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Steve didn’t quite know what to do.
He was in love -
With two people -
One of them hated the other one and for good reason.
He and Bucky had been lovers for the few short months they’d worked together during WWII. They’d been best friends before that but things got hot when Steve rescued Bucky. He’d always wanted Bucky but he held back, being so scrawny and all. He was so glad to see Bucky after he’d thought he was dead, that he kissed him.
Not just any kiss, but a full on the lips, open mouthed, passionate kiss with a bit of dry humping thrown in for good measure.
Bucky got the message loud and clear and they became lovers as soon as they found a place to get naked. They’d done a lot of hunting places to get naked in the next few weeks then Bucky was lost and shortly thereafter, so was Steve.
Moving forward to present time, along came the second lover.
He hated Tony Stark the moment he set eyes on the Iron man suit in Stuttgart. Things only got worse when Tony called him a Capsicle. The suit up argument, though, went straight to his groin. Something about standing there arguing about being men and heroes ignited something in Steve and as soon they saved the helicarrier, he’d gone to Stark’s quarters.
“Stark, I think we have something to settle.”
“You wanna fight me now?” Tony looked incredulous.
Steve stepped into the room uninvited and closed the door. “No. I want something else. You do, too.”
Tony looked confused for only a moment. That it only took a second to understand told Steve that the same idea had occurred to Stark.
“How do you know what I want?” Tony asked.
“Am I wrong?” Steve shut the door behind him and stepped closer to Tony.
He glared at Steve, not intimidated by Steve’s being taller and broader than he was. “No, you’re not wrong.” Tony glanced down at Steve’s body, his gaze lingering below Steve’s belt. “So show me what you’ve got, Cap,” Tony’s voice dropped to a near whisper as he took a step closer, bringing him almost close enough that their bodies touched.
Steve wrapped his arms around Stark and kissed him, both of them fighting for control of the kiss, of the embrace with Tony winning.
“So that’s how it is,” Steve said, his mouth almost touching Tony’s.
“Yeah. I’m a control nut, can’t help it.”
“I don’t mind letting someone else lead if our goals are the same.”
Tony slipped his hand between them, touching Steve’s erection through his suit. “I’d say they are.”
“Show me,” Steve said and for the next hour, Tony did exactly that.
*
Bucky Barnes turned up as a HYDRA operative, the Winter Soldier. Even though he set out to kill Steve and bring down SHIELD, he saved Steve in the end and when Steve and Sam finally caught him, they took him to Wakanda for some deprogramming and healing. This is where the story began.
Steve loved Tony, but Bucky was back.
He was still with Tony, but found himself going to Wakanda as often as he could to spend some time with Bucky. It was as if the years never passed. He hadn’t told either one about the other.
He was surprised when Tony brought it up.
“When are we going to Wakanda? I’d like to meet him.”
“Him?”
“Bucky.”
“You want to meet Bucky?” He was sure his voice squeaked.
“Two things, Cap. It didn’t take me long to figure out that he’d been your first love. You go all dreamy when you talk about him in your past. Also, you talk in your sleep and it’s his name you call out.”
Steve looked horrified.
Tony pulled him close and kissed his cheek. “I can’t ask you to give him up now that you’ve found him again. And unless you force me to, I’m not giving you up either. So we meet, we figure this out and we go on.”
This couldn’t possibly end well. Could it?
*
Bucky was living in a goatherd’s hut in Wakanda, but he came into the city when Steve came with Tony in tow. Steve’s heart sped up when he saw Bucky. It always did, but this time, it might have been panic.
Bucky and Tony shook hands.
“Good to meet you, Barnes.” Tony was tense, very tense.
“So you’re Iron Man.” Bucky’s smile was friendly and open.
“And Tony Stark. Cap tells a lot of Bucky stories.”
Bucky grinned. “I hear a lot of Tony stories on my end.”
Steve felt like he was going to explode!
“Can a man get some coffee here?” Tony asked. He still lived mostly on coffee and scotch.
Bucky grinned. “No Starbucks yet, but I’m sure there is some coffee in the compound. General Okoye is very fond of it.” He led them into the compound where the royal family and the government of Wakanda worked and lived.
Shuri met them in the hallway. “Captain! White Wolf! Oh, you must be Mr. Stark. I want to talk to you sometime!”
She was gone as fast as she appeared.
“Shuri, T’Challa’s kid sister. She’s brilliant. You’ll like her, Tony. She can out brain you and Banner,” Steve told him.
They got some coffee in a small cafeteria in the compound. Steve was nearly beside himself as Bucky and Tony felt one another out with small talk.
“You’re Howard’s boy? You favor him a lot. Steve says you’re a mechanical genius like he was.”
Tony actually blushed.
“Steve says I’m a lot like him, too,” Tony told him.
They chatted about the past, Steve and Bucky’s, about Howard, Peggy Carter. They walked around the beautiful hidden city after their coffee.
“You guys wanna rough it tonight? You’re welcome to come out the hut. It’s a little rustic but I do have running water and electricity,” Bucky offered.
“I’d love it!” Tony answered, surprising the hell out of Steve.
They went out into the countryside to Bucky’s little hut. It was a hut but had a kitchen, bed, a couple of chairs and lamps.
Tony didn’t make his usual snarky remarks, instead asking questions about power supplies and solar panels. He was impressed with the technology of the hut. Steve was pretty sure that Shuri might blow his mind.
“I’ve been wanting to meet you ever since I – well, since I was fixed,” Bucky said. “I finally have my memories back. I know who I am all the time, not just bits and pieces.”
Steve mostly watched as Tony and Bucky talked and talked. What were they going to do when it was time to sleep? Would things be awkward? Worse than awkward? He began to steel himself for the worst.
“Okay, guys, I got one bed and since Tony and I both, um, sleep with Steve, why don’t we give the sleeping bit a try? We’ll stick you in the middle, Steve.”
So they did. Steve was snuggled from both sides, so snuggled that he slept very little but it was a sweet sleeplessness.
Perhaps this would work out after all…