Disclaimer: Still don't own Star Trek, much to my disappointment.

A/N: This is a semi-sequel to "Inhibitions." By 'semi,' I mean that even if you haven't read that one, you should have no trouble keeping up with this story. All you need to know is that in this 'verse, Spock and Uhura got together thanks to the disinhibiting effects of a plant back when Uhura was a student. I may refer back to that on occasion, but not to the point where you will feel lost.

This will have a different tone than Inhibitions, I think, and all of the Enterprise crew will be featured (Including Gaila, whom I saved in Inhibitions).

Let me know if you like it so far!

Chapter 1: Secrets

A cool breeze off the Bay slapped lightly at Uhura's skin as soon as she stepped out of the Academy's shuttle hangar. It lifted her long ponytail from her shoulder and whipped loose strands of hair around her face.

She paused, facing the body of water glittering in the distance, and breathed in the familiar, salty scent of the sea.

"Earth. It's been too long," she murmured, closing her eyes, a small smile curving her lips.

"Seven months and three days," said a voice behind her.

Nyota turned to face her superior officer - and lover - as he followed her out of the hangar. He carried a Starfleet-issue duffel bag under each arm.

"Isn't it good to be planetside again, Spock?" she asked, her smile widening. "It's been months since I've been off the ship."

"You opted to forsake our other four shore-leaves," Spock reminded her. "I did not ask you to do that."

"You refused to leave the ship because you didn't think anyone else was responsible enough to run it with most of the bridge crew on leave," Nyota shrugged. "I didn't see any point in going if you wouldn't be there with me. I'm surprised I even managed to convince you to come this time."

"You were persistent in your pleas," Spock said, with a touch of bitterness.

"Oh, come on, Spock, it won't be that bad," Nyota said, reaching over to take her duffel from him. "Are we going to your quarters?" she asked as she heaved the strap over her shoulder.

Spock nodded, and they set off through the crowd of chattering Enterprise crewmen and across the grassy quad. They walked past the main school buildings and cadet dorms, under a line of trees along the brick path, nearing the graduate quarters with every step.

"Look, Spock," Nyota whispered with a mischievous smile as they passed a large glass structure. "The greenhouse. Should we go in for a look? Maybe we'll run across a certain plant..."

"I would prefer not," Spock said sternly. "We are supposed to meet with the captain and Dr. McCoy for dinner tonight."

"Besides," she said with a grin, "we don't need a plant to have... fun... do we, Commander?"

The corners of his mouth lifted as he looked straight ahead and refused to meet her knowing gaze.

"No, Lieutenant, we do not," he replied as they reached his building.

"I guess you'll have to prove it to me when we get to your quarters," she said teasingly. "Let's start off our shore-leave with a... bang... shall we?"

Spock's eyebrow slowly rose as he opened the door for her. "We shall," he promised.

XXXXX

"Let's go to the beach," Nyota suggested.

She was sprawled out on Spock's bed, staring up at the ceiling. Nothing hid her nakedness except the thin white sheet twisted around her body. Spock, wearing only a pair of loose cloth pants, moved around his quarters to put his belongings in their proper places. They had been on Earth for nearly two hours already, but certain... distractions... had kept him from unpacking.

Those "distractions" being, of course, a certain human female undressing him as soon as the front door slid closed behind them and the following two hours spent tangled up in the sheets of his bed.

"I have no desire to go to the beach," Spock said automatically as he set up his sonic shaver in the bathroom.

Nyota rolled over onto her stomach and propped her chin on one hand as she watched him.

"Then let's go sightseeing," she said. "We have to do something, Spock. That's what shore-leave is all about: relaxing, getting out and about to see things we don't normally get to see... we can't just stay here for the next two weeks! What's the fun in that?"

Spock raised an eyebrow at her as he left the bathroom to store his empty duffel in the closet. A grin slowly spread on her face.

"Well, okay. That would be fun, too. But as much as I know we would enjoy staying in, I want us to go do something together."

"We are dining out with the captain tonight. Together," Spock pointed out.

"Yes, but I want us to go out together, just the two of us."

Spock suppressed a sigh. "Nyota, I would prefer to stay here. We rarely spend time together on the Enterprise, due to our conflicting schedules. I had thought you would want to use this time for us to be... alone."

"Oooh, I see," Nyota said slowly, rising up on her knees to wrap her arms around his neck. Her nude body pressed against him deliciously as she kissed him lightly. "You want to spend this shore-leave naked," she whispered against his lips, her fingernails scratching lightly against his skin as her fingers threaded their way through the black hair on his chest before snaking down, down, down... to the waistband of his pants.

"Precisely," he said, his voice a low growl as he gripped her by the buttocks and lifted her from the bed. Nyota gave a shout of laughter that was stifled by his mouth as he kissed her deeply and laid her down on the bed.

XXXXX

The first several days of shore-leave were spent entirely in Spock's quarters. They played chess, watched holo-vids, and cuddled up on the sofa to read journals together, leaving only for meals. Wearing clothing became a rare thing - to avoid wasting time taking them off, since they frequently took breaks that required nudity, anyway - and they pursued all of these activities (excluding going out for meals) entirely naked.

Nyota had never before been able to savor her time with Spock. Their duties on the Enterprise prevented them from sharing more than the occasional meal, or the rare night when neither of them had to report to the bridge. Having him all to herself for two weeks was bliss, and as she became used to him holding her every night - to spending every second of every day with him - she wondered how she would ever be able to give this up when they returned to the Enterprise.

But then there came one morning, eight days after the start of leave, when Uhura woke to find herself alone.

Sitting up with a frown, she listened to the silence of Spock's quarters. When she did not hear so much as a rustle of movement from the living room, she threw aside the bedcovers and padded quietly out of the bedroom.

Her suspicions were confirmed: Spock was nowhere to be seen. Puzzled, Nyota returned to the bedroom and went to the window, which afforded a view of the campus grounds.

It was so early that the sun was just starting to rise, the sky still a deep blue but slowly lightening to steel-gray as streaks of orange and pink shot out of the east. Leaning close to the window, she strained her eyes to see across the shadowy quad; in the distance, she spotted a dark figure making its way toward the main Starfleet building, which housed the offices of Starfleet's most important officers. Even from this far away, she recognized the familiar, brisk stride of her Vulcan lover.

Where's he going so early? she wondered, a crease forming in between her brows as her frown deepened. Why would he leave without telling her?

Returning to bed, Uhura crawled back underneath the covers and waited. By the time she heard the front door open, the sun had fully risen and bright shafts of light were falling across the room.

She watched Spock enter the bedroom through half-closed eyes, pretending to be asleep as he pulled off his black pants and gray button-down shirt. He joined her, entirely naked, and gently pulled her against him, nestling her head in the space between his neck and shoulder as if he had never even left.

"Where did you go?" she asked quietly.

Spock froze. Several seconds passed before he responded.

"I had to go somewhere," he replied softly, stroking her cheek with his fingertips. "Go back to sleep, Nyota."

Uhura pulled away and sat up to look at him with a furrowed brow. "Why are you evading my question?"

Spock sat up also. "I cannot tell you," he said calmly.

Confused, she searched his face, but it was a carefully blank mask.

"Why not?" she asked.

"That is confidential information," Spock replied firmly. "Do not inquire further."

"Confidential...?" Nyota's voice trailed away. Then, in a strangely flat tone, she said, "So it's Starfleet business. You're working during shore-leave."

"As first officer of the Enterprise, my work never ends, whether I am on leave or not," Spock replied as she drew further away, folding her knees against her chest and hugging them tightly. "I had hoped to avoid this conversation with you."

"Which is why you sneaked out," she said. "To go to an appointment, I assume?"

Spock did not reply. He was no longer looking at her, his gaze trained instead on the window.

"The question is," Nyota said slowly, "what sort of meeting would you have to wear civilian clothes and sneak around to go to? Why is it a secret?" She waited, but again he said nothing. "Must be something quite important if you can't tell your Communications officer..."

"Nyota, you will not pry details from me, as I know you are attempting to do," Spock said, looking back at her. "You should not even know as much as you do."

"What? That a meeting took place?" Nyota scoffed. "That hardly tells me anything, Spock."

Uhura rolled out of bed and reached for the dark-blue silk robe that hung on the back of the closet door. "I thought you came on shore-leave to spend time with me, not to work," she said over her shoulder as she tied the robe closed. "But you didn't, did you? This meeting, or whatever you were sneaking to, is the only reason you're planetside."

Spock said nothing, and when she turned around and met his eyes, she saw a flicker of guilt cross his face before he quickly looked away.

Her lips parted in surprise. "That is why, isn't it?" she asked incredulously. "You didn't come on shore-leave for me at all, did you?"

"That is not true," Spock said, looking back up at her. "I came to spend time with you, also."

"'Also'," Nyota repeated, shaking her head in disgust as she turned to head to the bathroom. "Fine, Spock. I get it. I'm not going to pry. I'm in Starfleet too, remember? As Communications officer, I know all about classified matters. I'd just appreciate it if you'd let me know next time that I'm just a damned cover for whatever secret meeting you're going to."

"Nyota - "Spock began, but she cut him off.

"Don't worry, I'll pretend I didn't see you sneak out. Consider it forgotten, and whatever confidential mission you're working on safe," she said, and then the bathroom door closed behind her.