He hadn't heard anything in the house, but he hadn't expected to either with his headphones on and listening to the music from his mp3 player. It was a slow day, and he had been trying to get a few chores around the house done before Aaron returned from the latest run. They were never exact on their return times, but generally got back to Alexandria in the late afternoon to early evening, starting from where they had been scouting in the morning.
So he had thought that there would be a couple of hours for him to finish those tasks, and he was applying himself to the dishes when a shadow crossed the counter and hands grasped his hips. Eric jerked forward, away from the hands and into the counter, and dropped the dish in his hands into the soapy water. One of the earbuds fell out, and he heard Aaron laughing behind him, "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."
Eric frowned, removing the other earbud with wet fingers, "I have doubts about that. Any luck on this trip?" Aaron wasn't moving away from him, so he was still pressed against the counter, the dish water that had spilled over the sink edges soaking into his shirt.
"Depends on what you mean by luck. We didn't find any people, but we did find an old country doctor's office with some supplies left intact. Daryl brought them over to the clinic." He leaned into Eric, breathing deeply at the back of his neck, until he could feel the shiver it caused. "Or maybe it was luck that allowed us to get back early."
Eric swallowed hard, freezing in place as Aaron's breath ghosted against the back of his neck, "Lucky for me if you keep doing that."