Author's Note: Wow! I've finally updated! This took a while because life got in the way and I wanted to completely re-work Jacob's loyalty mission. It's one of the things I absolutely hated so I've tweaked it quite a bit. Thank you to everyone who left a review/follow/favorite. I absolutely love hearing your feedback. I hope you all enjoy!

The only thing Esperanza could think about on the elevator ride down to Engineering was Jacob's kiss. Jacob was a very, very good kisser. She was close to getting completely lost in thought when Tali's nervous demeanor snapped her back to the present. It turned out that Tali was being accused of treason by the Quarian Admiralty Board and was in real danger of being exiled from the Flotilla. Shepard had Joker head to the Flotilla immediately. She wasn't about to let her friend be accused of a crime she didn't commit.

After a meeting with the Admiralty Board, Shepard, Tali, and Garrus learned the real reason for the trial; politics. The Quarians, and the Admiralty Board, were pretty much split down the middle on whether or not they should attempt to take back their homeworld from the Geth. Tali was just a pawn for both sides, her guilt or innocence didn't matter at all. The whole farce of a trial only served to piss Shepard off and remind her why she hated politics and politicians so much.

When they heard Tali's father was involved in this, they decided to take back the Alarei to determine what really happened to him. After a long, hard fight against activated Geth that should have never been on the ship, they learned the truth. Tali's father was building Geth from the parts that Tali sent him to test weapons on them. He wanted to take back the homeworld so bad that he used his daughter to further that goal. The evidence they found on the Alarei's bridge could have easily cleared Tali's name but it would have indicted her father.

Tali begged Esperanza not to show that evidence to the Admiralty Board. Even after all he'd done, Tali still loved her father and wanted to protect him. Esperanza knew what it felt like to lose a father. She also knew what it felt like to want to protect family at all costs. That was why, when they finally found the evidence to clear Tali's name, Shepard decided against using it. She wasn't about to drag Tali's father's name through the mud to exhonerate her in a trial that never should have happened in the first place. Instead, she was going to do what she did best; force the Admiralty board and everyone else to see the truth of the situation.

That was how, hours later, Tali, Garrus, Jacob, Kasumi, and Esperanza sat in the port observation deck drinking sugary sweet cocktails and watching the video Garrus had taken of Shepard yelling at the admirals for the 5th time.

"I still can't believe you did that Shepard!" Tali said, giggling and slurring her words together. She was only a quarter of the way through drink number two but she was already three sheets to the wind. She was currently leaning heavily on Garrus (who stood beside her at the bar) while trying to insert her "emergency induction port" into the right hole.

"Well I can definitely believe it." Garrus said, his voice tinged with amusement. "We all know how much she hates politics and politicians. It was only a matter of time before she snapped. I'm just shocked she never punched Udina."

"Garrus has a point Shepard. How have you refrained from decking him?" Jacob asked, leaning against the window with a drink in his hand. Shepard was seated on the couch directly in front of him.

"Simple," said Shepard with a smirk. "Anderson beat me to it." That drew a laugh from both Tali and Garrus with the former spilling the remainder of her drink all over her envirosuit.

"Ok Tali, I think you've had enough. Time for bed." Garrus helped her up and guided her to the door while she grumbled incoherently about being an adult the whole time.

"Odd, I didn't even put that much alcohol in her drinks." Kasumi said, tilting her head to the side. Shepard laughed loud and clear. She couldn't remember the last time everything felt so, normal. It felt good to just sit around and drink and laugh with friends.

"Tali could never hold her liquor. Remind me to tell you later about Tali getting drunk at Flux and trying to do the Cupid Shuffle on the dance floor." Shepard stood and stretched while Jacob and Kasumi stared at her blankly trying to figure out if she was joking or not. "Right now, I need to figure out what the fuck our next mission is gonna be while I'm still semi-sober and get some sleep."

"Um, Shepard? Can I speak to you about something, in private?" Jacob looked uncharacteristically nervous as he stepped up beside her. Shepard thought something had been off with him the whole night. Normally he'd be right in the middle of everything, full of jokes and easy laughs. Tonight though he was quiet, spending most of the time looking out the window into space or on his omni-tool.

"Sure Jacob. Come on, we can talk in my cabin." The elevator ride up to Shepard's cabin seemed to take forever. The silence between them was usually thick. She knew whatever he wanted to talk about was weighing on him. She hated seeing someone she cared about so distressed. When the elevator finally stopped at the top, they both got out and made their way down to couch. Shepard was quiet as she watched Jacob fumble with his omni-tool. She wouldn't push him to talk; he'd open up to her on his own time. A ping on her own omni-tool drew her attention. It was a message from Jacob.

"What's this?"

"A copy of the message that was sent to me while you were with the Quarians. I thought it was nothing at first. A message sent to the wrong Cerberus operative. Most of the tech and medical jargon went completely over my head. There were two phrases though, two names, that caught my attention; the MSV Hugo Gernsback and Captain Ronald Taylor." Jacob sighed and ran his hands over his head finally clasping them behind his neck.

"Ok, start from the beginning. Who is Ronald Taylor? I'm guessing you two are related?" Shepard brought a knee up on the couch so she could face him. She wanted Jacob to know he had her full attention.

"He's my dad. I thought he…" Jacob sighed and leaned back in his seat, looking out the window above Shepard's bed. "Ten years ago, the MSV Hugo Gernsback went missing. Everyone on that ship was presumed dead, dad included. Mom and I had a funeral for him. The casket was empty but it was a funeral. A year later I had to bury my mom beside that empty casket."

"Jacob, I'm so sorry." Shepard knew the platitudes would do little to make him feel better, but she couldn't stop herself from saying them. Jacob rose and begun to pace the area between her bed and the stairs.

"It took me months to accept he was dead. I've been ok with that for years, but now? FUCK!" Jacob's biotics flared and he slammed his fist against the fishtank. Before she knew what she was doing, Shepard rose from her seat and wrapped her arms around his waist. Jacob was known for having strict control of his biotics. Shepard knew that this was hitting him hard if it was causing him to flare. After a few tense moments, Jacob turned so he could return the hug. Shepard could feel his voice vibrating in his chest as he began to speak again.

"Yesterday, I was sure he was dead and I'd never see him again. Today I get a message saying a lost ship sent out a distress signal and a bunch of documents talking about some fucked up experiments Cerberus was doing involving the Gernsback's crew and the local plants. Why now Esperanza? Why now?" His voice cracked and Shepard's heart broke for him. Jacob was normally very guarded about his personal life. He was showing a lot of trust in her by opening up like this and she didn't want to let him down.

"I don't know who sent this to you or why, but I promise you we're gonna get some answers. We're heading to Aeia to check out the crash site asap. We'll work out who sent the message after we get some more info on what happened to your dad and the Gernsback."

"We? What?" Jacob broke the hug and took a step back, confusion etched on his face.

"Yes, we. You don't have to do this alone Jacob. I'm here to help you. Whatever you need, just ask." Jacob was struck speechless by Shepard's desire to help him. He thought maybe she'd help him trace who sent the message but never dreamed she'd divert from their mission to go to the crash site. This was the first time in a long time he'd opened up to someone and he knew then his trust was well placed.

"Thank you so much Esperanza. I-" He stopped himself before he said something he might end up regretting later and kissed her. This kiss was different from the other many kisses they'd shared. They both knew something had shifted in their arrangement. They would definitely have to talk about it at some point but tonight was not the night for that. Jacob broke the kiss and rested his forehead against hers. "I should probably go."

"Stay. Please." Shepard whispered.

"Ok." Jacob took her hand and walked over to the bed. They both removed their shoes and then crawled up into bed; Shepard's back curling comfortably into Jacob's chest. He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her in close, placed a kiss at the base of her neck beside her amp port, and held her until he fell asleep. Sleep didn't come as easy for Shepard. She laid in bed long after Jacob had fallen asleep listening to the calming sound of his deep breaths. She could feel herself falling for him and knew there wasn't a damn thing she could do to stop it. Even if she could stop it, she wasn't quite sure that she wanted to.