Denial, deep denial… No, seriously, deep denial

by Betty BOKOR

SamDaniel. Marriage is not always as complicated as it seems.

Denial, deep denial… No, seriously, deep denial by Betty Bokor
Sam/Daniel. Marriage is not always as complicated as it seems.
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9.
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

Denial, deep denial… No, seriously, deep denial

SG-1 walked down the gate ramp towards Gen. Landry.

"Good morning SG-1. I'm glad to see you back on time."

"Yes, sir. We not only are on time," Cameron Mitchell said with a grin while holding up a stack of papers in his hand, "we also have the signed treaty we were sent to complete."

"Excellent!" Landry exclaimed. "Go to the Infirmary to get your tests done and we'll debrief in two hours."

"One more thing, general." Mitchell started, losing his smile and looking at his team for moral support.

"Yes?"

"During the signing of the treaty I…" He stopped, uncertain as to how to say the rest.

"You what, colonel?"

"I got Jackson and Carter married."

A smirk appeared on Teal'c's face.

"Married, eh?" the general said, amused himself at the distressed faces of the other three members of the team.

"Yes, sir."

"Why?"

"They would only allow a married couple to sign the agreement."

"And you couldn't call us to look for a couple that could fulfill that duty?" the general asked, still amused at how much they seemed to be suffering.

"It was more complicated than that," Daniel offered.

"It's all right, people. We'll discuss it during the debriefing. Now go and get ready." The three younger members of SG-1 walked out in silence. After them, Teal'c bowed his head at the general and couldn't hide a smile before leaving the room himself.

≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈

"After days of negotiating, everything was ready," Daniel was saying. "We had finally reached agreement on all the points of the treaty and the only thing left was to put it in writing. We even discussed the best way to do that," he added with a emphatic gesture. "When the documents were finished, the head negotiator signed them and his wife followed. Then, despite the fact that all of us participated in the negotiation, I signed, as I usually do with all the agreements we conclude. I was about to hand it to Mitchell for him to sign after me, when the wife handed it to Sam. I thought that perhaps the signature of a woman was necessary in the process and I didn't object."

"So what happened that you had to get married?" Landry questioned.

"After Carter signed," Mitchell continued the account of the episode, "the diplomat handed the document to the head of their government. He was smiling until he saw Sam's name. He called his negotiator and pointed at it while he whispered something. Suddenly, everybody was talking about something and we had no clue of what was going on."

"The wife, Surta, approached me," Sam continued. "With a dismayed look on her face, she asked me 'You're not his woman?' while pointing at Daniel. I said, "No."

"It was more like 'Noo!' Right?" Daniel said coldly.

She looked at him oddly and then resumed her narration. "She explained to us that it was traditional in their society for only couples to represent their people, to ensure that both sides, the men's and the women's, would benefit from the accord. I told them that we understood and that by both of us signing, we achieved the same result."

"They wouldn't have any of it, sir," Mitchell added. "They said that only a married couple had the connection, the bond between them, necessary to represent all the parties fairly."

"We tried to make them understand that it was not customary on this planet to do it in that manner," Teal'c intervened. "We also made a point of describing the deep connection that SamanthaCarter and DanielJackson share, after all these years in the team-"

"But they didn't budge," the head of SG-1 said. "They wanted us to get a couple from Earth to come to their planet and start the negotiations from zero. That's when I thought of the marriage," he finished. Daniel and Sam sat back on their chairs with the same look of consternation they had at their arrival.

"Please, continue, colonel," Landry requested.

"I asked them if they would agree to uphold the treaty if Carter and Jackson got married. They discussed it for a while. I don't have to tell you the looks I got from these two in the meantime," he added half-seriously. "They finally came back and said that they would accept only if they were allowed to perform the ceremony themselves. They didn't trust that we would do it here –and they were right on the track– but they did believe that our lovely couple here had what it takes to get married. It was a pretty simple ritual, if you ask me-" the looks of Sam and Daniel stopped him from making another joke about it. "What I mean, sir, is that they simply called one of their dignitaries and our couple had to repeat some vows. That was it."

"Well, if it was the only way to save the agreement and it worked," Landry smiled at them, "we should all be happy. I'm glad that Col. Carter and Dr. Jackson agreed to this little sacrifice in order to achieve a greater goal. This treaty will be very advantageous for our program in general and the defense of this planet in particular. We can arrange for you two," he looked at Sam and Daniel, "to meet with the attorney of the base to start the paperwork for the annulment, as soon as the papers that, inevitably, will make this marriage off-world legal, are finished."

"Couldn't we skip that part, sir?" Sam asked hopefully. "If the marriage is not legalized we won't have to annul it."

"I'm afraid not, colonel. Dr. Jackson here fought a brave battle with the legal system to make his first marriage valid in this country. That rule applies now to all marriages performed off-world."

≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈

The following days passed more normally than Daniel or Sam could have expected. They didn't alter their routines or made any changes on their relationship. They even went on a couple of missions with the team and didn't feel any strain. After all, the marriage had only been a formality and they were not willing to let it interfere with their strong friendship.

Jack was informed by Landry and took it as calmly as everybody else. At least, that's how he sounded to Daniel when they talked on the phone. Until he met Jack personally, he would have no way of knowing if Jack felt different than he said he did.

Aside from some congratulatory comments from the personnel on base who lacked the necessary clearance to know the truth and some presents that Sam catalogued carefully to be able to return later, nothing reminded them of their marriage, until they started the procedures for the annulment.

One Monday morning, both met for the first time with Major Strada, who would conduct the legal proceedings on their behalf. After all the customary introductions, the lawyer started the discussion.

"Gen. Landry informed me that you are pursuing the annulment of a marriage that took place off-world." Sam and Daniel assented. "All right, let's begin with the legal grounds. You should know that in Colorado, unlike a divorce, a declaration of invalidity of marriage requires that you prove the specific legal grounds in which you will base your petition." After his clients showed their agreement, he continued. "I'm going to read you the criteria outlined by the law and we'll choose the one that corresponds to your situation. Okay?" They both nodded and he grabbed some papers from where he began reading. "At the time of the marriage 'one party lacked the mental capacity to consent.' Well, we know you are not mentally disabled," he looked at them, "so that leaves drugs or alcohol. Was either one of you inebriated or under the influence of drugs?"

They both shook their heads. "Let's see then. 'One party lacked the physical capacity to consummate the marriage.' What about that?"

"Well," Sam said, "we haven't consummated the marriage. That could work."

"Are you willing to state, for the record," Daniel cut in, "that you were incapacitated, that you couldn't have intercourse, Sam? If this program ever goes public, even that will be public record, if it is not already."

"I'm afraid these proceedings will be public record as soon as they are finished. No mentions of any classified information, but everything related to the marriage and the annulment will be," the lawyer said.

Sam was not listening to him. "Why me? We can say that it was you, Daniel."

"I'm not going to lie for your benefit about this." Daniel answered. "My reputation is already damaged enough to add something of a private nature like this."

"Well. It looks that you do have an ego, after all…" She stopped herself, surprised at what she had just said, and quickly apologized. "I'm sorry, Daniel. I don't know what I'm saying. That was rude and inappropriate. This has me out of sorts."

"No need to apologize. I was wrong, too. I'm sorry." He smiled and patted her hand.

Major Strada looked pensively at them. Their first outbursts coincided with his experience with couples seeking an annulment. Their latter demonstration of concern for each other did not. He decided to continue. "Let's go on. Third, 'one party was under the age to consent-' Ah, forget about that. 'One party married because of the other's fraudulent act or misrepresentation which went to the essence of the marriage.' Was either of you lying as to why you were marrying or did either of you trick the other one into marrying?" he asked.

Sam and Daniel realized that, even though the major had clearance to work in the base and knew about the gate and the missions, he had no knowledge of the particulars of their union. They would have to be more careful. "No," Daniel answered. "We both knew exactly what we were doing." Sam agreed.

"Okay. 'One party married under duress'. What about-"

"Could that work?" Sam asked looking at Daniel.

"I don't think so. For anyone to be under duress, you need a threat, coercion… an unlawful threat as a matter of fact. Someone should have threatened one of us, or both, with impending or actual violence or a danger so severe that we couldn't but to acquiesce."

"You're right," the major agreed, impressed by Daniel's knowledge.

"Well, that doesn't apply either," Sam sighed. "The threat was just more work."

"I'm sorry?" Strada said.

"Oh, it's a joke… between us. Just a joke; forget about it," Sam said as Daniel looked at her with astonishment

"In that case, we have only two more possibilities. 'One party married as a jest or dare' is one," he looked expectantly at them and then continued with a sight. "Surely not the right one. The last is any case of bigamy, polygamy or incest." He looked at them and then added, "Yeah, I didn't think so."

"That's it?" Sam asked.

"Yes. I'm afraid we'll have to start looking at a divorce." Strada explained. "The annulment doesn't apply to your case."

"All right," Daniel said. "We'll do whatever it takes." Sam agreed.

"We'd better get together again and discuss the details. Unlike the invalidation, that states that there was never a marriage, the dissolution of the marriage implies that there was matrimony, but the contract was broken. Colorado has a no-fault policy. The legal grounds can only be that there is an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. I'll give you the name of a counselor so that you discuss the details of how you will justify that in front of the judge. Judges usually don't ask what the irretrievable breakdown is, but, if he did, I suggest you keep the explanation very brief and straight to the point. We can even speed up the process by using a mediator to arrive to an agreement." He checked that they understood what he was saying and then continued. "We'll need an affidavit from both of you. You do not have minor children and the colonel here is not pregnant. As long as you have no disputes or marital property to divide, we'll be fine."

Sam and Daniel agreed and left the office of the lawyer. They went to the cafeteria and drank some coffee in silence.

Finally Sam raised her head and said, "I'm sorry, Daniel. I can't believe how I behaved in there."

"That's all right, Sam. We haven't really talked about this since it happened, but it has been obviously affecting us at some level. I think we should get together after work and talk about it."

"You're right. Let's do that. I'll go by your office at 18:00 and we'll decide where to go then."

"All right," he agreed and they went their separate ways.

≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈

Late that evening, they finally made it out of the base. Their scheduled meeting time came and passed and their duties didn't allow them to get together. Now, they would have to get some take-out and head home. Daniel accepted the invitation to go to Sam's so that she wouldn't have to drive later. After a short while they settled on Italian food and got some warm pasta for dinner. The weather was cruelly cold and the pasta felt comforting. When the meal was finished, they sat to talk.

"All right, let me start with this," Daniel said. "We are two intelligent adults and this… marriage should not affect us. I understand that we made those vows and I intend to keep them as long as we're married, but this is going to come to an end very soon and there's no need to invest our feelings in it."

"Okay," Sam agreed shyly.

"What I mean is that we are not in love with each other, we have no physical attraction going on between us, and the more time we spend married the more time you will have to wait to get together with Jack."

Sam had been nodding slowly as he talked but his last statement shocked her. "Excuse me?"

"What?" Daniel asked, completely clueless about what Sam was objecting.

"I'm not going to get together with Jack. Where did you get that?"

"Come on, Sam," he said with a disbelieving tone. "There's an expression that says 'Somos pocos y nos conocemos mucho' and I believe it's true in this case."

"And it means…" Sam asked starting to feel angry with him.

"It could be translated as 'We are few and we know each other too well', and what I mean by it is that I've been witness all these years to all those longing looks and half-words that Jack and you have been exchanging. Now is your chance. He's not your commanding officer anymore. Don't keep hiding behind the regulations, for heavens sake!"

"We are not hiding!"

"Then what? What is stopping you now?"

"For one, I'm married to you."

"Oh, come on. Jack has been in D.C. for a good while now. I will never understand why you took that position in Nevada. Don't tell me it was because of Cassie; her university is in Chicago. Supporting her from Nevada is no different than supporting her from Washington."

"All right, that's true. It's just that I don't know what to do, Daniel. All these years, as you just said, I've gotten looks and half-words, nothing concrete to hang on to, nothing clear. Since he left he has never made any attempts to talk about it either."

"Why don't you do something, Sam? I hate to see you suffering."

"I tried, Daniel. Right before I found out my father was dying, the day I left Pete. I went to his house to talk about my feelings."

"I didn't know," Daniel said more softly. "What did he say?"

"I couldn't tell him; Agent Johnson was there." Daniel looked utterly surprised. "He was barbecuing; she was making some salad. It was still early, Daniel, on a Sunday morning. I'm sure she had spent the night there. It was very embarrassing… Right then, they called me about Dad and I had to leave. I think it was better that I didn't get to open my big mouth before I saw her."

"I'm sorry, Sam, and I'm also sorry that I haven't been there for you. We haven't even talked about our lives lately. Well, I don't have a life to talk about either." He sighed and looked sad.

"What a nice couple of newly-weds!" Sam said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, we are pathetic. When this situation is solved, we'll have to start trying to do better." He looked down, lost in thought.

"About today," Sam started timidly.

"Forget about it, Sam. We were both nervous," Daniel objected.

"No, I want to tell you this. I was upset before we saw the lawyer. I had talked with Jack on the phone and he had joked about us, about how nobody could believe that we were interested in each other, about how everybody knew we were sister-and-brother. I was just upset. I felt that he was belittling me. I wanted to tell him I was sure you could find something attractive on me. Then, we entered the office and you seemed so ready to get rid of me… It just made me madder."

"Of course I find you attractive, Sam, I'm neither blind nor stupid. It's just that you have always had this big 'NO' sign hanging on your chest. 'Keep out; this belongs to Jack' sort of sign."

"I'm not an object; I don't belong to anyone."

"You know exactly what I mean. Jack has marked his territory," Daniel concluded.

"Like Sha're the day we met you," she blurted out and immediately felt sorry that she had said it.

"Yes, like Sha're," he said sadly, and then, in a lighter tone, he added, "Don't worry, Sam. I'm over it by now. It's been too long, so many years…"

"Don't you feel lonely, Daniel?" she wanted to know.

"I could ask you the same, Sam, but I'll answer. Yes, I feel very lonely. I just cannot find a woman with whom I could share what my life is now. When I was in Abydos, life was simple, easy to share. Now, it's full of secrets and cover stories. How would I explain the injuries I get sometimes or the days and nights I spend at the base?"

"You could try with someone from the Mountain," Sam suggested.

"I've thought about it, but there are not too many women around. The nurses make me uncomfortable; I've been in their hands so many times… It would feel weird if one knew me better than the others."

"I understand," Sam smiled.

"Besides, no one has shown much interest. I'm sure that with so many military men around they have plenty to chose from."

"Ah, Daniel," Sam smiled again. "What was that you taught me, 'There's none more blind than one who will not see'? Was it like that?" Daniel looked clueless as to why she was applying the saying to his situation. Sam thought it was simply cute. "I'm going to make some more coffee; I'm starting to feel the cold in my bones," she said while standing up. "We're getting old," she smiled.

They did not talk about anything else serious that night. Daniel stayed in the guest room, as he had done in many other occasions, because it had started snowing and Sam didn't want him out during the night. They were both satisfied with their talk; they were happy that their friendship was still intact.

≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈

The counselor Mj. Strada had suggested they go to see was a very qualified professional but had no Stargate Program clearance at all. Daniel and Sam met her at her office in a nice residential neighborhood. Their cover story would be that while he had been performing an anthropological study on a primitive Amazon society, under the supervision of the U.S. Air Force –Sam–, they had been compelled to marry because of their ignorance of the customs of said society and in order to avoid an incident that would have thrown days of hard work down the drain.

Dr. Liam had been working in marriage counseling for almost forty years now and she usually trusted her first impression of a couple to decide what path to follow. Her years of experience had taught her which signs to look for and what significance each gesture and unsaid word meant in a couple's relationship.

After introducing herself and her credentials, she explained what role she would play in their divorce.

"First of all, I should tell you that you are under no obligation to work with me. Colorado laws only require counseling if it is requested by either spouse or at the discretion of the court. If the judge decides it would be beneficial, he appoints a marriage counselor, but usually his or her job would be to help the couple and their family cope with the divorce, deal with the consequences." Daniel and Sam looked at her questioningly and she added, "Your lawyer, Maj. Strada, suggested you to see me because he was having difficulty pinpointing how was that your marriage had irretrievably broken down."

"That's not exactly the problem." Daniel began speaking fast as he usually did. "We didn't intend to get married, at least not until right before it happened. We had no plans to do it. We were not involved in a romantic relationship. We just didn't know the local customs and we made a mistake that could only be fixed by marriage. That's why we did it."

"So you did know what you were doing and you consented freely at the time of the ceremony."

"Yes," he conceded.

"But we didn't know-" Sam countered.

"Ignorantia legis non excusat," Dr. Liam said with a smile.

"I know that our ignorance of their laws and customs doesn't excuse us, but there's no real marriage here. Just the vows that we made to each other," Daniel tried to explain.

"I would say that is a substantial reason to end this marriage. I know you have no marital discord but it looks like you are sure this marriage cannot be saved," the counselor said with a sigh. "Would you mind if we talk a little while longer; I'd like to ascertain that this is not going to have a toll on your friendship. I've been told you share a strong bond."

They both smiled lightly and Daniel said, "We were worried about that, too. We had a little incident that was completely out of character for both of us and it scared me."

"Me, too," Sam added.

"Well, what do you say the characteristics of your friendship have always been?" The counselor inquired.

As always, Daniel was the one to start. "First, we trust each other."

Sam rapidly supplemented, "We trust each other with our lives."

"Yes," Daniel continued, "we have put our lives in the other's hands many times, always knowing that whatever was done would be done with the best intentions."

Sam smiled at him and nodded.

"That's very important. It looks that your trust remains untouched," the counselor observed and both her patients assented. "What else?"

"Second, we have this… 'compatibility', we could call it. We think in sync; we understand each other very easily. We finish each other's sentences –thoughts, you could say. From the very first day we met we've been able to work all our problems together, not only on the job, but when things got rough in our private lives, too."

Sam took the lead, "We communicate so well. It's very easy to discuss something with Daniel. He's always frank and open-minded; he's honest and respectful, and oh, so bright," she finished with a smile.

Daniel was blushing, looking at her. He leaned toward her a little, patted her hand, and said softly, "Thank you." Then he turned and told Dr. Liam, "It's no accomplishment being bright when you have someone as extraordinary as Sam to work with you. Her brilliance raises your standards," he finished passionately, still with his hand over hers. Sam blushed this time and turned her hand up to squeeze his.

"Well, let's see," the counselor said looking at her notes, "We have trust, compatibility, understanding, frank communication, admiration, and respect. That's an outstanding relationship you two share."

Sam quickly added, "In addition to that, you have to count on other traits that Daniel has brought to our friendship." She kept holding his hand. "I have never met anyone as caring and compassionate as he is. He's full of sympathy, no, empathy, I should say. He's always ready to find a solution that satisfies everybody's needs. He fights for a pacifistic solution of every conflict. He doesn't hesitate before putting his life on the line for the sake of others." She looked at him and smiled, "Don't look at me like that, Daniel; you know it's true, and I haven't even tapped the surface of it. You've always been our conscience."

Dr. Liam was fascinated by their interaction. She was certain that they usually communicated more with looks and expressions than with actual words. She could see their connection. She could feel the energy around them. She couldn't understand why they were not together. She decided to push a little further.

"Do you have any common interests?" She asked taking them out of the trance they seemed to have entered while looking at each other.

"Sure," Daniel answered. "We usually enjoy the same kind of books or movies; we even, sometimes, buy the same book at the same time so that we can read it and comment on it together." He changed his expression to a more mischievous one, "We are not really good at sharing other activities with our friends, such as drinking beer while watching hockey or fishing in an empty pond."

Sam couldn't stop a little giggle from escaping her. She put her hand on her mouth and shook her head, "No, we're not really good at that."

Dr. Liam added one more line to her list, 'complicity'. "I can see that you can make each other laugh; that's very positive, too. So, you spend time together outside work. It's obvious that you two have the potential for adjustment for mutual benefit. How do you feel about companionship? Are you good at sharing?"

"Absolutely," Daniel emphasized. "Not only outside work. Sometimes we get together in my office or in her lab and we work there, together in the room, but on our individual tasks, cooperating when necessary, giving each other silent support, coordinating our efforts to achieve results more efficiently-"

"And then, we go home," Sam took the lead, "and we keep on doing it. We have spent countless nights in each other's homes, because of work or just because we lost track of time talking or watching something together." She smiled at Daniel again and he nodded pleasantly.

"You seem to have adapted very well to each other." Dr. Liam summarized. "You have no conflicts with togetherness. I would say that your friendship is still very healthy and this whole episode of your marriage has not affected it at all. You will be fine after the divorce. You already have a commitment to each other; you are willing to compromise in order to satisfy the other's needs." She smiled broadly at their content faces and put her final touch. "You don't have even any issues with privacy or intimacy if you can share your homes with each other-"

"We've spent innumerable nights sleeping on the hard floor of a tent while on missions. We've shared too many life-threatening situations. We've taken care of each other so many times after being injured or gotten sick," Daniel explained. "We know the other one too well to have any issues of that kind," he finished and Sam agreed.

"Then," the counselor smiled again, "you would have a wonderful marriage if only you had one more thing, that you're obviously lacking."

"What is that?" Sam asked, not knowing she would regret it a second later.

"Satiation," Liam answered. "You do not rely on each other to satisfy your sexual needs."

"It's not like we rely on anyone else, either," Daniel said in an introspective tone. "I'm sorry. I just meant that neither of us has a stable relationship at this time, or an unstable one, for that matter," he finished in a lower voice.

"But you haven't felt sexual awareness for each other, either," the doctor probed.

"No!" both answered in unison.

"Yes, I can see. No sexual tension whatsoever. You haven't even tried, have you?" she risked. She had a gut feeling and she was going to run with it. There was nothing to lose.

Sam and Daniel looked at each other with surprise. "No," Daniel stated emphatically.

"Well, sometimes, when two people have a bond as strong as yours, the sexual aspect comes one way or another. That doesn't mean that it would happen to you two. In occasion, a little play and trial doesn't hurt anyone. At the most, you prove your conviction and move on."

"Oh, we don't need to do that. We know. We're fine," Sam countered with confidence.

"In that case, we only need to schedule a half an hour next week, before the hearing, to prepare your statements." She handed them a little card, and after reading it Sam and Daniel agreed and left her office.

Sam drove Daniel home; they had gone in her car to avoid the nuisance of having two cars. He invited her in for coffee and she gladly agreed. They sat and talked for a while about their session with Dr. Liam. They were both feeling relieved that everything had gone well and that they would be done with the whole matter soon.

"What do you think if we order some food and we seat down to watch something interesting?" Daniel suggested. "I have some DVDs that I bought last week and I haven't even opened the package."

"Yeah, that sounds good", Sam accepted. Daniel has taken off his suit jacket and was getting rid of his tie. With the elegant white shirt he was wearing he looked different from her daily Daniel. She took off her pumps and felt better. She approached his room, where he had gone to leave his discarded clothes, and started asking, "Do you think you could find me something to wear more comfortable than this dress? Maybe a T-shirt and a pair of sweat-" she stopped abruptly as she reached the doorway and saw Daniel wearing only a pair of shorts and about to get into his jeans. "I'm sorry!" she exclaimed and run back to the living room.

Daniel followed her a minute later, with his jeans and a black shirt on. He offered a T-shirt and a pair of sweat pants to Sam, but she looked distraught. "Come on, Sam; it's not like you caught me naked. You've seen me like that before. Hey! You've even seen me only wrapped in a flag," he said jokingly.

Sam smiled at the memory of his second return and relaxed. "I know. It's just that the words of Dr. Liam have been messing around in my head."

"About the sexual awareness?" Daniel asked.

"Yeah," Sam granted.

"Well, if it makes you happy, we'll do what she said, 'give it a try'; we'll prove that there's nothing there and move on," he suggested.

"I don't know," Sam doubted.

"If it makes you uncomfortable or if I disgust you in that way-"

"No, Daniel! It's not that. You are a beautiful man, inside and out. I'm neither blind nor stupid," she smiled while repeating his own words about her. "It just scares me a little."

"Okay, then forget about it. Go change and I'll order the food."

She had been feeling all kind of tingling sensations with just the idea of 'trying' and his words disappointed her. "No, let's try, once," she said without much conviction.

He approached her and they both felt awkward. They giggled nervously for a second and, then, Daniel took the initiative and kissed her. They got lost in the kiss. They were both amazed and confused at the intensity of what they were sharing. They finally separated and they stood facing each other, Daniel's hands still holding Sam's face. "Wow," he just said.

"Can't even find a better word," Sam whispered. She grabbed him by the waist and kissed him herself.

"Wow, bis," Daniel said when they were apart again. Sam looked at him and he smiled, "Wow again."

"Should we try something more… complicated?" Sam asked shyly.

"Are you sure, Sam?" he inquired softly. "Are you sure you want to try that with me?"

"Well, you're my husband. I would say you are the right candidate," she smiled, "unless you don't want to-"

"Oh, I do. Believe me, I do," he said and kissed her again. "It's not like this is our first date. We've taken nine years to get here. We can figure out the rest later." She nodded happily. He scooped her up in his arms and they left the room.

≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈

On Monday morning, Dr. Liam entered her office and listened to her messages. She sat down deeply satisfied with herself. She was not surprised to hear that a couple of her patients had decided to abort their divorce proceedings and give marriage a try.