Good Plan
Spacegypsgy1
~0o0~
Plans often go in the direction you never anticipated. D/V.
~0o0~
"Where did you get all this…junk?"
"It's not junk, Daniel. Carolyn took me to a thrift store; she said that's how she furnished her very first apartment."
"Jackson, you live in and work in a tomb of antiquities. This is cool stuff, not junk. It's history. It's mid-century modern meets the eighties."
Cam and Daniel lowered the heavy dresser to the floor, both standing up and rubbing their backs.
"That thing weighs a ton!" Scowling, Daniel pointed at the solid wood fifties credenza Vala had purchased at the Goodwill Outlet. He walked to the window and looked out into the alley below. "I'm still not sure about this neighborhood. Seems a little seedy."
Peering out the window over Daniel's shoulder, Cam nodded in agreement.
Giving the two men a disgusted look Vala joined them. "Darling, I appreciate the concern, but it's in the college district. It's safe and it's all I can afford. And since you won't let me live with you," she said, grinning behind Daniel's back at Cam "and I'm tired of always being left on the base, it's what I have. It will be all your fault if something happens to me."
Daniel was still frowning. "Both Sam and Carolyn offered to let you to move in with them."
"I don't want to live with anyone but you." Daniel pierced her with a one eyed glare and she caught Cam's nervous grimace as he took a step back. "And since you won't have me, I want my own place. It's very cozy here."
She looked around the tiny living room with the small kitchen tucked up in an alcove, then to the door of the small bedroom and grinned.
Shaking his head in exasperation, Daniel headed for the front door.
Vala raised her shoulders with a widening grin towards Cam who looked decidedly uncomfortable with the whole thing. He rushed to catch up with Daniel, stepping aside when Carolyn entered carrying a tiny box.
Obviously out of breath from the climb up three flights of stairs, Carolyn huffed. "This is why I told you to take the other apartment. At least it had an elevator."
"It was only a studio. This one is bigger. It has a separate bedroom." Taking the box from Carolyn, Vala placed it on the credenza. "Where's Samantha?"
"Oh! I forgot. She's stuck half in and half out the downstairs entry door with your mattress." Carolyn sat on the edge of the only piece of furniture, next to the box, as Daniel and Cam rushed down the stairs.
Mouth twisted in a wry grin, Vala sat beside Carolyn, legs swinging. "She's not really stuck is she?"
"No. We just didn't want to have to carry that monstrosity up the stairs. We'd both end up in the infirmary!"
"Right. Well, how about some water? That's all I have."
Carolyn sighed, "I'm hungry."
"I was thinking you and me and Samantha could go for lunch while the guys finish moving. Teal'c will be here any minute with the truck and the rest of my stuff."
"Good plan. Let's go." Carolyn followed Vala out.
~0o0~
Sam's phone rang. "It's him again. Now he's calling my number."
Placing her glass of wine back on the table, Vala rolled her eyes and held out her hand for the phone. "Yes?"
"Where are you?"
"At the cute little bistro down the street. We're waiting for your lunch to get ready."
"You've been gone two hours."
"They're very slow. Is everything moved in?"
He was out of breath. "Yes. Mitchell says bring beer. Teal'c wants an apple juice. And a glass of iced tea, and a bottle of water."
"We'll see you soon."
~0o0~
"You look tired." Sam, P-90 held ready, waded through a stream beside Vala. Teal'c, Cam and Daniel followed somewhere behind.
"I can't sleep." Vala trudged along, swatting at bugs.
"You should be adjusted to your new place by now. It's been two weeks."
"I'm not. I've watched every movie on Earth. I'm hoping they have something new on the next planet."
Giggling, Sam gave her a sideways look, then trained her eyes ahead again. "I don't think that's going to happen."
"You said they have electricity and industrialism and large cities."
"I doubt they have DVDs." Sam's radio crackled as Cam checked in. "Nothing to report. You?"
"Naw. Just some eagle-sized mosquitoes. We're gonna regroup and spread out. Wait there for us."
Sam located a nearby bolder and sat.
Vala turned to watch for the others approach. "It's useless isn't it?"
"What?"
"Waiting for him. There's a cute guy in my building who asked me out."
"Really? And…?"
Shrugging both shoulders, Vala turned to face Sam. "He wants to take me to some dinner party."
"Dinner party? You sure he didn't mean a keg party?"
"He's a computer programmer, just got a new job and has to go to some corporate thingie. He's asked me to go for coffee a few times. This time he said…well, he begged me to go, because he doesn't have a date and the rest of them are married. So I said okay."
"You don't sound too enthused."
"Why bother? It can't go anywhere. Besides, I'm not quite over my obsession with your archeologist friend."
"It's just a date, Vala. Did you have him checked out?"
"Of course. He's fine. I suppose it's better than watching Moonstruck for the fiftieth time."
"Stop watching romantic movies. It doesn't help. I know…ah, here they come."
"Hmm. So how are you and Jack doing?"
"We're not."
"Again?"
"Yes, we're not, again. Drop it."
~0o0~
"Have you seen Vala?" Daniel poked his head into Sam's lab.
"Not this morning." She didn't bother to look up.
Hands in his pockets and head dropped, he moved silently just inside the doorway.
Irritated, Sam finally looked up. "What?" She snapped out.
He gave her a questioning look. "What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing. Did you need something else?" Sam glared at him.
"She hasn't answered my calls, and she didn't check in as scheduled."
"She had a date. Maybe she spent the night out." She didn't feel the least bit guilty when Daniel blanched, looking stunned. "You had your chance. She's moving on. Good for her. No need to waste years on someone who really doesn't give a damn."
"Uh, what?"
"Daniel, go play with your toys, I have work to do here." Turning away, Sam began to type furiously on her computer, ignoring his softly spoken 'Sam?' She didn't turn back to look for a long time. When she did, he was gone.
~0o0~
He was standing at the door to Vala's apartment within thirty minutes, knocking and calling her name.
The locks clicked, the dead bolt slammed aside and the door cracked open. He saw half her face appear in the crack. She didn't say a word. She was glaring, disheveled and sleepy-eyed.
"I was worried about you. You didn't check in as scheduled."
"I wasn't scheduled. I'm off today. I'm sleeping late. I'm a big girl now. Go away."
The door slammed shut and the locks and dead bolt relocked. He knocked a while with his knuckle and called her name again. Giving up, he turned away and was down a flight and a half of stairs before he stopped and retraced his step up again. This time he used his fist to bang on the door.
Finally the sound of the locks and the dead bolt came. The door was jerked fully open and she stood there with a hand on one hip. Stood there in a way-too-tight tank top and a pair of panties. "What!"
It took him a long few seconds to find his voice. "I don't like you living here by yourself."
"That is none of your business."
"Is someone here with you?"
"That is also none of your business."
"Look, if you want to live off base, you can come and live with me. I mean, at my place, if that's what it takes to get you out of here. It's not safe, Vala."
She was looking over his shoulder and he turned to find some bulking hulk behind him.
"You okay?" The giant asked Vala.
"I'm fine, really, Carl. We work together."
"Is this the guy you were telling me about?" Carl was eyeing Daniel with interest.
Vala nodded. The hulk grinned, patted Daniel on the shoulder and shook his head. "Too bad. Good luck, man, you're gonna need it." And he wandered off.
Standing aside, Vala ushered Daniel in. "I think Carl likes you. He seemed disappointed that you were…"
"What?" Daniel moved into the room surprised to find it looking so well put together. "Your place looks nice." He schooled his eyes to stay focused on the room, avoiding looking at her. "Really, you did a good job decorating."
"Carl decorated. That's what he does as a side job."
"Oh." Gaze darting anywhere but at her, Daniel cataloged knick-knacks by size and category.
Leaving him standing ill at ease in the open doorway, Vala wandered into the kitchen alcove. "Coffee?"
"Yeah. Please." Slamming his eyes shut a moment, before looking away after catching a glimpse of her barely covered six, he opted to stay where he was, afraid to get too close to her. "Nice curtains."
Vala turned, catching his sudden head jerk toward the window. He was so flustered he was straightening his glasses repeatedly. A sure sign she had him in her clutches.
"Daniel?" She called and he turned. "I'm out of coffee." Her hips swayed as she approached and her grin was wide. "And I can't live with you, silly. I'm too crazy about you and I'd want to sleep in your bed. And we both know that's not going to happen."
"I just don't want…I didn't want just… I wasn't wanting some short-term…I…I didn't think I was ready for…" He cleared his throat and took a step back. "…truthfully, Vala, I do think about you. But you're still such a tease; I never know what you're thinking."
"While I appreciate your kind offer to save me from whatever evildoers lurk in the alley with your sacrifice, I really can't live with you. You see, Daniel," she screwed a finger into his chest, "you'd be parading around in those delightfully fitting boxer briefs without a shirt and I'd be much too tempted. And, well, you wouldn't like that. And I walk around in nothing more than my panties." She placed her palm on his chest and started moving him backwards through the open door. "And you wouldn't like that either…" she removed her hand and started shutting the door, "…would you? And Carl…you've seen Carl. He'll protect me, and we had such a lovely time at the dinner party."
"I...I thought he was…"
"Oh no, Daniel, he's very much not, actually not completely, you see."
"Er…"
"Goodbye, Daniel." Vala shut the door and locked it, hiding her megawatt grin.
Daniel stood outside the door contemplating the conversation, listening as Vala put all the locks in place. All he could think of was her wandering around his place with nothing on but some skimpy panties. "Oh my god." He whispered, a slight pink flush coloring his neck, as he slowly made his way down the steps.
The image of her standing there, dark hair wild from sleep, a midriff gray tank showing the curve of her waist, and her adorable belly button and those low riding black bikini panties, stayed with him until he almost ran into the back of the car in front of him at the guard gate to Cheyenne Mountain.
He could barely park the car as the thought occurred to him that he'd seen her in her skivvies many times on missions and never noticed. Well, maybe he noticed, but not like today. And then, he thought, she'd seen him in his…and she'd commented on it. Obviously, she'd been thinking about him 'parading' around.
Dazed with thoughts he'd never had before about Vala, Daniel wandered to the commissary, poured coffee, black this time, grabbed an oversized muffin, and sat at the only empty table in the room.
Who'd have ever thought he'd consider having her walking around his home in nothing more then those…those… "Oh, shit, this is bad."
Sam lowered herself into the opposite chair, coffee in hand. "What's bad?"
When he looked up the face he presented was a confusion of worry and excitement.
"Daniel, I'm sorry I snapped at you earlier." Her doe eyes were wide and pleading.
"Huh? What?"
"I'm sorry for snapping at you."
"When?" He hardly recognized his own voice.
Reaching across the table, Sam laid a hand on his. "Are you okay?"
"Oh, no. I don't think so."
"Are you sick?"
"Yep."
"You need to go see Carolyn?"
"Nope."
"What's wrong?"
"Argh...I don't want to talk about it." Daniel stood, leaving his coffee and muffin on the table.
With a disgruntled 'tsk', Sam watched him leave then reached across the table and pulled the plate with the muffin in front of her. Picking pieces off, she ate the bits, staring across the room.
A blue uniform appeared in her line of sight. Lifting her eyes, she found Jack looking down at her. A heavy sigh escaped, and she pushed the remaining muffin away.
"You didn't answer my calls," he said as though he was completely astonished by it.
"Go figure."
"You're mad at me?"
An incredulous Jack was a funny man. Snorting, Sam replied, "Yep, I am." Pulling the muffin back within range she began to nibble again.
"Look, Carter," he said, leaning over the table and speaking low, "I didn't mean that I didn't want you to come visit."
"That's fine." She was down to licking her finger and picking up tiny crumbs.
"You didn't give me a chance to explain." He looked around, noticing that the room had quieted and others were trying to listen.
"No explanation needed."
One of the hardest things for Jack O'Neill to do was keep his voice low, so as he tried, each word went up an octave. "I was in meetings that were lasting all day and long into the night. They're not about to end anytime soon."
"Then why are you here? You probably need to get back to your long days and all-night meetings."
Yanking a chair out, he sat across from her, moved Daniel's coffee cup aside, placed his forearms on the table and leaned over towards her. "You're right. I do need to get back. I don't have a lot of get out of jail free cards when I piss the President off. I shouldn't even be here."
"Then why are you wasting precious time?"
Exasperated, Jack snatched his collar loose and glared. "Just pack a bag and come back with me. Then you'll see…"
"I don't need to see."
"For crying out loud!" Jack looked around, then continued with a lowered tone. "I'm sorry. I just said it all wrong on the phone. I didn't mean I didn't want you there. I know we planned this the last time you were there, but the timing is bad."
"Hmm. Really? Well, I can't leave. We have a mission."
"You don't have a mission for four days."
"I have to get ready."
"Ready! It takes you four days to get ready for a mission?"
"Yes, four days. That's right. I have lots to do."
"Fine. I'll see you when you get back." Jack stood. "We'll talk about it then."
"No. We won't."
"Oh, take it from me, we will."
"No, we won't."
"We will."
"We won't."
Jack threw his hands up in the air, shook his head, and walked out.
~0o0~
"What the hell is wrong with Carter?" Jack barged right into Daniel's office and stopped at his desk. He got no answer as Daniel stood, hands in pockets, staring at his inactive computer screen. "Daniel? Whatcha doin'?"
"Just thinking."
"Oh. Well…I won't ask about what, I don't have that much time."
"Vala."
"Oh, great. Listen, before you go off on a tangent, I need to ask you about Carter."
"Have you ever noticed her skin?"
"Carter's?"
"Vala's."
"Can you listen for just a minute? I have got to go!"
"Go talk to Sam."
"I CAN'T. She won't talk to me."
"She's so…so strong and soft at the same time."
"Carter?"
"No, Vala."
"Christ! Will ya stop with the flowery stuff? I've got a real problem!"
At Jack's outburst, Daniel's hands came out of his pockets, jerking towards the general to emphasize the obvious. "What the hell did you do this time?"
With a cocked brow, Jack shoved his hands into his pockets. "I didn't do anything! What did you do? Why are you thinking about Vala?"
"I, ahh," Daniel sucked in breath between his teeth, "I don't know. I've just been thinking about her. I thought this was about Sam."
Jack rolled his eyes. "It is. But I need to get you past the smoke and mirrors. What kind of thinking?"
"She wants to walk around my place with nothing on but some teeny tiny panties."
"Crap! This is bad. You wanna go get a beer?"
"You have time?"
"I do now. I probably won't have a job, but I have the time."
"O'Malley's?
"There's someplace else on Earth?"
"Not really."
~0o0~
This wasn't like the SGC. Her apartment was noisy and someone was always knocking on her door. Carl had cautioned her to use the peep hole, a rather nice addition he'd put in after Daniel left. She and Carl had eaten Chinese and he'd left for his night job, making sure she locked up tight.
Sam looked like a fish in a bowl through the glass. Vala was laughing when she opened the door.
"At least you're in good spirits." Sam thrust a ribbon wrapped paper bag into Vala's hand. "Champagne."
"Perfect. What are we celebrating?"
"Your new place."
Taking the bottle from the sack, Vala placed it on the small counter separating the living area from the kitchen. "We already did that."
"Oh. Right. Okay. We're celebrating my new single status." Sam found the champagne glasses she'd given Vala as a housewarming present. "I have another bottle in my purse. Just in case."
"Put it in the fridge. Keep it chilled. I'm quite sure we will need it later."
~0o0~
"What'd he say?" Daniel asked as Jack returned to his bar stool.
"That I woke him up and he wasn't really expecting me tonight, anyway. Seems the IOA's pissed at me and that made him happy. He's taking tomorrow off. I didn't think Presidents could do that."
"What'd she say?"
"She said, ring, ring, ring, leave a message."
"Oh, right. You think she's serious?" Daniel was contemplating Vala's declaration of adoration.
"You should have heard her earlier." Jack sipped his beer, worried that Sam was really fed up with him.
"She sure has changed."
"Changed! She's downright hostile."
"Hostile! She's been meek as a lamb lately. And that's scary."
"Meek? Meek? Which one of your rocks have you been under?"
"Huh? You know she wants to live with me, and I haven't even slept with her."
"Well I have."
"What?"
"Not her!"
"Oh. Wait…wait, I don't want to hear about that. That's like telling me you slept with my sister."
"You don't have a sister, besides I can't ask her to move to Washington and give up all this." Jack waved his hand around O'Malley's.
"Yeah. But I could."
"What!"
"Not her! I could live with Vala. I think. After a while, I mean. I'd have to think about it."
"Ah, the indomitable Vala Mal Doran. You finally see it, huh?" Jack peeled the label from his beer. "It sure took you long enough. She's definitely a fine piece of work. A perfect fit for you." He threw his hand up forgetting it held a beer and sloshed brew across the bar. "You should have snatched her up long ago. She won't wait around forever." Jack sopped at the beer with a napkin, then, as if suddenly remembering the important part, he looked at Daniel - face blank, and head cocked.
Daniel waited as Jack stared at him with a hand rolling around in thought. When his mouth finally caught up with his mind he blurt out loud enough to turn heads. "I can't believe you haven't slept with her! She's nuts about you, she's just plain nuts too, but Danny, ya gotta make your move. Just toss her on the couch and…"
In the middle of taking a long swig of his beer, Daniel almost choked. "You're the last person on Earth…in the Milky Way…and as far as the Pegasus and Ori Galaxies I'd take advice from on anything remotely related to relationships."
Once again Jack's expression went blank for a few heartbeats. His mouth opened and snapped shut. "Right." He finally said, holding up his beer bottle and Daniel met it with his own. "To bachelorhood."
"Here, here."
~0o0~
"He's so cute, don't you think? I mean really, if it wasn't for Jack, wouldn't you be interested in Daniel? I mean, if it wasn't for Daniel, I'd be interested in Jack. He's just so damned funny. And smart, but wonko smart. Not smart like Daniel. Though Daniel is only bookish smart. He's dumb as a ghost when it comes to common sense."
"Post." Sam giggled and set her half-full glass of champagne on the floor.
"Post what?" Vala was trying to open the second bottle. "Damn! I can't get it opened."
"Dumb as a post. Here, let me."
"I may not be able to write down all the squiggles and letters and numbers that make up the rudimentary basis of the theory about the whole wad of wires and crystals and thingies, but I can fix it as good as you can."
POP!
"Not you…the phrase is 'dumb as a post'."
Vala burst out laughing and threw her head back, hitting the wooden slat at the top of her fifties daybed/couch. "Ow."
"Here, this will make it all better." Sam filled Vala's champagne flute and then handed it to her, before picking hers up. "To Daniel and Jack. My ever they reign, or wave or …"
"I'm in love with Daniel."
"Oh. Right. I knew that."
"And you're in love with Jack."
"I knew that too. Damn, I can't drink this champagne it makes me queasy. And it's about gone, anyway. I think you drank most of the bottle yourself. And we can't drive. Where's your friend Daryl?"
"Who?"
"Daryl. That guy that…"
"Carl. He's at work."
"Right. Call Daniel. He'll bring some."
"You call Jack, I'm not calling Daniel."
"I'm not calling Jack. I'm not drinking anymore. I feel sick."
"What about wine? I'll call Cameron."
"I think I'd rather sleep."
"I'd rather have wine."
Cam showed up an hour later with two bottles of wine and Carolyn in tow. While the women drank -well actually Carolyn drank, as the other two appeared too far into their cups to down much, and Sam was all but passed out - Cam leaned against the counter and watched in fascination.
"He's always working." Vala pouted and passed the bottle to Carolyn.
Sam laid her head back. "Tell me about it! That's all he does."
"He buries his head in those stupid dusty things! He smells like dust."
"Mmmm, Jack smells like rain. It must be raining in Washington." She yawned and closed her eyes.
Carolyn lifted her gaze across the room where Cam stood with his head in the refrigerator, his pleasant six in clear view. "Cam smells like soap."
"Oh, I love it when Daniel smells like soap."
"Me too. Jack I mean."
"And his laugh. God, I love his laugh."
"It's so deep and contagious."
"And it rumbles on, it makes me all giddy inside."
"And, when he drops his head and sighs."
"And he puts his hands in his pockets."
"And his eyes twinkle."
"Like stars."
"With mischief." Sam drifted off to sleep.
Cam had the phone to his ear, hiding behind the open refrigerator door. "Get over here now! I can't handle three tipsy women on my own. If they start cryin', I'm leavin' and barricadin' the door."
"Cameron?"
He popped up and looked around the door guiltily, sliding the phone into his pocket. "Ah, yeah?"
"Is there more wine?"
"Naw, all gone." Cam tucked the last bottle into the bottom crisper drawer. "How 'bout I make us some coffee?"
Sam was asleep on Vala's couch, her head propped up on a small decorative pillow, her feet across Vala's lap. Carolyn sat in the overstuffed chair, her eyes intent on her empty wine glass.
Cam had his six resting on the arm of Carolyn's chair. He checked his watch and groused, folded his arms across his chest, and frowned. 1:00 AM. He looked at Vala, who just a moment ago was twirling a lock of her hair and yawning – her neck now rested against the back of the couch, her face relaxed in slumber.
The knock startled him and he jumped up, rushing forward. "It's about time you got here!" Cam's fierce whisper greeted the guests as he opened the door.
Carolyn's glass clanked on the floor and all three men turned in her direction. She too had succumbed to sleep, head tilted to one side and chin resting on her shoulder.
"Mitchell, you sure know how to throw a party." Jack walked to the couch and looked down at Sam, glanced at Vala and then turned his head and grinned at Cam. "You're a fricking genius, except what do we do with them?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Cam once again folded his arms across his chest. "I reckon I'll wake this one up and take her back to the base."
"Are you nuts? You're gonna take her to her father? That's clever."
Daniel had found the untouched coffee and poured himself a cup. Standing in the kitchen he surveyed the scene. "Take her home." He offered in solution.
"Shit! Her mother's visiting at her house." Worried, Cam looked around. "I can't take her home drunk. And besides, I can't find her shoes."
Sipping his coffee, Daniel furrowed his brows in thought.
Jack opened the refrigerator and stared into the cool depths. "No beer?"
"Naw, I already looked."
Pulling out the milk, Jack drank from the carton and placed it back on the shelf. "Take her to your place, or leave her here. But I gotta warn ya, do not take her home or to the base. Hank's suspicious. And you don't want that."
"Ah, damn. That's trouble. Yeah, I guess I better take her to my place. There's not much room here." Cam began to gently shake Carolyn's shoulder. "Come on, Sunshine, we gotta go. Wake up, darlin', time to get a move on."
Carolyn opened one eye slowly and smiled. "Umm?"
Lifting her out of the chair, Cam supported her weight and stood her up. "We're goin', come on. That's it." Arm around her back and hand under one arm, he walked her to the door. "'Night, good luck. Let me know if you find her shoes," he said, leading his barefoot prize into the hallway.
After pouring a second cup of coffee, Daniel watched Jack watch Sam. "Now what?"
"If you can get that one into the bedroom, I'll cover up this one."
"Really? You gonna just leave her there?"
"What the hell else can I do?"
"You can take her home, Jack. I'll get that one into bed and then we can all get some sleep."
Jack turned with a mischievous grin. "Think I can get her on a plane without waking her up?"
"A plane? Her house is fifteen minutes away."
"I'm thinking 'home' here, Daniel."
"Oh, right. No. You'll never make it."
"Beam?"
"That works. For now. What are you gonna do when she wakes up?"
"Run?"
"Good plan."
"She sure has been moody lately." Jack moved away from the sleeping women and settled into the chair.
"Yeah, I've noticed. Seems a bit odd for her. You're taking precautions, right?"
"Huh? Oh crap! No. I mean, no, that can't be it. I'm too old."
"Jack?"
"Oh, crap."
Setting his coffee cup on the bar, Daniel went to brush the hair from Vala's face and stood looking down at her.
With a worried frown, Jack shook his head to clear the unlikely thought. "Whatcha planning on doing with yours?"
"I'm gonna put her in her bed and crawl in there with her."
"Good plan." Jack stood and joined Daniel in front of the couch. "Weird, huh?"
"Yep. You and Sam. Me and Vala."
"Mitchell and Doc."
"Oh, right, that's really weird." Hands going deep in his pockets, Daniel smiled down at a sleeping Vala, then turned his face to Jack. "I wonder what people do when they don't have beaming technology?"
"Haul 'em up over the shoulder and take 'em into the cave."
"Right." Nodding, Daniel turned once again to study Vala. "I wonder why I took so long to see it clearly. I mean, I've had a thing for her since the instant she took off that Super-Soldier helmet. And, I've known all along that under the façade of teasing and rhetoric she hid behind, that she really cared for me. What makes a man do that? Run from the very thing he's looking for?"
"You're asking me?"
"Just thinking out loud."
"Well, stop your yammering. I gotta make a call."
Surprised, Daniel looked sideways to Jack. "You're really gonna beam her to Washington?"
"You're damned straight, I am."
"Good plan."
She might look like a little thing, but she was heavy. Daniel struggled to lift Vala's dead weight and carry her to the bed. He nearly dropped her as he tugged at the covers, but managed to pull them aside and place her head on the pillow.
Next, he lifted her legs and flopped them down on the bed with a small grunt. She didn't stir, just sunk into the mattress with a deep sigh.
Starting with her shoes, he began. Too tired to care, he tossed them one at a time over his shoulder. Hands on hips, he contemplated his next move. He'd only done this once before. But somehow it seemed different this time. Unbuttoning her pants, he hesitated, counseling himself. Come on, you can do this.
His hands trembled slightly as he unzipped her pants and peeked at the expanse of tight skin exposed. Hopefully, there's something else under here this time.
Running his fingers under the waistband, and around her hips, Daniel ignored the shock of warm skin against hands. He tugged, ever so lightly, trying not to look and unnervingly worried as more skin was exposed. Holy buckets! Stop looking.
A wisp of blue appeared just at the moment he'd reconciled himself to the prospect of nothing underneath the pants. His gaze lifted thankfully to the ceiling for a moment. Shimmying the cloth down, his eyes were drawn to creamy white thighs, and he missed the wicked grin she fought to hide.
The pants got thrown behind him and he settled on the bed beside her. Now what? Remove the sweater? It was soft, but twisted up, looking uncomfortable. She'd sleep better without. But would he?
His hands made an independent decision and started lifting the knit upwards. Carefully, he pulled one limp arm from a sleeve, then the other, revealing the blue matching bra. Good.
She mumbled and moved to turn. His hand accidentally landed on one blue bra cup when he tried to keep her from turning over. He snatched the hand away, quickly, and groaned.
Totally unprepared for what happened next, Daniel yelped. She moved quickly, locking her legs around his waist and flipping him over to the bed, straddling him.
"Hello, darling. Turnabout's fair play? Right?"
"You could say that."
"I just did."
Vala leaned and opened the bedside table drawer and produced a pair of handcuffs, grinning evilly at her man.
"Keep those handy, do you?"
"Wherever I go." She lifted one of his wrists and snapped the cuff on, running the other around a bar on the headboard and got no resistance placing the other one on the wrist he held in place for her.
"What now?" His eyes held hers and he grinned.
"I have a plan."
"I'm sure you do."
Hair falling like a veil around his face, Vala kissed him deeply.
"Good plan." He mumbled into her mouth. "GOOD plan."
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May be continued - Later… Un-Planned...Jack and Sam in Washington. And ...No Plan...Cam and Carolyn.