Category: Romance
Spoilers: Everything up to and including “Moebius”
Season: Eight
Rating: T
Warnings: Sexual content
Summary: Sam and Jack have a heart to heart conversation at Jack’s cabin after the war is over.
Author’s Note: Everybody and his dog has had a stab at what happened with Jack and Sam’s relationship between seasons eight and nine. Here is my own.
Disclaimer: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are not my property. I have written this story for the enjoyment of Stargate SG-1 fans all over the world. No copyright infringement is intended and no monetary gain is expected.
It had been a wonderful, peaceful day. The weather had been perfect, not too warm, and not too cold. The beer had been icy, the conversation relaxing, and the camaraderie had been palpable. Now, however, Sam felt slightly chilled, and felt the need to be alone with her thoughts.
She glanced over her shoulder at her friends while standing at the door of the colonel’s cabin with her hand on the doorknob, deciding that she could sneak out for a few moments of solitude. Teal’c and Daniel were watching the hockey game. A meteor could have crashed through the ceiling and they would have ignored it. She turned and looked at the colonel, who was busy at the sink with dirty dishes. He had insisted on cleaning up since she had done most of the food preparation and the boys had done the grilling… over Jack’s loud objections.
She grabbed her jacket from the peg next to the door and stepped out, the sweet aromas of nature immediately making her feel better. Not that she felt bad, really. She was just… a little melancholy.
She looked up at the fading sun through pink clouds and sighed deeply. Sam looked over the calm water from the porch and started to make her way down the path towards the little pier where they had spent their afternoon fishing for non-existent fish. It had been every bit as relaxing as her CO had promised.
When she reached it, the sound of her steps on the floorboards was unwelcome. Everything else was so silent, so calm, that the innocent sound was grating in the quiet evening. She understood why, after a perfectly enjoyable day, she was now blue. She missed him. Actually, if she had to be honest, she missed them both. Her dad, Jacob, and… Pete.
Her adored childhood hero w22; despite all the struggles and confrontations they had gone through w22; was no more; and her almost husband and future father to her children was gone as well, so she felt utterly alone despite the company of her closest friends.
A couple of weeks ago she was a happy bride-to-be and a daughter. Her future seemed full of possibilities. Now she was just Sam Carter, newly promoted Lieutenant Colonel and still SG-1’s commander. Ironically, she didn’t want to be just that person anymore, the accomplished military woman.
Her former ambition had turned to disillusion and bitterness, and she felt emotionally drained, weary of the responsibility, and bereft of any hope of ever having a normal life. Pete had been her ticket to that life, and she had thrown it away.
She was not having second thoughts about her choices; not really. That wasn’t it. She knew she had done the right thing by letting him go. It would have been monumentally unfair to him for her to marry him. Eventually they would have been unhappy because she could not offer him what he deserved, complete commitment. Not when she still loved someone else.
She sighed again, thinking for the millionth time how hopeless her personal situation was, and her heart broke a tiny bit more, knowing that it was not likely to change any time soon. Not now that Jack was involved with Kerry Johnson.
*****
Sam did not realize she was being watched. Dark eyes had been on her the moment she had left the house. They were full of concern and sympathy, as well as unguarded affection.
Jack took in the hunched shoulders, the lowered head, and the deep sighs, and he yearned to go to her and take her in his arms to console her, but he had to be careful. He still did not know exactly what was going on inside her head and her heart. He had not spent years denying himself what he wanted to just rush things now. He had to understand. He had to be sure, for her sake more than for his.
“Samantha Carter is grieving,” a deep voice said behind him.
Jack instinctively tensed, having been caught watching her, but said nothing.
“For more than just her father,” Teal’c added, heedless of his lack of response.
“I know,” Jack responded in a whisper, knowing the large man could hear him perfectly.
“Maybe one of us should go talk to her,” Daniel offered helpfully, trying to sound nonchalant and cautiously approaching the two men standing by the picture window.
Jack smiled crookedly and looked at the archeologist.
“I mean… she seems sad and…” Daniel stammered, but was stopped by Jack’s raised hand.
“Go back to the game, guys. We’ll be in shortly,” he assured them as he picked his jacket up and started to open the door. “No spying, okay?” he warned with raised brows.
Teal’c responded by nodding and heading back to the couch, while Daniel wished him good luck and followed the Jaffa.
*****
Sam was still lost in thought when she heard the soft steps behind her. Jack.
She’d recognize his steps anywhere, anytime. They were as familiar to her as her own heartbeat after years of working together, but she could not say the same about Teal’c or Daniel. No. Her familiarity with this one man was borne of her deep feelings for him. She was attuned to him as closely as two lovers could ever be.
“It’s getting a little chilly outside,” Jack commented softly, still a couple of steps away from her and clearly unwilling to invade her personal space.
“Yeah,” she responded just as softly without turning back to look at him. She was a little teary-eyed, so she tried to conceal this from him.
“Why are you crying, Carter?” he asked, his voice curiously gentle.
She smiled, letting a breath out and dropping her head, but she still did not look at him. She could never fool him. He also knew her well.
“Let’s see…” she started slowly, taking stock of the past weeks’ events. “I lost my father, I deeply wounded a good man that had offered me all I thought I wanted, I’m emotionally exhausted, and I’m…” she hesitated, then changed her mind and did not finish her sentence.
She had been on the verge of blurting out “I’m in love with someone that is in a relationship with someone else.” ‘That would have been lovely, Sam!’ she ironically thought to herself. Only a few weeks ago, Jack had been the one in her current position.
“You’re what?” Jack, however, prompted her, his voice still gentle.
“Never mind,” Sam sighed again. “Weren’t those enough reasons?” she asked with a sad little chuckle.
“I’d say!” he joked lamely, but took another step toward her, now within reaching distance. “Are you going to be okay?” he kindly asked her, but she stubbornly remained facing the water.
“Aren’t I always?” she asked bitterly.
Sam Carter always muddled through and landed on her feet, right?
She knew that her tone betrayed her true feelings, leaving her wounded soul in display and open to more hurt, but she just didn’t have it in her to hide anymore. She let her pain, raw and hopeless, hit him head on.
She suddenly felt his fingers graze her shoulder, a light and hesitant touch, a feathery caress that lasted a second but that was as devastating to her as a thunderbolt.
Her head came up with a gasp, but she did not turn around, her eyes now wide with anticipation and hope. Her arms remained crossed across her chest trying to ward off the chill of the evening, but her fists closed tightly and her heart was now racing after performing a spectacular back flip inside her chest.
“Sam?” he called softly, hesitantly. She had hardly ever heard that tone of voice coming from her CO. He sounded uncertain, vulnerable, and full of repressed feelings, and he had called her Sam, not Carter. She owed it to him to face him.
She desperately wanted to hold on to the unexpected intimacy that the sound of her name on his lips had created, so she braced herself for likely disappointment and slowly turned around. Her eyes locked with his as she boldly responded, “Yes, Jack?”
He looked as apprehensive as she did, and he sounded like a little kid when he finally asked, “Could you help me understand something?”
“If I can,” she responded, feeling a little lost. She felt that, whatever he was about to ask her, it was probably going to be pivotal in shaping their future relationship, whichever it may be, so she swallowed a lump, her heart now at full speed.
“Why did you break up with Pete?” he asked her after staring at her for long stressful moments.
“Because,” she started, swallowed again, but then continued without lowering her gaze. Coming up with the right words was trickier than she could have imagined, but she managed to respond with the truth without humiliating herself… yet. “I couldn’t make him happy.”
Jack smiled incredulously as he shook his head at her. “You’ll need to do better than that! Everybody knows how ridiculously happy the poor guy was to have you.”
“It wouldn’t have lasted,” she responded sadly. It was the plain truth. “He would have realized eventually…” she started to reveal, but her fear made her hesitate. She lost her courage and couldn’t finish. Her frantically beating heart was making it difficult for her to breathe properly, so she took a deep breath, finally looking away in defeat.
Soft fingers reached for her face and prevented her from hiding. They remained there, gently stroking her cheek, making her meet Jack’s eyes again. With his look he was begging her to finish what she had been saying, so she forced herself to say the words.
“He would have learned to hate me,” she finally said, still not wanting to reveal too much.
“How could anyone ever hate you?” he retorted with a chuckle of incredulity.
His fingers were now gently tracing her jawbone and doing wonderful things to her insides, making her shiver lightly, and then he took one more small step toward her as he let them trail softly down her neck.
‘WARNING! WARNING! HIGHLY UNPROFESSIONAL! HE IS YOUR CO! YOU SHOULD STOP THIS!’ Sam’s brain was blaring, but she was doing her best to ignore it. The feelings his fingers provoked were just too wonderful!
“Why do you think he could ever hate you?” he whispered, clearly intent on obtaining full disclosure.
He was very close now. Not close enough to kiss her, but she wanted him to kiss her so badly! Gone were all her concerns for regulations and repercussions. She could not think of anything but those lips tasting hers, imagining how delicious it would be to finally succumb to her passion for this man. She knew, however, that he would never do so unless she allowed it. The ball was in her court, and she decided to play for keeps.
“Because… I couldn’t love him the way I should,” she whispered.
His fingers tightened almost imperceptibly on her neck, but his touch remained light as he asked, “Why not?”
She swallowed hard one more time and took the plunge. “Because he’s not you,” she concluded, looking into his eyes and trying not to miss his reaction. She did not. His feelings were easy to read.
There was initially triumph and delight, relief and mischief, all shining through at the same time, but then his gaze gradually clouded with concern.
She had felt terrified but hopeful, so her heart sank when he suddenly removed his hand from her neck and shoved it into his pocket, looking away from her.
“Jack?” she shakily called.
He looked at her again. This time she didn’t attempt to hide her tearful eyes. She wordlessly begged him not to reject her.
“Why?” he asked again.
Sam frowned and tilted her head, struggling to understand.
“Why me?” he clarified.
Sam just shook her head, not believing that, after all this time, he could ask such a question. She suddenly felt angry, so she forced herself to summon strength and swallow her tears. “No. It’s my turn.”
“What?”
“It’s my turn to ask why.”
“Why what, Carter?”
They were sadly back to ‘sir’ and ‘Carter’, the intimacy suddenly gone, leaving her cold and bereft.
“Why did you push me away, sir?” she demanded to know, her eyes holding his despite the tears still threatening to fall.
“When did I do that?” he asked, looking honestly baffled.
“When I asked for your advice after Pete proposed. You practically encouraged me to accept his proposal. You made me believe that you didn’t… care about me anymore. Was it true?”
“God, Carter!” Jack uttered, taking a few steps away from her and running an exasperated hand through his graying hair. “How could you ever believe that?”
“You made it easy, really. If that wasn’t the reason, then what was it? The regulations again?”
“The regs still stand firmly between us, Carter; but no… they weren’t the only reason why I let you go.”
“Then why?!”
Her anguished tone managed to draw his eyes back to her.
She had taken two steps closer in her vehemence, but she didn’t dare to touch him. She just glared at him and waited for an explanation.
*****
The woman he worshiped was staring at him with wounded blue eyes, tears bright but refusing to fall, and Jack ached to draw her into his arms and soothe her, show her how much he craved her, and promise to give her anything she wanted if she would only love him back, but he couldn’t do it. Not yet. He had to be sure that she understood exactly what she would be getting into.
“Carter, you have to understand that I’ve always loved you,” he paused, then added, “Always! But I let you go for your own good.”
Sam’s eyes filled up again, and this time a tear finally rolled down her cheek. “Why?” she asked brokenly.
“Because I’m not what you deserve,” he sadly replied. “I know that you’ve always admired me and respected me and… I know that you want me, like I want you, but I’ve never believed that what you felt for me could endure. Not once you really got to know me. You have no idea what the full O’Neill package entails. Believe me, it’s not that great!”
She glared at him in obvious astonishment, speechless for a moment, but then she blurted, “Whaaat?!” She had sounded just like him, and she started to turn away from him as if intending to walk away.
“Hey, don’t get mad! Just listen to me, okay?” he begged, grabbing her shoulders and forcing her to face him again, but she shrugged him off angrily and took a step back, her eyes sparkling with anger and disbelief.
“You think that I’m such a dimwit, don’t you?! That I’m just a dumb blonde deep down, right?! That I’m too emotionally immature and naive to know what I want!”
She was shouting, and Jack could almost feel the scalding sparks of her anger on his exposed skin, so he automatically uttered a command in order to calm her down, just as he would have in the field. “Carter, stop it!”
She automatically stiffened and came to attention, years of following his orders halting her tirade immediately. She suddenly looked shocked, her face paling and her blue eyes going wide.
“I’m… I’m sorry, sir,” she hesitantly said, now completely subdued. She anxiously looked at her surroundings as if wondering why she was standing there. “I should go, I… I really shouldn’t have come here,” she said, turning to leave.
“Wait, Sam! I’m sorry. I’m not ‘sir’ right now, just Jack, so keep shouting if it makes you feel better. But, please, promise me you’ll listen to me for five minutes before you decide to leave.”
She didn’t look at him, but she managed to nod, clearly too upset to speak.
“Sam, you are perfect!” Jack started to explain with feeling. “You are every man’s dream. A beautiful, intelligent, sexy woman that is also strong, brave, honest, loyal, and loving. I’d be an idiot not to feel flattered that you want me to be more than your CO. But…” he faltered. It was terrifyingly difficult for him to expose so much of himself to anyone, even to the woman he adored. She, however, gently encouraged him, her hand reaching for his arm and finally making contact.
“Please, Jack. Tell me. What is it?” she whispered.
“I’m damaged, Sam. I’m also seventeen years older than you. I’m rolling down the hill so fast that you’ll never be able to catch me!” he tried to joke, but she did not smile. She sadly shook her head as she came closer, but he stepped back, “Wait. Please, let me finish.”
She stopped, but she still held on to his arm as he finished his explanation, baring his soul like he had never done so before, not even to Sarah while they had been married.
“I’m not right for you! You deserve so much more! You deserve someone that can give you a real future, full of healthy years, and children, and laughter, not a cranky, dumb old soldier like me. You’d get tired of me soon after we ate the forbidden fruit. You’d never know a peaceful night of sleep again, not when you had to sleep next to a sweating, screaming, screwed up man every night.”
Her look of commiseration did not stop him from continuing. He relentlessly revealed every single burdensome feeling weighing down his soul. “Yes, I still have nightmares. You know that I hardly ever fell into a deep sleep when we were off world. Why do you think that was? I didn’t want to wake up screaming and try to explain to you and Daniel that I have way too many dark memories haunting my sleep. The few times I did fall asleep and woke up in a sweat, I was lucky enough not to wake you. If you don’t believe me, ask Teal’c! He never missed an episode.”
“Oh, Jack!” she slowly shook her head at him, a mixture of compassion and tolerance in her suddenly weary features. “How can you really feel like that about yourself? Don’t you see what we all see?”
“What’s that?” he asked, feeling honestly puzzled.
“We see a hero. Yes, a worn out hero, but still our strong, courageous, brilliant, and very much admired leader. That’s what everyone can see in you, but I can see even more, and it made me fall in love with you!”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, looking at her in wonder. Was she deluded? What could she see in him worth wasting her precious life for?
“I love your heart, Jack. I love that you’d rather die than let one of your friends be lost. I love that you have a weakness for children, and that you can be a child when you choose to. I love your hidden intelligence, and your ability to see through people. I feel safe when you are around. I am secure in the thought that you are there, watching out for us… for me.”
Sam sighed deeply, her hand stroking his arm as it slowly moved toward his shoulder. In a sultry move, she was standing almost flush with him, and he could feel his defenses start to crumble as she continued in an even softer tone. “I also love your sarcastic remarks, your testiness, your temper, your lack of patience with some people, your brutal honesty, and, most of all, your refusal to make excuses for who you are.”
She leaned closer, looking up at him as her other hand came up to his empty shoulder and settled there gingerly, as if afraid that he would pull away. Not a chance! His defenses were now dust at her feet!
“I’d rather be sleepless forever with you… than cold and alone in my bed without you,” she finally declared.
“Sam, I think you’ve finally lost it. This war was too much for you!” he attempted to joke, shaking his head at her humorously.
She smiled brightly at him, and her hands grasped his shoulders with more confidence. “This war is no more, Jack, and I’m done with playing by the rules. For once, I’m going to put myself first, and I’m going to go for what I want… Kerry Johnson or not.”
“Kerry Johnson?” he asked, suddenly baffled. Where had that come from? Didn’t she know?
“I realize you are in a relationship, but I’m going to go out on a limb here and try to push her off… if you’ll let me,” she finished timidly, losing her bright smile and looking at him as if wondering whether she was going too far.
“There is no Kerry to push off a tree, Sam,” he quickly replied with a smile, happy to be able to remove that concern from her mind once and for all.
“What?” she asked, clearly taken aback by his revelation.
“She dumped me already,” he said with a smirk and a shrug. He was now having fun. Her sincere declaration of love had removed the last of his concerns for good.
“Why do I find that hard to believe?” she asked as she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.
“Well… she said I had ‘issues’; one big one in particular,” he responded, shrugging again and making a face that said that poor Kerry was clearly crazy.
“Issues?” Sam tilted her head at him.
“Yeah! You go figure! Can you believe it?” he replied, shoving his hands into his pockets and attempting to look like innocence personified.
“What big one?” she asked, starting to smile again a little.
“Hmmm?” he asked as if he didn’t know what she was asking..
“Ja-ack,” she warned threateningly.
“Oh, well… it happened right after you showed up in my backyard and caught us together. You do the math,” he revealed, then gave her a moment to assimilate that piece of information.
“Me? She broke up with you because of me?” she asked, finally smiling broadly.
“Yup! It seems she was under the notion that you were occupying most of my heart already, and I guess she didn’t think I was worth the trouble of fighting you. Not that she would have had a chance in hell…”
Jack couldn’t finish. Sam had quickly closed the gap between them and fastened her lips to his, her fingers now firmly gripping the front of his jacket and holding him flush with her, as if making sure he could not escape in case he tried.
Not a chance! Jack quickly followed her actions by wrapping his arms around her and responding greedily to her questing tongue, a sudden conflagration taking a hold inside his chest.
Sam let go of his jacket and wrapped her arms around his neck, trying to be as close to him as possible, which was impossible given the way he was already crushing her against his body.
They were oblivious to the curious eyes watching them through the picture window.
*****
“Teal’c, how about we go into town for a few beers?” Daniel suggested nonchalantly as he nosily gaped at the kissing couple holding each other on the little dock.
“We are not supposed to be spying, Daniel Jackson,” his teammate and friend growled from the couch.
“How else are we supposed to know when to make our strategic withdrawal?” he joked. “Which, by the way, now is the moment. I’ll go write them a note so they know where we went. Get your jacket, big man!” he instructed as he hastened to the kitchen.
Teal’c mumbled something to himself, but switched off the TV and grabbed his jacket. “When do you propose we should return?” he asked the younger man, who had finished the note and was sticking in on the fridge.
“We may be too drunk to drive back tonight,” Daniel answered with a smirk.
“I do not get inebriated, since I do not partake of alcohol. O’Neill and Colonel Carter know this,” the Jaffa pointed out the flaw in the archeologist’s ploy.
“They also know how stubborn I get when I drink, and I’ll want to stay in town tonight! Come on! Stop arguing with me and get to the truck!” he retorted, grabbing Jack’s keys and heading for the door. Teal’c had no recourse but to follow.
*****
Meanwhile, on the little dock by the pond, the two lovers were engrossed in each other, their bodies fused together as the lengthening shadows of the evening grew darker around them. She occasionally attempted to part from his lips in an effort to catch her breath, but he immediately recaptured her mouth to continue feasting deliciously.
Jack was finding it very difficult to stop kissing his second-in-command despite the fact that they were definitely breaching the much abhorred regulations. Once he had started, he just couldn’t have enough of her.
“I do love you, you silly woman. How could you ever doubt that? Do you have any idea what hell I went through when you got engaged?” he finally asked when she came up for air with a giggle.
“Why did you let me, Jack? I thought you didn’t want me anymore!” she earnestly whispered back to him. “I thought you had gotten tired of waiting.”
“Never! I’d wait for you forever! Even longer!” he answered in a passionate growl, gently capturing her lips between his teeth an nibbling on her playfully.
“God! I thought we would never be together, Jack! And I wanted a life so badly! I thought I was doing the right thing for both of us when I tried to move on, but even then, it just felt wrong. I can’t tell you how many times I was thinking of you when I was with Pete. I felt like I was cheating, and it made me feel horrible!” She revealed her distress in between kisses, her mouth still responding eagerly to his. She didn’t seem willing to stop kissing him either.
“You know, the regs are still there…” he reminded her, taking a brief break from her mouth and giving her a look to see how she would respond.
“Screw them!” she said passionately, seeking his mouth again, her tongue exploring sensuously as if in defiance.
Jack did not argue. He willingly let her drag him into a deep sea of irresistible feelings, and he did not have any desire to resurface. Not until they heard the sound of the truck engine start.
“I guess the boys are going into town,” Jack distractedly remarked, briefly glancing toward the cabin and seeing the headlights of his beloved truck disappear into the darkness behind it. Not even then did he want to move from where he was standing.
“You think they saw us?” she asked, sounding suddenly embarrassed.
“I think that’s a safe bet. You know how nosy Daniel is,” he replied, smiling at her and not minding at all the fact that they were now completely alone. “Are you cold yet?” he asked hopefully. Now that the cabin was empty, moving inside seemed like an enticing idea.
“I’ve never felt warmer in my life,” she smiled up at him, “But if you want to go up to the cabin, I’m all for it.” She clearly had followed his train of thought.
Jack heard a definite invitation in that remark, but he warned himself not to jump to conclusions and try to just follow her lead. They both turned and, with their arms around each other, they walked up the gravel path to the front door of the now dark cabin. Jack opened it for Sam, following her inside.
As soon as they stepped into the darkness of the warm hallway and closed the door behind them, Jack turned to Sam and embraced her again. Her hands were suddenly on his shirt buttons as her mouth responded to his, making him press her body against the wall and lower his hands to her waistband to undo her jeans.
Afterwards, Jack could not remember clearly how they had gotten to the master bedroom, but he did remember it had been in the midst of a frenzy of kisses and flying shoes and clothes.
Their bodies had sought each other’s hungrily, their minds numb to everything but their need. He had ended up carrying her into the bedroom; he remembered that clearly, because his knee was protesting later. He had dropped her unceremoniously onto the bed and finished undressing himself. She had been already gloriously naked. Her eyes had taken all of him in, desire bright in them, and when he had hesitated, wondering if he was dreaming, she had begged, “Jack, please… now!”
She had not had to ask twice. He had gently lain on top of her and her legs had opened to him and cradled his body lovingly, while he sought a full breast and claimed it with his hot mouth. “Oh, God… Jack!” She had moaned in pleasure, the sound driving him wild. He had claimed her as his the next moment, plunging deeply into her and making her arch her back with a gasp.
Finally! Sam had smiled and tears had filled her eyes again. She could not believe it was real! Jack was making love to her; with all the passion and skill she’d always suspected he was capable of. No. The reality of the consummation of their love had been better than she had ever dreamed. To think that he had thought she would ever tire of this!
He had taken his time, stroking her body with his sensuously, slowly, deeply. His mouth had branded her with hot kisses and a greedy tongue, his breath had taken hers away, his hands had worked magic on her skin. He had not wanted it to end, but when the moment came, they had exploded together with an almost rage borne of released passion and long denied love.
Now Jack held her tenderly, stroking her skin with his calloused hands and raining kisses on her forehead as she caught her breath, her arms still wrapped around him. “Jack?” she whispered with a small smile.
“Hmmm?” he answered lazily, too content to move.
“Can we do that again? Tonight?” she asked, mischief in her voice.
“Do you wanna kill me, woman? I told you I’m an old man!” he answered, scandalized.
“No, you’re not! I know what you’re capable of, remember?” she really did not expect another round of lovemaking, but she couldn’t help but tease him.
“And break the regs again?” he asked, now pulling back to look at her.
“About that…” she responded softly, suddenly serious. Jack was sorry he had brought up the subject, but then realized it had to be addressed.
“Don’t worry. I have it all worked out,” he assured her.
Sam bolted upright and looked down at him in concern. “You haven’t retired, have you?” She had been aware of an unusual number of private conversations and visits to Washington, and she was suddenly terrified of ruining things for the SGC.
“Relax, Colonel, nothing that drastic,” he soothed, trying to pull her back onto the bed.
“No, Jack, please tell me! No, wait! Let me tell you first, please,” she asked, afraid of what he’d reveal to her. “I have requested a transfer to Area 51.” She cringed at his look, knowing he’d be furious with her. “Before you yell at me, let me explain!” she begged.
“You better! How could you do something like that without talking to me? And what about SG-1?” he was now sitting in bed as well, trying to ignore her nakedness and concentrate on her contrite face.
“Remember I’ve been telling you how concerned I am about Cassie. She needs me Jack, more than SG-1 does. Also remember that I told you that I had decided to put my personal needs first for a change. She is one of them. She is my daughter now. She has no one else. And that way I can be with you, Jack. You won’t be my CO anymore!”
Jack stared at her for long moments, realizing that she had a point. SG-1 was not as critical any more. With the replicators and the Goaul’d not a threat, they could let down their guard a little. Besides, Daniel had been begging to spend more time with the Atlantis project for months, and Teal’c was spending more and more time with his people. They needed him there even more than Earth needed him at the SGC. Yes, SG-1’s days were numbered. An era was ending.
“Okay. I understand,” he agreed reluctantly.
“Besides, I can come visit Colorado Springs on weekends and holidays. I’ll have more flexibility with my time, and I have A LOT of accumulated leave!”
“Washington,” Jack clarified.
“What?” Sam asked.
“I said, Washington. You’ll be visiting Washington, not Colorado Springs,” he explained.
“Why?”
“Because I’ll be taking over for Hammond. He’s retiring and he asked me to. I won’t be the SGC’s commander any more. General Landry will be taking my place. The paperwork is being put through as we speak.”
Sam’s heart dropped to her stomach and her mouth went dry. “But… that means…”
“Yeah, I’ll still be your CO, indirectly,” he agreed.
“Oh, Jack!” she sighed, overwhelming weariness overtaking her. Her hand came up to her face and she closed her eyes.
“Hey! It doesn’t matter! We’ll still be together, Sam,” he reassured her, grabbing her and pulling her down to lay on the bed. He leaned over her and kissed one closed eye, then the other. “Hey! I mean it. We can see each other during breaks, just as you said. We’ll just have to keep our relationship quiet until I work out an agreement with Washington.”
“Why would they do that, Jack? We’d still be breaking the regs, wouldn’t we?” Sam asked, tears in her voice.
“Not really, Sam. Mine will be a unique job, after all. I don’t think there are really any regulations governing my position. Besides, I made them beg me big time before I said yes. I can just threaten to quit if they make it difficult for me!”
“You would quit… for me?” she asked with a small voice, her teary eyes looking lovingly at his face.
“I would do anything for you, Sam,” he whispered, dropping a soft kiss on her lips, then another one on the tip of her nose. “Now that I have you, I’m not letting you go. You’re stuck with me for good! Don’t you know that already?”
Sam smiled up at him, and he felt the room had been suddenly illuminated. “I know now, Jack. So… it’s you and me from now on?”
“You and me against the world, babe!” he smiled at her.
“I hope it doesn’t come to that. I’m kind of sick of fighting,” she sighed, stroking his face with her fingertips and letting her caress drift down to his neck and chest.
“If you keep doing that, you’re going to be up for a while, you realize?” he growled sexily.
“What?” she smiled even wider. “You mean this?” and her fingers kept stroking lower, and lower.
“Okay, you asked for it! Just remember that later!” and he captured her mouth in a hungry kiss, his hands roughly stroking her back and dropping to her bottom.
“And I’ll keep asking, Sir. Make no mistake! Always!” she promised, her mouth opening under his and taking him in, finally believing that the future was, indeed, full of possibilities.
The End
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 ]