The sound of running water in the bathroom suddenly stopped. The shadow outside froze with the hand he had been reaching toward the bathroom door, then quickly pulled it back and pressed himself against the wall, afraid Pepper might discover him.
Pepper took a hot shower, washing away her exhaustion. She then put on a loose bathrobe and pushed open the door, walking out of the bathroom while drying her hair.
Just as Pepper stepped out of the bathroom, a shadow suddenly darted out from the side and pounced on her!
Pepper had been lowering her head to dry her wet hair with a towel and had not noticed what was going on in the room. Sensing someone suddenly lunging at her from the side, she was thoroughly startled. In her panic, she had no time to care about her messy, dripping hair. She clenched her fist and threw a hard punch at the figure charging toward her!
At the same time Pepper struck, the shadow suddenly cried out.
"Sur~pri~se! Ah!~~~"
Hearing that familiar voice, Pepper froze, but her fist still slammed fiercely into the shadow!
Pepper quickly turned to look closely, only to find a familiar figure standing before her. The towel she had been using to dry her hair was now covering his face, held in place by his hand. Apparently, in her panic, she had thrown that punch with the towel still in her grasp!
Though his face was covered by the towel, Pepper recognized him at once.
Grabbing a corner of the towel, Pepper slowly pulled it downward, finally revealing the face that had been hidden beneath it!
It was Tony Stark, who had gone to S.H.I.E.L.D. that morning with Chen Mo and Maya Hansen!
At the moment, however, he was grimacing as he covered one