"Your blood pressure is a little bit higher than I would like, but it's nothing to worry about at the moment." Dr Pearce said.

Samantha groaned, of all her doctors appoints for Jack to be at, it had to be this one.

"Samantha was going to start taking some college classes in a couple of weeks, which for any normal person would mean a couple of hours a week but for Samantha would be more like a normal person's full time." Jack looked at his wife and dared her to argue. When she didn't, he continued. "She also runs her own business and we are guardians to a sixteen year old and seem to have adopted a septuagenarian who is recovering from a mild stroke."

After listening to Jack the doctor smiled. "After hearing all that I'm surprised her blood pressure isn't higher!" The doctor smiled at Samantha. "You know your limitations better than anyone but in a few months you are going to have a small person making demands on you that is going to make all that look like a walk in the park, all I can suggest is to think carefully about how badly you need to do these classes this semester."

"I will doctor."

"Right then would you like to see your baby?"

Jack and Samantha look at each other and smiled. "Oh yeah."

They were both enthralled with what they were seeing on the monitor ten minutes later. "Everything looks good. So are we finding out the sex today?" The doctor asked with a smile.

"Yes." Samantha responded at the same time Jack said "No".

The couple looked at each other. It wasn't something they had discussed, Samantha had just assumed Jack would want to know. Jack of course realised he should have known better, Samantha was the ultimate in control freaks – without a doubt she would want to know.

"Fine, but we don't tell anyone else." Jack said firmly as Samantha grinned at him and nodded. "Yeah doc we want to know."

"Well if I were you I would start shopping for pink things." The doctor smiled.

….

Two weeks later, Samantha was in her study working when she heard a knock at the door. She was expecting Annie and Jack home from college any minute but neither of them would knock. She rose as quickly as her ever expanding girth would allow.

When she opened the door she came face to face with an older version of herself. Samantha was shocked, she had agreed with Thor that they should not have any contact with each other and this was the second time the woman in front of her had violated that agreement. The last time had been Janet's death a few months earlier so Samantha got a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"You'd better come in."

Major Samantha Carter had been surprised when she stopped in front of the house. It was a lovely home, she just couldn't imagine herself living in it. As she walked to the front door though she realised the house exuded a homey feeling and she could see now why her counterpart lived here.

This was not a visit she was relishing making, in fact if General Hammond hadn't ordered her to come there is no way she would have ever sought out the young couple, seeing what her life could be was a bit disturbing.

"General Hammond sent me to talk to Jack."

"Oh. Well he's still at college, he should be home soon though." Samantha informed her. "Can I get you a coffee while you wait?"

"Ah yeah that would be good thanks." There was an awkward silence while Samantha made the coffee and set it in front of the military officer and then sat opposite her with a cup of tea. "So umm when are you due?" Sam asked making idle conversation but intensely curious at the same time.

Samantha smiled and subconsciously caressed her stomach. "I'm 25 weeks so around Thanksgiving."

There was another prolonged silence as the two women sat in the kitchen drinking. "Are you happy? I mean the husband, the house, the baby? Is it enough?" Sam Carter finally asked the question that had been burning inside her since she arrived.

Samantha considered her response carefully, after all she couldn't very well lie to herself. "It is more than I ever hoped for. I am the happiest I have ever been in my life."

Sam Carter looked shocked at her response. Pete had been making idle comments about marriage and family lately and the thought of it had her stomach tied up in knots but this other version of herself was sitting here telling her that marriage and family had made her truly happy, maybe settling down with Pete was the thing that would make her happy?

Jack Neil entered the kitchen and broke into her reverie. She had only seen him at a distance at the funeral, but up close she was shocked at how much he had physically changed in the last few months. He had obviously spent a lot of time in the sun but what shocked her most was how much he now looked like a younger version of her commanding officer.

"Carter? Dare I ask what you are doing sitting in my kitchen?" He spoke evenly as he walked over and placed his hand on Samantha's stomach and dropped a light kiss on her head. "Good day?" He asked her quietly and seemed satisfied with her nod.

The older woman watched their interaction with undisguised envy.

"Carter?" Jack asked again.

"Oh. Right, sorry. General Hammond asked me to come and speak to you."

"The answer's no." Jack said before the major could even say why she was there.

"You don't even want to know why I'm here?" She asked taken aback by his response.

"Nope. Not interested." Jack said firmly.

"Jack." His wife said quietly but firmly. He looked at her and with that one word he sat down and prepared to listen to what the major had to say.

"Fine! You've got two minutes and my answer is still no!"

Sam Carter was shocked by how the younger version of herself had got him to listen just by saying his name but she wasn't about to eat into her two minutes by dwelling on it.

"Colonel O'Neill is currently…. unavailable and we don't know if and when he will be available for active duty again." She managed to get the words out but they were laced with emotion. The thought of Jack O'Neill currently frozen in Antarctica made her choke up and have trouble breathing but she needed to get through this. "We have recently discovered a new weapon capable of defending the planet, however Colonel O'Neill is currently the only person capable of operating it. Should the need arise we need you to make the weapon operational." There, she said what she had come here for, now she just needed to wait for the reaction.

Jack was silent for a while. "Nope." He said casually and got up from the table and walked out of the room.

Samantha and Sam sat there looking at each other. "We both know he'll do it if he's needed, his sense of honour and duty won't let him say no, no matter how much he wants to." Samantha finally said.

"You obviously know him far better than I do then." Sam said.

"I take it the two of you aren't….?"

"No! He is still my commanding officer. Besides I am seeing someone else." Sam Carter confessed.

Samantha studied the woman in front of her. Sure, she was content but she wasn't happy. "Don't let rules stand in your way, you can have everything you want."

"I think I had better be going." The air force officer said.

…

"She's gone?" Jack asked as Samantha walked into their bedroom to find Jack stretched out on the bed.

"Yeah she's gone." Samantha sighed.

"You told her I'd do it?" Jack asked knowing that Samantha knew him well enough to know that if country asked him to serve in any capacity he would not be able to say no.

"I think we both knew you would." She smiled at him as she lay down on the bed and cuddled into his side.

"They still aren't together are they?"

"No. She is apparently seeing someone else."

"They are both idiots." Jack said firmly.

"Jack, just because we are happy doesn't mean they would be, how often have we said that from the moment of our creation we were different people, we made the conscious decision to want different things out of life with our second chance."

Jack turned slightly so he could look down on her beautiful face. "How do I know they would be happy? I know because you complete me and without you I would only be half a man."

Samantha lay there contemplating Jacks words and knowing they were true because she felt exactly the same way. "You're right they're idiots." She grinned at him. "By the way where's Annie? I thought she was coming home with you?"

Jack growled slightly. "She and Drew are studying." Jack made air quotes on the last word.

Samantha suppressed a giggle and managed to ask. "You have reason to believe they aren't studying?"

"Yes! Last time they were here studying I caught them making out on the couch!"

"And where is today's study session taking place?"

"At Drew's."

"And do you think Bob is going to react any differently to you if he catches them this time?" Samantha asked reasonably.

"No." Jack agreed. "I just know what hormones are driving that kid at the moment and I would hate Annie to end up a teen mom."

Samantha laughed at the irony of Jack's last comment considering the fact that they were about to become teen parents. "Jack I promise you, despite Drew's hormones, Annie is nowhere near ready for their relationship to go that far." She tried to placate her husband.

"You know this for a fact?" Jack asked sceptically.

"As a matter of fact I do. Annie and I have had several conversations about it."

"You have? You and Annie talk about that kind of stuff?"

Samantha grinned at the clueless look on her husband's face. "Yes we have and yes we do. I am very conscious of the example we are setting and I wanted to make sure she knew that our relationship isn't considered normal for teenagers."

"And she was okay?"

"Yes, she is fine." Samantha assured her husband. "Now, I say we forget about everything that has happened this afternoon and take advantage of having the house to ourselves."

"Oh yeah, I always knew you were the brains of the family."