Sigh. Well, I am officially embarrassed by the cheese factor of this story but the wedding spot has been an idea that I'd kind of laid aside but thought about for a while. I'd always imagined a really really small wedding for them so I don't know how this hulabaloo came about but it all kind of spilled out in one night.
There are two or three parts of scenes that I know I got the idea from different stories that I'd read on here ages ago and I would name who they are and what parts if I could remember but I can't. So if a line is super similar to something you've written, then it's you! lol. I hope no one gets offended by that cuz I'm not trying to be a plagiarist or anything but I write these more for me than anything else and I thought the line went well in the story and it took me to my shippy place so I kept it in.
Oh, and I'm really not kidding about the cheese factor. It's like a 27 on a scale of 1 to 10. (shakes head)
Jack blinked open his eyes and smiled. Sam lay asleep on the other pillow, the morning light from the window washing over her face. Her hair was ruffled from sleep and his inability to keep his hands out of it last night. She'd started growing her hair out and it was just past her shoulders now. After ten years of seeing her with short hair, Jack still wasn't used to her new look.
He liked it. Alot. Not that he hadn't liked her short hair. Hell, Samantha Carter could be bald and she'd still be the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. But Jack found that the longer her hair the more he could run his fingers through it. Which was quickly becoming one of his favorite things to do. She wore it in a braid alot of times at work. One which he couldn't seem to stop himself from giving a tug just to tease her. Daniel said it was childish. Jack didn't really care. She knew what she was getting into when she agreed to marry him.
Marry him. They were doing that today. Jack couldn't stop the grin that spread across his face at that thought. Scooting closer to her in bed, Jack wrapped an arm around her middle, drawing lazy patterns on her back. Sam smiled in her sleep and nuzzled into his neck with a sigh. That was her spot. She'd claimed it. Marked it as hers enough times as well.
He knew she was waking up when her nose twitched just slightly. Not quite a full Bewitched moment but close. She did it every time. And the funny thing is she didn't even realize she did it.
"Morning," he greeted her gravelly.
Sam blinked open her eyes at him and stretched. Placing her hands on his chest, she asked, "How do you do that?"
"Do what?," he asked innocently.
"Know the second I wake up?"
He shrugged and distracted her by kissing her. He couldn't very well tell her all his secrets, now could he?
Distractions were a great thing. Especially, Jack decided, when they involved Sam's mouth.
"Good morni...," followed by a loud gasp and a shrieked, "JACK! What are you doing here?" interrupted what was turning out to be a great morning.
Jack looked up at Cassie standing in the doorway, her hands on hips and if he looked down he just knew her foot would be tapping.
"I live here, Cass."
"Yes, and I kicked you out last night! You're supposed to be at Daniel's."
Jack glanced down at his arms still full of Sam Carter ...soon to be O'Neill, and said, "But here is so much more fun."
"Okay. For one, just ew and way too much information. And two, you're getting married today. You're not supposed to see Sam before the wedding. Which is why you were sent to Daniel's in the first place! Sam..." Cassie implored upon the woman's help.
Sam just giggled and climbed out of bed, much to the chagrin of her future husband.
Rolling over on his back and raising a lone eyebrow, Jack faced Cassie and said, "Ya know, for an alien, you sure are taking Earth's wedding rituals seriously."
Cassie huffed and then turned a glare reminiscent of one Janet Fraiser on her honorary uncle. "How exactly did you sneak in here anyway?"
"I have a key, Cassandra dear."
"I took away your key, remember?"
"I didn't say it was my key."
Cassie gasped. "Why that little, ...Daniel gave you his key?!"
"Not so much gave as unknowingly let me borrow."
It was at that moment that Jack realized that he was being grilled by a twenty-one year old. Admittedly, Cassie was scary when she was in 'wedding mode' as he'd come to discover. Lord help them when she got married. And when the tapping of her foot became audible, Jack realized something else. Sam had deserted him to deal with 'wedding mode' Cassie all by himself. Traitor.
"Jack," she said, looking at her watch, "you have ten minutes ...no, five minutes to get out of this house before I call Teal'c."
That was not a threat to take lightly. The aliens had banded together against them and Teal'c had become Cassie's sort of number one hit man these past few months. Sighing, Jack rose from the bed, wondering not for the first time, why Cassie felt that a couple already living in sin needed to spend the night before their wedding in separate beds.
She narrowed her eyes at him as if reading his blasphemous thoughts. Sometimes Jack really did wonder if she could read his mind. And he was man enough to admit that Cassie's glare cowered him a bit. She lifted one hand and pointed at the door. Bowing his head in defeat, Jack walked out of the bedroom grumbling about power mongers. With a goodbye kiss to Sam that he might have gotten a little carried away with (hey, he was getting married today he was allowed to be sappy), he took his leave, meeting an excited Vala on the front steps.
"Ooh, I bet your in trouble, aren't you?"
"Barely got out of their alive," he agreed melodramatically.
Jack made it back to Daniel's apartment just as the Space Monkey was taking his first sip of coffee. Daniel blinked at him, glanced at his disheveled couch, and looked back at Jack in slight confusion. A dim light began to appear in Daniel's eyes and he asked, "How long did you last?"
Not even pretending to misunderstand, Jack answered, "About twenty minutes."
"Damn."
Jack raised an eyebrow.
Daniel frowned petulantly into his coffee cup. "I gave you an hour."
Jack chuckled. "Teal'c?"
Daniel narrowed his eyes as if Teal'c could feel his glare from miles away. "He said fifteen minutes."
Setting his coat on the couch, Jack said, "You should really know by now to not bet against Teal'c. You always lose."
Daniel handed Jack a cup of coffee. "Yeah, but the odds of that are just ...phenominal. It's not right. I swear he cheats."
Jack snorted. "Well I'm off to shower. You still picking up the tuxes?"
Daniel looked at his watch. "Yeah, I'm supposed to go get them in an hour."
Jack looked at himself in the full length mirror in Daniel's room. The tux was on and he didn't look too shabby if he said so himself. Of course his hair refused to cooperate into any semblance of order but what else was knew. And his face ...well, his face was old. God, he thought, when did I get so old? Here he was getting married at fifty-four.
There was a knock at the door and Daniel being Daniel, he walked in before Jack could respond.
Jack looked at the archaeologist in the mirror reflection. "Daniel," Jack asked patiently, "...what are you doing?"
"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm filming you."
"Why?," Jack asked, again with what he thought was rather remarkable patience on his part.
"It's your wedding day." Of this Jack was pretty sure he had been aware of. "And so Sam and your future kiddies can look back on this day and," Daniel paused, "...and in all honesty, I don't really know. Vala and Cassie told me I had to and Cassie got the look that she gets..."
"Say no more."
"So what were you thinking?"
"When?"
"When I came in?"
"I was thinking?"
Daniel rolled his eyes. "Yes, you were thinking. You were looking in the mirror and you looked all pensive."
"No, I didn't."
"Yes, you did."
"Didn't."
"Did."
"Didn't."
"Did."
Jack looked back in the mirror, staring at his reflection. "Honestly?"
"Yeah..."
"I was wondering if Sam was crazy."
Daniel was thrown. "Excuse me?"
Jack looked at Daniel and frowned at the sight of the camera. He looked back at the mirror, sighing minutely as he adjusted his tie. They'd had a tough time deciding whether Jack should where his blues or not. Jack had voted no. The last thing he wanted to where was the dreaded dress. Sam felt he was particularly alluring in his uniform and voted yes. Daniel added his viewpoint by stating that the Air Force had been the reason they were kept apart for so long so why have it be apart of their wedding. Vala put her two cents in against Daniel's comment by bringing out that it was the Air Force that brought them together in the first place. More opinions were sought. Cam sided with Jack, afraid that he'd be stuck on KP duty for the rest of his life if he disagreed with the General and Cassie agreed with Sam that Jack looked rather dashing in uniform. Teal'c firmly refused to be the deciding vote one way or the other. In the end, they'd decided on tuxes since Daniel was the best man and according to Vala, the black of Daniel's tux would "clash horribly" with Jack's dress blues.
Jack looked back in the mirror at Daniel. He was looking expectantly. Right, Daniel had just said something, hadn't he?
Jack grimaced a little and shrugged his shoulders. "I just hope she doesn't regret this is all."
Daniel shook his head and grinned. "Jack, Sam's been stuck on you for ten years. And this is knowing what a nut you are. I don't think she's going anywhere."
"Gee, thanks."
Daniel continued grinning gleefully. "You're welcome." Turning serious, Daniel said, "Sam loves you, Jack."
Jack's eyes were on the mirror but the small smile on his face and far off look in his eyes gave away that his thoughts were elsewhere ...thinking mainly about this past year with Sam. "Yeah, she does," he agreed. Clapping his hands together and turning to Daniel, Jack asked, "So? Time to start yet?"
"Uhh..." the camera shifted and jolted as Daniel looked at his watch. "Yeah, it will take about fifteen minutes to get down there so yeah, we should head out."
There was a gasp behind the camera as Sam stepped out of bathroom into the bedroom. "Samantha! You look gorgeous!"
Sam bit her bottom lip and asked nervously, "Really?"
"Darling, Jack isn't going to know what hit him when those doors open to reveal you in that dress," Vala told her seriously.
Sam smiled her mega-watt smile and her eyes started to shine with tears against her will. Another voice from behind the camera said, "No no no. You can't cry now. You have mascara on and you'll melt." Said voice popped in front of the camera with tissue, seemingly not taking her own advice as she dabbed at her own eyes.
Cassie smiled tremulously, handing Sam the tissue. "You really do you look beautiful, Sam. You're gonna take Uncle Jack's breath away."
Not caring what it might do to her perfectly done curls, Sam pulled Cassie into a hug. "Thank you, Cass. For everything."
Cassie squeezed her back. "Mom would have loved to be here. She always hoped you two would get together."
The tears formed again for completely different reasons now. Sam let Cassie go and looked into the younger woman's eyes. "Oh, Cass."
Both wiping their eyes, Sam turned towards the camera. "Thank you too, Vala. I don't know what I would have done without all your help."
Vala smiled softly. "I wouldn't have missed one moment of this, Samantha."
The camera scanned over the crowd as they all headed to their seats. There was a sea of blue uniforms, members of the SGC celebrating the joining of two of their best as much as the rest of them. Cam wasn't wearing his blue's today since he had the role of groomsman to fill but he was okay with that. He'd been so honored that the General would ask that he'd practically not been able to answer the man for a full minute. Several other non military members of the SGC were present as well, scientists that had worked close with Sam over the years on various projects. Originally, the wedding was going to be quite small. Only a handful of friends and family up at the cabin. Jack and Sam didn't really want to publicize their marriage, preferring to keep private things private. Especially in regards to the Air Force. Somehow, no one was really sure how still, word was leaked to the SGC and soon, Sam was being overwhelmed by congratulations on her upcoming marriage and there was no hiding it. Seeing as everyone knew anyway, Jack and Sam changed their plans and booked a resort on a far part of Cheyenne Mountain, which they thought was fitting since it was under that mountain that they had met and fallen in love.
The wedding was outdoors and thankfully, the weather perfect. The view from the mountain was spectacular and the resort itself looked like a large lodge, fitting in perfectly with the landscape with its dark wood and stone walls. The outdoor area they were having the wedding was right off the main lobby of the resort, with space enough for all their guests and off to the right, a reception area with round tables covered in long white tablecloths and black iron chairs. Four-globed black iron 'street lamps' outlined the reception area, giving the feel of having been sent back in time. Cameron scanned the whole area with the camera and paused on the window by the double doors from the lobby.
The blinds fluttered again. "Hey, Jackson. Look. We're being watched."
Daniel furrowed his brows and looked over the crowd. "What?"
Zooming in the camera to see the giggling faces more closely, Cameron stated, "11 o'clock."
Daniel and Jack both looked in said direction, only to catch the blinds snapping closed once more.
The doors were just in front of her now. On the other side would be her future. Well, that didn't sound dramatic at all, Sam told herself. If they didn't hurry up, she was going to open the doors herself and sprint down the aisle. Sam had always thought she would be extremely nervous on her wedding day. Butterflies fluttering away in her stomach. And they were, a little. But she was so ready for this. So ready to be Samantha O'Neill. Not that the man would ever stop calling her Carter. He'd tried. Supposedly. And to his credit, he did call her Sam more often than Carter anymore. His forever name for her seemed to slip out at random moments. When he was tired especially. Sometimes when they were having a fight and he slipped into his 'authoritory military' role without even realizing it. And sometimes in bed right before he lost himself completely to her.
Vala and Cassie were whispering by the window. "What are you two doing?"
"Peeking," was Cassie's only reply.
Unable to contain her own curiosity and wanting to see what Jack looked like, Sam made her way over and parted the blinds to 'peek' out.
"Look how cute he is," Sam couldn't stop herself from gushing aloud. She could see that his hair was adorably ruffled all the way from here, no doubt having run his fingers through it countless times to relieve some of his nervous energy. Jack and Daniel were talking and Cameron was waving a camera around. The camera stopped, focusing on their window.
"Uh-oh," Cassie stated, releasing her fingers from the blinds. "I think we've been spotted."
"What?," Vala and Sam both said, looking at the three men standing up at the front who were all now staring at them. Both women gasped and instantly released the blinds so that they snapped back in position. And then realizing how silly they all looked gaping out the window like giggly girls, they all laughed out loud.
Teal'c entered through the double doors, taking in the womens' appearances.
"Colonel Carter, you are unceasingly beautiful this day."
Sam smiled fondly at her long time friend. "Thank you, Teal'c."
Teal'c also commented on the beauty of Cassandra and Vala, earning a hug from Cassie and a large smile and a 'Not bad yourself, Muscles' from Vala.
Getting down to business, Teal'c stated, "They are ready to begin."
Music started to play, instantly shushing the crowd. The large dark brown french doors opened and Jack fidgeted on his feet. Cassie was the first person he saw and he smiled. Somewhere along the way Cassie had grown up without him really knowing it. The long strapless brown dress she wore made the orange flowers she carried stand out. Her hair was full of wavy ringlets, the top portion clipped back with just a few ringlets framing her face. Cassie had grown into a beautiful woman and Jack didn't doubt that one day too soon for his liking he'd be seeing her in a white dress of her own.
Vala came out next, a large smile on her face as she looked at everyone in the crowd. The doors closed behind her, signalling to everyone that the bride would come out next.
Jack's heart picked up speed double time and he stood completely still, eyes focused on the door.
Sam heard the music stop outside as they prepared to start the music she had selected for her wedding march. It was Irish, a touch to Jack's back round. Something she was surprising him with.
Teal'c took her hand and placed it through his arm. She had never seen her Jaffa friend look so honored as when she had asked him to walk her down the aisle in the absence of her father. And just like she had felt a pang of sadness so many times throughout the wedding process wishing her mother could have been there, this moment brought a moment of grief, wishing her father was here for her. He'd liked Jack, which was so utterly shocking in itself since he'd hated every boyfriend she'd ever had without fail, but then at the very end he'd practically given his blessing.
Teal'c distracted her from her train of thinking.
"Colonel Carter, I have informed O'Neill that there will be no place in which he could hide should he ever hurt you in any way."
After her brief shock at Teal'c's comment, Sam fairly grinned. "Thank you, Teal'c. I'll keep that in mind."
He tilted his head and gave her a solemn nod. And then that familiar Irish tune filtered through her ears and Sam knew it was finally time.
Irish bagpipes flowed through the speakers and Jack was surprised and touched that she had thought of it. But then the doors started to open and all coherent thought left his mind.
She was absolutely stunning. There was no other way to put it. The dress was ...wow. He didn't know much about dresses, being a man and all, but this one was strapless and accentuated Sam's femininity perfectly in every way. Her hair curled around her face and Jack's fingers actually twitched with the want to run them through her hair. His eyes locked with hers and maybe it was because he was pretty sure he must be smiling like an idiot but Sam smiled one of her smiles that she saved only for him.
Daniel grinned. "Breathe, Jack."
Right. Breathing was pretty important. Jack took a deep breath and smiled as he came face to face with Sam.
Teal'c placed Sam's hand in Jack's and took his place now as groomsman beside the other men of SG-1.
Jack looked at the beautiful woman before him and whispered, "Hi."
She smiled a large toothy smile and suppressed a giggle. "Hi," she whispered back.
"Ahem."
Both looked in the direction of the rumble of a voice and saw General Hammond's are-you-quite-through-now expression. Neither could help the slightly chastised looks that still came naturally upon receiving that look from the General.
"Sorry," Jack said, no longer whispering. "Go right ahead, General."
There were several chuckles from the crowd.
"Thank you, Jack," George said sarcastically but with a smile. Then turning serious, he started, "We are gathered here today..."
If Jack was honest with himself, he didn't really hear a word of what General Hammond said about the importance of marriage or what might have been said about him and Sam specifically. If he really wanted to know, Jack supposed he could watch the tape later. He was pretty sure Walter was filming. No, Jack was far too busy being lost in Sam's eyes. And the shape of her lips. And the dimple on her left cheek as she smiled. The feel of her hands in his and the softness of her fingers under his calloused thumbs. This was really happening. They'd finally made it here.
And when her eyes teared up as she said her vows, Jack noticed the way the blue deepened like pools of dark ocean water. When a tear fell, he lifted his hand and wiped it away, loving the way she leaned into his touch.
The words "I Do" passed her beautiful lips and Jack felt the same exact way as the first time he ever piloted his own plane.
"...pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss your bride."
Jack didn't need to be told twice. His lips found hers, reveling in the feel and taste of her like he always did. His fingers found their way into her hair like they'd been itching to do since she walked down the aisle and Jack smiled against her lips when the roaring in his ears finally registered as the cheers of all their friends and family.
Jack wrapped his arms around her from behind as Sam stood at the railing overlooking the view. They were under a secluded gazebo away from the group, taking a private moment. While the chairs from the wedding were being taken away to make room for a dance floor, Jack and Sam had had some wedding pictures taken and the photographer had just left to go back to the reception area.
"Hey gorgeous," he rumbled in her ear.
Sam smiled softly, a shiver running through her at his breath on her ear. "Hey yourself," she replied, covering his hands with her own.
They could hear a wordless melody playing in the distance and Jack began to sway them both. Sam turned in his arms, leaning back against the railing and wrapped her arms around his neck, just looking at him.
After a moment, Jack asked, "What?"
"Just looking at my amazingly handsome husband," she replied with a grin.
He smiled back at her. "Say it again."
Sam corked an eyebrow at him. "That you're amazingly handsome?"
"No," he said, though she caught his smirk as he leaned down and kissed along her neck. "The last part."
"Oh," she mumbled distractedly as he'd brought his tongue out to play on her pulse point. "You mean 'my husband'?"
He pulled back to look at her with heated eyes. "I really like the sound of that."
Her lips twitched as she pulled his head closer to hers. "Me too," she said right before his lips crashed with hers.
Sam pecked Jack's lips one last time, effectively ending their impromptu make-out session. He wore a very calculating expression on his face, one she'd seen on his face a million times. Although, Sam wasn't exactly used to seeing this expression outside a battle situation.
When his eyes finally settled on hers again, he said, "Ya know, we don't really have to go back. We could sneak away to the room and," his heated gaze looked up and down her body, "I could find out exactly what you've got on under this dress."
Sam quirked an eyebrow. "Who says I've got anything on under my dress?"
If possible, Jack's eyes got even darker. "You are such a tease," he accused.
"Am I?"
Jack narrowed his eyes before looking over her body again, as if he might suddenly gain x-ray vision to be able to see under her clothing. Sam released herself from his grip, heading back toward the reception before he could attack her again.
"Come on, Jack." And just as an added incentive for him, she added, "There will be cake."
Jack shook his head and muttered, "Evil evil woman."
"Dance with me?"
Sam smiled and took his hand for their first dance as husband and wife. It had taken them a surprisingly long time to find a song they both agreed to. Just two weeks ago, actually, was when they stumbled across the song that they both fell in love with. It was playful and kind of silly which is how Sam felt their relationship was in a lot of ways but at the core, it was deep and true to them.
And as the beat began to play, Sam happily lost herself in Jack's eyes.
If you are falling, then I would catch you
You need a light, I'd find a match
Cuz I love the way you say good morning
And you take me the way I am
If you are chilly, here take my sweater
Your head is aching, I'll make it better
Cuz I love the way you call me baby
And you take me the way I am
I'd buy you Rogaine when you start losing all your hair
Sow on patches to all you tear
Cuz I love you more than I could ever promise
And you take me the way I am
You take me the way I am
You take me the way I am
And that really said it all, didn't it? Jack had always accepted her the way she was. He'd never been in awe of her brain as so many people tended to do. And he wasn't the reverse either. He didn't despise her for it. For some strange reason that was beyond her, Jack found her geekiness cute. He was never threatened by Soldier Sam, he embraced and encouraged it. And when they'd started living together ...she'd been so terrified that Jack would see her, Samantha, and whatever pedestal he'd held her on all these years would come crashing down and he wouldn't want her anymore. But it hadn't happened. He'd taken Dr. Carter, Colonel Carter, and Samantha and loved them all.
And Jack? Well, it was just impossible for her not to be in love with him. She'd tried so many times to stop over the years and had always failed miserably. Everything about him either drove her crazy or wild and sometimes both. He was the biggest kid she knew, always reminding her that life is short. There was no need to waste it being serious all the time. He'd had a life full of so much pain and yet come out that much stronger in the end. Jack taught her everything she knew about command, about honor, and about The Simpsons. He knew her. She didn't even have to say a word sometimes and he'd know just what she needed. Yes, he was gruff and grouchy and maybe there was something wrong with her, but she found it adorable. And he let her love him. Totally and completely.
"Are you happy, Mrs. O'Neill?"
"Say it again."
He smiled cheekily. "Are you happy?"
She looked pointedly at him from the other side of the bed and leaned over to kiss him. Against his lips she said, "The other part."
"Mrs. O'Neill."
Sam closed her eyes and smiled, falling back on her pillow. Opening her eyes, she looked into Jack's amused brown ones and said, "Yes, Mrs. O'Neill is very happy."
Both eyebrows slowly crept up his forehead. "I can think of a certain Captain Carter who would be looking down on you shame-faced right now."
"Yes, well, Colonel Carter knows better now." Sam pulled Jack down over her, his face hovering above hers. "I can be Colonel Doctor Samantha Carter all I want for work and still come home and be Mrs. O'Neill for play."
Jack took on a mock serious thoughtful expression. "I like the sound of this 'play'. What exactly did you have in mind?"
"I dunno. I was kind of thinking Scrabble. What do you think?"
"Oh, I love Scrabble," he answered her cheeky comment in kind as he kissed the silly grin off her face.
Jack abruptly pulled back a few minutes later and kind of fell/hopped out of bed.
"Jack?"
"I've got a surprise."
Oh boy. With that man a surprise could mean anything. Sam couldn't help but giggle when she saw what he had in each hand.
In his left, a tub of blue jello. In his right, a tub of red.
"I pilfered them off the table before we left. And just so you know, I was winning."
"Sure you were." Her incredulousness came through crystal clear in her voice. Other than cake, the dessert options for the wedding were red or blue jello, a kind of private in-joke to all who knew them well enough to get it. Jack, of course, had made a bet of it claiming that the red jello would be waaay more popular than her silly blue jello which could obviously hold no contest next to the greatness that was his red jello. And since Sam could not stand by and let her blue jello be blasphemed against so outrageously, the bet was made and Daniel would let them know later who won.
"I was!," he continued, acting offended that she would think he was lying.
"Uh-huh."
Jack scoffed. "See if I bring you your tasteless blue jello ever again."
"Tasteless?!" Sam pushed him on his back and straddled the insolent man. "If it's so tasteless then tell me why is it you always try to sneak a bite of mine when you think I'm not looking?"
Sam did an admirable impression of Teal'c, egging him on to answer her with the power of her lone raised eyebrow. They both knew he only did it when he knew she saw but it would only keep being fun if he didn't admit to it.
His face took on a certain leering look and he sat up, bringing their faces close together. He looked at her lips and Sam licked them on instinct. "Because," he growled, "Then, I'd know what you'd taste like if I kissed you."
Well, if that didn't just make her skin ignite under his fingers. "Guess you don't have to wonder anymore."
He grinned. "No. I guess not."
And then he kissed her.