There were three blissfully busy days that followed, Fitz hopeful that Jemma would drop the charade of their supposed romance in favour of focusing on their work. His dreams of that were shattered relatively quickly, however, when Jemma sidled up to him in the middle of his constructing a motherboard for one of their projects.

"We may need to be more public if we're going to convince Skye of our relationship," she commented, voice quiet but tempered. Fitz dropped the screwdriver he had been using to the table, the metal clattering loudly in the otherwise relatively calm lab.

"I'm sorry?" he squeaked, eyes wide as he looked up at her.

"Skye hasn't said anything about the other night which makes me think maybe we were too quiet or not obvious enough. Maybe we need to be more vocal? Or simply just engaging in... activities in a more public setting," Jemma rambled, fidgeting with the papers in her hand before she moved back towards her own work station. Fitz swallowed hard, trying to keep himself focused as he fought with the bolt of arousal that her words sparked in him.

"What... what did you have in mind exactly?" he queried, picking up the discarded tool to feign work while he awaited her answer. He knew he was being idiotic – that it would only result in confusion and most likely destruction on his own psyche, but he couldn't help but be curious. Would she want him to snog her? Would they pretend to be touching and petting one another beneath the cover of a blanket on the common room sofa? Would she want him to push her up against a wall just before Skye would round the corner and –

"I was thinking perhaps we could pretend to be engaging in sex here in the lab. The table over there is out of view of the cameras and if it's later on in the evening the only person who would be likely to come down here would be Skye. You could stand behind me and we could stage it to look like we were having intercourse without either of us having to take any clothes off." Jemma kept her words clinical and focused on the task she had set herself to complete, using the guise of planning and preparation to keep herself grounded and her thoughts away from the romantic, downward spiral that they had been spinning into since their fake tryst. She had been intent on ignoring the feelings that Fitz's moans had sparked within her and the thoughts that followed, particularly the ones that involved him kissing her senseless.

'Sweet Mother of Jesus' Fitz thought, trying not to let his jaw drop at the suggestion while his trousers suddenly became exceedingly tight at even the thought of pretending to take Jemma over top of the table.

"Okay," he managed to get out instead, trying to recite the periodic table backwards to distract himself. "If... if that's what you want and, uhm, if you think it's a good idea."

"I think it will work," Jemma replied, carefully pouring one beaker into another, never once lifting her eyes to meet his. Fitz just nodded deftly.

"But... uh, let's... let's wait till this mission is over, yeah? Don't want things getting too... complicated," he muttered, shaking his head to try and focus on his work.

"Of course we'll wait. If this were real we obviously would want to be focused on our work first."

XxX

The mission lasted another day and a half, Fitz's attention often straying to the thought that he was going to have to pretend to have sex with Jemma again the minute it was over. It didn't help that there was a life or death scare in the last few hours of their assignment, guns popping as they ran through a warehouse, Fitz tackling Jemma to the ground as a stray bullet whizzed past them, grazing his shoulder as they dove for the floor.

"Fitz!" Jemma gasped, raising a shaking hand to the tiny mark that had torn his shirt open but left little more than a scratch against his skin.

"I'm fine," he assured her, grabbing her hand in his and lowering it from his shoulder even as she frowned, trying to survey the damage. As another round of bullets flew over the crated they were hidden behind, he grabbed her head, tucking her into his chest as he pressed her against the wall, shielding her from any ricochet. Jemma felt her heart pounding even as she clenched her eyes shut, trying to block out the sounds of gunshots as her hands trembled, fingers tangling in the fabric of Fitz's Oxford. "You're okay, I've got you," he mumbled against her hair, breath stirring against her ear as the shots finally died down.

"Everyone okay?!" Coulson's voice rang out from the opposite side of the warehouse, May and Ward's affirmatives echoing a second later.

"What the hell was that?!" Skye was yelling almost instantly after, popping up from behind the crates at the end of the same aisle where Fitz and Jemma were hidden. Fitz blushed, slowly leaning back until Jemma could disentangle herself from him, standing up on only slightly shaking legs.

"Well, it seems like things have at least ended in our favour," she offered, fiddling with the row of buttons on Fitz's shirt as she remained in his personal space, Skye's gaze focused solely on them as Jemma looked up into his eyes, a strange look passing through them.

"You're okay?" he asked, his hand coming to rest of Jemma's elbow as she nodded.

"I'm alright," she agreed, voice thick for a moment before she almost visibly shook herself out of it, dropping her hands back to her sides and taking a step back. Skye watched them for a few more seconds before turning around and heading towards the rest of their team. "That... we... it will be easy to blame life or death for us not being able to make it back to our bunks when we get back to the bus," Jemma whispered, following Skye a moment later, leaving Fitz to stand in the aisle on his own.

"Fuck," he grumbled, trying to tamp down his arousal as he trudged after Jemma.

XxX

"Quick, before Skye comes down here," Jemma rushed, grabbing Fitz's wrist as she yanked him towards the table she had designated as the next setting of their ruse. Fitz swallowed thickly before wandering towards her with significantly less haste. She let out a frustrated huff, dropping his wrist so that she could lean over the table, yanking her skirt up to rest atop her backside.

"Jemma!" Fitz panicked, clenching his eyes shut as he turned his head toward the ceiling, neck protesting at such a sudden movement.

"Calm down, I have running shorts on," she groused, tugging at his wrist again. When he cracked an eye open he found that she did, indeed, have a tiny strip of fabric covering her intimate areas, although he thought calling them shorts was being generous – they looked more like knickers to him than something someone would wear while running.

"What do you –"

"Undo your belt and come up behind me. Its unlikely that Skye will actually get close enough to see that we're not actually having sex. We just need to simulate it," Jemma instructed. He did as she told him, shaking hands pulling his belt and letting it fall open, the strips of leather bracketing the bulge that was already pressing at the front of his trousers. When Fitz made no further comment, she groaned. "Fitz, just stand behind me and thrust."

"Okay," he squeaked, unable to keep his voice level as his vision swam, all the blood from his face rushing into his groin. He pressed one hand onto the counter next to Jemma's hip, trying to keep his pelvis away from her. "Should... should I... where should I put my hands?" he asked after a beat. Distantly, he could hear the sound of Skye's shoes squeaking at the top of the stairs, her voice, along with Ward's, echoing down into the lab. Looking around frantically, Jemma frowned, her own hands going to her blouse to pull a few buttons open, un-tucking the hem from her skirt before she glanced back at Fitz.

"Keep this one here, put the other one in my hair, pull me back towards you. If you're worried about your expression hide your face in my shoulder," she rushed, grabbing his hand to put it into the silky strands of her hair.

"Jemma!" he gasped, more out of shock than anything else, his hips nearly jumping towards hers without his volition at the picture she painted, her back curving as she leaned towards him, pushing her breasts out. She glanced back at him, smirking, before starting out let out exaggerated moans, rocking her own body against the edge of the table.

"Oh Fitz, yes," Jemma groaned, giving him a wink over her shoulder. She didn't dare let herself think too deeply on what she was doing, her body already responding to the simulation she was putting in motion, the feeling of Fitz's fingers tangling in her hair and his forearm pressed against her hip as he gripped the table with white knuckles sending her mind into overdrive. She wanted nothing more than to push herself back against him, to align their bodies in hopes of feeling his arousal against her backside. They'd barely even begun their façade and already she was wishing she had more fabric between them, her body responding quickly until she could feel the fabric between her legs dampening.

'Oh God,' she thought suddenly, her cheeks draining of colour. 'What if he really isn't attracted to me?'

She wasn't able to dwell on the thought too much, however, for that was the moment that Fitz pulled on her hair slightly, their bodies curling together as he pressed his face into her neck, his breath hot as he panted against the skin there. Jemma's hands reached back, one cupping his neck while the other flew to his hip, holding him tight against her despite how he kept his pelvis just far enough away that she couldn't feel him.

He grunted, thrusting against the air, desperate to keep his erection from touching her even as he simulated having sex with the gorgeous woman in his arms. Moans were spilling from Jemma's lips with ease and, if he opened his eyes to look down from where his face was buried in her neck, he could see down her blouse, the pale blue lace of her bra contrasting against her lightly freckled skin.

"Fuck, Love, what you do to me," he growled, trying to rein himself in even as he felt his body spinning out of his control. He wondered what it was about the woman in his arms that had him so wound up, but he could only assume it was one thing: his feelings for her. He could feel his cock pressing against the fabric of his pants, the sensitive tip pushing into the seam of his jeans with each forward motion of his hips, driving his arousal higher and higher. He wanted to pull back, unsure of how long he would be able to control himself in such as position. As it were, he desired nothing more than to take hold of her hips and rut against her until he reached completion. If he was honest with himself, it wouldn't take long at the rate he was going.

"Yes, oh, more Fitz, please," Jemma begged, the fingers that she had around his neck increasing in pressure as the sound of the lab door opening filtered through his senses.

"Jesus Christ!" Skye yelped, her hand slamming up over her eyes as Fitz's popped open, having completely forgotten what their actual intent was regarding their actions.

"Oh God!" Jemma exclaimed in mock horror, her hands dropping away from him as she frantically tried to close the gap in her blouse.

"Fucking hell," Fitz mumbled, hastily acting as if he were trying to push himself away into his trousers, turning his back on the two women. "God Skye, haven't you heard of knocking?!" he bellowed, dizzy with sensation as he stumbled into the back room of the lab, turning on the sink.

He could vaguely register Jemma's voice sounding through the thin wall as she scolded Skye, the younger woman yelling about privacy and there being bedrooms for a reason, but he couldn't find it in himself to care, the pounding of blood in his cock too much for him to endure much longer. He had thought that Skye's entrance would have cured his current state, but it had done nothing to alleviate the problem. All he could think about was the sensation of Jemma's nails in his neck and the feeling of her hair in his hand, the heat from her body surrounding him where they had been pressed together.

He barely had time to undo his fly and get a hand on himself, stroking only a few times before he was finding release, pulsing into the sink as his hips pushed his cock through the ring his fingers had created. The hand which was empty pressed against the wall, keeping him upright as he shuddered through each bolt of pleasure, his mind warring between ecstasy and revulsion at himself, only a fleeting thought being spared for how grateful he was that he hadn't gone off in his trousers again. He didn't let himself dwell in the afterglow of release, shoving himself back into his jeans before hastily washing his hands, his cheeks stained red as he finally managed to walk back into the lab where Jemma was standing stiffly by one of the chairs, Skye leaning against the wall, arms crossed over her chest.

"Well, obviously you two have something going on here," Skye muttered, regarding him with a smirk. Fitz squirmed under the scrutiny.

"Skye –" he started.

"I know, I know, you both almost got shot today, you needed to reaffirm that you were alive. I think its romantic, really, just please, save my poor eyes and do it in your rooms, yeah? You're not the only two that have to work in this lab... or, well, visit this lab," she said. Jemma had the gall to look sheepishly at the other woman from under her lashes before averting her gaze to her hands which were folded in her lap. "Right. I'm going to go train for a bit so you two can, you know, finish... that, in one of your bunks."

"I quite think the mood is ruined now Skye," Jemma grumbled. Skye snorted with laughter.

"Yeah, alright, you tell yourselves that until your ankles are up around your ears there Simmons," Skye cackled, taking her leave of the room. Jemma rolled her eyes despite the slight blush that tinted her cheeks, fidgeting with some papers on the desk.

"Well... uh, she definitely thinks we're, uhm, doing... it now," Fitz said, shoving his hands deep into his pockets. Jemma nodded deftly.

"Yes. I think... well, maybe once more, just... just audio this time and then hopefully she'll leave us alone," she said.

"Uh, okay. I'm... I'm really tired Jemma, I'm going to head to bed, alright?" He didn't look up, missing the wounded look that crossed her features at his quiet and dismissive tone.

"Of course. I've just one or two things to look over and then I think I'll do the same," she answered. "Have a good night Fitz."

"I'll see you tomorrow," he muttered, hastily heading for the door, dodging up the stairs quickly before Jemma even really had time to process what had happened. She staggered back until her knees hit her chair, her body folding into it almost immediately. As she glanced up at her computer, she noticed the flush on her cheeks and the blown out look of her pupils, her hair a mussed disaster as it curled down around her shoulders.

"Oh God," she muttered, hiding her face in her hands. When they had started their fake tryst, she had only wanted Skye to leave them alone. Now, two fake sex scenes later, she was in turmoil. She hadn't realised how strong her feelings for Fitz actually were until they had started faking orgasms around one another. Hadn't realised that it was more than lust until earlier in the day when she had felt him cocoon her in his arms during the fire fight. And now, her body still thrumming with unsatisfied arousal, she realised that she wanted him. In every way. For real. "What am I going to do?"

Looking at the clock and seeing how late it was, she sighed, resigning herself to get to her feet and go to bed. She wasn't going to find answers with no sleep after all.