Bright sunlight hit my eyelids, waking me from a deep, dreamless sleep. I slid a hand up out of the soft silk sheets, rubbing it against my tired eyes. I felt Matt shift behind me before I felt warm lips placing a kiss just below my ear. I shivered slightly at the affectionate touch on such a sensitive spot.
"Good morning, sweetheart," he whispered huskily beside my ear.
I sighed contentedly, rolling over in his arms and facing him. There was a bright smile on his tired face and his hair was disheveled from sleep. His eyes were partially open, staring drowsily back at me. I smiled faintly as I took in the sight of him in his bed with just the faint morning light sneaking through the corners of the curtains. My heart ached at the way his sightless eyes were shining with so much warmth and affection on me. No one had ever looked at me like that before–blind or not.
I swallowed hard, one hand tentatively rising from out of the silk sheets and lightly brushing against his stubbled cheekbone. His eyes drifted closed the moment my fingers touched him and a soft hum came from his throat. I smiled briefly, but the memories of last night came flooding back almost immediately. I had almost lost him; he'd stepped off the roof and almost fell down six floors to hit hard pavement last night. Tears were welling behind my eyes as my fingers trailed down his cheek to his jaw. My fingers dragged back and forth along his jawline, focusing on the warmth of him underneath my fingertips.
He's alive. It's okay. He's okay.
The smile fell from Matt's mouth; a slight frown replacing it as his eyes opened. His hand slid from off of my waist, reaching up and grasping my wrist, halting my hand's movements. "What's wrong?" he asked softly. His hand released my wrist and gently brushed against my cheek, wiping away a stray tear. "You're crying."
I sniffed, dropping my hand from his face. His thumb caught a few more tears as he watched me in concern.
"I…I almost lost you, Matt," I said, lip quivering. "It's just…hitting me…again." I wiped a hand over my eyes. "I don't–I don't know what I'd do if…if you'd–"
His arm slid back around my waist as he lightly shushed me and drew me in to him. I wrapped my arms tight around his bare torso, taking comfort in the warmth of his skin and the feel of his heart beating against my chest. I buried my face into his neck, a few more tears slipping out of my eyes. He only held me tighter, a hand stroking the back of my head as he nestled his face in my hair.
"It'll be okay, Liv," he told me. "I'm alive. We're both safe."
"I can't lose you," I mumbled into his neck. "Especially not because of me."
"You won't," he whispered back.
I sighed deeply, inhaling the scent of his skin. As I laid there with my face buried against his neck, my resolve began to harden with each beat of his heart, each rise and fall of his chest, each breath of him in my nose, each gentle stroke of his hand through my hair. My jaw tightened and my tears stopped; I pulled back from him abruptly, the movement drawing him from my hair to look down at me. His brows rose on his forehead in a silent question, clearly having felt my mood shift yet again.
I cupped his cheek, turning his head towards me and doing my best to meet his gaze. His eyes were roaming my face, searching for an answer to his unasked question.
"I'm going to end it," I told him firmly. "No more hiding, no more letting him slip through my hands." I shook my head roughly. "No more chances for him to kill anyone else. Next time I see him, when Jess finds him, I'm going to end it. Once and for all," I promised him. "I don't care what it takes; I'm going to make sure he never hurts anyone again."
His body tensed beside me and his mouth opened to speak, but my hand slid over his lips, silencing him.
"I plan to heal him," I told him. "I know I can."
I slid my hand from his mouth, grabbing his chin and leaning in, kissing him hard. His mouth took a moment to respond, surprised at the sudden gesture, but his lips quickly worked back against mine.
Buzzing from the nightstand caught my attention and I broke away from Matt. I turned, hand darting out to grab my phone. When I saw Jessica's name on the screen, I quickly answered the call.
"Please tell me you found something?" I asked immediately.
"Hopefully," Jessica's voice replied. "Luke insisted he come with me while I searched Albert's hotel room. We found the virus he used on Kilgrave among his things there. It's from a local biochem lab."
"Great," I said, throwing the sheets off of me and sliding to the edge of the bed. "Text me the address and I'll be there as soon as I can."
"Hold on," she said quickly, "we don't know if Kilgrave is going to be there. Luke and I are going to go there and scope it out. I'll let you know the moment I find anything if I do."
I rolled my eyes, letting out a huff of annoyance. "Jess, am I just supposed to sit around and paint my damn nails while you look for him?"
"No, but we need you at the top of your game," she told me. "Just give us a few hours."
I ran a hand down my face. "Fine," I grumbled. "Just don't leave me out of the loop."
I hung up, tossing my phone back on the nightstand and sighing. I felt the bed shift behind me and I looked over my shoulder, spotting Matt scooting towards me.
"What am I supposed to do all day?" I groaned.
"You could spend it with me?" Matt suggested.
I raised a brow curiously at him. "And what do you suggest we do?" I asked.
"I could think of a few things," he teased, a slow smirk spreading across his face.
" All day?" I shot back with a grin of my own.
He slid slowly behind me, his legs on either side of mine as he wrapped his arms around my stomach, pulling me back into his bare chest. He leaned forward over my shoulder, placing a lingering kiss on my cheek. My eyes closed, leaning further back into him.
"I mean…we certainly could…" he mumbled, his lips moving down to kiss my shoulder as his hands ran up my arms.
I turned at my waist to face him better but a sharp pain on my lower left side jolted up my body. I winced, pulling back and groaning lightly in pain.
"So maybe not that today," Matt said, his hand sliding down and resting just over my injured side. "This sounds irritated."
"Sure it's not just me you're hearing after being rejected?" I joked.
He snorted in response, shaking his head and grinning. "Your friend is right, you need to take it easy."
Matt's phone rang from across the room, the automated voice calling off a list of numbers. I felt Matt pull away from me and I frowned, glancing over my shoulder at him. I watched quietly as he answered it, his back towards me.
"Yeah?" he answered after the third iteration of the number.
I sighed, rising to my feet and heading to the bathroom to give him some privacy. I used the bathroom quickly, spotting my blood soaked clothes on the floor from last night.
I should probably head back to my apartment and chuck those. Maybe brush my teeth.
As I washed my hands, I surveyed myself in the mirror. Part of my right eye was bloodshot and my hair was a knotted mess. There was a bruise on my face from where Simpson had hit me and I ran my fingers along it carefully, wincing in slight pain from the touch. I lifted up the hem of Matt's shirt; there was a large, purple bruise on my lower left side where Simpson had also punched me hard. I dropped the shirt back down with a sigh before meandering out of the bathroom. I heard glasses clinking in the kitchen and followed the noise, finding Matt hovering over a coffee machine and brewing a pot.
"Work calling for you?" I asked as I made my way into the kitchen.
Matt turned, resting his back against the kitchen counter and smiling towards me. "Just a client with a question," he answered off-handedly. "You want some coffee?"
"I always want coffee," I told him.
His head tracked my movements through the kitchen, grinning when I stopped just in front of him and boxed him in with my hands against the counter. His hands reached out, resting on my hips.
"I like you like this," he told me.
My head cocked to the side curiously. "Like what?"
"Smelling like my soap," he whispered low, his hands dropping to slip below his shirt I was wearing and gripping my ass firmly. "Wearing nothing but one of my shirts. Smelling like me ."
Slowly I raised my left leg, ignoring the sharp pain in my side at the movement, and hooked my leg around his. I leaned in, dragging my nails up his bare chest and grinning when he inhaled sharply. I slid one hand further up the back of his neck, firmly gripping a fistful of his soft, brown hair and lowered his head towards me. I placed a gentle nip along his chin, enjoying the sound he made as I did–something like a low, predatory growl–as he gripped my ass tighter in his large hands.
"You could fuck me like this," I suggested gently, relishing the way he immediately tensed under me.
He swallowed hard, his mouth twitching as his eyes closed. "As… tempting as that is," he said, eyes still closed and voice tight, "you need to let your body heal."
I frowned, releasing my grip on his hair and sliding my leg back down. With a low sigh I turned and headed toward the breakfast bar counter directly across from him in the kitchen and leant up against it. The coffee machine noisily began to brew a pot as I watched Matt run a hand through his hair a few times.
"Are you upset?" he asked hesitantly.
"No," I told him. "Just annoyed that you're probably right. If Jess finds Kilgrave soon I probably shouldn't be pushing my body past its limits just for sex."
"Yeah, that's what–"
"I'll just do it after I deal with him," I said, cutting Matt off.
His mouth twisted into a smirk as his brows raised. "Oh really? That what you're planning is it?"
"Mhmm," I told him, crossing my arms. "Seems like all I need to do is use your soap and wear your shirt and I'll have you on board."
"Think it's that simple?" he asked.
"I have… other ideas too," I told him smugly.
He pushed off of the counter, sauntering his way over. I bit my lip, watching the way he moved like a feral cat across the kitchen towards me and feeling my heart speed up. His arms boxed me into the counter now, his hands on either side of my hips. His own hips pushed into mine, causing me to arch back to stare up at him, the counter biting into my lower back. He lowered his head beside my ear, his mouth just grazing it.
"You're not the only one with ideas," he teased, voice low and gravely. The Devil of Hell's Kitchen's voice.
I swallowed hard, feeling excitement rising in my chest as I looked up at him towering over me. One of his dark brows was raised and the left corner of his mouth was pulled up in a devilish smirk. I grinned, one hand reaching up to grasp his bicep beside me, digging my nails into the muscle just a bit.
"I wouldn't mind fucking the Devil of Hell's Kitchen," I whispered back.
Matt's lips pulled back in an almost snarl, his hips roughly bucking forward into mine at my words. I moaned out faintly, feeling a warmth growing down low as my tongue ran along my teeth.
"Careful what you ask for, sweetheart," he warned gently.
My eyes narrowed, my grip on his arm tightening.
"You forget, Matthew …" I whispered, trailing off.
Abruptly, my other hand rose to grip his left bicep, my hips pushing roughly forward into his own; using my weight I spun him fast, slamming his back into the counter. A surprised gasp came from him before a slow, dark smile spread on his face.
"I'm not as fragile as you think," I finished, sliding my hands down to his wrists and pinning them underneath mine on the counter. I leaned up, planting a light, quick peck on his lips. "Coffee's done."
I released his hands and wandered over to the coffee maker, pouring out two cups in the mugs he had pulled out. When I turned, I was surprised to see Matt still leaning up against the counter, watching me. I quirked a brow in his direction.
"Something on your mind?" I asked him innocently.
He chuckled lightly before pushing off the counter, heading towards me. I handed him a coffee and he eagerly accepted it. He took a sip of it black before he finally spoke.
"Was just thinking I should take you to Fogwell's gym sometime," he told me. "I have a deal with the owner. I work out there sometimes at night when it's closed."
I laughed lightly. "Would be really hard explaining how you can move like you do without being able to see?" I asked him knowingly.
"Yeah," he answered.
"Someone think he wants to spar with little old me?" I asked, feigning innocence.
His hand darted out, gripping my chin between his fingers with a delicate force that had my heart hammering excitedly again. "I think I can handle you," he told me, lifting my chin towards him and biting my lower lip before he released his grip.
"Do you?" I asked curiously, eyes narrowing. "Think we'll have to find out some time then. You do remember that I was forced to learn martial arts at a young age, right?"
"You do remember I was, too?" he shot back with a cocky smile.
I took a sip of my coffee, watching as Matt turned and headed for his table. Grinning and feeling emboldened after last night and this morning's flirting, I said, "Guess I'll just hope I have a back alley run in with the man in the mask until then." He paused mid-step, back straightening. "Wouldn't mind a few minutes alone with him… He seems like he could use some help releasing some tension."
I took another sip of my coffee, hiding my amusement behind the mug as he tilted his head over his shoulder at me. The muscles in his jaw were twitching as he inhaled deep before he continued towards the table. I followed shortly after him as he lowered into a chair. As I passed by, I opened my mouth to change the subject but stopped short when his palm hit my ass with a loud smack that rang out through the room. I squealed briefly in surprise, eyes widening as I turned around and found Matt grinning in his seat, pulling his cup up towards his mouth.
"Back alley run in, hmm?" he mused, taking another drink. "Is that what you think about?"
"Sure as hell is now," I muttered, eyes darting to my coffee mug as I took a seat across from him.
He chuckled lightly before relaxing back into his chair, a warm, affectionate smile on his face now. "We should probably change the subject before you have a heart attack," he teased. "Your heart has been racing for a few minutes now."
"You tend to have that effect on me," I murmured.
"I know," he said, tapping a hand to his ear as his smile grew wider. "I can hear it pounding often when you're around me."
I rolled my eyes playfully at him. "Okay, well if there's not going to be any follow through this morning, let's change the subject before I contemplate just jumping you," I told him.
One of his eyebrows rose as he quietly grinned at me across the table, one finger tapping lightly against his white mug. I closed my eyes, effectively shutting him from my view, and shook my head sharply. Inhaling deep, I opened them again when I felt like I could stop picturing him shoving me into a wall in a dark alley.
"I should probably get rid of my blood soaked clothes in your bathroom and get dressed in my apartment after this coffee," I told him.
"Don't want to spend the day with me now that it won't consist of certain physical activities?" he asked curiously.
"No," I answered him, shaking my head swiftly. "I still want to if you do. But I sort of need to be ready to go whenever Jess calls me with something."
"Anything in particular you'd like to do?"
I frowned, staring down at my coffee. "No, not really. Nothing fun, exactly."
He ran a hand through his disheveled hair, messing it more before he proceeded to stretch back in his chair. The sun was out this morning and its orange glow cast a soft light across his face and hair. I could even see some flecks of green in his mostly brown eyes when the light hit just right.
How can one man be so beautiful?
"You're staring," he pointed out.
"And I'm not apologizing for it," I shot back before downing the rest of my coffee.
He exhaled a huff of amusement before leaning forward towards the table, resting his elbows onto the surface and grabbing his mug.
"So what did you have in mind?" he asked.
Awkwardly I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, chewing the inside of my cheek. "Uh, it's more like an errand than a fun activity."
He chuckled, shaking his head a little as he finished the rest of his coffee. "Just tell me already," he said.
"Well I haven't had a chance to restock my groceries…" I told him slowly. "I've sort of been occupied as of late."
An amused grin lingered faintly on his lips as he watched me from across the table. "You want to go grocery shopping?" he asked.
"Uh, yes?" I answered him.
"In public?" he clarified.
My eyes narrowed suspiciously at him. "Is there a way to do it privately that I'm not aware of?" I shot back.
"But with me?" he pressed.
Exasperated, I threw my arms on the table, cocking my head to the side and examining him across from me. "Okay, is this some sort of trick question?" I asked him curiously. "Or is public grocery shopping code for something I'm not aware of?"
His warm laugh brightened the room more than the sunshine did. My heart fluttered at the sound, grateful Kilgrave didn't succeed in snuffing it out of this world last night.
"No," he told me, still laughing slightly. "I just thought you didn't want this to be public? Not until…" the smile vanished immediately from his face before he finished, "not until he was out of the picture."
"To hell with him," I answered, voice suddenly low and dark as my hands balled into fists on the table. "He already knows about us, last night made that clear. If he wants to attack you in the grocery store he'll have to get past me," I growled. "And I can promise you he won't . Not this time."
The faint hum of a vibration began behind my eyes, ignited at the spark of fury for everything Kilgrave had done recently.
He won't control Matt, not again. If he does , a voice in my head snarled, I'll end him. One way or another.
I shook the thought from my mind, shaking off the faint buzzing in my skull with it. When my eyes landed on Matt, I saw he was looking towards me with a mix of curiosity and something else I couldn't quite place. Affection? Attraction? Both?
Quickly he cleared his throat, running a hand through his hair again. "I suppose my fridge is quite bare," he commented. "Maybe I should grab a few things while we're out."
I rose from my seat, grabbing my coffee mug and taking Matt's empty one from him before placing a kiss to the top of his head. My heart skipped when I saw his lips curl up and his eyes flutter close at the gesture.
"I'll just grab my now destroyed clothes from your bathroom and head back to my place," I told him, rinsing out the cups before tossing them in his dishwasher. "Should be a few minutes."
"You want to borrow some pants?" he asked, turning towards me in his chair.
I grinned, sauntering over toward him and very slowly straddling his lap on the chair, fighting back the wince of pain at the movement from my side as I did. Matt straightened immediately, his hands dropping almost instinctively to my hips. I grabbed his wrists and redirected his hands to my upper thighs instead, pressing them into the warm flesh there and enjoying the way he swallowed hard. I carefully slid his hands up my thighs, his fingertips just brushing up towards the fabric of my underwear where his shirt had ridden up on my lap.
"No," I whispered. "Let our neighbors see me leaving here in just your shirt." I leaned in, kissing him gently as my hands still firmly clasped his to my upper thighs. "I'm done hiding this," I told him when I pulled away.
I slid off of his lap, releasing his hands and thoroughly enjoying his momentary stunned silence. I headed towards his bathroom, intentionally swaying my hips and wondering how well he could 'see' what I was doing. Grabbing my bloodied clothes from last night off of the floor, I turned around and startled. Matt was standing in the darkened doorway; I hadn't bothered to turn on the light for the brief moment I'd be in here. Standing there, his mouth in a hard line with dark shadows covering most of him–he looked so much like the Devil of Hell's Kitchen.
"Might want to be careful with what you're playing at, sweetheart," he told me, his tone a husky whisper with a faint warning ringing underneath.
I approached him, head tilting back as I stood just inches from him, my bloodied clothes balled up in my left fist. My right hand reached out, sliding down his bare left shoulder slowly before pausing at his wrist.
"I think I've had enough of the foreplay," I whispered back.
Dropping my clothes, I threw my foot out and swept it past both of his, kicking his feet out from under him. As he fell, I twisted his trapped arm in my hand, using the momentum to turn him so that he landed on his knees in the darkened hallway, his left arm twisted behind his back in my tight grip.
"One thing to know about me," I told him, leaning beside his ear and giving it a playful nip. "I don't back down from challenges."
Suddenly he was twisting in my grip, spinning on his knees towards me and swinging a leg out. As I fell backwards, knocked off my own feet, my hold on his wrist loosened enough for him to break free. The moment my head hit the hardwood floor, he was on top of me, both of his hands pinning mine above my head, his muscular thighs resting just on the outside of mine as he sat on my hips.
"Neither do I," he shot back, a satisfied smile on his face.
I ground my hips up towards his, smiling when a deep rumble came from his chest. "I'm just getting started," I warned him.
Pushing my hips up again a second time, I threw much more force behind it, startling him just enough to shift his weight and give me enough room to move. Arching up into my back, I abruptly slid my legs out from under him, pulling them quickly up towards my chest before throwing them up and wrapping them around his neck. Pushing off the floor with my upper back and knocking him off balance, I used that brief moment to flip him with my thighs, both of them now on either side of his face as he lay flat on his back, his mouth mere inches from my underwear. I reached down, grabbing his arms and pinning them above his head.
"Can we just fuck already?" I asked him. "I don't need the extra bruises right now."
His tongue darted out, lightly lapping against the outside of my underwear. My back arched and a soft sigh left me.
"Is that a yes?" I breathed out.
"Only if you stay like this first," he answered back, his tongue briefly darting up against me again.
His hands strained against my grip and I released them. Immediately they moved; one hand darted up towards me, sliding my panties out of the way of his mouth while the other made its way up under his shirt, cupping my left breast.
He swiped his tongue along my cunt slowly at first and another sigh left me before I bit down on my lip. And then his tongue began to work itself inside of me carefully as my eyes shut, enjoying the feel of it. He worked it in and out repeatedly, his tongue moving gentle at first, getting a feel for how my body reacted to him. My breathing began to come in pants as his tongue slid in and out gradually faster and faster. My hips began rocking forward into him, encouraged by the moans he was making beneath me as my thighs tightened further around his head. With the way he was making me feel it was easy to ignore the pain in my side.
By the time he began lapping vigorously at my clit, working it in different motions with varying pressures, I fell partially forward over him, one hand braced on the floor to hold me up while the other tangled into his hair. A strangled cry of pleasure flew out of my mouth and the hand he was kneading my breast with slipped down to my right hip, grabbing bruisingly tight. When his name rolled off my tongue with a moan, his hand wrenched my hips further down onto his mouth, limiting the movements they'd been doing to just small thrusts forward against him. He was lapping at me aggressively like a man starved and I was right there on the cusp of a climax.
I teetered on the brink of orgasm for a minute, my eyes seeing stars even closed; it was when Matt moaned out underneath me loudly, his tongue changing speed and pressure yet again, that I felt my body come undone. My head fell back as a cry rose in my throat and my thighs clamped tighter around his face as I felt my muscles pleasantly contracting. He continued to lap gently against me as I came, my body twitching at the slight overstimulation. Then he lowered his face and licked up every bit of my arousal that was beginning to drip down my thighs. I bit my lip, my shoulders and chest heaving as a shiver ran through me.
When he moaned out again, a deep need in me arose and without waiting I rose to my feet. I swung my legs over him and turned, pleased when I spotted the tented area of his sweatpants. Eagerly I headed towards his lower half, sliding his sweatpants and boxers down his thighs and pausing to lick the tip of his cock as it sprang free, eliciting a gasp from Matt as I did. I slipped his clothes off the rest of his legs before crawling between his thighs, nudging his legs open wider as he sat upright. He obliged and I focused my attention on his cock, running my hands along the hardened, silky length before bending forward and sliding the flat of my tongue from shaft to tip. The cry that left him had me hungrily pulling him into my mouth unable to wait any longer. One of my hands rested on his thick, muscular thigh, scratching my nails back and forth along the tender skin and enjoying the way his hips occasionally bucked up into my mouth ever so slightly.
Both of his hands ended up in my hair, gripping tight as my mouth and hand worked along the length of him. He was breathing heavily now, and as I glanced up towards him, watching as his tongue slid along his lips, his eyes closed as his head fell backwards, I felt my own arousal growing at how undone I'd gotten him. He was whining my name, his hands gripping my hair tighter in his fists. I felt myself getting wetter all over again, moaning excitedly as I sucked his cock, turned on by the sight of him before me and the feel of him in my mouth.
"Fuck, I want to be inside of you," he groaned. "Olivia, please," he begged breathlessly. "I need to… fuck ," he moaned the word, his eyes closing tighter.
I pulled him from my mouth, rising to my feet to slide my underwear down my legs before I stepped a foot on either side of his hips, lowering myself until I was hovering above his cock. My hands reached out, grabbing onto his shoulders as I lined him up with my slickened entrance, slowly lowering onto the length of him. A groan of pleasure escaped my mouth, but it was quickly swallowed up by Matt's mouth on mine, his tongue sliding in.
His arms snaked their way around my back as mine slid around his, both of us pulling the other in tight against ourselves as we moved together. His tongue was massaging mine with a tender urgency and it was then in that moment that I felt the mood shift between us. The way our hands were holding each other so tight, as if we were both afraid the other would disappear if we let go; the languid way our mouths and tongues were moving in sync with each other, savoring the kiss; our hips rocking together agonizingly slow and sensual, as if we had all the time in the world to indulge in each other. It felt like last night, when we'd had sex in the shower after he'd stitched me up and I'd almost lost him.
I'd had one night stands when I was in Alaska, and I'd slept with Kilgrave before he…forced me to. Nothing had ever felt like this–whatever this was. It felt…intimate in a way I'd never known as he pulled back from my mouth, his forehead resting against mine. Both of us were slicked with sweat and panting hard, our breath mingling together in the small distance between us. As I began to feel that coil tighten in my core, on the verge of another orgasm, I realized Matt was moaning my name. Something about that–hearing my name from his mouth with the way his cock was hitting so slow and deep inside of me–made me lose it. His name flew out of me in a choked cry as I climaxed, my inner walls convulsing around his throbbing cock as I clung desperately to him. He continued to thrust up into me, his pace quickening with his heavy pants. It was moments later that I felt him release in me, a cry of pleasure rolling out of his mouth as I watched his eyes clench close, his fingers digging hard into the skin of my back under the shirt.
My heart was hammering in my chest as I rested my forehead against Matt's shoulder, breathless and spent. His chest was heaving underneath mine, his skin warmer than usual and dampened with sweat as his face fell into the crook of my neck.
A safe, comforting feeling washed over me as we sat wrapped in each other's arms after such an intimate act. I smiled lazily into his shoulder, running my fingers lightly down the length of his spine and then back up. Goosebumps rose along his skin as he sighed contentedly and I continued the movement.
Home , a voice inside my head suddenly whispered. This must be what being home feels like.
Matt placed a soft kiss on my neck before his hands slid down to my hips, carefully lifting me from his softening cock. Internally, I briefly mourned the loss of the feeling but he sat me back down between his legs, his lips planting a sweet kiss to my temple. I mumbled a noise of contentment at the gesture.
"I can't believe we just did that on the hallway floor," he muttered with a light chuckle.
I giggled–actually giggled–at the thought.
"You were teasing me all morning," I mumbled. "What'd you expect?"
I felt him pull back and I shifted slightly against his shoulder, glancing up and grinning at the look of shock on his face.
" Me ? What about you ?" he asked in disbelief.
I rolled my head, burying my face back into his shoulder, laughing lightly. "You started it. You mentioned an entire day of sex," I defended myself. "What's a girl to do when you look like that ? Not want to have sex all day?"
The rumble of a laugh that left him had his shoulders shaking, bouncing my head lightly with the movement. My smile widened as my eyes closed again. I wanted to stay here in this moment forever, wrapped around Matt, enveloped in his embrace, his warmth, the smell of his skin. It was everything I'd always wanted without even knowing I'd been wanting it.
"What're you thinking about?" he asked gently, one of his hands beginning to stroke my hair.
"Nothing," I whispered back. "Just enjoying this moment. With you." I sighed softly before adding, "I wish I didn't have to end it, but I probably should go get ready in case Jess calls."
"There'll be other times where we can have this again," he mumbled, brushing strands of hair from my face and tucking them behind my ear. "We can have this every day if you want. Just you and I. Together." He kissed my temple lightly. "But maybe we should both go take a cold shower before grocery shopping. Otherwise we might end up like this in the middle of the produce aisle."
I snorted a laugh into his shoulder before finally sitting upright. Matt was grinning wide at me, his eyes focused just below mine.
"Now, Matt," I teased, "Everyone knows the cereal aisle is the sexiest aisle."
His head fell back in a laugh. "What?" he choked out. "How is cereal sexier than strawberries? Or any other fruit?"
I shook my head, muffling a laugh behind my hand. "There's just something in Count Chocula's eyes," I said between laughter, "it just really does it for me, you know?"
A bark of a laugh escaped him as his hands slid up, cupping both sides of my face and holding me just inches in front of him. My mouth was matching the contagious smile on his lips, enjoying how happy he looked as he stared down at me.
"You," he began, amusement in his tone, "are ridiculous. And I love it."
Warmth bloomed in my chest at his words, my mind not currently having a chance to dissect that feeling rising in me again before he pulled me in for a quick kiss.
"But we would probably both benefit from a cold shower right now," he told me, pulling away.
"Okay, fine," I huffed out, feigning annoyance, the wide grin still plastered across my face. "I'll see you in a bit."
"Okay, favorite…meal?" I asked Matt curiously.
He was standing beside me as I picked out some fresh fruit. It'd been a while since I'd shopped and I hadn't had any in so long. Matt hummed in thought for a moment, one finger lightly tapping against his cane as I placed some strawberries in the cart. I tried hard to ignore the earlier comment he'd made about the fruit being 'sexy.'
"Honestly?" he said. "Probably spaghetti and meatballs. My dad he…used to make it often. When I was a kid."
I smiled lightly, glancing past the display of mostly under ripe bananas at him. He had the ghost of a smile on his face. He cleared his throat before turning his attention towards me.
"What about you?" he asked curiously.
I picked up a bunch of bananas and placed them in the cart beside my package of strawberries and the packages of blueberries and kiwi that Matt had picked out by scent–a feat that had baffled me as I watched him do it.
"There was this Vietnamese restaurant in Anchorage," I answered immediately. "Had the best banh mi I've ever had. It was the first thing I ate when I'd gotten off the plane, when I'd finally…finally gotten away from Kilgrave." I pushed the cart along as Matt fell in step beside me, his hand lightly gripping my elbow; whether it was because he was actually letting me guide him around the shop or because he wanted the touch, I couldn't tell. "I don't know if it was really as great to others as it was to me," I continued lightly, "or if it was just because it was my first real taste of freedom but…I ate there often. Always the same thing." I laughed a little, noticing Matt's grin out of the corner of my eye as he focused on my voice. "I went there at least once a week. Always ordered the same thing. Didn't take long for them to call me the 'banh mi girl'."
He chuckled softly, squeezing my elbow lightly. I led us down the grain aisle, grabbing a large bag of jasmine rice and scanning the shelves.
"What's your favorite scent?" I asked him, slightly distracted as I browsed the shelves of pasta but enjoying this little questioning game we'd somehow fallen into.
"Yours," he answered immediately.
I swallowed hard, blushing as my hand paused just over a box of organic pasta. I turned my head slightly, taking in the sight of him leaning over the shopping cart towards me. Mentally I cursed his damn glasses for what felt like the hundredth time as they obstructed my view of his handsome face. Biting my lip, I turned back, grabbing the box before placing it in the cart.
"Flirt," I teased him.
A smirk spread along his mouth, faint but noticeable. "Only for you," he shot back.
The blush on my cheeks deepened as he made his way back along the cart towards me, gently gripping my elbow as we moved down the aisle again.
"But what's your real favorite scent?" I asked him, turning the corner and entering the bread aisle.
"I told you," he said.
I rolled my eyes, scoffing. "Okay, so besides me."
He sighed deeply, chewing his lip as he thought for a moment. "Probably…the library at my old law school," he answered slowly. "The uh…the books. Reminds me of late nights studying with Foggy. Laughter. Good times…" His head tilted towards me, his brows raised. "Your favorite scent?"
Your skin…
I cleared my throat before pausing in front of a section of bread loaves beside us. My eyes ran along each one for a moment as I thought. And then my eyelids closed as the scent hit me full on.
"Rainy summers in Anchorage, just outside of this one coffee shop I frequented," I told him as I recalled it. "Smelled like earth and coffee and fresh pastries."
When my eyes opened, I saw the slight downslope of his mouth. His head was tilted towards me, eyes focusing near my chest. His tongue darted quickly out, wetting his lips.
"You really miss it there, don't you?" he asked softly.
I nodded as I turned, grabbing a loaf of bread and tossing it in the cart. "I do," I told him. "but…" my voice trailed off, my fingers dancing along the handle of the shopping cart nervously.
"But?" he asked curiously, a hand coming to rest along my lower back.
My eyes turned up, scanning his curious gaze behind his darkened glasses. "But Alaska doesn't have you," I whispered.
His mouth opened to respond, but the sharp, loud ding of my phone in my pocket abruptly cut him off. My hands were quickly tugging at my jacket, yanking the phone out and immediately opening the text. It was from Jessica.
11:48 AM I should have let you come
My heart flew up to my throat, pounding hard and fast at the text. I immediately began to type, but another text from Jessica came in before I could type more than one word.
11:48 AM We followed a guy from the lab. To a park
11:49 AM Stabbed garden shears through his neck
11:49 AM Briefcase he had was empty. Wasn't a lead
11:49 AM You might have been able to save him though
My eyes slowly closed, the heavy weight of guilt falling on my shoulders. Matt's hand on my lower back pressed against me lightly.
"What?" he asked.
"That was Jess," I answered him slowly, my eyes opening and staring blankly ahead. "The lab wasn't a lead. Kilgrave had them follow a man carrying an empty briefcase and he killed himself in a park." I shook my head, jaw clenching. "I should have been there. I could have saved him."
"You couldn't have known," he whispered.
"I should have," I growled.
The rest of our shopping trip hung under the weight of my darkened mood.