Bucky walked around the table and stood by Ava. He flipped the light on the table that lit it up from underneath, revealing a blueprint of Buckingham Palace.

His eyes darted over the blueprint. He pointed to a large room on the left side of the castle.

"This is where the Royal Tea Masquerade Ball is going to be held. According to our theories, this is where Sarah is going to be most vulnerable. If someone wants her dead, it could happen at any moment, but this would be the perfect opportunity to do it."

Connors tapped on several locations. "There will be several entrances and exits that are guarded, but still permeable. It's tea with a soon-to-be princess, so everyone wants to attend. Tickets are sold at auction, and radio stations are raffling off tickets. Anyone can participate so it's next to impossible to control who will be there."

Peter flipped Ava's file open and skimmed through several pages. "Here is a list of who is already attending. However, there are still another hundred to two hundred prize tickets to be won. This thing is massive."

From the long list in front of her, Ava could tell. "So you want us to guard S-Sarah?"

"Without being detected. She has bodyguards. You two need to go in undercover. No abilities out in the open," Bucky said. "Or just don't get caught using them," Peter added.

"Do you know if it is someone working alone? Do you have any idea of who it could be?" Steve asked as he stared at the list on the table.

"We have almost nothing," Connors said.

"It is a viable, legit threat."

"What are Sarah's powers?" Ava looked around the table.

Nobody responded. She checked the front of the file and found the page on the prince's fiancé. "Unknown?" Peter frowned. "It's not exactly a question you openly ask the soon-to-be Princess of Wales in front of the Queen of England!"

"So you mean, you don't know what she can do?"

"Not at the moment." By the expression on Peter's face, he didn't like having to admit to it.

"Ava should drive with you," Bucky said to Steve. "Steve and Ava need to go over the file and get to know each other.

~Rogers House~

"Amma, Please can I also come?" the redhead tugged at his mother's dress. "I am sorry, baby. It's a work thing. You will be with your Aunty Wanda, Uncle Bucky, and Uncle Sam." "Sleepover?" "Yes, baby. A long sleepover. Now be a good boy and get your things ready." James ran to his room oblivious to the tension between his Amma and Dad.

~London~

Ava and Steve sat in awkward silence as he drove them out of the city. They only spoke when necessary. As he headed onto the motorway, her phone rang.

"Hello love" A low voice echoed through the phone. Ava was shocked.

"Julian Motherfucking Hawthorne" She laughed and pretended not to notice the scowl on Steve's face.

"How are ya, sweetheart?"

"It's been so long, darling. I missed you. After the trial, you disappeared off the earth"

"It was important, Rose darling. Vancroft's people were after me. I had to hide in Spain. I am sorry my dirty little mistress"

"Oh didn't you hear I am an adulterous whore now."

Steve shot her a look. She remembered he could hear both sides of the phone conversation. She cleared her throat.

"Shut up!! You serious? You smash?"

"Nah. Just rumors. But I am pregnant"

She turned so she couldn't see Steve's face.

"You are pregnant, love? Oh my god. That's the greatest news ever. Drop the address and I will be there."

"I am currently working, love. Will give the address after all this shit. Can you please check on Molly for me?"

"Now, you owe me if I do this."

"Owe you what?"

"Dinner. Movie. Some kind of proper date."

The car suddenly accelerated as Steve whipped by another car on the motorway. She had nearly forgotten for a moment he was there and could hear everything. She held on to her seatbelt. Because of him, she was single. That fault belonged entirely to him.

"You got yourself a deal, Jules."

"Good luck saving the world sweetheart. Bye."

"Bye."

She glanced at Steve whose face had become completely unreadable. He swerved around another car and pulled sharply back into the middle lane/

"Who the hell is Julian?" Steve snapped. Ava blinked and reached for the dashboard as he accelerated and whipped by another car.

"Seriously? You're going with road rage?"

"What?" He glanced down at his speedometer and lifted his foot off the gas pedal. "Who's Julian?"

"A friend." She got her answer to the jealousy question.

He scoffed. "That's it?"

She didn't owe him any explanation and yet she couldn't stop her mouth from talking. "He is just a friend, right now. He's a good guy. You'd like him if you met him."

He shook his head. "I highly doubt that." She frowned at him. "You're the one who ended whatever little we had, remember?"

She didn't dare say more on that one.

Steve tended to have the ability to read through her.

"Are you dating this guy?"

"That's none of your business."

His fingers tightened on the steering wheel. "You are."

"I am not getting into this with you right now, Steve. Can we just concentrate on the job?"

"This mission?" He scoffed. "We're supposed to be dating and you're already cheating on me!" She rolled her eyes.

"Sorry." Steve pressed his lips together. "I will try and keep this professional." She giggled sarcastically. She didn't mean to, but it escaped.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Are you sure this is where we are staying?" Ava ducked her head to get a better view out of Steve's car window. "It looks insanely posh."

Against the setting sun, the building's red brick seemed to burn with fire. Steve drove down the gated drive and around to the front of the house. Beautiful orange-red bricks with stunning windows and pointed roof parts jutting out by the raised windows near the top.

"The place is called Joist Hall." Steve reached for a garage door remote inside his glove compartment and hit the button.

"Some architectural billionaire bought the place, renovated it, and now rents it out to football players, movie stars..." "And the SHIELD," Ava finished and shook her head, amazed. "The entire place isn't ours, is it?"

Steve pulled his car into one of the four parking garage spots located on the west side of Joist Hall. He cut the engine. "There are four flats. We have an apartment on the right with a view of the forest and fields. Peter and Connors will be staying in the wing across from us. SHIELD rented out the top floors as well, but no one is staying in them."

Steve opened his door and stretched his arms and back when he stood. "You coming?" Ava stuffed her phone and purse into her backpack in front of the file for the mission. She took a deep breath as she opened her door.

Once Ava followed Steve out of the small garage, she noted that he didn't walk ahead or behind her, but kept perfect pace beside her. "So we have to try and stop a killer and blend in perfectly with royalty, as we've always been classy? This might be out of my league."

Steve reached for her hand and squeezed it. "You've got this, Ava. I wouldn't have agreed to the mission if I didn't think you—we could handle it." He quickly let go of her hand and stuffed his into the pocket of his jeans.

She didn't know how to respond. They walked around the small water fountain at the front and into the arched wooden doors of the front entrance. Her eyes roamed the building like a child in a candy store.