She watched him, completely oblivious to the looks he was getting, as he explained his hypothesis about Mary Poppins possibly being an Ancient. Did that Nurse just give him the once over? Is Sergeant Safanovsky giving him the eye? Had Doctor Harper's eyes ever looked that alive before? Was Chloe drooling?! Oh dear.

She was jealous, she knew it, and yet this man didn't know how much of a catch he was. Three in one - drop dead gorgeous, drop dead clever, and drop dead unselfish; the term "drop dead" turning out to be rather ironic.

He paused, looking at her with concern, and asked, "Sam?"

Her name said in that voice woke her up from her reverie, and she found that she had been staring at him. She blushed and he asked,

"Are you feeling alright?"

Oh those eyes. She had to go otherwise she was going to lose control. Nothing like a Naquadah generator to distract a love-struck Astrophysicist. Nothing like a stream of technobabble to practically neuter oneself.

She fled.

What the heck was happening? This was Daniel after all. Daniel, the lone crusader. Daniel, the conscience. Daniel, the SG-1 member. Daniel, the someone that she had to face everyday. Everything about this seemed wrong, yet at the same time, felt as right as raindrops.

She showered, trying to wash away her odd behaviour, but failed.

She knew it. She had fallen for him, fallen for him big time. This was going to pose a problem, especially as he had been alone since losing Sha're. The fact that he hadn't moved on meant that no-one could hope to even fill a fraction of the space she had left in his heart.

While she dressed, she analysed her feelings. Lust or love? Lust, she thought, is a solely physical attraction, while love is both physical and psychological. What did she love about him? Well, everything - his mind, his looks, his bravery, his tenderness, his diplomacy...

Every time she saw him, she found it hard to control her breathing. This man had the most brilliant mind in the mountain, and yet he didn't think he was anything special. In fact, he was the sort of person who always tried to make a difference, for the better, and if he felt that he had failed, he would beat himself up about it.

Yep, definitely love. Oh boy. She didn't need this - she had her career to think about.

She fled to the familiarity of her office, where she worked on various projects. She ran tests and formed and re-formed theories based on data. She buried herself so deep that she didn't see or hear him. But she felt him. His arms were wrapped around her waist and then he whispered into her ear,

"Colonel-Doctor, you work yourself too hard."

And then he began to trail kisses along her neck, making her moan slightly in pleasure. This felt good, good being a very poor description of the panoply of feelings coursing through her very being. They could have been caught, but she didn't care. All she could feel was Daniel, and how good - no - great it felt to be in his arms and to have those luscious lips caressing her skin.

She whispered, "Oh Daniel."

Suddenly, she woke up to find that she was in her chair, her head resting on her arms. Only a dream, she thought, with a sigh of disappointment. She began to work again, and was startled on hearing Daniel's voice,

"Sam? Are you ok?"

She looked up and blushed to see him standing next her open door. How long had he been standing there?

"Um... I'm fine -- why wouldn't I be?"

He slowly walked to her desk and said, gesturing as he made his point, "You spaced out in the Commissary. Then it was like you couldn't get out of there fast enough. And then... you were talking in your sleep."

She felt her face heating up and she brusquely replied, embarrassed,

"I've really got to get this done... Jay needs the data."

She went back to working and he smiled at her, still watching. She, sensing that he was still there, looked up and asked,

"What?"

He ducked his head briefly before saying, "Nothing... I just realised something. Did you know that dreams are often an expression of your suppressed desires?"

If her face heated up any more, she was sure that she would need a fire extinguisher. She tried to be casual as she remarked,

"And you're telling me this, why?"

He sat down in the chair on the other side of her desk, and continued, doing his best innocent expression,

"I'm telling you this because... I love you."

Another dream, perchance? Dream or no dream, she was going to take the chance. This was Daniel after all, and he just said he loved her.

Her face reddened and she slowly replied, her self-control working overtime, "Um... ok. I love you."

He smiled at her, and she repeated, liking the sound of the words more and more,

"I love you."

She ran her fingers through her hair, before asking, "So, where do we go from here?"

He replied, a smile playing on those lips of his as he feigned an innocent expression, "Oh, I've got a fair idea."