"Yeah, that's fine... Oh no, he won't mind, there's tons of people here already, two more won't be a big deal... Alright, I'll see you in a while." Sam hung up the phone, looking around at the people milling about her father's house.
Christmas day had always been a busy time in the Carter household, but over the last few years it had seemed to have gotten even more so. When Sam was a child, she had always wondered why her family never had a simple, quiet Christmas like her friends. Her mother had said that it was because her father was an important person, so many people wanted to visit him at Christmas, to wish him, and them, well. But that explanation didn't quite cut it for young Samantha Carter. As Sam grew older, and more mature, she came to realize that her father just enjoyed the attention, and she no longer begrudged him this loud boisterous party.
"Must be something *really* interesting over there for you to be watching that area so intently," Jack commented with his all-too-familiar teasing tone as he came up behind Sam. She turned to face him. He looked relaxed in his chinos and dress shirt, tie-less, which was not unexpected. She smiled.
"Just lost in thought, Colonel," she responded.
"Having that good a time, eh?" he queried, a smile appearing on his face. "And I thought I asked you to call me Jack," he commented, leaning up against the wall.
"I'm having my usual 'okay' time, and I did say I'd *try*," she replied, answering both his statements. Jack grinned even wider.
"So, you wanna ditch the party and go do something fun?" he asked, leaning towards her conspiratorially. Sam laughed aloud, capturing the attention of a few of the partygoers.
"I don't think Teal'c or Daniel would appreciate that," she answered, gaining a quizzical look from O'Neill.
"I hate to inform you, Sam, but neither of them are here. One isn't even on the planet," he finished, whispering the final part. She smiled sweetly at him.
"They're not here *yet*."
"What are they doing back?" Jack questioned, finally catching on.
"Daniel's dig fell through, literally, and Teal'c... well, he, um, 'imbibed' a bit too much and his wife sent him back." Sam barely hid a grin at the last of her explanation, then began to giggle at the expression on O'Neill's face.
"*Teal'c*! *Drunk*!?" Sam simply nodded, attempting to contain her laughter now that people were looking at her again. The only problem with her doing that was that her body began to shake, and this enhanced Jack's blossoming laughter. As more people stared at the two soldiers, they decided, without a word, to move elsewhere.
Sam brought Jack to her father's study, where they both finally let loose and laughed long and hard at the thought of the always serious Teal'c drunk.
"I wonder what someone with a Goa'uld would have to drink to get drunk?" Sam asked once her laughter subsided. She slid into one of the leather-bound chairs, careful to arrange her dress once she was seated.
Jack watched her, now almost mesmerized by her movements. He had noticed how well her dress fit her earlier, but something about what she was doing made him want to do nothing else but look at her. To watch the way she smoothed the velvety fabric over her well-developed body. The innocent smile she gave him as she looked up at him.
[God, O'Neill, get a grip! It's like you've never seen a woman before! And she's your friend...] he thought.
[And maybe more?] another part of him asked.
"Jack? You in there?" Sam wondered, speaking his name in a sing-songy voice to try and capture his attention. O'Neill snapped out of his self-induced reverie, giving her a textbook Jack O'Neill grin.
"Most of the time," he replied.
"You haven't heard a word I said since we came in here, have you?" Jack considered faking her out, but then thought twice about that.
"Not really, no," he answered sheepishly. A curious look crossed Sam's face as she briefly mulled over his answer.
"I was telling you about what Daniel had told me, about his own travels and Teal'c's. But maybe they'll tell it better," she said, now getting up from the chair, her dress falling perfectly into place. Sam noticed Jack more or less looking her up and down, so she went on impulse and walked right up to him, their bodies barely inches apart.
Jack felt his breath catch in his throat at her nearness. He got the smell of whatever scent she was wearing and found himself even more distracted by it. She leaned her head towards his ear, and Jack wondered what she was up to. Not that he was complaining.
"See something you like?" she breathed out, the words seeming to brush against his ear. He shivered slightly, but definitely not from lack of warmth. Jack's eyes wandered from her head down to her neck, 'landing' upon a familiar object.
"I see you're wearing the necklace," he commented, avoiding her question. Sam, having moved back slightly after asking her question, reached up her right hand to the necklace, a blush tinging her cheeks now at the reminder the piece of jewelry gave her. It seemed silly for her to get flushed because of an 'almost' kiss, considering how flirtatious they both were with each other, but something about the gift and the events of the previous evening changed things. Big time. And this still kind of scared her.
"Of course. It's a lovely gift," she said, attempting to sound level. Jack smiled at her matter-of-fact reply.
"I'm glad you like it." Before either of them said anything more, the door to the study opened, and they both turned to look at who was entering.
"And this is the study," Jake Carter explained to his guest. He stopped short when he saw his daughter and her friend, a smile spreading across his features.
"I'll leave you two alone," he told them, then turned around, gently ushering his curious guest out with him. Sam let out a groan once the door was shut, hiding her eyes behind her right hand.
"What?" O'Neill asked, seeming oblivious. Sam put her hand down, looking at him.
"My father already has 'ideas' about you and I, now I'm certain he's thinking they've been confirmed."
"'Ideas'... as in...?" Jack gestured with his hands, still not quite sure of what she was meaning.
"'As in' he thinks we're involved. Intimately," she stated.
"Ah." Jack paused, letting this sink in. "And this is a bad thing," he pronounced, almost questioningly. Sam couldn't believe what she was hearing. This man who, not even a year ago, was denying any probability of them being involved because of protocol, even in an alternate reality, was suddenly acting as if he had no problem with the idea. This thought made Sam feel more confused than she had been last night, and definitely annoyed that she was confused. She let out a frustrated sigh, then turned on her heel, leaving the room. Jack figured then that maybe he had pushed it too far and went after Sam in an attempt to appease and reassure her.
***
"Sam!" The sound of Jack calling out to Jake Carter's daughter caught the older man's attention from the other side of the foyer. He watched the two of them talking while he half-listened to the group of people surrounding him.
Jack reached out to stop Sam, gently taking her by the arm. She faced him, looking half-way between determined and uncertain. She allowed him to talk, never saying a word, listening carefully. His hand moved from its grasp on her arm to her shoulder. A reassuring gesture more than anything else, and one she did not shake off. From his viewpoint, Jake would even say it softened his daughter's stance. This thought made him smile, reassuring *him* that his daughter was in good hands.
He had been not entirely sure at first. Jake had heard about this O'Neill, 'a loose canon' was the usual description given. Even after their first brief meeting when they had come to D.C. to be awarded their medals, Jake had felt wary in regards to the younger man. He found O'Neill flip, and he could see his daughter felt an attachment to him. He feared though that Sam was possibly looking to 'heal' this man. She had always been that way with the men she met, or at least it seemed that way to her father. But over the last while, Jake had gotten to know what kind of person Jack O'Neill was, through direct and not-so-direct means. He found a man who was much more than was presented to him initially. A man who had a painful past, but one that he had dealt with and was moving on. A man who had strong, and good, moral and ethical beliefs, ones that matched Jake's. A man who respected and quite obviously cared for his daughter. In O'Neill's case, first impressions were something *not* to judge him on. And Jake, for once, was quite happy to be wrong.
He returned his attention to the group as someone asked him a question, finally leaving his daughter and her 'friend' the privacy they thought they already had.
***
Jack's left hand rubbed Sam's right shoulder. She felt any possible resolve to stay annoyed with him slowly melting away.
"Can you forgive me?" he asked, his face all penitent. Sam let out a tired sigh, then a tiny smile.
"Yeah, I can. But I guess I was overreacting a bit," she answered, running her left hand through her hair in a nervous gesture. Jack smiled.
"Nah, I just got too silly. Getting carried away with my own 'good press'." Sam gave him a questioning look. "You tellin' me your dad thinks enough of me to even consider me worthy of you is enough to give any man a swelled head." Carter tried not to smile at his response, but soon enough she found herself grinning.
"'Worthy of me'?" she repeated.
"Well yeah. Any father would be protective of his daughter, especially when it comes to other men. He wants to be sure that a man will respect his daughter, as well as love her." Sam felt her skin flush, and Jack readily noticed it. The fact that it was his words that made her react this way made him smile.
"You certainly seem to know a lot about this."
"Having practice as a dad for a while helped, but just knowing guys like me is enough for me to understand where your father would be coming from."
"You're not all that bad," Sam blurted out, gaining an even wider smile from O'Neill.
"Thanks." Neither of them said anything more for a few moments until Jack, upon looking above them after seeing something out of the corner of his eye, noticed something attached to the ceiling.
"You know what?" he asked as he looked back at Sam.
"I'm afraid I don't."
"We've been standing underneath mistletoe this whole time," he told her, pointing up to direct her attention to the plant. Sam glanced up to where he was pointing, then returned her gaze to him.
"My dad must have snuck one or two up in the house. He was always a romantic with my mom." Jack nodded in understanding.
"Mmhm." Sam watched Jack's expression. He seemed like he wanted to say something more, but he looked like he didn't want to push his luck.
"What is it?"
"Hm? Oh, I just, you know, there is that whole tradition attached to that little plant, and..." he trailed off, letting her try to fill in the rest. Sam quickly caught on to what he was getting at, although she wasn't sure if he was simply looking to have a friendly kiss or if he was hoping for something more serious. Even more serious than last night.
As Sam contemplated what he wanted, she felt the gentle pressure of lips on her right cheek. She turned her head to look at him, his face so close to hers still. In another moment of impulse, Sam leaned into Jack, bringing her lips to his, closing her eyes in a demonstration of trust. She felt his arms fully embrace her, one hand at the base of her back while the other gently rubbed across her back. Their lips moved in concert, exploring, enjoying. Sam felt somewhere between ecstasy and unsure. On the one hand, she hadn't felt this wonderful in a long while, especially not because of a man. And on the other hand, this was someone with whom she had only recently regained a certain measure of trust, and someone whom she still didn't know much about. She just wished she could know what was going through his mind right now.
--
Jack couldn't believe what was happening. One minute he was simply flirting with Sam, the next they were on their way to a full-fledged make-out session. Admittedly his impromptu kiss on the cheek seemed to be the catalyst, but *still*. The feelings he got from this kiss: passion, need, desire... and not just his own. Sam was a very active participant in this kiss. She seemed to even be deepening it, but Jack also felt something else from her, almost like she wasn't entirely convinced that this should be happening. It was because of this that Jack ended the embrace and pulled away slightly, albeit reluctantly.
Sam gazed at him, confused and wondering. Jack brought his left hand up to the side of her face, tucking a stray hair behind her ear, then resting his hand at the nape of her neck, caressing it.
"Maybe we should slow it down," Jack commented in response to the expression on her face. Sam nodded, but she glanced away, still looking a little confused. Jack wanted to be able to say or do something to get rid of that confusion, but he felt that it was something that Sam had to figure this out on her own.
"You okay?" he asked, trying to get her to look at him again.
"Sure," she finally said, but she still didn't look at him.
The front doorbell rang, ending any more possible discussion as Sam disentangled herself from their embrace and went to answer it. Jack stood there for a moment, then followed her once he heard Daniel and Teal'c's voices. O'Neill put on his best 'everything's as it should be' face as he approached his friends.
"Jack! Merry Christmas!" Daniel exclaimed upon seeing the colonel. The archaeologist took the soldier's right hand, shaking it in greeting. Jack couldn't help smiling at the younger man's enthusiasm.
"Same to you, Daniel. Teal'c! How're you feeling?"
"I am as well as can be expected," the ever stoic Jaffa responded. Jack saw Sam and Daniel grinning at each other out of the corner of his eye.
[She seems to be relaxing,] Jack thought. [Good.]
"Why don't we get you something to eat and drink," Sam suggested, indicating to the newcomers to head into the main room.
"I think I will refrain from drinking," Teal'c commented as he passed Sam. The other three barely withheld their laughter. Daniel followed behind Teal'c, and Sam went to go after them when she felt a hand on her right arm. She looked back at Jack, who let go of her arm.
"Are we... okay?" Jack asked, a bit of worry tinging his tone. His worry began to disappear as Sam smiled softly.
"Yeah, we're okay," she replied, her voice quiet.
"Is there a chance... we could talk sometime?" Uncertainty flickered across Sam's face before she answered.
"Sometime. Just not now." Jack nodded, willing to be patient. The time had to be right, for both of them.
Both in agreement, Sam and Jack went into the main room, putting aside, for the moment, any lingering worries either might have to allow themselves to enjoy this holiday with their friends.
The End (for now!)
Story Notes: I decided to do a follow-up to the first "Christmas Revelations" when I got the 'official' challenge details. Gee, that's two S&J fics I've blamed on other people. Oh well, such is life! Enjoy! =)
DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognisable characters, settings, etc, are the property of their respective owners. Any original characters and plots are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended. ... [ read more ]