"Shoot, my cousin called while we were off-world…" Jack moaned as he shoved his house keys in the inside pocket of his leather jacket with one hand and held the phone up to his ear with the other. "Mind if I call him back, quick?" he asked Sam as she quietly shut the front door behind her.
Sam just smiled and nodded, his apologetic expression melting any objection she may have had. Shucking off her shoes at the door, she padded into his living room and sank into the comfortable leather couch, leaning her head on the back of the sofa and closing her eyes. It had been yet another long Monday at the SGC, made longer by the distinct possibility that somehow, Janet had found out. The keenly observant doctor kept shooting Sam knowing looks, trying to corner her, and Sam was running out of places to hide. Thank God they were planning on telling Hammond everything on Friday, because truthfully, Sam didn't think she could hide it any longer even if she wanted to. Which, of course, she didn't.
Well, that wasn't entirely true. She didn't want to hide it from Janet, Cass, Daniel, Teal'c… Oh, and that Major from SG-14 that kept hitting on her and wasn't taking `no' for an answer. She hadn't told Jack about him yet, since she knew he'd probably try something stupid. But after their new relationship was out in the open, she was definitely telling him all the details. Hm, there were going to be distinct advantages to going out with the most feared Colonel on the base…
However, she wasn't looking forward to telling General Hammond, or another `general' that immediately came to mind. She suspected Hammond was a teddy bear deep down, and once he learned of their extremely cautious treatment of the situation, she was confident he'd get used to the idea. But the other General? Oye. What were the odds that Jacob Carter would react positively to the news that his daughter and Colonel O'Neill were officially putting their personal lives first for once? Not good. Her father, though significantly more caring and understanding since his blending with Selmak, would no doubt be horrified at the news that Sam was dating her CO.
Not dating, Sam corrected her own thoughts. Not officially, at least. They hadn't done so much as hold hands since a month ago, when they decided to see if this relationship thing was really worth chucking their careers over. It had been Jack's idea, and for once, Sam couldn't come up with an excuse. He was sick of tiptoeing around her, she was tired of ditching out on team outings just because he was going to be there. There was no reason they couldn't hang out as friends a bit more, see where it might lead. She had put her personal feelings on hold for seven years, for pete's sake. They were good reasons, saving the world, and all that… But you only live once, right? And what's saving the world good for if you never enjoy yourself?
Sam's thoughts were interrupted by a weird feeling in her stomach that almost always meant someone was watching her. Her eyes popped open, and she saw him, standing in front of her, his white t-shirt mostly un-tucked from his favorite green cargos.
"That's mildly disturbing," she laughed quietly, beginning to get up from the couch. "I didn't hear you at all. How long have you been standing there?"
"Just a few seconds. Watchin' ya think," he admitted sheepishly, sitting down a few inches from her on the couch. "Oh, wait! I almost forgot! Sit right there for a sec… I've got something for you," he said excitedly, jumping up from the couch and walking purposefully into his bedroom, then coming out a minute later with one hand behind his back.
"A present?" Sam asked, her eyes shining with curiosity as she watched him walk close to her, stopping a mere foot in front of her. The look on his face was adorable, his mouth curved up in a playful smile, his hair perfectly tousled. What Sam really wanted to do was unwrap him – forget the gift – but they had done so well keeping control so far… She could wait a few more days, couldn't she? After all, she'd waited years just to get this far… "What is it?" she asked him as he handed her a squishy package wrapped in the sports section of the newspaper.
"Open it," he urged, sitting down next to her and watching expectantly.
Sam giggled at his enthusiasm, then looked again at the gift. It had to be clothing, or a very flat stuffed animal, or a blanket? A small pillow, maybe? She looked it over very carefully, squeezing it to attempt to ascertain its identity.
"Oh for cryin' out loud, Sam," Jack murmured softly, rolling his eyes at her teasingly. "Just open it, will ya?"
Sam grinned mischievously at him, squeezed it one more time just to make him wait, then delicately separated the tape from the newspaper, flattening out the paper as she removed it. What lay inside the newspaper was a soft, worn and faded gray t-shirt. Flipping it over, she spotted a familiar blue USAF logo, and her head cocked slightly to the left. "But Jack, I already have one…"
Jack shook his head. "You have yours, Carter… This is mine."
Sam licked her lips distractedly, her eyes locking with Jack's. A few days ago she realized that all of the sudden, the way he said her last name was a huge turn on. Which of course made working with him even more of a continual practice in self-control, since he called her that constantly. "Jack…" she said softly, leaning in closer to him without entirely meaning to.
Jack's eyes widened as he scooched back on the couch just enough to take him out of the danger zone. "Whoa, Sam… You start looking at me like that and this whole plan's gonna crash and burn…" he said, putting his hands on her shoulders and holding her at arm's length. "You know I want to, right? But we can't…"
Sam snapped out of it then, shaking her head and exhaling loudly. "Sorry… Really, I just…" she stopped, her eyes expressing perfectly the internal struggle that they had been so familiar with for almost a month now.
"I know, I know…" Jack said quietly, smiling at her with complete understanding. Then he looked down at the gift, which was still laying in Sam's lap. "Hey, you didn't let me finish!" he said, pointing to the shirt.
"You're giving me your Air Force academy t-shirt?" Sam asked, faintly remembering seeing him wear the shirt a few months ago when they switched the teenage-Jack Asgard clone. "That's really great, Jack, but…"
"Smell it," Jack said, flashing his trademark (and in Sam's humble opinion, extremely sexy) half-smile.
Sam looked slightly confused, but complied with his request. She put the soft material up to her nose and breathed in the scent. Immediately she closed her eyes and groaned involuntarily. "Oh my gosh…" she breathed, not daring to open her eyes for fear of jumping the owner of the shirt. It smelled amazing. Somehow the material had taken on every particular essence of the scent of him – his soap, shampoo, the detergent he used, the cologne he wore on special occasions… All rolled into one, and in a word, irresistible. Heck, if she couldn't make out with Jack, maybe she'd just make out with this shirt, Sam thought ruefully.
When she finally looked up from the shirt, she could see Jack's intense brown eyes focused on her, taking in every nuance of her reaction. He looked highly pleased, very proud of himself, and more than a little turned on by her reaction.
"You like?" he asked, the half-smile returning, much to Sam's pleasure.
"Hell, yeah," Sam said, grinning. "Better than sex…"
Jack's jaw dropped almost imperceptibly, but then he recovered and shot her a playfully warning look. "Them's fightin' words, Carter…" he said, shaking his head, obviously trying to clear his thoughts. "Want a beer?" he said as he got up off the couch and headed to the kitchen.
"Are you afraid of me, Colonel?" Sam asked, her eyebrow raised in amusement at his hasty retreat.
"Nope," Jack said over his shoulder as he entered the kitchen. "I'm afraid of me, Major."
Story Notes: Spoilers: Fragile Balance, The To'kra (?)
Notes: Okay, this was intended as part of a sequel to a fic I never finished. What can I say, I got bored. I'm kind of planning on continuing this one, but it stands nicely on its own, I think. Thanks to Erica, who was kind enough to Beta this, my first official fic to be posted!!
Feedback: Ooh, that'd be nice… First fic and all. Plus, the chances of me continuing it will be greatly influenced by the amount of feedback I get to this one!! :)
Notes: Okay, this was intended as part of a sequel to a fic I never finished. What can I say, I got bored. I'm kind of planning on continuing this one, but it stands nicely on its own, I think. Thanks to Erica, who was kind enough to Beta this, my first official fic to be posted!!
Feedback: Ooh, that'd be nice… First fic and all. Plus, the chances of me continuing it will be greatly influenced by the amount of feedback I get to this one!! :)
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 ]