Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

James had noticed the guy the first time he'd shown up at Mystery. Even with the constant flow of traffic through Omega, Tuesdays, or what passed for them on the station, weren't really a big draw for new customers. So a stranger in the club had caught his attention right off the bat. The fact that he wasn't bad looking at all, despite being a little worn around the edges, didn't hurt. But James had learned long ago that good looks did not always mean good people.

The guy had barely looked his way while he'd been on the main stage, seeming much more engrossed in his meal than in the entertainment. Which was a shame, because James was really bringing it tonight. All other eyes in the club were on him as he divested himself of his costume piece by piece, strutting and rolling his well-muscled body to the beat of the music. When at last he was down to his dog tags and his oh so small briefs, he paused for dramatic effect, giving his hips a little shimmy. Then he hooked two fingers of each hand under the band of his briefs, as if he meant to slip them off as well. That drew a chorus of whistles and catcalls from his audience.

"Uh uh uh," he laughed, pulling his hands up and shaking a finger at the crowd. You know the rules, not on the main stage. You guys want more, you know where to find me!" He gave a little bow and danced backwards across the stage, snagging up the pieces of his costume as he went, drinking in the applause and cheers. Just before he ducked behind the curtain, he happened to glance at the stranger. The guy was definitely watching him now, though James had to admit the look on the other man's face was more thoughtful than lustful. Their eyes met for the briefest of moments and James winked at him before disappearing backstage.

He made his way to the dressing room, feeling pretty damn good about his performance. A glance at the data pad in his cubby made his grin widen. Every table in the club had a built-in payment screen that the customers could enter an account number into for their tab and to send tips to the dancers. James' data pad showed him the tips that had been sent to him, and they were rolling in tonight.

The pad pinged that he also had two requests for private sessions, though neither of them was from the stranger's table. He felt a brief flash of disappointment at that, but it was gone when he realized the requests had come from regulars, both usually polite and very big tippers. By the time he'd given them their dances and made his way back to the floor, the stranger was gone, and James was busy enough that he didn't give it any more thought.

When James saw that he was back the next night, same table, same big meal, same intense focus aimed more at the food than the dancers, he grinned. Something about the guy drew James in. He seemed so serious, and while he was polite enough to the server, he didn't appear interested in talking to any of the dancers working the floor, respectfully ignoring men and women both. Watching from behind the curtain, James couldn't help but notice when the man looked up as his own stage name was announced, settling back into his seat with that same thoughtful look from the night before.

James met the man's eyes when he stepped through the curtains onto the stage, and he held his gaze through his whole routine. He'd picked something slower to dance to tonight, more sensual, allowing him to really tease the audience as he removed each piece of his old-fashioned military uniform costume. Giselle, the owner, had a "vision" for Mystery, as she called it. The whole club looked like something out of some old black and white noire vid from early twentieth century Earth. She thought it appealed to the large non-human population of Omega, giving them something exotically human to ogle. Although the music tended to be more along modern sensibilities, she insisted that their costumes fall in line with the theme of the place. So Lieutenant Jimmy, as he was known in the club, had an array of outfits inspired by military uniforms from that time period.

Tonight he was in a mock dress uniform, and the crowd was eating it up as he undid each shiny button, revealing a tanned and muscled chest with more than a few anachronistic tattoos underneath. Giselle didn't so much care about the tattoos, or his short mohawk, or that her dancers still tended toward more modern underwear, just so long as the costume itself was good enough. The stranger watched James' entire routine with an intensity that would have unnerved him if he had been just a little less experienced.

He wished that he could see more of the man, but in the low light of the club, with his dark hair and dark clothes, he blended in too damn well with his surroundings. All James could really get a fix on were those eyes. Though maybe they were enough. There was just something about the guy.... He finished the routine, shooting another wink at the mystery man before retreating behind the curtains. He couldn't be sure, but he thought he caught just the hint of a smile from the man in return.

Instead of heading straight to his cubby, he risked a peek back through the curtains while Giselle announced the next dancer. The man was tapping something into his payment screen. James felt his pulse quicken. Requesting a private session, maybe? But no. Now he was standing up, shrugging into a jacket, and leaving without a backwards glance.  James sighed and headed to his cubby, reluctantly picking up his data pad.

Heh. Don't know why I'm acting so loco over this guy. Guess I'm just getting bored here. Same customers every week, it seems.

He shook his head at his foolishness. Still, his lips quirked up in a small smile when he noticed the modest tip from table forty-two.

Enjoyed the show, at least.

For the next two weeks it went on like that. The stranger would show up around dinner time, order an insane amount of food, and keep to himself while he ate it. James was kind of impressed by that, truth be told. He didn't know where the guy was putting it all. The servers all said he was always polite, soft spoken, never asked any questions, except for one time when he'd come in on a Sunday, James' usual night off. He hadn't showed up when the next Sunday rolled around, a smug waitress had told James the Monday after that. He'd stick around until James finished his show, leave a tip, and then be on his way.

James didn't hold it against the guy that he never wanted any one on one time. Private dances weren't cheap, and he was more than used to customers who wanted to keep to themselves. A lot of their regulars had a favorite dancer, someone they came especially to see. Some folks just wanted to watch for a bit and enjoy the view. James usually preferred it that way, if he was being honest. Just because he'd been lucky with his back room sessions so far didn't mean he wasn't one creep away from a really bad night. Something about this particular guy just had his curiosity up for some reason.

Of course, just when James started to get used to the guy's dependable appearance, that's when the routine up and changed. First, the guy didn't show for a week straight. James tried to shrug it off, assuming that maybe his business on the station was done and he had moved on. Then James was late to work on a Wednesday and hurrying across the floor in his street clothes, hoping to get to the back before Giselle could yell at him. He hadn't been able to come in through the employees' entrance because a delivery transport was blocking the alley, so he was crossing his fingers that she would cut him some slack for coming in through the front. He was halfway across the club when he noticed that the stranger was back at table forty-two, and watching James quite closely.

He didn't stop short, but it was a close thing. For a guy who spent most of his time practically naked, he felt unusually exposed under that gaze. His torn up jeans and battered old Alliance t-shirt might as well have ceased to exist. He felt the other man's gaze before he saw him out of the corner of his eye, and his steps faltered for just a second when he realized just who was looking at him. But a heartbeat later he was given a legitimate excuse to stop moving.

"Vega! You're late!" He had never been so glad to hear Giselle bitch at him in all his time on Omega. "Get your ass in the back and get dressed, you're on in fifteen!"

"Sorry, Elle!" He called back. "Couldn't be helped!" He turned toward the bar as he said this, and pretended to notice his stranger as he did so. Sketching the man a mock salute, he winked and motored to the back. He thought he heard a soft, amused laugh follow him behind the bar.

Every day for another week the stranger was there, then gone again for four nights, and then back. The sporadic disappearances only made James more curious about the guy, but he had almost resigned himself to never knowing anything more than that he had a damn healthy appetite and he seemed to enjoy watching James dance.

Which was, of course, when the mystery man changed things up again.

"What's up with you, Vega? You look like you've seen a ghost." Amie plopped down on the bench beside him and started pulling on the sheer stockings that were part of her costume. "Or are they not tipping tonight?" She smirked, but it was friendly enough. "Maybe it's time to update your routine," she teased.

"Table forty-two," was all James said in reply, not raising his eyes from his data pad.

"Oh, that hottie with the ass who has a crush on you?"

"He requested a private session," James whispered. Amie whistled. James just blinked and looked up as Amie's comment sank in. "Wait. What ass? What are you talking about?"

"Forty-two's ass," Amie grinned. "It's glorious. Hadn't you noticed?"

"I've never had the chance to," James answered with a thoughtful frown. "He always leaves while I'm still backstage." He didn't really want to explain to her that he had a hard time getting past those intense eyes, although he had noticed the lips a time or two. Maybe thought a few inappropriate things about them. Not that he'd ever admit that. The dancers definitely weren't supposed to be the ones lusting after the customers.

"Not tonight, apparently," Amie elbowed him in side. "Guess he finally got tired of just watching. Maybe he'll let you touch it." James grunted and tried very hard to think of anything other than doing just that. "Promise you'll tell me all about it."

"Now, now, sweetheart," James said, calming down a bit under her teasing, "you know a gentleman never tells."

"Good thing you're no gentleman, then, Vega," Amie said with a hearty chuckle. She punched him lightly in the arm. "Go on now, don't keep him waiting!" She shooed him off the bench. "And remember," she called as he shook his head and headed for the door, "I want details!"

"Not happening, amiga!" He shot back as he stepped out into the hallway and shut the door behind him.

He took a steadying breath and then made his way to the room assigned for his private sessions. James wondered if Amie was that far off in her guess about the request, and then wondered what he would do if she was right.

Giselle might not run the most popular strip club on Omega, but she had some of the most loyal dancers. That was because she took care of them. On the club floor and the main stage she maintained a strict policy of no touching between customers and dancers, and full nudity was never on offer. The men had to keep their briefs on--however small they wanted them to be--and the same went for women. Whether or not to go topless was up to each dancer, as was how skimpy the underwear actually was. Giselle claimed it kept the tone of the establishment "classy." Of course, it also drove up the demand for private sessions.

Private sessions lasted for half an hour and they varied according to what each dancer was comfortable with. Some customers just wanted to see the dancers get completely naked, some wanted touching, others wanted more. But nothing happened without a dancer's consent, and she kept a staff of exceedingly intimidating security--krogan, human, and turian at present count--on hand to ensure that. Each room had a call button that, if pressed, would summon said security instantly, ending the session.

Mostly, James' private sessions were with regulars, and so far no one had really asked for more than to see all of him. A few had wanted to touch him, but they'd been respectful enough, and if he hadn't necessarily enjoyed it, neither had he found it unpleasant. As he made his way down the hall, he couldn't help but wonder what his stranger had in mind for their session.

Nodding to the turian keeping an eye on the private rooms, James knocked once on the door to his and then went inside, taking a deep breath as he did so. Forty-two was already waiting for him and he gave James a small smile. His eyes raked James up and down, taking in his floor uniform, old-school black tuxedo pants and a crisp white tuxedo shirt, the collar left open.

"The uniforms suit you better," he said softly. His voice was husky and low and it stirred something in James that had been quiet for a very long time. Unsure what to say in response to that, because it didn't actually seem to be a come on, James just shrugged and offered a cocky grin. He leaned against the door, letting the other man get a good look while he took one of his own.

The lighting in the private rooms was low, but it was still brighter than the main floor and he could actually see the other man for the first time. Not as old as James had first thought, but definitely still a few years older than himself. He was leaner than James, which was hardly a surprise, since James had a build most often called "krogan-like," but still heavily muscled. Tan and freckled, but lighter than James, with dark hair, swept back from his face and slicked neatly in place. James had the sudden urge to run his fingers through it, find out what it would look like all messed up. Just a hint of grey showed at the temples and James decided he liked it. He met the man's eyes last, those intense, whiskey colored eyes, and cocked an eyebrow.

It's your half hour, amigo, what do you want to do with it? The man seemed to hear the unspoken question. He chuckled and stood up from the couch.

"Do I get to call you Vega?" He crossed the room and stopped a few feet away. Something in the way he moved triggered a memory in James' mind, but it was fleeting, gone before he could grasp it.

"Only if you give me something to call you back," he teased.

"Kaidan," the man said in that same quiet voice. He took another step closer.

"So, Kaidan, huh?" James pushed away from the door, glad when Kaidan held his ground. Sometimes people had a tendency to jump back when James moved his considerable bulk suddenly.

He took a step forward, reducing the distance between them. They were just about of a height with one another, though James thought he might have an inch on the other man. Kaidan. He raised one hand and ran his fingers lightly down Kaidan's arm, enjoying the way it caused his breath to catch and his eyes to slide closed.

"Guess you've been liking what you've seen, then, eh?" Kaidan made a small sound that might have been agreement. "Were you wanting to see more?"

Kaidan's eyes opened and he gave himself a small shake. A rueful smile crossed his face and he took a small step back, breaking the contact between them.

"Not like this, no." He ran a hand through his hair and glanced around, settling his eyes on the couch. James pushed down the wave of disappointment that washed over him and leaned back against the door, waiting. "I was hoping we could talk?" Kaidan said after a moment, pointing to the couch.

"Sure, man," James said, keeping his voice light. "They're your credits." He followed Kaidan to the couch and sat down beside him, surprised when Kaidan scooted a bit closer and leaned forward, those intense eyes on him again. "What did you want to talk about?"

It wasn't wholly unheard of, customers buying a private session just to have someone to talk to. First time in James' experience, but he supposed there was a first time for everything. Better that than someone who didn't know how to take no for an answer, he supposed.

Not that he'd been planning on telling Kaidan no to anything.

"It's just," Kaidan started and then stopped. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair again. "Look, don't think I don't find you attractive. I do." He shot James a sheepish grin, "Really. But this," he gestured around the room, "isn't really my scene, you know?"

James very politely did not point out that Kaidan had spent almost every night of the past month eating his dinner in a strip club. Which would, to James at least, indicate that this was actually very much his scene. But hey, what did James know?

Sure, he'd heard stories about customers falling for the dancers, but none of them had gone quite like this.

"Okay," James tried. "So, Kaidan, tell me what brings you to Omega, then?"

The change was instantaneous. Kaidan went from being flustered and open to closed off and composed in the space of a breath. James did his best to stay relaxed, although the sudden shift set him on edge more than he cared to admit, calling up old instincts almost on reflex.

"Ah," Kaidan said, still quietly, still serious, but somehow completely different.  The earnestness was gone, leaving behind a cold professionalism. "I'm not really supposed to talk about it." He gave James another sheepish smile, but it did not reach his eyes. Those remained assessing, watching James carefully. "Besides, that's boring stuff anyway. You don't want to hear about what I do for a living."

Suddenly, James realized he very much did want to hear about that.

"Well, hell, amigo, you don't want to talk about me. I'm not interesting at all!" Kaidan chuckled and his whole body relaxed a bit. James breathed a bit easier. But only for a moment.

"Oh I don't know about that," Kaidan said with another smile, this one honest, "I'd love to know how you went from being an Alliance Marine to a stripper on Omega." James went very still, but Kaidan seemed not to notice as he reached out to James' open collar. He traced the younger man's throat and snagged the chain around his neck, pulling out the dog tags James wore. "Hmm, yes, I thought those were real." He held them up and examined them closely, seemingly oblivious to James' discomfort.

"Look, man," James started, but he trailed off when Kaidan's eyes met his. There was nothing in them but simple curiosity, and James swallowed at the sight. For all that he was used to being the center of attention, this was something too personal, too much. "I don't...I don't talk about that," he finished lamely.

"Maybe another time then," Kaidan said softly, dropping the tags. He reached out and traced one finger along the scar across James' nose and then sat back, smiling sadly. "See you around, Vega," he said. He grabbed his jacket from the arm of the couch and left without looking back.

James stared after him, his eyes wide as the earlier memory resurfaced again, this time breaking through fully. Kaidan moved like a soldier. That was what he had recognized. Kaidan was Alliance, or had been. Was that why he was so interested in James? He'd recognized one of his own?

James shook his head, trying to pull himself together. As far as anyone at Mystery knew, he just took on the soldier persona because he had the build for it. He'd meant it when he said he didn't talk about his time in the Alliance. Once more he found himself intensely curious about who Kaidan was and what he was actually doing on Omega.

Guess I'll just have to find out, he told himself as he stood up and left the room, ready to be back in the familiar world of Mystery.

Chapter Text

Kaidan stayed away for the next two nights, and James had conflicting feelings about the other man's absence. He'd gotten so used to seeing him, night after night, sitting at table forty-two, that dancing without him there felt strange now.

He could admit to himself that there was definitely an attraction as well. Once he'd gotten over the initial shock of Kaidan calling him out for his past in the service, he had replayed the session in his mind over and over. Kaidan's eyes and voice and smile, not to mention his body--Amie had been right, that ass was amazing, from what James had seen--it was all a damn nice package. That Kaidan had openly admitted to being attracted to James, and had seemed to take an actual personal interest in him, well, those held their own appeal as well.

He kept thinking about what Kaidan had said. Not like this.  What had he meant by that? Surely not what James was thinking. Still. He caught himself up in more than one day dream, imagining running into Kaidan in his off hours and getting to know the guy in a less professional capacity.

Bad idea,  he told himself, fixating on a customer like this. Especially one he knew almost nothing about. The way Kaidan had clammed up at such a simple question was not a good sign. If he was Alliance, then Kaidan was unlikely to want much to do with James anyway once he found out just how James had ended up on Omega. Really, it was good that Kaidan hadn't come back. It would be for the best if he stayed away, James tried to convince himself. But he still found his eyes straying to table forty-two every time he stepped into Mystery or out onto the main stage.

Because let's face it, James, this guy's the most interesting thing to happen to you in ages.

When Kaidan did show up again, it was almost as if the private session had never happened. He slipped back into the previous routine of dinner, watch James, leave. James caught a few more smiles from the other man now, a little more open appreciation, a few nods of greeting, but that was it. After another month of this, complete with the random nights where he didn't show, James' curiosity was almost overwhelming. He decided it was time to take matters into his own hands.

Giselle was surprised when James asked for a night off. It was the first time in the two years he'd worked there that he'd put in a vacation request, after all. She was even more surprised when he actually showed up at the club on his night off.

"Left something in my cubby, Elle," he said with an innocent shrug. "Just gonna run in and grab it, you won't even know I was here." She had been in the middle of accepting a delivery, it was Wednesday again, and had just waved him on in. He managed to sneak into the main room of the club without any of the other employees seeing him, and he tucked himself into a dark corner close to the entrance where he could observe unseen.

Kaidan showed up about half an hour before James usually went on the main stage and made his way straight for his usual table. James held his breath as the other man passed him, but Kaidan didn't see him. Amie sauntered over to his table when she noticed him and dropped into the seat beside him, leaning as close as she could without touching. Kaidan gave her an uncomfortable smile and leaned away a bit. James smirked at the sight, and a small thrill of satisfaction shot through him. Amie said something to Kaidan and he looked surprised but nodded and said something that looked like "thanks" before she left to continue working the floor.

James guessed she had told Kaidan that he had the night off. That guess appeared to be correct as Kaidan tapped something into his payment screen--probably covering the drink minimum, which James cringed at a little, he hadn't meant to cost Kaidan any money--then gathered up his jacket and left. James was moving the second Kaidan reached the entrance, slipping out into the night behind the other man.

Kaidan's shoulders slumped just a little bit as he stepped out into the station. He paused not far from the club's entrance, looking around as if trying to decide where to go next. Thankfully, he didn't look behind himself. Otherwise it would have been hard to miss James huddled in the shadowed doorway of the club.

"Fuck it," Kaidan sighed after a moment, "still gotta eat." Mind made up, he turned left and started walking briskly down the street. James, following behind, suspected they were headed for the stretch of restaurants a few blocks over. The guy definitely had an appetite.

James had little trouble following Kaidan. There were enough people around this time of night that foot traffic was pretty steady, and there were plenty of shadows to slip into if it looked like Kaidan might stop or turn around. James had lived on Omega long enough to know how to move without attracting attention, and he had the advantage that Kaidan had no reason to suspect that he might have been followed out of the club.

They were about halfway to the restaurant row when Kaidan did stop, right in the middle of the walkway, seemingly oblivious to the crowd of annoyed pedestrians who had to jostle out of their way to avoid running into him. James chuckled silently to himself. Either Kaidan really had no idea how dangerous the inhabitants of Omega could be if you pissed them off, or he had a big enough pair of cojones to just not care. Probably the latter, James thought to himself, remembering that quick change that had come over Kaidan during their private session.

He ducked into a nearby alley and risked peeking around the edge. Kaidan dug around in his pocket and pulled out a comm of some sort, fixing it in his ear and then giving it a tap. James could hear a low beeping sound as the comm appeared.

"Alenko." Kaidan said, a finger pressed against his ear.

His voice still held a low gravelly quality, but there was nothing soft about it. He was all business at the moment, cold and hard. It definitely did not send a pleasant shiver rippling down James' spine. Not at all.  Kaidan tilted his head as if he was listening to someone else and he stood a little taller, his shoulders set and his body tense.

"Are you sure, sir? They've never received any shipments on Wednesdays that we've seen before." The voice on the other end of the call said something else and Kaidan nodded in response, even though the other person couldn't see. "No, you're right, this could be the break we've been looking for. I'm on it. Thank you, sir. I'll call you with an update. Alenko out."

Well, it seemed James had a last name to go with the first now. Not that it did him much good, but still, it was nice to know. In the street, Kaidan sighed and shook his head. Then he turned around and set off back in the opposite direction. James let him get a little bit ahead and then resumed following. It sounded like something was going down, and it looked like Kaidan was off to deal with it on his own. James knew he probably shouldn't interfere, but he didn't like the thought of the other man being without backup. It couldn't hurt to just follow him and keep an eye on the guy, right? Hell, at least he'd get some idea about what Kaidan was doing on Omega. Might be all he needed to decide that his handsome mystery man was more trouble than he was worth.

Following Kaidan got a little bit more difficult as they left the more populated part of the Tuhi District, clearly making for the several blocks of warehouses and storage units that ran along the edge of this part of the station. The pedestrian traffic died down to almost nothing here, and fewer people meant that James had to keep further back to avoid his footsteps being heard. That increased his chance of losing Kaidan in the labyrinthine network of alleys and narrow walkways between the larger buildings. It also meant being much more on alert, because attracting the wrong sort of attention in this part of the district could prove fatal.

James panicked a little when Kaidan turned onto one of the wide delivery avenues. There would be almost zero chance of cover here if Kaidan turned around. He stayed at the mouth of the alley, debating on whether or not to follow further or just turn around and call it a wash. Then Kaidan stopped at the back of a warehouse, looked around for a moment, and jumped up, catching hold of the square column at the corner of the building. James blinked in surprise as Kaidan seemed to shimmy up the face of the column, pulling himself onto the low roof.

The fuck?

Kaidan's shadowy figure appeared on the roof and then quickly ran across the building. It looked like he jumped down to the other side of it, and then he was gone from view. James just stared for a few moments and then decided he was already clearly in over his head. Figuring he might as well see this thing through, he hurried across the avenue and approached the building. As he got closer he saw a glint of metal in the column and grinned.

Just a foot or two above his head, there was a small spike embedded in the column. Not something anyone would notice unless they were looking for it, but just enough to give a bit of a handhold to someone wanting to make their own way up. James jumped up and caught it, surprised by how easily it held him. He swung his eyes up and quickly grabbed the next spike with his free arm. Whatever Kaidan was up to, James suspected that the spikes weren't here by accident. He quickly made his way up the column and cautiously poked his eyes above the roof. No sign of Kaidan or anyone else. James pulled himself up and crawled across the roof, staying on his stomach just in case someone might see him from below. He made his way to the edge about where he thought he'd seen Kaidan disappear and peered over.

He found himself looking at an enclosed courtyard with a big set of barricaded doors opposite the warehouse, as he popped up they were just closing behind a large departing transport. Several smaller transport vehicles and a few basic shuttles were parked to one side of the courtyard, and the rest of it was full of crates. From the activity below, it looked like the crates had just been dropped off, with several turians streaming out of the building and moving about them, getting them ready for storage or further transport.

They all looked to be at least lightly armored, and James frowned when he noticed the insignia painted on the closest vehicle. A rough white circle underneath three horizontal red lines, the bottom two of which were bisected by a vertical red line. Living on Omega, it was just stupid not to keep tabs of the various mercenary groups that operated on the station. James recognized the symbol for the Talons. They were a pretty low-level group, but that didn't make them any less dangerous. He wondered what Kaidan was doing messing with them. Which then led him to wonder where Kaidan had actually gotten to.

A second scan of the courtyard answered that question. There was a slight movement in the shadows off to his right, and a closer inspection revealed it to be Kaidan, crouched behind a shuttle. He had an omnitool out and it looked to James like he was recording the proceedings. The sound of a door hissing open caused Kaidan's head to snap around to something just beyond James' line of sight.  After a moment, he heard voices, though they were faint from his elevated position. He caught just a few fragments of the conversation as a female turian wearing full armor painted with the Talons' insignia and a sharply dressed human woman moved into his line of sight.

"...going to cost you more, you know. A lot more."

"...doesn't matter....through the legitimate corporation, so it cannot be traceable back to Omega or anywhere in the Terminus Systems...all kinds of red flags."

"It's your money...need it to come from?"

They moved on a little further and James didn't catch any more of what they were saying. It had been enough for him to get the gist though. The Talons were smuggling something for the woman, probably red sand if he had to guess. His eyes shifted back to Kaidan. The man hadn't moved, but there was something on his face--like he had finally found a crucial piece to a puzzle that he had been stuck on for a long time. It wasn't joy or relief, more like understanding, like he could finally see how everything fit together.

Out of the corner of his eye, James noticed a bit of a commotion. Two of the turians were hurriedly whispering to one another and pointing at something...in Kaidan's direction. James froze. Had they seen the other man? There was no way he could get out of the courtyard unseen with so many people out there. He had probably been insanely lucky that he had arrived just in time to get in position in the first place. A third Talon joined the group and one of the others pointed to the shuttle hiding Kaidan. From his vantage point, he could see that Kaidan didn't yet realize he'd been made, his attention was still on the pair in charge.

When the third turian picked up a sniper rifle and slowly began moving into position to target Kaidan unseen, James took a deep breath and sprang into action. In one deft move he pushed himself to standing and pulled out the knife he always carried at his waist. He threw the knife at the sniper, waiting only to watch it sink into the sniper's eye before throwing himself off the roof. Seeing their comrade fall, the other two mercenaries immediately turned and began shooting where James had just been.

James hit the roof of one of the vehicles, only marginally successful in his attempt to land in a roll. He bit back a cry at the pain in his shoulder but quickly pushed himself off the vehicle and ducked down behind the shuttle, pausing only to take a breath before he was up and running. Shouts rang out as the rest of the Talons realized they had an intruder and James quickly moved from vehicle to vehicle, drawing their attention away from where Kaidan had been. As the Talons began shooting, James fervently wished for some of his old Alliance armor. Still, his distraction seemed to be working, everyone was moving toward him, away from the warehouse. Hopefully Kaidan would take advantage of the distraction and get moving back through the warehouse and out into the streets. He felt a sharp pain in his side as he moved to the next spot of cover and realized he'd been hit. Didn't seem immobilizing though, so he kept on moving.

Probably should have taken a second to think about how I would get myself out of here once I had everyone's attention, he thought ruefully as he peeked out around the edge of the vehicle, thankful that it, at least, was armored. He didn't realize anyone was behind him until he heard the crunch of a boot on glass. He whirled around, fist swinging, and only just barely managed to pull the punch.

"Vega?!?"

"You were supposed to go the other way, you know," James said, trying for nonchalant.

Kaidan stared at him in utter shock. James just offered a sheepish grin back. He could see a million questions in the other man's eyes, but instead of asking them, Kaidan just crouched beside him and looked him over, noticing the blood on his side.

"Can you move?"

"Sure," James nodded. "Just give me an opening."

"Can you shoot?" James nodded again and Kaidan passed him a heavy pistol, a Phalanx, by the look of it. "Good. You cover our six, I'll clear a path."

With what? James wanted to ask, not seeing any other weapon in Kaidan's possession, but he never got a chance to form the question. The hairs on his arm and the back of his neck stood on end and the next thing he knew Kaidan was surrounded in a halo of blue energy. He held up three fingers and then silently counted down, when he closed his fist, he and James both stood, back to back.

James had always preferred the bigger guns, but the pistol did just fine to take care of the two turians moving in from behind them. It was rather thoughtless of them, really, to have not bothered with any head protection. A quick scan revealed no one else behind them and James turned in time to see Kaidan gesture. The air in front of him seemed to ripple in a wide swath and as the shockwave moved out, anyone in its path was toppled.

"Now!" Kaidan ordered and they barreled through the downed turians before any of them had a chance to regain their feet. Into the warehouse and straight through the back. The door was locked but it was an old-school hinged door. A few quick shots and it wasn't a problem anymore.

James followed Kaidan through the maze of buildings, trusting the other man to lead the way. He kept an eye behind them but they seemed to have managed to evade pursuit for the moment. They slowed down once they hit the more commercial part of the district and James handed Kaidan's pistol back, giving an impressed grunt when it disappeared into his jacket.

Kaidan pulled them into an alley off of a main street and James steeled himself for a tirade that didn't come. Instead, Kaidan steered James under a light hanging over the door to a restaurant and carefully probed at James' wound.

"Just grazed, it looks like," Kaidan said softly. "You have no idea how lucky you are, jumping in the middle of that with no armor or shields. Come on, we should keep moving." He pulled James back into the walkway and kept a firm hold on his arm.

"Uh," James said once he realized Kaidan was leading him in the opposite direction of his apartment. "I can take it from here. My place is kinda back that way." He pointed vaguely behind them. Kaidan shot him a look over his shoulder that stopped him in his tracks. The cold, calculating professional was back. James began to realize he wasn't going to get out of his ill-advised adventure as easily as he had thought.

"You can't go back to your place, Vega. Or to Mystery. Not for a while, maybe not ever."

"What are you talking about?"

"You just killed at least three Talons--"

"Yeah, lost my best knife, too," James grumbled. Kaidan's grip on his arm tightened.

"They are a low-level enough organization that they can't afford to be seen taking any crap, Vega," Kaidan explained with a sigh. He tugged on James' arm, getting them moving again, and kept talking quietly. "They'll want payback. You aren't exactly built to blend in." His eyes flicked to James, his lips quirking up in the tiniest of smiles. Then he was all business again. "If anyone got a good enough look, you won't be hard to track down. So you're gonna have to lay low until we can make sure the threat is dealt with."

"Oh," James said quietly. "So, where are we going then?"

"My place."

"Oh."

James' mind was immediately filled with thoughts about how interesting that proposition could prove. He squashed them before they could get too far off the ground though. He doubted Kaidan would be in any way inclined to oblige in such things any time soon. If ever, after he got the whole story about why James had been at that warehouse in the first place. He was under no illusions that the other man wasn't going to get the full story from him.

"So, uh, "James searched his mind for something else to talk about to distract him while they walked. "You're a biotic, huh? No wonder you eat so much." Kaidan shot him a blank look and James continued babbling. "Hey, if you like eggs, I make killer huevos rancheros. My abuela's recipe."

A split second after he said it, James realized he had offered to cook Kaidan breakfast. He suppressed a groan, but Kaidan just barked out a sharp laugh in response. James grinned and relaxed, just a little.

Sure, his whole life had been turned upside down in the course of one evening, but it had been getting a little stale for his tastes anyway.

Maybe he hadn't screwed up as badly as he thought.

Chapter Text

They didn't say anything else until they got to Kaidan's apartment. James was bubbling with questions but his instinct for reading people was well enough honed that he knew now was not the time. Even though he was certain they hadn't been followed out of the storage district, James noticed that Kaidan was starting to double back and had circled around a few times. He guessed that meant they were close to their destination.

His guess proved correct when Kaidan paused to do one last intense sweep of the street and then pulled James through a set of security doors and straight into an elevator. Kaidan was still holding on to his arm, but the grip had relaxed quite a bit. Anyone watching would likely just assume...well. James blushed a little at the thought. Damn. But it had been too long. He needed to get a hold on his thoughts. He was in a precarious enough position as it was.

"Wounds first," Kaidan said firmly as they stepped out of the elevator and approached a door at the end of the corridor. "Then food," he pressed his palm to a pad outside the door and leaned forward so that his eyes could be scanned. There was a quiet beep and the seals on the door released. Kaidan pushed it open and gestured for James to go in first. "Then, Vega, we need to have a very serious chat."

"Um, right." James entered the apartment and looked around while Kaidan shut the door behind them.

It was small, and sparse, very neat. It had all of the earmarks of a soldier on assignment, one who knew he could be reassigned at any moment. Oh yeah, James thought, Kaidan's definitely Alliance. That didn't really bode well for him. He moved to the small sofa that Kaidan directed him to and sat down as Kaidan turned on a nearby lamp. Kaidan disappeared into what James could only assume was the bathroom and then reemerged with a first aid kit in his hands.

"Take off your shirt, please, Vega," Kaidan said. James did blush then, and Kaidan's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "What, don't tell me you're shy? Vega, I've seen you a lot more than shirtless."

"Well, yeah," James said, staring off into the little kitchenette nearby. "But that was on the clock. It's kinda different when I'm not in that headspace, you know?"

"Huh." Kaidan tilted his head, as he thought about it, and gave a brief nod. "I guess I can understand that." The curiosity was back, the openness, and James almost wished it wasn't. Made it a lot harder to keep his emotions, and other things, in check. As if reading his mind, Kaidan straightened and blinked, back to business once more. "Still, it's not like this is anything untoward. You're wounded, and I can't get to it with your shirt in the way."

"Right. Yeah." James hurriedly pulled his shirt off, wincing as he raised his arms above his shoulder. Damn. He'd hit that harder than he thought. Kaidan noticed the stutter in his motion.

"Your shoulder too? Another shot?" He grabbed the shirt from James' hands and tossed it to the floor, moving in close to get a better look. James swallowed at the sudden proximity.

"No, um, when I jumped off the roof. Tried to land in a roll but I kind of, er, missed."

"Ah. Well, let's see."

Kaidan probed James' shoulder for a moment and then, deeming the gunshot graze the worse of the two injuries, moved to look at it again. He shook his head as he cleaned it, again muttering about how lucky James had been. After applying some medigel and a bandage, he looked at the shoulder again.

"I think it's just bruised," he said. "I wish we could get you to a doctor, but we can't risk a hospital right now. Still, give it a day or two, and some medigel as well, and there shouldn't be any lasting damage. No scar, even, though I can't say the same for your side." His face held a small smile, and his eyes moved across James' torso and then back up to his face.

James hadn't seen many battles during his brief stint as a Marine, but those he'd been in had left their marks. James probably could have had them removed, but he liked to think of them as permanent souvenirs. Besides, in his experience, customers seemed to dig them. Present company not excluded, it would seem. He meet Kaidan's eyes, then, and saw that he wasn't the only one full of questions. They stared at each other until Kaidan gave himself a shake, breaking the moment.

"Scars don't bother me much," James said quietly. "They mean I'm still alive."

"Wouldn't have thought you much cared about that," Kaidan said, just as soft, "considering what you pulled tonight." James stiffened, but relaxed again almost immediately. There was no anger in Kaidan's words. Just more of the curiosity. "I think you saved my life, though," he added, catching James' eyes again. "Thank you for that."

"Yeah well," James gave his arm a cautious swing and winced. "Seems to me you repaid the favor pretty much straight away. No thanks needed." Kaidan laughed, that low husky chuckle that James was starting to realize he could happily drown in. "Wouldn't say no to some food though," he added. "I think you mentioned something about that? I'd guess you're just about starving, after all that, huh?"

"Yeah, I suppose I am. Let me get cleaned up and I'll see what we've got on hand."

Kaidan picked up the first aid kit and disappeared into the bathroom again. James could hear the running of water. He got up from the couch and wandered over to the kitchenette, washing his own hands in the sink. Then he turned to the fridge and pulled it open, perusing the contents. There wasn't a whole lot on hand, James figured Kaidan probably ate out more than he ate in. Still, there were plenty of cold cuts and cheese, along with some other things that would pile up well on a sandwich. And beer. Good stuff, too, James noted with approval. He grabbed two bottles and put them on the counter that divided the kitchen from the main room of the apartment. He was pulling the rest of the food out of the fridge when Kaidan came out of the bathroom.

"Figured I'd get it started," he said in response to Kaidan's look of surprise. "Might as well pull my weight while I'm here."

"Thanks." Kaidan smiled, then he squeezed behind the counter with James and opened the pantry next to the fridge, pulling out some bread.

He turned around at the same moment as James and the two men found themselves pressed right up against each other. James was relieved that he was not the only one blushing. Suddenly he was very aware that he hadn't put his shirt back on.

"I'll, uh, just get out of your way," James said, stepping back and around the counter. He moved to the couch and grabbed his shirt. It was torn in a couple of places and splattered with blood where James had been shot.

"Not a lot of space in here, I guess, "Kaidan said with a shrug. "I'm not here that much, I didn't see any reason to get a huge place." He noticed the way that James was examining his shirt. "I've got some clean shirts in the bedroom," he said. "Top drawer of the dresser. Might be a little tight, but..."

"Hey, better than full of holes and covered in blood. Thanks, man." James offered him a grin and Kaidan returned it.

He headed into the door that didn't lead to the bathroom and found the dresser easily enough. He opened the top drawer and pulled out a plain black t-shirt. A quick peek proved the rest of the shirts in the drawer to be the same. Either Kaidan had a thing for black or he was trying to keep a low profile while he was on Omega, James figured.

He resisted the urge to check the rest of the drawers and pulled the shirt on. The medigel had numbed his shoulder a little bit, but it still hurt like a bitch to tug the shirt into place. Kaidan was right, it was a little tight, but the fabric was stretchy and it would work. Though he was gonna have to figure something else out if he was gonna be here for a while.

That thought gave him pause. Damn. What was he going to tell Elle? Would Kaidan even let him contact her to not expect him? What would she think when he just...disappeared? Shit. He hated the idea of leaving her in the lurch. His shoulders slumped a little. At the very least, he was out of a job now. It hadn't been the best job in the galaxy, sure, but it had paid the bills, and Elle had always treated him well. Definitely hadn't been the worst job, either.

Also, he wondered, where was Kaidan expecting him to stay, exactly? Here? He was right, this place was tiny. His eyes flicked to the small bed in the corner, neatly made of course. Might be able to fit the both of them on it, if they didn't mind being really close...

Don't go there, James, he chided himself. He'd probably killed any chance of that ever happening, even if Kaidan hadn't realized it yet. The couch was likely where he was headed, if Kaidan was planning on keeping him here at all. Still, he'd been the one to jump into matters that were none of his business, probably deserved everything that was coming to him, including Kaidan's anger.

Realizing he was dawdling, James took a deep breath and headed back to the main room. Kaidan was leaning against the counter, his eyes closed tightly, finger at his ear. Talking on his comm, James realized.

"I'm sure, sir. It was definitely a rep from Zendel Corp. Not just any rep, either. Head of Distribution. Yes sir, Morris. I managed to record her conversation directing the red sand shipment be diverted to one of their factories in Asari space so that...yes. Exactly."

Kaidan must have heard James come back in because he opened his eyes. He held a finger up to his lips and James nodded, moving back into the kitchen to assemble himself a sandwich while Kaidan finished reporting to his superior. He was quiet for a few minutes, listening, and then James saw him nod before answering. James smiled at the gesture, amused that he did it even though the person on the other end of the call couldn't see him.

"Understood, sir. I'm already on it. I'll forward you the recording immediately and wait for further orders. Alenko out."

Kaidan pulled the comm out of his ear and set it down on the counter with a large sigh. He reached up to rub the back of his neck for a moment and then pulled up his omnitool. James opened one of the beers still on the counter and nudged it over to Kaidan, who gave him a grateful smile when he saw it. He tapped at the omnitool, probably sending off that recording, and then shut it down. With another sigh he pulled out one of the stools behind the counter and sat down, picking up the beer and taking a long drink.

"You, uh, didn't tell him about me?" James risked asking as he slid a plate holding a very large sandwich over the counter to Kaidan. Kaidan snorted and then, seeing the sandwich, picked it up and took a bite. He eyed James thoughtfully while he chewed, answering after swallowing the bite.

"Tell him what, exactly? That the stripper I've been going to see regularly turned up at the Talon warehouse? That he managed to save my ass when I didn't realize I'd been made?" Kaidan shook his head and took another bite. "Yeah, that would go over real well. Vega, I still don't even know what the hell you were doing there, how exactly am I supposed to explain you to my superiors?"

James looked away, trying to figure out how to explain. Seemed like Kaidan was covering for him, so James figured he at least owed the guy that much. He glanced down at the counter, focusing on making a meal of his own while he gathered his thoughts. Shit, Kaidan didn't even sound pissed, just baffled. Though it was pretty clear to James that he didn't like the feeling. James thought maybe Kaidan was the kind of guy that was used to knowing more about the situation than anyone else in the room.

"I've been at Mystery for two years," James started, still avoiding Kaidan's curious stare. He could feel it though. "Worked at a few other clubs on the station for two years before that. All that time, no customer's ever gotten under my skin the way that you did." He shrugged. "All this mysterious shit, with you there every night, except for when you weren't, with no schedule to it, I was curious. I...guess I wanted to know who you were." He looked up then, just in time to see the smile flash across Kaidan's face.

"Huh."

That was not the answer James had expected.

Which, given every other interaction he'd had with the man, was maybe something he should have expected.

When Kaidan didn't say anything else, James started in on his own sandwich. They ate in silence for a while. Kaidan finished his sandwich and made himself another one. When he was about halfway done with it, he finished off his beer and went to the fridge to grab another one. As he closed the door and turned around, he shot James an assessing look.

"So, what, you decided to follow me from the club? See where I live?" James nodded.

"That was kinda the plan," he admitted.

"So what next?"

"What?"

"After that, what was the plan? Were you just going to show up on my doorstep?"

"Oh, um." James blushed again, and cursed under his breath, realizing that Kaidan was laughing. "Well, shit, I don't know. I guess I thought maybe I'd be able to bump into you at the store or something? Have a normal conversation?" Kaidan finally let loose his silent laughter, a warm sound that heated James from top to bottom. Laugh like that ought to be illegal.

"Vega, I don't think normal is in the cards for us." James didn't really have anything to say to that. "So, what, you followed me out of the club, and didn't think it was strange when I decided to stop in the storage district for a little breaking and entering?"

"I heard some of your call when you changed direction," James admitted. "Sounded to me like something was going down and you were heading into it without backup." He shrugged again. "Didn't much like the sound of that."

"Huh," Kaidan said again. He took a swig of beer. "Guess some of that old Alliance training stuck with you after all."

"Guess so." Wanting to divert the subject of conversation away from himself, and relieved that Kaidan didn't seem about to take him to task for crashing the mission, James asked the first thing that popped into his mind. "So, you're, what, here on Omega to shut down the Talons' red sand smuggling operation? That seems like a big job for just one guy." He grabbed himself another beer from the fridge.

"Not, exactly," Kaidan said. He tilted his head as if trying to decide how much to tell James. "Officially, I'm here looking for human kids with biotic potential, to recruit them for Alliance training. Lot of runaways on Omega, people looking for a fresh start." Something in the way he looked at James when he said that made James look away. Kaidan cleared his throat.

"But really?" James prodded.

"Right, well, I have found a few, actually. It's not a completely bullshit cover. But really what I'm here for is to find the source of the tainted red sand that's been making its way into Alliance space."

"Tainted?" James blanched. His father had been an addict, he knew better than most how bad dusters could get. But throw in tainted stuff? That had to be ugly. Kaidan just nodded.

"There have been quite a few messy deaths," Kaidan said softly, "and the Alliance wants it stopped. Red sand trafficking is impossible to shut down completely, but if we can find the source of the tainted stuff, and who's been distributing it to Alliance space..."

"There's only one reason the Alliance would be sending its own people in to do that though, instead of going through the Council," James mused.

"Yeah. We know it's a human operation," Kaidan confirmed. "We also managed to get proof that whoever is bringing it in knows it's tainted and doesn't care."

"Damn." James let out a low whistle.

"Indeed." Kaidan replied with a wicked grin that made James very glad the counter was between them. The reaction it caused was wholly inappropriate to the content of their conversation. "We've been on to Zendel for a while now, and we knew they were working with the Talons here on Omega, but we couldn't figure out how they were moving the drugs into Alliance space undetected. Tonight I got the proof we need to start taking them down, though."

Something in James clenched. His expression must have reflected it, because Kaidan looked at him in concern.

"Just my shoulder," James said, giving it an experimental roll and wincing, "I think the medigel's wearing off." He wasn't sure Kaidan bought it. "So, uh," he figured he might as well ask, "does that mean you're pretty much done on Omega?"

"I'm not sure," Kaidan said, leaning back a little. "Orders are to sit tight, and there might still be some surveillance that needs to be done on the Talons or any Zendel reps we can track to the station." James tried to keep the relief off of his face. He was pretty sure he failed spectacularly, by the way Kaidan smiled at him. "Looks like we're stuck here together for a while, Vega."

"Heh. Yeah, um, I guess so." James managed to keep the smile off of his face, but only just. Then he straightened as another thought hit him. "Shit, Elle!" Kaidan's eyebrows rose. "My boss," James explained. "She's been good to me, I don't want to leave her in the lurch. Am I going to be able to let her know I'm out of commission?"

"It might be better for everyone concerned if she thinks you just disappeared," Kaidan said, considering. James slumped against the counter. He understood. It would be safer for her if she had no idea, especially if the Talons came looking. He didn't like it though. Felt like a dick move. Kaidan tilted his head again. "Maybe we can arrange to get word to her. Tell her you had to leave the station indefinitely, but..."

"No," James shook his head. "No, you're right. It's not like you are here to take the Talons down for good. That means I'll have to leave the station. Better to break ties now." He let out a sigh of his own. "People disappear on this damn rock all of the time anyhow. It's not like she'll get that suspicious. I just don't like the idea of leaving like that. She's good people."

Kaidan gave him a sympathetic look and James started cleaning up the remnants of their meal for something to do. He couldn't help but wonder where he was going to go from here. He'd been on Omega longer than anywhere else since he'd left his dad's. It wasn't like he had a ton of friends here, but he had roots, of a sort. It sucked that he was going to have to start over again somewhere else. He was tired of starting over.

"So." Kaidan picked up his beer and moved back to the couch, gesturing for James to do the same after he finished rinsing their plates. "You've been on Omega for four years?" James nodded as he sat down, still half lost in thought. "What did you do for the year in between the Alliance and Omega, then?"

That caught James' attention.

"How'd you know it was only a year between--" James stilled, staring at Kaidan. The other man's face was unreadable, but his body had tensed at James' reaction. He remembered Kaidan looking at his dog tags during their private session. "Shit. You looked up my record."

"Told you I was curious," Kaidan admitted with a hesitant smile, relaxing once more. "You're, uh, not the only one who managed to develop something of an interest." James looked away, squeezing his eyes shut. Damn. If Kaidan had seen his record, then that meant he already knew why James had washed out.

"Vega?" He felt a warm hand on his arm, and Kaidan's voice rang with concern. "Are you alright? I didn't mean to--"

There was a small beep and he cut off mid-sentence. When James opened his eyes he saw why. A small light was flashing on a pad next to the apartment's door. James recognized it as a proximity sensor, and thought of the high-security locks they had gone through to get inside. Kaidan had the door wired to alert him if anyone approached.

James had been positive they hadn't been followed, but now he had to wonder if he'd been wrong. Because someone was, according to that blinking light, standing right outside their door. 

Chapter Text

Both men watched the door tensely until the light stopped blinking and then changed color. Kaidan relaxed immediately. There was a soft beep and the door's locks released. Whoever was out there apparently had access to the apartment. The door opened and a man entered backwards, dragging a wire cart in after himself.

"Commander, a little help here? This food's not gonna bring itself in."

"Damn, Cortez, that was fast," Kaidan answered as he got up and moved to help wrangle the cart through the door.

James blinked for a moment, taking in the newcomer. He was smaller than Kaidan, but not by much. Slight, but still well-muscled. James noticed a thin sheen of sweat on his brow, probably from lugging what appeared to be a massive stockpile of food. As the two men got the cart inside and Kaidan shut the door, James' mind kicked back into gear. Clearly Kaidan hadn't just called his superior officer while James was dithering in the bedroom. He left the couch to help them unpack the cart. Cortez noticed his approach and grinned at him, extending a hand.

"Lieutenant Steve Cortez. You can call me Steve. Or Cortez, or whatever. I hear you saved the Commander's bacon, tonight. Good job." Behind him Kaidan rolled his eyes and continued unpacking the groceries.

"Um, thanks. James Vega. Most people just call me Vega." James took the offered hand and they shook.

James couldn't help but return Steve's smile. The other man's grin was infectious. His blue eyes glinted in what James realized was definite amusement, and he wondered what about this situation the guy found so funny. He didn't get the impression that he was being laughed at though, so he let it go.  Steve reached into the cart and pulled out a duffle bag that James hadn't noticed, lobbing it at him.

"Here, Mr. Vega, this is for you."

James caught the bag, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise. Mister? Really? Well, two can play at that game.

"Thanks Esteban," James said, smirking. Kaidan made a strangled sound that James couldn't really interpret but Steve just laughed and went back to taking stuff out of the cart.

"I think I like him, Commander."

"Why doesn't that surprise me, Cortez?"

James let his smirk slide into an easy smile, letting the banter of the other two men wash over him while they put away the food. From the playful way the two interacted, it seemed like Kaidan wasn't much of a hardass as a CO. That made James happy for some reason he couldn't even explain. No, not happy. Proud. Which made even less sense. He watched the pile of food disappear into the cupboards and fridge, nodding in approval. Apparently Kaidan had anticipated being told to hole up in the apartment for a while and had contacted Steve for supplies. James noticed a long cylindrical bag still in the cart and recognized it as an Alliance issue cot.

Well. Guess that answers my question of where I'll be sleeping.

He felt a small pang of disappointment at the thought but chased it away quickly. This wasn't some cheesy vid, and he wasn't staying here for a romantic getaway. He and Kaidan barely knew each other, after all, and had little reason to trust each other. Well, not aside from a feeling deep down in James' gut that said he could trust the other man. But that didn't mean Kaidan felt the same way. Of course, Kaidan had looked him up, and knew his record, so he definitely had the advantage on James at the moment.

That thought sobered him up a little. He would do well to remember that however friendly the guy might seem, Kaidan was still an Alliance officer with a mission to complete. He wasn't about to let a washed out soldier-turned-stripper distract him. The fact that he had saved Kaidan tonight rather than ruining the op was probably the only thing keeping him in the man's good graces. James sighed and looked down at the bag in his hands. He made a startled sound when he recognized it.

"Vega?" Kaidan had crossed the apartment in an instant, that concern back in his voice.

"This is my bag," James said quietly.

He hadn't recognized it immediately, not until he'd noticed the bent zipper pull on the side, the only original pull left on the bag--it was old enough to have lost the rest, which James had replaced as needed. There was the name "Sanders" embroidered in scarlet lettering over the pocket, so old and worn it almost blended in with the black canvas of the bag itself.

The bag had been his dad's, actually, handed down to him the first time he'd gone to stay at his uncle's for a weekend. From before things between the two of them had all gone to hell. It was one of only two things he'd kept from before joining the Alliance.

"Yeah," Steve seemed unfazed by James' reaction, but Kaidan was watching him closely. Steve added, "You should probably check what I grabbed before I go. I figure you've got maybe a day before the Talons track you down enough to get your address, so I should be able to make one more trip if there's anything else you need or want."

"You broke into my apartment?"

Steve and Kaidan shared a look.

"Only in the most technical sense, Mr. Vega," Steve answered, still smiling. "I promise I didn't make a mess or anything, and I left the locks intact. It's as secure as it ever was."

"Which wasn't very, apparently." James grunted.

"Well, I am trained to get in and out of places that are trying to keep me out," Steve spread his hands and shrugged.

"Yeah," James quipped, "you and half of Omega."

"Point." Steve smiled. "But I bet none of them have my style."

"It was my call, Vega," Kaidan said, placing a  hand lightly on James' shoulder. "I figured with everything that happened, and going into hiding being just kind of thrust on you, well, I thought you might want some of your own stuff."

"Not like it wasn't my own damn fault," James mumbled, kneeling down and opening the bag. He looked up at Kaidan, who he couldn't help but notice was still touching his shoulder, and smiled. Kaidan smiled back and James said, a little louder, "Thanks." He looked at Steve and repeated the thanks. Steve nodded.

James decided he wasn't gonna bring up the fact that his current address had very likely not been in his Alliance file.

He did a quick survey of the bag's contents. It was pretty basic stuff: his toothbrush and razor, a few other things from his bathroom, his personal tablet that had been on his night stand, its charger, clothes. James had to laugh when he saw the clothes Steve had picked. He had done laundry earlier in the day, which seemed a lifetime ago. But the clothes had still been folded up in his laundry basket. It looked like Steve had just dumped the whole thing into the duffle.

"Seemed like the easiest way to make sure I got stuff that you actually would want to wear," Steve said, seeming to understand his amusement.

James chuckled and nodded. He liked the guy, he realized. He wondered how much of Steve they'd be seeing while they were holed up. It seemed like Steve was Kaidan's partner, or at least here as some part of the mission. Since the Talons hadn't seen him, James guessed he'd be their contact with the outside world for a while.

There wasn't much else in the bag, but when James noticed the last item he let out an audible gasp. He pulled the blanket out of the bag completely and smiled down at it. This was the other thing from his old life that he'd kept. His abuela had made it for him when he'd still been a boy. He buried his fingers in the soft yarn, blues, blacks, and greys faded from years of use and washing. He didn't know what had made Steve toss it into the bag, but he was extremely grateful.

"I'm not going to be able to go back to my place again, am I?" He looked up at Kaidan.

"Probably not," Kaidan admitted with a sigh. "Once the Talons track down your name..."

"Yeah," James set the blanket down and stood up. "Once on their shit list, always on their shit list. No point in making it easy for them." He looked over at Steve. "If you don't mind then, there are a few more things I'd like to have." Steve nodded.

James didn't have much in the way of material possessions anyway, but there were a few things he'd picked up while he was on the station that he'd like to hold on to if he could. He gave Steve a list, telling him where to find everything. He offered to give the other man the security code this time but Steve just grinned and said he didn't need it.

He stayed for a little while longer and then collapsed the cart and folded it up, much easier to carry now that it was empty. He promised to return sometime the next day with the rest of James' stuff and then he was gone, leaving James and Kaidan once more alone with each other. Kaidan gave James a long look after Steve was gone.

"It's been a long day," he said after a while.  "I think I'm going to call it a night. Let's get your cot set up first though. It's easier with an extra set of hands."

"Sounds like a plan."

They didn't say much as they assembled James' cot. Kaidan did insist he put it in the bedroom, just so that they wouldn't be tripping over it during the day. They ended up putting it kitty-corner to Kaidan's bed, along the wall without a dresser. The little room felt even smaller once the cot was in place. James slid his duffle underneath, keeping out his blanket and adding it to the others that Kaidan handed him. After that, they took turns in the bathroom readying themselves for bed before turning in.

James lay awake for a long time, listening to Kaidan breathing and trying to figure out how the hell he was going to survive the next few days without embarrassing the hell out of himself. Close proximity to Kaidan had done nothing to dim his interest in the man. Instead, the more he found out about him--which, he had to admit, still wasn't much--the more he knew he wanted him.

But did Kaidan feel the same way? Or did he just see James for the messed up kid he was, and wish that he had stayed back at Mystery where he belonged? He sighed softly and rolled over on the cot, facing the wall. Whatever was going to happen, it wasn't going to happen tonight. Might as well try to get some sleep. He shut his eyes and let his thoughts drift, eventually succumbing to weariness and dropping off to sleep.

James slept until about noon the next day. It took him a minute to reorient himself when he did wake, remembering where he was and the events of the night before. He was alone in the bedroom, Kaidan's bed was empty and neatly made. James could hear him moving around in the living room, however. He got out of the cot and made it up as neatly as he could.

"Morning," he grunted to Kaidan as he made a beeline for the bathroom. He heard Kaidan chuckle and say something about the morning already being gone before he shut the door behind himself.

When he reemerged, Kaidan set a plate down on the counter and James grinned as he pulled out a stool and sat down to eat.

"Thanks, man." James said in between bites.

"Not a problem, Vega," Kaidan leaned back against the cabinets with his arms crossed and watched James eat, a small smile on his face. "Guess I shouldn't have been so worried about waking you when I got up this morning."

"I can sleep through pretty much anything," James admitted.

"Consider me jealous," Kaidan laughed. "I wish I could say the same. Coffee?"

"Oh, god, yes," James sighed. He accepted the mug eagerly, shaking his head at the offer of sugar and cream. He took a tentative sip to check the temperature and then a much deeper one when it proved cool enough. Then he held the cup out and stared at it, glancing up at Kaidan. "Damn. You like the good stuff."

"Hey," Kaidan shrugged. "There have to be some perks to covert assignments of indeterminate length on the edge of the Terminus system, right?"

"Guess so," James said, looking at the other man speculatively. He filed that tidbit of information away with the few other things he knew about Kaidan. Appreciated good coffee. And beer, he added, remembering what he'd found in the fridge last night. "Never know when you're gonna be sent somewhere you can't get that stuff, so you might as well enjoy it while you can, huh?"

"Exactly," Kaidan agreed. He gave James a look that made him think maybe they might not just be talking about coffee. After a few minutes Kaidan nodded toward a small bag next to the couch. "Steve came by about an hour ago. Dropped off the rest of our supplies, and the other things from your apartment."

"Sorry I missed him," James said, finishing up his food. "Wanted to thank him at least. I didn't realize he'd be by so early. I'm used to sleeping late because of my hours at work."

"He had to get going, had a ship back to the Citadel to catch."

"So he's not your partner on this mission?" James was mostly just thinking out loud. He didn't really expect an answer or explanation, but Kaidan surprised him by obliging.

"Yes and no. He's my connection to the rest of the galaxy while I'm here. When I do find kids with biotic potential, he gets them to Grissom for me, and he takes back the information for my mission that's too sensitive to convey over comms." Kaidan shrugged. "I'm sure you'll see him again. He comes to Omega twice a month to bring me supplies and check in."

"So they really do have you doing this shit without backup then?" James was surprised at the anger in his voice. Kaidan's eyebrows rose and his expression turned serious.

"I'm covert special ops, Vega. I'm trained to work alone. I get lifelines like Cortez, sure, but the whole point of putting me somewhere is to get information without getting noticed. I'm damned good at what I do." He sighed and reached up to rub his neck, grimacing. "Normally, anyway," he sighed.

"But now you have been noticed," James said staring down at his plate. "Because of me. Because I fucked up." Again. He didn't say the word aloud, but it was there anyway.

He heard Kaidan sigh again, and then realized the other man was moving around the counter. He didn't flinch when Kaidan's hand rested on his shoulder, but it was a near thing. Then Kaidan placed his free hand on James' chin and tilted it up, forcing their eyes to meet.

"Vega, James, don't. Okay? Last night was a clusterfuck, yeah. But that's because I went in unprepared and distracted. Normally I get a lot more notice before I have to go in to hostile territory like that, and instead of slowing down and making a plan I just jumped in. I fucked up, not you. Maybe you shouldn't have been there, sure, but if you hadn't been? I'd be dead right now, and the information I've been working for so long to get would have been hidden right along with my body instead of in Alliance hands, where it is now. So. Thank you."

James' breath caught in his throat as he stared into Kaidan's eyes. This close to the man he could feel heat radiating from his body. Kaidan burned. James knew it was the biotics, but that made the sensation no less intense. The heat didn't just come from Kaidan's body or his hands on James; it was in his eyes as well. Those amazing whiskey colored eyes, focused completely on him, full of fire and want and need. It was the eyes that undid James.

He stood suddenly, knocking over his stool with the motion. Kaidan didn't even have time to step back before James pulled him into a kiss, crushing their lips and their bodies together. He kept moving forward until Kaidan's back hit the wall, kissing the other man fiercely, trying to convey everything he felt with that one action. Though surprised at the suddenness of the kiss, Kaidan did not hesitate to return it once James' lips found his. His grip on James' shoulder tightened as his other hand slid around to the back of James' neck, keeping him from pulling back.

The kiss felt like it went on forever, tongues dueling and then just exploring, lips and teeth, nipping, pressing, pulling, neither wanting to break contact. When they finally did, James rested his forehead against Kaidan's, both of them panting, trying to catch their breath. Their bodies remained pressed together, and James could feel Kaidan's erection pressing against him through their clothing, and he knew Kaidan could feel his own.

Kaidan looked up at him and a wicked grin slid across his face. He rolled his hips, just a small motion, pressing himself even closer and then pulling back. A thrill shot through James and he moaned. He leaned down and licked a line from Kaidan's collar, up along his neck, to his ear, catching it in his teeth and biting down slightly. Kaidan shuddered underneath him. His hand dropped from James' shoulder, sliding down his back and stopping on his ass, squeezing firmly.

James felt like he must look like an idiot; he was grinning so widely he thought his face might split in two. From the way Kaidan was staring at him, though, he didn't seem to mind at all. At the same time they both looked towards the bedroom and then they caught each other's eyes again. With a great effort, James pulled back from Kaidan, catching up his hand as he walked backwards towards the door leading into the other room. Kaidan smiled hungrily and laced his fingers through James' as he followed.

They got about halfway into the room before Kaidan stopped, pulling James back to him for another kiss, searing James with the heat of it. James kissed him back eagerly, allowing his hands to explore the other man's body, fingers slipping up under the edge of Kaidan's shirt, pushing the soft fabric out of the way in favor of the hard lines of muscle beneath. He broke the kiss so he could pull the shirt off completely, taking a moment just to stare at Kaidan in appreciation, enjoying the chance to be the one looking for once. Kaidan let him have the moment, an amused smile on his face, but then he rather insistently began pulling on James' shirt. Once it was over his head, he tossed it in the corner and they came back together for more kissing, more touching.

Kaidan ran his hands over James' chest, tracing the lines of his tattoos, skipping lightly over the bandage on his side. James ran his fingers up into Kaidan's hair, sliding them through it, and down his neck, rubbing at it a little, then some more when Kaidan moaned at the touch. James was so distracted by the sound, and by trying to get Kaidan to repeat it, that he didn't even notice Kaidan had begun pushing him backwards again until the back of his knees hit the bed.

He looked down in surprise and then back up at a grinning Kaidan, who leaned in to give James a quick kiss and then shoved him backwards onto the bed. He leaned over James, arms braced on either side of him, and gave him another kiss, longer, slower this time, his tongue sliding into James' mouth. James made a noise that was decidedly not a whimper when Kaidan pulled back. He hooked his fingers under the band of James' sweats and underwear,  looking up, his eyebrows raised in question, asking permission. James nodded his assent fervently and Kaidan slid the pants down and off, James lifting his hips from the bed, then his feet from the ground, to help.

Once his clothes were out of the way, Kaidan took a step back to admire James in all of his now-naked glory. Then, faster than James would have believed possible, he rid himself of his own pants and underwear and climbed on the bed, kissing and licking his way up James' body.

James spread his legs as Kaidan came to rest between them, lowering himself down until they were pressed against each other once more, this time skin to skin. Now it was James' turn to moan again. He craned his neck up, capturing Kaidan's mouth in a kiss and started to wrap his arms around Kaidan's waist. Kaidan reached down and grabbed James' hands in his own, though, lacing their fingers together and sliding their hands up above James' head.

Then he began to thrust.

It felt fucking amazing. James cried out, planting his feet on the ground and pushing up to match Kaidan's thrusts with his own. The friction as they moved together was delicious and James never wanted it to end. His eyes slid shut as he focused on the sensations, on the feel of Kaidan's body against his, the sounds of Kaidan breathing heavily next to his ear, the smell of sweat and arousal, the jolts of pleasure shooting through his body, building up.

Kaidan's breathing began to stutter and his thrusts quickened. James opened his eyes and found Kaidan staring down at him, that intense gaze dark and heavy with desire. Kaidan came with a shout and the sight of it and the feel of his hands tightening in James' was enough to bring James to completion as well.

Kaidan released his hands and flopped over next to him. James had been right in his initial assessment of the bed. There was barely enough room for the two of them to lie there together, but he didn't mind, pulling Kaidan in close against him. The other man's heat was enough to counter the cooling sweat (and other fluids) on his body. At least for a while. James knew he was gonna want a shower very soon. But for the moment he was content just to lie next to Kaidan, basking in the afterglow.

"I have wanted to do that for a while now," he said softly, once his breathing was more or less back to normal.

He was almost afraid to look at Kaidan, worried about what he'd see now that the passion of the moment had passed. But Kaidan just chuckled and pulled himself up on one elbow, leaning down to look at James. He smiled softly and stroked a light finger along James' chin.

"Bet I've wanted it longer," he whispered, before pressing a kiss against James' lips.

Chapter Text

"So what now?"

"Hmm?" Kaidan stirred beside him. They'd fallen into a comfortable drowse after the frenzy of sex, but James wasn't really that tired, having been awake for only an hour or so.

"What now?" James repeated. Realizing Kaidan could interpret the question a few ways, he hurried to clarify. "Your orders are to sit tight in your apartment, and that means I'm stuck here too. Esteban's left the station, which means it's just us. So what do we do to keep ourselves occupied until we're allowed back outside again?"

Kaidan pushed himself back up on his elbow and looked at James with a small smile. He lightly traced a finger around James' jaw. He leaned over and pressed a kiss on James' forehead.

"I don't know, James," he said, his voice even huskier than usual. "I can think of a few ways to pass the time." He cocked his eyebrows in what James could only assume was meant to be a suggestive manner. Despite the rush of heat Kaidan's words had caused, however, he couldn't help but laugh at the other man's expression.

"You cannot expect me to believe that look has ever actually gotten you laid."

"I, uh, no?" Kaidan blushed. James noted with some interest that the color extended well past his throat. He rolled over and propped himself up on an elbow as well, putting him face to face with Kaidan. Then he leaned in and kissed Kaidan, sliding his free hand around to cup the back of Kaidan's head, holding him in place. When he pulled away he darted his tongue out, tracing Kaidan's lower lip.

"Good," he whispered, smiling when he saw that Kaidan's eyes had slid closed while they kissed. "I'd hate to think I'm just falling for old tricks."

"Don't have many of those." Kaidan opened his eyes and turned his head. James thought he looked embarrassed. "To tell you the truth, there haven't been that many, um," he waved a hand between the two of them. James grunted in surprise. "Well. I don't ever really get to stay in one place for very long, my line of work." He glanced back at James, his face serious now. "Never really been that good at casual, so, the list really isn't that long."

"Huh." James just looked at Kaidan for a few long moments. He'd known a lot of people to use that kind of story as a line before, but he was pretty sure Kaidan was on the level. "You don't do casual, huh?"

"Not so much." Kaidan caught his eyes, and his usual intensity was back in full force. James felt his breath catch. It was clear what Kaidan wanted to know. He guessed that, knowing they were going to be stuck here together for an unspecified amount of time, Kaidan wanted to get all of his cards on the table up front. James could respect that.

"Cool," he said, leaning in to kiss Kaidan yet again. He really couldn't help himself. The man was intoxicating. He felt Kaidan relax into him and wrapped an arm around his waist, rolling back and tugging so that Kaidan was lying on top of him. Kaidan pulled back and looked down at him with a relieved smile.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Cool." Kaidan whispered. This time he kissed James.

"Damn," James said when they finally broke apart to catch their breath. "How the fuck did a guy like you ever end up in Mystery in the first place?"

"I didn't realize it was a strip club at first," Kaidan admitted with a chuckle. "I saw an ad for the all-you-can-eat steak, and the price was right. Looked like some kind of theme joint." He shook his head and shrugged. "By the time I realized why the food was so cheap, I figured what the hell, might as well stay for the show." He idly ran his fingers along James' tattoos. "Pretty sure it was the right call."

Kaidan rolled his hips and James let out a low moan. Damn, that felt good. If Kaidan kept going, he'd be up for another round in no time. Which, James had to admit, certainly had its appeal. But they were still a mess from round one, and thinking about that gave him an idea. He nudged Kaidan gently, urging the other man off of him, and sat up. Kaidan looked at him curiously but did not object.

"Come on," James said, lacing his fingers with Kaidan's and tugging him off the bed.

"Where we going?"

"I don't know about you, Blue," he gestured to the evidence of their earlier activity smeared all over their skin and half dried already, "but I think a hot steamy shower sounds like just the thing." He threw a wicked grin at Kaidan and pulled him toward the bathroom.

"Yeah," Kaidan grinned back. "I guess it does." A pause and then, "Blue?"

"Have you seen how amazing you look when you're all lit up with biotic energy? Even your eyes go blue. I did not know I could be that hard and still run so damn fast."

Kaidan just laughed and let himself be led into the bathroom.

The apartment may have been tiny, but James was glad to see that the bathroom did not suffer for it. There was no tub, but the glass-fronted shower that took up half of the room was more than big enough for both of them to use at once. James got the water going and then stepped into the stall backwards, pulling Kaidan into the stream of water after him. They came together for another kiss, this one slow and easy, and let the water wash over them for a few moments.

Kaidan pulled back and cupped James' cheek, tracing small circles with his thumb. He looked at the younger man, his eyes serious again, and James just met his gaze and held it. James felt like he should say something, but he didn't really know what Kaidan needed to hear, so he settled for offering a small smile instead. Kaidan smiled in return and then wrapped his arms around James' broad shoulders, pulling him into a tight hug.

"You alright there, Blue?" James asked softly.

"Yeah. I think I am, James. For what it's worth, I'm glad you followed me from the club."

"So am I. Hell, I was starting to get bored here anyway." Kaidan chuckled and let go of James, stepping away.

"I can't make you any promises. I wish I could," he looked down and bit his lip. "But once this thing with the Talons is wrapped up, there's no telling where I'll get sent next, or for how long, or--" James pressed a finger to his lip, interrupting.

"Then I guess we're just gonna have to make the most out of the time we've got here," James grinned and waggled his eyebrows suggestively. Kaidan laughed but he also relaxed and James was glad to see it.

"Guess so."

Kaidan turned and grabbed the sponge from where it was hanging and then picked up a bottle of soap. He poured a good dollop on the sponge and then lathered it up, raising it to James' chest. When James didn't object Kaidan began cleaning him gently and thoroughly. When he was done, James snagged the sponge and returned the favor. Kaidan leaned back against the wall of the shower and closed his eyes, a look of contentment on his face.

After rinsing off the sponge, James snagged the bottle of shampoo and poured some into his hands. He stepped back over to Kaidan and began soaping up his hair, eager for an excuse to play with the thick strands. Kaidan just groaned his approval at the action, leaving his eyes closed. James took his time about it, massaging Kaidan's scalp and neck and working up a good lather. When he was done, he steered Kaidan under the spray of the water and then quickly took care of his own hair. Kaidan stepped aside to let him rinse, watching him with a considering expression.

"Something on your mind, Blue?"

"Lot of things," Kaidan grinned, and then snapped his eyes down, bringing them back up across James' body slowly. James shivered under the scrutiny. "But there are a few...pressing issues."

James shivered again. The intensity was back, and he suspected the look on Kaidan's face could only mean good things were about to happen. Kaidan took a step forward, placing a hand on James' stomach, his thumb just brushing the top of the dark hair nestled between James' thighs. He kept moving, pushing James up against the back wall of the shower, and then leaned in for a deep, hungry kiss.

Oh yeah, very good things.

Kaidan traced his tongue along James' lower lip and then around to his ear, catching it in his teeth and biting down just hard enough. James' hips bucked and Kaidan gave a low throaty laugh of approval. James was fast becoming hard under Kaidan's attention, and when Kaidan pressed in closer he could feel the other man's burgeoning erection as well. He rested his hands on Kaidan's hips, debating whether or not to let them wander.

Kaidan made the decision unnecessary. He let go of James' ear and licked his way down the side of James' neck, tracing his tattoos, tasting the skin, taking little nips on his way. He kept moving lower, sinking down on his knees until his face was level with James' cock. Kaidan looked up at James, who was watching him as if spellbound, and winked. Then he took hold of James' cock in one hand and lowered his mouth to the tip, swallowing him halfway down and then pulling back, swirling his tongue around the head.

"Dios mio!" James whispered, his head thumping against the shower wall.

He sank his fingers into Kaidan's hair and lost himself in the sensation of Kaidan's mouth and tongue working on his cock. Kaidan's hands weren't idle either, stroking the bit of James he couldn't get his mouth around and playing with his balls. It didn't take long for him to bring James off. James came with a shout, bucking into Kaidan's mouth. Kaidan seemed ready for it, grinning around James and pulling back enough to swallow it all down.

"Fuck, Blue," James whispered. "That was..."

"Glad you enjoyed yourself," Kaidan stood and kissed him on the cheek, then turned to shut off the water. James made a feeble gesture of protest.

"Hey, I can return the favor!"

"I'm sure you will. We've still got plenty of time though. Come on, we can't stay in the shower all day."

They got dried off, which took much longer than it needed to. There were quite a few interruptions for kissing and touching and appreciative glances. But eventually they made it back to the bedroom and pulled on fresh clothes, then wandered into the living room.

"So." James dropped down onto the couch next to Kaidan and sprawled out, bumping the other man's knee with his own. "What now?"

Kaidan just laughed in response.

They spent a month in the apartment together. Kaidan checked in with his CO every couple of days, but his orders remained the same: stay inside. Kaidan's intel had provided the Alliance with the last thing it had needed to crack down on Zendel Corp. That was the good news. The bad news was that because he hadn't gone unnoticed, Zendel had been given a bit of a warning about it. Not enough to completely evade charges, but enough so that several key figures in the smuggling had gone to ground. Likely on Omega.

James figured it would have made sense to send Kaidan to hunt them down, but apparently his superiors felt it too big a risk. If they had gotten a good enough look at his face, they would be able to find him long before he ever managed to track them down. Not to mention that the Talons were pissed at the loss of income from the shut down smuggling enterprise.

"So why don't they just get you the hell out of here while they clean up the mess, then?" James had asked. Kaidan had grimaced and shrugged.

"If it was just one group or the other? They might. But with both Zendel and the Talons in play, my superiors want to make sure they can get us off the station safely and without drawing attention."

"Us? You told them about me?"

"Um. Well. I told them I had a contact who had helped me get my intel on the Talons, who needed to be relocated now that my cover's blown." James raised an eyebrow, amused by Kaidan's sheepish expression. "It wasn't exactly a lie."

"Wasn't exactly the whole truth, either, Blue." James laced his fingers in Kaidan's and smiled.

"Well, I didn't really think they needed all of the salacious details," Kaidan said, meeting his eyes. He rested his free hand on James' knee and traced a circle with his thumb. James shivered at the contact.

"Yeah. That was probably a good call."

Steve came by twice to check in, bringing with him more food and supplies, along with news of the outside world. He'd had eyes on Mystery and on James' apartment, it seemed. Like Kaidan had feared, it hadn't taken the Talons long to track James to the club. Giselle had told them off when they'd come around asking, telling them James had just stopped showing up and she had no idea where he was. She refused to give them any more information than that, and the presence of her security staff had kept her safe enough.

The Talons were keeping eyes on the club, Steve reported, and had followed a few of the dancers just to make sure they hadn't met up with James. But both he and Kaidan agreed that as long as James stayed away from Mystery and didn't make contact with anyone that worked there, they all should be safe enough. The Talons didn't want to advertise what had happened at the warehouse, so they were keeping their search on the down low. James wondered aloud if he was going to need to change his name when he left the station.

"No worries Mr. Vega," Steve assured him. "I managed to hack a few systems and leave them a trail of breadcrumbs leading to Ilium for you, and they haven't bitten. I think as far as you're concerned they are more worried about saving face on Omega than anything else. We get you far enough away from the station and as long as you don't come back, they aren't going to try to hunt you down."

"Could be they just didn't buy your 'breadcrumbs' Esteban."

"Mr. Vega! You wound me!"

"No, I think Cortez is right about this one," Kaidan interjected, his brows creased in a thoughtful frown. "We're giving them bigger fish to fry anyway. As long as they don't know when we actually move you off the station, and as long as you settle down somewhere they've got no interest, there's no reason for them to come after you."

He reached out and squeezed James knee reassuringly. James covered Kaidan's hand with his own. He tried to ignore the knowing look Steve shot at the both of them.

They had not, as far as Steve could tell, learned Kaidan's identity. James felt an almost overwhelming sense of relief at that particular bit of news. It was going to be a lot easier for him to avoid returning to Terminus space than it would be for Kaidan, he knew.

Steve's visits didn't last more than a day or two, and once he was gone Kaidan and James were left alone to their own devices. Mostly said devices involved lots and lots of sex. But they were only human, so even they had to take breaks every once in a while. They played a lot of cards. Sometimes the stakes were for chores, sometimes it was strip poker. Sometimes it was just cards. They both had a lot of books on their personal data pads, so it wasn't unusual for them to spend a quiet evening just curled up together reading.

They talked. A lot. About Kaidan's L2 implant and the migraines, his worries that a breakdown was never far away. The knowledge that pretty much everyone he worked with was worried about the same thing and always watching him for signs. They talked about how James had ended up working at Mystery. He had stumbled into dancing after trying for a bouncer position at a different club and Giselle had seen him and snatched him up once he started to make a name for himself. Kaidan was curious about James. He seemed to want to know everything about him that hadn't been in his Alliance jacket. Even though Kaidan already knew how he had washed out, he was glad that Kaidan never brought that piece of the past up. That was one thing he still wasn't ready to talk about.

It seemed that Kaidan had his own history that he'd rather keep buried. While Kaidan had told him plenty about his various assignments with the Alliance (what wasn't ultra-classified at any rate) and the things he'd seen in his travels, it hadn't escaped James' notice that there was a pretty big gap in the narrative. Between finding out he had biotic potential and joining up with the Alliance, there were, by James' count, several years that Kaidan was keeping to himself. He could understand that, though, given his own past. So he didn't pry. By that point he was pretty damn sure he knew everything he needed to about what kind of man Kaidan Alenko was.

What he knew was enough to make him dread the day when Kaidan got orders to leave Omega.

But he didn't mention that to Kaidan.

Kind of suspected he might know it anyway though. That was what Kaidan did, after all, figure things out, know things that people wanted to keep to themselves.

Still, after three weeks, the check-ins with Kaidan's CO started to become a lot more frequent. Updates went from "possible suspect identified" to "suspect apprehended and in custody for questioning." They both knew that their time was running short. Kaidan would get James off of Omega like he had promised, and see him dropped off somewhere safe outside of Terminus space. Then he would go back to his life and that would be the end of that.

So when Kaidan brought up the subject of what would happen once the mission had been called, James wasn't surprised. He was, however, completely shocked when Kaidan suggested that James reconsider the Alliance.

"You've seen my jacket, Blue." He grunted in response. "You know that's not happening. Dishonorable discharge isn't the kind of thing that gets overlooked."

"Yeah." Kaidan replied earnestly. "I have seen your file. That discharge was crap, and the people who let it slide are long gone. If you filed an appeal--"

"What the hell are you talking about? Look, just drop it okay?" James got up from the couch and stalked over to the kitchen, needing to move, trying to distance himself from the subject. He opened the fridge and pretended to look for something inside, hoping Kaidan would take the hint. He didn't.

"Hear me out, James. Please." James shut his eyes and took several deep breaths. Then he reached into the fridge and grabbed a few beers. If he was going to talk about this, then he needed alcohol.

"I'm listening," he snapped as he moved back to the couch. He held out a bottle to Kaidan, who was watching him carefully. He glanced back at the couch, clearly expecting James to sit back down, but James stayed where he was. He opened his beer and took a deep drink, then crossed his arms over his chest. "Well?" Kaidan sighed and settled back against the couch.

"Look, I know at the time it seemed bad, but--"

"I disobeyed a direct order. Got my CO killed. Bad doesn't even begin to describe that shit."

"It was the wrong order," Kaidan said softly. James straightened out of his customary slouch, surprised by the reply.

"Brass didn't seem to think so," was all he said.

"I read all of the file, James," Kaidan shook his head. "Your report, your squad's reports, all of the transcripts from your CO's last few check-ins. It was a mess, but there was more than enough there to get a full picture of what went down."

James just stared at him. Kaidan seemed...upset. No, that wasn't strong enough. He looked angry. Angrier than James had ever seen him. Kaidan ran a hand through his hair and then down to his neck, rubbing the back of it like he did when he had a headache or was trying to sort out what to say.

"It's not like it was that complicated," he said after a minute. "It was just an automated mining facility. I was part of a squad of marines, stationed there to make sure no one messed with the facility and that the equipment kept running like it was supposed to. Major Jessen was an ass, and it was pretty clear that he felt he deserved a better assignment, but he didn't deserve to die when everything went down."

"What went down, exactly?" Kaidan asked. James cocked an eyebrow at him. He'd read the file, he already knew. "Humor me," Kaidan said, raising up his hands in a placating gesture. James huffed and finally rejoined him on the couch, slumping back against the cushions and taking a long pull from his bottle.

"Near as I can figure, the sensors on the equipment must have malfunctioned," James started, thinking back. He had tried to avoid remembering that day for so long. But now it was all flooding back. "The drill opened up a massive pocket of some kind of gas. Toxic as all fuck. It flooded the whole valley and the facility locked down instantly. It should have been fine. Our readings showed that the gas would dissipate in a few hours. The gas couldn't get inside, we just had to wait it out. But..."

"Your Major was outside when the gas was released," Kaidan finished for him. James nodded.

"I didn't even realize it at first. Thought he was in his office doing reports. I was running the rest of the squad through drills when the alarms sounded and the building shut down. Made it to the control room with the engineers to assess the situation, and I was pretty damn surprised when Major Jessen wasn't already there. Then about ten minutes in we got a call from him on the comms. He said he'd been inspecting the equipment and ordered me to override the lockdown to let him in." James shut his eyes, shaking his head. "I refused the order. He died."

"Why did you refuse the order?" James knew that if Kaidan had seen the files he already knew the answer to the question. But he guessed Kaidan wanted to hear the explanation from him.

"Building we were in was just basic living quarters and the control room," James explained. "The atmosphere on the planet was usually pretty friendly to humans, so it had only been built with minimal life support functions. The Major said that the gas hadn't reached the building yet and if we moved quickly, we could let him in and lock the building back down before it hit us. But the readings from the control room showed that it had already filled the whole valley. The system was already working overtime to keep the toxin out. If I had opened up the doors, that gas would have flooded the building. Everyone inside would have been dead within minutes. Including the Major." Kaidan nodded as if it was the answer he had expected.

"Did you think Jessen would die?"

"What?" The question surprised James. He couldn't remember anyone asking him that in the aftermath of the incident at all. But now he couldn't help but wonder why. Because...

"Hell, no! He should have been fine. He had taken a Grizzly when he left the building. If he had just sat tight, it should have been able to keep him safe until the gas cleared."

"So why'd he die?"

James grimaced.

"Pendejo still thought he could outrun the gas, even though we told him it was already at the building. He tried to override the locks from the outside, but he didn't get very far before, well. That was the end of Major Jessen."

"So, just to summarize," Kaidan said after a few moments of silence, "You refused a direct order that would have resulted in the deaths of yourself and your fellow soldiers, as well as of your commanding officer, even though he seemed to think otherwise. Said commanding officer left the safety of his tank, despite the fact that remaining there would have saved his life. He died, and you got blamed for it."

"Sounds about right," James finished his beer. Kaidan handed him his own mostly untouched bottle and James accepted it, downing half of it in one swallow. "The Admiral who presided over my discharge said I showed a 'disturbing lack of respect for human life as well as the proper chain of command.'"

"That was Admiral Ahrens, wasn't it?"

"Yeah." It wasn't a name James was likely to forget. Joining the Alliance had been his ticket out of his fucked up life, and being kicked out of the first place he had ever felt like he belonged.... No, it wasn't something he'd forget at all.

"Jonathan Ahrens," Kaidan said as if reading a file entry, "brother to one Alma Jessen, uncle of Randall Jessen."

"Shit," James whispered as the implication washed over him.

"From what I can tell, Ahrens pushed Jessen through the ranks pretty quickly. The relation wasn't publicly known, of course, or he would never have been allowed to head up the crock of an investigation into your incident. What you probably weren't ever told, and what Ahrens tried to hide, is that Jessen was the one who sabotaged the mining equipment so that it didn't detect the gas." James just stared at him in disbelief. Kaidan nodded and continued, "The logs were doctored, but a later investigation showed that Jessen had been trying to speed up the process to get the mission wrapped up more quickly. It seems you were right that he wanted to be assigned anywhere else. He disabled the sensors so that the drills could work faster."

"Fuck," James whispered. "That's why he was out of the building, isn't it? Why he didn't tell anyone he was leaving."

"That'd be my guess. Ahrens saw enough in the incident report to realize that his nephew, the officer he had been grooming and vocally supporting, had been at fault for the whole thing. So he rushed the investigation and decided to make you his scapegoat."

"Story of my damn life," James sighed.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, a few years later, Ahrens got caught out in a pretty major scandal. He and all of his cronies went down for treason and collusion with the enemy. Brass has had their hands full trying to fix all of the damage they did." He squeezed James' knee. "That's why I think you've got a good chance of overturning the original ruling. You just need to appeal it."

"Don't know that it would make much of a difference, Blue," James said softly. "No one out here cares that I was ever Alliance, let alone how I parted ways with it."

"But if you wanted to reenlist--"

"I've been out for too long. That was the answer when I was a kid, but now...I don't know if I could adjust to that kind of life again, you know?" Kaidan looked let down and James sighed, reaching up to stroke his cheek. "I will think about it though. It's good to have the option at least. Thank you. For telling me what really went down. I always hoped that I made the right call, but knowing it, once and for all, it...it helps."

"You didn't mean for him to die," Kaidan breathed out, his shoulders drooping. "You were just trying to protect the people around you." He shook his head. "Hell, if Jessen had been anyone else, you'd probably have been commended."

"Sounds like maybe we're not talking about me anymore," James grunted in surprise. Kaidan sighed and a sad smile played across his face.

"Maybe we're not," Kaidan admitted. He shifted on the couch and looked up at James, catching his eyes and holding them. He stared at James for several long moments, and James thought he was trying to come to a decision about something. "I guess I look at what happened to you and I wonder how differently my own situation could have played out," he admitted at last.

"Oh?" James asked cautiously.

"How much do you know about biotic training?"

"Um," James paused at the seemingly unrelated question. "Guess I never really gave it much thought. The Alliance takes care of most of that, doesn't it?"

"Pretty much," Kaidan nodded. "There are a few private firms for those who can afford it and don't want obligations to the Alliance. Occasionally an asari will agree to be hired as a personal trainer. But, like you said, it's mostly the Alliance. Especially in the early days, when humans with the potential were just starting to turn up."

"Like you?"

"Like me," Kaidan smiled.

James finished his beer and judged that Kaidan might need his own drink soon. It sounded like he was about to hear about that gap in Kaidan's personal history. He patted Kaidan's knee and headed for the fridge, grabbing two more beers. Kaidan waited until James was seated beside him again and their bottles open before continuing.

"Nowadays there's a special program at Grissom Academy, as you know. But that didn't start up until seven years ago. Before that, though, there was Brain Camp." James snorted and Kaidan's smile widened. They bumped knees and he went on. "Yeah, I know. That's what we called it though. It was easier to say than Biotic Acclimation and Temperance Training."

"Damn, I guess so."

"Yeah. It didn't take them that long to realize they didn't know what the hell they were doing with us though. Couldn't ask the Citadel for help, because that would make humanity look inexperienced. So some genius got the brilliant idea to hire a bunch of turian mercs to train us on the down low."

James whistled. That was a disturbing thought. He had yet to meet a turian that would put up with any bullshit. The idea of turian mercenaries being put in charge of a bunch of kids was unsettling, at best. Kaidan seemed to read James' thought and nodded in agreement.

"It went about as well as you'd expect. My group was taught by Commander Vyrnnus. He was a real hardass on the best of days. On the worst, well...not all of us lived to see the end of the worst days." James winced and Kaidan paused to take a drink. He stared down at his hands. "He liked to use deprivation as a motivator, and pain. Vyrnnus didn't really see any problem with breaking a few limbs to make a point."

Damn. James knew people like that existed in every race. His father was living (probably) proof. But to put someone like that in charge of training kids? That was just wrong on so many levels. James set his beer on the table and took one of Kaidan's hands, lacing their fingers together and squeezing tightly. He scooted over just a little bit closer, so that more of their sides were pressed together. Kaidan sighed and squeezed his hand back.

"There was a girl in my class, Rahna. She..." He looked away and swallowed before turning back and meeting James' eyes. "Hell, we were kids, you know how it goes." James nodded, trying not to grin at Kaidan's blush. "Anyway, one day we were training and Vyrnnus got pissed when she reached for a glass of water physically and not biotically. He broke her arm and I, ah, I didn't react very well. But he left her alone and started beating on me, which was fine. I was used to it. Better me than her, I thought."

"I'm guessing this story doesn't end with her swooning over your manly heroics?"

"Not so much." Kaidan took a breath. "Vyrnnus pulled out a knife. I guess there were some things he didn't mind skipping biotics to do. I flared and lashed out...broke his neck."

"Ouch."

"You can say that again. It...well, it pretty much put an end to the program. Alliance shut it down, sealed all of the records so it wouldn't get out. Then they took a few years to reevaluate before starting a new formal training program."

"Rahna?" James figured he already knew the answer, but he thought maybe Kaidan needed to get these memories out in the open as much as he had needed to with his own.

"Didn't want anything to do with me after I killed Vyrnnus. She looked at me like I was a monster, like she was afraid of me." Another sigh. "Like she was worried I would lose control again at a moment's notice."

"Her loss for not sticking around," James quipped. "I don't know anyone with better control than you, Kaidan."

"I'm not so sure about that, James, but thanks." He gave that sheepish grin again and leaned in to kiss James on the cheek. "I had to work at it though."

"Don't we all?"

"Point." He chuckled. "With the records sealed, no one was coming after me for Vyrnnus' death though, so I was just kind of set free after the program ended. I was barely eighteen. Thought maybe I'd travel around Earth for a bit, then see the galaxy."

"But?"

"Instead, I spent a couple months at home, just kind of processing, and before I could leave, I got a visit from the Alliance." James nodded and Kaidan went on. "It was a Captain from special forces. Said he'd gotten hold of the Brain Camp records and he was impressed with my skills. I wasn't really in the mood for being complimented for accidentally killing someone but he somehow managed to talk me into taking a walk with him." Kaidan shrugged. "By the end of it, I'd agreed to join up, get some more biotic training, as well as formal military training. I might have ended up enlisting eventually, or even been banned from the Alliance altogether for what happened. Instead, I managed to make someone notice me and decide he wanted me on his team. One thing led to another, and well, here I am."

"Here you are," James grinned, pulling him closer for a kiss. Kaidan sighed into his mouth and returned the kiss slowly, stroking James' face with his thumbs.

"Worse places to be, I guess," Kaidan whispered.

"Definitely." James agreed. He slid a hand underneath the edge of Kaidan's shirt, ghosting his fingers up the muscles. Kaidan shivered at the touch. He locked eyes with James again and, like it always seemed to, finding that intense scrutiny directed at him shot straight to James' groin. He groaned and leaned forward to capture Kaidan's bottom lip in his teeth, biting down gently before releasing it and moving in for a deep kiss, his tongue probing Kaidan's mouth. "Been getting too serious up in here, Blue. Guy could go a little loco from all the tension."

"We should probably do something about that, then," Kaidan whispered into his ear.

He managed to pull away from James, with a little difficulty, and tugged the younger man up off the couch. A quick press of his lips against James' and then he had his hands under James' shirt, pulling it up and off, tossing it to the floor. He licked a swath up James' neck and moved his hands to the fly of James' jeans. It didn't take him long to undo them and push them down, James stepping eagerly out of them.

James moaned as Kaidan skated fingers across his body. He stepped in to kiss Kaidan and then muttered a curse, annoyed at how little of Kaidan's skin was exposed. Kaidan laughed when James scurried to get him down to his boxers as well, but he helped without any argument. They stood in the middle of the living room kissing and touching and licking everywhere they could.

Kaidan's patience ran out first, and he stepped away, holding a hand out to lead James into the bedroom. The cot was still set up, but it hadn't been used since that first night. Kaidan paused to grab a small bottle from the top of the dresser and then he shimmied out of his underwear. He turned back to face James and grinned at the wolf whistle he received.

"Your turn," Kaidan rasped. James quickly complied, then crossed the room and took the bottle from Kaidan's hand. Kaidan took advantage of his nearness to pull him in for another searing kiss. "I don't think I'm in the mood to play around much, Vega," he growled.

"Yes, sir," James quipped.

He was standing close enough to feel Kaidan's cock twitch at that and he grinned in response, pushing on Kaidan's shoulder until he sank down on the bed.  Kaidan scooted back and watched hungrily as James climbed up after him. James opened the bottle and poured a generous amount of lube in his palm. He coated his fingers with it and Kaidan spread his legs, still watching every move James made. James reached down to begin preparing Kaidan and leaned forward to give him a quick kiss.

"Let me know when you're ready."

Kaidan nodded and placed a hand on James' neck, pulling him back down. He slid his tongue into James' mouth, mirroring the movements of James' fingers inside of him. It was almost enough to make James lose focus, but he managed not to get too distracted.

"Now," Kaidan whispered.

James raised his eyebrows in surprise but didn't argue. Kaidan liked it rough sometimes. It seemed he was in that kind of mood tonight. He coated his cock with lube and then lined himself up, pressing slowly into Kaidan. Kaidan's head fell back against the pillow and he groaned.

"James," he growled after a minute, looking back up. James stilled and Kaidan growled again. He made sure that James was looking into his eyes and then James felt that now-familiar sensation of all of his hair standing on end as Kaidan blazed blue, right down to his eyes.

"Shit!" James yelped, jerking forward and slamming home in surprise.

"Yes!" Kaidan hissed before capturing James' mouth with his own.

James allowed himself a moment to adjust to the sudden tightness surrounding him and then he began to thrust. He didn't hold back, pounding into Kaidan with everything he had. When James was almost there, Kaidan reached for his own cock and James slowed down just enough to wrap a hand around Kaidan's. They stroked together until Kaidan came with a shout and then James increased his thrusts again. It only took him a few more before he was coming as well. He managed to give Kaidan a quick kiss before he slipped out and collapsed next to him on the too-small bed. Kaidan rolled toward him and wrapped him up in a tight embrace, sighing into his neck.

"Yeah, there are definitely worse places to be."

After that night, the air between the two of them was different, somehow. Easier. They weren't strangers anymore. It wasn't the sex, it was the trust. They had told each other about their pasts, about those pieces of themselves that they were most ashamed of, that they most kept hidden. It was as if they had both needed someone to share that part of themselves with and hadn't even realized it until it was done.

Of course, the sex was still pretty damn fantastic too.

But it couldn't last, and they both knew it. The call came down two days later that they were being moved off the station the next morning. James thought he would have a lot to say to Kaidan when the time finally came to part ways, but it turned out he really didn't. They had both known that what was between them came with an expiration date. They'd made the most of it, and he had no regrets.

Steve was the one who flew them off of Omega. It was just a small beat up passenger shuttle, registered as a courier ship, headed for the Citadel. James sat as close to Kaidan as he could on the flight, and he was grateful that Steve stayed behind to do some (he suspected) completely unnecessary post-flight checks as they got off at the Zakera dock. James hefted his bag over his shoulder and looked at Kaidan awkwardly for a moment.

"Oh fuck it," Kaidan muttered after a minute, stepping close and cupping James' neck. Their kiss wasn't wild and passionate. It was simple and sweet, and sad. But James knew it was one he would never forget. "Damn it Vega," Kaidan whispered, " I wish--"

"Hey, Blue, hey." James took a breath and forced himself to step back, resting a hand on Kaidan's shoulder. He offered Kaidan a reassuring smile. "We knew this was coming. It's okay. We're big boys, we'll be fine."

"Right." Kaidan nodded. Then he tilted his head, watching James curiously. "You know where you're gonna go?"

 "I've got a few ideas," James shrugged. "Need to figure out how to earn a little scratch first before I decide where to move on to."

"Oh! I almost forgot!" Kaidan slipped a hand in his pocket and pulled out a data chit, tossing it to James. "Steve managed to hack your bank accounts, move the money around, part of making it look like you'd gone to Ilium. Then he moved it into a few untraceable accounts. It's all there, plus a consulting fee from the Alliance for your help in stopping Zendel's smuggling." James barked out a laugh at that and Kaidan grinned. "You should be able to access them from here to arrange transport, then move it all into a new account once you get settled." He stepped forward again and leaned in to whisper, "Password's Esteban."

"Of course it is," James laughed, rolling his eyes. "Thanks, Blue." Kaidan pulled back and their eyes met again. They both looked away quickly, their smiles turning just a touch sad.

"Well, I should be going," Kaidan said, gesturing to the rapid transit hub nearby. "Admiral's expecting me."

"Yeah. See you around, Blue."

"I hope so, James," Kaidan whispered.

He turned quickly and walked away. James watched until he was gone. Then he sighed and headed for the map he could see across the bay, waving goodbye to Steve, who was coming out of the shuttle.  James let himself get lost in the crowd, trying to decide where to go from there.

Chapter Text

Joughin, Benning: Three Years Later

James managed to maneuver a hand free long enough to press against the entry pad at his door without dropping the full load of groceries he was carrying. He shouldered the door open and then kicked it shut behind him, waiting until he heard the soft beep signaling that the lock had engaged before moving toward the kitchen.

"One of these damn days I am going to remember that damn cart I bought specifically for groceries before I actually get to the store," he muttered to himself as he started setting things on the counter. "Lights," he said in a clear voice, beginning to put away his purchases in the now illuminated room.

He knew that the easy thing to do would be to place an order with the store's extranet system and just have it delivered to his house once a week on his day off or after he got home from work. But he had never quite been able to bring himself to do that. Since leaving Omega, James had done his best to stay off the grid as much as was possible. He seriously doubted the Talons were still looking for him, but it didn't seem worth it to take any unnecessary chances.

Especially since he hadn't changed his name. Oh, he had thought about it. He had scoped out a few vendors on the Citadel who could have gotten him the required paperwork before leaving. Considered it again when he got to Benning, almost checking in under Sanders instead of Vega. But in the end, he was who he was. Benning wasn't of any concern to the Terminus systems, and its proximity to the Arcturus Station meant that it didn't see as much alien traffic as other Alliance colonies. Besides, taking his father's name seemed wrong in a way he didn't really want to think too much about. Just making up something didn't feel very right either, for once in his life.

Guess I'm hoping some people are still able to find me, if they want. He grinned ruefully at the stray thought. Shaking his head at himself he finished getting everything put away and then threw together a quick dinner, eating over the sink and then washing the dishes. As he was hanging up the dishtowel he felt something brush up against his legs and looked down.

"Mrrow?"

"Hey there, Felix," James grinned and knelt down to scratch the silver-blue tom behind the ears. "Guess you want your dinner too, huh?"

"Mrow!" Felix butted his head against James' hand.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm on it. No sassing," James laughed.

He pulled out a canister of dry cat food and filled the bowl at the end of the counter, then checked the water dish while he was at it. He leaned against the fridge and watched the cat for a few moments, chuckling to himself.

If someone had told him he would have ended up with a pet, he always would have assumed it would be a dog. But about two months after he'd moved into his house, the cat had just turned up, sneaking inside when he'd had the door open and refusing to leave. None of the neighbors had laid claim to him, and James had been surprised to realize he liked the company, so he decided to keep the tom.

Felix was pretty low-maintenance, truth be told. He wanted to be fed in the morning, and then if James was going to work, he'd run outside and spend the day chasing birds or whatever it was that cats did, but he always turned up again not long after James got home for more food, and he would stay in the house for the night. Usually he'd just curl up on the couch while James read or watched vids. On colder days or days when James didn't work, Felix would stay in the house and prowl through it in constant search of the best sunny spot for napping. James found it a pretty ideal arrangement.

After a few moments, he left the kitchen, thinking he wanted to change into some sweats and just relax. Work had been a bit hectic. He was halfway through the living room when it occurred to him that he hadn't let Felix inside. He supposed the cat could have darted in while he was bringing in the groceries. But he was pretty sure he would have noticed. The cat had a talent for weaving through his legs when his arms were full.

James turned around and carefully made his way back into the kitchen, examining the window over the sink. When it proved intact and locked, he moved to the door that led out into his small back yard. His throat tightened when he saw that it was ajar, just slightly. How hadn't he noticed that when he first came in here? Closer examination revealed that the lock was jammed. The door could have been pushed shut to look like normal, but the lock wouldn't have engaged. Likely, Felix had pushed on it when he'd seen James was home, and it had just opened to let him in.

James' heart was pounding. Someone had broken into his house. Very quietly James picked up one of the chairs at the table in the nook opposite the door and placed it in front of the door, holding it shut. It wouldn't stop anyone who was really determined to get in or out, but it should make enough noise to give him some warning. He hoped.

"Mrow?" Felix had hopped up on a counter and paused in the middle of licking his paw. He watched James curiously. James patted the cat on the head and opened his junk drawer, reaching inside to retrieve the gun that he kept there.

He did a slow sweep of the kitchen, scrutinizing it to see if anything was missing. He saved the pantry for last, opening the door quietly and peering inside with the gun drawn. No one was inside. He shut the pantry door and then proceeded to the living room, manually turning on the lights and giving it the same onceover as the kitchen. James moved through his small house room by room, giving each the same inspection. Nothing seemed to be missing or out of place that he could tell. He should have been relieved, but instead that seemed to unnerve him more than anything else.

At last, only his bedroom remained. Felix trailed behind James as he approached the closed door, no doubt curious at the odd behavior. Had he closed it that morning before leaving? He couldn't remember. Slowly, quietly, he turned the knob and pushed it open. The room was gloomy but he didn't sense any movement. He stepped inside and turned on the lights to find...

"Blue?!"

Kaidan Alenko, fast asleep on James' bed, did not stir at his entrance. James stared at him in disbelief, while Felix pushed through and jumped onto the bed, stalking over to sniff at the stranger. When Felix nosed at Kaidan's face, his eyes snapped open and he jumped off the bed. Well, he tried to, at least. The sudden movement drew a strangled cry of pain from Kaidan and he collapsed on the floor.

"Shit!" James dropped the gun onto his dresser and ran to Kaidan, helping him back to his feet. One of his legs tried to fold and James saw that he was wounded. "What the hell happened to you? Are you alright?"

"Um, hey Vega. I'm fine, I just--" He tried to step back and stand on his own, but the movement drew another wince. "Meant to get that cleaned up, just sat down for a moment, I must have fallen asleep." James snorted in response to that and Kaidan took a deep breath. "So, uh, I guess I owe you an explanation or three, huh?"

"Yeah, I'd say you do," James grunted, getting a shoulder under Kaidan's arm. Kaidan started to protest but was quelled by a look from James. "Let's see to that leg first though, huh?"

James led Kaidan into the hall and toward the bathroom. Felix emerged from under the bed, where he had hidden after waking Kaidan, and trailed behind them curiously. In the bathroom James helped Kaidan get his boots and pants off, trying not to think about other, much more pleasant, occasions on which he had done the same. Kaidan's wry grin told him that they were thinking along the same lines.

His mind raced with questions but he focused on getting Kaidan's wound tended to, hoping it would give him time to put them into some sort of coherent order. Kaidan sat on the edge of the tub and James pulled out his first aid kit. He set to cleaning the wound while Kaidan watched quietly. Felix hopped up next to Kaidan and rubbed against his side, demanding attention. Kaidan acquiesced, petting the cat with a soft smile.

"Never pictured you for much of a cat person, Vega."

"Hey man, me neither," James snorted. "Felix had other ideas though. He's not so bad, really."

He was quiet for a moment as he finished cleaning up the wound, which consisted of several long scratches along the side of Kaidan's leg. None of them were very deep, and he didn't even think they'd need stitches. Still looked as if they hurt like hell though. James had been worried at Kaidan's collapse, but he guessed that maybe the leg had just stiffened up while Kaidan had been asleep. He coated them with medigel and wrapped a bandage around them carefully.

"You gonna tell me how this happened?"

"Don't know how much I should say," Kaidan sighed, leaning over to examine James' handiwork. "Thanks, by the way." James nodded and Kaidan leaned back, looking at him carefully. "Don't suppose there's any chance of a beer?"

"I don't see why not. If I expect you to be talkative, I'd probably better keep you watered."

Kaidan laughed at that and levered himself off the edge of the tub. James offered him support but he waved it off, limping into the hallway. They went to the living room and James gestured toward the couch, then darted into the kitchen to grab them beer. He stopped in the doorway when he came back. Kaidan's eyes had slid closed as he settled into the couch and James couldn't help but feel a pang at the sight. How many times had he imagined having Kaidan here? Sitting right there, drinking beer and catching up? Too many, he thought, shaking his head and moving to the couch. But never quite like this.

Story of my life.

Kaidan opened his eyes when he felt James' weight settle on the couch next to him and accepted the beer with a nod of thanks. He took a deep drink and then sighed, staring at his hands for a few moments.

"You know much about Cerberus?"

"What, that human supremacy group?" A look of disdain crossed James' face.

"Yeah, that's the one." Kaidan's look of disgust showed that he shared James' sentiment. "They've got a cell here on Benning."

"Not that many aliens here," James mused.

"No, but this a hub for soldiers stationed at Arcturus. Brass has been worried that Cerberus is turning Alliance soldiers, aiming for those poised to rise in the ranks so that they've got their puppets in strategic places. There have been some worrying incidents on Arcturus last couple of months." He sat forward with a sigh and finished his beer. James passed him the second bottle. "So they sent me in to see if I could infiltrate the cell, find out who on the station is taking orders from Cerberus."

"Damn." James whistled. "I can't imagine that's an assignment you've enjoyed."

"You are not wrong about that." He sighed again and sat back. "I think I've got the information I was sent to find, but when I tried to erase my footprints in the database I triggered some kind of security protocol I didn't know about. Set off an alarm and brought guards running. I managed to get out of there unseen, but I didn't get the chance to wipe the security feeds. Then I managed to tear up my leg going over the fence. I'm pretty sure they don't know what I know, or that I'm Alliance. But odds are good they'll be looking for me. Needed to hide out for a bit while I cleaned up and checked in with my superiors."

"So you came to my place." James cocked an eyebrow.

"Um. Yes? There's nothing in my cover to lead them here," Kaidan said cautiously.

"Here, to my house. That you apparently knew exactly how to find." Kaidan blushed and James shook his head. He wasn't sure whether to be amused or affronted. "You've been keeping tabs on me, Blue."

"Just enough to make sure you were safe," Kaidan whispered, looking away.

"So you've known where I was this whole time?" Kaidan nodded. "But you never called or dropped by?"

"There was never really a good time, a safe time, for a visit, Vega," Kaidan said, meeting his eyes again. "Besides," he didn't hold the eye contact, looking down instead, "I wasn't really sure I'd be welcome. I've already turned your life upside down once. I wouldn't be here now if I'd had anywhere else to go."

"Hey." James sat forward and tucked a finger under Kaidan's chin, tilting his head up so that their eyes met again. "You can turn my life upside down as many times as you want, Blue, as long as you're in it."

Kaidan's eyes widened and he sucked in a sharp breath. James grinned and Kaidan offered him a shaky smile in return then leaned in slowly to place a hesitant kiss on James' lips. James felt himself grinning as he returned the kiss. This was something he had been missing for years, something he hadn't let himself ever really think about how much he still wanted. But now that Kaidan was here, James felt solid in a way he hadn't since leaving Omega.

James reached up to stroke Kaidan's chin, moving his other hand back to card through the tangle of curls, mussed from Kaidan's accidental nap. They deepened the kiss, taking their time, tasting and exploring each other once again. Then James started as he felt a set of tiny pinpricks in his knee. He jumped back in reaction and Felix hopped into his lap, effectively putting an end to the kissing for the moment.

"Hey!" James scowled at the cat. "I thought we had an agreement about you not using your pointy bits on me!"

"Mrow?" Felix butted his head into James' chest, demanding attention. Kaidan just sat back and shook his head, laughing in that husky voice of his that James remembered oh so clearly.

"I guess he didn't like you petting someone else."

"Yeah, well, he's going to have to get used to it," James growled. He half-heartedly tried to shove the cat off his lap, but Felix would not be budged. He turned around and settled down, curled up with his tail wrapped neatly around him. He gave Kaidan something that James would have sworn was a pointed look before closing his eyes, purring loudly.

Kaidan laughed again and reached down to scratch the cat behind his ears. Felix opened one eye and looked at Kaidan for a long moment before closing it again and moving his head just slightly closer to Kaidan's hand.

"Guess he just needs to get used to me." Kaidan looked up and blushed when he noticed James staring at him. "Um, if I can stay, that is. Probably just for a couple of days until I can get these Cerberus characters dealt with."

"Well sure," James said in a flat voice, "but I don't know how safe it is. Some pendejo broke in earlier today. My back door is held shut with a chair at the moment."

"Um, yeah, sorry about that. I meant to fix the lock before--"

"Before you fell asleep in my bed?"

"I didn't mean to--" Kaidan blushed again.

James tried to hold his serious expression, but Kaidan looked so unsure that he couldn't help himself. He leaned forward again, cupping Kaidan's face in his hands, and planted a soft kiss on his lips. Kaidan released a small sigh of relief and James grinned at him. Felix uttered a sound of annoyance and jumped to the back of the couch, settling down there with a glare at both men, who were too busy staring at each other to notice.

"I haven't kicked you out yet, Blue, have I?" James whispered. "I think it's safe to say I don't mind you staying. Stay as long as you like. You know I'm not going to complain."

"Thank you." Kaidan reached up and placed a hand over one of James' as his eyes slid shut. "I was afraid you might not want--"

"You? That's just crazy talk. You really are a pendejo if you think that."

"It's been three years. I don't want to get in the way of your life now, of anything you might have going on..." He leaned his forehead against James' and squeezed his hand. "I'd understand if you'd moved on, that's all."

"Seems to me," James drawled, "that you once said you didn't think normal was in the cards for us."

"I did say that," Kaidan agreed with a wry chuckle.

"You also said you don't do casual." James shrugged. "Yeah, it's been a while, but I kind of hoped that second thing meant maybe if we met up again, well. Let's just say I've been hoping we would meet up again."

"Me too," Kaidan whispered.

"Good."

Kaidan pulled back and looked at James seriously for a few minutes before offering a small, sure smile. Then he lunged forward, bringing his lips to James' in a deep kiss while pushing James back into the couch. James grunted at the sudden movement but eagerly accepted the kiss. He parted his mouth and pressed his tongue forward, sliding it between Kaidan's lips when they opened to him. Kaidan pushed him down on the couch and straddled his waist, rolling his hips against James. James moaned in approval.

He ran his hands up Kaidan's thighs, finally remembering that Kaidan wasn't wearing any pants. While it occurred to him that this would make getting Kaidan naked considerably easier, it also reminded him of Kaidan's wounds. He moved a hand up to Kaidan's chest, pushing gently to get the other man's attention. Kaidan sat back and stared down at James, eyes wide and dark.

"I do have a bed, you know," James said, his voice thick with desire. Kaidan relaxed a little when he realized that James wasn't stopping the proceedings entirely.

"Mmm. I did notice." Kaidan grinned slowly. "Nice and big, too."

"In a room with a door that closes," James whispered, shooting a glance at the cat who was pointedly acting like they weren't there. Kaidan laughed long and loud at that. Then he nodded and climbed off of James, standing carefully, gesturing for James to lead the way.

As they made their way to the bedroom once more, James noticed with great relief that Kaidan's steps were much steadier than they had been earlier. His leg was already doing better. Good. Still, he'd have to make sure that they didn't do anything to mess it up further. A grin flashed across his face at the thought of the challenge. He stepped into the bedroom and waited by the door, closing it firmly behind Kaidan. Kaidan stopped in the middle of the room and turned back to look at James with a hungry smile. James returned it, looking Kaidan up and down while he made his plans.

"I think I like that look," Kaidan whispered.

"Yeah?"

James stepped to Kaidan and ran his fingers up Kaidan's chest, stopping to rest his hand on his shoulder. Kaidan started to lean in for a kiss but James squeezed his shoulder, stopping the motion. Kaidan's eyebrows shot up, but it was the only indication of his surprise. James stepped back, walking around Kaidan in a slow circle, considering, and Kaidan fell into a relaxed stance. James chuckled. Good. It seemed Kaidan was willing to be patient. Not that he had any intention of making him wait that long.

They'd waited long enough already.

James came to a stop behind Kaidan and he placed a small kiss at the nape of Kaidan's neck, causing Kaidan's breath to catch, ever so slightly. Then he reached down and tugged at the bottom of Kaidan's shirt. Kaidan lifted his arms obediently, allowing James to tug it off. James placed a trail of small kisses along Kaidan's shoulder blades and then wrapped him in his arms, pulling Kaidan snug against his body. Kaidan loosed a small satisfied sigh.

"Missed you, Vega," he whispered. "So damn much."

"I've missed you too, Blue," James breathed in his ear. "Never stopped thinking about you, really." One of his hands slithered down Kaidan's chest, slipping under the band of Kaidan's underwear. Kaidan sighed again when James took his cock into hand and slowly began to stroke it. "Thought about touching you, making you fly to pieces." He quickened his strokes, tightening his grip slightly. A shudder ran through Kaidan's body and James smiled when he realized Kaidan was trying to hold still, to not buck into his hand. "Thought about making you come so hard you go all blue for me," he added. Kaidan's breath caught again. James kissed the nape of his neck and then nibbled his way to Kaidan's ear, tugging on the lobe with his teeth.

"James!" Kaidan hissed, unable to keep himself still any longer. James let go of Kaidan's ear and grinned, stepping back, letting go of his grip on Kaidan. "James!" It wasn't a whine exactly, but it was close, and definitely an objection.

James walked around Kaidan, stopping in front of him this time. He grinned and leaned down to kiss Kaidan. Kaidan grabbed at him, pulling them close together, his tongue forcing its way into James' mouth. James parted his lips eagerly, meeting Kaidan's tongue with his own. Kaidan scrabbled at his shirt, pulling it over his head, and James lifted his arms to allow it, wrapping Kaidan up in them as soon as the garment was gone.

Slowly, James began moving forward, pushing Kaidan back. When he stopped, he reached down to tug on Kaidan's underwear, pulling them down and urging Kaidan to step out of them. Then he pressed down on Kaidan's shoulders gently. Kaidan looked behind himself and then back at James with a grin. He sat down on the edge of the bed and then reached up for James' fly. James batted his hands away with a smile.

"Not a bad idea, Blue, but not what I had in mind."

"Oh?" Kaidan cocked an eyebrow at James. He looked down into his own lap and then back up at James. "You've kind of got me at a disadvantage at the moment, Vega."

"Let me even the field a little then," James laughed. He kicked off his shoes and quickly stripped down until he was as naked as Kaidan. When Kaidan reached for his hips though, he shook his head and sank down in between Kaidan's knees. He shot the other man a wicked grin when he pushed his thighs apart and Kaidan's eyes widened.

James leaned forward and took Kaidan's cock in his hands once more, stroking it lightly again before licking the underside from root to tip. Kaidan groaned and braced his hands behind himself on the bed. His head fell back as James set to work with hands and tongue and mouth, licking and sucking and touching until he had Kaidan bucking against him once more.

"Oh, god, yes," Kaidan hissed as he came into James' mouth.

James grinned as he swallowed it down, licking his lips as he pulled back. Kaidan sat forward again and stared down into his eyes while James remained kneeling before him, reaching forward to caress James' cheek. James leaned into it, rubbing Kaidan's thighs lightly with his thumbs. After a moment, James gave a satisfied sigh and pushed himself up, dropping down next to Kaidan on the edge of the bed.

"That was nice," Kaidan said with a grin, leaning to bump shoulders with James. He ran a hand along James' thigh and then slipped it into his lap, ghosting his fingers along James' heavy erection. "Seems like you're the one with the plan tonight." James shivered under his touch. "What did you have in mind for this, then?" He gave James' cock a quick, firm tug.

James didn't say anything in response. Instead, he leaned over to his bedside table and pulled open the drawer. After digging around for a moment, he slid it shut again and handed Kaidan a small tube. Kaidan accepted it and smiled down at the lube in his hand. James lifted an eyebrow in question and Kaidan gave him a brief kiss.

"Oh yes," he said. "I do like the way you think, Vega."

James reached out a hand to take the lube back but Kaidan grinned and shook his head.

"Uh uh," he said, his voice husky. "Let me."

He scooted back onto the bed and swung his legs up, spreading them open as he lay back on the pillows. James twisted his body to watch, his eyes following Kaidan's fingers intently as Kaidan began to prepare himself.

"Damn," James whispered as Kaidan let himself get into it, dropping his head to the pillow and closing his eyes. "That is a sight." Kaidan's eyes remained closed but he smiled in acknowledgement.

Before long he removed his fingers and held out the lube. James took it and eagerly coated himself, climbing up onto the bed and crawling between Kaidan's spread thighs, pushing them apart more. He leaned down to kiss Kaidan, and was rewarded by those whiskey eyes sliding open and catching his own. Ah, mi amor, James caught himself thinking. He bit his lip before the words could escape, instead sitting back on his knees.

He tugged on Kaidan's legs, pulling Kaidan into his lap, shoving a pillow under Kaidan's hips. He carefully lined himself up with Kaidan's entrance and pushed forward, slowly, keeping his eyes trained on Kaidan's. The lazy grin on Kaidan's face slipped as he felt James push inside, becoming a look of anticipation, instead. James made himself take his time, stilling briefly when he was fully seated in Kaidan. He was savoring the moment, he knew, trying to hold onto the feeling so he could remember it when Kaidan was gone again.

Shouldn't be thinking about things like that right now, he reminded himself.

Kaidan's grin returned and he cocked an eyebrow at James. Well? He didn't have to say it out loud, his expression was clear enough. James chuckled and began thrusting. Slowly, at first, but then speeding up, his hands gripping Kaidan's hips as he began to slam into him. Kaidan's fingers clutched at the bedcover as he cried out.

"God, yes! Yes!"

Kaidan's cries were joined by James' grunts and the sounds of their bodies slapping together as he moved inside of Kaidan. It did not take long for him to find release, stuttering to a stop as his orgasm finished. He dropped his head, catching his breath for a moment, until he felt Kaidan's hands scrabbling at his arms, pulling at him. James let himself slip out of Kaidan with a happy sigh and allowed Kaidan to pull him down next to him on the bed. Kaidan wrapped James in a tight embrace and kissed him slowly and deeply. James could feel Kaidan's lips smiling, matching his own expression, he knew.

"Really, really missed you, Blue," he whispered when they broke apart.

"Yeah, James." Kaidan kissed his forehead. "I missed you too."

A loud grumbling sound interrupted the moment and James sat up, looking down at Kaidan fondly.

"When's the last time you ate something?"

"Uh," Kaidan gave an embarrassed laugh. "Now that you mention it, I guess it has been a while."

"Come on," James said, tugging Kaidan off the bed. "Let's get you fed."

They grabbed some clothes and James opened the door to shoo Kaidan into the bathroom for a quick cleanup. A blue-grey blur bolted into the room the second the door was open. Felix made it halfway to the bed before he skidded to a halt and then turned around to glare at the two men laughing at him. When he saw they were leaving the bedroom, he casually followed them back out, as if he had never intended to enter at all.

"Guess he doesn't like being ignored," Kaidan observed.

"Not when he wants attention, at least," James said, rolling his eyes.

They got dressed and cleaned up and James steered Kaidan into the kitchen. Kaidan turned his attention to fixing the broken lock on the back door while James quickly slapped together a couple of sandwiches. When Kaidan finished, pulling the chair back to the table and settling down on it, James set the plate of sandwiches in front of him. James grabbed them some more beer and sat down in the other chair while Kaidan began eating.

"Good thing I went to the store today, I guess." James laughed as Kaidan wolfed down the food. Kaidan blushed but did not slow down. James squeezed his shoulder and then sat down next to him, enjoying the company. Felix hopped up into his lap, taking advantage of Kaidan's preoccupation.

"So," Kaidan said in between bites, "Tell me what you've been up to here on Benning?"

"Thought you already knew all that," James said with a raised eyebrow. "Keeping tabs on me and all."

"Just looked up where you'd gone," Kaidan admitted, "Checked to make sure you were still here, still safe." He chewed a bite thoughtfully, and then swallowed before adding, "I didn't want to pry. I just wanted to know you were okay."

"I am," James said with a small smile. "I really am. I had an apartment for a few months when I got here, but then I lucked into this place. Actually had enough saved up for a decent down payment. I worked as a bouncer at a bar for a while, but that got old pretty quickly." Kaidan nodded, watching James intently as he ate. James pushed a bowl of fruit towards him when the last sandwich was gone.

"One of the regulars at the bar keyed into how bored I was with my job," James shrugged. "She offered me a new one. I was kind of suspicious at first, thought maybe she was just coming on to me." He looked down, embarrassed. "But I figured what the hell and went in for the interview. Turns out she has a furniture store. Beautiful wood stuff, meant to look like antiques and shit like that." Kaidan's eyebrows shot up and James laughed.

"I know, I know, like a bull in a china shop, right? But she needed a new delivery guy and she figured I wouldn't have a problem with heavy lifting. It's not bad work at all. I get to go all over the settlement, meet lots of interesting people. Scenery's different every day." He took a drink of his beer. "Good hours, pays pretty well. She makes it all herself, has been showing me how to build a few things. She says I've got a knack for it. Made these chairs, actually." He gestured to their seats and shrugged. "Don't know if it's what I want to do for the rest of my life, but don't know that I would mind that, either."

"You're happy, then," Kaidan said with a soft smile, placing a hand over one of James' where it rested on the table.

"Yeah, I guess so," James gave Kaidan a smile in return. "Mostly." He turned his hand over and gave Kaidan's a squeeze. Kaidan looked down at their hands for a few long moments, not saying anything. His posture looked thoughtful to James, so he was content to let Kaidan think. He scratched Felix behind the ears, smiling at the cat's contented purr.

"I, uh, I should probably check in with my superiors," Kaidan said at last. He squeezed James' hand once more and then pulled his own back.

"Yeah, okay." James picked up Felix and stood. "You do that. Then, bed?"

"Yeah," Kaidan smiled and nodded. "Bed sounds wonderful."

James kissed Kaidan on the cheek and then wandered out of the kitchen, leaving Kaidan to his work. He hadn't meant to turn things so serious there, but what he had said was the truth. He was mostly happier. But that didn't mean he didn't miss Kaidan like crazy. He meant to enjoy their time together as much as he could while it lasted. James only hoped that it would tide him over until whenever the next time might be.  Because he damn well meant to be sure there was a next time.

Chapter Text

After a long day of work and the excitement of Kaidan's unexpected, but certainly not unwelcome, arrival, James was pretty beat. He puttered around the house a bit while Kaidan put in the report to his superior, picking up their beer bottles and tidying up. After that he decided to take a quick shower before bed. He was just rinsing his hair out when he heard the shower curtain rattle. He opened an eye to see Kaidan peeking his head in.

"Mind some company?"

"Come on in, Blue," James grinned. "It's nice and hot."

"Heh," Kaidan's eyes flicked up James' body, then down again quickly. "Won't argue with that." James just chuckled, and ducked out of the stream of water, making room for Kaidan.

"C'mere," James said, pulling Kaidan to him in a hug and maneuvering them so that the water was sluicing across Kaidan's back. He relaxed in James' arms with a small groan of satisfaction, then leaned up to kiss James softly.

After a few moments James let Kaidan go and leaned back against the wall of the shower, watching as Kaidan washed himself off.

"How'd your check-in go?"

"As well as you'd expect," Kaidan shrugged. "The data I got was encrypted. They've got Cortez working on decrypting it now, and hopefully we'll have a list of names on Arcturus by this time tomorrow."

"Then what?" James tried to sound nonchalant but he didn't think he quite hit the mark.

"Then the moles on Arcturus will be arrested and I'll meet up with a team down here to round up the rest of the cell. Then they'll be sent back to Earth for trial."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that," Kaidan agreed. "The goal was to shut down whatever they're doing on Arcturus, as well as to round up as many Cerberus operatives as we could. It might give us at least a chance of figuring out what their grand plan is."

"So I've got you until tomorrow, at least," James sighed. Kaidan gave him a funny look.

"At least," he said softly, smiling as he turned to shut off the water and leaned in for another quick kiss.

They got dried off and made their way to the bedroom, not bothering with clothing as they crawled into the bed together. James wrapped himself around Kaidan, relishing the feel of having the other man in his arms again.

"Think we forgot to close the door," Kaidan whispered, laughing lightly as Felix jumped up on the bed and stalked his way across the covers. The cat wandered around for a moment before moving back down to the bottom corner on James' side and curling up in a neat ball. The very tip of his tail flicked, just once, and then he was still.

"Probably for the best," James said with a yawn. "He makes an awful racket when he's pissed. Besides, 'm too tired to do anything else tonight anyway." He tightened his arms in a quick hug and felt Kaidan's head nodding on the pillow beside him.

"Yeah, sleep would be good," Kaidan agreed. He ran a hand lightly down one of James' arms and then leaned over to kiss him on the temple. "Good night, James," he whispered.

"Night, Kaidan," James answered, falling asleep only a few moments later.

James woke the next morning to the soft click of the bedroom door being shut. He opened his eyes blearily and found Kaidan standing next to it with a satisfied grin on his face.

"Hey there," Kaidan said, leaning against the door. "Didn't mean to wake you." James waved a hand vaguely, hoping Kaidan would understand that he wasn't bothered. Kaidan nodded as if he did understand and then grinned widely. "Got up to use the facilities and Felix followed me. Went ahead and put some food out for him."

"Heh. He's got you wrapped around his paws already," James snorted.

"Maybe," Kaidan's grin widened and he moved away from the door. "Or maybe I just thought I could take advantage of his distraction to shut the door.  For the eventuality of you waking up. Which you have."

James eyebrows shot up as he realized what Kaidan was suggesting. A thrill of desire shot through him as he watched Kaidan approach. Then he was climbing onto the bed and sliding under the covers to press his body against James. James sighed at the warmth. Kaidan always ran so hot due to his biotics. It was amazing how cold a bed could feel when the memory of that warmth was always there to compare it to. But he wasn't cold now. Not at all.

"Hey." He rolled over and drew Kaidan close for a kiss, which Kaidan eagerly returned. The kiss started out slow and lazy but grew heated the longer it went on. Kaidan pushed James back into the bed and moved on top of him, straddling his thighs and trapping their stiffening cocks between their bodies.

James moaned and rolled his hips up, pressing himself as close to Kaidan as he could. Kaidan chuckled and did the same. They thrust against each other, timing their movements to ratchet up the delicious friction. James slithered a hand between them, grasping Kaidan's cock, working at it in quick, sure strokes.

"Yes!" Kaidan hissed. "Oh, god, yes!" His thrusts sped up and James tightened his hold, ever so slightly, at the same time reaching down with his other hand to work at his own erection. Kaidan's control started to break, his thrusts becoming erratic. He cried out wordlessly as he came. The feel of the hot fluid shooting onto James' stomach and chest sent him over the edge as well, and his shout followed Kaidan's cry by mere seconds.

"Oh, hell yes," James whispered as Kaidan collapsed on top of him, mindless of the sticky mess cooling between them. "Wake me up like that every morning."

"I'll see what I can do," Kaidan laughed before kissing him again.

They drowsed together in bed for a little while longer, but eventually made their way back to the bathroom for another shower and then into the kitchen in search of breakfast.

"In the mood for anything particular, Blue?" James asked while Kaidan fiddled with the coffee maker.

"Hmm. I seem to remember you once mentioning something about making some killer huevos rancheros," Kaidan called over his shoulder.

"Heh. That I can definitely do." James began pulling out the necessary ingredients.

"What time do you need to leave for work?" Kaidan wrapped his arms around James' waist from behind, stretching to peer over his shoulder as he chopped up chiles for the sauce.

"It's my day off, actually," James told him. He paused and turned enough to kiss Kaidan's cheek. "How spicy you want this, Blue?"

"I can take it as spicy as you can, Vega," Kaidan assured him. James made a skeptical face but he just shrugged and continued preparing their breakfast. Kaidan moved away to snag coffee mugs and then began setting the table. "So I get you all to myself today, huh?"

"Looks like," James agreed, moving on to the next stage of preparation. "Assuming my roommate cooperates." He gestured toward the windowsill, where Felix was sitting and watching them both intently.

The day passed much too quickly for James' taste. They lingered over breakfast, and James was pleasantly surprised when Kaidan had no problem at all with his sauce. Abuela would approve, he thought to himself with a grin as Kaidan shoveled down a third helping. They talked for a long time, about books they'd read, vids they'd seen, things they'd done or wanted to do.

James tried to ignore the little voice in the back of his head urging him to hold back, reminding him that Kaidan would be leaving again, and soon. But he couldn't help himself. Being around Kaidan just made everything else in his life feel right. Hell, even Felix had warmed up to the guy quickly, he thought, realizing at one point that the cat was contentedly curled up in Kaidan's lap and purring loudly. Kaidan just fit here. He knew he should say something, but for all of the talking they did, he couldn't think of a way to bring it up.

"Damn. That was quick," Kaidan said with a little frown as his omnitool beeped to let him know he had a message. James frowned too. They had only just finished cleaning up from lunch. He had thought they'd have a few more hours at least before Kaidan had to report back.

"You've got to go?" He tried not to sound too disappointed, but Kaidan's heavy sigh told him he hadn't succeeded.

"Cortez cracked the encryption. The files were financial statements, like I thought they were, and he was able to trace the transactions and come up with a list of Arcturus staff on the Cerberus payroll."

"Guess Esteban really is good at what he does," James quipped, trying not to pout. They hadn't even made it back to the bedroom for another round.

"He's the best," Kaidan smiled, just a little, then he gave James a serious look. "Hey." He reached out to take James' hand. "I have to go in to lead the team making the arrests down here, we're coordinating with local law enforcement. But I will be back before I leave Benning, okay?"

"Hey, man," James shrugged. "I know you've gotta do what you've gotta do."

"James." Kaidan squeezed his hand, waiting until James met his eyes. "I will be back. I promise you. This isn't over. Not by a long shot."

James lunged forward, kissing Kaidan. Their teeth clacked together from the suddenness of the impact, but he didn't pull back. He slid his fingers into the tangled mass of Kaidan's hair, loose and curly and not slicked back for once. Kaidan gasped in surprise and James took advantage to slide his tongue into the other man's mouth. Then Kaidan recovered and wrapped his arms around James, pulling him in even tighter, kissing back just as fiercely.

"Be careful, Blue, okay?" James whispered when they pulled apart. He closed his eyes and rested his forehead against Kaidan's. "I just, I can deal with you not being here, but I need to know you're coming back."

He couldn't bring himself to meet Kaidan's gaze, afraid of what Kaidan would see in his eyes if he did. Kaidan's arms tightened around James for a moment and when he answered, his voice had gone all husky, that gravelly sound that undid James so easily.

"I am. I will. Always. As long as you want me to, I'll come back."

"Good to know, Blue," James whispered.

And it was.

Kaidan left pretty much right after that, although he gave James a look that suggested he would have much rather stayed, at least for a while longer. James managed to get himself back under control, though, and he shooed Kaidan out the door, giving him the security key so that he didn't have to break in (again) if James was asleep when he got back.

James was restless for the rest of the afternoon, unable to sit still for very long. Every time he did, his mind wandered to Kaidan, worrying about whether or not he and his team had successfully managed to ambush the Cerberus operatives. Their goal was to try to time the arrests simultaneously so that no one had a chance to tip anyone off. James remembered Kaidan's injury from the night before, and though it was already well on the road to healing, there was always the chance it would slow Kaidan down...

James shut down that line of thought before it could go any further. Wanting to distract himself, he slipped on some shoes and went outside to his small backyard. He had a little herb and vegetable garden growing in the corner and he made his way for that, thinking a bit of weeding might be just the diversion he needed. It worked for a little while, but before long, James realized he was pulling up actual plants with the weeds and he gave it up for a lost cause.

"Mrow?" Felix rubbed up against his leg, looking up at him with large eyes.

"I know he's good at what he does, gato," James sighed. "But apparently that's not enough to stop me from worrying." He stroked the cat's head, relaxing a little at the purring this brought forth.

Standing up and stretching, James sighed and looked around the yard. When his gaze fell on the little shed in the other corner, a grin crossed his face. He made his way for it, thinking he had finally found the distraction he needed. Inside he had set up a little workspace to use for practicing his furniture-making. He couldn't do anything huge, but it was enough to hone his skills. A small, spindly end table sat unfinished in the middle of the space.

James got to work, losing himself in the process of sanding the wood pieces to a smooth finish and carefully assembling them to make sure everything fit together properly. Felix wandered in and out as James worked, sometimes watching from a windowsill, sometimes stalking animals and bugs in the yard. The sun was just sinking down over the horizon when James finished what he could of the table. It would require a coat of varnish to be completely finished, of course, but Valarie, his boss, always said that was the easy part, so he usually didn't worry about it too much with his practice pieces.

He went back into the house long enough to grab some water, feed Felix, and slap together a sandwich before returning to the shed. The table was meant to be one of a pair, and he knew if he stopped working he'd be restless again. So James set to work cutting out the pieces for the next table. It was well past midnight by the time he was finally interrupted in his work again.

"...Vega?"

"Kaidan." James sighed his name in relief as he stared at the man standing in the doorway.

"You weren't in the house," Kaidan said, "and I saw the light out here so I thought I'd check..." he looked around, his eyes taking in the workspace. There was a flash of something in them that James thought might be approval. "Hell of a setup you've got out here."

"It's just to practice," James shrugged. "Thought it might be a good distraction today." Kaidan tilted his head, giving James a thoughtful look. "So, uh, how'd it go? You get all the bad guys?"

"We did," Kaidan grinned. "Everyone on our list, both down here and on the station, is in custody. It was a huge op. Frankly, I'm a little impressed we pulled it off."

"Hopefully nobody slipped through the cracks."

"It's always a concern," Kaidan admitted, "but even if we did miss someone, we've managed to severely deplete their resources in this system. We'll be checking into everyone we pulled in for any associations to follow up on, and there will be some security changes on the station that should keep this from happening again."

"Guess you're in pretty good with the brass after this, huh?"

"You could say that," Kaidan said with a grin. He took a step inside the shed. "Anything I can help you out with?"

"Nah," James said, taking off his protective goggles and setting down his sander. "I'm done for the day. Come on, I could use a beer. You?" Kaidan nodded and backed out of the shed, waiting for James before heading in to the house.

"I've got a shuttle to Arcturus in the morning," Kaidan said quietly once they were settled in the kitchen. James nodded, keeping his face impassive. "I'll be up there for a couple of days at least, to file reports and wrap this up. But..." Kaidan drew a deep breath, looking down at his hands. "I've got some leave saved up. Quite a bit, in fact. You weren't wrong that this job has got me in my superior's good graces. I shouldn't have any problem requesting some time off after this is all wrapped up." He glanced up. "If you wouldn't mind a visitor for a while, that is?"

"As it so happens, I've got a bit of time off saved up myself, Blue," James said, allowing the grin he was feeling to slip free. "Hell, we don't even have to stay here, if there's some vacation spot you wanna go visit."

"I don't know, Vega, I, uh, I kind of like it here."

"Yeah. Guess I do too." He nodded and finished off his beer. He held out a hand across the counter and Kaidan took it, lacing their fingers together with a soft smile. James grinned at him. "So. A vacation together, huh? No mercenaries trying to kill us, no hiding out. Just...time off. It's almost like we're a real couple, Blue."

"There's no almost about it, Vega," Kaidan said, giving James a heated look. "Not for me, anyway." The unasked question was heavy in the air.

"Not so much for me either," James breathed, clenching his fingers tightly around Kaidan's.

"Now that we've got that settled," Kaidan said, straightening and setting his bottle down on the counter, "can I just say how unbelievably hot it is to see you working with your hands like that?" He gestured behind James, to where the backyard and the shed were. His voice had gone husky again.

"Sure you can," James answered with a cocky laugh. "You can tell me that as often as you want."

"I think I'd rather show you," Kaidan said, stepping around the counter and closer to James.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

Kaidan closed the distance between them, pushing James against the wall and capturing his mouth in a kiss. James settled his hands on Kaidan's ass, pulling the other man close to him, groaning at the feel of Kaidan's erection pressing into him, discernible even through their pants. Kaidan slid his fingers up under the edge of James' shirt, dragging them up his chest, tracing the lines where he knew James' tattoos were. James arched into his touch, lifting his arms eagerly when Kaidan tugged to pull the shirt off of him.

"So fucking hot," Kaidan whispered in his ear, before moving his mouth to map the lines of James' muscles and ink with his tongue, sucking briefly and biting down on each nipple as he reached it, slowly sinking down to his knees, mouthing James' stomach as he pulled open the fly of James' jeans, sliding them down to his ankles, along with his underwear.

James stared down at him, eyes blown wide with desire, and Kaidan shot him a wicked smirk. He darted his tongue out to the tip of James' cock, and James sucked in a sharp breath. Hands braced on James' thighs, Kaidan leaned in and swallowed James down as far as he could in one smooth motion. James gave a cry of mixed surprise and pleasure. He let his head fall back as Kaidan pulled slowly off of his cock before sucking him back down again. Kaidan kept at it and James rode out the sensations. His muscles started to tighten, his orgasm closing in. A sharp tug at his balls drew a gasp from him and he looked down as Kaidan sat back, finally releasing James' cock. James whimpered.

Kaidan was still fully clothed, he realized. How the fuck was that fair?

He watched Kaidan stand and tried to reach for the other man's belt. Kaidan batted his hands away with a grin, leaning in to whisper in James' ear again.

"Wanna fuck you, James." Another whimper. Kaidan chuckled. "Do you want that too?"

"Oh, hell yes!" James moaned. "Please, mi amor."

"Hmmm." Kaidan hummed a pleased little sound and bit down gently on James' earlobe. "Since you asked so nicely. Where should we do this?"

"No lube in here," James whispered, making a mental note to start keeping a bottle in every room in the damn house. Just in case.

"Bedroom it is, then," Kaidan laughed. He kissed James and then sauntered out of the room.

James hastily kicked off his shoes, his pants and underwear quickly following, then hurried after Kaidan. Kaidan was waiting by the bedroom door and he closed it after James entered, pointing James to the bed. He hurriedly complied. Kaidan picked up the bottle of lube from the bedside table and tossed it to James, who began preparing himself while Kaidan slowly undressed. He wasn't so much putting on a show as he was taking his time watching James finger himself.

But soon enough Kaidan was as naked as James and the patience of both men seemed to give out at the same time. Kaidan climbed on the bed and picked up the lube, pouring some into his hands before tossing the bottle aside. He coated his cock and then crawled forward, pushing back James' thighs so that the backs of his knees were hooked over Kaidan's shoulders. He raised an eyebrow at James in question and James nodded eagerly.

With that, Kaidan lined himself up and slammed home inside of James. Both men cried out at the sudden sensations, but Kaidan did not stop to savor it. He pounded into James, wrapping a hand around his cock and stroking in time with his thrusts. James gave a strangled shout, calling out something half in Spanish, half in pure gibberish, and his cock pulsed, semen shooting out in long, ropy spurts. James' body clenching around his cock spurred Kaidan on and he lasted only a few more thrusts before he came as well. He slid out of James and let his legs fall to the bed. James stared up at him, both of them breathing heavily for several long moments.

"Damn, Blue." James whispered in a hitching breath. "You must really love taking down the bad guys." The corners of his mouth started to twitch up in a smirk, but they didn't get very far. He blinked slowly as a wave of exhaustion swept over him.

"Guess I do," Kaidan smiled and reached down to cup James' cheek, leaning in for a quick kiss.

James thought Kaidan looked like he wanted to say something else when he pulled back, but he remained silent. Kaidan kissed him again and murmured that he would be right back, sliding off the bed and making his way to the door. James lay on the bed, sated and dazed, finally relaxed after a long day of worry. Kaidan had come back to him, just like he promised. He was grinning widely when Kaidan slipped back in the room, bearing a warm wet washcloth. He gently cleaned James up and then tugged at the covers, pulling them over James and then crawling underneath them, pulling James into his arms. James barely heard Kaidan's whispered "good night" before he was fast asleep.

They woke early the next morning, sharing a shower and breakfast before heading out, Kaidan for his shuttle to Arcturus Station and James for work. Kaidan promised to keep James updated on when he would be done with the operation and able to come back down to Benning for his leave. It wasn't enough to keep James from hating the goodbye, but it did make the parting slightly easier.

He made it through the next few days of work in something of a haze. Valarie kept shooting him strange speculative looks, and occasionally he would catch her grinning and shaking her head before looking away. Okay, so, yeah, maybe he was checking his omnitool a little (a lot) more than was normal, hoping for an update from Kaidan. And maybe he was grinning like an idiot and whistling while he loaded up furniture. But that wasn't a big deal, right? At least she never commented out loud on what she was thinking, and when he asked for a week or two off, she just grinned and pinched his cheek, telling him they'd manage without him for a few weeks.

A week after leaving for Arcturus Station, Kaidan showed up on Joughin again. He was already at the house when James came home from work, making an utter mess of the kitchen attempting to cook something that looked downright frightening but actually smelled not too bad. He manage to mutter a promise to clean up the mess before James crushed him in a hug, silencing him with a happy kiss.

They ended up just ordering take-out after the dinner burned. James helped Kaidan clean up the mess though, arguing that he had contributed enough by distracting Kaidan and dragging him off to the bedroom the second he saw he was back. They were still laughing about it three days later. Coincidentally, three days was about how long it took for the stench of burnt...something (James had never quite figured out what Kaidan had been making) to clear out of the house.

For the first week, they barely left the house. James had, quite wisely it turned out, stocked up on groceries again after Kaidan left for Arcturus, so they were set for food at least. It was a little reminiscent of that first month they had spent together, locked up in the apartment on Omega. Although things were much easier between them now than they ever had been then. If the time apart had done anything, it had convinced James that he didn't want to be with anyone else but Kaidan, and it seemed Kaidan had come to a similar realization.

The second week, after they had christened every room in the house and had sex in every way they could possibly imagine, they decided to try venturing outside a bit. Not for sex, although James was surprised when Kaidan didn't seem too opposed to the idea, filing it away for future reference. James took Kaidan to all of his favorite places in Joughin, and even to a few outside of the city.

When the third week started, James had to return to work, but Kaidan was still on leave, so their life settled into something of a domestic routine. James had never been happier in his life. But as three weeks turned into a month, a weight began to grow in the pit of his stomach. Every day that passed was bringing them that much closer to the day Kaidan would have to leave again. He tried not to let it sour their time together, but the not knowing was starting to get to him. Kaidan had been remarkably silent on the subject. Eventually James decided to just dive in and bring it up.

"Can I ask you something Blue?"

"Shoot," Kaidan answered easily.

They were sitting on the deck behind the house, drinking beer and just enjoying the sunset and each other's company. Felix was jumping back and forth between their laps, trying to maximize his petting time.

"You have any idea how much longer your leave's gonna last?"

He took a careful sip from his bottle. Kaidan glanced at him with a guarded expression.

"I guess you're getting itchy to get back to life as usual, huh?" Kaidan said lightly. James didn't miss the creases around his eyes that belied the tone, however.

"Shit no," James whispered, gratified when Kaidan's tensed shoulders relaxed. "I just." He shrugged. "I know I'm going to have to, at some point. I was kind of just wondering when. Thought if I had a day marked on the calendar I'd have a better shot of getting myself used to the idea."

Kaidan sighed and sat down his beer on the table, turning in his chair so that he was facing James. James sat up and did the same. Kaidan reached out, taking one of James' hands in both of his, lightly stroking it with his thumbs.

"Been thinking about that, myself, actually." He glanced up, catching James' eyes with his own. "I love you, James. You know that, right? I know I haven't said it, but..."

James swallowed and nodded. A smile flashed across his face and he placed his free hand over Kaidan's, giving them a quick squeeze.

"Love you, too," he whispered.

"Enough to want me to stick around?" He sounded...hopeful. The weight in James' stomach seemed to lighten. "For good, I mean?"

"Dios, Kaidan, you know I do."

"So that's that, then." Kaidan smiled. James blinked.

"What's what?"

"I'm staying."

"But..." James' emotions roiled. Joy, love, elation. Fear, apprehension, confusion. "Pretty sure the Alliance has its claim on you, Blue," he whispered. Kaidan cocked an eyebrow.

"Not if I resign."

"Shit, Kaidan, I don't want you to quit your job for me!"

"Not for you, James, for us." He stood, tugging James up with him, and pulled the younger man into an embrace.

"But you love your job, you love being Alliance." James winced at how week his protest was.

Who was he kidding? Nothing would please him more than to have Kaidan here with him forever. He certainly wasn't fooling himself. Wasn't fooling Kaidan either, by the look of it.

"I like the part of my job that is bringing bad guys to justice, the part that's protecting others. There are lots of jobs where I can do that though." Kaidan shrugged. "I'm a highly trained biotic. There are plenty of places I can find work that doesn't involve keeping secrets all the time, never being allowed to get close to anyone, never being able to put down roots. Even here on Benning." He smiled. "If you're okay with me staying, that is."

"I'm more than okay with it," James said, brushing his lips against Kaidan's. "To have you here for good, mi amor, you don't know what that would mean to me."

"I have an inkling."

"Heh. Okay. Maybe." James leaned against Kaidan, soaking up his warmth.

"It will take a little bit of time for the paperwork to go through," Kaidan said after moment. "But I've got enough leave saved up that I'll be amazed if it runs out before that happens."

"So that's that, then?" James asked, smiling widely.

"That's that." Kaidan agreed.

He leaned up and captured James' lips in another kiss, this one slow and full of promise. As the sun finally slipped below the horizon, they stood there together, wrapped up in each other's arms. There wasn't anywhere either of them would rather have been.

End