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Chapter 2

xoxoxoxoxo

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"Well, the first thing we need to do is create backgrounds for everyone," Greg explained to the group who had assembled in the empty office space in San Francisco. John, Teyla and even Torren had come over and brought Ronon, Amelia, Lorne and Rodney. They had been introduced to Greg's team.

Besides Greg, there was Aaron Sutherland who was a whiz with computers and technology, Nina Dunton, who would arrange for their housing, clothes, and make sure they had everything they needed to play the part. Then Nick Parker and Gina Colburn were from one of the national agencies and arranged for all the background to be authenticated in case anyone checked. They also had access to quite a bit of information that they otherwise might not be able to get their hands on.

Nina stood up and began. "I've found that the easiest way to remember most of your back story is to keep it as close to reality as possible. Your first names are fine, John and Teyla but we will need to change the last one. I've gone with Sherman, same initials as Sheppard and easy enough to remember."

Nina opened a folder and narrowed her eyes at John. "Now according to our research there's no record of your military service beyond when you were stationed in McMurdo five years ago. And there's no record whatsoever on Mr. Dex and Ms. Emmagen. Now normally I would be concerned about that but it actually works in our favor and apparently General Landry vouches for all of you. And I'm guessing what you did was very top secret and that will help you in this situation. So let's begin."

Within an hour they had their whole lives mapped out and Nina printed out a few sheets so John and Teyla could study it in case any of the questions came up. Lorne, Ronon and Amelia had their own little back stories as well with their subsequent homework.

"We'll start moving in your furniture in a few days but we'll need to get you outfitted with wardrobes that fit who you are. If you have clothes that you think might work, you're welcome to bring them along too, but most of the stuff will be supplied by us."

"So probably not the fifty black t-shirts you own, Sheppard," Rodney quipped. "This will be interesting seeing you in something other than BDU's."

John glared at his friend but did realize he would be wearing civilian clothes ever day. And they'd have to be higher quality than he usually got. But he knew all about the lives of the rich so it wouldn't be as much of a stretch as anyone thought. Ronon was, after all, the only one of them who had seen where he'd grown up.

Agent Parker then got up while Agent Colburn set up a Power Point projected on the wall.

"This is our main suspect," Parker introduced as a picture of a suave, handsome man in his late thirties or so was flashed on the wall. "His name is Philip Traynor. This is his wife, Elise and they have two children, a six year old boy, Jeremy and a three year old girl, Emma. Inside the folder that each of you was given is information on their household help. It would be beneficial if you could strike up friendships and conversations with them. You never know what little details you might get that could be useful."

More information was presented on the types of weapons that they were finding in the hands of people who shouldn't have them. And the government was getting a little anxious about it. Run downs on Traynor's business and financial aspects were discussed as well as scenarios on the best way to infiltrate his organization.

"If we start socially I think he'll be less likely to suspect anything," Colburn said. "Moving you in next door will be key. I've included information about where they shop, get their hair done, what clubs and organizations they belong to and we plan on having you join many of those to quicken the relationship with them."

Torren took that opportunity to clap his hands and yell, "Da!" as he held out his arms to John.

John grinned sheepishly as he took the boy, knowing he had been very good throughout most of the presentation. He whispered a few things in the child's ear and he settled down on his shoulder to suck his thumb. John knew he would probably need a nap soon so he started rubbing his back and he felt Torren relax against him.

But the interruption made Colburn raise her finger in remembrance. "Oh, and Emma Traynor goes to a play group a few mornings a week and we thought it would be great for Torren to go too. But we're thinking if Elise Traynor suggests it, it might be better, less suspicious. So Teyla, fairly soon after you meet them it might be a good thing to ask her for suggestions."

"Yes, certainly," Teyla nodded and agreed.

The group spent another half hour on more details, Rodney had his head together with Aaron, scheming all sorts of technical assistance, then they started to break up. John stood up with Torren now soundly asleep on his shoulder and moved toward Greg.

"Don't worry, Greg, we'll get this guy and whoever he's working with. My team's the best and we've been working together for a while so we're pretty in sync with each other. And with all the other help and info that your team is providing, it should be a piece of cake."

Greg glanced around and saw that Teyla was speaking with Nina so leaned in to John and observed, "You know you make taking care of that baby look like a piece of cake. But you don't have any kids of your own? Maybe you should have."

John just snuggled Torren closer on his shoulder and made a wry face. Then he looked at Teyla and knew having a child with her would be an amazing thing. But he had to concentrate on the mission at hand and work on the Teyla aspect a little at a time.

When he looked back at Greg, his friend was grinning. "So that's how it is with you two, huh? This 'marriage' thing won't be too much of a hardship for you, I'm guessing. Good luck!"

John just rolled his eyes and mumbled, "Thanks." He didn't even want to try and deny his feelings for Teyla. And the next month or so he wouldn't need to. He could give her all sorts of caring and affection and no one would be the wiser. He was actually looking forward to that. He wondered what Teyla was thinking about it, too.

They made arrangements for Teyla to be taken by Nina to get her wardrobe, especially as she had no clue what the rich American wore, but John asked if he could get his own. He knew what he liked and had more than enough knowledge of the right fabrics and brand names and he didn't like the idea of someone else picking out his clothes. It was just a personal thing.

They would spend the next day getting everything ready and making sure their identities checked out if Traynor decided to investigate them. Rodney and Aaron also needed time to put together wedding pictures and photo albums and all the other items a family would have in their possession when they moved. Target time to move was two days from now and then the real show began.

Teyla walked over to John to let him know she was going with Nina. "Do you need me to take Torren with us?"

"Nah," John answered as he looked at Teyla's excited face. He could tell she was enthusiastic about this mission and he was glad. "You won't be able to try on all the clothes you'll need with him crawling around your feet. I'll take him back with me and get someone to stay with him while I do my shopping."

Amelia heard this and moved closer. "I can watch him. I'm gonna be doing it a lot soon anyway and I've certainly babysat him enough that he'll be fine. That way neither one of you will be hindered with him."

John rubbed the boy's back again and pressed a kiss to his head. "I don't really think of him as a hindrance but I know what you mean. Thanks, Amelia."

John then looked at Teyla and snickered, "Now don't spend too much money, sweetie. You know how hard I work for that."

Teyla's eyes sparkled with glee at the quip. She stepped closer and pressed herself against John's side. "But I will make sure and get some nice, sexy lingerie while I am out. That should help ease the pain of anything else I spend, right, honey?"

John knew he was in trouble now. Teyla was getting into this maybe a little too much. She started to leave then turned back and reached up and pressed a chaste kiss to his lips. But that chaste kiss lasted a little longer than was typical of something chaste.

As she headed out the door, he looked at her nicely shaped bottom and pictured it clad in lacy underwear. Yes, he was in trouble.

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xoxoxoxoxo

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"I think that's it, sir," Lorne said as he looked around at the empty boxes being removed from the very large house. "The crew managed to get everything put away and cleaned up. You should be all set to go. Did you need anything else?"

John tried to hide the grin at the very subservient way Lorne was addressing him. He knew he needed to play his part now. He channeled his Dad and said, "No, we're all set for now, Lorne. Thank you. If we need anything else, we'll call."

John turned away dismissively and thought he heard Lorne chuckle quietly so he turned and added, "Oh and Lorne, I'll be needing the car at eight o'clock tomorrow morning. Please make sure you're punctual."

"Eight o'clock," Lorne said though the words felt unfamiliar to him. They were used to telling time in military standards. "I'll be ready, sir."

John winked at him then turned dismissing him again. He looked for Teyla and found her in the kitchen with Jennifer who had helped put all the dishes and cookware away. She planned on coming in for a short time during the days to 'clean the house' and bring any messages back and forth that couldn't be discussed on the phone. With no one going out on missions she had been underused recently too. But she didn't feel too comfortable being deeply involved in a covert operation like this but was more than happy to be a courier of information.

"All set in here, sweetie?" John asked as he sidled up behind Teyla and wrapped his arms around her very tiny waist. He glanced down at the gold ring on his left hand then to the set of rings Teyla was wearing on the hand that now covered his. He knew no one was watching them right now inside the house but Nina had told them they should try and stay in character as often as possible so they didn't forget. He was happy to do the loving husband thing whenever he could.

He felt Teyla lean back into his arms and his heart sped up. He could get used to this very quickly. She gazed up at him and smiled beautifully. "Yes, Jennifer has been most helpful. I cannot believe that everything we have has already been put away. It was so fast."

"You get what you pay for," John quipped though he didn't think Teyla quite understood the saying.

He nuzzled his nose in her hair and sighed, "I don't know about you but I'm bushed. Moving is a lot of work and we didn't even do all of it. But I'm also hungry. You fancy anything special? I'm buying as long as it's quick and can be delivered."

"Ooh, I'll take Chinese," Rodney interrupted as he strolled into the room dragging some papers and his ever present laptop.

"Nobody asked you, McKay," John retorted. "And aren't you supposed to be installing the security system?"

"Yeah, it's all done. You've got a camera in most of the main rooms and I've installed a panic button in quite a few locations. All your other gadgets should be up and running and I've listed here where all the weapons are hidden so you can access them easily if you need to."

He handed John a floor plan of the house with codes written in that they had discussed previously. John studied it for a few seconds but nothing had changed from their earlier arrangements.

"All right, well tonight should be quiet since we haven't even met the neighbors yet. So Teyla and I are going to try and unwind and make sure we're all set for tomorrow's big performance. It's Saturday and Traynor usually goes for his run by seven. I figure if I plan it so I'm just returning from mine around then, we could possibly bump into each other. Even if we don't end up talking at least he's seen me and has a visual of who moved in. Today there were a million people over here and he didn't even get home from work until an hour ago."

"You actually saw him come home from work?" McKay asked curiously. "I … I didn't notice that."

"Of course you didn't. You had your nose in your computer. But it's my job to be aware of these things and I already knew his typical schedule so was looking out for it."

Rodney walked to the refrigerator, opened it and scowled. "There's nothing in here. You people have got to go shopping."

"On our list of things to do tomorrow," John replied. "I've got Lorne bringing the car around at eight."

Rodney just rolled his eyes and motioned for Jennifer. "Come on, let's go and allow the rich snobs to have their takeout food. I will take you to dinner."

"Really?" Jennifer asked. "Oh, that's so sweet, Rodney. Where will we go? Am I dressed all right?"

"Oh, yeah, you're fine," he grunted. "We'll just stop at that burger and ribs place on the way back."

Jennifer sighed and John and Teyla laughed as the couple left them standing in the incredibly large kitchen. Teyla looked around with her eyes wide. "I do not know what some of these appliances are, John. How do you expect me to actually use them for cooking?"

"You won't," John answered. "I'll use them. I actually like to cook but usually don't have the time. But now that I'm a work-at-home entrepreneur I should be able to whip up a little something for us each night. But for right now I plan on sending out for some food. And maybe I'll take McKay's suggestion. Chinese sounds good and I know you like some of the vegetable chow mein. Where did Amelia put those local menus she brought in?"

Teyla quickly pulled them out of a drawer and within thirty-five minutes they had bags of food sitting on the kitchen table. John pulled out his cell phone and called Lorne and Ronon who were staying in the small apartments above the four car garage. They showed up a few minutes later along with Amelia and Torren and they all sat down to share a meal.

"You know, sir, you really shouldn't be eating with the hired help," Lorne teased as he passed the egg rolls to his CO.

"I know, I know," John admitted. "But think of this as the last supper. You won't get to do this again while we're here."

"And the neighbors went out a little while ago anyway so they can't see us doing this," Ronon added. "They were dressed pretty nice. Must be something fancy."

John appeared thoughtful. "Well, wherever it was, we'll just have to make sure that next time we get invited. Give us a chance to use all those fancy gowns you bought, Teyla."

Teyla's eyes glossed over. "Yes, they are very beautiful. I am looking forward to wearing them and going to whatever affair is elegant enough to warrant them."

"I'm sure we'll be going to plenty and I can't say I'm looking forward to it. I had more than my share of snobby events when I was young. I don't imagine they're any better now that I'm older."

Everyone dug back in and the food was finished off in short order. The leftovers were stowed in the fridge and Lorne headed back to his apartment while Amelia and Ronon moved to her set of rooms in the back of the house.

John and Teyla took TJ and got him settled for bed with a few stories and some quiet cuddling. Teyla sang him a little Athosian lullaby and the child drifted off to sleep. They set the baby monitor on the table near him and walked back to the large family room off the kitchen.

"So, Mrs. Sherman," John joked as they sat on the sofa and turned the TV set on. "How's married life so far? Living up to your expectations?"

Teyla grinned at his words. "Well, Mr. Sherman, so far I have no complaints. But there is still time. We will have to see."

John gave her a playful glare and shook his head. He held out his arms and said, "Come here. I think we need to practice a little more. Just to make sure we have it right."

Teyla moved obligingly into his arms and snuggled cozily against him. John pulled her in close and pressed his lips to her hair and asked, "How's that?"

Teyla released a big sigh and whispered, "Still no complaints."

John kicked his shoes off and propped his feet up on the coffee table in front of him and leaned back comfortably. He knew he didn't have any complaints yet either. And with Teyla in his arms like this he didn't think he really would.

They watched an old western but when it was over John started to get a bit anxious. Now was the actual big test. They needed to climb in the same bed and he was a little nervous. He didn't know why. He had known Teyla for over five years. But he wondered about the steel control he'd had for so many of them and hoped he could keep it strong. But he really didn't want to. That was his dilemma.

They shut off the lights and locked up all the doors before they went up and John thought Teyla seemed a bit anxious as well. He hoped she didn't think he would do anything she didn't want. Heck he wasn't even thinking that he would try anything. Certainly not this first night.

He knew Teyla was the sort of woman you took your time with. And he would never expect anything of her that she wasn't willing and able to give. He hoped she knew that.

They went about the large bedroom getting sleep clothes and washing up. John had gotten a few pair of pajama pants for Teyla's benefit but knew he would just sleep in a t-shirt since he couldn't even pretend to be a pajama top kind of guy. He hoped she was okay with that.

John turned off all the lights in the bedroom except the one by the bed as he crawled into the large King sized bed. He'd be lucky if he could even see Teyla in a bed this big. They definitely didn't have to touch each other if they didn't want to. But he knew he wanted to. But again he knew he would be patient and take things slow. And if Teyla indicated she had no interest then he would respect that.

He looked up as the bathroom door opened and Teyla shut that light off. As she moved closer John almost groaned. He could now see that she was wearing some sort of silky nightgown that swirled snuggly around her hips and ended just above her knees. The color was a deep emerald green and had skinny little straps that barely held the fabric on her shoulders. John knew he'd never sleep tonight.

"Are we all set, John?" Teyla asked as she slipped under the covers on the other side of the bed. John had to clear his throat before he was able to speak again.

"Yeah, all set. Good night."

"Good night, honey," Teyla said and John could hear the humor in her voice as he turned the lamp off.

John chuckled too and added, "Pleasant dreams, sweetie."

The room grew silent and John thought Teyla must be able to hear his heart pounding loudly in his chest. But she didn't say anything so he tried to close his eyes and relax. All he could think about was that nightgown she had on and how it had clung to every curve of her delectable body. He remembered her words from a few days ago.

"Teyla, did you buy that on purpose? You said you were going to get some sexy lingerie. I guess you weren't kidding."

"Do you not like it, John?" Teyla's amused voice came from closer to him than he thought she was. "I had hoped you would."

"Oh, yeah," John almost groaned. "I like it. I like it very much. Now get some sleep, Mrs. Sherman. We have a big day tomorrow."

"You are correct, we do have a busy day ahead of us." Teyla was silent for a few moments then she added, "And I am glad you like it, John. I bought it with you in mind."

"Thanks," John breathed out as he felt Teyla's presence beside him even in the large bed.

He rolled so his back was to her and tried to relax. But the image of the nightgown was still burned to the inside of his eyelids and he didn't think he'd be able to forget it any time soon. It was going to be a very long night.

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xoxoxoxoxox

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