Category: Romance/UST
Spoilers: Solitudes
Season: One
Pairings: Sam and Jack
Rating: PG (Older Kids)
Warnings: None
Summary: Jack talks to Sam about special things, and takes a risk by revealing that she’s one of them.
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.
Colonel Jack O’Neill hesitated yet again as he reached for the phone for the third time. His gut told him he should just make the call and take the first step toward his long-term objective. The problem was that his head was telling him that this was a stupid move when he didn’t really know how long the long-term objective would take.
He debated again the pros and the cons. If he called, he’d be staking a claim and creating an expectation, giving themselves a chance. If she didn’t feel the same way he did, at least he would know and be able to move on… eventually… maybe. If she did feel the same way he did, revealing their feelings to each other would probably make it hard to avoid temptation, not that it wasn’t difficult already.
If he didn’t call it would make it easier for them to fool themselves and ignore the forbidden feelings growing between them. It could also make him lose Samantha Carter to another suitor without ever letting her suspect that he wanted her for himself!
Let’s face it; she was kind, and smart, and sweet, and sexy, and… okay, she was hot! Someone was bound to try to claim her sooner or later. And he’d kick himself a million times if he ever let that happen without at least trying to prevent it. So he finally picked up the phone and dialed her number.
He’d been recovering now for three weeks and moving around pretty well on crutches, so he was sure he could make it to the roof later. Today he had the perfect excuse to lure an unsuspecting Captain Carter to his lair. The last and deepest penumbral lunar eclipse of the year was tonight, and he meant to take advantage of the special occasion.
“Carter! Hi! It’s me!” he casually greeted the soft voice at the other end of the line.
“Oh, hi, Sir! What’s up? Are you okay?” she asked, surprise loud and clear in her voice.
“I’m fine. And nothing’s up, except the moon… later tonight. Have you heard about the eclipse?” he asked.
“Ummm… not really. Is there one tonight?” she asked.
“Yep! The last penumbral lunar eclipse of the year is tonight, and my telescope is waiting. You think you might feel up to helping your ailing CO get to the roof?” he very nonchalantly asked, innocence dripping from his words.
Of course he knew she’d say yes. She was still feeling guilty about the pain she’d inflicted while setting his leg, and he also knew that she felt even guiltier for not figuring out that they’d been stuck in Antarctica and not on another planet. He was not above using that guilt to his advantage. He could play dirty when he needed to.
“Sure! I’d be glad to! What time?” she readily responded.
“Nine-ish?” he suggested.
“I’ll be there at 2100 sharp, Sir,” Sam cheerily agreed.
Okay, Step One, check! Step Two required more finesse. And he hadn’t planned that far, yet. Just getting the nerve to talk to her was going to be a step all on its own! But some beer would help.
All right, revision to plan: Step Two, make sure there was enough beer in the fridge. He opened the refrigerator and confirmed that he had a six-pack of beer ready and waiting. Yes, that just might be enough beer. Maybe not.
Crap! Just waiting for her to arrive was making his stomach churn! “It’s going to be a long wait!” he sighed, closing the appliance before he was tempted to start drinking already. It wouldn’t do for his captain to arrive and find him drunk.
At 2100 sharp, as promised, Jack heard the doorbell ring. He grabbed his crutches and painfully slowly — to add enough dramatic flair to his need for assistance — he moved to the front door and opened it.
A smiling vision of loveliness dressed in black jeans and a cream-colored cable sweater greeted him, making his resolve strengthen significantly. She looked feminine, soft… just… beautiful in that sweater! It was just heavy enough to provide her warmth without a jacket in the late September evening, but still hugged her breasts and molded to her figure enticingly. Jack mentally shook himself and reacted.
“Carter,” he greeted calmly, not giving away any of the nervous tension that had been plaguing him since he’d taken Step One.
“Hello, Sir. Ready to go up to the roof?” she eagerly asked, her eyes shining suspiciously. He chose to ignore the possibility that she might be onto him and his intentions. There was no way she could suspect!
“Sure am! Just let me get the beer and we can head up,” he answered with a half smile.
Soon they were at the bottom of the wide ladder leading up to his roof deck. It was neither a real ladder nor a set of stairs, but something in between. Still, he knew it was obvious that it wasn’t difficult enough to climb using both hands and one leg. He was ready for an explanation, but he didn’t need one. She never asked for one.
Smiling widely at him, she reached for the cold six-pack he had in his hand and offered the support of her body as he propped his crutches against the side of his house.
Reaching around her shoulders and taking a firm grip of her, he let her receive some of his weight, taking full advantage of their proximity to take a covert whiff of her fragrant hair. She smelled like berries… with whipped cream.
They managed the ladder as if they had been using it together for years, coordinating steps and Jack pulling up most of his weight so as not to unbalance her, since she was carrying the beer. They eventually made it to the deck, and Sam put the beer aside as he pulled open the two chairs for them.
Step Three, check! They were now together and alone in a suitable setting for an intimate conversation. “Thanks, Carter. That would have been impossible to do alone.”
Her eyes met his briefly, a little smile on her face as she opened one bottle and handed it to him. “With the beer, yes, absolutely!” she agreed. The twinkle in her eye told him she was too smart to be easily fooled, so he better come up with some explanations.
“What’s a lunar eclipse without beer? Special things go together sometimes. Tonight is one of those times,” he justified as he casually sat on his chair and started to adjust his telescope to the already darkening moon.
“Special things, huh?” Sam grinned, looking up at the moon.
“Sure. There’re a few very special things I happen to enjoy very much, beer and astronomy being two of them,” he chatted away.
“Uh-huh,” she answered pensively. “So, what other things?” she inquired, now looking at him as he busily adjusted the apparatus just so, looking up directly at the already darkening moon, then through the telescope alternately.
“What other things what?”
“What other things do you consider special?”
“Oh, well… I like to watch the Simpson’s on TV. That’s the best show ever!” he answered enthusiastically, making her smile wider and shake her head at him tolerantly.
“What else?” she prodded.
“I loooove cake! Especially chocolate cake!” he turned to give her a rare, childish smile… and their eyes locked. God, he could drown in those eyes so easily! They looked especially large and soft reflecting the moon in them.
Jack only realized that he’d been staring at her when he saw her gradually lose the smile, then swallow hard, still looking back at him. He forced himself to continue, “Then there are more important special things,” he paused. “Like… good… friends,” he ventured hesitantly.
“Really?” she asked distractedly, and he could swear that she was staring at his mouth.
“Really,” he confirmed. “And… you’re a good friend, so…”
“Am I?” she asked, her eyes returning to his eyes with a look of surprise.
“Yes. You are. You’re more than just my captain, Samantha. You’re also a good friend. A very special friend that has already saved my life a few times. And I don’t think I’ve ever properly thanked you for that.”
“Oh! There’s no need, Sir. I’m glad to save your six anytime,” she teased, looking away coyly, as if suddenly aware that she’d been staring at him hungrily. Or maybe it had been the use of her full name that had made her suddenly uncomfortable.
He had to tread carefully. He didn’t want to insult her or creep her out. He just wanted to let her know that he felt for her what he believed she might feel for him. “Sam?” he called nervously, making her look at him with an expectant look on her face.
“Yes, Sir?” she answered, and her words were almost like a caress.
“I lied,” he admitted slowly, dragging out the two words.
She tilted her head endearingly, looking up at him in puzzlement. “About what, Sir?”
Jack looked up at his accomplice, the moon, and admitted, “It… wasn’t… my sidearm.” He grimaced, waiting for her to react and hoping it would be in a good way.
When she didn’t respond, he sighed in disappointment and lowered his gaze, not daring to look at her. “I’m sorry,” he almost whispered.
“There’s no need to feel sorry… about anything,” she gently responded, making him turn to her hopefully.
“No?” he asked earnestly.
“No,” she shook her head with a little smile on her beautiful lips.
“Are you okay with that? I mean, you’re not… insulted or anything? It really was an involuntary response; I couldn’t help it,” he tried to explain, sounding very vulnerable for a tough, hardened Air Force colonel.
“You mean… you didn’t… mean it?” she asked, eyes wide and alarmed disappointment on her face.
“No, of course I did! I…” Jack narrowed his eyes at her, realizing that she was playing with him. “Carter…” he said warningly.
“Then I guess I’m okay with that,” she grinned, and her amused smile warmed up his insides, which had gone suddenly cold with momentary dread.
“You are?” he smiled in return. He didn’t know what he had expected. He’d tried very hard not to imagine her response. But her ready admission still amazed him.
“Yes, Sir, very okay with that,” she admitted, intently looking up at the moon. Jack couldn’t tell under the dim illumination of the night, but he thought she might be blushing.
“Does that mean…” he gently prodded.
“Yes, Sir. Me, too,” she nodded, still looking up at the moon, avoiding his eager eyes.
Jack openly grinned, looking at her tenderly. “Sweet.” ‘ALL RIGHT! Step Four: CHECK!!!’ he thought, absolutely elated.
“And I already knew that it wasn’t your sidearm,” she added teasingly, still not looking at him.
“You did?” He’d suspected as much, of course.
“Oh, yeah!” she nodded, a definitely embarrassed look on her face, but still smiling.
“Cool.” He was reduced to monosyllabic words. And he was now dying to kiss her, but that far he could not go.
“But there’s nothing we can do about it right now, Sir. We can’t,” she regretfully said, suddenly serious and echoing his thoughts.
“I know. I didn’t mean to put pressure on you or anything. I just… needed you to know,” he tried to awkwardly explain.
“Thank you, Sir. It’s good to know I’m not alone in this,” she finally looked at him, her smile back, but looking a little sad nonetheless.
“You’re definitely not alone, Carter. I’ll be there every step of the way… always,” he softly promised, his dark eyes holding hers and promising much more.
“That makes me feel better,” she quietly admitted.
“Someday,” he pledged.
“Yes, Sir. Someday,” she agreed, and he had to restrain himself from reaching over and touching her.
“Until then, we can still share special things,” he playfully suggested, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes.
Sam nodded, clearly unable to say anything else but still smiling at him.
“We still have this eclipse, cold beer and… a special friend to share them with,” he bantered affectionately.
“Yes, Sir,” she managed to say. And he couldn’t help himself. He reached for her hand, which willingly came into his. He held it firmly as they stared at each other longingly for long moments. Then he brought it up to his lips for a soft, brief kiss, and let it go.
Reaching over, he picked up and offered her a beer. She smiled at him, took it from his hand, and opened it.
Then they finally paid attention to the special event of the evening, both still thinking of someday.
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 ]