Sam woke up with a smile on her face during the night, the reason down to a certain affectionate Archaeologist nuzzling her neck. He grinned on seeing that she was not only awake but not going to kill him for waking her up, and they kissed, the Colonel sighing happily during the clinch as she held onto him.

He whispered, gazing at her lovingly when she made to undo his shirt, "Sam... just because we're in my bed doesn't mean we have to do it. It's great just being with you. I don't want you to feel you have to do anything."

She smiled at his thoughtfulness, stroking his jaw. "I want to."

They kissed again and she went back to undoing his shirt buttons as he began to get a little scared, chiefly as he hadn't done anything remotely like he was about to do in such a long time. Sensing this, and understanding what he was going through to a certain extent, she paused when she had finished with the buttons and kissed him softly; the gesture an assurance and a promise.

He returned the kiss, this gesture a promise of his own to relax and just let go for once as well as a testimonial of how much he loved and trusted her.

She took his shirt off and then marvelled at his semi-naked form. She had seen him almost naked before... the most memorable time being when he had descended from being semi-ascended, but this time was much different. This time, she could touch him without reservations, without worrying about protocol or anyone or anything... and this time, she could admire his sculpted figure to a similar degree.

She ran her fingers down his chest and his stomach, familiarising herself with the previously unknown, the soon-to-be formerly unchartered. The fact that she was going to have exclusive rights on it, for however long, sent an electrifying thrill through her.

Surprised that she actually appeared to like what she was seeing, and feeling a once familiar warmth spread through him as a result of her touch, he pulled her top off, the Colonel helping him when he decided to be too polite to pull it all off. It was then that he just stopped, unable to keep himself from gawping at her. He caught glimpses of her beauty over the years, but nothing like this.

Amused at the dazed expression that slid across his face and remained, flattered and embarrassed too, she removed her underwear, which resulted in one stunned Archaeologist. Smiling, she held him close, the sensation of skin against skin almost too much for either to bear.

Snapping out of daze, he held her tightly, kissing her shoulder as he rubbed her back, her own hand rubbing his shoulder and the back of his head. Like this they remained for a long while, their bodies communing, repairing and re-establishing their bond.

After a long, long moment, as he waited for her to make the first move, she released him, fumbling with the belt buckle on his jeans. He touched her cheek and when she looked at him, she stopped and smiled, the look one of a common understanding that it would be easier to work on removing their own clothes.

They did just that, both of them increasingly stunned on sighting the other's nakedness.

Taking it slow at first, they lie parallel, gazing at each other lovingly as they exchanged kisses and touches.

It was then that something snapped.

The kisses became more and more passionate, the touches and caresses more and more intimate as their bodies kindled and then blazed in the heat of passion. Years of suppressed feelings surfaced and resurfaced, intensified and sky-rocketed. She held onto him as he rested himself over her, his lips moving from hers to her throat and her chest as she writhed beneath his touch in sheer bliss, calling his name... an act which excited him even more, the very idea that it was him who was giving her so much pleasure, so much happiness, and no-one else. The idea alone made him feel as though he was the happiest and the luckiest man on the planet.

She smiled as she kissed him, seeing the love and the lust blazing in his eyes, the sight shocking to say the least, but welcome nonetheless. She ran her hands up and down his torso, sometimes on his backside during rare lucid moments, and as he continued to make love to her, she realised that she had never been so happy and so carefree in her entire life. Also, she had never seen him nearly so playful or happy too, a fact which made her proud due to the reason appearing to be her and no-one else.

Pulses raced, breaths became ragged, and the eventually reciprocal lovemaking culminated in an explosive yet welcome release that neither had ever known before. Noisy, refreshing and sensational, it resulted in a feeling of soaring through the cosmos, through the furthest known stars and galaxies, into infinity itself.

When they came down from the breathtaking heights that they had ascended to, they clung onto each other, full of conflicting emotions; fear, love, wonder, amazement, joy, trepidation.

As she began to get tearful at never feeling anything as awe-inspiring and utterly wonderful, she realised as his body shook that he was crying. She held him tighter, realising the reasons for him doing so, that it had been such a long time... too long. She rubbed his back in long strokes and whispered in his ear,

"I love you Daniel... I love you."

His eyes so much clearer than she had ever remembered them being, he gazed at her as she tenderly wiped his tears away. "I love you too."