Tony just went through the motions, letting her put her hands on him; he let her have her looks, have her say, and even leaned into the embrace she gave him. Returning the embrace, Tony let his eyes fall shut a moment as he listened to her, trying to take to heart everything she was saying. It definitely did not fall on deaf ears; he heard her, but could he internalize it? Could he hold onto it? He wasn't really sure.
Finally, he just shook his head and pushed away from her even as her thumb touched his cheek. He looked back at her eyes, then lifted his hands up to take both of hers and moved them from his face, "You're right, I need to stop running, but not because of that. I'm not the one who should be running, Pepper. It's you and Peter, you're both far too smart, have too much ambition and good heads on your shoulders, you should be pursuing what it is you are passionate about. Both of you..."
He then stood from his chair, snatching up his glass once more and the bottle that went with it. Moving away from the desk, he walked further into the room and looked around the lab. Holding his arms open, before turning to face her, "My greatest accomplishment was a suit of armor that I don't want to share with anyone. I was so worried about someone having its power, I kept it from everyone..."
He took a drink and smiled, "I held it to myself, and for what purpose? So they could come in and take it from me anyway. So my father could call it a hobby, a toy. He didn't understand what went into it, and he wouldn't listen to me because my own father found me a disappointment. And if I were to ever rise up, and take that company, and push it to new heights it never could have dreamed of before... he won't even be here to see it. And he made sure that he wouldn't. My own father, Pepper, wants me to succeed but only so that he doesn't have to see it. He likes knowing I'm a failure, he likes thinking he's the smartest in this family, and now I can't even prove him wrong!"
Tony sighed and slumped against a computer bank, another drink taken, "I will never see my father proud of me..."