Previously:

Jack grinned. "Good, cuz I was planning on inviting the gang over for a BBQ."

Sam grinned. "A BBQ, really? Hmm, it has been ages since I've been subjected to an O'Neill BBQ."

"See there, you are way overdue, ma'am," Jack replied, playfully.

Sam's smile grew. "Can't wait," she quietly replied, her eyes dancing in merriment as she gazed into the loving eyes of Jack O'Neill.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter Eleven: BBQ

Jack smiled back, his hand still warm from her contact. All of a sudden feeling uncomfortable, he shifted nervously on his feet.

Sam watched his movement and correctly interpreted it. This Jack O'Neill was exactly like hers was. Every gesture, every smirk, every movement, exactly like her Jack's. In a way, it was comforting, familiar, and then again, it was distressing to know that he was Jack O'Neill, and yet, not her Jack O'Neill. Taking a deep breath, Sam moved her attention across his room, taking in the old familiarity of his humble abode. "Your house, uh in my reality……it looked just like this one," she ended in a forced laugh.

Jack's hands made their way into his pockets and he slowly started to sway back and forth on the heels of his feet. "Yeah? I guess that really doesn't surprise me."

Sam let a small smile appear at the corners of her mouth. "Actually…..it really doesn't surprise me, either."

Jack's eyebrow shot up his forehead in a playful manner. "What are you saying, colonel, I'm not that complex?"

Sam turned her attention back to Jack, a teasing look on her face as she lightly shrugged and grinned at him. No words needed.

"Hey!" Jack quickly replied to the non-verbal insult. "I can do complex!"

Sam just shook her head lightly and turned to look at the pictures her brother had been admiring when she had interrupted. Her eyes fell on a familiar photo she wasn't expecting to see.

It was her.

There were other photos of her in his house, but the others were SG photographs, and usually had Cassie or Daniel or someone else in the photograph with her. But this photograph, it was just her. Before the Stargate Program, before the Pentagon. This was the photograph her father took when she graduated from the Air Force Academy.

Jack saw what had captured his guest's attention and felt his arms tickle with gooseflesh. "Uh, I liked the picture?" he stumbled over his words, trying to find an adequate excuse for having such a photo of her in the special position on his fireplace mantle.

Sam turned her head to look at him, her eyes searching his for an explanation. "You have my memories of graduating?"

Jack dropped his head, nodding in the process. "Yeah," he said in a whisper.

Sam exhaled loudly. Once again, the worry of what all he had of her memories flooding her mind.

The air thickened as the tension in the room grew exponentially.

Jack finally took a step back. "I have something to show you, come on," he told her and nodded his head towards his garage door, his hands still safe in his pockets.

Sam meekly followed him, at the same time wishing she had a good excuse to get away from him.

Jack opened the door to his garage and entered, Sam right behind him. He walked over and pulled the gray cover off one of the cars, revealing Sam's Volvo.

Sam gasped. "My, my car!"

Jack watched her in amusement.

She reached out and touched her precious classic. It was in obvious better shape than the one in her reality.

"I've only driven her a few times. She's mostly been up on blocks in here. I couldn't sell her," Jack announced, walking over to the other side of the garage and pulling off another cover. "Or this."

Sam looked over to where Jack had gone. "My bike!" she squealed in delight. "Holy Hannah, sir! I-I don't know how to thank you."

Jack grinned. "No thanks are needed, Carter. The you in my head wouldn't let Mark sell them."

Sam's eyes were, once again, filled with glee. "Can I, are you, uh," Sam swallowed, her words getting ahead of her.

"They're yours, Carter. I wouldn't keep them from you," he quietly replied to her jibberish. "I have some more of your stuff in my attic. Oh! And a few things around my house. Mark took a few things and wanted to give the rest to charity, but everything I saw brought out one of your memories, and I just couldn't get rid of them." he confessed.

Sam bit her bottom lip, knowing how hard it must have been for him to confess that to her, and not knowing how to reply to it. "Thank you," she finally whispered out.

"Welcome," he replied warmly before they both heard the front door to his house open and a child yell, "Ja-ack! Where are you?"

Sam and Jack looked at each other and simultaneously said, "Sammie."

Jack coughed. "We're in here, Sammie!" he yelled as he walked towards the door.

Just as Sam made it to the door, a blob of brown went screeching by and jumped into the arms of Jack O'Neill. "Jack!" Sammie squealed in his arms.

"Sammie, baby," Jack replied, tickling the bundle in his arms and blowing raspberries on her neck. "How's my best girl doing?"

"Great!" she replied out of breath and then looked over at Sam. "Sam!"

"Hey, sweetie," Sam replied, grinning.

"Aren't you so happy that Sam's back, Jack?" Sammie squealed again, her small hands on Jack's shoulders.

Jack looked over at Sam, seeing the flush that was forming on her light cheeks. Grinning, he turned back to Sammie. "You betcha!" he told the little girl, feeling Sam's gaze burn into the side of his face.

The rest of the morning flew by, and by noon, Jack was lighting the grill and starting the BBQ. Everyone had arrived right after the Kawalsky's and were all chatting in the backyard, settled into Jack's lawn chairs when Kerri finally came back, her arms loaded down with shopping bags.

Jack saw her and jumped up to help. "Did you leave anything in the store?" he teased, earning a grin from Kerri and causing Sam to feel out-of-place again.

Jack helped Kerri unload her bags and then, armed with another beer for himself, and an iced tea for Kerri, the two joined the others in the back.

Sammie had been playing in the yard with Henry and Charlie when Kerri came out and took a seat in one of the patio chairs. Seeing the woman, Sammie went running over to say hi. "Hi, Kerri!" the little girl squealed, approaching for a hug like she had done with everyone else when they arrived.

"Hello, Samantha," Kerri replied, and then pulled back in her chair, raising her hands up in defense. "No hugs, this outfit is expensive and you are dirty," she told the little girl.

Sammie stopped dead in her tracks and gave the woman a Kawalsky glare. She put her little hands on her hips and settled her body on one leg, getting ready to retort to the woman, when Sam cut in.

She had watched the little exchange and saw the hurt-look that crossed Sammie's face before it turned to a glare. "I'd love another hug, Sammie," Sam called out, holding her arms open for the little girl.

Sammie, still in her 'attitude' position, turned her head to see Sam. Smiling widely, she ran into the arms of the blonde woman.

After a nice hug and a tight squeeze, Sammie pulled back. "You don't mind if I'm dirty, do you, Sam?" the little girl said loud enough for everyone to hear her.

Sam grinned at the little girl's audacity. "Course not," she replied with a grin. "I love dirt! In fact, I think it would be fun to turn on General O'Neill's hose and see just how muddy the two of us can get."

Sammie's smile was huge. "Let's do it!" she squealed, jumping up and pulling Sam with her.

Before long, everyone but Kerri was covered, head-to-toe, in mud. Kerri just sat on the deck, rolling her eyes as everyone else played war with the mud. Making mud-balls and throwing them at each other. Kerri snorted in disgust when Jack came squishing on the deck to check on the burgers, his entire body covered in dark mud, his face and arms black with caked on mud. As he walked, clumps of mud was falling off of him, splattering on the deck.

"What?" he asked her when he heard her snort.

"I didn't come all the way from DC to watch you and your cronies throw mud at each other," she snarled back, her anger taking over.

Jack set down the spatula and turned to the very clean woman sitting on his deck. "Can't you just lighten up for once and have some fun? Besides, I hear mud is good for the complexion."

Kerri snorted again. "I think I'll pass," she sarcastically replied, shifting in her seat to openly ignore him.

Jack watched her for a minute, wondering if he should try to make amends with her, or go back to having fun. When Sammie snuck up on the side of the deck and smeared mud all over his already muddy boots, he opted for fun and jumped over the railing to chase the small child.

Eventually, the mud war came to an end, no clear winners. And, Jack used the hose to spray everyone off. It wasn't a perfect clean-up, but everyone was good enough for now.

After eating, Sam ventured back to Jack's garage, popping the hood on her Volvo to get a good look at the engine, making sure everything was running good before she took it out.

Janet had come in while Sam's head was under the hood and informed her she was taking the car Sam had drove over home with her. Sam nodded, and a few minutes later, heard Jack saying good-bye to everyone and several car engines start up and pull out of his driveway.

Jack walked into the garage, silently watching the back of Sam under the hood. "Everyone gone?" Sam asked, not even looking up from her position.

Jack was a little surprised that she had been aware he was there and wondered if she knew he was openly gaping at her back end the whole time. "Uh, yeah, they all want showers. Go figure."

Sam laughed, but continued her work.

Jack shifted, his eyes still taking in Sam's backside. "Uh, actually, I think I'm going to go jump in to one myself. This mud is kind of itchy when it dries."

"Yeah," Sam agreed. "As soon as I get the oil changed, I'm going to head back to Charlie and Janet's and probably take a nice soak in the tub."

Jack gulped as his mind taunted him with images of Sam naked in a tub, bubbles surrounding her supple skin, droplets of water covering her flesh. He shook the image from his mind before it went further.

"Uh, yeah, well, I won't be long in the shower," he told her, hoping she wouldn't leave before he got out.

"Okay, sir," she replied in a dismissive voice.

Jack nodded, even though her back was turned and she couldn't see him, and walked swiftly out of the room.

Sam finished draining out the old oil and replacing it with new when Kerri sauntered into the garage. Sam looked up and briefly thought the prissy woman looked way out of place in Jack's greasy garage.

"I know what you're doing, Col. Carter, and let me tell you, it isn't going to work," Kerri hissed at her.

Sam dropped the hood on the car and turned confused eyes to the woman. "What?"

"Your time with Jack has come and gone. He's moved on. He's with me now and I'm not giving him up."

Sam's head went back in surprise at the venomous tone the agent was using. "I wasn't suggesting you give him up," Sam replied. "I don't know what you think, but General O'Neill is my commanding officer…….and my friend. I have no intention of stealing him from you…."

"Don't play innocent with me, Samantha!" Kerri sneered and took a step towards the air force colonel. "I'm the one who lays next to him at night and hears him call out your name. I'm the one who has to look at all the photographs of you he keeps in his house. I'm the one who has to see the far-away sad look in his eyes and know that he's thinking of you, or remembering something from your past. I KNOW all about you! I knew before I ever got involved with him. It's bad enough having to deal with you haunting him in his own mind, but now you're here, alive, and you've got him wrapped around your little finger. I thought I could help him get over you, move past you, and trust me, I was making progress. I'm not giving up on him!"

Sam just stared at the woman, her blue eyes huge as she took in everything the woman had just yelled at her.

"Kerri! What the hell are you doing?" Jack's angry voice shouted from the garage door.

Kerri looked guiltily towards Jack. "I was just talking to Col. Carter," she innocently replied.

Jack scowled at the agent. "I heard your little tirade," he announced with a glare.

"I-I should go," Sam stuttered out. "I've got the car tuned up, uh, so there's no reason for me to stay, and I really do need a bath."

Jack's glare turned to Sam and softened upon contact. "Carter, you don't have to go," his voice softened as he watched her.

Sam bit her bottom lip nervously. "Yeah, I really do. Thank you for….everything, sir," she told him before opening the door and jumping in her precious Volvo, highly tempted to hug the steering wheel.

Jack watched in silence as Sam backed up out of the driveway and drove down the street. When he could no longer hear the sound of her engine, he turned his steely gaze back to the curly auburn-haired woman still standing in his garage. "You knew she was here. That's why you came."

Kerri dropped her head. "Of course I knew," she replied in a defeated tone. "I was one of the people who had to work out her cover story."

Jack sighed. He should have seen this coming. "Did you have this little confrontation planned?"

"No! I don't know! Damn it, Jack! I know what she means to you. I just needed to see for myself."

"See what for yourself?" Jack growled.

"That you still love her!"

"She's NOT my Sam! You know this!" he barked back.

"She is! Yes, so she's not exactly her, but at the same time, she is. And you love her! Whether it's your Sam or not, can you look me in the eye and tell me you feel for me as much as you do for her?"

Jack stared at the woman, his brown eyes softening from their hard glaze. He took in her words, trying to sort out what she said and answer her, but finding it hard to do so. His eyes shifted around the room, worried that if he kept eye-contact she would be able to read him like a book. "Kerri!" he finally yelled in irritation, running his hands through his hair in frustration.

Kerri just sighed, her eyes filling with tears as she realized she never had a fighting chance. "I think I've caused enough damage. I'm just going to go….arrange an earlier flight back to DC."

Jack just stood in the doorway. As she went to pass, he grabbed her arm, finally meeting her gaze again. She could see the devastation staring back at her, the sadness, confusion, it ate at her gut as she saw all the turmoil Jack was in and she instantly felt guilty. She could have come here and consoled him, allowed him to open up to her and let some of the angst he had built up out. But, instead she had come and started trouble. She had let the jealousy she had always had towards Sam Carter engulf her body and take over her actions. She was ashamed.

Speechless, she passed an apologetic look towards Jack and shrugged out of his grasp. Jack watched her go, sadness and relief gnawing at his gut.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------