'What kind of deal? '

Levi had done the impossible feat of getting me to focus on something other than the increasingly demanding throb in my pants. The mix of emotions that had battled for position on his face had finally settled into one expression of annoyed defeat. He was giving in to something, although I had no idea what it was. I had my hopes, of course; all of which had to do with him continuing to move his hips in the same blissful rhythm they had been in only moments ago. Hell, if it would get him moving, I was willing to bargain just about anything despite the fact that I had very little to offer.

'I shouldn 't have to give you shit, you know, ' Levi started, an annoyed snap in his voice, 'You agreed to do this for me and now you 're backing out. I should have expected as much. '

'That doesn 't sound like a deal, ' I muttered, trying to ignore the way his hips felt against mine as he adjusted his position. 'Those are usually a you give, I give kind of thing. '

'Would you shut your mouth for one damn second? ' Levi interrupted. He let a sigh rush through his clenched teeth and I wondered for a moment if he was trying to get control of his body as well. Maybe his mind was as muddled as mine. 'You never think before speaking, do you? You just say whatever the fuck pops into your head. There 's no filter. '

I opened my mouth and he clamped his hand over it. I thought, in an instant of pure insanity, that it would be a good idea to lick his hand. It was a childish idea, of course, something I would have done if I were messing around with Armin. Luckily whatever sense I had left was just enough to keep my tongue in my mouth. It was, unfortunately, not enough to keep the mischievous glint from flashing through my eyes. He stared down at me, reading my expression as if I had actually said my thoughts out loud, and leaned down. His fingers curled to grip my jaw as he spoke close to my face, his hand the only barrier between our lips.

'Don 't even think about it, brat. Sending you back to Mike without a jaw wouldn 't look good. '

I swallowed.

I knew he didn 't mean it as a joke. Levi 's apartment had been immaculate in every sense of the word, without a spot of dust to be seen. Something about his appearance told me that the cleanliness was not a maid 's doing, but his. Even now, after he had taken his time tormenting me on the couch, his clothes were still in pristine condition and his hair didn 't have a strand out of place. I thought back to the times when I had seen him in the elevator, black eyeliner and wig in place, and realized that he had been perfect then, too. I had a feeling that Levi didn 't do anything half-assed. He valued being as sanitary as the things around him, and my tongue on his hand would be a violation of that.

'Now, as I was saying, ' he continued, 'I shouldn 't have to give you a damn thing, but since you 're determined to be a little shit ' why don 't you tell me what you want. One thing and one thing only. '

He moved his hand and sat back on my hips. I fought my reaction to the satisfying weight pressing into the dull throb that still lingered there and spoke, 'You. '

I had expected, and even hoped for, some kind of shock in response to my confession, but the most I got was boredom and annoyance. His expression didn 't falter in the slightest, not even a small twitch of his mouth. He was stoic. He had anticipated this. 'Why? '

I felt my brow furrow as confusion sunk into me. Was that a legitimate question? Had he ever seen himself in the mirror? 'What do you mean why? Isn 't it obvious? '

'You think I 'd waste my breath on something that 's obvious? '

'You just did. '

'Look at me, kid, ' he said despite the fact that I already was. It had become impossible to look away from him. 'I 'm not exactly a prize to be won. I 'm offering you a fucking sex god. Don 't turn down a buffet for dinner scraps. '

I stared at him with incredulous eyes and propped myself up on my elbows. He leaned back to accommodate my new position and amusement touched his features, 'Your eyes look like they 're going to pop out of your head, kid. It 's creepy. '

'Are you insane? '

'It 's one of my best qualities. '

'No, I 'm serious. Have you seen yourself? ' I adjusted my weight to one arm to point at his face, as if he wasn 't already aware of what I was talking about. I was pretty sure at this moment that he had no clue.

'Have you seen him? ' Levi put emphasis on the last word and I felt jealousy twist like a knife in my gut. I didn 't want to think about the fact that Levi considered Erwin attractive.

'Yea, I saw him, ' my voice was low and tinged with frustration, 'You practically shoved him in my face. But I don 't want him. '

'You don 't know what the fuck you want. '

'I want you, Corporal. '

He groaned and put a hand over his eyes, pressing it tight against his head. I could see the definition in his jaw as he clenched his teeth and he sat there for a long moment, his breathing audible as he tried to collect himself. Finally he dragged the hand off his forehead and through his short hair, the strands sticking between his fingers as he stared down at me with an expression caught between lust and anger. When he spoke his voice was low and raspy, strained as if he were barely managing to contain himself.

'You 're a manipulative little shit for making me want what I can 't have. '

I didn 't wait for him to say more. I lunged forward, throwing him off my hips in the process. His back hit the couch and I joined him with an urgency I had never felt before, swallowing his angry protest as I covered his mouth with my own. I felt his hands push against my shoulders and steeled my hand against the side of the couch, determined to keep my position. I was brave in that moment, confident to the point of insanity and driven by the single desire that had consumed my every thought for the past week.

His hands surged forward as I continued to assault his lips, my tongue boldly probing for further access. He would no doubt take advantage and bite my tongue to get me off of him, but I was too possessed by my need to taste him that I couldn 't bring myself to care. I would have welcomed the pain and struggle if it would grant me a moment more of this. I was willing to take what he would give me at this point, and the fact that I was so desperate for him so shortly after meeting him both thrilled and terrified me.

I felt his lips tense into a thin line as his jaw tightened and his hands stilled on my shoulders. In a moment of clarity, I realized I had gone too far and finally gave up, withdrawing from the kiss. He stared up at me with an expression that was carnal desire in the most primal sense, his blue eyes brighter than I had ever seen them. A low growl stirred in his throat and I hissed when his nails dug into my shoulders before clenching around fistfuls of fabric. He wrenched me down to him and surged up in the same instant, his mouth open as he reclaimed mine.

His tongue invaded my mouth before I could protest, the warm, slick heat exploring every inch that I had to offer. My tongue met his and the taste that flooded me pulled a delirious moan from my chest, taking my mind with it. I could hear nothing but the panting breaths that escaped our lips in the brief instances that they parted. A soft, pleading whine was stirring in my throat as I scrambled to get back on top of him, desperate to feel the throb that I knew would be waiting for me there. Our hips pushed together and a guttural moan parted my lips, his head tilting back as he hissed through his teeth.

'Damn it, Jaeger! '

He grabbed my hips and shoved me off of him with such ease that it was almost insulting. I fell against the opposite side of the couch and stayed there, my trembling limbs refusing to do much other than a stationary position. I struggled to collect myself, panting hard as I stared at him. My cheeks were flushed red, but I noted with a triumphant satisfaction that his were as well. His lips were parted, his breaths labored as he stared at me with the same bright eyes that told me he was barely restraining himself.

'What the fuck. ' He paused between breaths and pressed both hands against his forehead. He let a heavy sigh rush through his teeth and followed it with a frustrated groan before repeating himself, 'What the fuck are you doing to me? '

'I could ask you the same thing. ' My voice was breathless and I tilted my head back, trying to focus on my recovering lungs rather than his face. He made breathing impossible on a regular basis, and I would suffocate happily if I looked at him now.

I heard a rustle of fabric as he moved off of the couch and envied him for his ability to walk. I followed him with my eyes as he crossed the room to the door, grabbing the handle before turning to me. 'Get out. '

'What? ' I spoke through a laugh. I wasn 't sure if I was flabbergasted or just plain amused that he thought I had any control of my legs at the moment.

'You heard me, brat, ' he growled, gripping the handle so tight that I could see the white of his knuckles. 'I want you to get out of here. Now. '

'I can 't move my legs. '

'Then I 'll drag you out by your hair. '

'You can 't be serious. '

'Try me. '

I sat there, staring at him as I debated my options. There was a reason he was standing at the door and ordering me to leave, and it wasn 't because I had no effect on him. His chest was still rising and falling quickly as he struggled to maintain some semblance of his signature indifference, and I noticed his pants evidently offered as little accommodation as mine did. Walking out of that door meant abandoning any of the progress I had just made, and I was certain I had made a lot. Like hell I was moving off of this couch.

I leaned back against the arm of the couch and stared at him with defiant eyes. I could have sworn I heard metal crunch as his hand tightened on the doorknob. Then he released it, striding over to me with a determination that told me I should start running now if I wanted to live. He caught me before I could make it off the couch, grabbing a fistful of my hair and giving it a hard tug to show that he had been serious, 'Have it your way, then. '

'Don 't you want me to help you? ' I blurted out the only thing I had left.

His hand stilled and his grip loosened just enough to tell me that I managed to save myself a painful trip out the door. 'You already made it clear you have no intention of helping me. '

'No, I said I wasn 't interested in him. I never said I wouldn 't help you. '

He stared at me like I had just told him two plus two was five. 'An interest in him is kind of the one and only requirement, kid. How the hell are you supposed to make him want to fuck you if you can 't get it up? '

'I can get it up, ' I scoffed with a roll of my eyes, 'I might not be interested, but it 's not like he 's not attractive. He 's hot. Trust me, I 'll be hard for him. '

I caught sight of his eyebrow twitching once in what looked like anger and decided to try my luck. 'I 'm hard thinking about him now, actually. Is he still in his office? We could get started right away. '

'Fuck, ' Levi muttered and released his grip on my hair, shoving me back against the couch. He strode away from me and towards his desk, pacing the room. He ran both hands through his hair, knotting the strands in his frustration. 'You damn shitty little brat. Fuck! You 're good. You really are, you know that? '

'What do you mean? '

'Come off it, Jaeger, ' he snapped, turning to glare at me, 'You 're almost as manipulative as I am. '

I shut my mouth and suppressed a satisfied smile. I had managed to make him jealous. But who was he jealous over? A nagging voice gnawed at me, reminding me that he was in a relationship with Erwin, or at least had been recently. The jealousy might not have been over me at all, and the thought made my stomach twist uncomfortably.

Then I realized, 'You want to hurt him, don 't you? '

'What? '

'That 's why you 're asking me to do this, right? I mean, you wouldn 't be this gung ho on it if I were just a piece of ass for him. He seemed more interested in Armin, if that were the case. I 'm probably not even his type, am I? '

'You 're young enough, ' he spoke slowly, eyeing me with a guarded expression. I was getting into things he wasn 't prepared to discuss.

'He barely looked in my direction today, ' I countered, standing up from the couch. 'This isn 't about a relationship. You 're trying to get me to fuck him. Why? '

'That 's not your business. '

'It 's my ass! I 'm pretty damn sure what goes in my ass is very much my business! '

Levi 's mouth curved on a small smirk. 'Maybe so, but you 're going to have to trust me on this one. '

'Trust you? ' I spit the words out as they filled my mouth with a bad taste, 'Are you kidding me? I don 't even know who the hell you are! I 've known you for a week and everything up until now has been a lie! '

'None of that was a lie, ' he snapped back, 'What you see in front of you right now? That 's the lie. It 's the lie I live until I can have the life that I want. '

'What life? The Wall? '

'Mock it all you want, kid, it 's a hell of a lot better than what I have here. '

I looked around the expansive office with the glass windows that offered the best view I had ever seen of the city. It was hard to believe that anything would be better than this comfortable job in a position of authority in one of the most respectable businesses in the country. I turned my attention back to him and raised one eyebrow, questioning his sanity.

'Life isn 't all about money and things, kid. ' He leaned one hip against his desk and folded his arms, cocking his head to the side and fixing me with a smirk. The pose was one I would expect from some sassy girl, but somehow it worked for him.

'Is that why you want me to help you, then? ' I decided I had to return to the subject and at least attempt to understand why he wanted me to do any of this. 'So that you can have that life? '

'You could say that. '

'Is he forcing you to be here? '

'Not exactly, ' he said with a small shrug and then shook his head. 'We 're not going to talk about this. That 's the most you 're going to get out of me. '

'You 're going to have to give me more if you expect me to do this for you. '

He narrowed his eyes and moved away from the desk to walk towards me. I tried to ignore the sway of his hips and wondered how he had taken a motion I had always associated with women and turned it into something that was both alluringly feminine and seductively masculine in the same moment. He could take down armies with those hips.

'Does it have to be more information? '

'No. ' I blurted out the word before I even had time to consider the question.

He paused and gave a little nod, eyeing me speculatively. 'So let 's say I were to offer you my company on a weekly basis ' '

'Daily. '

'I have a life, brat, ' he retorted and then sighed when I said nothing, 'We 'll see. '

'What kind of company are we talking about? ' I amazed myself when I managed to say the words without stammering.

'Oh? ' He purred the word in a way that made my pants uncomfortably tight yet again. His eyelashes flicked down as he noticed my sudden problem, and a smirk had teased its way onto his lips by the time he returned his gaze to me. 'We 've already established that I 'm not a hooker. I 'm offering you my company, which is more than I 've ever offered anyone. Be grateful. '

'So no touching. ' I clarified.

'We 'll see, brat. Don 't get your hopes up. '

'Can I have time to think about it then? '

The look crossed his features so quickly that I barely had time to process it. His eyebrows had knit together and his eyes almost closed, his lips parting to reveal a set of white clenched teeth. It looked like pain, but that didn 't make sense.

'Yea. Sure. ' His face was impassive and his voice was cold. He walked past me and his shoulder struck me along the way. I stumbled slightly and righted myself by placing one hand against the wall. 'Think about it. '

He opened the door and tilted his chin towards the exit to indicate that it was time for me to leave. I faltered for a moment, wanting to stay and figure out what had gone so wrong so quickly. I said something that had set him off, but I had no idea what it was. Deciding that I might only make things worse, I opted to take the offer to leave. I was almost through the doorway when he caught my upper arm and yanked me hard enough that I fell against his chest.

He leaned up, growling at my ear, 'If my body is all you 're interested in, this could work out nicely. '

The biting edge of his voice said otherwise. 'Who said that was all I wanted? '

'Why do you have to think about it? ' His fingers curled and pressed his nails against me through the fabric of my shirt. 'If we get this over with, will you get started now? '

Ah. Suddenly I knew exactly what had gone wrong. I had chosen to say I would think about it right after I had been denied the promise that things would be physical in those daily visits. He was right. I really had no control over the words that came out of my mouth. I didn 't stop to think about them for a moment, and it had turned everything to shit now because of it.

'That 's not all I want, ' I said, jerking my arm free of his hold.

His eyes narrowed infinitesimally and he lowered his hand to his side. 'Fine. It would make things a hell of a lot easier, but fine. If that 's the case, then you 're going to prove it. '

'How? '

He dug in his pocket and held out a key, 'For the penthouse. You can 't get the elevator up there without it. This is my spare, but that doesn 't mean you can be a dumbass and lose it, got it? '

I took the key, staring at it as my brow knit in confusion, 'What do you want me to do with it? '

'Sit on it and spin, ' he said with a roll of his eyes, 'Really, you don 't think, do you? I want you to come up to my place tonight. '

I felt my heart skip. 'Okay. '

'By seven, ' he continued, 'Not a second later. Don 't make me wait for your ass, Jaeger. You 'll be up there by then and you 'll have an answer on whether or not you 're going to do this for me. You 're going to do that or you can forget the whole fucking deal. I 'll find someone else to do it and you can kiss this internship goodbye. '

'I 'm actually not interested in the internship anyway, ' I said with a dismissive shrug. I wasn 't trying to downplay his threat, but it was true. I had been dragged into this thing kicking and screaming by a cute, manipulative blonde.

'What do you mean you 're not interested? ' His voice was almost as incredulous as Armin 's had been when I first tried to turn down the internship. 'If that 's the case, then why are you even here? '

'I was dragged into it by Armin. '

'Armin ' ' Levi looked towards his desk and I followed his gaze, noticing a stack of labeled folders sitting at its center. 'Arlert, right? He 's Erwin 's favorite. '

'I could tell, ' I uttered the words in a voice that elicited a knowing smile from Levi 's lips. It was one of the few instances in which I had seen expression on his face, but I was too angry and protective over Armin to appreciate it.

'That kid 's going to have to watch his ass around him, ' he noted and then added, 'I mean that in the most literal sense. Erwin has a thing for smart petite men. '

I couldn 't stop my gaze from roaming over his body, and he gave a small laugh when he noticed my stare. 'Myself included, yea. '

I didn 't want to know anything about their relationship. In fact, it was impetrative that Levi keep those details to himself if I had any hope of pursuing Erwin in the way that he wanted me to. Not that I was sure I would be able to anyway. I was as inexperienced as the word virgin went and I had only just recently accepted the fact that I was interested in men.

'You know I 'm not petite. And I 'm no where near as smart as Armin. ' I paused and then muttered the last bit so quick and low that I hoped he might miss it, 'I 'm not even as experienced as Armin. '

'Experience isn 't a necessity, ' Levi waved his hand dismissively, unfazed by my confession. 'In fact it 's kind of a bonus where Erwin is concerned. He likes fresh meat. Breaking in someone new just happens to be one of his favorite pass times, right next to pottery and crocheting. '

Both my eyebrows shot up and he smirked. 'I 'm kidding. '

I jumped when my phone started to vibrate in my pocket and pulled it out to see Armin 's cheerful face on the screen. 'Hello? '

'Eren? ' He sounded panicked. 'I just checked the bathrooms. Where are you? The tour 's almost over. '

'Why did you break away from the group? ' I decided to avoid his question with one of my own.

'We 're having lunch because we just finished the tour of the cafeteria. Where are you? '

'I 'm- '

My eyes widened with surprise when the phone left my hand. Levi waved me off as I tried to reach for it, and he leaned back against the doorframe as he held the phone to his ear.

'He 's with me, kid. '

I had the sudden urge to punch Armin for stealing my pet name, but then reminded myself that he wasn 't the one who said it. I glared at Levi and he raised one eyebrow in response, clearly not aware that the name was mine. I still hated it, of course, but it was mine.

'Vice President Levi, ' he said the title in such a bored voice I was actually waiting for him to tack on a yawn at the end. Armin must have asked who he was.

'Uh huh. Yea. ' He let out a rough sigh of impatience, 'Yea, yea, kid, I get it. I 'm fucking amazing. Can we move on? Great. Where are you? '

I watched his brow furrow and felt my fingers aching to trace the lines. I mentally kicked myself for the thought immediately after and realized that I was now becoming dangerously obsessed. This was going to be bad.

'Which cafeteria, Arlert? There are two. ' His nose wrinkled in disapproval, 'That one? Ugh. All right, tell Mike I 'm on my way down to rip him a new one. We don 't need the interns eating swill on their first day. Tch. What kind of impression is that? '

I could hear Armin 's nervous stammering on the other line and felt a stab of pity for him. He clearly didn 't want to tell Mike anything Levi had just said.

'What? ' Levi rolled his eyes and continued, 'I didn 't ask whether or not you wanted to do anything. Tell Mike I 'm on my way, and I 'm bringing his straggler with me. '

Levi hit the end button on my phone and held it out to me in one fluid motion. I took it from him slowly, completely dumbfounded over what had just occurred. I was pretty damn sure Armin had the same expression on his face a few floors below. 'You didn 't have to yell at him. '

'Yell? ' Levi scoffed, 'When I 'm yelling, you 'll know it. What I did just then is called being authoritative. You 're going to have to learn to get used to that really fast if you plan on spending any more time around me. '

He grabbed my wrist before I could even ponder a response and pulled me out the door. He shut it behind us and took off at a quick stride down the hall, rapping his knuckles hard against Erwin 's door as he passed by it. He called over his shoulder when he heard the door click open, 'Mike brought the interns to the fucking dive the warehouse workers eat in. Who the hell put him in charge again? '

'That would be me, ' Erwin started, already closing his office door behind himself to follow us, 'What are you doing here, Eren? '

'I ' uh ' '

'He got lost in the shitter, ' Levi said with a roll of his eyes, waving his hand dismissively over his shoulder. He glanced back at Erwin, 'These kids are hopeless. They 're just going to mess up everything. I don 't know what you were thinking with this internship. '

Erwin was eyeing me suspiciously and I managed a sheepish grin. He wasn 't buying Levi 's excuse; that much was obvious. I tried to ignore his stare and focused on catching up to the raven-haired man in front of us. Trying to keep up with Levi 's surprisingly fast gait should have been a category in the Olympics. It should have been easy for us considering our legs were much longer, but he stayed at least two strides ahead of us the entire length of the hall. Levi jabbed his thumb against the button for the elevator and turned to face us as we finally caught up.

'So, Eren, ' Erwin 's voice was invitingly smooth and yet commanded my attention. I turned my gaze to him and tried to ignore the fact that he was actually attractive. I wondered, briefly, if maybe I could do this for Levi after all. 'Are you enjoying your first day here? '

'Tch, ' Levi interrupted, 'He said he 's not even interested in being here. He 's been moaning all day. '

The last comment sent a thrill straight down into my groin and by the look on Levi 's face I could tell it was fully intentional. I tried to fold my hands as casually as I could and held them near the fly of my pants. Stupid, manipulative midget.

'That 's a shame. It 's a great opportunity. ' Erwin said as he eyed me with a speculative stare. 'Why did you sign up if you 're not interested? '

'Because Armin wanted me to. '

'Oh, Arlert, ' he murmured in a voice that was a little too low not to be sexual. I didn 't like the way he said his name. 'I remember him from earlier. He seems like a very bright young man. I 'd like to have the chance to get to know him. '

I bet you would, you dirty fucking-

'I 'm sure he 'd love that, ' Levi interrupted my thoughts as we stepped onto the elevator. 'Maybe you can talk to him at lunch. After we get them out of that shitty ass excuse for a cafeteria, that is. '

'The food isn 't that bad, Levi. '

'Have you seen the kitchen? Filthy. ' He shook his head with an expression of pure disgust. 'I don 't even want to think about the last time they cleaned it. '

Erwin gave him an accommodating smile, 'Fine, we 'll move them to our cafeteria. Is that better? '

'Much, ' Levi muttered, looking over his nails with a bored expression, 'It 'll be the perfect place to tell them. '

'Tell them? ' I was glad Erwin sounded as confused as I was. 'Tell them what? '

'I 've decided to add an extra piece of incentive for the end of this internship, ' Levi said, lifting his gaze to Erwin and lowering his hand back to his side.

'Oh, you have? And what are we going to be giving them? ' Erwin sounded more amused than the annoyed that I had expected. I realized then that Levi had far more power in this company than I had originally thought.

'We 're not giving shit to all of them, ' Levi corrected, turning his attention to the elevator dial as it countered down the numbers, 'Just two of them. The best of the interns. '

'And what are we giving them? ' Erwin prompted, his interest piqued. I had to admit, so were mine.

'Jobs, ' Levi stated simply and then the corner of his mouth twitched in a small smirk. 'I 've been wanting a personal secretary, and you don 't have one either. That gives us two openings for the interns. Preferably male. '

'I don 't think you 'd do well with a male secretary, ' Erwin murmured, shooting a wary glance in my direction. He seemed to be analyzing whether or not he could say anything too personal in front of me, and must have decided that he could because he said, 'If you had a little bitch doing what you demanded day in and day out, I doubt you 'd be able to keep your hands off of him. '

'Oh, I can guarantee I wouldn 't keep my hands off of him. That 's the point. ' Levi said with a low chuckle and then paused, glancing at Erwin once more. 'I 'm sorry, did I call them secretaries? That was stupid. I meant toys. '

The edges of my vision were blurring with a new level of jealousy I would have never thought possible. The idea of anyone working under Levi in both a figurative and literal sense made my skin crawl. The fact that there was a chance that person could be Jean made me want to slaughter everyone in the building to prevent that from ever happening. I felt my nails biting into my palms and tried to relax my grip only to find that was currently impossible. I was trembling with a rage that I needed to get under control before we left the elevator.

I could practically feel Levi 's gaze on me and didn 't have to look to know it was there. He had planned this and I was giving him exactly the reaction he wanted. He was the most dangerously manipulative person I had ever met and I realized what he had said earlier was true. I was wrapped around his finger and he was toying with me whenever he felt the inclination to do so. What was worse was that I couldn 't stop him. I didn 't even want to. He wanted me to give a damn about this shitty internship and suddenly it was the most important thing in my world.

Erwin stepped off the elevator first and I went to follow him, eager to get out of the enclosed space that was filled with one too many thoughts. Levi 's hand on my shoulder stopped me in my place, and I shuddered as his lips brushed against my ear and he purred in a voice that was so seductive I felt my sanity slipping.

'Interested yet? '