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James Sanders Vega never considered himself a man on a mission. There were aspects of his life that drove him and inspired him; he had a good nature about him that let him make some hard decisions, and he got results. He had a bar personally set that he wanted to meet and exceed, but that was James’ desire to be the best version of himself that he could be - and he was just using Shepard’s accomplishments as a framework.
He wondered if the Commander ever ended up in the lower levels of Illium, sitting in a bar that was half a layer of grime away from being ‘dingy’, waiting for a mysterious hookup from an app he'd suddenly found on his omni-tool. The beer was good, even if he'd never normally order a Mindoir copper. But that was part of the code for the hookup.
The conversation, if it could even be called that, had been shorter than his first name. James had provided ‘LawBringerSR2’ with his medical records that were mainly the injuries he'd gotten during the defence of Fehl Prime not long ago. She - and James was trusting what iPartner listed in her profile - gave precise instructions that he had followed, including his outfit and drink order.
There were sounds of high heels making their way to the bar, but James paid it no mind. You minded your own business in a place like this, or so he'd quickly learned.
“Perfection.”
The Asari bartender nodded and grabbed a bottle of strawberry liqueur off the back shelf, along with whisky, vodka, and grenadine. The bartender’s moments were fluid, mixing the drink in a highball before placing it on a cheap blue napkin. A manicured hand with a flashy string of diamonds around the wrist picked the drink up.
“A rare occurrence, even on Illium.”
Now James paid attention. The instructions were very clear on a precise set of phrases exchanged, including his own to order the beer. He sat up a little straighter and took in the woman with his peripheral vision. She was leaning forward on the bar, long slender fingers manicured in short pointy-tipped nails, that thin string of diamonds around her wrist sparkling in the light. Her left arm was bare, obscured only slightly by her long wavy black hair that had that sheen one saw with extranet stars in a high-value production.
Turning his head subtly - or so he hoped - James’ eyes caught her shimmering magenta dress, long and form-hugging. The daringly high leg slit showed off a foot perched on the metal bar meant for those sitting in the tall stools like he was - the foot was adorned in simple but elegant thin sandals that featured an impractically tall stiletto with a mild curve to it.
She turned to face him just as eyes roamed up past the ruched waistline - which he couldn’t tell if the dress was accenting her assets or if her assets were making the waistline pop - and he ended up taking in an eyeful of the v-cut cowled neckline that hugged her bust. With the strength of will known to few people, he pulled his eyes further up to meet her ice-blue eyes. They should have felt cold, or scrunched in anger, but instead they matched her expression of someone who was waiting for an answer to a question long forgotten.
Mierda, he cursed to himself. The countersign! What was it again?
All of his practice and rehearsing, looking suave in the mirror like some kind of playboy kingpin, all gone thanks to one in-depth look at his date. Or hookup. He took a sip of beer to buy himself a second, hoping he looked as suavely as he’d practiced.
“Rare, but not impossible.”
The woman facing him cracked the faintest of smiles at a corner of her mouth. “Let’s go somewhere a little quieter, Mister GrizzleBear58.”
There was no waiting for James to agree, or even acknowledge, much less look around the bar for somewhere else to sit. Playing it cool, he flashed his omni-tool to pay for her drink, snagged his beer, and calmly followed the mysterious woman and her appealing swaying hips. The entire situation was growing more bizarre to his mind. Getting a Diamond circle membership gifted to him for the exclusive iPartner group was certainly an expensive and time-consuming prank. Getting matched and a concise message from LawBringerSR2 had to be nothing but spam from the iPartner system to keep him motivated to continue his membership.
Being informed of very specific outfit requirements - which he was thankfully able to procure thanks to Illium being Illium - and given exacting instructions … well the man was continually braced in case some slagnet star jumped out and yelled some profanity about how it was all a prank that James had fallen hook, line, and sinker for.
And now?
Now he was sliding into a small booth across from her, gracefully keeping his drink from sloshing as he realized that his broad shoulders and lats barely fit in their little alcove. He tried not to think about what was plastered on the wall as the shoulder of his tux pressed against it. “Cheers,” he offered, tilting the rim of his glass towards her.
She tapped it with the bottom of hers, and took a sip. They sat quiet for a moment, not doing anything to resolve the question of this being a date or a hookup. He wracked his brain for a snippet to try and start a conversation with, but everything was too boring that wasn't related to his Fehl Prime posting, and the posting was too raw.
“You’re an impressive specimen,” she offered.
James tried to control his surprise. Most people he met commented on his burly physique, calling him a “Mako on Legs” or a “Walking Grizzly Tank”. But with the hindsight of his medical history fresh in their minds, surely she meant more than just his physique, or his looks.
“A time-honoured recipe, chica bella.” James flashed a smile.
He could see the rapid translation of his words in her mind, and the smile offered in return suggested a warning … to try harder.
“I’m gonna go out on a limb and say you know my name,” James said calmly. “Will I get the chance to know yours?”
“Depends,” she said, taking a sip of Perfection.
He could’ve asked ‘on what', but he decided to try a different tactic. “What stood out to you after I sent my records?”
“A few things, horribly specific and terribly boring if you aren't interested in quantum biology.” She placed her glass on the table and ran a finger along part of the rim. “But also your smile.”
James must have relaxed more visibly than he’d thought, because the woman across from him let out a laugh. “ Ay, mierda, ” he cursed softly.
“You must have thought I was going to devour you,” she joked, “and not in the good way.”
“To be honest, chica bella , I can take care of myself against a lot of people. But you, you’re something else. The way you carry yourself, it spells trouble for those smart enough to know, and dumb enough to find out.”
Her shoulders relaxed a bit. The compliment was truthful, though a bit outside his usual realm of how he complimented someone. Perhaps realising that he was not just dumb and brawns, she steered the conversation around some lighter topics, letting her guard down a bit as they both re-evaluated the potential of the evening. Their drinks disappeared, along with a second round - though James picked “a lighter crisper cerveza ” for a myriad of reasons.
They exchanged sips of each others drinks on the second round; James could tell that her choice of a Perfection could leave him in a lot of trouble, the flavour made it all too easy to crave more and forget there’s a strong shot of whisky and vodka under it all. “Strong, and delicious,” he commented, making sure to lock eyes with her brilliant blues.
“An easy pleaser, very crisp and tasty,” she described his beer. “Not without its own unique notes.”
“Can’t help but feel like that description isn’t just for the drink, chica bella ,” James smiled.
“You’re going to stick with that nickname no matter what, aren’t you,” she stated.
“Unless you want to tell me your name.” There was a pause, and for a split second James thought he’d pushed her too far too fast.
“Want to get out of here?”
-_-_-_-
Her pad could have passed for a nicely pre-decorated apartment, or a homey-feeling hotel room. James didn’t know which it truly was, but that didn’t really matter considering her lips were on his and had been since they’d hailed a skycab. His big hands roamed her dress, feeling the soft material, tracing around the criss-crossing straps that did nothing to cover her bare back, teasing at the neatly tied bow perfectly centred.
He felt his tie being pulled off and the buttons to his shirt all but wrenched open before her manicured nails came to a rest on his bare skin beneath. They didn’t stay still for long as his shirt came untucked, the cuffs to his sleeves falling open like he hadn’t spent 10 minutes on each several hours prior. But he took the undoing of his belt as a clear sign to reciprocate. While she was hurriedly, verging on frantically, urging James to shuck and discard the outfit she’d so carefully instructed him to wear, James took his time.
First, he let her pull a sleeve off his arm. He delicately pulled on one of the ends of the bow. Once he felt the knot give way, he allowed his other arm to be freed from his shirt. It joined his tie somewhere else in the room. Behind her back, the strings dangled loosely over her wonderful ass, and his hands glided up her bare back until they came to his shoulders. He brushed the straps over her shoulders until the dress threatened to fall off her.
She turned around, sauntering away, heels clicking on the floor, letting her swaying body tease the dress down her body until she stepped out of it, naked except for her heels. James followed suit, masterfully kicking his shoes off one at a time, confidently marching out of his pants without tripping over them or tearing them.
He wanted to admire the sight before him, this gorgeous and strong woman on the bed, propped up on her hands and knees, her ass sticking back towards him, legs crossed at the ankles. James knew there was no time for any preamble, no time to gently arouse one another and build things up.
She wanted it now.
He wanted it now.
Making sure he wasn’t going in dry, James lined up with her entrance and slowly buried himself inside her. She whimpered as his hips came to a rest against her asscheeks, arms shaking as she adjusted to accommodate his length. The second or two waiting felt like an eternity, but then James was pumping his shaft in and out of her wet pussy, working hard and fast. The room was filled with her pleasurable moans, his hips smacking against her ass, his groans and heavy breathing.
Her moaning shifted into stuttering breaths as her body shuddered. James allowed himself a thin smile, keeping his pace without giving her a moment to come down from the brink. If he’d had any reservations, they were swept away by her muffled “don’t stop!”
His hands gripped her hips a little harder, and she gave up trying to keep herself propped up on her arms. She collapsed on the bed, her face and tits resting on the sheets, which pushed her ass up against James. Her hands wildly and ineffectually gripping the sheets as he fucked her put him over the edge; he barely managed to pull out before ropes of cum were landing on her back, her ass, and even a bit in her shiny wavy hair.
James managed to roll himself onto the bed, lying flat and strewn out. Her legs slid out from underneath her as she similarly fully collapsed onto the bed. He gave up any pretense this being just a raw hookup, and pulled her in close.
“ Mierda , chica bella , you were amazing,” he said quietly.
“Miranda,” she said after a moment. “My name is Miranda.”
His heart thumped so loudly in his chest he thought it was someone at the door. “Miranda,” he echoed in a soft whisper. “ Mi bella Miranda.”