"Here you go, Grace!" Jack called as he threw the Frisbee in her direction.
Doc barked, happily wagging his tail as he bounded after the Frisbee.
Sam laughed softly.
"What?" Jack asked, looking over to where she sat on the picnic table.
"I just love the fact that teaching Grace how to throw a Frisbee turned into a game of keep-away," she teased, affectionately.
"Oh, hush." He said, shaking his head. "Just because you don't want to play."
"I never said that." She protested good-naturedly.
"You didn't have to," he murmured, wryly, as he caught the Frisbee which Grace had just thrown.
She smiled as she stood. "I suppose not."
"Where you going?"
"I thought I'd show you how to really throw a Frisbee," she chuckled as she took the toy from his hand.
"Oh?"
She nodded. "I have a gift."
"You have more than one, my dear," Jack chortled.
"Just let Doc catch this one, okay?" Sam called to her daughter.
"Are you going to throw it, Mom?"
"Yep." She grinned as she prepared for the launch.
Sure enough, when it flew from her fingers, it had greater height and distance than her husband's.
"Wow, Mom!" Grace cried, watching the Frisbee sail overhead before Doc leapt up and caught it, having run fifty feet past his young owner to catch the toy.
"That's impressive," Jack whistled, looking over at his wife. "How'd you learn to do that?"
She offered him a secretive smile. "You don't really expect me to tell you, do you?"
"Uh, we're married. No secrets, remember?" He said, looking over at her.
"Bothers you, doesn't it?" She teased before turning back to Grace. "Let's go, Grace. The sky's getting gray, and I want to get home before it starts to rain."
"Okay, Mom," Grace said, quickly hurrying to her mother.
"It doesn't bother me, per se." Jack said, following her to where she packed up the small bag of dog toys they'd brought along to entertain Doc with. "Just...intrigues me..."
"Well, in that case," Sam said, turning around to face him. "It's simple physics. Simple trial and error under a variety of circumstances led me to make several observations which have helped me perfect my game. I mean, once you account for wind resistance and mentally calculate the distance to your intended target, the arch you need to achieve for the actual throw is obvious which means that as long as you follow the same parameters which you have just gone through in your mind, you should have a perfect throw every time."
"I love it when you talk science," he murmured as he leaned in to kiss her.
She returned the kiss as a smile grew on her lips. "I know," she giggled.
"No giggling, General," he whispered in her ear as he held her tightly.
"How do you plan on making me stop, General?" She teased with her eyes twinkling in amusement.
"I have my methods," he murmured as he kissed her soundly.
Doc barked, and Sam nearly pulled away before she heard Grace. "You'd better get used to it, Doc. They do that a lot."
Sam leaned her forehead against her husband's shoulder as they both chuckled softly to themselves.
Finally, Sam turned back to her daughter. "Come on, angel, let's go home."
"What are we going to do at home?" Grace asked, catching up with her mother as Jack reached for the bag of toys that Grace had packed for Doc.
"I thought maybe I'd do your hair and paint your nails before Teal'c comes over."
"Teal'c's coming?" Grace asked, excitedly.
"Yep. He's going to stay with you for the night while your dad and I are in Denver."
"Denver?" Grace and Jack asked in unison.
"I'm kidnapping you," Sam winked as she turned to her baffled husband.
"Again?" He teased.
She smiled softly at the fond memories she had of their weekend at that beautiful bed and breakfast.
"Can we have a girls' day out?" Grace asked, looking up at her mom.
"Probably tomorrow night." She said, nodding. "If you want, I can call Vala."
Grace bit her lip as she shook her head. "No, I just want it to be you and me."
Sam smiled softly. "All right then. Just you and me."
She grinned as she took her mother's hand into her own as they walked home.
-
Sam chuckled as Grace squirmed with Sam's application of the nail polish on her toenails. "I swear, you do this for the attention now," she teased.
"No," Grace giggled. "It really tickles."
The doorbell rang, and Sam turned back to look at the kitchen. "Jack! Someone's at the door!"
"I'm going, I'm going..." He murmured, walking over to the door.
Sam smiled softly before she returned to her task. "Stay still, Grace," she murmured, affectionately.
"T!" Jack cried as he opened the door.
"O'Neill."
"Teal'c!" Grace cried, jumping up from where she sat on the couch as Sam paused between nails.
"GRACE!" Sam called, shaking her head as she bounded toward the Jaffa.
"Greetings, Grace O'Neill," Teal'c said as the six-year-old hugged his legs.
"Hi, Teal'c," Sam said, standing from where she'd sat on the couch.
"General Carter," he greeted with a small nod.
"Please, Teal'c," she said, blushing lightly. "Here it's Samantha O'Neill."
"Samantha O'Neill," he corrected with a faint smile.
"Teal'c, come downstairs!" Grace cried, tugging on his hand. "I taught Doc a new trick!"
"I haven't finished with your toenails yet!" Sam said as her sight followed her daughter.
"That's okay, Mom. You can fix it when you and Dad get back."
"I don't think we're needed anymore," she stage-whispered to her husband.
"That's what you get when they can tie their own shoes and read their own directions," Jack returned with mixed expression.
Sam inhaled softly before looking at Teal'c. "Thanks for watching Grace."
"It is my pleasure." He said, seriously.
"Bedtime's at eight...other than that, it's your call."
"She will be fine." Teal'c assured.
"I know." Sam said with a small smile. "You have our numbers if there's an emergency."
He nodded.
She walked over and hugged him gently. "Thanks again."
"You are welcome, Samantha O'Neill." He said, returning the hug.
"Come on, T!" Grace cried from the top of the stairs.
"Wait a minute, Grace," Sam said, pulling away from Teal'c as she walked toward her daughter. "Do what Teal'c says, okay?"
"I know, I know." She said, rolling her eyes. "Go to bed on time, eat healthy snacks, and be good."
Sam smiled an affectionate smile before she hugged her daughter. "We'll be back tomorrow morning."
"I know, Mom." She said, simply.
Sam kissed her the top of her head. "I love you, angel."
"I love you too, Mom." Grace said, honestly. "I'll be okay."
"I know." Sam said, nodding as she turned back to Jack. "Well, I think I'm ready."
Jack nodded before walking over to his daughter. "Make sure your homework is finished before play with Teal'c or Doc, okay?"
"Okay, Dad."
"I love you, kid." He said, earnestly.
"I know." She said, looking up at him with a smile as she hugged him tightly. "I love you too."
"I guess we're gonna see you tomorrow."
Grace nodded. "Have fun."
Jack looked back at his wife before smiling. "I think that's one thing we'll manage to do."
Sam chuckled softly. "Come on, Jack. We should get going before they cancel our reservations."
"Milady calleth," Jack teased as he walked over to her.
Sam shook her head, affectionately. "You're crazy, you know that?"
"Why, thank you!" He said, grabbing the suitcase which she'd packed for them.
"Hey, T," Grace whispered as they left the house.
"Yes, Grace O'Neill?" He asked, turning to her.
"You wanna see Doc's new trick?"
-
"Where are we going?" Jack asked from behind the wheel.
"That little bed and breakfast we stayed at a few years ago."
"I liked that place." Jack murmured.
"I know you did." She acknowledged. "And you liked the cake we got from Strings."
"Yeah." He said, nodding.
The warm, teasing facade had been put away almost the moment they'd gotten onto the freeway, and Sam could feel the saturation of the tension closing in on them.
"I, uh, brought that nightgown you like so much," she said, trying to break the ice.
"Cool."
"And I brought that CD you made for my birthday. I thought that might be nice. You know, for ambiance..."
"Yep."
She bit her lip as she watched him out of the corner of her eye. "Jack..."
"Hm?"
"I know you've got something on your mind, and I have a pretty fair idea of what it is, so...let's just talk about it."
"I'm fine," he sighed. "You've made your decision."
She winced. "I offered a suggestion, Jack. I didn't make a decision."
He bit the inside of his cheek as he let his eyes dart over to her before turning them back to the road.
"Come on, Jack."
"No, you don't want anymore kids. You made that rather clear."
"I didn't say that outright," she protested.
"Would you, please?" He asked, soberly. "The ambiguity, the wishy-washiness...it's getting exhausting."
She felt tears well up in her eyes. "That's not fair," she murmured.
"Sam, either you want a baby or you don't." He said, soberly. "That's all there is to it."
"No, Jack, it's more complicated than that." She explained, passionately. "I'd love to have a baby, but there's a time limit imposed on us by nature that is close to running out if it hasn't already."
"Adoption," he pressed.
"Was almost impossible last time as you so eloquently pointed out," she retorted.
"Offworld orphans still need homes," he reminded her.
She winced as she thought of Cassandra.
"We don't get too many of those anymore," she whispered.
"If you really still want a baby, why are you giving up?" He asked after a few moments.
"Because I'm not willing to get hurt anymore," she managed as a tear slipped down her cheeks. "And I refuse to watch you suffer any longer."
"I knew it wasn't what you really wanted," he murmured after a moment.
She wiped the errant tear from her face as she looked out the window. "Well, congratulations, Jack," she whispered softly. "You were right. Jump for joy."
Jack sighed. "Give it another few months, okay? Until we've been trying for two and a half years. Then, if we need to, we'll try some treatments."
"I can't do this anymore, Jack," she said, looking over. "I can't keep getting my hopes up every time my period is a few days late or I get a craving. I can't keep dreaming of having a baby in my arms that I finally get to meet."
He looked down at the steering wheel before he looked back up at the road. Sam could see the emotion lining his face.
"Jack?"
"I'm not sure I'm ready to give the dream up," he managed after a moment.
"I'm not saying that I should go back on birth control," she murmured, looking over at him. "But I am saying that I can't keep expecting something to happen. Keep thinking about having a baby. I probably will too, but..." She inhaled. "I need the freedom to believe that this was in some way my choice."
He nodded slowly as she laid the back of her head on the seat's headrest. If she could only go back and do it all again, she thought to herself.
The car bounced slightly as Jack came up over a small hill. The dizziness which overcame Sam caused her to groan silently. The effects of that alien perfume, the headache, nausea and dizziness, were still abating slowly.
She'd be glad when she could be rid of the effects permanently.