"Ow, Garrus, stop squirming!"

"I'm not, Shepard. You're the one elbowing me in the ribs."

The Commander rolled her eyes and tried to pull her arm free from between the wall and her back. The mission had been simple: pick up the cargo. It had been complicated, however, by the presence of both Talon and Eclipse forces, and strict orders from Aria to stay off the radar. And so, cargo acquired, it had been at the sudden appearance of each gang's patrols that they'd ducked into the nearest hiding place with their loot. Unfortunately, the maintenance closet was lacking in space for even one person to stand comfortably. A stack of crates dug painfully into the side of her thigh, and her back ached where she was bent and twisted to accommodate her turian companion; Garrus's neck was tucked awkwardly, and he had one arm braced against the wall to keep his balance.

"Do you have to keep… flexing?" he huffed as her hip pressed against his codpiece insistently, his shin braced against the crates.

"I can't feel my toes, you ass. Now shut up or they'll hear us." Shepard tried to crane her neck to hear, but hit her head on Garrus's cowl and grimaced. "Mother f—"

"Sh." The turian tried to ignore the cramps in his calves, and the fact that they couldn't move an inch without hitting each other. Frankly, he was glad it was Shepard and not, say, Grunt. Or Miranda. He knew he could count on Shepard.

He also knew that Shepard didn't do well with being still. She huffed out a breath and tried to free her arm again without success, attempting to use the other against the wall as leverage. All it did was shift her more firmly between his knees.

"Spirits, Shepard, stop moving," he growled, pressing her more firmly against the crate with his free hand. It was dozens of yards away, but he could faintly make out the sound of boots. They were slow, meandering. This was going to take a while. "They're coming."

The Commander shot him a dark look, but kept her mouth shut. She wanted to be on their way back to the ship, not standing doing nothing in a closet. But at least it was Garrus and not Jacob. Or Mordin. Garrus was a professional, and her friend through everything. And excluding the odd tension in their more recent conversations, the easiest person for her to work with. Just not right that second.

"Then stop crushing me." She could feel a sweat beginning to bead on the back of her neck and her brow as the small space grew warm. Damn turians always ran so hot… Shepard felt his rumble of warning rather than heard it and she scowled at him. But again, she fell silent, staring at the dingy, dimly lit wall in front of her face.

In the silence, she was very aware of the suggestive mess they'd gotten themselves into. She took a long breath, and then turned pink when their armor clacked together. She could make out the faint bootfalls now, and sighed. It would be a while.

He saw her heartrate begin to rise on his visor, and became aware of the feeling of heat seeping through his plates. The closet was sweltering, even by his standards. He scrubbed a gloved hand over his face and listened out into the hallway again. Eclipse, probably; they didn't sound heavily armored. The Talons wouldn't be far behind. They could wait it out…

Shepard tried to flip an errant lock of hair out of her face, but gave up when it stuck to her forehead. Her hair was already damp; she was sure he'd just have to deal with it. Garrus, to his credit, smelled like thunderstorms and woodfires, and the Commander had to admit, it was nice. Alluring, almost. The off-handed comments had been good-natured at first, but there was more to it. Something a bit more… carnal. His mandibles twitched distractedly, and she caught herself staring.

Garrus held his breath as the mercenaries passed their hiding place, not daring to move, even as his shoulders began to throb. Spirits, this was torture. She smelled of musk and rain, and he forced himself to keep his eyes above her head. He didn't know what to make of recent developments; did she know they were flirting, or was this another time where humans were woefully unobservant? He knew he wasn't subtle, and he hadn't even considered what to do about biology, but he had considered that Shepard was worth more than blowing off steam. But she didn't seem to notice, or at least she didn't act like it. The sooner they got out of the closet, the better, and the footsteps were getting further away.

"Come on, we should go before—"

"The Talon enforcers will be here soon, our headstart wasn't great. We need to wait for them to give up, and then quietly go back to the ship." He tried to stretch his neck, mindful of his fringe and the ceiling. "Be patient."

Shepard grimaced. "Fine, but back up so I can sit like a normal person," she hissed, licking a drop of sweat from her lip. If she could move, then maybe it would be less… arousing. She kept telling herself it was just hot in the closet.

"Fine." He shifted back as far as he could—a whole 3 inches—and tried to giver her space. But she didn't try to stand, instead turning and sitting atop the crates, her back against the wall. His balance, less than stellar in the small space, failed him and he had to brace himself against the wall beside her head. She turned pink all the way down to the top of her armor, and his mandibles pulled tight to his face when his greaves bumped against the insides of her thighs.

Well, at least she could see his face. In the uneven light, it looked even more predatory.

He wasn't sure that this was better. But he also wasn't sure he wanted to tell her so. Instead, he didn't move, didn't even breathe.

The footsteps that soon echoed up the hallway were urgent, and the two thugs argued as they approached.

"The transport landed in this district, they couldn't have gotten far."

"They wouldn't have gotten that far if you hadn't let the woman get the drop on you!"

They slowed down and Garrus felt his heart sink. Of course they were going to look around…

"Well you didn't see the turian coming either!"

Shepard rolled her eyes and slouched a little further down on the crate; their faces were inches apart. And now they would have to wait. Garrus tried to move back and his armor echoed against the wall. Shepard grabbed his arm and pulled him back forward without thinking. Until he was snugly pressed between her legs, towering over her.

Oh. Damn.

Something in the air changed, and there was a tangible crackle of tension as both breathed carefully through their noses, unwilling to move, or acknowledge the shift in atmosphere.

He wanted to taste the sweat sliding down her neck.

She wanted to trace the panes of his face and explore the uncharted territory that was the turian form.

Her breath was cool across his cowl, teasing his neck with a come-hither purr.

He radiated heat and power, raising a flush on her skin, even under her armor.

"Where did they even come from?"

"Hell if I know. Wonder who hired them…"

Their footsteps stopped near the door and Shepard and Garrus's eyes both went wide. This kept getting worse.

"Do we know what they took?"

Shepard glanced toward the door, licking her suddenly dry lips. They didn't even know; the Illusive Man had been intentionally uninformative. They had only been told it was of the "utmost importance for their mission" and it was an "urgent matter of opportunity". Shepard, of course, didn't trust him.

"Shipment from Calcigen Chemical. Derius thinks it's the Raxophyl."

"Shit…"

Garrus tried to lean more towards the voices, and his fringe made painful contact with the ceiling; Shepard saw the roar of pain rising and grabbed him without thinking, covering his mouth with hers before the sound could escape. His growl ran through her body, making her toes curl and her legs on either side of his hips tighten. Suddenly, he felt so big, so alluring… She felt another growl thrum between them and let out a shaky breath. So predatory…

When she kissed him, he was so stunned he didn't even have time to realize what was happening. But the electricity that shot through him, he couldn't miss. Her knees around his hips made his breathing stop and it took all his energy not to bend her backwards. The second growl that escaped him was much lower, deeper in his chest; it was automatic, an instinctive reaction.

The tiny breath she let out caressed his mandibles and he could almost taste the anticipation.

"Wait, did you hear that?"

Shepard inhaled sharply through her nose and he felt his carapace get tight.

"Hear what?"

"That… that noise, like an engine."

Garrus silently willed them to move on faster as his blood thrummed hotly through his veins, threatening to overwhelm his common sense. Instinct said to keep going, she wanted this, and he craved it. Common sense said to play it cool, stop and get out of this mess.

But she sat in front of him, smelling like sin, and all but shaking with anticipation.

She wanted to kiss him again, to taste and see if it was as good as the smell, the musky smell of sweat, gunpowder, and Garrus. And the thugs stood outside, so close to finding them.

"I don't hear it."

Garrus's mandibles fluttered nervously, not looking away from her face, and Shepard tried to imagine how they'd get out of this.

"Just… just wait a second."

Shepard didn't have an overabundance of patience, and without warning, she grabbed him by the back of his cowl and pulled him down, sneaking her fingers into his fringe as she kissed him again. She didn't care if the Talons were outside, she wanted this. She'd waited long enough.

When her fingers reached his fringe, he had to tamp down his automatic reaction to growl and instead grabbed her waist with the hand not supporting his weight. When her tongue snuck past his mouthplates, his higher brain function froze, and he wondered what humans weren't considered as… sensual as asari.

He tasted like heat and danger, and the prick of his teeth against her lips only excited her, and when he grabbed her, she arched her back so they were closer. Their armor clacked together again, but they didn't pull apart.

The danger just outside the door made her heart race and the challenge to stay silent made the situation all the more… forbidden.

"You're hearing things. Come on, we should keep looking."

Bootfalls wandered away as the two soldiers stayed wrapped up in each other, tasting and exploring, until minutes had passed. Shepard was panting lightly, and there was a curious, hungry purr coming from Garrus.

"So—" she started breathlessly, but that's as far as she got before Garrus kissed her again, effortlessly lifting her off the crate and onto his hips.

"Shut up, Shepard," he growled, one hand tangling in her hair as he nuzzled her neck. They were already late for their rendezvous. Cerberus could keep waiting. He couldn't.

She let out a wanting sigh, her arms around his cowl as she let her head fall back. She didn't want to stop him, she wanted Garrus. She had wanted Garrus for… years, technically. And she was going to have him, if his fascination with exploring her was any indication. She locked her ankles around him and his hand strayed up her back to pull her closer as he nipped at the skin exposed just above her undersuit.

"We shouldn't." It was his voice of reason that made him say it, but he didn't pull away from her, eyes meeting hers. Hunger and lust swam in the depths of green, and he was sure she saw the same in his.

"I don't care," she moaned, ducking her head down to taste the velvety skin of his throat; she savored the saltiness on her tongue and worked her way back to his face.

Well then, neither did he. Her form was alien, yet she seemed to appreciate what he did. When he tugged her hair gently, she bared her neck and almost purred. When he pressed against her insistently, she arched against him, rolling her hips. His armor was suddenly too confining. But their biology…

Shepard unwrapped her legs from him and dropped to the floor again, but didn't move away. Instead, her hands began to wander over his armor, finding all the little gaps and spaces she trailed down, down, down…

Garrus let out a groan when she unlatched his codpiece and set it behind her. Already, his erection had emerged from his plates and strained against her undersuit, and she cupped the bulge almost reverently.

"Allergies."

"Cybernetics. You?"

He pushed her so she was almost bent backwards and made short work of her own armor. "None."

It felt hot and dirty to be pawing at each other in a closet, and Shepard kissed him hungrily again. "Garrus…" His name was a needy sigh as the heat between her legs became unbearable.

Spirits, he hadn't expected this as the outcome of their mission, but she was pressed against him, grinding against his armored thigh with an animal need. It was the small room. It was the heat. It was the adrenaline, the danger. He pulled off one of his gloves with his teeth and cut through the crotch of her undersuit with a bare talon. When he smelled her hot arousal, he wondered how he had stayed away so long.

When the air of the closet hit her exposed center Shepard licked her lips, hungrily watching as he unsnapped his undersuit and pulled out his now-quivering erection. She'd never seen anything like it, and when he caught her staring as he stroked himself with intentional slowness, she couldn't suppress her desperate groan.

He was on her in a second, hoisting her up and all but slamming her against the wall, and she hitched her legs up around his waist. His teeth grazed her neck and she squirmed, his hard cock pressed against her. But oh, she wanted him somewhere else…

He made a sound in her ear that she had never heard from him—or anyone—before, and it thrummed all the way through her, making her tremble. And then he was inside, and she bit down on her lip to stifle her ecstatic moan.

She held him like a vice, and he rocked gently, watching the last inch of him finally slip inside as she stretched to accommodate him. And she felt divine, squeezing and arching against him. He hooked her calf over his arm, his other hand cupped around the still-armored curve of her rear and drove into her with a low growl.

The new angle made her cry out, and she clung to him by his shoulders as his hips pumped back and forth. She hadn't known what to expect—her new fantasies had tended to be rough and unforgiving—but it didn't live up to the raw power and force as he surged into her over and over. Her body was on fire, and he filled every inch and then come; his growl had dropped to a heavy purr and he hoisted her up higher against the wall, tongue sneaking out to taste the rivulets of sweat dripping down her temple. His hips snapped faster against hers and she let her head fall back against the wall, meeting his thrusts with a buck of her hips.

"Yes, yes…" she panted, her toes curling in her boots, "Oh, Garrus, yes!"

He wanted to hear her say his name at every volume, in every tone. "Yes, what, Shepard?" he rumbled in her ear, stopping when he was sheathed fully inside her. She squirmed and whined, but he had her trapped, his cock pulsing hotly within her and making her writhe. "Yes what?"

"I want this, please," she begged, eyes seeking his desperately, and he felt her squeeze him, "I've wanted this for so long, please Garrus, just fuck me!"

He couldn't deny her when she looked at him like that, wanton and needy. When he began to move again, his pace was rough and punishing, and she let out a moan that would have put any of his old partners to shame. He'd never be able to have another but Shepard again.

"Garrus," she whined. She knew she was getting close as the coil in her stomach tightened, and he didn't seem interested in slowing down. It felt like running full sprint toward the edge of a cliff, and there was a thrill in knowing soon she would leap over the edge. She heard the distant trill of an omnitool, but ignored it.

Garrus was glad, at least this time, that she still wore her armor, or he was sure he would have left some marks. Then again, maybe he would like to see her with something he'd given her… Someday. His tempo grew erratic and he knew he wouldn't last much longer.

"Don't hold out on me, Shepard," he panted beside her cheek, and he felt her breathing stop. And like an earthquake it began with tiny tremors, and ended with the world cracked asunder. She came with a gasp, biting hard on her bottom lip as she shook, and he didn't stop, savoring the sweet torture of her fluttering muscles, trying to coax every drop out of him.

And he gave in. With a muffled roar, he finished pressed snugly between her thighs; he could hear his heartbeat like an ancient drum, and his knees suddenly felt weak. But for a moment neither moved, panting and pleased in the now sweltering closet.

Shepard patted his shoulder at last and he gently set her down, grimacing when his calf muscles reminded him of the awkward position he'd held. But Spirits, was it worth it. She leaned bonelessly against the crates for a second, a satisfied smirk on her lips as he fixed his armor.

"Wow."

Garrus let out a low chuckle, and offered her the pieces of her armor. "Yeah, wow." When she took the plates, he bumped his forehead against hers affectionately. "So… how long were you wanting that, exactly?"

She scoffed, snapping her armor back on before looking back up at him with a twinkle in her eye. "You were always cute in that C-Sec uniform."

His mandibles fluttered in surprise.

"Come on, big guy," she said with a laugh, scooping up the canister they'd stolen.

He shook himself and followed as she slipped back onto Omega's streets, scanning for any signs of their pursuers. Nothing appeared on his visor, and… He swallowed thickly as he trailed after the Commander back toward the docks; he would have to see just how much had been… documented once they were back on the ship. After a… long overdue conversation.