Title: Her Father, The Gambler?

Author: em

Email: em_the_gem@sbcglobal.net, beatrice51398@yahoo.com

Status: Complete. Sequel to `His Favorite T-shirt,' and `Her Favorite Time of Day.' More to come, if I can find the time!!

Category: S/J inferred romance, Sam and Jacob conversation, short

Rating: PG-13 (itty bitty language, some innuendo, nothing too harmful)

Summary: She was expecting a lot of different reactions from her dad when she told him the news, but this wasn't one of them…

Spoilers: I dunno. To'kra stuff. Random S/J inside jokes alluding to anything in seasons 1-7. Mark Carter reference.

Archive: SJD, yes – anybody else, just ask

Disclaimer: Sam and Jack and Co. sadly belong to MGM, Gekko Corp and Double Secret – evidence of this can be found in the fact that after 7 seasons, these two people still aren't together. If I owned them, they would have been married by season 2. They'd have six kids by now. Yeah. No money was made, no copyright infringement meant, yada yada yada.

Notes: Erica rocks. She has faithfully beta'd this entire series, and helped me fine-tune yet another ending. She is also something of an amateur botanist (aka, she knows the correct spelling of `ficus' – an invaluable beta'ing talent!!) He, he… Thanks again, E!!! :)

Feedback: This part makes me giggle. If it makes you giggle, too, send me some feedback, and we can giggle in unison. ;>

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"So, Sam, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?" Jacob inquired with a solemn questioning gaze at his daughter, now that they had gotten past the small talk about the SGC, SG-1, and the current health of her brother Mark and his family.

Sam took a deep breath and glanced around his `office,' which was basically just another hole in the rock with two gray chairs and a clear table with a smattering of multi-colored To'kra doohickeys. Wait, did she just think the word `doohickey?' Sam smiled inwardly at how Jack would laugh when she told him just how much he was rubbing off on her.

"You know, next time I visit I should bring you a Ficus or something. Add some color," she teased, her voice betraying the nervousness she felt deep in the pit of her stomach.

"Come on, Sam. I know you didn't take an afternoon off from saving the world to help me redecorate my office," he said with a slightly sarcastic tone, his eyebrows furrowing. "Out with it."

Sam looked up from her fingers, which she suddenly realized she had been staring at for the past few moments. "Sorry, Dad. This is… kind of awkward…"

Jacob took a step back, amusement filling his features as he sat on the edge of his desk. He said nothing, but patiently stared at his daughter, waiting for her to continue.

She sprang up from the chair she had been sitting in – the nervous energy she had stored up all morning was beginning to drive her crazy, and she felt as if moving around might help a bit. "You know how you keep telling me that I should get out more, make friends outside of the SGC, date a guy who isn't an alien or a psychopath?" Sam said quickly without looking at her father.

Jacob nodded almost imperceptibly. "Not in those exact words, but yeah, that's the general idea…" he said, his sharp brown eyes squinting slightly as he regarded his fidgety daughter. He reached out a hand and stopped her pacing. "Sam! Get a hold of yourself…" he said, gesturing for her to sit once more. "What ever it is, it can't be nearly as bad as you…"

"Colonel O'Neill and I are together," she blurted suddenly, interrupting her father's calm reassurance. Her eyes widened as she realized what she had said, and she inhaled sharply as she saw the shock register on his face.

Jacob Carter took a deep breath and sat once more on the edge of his desk, his eyes narrowing as he examined Sam's face. "Together *how*? Be more specific, please," he said calmly.

"More specific?" Sam asked in disbelief, finding his sedate reaction more than a little puzzling. "Dad, I hardly think…"

"Together *how*?" Jacob repeated, his voice becoming agitated. "What, you just woke up one morning and thought, `hey, that CO of mine is quite dishy, I think I'll hook up with him?' " he asked, standing up and starting to pace behind his desk, not looking at his daughter. "Or maybe you two were struck with some alien virus that made you want to make out with him? Or you got sick of coming alone to Mark's house on Christmas and thought Jack would make a nice conversation piece? Or *maybe*…"

Sam stood up from her chair, her eyes steely. "That's none of your damn business, and you know it!" she growled, her words stopping Jacob in his tracks.

The older man turned around, his eyes softening considerably as he gazed at his daughter. "Oh, Sam, I'm sorry, I…"

Sam shook her head and swallowed, forcing down the horrible tingling that always happened when she was about to cry. "Jeez, Dad! Why couldn't you just ask me if I'm happy, and leave it at that? Or, hell, yell at me for waiting so long to tell the man how I felt!" she exhaled loudly, trying to regain her composure.

"Sam, honey…" Jacob said softly as he walked over to her side and put a hand on her shoulder.

She looked up from the ground and met his eyes. "What?" she asked, sounding very much like the petulant teenager she once was.

"What took you so long?" he said with a smile, his eyes twinkling. Sam raised an eyebrow at him. "Excuse me?"

Jacob laughed a large, full-blown laugh and hugged his daughter close. "You'll never believe this…" he began, pulling back from the hug and holding her shoulders with his hands. "But I really thought you'd gotten over him. I knew you were in love with him a few years ago…"

"You did?!?" Sam exclaimed, remembering the point at which when she realized her feelings for Jack. It was a few years ago, all right.

"Sure, we all did," Jacob said, as if this was the most normal answer in the world. "For awhile there, we even thought maybe you were already together, but just keeping it a secret…"

"We? *All*?" Sam choked, trying to get her mind around this new information.

"Hm…" Jacob murmured, dropping his hands from his daughter's shoulders and smiling mischievously. "Don't want to say too much. Let's just say Selmac won the bet. Looks like I'll be writing the memos for awhile…" he laughed, shaking his head.

"So, you're… okay… with this…" Sam said slowly, making sure she wasn't imagining this conversation.

"Okay with it?" Jacob asked, amused. "Sam, if you would have gotten together with Jack two years ago, I would have won the bet. I figure you're overdue for some happiness, sweetheart," he said with a fatherly smile. "Of course, I am a little concerned for your careers… Have you told George yet?" he asked.

"That's what Jack's doing right now…" Sam answered, leaning back in her chair.

"Ah… I take it Jack lost the toss?" Jacob teased.

Sam shook her head and laughed. "Are you kidding? *I* lost the toss, Dad!"

Jacob grinned and nodded, as if he already expected her retort. "Yeah… Actually, I figured as much."

"You did *not*," she argued playfully.

"Sure I did! Sam, I know the kind of trepidation that fills your heart when you're about to tell a father you want to marry his daughter… I don't blame Jack for sending you instead…"

"Marry? Nobody said anything about us getting married, Dad," Sam rebuked, her eyes wide as she thought how handsome Jack would look in a tux, standing there at the alter, waiting for her and her father to walk down the isle... Sam sighed, then looked back up at her dad. "Anyway, we haven't even kissed yet," she murmured with a small grin, color rushing to her cheeks.

"Oh really? May I ask why?" Jacob said, one eyebrow arching dangerously high on his forehead.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you've been a To'kra so long that you completely forgot about frat regs…" she chided.

"So, what… you started dating but kept the physical relationship completely clean, is that what you're telling me?" Jacob asked, obviously impressed. "After all those years of loving each other?"

Sam felt the smile forming on her lips as she heard her father's words. All those years of loving each other… Yep, she definitely needed to finish up this conversation with her dad and get back to the SGC. She and Jack had some major lost time to make up for. "Yeah, though technically we weren't really dating. Just kind of… hanging out. We never really did that, before."

Jacob exhaled loudly, a kind of low whistle escaping his lips. "So do you mind my asking… How did it happen? What changed your minds?" Jacob asked, the excitement apparent in his voice. "Off world mission gone bad? Somebody on base asked you out and Jack finally got a clue? What?"

Sam giggled at his enthusiasm as she got up out of her chair. "Well, I…" she said, drawing out the last word just to irk him.

"Come on, humble an old man with no love life, will ya?" he joked, nudging his daughter as the two of them walked out of his office. "Besides," Jacob said casually as they made their way towards the To'kra kitchen facility, "I've got a bet with Selmac on that, too…"

Sam punched her dad lightly on the arm. "You're pathetic, you know that?" she said as they passed a few To'kra scientists she recognized. "Well, it was pretty simple, really…" she continued as they neared the dining area. "It just kind of happened. We were sitting in my lab talking as usual – he was breaking things, I was scolding him – and then all of the sudden he was asking me to go see this movie with him. I asked if Teal'c and Daniel were going, and he said `no, but would that be so bad?' with this adorable smile…" she said, trailing off as the stupid grin she had been fighting all week returned.

Jacob chuckled, then shook his head. "The `ol O'Neill charm finally got the best of you…"

Sam shrugged, her eyes sparkling. "I couldn't hold out forever, Dad."

Jacob nodded. "No, I suppose not…" he said as they turned into the dining area. "But I'll tell you one thing, Sam."

His daughter turned and looked questioningly at him. "What's that?"

"I would give my right arm to see George when Jack tells him about you two," Jacob answered, his eyes mischievous.

"Oh, me too, Dad. But I think Jack will have it pretty easy…" Sam said, grabbing a plate and blanching slightly at the sight of the horribly tasteless To'kra food. Yep, she definitely needed to get back to the SGC. Maybe she would be lucky enough to catch Jack just as he came out of the General's office. Maybe she would make up some kind of problem, and say that she needed him to come to her lab right away. Maybe she could finally use that big desk for something *other* than work… Oh, this was going to be a *very* good day.

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