Author's Note: I hate that it is taking me a week to up-date right now, but such is life. With the nicer weather there is gardening and yard work to get done…. I'm still on target to finish this is in 4 to 5 more chapters though.

Thanks to all of you who have kept reviewing. It keeps me motivated!

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

See Part 1 for notes and disclaimer

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sam stood at the grave sight, back straight, eyes focused on the ground just in front of the casket as the sound of the rifles firing echoed in her ears. That noise was being drowned out however by the words that were repeating in her head.

'Should have thought about the glass'

Jack O'Neill was similarly standing at attention, but there were a whirlwind of conflicting thoughts running through his mind. The largest conflict was caused by the emotions that the man being buried today has forcing Jack to face. Anger over the abandonment that had occurred years before, sadness over the friendship lost as a result, guilt at not having accepted the olive branch that Cromwell had offered before he died helping Jack to save the planet.

With a sigh his eyes flick to Cromwell's widow Mary. Once upon a time, she and Frank had been his and Sara's best friends. Then it had all turned to dust. First the friendship, then his marriage. Had he learned anything from all of that? His eyes moved briefly to where his ex-wife stood quietly lending her support to her old friend. Conflict number two. He never knew exactly how to act around Sara. He would always care for her and certainly never wanted to cause her any more heartache, so he generally avoided any interaction. But he could see her glancing at him occasionally and her eyes would flicker to Sam then back before looking away. He was going to have to at least talk to her today and introduce Sam.

Conflict number three, he sighed as he glanced at the woman next to him. His feelings for her were far from conflicted. He loved her, there was no question there. But watching her now he knew that she was blaming herself for Cromwell's death, and he wasn't sure what to do about it. Actually he knew what to do but it would require opening himself up and talking to her about feelings and thus the conflict.

As the funeral ended and they headed to a small gathering being held at one of Frank's teammates home he knew that he owed her at least that much. She'd made such progress lately regaining her confidence after Jolinar and he refused to let her backslide. So he jumped in with both feet.

"I should have thought about that window being a hazard," he stated, watching for her reaction.

Her eye's widened in surprised and he heard her suck in a quick breath. Bingo. He'd nailed it.

"That's just what I was thinking," Sam admitted.

"It was my mission and I'm trained to plan for all possibilities," Jack told her. "I should have realized it was dangerous using those ropes so close to a window."

"You had no idea that the effects of the black hole could break it, but I should have thought of it," Sam insisted.

"Your job was to come up with the plan and figure out how much and where the charge should be, Sam. You can't think of everything," Jack argued. "Besides, you were operating on a lot less sleep than I was," Jack pointed out.

"How do you figure that?" Sam asked in confusion.

"You went top side and more time passed for you than it did for me. And don't even try to tell me you got any sleep up there. I know you didn't rest until you came up with the answer," Jack explained.

"Still, that's no excuse," Sam said with a sigh.

"Sam, if there's one thing I've learned in all of my years of leading missions is that sometimes things happen that you just couldn't plan on. It's not exactly like either of us has ever had to deal with the effects of a black hole on an up-close and personal basis before. Hopefully you learn from any mistakes or unexpected glitches, and move on. It doesn't mean that you are not sorry for what happened. It just means that you know you did the best you could in the circumstances. You came up with a plan and convinced all of the powers-that-be that your plan was better than their plan. And you executed your plan and it worked. I'd say you did your very best under the circumstances. I put aside my differences with Frank long enough to work with him side by side. We both knew that what we were doing was extremely dangerous. We did our best," Jack concluded.

Sam was quiet for a moment, then nodded. "I guess you're right," she admitted.

"Of course I am," Jack declared with a grin, congratulating himself when he was rewarded with a trace of a smile. Then he grew serious again. "Now for the bad news. My ex-wife was at the funeral and I'm sure she will be at this gathering also. We won't stay long, just pay our respects and leave, but I am going to need to introduce you to her."

He could almost hear the wheels turning. He had no idea what her reaction was going to be although he knew she was feeling a bit nervous by the way she bit down on her lower lip. After a full minute of silence though she started to chuckle.

"What's so funny?" he asked her in confusion.

"Exactly what are you going to introduce me as?" she asked, knowing that the Jack she knew and loved hadn't thought that far ahead and now would be totally panicking.

Sure enough he looked a bit like deer caught in the headlights of a car. He opened his mouth twice and then closed it again thinking better of his answer. Finally Sam took pity on him.

"I think you could just introduce me as a good friend, Jack. They can infer the rest," she told him. "Sara will probably corner you quietly to get the scoop, and you can tell her as much as you are comfortable with."

Jack noticeably relaxed, and they began looking for a parking spot on the crowded street. Several minutes later they have made it into the house and paid their respects. Both Frank's widow and Sara had looked curious when Sam was introduced, but Jack kept the meeting brief and they were left to wonder on their own as Sam had predicted. However it wasn't Jack that Sara O'Neill sought out five minutes later. Waiting until she noticed her ex-husband quietly talking to a few old Air Force buddies she made a beeline for Sam.

"Dr. Carter, did you get something to eat?" she asked politely to break the ice.

"No, but I'm not really hungry, thank you," Sam assured her.

"So how long have you known Jack?" Sara inquired.

"About two years," Sam replied.

"Since you are not in uniform can I assume that you are not in the Air Force?" Sara inquired.

"No, I'm a civilian scientist. I was hired as a technical advisor, and occasionally I work with Jack's team," Sam replied only slightly wavering from the truth.

"All top secret stuff that you can't talk about I'm sure, but seeing as you are here with Jack today, can I assume that you are in a more personal relationship as well?" Sara asked bluntly.

"We've been dating, yes," Sam carefully replied. She really didn't think it was her place to tell the woman she was living with her ex.

Sara looked uncomfortable but determined. "Part of me feels like there is a lot I should tell you, but I'm not sure it is any of my business," she finally said with a frown.

"I know enough," Sam assured her, "and what I don't know I can guess."

Sara nodded, understanding that Sam was politely agreeing that it was none of her business. Still she couldn't help but wonder just how close the younger woman was to her ex-husband since neither was giving anything away. Just then Jack freed himself from his conversation and stepped over to rescue Sam.

"Sara," he greeted her with a nod. "Sam and I need to get going, but it was nice seeing you even if the circumstances were not the best."

"You too, Jack. Sam, it was nice to meet you," Sara politely acknowledged.

The two stopped to offer their final condolences to Mary Cromwell on the way out and Sara watched them carefully. As they were exiting the house she saw Sam give a sigh that seemed relieved, and Jack put an arm around her shoulder and said something to her. For just an instant their eyes met before they continued on out the door.

That one look was all that she needed to know one thing for sure. Whether or not she was over Jack O'Neill, he had definitely moved on.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

TBC