A/N: Posting a day early as I will be busy all day tomorrow, and I'm not sure I'll get a chance then.

So, here's the date. James surprises even me sometimes. I should warn you that things are definitely rated 'M' towards the end. Not my strong suit, but hopefully it's at least okay. ;-)

I appreciate all the comments, please keep them coming! All the feedback I received just makes me want to write more, more, more. :)

BioWare owns all, I just can't leave it alone.

4 months ago, Vancouver

James watched as Shepard frowned and pushed the food around on her plate. He'd been sitting at the table with her for an hour, and she'd only taken a few bites.

"What gives, Lola?"

"I'm just sick of the same old crap every damn day. Tasteless, lumpy mush for breakfast. Some sort of mystery meat formed into a patty and served on a hard bun for lunch. And I'm not even sure what this dinner is supposed to be, but it tastes like sawdust. I mean, seriously. It's not enough that they are keeping me on house arrest. They have to torture me too."

"Don't tell me you're a food snob."

She glared at him. He couldn't help but laugh, which just caused her to glare harder.

"I am not a food snob, I just...like a little flavor. Is that so wrong?"

"Okay, so what's your favorite food?"

"Oh, that's a tough one. Anything can be good if it's seasoned properly. My dad was Italian and loved cooking, so I grew up with a lot of homemade food. Not just Italian either. He learned how to cook a lot of things from scratch. He made the absolute best key lime pie I've ever had. I'd ask for it every year instead of a birthday cake."

She had a faraway look in her eye as she continued, "There was also this older lady who lived down the street from us. She'd babysit from time to time. She grew up on Earth, in the southwestern United States. Oh, the foods she introduced me to."

"Really? Like what?"

"Oh, everything she made was great. Flautas, enchiladas...and she made the best tacos. Nothing like you find in any of the restaurants, but fresh and delicious. She grew most of the ingredients herself, and everything was homemade. My personal favorite was when she would have to watch us overnight, and she'd make us breakfast. Huevos rancheros."

"You're shitting me."

She looked up at him in surprise. "No, why would I be?"

He shook his head. "I guess you wouldn't. It's just that my abuela used to make that for me, and it was my favorite too."

"That means you have good taste."

She smiled at him, and he found himself wishing she would do it more. This house arrest they had her under was slowly draining her spirit. It was the worst part of this assignment, watching this vibrant, amazing woman fade under the scrutiny and isolation of her situation.

But the best part of it was the times like this, when he realized that he could make her smile, or laugh, and bring part of that back. That was something he would never grow tired of. In that moment, he made it his personal mission to make her laugh and smile as often as he could.

Shepard couldn't help but smirk when she opened the door and watched James' expression. He clearly liked what he saw. She was enjoying her view as well. While it wasn't the Alliance-issue he usually wore, the tee he had on still clung to his chest in the same tantalizing way, and his jeans fit just right. Clearing her throat, she watched his eyes snap back to hers, and she could see a deep blush creep into his cheeks.

"You clean up very well, James."

"Uh, thanks. Not too bad yourself, Lola."

She laughed. "You are such a sweet talker."

Grinning, he said, "Lola, if I told you what I was really thinking right now, this date would probably be over before it started."

"Oh? Is that right?" As she walked past him into the elevator, she winked and said, "Well then, maybe you should hold that thought until you drop me off later."

As he followed her into the elevator, she heard him talking under his breath.

"Vas ser la muerte de mí." **

"Oh, but I guarantee you'll love every minute of it."

She couldn't help but laugh when he looked at her in surprise. "You understood that?"

"Enough to get the gist."

"Hmm. That is...interesting."

She watched as he pushed the button for the shuttle bay. Her curiosity was piqued. "We aren't going to the Citadel?"

"Nope."

"Ah. So…"

"It's a surprise."

"I see. What's in the bag?" She pointed to the bag he was still holding behind his back. His surprised look told her that he'd completely forgotten about it.

"Oh yeah. I didn't think you were a flowers kind of girl, so I got you this."

He handed her the bag and she was surprised at how heavy it was. Peaking inside, she couldn't stop the huge grin that broke out on her face.

"It's beautiful! You really shouldn't have, though."

James shrugged. "You desperately needed a new one, and I think this fits with your fighting style better than anything else out there."

She smirked at him. "No, I meant you shouldn't have been able to get this. The M-11 Wraith is only available legally through Spectre Requisitions."

"Ah. Well, what can I say? Esteban works magic."

She narrowed her eyes. "Are you corrupting my shuttle pilot, Vega?"

He laughed. "No corrupting necessary." As the doors opened to the shuttle bay, he said softly, "Don't you know that everyone on this ship would already do anything for you?"

She looked at him and opened her mouth to reply but then she caught sight of what should have been the shuttle bay, and the words died on her lips.

"What...happened to the shuttle bay?"

Shepard walked slowly into the room, with James trailing closely behind.

"Well, I thought long and hard, and I decided that nowhere on the Citadel would really be relaxing. You are too easily recognizable, and wherever you go there are people asking you to rescue someone, or recover some object or another. And you always do it, because that's who you are, but that's not what tonight is supposed to be about."

She stood in awe, looking around at the changes that had been made. There were gauzy curtains hanging all around, covering the weapons lockers and shuttles, and making the room seem smaller and cozier. The lights were off, but candles had been placed on stands throughout the space. In the middle of the room was a table set for two, with a small, bow-topped box in the center. In the far corner a comfy looking couch sat facing a large screen. Soft music was coming from the overhead comms. She turned back towards James.

"What is all this?"

"Isn't it obvious?" He pointed to the table set for two and said, "Dinner." Then he turned towards the setup in the corner. "And a movie. Fairly generic date, I know, but-"

"But it's all just for me." He simply nodded, and she asked, "How did you do all this?"

"Well, I didn't do it all. I had help. Like I was saying in the elevator, everyone on this ship would bend over backwards to help you in any way. Tali, Garrus, Esteban, and EDI all helped put this together. Esteban got everything I asked for, and did it quickly. Don't tell him I said so, but he's a miracle worker. Tali and Garrus worked on getting it all set up and EDI mostly helped by stalling you from coming back to the ship too soon."

"Ah. So she hasn't gone crazy." She could feel tears forming. No one had ever done anything quite like this for her. "James, this is amazing. Thank you."

He grinned. "I'm just getting started, Lola."

He grabbed her hand and led her over to the table, pulling her chair out for her and pushing it back in as she sat down. There were two covered plates already sitting on the table. She nodded towards them as he sat down across from her.

"What is this?"

"Dinner. Go ahead, lift the cover off."

She did exactly that. When she saw what was sitting there, she couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry. She looked up to see an uncertain smile on James' face.

"Hope you don't mind breakfast for dinner."

"Huevos rancheros. I can't believe you remembered."

"Of course I did. My abuela taught me how to make it. I'm not as good at it as she was, but hopefully I did all right."

"You made this all by yourself?"

"I did."

"You are just full of surprises tonight, James Vega."

They continued their lighthearted conversation into the meal. It tasted amazing, and it reminded her of those simpler, happier days on Mindoir. She talked about her family and friends, and she realized that although it was sad, it was also nice to be able to share the memories with another person. James talked of his mother and grandmother, and Shepard could tell that the two women had played a huge part in shaping the man sitting across from her.

When they had finished the meal, James reached for the small box in the center of the table. He picked it up and handed it to her.

"This I did not make myself. But I have been assured that it is the absolute best available on the Citadel, and that it was made fresh today."

Curious, she opened the box. It was absolutely perfect.

"Key lime pie. And it's not even my birthday."

"Consider it a late birthday. Your real birthday was spent under house arrest anyway. This is a much better way to celebrate."

"I can't argue with that. There's only one slice. Don't you want some?"

He shrugged. "If we still want more later, the rest of the pie is upstairs in the fridge. With a letter threatening loss of limb if anyone steals any of it. I figured we could share this one." He tilted his head towards the corner of the room. "Over there on the sofa."

She grinned. "Sounds like a plan."

A few hours later, as the credits to the movie rolled, James reflected on the evening. From the way Shepard was curled up beside him on the sofa, with her head resting on his lap, he thought he had been successful in getting her to relax. She had smiled and laughed often throughout the night, and he hoped that meant she had been able to put the stresses of everything else out of her mind, if only for a day.

He felt her shift on the couch and looked down to see her smiling up at him.

"I've never seen that version of The Hobbit before. How did you find it?"

"I did a little research, and according to the general consensus of the, uh, very opinionated people of the extranet, the 2098 version was the absolute best. What did you think?"

"I'd have to say that they were probably right. I've never seen another one that captured the actual heart of the book so well. Thank you for finding it for me."

"Ah, it was nothing."

She sat up and turned to face him. "This was not nothing. Everything you did tonight was absolutely amazing and perfect. You remembered things I told you that I barely remembered myself, and made this whole evening so personal. And you pulled it all off in a matter of hours."

"With a little help from our friends."

"But the ideas were yours."

"Mostly, yes. The decoration was all Tali, though."

She smiled, and there was a mischievous twinkle in her eyes that made his pulse quicken.

"So, Lieutenant…You ready to tell me what you were really thinking when you showed up at my door earlier?"

Grinning, he said, "I'venever heard my rank sound quite so...sexy before."

She leaned forward, stopping with her face inches from his. Her voice was soft and low as she said, "You didn't answer my question."

James swallowed hard. She was trying to kill him, he was sure of it.

"Well...uh…"

She leaned in even closer and he lost the ability to speak. So he simply reached up, pulling her that final inch, and captured her lips with his own. She reacted by snaking her hand behind his neck and pulling him even closer. Tangling his fingers in her hair, he slowly deepened the kiss, probing her lips with his tongue. She granted the entrance he was requesting with a soft moan that made his blood boil. He could still taste the lingering sweet-tartness of the pie. Dropping his hands to her waist, he pulled her over so that she was straddling his lap. As trailed her hands down his back, he moved his up hers and pulled her close, until their bodies were crushed against each other. She moved her hands under his shirt, raking her nails up and down his back, and then around to his chest.

When she started to move them lower, he couldn't take any more. He abruptly broke the kiss and stood up, still hanging on to her tightly. She wrapped her legs around his waist to keep from falling, and then dropped her forehead onto his shoulder.

"What gives, James?"

He started walking towards the elevator, carrying her the entire way, before he answered.

"I have been wanting this, wanting you, for longer than I have even admitted to myself." He stepped into the elevator and pushed the button for her cabin. Then he gently pulled her head back with one hand and looked into her eyes. "The first time I make love to you is not going to be on a couch in the middle of the goddamn shuttle bay."

The crooked grin she gave him in return caused his heart to do a flip. "You are such a romantic. Who would've thought?"

"No, I'm a gentleman."

"No….well, maybe. But you are also a romantic. All that other stuff just proves it."

He pretended to consider before grinning and saying, "Okay, maybe I am. Is that a problem?"

"Not in the slightest."

"Good."

The elevator doors opened and he carried her through and into her quarters. Walking over to her bed, he gently laid her down. When she started to reach for him, he shook his head, grabbing her hands and pinning them above her head. He climbed onto the bed and straddled her, keeping her hips pinned with his weight and her hands pinned with his left hand.

"So, Lola, you really want to know what I was thinking when you opened your door earlier?"

"Most definitely."

"Well, first I noticed this shirt. It's kind of evil, you know."

Shepard raised a brow. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, it's very evil to tease a man that way. Giving me just enough of a view that I want more. We need to do something about that."

He let go of her hands and lifted the shirt up and over her head, quickly pinning her hands back down as he tossed it to the side.

"Second, I noticed these pants. They way they fit your body should probably be illegal. In fact, I think it might be."

"Are you going to turn me in?"

He shook his head. "No, but I'll help you get rid of the evidence."

He moved quickly, removing the pants in one movement. She now lay beneath him in just a black lacy bra and panty set.

"Much better. But there's still your hair."

She looked up at him in surprise. "My hair?"

James nodded. "I can see why the Alliance requires that you keep it up. It can drive a man to distraction. I just kinda want to do this with it…"

He released her hands and brought both his hands to tangle in her hair. Then he pulled her up for another fiery kiss. With her hands suddenly free, she didn't waste any time in removing his clothing. She pulled his shirt up over his head, quickly reclaiming his lips as she tossed it to the side and moved to the button on his jeans. Then continued to alternate frenzied kisses with removing articles of clothing until they were both completely naked.

That's when Shepard surprised him by turning the tables and flipping them over so that she had him pinned. They were both more than ready by this point, so she simply winked at him and said, "My turn." And then slowly lowered herself onto him. So goddamned slowly he thought he was going to lose his mind. He tried to speed things up by bucking his hips, but she simply lifted hers. He groaned.

"You are trying to kill me, Lola. I knew it."

She lowered herself the rest of the way, slowly rocking her hips as she leaned down to whisper in his ear.

"You aren't the only one who waited a long time for this. I'm savoring, James."

"Dios! Mercy, por favor!"

She laughed and the sound reverberated through his body, only increasing the sensations he was feeling. But she apparently took pity on him, as she finally released his hands. He quickly turned the tables once again, and before long had her begging for mercy. He sped up his pace and as soon as he felt her climax, he felt his own coming. After following her over the edge, he collapsed next to her on the bed.

She curled up next to him, laying her head on his chest before saying, "So, can the second time be on the couch?"

Grinning, he replied, "As long as you give me a few minutes to catch my breath, we can do whatever your heart desires."

She pulled her blankets up over them and said, "Okay. After a nap. That was one hell of a first date."

"Agreed."

As James drifted off to sleep he couldn't help but marvel at the incredible luck that brought this amazing woman into his world. And she was right. She might be the death of him, but he was going to love every single minute of it.

** According to my daughter in her 5th year of Spanish, this translates to "You'll be the death of me." I'm taking her word for it because the extent of my knowledge allows me to count to three. -)