The hotel was much better than Jenna had been expecting. Rio had been hit hard, it had been a high priority military target. But it had also become a high priority rebuild during the aftermath, and that showed. She walked with John into the bright lobby, immediately feeling the weight of eyes upon them, a whisper of voices preceding them. Comes with the territory... She'd been warned about this. She was smart enough to figure it out without the warnings. The stares had been sideways, always averted on the Naval base in Vancouver, but there was little subtlety here. This was what it was like to stand in public with Shepard, something she was just going to have to get used to.
He glanced over the lobby, giving each person he saw a split moment of focused attention before his eyes moved on. His fingertips lingered at the small of her back, just a hint of cautious possession there, before he apparently judged them all harmless enough to step away from her. She walked with him in silence, first awkward...he felt jumpy, hyper aware and it was sad that a man who had saved everything he saw, rescued every single person his eyes landed on, felt the urge to be so cautious. Jenna was not a shining fool, she understood the logical reason for it, but it was still so very sobering. And sadly, she understood that now, she would need to start thinking, behaving, like this as well. Agreeing to this changed her life forever, but she'd never been an incredibly social person anyway. If this meant she was watched, guarded, well...the world was a chaotic, dangerous mess. As long as she didn't feel smothered, she was content with it.
He rested his hand on her shoulder, squeezing slightly. "You seem a little far away." He noted, but she couldn't help but realize he was standing between her and the lobby, eclipsing her completely, while they waited for the elevator to drop.
"Wrapping my mind around things." She admitted, watching his expressions flow from watchful, to curious, and settle on thoughtful.
"Second thoughts?" He asked evenly, shifting her around slightly when the whoosh of compressed air announced the arrival of the elevator car. His gaze moved to the doors, and didn't shift until they slid open to reveal a perfectly normal and empty elevator car.
"No." She said, stepping in and making room for him. "Just working it all out. Things change because of this."
"I won't deny that. I can't. This is some pretty deep shit, Jenna." He gave her an intent, focused stare. "If something were to happen to you, it would get to so many people, so quickly. Then you added to it by destroying your MVC tests for strat and tac, making you valuable for just being you. I'm not going to sugar coat any of this, Jenna."
"Of course not."
He grimaced as if she'd said something else, something entirely less agreeable and she frowned at him. "Is this going to be a problem? Can I trust you to be careful? For all of us? I want to be able to assume you are part of the solution."
"I have no intentions of doing stupid. I'm a homebody anyway." And that was something he wasn't pleased with...but he couldn't have it both ways. She couldn't be careful as he asked her to be, yet be as boldly confident as the women he was used to. And, like it or not, bold confidence was something she rarely experienced. He would never see her at her best, which was a suddenly sobering realization. She was used to people around her who had seen her at her apex, but now, that was gone. Irretrievable. And he'd probably just find it hilarious, anyway. "You can't have it both ways, John. I can be as careful as you want, but I can't be as kickass as you're used to. And for Kaidan..."
"You need to be as careful as I want." He finished slowly, stepping forwards when the bell dinged and the doors opened. There was an actual guard, a marine, in the elevator lobby beyond.
"Sir. Ma'am." He greeted quickly. "All quiet."
"Good, good." John replied, and she sensed he relaxed slightly. The hallway off of the lobby was quiet, well lit, and he led the way. The suite was just as nice as the rest of the hotel, subtly luxurious, and she took a deep breath as he slung his jacket over the chair and stretched. Nothing like showing off the goods...and he had a lot to show off. There was still the promise of more that night, even with the distractions and Jenna was still quite in the mood.
He twitched when she came up behind him and rested the palms of her hands against his lower back. Was he still interested? He wasn't the one who'd gone without for months, but he'd been pretty fired up earlier... "John?"
The lines at the corner of the eye she could see deepened, and he snorted in amusement. "How 'bout you prove your claim about what you're wearing under that?"
Oh, God. He really was serious about that. She laughed, spinning away from him and flipping up the edge of her skirt to prove that at least part of it was true. And the answering stare in his eyes proved that yes, he was still fired up. She undid the first tie at her shoulder, letting the dress fall slightly down, just enough to prove that all of it was indeed true. He chuckled, nodding in appreciation, but silenced when she untied the second, holding it up with the forearm crossed over her chest.
"So." He muttered thickly, shedding his shirt and closing with her in a split moment. "Where were we, again? Before we were interrupted?"
"We were..." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, letting the dress fall until it caught at her hips and the thigh of the leg she settled on his hip again... "Here, I think. Well, at least I was. You were..."
"Here." He slid his hand back down her underwear, sliding a finger within her. Yup. That was exactly where he'd been. He planted his other hand on her ass, amazingly strong, supporting her weight without effort. He smelled wonderful, he felt wonderful, she just wanted to close her mind, stop thinking, and let it all happen. To immerse herself in the moment and shoo away doubts. When had she started living for the moment like this? Or was she? She'd just committed. And committed. And again, committed. To Kaidan. To the Navy. To John. She'd avoided Mitch's clumsy attempts to get her to commit or to be caught by pregnancy, for years. But recently, all she seemed to do was make firm decisions, as insane as some of them seemed to be. And this was one of those insane, yet firm, decisions.
He picked her up, carrying her into the bedroom and lowering her onto the richly patterned coverlet, letting the dress fall to the floor. She knew she looked good, she'd put on weight, laid on muscle... and he looked better than good. For all of his coiled strength, his touch was gentle, his fingertips grazing down her skin. "You'll have to bear with me." He chuckled, an edge of self deprecation in his tone as he sat up and began to shed his clothes. "I'm gonna be a little rusty."
Kaidan and only Kaidan for years. If he thought she was going to hold that against him, he had another thing coming. She'd rather have a faithful, if slightly rusty, man in her bed than a well practiced one. And anyway, she wasn't sure just what these two had been fed growing up, but they were both jaw droppingly stunning. "We'll work it out." She promised, running her fingers down the gully of his spine. "Unless you've changed your mind? Unless you need Kaidan here?" That last one was something she'd never considered before and it was an unwelcome thought.
"No, I do not need Kaidan here, nor have I changed my mind." He chuckled, shaking his head at the very idea. "You're beautiful, Jenna." As was he. He was taller than Kaidan, heavier, and he had a huge, comforting presence when she wrapped her arms around him. This is the sort of man who will kill for you.
She knew they were both dangerous, everything that she knew about their pasts proved that. Kaidan had been very forthcoming with that from the very beginning, but he was much more subtle about it than John was. John wore it proudly on his sleeve, it was part of his identity.
He turned in her embrace, one arm behind her shoulders as he lowered her to the bed beneath him. She'd never been a small girl, even when she'd lost weight during the invasion, but John made it seem like she was weightless. He buried his face in her breasts, stroking down her sides. She responded by hitching her knees up to grasp his hips between them, sliding her hand down between them and taking a hold of him. He was definitely aroused, fully erect and thick in her hand. She could feel his pulse thudding under her fingertips, so warm...
He hissed, shuddering under her touch, hooking his fingers in the waistband of her underwear and pulling them off, tossing them over his shoulder. "It's been awhile, right?" He teased, stroking his fingertips down her curls, his index finger traveling down her slit.
"Ass." It had been awhile. A good long while... "Don't you dare tease me." She'd been ready since the teaser by the bathroom and now she ached. She didn't need, or want, any more foreplay. "Now, John!"
He laughed, "Demanding, aren't we?" But he complied, twining his fingers with hers and entering in one strong, slow thrust. He was quieter than she'd been expecting, his eyes closed as he focused on the sensations, every motion controlled, yet perfect. Was this just how he was, or was he being cautious? Careful?
She shifted slightly, bringing her knees up to his armpits and increasing the depth and angle of his penetration, digging her fingers into his marvelous ass. If this was how he was, then that was fine. If he was holding back out of caution, then that wasn't fine.
He moaned in answer, pushing harder, losing that cautious edge. The moment it slipped and he began to thrust, his hold on her tightening, his breathing going into deep gasps, she relaxed around him. Yes. She wasn't as fragile as he thought she was, and this...this was what she wanted. This would push her all of the way over the edge.
"God." He breathed, his teeth locked. "Oh..." one thrust. "My..." a second thrust, and the world fell out from underneath Jenna. "God." He yelped. She felt him come, his last few ending thrusts were cushioned by fluid, and he was done, holding his weight up on his elbows, his eyes still shut, trembling and shuddering. She stroked his face, his eyebrows, his lips, watching him intently. His face was empty, lax and he looked suddenly years younger, almost unburdened. It lasted only a moment before he came back online, blinking as he focused in on her face.
"Damn." He murmured, shifting his weight to lie beside her. "I mean... that was fantastic."
"We should definitely do it again, sometime." She teased, cuddling up to his side and fighting down a yawn. It would be a losing battle, she'd had everything that was guaranteed to put her to sleep... a lot of fantastic food, a good amount of alcohol and a great orgasm. She was done for the night and she needed to get up in the morning...well, further on in the morning. Three breaths later and she was gone, out like a light, still held in his arms.