A year had passed since they abandoned the second Normandy and Shepard was starting to get bored and restless. It seemed like she had everything: the money, the guy, the power. But she couldn't help but feel like something was still missing. The Illusive Man proved to be much more elusive than she had anticipated and the number of people they killed to get to him was getting higher and higher. Not that it was a problem, they were bad people to begin with. But with each kill they were no closer than they were before.

It was angering and frustrating Shepard and she sought solace in the lower levels of Afterlife. More often than not she came back to their apartment drunk which caused a disagreement between her and Garrus. But he always apologized for it with amazing sex. And that's how it was for them. Hunt and kill some people during the day, get drunk in the evening, then have rough and satisfying sex at night while Grunt was counting credits in the next room.

Not that it was a bad arrangement. No one ever complained. But it was still not enough.

"One more." she ordered the bartender. He obliged, looking skeptically at her. She had been sitting in the same chair for the past two hours, drinking, thinking, dried up blood from her last victim still on her hands. "Don't judge me." she shot at him.

"'Slong as you don't start trouble I don't give a damn what you do." the Turian bartender eyed the heavy pistol clearly displayed by Shepard's arm.

"So what if I do wanna start trouble? What are you gonna do? Throw me out?" she laughed and it sounded strange in the mixed beats of the bar and the haze of smoke. It didn't sound her own.

"If I have to, I will." he shouted back in reply. Shepard was drunk and everything felt distorted. His words were a challenge, she was sure of it. She drew her pistol and fired. The shots resonated throughout the bar, momentarily drowning out the music. Her ears rang, sending her into a spin. She was no longer in control of her body, her finger pulling on the trigger over and over again, sending customers in all directions for cover. Shepard didn't know how many shots hit, she wasn't even aware of the situation any more. Everything was a blur. It was exciting. It made her feel alive. Then suddenly, sharp pain in the back of her head and then blackness.

She woke up on the couch as a familiar scent filled her nostrils. It made her choke and swear. But it brought her back to reality. Her head was throbbing. But more than that, the fingers of her right hand were burning. Why, she didn't know, couldn't remember.

"Nice going, Shepard." she vaguely heard Grunt complain somewhere near her. Nice going what? What did she do? Her hand instinctively reached for her forehead. The hotness of her skin made her fingers burn even more and she swore again, louder.

"Shut up or you'll wake up the turian." he threatened her.

"What the hell is going on?" she managed, tenderly nursing her hand.

"Well, Shepard. Let me tell you, in clear detail. You got piss ass drunk and fucking shot up Afterlife. Killed nearly half the people there. Including someone very important."

"I hope it was the Illusive Man, that son of a bitch." Shepard muttered in reply.

"No, you are not that lucky. I hope you know that is is going to piss a lot of people off."

"I should hope so. It's what we do, isn't it? Piss people off then kill them?"

"Yeah, we do. What we don't do, however, is tell people who we are, you retard."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

"You, moron! You killed half the population of Omega last night, shot up Afterlife while shouting just about everything! Lucky for you, your turian friend is smart. Settled the whole mess. But I suggest we get the hell out of here. Soon."

Shepard still wasn't sure what Grunt was talking about but it sounded like something she would have done. It also explained the burns on her fingers. Fuck! she silently thought to herself. She knew that her drinking problem would eventually get the better of her, she just didn't know how much. In her mind, she imagined Garrus, struggling to calm the crowds down, telling them that whatever she said was a lie, that she was just drunk, that there was no way she was the Commander Shepard (she was sure she blurted that out somewhere in there), that she was just out of her mind. Guilt seized her. She knew she was slowly falling apart and she was taking him down with her. And a fool that he was, he followed her, trusted her. Loved her. Thinking of that made her realize that for all the times he's confessed his love to her, she had never reciprocated his feelings. She has been an idiot, Grunt was right. And now, she put them all in danger.

Gingerly, she got up off the couch and proceeded into her bedroom where Garrus was sound asleep. She sat on the edged of the bed, watching him. It was warm in the room so he kicked the blanket to the ground, sleeping in the nude as he always did. Shepard had to admit that his body was pretty damn sexy. He was probably the best looking turian she had ever seen. His body was lean, muscular, strong. But also impossibly gentle. The way he touched her face, her body. The first time they had intercourse, she walked away with only a couple scratches. Afterward, she allowed him to be rougher, eventually branching out into full scale wrestling matches that left them both panting and wanting more. He complimented her strength often, evidently surprised that she could hold out against him. He always won, but Shepard didn't mind.

She reached out to touch his heaving chest. His skin was warm, comforting. Her own body temperature was rising. Thinking about sex wasn't helping. She wanted to wake him up, but after what she had done, he deserved to be left alone. Putting aside her thoughts of arousal, Shepard got up and walked over to the desk as quietly as she could in darkness.

"Shepard?"

Not quietly enough. She whirled around, catching herself on the chair.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

"No, I was already awake."

Shepard immediately thought back to a moment ago and blushed.

"Why didn't you say something?" she shot hotly at him.

"Because I liked where your hand was."

She blushed again. Didn't know why, but she did. His confidence in their relationship has soared incredibly over the past year to the point where he was teasing her instead of the other way around. But it made her arousal all that much better.

"Jerk." she muttered.

"I heard that." he laughed in response. "So, you were quite the attraction earlier today. I'm sure Omega is still speaking of it."

The guilt returned, stronger this time.

"I'm sorry, Garrus. Really. I am."

"Shepard, you know I forgave you. Besides, I really don't want to get my ass kicked by you." he joked.

"You sure? 'Cuz I can totally oblige you."

"Stressed much?"

"You have no idea."

"Then show me."

The seduction was literally dripping off his words, like honey. It was both sweet and intoxicating.

"Come here and I just might."

"I don't know, all those clothes might get in the way." he nodded at her, indicating her attire.

"You talk too much, turian." she replied, kicking off her shoes and approaching the bed. She saw him watching her, his eyes glowing in the faint light of the room, hungry, devouring, but he didn't move.

"Hurry up, Shepard, or I might fall asleep."

"You want it that bad?" she teased.

"No less than you by the looks of it."

She had to give it to him, he was right. Just the thought of him inside her made her wet and her nipples erect and dangerously sensitive. She could feel the rough fabric rubbing against them with her every step, acutely aware of each sensation. If she wanted to, she could orgasm just by looking at him. With as much patience as she could muster, Shepard tugged off her shirt, exposing her sensitive breasts to air. She tried to strike a sexy pose in front of him, tossing her shirt at his chest.

"Like it?" she asked in a husky voice.

"Too slow." he replied and before Shepard knew what was going on, she was on the ground, beneath him.

A/N: For all you Shep/Garrus fans, I will try not to disappoint in the next chapter!