Set in episode 2.08

He wasn't snoring this time when she woke up; his bedroom was eerily quiet except for the scratch of pencil on paper. This was the third such weekend she'd stayed over at his place, but this was the first during the middle of an ongoing case; Alice needed a break from her registrar duties, and Matthew had needed a break from Lucien's antics. It was nice, Alice thought, to have a sort of sanctuary away from it all, and it surprised her that she'd found it in her lover's home.

"What are you writing?" She yawned as she turned to face him without opening her eyes.

Matthew chuckled lightly, "I'm not."

"I can hear it."

"I'm not writing, I swear."

"So you're not filling out The Courier's crossword?"

"Nope."

Alice cracked an eye open and saw his crooked smile as he continued to do whatever it was he was doing - his gaze firmly on the notebook in his hand as his left one scribbled.

"What are you doing then?"

"Can't a man have his secrets?"

"Not when you're doing the secret right in front of a very curious and somewhat persistent doctor."

Matthew outright laughed at that and leaned over to kiss her forehead, "You are persistent, I'll give you that. I'm… it's a little well… I've never shown this to anyone, and… I guess I'm a little protective of it."

"Like if you share it, it's no longer just yours?"

"Yeah," he smiled.

Alice smiled back and stretched; as she flung her arms above her head, she sighed, "Well… you don't have to tell me or show me, Matthew, if you're really uncomfortable with that idea. But… I can share one of mine too if that might make it easier."

"You have secrets?"

"A lot that you don't know yet, Superintendent."

Matthew grinned and kissed her, "I look forward to learning them. And this… is my secret."

He shifted on the bed until they lay side by side and handed her the notebook; it was a sketchbook and the pages were filled with art - art by Matthew's steady hand and eye for detail. Alice propped herself up on her elbow and slowly flipped through the pages - drinking it all in.

"Matthew, these are gorgeous."

"You think so?" He kissed her bare shoulder as she continued to look at his work.

"I do, did you go to school for it before you became a cop?"

"Nah," Matthew kissed her shoulder again, "couldn't afford that. I picked up what I could by watching and asking questions at museums over the years."

"I think these are wonderful. You've a real eye for detail."

"Thank you."

Alice flipped another page and the figure on them turned familiar. "Are these… me?"

"Yeah," he flushed a dull pink.

"No one's ever drawn me."

"You're very inspiring."

"I'm what?"

"Inspiring," Matthew gently took the sketchbook from her hands and kissed her neck. "I love the look of you, the lines and curves of your body… the way you lay in my bed… I can't help but want to draw you."

Alice felt her cheeks burn - the flush traveling down her chest as Matthew continued to kiss her neck, "No one's ever said that about me."

"Then they're obviously blind as well as stupid," he nipped at her skin. "You're beautiful, and sexy, and you're making it hard to keep this hobby a secret because I catch myself almost drawing you in the margins of my reports."

Alice laughed, "Now you're just being ridiculous."

"It's making you laugh, isn't? But I'm serious, I want to draw you every free moment I get."

"Why don't you… you've free time now."

He chuckled and kissed his way up her neck as he rolled her underneath him, "Need to study my subject some more, I think."

Matthew kissed her - his fingers trailing over her cheekbones, down the line of her neck and collarbones; his mouth followed - his tongue dragging along her freckled shoulders, lingering on her breasts as his fingers tickled her sides. Alice writhed beneath him and pushed on his shoulders as she tried to direct him further down.

"Patience, Doctor," he murmured against her skin as he nipped and sucked wherever he felt like - she'd finally managed to get him better at hiding his marks so no one knew the odd and aloof pathologist was getting regularly fucked these days.

"Matthew, I swear to Go-"

"Patience," he laughed, "this is a very serious study."

She joined in on his laughter as he tickled her again; Matthew made her laugh more than anyone she'd ever met, and Alice loved it.

"Oh!" she let out a gasp when he kissed the crease of her thigh; the gasp turned into a moan when he dipped further down, and all talk of drawing studies ceased.

Later - both of them adequately satisfied for the time being - Matthew played with her hair as they lay tangled together in bed.

"You haven't told me your secret."

"Mm?" she hummed idly.

"Your secret, the one you said you'd share if I told you what I was doing."

"Oh," Alice smiled and shifted on the bed until she practically draped herself across his chest - her chin resting on the back of her hands. "I have a secret hobby too."

"Really?"

"Mm-hm," she nodded as Matthew's hand combed through her wild curls and drifted up and down her bare back. "I quilt."

"Really."

"Yeah."

"That's not what I pictured for you at all."

She giggled, "I like it, it involves a lot of math and precision."

"Where'd you learn it?"

"I did retain some sewing knowledge from growing up, but I read about quilting in a book during med school and went from there - quilting helped me stay sane during it all."

"Ah, yeah, something to do with your hands," Matthew nodded. "Make anything that I've seen?"

"The quilt on the back of my couch."

He whistled lowly, "I thought you'd gotten that from a store."

Alice swatted at his shoulder, but laughed along with him.

"Can you make other things?"

"I can do a limited amount of mending, but clothes and I definitely don't get along, and I can barely do any kind of decorative stitch. Quilting is much easier for some reason."

"Well, you've certainly surprised me with this secret hobby, but now that I know it… it just feels right for you."

"Thank you," Alice leaned up and kissed him softly. "I feel the same about your drawing skills. Does it frustrate you in this case, with Lucien prattling on about art like we're both philistines?"

"Ah, well, he does know more than I do, and I really only draw, I don't paint; I would like to learn though, I think it'd be fun."

"Then you should," she kissed him again, "but maybe after this case unless you want Dr. Lucien Blake trying to teach you."

Matthew laughed and kissed her back, "What cheek you have about your fellow colleague."

"You know I'm right."

"I do," he kissed her cheek. "Now, Dr. Harvey, can I make you breakfast?"

"Please, I'm famished."

Alice's love for quilting is inspired by my mom, who fully admits she's not the "creative type", but she loves quilting because it's got math and is a lot like a puzzle and that struck me as something so very "Alice" and I decided to put it to use!