You Have to Go to Come Back
by Remi Craeg

Sam was on her stomach looking out the window when Jack climbed onto the bed. "I think the sun might come out," she told him without breaking her gaze.

He ignored the open blinds and crawled up next to her. "Mm…" he hummed against her ear, nuzzling the hair there.

When she rolled over to face him, he glanced at her bare legs. His eyes scraped back up her body to her mouth. She was talking to him again.

"Maybe we can go for a walk," she was saying.

"Maybe…" he whispered as he adjusted to prop himself on an elbow. He took a deep breath and pulled at the collar of her t-shirt. A slow smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Although, it's pretty nice in here."

She touched his smile, running a thumb over the curve of his chin, his lips. "But the fresh air is out there." She thought it was a pretty valid argument, but then he pulled her closer and wormed an arm under the blankets she'd just pulled up to her chest. He stopped at the hem of her shirt.

"Way overrated, Carter." His lips grazed her cheek while his hand slid up her stomach dragging the cotton with it. Fingernails skimmed across her ribs. "And from where I'm sitting, the view's better."

Sam chuckled. He seemed to prefer the physical evidence rather than sound reason, but before she could fully process the thought he'd convinced her body to stay put. Jack worked her arms through the sleeves and pulled the material over her head.

He smiled again and asked, "See? Better."

She nodded, not daring to move any more than that. A minute ago she'd felt bad for laying around as long as they had, but he quickly and thorough pulled the guilt from her mind and replaced it with clouding arousal—the kind he seemed to carry around in his back pocket, pulling it nearly every time he saw her. Her brain tried for one more, last-ditch effort, "It's almost noon."

He grunted against her neck. One hand curled into the hair at the base of her neck, another anchored his body above hers. Then he went still. His head popped up, eyes locking with hers. He stared a moment, but didn't speak.

"What?" she asked, suddenly nervous under his scrutiny. Jack's hips dipped and her brains evaporated taking all thought with them. Her eyelids fluttered shut, a gasp escaping her lips. Jack liked that so he kissed her.

He thrust against her gently, watching her carefully. Her eyes stayed shut and her tongue darted out to wet her lips. A strand of hair fell into her face. He brushed it away.

He left his hand at her temple because the hair was soft there.

Jack stopped moving and separated their bodies. That got her to look at him, a question in her eyes. He started to get up and she looked completely panicked. "Jack, where are you going?"

"I'm gonna go dig out my boots. Which trail should we try this time?" Her eyes widened and he thought she might hit him. He smirked, "What? No walk now?" Her hand gripped his bicep and unlocked his elbow. He collapsed back to the mattress allowing her to climb onto his lap.

"You turned mean while I was gone," she said.

Jack grinned. He reached up to touch her hair again and held onto it even as her head lowered. "I like having you around, Sam," he said, causing her to pause before she reached him.

Sam pulled back to study his expression. Deciding he was serious, she replied, "I like being back."

"C'mere," he mumbled and pulled her down.

*

They didn't make it out to see the sun until it was already low in sky and even then they only made it as far as his deck.

Jack was firing up the grill while Sam dug around in his bedroom for a long sleeve shirt. It'd grown cool while they were overheated and out of breath inside. She found him standing over charred meat and brushed his shoulder with her fingertips. He looked up at her for a moment, then back to their food.

"My quarters in Atlantis were drafty," she confessed.

He turned to her again and let out an amused huff. "All that technology and they couldn't keep the windows sealed properly."

"I guess not." Sam looked down.

"What's wrong?" he asked. A look of concern passed over him and her stomach dropped.

Sam approached him; she didn't mean to worry him. "Actually," she started, hooking a finger in his belt loop, "Not a thing."

Jack frowned, unconvinced.

"Really," she insisted stealing a kiss before he could speak. Pulling back she added, "I missed it here. I missed you."

He nodded this time and touched her neck. "I don't know about the rest of the house, but the bedroom stays pretty warm..." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Sam chuckled, shaking her head.

Continuing to ignore the meat, he drew her into another kiss, his arm winding around her waist. A moment later his voice, a whisper against her ear, gave her goosebumps. "Sell your house, Sam."

She took a step back but didn't let go of his hand. She considered him carefully. Was he really asking her to move in with—

Jack gave her an encouraging nod and gestured back to the house.

"Okay," she said because the answer was so obvious to her, but she didn't know how to voice it.

He seemed to understand because he eased her into a tight hug. "Then welcome home."