#Alread have a naturally high heart rate

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iff I don’t come online sgain assume i had a heart attack and died at the ripe old age of 14

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Super Soldier Love Chapter 3

Pairings: Steve Rogers x OFC

Warnings: swearing

Summary: Harlow has always had bad luck dating and felt she will never find ‘the one’.  Until one day when her friends sign her up for a “dating challenge” they found on the internet.  Begrudgingly, Harlow agrees and she finds herself moving into a large house with 11 other women.  The surprise? She was vying for the love of a certain Captain; Steve Rogers himself.  

Steve looked at himself in the mirror of his new bedroom.  His hands were jittery as he took in his appearance.  He was wearing a pair of khakis with a dark blue button down dress shirt.  His dark blonde hair was swept back and out of his face.  

He was nervous as hell and that was putting it mildly.  Each day that grew closer and closer to this day, he was doubting if he could do this. All he used to want was to find a woman to love, get married and have a family together.  After he came out of being frozen and learning Peggy had married and had her own children, he didn’t think he would ever be able to find love again. Naturally Bucky had helped as much as he could, but Steve just couldn’t find the right women.  When he did find women he liked, he soon realized that they just couldn’t handle him being gone on missions, or they became too clingy and only wanted him because of who he was.

There was a knock on his door, the one he shared with Bucky and Steve turned around to see him standing in the doorway.  

“Nervous punk?” Bucky joked as he made his way into Steve’s room.  

“Shut up jerk,” Steve retorted back as he shook his head at his best friend.  The two of them stood facing the mirror together.  Bucky was wearing a pair of black dress pants and a dark grey button down shirt.  His brown hair brushed and tucked behind his ears.  “I don’t know if I can do this Buck.”

Bucky placed his right hand on Steve’s shoulder, giving it a friendly squeeze.  “I know you’re nervous about this.  Hell, I’m a little nervous myself.  But I’m here for ya pal.  Always was and always will be.”

Steve smiled at his best friend, his heart full at having someone so near and dear to his heart with him and to spend this journey with him as well.  Steve knew he couldn’t do it without Bucky by his side.  

“Gentlemen, your ladies await!” They both heard Tony say from downstairs.  

“I’m with ya till the end of the line,” Bucky said while giving Steve a pat on the back as the two of them began to walk out of Steve’s room and into the upstairs hallway.  

Steve took a deep breath, letting it out slowly before the two men began to descend the stairs. Steve knew deep down, this was what he wanted; to find a woman and enjoy life with.  He may not have wanted to go about it this way, but he trusted Tony with all of his technology to find the right women for them.  

His feet hit the wooden floor, giving Bucky one last smirk.  The men walked side by side with confidence and into the living room.  

Standing before him was twelve gorgeous women and Tony.  Tony had a huge grin on his face as he watched Steve look around at the women in front of him.  Steve felt Bucky give him a playful nudge.  

Steve could tell easily which six women were for him, and which six women were for Bucky.  Bucky always went for the overly beautiful women, getting to know their personality came in second.  But Steve was different; he didn’t go for looks.  He wanted someone he could connect with on an emotional and mental level; always knowing that that was the most important for him first.

As his eyes scanned the room, Steve’s gaze fell on one woman in particular and not because she was the only one wearing jeans.  She had long wavy brown hair that shone beautifully, but it was her gorgeous hazel eyes that took Steve’s breath away.  

~~~

Harlow didn’t know what to feel when she saw the two super soldiers enter the living room.  While she knew most of the other women were elated, Harlow was somewhat confused; shocked even.  Why would these two extremely attractive men need help finding women?  She would have thought that women throw themselves at these guys.  

She wasn’t disappointed in the least bit however.  Harlow remembered reading about both Steve and James in her history classes throughout high school.  In fact, she was very fond of both of them and their heroics.  Without a doubt, Steve was one of the greatest heroes during the evil that was war.  

Harlow could feel a pair of eyes looking at her and she looked up from the floor, making eye contact with Captain Rogers himself.  Her breath hitched in her throat at the mere sight of his breathtaking blue eyes.  Her mouth became dry and she felt lightheaded as Steve gave her a small smirk.  She began to feel her face flush from his gaze and as Steve realized she was peering back at him, his cheeks turned pink in return.  

“I’m going to go out on a limb here and assume that, especially based on the bedroom in which you are staying, you know exactly which man you are here for,” Tony said, snapping Harlow out of her haze.  “There is champagne in the kitchen.  Tonight you all can hang around, get to know each other, jump in the pool and the hot tub. Whatever your heart’s desire.  And with that, I will leave you all too it.” Tony gave a salute and headed out the front door with Happy.  

Harlow was uncertain as to what to do; frozen in place as the other women, Steve and Bucky all headed into the kitchen.  

“Hey, you alright?” Charlotte asked with furrowed brows.  

Harlow cleared her throat, shaking her head.  “Yeah, no I’m fine.  I just-I just wasn’t expecting it to be Steve fricken Rogers is all,” Harlow let out a soft chuckle.  

Charlotte wrapped an arm around Harlow’s shoulders.  “Trust me, I think I stopped breathing when I saw him standing there.  God is he gorgeous or what?”  Both girls laughed before falling in with the rest of the crowd and making their way into the kitchen.  

~~~

Steve and Bucky made their way outside, getting some fresh air as the women toasted with their champagne drinks.  They both looked through the large windows, admiring the women before being bombarded by them.  

“So what do you think pal?” Bucky asked Steve, giving him a playful shove.  

“It’s ah-a bit overwhelming,” Steve chortled, his hands in his front pockets as he stared out in the green forest in front of him.  It was dusk, his favorite time of the day as the sky was painted with hues of purples, pinks and oranges.  

Bucky kept his smile as he continued to watch the women inside.  “I don’t know about you, but my girls in there are so sexy.”

Steve snickered at his friend, shaking his head.  He was nervous about this whole situation, especially because he liked to be the one to go up to women and start a conversation; he liked to take control that way.  But he knew he wasn’t really supposed to in this situation.  The women were the ones who were supposed to come to them to get to know them; that was what he was told from Tony.  It wasn’t that Steve couldn’t take any initiative to speak to the girls, Tony just said they should let the girls take the lead for the first night at least.    

It didn’t take long until the patio door opened and Steve heard the giggles and talks of the women begin. Immediately, Bucky’s girls began to swarm him.  One of the women pulled him off to the side and onto one of the outside couches as he watched the two sit down; an enormous grin on his friends face the entire time.

“Hi,” a voice had Steve looking away from his friend.  There was a very pretty woman standing in front of him.  She was, naturally, shorter than Steve and her brown hair was pulled up into a loose bun on the top of her head.  She wore a simple black dress that hugged her body nicely, but not too tight, and it ended just above her knees.  “I’m Olivia.”

Steve didn’t know whether to shake her hand, or give her a hug, so he just smiled widely back to her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Olivia. I’m Steve.”  Luckily for Steve, Olivia decided what she wanted and that was a quick hug.  She wrapped her arm around his torso, giving him a side hug.  

“Should we go chat?” Olivia asked, motioning her head to another section of couches near the pool.

~~~

Harlow watched from the kitchen as she slowly sipped her glass of champagne.  She knew she needed to drink a little bit more to have the liquid courage to even talk to Steve at this moment.  Harlow was getting frustrated, not with herself, but with her friends right now.  She knew it would be difficult for her to be outgoing in this type of situation, but she didn’t realize how rough it would really be, until now.  She was always the shy one, waiting for guys to approach her. And now all that was out the window and she had to be the one to approach Steve to get to know him.  The worst part about it all?  If she didn’t get the courage to do so, she could easily be eliminated first because of it.  

As she continued to look out into the backyard, she had already witnessed two girls talking to Steve. Letting out a sigh of annoyance, she downed her drink before filling up another glass and headed out into the backyard.

Dusk had officially ended and it was now dark outside, but the lights illuminated the entire backyard and it was truly beautiful.  The landscaping itself made Harlow want to run upstairs, get her sketchbook, and begin to draw.  But that wasn’t what she was here for.  She was here for love, for Steve.  

Harlow saw a woman with curly black hair sitting with Steve on a couch.  She decided it was now or never.  As she began walking towards them, she felt her heart rate begin to race inside of her; thumping wildly.  

“Let’s all go in the hot tub!” the woman sitting with Steve shouted and before she knew it, all the girls were cheering and rushing back into the house.  

Charlotte grabbed Harlow by the arm and excitedly jogged into the house.  ‘There goes that idea’ Harlow thought to herself as she trailed behind Charlotte up the stairs and to their room.  

Inside the room, Harlow saw that their entire luggage was now placed on the beds in which they had chosen to sleep in.  The other women were already changing into their swim suits by the time Harlow found her suits in her luggage.  

She dug through all her suits and decided on one of the newer ones she had bought.  It was a two piece, but the bottoms were very high wasted, kind of like back in the 1950’s.  The top was a thick white halter, which held in her girls tightly, while the bottoms were cherry red.  

“Are you ready?” Charlotte called out into the bathroom while Harlow changed.  

“Just about.  You go on down and I’ll catch up,” Harlow replied as she tied the ties behind her head.  Once she was fully dressed, she looked at herself in the mirror.  By now she was grateful that Jenna took her to get a bikini wax just last week; it definitely came in handy.  

Harlow exited the expanse bathroom and made her way down the long set of curved stairs; her arms hugging her body at the chill from the air conditioned house.  

Once outside she saw that the hot tub was already filled to the brim with people; some of the women even having to stand on the outside and leaning in to get in the conversation. This was not what Harlow was expecting. She was hoping to get a seat next to Steve so she could talk to him a little bit.  

With a slight groan, she looked over at the pool and realized nobody was swimming.  Growing up, Harlow loved the water; her mother even calling her a mermaid at one point.  Deciding not to let it go to waste, she headed over to the pool and slowly began to descend into the warm water.  

Harlow loved the warm water over her chilled pale skin as she began to swim around gracefully.  She dove under, opening her eyes as she swam along the bottom of the pool.  Once she got to the other end she began to swim upwards until she breached the water, taking a deep breath.  This pool was one of the deepest underground pools she had ever been in.  Most underground pools, at the deepest, ranged from six feet to ten feet.  But not this pool.  It must have been at least fifteen feet; her ears even popped at the bottom.  

She held on to the side of the pool as her legs kicked back and forth.  Harlow looked over at the hot tub and noticed that some of the girls were getting out of the hot tub; and so was Steve.  She tried to calm her breathing as she saw him standing there, dripping wet in nothing but a pair of navy blue board shorts.  His chest was on full display and Harlow didn’t realize her jaw became slack just looking at him.  He looked like a damn Grecian god; his body was absolutely perfect.  

There was a large splash from behind her and she turned to see a handful of women resurfacing from jumping into the pool.  She let out a laugh as they all began to splash each other while some of them were doing hand stands.  

Harlow noticed Steve begin descending down the steps and into the pool.  The same girl she saw sitting with him on the couch latched onto his shoulders from behind and wrapped her legs around him.  She saw Steve grip the front of her legs, holding her close to him as he smiled widely.  A pang of jealousy shot through her body, which confused her to no end. She hadn’t even talked to Steve yet; there is no way she should be jealous of another girl, quite literally, hanging onto him.  

She pushed those thoughts away as she noticed a table that held more champagne and some fruit. Swimming over to the ladder, she got out of the pool and headed towards the table, meeting Charlotte there as well.

“How are you doing?” Charlotte asked while nibbling on a piece of watermelon.  

Harlow shrugged as she took a sip of champagne.  “I don’t know if I’m cut out for this Charlotte.”

“Hey, don’t give up so easily.”

Harlow sighed, shaking her head.  “I’m just too dang shy.  And every time I get up the courage to go talk to him, someone else seems to already have his attention.”  Harlow looked down to the floor, watching the water from her feet spread on the concrete. “Have you talked to him yet?”

Charlotte looked over to see Steve swimming around the pool.  “I did actually.  In the hot tub.  He’s really sweet Harlow.  Don’t blow your chance here.  Some of these girls in our group, I honestly don’t think they are right for him.  They just don’t seem to fit the personality to someone he would be interested in, especially that Aria girl.  But you and I, to be quite frank, I see us going all the way to the end.”

Harlow’s brows rose at Charlottes confession; Charlotte nodding her head back to her.  There was something about Charlotte that made Harlow trust her immediately.  She was the only one to reach out and talk to Harlow so far and there seemed to be some sort of special bond between the two.  

“Look, he’s getting out of the pool right now.  Down your drink real quick and head over there before someone else gets to him first,” Charlotte whispered.  

Harlow did just that; she downed the last of her drink in one big gulp and set the glass down.  She then zeroed in on Steve and began to walk towards him.  As she got closer to him, she couldn’t help but begin to walk a bit faster, just wanting to get this first time meeting and awkwardness over with.  But she was walking too quick and she ended up stumbling over her own feet.  Her eyes clenched shut as she braced for the hard impact of the concrete; but it never came.

Instead she felt a pair of strong arms wrapped around her torso holding her up.  She let out the breath she was holding and opened her eyes. Her heart was beating rapidly in her chest as she felt her cheeks begin to pulsate with heat and embarrassment.  

“Well that was embarrassing,” she softly said as she got lost gazing into his ocean blue eyes.  

Steve responded with a slight chuckle, his head shaking back and forth.  “Don’t be embarrassed.”  Shit, even his voice sounded like a god!  

“I’m-I’m Harlow, but my friends back home call me Low,” Harlow replied sheepishly, her voice quiet and soft.  

“It’s very nice to meet you Harlow.  I’m Steve. And I have to say that your name is very unique.  I really like it.”

Ok, that got Harlow to blush even more as she cast her eyes down to the ground for a moment.  When she looked back up at Steve, she smiled back at him.  “Thanks,” Harlow replied with a slight shrug.  “It actually is an old English name which means ‘army’.”

“That’s very fitting for someone like me,” Steve answered back.  

‘Holy crap, is Steve flirting with me?’  Harlow said the only thing that she could think of in that moment.  “Well I guess you and I fit well together based on our choices in swim suits.”  She could not believe she was flirting back already.  Harlow just wanted a quick talk with Steve, to see if they were even compatible, yet here they were, sharing flirting banter back and forth.  

Steve’s cheeks turned pink at Harlow’s words as he quickly snuck a peek at her swim suit.  “All that’s missing is the stars and stripes,” he replied with a wink.  

“Steve,” Bucky’s voice broke through their flirtation, causing the two of them to look over at him. Bucky motioned for him to come over and Harlow wasn’t ready to stop talking to Steve yet.  Steve looked down, noticing his hands were still at Harlow’s waist and he quickly took them off, clearing his throat.  

“I should probably head over there and see what he wants,” he said, his hand going to the back of his neck.  

“Yeah, alright.  I guess I’ll see you around?”

“I’m looking forward to it.”

~~~

“Are you ready for our first elimination?” Bucky asked Steve as the two toweled themselves off from the water.  

“Wait what?  That’s tonight already?  But it’s the first night!”

“I know punk,” Bucky sighed. “But that’s one of the things Stark said.  We each had to eliminate one girl tonight based off of first impressions alone. I’ll go ahead and make the announcement.”  The two of them walked to the edge of the pool, gathering everyone’s attention. “Unfortunately I have some bad news. There will be an elimination tonight. Upstairs you will find your cell phones on your bed.  Programmed inside will be either Steve’s phone number, or mine.  We will call you down either one at a time, two at a time, or in groups of more than that.  That is how elimination will occur from here on out.  Why don’t you all head upstairs and get ready.  Keep an eye out for our text message.”

Steve thought it was kind of weird to be texting them to come down for an elimination, but then again, he still found a lot of things weird about this time.  There was a mixture of scared groans coming from the women as he and Bucky headed back inside the house and up the stairs to their rooms.  

Once inside his own room, Steve headed into the bathroom, needing to take a shower and get the chlorine off his body.  

As he stood under the hot shower, he battled in his mind with what to do.  This was the one part he feared most about this dating challenge; the elimination.   He didn’t have it in his heart to just send a woman home based off whether they hit it off well or not.  But he knew what he signed up for and he was here to find love at last.  

~~~

Harlow waited her turn until the shower was free.  Luckily the shower was placed behind another door within the bathroom so there was ample privacy; especially because all the other women were getting ready in the bathroom in front of the mirrors together.  

As she showered, she didn’t know what to think about this elimination.  Sure she had a few moments to talk to Steve, even flirting a little bit. But maybe she came off a bit too strong? Harlow was never like that when meeting a guy for the first time.  It was usually easy chit chat, nothing deep or serious for the first few dates.  Yet at the same time, she was vying for his love out of five other women.  

She placed a large towel around her body and began to blow dry her hair.  More thoughts came to her mind about tonight.  Steve easily could have instantly connected with any of the other girls.  Nevertheless, Charlotte’s words rang through her head.  She could tell that Charlotte had a good sense of character right off the bat and maybe she was right.  Perhaps Harlow was exactly what Steve wanted; yet again, maybe she wasn’t.

Harlow decided not to dwell on it too much as she finished her hair.  She was never much of a makeup person but thought that a little bit might go a long way tonight.  She did her best at a light smoky eye and put on some mascara, finishing it up with a deep red lipstick.  If any makeup was involved with her daily routine, it was lipstick that she learned to master.  She loved that she was able to find the best lipstick that wouldn’t budge or stain; however it did make it difficult to wash off.  

Looking through her dresses she decided on a simple black dress.  The top was tight with short sleeves and a lace overlay.  It cinched at her waist and hung loosely down to the tips of her knees.  Pairing her dress with some red pumps, she took one final look in the mirror; deeming herself presentable for the elimination.  

She went and sat with Charlotte on her bed, clutching her phone as she waited for the text.  Harlow and Charlotte made small talk, trying to ease the nerves and tension and to pass the time.  It was when Aria let out a small squeal did she realize it was starting.

“Alright ladies, wish me luck,” she said as she sauntered into the hallway and out of sight.  Out of all the women that were here for Steve, Aria seemed like the one that didn’t fit at all.  From her looks alone, she looked like she would belong across the hall with Bucky’s women.  Harlow didn’t want to judge, so maybe it was her personality that really stood out on the application.  

A few minutes had passed before Aria came back into the room.  “I’m safe!  I’m here to stay girls!”  There was something about her voice that seemed off, like she was trying too hard and that set Harlow on edge.  She didn’t like fake people, especially when it came to being around guys.  What was the point of being fake because sooner or later, the guy will find out and realize you weren’t who he thought you were.

Charlotte’s phone buzzed next, along with two other girls whom Harlow now knew were named Olivia and Elizabeth.  “Good luck,” Harlow whispered to her new friend, giving her an encouraging smile.

Harlow sat on Charlotte’s bed, fiddling with her phone as she waited.  She saw that all of her social media apps had been disabled for the time being, along with all her contacts except one; Steve.  She gave a small smile, having a feeling that Steve didn’t like the whole texting thing to call the women down for elimination.  He probably has a really tough time adjusting to technology.  

Time seemed to slow down as she waited for her friend to come back.  Harlow thought about Blair and Jenna, wondering what they would be doing right about now.  They were probably pigging out on junk food watching the newest Bachelor; Harlow scoffed at the thought.  She was never into shows like that, but now she knew why they pushed her to do something like this.  

She saw Charlotte walking up the stairs along with Olivia and Elizabeth.  “We all made it through,” Charlotte said as she sat back down next to Harlow.  

Harlow gave Penelope, the last girl in the room a tight smile.  It meant that one of them would be going home tonight.  

Her heart jumped in her chest as her phone vibrated in her hand.  Looking up, she saw Penelope too get up from her spot on her bed.  The two of them made their way downstairs and into the living room; Harlow’s breath catching once again at the sight of Steve.

~~~

Steve stood next to Bucky waiting for the last two ladies to come down.  Bucky had already eliminated one of his women.  Her name was Alexa and Bucky just didn’t feel they hit it off well compared to the other five girls.  

It was now Steve’s turn to eliminate one of the last two of his women and he was dreading it.  Even though he only met these women a few hours ago, it still didn’t sit well in his mind to do this.  But Tony assured him he was almost positive that he would find his true love by doing this.  

Tony and Steve had been through so much over the last handful of years that at this point, he couldn’t not trust Tony’s advice.  

The sound of heels snapped Steve back to the present as he clasped his hands together in front of him; waiting for the two women.  He felt Bucky place a hand on his shoulder, giving him a squeeze and letting him know he was there for him.  

Both Harlow and Penelope now stood in front of them, worry etched on their faces.  “I wanted to introduce myself because we haven’t met yet. I’m Bucky, this punks best friend.” His words lightened the mood causing the girls to let out a light laugh.  

“I’m Penelope,” she said shaking Bucky’s hand.  

“I’m Harlow.  It’s nice to meet you,” Harlow said gracefully with a smile on her face, taking Bucky’s hand in hers.  

“I just wanted to say that this is extremely out of Steve’s comfort zone,” Bucky began to say.  “The only reason that either of us is even doing this, is because we have each other to lean on during this whole thing Tony came up with.  I wouldn’t have even agreed if Steve decided not to do this and I know he feels the same way.  So I’m going to shut up now and let Steve take over.”

Steve unclasped his hands, scratching his neck with his right hand as he looked between the two women in front of him.  “This is the part that I have dreaded most, without a doubt,” Steve began to say. Harlow could tell just how nervous he was.  “Tonight I had the pleasure of talking with both of you.”  His eyes glanced back and forth between Harlow and Penelope.  “But one of you really captured my attention.” Steve took a deep breath before speaking again.  “Penelope…..I’m sorry but you aren’t the girl for me.”  

~~~

Harlow let out the breath she was holding, casting her gaze down at the floor.  She felt bad for Penelope even though she didn’t get a chance to talk to her at all.  But she had to remember that she was here for love, for Steve, and that all the other women were her competition.  

She saw Penelope give a slight wave to Steve before leaving the living and heading up the stairs to pack her belongings.   Turning her head, she locked eyes with Steve.  

“Harlow, I have to say I was actually pretty excited that you ended up tripping in front of me.  It finally helped us get a chance to talk.” Harlow’s cheeks flushed at the thought. “Since the moment I saw you, I admit that I have been rather intrigued by you.  Would you like to stay here and have a chance at love with me?”

Harlow’s smile spread wide, nodding her head.  “I would love to Steve.”  She stepped forward and into Steve’s open arms, wrapping her arms around his torso. She had to be truthful and saying that Steve gave such great warm hugs.  She felt safe in his arms instantly.  

Too soon he pulled away, giving her a smile and she nodded at Bucky before walking to the stairs and up to her new room.  

Harlow saw Penelope packing as tears streamed down her face.  Her heart hurt for the woman in front of her, but she had to be strong for herself.  This was what she wanted, and she wasn’t going to back down without a fight.  She wanted to find love, and she had a good feeling that Steve very well could be her Mr. Right.

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