For mythomagic29, who wanted a jealous Kaidan
Kaidan hadn't missed the look Jacob gave Shepard. He hadn't missed how she had rushed to his side, or how easy their conversation seemed, despite the situation they were facing. He tried to ignore it, knowing Shepard would be angry that he was jealous. But he couldn't help his mind from wandering places, and wondering.
Had there been something between them? And if so, what? He knew he had no right, really, to be jealous if there had been something. After all, he was the one who had walked away.
It didn't change the fact that Kaidan hated the thought. And that, by virtue of his suspicion, he unreasonably disliked Jacob. Shepard noticed his uncharacteristically cool behavior, giving him a sharp look when he refuted Jacob's attempted kindness, but she was too focus to really say anything about it.
She also didn't respond to the slight moves Kaidan made, suggesting that they were more than just squadmates. She was always very single-minded on missions, and typically Kaidan would have never done anything like that, but he still couldn't help but wonder if some of the reason she wasn't responding was because Jacob was there.
It wasn't until the shuttle, after the had made it out of the facility, that she confronted him. "What's up, Kaidan?" she asked, finally coming to sit beside him after she had made sure the rest of the team was okay. "You've been acting weird all day."
Instead of responding, Kaidan put a hand behind Shepard's neck and pulled her in for a kiss. She didn't pull away, but she looked confused. "Okay. Seriously. What's wrong?"
He shrugged noncommittally, but his eyes flicked up toward Jacob, who was sitting a few feet away. Shepard noticed the look, and raised an eyebrow at him. "There's nothing between Jacob and I," she said cautiously, gaging his reaction.
"I was gone a long time, Shepard," he responded, offering her a chance to explain.
She sighed heavily. "You were. And Jacob was there. He's a good man, and a good friend. Maybe I talked to him a little too much, a little too unprofessionally. Maybe I let him get a little too close. I was lonely, Kaidan. Especially after you walked away. I just wanted someone to be there for me, and Jacob was. But nothing ever happened," she asserted firmly, grasping his hand and giving it a squeeze. "Once he made his intentions clear I told him the truth. That I was in love with someone else." She paused, her bright eyes trained on his. "It was always you, Kaidan," she breathed.
Kaidan caught her chin under his finger, drawing her face in close and kissing her softly. "I love you," he murmured. "I'm sorry. I was stupid to be jealous."
He felt a smile playing at her lips. "It was cute," she responded, keeping their faces close. "But be nice to Jacob, now. He's a good guy."
"You flatter me, Shepard," Jacob called with a grin, apparently not as out of hearing range as they had thought. "Now you two better go get a room, before I get jealous," he teased, and though both laughed, planning to take his advice when they returned to the Normandy.
