A/N: Thank you Kirabaros, Jules Hawk, jediserenity82 and Vorcha Girl for the reviews on my last chapter. They kept me going! As always a huge thank you to Vorcha Girl for being my beta reader. Without further ado, enjoy the chapter! (It's NSFW.)

Chapter 34. Quality Time

The next morning Nick rummaged through the cabinets in the kitchen searching for something edible while Kaidan was in the shower. It looked like he was right: They'd have to venture into town today to stock up on food, because stock at the cabin was running low. Apparently they'd used up most of what had been at the cabin yet for their picnic the previous day and for dinner.

There was plenty of coffee yet, so Kaidan would be happy. But not much of anything else.

Cursing under her breath she climbed onto the counter in order to reach the top shelf of the wall unit and found flour, sugar and baking powder. Well, if she found oil and vinegar she could at least bake a quick cake.

Cake sounded good.

"Kaidan?" she called as she opened the next cabinet, hoping he was out of the shower and would hear her. "Where in this bloody kitchen can I find oil and vinegar?"

She jumped down to the floor and froze when she suddenly heard the front door open and several people come in. Nick glanced down at the clothes she was wearing, wishing she'd dressed properly and not just donned Kaidan's hockey jersey. A good thing his jersey went well past mid-thigh on her.

"Who are you? And what are you doing in our kitchen?" a female voice asked in surprise from the door and Nick looked up to see a dark-haired woman with amber eyes. Nick's brain kickstarted. This had to be Kaidan's sister. He obviously hadn't told his family he wasn't at the cabin alone.

I'm going to kill him.

A man appeared in the doorway and Nick knew without a doubt this had to be Kaidan's father, even if his father was taller in build and had a much sterner expression. The heat of embarrassment crept up from her collar under the critical eye of ex-Alliance Major Adam Alenko.

She cleared her throat. "I'll, uh, get Kaidan. Just a minute." Nick walked past them with all the dignity she could muster, stopping at the bottom step of the staircase. "KAIDAN!" she hollered, "we have company!"

A few seconds later the man in question came out of the bathroom, pulling a t-shirt over his head. He stopped short at the top of the steps and slowly walked down..

"Dad? Erin? Uh … hi. What are you doing here?" He sounded astonished and craned his neck to look past them at the open front door. "Is mom here, too?"

"Your mother is outside. I'm surprised to see you here already, Kaidan. You could've sent a message. Your mother wanted to stock the pantry. You know how she is," his father answered stiltedly, his eyes flicking between his son and the scantily dressed woman next to him. An odd expression moved through his eyes; as though she seemed familiar and he was trying to place her.

Nick moved behind Kaidan.

"I did send you a message about when I was going to be here," Kaidan replied. "And thanks, but it really wasn't necessary. I think we're capable of buying our own food."

"I should go." Nick turned and fled up to their room, leaving Kaidan behind in an awkward silence. She listened with one ear as Kaidan's father asked the question she had known was burning on his tongue before she closed the door.

This was not how she had expected to meet any of Kaidan's family. Truth be told, she hadn't expected meeting them at all yet.

When she returned downstairs fully dressed she found they had moved to the kitchen and were unpacking boxes of goods. Good grief. It looked like Mrs. Alenko feared they might starve, even considering the higher calorie intake Kaidan needed. Nick walked over to him and whispered in his ear. "I'm going to kill you, Alenko. I nearly died of embarrassment."

"Why?" he murmured back and smirked. "You should be grateful they didn't walk in half an hour earlier." She swatted him playfully. Kaidan glanced over his shoulder at his father and then leaned closer to Nick. "I probably should've expected a visit. They usually drop by once while I'm at the cabin. We shouldn't mention you're my CO, though."

Nick nodded in agreement and steeled herself. She could do this; she'd faced worse.

The weather turned colder and let the ice cover on the lake grow thick. One day Kaidan came back in from outside grinning like the Cheshire cat while Nick was still busy pulling on thick winter boots. He opened a closet and dropped a pair of ice skates into Nick's hands shortly after.

"These should fit you," he told her over his shoulder as he returned to the closet.

Nick stared at the skates. "Kaidan, I haven't stood on skates since I was like ... fourteen? And I'm worse at skating than I am dancing."

She heard a mumbled response that sounded suspiciously like, "I find that hard to believe."

"What did you say, Alenko?" Her eyes narrowed dangerously.

Kaidan closed the closet, holding a pair of well worn skates in his hand.

"I said I find that hard to believe," he replied with a smile. He placed a quick kiss on the tip of her nose and continued before she had a chance to answer. "You'll do fine on the ice."

To her utter horror he grabbed two hockey sticks, stuffed a few pucks in his pockets and headed for the door.

Nick glared at him, still holding the skates in her hand and not moving. "You can't be serious."

Something in her voice gave him pause. Kaidan placed the hockey sticks next to the door and came walking back to her, a small frown on his face. "I thought you'd enjoy it. We can just go for another hike, if that's what you prefer."

It's what they had done the past three days, hiking through the woods around the cabin, the previous day they had even put on snowshoes. And while it had been wonderful a change might be nice.

Nick swore at herself, seeing disappointment briefly flash in his eyes. "No, I - , let's do this."

He studied her face for a long moment. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," she answered with a curt nod.

Kaidan stepped closer. "I won't laugh and I promise I'll kiss every bruise you get from falling on the ice later on," he whispered, looking at her intensely. Nick caught her lip between her teeth and nodded, not able to pull away from his gaze. He kissed her softly on her mouth and pulled away again, leading her outside and grabbing one of the hockey sticks on the way.

"Let me guess, you've been checking if the ice was thick enough ever since we got here," she asked quietly.

"Of course! I was beginning to worry we wouldn't get around to it," he admitted as they walked slowly towards the frozen pond. "It's one reason I love being here in the winter." Her heart nearly burst at the boyish gleam of pure joy and excitement in his eyes.

"Skating on a pond is different from skating at a rink," Kaidan told her as he finished lacing up his skates and stepped onto the frozen surface, his breath condensing instantly in the cold air. He waited for her, taking her hand as soon as she stepped on the ice as well.

Nick tightened her grip on his hand, wobbling.

"Relax." Kaidan's voice was deep and soothing and she took a deep breath. He gave her hand a squeeze. "Do you want to try it yourself or do you want to hold on to me?"

She let out a short laugh. "I'll try it myself. I've just never worn hockey skates before. It feel so … different from what I remember."

Kaidan nodded and let go of her hand, but didn't stray from her side, always alert to steady her if she stumbled. After a few tentative steps Nick relaxed as muscle memory took over and she found both her balance on the skates and a good stride. She reached out to Kaidan with a smile. His hand grasped hers, light but firm, as they slid over the ice. They kept a comfortable silence; there was no need to speak and the scratching of their skates over the ice was the only sound that filled the air.

After skating together for a while she gave him a small push and winked. "Go on and get that hockey goal you've been glancing at the past few minutes! I know I'm skating too slow for you and I don't want you to have taken the stick and those pucks along for nothing!"

Nearly an hour later Nick felt her muscles burn; she would be sore the next day. Slowly she skated to the edge of the ice, rubbing her thighs and sat down on a log with the intention of just watching Kaidan for a few minutes. Though truthfully, she wouldn't mind watching him for hours.

Not much later he collected everything and skated towards her with an expression of disbelief on his face, holding out his hand.

"I was just taking a short break," she defended herself weakly.

A short explosive laugh was Kaidan's only answer as he pulled her to her feet and back onto the ice. Momentum carried her into his arms and he slowly skated backwards, encircling her waist with his arms. His eyes gleamed brightly as her arms slid around his neck and they moved slowly across the ice, holding each other close.

Once they returned to the cabin Kaidan lit the fireplace and disappeared into the kitchen, returning minutes later with two steaming mugs of hot chocolate. The fire crackled merrily as they snuggled together, sipping their beverages, hands gently roaming over the other's body, slipping under the clothing to feel skin. Slow, languid kisses grew more insistent as clothes were discarded, laying bare more places to be kissed.

And Kaidan kissed her everywhere.

A week later Nick marched onto the Normandy with look on her face that could have curdled milk. She hadn't been in a bad mood when they had docked at the Citadel earlier that day, but it obvious that whatever the Council had told her pissed her off, badly. Kaidan carefully turned his head to look at her as she stepped into the helm.

It had felt strange returning to duty on the Normandy on Arcturus two days previous and not being able to kiss Nick good morning. He was certain she felt the same; he'd seen the same hunger flash through her eyes. The first night in his sleeper pod hadn't been easy either, but they had agreed before that they would spend the first few nights in their respective bunks.

"Joker, get us out of here and set course for the Terminus systems," she ordered in an icy tone.

"Aye, aye, Commander!" the helmsman responded after trading a quick look with Kaidan.

Shepard turned on her heel, her eyes lingering on Kaidan for a brief moment. He raised an eyebrow questioningly. She shook her head and made the slightest nod towards the CIC.

Kaidan returned his gaze to the board in front of him while he listened to the thud of her boots on the grating as she left.

"Terminus systems, huh?" Joker asked as the docking clamps disengaged and the Normandy drifted backwards. Kaidan's mouth twitched. He knew this was just a set-up to get to the questions that really burned on the helmsman's mind.

"So it would seem," Kaidan answered, not taking his eyes off his console. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Joker turning around to him, but before the other man could say anything the ship wide comm clicked.

"Attention all stations, this is the Commander speaking. Vessels have been disappearing in the Terminus systems. The Council and the Brass suspect the geth behind the attacks. Our orders are to seek and destroy any remaining geth outposts. That is all. Shepard out."

That explained Shepard's bad mood. Kaidan couldn't help but wrinkle his forehead; the order made no sense. First of all, there were always reports of ships vanishing in the Terminus systems and secondly the geth weren't behind the attack on the Citadel, but only henchmen. Why weren't they ordered to find more Prothean artifacts and find out more about the Reapers?

"That's weird," Joker commented quietly, unknowingly voicing Kaidan's thoughts as he maneouvered the Normandy away from the Citadel. "There are always ships disappearing in the Terminus systems." He shrugged his shoulders and then looked at Kaidan with a sly glint in his eyes. "Sooo," the pilot drawled. "You never answered my question yesterday. How was your shore leave?"

Kaidan rolled his eyes. "My shore leave was fine, thanks for asking." He glanced over at the smirking helmsman. "What?"

"Well, where did you go?"

"I spent some time at our family cabin on the Gold Coast. You know, hiking, snowshoeing, skating, stuff like that," Kaidan replied, tossing a few tidbits of information at Joker.

"But you weren't alone, were you? I'm thinking you and She- "

"Moreau." There was a warning growl in Kaidan's voice that made Joker look at his friend.

The pilot held up his hands. "Alright, alright! No need to get squeamish. I still say you weren't alone on shore leave!"

"You are the nosiest friend ever," Kaidan muttered under his breath.

"Hey, I think Williams is worse than I am! Her and I spent last evening discussing this topic. I'm surprised she hasn't grilled you yet," Joker grinned.

Me too.

Kaidan took a deep breath. "As your friend, I'm going to ask you once. Please stop talking about my personal life while we're on duty or around other servicemen." He gave his friend a somewhat frosty stare.

"Fine. I'll drop it for now. Unless we're sitting down in the mess and nobody else is around except for Ash or Liara or Shepard," the snarky pilot gave in.

"Good." Kaidan narrowed his eyes as he watched the temperature readings for the heat sinks on his terminal while Joker began the relay approach. The starboard heat sink was warming up faster than he liked, but the rate was within set parameters. Other than that everything seemed in order.

He typed a short message and sent it to CHENG Adams. If necessary he would go down to Engineering and help out once they had cleared the relay. Or maybe he'd just go down to have a chat with him face to face. It was something like a safe spot if he didn't want to be pestered by Ashley, because unless they were talking weapon optimization Ash quickly got bored by tech talk.

He grinned to himself for a short moment, but the smile faded almost as quickly as it had appeared.

A number of things had changed, and Kaidan wasn't just thinking of the fact that he was fraternizing with his commanding officer. Tali was no longer there, as she had returned to the Migrant Fleet to end her Pilgrimage, Garrus had gone back to C-Sec, and Wrex to Tuchanka.

He missed Tali and Garrus already. It had been strange walking into the cargo hold and not seeing Garrus by the Mako, and it would be even weirder not seeing Tali in Engineering. Apart from Ashley and Joker he considered those two to be his best friends.

With a slight shake of his head Kaidan tried to rid himself of his wandering thoughts, and focused on his duty station.

A few hours later he made his way to the nearly empty mess. The mess sergeant waved him over and wordlessly handed him a tray loaded with food. With a grateful nod he took it and sat down at the table. He was hardly surprised when Ashley dropped onto the seat next to him shortly afterwards, proudly sporting her new chevrons. She looked around and then leaned closer.

"Tell me everything," she whispered loudly.

Kaidan poked at the meat on his tray and frowned. After almost four weeks of eating something other than Alliance military rations, the first meals were always the worst.

"I'm eating, Ash," he answered. "And congrats on the promotion, Operations Chief. You've more than deserved it!"

Ashley snorted disdainfully. "Thanks, but stop flattering me. If it's meant as a diversion, it's not going to work."

"I didn't say that just to flatter you, Ash," he scowled at her. "I meant it."

Her expression softened. "I know you did, but - ," The sound of steps coming from the CIC refrained her from saying more. Ashley smirked widely when she saw it was Shepard.

"Skipper! Grab a bite and sit down with us! I'm sure LT won't mind," Ashley called, patting the table on Kaidan's other side.

Kaidan turned his head and saw Nick walking towards them with a little smile playing on her lips. God, how he wanted to kiss those lips. She place a hand leisurely on the back of his chair when she stood next to them.

"If you're still here in ten minutes I'll join you," Nick replied, facing Ashley. Then she turned her head to Kaidan. "If that's alright with you, Lieutenant?"

He swallowed, looking up into her blue-gray eyes. "Of course, Commander."

With a curt nod Shepard stepped away. His eyes followed her as she headed to the galley, utterly bewitched by the light sway of her hips. A snigger from Ashley brought him back to his senses.

"You're staring, LT," Ashley chided good-naturedly. "You might want to work on that again, before everyone on the ship knows how enamored you are with the Skipper." She leaned back sipping her coffee and gave him a satisfied grin.

"The past few weeks were so wonderfully quiet, you know," Kaidan told her, pointing his fork at her.

"Aww, I'm sure you missed me keeping you on your toes, LT," the operations chief shot back, trying to grab a cookie off of his tray.

"As if!" he muttered, slapping her fingers, and then taking another forkful of food.

"Ow, that hurt my feelings!" Ashley clasped her hands over her heart dramatically. Kaidan rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"What hurt your feelings?" Joker asked, limping slowly towards the table. Kaidan groaned. This was going to be more like an interrogation than anything else. He hoped Shepard finished whatever she had to do soon and could take some of the heat off him.

"LT said he didn't miss me. Just imagine that!" Ash pointed at him accusingly. "And he won't share his cookies with me."

"What did you expect? We both know there's only one person he shares anything with, preferably the bed," Joker told her in a matter-of-fact tone of voice. Kaidan froze, and then scanned the area quickly. They were alone. He exhaled slowly while Joker smirked at him. "And now to something completely different. Two words: shore leave."

Kaidan eyed his tray. Except for his dessert everything was gone. "You two just aren't going to shut up about it, are you?" he asked, taking a cookie.

"Nope!"

Kaidan glanced at Shepard's cabin, but there was no sign of her, and he turned his gaze back to his friends. They were looking at him expectantly, leaning closer with sparkling eyes. Ashley's lips were parted; she was probably hoping for some juicy tidbits. "Right," he replied with a sigh of resignation. "Ask away."

Joker cut straight to the chase. "Did you and Shepard go on shore leave together?"

"Yes." There was no use denying it. He knew them well enough to know they wouldn't have accepted 'no' as an answer either way. Kaidan's look swept back to the bulkhead of Shepard's cabin just as she stepped out and he almost let out a sigh of relief.

"Ha! I knew it!" Ashley said triumphantly, turning to Joker for a high five.

"You knew what, chief?" Shepard asked as she walked around the table and took the seat next to Kaidan.

"That you two spent shore leave together!"

Shepard looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Did you also tell them how extremely talented you are at letting a girl forget where she is?"

Ashley nearly spit out her coffee.

"Not something I boast about, Shepard." Kaidan replied, feeling the heat of embarrassment slowly creep up his neck.

"Oh, but you should. I'm sure the neighbors heard my screams of pleasure more than once." She smiled innocently while her knee brushed against his under the table and snatched the cookie out of his hand as he stared at her. He couldn't believe what she had just said; maybe he was hearing things. The fact that her tongue darted out to slowly lick some crumbs off her lips as she steadily gazed at him didn't make it easier for him to concentrate.

"More likely they heard your shouts of rage when I beat you at the rifle range," he retorted once he'd found his speech back. "Soundly beat."

He watched as her smile turned to a mock scowl. "I told you I can't shoot with a goddamn pea-shooter!"

"I also had the higher score with the assault rifle, which I haven't used since basic," Kaidan explained, looking at Ashley and Joker.

"Don't be so smug, Alenko! My rifle kept pulling to the side," Shepard muttered, punching his shoulder playfully.

"You should've realigned then," he returned with a shrug, his typical lopsided smirk tugging at his lips. "As I recall we switched assault rifles yet, remember? And I had the higher score both times."

"But I kicked your ass with the sniper rifle!" Nick emphasized.

"That you did," Kaidan answered with a smile.

His heart did a little somersault when she smiled back. "I can't help it, I just like big guns."

"Size isn't everything, Commander." Kaidan said.

"You don't have to worry about size anyway, Lieutenant," Shepard purred, the pressure of her leg against his increasing.

Ashley coughed lightly. "Are you two still talking about weapons or is it your sex life now?"

"Weapons," Kaidan and Nick answered as one, still looking at each other. The looks they received from Joker and Ashley when they turned their eyes on them stated clearly that their friends didn't believe a word. They remained at the table some time yet, asking Ashley and Joker where they had spent their shore leave before all heading to bed.

Shepard turned around once more before entering her cabin.

"Oh, Joker? Ash?" she said sweetly. "If you mention anything to anyone that could harm my career, or worse, Kaidan's, I swear by my pretty, floral bonnet, I will end you." She smiled and walked into her cabin, her voice drifting out to them, "Painfully."

As Kaidan lay in his sleeper pod a short while later he struggled to get comfortable. He could still feel her leg pressed against his, her fingers brushing over his ever so lightly when she had snatched the cookie out of his hand. He saw her tongue dart out to moist her lips when he closed his eyes. Shepard was obviously right; being back on the Normandy was a lot like going cold turkey.

Goddammit, Alenko, pull yourself together. It's not like this is forever!

Several days later they had managed to sneak a few kisses here and there, but all it did was fuel his hunger for more. Kaidan wouldn't have thought it possible, but it was worse than on the first run with the Normandy, because he knew exactly what he was missing.

This cruise was going to be pure torture.

His heart hammered in his chest as she approached his workstation on the crew deck, chewing on her bottom lip, obviously deep in thought. As she drew closer her eyes swept through the room to check if the coast was clear. But there was something in her posture that told him this wasn't just a friendly visit.

"Lieutenant, do you have a minute?" Shepard asked.

Straightening up Kaidan turned to face her. "Of course, Commander."

"Good. I need to speak to you. Privately." She gestured towards her cabin.

Bewildered Kaidan closed his duty station and followed her, his mouth dry. His shift was nearly over anyway, but something was obviously up.

"Have a seat, Alenko," Shepard said as she sat down at the small table. For a second she turned the datapad she was holding in her hands back and forth before pushing it towards him.

Kaidan picked it up and his eyes widened as he skimmed the text. He looked back at Shepard, and found her smiling at him.

"Congratulations, Lieutenant Commander," she said, standing up suddenly and moving closer to him, her fingertips grazing his arm. "I think a celebration is in order. What a happy coincidence that your shift is just over, wouldn't you say?"

He was off duty and they were alone.

"A very happy coincidence," he murmured, pulling her onto his lap. Their mouths met, and he could feel her hum of approval as they kissed hungrily. She tasted of chocolate and cinnamon, sweet and sharp.

"They're probably going to transfer you, you know," Nick whispered between kisses, her fingers trailing along his shoulders and down his chest. "And technically we're not fraternizing anymore, are we? You're no longer my subordinate." She stood up, pulling him with her.

Kaidan tugged her close again and chuckled against the crook of her neck, running his tongue along her collarbone. He didn't think the brass would agree with that, but at the moment he was too preoccupied to worry about it. She moaned lustfully as he sucked at her pulse point and slid his hands under her panties, cupping her ass.

They undressed with military efficiency and Kaidan pushed her slowly towards the bed.

Nick sat down and grinned up at him, licking her lips before running the tip of her tongue along his erection. He groaned and closed his eyes, twisting one hand into her hair as she swirled her tongue around his tip.

With a kiss she pulled away and, biting her lip, moved up the bed. Kaidan followed her, his mouth leaving a hot trail along the inside of her thighs, nudging her legs further apart. He deliberately ignored the apex of her thighs, kissing the scar just below her ribcage before catching a pebbled bud of her breast in his mouth. He grazed the sensitive mound with his teeth, sucking and licking, then turned his attention to the other rosy tip.

She whispered his name and Kaidan looked into her beautiful face, eyes dark with desire. His tongue slid smoothly over hers, kissing her deeply. Her hands slid over his shoulder to his amp jack and Kaidan instantly felt the buzz of his biotics humming just under his skin. He shuddered, willing down his power.

With a smirk he moved down her body, settling between her legs. His eyes darted to her face again, flushed with arousal, He ran his thumb lightly through her folds, spreading them and her breath hitched when his tongue flicked over her clit. Nick squirmed and writhed as he held her, circling her nub with his tongue, nibbling and sucking, until she was keening with lust.

Her hips jerked upward when he slid a finger into her core, adding a second shortly after. She chanted his name like a mantra, her body going rigid just before her orgasm tore through her body. Kaidan placed a soft kiss on the hypersensitive bundle of nerves. She twitched even at this gentle touch. He placed another kiss just a little bit higher, but her hand curled into his hair, tugging him upwards.

"I want you to fuck me," Nick whispered hoarsely. "I want you to fuck me hard and fast until I can hardly hold back from screaming your name."

Pure lust shot through at her words and he kissed her hard. Kaidan pulled away, his eyes wandering to her swollen lips. Her wish ran through him like lightning and with one sure thrust he entered her. He began to move slowly, pulling almost all the way out before slamming into her again. Her hands fisted into the sheets with every thrust as he increased his pace.

"Oh my God," she mewled when he hooked her legs over his shoulders, driving deep into her. Her breathing was almost frantic and her nails dug into his shoulders, her hips meeting him with every movement.

Kaidan had to slow down; he was getting close. He leaned down to kiss her, pressing his forehead to hers and their eyes were locked as he gradually went faster. He felt the tension building up low in his body; he wouldn't be able to hold back much longer.

"Nick, I won't last much longer," he panted. A slight nod acknowledged his words as she urged him on.

"Don't stop. Oh my God, don't stop!" Her eyelids fluttered and she arched her back, dragging her fingernails down his back, digging them deep into his flesh. Somewhere in his mind a voice told him he would bear scratch marks for several days, but Kaidan didn't care. He picked up speed again as he fucked her just as she wanted him to, hard and fast. With each thrust he struggled to keep his rhythm and his biotics under control. Lights danced in front of his eyes, exploding as the tension uncoiled and he spilled himself into her with a low groan, feeling her inner walls tightening around him, milking him.

For a moment they both lay there panting hard as their orgasms slowly subsided. "That was incredible," Nick mumbled.

Kaidan chuckled. "I aim to please."

He kissed her again, slowly this time, feeling completely sated and happy before drifting into sleep together.

A/N: I fear fun times are over for a while. They are in for a rude surprise the next day!