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Just as his hands tried to fall away from her warm cheeks, her own were there, holding them close and making his breath hitch in his chest. He thought that he was the only that was having a difficult time resisting the urge to touch her and he damned well thought that he was crossing some line each time he cracked and did it anyway. Yet, here she was, holding on to him like she needed his touch to stay upright.

The muscle at the edge of his jawline flexed and relaxed, bulging with the effort to find his words. It was frustrating him to tip toe around all of this and he wasn't any good at hiding it for long; his temper had never been great, even if it had been dampened by her most of the time.

"Then where are we starting, babe?" He sighed the words and stepped closer to her, into her space, so that the hands that held her face forced it to tilt upwards for him. "Because not knowing where you want to draw this line is driving me crazy. Every time you look at me with all that hurt in your eyes I just want to hold you, and then when you laugh, I want to kiss your lips and feel that joy on mine."

His fingers flexed beneath hers but he didn't move closer, he didn't dip down to try and kiss her, he just stood there with her hands over his and the bubble he'd let her keep up around herself decidedly popped.

"I'm annoyed and fighting all these impulses because I don't remember what it's like not to do this with you. So tell me where I stand, Jade, so I can start there."

The part of Levi that was accustomed to coming and going in her life whenever he wanted was decidedly not pleased and for just a breath, he felt his temper boiling in his veins. Then, the rational, thinking part of himself that he had been forced to get acquainted with recently realized that he wasn't just healing himself. Two days a week was much more time than he had given her at the end, when everything went wrong; this was just as much about healing them.

The fuse dampened and he nodded, suddenly ashamed of himself. It made his heart ache and he couldn't help the way his hands slid from her neck, down and around her shoulders, until he could drag her into his chest and let his chin lean on her pale crown.

"Okay," he agreed, "okay."

He couldn't promise not to get mad, or upset, so he didn't. He wasn't ever going to make another promise to her that he couldn't keep, not even to make her feel better for a moment. All he could do was try to remember that ******** ups didn't just get everything they wanted. It was a hard lesson for a man that had never thought poorly of himself.

For a long moment, Levi just held her like that, concentrating on her heartbeat where it thudded dimly against his belly. He had missed this, the way she fit just right in his arms, the smell of her hair, how soft she was when he tightened his grip.

"Those sound perfect," he mumbled into the top of her head. Then he loosed his arms to let her pull away, ignoring the fact that she had pulled creases into his tshirt once he was forced to stare down at her pretty face. "Remind me to plug it into my calendar after breakfast, okay?"

The breakfast that was probably burning a little. It made a small, annoyed jolt of panic spark in his stomach but he didn't withdraw immediately even after he realized it. Instead he dipped, slow and careful, and pressed a very gentle, chaste kiss against the corner of her lips. It was full of restraint and carefulness, something unlike him, but he could handle it now that she had made her point. There as some hope here. That's all he needed to know.

Regretfully, he unwound his arms and slowly turned back to the stove. One hand turned off the burner of the bacon (crispier than he liked it but probably perfect for her) while the other lifted his spatula and slid it under a pancake that was charred on one side while still doughy on the top. It made him frown as he walked to the trash can but the annoyance was shallow; even the wasteful plop of it into the plastic bag couldn't dampen his mood. He just went back to the stove and poured another round in.

Once it settled, he cast a small, playful smile over his shoulder at her.

"I guess you're getting crispy bacon after all."

"Fiiine," he drawled playfully.

He pulled down a plate, covered it in a layer of paper towels, and began pulling the bacon out with his tongs. One after the other until he had a layer of them atop the paper towels, all the grease soaking in as they cooled and crisped. He did have the forethought to flip that pancake before he turned and settled the plate on the island between them.

"There you go, Ms. Impatient." It was teasing, but tender, and when he pulled his eyes away from her that time it was with some effort and a pleasant smile on his face.

Then he was back to the coffee he had started to pour, opening the fridge and taking down a few different creamers - regular, coconut milk, almond milk. They were flavored but, for the most part, all seemed to be natural. He was still playing around with what he liked and what he didn't, what was arguably sweet enough without being too much sugar.

He didn't know if any of it would make her happy.

"Sorry, I'm still figuring out what it means to drink coffee instead of sugar, but these are your options."

Her compliment made him smirk and as he drug his eyes up from where he had uncapped the bottle of almond milk to say something that was undoubtedly smarmy, he saw her suck on her fingers in a way that sent heat straight to his belly.

"That's not fair," it was a pointed, accusing tone that fell between them but even for it, he was having a hard time hiding his disbelieving smile. He just shook his head and poured the creamer into both cups before he put the rest away, using that moment with his back turned to avoid the urge to stare at her perfect lips. It was really not fair at all.

He had poured the coffee before he looked at her again, settling the cup just out of reach of her outstretched hand.

"But thanks for you approval all the same, I guess. Maybe breakfast would be ready by now if you weren't trying so damned hard to distract me, hm?" A brow raised before he turned away again, flipping the pancake and glad to see that it was a perfect, beautiful golden brown.

"You were almost good, so you almost get coffee."

There was humor in his voice but he didn't look at her for a long moment. He brought his mug up to his lips and took a careful sip; it was still not sweet enough for his liking but it was tolerable. That's how most things were these days anyway. Despite it, he made a show of smacking his lips as the first taste of it settled on his tongue.

"Mmm."

The pancake was removed from the pan and another batch poured quickly into place. It was only then that he set his cup down and turned to look at her where she was stretched out dramatically, pouting at him. It made him smile as he walked forward and braced both hands on his side of the bar; a brow raised, challenging her. Then, with his amused look perfectly in place, he leaned down to press a playful kiss against the tip of her nose. It was more cutesy than he usually played at but she was adorable with that pout on her lips and all of her weight shifted forward.

"Fiiine," he drawled at last, sliding her cup toward her. "How many pancakes do you want?"

The kiss on his cheek made him stiffen, every muscle going ridged, before he slowly, very slowly, melted and met her gaze. Somehow they had become playful teenagers in bodies that had already been explored between them and it was strange, but not bad. It made him shake his head a little as he turned around and left her to sipping on her coffee - it was simpler than the coffee shop drinks she liked but it was enough.

"Alright, two for the siren, two for the sailor."

Levi flipped the pancake out of the pan and poured another, ignoring the way he could still feel her lips on the curve of his cheek. He wanted to reach up and touch it but he didn't; that was desperate and he was calmer than that. He wasn't a giddy teenager, no matter how ridiculous he felt about it right then.

"There's some chopped fruit in the fridge if you wanna try being helpful," it was a tease and he smiled as he flashed her a smile over his shoulder. "And I'm sure you remember where the plates are, right?"