Curious Jealousy- a F!Shenko Fic

Chapter Fifty-Five: Shepards

Shepard sat at her desk, pouring over the data that Hackett was constantly sending over for her to review. She had a few sat to the side that she wanted to discuss with him, but, otherwise, she had no problem with everything else that she had seen. She figured that she would call up Hackett once they arrived at the Citadel and the crew went on a small leave while supplies were restocked.

With a sigh, she reached over for her cup of tea, only to find that she had been sitting there long enough for it to be cold. Rolling her head, she took a deep breath and pushed away from the data pads, stood up, and stretched, letting out a small moan of relief.

“Joker,” she said suddenly, activating the comm to the helm.

“I’m sorry, Commander, Jeff isn’t here- but can I help you?” EDI informed her.

“What’s our ETA to the Citadel?”

“We are still twelve hours out, Commander.”

After a small beat, she asked, “Where is Joker?”

“He, Major Alenko, Lieutenant Vega, and Garrus are playing poker in the lounge.”

“Who’s winning?”

“It would appear that Lieutenant Vega is currently winning, the Garrus and the Major both vying for second.”

“Thank you, EDI, that’ll be all.”

Feeling bored, Shepard decided to maybe join the boys in their little game.

“Are you even trying?” James chuckled, pulling in his latest winnings.

Joker frowned at the other man as he shuffled the deck- sure that James was cheating in some manner or another.

“Everyone up for another game?” James asked, neatly counting out his credits.

The other men all groaned, but nodded.

“Have room for another?” another, distinctly feminine voice asked from the doorway, causing all of the guys to jump a little. “And that explains why none of you are Special Forces,” she chuckled, making her way to the table.

James gestured to one of the empty chairs. “Just because you’re the Commander doesn’t mean anyone will take it easy on you, Lola,” he informed her.

With a perfectly blank expression, she nodded stoically as she sat between Joker and Kaidan. “Well, if it’s anything like practicing hand-to-hand with you, I should have absolutely no problem.”

Joker cackled as he began dealing the cards.

“Hey, you,” she murmured, turning her attention to Kaidan, only to notice him watching her intently. She smiled at him, wandering why it took him a beat too long for him to answer in kind with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Get your work done?” he asked- a small edge in his voice.

Frowning, she leaned closer to him and asked, “Care to explain what’s wrong?” so that only he could hear.

“Not really.”

Brushing off his irritation, she sat back straight and picked up her cards and began to play.

In less than an hour, she had completely cleaned out all three men. Throwing down his cards, James gave her an exasperated look.

“I don’t know how you do it, Commander, but you’re a complete badass at everything you do,” he informed her.

Joker snorted as he put the cards away. “You’ve never seen her dance, James, trust me- she sucks as that.”

“Well, if I’m going to keep playing, there’s only one way I can,” James informed them.