Chapter 11
"You have to admit, this one was fun." Anya was beaming as she started pulling out a small pot and pasta, still riding the tail end of the adrenaline rush that had started when she first hit the keystone for Grunt's Rite.
"Only you would count taking a thresher maw down on foot as fun."
"Grunt enjoyed himself."
"Yeah, but he's krogan. He has back-up everything built into his body. You do not." Garrus crossed his arms. She pretended not to notice the look he was shooting her as she filled the pot with water.
"So are you saying that you didn't have any fun? Because I distinctly remember you sounding like you were having a blast until the maw."
He sighed. "Fine, it was fun before then."
"Knew it!" She place the pot on the stove and turned on the heat. In less than a minute it would be boiling.
"I was just so lost in the moment until I started having flashbacks to when you would almost kill us all in the Mako, then dismount on foot to finish off a maw. I just kept seeing so many flashes from so many repair manuals…"
She felt her expression shift from jubilation, to concern, to indignation as he spoke. She glared, and his solemn expression cracked. "Ass."
He laughed, then reassured her, "I wouldn't change a thing."
She could feel the irritation bleeding out of her features. With less annoyance in her voice, she muttered, "Me, either. You're still an ass."
"Yeah, but at least I'm an ass that always has your six," he teased.
"As long as I'm not driving the Mako." She started to add seasonings to the water.
"I would gladly ride 'shotgun' in the Mako with you if it would make you happy."
She narrowed her eyes at him, but she could feel herself smiling. "You're only saying that to get me to drop it."
"No. I mean, yes, but it's also true. Does that help?" She turned back towards her soon to be dinner.
"A little." She dropped a large handful of the tortellini into the now boiling water. She didn't jump when she felt him come up behind her and tentatively place a hand on either side of her waist.
Her lack of negative reaction seemed to embolden him a little. He shifted so that he was closer to her, and she leaned into him after stirring.
"Tali give you hell about the Mako, too?"
"Yes," she groaned.
"I'm sorry, Shep, your driving is just an easy target."
"I'm just saying it's on the Alliance for building a vehicle that's that light with that kind of suspension."
"You have a point," he soothed, adjusting so he was almost hugging her from behind.
"Don't patronize me." She let her head fall back on his shoulder. She could feel the subharmonics in his chuckle.
"And risk you unleashing a Nova on me? Wouldn't dream of it."
"Smart man." She stilled when she felt him nuzzle the side of her throat from behind. He was being careful, and she shivered when she felt him gently nip the sensitive skin.
"Was that...good?" He seemed hesitant to ask.
"Yeah. I...yeah. I liked that." She fumbled with the words a little.
"Good. I...I just wanted to make sure."
"I'll speak up if I don't like something."
"You sure? Because you barely seem to be able to speak up when you do like something." He went back to her throat and she felt her cheeks heat.
"Because you're going out of way to distract me and turn me on."
"You aren't wrong," he admitted. He nibbled at her neck again and she felt herself press against him harder.
"Garrus…" She knew she probably sounded breathy, but she couldn't help it.
"Do I need to stop?"
"I don't mind if you don't want to stop."
"I'm not sure I'm ready for the main event yet."
"I also don't want you to do anything you don't want to do."
"I do want to, that's the issue. My only concern is not wanting to hurt you."
"I'm sturdier than I look."
"Noted," he murmured, tongue darting out to taste her skin briefly. She made a small noise and he chuckled again. "Spirits, you're responsive."
"Is that a complaint?"
"Not even close." The way his voice lowered in pitch almost made her tremble again. "It's honestly pretty sexy."
She turned in his arms and slid her arms around his neck. She was quick to rise up to press her mouth to his, and she made an appreciative noise when he moved his mouth against hers. After a few moments, she tried letting her tongue dart out to explore. He hesitated for a beat, but still allowed it. She gently touched her tongue to his, coaxing him into returning the gesture.
When he did, she let a small, pleased sound escape. He responded by pulling her tighter to him and doing it again. In what seemed like no time, their kiss devolved into a searing tangle of hands and mouths. Anya wasn't entirely sure when she had ended up nearly grinding her hips against the turian's, but she knew she didn't want to stop.
She was the first to pull away, and she regretted it almost immediately, even though she knew it was the right call. She could tell he was confused when she did it, and she was quick to pant, "Damn, Garrus, are you sure you've never tried kissing before me? That was…"
She shook her head, sure that no words she could come up with would describe their kiss.
One mandible twitched upward, and she was relieved to see his wry smile. "Trust me, I would have remembered something like that."
"It got steamy pretty quickly," she admitted, smiling a little. "I promise I wasn't initially going for...all of that. I just wanted to steal the one kiss."
"Well, it was your turn to get carried away," he teased. "Also, I am more than willing to donate more kisses."
"Another one of those and I'm going to be asking you to fuck me outright," she admitted, turning back to her neglected pasta. She was quick to work on getting a few of the noodles unstuck from the bottom, and she felt relieved that it wasn't worse.
"Kissing gets you that wound up?"
"No, good kissing gets me that wound up. Plus it's you. Even if I pretend I'm not into tall badasses, especially the ones with wicked senses of humor and problems with authority, that was a hell of a kiss."
"Spirits, you know how to build a guy up. Is that really how you think of me?"
"Well, yeah." She glanced back at him. He seemed preoccupied, as if something had occurred to him that he didn't care for, and didn't want to ask about. "Alright, spit it out. What's on your mind, big guy?"
"Ah, it's not-"
"Nope, no excuses. Just talk to me."
"I just...I took a rocket to the face, Anya. Even if you don't mind being with a turian, nearly a third of my face looks like hell. How does that not bother you?"
"It's not as bad as you seem to think. Most of that damage should heal with just a little superficial scarring anyway. But, even with that right now, it just...doesn't matter. I like you as is. I also... I think you have really pretty eyes." Her last words came out rushed.
"You...like my eyes?"
"Yeah. I do. They're such a nice shade of blue and I just...I really like them."
"I...I guess I'm glad the rocket didn't go any higher, then. So you really are okay with...this." It was more of a statement than a question.
She answered anyway. "Yes."
"Good." She felt him come up behind her again, this time more confidently. He wrapped his arms around her waist and squeezed gently for a beat. "What are you making?"
"Tortellini. Nearly done. Just gotta drain the water and add some stuff."
"Mmm. Glad to see you eat real food for once."
"I eat."
"Ramen and granola bars and those weird little pre-packaged meals the Alliance used to throw at you on the SR-1. That's not real food. Besides, what's the point in splurging on edible rations if you aren't going to enjoy them?"
"Hey, I'm getting better!"
"I see that. I like it when you take care of yourself."
"So you've mentioned." Anya felt a smile tugging at her lips. She heard the door to the medbay slide open and she paused. "Dr. Chakwas going somewhere?"
Garrus pulled back and turned. "Ah, actually looks like Mordin going in. I wonder if he saw us?"
She sighed and shifted so she could look as well. "Probably. I swear, we are the absolute worst kept secret on the ship."
He faced her again and his mandible twitched. "I swear I can be stealthy."
She snorted and smiled. "I know. Maybe we need to stop trying to sneak around like teenagers. Apparently we suck at it."
He chuckled. "It's fun, though, you have to admit."
"Not as fun as killing a maw on foot, but I take your point."
"Crazy woman."
