin’,” she said, returning the hug.

You pulled away, hands on her shoulders and staring into the blue eyes that almost matched her brother’s to a T. “You saved my ass today,” you said. “Both you and Bucky. Thank you.”

She smiled. “Of course. I’m glad things went…” she looked and Bucky, “...so well.”

“Apparently she’s namin’ her first child after ye,” he grumbled. “Even though I was the one to actually rescue her from BHOD.”

You nudged his stomach with your elbow. “Second kid. I’ll name my second kid after you, okay?”

He let out a huff in response and Becca cackled. “God, yer so dramatic, brother.”

Bucky opened his mouth, ready with some sassy retort when Natasha called out to him, “Oy! Barnes!” He turned to the redhead and she pointed to one corner of the bar. “You’re up, buddy.”

He turned to your confused expression and blushed, giving you a small grin. “I’ll be back, love.” Before leaving, he placed a hand at the small of your back and leaned forward until his lips brushed along your cheek for a soft kiss. You clenched your jaw to prevent a noise from escaping you, and then next thing you knew your blue-eyed mechanic was heading over to the microphone.

You turned to Becca, gaping.

She raised her brows in a just you wait expression, nodding her head to Bucky and you watched him grab the guitar by the wall and a stool. He sat down, positioning himself so that the guitar rested on his leg and he raised the mic stand to reach his tall form. The whole room started whooping and hollering as he got himself settled and he blushed.

“Um,” he said in a deep, low voice, tuning the guitar. He cleared his throat. “Haven’t played this one yet. But it seems like a grand enough night to do so.” His eyes met yours and he gave you a small smile before his fingers started strumming.

You knew it before he even started singing, and it brought an unfamiliar ache to your chest.

“I had a thought, dear

However scary

About that night

The bugs and the dirt”

His voice was, of course, perfect. Sweet like sugar with just a bit of a grizzly bite to it. Hozier usually sang the song in a higher key, but you could tell that Bucky transposed it to fit within the range of his grizzly baritone voice.

“I will not as you where you where you came from

I will not ask you, neither should you.”

His eyes locked on yours once again.

“Honey just put your sweet lips on my lips

We should just kiss like real people do.”

You chugged the rest of your whiskey, placing the empty glass on the bar and Wanda refilled it.

Suddenly, you felt a large presence behind you. You turned to see Steve smiling down at you.

“He sure is somethin’, isn’t he?” he asked, eyebrows wiggling up and down.

You bit back a smile, shaking your head. “Is this his move? He rescues people from a ditch in the road and then brings them to a pub to sweep them off their feet with his ridiculous charm?”

Steve sighs, shaking his head. “Nope. He’s never brought anyone here. Ever.”

Your eyes narrow, the ache in your chest growing. “Ever?”

“Ever. He knows if he did everyone here would give him so much shite for it and rag on him for bein’ sweet on someone.” He lifted his glass to his lips and murmured, “Guess he thought ye were worth it.”

You turned back to Bucky, noticing that his focus was still on you as he sang.

There was absolutely no fucking way that this was actually your life. It had to be a dream. The best damn dream of your life.

Your eyes looked down at his fingers, moving effortlessly across the strings. Then, to his hair, how the dark brown color seemed to glow underneath the lights. His eyes once more, trained on you and sparkling, as if looking into your very soul.

“I will not ask you where you came from”

Little did he know, he was claiming it for himself with each word he sang.

“I will not ask you, neither should you.”

As stupid as that was for you to do. To allow your heart to drift its way over to this man who you would never see after tomorrow. His life was here, and yours was in America.

“Honey just put your sweet lips on my lips”

It was going to hurt like a motherfucker. But you had officially decided that until then…

“We should just kiss like real people do”

You were going to spend whatever time you had enjoying every single moment of it to the fullest.

Everyone began cheering again as Bucky played the final note, and he nodded at them in thanks. You took another large swig of whiskey while he put the guitar away, allowing the warmth of the liquid to give you courage as he walked toward you.

He only had a second to narrow his eyes in confusion before your hands cupped his face, pulling him down until his lips met yours.

If he was caught off guard at all, he didn’t show it. Instead, he wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled your body flush to his, completely enveloping you within his form. You opened your mouth to allow his tongue to slip in and as soon as he got a taste of you, Bucky let out a low, guttural moan.

Meanwhile, you were going feral, hands moving up to take hold of his hair, which was even more soft than you imagined. Everything about Bucky was better than you could have imagined. The way his scruff lightly scratched your skin, the sweetness of his lips, his large hands desperate to touch every part of you.

Sure, there were probably dozens of eyes on you, and you could hear the whistles and cheers and a way to go, Buck from Steve, but you didn’t give a damn. None of them mattered in this moment. Only Bucky.

You were the first to pull away, only because you were on the verge of passing out. The two of you were breathless, his eyes were scanning your face, licking his lips as if trying to hold onto the taste of you.

“Hope I didn’t read the situation wrong,” you joked, one hand moving a strand of hair out of his face. “I mean, it seemed like you were practically begging for it with that song.”

His face broke out into a wide grin and he let out a low chuckle. “Believe me, love, if ye weren’t gonna kiss me in the next hour I was actually goin’ to start beggin’.”

Your left eyebrow shot up. “Now that is something I’d like to see.”

He chuckled again and then pulled you in for another kiss, less hungry but still intense enough for you to have to lean on him for support because your legs were about to buckle.

“Okay,” Steve groaned, “Will you two get a room already?”

Bucky moved back and glared at his best friend. But there was a lightness in his crystalline irises as he looked back at you. “Wanna get out of here?”

You nodded. “Absolutely-”

“Wait! Ye can’t leave yet!” Becca exclaimed. You turned to see her staring, arms crossed over her. “Y/n still hasn’t performed.”

Bucky shook his head. “Becs, she doesn’t need to-”

“Um, yes she does,” his sister cuts off. “Them’s the Elixir’s rules. Newbies have to get up there and do somethin’.”

You gave a panicked look to Bucky and he shook his head again. “Ye don’t have to…”

“Sorry Barnes,” Natasha called out. “If Y/n ever wants to come back, she’s gotta pay her dues.”

If she ever wants to come back.

Back to Ireland, back to the Golden Elixir, back to Bucky.

You sighed, then wiggled your way out of Bucky’s strong hold and downed your whiskey. Natasha filled it one last time and then you were walking slowly to the mic.

You bit your bottom lip, eyes scanning the pub until they landed on a very anxious looking Bucky. He looked as if he thought you would never want to talk to him again after going through with this.

Obviously you were going to talk to him, and nothing was going to stop you from kissing his pretty face when you were done. So you gave him a reassuring smile and a wink, which seemed to relax his shoulders.

“Hello everyone,” you started, “I’m Y/n…”

“Hi Y/n,” everyone said in unison and you laughed.

“It’s been great meeting you all and drinking your whiskey. I gotta say, it tastes a lot better than most of the shit I drink back home in the states.” That was met with loud cheering, even from Bucky. “I do know part of a song that I feel y’all will know, and I have to admit I found it on TikTok being performed by the beloved Hozier.” Bucky’s brows shot up and his smile widened. “Hopefully I don’t butcher it too much, but if I do, I just ask that you’ll help me out.”

More cheers. And then you cleared your throat.

“Come guess me this riddle, what beats pipe and fiddle,”

The whole pub erupted, and Bucky was whooping and clapping his hands.

“What’s hotter than mustard and milder than cream?

What best wets your whistle, what’s clearer than crystal,

Sweeter than honey and stronger than steam?”

You lifted up your whiskey glass and took a sip as everyone kept cheering. As you continued with the song, everyone sang along with you, until the entirety of the Golden Elixir was swaying side to side, waving their glasses in the air as they belted out the classic and well-beloved tune. Even Natasha was smiling, singing her heart out.

Bucky sang along as well, the entire time looking at you like you were the damn sun and he was all of the planets orbiting around you. He was enraptured, smitten, completely lost in everything that made up you.

“And, boys, I’d half wonder if lighting and thunder

Was made from the plunder of whiskey, me boys.”

With the last words sung, you downed the rest of your glass, raising it all the way up as you giggled at the riot happening before you. Swarms of people ran up to hug you and pat you on the back, calling you a true Irish lass and telling you that you were welcome any time you wanted.

Eventually, a path cleared for Bucky to get through to you, and now it was his turn to cage your face in his hands and kiss you senseless, and everything around you seemed to go quiet as you lost yourself in his lips.

When he pulled away, he whispered into your lips, “Ready for another adventure, love?”

You nodded, brushing the tip of your nose with his. “Lead the way, Buck.”

It was a 30 minute drive to your destination, most of it surrounded by fields. It was too dark to really make out anything, but you were more than content with looking out the window at the stars.

The stars and, well, Bucky’s smiling face.

His hand remained on your leg the entire trip.

After a few miles, he veered off the main road and onto the grass, driving a little bit further until you were a couple hundred feet from the main road.

“Stay here, love,” he said as turned the ignition off.

“Is this the moment you tell me that you are actually a serial killer and you’re about to murder me in the middle of nowhere, Ireland?” you remarked, unable to fight back a smile.

Bucky shook his head with a chuckle, moving to get out of the truck. “Nah,” he said, grabbing a lantern from the back seat. “I mean, that was the original plan, but now I like yer voice too much. Can’t get enough of it, really.”

Your breath hitched as you watched him close the door of the back seat and move to the bed of the truck.

A few minutes later, he was opening your door, taking your hand to help you out to lead you to the back of the truck.

A small gasp escaped you as you took in the display. Bucky had lain out a blanket with a few pillows and had unknowingly created your literal dream date.

“I come out here every once in a while when the sky is clear,” he said, jumping up onto the bed and turning to help you. “Ye said yer from New York, and I feel like ye don’t get to see the stars like ye can here in a big city like that.”

You nodded slowly, looking up at the infinite number of stars above you in awe.

It only took seconds for the two of you to entangle yourselves together on the blanket, your head resting on Bucky’s chest, arm wrapped around his abdomen while his held you close to him, fingers running along the side of your body. A chorus of crickets was the only sound aside from the heartbeat against your cheek.

“Have you been to New York before?” you asked, eyes still looking up at the glowing constellations.

You felt him nod. “Me mum was from there. Met my da when she was travelin’ and then the rest was history. We’ve gone a couple of times to see family.”

“Do you still go?” You tried to remove any sense of hope in your voice.

His hand stopped moving along your side for a fraction of a second, and then continued traveling down to your waist. “Not as often, but yes.” He let out a long sigh. “Not gonna have much time to travel soon with school and all.”

You looked up at him. “You’re going to school? For what?”

“Engineering, hopefully,” his lips curved upward in excitement and you felt your heart almost burst. “Wasn’t able to go to uni when I turned 18 cause we couldn’t afford it. Started workin’ at the shop instead, but I’ve been savin’ and studyin’.”

“That’s amazing, Buck. Do you know where you’re going?”

He opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again and said, “Not sure. Still waitin’ to hear back from a few places for the fall.”

You cupped his cheek and turned it to face you. “Any place would be lucky enough to have you.”

He beamed then, eyes drifting down to your lips as he moved forward to kiss you. It was slow, lazy, more intoxicating than any of the whiskey you had consumed that evening. It was as if you were both taking the time to memorize the feel of one another, desperately trying to permanently etch the feeling of each other’s lips in your minds.

Suddenly, you were giggling into his lips, and Bucky pulled away, eyes narrowed in confusion though he was still smiling.

“Sorry,” you said, still laughing. “It’s just…I can’t believe that this is my life right now.” Your pointer finger traced his brow bone. “I mean, I’m making out with the most gorgeous man I’ve ever laid eyes on, who casually lifts cars and can sing, but also makes me laugh and is genuinely so sweet and kind….and I get to KISS him? Like, how is any of this even real-”

Your words were cut off by Bucky’s lips crashing into yours. Gone was the slow, lazy movements. This time was harder, desperate, dizzying as he crushed your body to his.

You weren’t laughing this time when he pulled away, both of you panting.

“Does it feel real yet, love?” He stroked a finger along your hairline.

Still unable to speak from the lack of air in your lungs, you simply nodded.

“Good, because I don’t ever want ye to ever think ye can’t exist in a world where I wouldn’t want an angel with a smile brighter than the stars above to kiss me ‘til I’m blue in the face, ye hear? These lips are yers for as long as ye’ll have them.”

Yours.

It amazed you that in just the few hours you had known Bucky, your heart had managed to swell to sizes you didn’t think possible.

Yet here you were, a pulsing ache in your chest that threatened to crush you or transform you.

Bucky was yours….whether that was just for a few more hours or something beyond the time you had left here.

“I’d have them forever, if you let me,” you breathed out.

It was a bold statement, intense, binding, but as Bucky’s smile threatened to split his face in two, you knew he felt the same.

He shifted his body then, gently guiding you until your back was on the bed of the truck and he was leaning on his elbows on top of you, caging you in. His thumb grazed your bottom lip.

“Sounds like a plan, love,” he murmured before his lips found their way to yours once more.

Chapter 3

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#bucky x reader #bucky x you #bucky x y/n #sweeter than honey #Bucky Barnes

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