Chapter 3

"Hmm…" Sam thought as her consciousness drifted out of dreamland, "I don't want to wake up. This is the best dream I've had in months." She nuzzled her nose into that warm soft crook between Jack's jaw and neck and relished the feel of the firm shoulder under her cheek. Then her body became aware of the arm underneath her neck and the arm resting on her ribs. And then of the legs her legs were stroking. Confusion and fear mixed as she rapidly extracted herself from the body she found herself entangled with and sat up.

"Uh…savete?" Jack said as he looked at her with concern.

"What the…" Sam said as she struggled to grasp the situation she found herself in. "Oh, my God…Jack?" she added as she scrambled off the bed and stood on the side opposite the one he was laying on.

"Decetuit, decetuit…" he said with a calm, soothing voice.

Angry that she'd slipped and called him by his first name again, she straightened and said, "I mean, General, sir." She was pleasantly surprised to see him, but dying of embarrassment that he'd found her in his bed. "This cannot be happening," she thought.

She watched the lazy smile that had graced his face fade rapidly. He turned and sat on the edge of the bed, shook his head and grumbled, "Acclamare".

She forgot her embarrassment as concern took center stage. "What's wrong?" she asked as she moved around the bed to face him. "Please, sir, let me apologize. I shouldn't be here, I…" He raised his hand and cut her off mid-sentence.

She stood by, dumbfounded and watched as he got up and walked to a desk on the far side of the room. He pulled out a piece of paper and a pen and sat down to write. How good it was to see him and how thin he looked invaded her thought processes. She found herself blushing in embarrassment again when he turned and startled her out of her reverie by handing her a piece of paper.

She was startled by the intensity of the emotions displayed on his face. He was usually so good at keeping what he was feeling from others. "His time with the Asgard has changed him," she thought.

"I'm dead. No 'sir', no regs. Just 'Jack'," she read the note out loud. Her heart started thumping as the meaning behind those words sank in. "You're not staying, are you?" she asked, afraid to hear his answer. A 'yes', would mean he'd leave again…for who knew how long. A 'no' would mean they had an opportunity she had not anticipated.

He shook his head and turned back to write more. She struggled to take a deep, calming breath and not appear that she needed one. Fortunately for her, his attention was on the paper again. He wrote quickly, hesitating as he struggled to remember the words he wanted to use.

"Here for a few days. Will go back with Thor for a while. Will return when I'm 'right' again. No one has to know I came. We can spend the time together. Return to normal when I come back for good. This can be whatever we want it to be. I leave it to you to decide," she read it out loud again.

When she looked at him, he was looking at his feet…which made her look at his feet. "Damn that man has sexy feet," she thought and then shook her head to repel the thought.

"Can we do that?" she asked. "Can we go back to normal, pretend nothing happened?"

He scribbled on yet another piece of paper.

"Can it be any more difficult than the pretending we've been doing?"

Sam considered his question. She watched his face as she ran scenarios through her head. Again she was taken aback at the emotions that played on his face. He was not normally so expressive.

It only took her a few minutes of looking into his deep chestnut eyes before she made her decision. She was not big on regrets…and if she turned this down she would regret it for the rest of her life. They may never have an opportunity like this again. How could she not take advantage of this? How could she tell him no again?

She could not stop herself from smiling. And she knew she was blushing too, but at that moment, she didn't care. Then he smiled too, and his eyes twinkled. "God, how I've missed that," she thought.

"You must be hungry," she said and smiled at his expression. His inability to speak might cause problems, but his new lack of hiding his emotions, was helping in the communication area. "I bought some groceries yesterday. Let's go see if we can find something you'll like."

"Crustum?" he asked.

"Uh…sure," she replied, though she had no clue what he asked.

He followed her down the hall and into the kitchen. She began rummaging through the bags of non-perishable or canned items she'd left on the counter in the kitchen. Then she turned holding the box of Bisquick she'd retrieved. "Do you have a waffle iron?" she asked.

She watched in amusement as his brow furrowed, and then his face brightened as he recalled the location of the appliance she wanted. A few minutes later, she was mixing up waffle batter and he had left the kitchen. After she started the first waffle in the iron, she turned to see where Jack went.

As she stepped out of the kitchen and into the dining area, she could see him standing near the sliding glass door to the deck. She wondered what he was thinking about and tried to imagine what it had been like to spend so many months with the Asgard. No real food, no 'outside', no human companionship…not unlike the time she'd spent trapped on the Prometheus. She shuddered at that memory. And he had to go back…for however long it would take to completely remove the remaining knowledge from the Ancient database that had been downloaded into his brain again.

The smell of waffles brought her out of her contemplation and sent her back into the kitchen. Before long she was serving up waffles with strawberries and whipped cream. She didn't even have to call Jack to the table; the aroma of the food did her job for her.

"Papae," he said as he approached the table.

"I hope that's a good thing?" she asked, chuckling.

"Aio," he said as he pulled out the chair in front of her and gestured for her to take a seat.

"Oh, thank you," she said, as she sat and he helped her scoot the chair in. Then he sat and promptly stuffed a fork full of strawberries and whipped cream into his mouth. She was rewarded with a pleasure induced groan and then an expression of pure bliss.

He ate his first helping rather quickly. She was amused by his obvious enjoyment of the food. He motioned for her to quit watching him and start eating her own food as he started dishing up second helpings of everything. "I'm sorry," she said, looking down at her plate, "it's just that…" but she couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence. The old habit of suppressing such sentiments kicked in. Their eyes met and as they had so many times before, they communicated without saying a word. Pulling her gaze down to her plate, she felt a warm blush creeping onto her cheeks. She really was not used to Jack wearing his emotions on his sleeve and that's exactly what had been happening since he'd returned.

She thought to change the mood slightly by catching him up on what he'd missed while he was with the Asgard. When they had finished eating, she began clearing away the dishes, but was stopped by his hand on her arm.

"Posterus," he said and started tugging at her hand.

"But, I need to get this cleaned up and get some things started for dinner," she protested.

He looked at her questioningly, picked up his dishes and motioned for her to continue. Placing his dishes in the sink, he turned to her. "Quid a cenae?" he asked and then turned to look in the refrigerator.

"What?" she asked.

He found the breast of turkey she had purchased and pulled it out. "Is ea id?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah," she said, as comprehension dawned. "I was planning a small turkey dinner. I hope that sounds good to you."

Jack smiled and looked at the weight of the turkey. It weighed less than 8 pounds. "Ego habeo aetatis," he said and put the turkey back in the refrigerator.

Sam shook her head. "I don't know what you just said," she said.

He tugged at her hand again and she followed him down the hall. She was puzzled, but bemused. He pulled her into the bedroom and began looking through her bag. "What are you doing?" she asked, chuckling. He found a hat and scarf and threw them at her. Then he picked up a pair of sweat pants, a pair of thick socks, a sweatshirt and threw those at her as well.

"Okay, hold on," she said as she caught the shirt but dropped the socks. He ignored her and walked to his dresser. He pulled out a long sleeve shirt and slipped it on over his t-shirt. Then he opened another drawer and pulled out a stocking cap and a pair of gloves. He turned, pulled the hat on and looked at Sam.

She read his expression without difficulty. 'What're you waiting for?' his face asked.

"Where are we going?" she asked as she sat on the edge of the bed and pulled the sweat pants on over her pajama pants.

He just smiled, dug into his closet and pulled out some boots. He waited for her to get the sweatshirt, socks and hat on, then grabbed his coat and motioned for her to follow him. He stopped near the front door and indicated that she should put on her boots. Then he handed her coat and gloves to her. When they were finally dressed, he grabbed her hand and dragged her out through the sliding doors, over the deck and into the back yard.

"Okay," she said, squinting against the brightness of the sun on the snow, "what are we doing out here?"

"Hominis niveus," Jack exclaimed and bent over to pick up some snow.

"Oh, no," she said, starting back toward the house. "I'm not going to get into a snowball fight with you.

"Haut! Manto…" he said and bent over to begin rolling the ball into a larger ball. He stood up and made the shape of a snowman with his hands. "Hominis niveus…" he said again with a hopeful expression.

"A snowman?" Sam asked, frowning and smiling at the same time. "You want to make a snowman?"

"Aio," he said grinning broadly.

"Aio…that's yes?" Sam asked, deciding she'd better start paying attention to some of the words he'd been saying.

He nodded and motioned for her to join him. She looked at her watch and decided she could spare an hour if he really wanted to make a snowman. She shook her head and chuckled at the goofy expression he gave her.

They rolled three large balls of snow together and stacked them. Sam had to admit that she was having fun. It had been so long since she'd done anything fun, she'd almost forgotten what it felt like. They rummaged around and found a couple of sticks to make arms and Jack looked under the deck to retrieve several pebbles for the nose, eyes and mouth. Then she took off her scarf and wrapped it around the snowman's neck.

They stood back to admire their handiwork. "He is a fine, strong snowman," Sam declared and then giggled at the look Jack gave her. "What shall we call him?" she wondered aloud. Jack shook his head. "Yeah, me neither," she said and sighed, "I guess he will just be Snowman."

Jack shrugged and smiled. Suddenly, she had the urge to do something else she hadn't done since she was a kid, but she was having trouble finding the right place. Finally, she spotted an undisturbed section of the yard and ran towards it.

"Quid factionis ti?" Jack yelled as she ran across the yard.

"Oh, I'll just be a second," she yelled back. "I just have to make one," she said as she reached her destination and turned back to face his direction. Then she flopped onto her back and started moving her arms and legs back and forth as she giggled.

He walked up and stood at her feet as she finished making her snow angel. "Come on," she coaxed, "it's fun."

Jack smiled but shook his head. He offered her his hand to help her up.

"You're no fun," she mocked and reached up to accept his help. Then she pulled roughly on his hand and threw him into the snow next to her. She chuckled as she sat up and he rolled onto his back. He picked up a handful of snow and threw it at her face.

She spluttered as the snow hit her. Then she grabbed a handful of snow and descended on him, intending to return the favor. He blocked the snow with his hands and she flipped some up with the other. Pulling on her jacket he threw her to his side as he rolled over on top of her.

Sam was laughing so hard she was having difficulty catching her breath; it had been a very long time since she'd laughed like that. Jack laughed too as he straddled her and sat back on his calves.

She looked at his rosy cheeks and nose, listened to their laugher as it mixed in the frigid silence and became overwhelmed by the sudden desire to kiss him. Her laughter subsided as she considered her situation.

This whole scenario was just unreal. She didn't romp in the snow like a child. She didn't wrestle with her CO. She lived with restrictions, regulations, battles, intergalactic puzzles and impossible pressure situations.

How many times had she wished for a situation like this? How many times had she imagined what a time without regulations, without restrictions with him would be like? What if she'd built this up in her mind too much? What if this didn't live up to her or his expectations? Why was she finding this so awkward? Because it wasn't smart and it wasn't real.

She watched as his laughter subsided too. He looked at her and she saw a mix of concern and longing in the depths of his expressive brown eyes. She reminded herself that she was doing this for him. If he could do this, she could do this, even if it wasn't the smartest thing, even if she might hurt like hell later on.

She pushed herself up onto her left elbow and took off the glove off her right hand. She reached up and caressed his icy cheek and smiled. "We'd better get you back inside before your knee freezes in place."

He chuckled and pulled the glove off his right hand so he could take hold of hers. He stood and gave her a little tug. She stood right up and he wrapped his left arm around her to steady her. Neither of them moved. They stood there, their breath steaming between them, looking into each other's eyes.

Sam could stand it no longer. She leaned in tentatively, brushing her cold nose against his as he tilted his head slightly. Closing her eyes, she removed the short distance between them. Their lips brushed lightly at first, then his arm tightened around her and their lips met again with more pressure.

Any fear that she would be disappointed quickly melted away in the heat that began building within her. Any doubts that she had made the wrong choice in deciding to indulge this fantasy dissipated as well. She relaxed into his embrace and felt tears of relief sting at the back of her eyes.

She really did love this man. She had loved him for a very long time and for the first time, she didn't have to hide it. The release was overwhelming. She wanted to stay in his embrace forever, but it was cold and they were wet. Dinner was waiting to be cooked and she wanted to make a spectacular meal for him. And then later, she wanted to do more.

She reached her ungloved hand up to caress his cheek again and then slid her fingers over his lips as she backed away slightly, ending the kiss. She watched his face as he slowly opened his eyes and smiled that lazy smile she loved so much.

"We really need to get back inside," she whispered. He nodded his agreement and took hold of her ungloved hand. They walked back into the house, began peeling off wet clothes and placing them near the fireplace. Though her pajama pants were damp too, she left those and the sweatshirt on and went into the kitchen to get the turkey started before she changed.

She had just taken the turkey breast out of the refrigerator and was looking for a pan when she turned and noticed him standing, leaning against the doorframe smiling at her with the a self-satisfied, 'cat-ate-the-canary' grin. She grinned back at him, and then it occurred to her that she had seen that look before.

"What are you thinking about?" she inquired, her right brow raised and her left brow furrowed.

His reaction to her question puzzled her even more. He stood straight up and got one of those 'I just thought of something I have to do elsewhere' looks on his face. He pointed his thumb toward the living room and said "Uh…caminus." Then he turned and walked into the living room.

She followed after him, puzzled. She watched as he looked into the firewood bin and found it nearly empty. He looked up and indicated that he was heading out to split some more firewood in the back shed. She smiled and watched him put his coat and boots back on before heading back into the kitchen.

Sam sliced up an apple, a couple of celery stalks and peeled an onion before she heard him return. The whole time, she was trying to remember when she'd seen that expression on his face before - it was driving her crazy.

She tried to picture the last time that look had been on his face. Where had they been? He was smiling like that again…and then he…took a bite…of…OATMEAL! That was it! It was the time loop. Daniel had asked that question. She'd wondered for weeks why he'd smiled like that. Eventually, she just forgot about it.

"Whoa!" she thought, "He kissed me during the time loop?" Her mind was having difficulty processing that realization. "What the hell else did he do?" she wondered, seriously beginning to be concerned. "Because, if he kissed me then like he did just now…"

She dropped the onion she'd been peeling on the counter and stalked out of the kitchen. "You kissed me!" she accused as she turned the corner into the living room.

He turned and looked at her with an expression that said, "Duh!"

"No," she said, shaking her head and smiling to let him know that ploy wouldn't work. "During the time loop, you kissed me, didn't you?"

He crooked his brow and looked toward the ceiling, clearly acting like he was trying to recall the time loop.

"What else did you…we do?" she asked. "How could you take advantage of a situation like that? When you knew I wouldn't remember?" She was trying to control the anger that was building within her.

He looked around and she wasn't sure if he was looking for something or looking for a way out. Then he held up his hand, telling her to stay where she was. He approached her and put his hand up again to indicate that he was leaving, but that he would be right back.

"Where are you going?" she called after him as he disappeared down the hall. "Man, this communication barrier is beginning to be a pain," she thought.

Sam paced around the living room, trying to decide if she should follow him, go back into the kitchen or just wait in the living room. Looking over at the fireplace, she noticed that he hadn't gotten the fire started yet, so she put her energies into doing that.

Before long Sam had the fire crackling. Again the decision to wait, go to the kitchen or go find him plagued her. She was just about to do the latter when he walked back down the hall.

She turned and walked toward him when she heard him approach. "So…" she said, but the retort she held on her tongue remained unspoken as he handed her a piece of paper. "What's this?" she asked as she took the piece of paper and began to read the typed message that was printed on it. She read it silently as he walked around her to look at the fire she started.

"You…resigned before you kissed me?" she asked, turning to face him.

He raised his brows and nodded slightly.

She didn't quite know what to say about that. "And that's all that happened?" she asked. "Just the one time?"

He shrugged and nodded again. She shook her head and smiled at him. She was really quite touched. Repeating who knows how many iterations of the same ten hours, knowing that whatever he did would have no consequences, that the slate would be wiped clean - it wasn't dissimilar to the situation they currently found themselves in. He'd taken the regulations out of the picture then and they were taken out of the picture here as well. The only difference was that this time they would both remember.

Then a thought occurred to her. "Does Teal'c know about this?" she asked, suddenly very curious.

He gave a sheepish nod.

"And all this time, the two of you have kept this secret?"

He nodded again.

"I'm impressed," she said as she folded the piece of paper and slid it into the pocket of her sweatshirt. "I guess we'll have a little secret of our own after this, huh? Well, I mean a secret that Teal'c doesn't share."

Jack nodded. Sam nodded back and then pointed toward the kitchen. "Well, I'm gonna go back to the kitchen and finish what I started in there."

Jack nodded again. He gestured that he was going to go take a shower by pointing and scrubbing his fingers through his hair.

"You're going to take a shower?" Sam asked, just to clarify. Jack nodded again and patted his nose. She chuckled and walked back up the short steps into the dining area as he began his trek down the hall.

Sam looked at the vegetables and fruit she had cut up. The turkey wasn't yet ready for the oven, but suddenly cooking had lost its appeal. She looked at her watch. A few more hours could be spared because they could eat just a little later. The thought of a shower was enticing. The thought of a shower with Jack was too tempting to pass up.