Intai'sei

"Kaidan, this is so exciting!" Kathryn gasped, as they entered her new apartment.

He laughed; they had only just stepped into the entrance hallway, but as far as hallways went, it was nice. It was wide, with storage lockers on one wall, medi-gel, weapons, and ammunition storage along the opposite wall, and two large windows at the other end, next to the door to the actual living space. The sun was setting, casting a rosy glow over the entire room.

Kathryn pulled her armor off and put it away, opening a second locker for Kaidan to use, and hurried into the apartment, unable to wait any longer.

"Oh my god, this is great!"

Kaidan listened to her ooh and ahh about the view until his armor was stowed away. Stepping into the apartment, he whistled. A sunken living room was situated at the front of the place, and the entire front wall was a window looking out over the desert and distant mountains. The setting sun was slowly disappearing behind the highest peaks directly in front of them, and it was a breathtaking sight. Kathryn knelt on a bench along the window, watching a video screen rise up out of the sill.

"You can watch vids, news reports, anything from your datapad, omni tool, or computer."

Before he could say anything, she was moving back to the upper level of the room, dragging a hand over the table and chairs there. She touched the desk and computer station, walked past a short hallway to the kitchen and bathroom, then to the bed and storage at the back of the room. Completing the circle by coming back to him, she stretched her arms out and turned in a circle.

"So much more space than the quarters on the Normandy. There's a hydroponic garden, and water, waste, and composting systems in the building next door. Other apartments will be built over the next few years, apparently, but so far this is the only one."

She fixed him with a look that was both predatory and mischievous. "We are all alone on this planet, Kaidan, for four days."

They stared at each other for only a moment before their bodies collided in a passionate embrace. Fumbling with each other's clothing, which fell to the floor around them, Kathryn and Kaidan stumbled blindly to the bed and collapsed onto it, a tangle of limbs. She rolled him onto his back and straddled his hips, slowly sinking down onto him.

"I need you now," she whispered as Kaidan gasped and grabbed her hips.

He could barely nod a reply as his eyes wandered over her body up to her face. Kathryn was beautiful, framed by the sunset and flushed with desire, and the very sight of her took his breath away. Each movement of her body against his was a moment of bliss; when she pulled away, the separation was agony. They fit together perfectly. For several minutes she rode him, slowly increasing her pace until she couldn't wait any longer.

"Kaidan," Kathryn panted, sliding her hand between her legs. "So...close...ah!" She threw her head back, body shuddering, legs gripping Kaidan.

"God, Kate," was all he could manage before he came, crying out as he thrust into her sharply.

She spread out beside him, one arm draped over his chest, and kissed his shoulder. Kaidan put an arm over hers.

"Kate."

"Yes?" She pulled back to look him in the eye, a lazy smile pulling at her lips.

"I love you." He held his breath, not entirely certain how she would react.

For a brief moment, it looked like she was wasn't sure what to say, but then she smiled. "Me too. I mean, I love you, Kaidan." She let out a breath of air. "Were you nervous? I'm nervous."

He laughed. "A bit, yes." He propped himself up on his elbow and reached out to touch her cheek. "Why are you nervous?"

"I don't know, I guess I'm just wondering what if..." She let her voice trail off.

Kaidan pulled Kathryn into his arms and lay back down. "We can't let this change things, Kate. This is the best crew I've worked with, the best ship. Neither one of us wants to lose our post." He kissed her forehead. "But I don't want to lose you, either."

She snuggled up against Kaidan. "Right. So...no touchy feely in public, keep it strictly professional? I think I can live with that, as long as you can promise me we'll be downright unprofessional in private."

Kaidan laughed out loud and hugged Kathryn again. "I'll see what I can do for you, Commander."

She poked him in the ribs. "Right now, you can shower with me, soldier. And then we should eat something. You're going to need the energy, because I have plans for you."

x ~ X ~ x

For three days they made love, watched old Earth videos, ate, slept, talked, and played poker, all conversation relating to their work or careers forbidden. Kathryn thought she couldn't have planned a better shore leave it she'd tried, and not for the first time, she was glad her recklessness had paid off.

The morning of their fourth day on Intai'sei began much like the others. Kathryn awoke, spooned up against Kaidan, and listened. I thought I heard some...

Her computer beeped an incoming message alarm, the screen flashing red to indicate the serious nature of the message.

"Fuck," she mumbled, struggling to unwrap herself from the bed sheets.

"Mmph, what are you doing?" Kaidan asked, still half asleep.

"Thinking up the worst possible punishment for whoever's calling, that's what."

Reaching for her bathrobe, she pulled it around her body and sat in front of the computer, making sure the the video camera was pointed away from the bed, and turned the monitor on.

Joker's face appeared before her. "Oh, ah...hey, Commander Shepard, how are you?"

"I was sound asleep a minute ago, Joker." She stared at the screen, waiting.

Joker's ever-present smirk widened into a smile. "Right, and I am really sorry for interrupting your leave, but you can blame Admiral Hackett for this one. Reports of geth activity and three ships are unaccounted for."

Kathryn groaned and ran her hands through her hair.

"There," Joker laughed. "You're almost ready to go. Slap some clothes on, grab the lieutenant, and get packed. We'll be there in six hours to pick you up. On second thought, maybe you shouldn't grab the lieutenant. We can't waste any time..."

"Jesus, Joker," Kathryn laughed. "Just give us a call when you get here."

"Right, Normandy out."

"Duty calls?" Kaidan sat up in bed, rubbing his face.

Kathryn got up and stood at the end of the bed, arms crossed over her chest. "In six hours, not right now, Kaidan." She opened her bathrobe and let it fall to the ground.

"I think I like this duty. Come here, Kate."

x ~ X ~ x

Kathryn stood at the entrance to the apartment, checking things off on her fingers. "You, Mom, and Dad all have security access, ownership is now fully transferred, and VI is set to email all of us if anything happens while it's empty. I think we're good to go."

"Mmm, not yet, Kate." Kaidan caught her around the waist and pulled her body against his. "Thank you for this, it's been a great few days."

"We'll be back soon. What's a few geth, right?" She grinned and kissed him.

"Right." He squeezed her ass as he kissed her back, groaning as her mouth opened to him. Pulling away from her at last, he grabbed their duffel bags and nodded to the door. "Let's go, Commander."

"Let's, Lieutenant."

Kathryn followed Kaidan out of the apartment and sealed it up behind them. Getting into the Mako, she looked back at the front window and remembered making love to Kaidan on the bench there the night before. Smiling, she nodded to him. Kaidan entered their rendezvous site's coordinates into the control panel and hailed the Normandy to announce their departure. As they pulled away from her new home, she settled back in her chair and sighed. Whatever was ahead, she was ready.

A/N: And there you have it, my lead in to the events of ME2. My gratitude goes out to Bioware, Zute and Zevgirl, and everyone else out there who's reading and listing. Please read and review! Cheers, Biff