His whistling echoed through the hall as he returned for the day. The sun had just dipped below the horizon, the chill of evening had set in as the boilers that kicked on letting out a few random bangs as the cold metal ducts and pipes reacted to the fresh heat. Lucille perched on his shoulder, caked in drying blood and a few spare bits of flesh, she needed a good cleaning. He'd managed to dirty his own clothes as well, fuck that was annoying. Properly leaning blood off of real leather was such a pain in the ass, at least his scarf was already red. He reached a gloved hand for the door to his room and swung it open stopping just one step in. The fucking nerve -

The sheets twisted around her legs, having tangled in a fitful sleep, her body unable to decide if it was too hot or too cold. She'd managed to end up with the book she'd been reading pressed up against her face the pages folded this way and that. A mass of messy dark waves flipped up over her head a few falling across her face as she lay on her stomach, clutching the pillow to her chest. He glanced around, her pants, coat, shoes and sweatshirt lay in a messy trail across the room leading to the sleeping figure in his bed. His gaze trailed back up her bare legs, lingering for a moment on one of his favorite curves before making their way to the most modestly covered part of her, his other favorite curves hidden beneath a thin tank top. He took a deep hissing breath inward, letting it out quickly, trying to find his next move somewhere between impressed, irritated and aroused. Damn this girl had balls, breaking into his room, sleeping damn near naked in his bed, an empty glass and a bottle of whiskey on the table - and why the fuck did it smell like steak in here? He lay Lucielle on the small table by the window and walked over to the sink. A greasy pan lay at the bottom, she stole his steak, what the actual fuck? He turned still bewilderedly-impressed and pissed off, and strolled over to the sleeping demon wrapped in clean blue cotton.

She made a small noise and clutched the pillow tighter, shoving the book out from under her face with a haphazard fling of her arm. The paperback book flopped open, facedown, onto the floor at his feet. He reached down, scooping up the discarded thing, reading the golden embossed "Founding Brothers" on the cover.

"You a reader little monster?" he muttered tossing the book at the end of the bed. He sat down near the center of the bed and she stirred at the disturbance but didn't wake up. Reaching out, he wrapped his hand around her calf and gently shook her leg. He was rewarded with a grumbling noise and she kicked out at him attempting to shake off the offending grip. "Oh I don't think so." He scoffed with a grin, reaching his arm out around her knees and pulling her towards him, snatching her out of her slumber.

She let out another small groan and before she could tell quite what was going on she lost her grip on the pillow and her arms flailed towards her assailant, grasping at the front of his shirt. He gritted his teeth in a tight smile and covered her hands with his as they knotted in the fabric across his chest. He hair was wild and tangled from tossing and turning, her eyes still held the haze of sleep but there was a frantic edge to her movements. "Darlin." he said quietly, she froze finally drawing herself back into reality, her gaze focusing on him.

"Oh-" She breathed, her body relaxed and her fingers slowly released his shirt.

"'Oh'? Is that all?" He watched her with raised eyebrows "With the fucking nerve it took to bust in here and make yourself at home I expected-"

"So you expected something?" She interrupted him with a small smile, flattening her hand out against his chest.

"Oh I always expect something from you, because you're a goddamn terror darlin. Problem is I'm never quite sure what I'm expecting." He grinned back.

She leaned in, her lips almost touching his ear and finished his thought for him "But damn, am I - something else." She felt the deep hum in his chest beneath her fingers, felt his hands wrap around her thighs. She was still riding a high of impetuousness, having broken into Negan's room, eaten his food, drank his whiskey, and slept in his bed. At this point she felt she could also conquer the man himself.

"Well if that aint the fuckin truth." he laughed. She warmed to his encouragement, sliding her arms around his neck as she forgave his harshness and relished in the gentleness of his embrace. He always seemed to look at her, really look at her, even if he seemed on the verge of some act of violence. There was some indescribable depth of intimacy to his gaze. In any case, she was getting better at playing this game with him, he was predictably volatile and he liked playing with her too and his skill as an opponent made him far more interesting. That was how she thought of him she realized, not as a lover, certainly not as a husband though the option was open to her, she was his rival, his opponent and in some ways an equal. Given circumstance they could be Lee and Grant, Jefferson and Adams, though at the moment their current entanglement painted them as Caesar and Cleopatra. She wasn't sure of his past, but before this world she'd been poised for power, highly trained and educated, and an ambitious young 'leader of tomorrow'. Though this world had presented her with new challenges, he was the first endeavor worthy of the education and experiences her former life had afforded her. All at once she wanted to bring him to his knees, rule at his side, and utterly destroy him.

She slowly leaned in, her lidded gaze locked with his as she wrapped her hand around the back of his neck, her fingers slipping into his hair. "Please." The word was a question, a command, a request, a warning. He obliged, pressing his lips to hers his hands slowly moving from her thighs drifting to lift her up onto his lap but she beat him to it. Before he could take the appropriate grip she stole his breath moving against him, straddling him and pressing him back against the mattress. He held her with equal fervor, his fingers twisted in the back of her shirt. She could feel his muscles flexing in a restrained response as she dug her fingernails into sharply into his shoulder and nipped at his lower lip. She pulled back to look at him with a small but devious grin, he grinned back. The moments that followed floated between blurred images of sheets and clothes falling to the floor, sharp clear scenes burned into her memory as his mouth moved from her neck to her chest, his lips trailing reverently down her stomach until his chin nestled at her inner thigh his hands wrapped firmly around her hips. She could barely remember how they got there as her hands twisted his hair into tangles as they crashed into each other once more, her legs hooking around his waist as he hoisted her into his lap. She pressed forward grinding her hips against his and pressing her now hot and exhausted body against him, her skin betraying her lack of composure with a fine sheen of sweat. He lazily nipped at her neck as their motions finally slowed, winding their limbs and falling back against the tangled sheets and scattered pillows.

In the quiet moments that followed, he lay in her arms, his head resting on her chest, her fingers carding through his hair. The rare calm with this man couldn't last long, but to her it still felt like a strange victory. she was still decided when it came to him. He was dangerous, he was complicated, he was challenging, he was intriguing, he was warm.

"You can't fall asleep" she said gently to the tired monster in her arms.

"Fuck you." he muttered

"Pass." She said, a bit of laughter in her voice. She removed herself from his grasp and began to dress. He rolled onto his back his hands folded behind his head, watching her in the dim lamplight before turning to the whiskey bottle she'd left on the night stand, pouring himself a shot into the empty glass.

"Hope all that shit you stole was worth the points." His tone was jovial but she responded sharply. She tugged at the last lacing on her boots and strode over to him, her heels hitting like solid heartbeats on the floor as she did. She leaned on the bed crawling up to him she kissed him hard on the mouth, catching him off guard stirring him awake once more. Then she was striding towards the door, the heavy glass bottle in her hand, swinging at her hip as she walked.

"No points."