The Christmas ball

Chapter one

The holidays were closing by. Jack O'Neill had never been keen on mundane parties but as the new commander of the SGC, he didn't have the heart to refuse his people the pleasure of the traditional and otherwise very popular Christmas ball. They had all worked very hard, he was proud of them and they definitely deserved to have some fun and socialize off base once in a while. Walter had been delighted to be allowed to organize the whole thing by himself. You could see how he nearly rubbed his hands in glee at the thought. He knew that, contrary to General Hammond who was very keen on such parties and had many ideas of his own, General O'Neill didn't care a bit and he would let him decide of everything. As a matter of fact, General O'Neill was still new at his job and he had so many other tasks on his plate that he had probably forgotten about the ball as soon as Walter had left his office.

Walter had booked a restaurant at a conference center. It was regularly used for larger events like weddings, which meant there would be place to dance, and people would even have the possibility to sleep over if they had too much to drink. The invitation specified that no uniform was allowed. Walter knew how much the General abhorred his Class A so he had thought it would be a good idea to dress as civilians. It also meant that the event would be more relaxed and that everyone would have a chance to get dressed up for a change.

The General had tried his best to remain on base with the skeleton crew that evening. He had even attempted to intimidate Walter with his most terrible O'Neill glare but the Sergeant knew better and had finally managed to convince him that as head of the SGC, not only was he expected to be at the ball, but it also was his duty to do so. Duty being the key word there. No other argument would have made the General change his mind over this one and Walter was pretty proud that he had come to think of it.

Half of the SGC had already arrived when Jack entered the restaurant that evening. As discreet as his entry was supposed to be, he was not the kind of men that went unnoticed. The dark gray suit was matching his silver hair, he was stunningly handsome. His men were looking at him proudly, although a little jealous of the way the ladies were suddenly so distracted by his arrival. Jack didn't exactly enjoy being the center of attention in a social event, therefore he went straight to his friends.

"Hi T. Daniel. Where's Carter?"

"We have not seen her yet O'Neill. I believe she will arrive shortly"

"I'm impressed Jack. You've really surpassed yourself!" Daniel teased while attempting to touch Jack's combed hair.

"Don't do that!" Jack protested. "You have no idea how much hair gel I had to use to make it go that way!"

"Why Jack, I didn't even know that you had hair gel!" Jack sent him a dirty look and was about to spit some well-chosen words when Ferretti interrupted by clasping a heavy hand on his shoulder.

"Jack! Good to see you! I really thought you would stay on base tonight!"

"Ferretti! Glad you could make it! It's been a while!"

"Yeah, nice of you to invite me and the guys, we miss you up there"

"Really? I always thought you'd like to have your own base, Lou. Not happy with the Alpha site?"

"Oh yeah, it's great. But it's good to be on Earth and get some leave back home too. There's not much going on at the Alpha site, and the food sucks" Ferretti joked. He had some more comments to make but kept them for himself as he noticed the conversations around them had stilled. His eyes followed every gaze toward the entrance. Colonel Carter had just arrived, smiling to known faces but searching for her friends in the crowd, when she noticed the silence. Everyone was looking at her and she blushed. The SGC was not used to see the woman behind the Colonel, and she was simply stunning in her midnight blue ball dress. Her shoulders were left bare as her silver shawl had slipped down. A large sapphire at the end of a diamond necklace was enhancing both her fair skin, the dress and her eyes. All males present vowed to invite her to dance this evening. All but one.

Conversations picked up again and Sam was smiling shyly to her colleagues while making her way toward the high figure of Teal'c that she had noticed on the other side of the room.

"Hi Sam! Nice dress!" Daniel complimented.

"Indeed, you are most beautiful tonight Colonel Carter" Teal'c added. Sam smiled shyly and was about to answer but got interrupted.

"Colonel" Jack saluted dryly, which earned him surprised looks from his friends. He was looking away, conscious of being rude, casting a guilty glance at her when she answered by a surprised but likewise dry "Sir". Both Daniel and Ferretti were looking from one to the other, trying to understand what the problem was between the two. Teal'c wore a hint of an amused smile, which Jack found most irritating. He excused himself as soon as he got a glimpse of Walter, pretending to have some things to arrange with him.

"What was that?" Daniel asked. "Did you two have an argument or something?"

"I have no idea Daniel" Sam answered coldly. She was determined to not let the General spoil the evening for her, what ever the reason for his rude attitude. She was used to his bad temper and chose to attribute it to fatigue. He had had a tough time since he took over the SGC a few months ago, with little sleep and much to deal with. This would explain that, or at least that's what she was trying to convince herself of. Moreover, she was determined not to let anyone see how mortified she was by his demeanor toward her. So she sucked it up and engaged in a pleasant conversation with Ferretti, who was delighted to have her attention. Teal'c glanced toward the tall figure of O'Neill, who was standing with an animated Walter at the appetizers' table, looking bored. The amused flame in the Jaffa's eyes was dancing.

During the meal, Jack was sitting at SG-1's table and did his best to ignore Sam, who in turn did her best to ignore him, although she could not understand his attitude. Cassie had been invited too and she was in an animated conversation with Daniel, which Sam tried to focus on. Jack showed himself a perfect gentleman toward Dr Brightman who was sitting left to him, and was a wonderful excuse to turn his back to Sam who was sitting on his right. As soon as the meal was over and the music started to play, he invited the doctor to dance so that they could leave the table. Ferretti, Reynolds and Dr Lee rushed toward the table to invite Sam. Ferretti being closest reached her first. Triumphant, he walked her to the dance floor, nagging at Reynolds and some of the other guys who were obviously envious of his luck. Sam did her best to engage with him but she couldn't help to glance toward the General. She couldn't understand why he was so distant. They had had a normal day, week, month even, but she had to admit that her first excuse of him being tired didn't hold anymore. He was attentive and nice to the other guests. As the evening went on, she noticed that he was the perfect host and leader, inviting every woman present to dance. And now, he was dancing with Dr Brightman again. All the women had danced with him at least once, but her. Which Cassie couldn't avoid to comment.

"What's with Jack and you Sam? He has been ignoring you all evening"

"I know Cass', I have no idea why he is acting like that. I have probably done something he will tell me about when he summons me to his office on Monday" Sam said with more concern in her voice than she was willing to admit. Cassie was about to answer when she noticed Jack who was coming toward them. "At last!" she thought. "I made a mountain of nothing, now he will invite Sam to dance!" but Jack took her own hand and lead her toward the dance floor. Cassie was so astonished that she couldn't say a word for a good half minute. Then she decided it was none of her business and she engaged a conversation about how nice the party was. Daniel had noticed the hope on Sam's face when she thought Jack was coming to her, and the hurt when he left with Cassie without even a glance in her direction. He decided it was time to intervene. He took Sam's hand and dragged her toward the dance floor. However, she was reaching her limits and felt more like leaving the ball to go home and let her frustration out in private, than to humor Daniel to a dance. He didn't give her a choice though, he was holding her hand firmly and she would have had to make a scandal to free herself. She followed unenthusiastically and decided she would leave after this last dance.

Daniel was a good dancer, and although Sam preferred more modern music, it was a pleasure to dance this waltz with him. He was discreetly maneuvering them toward Jack and Cassie. He managed to make eye contact with Cassie and communicate that he had something in mind. At the right moment, he taped Jack's shoulder and threw Sam in his arms as Cassie freed herself from him and disappeared in the crowd with Daniel.

"Carter!" Jack whispered, taken aback and turning bright red.

"Sir…" she nearly excused herself. The situation was awkward at best. They both stood there, looking at each other for a couple of seconds before Jack noticed some curious looks from the other dancers, and decided to resume the waltz with Sam. She however, was most uncomfortable and had taken a step away in the direction of their table. He grabbed her and secured her hand in his, keeping his eyes on their joined hands. She was now completely confused by his attitude.

"Sir…?" she asked in despair. "Have I done something wrong?"

"Wrong? Why would you say that?" he replied, obstinately keeping his eyes on their hands.

"Why?" she spitted in a whisper so that the other dancers wouldn't hear. "You've been avoiding me the whole evening, and when you had to talk to me, you were as cold as you could possibly be! I had to assume that I had done something to offend you!" She was outraged and hurt, he could hear than clearly in her voice. He cast a guilty glance at her. Her face was showing both indignation and pain. He had chosen his line of action to protect himself, not realizing how much it would hurt her.

"I'm sorry Carter, you've done nothing exactly wrong. It's just…" he wavered.

"It's just what?" she insisted, irritated.

"Well, if you have to know, it's your dress.." he whispered, looking away again.

"What? Is there something wrong with my dress?" she worried. Now he wasn't making any sense. She had had thousands of compliments on her dress that evening!

"As I said… nothing wrong" he tempered.

"Then what?" she was both irritated and eager to understand. She would be sorry if she had offended him in any way, his friendship was very dear to her, but she would have none of this nonsense.

With a sigh, his eyes left their joined hands and dared to look into hers. There was resignation there, shame too perhaps, but also something deep and powerful that she could not define, that was so much Jack O'Neill, and it had a strong, magnetic effect on her.

"Sam… It's not exactly a BDU"

"Of course it's not! This is a Christmas ball!"

"Yeah, I know. But it's not making things easier on me" he whispered as the blush was coloring his cheeks again.

"What do you mean?" she insisted.

He gathered their joined hands and pressed hers on his shirt. Under the toned muscles of his chest, she could feel his heart pumping hard and fast. Very fast. That's when she noticed his controlled breath. She raised an interrogative brow. Holding her gaze with an intensity only he was capable of, he trust his hips toward her.

"Oh… Oh!" Understanding washed over her like a cold shower while her body was reacting immediately to what his had revealed. A kind of hungry vertigo was burning her inside.

He had managed to keep professional so far because he saw her as one of the guys and the BDU saved him. But now, there was no denying that she was a woman, a beautiful, highly desirable woman. He had tried to restore the distance to protect himself by avoiding her since she had crossed the restaurant's threshold. When Daniel had thrown her in his arms he had had no way to hide anymore, and the result was painfully obvious to both of them. It was kind of tough on him to keep his hands in the right places and refrain from kissing her senseless in the middle of the dance floor. She was both turned on and scared as understanding dawned on her. Such powerful drift in a man like Jack O'Neill could lead anywhere! The shame and resignation she had seen in his eyes moments ago were gone. Now there was plain desire and determination. This was not the time for any guy to come and ask her for a dance! She was his and he would fight for that right. She was drawn to him, the magnetic force she felt was growing stronger and alarm bells started ringing in her head. She had to go. Now. Before someone else would be aware of what was going on between them, or before she would respond to his appeal.

She managed to tear her eyes away from his, and cast a glance around. No one seemed to have noticed anything. Taking a step and her hands away, she realized that her own breath was labored too now, it would take all her self control to rejoin her place without anyone noticing that she was dying to rush back to him and give way to her body's need of him. She glanced back. He was standing where she had left him, staring intensely at her, firing the lustful storm that was already tormenting her.

Walking at a measured pace to try and compose herself, she reached the table where she helped herself with a glass of water. She picked up her purse and shawl and tried to remain casual as she started a goodbye round she hoped would be short. As Teal'c was looking over her head with a shadow of a smirk on his face, Sam followed his gaze and found Jack sitting at the bar with a glass in his hand, his tie loose and the upper button of his shirt opened, like a signal that mundanities were over for tonight. Some young woman from the upper floors at the SGC came to sit at his side. The woman had been one of the first ones he had invited to dance earlier in the evening and she figured that, as he showed some sign to be ready to relax and enjoy the evening like every other guy, she probably had her chances to a date or something. To her disappointment, he barely acknowledged her presence.

He had noticed Sam going around to say goodbye, and his gaze was discreetly following her. She was gorgeous in that dress, dangerously gorgeous. She was already beautiful in BDU's, that dress was an appeal to crime! He wanted her badly, like he seldom had wanted anyone. But he was a big man, he could keep his drifts under control. As long as she kept her distance. That is, if Ferretti would keep his hands away from her! he growled when he saw the Colonel resting a hand on Sam's shoulder for a good bye hug. Jack was half out of his chair when, luckily for Ferretti, the man had the decency to remove that hand immediately after a brief embrace. Several other guys eagerly offered to drive her home, some of them had had a little too much to drink already and would not take the hint when she declined. Jack was holding still, reassured to see that she managed to brush them off without his intervention, but he was ready. What if she ended up saying yes to one of them? he worried. She had every right to do that, and more. He turned his gaze down to his glass. She was not his to protect or possess. She would never be.

His pants were painfully tight now, and the young woman at his side looked like she would be eager to help him with that. He considered the possibility for a moment, she was cute, probably half his age though, and although she was sexy in her own way, she was not his type. He needed to get laid, but not with her. Not with any other than… than the woman he could not have. Jack closed his eyes and drank his glass down. She was gone now so he figured he could leave too. He had been there a reasonably long time, neither Walter nor Daniel could argue that he was being asocial. He grabbed his jacket and made his way to the door after some quick goodbyes. The fresh December wind met him abruptly outside. He put his coat on and lifted the collar while hurrying to his truck, cursing at the melted snow in which he had to wade through to cross the parking lot.

TBC...