A/N: Thank you so much to all my loyal and enthusiastic readers! You make it worth neglecting the mountain of other things I should be doing! Writing this has had a healing effect on my life, which I've need. I can only hope you're enjoying the reading as much as I'm enjoying the writing. So now, without further ado....
Watching Sam get on the elevator, Daniel knew she was upset. Which really wasn't a surprise! For being a linguist, he really hadn't explained things properly. He'd cut things short and then she'd left abruptly. They should have talked about things more, instead of just leaving it where they had. But he'd seen the look in her eyes that begged him to let her go, so he'd given in.
He only had one defense. It had been incredibly hard not to confess his feelings for her, to let her know just how much love he held in his heart for her. When their lips had touched, it had been exquisite agony! He wanted so badly to believe that Sam had initiated that kiss for the same reasons he had responded, but what if he was wrong? He didn't want to scare her off, and the intensity of his feelings could do just that. In the end, his own cowardice had been only too happy to give in.
Now he had to figure out what to do next. If he didn't handle things carefully, he could ruin their relationship forever. If he knew Sam, and he did, she would be feeling awkward about what had happened. She would probably even try to avoid him if she could, until enough time had passed that he wouldn't mention it.
Well, there was no way in hell Daniel was going to let that happen.
* * * * * *
In the morning, Sam went about her regular routine, assuring herself that the easiest way to deal with Daniel was to just ignore whatever had happened last night. He was enough of a gentleman that he would let it go. So there was nothing to get worked up about. It was just a weak moment, and they could easily get passed it. Afterall, she really only had to get through the next week and half, and then he'd be gone and she could deal with her emotions in peace.
She finished getting dressed and decided to head to the mess for breakfast and coffee. She opened the door and started to head about before stopping dead in her tracks. Daniel stood there in a white button down shirt and blue jeans, completed with a leather jacket and a devilishly handsome smile, extending her a mug of coffee and holding its twin in his other hand.
"Good morning," he said brightly as she took the mug.
"Good morning," she replied, sighing. Looks like ignoring him was going to be out of the question.
"Care to join me for breakfast?" he asked as he fell into step next to her.
"Sure," she smiled. It was hard to be mad at anyone who looked as delicious as he did at the moment. At least one of them appeared to have gotten a good night's sleep.
"Great." As they made their way through the brief line, Sam watched as Daniel flirted with the young girl behind the serving counter who was refilling the muffins and had to suppress a grin at the way the girl reacted. She was accidentally mixing the blueberry and the chocolate, completely unaware. He probably had no idea about the kind of effect he had on women, she thought wryly, including herself. Nevermind the fleeting twinge of jealousy. She absolutely would not dwell on that.
"Colonel Carter, Dr. Jackson, would you care to join us?" Teyla called.
"Sure, Teyla. Thanks," Daniel smiled, seating himself on the same side of the table as Teyla and Rodney, leaving Sam to sit next to John and Ronan.
"So, Dr. Jackson, you must have found a lot to keep you busy yesterday," John said lightly.
"Ah, yes, actually, I did. I'm not sure I'm ready to announce anything formal just yet, but suffice-it-to-say I'm thoroughly enchanted with my work here."
"Oh, really? Surely you can tell us what you've found? I mean, I am the head of the science department. By all rights, I should have been the one in there, learning about everything."
"Rodney, we discussed this. You're needed for other, more important tasks," Sam said, trying and failing not to make the important part of that sentence sound too sarcastic.
"Yes, so you said. Still, I don't think it would be too much of a stretch for me to have spent an hour or two doing a preliminary exploration."
"Anyway," John said, cutting Rodney off before he could go on any more,"we're glad to have you here again. Let us know if there's anything we can do to help you, Dr. Jackson."
"I will, thanks."
Daniel spent the rest of the meal talking with the group about current events on Earth while Sam watched, eating mostly in silence. He could fit in just about every where, something that had never ceased to amaze her. Sam couldn't even count the number of times Daniel had approached complete strangers on a new planet and earned their trust in a matter of minutes. It was hard not to respond to his genuine kindness, the way she had from the first moment they'd met.
"Well, I think I should be going. Thank you all for a lovely meal," Daniel said, rising from the table.
"I believe it is us who should be thanking you, Dr. Jackson," Teyla replied.
"I have to go, too. I'll see you all in about an hour for the debriefing?" Sam asked.
"Yes, Ma'am. We'll be there."
"Great. I'll see you later Daniel." Daniel watched as she walked from the room, the confident stride of a full-bird colonel, before turning to make his way to the library. She really did belong here, he thought with a smile and a small sigh of resignation.
* * * * * *
"Okay, is it just me, or is something weird going on with the two of them?" Ronan asked. He was the newest member of the Atlantis expedition and was the least familiar with the history of SG-1.
"What? Oh, no, no. Col. Carter and Dr. Jackson have just been friends for really long time. They were team mates together, you know."
"I don't know, Rodney. There appeared to more to it than that. She couldn't seem to take her eyes off of him," Teyla added.
"Yeah. And did you see the way he watched her leave? Don't get me wrong, I love you guys, but I'm not going to watch you walk out of a room that way. Well, maybe you, Rodney," Sheppard teased.
"Oh, ha, ha. Very funny, again, Colonel. Anyway, I don't see what you're talking about. There's nothing between Dr. Jackson and Col. Carter but deep friendship and admiration," Rodney insisted. "Believe me, I've known them longer than any of you have."
"If you say so," Ronan agreed, sharing a look with his other two team mates that clearly said he did not.
* * * * * *
"Dr. Romani, I understand where you're coming from. Believe me, I really do. But the truth is that my hands are tied. That research doesn't seem to show the kind of promise we need right now, and our resources are just too limited to allow for projects that don't aide us in our greater mission."
"That's outrageous, Colonel Carter. Scientific experimentation should never be limited to what is justifiable for the military. I expected more out of an astrophysicist than the same old bureaucratic nonsense."
"I'm sorry you feel that way, Laura. Please believe me when I say that I get it, because I truly do. And in theory, I agree with you. But as the leader of this expedition I have to think about the whole, and right now the whole would be better served if you were to work on Dr. Zelenka's project. I hope you can come to understand that," Sam finished.
"I don't think that I have much choice, do I?"
As she watched the petite brunette storm from her office, Sam felt exhausted. This day had been stressful from the moment she'd walked into the operations tower. She always hated to give those speeches to her crew, but they were necessary.
At least being around Daniel hadn't been as bad as she'd thought. Daniel had shown up at noon on the dot to escort her to lunch, which had gone as smoothly as breakfast had. She would say things were back to normal, but she knew better. Even though there'd been no contact, Sam was no less aware of Daniel than she'd been yesterday. In fact, she was even more conscious of her attraction to her endearing best friend, because now she knew exactly how amazing it was to--
"Sam? Is this thing working?" Sam smiled. Speak of the devil. Daniel was apparently trying to work his ear piece for the first time.
"Yes, Dr. Jackson, your comm is working just fine," someone replied.
"Ah, great. Thanks," Daniel said, sounding a bit confused. "Ah, Colonel Carter, please respond," he continued with more formality.
"Go ahead, Daniel," she said, trying not to laugh out loud.
"Uh, yes. I was wondering if you would be able to meet me here in the library for a few minutes. There's something I want to show you. It's not urgent or anything, just... interesting. It can wait, if you've got other pressing matters." Again, Sam had to suppress her laughter.
"It's fine, Daniel. I'm just finishing something now, but I'll be available shortly."
"Great, thanks," Daniel finished. He touched his ear piece again, assuming that this would turn the speaker off so that others would no longer be able to hear him, and surveyed his handiwork.
He'd spent a good portion of the afternoon setting up the scene before him, and he wanted everything to be perfect. Daniel was actually in a room adjoining the library that had an incredible view of the ocean, being that it appeared suspended over the sea at one of the city's five outer spokes. From the view of the curved glass window, it looked as if this were the only spot on the entire planet.
Daniel had brought a table and chairs here, and set up holographs of Ancient artwork around the room. He'd figured out how to get the music collection tablets to play one song after another, and had found the perfect soundtrack for the evening. Then he'd made his way to the kitchen and asked for a special supply container he'd had sent through. The girl from breakfast had been only too happy to assist him, and he'd been able to bake the perfect vegetable lasagna for two.
For the finishing touch, Daniel had uncorked a bottle of wine and poured two glasses. Normally, he knew Sam would never indulge on duty, but he hoped she would make an exception for just one glass.
"Daniel, I'm on my way," he heard, and smiled.
"Ah, copy that," he replied. Taking his cue, he lit the two taper candles and went back to the library.
He took a deep breath, rehearsing what he wanted to say before Sam arrived. Before this night was out, he was going to tell Sam that he loved her.