So, this is pretty much pure romantic smut, so feel free to take a pass if that's not your thing. For those who've read the other Melanie Shepard stories, this is set in-between Long Way Home and Home Life. For those who haven't, it stands on it's own. The only thing to know is that Shepard and Liara didn't get together until ME3. Please leave feedback and I hope you enjoy it.
"Liara, I think I've served on ships smaller than this." Melanie Shepard was only slightly exaggerating. The penthouse suite at the Illium Grand hotel was vast; with a massive bed, a huge leather sofa, a bar, a vid screen large enough to use for commercial purposes, and a panoramic view of one of the more intact major cities left in the galaxy, it was fair to say Shepard had never stayed anywhere quite like it.
The asari grinned at her. "Good. I would hate to think that I spent this many credits and you weren't impressed."
"Well, you succeeded. I sometimes forget just how rich you are."
"You were the one who helped make me the Shadow Broker. It only seemed fair that you share in the rewards. Besides, when the woman who saved the galaxy gets her first real vacation in years, it should be memorable."
Shepard pulled Liara into her arms, causing the information broker to drop her bags. Running her hands up and down the asari's body, she whispered huskily, "You'll make it memorable."
"That is my hope," Liara purred, her voice hinting at all manner of future pleasures. It had been over a week since the last time they'd made love and Shepard was on edge from the break. It may have been an insignificant amount of time compared to her wait to be with Liara, but it felt like an eternity in terms of their frequency since being reunited after the war.
A routine stop at Helyme to deliver medical supplies to the refugees there had turned messy when the pirates preying on the system had made what Garrus described as the almost unbelievably stupid decision to take on "The Savior of the Galaxy" and her crew. Several days of fighting had followed, and while it wasn't anywhere near as bad as the war they had just come out of, it was still an intense capstone to what had already been a pretty stressful schedule of relief work. With the threat now dealt with, Shepard had decided the crew needed some shore leave and nearby Illium had been the obvious choice.
Melanie started to glide her tongue over the scaled skin of Liara's neck, but when she reached for the clasp of her white dress, her lover stopped her. "Wait," she grinned, pressing a playful finger over Melanie's nose. "I had the opportunity to do a little shopping while you were busy being mobbed by grateful throngs and I want to change into something."
Her reluctance diminished by her curiosity, Melanie let her bondmate slide out of her arms. "Go on. I can be patient."
"You certainly were with me," Liara smiled, picking up one of her bags and heading into the cavernous bathroom. "And now I would like to repay you for it."
Shepard felt a tear come to her eye. She may have waited a couple of months for Liara to be ready to make love, but the asari had waited almost three years for Melanie to come to her senses and accept that she wanted to be with her. "You were incredibly patient with me as well."
"And I'm sure you will amply reward me too," Liara replied mischievously, her good humor banishing Melanie's regrets, before disappearing behind the closing door.
Sitting down on the white leather sectional, Melanie reached down to unlace her boots. Pulling them off along with her socks, she un-tucked her uniform shirt and poured herself a glass of water from the bottle on the coffee table, sipping it slowly and enjoying her anticipation of Liara's re-emergence.
She wished that she and Liara could have settled down and spent more time just enjoying each other as soon as the war ended, but it wasn't in their natures to rest with the galaxy in the shape it had been in. The Reapers may have been destroyed, but famine, disease, and homelessness had been left in their wake and every available hand was needed to get things up and running again. Even a year of hard work later, it would still be a little while before she could consider retiring from the Alliance in good conscience. None the less, things were much better than they'd been, and for the next few days, she and her crew could enjoy a taste of the peaceful future they had won.
Her eyes drawn by the sound of the bathroom doors sliding open, Melanie was struck by just how appealing that taste looked right then. Liara had changed into a skimpy negligee made of blue silk, it's low cut giving an enticing view of the top of her breasts, while with every step she took the high slits along the sides showed hints of a pair of lacy panties made of the same material underneath.
Shepard swallowed hard. "God, Liara, you look…" She couldn't find the words, but her lover didn't seem to mind, striding seductively towards Melanie, evidently pleased at having taken the Specter's breath away.
Liara settled herself on Melanie's lap, and angling her neck down, caught the human's lips with her own. It was a long, slow kiss, and as Shepard felt Liara's tongue tangle with hers, she marveled at how passionate the asari could be. Liara had been impressively enthusiastic for a novice during their night together before Cronos Station, but now she had far greater confidence in her own sexual abilities.
Melanie pulled her lover closer, her strong hands running over the asari's soft curves, the feeling of her skin beneath the thin silk almost addictive. "I take it you approve," Liara breathed, her own hands tangling in Melanie's short, dark hair and the only adequate reply Shepard could find was to kiss her again.
As the kiss went on, one of Melanie's hands moved around to cup a pert breast, the thumb tracing small circles over the dark blue shape she could see beneath the silk. The nipple hardened swiftly under her touch, and Liara moaned into the kiss before breaking it to shower Melanie's neck with smaller, swifter ones. Shepard's free hand went to the back of Liara's crest, lovingly pressing her face against her. Just this, the feel of Liara's warm body entwined with her, was so sweet, and for a moment she was overwhelmed.
As Melanie held her close, Liara asked tenderly, "Are you all right, love?"
"I'm fine." Her fingers explored the folds of Liara's crest and the asari moaned softly into her shoulder. "I just… It's still amazing to me sometimes. That we survived, that you're really here with me."
"Always."
The certainty in her voice was reassuring and Melanie grinned. "Then I'll just have to make sure I'm worthy of this second chance."
Liara lifted her head, her bright blue eyes beaming with pride in her lover. "You saved the galaxy repeatedly. I think you earned it."
"Still," Melanie laughed, "I'd like to be sure." Her hand slid under the negligee, slowly encompassing a breast in her hand. The nipple was firm against her palm, and Liara exhaled with delight.
"Well, I'm told you humans have a saying: better safe than sorry."
"Mm hmm. My thoughts exactly." Her hand dropped down from Liara's breast to her bare leg and started running up it, raising the silk slightly with her fingers. The asari started moving into her touch, her back arching, her body pushing forward to get more of Melanie.
Her fingers traced along the fringe of Liara's panties, pushing them up slightly. The scales underneath were already engorged with arousal, damp to the touch, and when she caressed them gently, the asari whimpered, angling her hips in an attempt to get Melanie's hand on her clit.
"I thought you were patient," the human teased.
"You can make patience difficult sometimes," Liara replied, her voice strained. Clearly, she had missed this as much as Melanie, and the Specter looked forward to rectifying that.
"As you wish, my love." She pushed aside her bondmate's underwear and pressed two fingers lightly against her core, finding it already slick with her excitement. Liara breathed in sharply, and Melanie started rubbing up and down the shaft of the clit while her other hand resumed playing with her crest. The asari felt so good like this, her body resting on Shepard legs, getting hotter and hotter under her touch.
Melanie dipped down her fingers, sliding first one and then a second inside Liara. She was so wet, gripping her digits so tightly, and Melanie found it thrilling. Often they would join by this point, sharing their pleasure, but sometimes Shepard enjoyed not doing so, focusing all of her attention on Liara, and savoring her reactions.
Liara leaned into Melanie, taking the human's fingers deeper inside her and the Specter used the proximity to pull the negligee up enough to take a blue nipple into her mouth, sucking vigorously on the rock-hard bud while she increased the speed of her thrusts. The movement of her lover's hips started to become more frantic, her cries louder, and Shepard lifted her head up, nipping at Liara's neck as she kept fucking her with her hand. "Am I making a good case for myself?"
"Goddess, yes," Liara cried, her words somewhere between a response and a more general affirmation of pleasure. Melanie curled her fingers, sliding them against her inner walls until she found just the right spot inside her lover. It had taken her a bit of practice to be able to get this right without the meld, but it was worth it. Liara came undone around her fingers, her thighs squeezing Melanie's leg, her inner muscles contracting over and over again. Shepard held her lover close, Liara wrapping her arms tightly around the human as her bliss washed over her.
Her shudders gradually ceased, and Melanie withdrew her hand slowly, brushing her slick digits across Liara's still quivering clit when she did. The asari let out one last moan of pleasure and Melanie kissed the wet tips, savoring the sweet, clean taste of her beautiful bondmate on her fingers.
Liara slumped against her chest and, Shepard held her close, letting her take as much time as she needed to come down. After a minute though, her soft voice purred into Shepard's ear, "I am quite convinced you deserved your second chance."
Melanie kissed the top of her head. "Good to know."
"Now," Liara offered coyly, "Let us see if I can make an equally convincing case about why it was worthwhile to be patient with me."
"That sounds wonderful."
"One more minute's patience though," Liara smiled, pouring herself some water. "I am a bit short of breath."
Melanie laughed. "I'm not surprised. I'm glad this is the only room on the floor; dealing with noise complaints from the other guests isn't exactly how I imagined spending our shore leave."
As Liara gulped down the water, she couldn't help but feel a little chagrined. She'd gone to the trouble of getting dressed up for Melanie, and the Specter managed to distract her so thoroughly that she'd already come and her bondmate was still wearing her uniform. Still, Melanie did seemed pleased with the direction things had gone in. Neither the clinical lectures about sex that Liara had heard in school nor the occasional curious visits to questionable extranet sites had prepared her for just how enjoyable a lover's pleasure could be. Setting down the glass, she turned back to Melanie, taking the Specter's face in her hands and kissing her happily before motioning in the direction of the large bed.
"Get undressed." It was more of a suggestion than an order, but the hungry tone in Liara's voice left no doubt that it was also a suggestion Shepard would enjoy following. Melanie lay down on the bed, her frame sinking into the soft mattress, and once she looked comfortable, Liara pushed the straps of the now-rumpled negligee off of her shoulders, letting the silk pool at her feet. She loved the appreciative way Shepard looked over her bare skin, and she continued, slowly pulling the soaked underwear down as well.
Melanie's hands moved to her dark blue shirt, but though she started undoing the buttons, her eyes stayed fixed on Liara. "Goddess, Shepard," the asari breathed, "The things you do to me… Before I met you, I never imagined anyone could make me feel the way that you can." She traced a finger over a nipple still damp from Melanie's mouth and she could see the Specter swallow hard, her breathing hitching.
Liara let her hand move down her stomach, arching the muscles in her abdomen as she did, enjoying the sight of Melanie trying to unhook her bra without breaking her gaze. "She's lucky she's so dexterous," Liara thought, "And so am I." That last sent a tremble of desire through her, and she let her fingers brush over her still-sensitive clit. "Look at what you do," she purred as her sensitive flesh quivered under her hand. "I've already come so hard and I still want you so much."
"Fuck, Liara," Melanie chocked out, and she could tell it was taking all of the human's willpower not to leap off of the bed and take Liara's body in her arms.
"Let me help you with that," Liara offered, laying down on the bed below her lover, unfastening Melanie's pants while giving the Specter a perfect view of her ass. Removing the dark trousers, she ran a finger over the damp grey fabric between Melanie's legs. Shepard moaned, and Liara teased, "That is quite a reaction you seem to be having."
"Can't help it," Melanie rasped. "Feeling you come…"
"I know what you mean," Liara agreed. "My turn to enjoy that now." She slid the plain underwear off and looked up for a moment, admiring Shepard's body. It was remarkable how thoroughly the scars had faded, just as Miranda had promised. Though the taut muscles and trim frame certainly looked like they belonged to a soldier, the smooth, tan skin hardly seemed like it could be that of a woman who had suffered through what her bondmate had.
"Liara…" Shepard pleaded, and the asari decided to stop making her patient lover wait any longer. Lowering her head, she started to lick down her taut stomach, planting a series of light kisses on the dark strip between Melanie's legs. She'd been intrigued by that hair the first time she saw it, and she still enjoyed playing with it now. This wasn't the right time though. Melanie felt so needful under her that Liara wanted to give her what she craved. The musky smell of her arousal filled Liara's nostrils as she moved down, nipping playfully at Shepard's inner thighs while her fingers parted her wet folds, giving the asari a clear path to her engorged clitoris.
Liara flicked her nimble tongue over it, and Melanie nearly jumped off the bed in response. Goddess, Liara loved the way her bondmate reacted to her. For so long, she thought that the woman she'd fallen in love with wasn't even interested and to know that not only did she want her, but that she wanted her so much was intoxicating.
She made her strokes firmer, reaching up with her free hand to massage Melanie's breasts. Slightly smaller than her own, they fit perfectly in her palm and she enjoyed the contrast between the softness of the flesh and the hard point of the nipple pressing against her touch.
The human's thighs started to press around her, and she felt practiced fingers massaging the folds of her crest, pleading without words for her to keep going. Eagerly, she acquiesced, pulling Melanie's swollen bud between her lips, her tongue rapidly travelling back and forth across its length. She knew Melanie couldn't take much more and she brought her hand back down, two of her fingers sliding easily inside Shepard's wet center. She wanted to feel her bondmate come around her, and it wasn't long before she got her wish. A few swift thrusts of her hand combined with a final flutter of her tongue to send Melanie crashing over the edge, her thighs and inner walls clenching around Liara while she moaned the asari's name.
Feeling how quick and intense Shepard's pleasure had been, Liara decided not to stop just yet. She withdrew her slick fingers, but she only paused the strokes of her tongue for a few moments, letting the orgasm subside, before immediately building her lover up towards another one. Melanie was beyond words by that point, but Liara could feel just how sensitive she was, her hips bucking from even gentle licks of the asari's tongue. She caressed those hips with her hands, relishing the effects that her every movement had on the beautiful Specter. Indeed, she could feel her own body reacting to Shepard's ecstasy, slickness coating her inner thighs, but she kept herself focused on Melanie. There would be plenty of time for her to get more pleasure from her lover.
She could tell the Specter was about to come again when the motion of the hand on the back of her crest grew more rapid, caressing her with an increasing tempo that matched the motion of her body under Liara's tongue. The asari looked up at her lover, a happy gleam in her bright blue eyes, and seeing that even as her tongue flicked over Melanie's clit overwhelmed the human. She cried out long and loud as her second release overtook her, her body arching off of the mattress for a few ecstatic seconds before flopping back down into its softness.
Liara crawled up alongside her lover's sweaty body, planting a few last small kisses on her as she went , before capturing her mouth for a much longer one. "Jesus, that was…" Melanie struggled to find the words. "You've gotten amazing at doing that even without the bond."
The asari grinned across the pillows at her bondmate. "Well, I wanted to save our joining for later. I have something special planned."