DC Meeting
Mandarax

Rated K

Summary – While waiting for Jack to show up, Sam bumps into someone from his past.

Disclaimer – still don't own them.

Author's Note – I've been reading a bunch of "Sam/Jack meets someone from their past and show off." I had to write one. Same story, three POVs.

**

Chapter 1 - Sam's POV

I hate when he's late. I really do. He's made a reservation at a fancy-shmancy restaurant for lunch for us because we already had dinner plans. We decided to meet at the corner of 15th Street North and Pennsylvania Avenue, just a few feet away from the restaurant. But, he's late. I know it's most likely not his fault, he's coming from some important meeting with the joint chiefs, or senators, or congressmen, maybe even the President himself.

But he's late. I cross my arms in front of me and glance at my watch. Tapping my foot down on the concrete, I glance down Penn Ave again.

"Excuse me, ma'am?" A voice behind me says. "Do you know how I can get to Potbelly's?"

I turn around to look at the woman, racking my head to remember where Potbelly's is. But no, no idea. "No, sorry," I answer.

I look at the woman again and she looks so familiar, it's like her name is on the tip of my tongue. And by the way she looks at me she recognizes me to.

"Captain Carter," the woman says, and the other shoe drops.

"It's Lt. Colonel these days," I correct her. "It's nice to see you again, Mrs. O'Neill."

What are the chances that I would meet Jack's ex wife in the middle of DC, a few blocks away from the White House? We've both been living in Colorado Springs for the past few years, and I've only seen her once in person, a few months after SG-1 was created, and in a few pictures at Jack's place. The only one left these days is the one of the two of them and Charlie; the others were replaced by pictures of us. What were the chances I would bump into the other Mrs. O'Neill in DC of all places.

"Please, call me Sara," she says.

I try to smile, but this is so awkward. So uncomfortable. So unpleasant.

"So how have you been, Colonel?"

I hope the smile I give her doesn't appear as weak as I feel it does. "Pretty good, and you?"

She nods at me. "Ah, okay. I'm supposed to meet a friend for lunch but he's running late."

At least she's as uncomfortable as I am.

This time when I smile at her, it's real. "Actually, so's mine."

She's fidgeting, and I know she wants to ask about Jack but she doesn't know how to bring him up.

"So when did you transfer to DC?"

I shake my head. "Oh, I haven't. I'm still stationed in Colorado Springs; I just have a few meetings at the Pentagon."

She half smiles at me, "Oh."

I try to ease her into what she wants to know, just to get this conversation over with. To get her to walk away. "What about you? General O'Neill didn't tell me you moved to DC."

"Jack's made General?"

I assumed she'd known. "Yes, a couple of years ago."

"I - I didn't know. We don't talk much."

I always thought Jack still kept in touch with her. We never talk about it; there was never anything to talk about it. I'm not the jealous type, I don't care if he's talking to her or not.

"Oh."

If he'd been here, where the hell is he, he'd have said something like 'Awkward'.

But I can hear his footsteps behind me, and I let relief flood me.

"Sam! I'm sorry. The Big Honcho and his group of merry men wouldn't let m get away. They want to start using the S-"

I turn around to look at him, standing next to Sara so he can see I'm not exactly alone.

I almost laugh when he stops in mid-step. He's doing a pretty good impression of a fish.

I only bite my lower lip. I let her make the first move, and I can hear her inhale.

"Hi, Jack."

I smile at him and I hope he can read in my eyes that everything's alright and he can come closer. I can see him inhale, steeling himself for the conversation and then he moves closer.

"Sara," he says.

"Colonel Carter didn't say she was meeting you."

I meet his gaze and shrug.

"Who did she say she was meeting?" he asks.

Sara's looking between him and me; she's trying to figure out what's going on here. "A friend."

He leans in to kiss me, not exactly on the mouth, not exactly on my cheek, just the corner of my mouth. I smile at him when he pulls back. I can tell Sara's confused. She's lived military life long enough to know that if he's in DC and I'm in Colorado Springs we're not directly in the same chain of command. I can tell she's trying to figure out what we are now.

"It's nice to see you again, Jack," she tells him.

For some reason I have an urge to hold his hand.

"What'cha doing in DC? Come to pass a law? Create a new amendment?" Jack asks her, and I'm not sure if he's being sincere or just plain sarcastic.

"No, nothing like that. Just visiting Mike."

"The bill of rights is safe, then. How's your father? Mike?"

"Dad's good. Mike got married a couple of months ago."

I feel like I'm invading a personal conversation these two should be having without an audience.

He's laughing. "Again?"

She's just nodding, like this is a usual occurrence, her brother getting married.

"Is this one any better?" Jack asks her.

I don't have to actually listen to them, I can just look at him, in his crisp uniform and his hat, the shiny black shoes, he's taken the sun glasses off, and he's holding them in his hand. He's looking at me now and I can tell by his gaze that he's sorry, this isn't what he expected for our lunch break.

"Yes, she's actually a nice girl. A doctor."

His attention is back on Sara. "You always wanted a doctor in the family."

I shift my weight from one foot to the other, taking a step closer to Jack in the process. He's going to have a Doctor in his family pretty soon. Granted, not a people doctor, but a two PhDs in sciences doctor. Somehow that makes me feel better and I don't know why.

"I hope this one lasts longer," he tells her.

"Sara's brother changes wives like dirty socks."

He's talking to me; he's trying to include me in the conversation.

Not that I really care for her brother. "Oh."

I can tell Sara doesn't particularly like the way he's looking at me, like he's a piece of meat that belongs to her and I'm stealing. She's gesturing to his jacket. "How about you? Colonel Carter told me about your promotion. Congratulations."

"Thanks. It's a desk-job. You know how I am with those." He makes me smile, the way he casually disregards his new prestigious job.

"He gets bored easily," I tell her.

Jack's smiling at me, and he's pleased that he managed to steer the conversation back to familiar grounds.

"Yes, I remember," she says, kind of snappish.

"They try to keep me grounded by having President Heyes talk too much, but that doesn't help much," he says.

Her eyes are so wide, she's surprised. It's like all that time they were together she didn't know just how good a soldier and officer he really is. Like it surprises her he can get to such high places.

"President Heyes? You've met him?"

"Ah, yes, he's my CO these days."

God, I love seeing him blush.

"Oh, wow. I'm guessing you still can't talk about work?"

He's bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Still need to know. Now more than ever. Sorry."

He once told me things weren't great between them before Charlie, and now I know why. He was away for days and weeks at a time on some op, and when he came back he could never tell her anything about it. Nothing, except for Charlie. And once Charlie was gone…

"Actually, Sam," He calls my name and I look at him, "he's excited about dinner tonight."

He's showing me off! I can feel the blood rush to my face. "It's just a pizza over satellite readings, Sir."

And she turns to look at me, interested in what I have to say for the first time since he joined us. She even looks impressed. "You're having pizza in the oval office?"

I nod, "One of those meetings I was telling you about."

"Oh." Then, just as quickly as the attention was turned to me, it's back to him. "So you left Colorado Springs?"

"Yep. I got an apartment in Georgetown."

I glance down at my watch; we're 20 minutes late for our lunch reservations. There's no way we're going to make it in time for the 1400 hours meeting. "Sir."

"Mike lives in DC too now. You should give him a call."

Why would he want to talk to his ex-wife's brother?

Jack just shrugs. "Maybe." I know his 'maybes'. They generally mean no.

I have to remind him again. "Sir, we need to go."

"He's near Norfolk. I'll give you his phone number." She's actually looking for her mobile phone in her purse. She really doesn't know how to read him anymore. I wonder if she ever did.

"Sir."

Jack shakes his head; he really doesn't want the number. "I think I still have it."

"Oh. Okay." Sara gives up the search.

"Jack!"

They're both looking at me now, and I give Jack a pointed look again.

He's still looking at me. "Right, sorry, Sara. We need to go."

She's looking between us now and I can tell she's wondering what exactly is going on.

"I should probably go meet my… friend… too."

We both smile at her now.

"It was nice seeing you again," I tell her.

"Yes, you too, Colonel Carter, Jack." Sara says.

She turns around and walks away just as he pulls me into him arms. He kisses me, one of those has his apology for being late and all his excuses in them.

"Sorry about that," he says.

"S'okay," I tell him.

"I thought you said you weren't the jealous type," he's grinning at me.

"I never used to be," I tell him.

His hand slips into mine and he's leading us to the restaurant.

"Sweet."