He spent several hours finding the small silver oak clusters. After all it had been eleven years since he'd worn them. Then another two were spent happily cleaning and polishing them until they looked almost new. He wasn't sure he would even offer them to her, but the time spent on the tasks had kept his mind off of other things. Like the great big looming fact that after tomorrow Dr. Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter would most likely not be under his command anymore. The thought terrified him on many levels.
First there was the thought that he, Daniel and Teal'c would have to continue on without her. He had no doubt in his mind that the three of them would annoy each other to death without her calming presence to keep the testosterone from getting out of control. He wondered if they should look for another female as a fourth for that very reason. Problem was, he couldn't for the life of him think of any other woman in the universe who would be able to put up with the male members of SG1 for any extended period of time.
Then there was the thought of her going out there without the three of them to back her up. She'd done it before, but the last couple of times she'd done so they had almost lost her. He wondered if Hammond would let him hand pick her new team to be sure she got the very best to watch her back.
He was trying to totally ignore the other point that was threatening to tie his stomach in knots. He was almost fifty years old, and he refused to let the idea of asking a girl out turn him into a quivering mass of nerves. He was going to play it by ear, take things slow and see where they went. He groaned as he realized he'd been reduced to using cliches.
The woman currently tormenting his waking thoughts and (now that he'd let down his reserve a notch) starring prominently in some pretty great dreams, had no clue how much her life was about to change. Hammond had told them that there would be some visitors from the new President's staff on base tomorrow, and ordered them to dress accordingly, which meant class A's for he and the Major. In truth, General Jumper was making a special visit to present several promotions, including Carter's, and to meet with Hammond to discuss the incoming administrations initial reaction to the Stargate program. Hammond had offered Jack the honor of helping to pin the silver oak leaves on the new Lt. Colonel and that had prompted his frantic search for his insignia. He was getting sappy in his old age he decided, but somehow he just felt it was a fitting farewell present to the best 2IC he had ever had the pleasure of serving with.
*****
The next day did not find Major Sam Carter in the best of moods. It had been bad enough figuring out how to modify BDU's to fit over her cast, but the damn fiberglass up to her mid-thigh was really not conducive to putting on her dress blues. She'd finally managed something that was close to regulation dress, but now was having to practice using her crutches again, as the one dress pump was seriously throwing off her rhythm. Maybe she could go barefoot until the last possible minute. A knock on the door of her quarters interrupted her mental griping and she shuffled over to open it for her CO.
For a moment she couldn't breath. God, he looked wonderful. She might be an expert at hiding her inappropriate feeling for Jack O'Neill, but there were still unexpected moments when the man made her go weak in the knees. This was definitely one of them. It had been way too long since she'd seen him in his dress blues, and the sight was something worth taking a moment to appreciate. Luckily for her, Jack was also frozen in place at the sight of his Major (for the moment) in her uniform. His mind was hopelessly flashing back to the first moment he had seen her as she'd stepped so confidently from the shadow of the doorway in the briefing room almost seven years ago. He couldn't help but think that time had been much kinder to her than to him in the intervening years. She still looked drop dead gorgeous in her dress blues. A passing airman broke their reverie, and Jack stepped back to let Sam pass, shutting the door behind them. Behind her back he allowed a proud grin start to form.
By the time they had reached the Gateroom he had his emotions strictly under control, though he couldn't help reaching into his pocket every couple of minutes to feel the comforting presence of the insignia there. Carter was still oblivious, and he delighted in watching her face as General Jumper entered the room with Hammond and she began to get the sense that something was up. She had started to relax as Jumper gave his speech and then others were called up for promotion, so he almost laughed out loud at her confusion when her name was called. By the time he and Hammond were standing in front of her everything had begun to sink in and they were greeted by a very happy smile. He signaled Hammond to hold up for a moment as the General pulled out her new insignia and then reached into his pocket to pull out the freshly polished pair hidden there. He saw her eyes widen in surprise and then they flew to meet his. They were glistening with happy tears as she accepted his gesture with a small nod. He handed one of his insignia to Hammond who pocketed to now superfluous pair, then they each proudly removed one of her gold leaves and replaced them with Jack's silver ones. With huge grins they stepped back to salute Lt. Colonel Carter.
As she returned the salute the assembled crowd burst into applause, and an instant later Daniel and Teal'c were surrounding her offering their congratulations. It was an hour later, after having made the rounds including chatting with General Jumper, that SG1 prepared to head out of the celebration. They made plans to treat Sam to dinner out at a nice restaurant that evening, and Jack promised to invite Hammond as well. He had a few items he wanted to clarify once the General was through meeting with Jumper anyway. He headed for his office, not bothering to change out of his uniform while a five-star was still on base, but within twenty minutes he found himself heading down to Carter's lab. He wasn't able to concentrate worth a darn anyway.
As he expected he found Carter was in a similar state, staring at her computer screen blankly, unsure if she was supposed to understand what it was displaying or not. She was actually relieved when the Colonel wandered in, and she gave him a smile as she chuckled at her own expense.
"I'm in a total daze," she admitted.
Her jacket was draped over the back of a nearby chair, and she turned to finger one of the silver leaves.
"Thank you, Sir. It means a lot that you gave me these," she told him.
"I can't imagine anyone more worthy of wearing them, Sam," he responded and delighted in the startled look she gave him at his use of her first name.
He actually saw the moment it dawned on her that he was no longer going to be her CO. Her eyes widened and her lips formed a soft 'Oh'. She really had been in a daze if she was just thinking about it now, he realized. Then she did something totally unexpected. She smiled. Not just a normal smile, but a huge Sam Carter smile. The kind she normally reserved for when she uncovered one of the secrets of the universe. And Jack was reduced to standing there, speechless, grinning back at her. Luckily, the ringing of her phone saved him.
"Carter. Yes, he is Sir. I'll send him right down, Sir," she replied to the queries he couldn't hear, but could guess at. "Hammond wants to see you," she confirmed as she hung up.
"See you later. And Sam? Stay in the dress blues. You should wear them for your celebration dinner," Jack ordered.
"I will if you will," she agreed, then caused him to stop dead in his tracks as she continued. "You will be driving me home afterwards, won't you?"
He didn't dare look back at her. "Wild horses, Colonel."
******
Hammond had given him a rundown on what was going on in Washington. On the plus side, the new President was impressed if slightly overwhelmed by the knowledge of what had been going on at the SGC for the last seven years, and he seemed to realize that Vice President Kinsey had his own private agenda. On the downside, President Hayes was under a lot of pressure to make changes in the structure of the command. Hammond was hoping these would be minor, but there was no telling what would occur.
Their discussion then turned towards matters that were under their control. "I'm officially transferring Lt. Colonel Carter off of SG1," Hammond announced. "For now she will be working full time in the lab, reporting directly to me. When she has fully recovered, as I have no doubt she will, I am planning on giving her command of a team."
Jack nodded. He'd expected most of this, the thing he'd wanted to clarify was whom she reported to while she was still on light duty. Hammond had just given him the all clear. And if the smile lurking in his CO's eyes was any indication, the General was well aware of the implications.
"She'll be a great CO. She's been ready for her own command for quite a while," Jack admitted. "I'm not sure how SG1 is going to survive without her though."
"It's going to be a tough transition for everyone. In a way I'm glad that the timing has worked out the way it did. Not that I'm happy about the Lt. Colonel being laid up, but it gave you all a breather to get used to the idea before it became a reality," Hammond confessed.
"I don't think the reality of it has hit Daniel yet, although Teal'c probably understands the implications," Jack replied. "Guess I should talk to them before we go out tonight. Will you be able to join us, Sir? I know Carter would like it if you did," Jack acknowledged.
"I'll be sure to make it there then," Hammond assured him. Privately he was looking forward to seeing just what would occur between O'Neill and Carter now that they no longer had the regs in their way, and tonight was going to be the first test of that. He wouldn't miss it for the world. "Why don't you send Lt. Colonel Carter down to see me so I can go over these plans with her. I'll leave it to you to make sure the rest of SG1 understands what is occurring," Hammond commanded.
*****
The celebration that night was in full swing when Sam and Jack finally got two minutes alone together. Somehow the word had spread as to the location of the dinner and several other SG teams, including two that were also celebrating promotions in their ranks, had showed up. And it didn't take long for Jack to notice that there was lot of whispering and staring going on. Perhaps even a bit of wagering. He wondered whom he had to thank for leaking the word that Carter was officially off of SG1.
When Jack had talked to his teammates earlier before they left base Daniel had been too upset at the realization that Sam was no longer going to be on their team to think beyond that fact. Teal'c however had nodded sagely.
"Do not waste this opportunity, O'Neill," he had warned. Jack hadn't bothered to feign ignorance.
Now however with a couple of beers under his belt, Daniel was eyeing his friends as if he expected them to spontaneously combust at any moment, as were about half of the rest of the folks from the SGC that were still partying. Jack was feeling in need of a break from the prying eyes.
He slipped out of his seat and headed to the bathroom, and after he was done there he noticed a back door to the restaurant beckoning. It took about ten minutes of breathing in the clean air before he felt ready to face the crowd again, and he headed in, almost bowling over Carter as she maneuvered herself out of the ladies' room into the narrow hallway. She gave him a wry grin.
"There is no way we can appear back at the table together at the same time," she commented.
"You noticed, too, huh? What do they think is going to happen here tonight?" Jack asked shaking his head.
"I heard one bet that you would sweep everything off the table and take me right there," Sam quipped.
"That's ridiculous. Your cast would get in the way," Jack pointed out.
"Oh, I'm sure we could find a way around that," Sam countered.
"Is that a challenge, Carter?" Jack asked, only partially kidding.
"Not really," Sam insisted to his disappointment. Then she continued "I don't want our first time to be a balancing act. No cast." She started to turn away and then paused to warn him, "Give me a couple of minutes before you head back. You can say you were making a phone call if anybody asks."
And she hobbled off leaving Jack mentally calculating how long it would be until that damn cast came off.
*****
In the end, the two officers had given no outward indications that anything had changed much to the disappointment of most of those gathered that evening. Lt. Colonel Spencer obviously wasn't paying attention to the gossip though as he cornered Sam for a while and finally worked up the nerve to ask her out. There were more than a few relieved sighs when she gently turned him down. Jack to his credit didn't even bat an eye, although he swore he stopped breathing for a split second before she gave her answer. By the time he bundled her into the back seat of his truck to take her home even he was a bit let down by the lack of anything happening. Then he remembered her comment outside the restrooms and he couldn't help but smile. Unfortunately the memory didn't make their parting at Carter's house any less awkward.
He helped her unfold from the back seat of his truck and handed her the crutches, then pulled out the rest of her gear while she made her way to the front door. He followed her inside, putting the garment bag that had carried her uniform into work that morning and her briefcase down on the couch, then turned to help her off with her uniform jacket as she balanced on one crutch. He hung it neatly over the back of a chair, then turned once more to where Sam was standing looking a bit anxious. He knew exactly how she felt. He could feel his own heart pounding as he tried to decide what to do next.
"So…," he stammered, "It's late, I guess I'll see you in the morning."
"Um, yeah," Sam agreed.
They headed towards her front door and he paused with his hand on the knob. Decision finally made he turned around sharply and leaned in to brush his lips softly against hers. The kiss was nothing more than a promise, which he followed up with an invitation.
"Are you busy Friday night?"
Sam took a moment to recover from the duel surprises inflicted by the sudden kiss and question, then she smiled.
"Well… I was going dancing," she began looking sarcastically down at her cast, " but I can cancel if you have something in mind."
Picking up on her mood, he replied, "Oh, I have something in mind, but you said you want to wait until the cast comes off. So I thought maybe we could have a quiet dinner at my place and watch a movie instead. It will be easier than trying to fit you into a theatre."
"That sounds nice," she agreed.
"Then it's a date," he smiled, silently trying to calculate just how long it had been since he'd last been on a date and giving up when it started to depress him.
This time it was Sam who leaned in to initiate a gentle kiss before whispering, "Can't wait."
*****
Of course they should have known it wouldn't be that easy. Now that Carter's transfer was official Hammond wasted no time assigning a new member to SG1 and scheduling them for a mission. They headed out on Thursday for a twenty-four hour standard planetary survey, something easy to break in their new forth, a Captain Lloyd Crenshaw. They ended up coming back six hours late on Friday, because the Captain had misread his instruments and he'd had them hiking in the wrong direction for hours, constantly insisting that the Gate was just ahead before realizing and admitting his mistake.
So it was three very grumpy ex-teammates and one quiet and scared young Captain that arrived through the gate at 18:00 Friday evening. Jack immediately spotted Carter standing in the briefing room window looking slightly pale but relieved to see everyone in one piece. Debriefing was scheduled for first thing in the morning, but Hammond asked to see O'Neill as soon as he was showered and through his post- mission physical. Knowing he would be awhile, he exchanged keys with Daniel so that he and Teal'c could take Sam home in Jack's truck. He was glad he had done so as it was two hours before he was finally through reviewing Captain Crenshaw's performance with Hammond (they both agreed that he wasn't a good fit for SG1) and was able to head to Sam's for pizza and beer with his old team.
When he arrived he was feeling even grumpier as he realized that his first date with Carter had been ruined. He wondered if the two of them would ever catch a break. He was surprised to have the door opened by Sam and even more surprised when as soon as the door was closed behind him she threw her arms around his neck letting her crutches drop to the ground and leaned in to initiate a heated kiss. Surprise didn't keep him from enjoying the moment though, and he instinctively pulled her in closer and gave his full attention to memorizing the feel of her body pressed up close to his. When they parted several glorious minutes later Jack's mood had improved considerably.
"Please tell me Cassie, Daniel and Teal'c have decided to leave us alone for the evening," he murmured into her hair as his hands began to wander.
"Cassandra is out with friends and won't be back until late. But I just sent Daniel and Teal'c out for food and beer. They should be back soon, " Sam sighed in disappointment. Then she leaned back and gave him a playful punch in the shoulder. "You owe me $100," she told him, her eyes suddenly getting serious. "I was so afraid you'd succumbed to the Carter curse," she admitted.
"Not a chance. Especially now that I know what the homecomings can be like," he vowed. "So are we going to go double or nothing again?" he teased.
"I don't know. It doesn't seem to be encouraging you to stay out of trouble," Sam complained.
"This was not my fault. You spoiled us by never being wrong when it came to reading your doohickey's, and always admitting it when you didn't have the answer right away," he explained.
"So this was my fault?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, trying to look indignant, but actually having a bit of trouble with her breathing as Jack had managed to untuck her shirt from her jeans and his fingers were now caressing the bare skin of her lower back.
"I wouldn't say it was your fault, but you have made it almost impossible for anyone to replace you in our eyes," Jack confessed nibbling on her neck.
The sound of a car door slamming broke them apart, and had Sam leaning against the wall frantically tucking her shirt in, while Jack reached down to retrieve her crutches. By the time Jack opened the door to Daniel and Teal'c they both felt relatively back in control. The four of them spent a pleasant evening, especially after Daniel and Teal'c stopped watching Sam and Jack's every move and relaxed. Whatever was going on between the two, they obviously weren't going to tell until they were good and ready, so the rest of SG1 would just have to be patient.
Before Jack left that night he and Sam rescheduled their date for the following evening, and since he was the last to leave they were able to share a goodnight kiss that curled Sam's toes. She was still ginning like a fool when Cassie came home and the teen took one look at her and instantly demanded to know what was up.
After seven years of ignoring and repressing her feelings it took Sam a moment to be able to get the words out.
"I'm in love with Jack O'Neill," she stated happily.
Cassie just shook her head. "For a genius you sure are slow. We've known that for years."
*****
End Week Five
Story Notes: Eight Weeks Series – Week Five: Season: Season 7, immediately after Resurrection
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 ]