Takes place in ME1, more than halfway through. Shepard and Kaidan have kissed and flirted pretty heavily before, and have a weird 'not-dating-but-kind-of-are' relationship so this takes places sometime after the drabbles entitled 'Lever' and 'Who Dares, Wins'. You can slot it in anywhere you like really, aside from that, as long as it's before Ilos.

CW: Slightly smutty.

"Hey, old man."

Shepard enters Anderson's office, a wide smile stretching across her face at the sight of her old friend. She hasn't seen him for a couple of weeks, not since their last stop in to the Citadel and she lets her eyes drift over the craggy creases in his face, his warm brown eyes and familiar uniform.

She salutes briefly and so sloppy that it wouldn't pass parade inspection and throws her body into the seat in front of his desk, draping in the cushioned chair in a messy heap.

Anderson beams back at her, returns her hasty salute and then sits down. "Shepard, a pleasure as always."

"Now, now," she mockingly tuts, still grinning. "Don't go getting all fancy on me. You going all soft in this desk job?"

He laughs, booming loud and it reminds her of happier times, when she was younger and far more brash.

"Kiddo, I could still take you down, one hand tied behind my back. Blindfolded."

"My, my," she says, holding back the giggle threatening to burst from her lips. "Such daring words for a senior. We both know I'd break you in two."

She watches amusedly as Anderson's lips twitch as if he too is trying to keep from laughing.

It doesn't work. A strangled giggle escapes her throat, belly-deep and loud and he loses it, dissolving into chuckles. They sober after a while and he shuffles some papers around his desk, becoming more business-like.

"How's the mission?" he asks. "What are you doing back on the Citadel?"

Shepard shrugs. "It's going as well as can be expected. We're getting closer to catching him, I can feel it."

She pauses, the rush of anger she feels at Saren matching the gleam of overdue revenge she sees in Anderson's eyes.

"We're back on the Citadel for supplies mostly," Shepard continues, "The mess sergeant was bitchin' at me; we were running low on edible things apparently." She rolls her eyes, half joking. She knows their supplies are low, and it would be no good for morale if they have to eat gruel for a week just because she's too stingy with fuel and bent on hunting down Saren to head back to the Citadel.

"Hmm, yes," Anderson hums, affection in his eyes. "That damn need to eat always did slow you down."

"I know, right? Stupid human limits," she scoffs, smiling gently. "No, it's good really. Gives the crew a few hours to de-stress, take some leave, drink or fuck or whatever."

She lifts her shoulder in a shrug, thinking of the crew who had made a beeline for the Wards and the asari massage parlors and strip clubs there. Garrus told her parts of the Ward are notorious red light districts, seedy but with a fetish for everyone if only they have the creds to pay for it. And she wonders if he knew that from personal experience or just his C-SEC days.

God, she hopes she wouldn't have to make a ship announcement about not catching STDs while on shore leave. That thought has her shuddering, and resolving to leave it in Chakwas' capable hands.

"It's good to get away from people they've been crammed in with for months," she says to her mentor, thinking that there was one lieutenant that she has made absolutely no effort at all to get away from. She doesn't mind being packed in like a sardine with him.

Anderson seems to see right through her, asking with a raised brow, "Hmm, not you though?"

"Nah," she says, coughing a little uncomfortably. "Told ya, last time I had a bad hangover in Rio. Lost my taste for the drink."

And screwing strangers, she thinks privately, not daring to mention to Anderson what she had done with her last day of leave. It was the day she had met Kaidan in that Rio dock. She doesn't think she could ever forget it.

Anderson gives her a shrewd, penetrating look. "Why do you have that look in your eyes like you're lying to me?"

"I think those gene mods need touching up, Anderson," she laughs, distracting him from her sudden rush of self-consciousness and urge to fidget. "Your eyesight's going."

"So you came all the way up to my Presidium office to mock an old man?"

"No, uh Lieutenant Alenko and I were just shopping for some new amps for the biotics on the team."

Shepard smiles, remembering how Kaidan had nerded out over the amp specs and she had been dragged around the shopping center as he held various ones up to the back of her neck, mumbling to himself over what one would be best for her. "I got kinda bored and left him to it, to come annoy you."

"I'm flattered you could find time out of your busy schedule, Shepard," Anderson says with a mock little bow, teasing her. "Just to come and harass an old soldier."

"Old soldier, my ass. You're a crafty old devil," she refutes, eyes narrowing as if to not let him get away with playing the wounded party. She sees through his tricks, if he wanted to, he could take down a soldier Kaidan's age any day. He taught her all she knew, after all.

There's a sudden crackle on her omni-tool and she flares it, pressing the comm button.

"Shepard? I got the amps." Kaidan's voice comes through. "Where did you go?"

"Kaidan, I went up to Anderson's office. Come on up."

"Will do. Alenko out."

Anderson smiles and Shepard doesn't like the knowing look in his eyes. "I was hoping your…vitality would bring out the best in him. Seems to have worked."

"Really?" she asks, surprised. "My vitality?"

"Yeah." Anderson nods. "He had a good record but he wasn't really progressing very quickly in the ranks. I had hoped some of your…'take no prisoners' attitude would rub off, give him a bit of fight and fire."

"Huh." Shepard looks away, tapping a finger at her lips in thought. She hadn't really considered Anderson's assignment of Kaidan under her; she had thought he might have done it more for her benefit with his biotic skills and restraint. Aside from how their personalities click together and she considers him a dear friend (and more), he's an excellent match for her skill set as part of a ground team. Maybe the sly old soldier had done it for both of their skill's progression and growth as officers.

"Well, he's certainly a very capable officer," she says, straightening in her chair. "And he has grown a lot. I'm not sure that I had anything to do with that, but sure, I'll take the credit if you wanna give it to me."

Anderson frowns at her attempt at playing down her skills and she scowls back at him, matching the furrowing of his eyebrows just to annoy him. "You have the unique ability to bring out the best and worst in people, Shepard. It's what makes you such a good commander. I saw that when you were a sixteen year old slip of a girl, swamped in your uniform and still too skinny and I see it now."

"Here I thought that was my natural charisma," she grins and Anderson laughs again, the sound echoing in the expansive office.

"Charisma of a sea sponge."

Kaidan chooses that moment to appear in the doorway, laden down with packages of military grade equipment.

"Anderson. Shepard," he greets, nodding to them.

Shepard jumps up, crosses over to him and says, "Here, I got them."

She takes some packages from his hands so he can move more freely and settles them down beside her chair as he does the same with the ones left over.

Once his hands are free, Kaidan stands to attention, swiftly saluting Anderson. "Sir!"

"At ease, Alenko."

Kaidan turns awkwardly to Shepard, producing from a bag a steaming travel mug of coffee and a sweet smelling, sugary donut.

"I, uh, brought you some coffee and a donut, Shepard. From that salarian stand outside." He frowns at the older man as Shepard gratefully takes the food from him. "Sorry sir, I would have brought you one too…"

"That's ok, Alenko." Anderson waves him off. "I think I'll live without you bringing me treats."

"Thanks, LT." Shepard says, shoving the donut into her mouth and mumbling around it, "I'm starving."

Kaidan grins and she can tell that he's happy at her enthusiasm for his little gift. Shepard smiles back, crumbs falling out of her mouth in a very unlady-like fashion.

"Got the amps?" she asks, looking at some of the smaller packages.

"Yeah. I checked them out, seem good quality."

"Good." She nods, impressed with his selection and attention to detail. "We'll check 'em out on the ship. This one just isn't meeting my power requirements anymore." Shepard motions to the back of her neck and the metal imbedded there, annoyed at its poor performance lately. She has progressed with her biotic talents lately but the old Gemini amp just doesn't have enough juice to keep up with her anymore.

Shepard gestures to the spare seat in front of Anderson's desk and Kaidan sits in the chair beside hers, Anderson striking up some conversation over the latest Alliance news bulletin.

Shepard listens with half an ear to the two men's deep, pleasant voices as she sips her coffee and relaxes in the padded seat.

It's nice here, with her two favorite men in the galaxy talking to each other, her crew safe and her ship safety nestled in the docking bay. She has a good life now and she feels some muscles in her back loosen, the bitterness of coffee on her tongue and the shine of warm, artificial Presidium light on her skin. The freshly laundered casual uniform she wears is comfortable and she feels herself start to drift, lulled by the calm tones of her men and contentedness in her heart.

"You hear about that frat case they had back on Earth, in the artillery division?" she hears Anderson ask and a small chill runs up her back, her warm bubble popped and bringing her back to reality.

"Uh, no," Kaidan replies. "I've missed a lot of the scuttlebutt lately."

"One of the worst cases I've seen," Anderson says with a frown. "Messy. Officer and an enlisted. The officer was a married man, young kid at home. Idiot, adding adultery and a kid to that sad mix. The enlisted was barely out of Basic, young bright kid. And to top it off the officer knocked her up. His career is over, there's talk of a court martial. All came out when a friend turned them in, jealous of some favoritism that was going on." He shakes his head. "Damn shame, they had promising careers."

"Yeah," Kaidan hums and shifts uncomfortably in his seat. Shepard prays that he has the good sense to keep his mouth shut and just agree with Anderson. "What happened to the enlisted?"

"Oh, she was shuffled around, put on desk duty. The blame falls on him of course, but she's not going to shake off the stigma. Odds are she'll wash out."

Kaidan says, "They're still together?"

"No. Officer tried to deny parentage, said she slept around and was trying to pin it on him."

Kaidan's eyes narrow angrily, and she knows that his sense of honor would judge the officer harshly. "Shit, that's awful."

"Yeah," Anderson nods in agreement, the crease between his eyes a canyon. He crosses his arms across his barrel chest and says, "Bad conduct all around."

A heavy silence falls and she looks at the remaining dregs of coffee in her cup, for some reason no longer able to meet Anderson's eyes.

"We should head back," she says, glancing at Kaidan. He stands and collects the parcels again and she takes some in her arms, lightening his load.

Kaidan nods to Anderson, salutes respectfully and heads to the exit, continuing down the hall to wait for her near the reception desk. Shepard smiles at Anderson again, leaning in briefly to peck him on his scarred cheek.

"You be careful, Shepard," he says, smiling at her gently with fatherly pride and concern. He gives her hair a quick pat and continues, a frown chasing away his smile as he searches for something in her face, in her soft expression, "You're flirting with danger and you've worked so hard to get where you are. I'd hate to see you throw it all away."

"Relax, Anderson," she says, heading for the door and Kaidan waiting outside for her, thoughtfully giving her a little privacy with Anderson. "No way Saren is taking me down. We'll get it done."

"I wasn't talking about Saren, Shepard."

She falters for a moment in her steps, looking back to see the sad and serious look in his eyes, looking meaningfully down the hall.

"Oh," she breathes and then hoists a breezy smile on her face; as if to say he's crazy for even thinking what she knew he was thinking, his no-doubt deliberate topic of discussion with Kaidan in front of her. "Believe me. There's no…problem there. It's not even like that."

As she reaches the door she calls firmly to Anderson, walking towards Kaidan's waiting smile, "It's all under control."

"We're so out of control," Shepard mumbles just before Kaidan shoves his tongue down her throat, his hands on her hips, groping and bunching the fabric of her shirt so his fingers stroke her bare stomach.

They had just been messing around with the amps in her cabin, trying new ones and he had helped her install the one that would give her a power boost. Shepard knows that biotics have to be careful when trying a new amp; they had to lie or sit down carefully, and breathe deeply, clearing their mind to stop any residual dark energy build-up. De-amping a biotic without proper warning and preparation can cause strokes or seizures so she had lain on the bed as he had carefully washed his hands, brushed her hair to the side and took the old amp from her implant at the base of her skull.

She had tingled, not enjoying the sensation but also aroused by their unintentionally intimate position. His hand had stroked her bare neck, the most sensitive part she could reveal to another person while still having her clothes on and she had rolled onto her back, grinning at him above her.

He hadn't been smiling. His eyes were dark and hooded and it had happened like gravitational pull, he had just pressed his lips to hers, demanding and wanting.

And she had given.

"Mmpf," she sighs raggedly against his lips as her traitorous hands drift to the firm muscles of his back, beneath his shirt. She marvels at the soft texture of his skin but the hard feel of his bunched and sleek muscles. "No. Kissing bad. Kissing very bad. It's-"

"Very bad," he agrees, pulling his mouth from hers and breathing hard, his hands frozen at the high point of her stomach, just beneath her breasts. "We shouldn't."

"Yeah. Bad."

She tries to remove her hands from him but they won't budge. She aches for him. They have privacy and time, half the crew still on the Citadel and not due back for hours yet. Oh god, she wants him and they are kneeling on her bed in her cabin, making out like a couple of teenagers.

Anderson would have a stroke.

"No," he breathes, grinning conspiratorially and takes his hands from her, holding them up as if to profess his innocence. "Saving it for shore leave."

"Right. Shore leave," she nods, removing her own hands from him as if he burns her.

They stare at each other for a beat; her blue eyes tracing his swollen mouth, the darkening of stubble around it which she had felt sting her face slightly when they kissed. She looks at his amber eyes, black with lust and feels the need between her thighs and her already terrible self-control fractures.

"Fuck…it can't come quick enough!" she exclaims and cups his face with her palms, pulling him in and pressing her lips back to his. His mouth opens under hers, his tongue soft and skillful and she hums in the back of her throat as his hands dive down the front of her pants, rubbing her through her underwear. Her hips buck against him, and she gasps, fisting her hands in his dark hair.

Eventually he pulls away, their harsh breathing the only sound in the room.

"Shepard…." he pleads with her, to stop him, to stop herself.

"Ok," Shepard says, pressing her hand to her mouth in attempt to calm herself. "Here's the deal: I order you from this room, LT." She gestures to the door. "You're banned, ok? This is a direct order, you must stop kissing me and oh god-" she breaks off as his thumb strokes her clit again and she clings to his shirt, burying her face in his neck. "You've gotta leave and go and sleep in your sleeper pod," she practically begs, pressing open-mouthed wet kisses to the warm, sensitive skin at his throat.

"Ok," he groans and pulls his hand out. Shepard hates herself for a moment and draws back. There's a hopeful light in his eyes that he can finally cling to some reason and logic and stop committing career suicide.

"Phew, ok I can deal with that," he says breathlessly getting off the bed. She notes with a guilty little twist of satisfaction that his arousal for her is more than evident at the front of his pants. Good, let him suffer like she suffers, she thinks. "I can follow orders. I don't know what's wrong with me but you're…you're something else."

"Backatcha, soldier," she replies, and throws caution to the wind to wink saucily at him, reclining back on the pillows in what she hopes is a way that seems seductive and not stupid. Kaidan swallows hard, and leaves the room in one jerky movement, mumbling about showers.

Shepard rolls over on her bed and screams her sexual frustration into a pillow. Then she flips through her omni-tool and navigates to the Alliance network page, quickly finding the article on the bad fraternization regulation breaking case Anderson mentioned, trying desperately to remember how that LT of hers is such a bad idea.

It doesn't work.

Shepard stays in bed that afternoon and she lets her imagination run wild trying to work out her frustration by herself and get a grip on her apparent determination to be made into an example of an officer doing the wrong thing.