Chapter25

"Uh, Vala, at some point you're going to have to tell me where the hell we're going," Daniel commented as he turned his vehicle around for the fifteenth time that night.

If she heard him, she pretended otherwise. She sat forward and twisted her torso 180 degrees to look behind them. "We need to turn around again. You were supposed to make a left there."

He gave her a look. She ignored it. With another exasperated sigh, he did as she asked. "If you would just tell me where we're going, I'm sure I could find this place a lot faster."

"And ruin the surprise, Daniel?" she managed to look momentarily hurt before turning her attention back to the Mapquest printout sitting in her lap.

They'd been circling Colorado Springs in the dark for the last thirty minutes. Daniel knew he should just snatch the directions away from her and end this never-ending expedition. As much as he was happy to spend any sort of time with her, especially knowing what she had been through, he was getting tired of this game.

"Oh Daniel, there!" Vala said suddenly, bouncing forward in her seat. Dropping the map on the floor, she unsnapped her seatbelt.

"Vala," he scolded the minute she did. But he was soon silenced when she crawled over him to look out his window. She leaned forward to point out the brightly lit sign in the distance a little farther down the road on his side.

Daniel was frozen underneath her. "Uh, Vala," he finally said after a few unbearable moments.

Her eyes dropped to his lap, and like lightning, she immediately snatched her hand back and fell back into her seat. She looked up at him with wide eyes, but was unable to keep her grin tucked away.

She didn't apologize. He didn't ask for it. They simply exchanged a hot look that teetered on embarrassment. Both realized it might be a little early to comment on it…so they kept quiet.

He turned his eyes to look back out his window. He leaned forward squinting in the darkness trying to read the sign in the distance. Suddenly his face dropped. "Are you talking about Starlight Lanes? We passed this place twenty minutes ago."

She cocked her head at him. "Did we?"

"Yes," he said blandly, hearing the 'above suspicion' tone in her voice.

She didn't respond. Her eyes were back out on the road, waiting for them to arrive at the building. The theme of the date sank in. He scrunched his forehead at her. "We're going bowling?"

She smiled brilliantly at him, obviously pleased with herself. "Moonlight bowling," she corrected.

"You made reservations for bowling," he said flatly. This was not what he expected. Though remembering whom he was sitting next to, he should have.

"Well, I wanted to be sure they would have a lane open for us. And I hear this place is very popular on Saturday nights."

As he pulled into the parking lot, he passed her a quick glance. "Have you ever been bowling?"

"No. But you can teach me," she replied, her gaze captured by the bright neon lights over the entrance. The moonlight bowling part of the sign was flashing and apparently it was enough of a draw to fill the parking lot. Vala must have had a pretty good source. The place seemed to be hopping and Daniel was having trouble finding a parking spot.

She suddenly frowned as a thought occurred to her. "You do know how to bowl, don't you, Daniel?"

"Yes, I know how to bowl," he replied easily. "I used to work in a bowling alley when I was in college."

She lifted her head and grinned at him. "Oh, then you must be good at it."

"Well, I was good at disinfecting shoes," he quipped dryly, but saw her worry return and tried to sound reassuring. "I am fairly good at bowling, yes."

His eyes searched the lot for the smallest indication that someone might be leaving soon as he contemplated her and her date plans. Admittedly he was less than thrilled with the prospect of spending their date together in an overpopulated and noisy bowling alley. He'd been looking forward to a place that would be conducive to intimate, alone time with her. He really wanted to talk. He wanted to explain himself. Wanted to hear her feelings on everything that had happened between them. And yet, from the looks of things, it was unlikely that was going to happen anytime soon. But he did his best to keep his disappointment hidden.

Moments later, Daniel's thoughts of her were distracted when an SUV's rear brake lights lit up just down the stretch. It pulled out, leaving a space for Daniel to park.

Vala tossed the directions on the floor in the back and grabbed her purse, while Daniel pocketed his keys in his jacket and exited out of his side. Vala followed Daniel's lead after a quick once over in the visor mirror and stepped out of the car. He met her on the other side, closing the passenger-side door for her. She gave him a shy smile, indicating she probably wasn't used to this kind of attention. He returned it and warmed the small of her back with his hand, guiding her as they walked toward the entrance to the bowling alley.

She was gorgeous. Her hair was down and wavy. She had one of her infamous glittery barrettes clipped just above her ear. Her clothing wasn't anything extraordinary. Just a simple white blouse that ruffled at the sleeves and a pair of jeans that hugged her in all the right places. And yet it was enough. The only thing that marred her perfect appearance was the jagged looking cut just below her hairline from when she had been injured on Hira. But it was healing nicely and, if anything, it only reminded him of how lucky he was to have her back.

When she had greeted him at his door earlier, it had taken all his willpower not to forget about the date altogether and just keep her in his quarters for the rest of the night. But he knew she had worked hard on all this. She was looking forward to it. While again, not the intimate night he had hoped for, she was true to her word in attempting to engage him in something fun. And he didn't want to ruin it for her.

Walking into the entrance of the bowling alley, they were greeted with loud, energetic eighties music. The tenor sounds of pins crashing and the low rumble of bowling balls rolling quickly followed. Kids raced past from the arcade. Adults waited in line at the counter to purchase more games. And teens wandered by, gossiping about friends and munching on fast food from the bowling alley's pizzeria.

Vala's wide eyes explored the new environment with awe and amazement. Daniel smiled. While Hira had been Daniel-Disneyland, this was Vala-Disneyland. He could feel his original disappointment fading as he watched her eyes sparkle in happy wonder.

He stopped their forward movement at the counter to get their lane assignments, but Vala pulled away. "Oh no, Daniel, it's already been taken care of. I already reserved our lanes," she said, moving away toward the sounds of strikes and gutter balls.

"Vala, just because you reserved a lane, it doesn't mean can just go and take one. We have to-"

But she was already out of earshot, on a mission towards the lanes, easily forgetting about Daniel. His eyes rolled upwards, and he made an irritated sound in his throat before jogging after her to catch up.

The lanes spread out in seemingly endless directions. Blue lights and disco balls replaced the normal fluorescent lighting, highlighting bright neon illustrations on the walls. Vala was like a mouse following the pied piper's music. She was completely taken in by the atmosphere and lights.

But in moments her attention to the environment was lost. She was searching the lanes, as if looking for someone. Then a smile animated her face as her eyes seemed to spot something or someone.

"There they are," he heard her say.

"There who are?" Daniel asked in curiosity, following her. His eyes searched to see what she had seen. Then he saw them and stopped.

Almost all the way down at the other end, in the middle of the last couple of lanes was a familiar face. Standing underneath the scoring screens, Mitchell was holding a hand over his head in greeting. An amused smirk lit his face when his eyes met with Daniel's.

And then Daniel saw the other two. Sitting down in the seats near Mitchell were Teal'c and Carolyn Lam. Daniel could only stare in disbelief.

"Daniel?" Vala called with an expectant look. She had stopped only a few feet ahead, realizing Daniel was standing still in frozen astonishment. She waved him over.

Daniel quickly bit his words, a flood of annoyance washing over him.

Vala didn't notice his change in temperament when he reached her. She was too bouncy and excited just being in the energized environment to care that Daniel was not very happy with the additional company.

"Hey there, princess," Mitchell called in greeting to Vala, ignoring Daniel's frown. "Was wondering when you guys would show up."

"What took you guys so long?" Carolyn queried. She was a little less decorated than Vala, but she looked good.

"We got a little lost," Vala explained, dropping her purse on an empty plastic seat.

"Don't you know where the only bowling alley in town is located, sunshine?" Mitchell asked of Daniel with a raised brow. "There's a big neon sign…you can probably see it from the top of Cheyenne Mountain."

"I didn't know we were going bowling," Daniel said in his own defense, covering his annoyance with a forced smile.

Vala hardly noticed. She was distracted by all the colorful bowling balls rolling down the lanes. Carolyn moved Vala away from the lane and guided her over to the cart of bowling balls behind them to help her choose one of her own.

Mitchell kept his knowing smile in place as Daniel moved to his side.

"Didn't I just talk to you about how Vala and I were going out tonight. Funny how you didn't say anything about being here too," Daniel said in a low sarcastic voice to his friend.

"Yeah, thought you might enjoy the surprise," Mitchell said with a chuckle. "Trust me. It only gets better."

Daniel turned a dubious stare in his direction.

"Hey, this wasn't my idea. She had this all planned before you realized you loved her."

Everything inside Daniel stilled. He looked over at Teal'c. Teal'c smiled pleasantly and did not meet his stare. He, like Mitchell, was watching the ladies test Vala's fingers on a lime green bowling ball. Daniel turned his sharp gaze back to Mitchell.

"For some reason, she didn't think you were looking forward to the date," Mitchell continued. "Thought inviting us would lessen your irritation with her. She actually had your best interests at heart."

Daniel's expression softened somewhat looking back at her. Then smirked to himself. "Plus, you know she really wanted to try out bowling."

"Yeah," Mitchell smiled. "There's also that."

"Daniel Jackson. You have not yet retrieved bowling shoes."

Daniel quickly dropped his eyes to his sneaker-ed feet where Teal'c was staring. "Oh, right." He looked back over at Vala who was testing the weight of a bright pink bowling ball. "Vala, we need to rent shoes."

Vala ignored him for only a minute, testing her fingers on one more bowling ball. She grinned when the bright pink one seemed to fit on her hand a little more perfectly than the last one. She bounced back over with Carolyn trailing behind and placed it with the rest of the bowling balls stacked up between the lanes. Seconds later she met Daniel at the top step with a beaming smile. It was hard to stay frustrated with the fact that their date had additional company when her excitement was so infectious. He didn't fight the smile that crept up just seeing her expression.

On their trip to the shoe rental counter, however, Vala's enthusiasm dampened. Seconds into their travels Vala had halted when her eyes spotted the pairs of rented shoes hanging from the fingertips of bowlers passing by.

"Those cannot be the shoes," she declared, staring after the opposing shoe-wear in horror.

Daniel nearly had to drag Vala to the counter. He gave the greasy-looking kid his shoe size and had to give Vala more than a few nudges for her to give hers. In only moments their shoes were sitting on the counter. Vala stared at them in unmasked disgust while Daniel paid the rental fees.

She sniffed. "They're filthy," she remarked unconcerned about who heard her.

"They were disinfected. Or at least they probably were," he offered as they headed back to their lane.

She snorted, eyeing the shoes in repulsion "I don't care. I am not wearing those things."

"Vala, they're meant to make you play better."

"I don't care. I'm not wearing them. They smell repugnant, and they're unsightly," she announced when they returned to their lanes.

"Fine. Go in your socks."

Her expression lifted. "Can I? I'm allowed to do that?"

He dropped his head and sent Teal'c an exasperated look. "No," he replied, "but do it anyway."

She grinned. "Okay." She immediately plopped down in one of the plastic chairs opposite Teal'c and popped a sneaker off without untying it. Daniel sat next to her and untied his shoelaces.

"Carolyn, want to bowl in your socks with me?" Vala asked with a happy grin.

Carolyn looked over at Daniel and her brows lifted in mild amusement. He only shook his bowed head as he slipped his sneaker off. Carolyn looked back at Vala and finally shrugged. "Uh… sure. But our socks will get dirty."

"Oh." Her excitement nearly faltered. But then after thinking about it, she shrugged. "Well, I guess that's okay." She neatly tucked her sneakers under her seat.

"Was Jonas invited?" Daniel asked pulling off his other shoe.

"He was, but he decided instead to spend the evening with Tomin," Mitchell replied.

"That was good of him."

"Yeah. I know Jonas is hoping to get more insider information about the Ori. If he's going to go back to Langera, he wants to know what he's up against. Tomin seemed the best resource for that."

Daniel nodded in understanding.

After a few more minutes, lacing up his final shoe while Vala tested her 'Risky Business' moves on the slippery floor of the bowling lane, Daniel asked, "So, what are the teams? We're kind of uneven."

Mitchell cast Teal'c a quick glance. "Oh, we're not uneven. The third member of your team is getting pizza and beer."

Daniel raised his eyes, unable to stop the unease that settled in his gut at Mitchell's tone. "The third member?" he repeated.

"Did someone say anchovies?" an annoyingly familiar voice sounded behind them.

Daniel looked up sharply. "No."

Vala paused mid-slide at the new voice, a smile lighting her face. "Jack!"

The older man chose not to recognize Daniel's maddened expression, and he dropped the pizza box in his hands on the table. "Pizza's here, kids."

The waitress who had followed Jack back to their lane set two pitchers of beer and plastic cups on the second table behind him.

Jack snagged the plates that had been sitting on the top of the box and opened the box. "T, Mitchell… Carolyn, Vala. We got cheese or pepperoni."

Mitchell smiled at the floor before lifting his head and getting out of his chair. "Sounds great. Smells great, actually."

"Indeed," Teal'c said, following him. Both bypassed Daniel without meeting his look.

Daniel got up. "Jack." His voice laced with displeasure.

"Daniel," his friend replied in return as he pulled a slice from the box and handed it to Teal'c who had a paper plate ready.

"Jack," he ground out again.

"Daniel?" his final query met with a semi-amused, lifted eyebrow.

Daniel's eyes remained wide and annoyed. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Vala invited me."

"Why?" he asked slowly.

"Well, the whole bowling date was his idea," Vala informed him as she slid past him towards the delicious smell.

Daniel turned his wide-eyed stare on her, which she met unabashedly. "His idea?"

"Yes, and I couldn't very well not invite him."

Daniel's disbelief shifted to irritation. "You went to Jack for advice about our date?"

Her dark brows dropped. "Well, he is your best friend. Who would know better what kind of date you might like?"

"Well, that might make the best of sense if we were talking about anyone else but Jack," Daniel said, moving his eyes back to the man under discussion.

"If you don't want any pizza or beer just say so," Jack commented, handing a slice to Vala.

"It has nothing to do with the pizza or beer," Daniel gritted out.

"The bowling?" he queried, grabbing his own slice while Carolyn passed beer around to everyone else. "I thought you liked bowling."

"I do like bowling."

"Well what then?"

Daniel gave him a knowing glare.

Jack bit off the point of his slice and chewed thoughtfully, meeting his annoyed stare. "I'd hate to think you don't want me here, Daniel."

"No, don't think that," Daniel said, his voice heavy with sarcasm.

Jack only raised his grey brows at him, his face plain of amusement, but his eyes sparkling with familiar mischievousness. He took another bite over a mouth twisted in dark amusment before he took a seat at one of the tables at the top of the stairs.

He and Jack continued their stare off until Daniel finally broke it with a ragged sigh of frustration. He was not going to let Jack ruin this night. Maybe he could just haul Vala off, and then they could have the alone time they so rightly deserved. Daniel moved his eyes to Vala. She passed him his own paper plate and plastic beer cup. She smiled happily at him and sat down in the chair next to his shoes, joining the rest of the team who had returned to their seats and were eating.

Daniel sighed and closed his fist tightly around the plastic cup sending beer foam over the edge and unto his pants. He ignored it. His mind was too conflicted and completely caught up in her. She was happy and enjoying their 'date.' He knew he'd just have to suck it up and put up with the jibes from his friends for the rest of the night.

"Mmmm…" Jack commented over a mouthful of cheese. "I love pizza and beer on date-night."

Daniel's eyes snapped open and he glared again. Though in no way did that mean he couldn't harm them.

The first game went about as well as Daniel should've expected. Team Mitchell, Teal'c, and Lam were bowling magicians, getting strikes and spares just about every time their ball would role down the lane.

Mitchell admitted to playing in a league with his parents when he was kid. Carolyn happened to be a natural and managed to out-bowl Mitchell at every turn. That was just about one of the few amusements Daniel could claim from his evening, watching Mitchell get more and more exasperated as her score kept inching up higher and higher than his. And Teal'c… who the hell knew how he bowled so well. He, like Vala, was a first time bowler.

Team Vala, Jack, and Daniel on the other hand bowled worse than Daniel thought was possible.

"That went well," Jack said casually after watching Vala roll the bright bowling ball between her legs only for it to veer off into the gutter almost immediately. It didn't even have enough power to make it all the way down the gutter. Daniel had to go trudging after it.

Daniel attempted to teach her. He'd model for her the right way to hold the ball, the stance, how to release the ball… which only resulted in Mitchell's snickers, and Jack's smart ass remarks at his descriptions.

Then Daniel tried to physically guide her movements with his own, only to find that being pressed against her, and all her small wiggles and bumps, were much too stimulating to continue helping her without introducing her to just what he'd rather be doing with her. Just watching her slide, bend, and bounce as she tossed the bowling ball down the lane with a thunk was enough to get him all bothered just sitting from a distance. Feeling her up against him while she did it would only result in more embarrassment.

Jack clearly just came for the pizza and beer… and to bug the hell out of Daniel. He barely managed to round out a score of fifty. Most of his efforts ended up in the gutter, to which he responded with a disappointed, "Oy!" And yet his lack of success at bowling hardly seemed a bother. Jack seemed perfectly happy sipping his beer and enjoying Daniel's glares.

Daniel, who should have been semi-decent at bowling, pretty much sucked too. He was completely distracted. Anytime he was up, Vala was sliding around in her socks, dancing to the loud music and bumping into him. Or she was sidling up to him at the last minute asking him bowling questions in her silky alto tones. Or having conversations with Carolyn about sex, just in general. Carolyn needless to say could only smile back, wide-eyed and provide Vala with her best professional opinion on the matter. The only gutter ball Mitchell got that night was right when he and Daniel were both up to bowl and Vala asked Carolyn which contraceptives she and Mitchell use.

By the end of the first game, Team Vala, Jack, and Daniel barely hit the three-digit mark. Daniel was exhausted and Vala said she needed to 'pee,' so he took her on a much-needed break from the rest of the team and escorted her to the bathrooms near the entrance.

He was waiting for her outside the arcade as she exited the ladies room. But as she passed by the open entrance to the arcade, her eyes hesitated on something inside. Then her face stilled. "Daniel," his name escaped her lips in awe, her eyes wide like a child's.

His brows furrowed, and he stepped forward to see what she had spotted.

Within the arcade, right in the path of their eyesight on the opposite end of the room, next to two mammoth racecar video game consoles, and a teenage mutant ninja turtle arcade game, was a single claw vending machine. Loaded with strange-looking cartoon characters and other various stuffed creatures, the silly metal game sat waiting for endless minutes of parental frustration and a few thousand quarters.

Daniel glanced briefly at Vala in curiosity. Her eyes were bright as she moved slowly away from him and towards the game. It only took him a minute or so to finally realize what had grabbed her attention as his eyes caught sight of it too. In the middle of the pile of stuffed creatures in the claw machine, a tall and proud, orange and brown giraffe stared back at them expectantly.

Vala could only stare back in awe. "He's beautiful." She looked up at Daniel. "How do I get him?"

Daniel fought a smile, scratching behind his ear. "Well, it's a lot harder than it looks."

Her forehead furrowed as she stared back at the box-shaped machine with glass windows. "What do you have to do?"

"You see that metal, three-pronged claw hanging above the pile?" he said, leaning into her and pointing. She nodded, squinting thoughtfully. "Well," he said, tapping the top of the joystick with his fingertips. "You use this to aim the claw at the stuffed animal you want, and then you press this red button to try and grab it."

Her lips pursed. "It doesn't seem too difficult."

Daniel half-smiled. "Yeah, that's the point. They want you to think it's easy so you'll spend all your money thinking you can do it."

She looked up. "Can you?"

He made a face and gazed back at her, her pretty face staring up at him in wide-eyed hopefulness. He dragged his eyes away from her and searched the room for a kind way to say no. She pressed her body up against his chest. He looked down and was met with doe-eyes. He sighed. She grinned.

"I'm not making any promises."

"I have faith in your abilities, Daniel."

"Thanks," he replied dryly, yanking his wallet out of his back pocket. "How much is this thing?"

Vala looked over the front of it. "A dollar."

He halted his search. "A dollar?" He was about to put his wallet away, but saw her expression and with another sigh pulled out a ten-dollar bill. "Here." He pointed to the arcade counter. "Go get singles," he dropped to his haunches after putting his wallet back, "while I try and see if I can figure this thing out."

Vala returned in under thirty seconds, bouncing as she handed over the singles. He tucked a bunch in his pocket and inserted one into the machine. The claw hummed to life and a red clock ticked off as he had thirty seconds to get her prize.

Half the time up and no result, Vala finally queried into his strange method of trying to get the stuffed giraffe. "Aren't you supposed to use the claw thingy to grab it?"

Daniel was concentrating hard as he swung the claw through the glass box, trying to knock the giraffe into the exit shaft. "I heard you're more likely to get something if you just try to knock it over the shaft rather than grab it."

But when time was up, there was no giraffe.

"Well, that method wasn't very successful," Vala said plainly.

"No," Daniel replied, grabbing for another dollar. "It may just take some time."

Nine more singles later and another twenty that Vala retrieved from the arcade worker and still…no giraffe. Daniel did manage to knock the green hat off a stuffed leprechaun. Somehow that just didn't have the same satisfaction. And much to his own dismay he realized he probably would've continued to try if they didn't have a line of children behind them waiting for their own crack at the stuffed giraffe. The children were starting to get impatient and unruly, and it took Vala's grasp to finally drag him away.

"Sorry," Daniel grumbled as they started to exit the arcade.

She grabbed his arm and held him back. Seeing his regret, he saw her put away her own disappointment as she smiled up at him brightly. "I love my tiny green 'leper can' hat," she said, lifting it up to give it a quick kiss.

"Nice try. You don't need to make me feel better," he responded, his amusement returning. "And it's 'leprechaun,' by the way."

"Well, whatever it's called, I like it," she tried to insist.

"Sure you do."

"I do!" she said, trying to sound offended. "I can put it on Walter. He needs a hat"

"Walter? I'm assuming you not talking about Sgt. Harriman."

"Oh no. That's the name of my other giraffe."

"Oh right. The old one you keep in your mission pack."

She nodded.

"I thought you wanted a new Walter," Daniel said with raised brows, nodding back at the machine.

Vala shrugged. "It's for the best. He'd be offended if I brought home a new giraffe."

"So I just spent thirty bucks on a tiny green hat for your giraffe," Daniel commented wryly.

Vala grinned. "He will thank you for it. As will I."

She moved up to give him a quick kiss on the lips, but when she did, he caught her, causing her kiss to linger. Electricity sparked as she finally dragged her mouth from his.

He didn't give either of them time to reflect on what it meant before he leaned in and kissed her again for only a moment. It lasted only a few seconds longer than the first kiss she initiated and an unhappy sound arose in her throat when he retreated. The corner of his mouth lifted when he saw her flushed face. His eyes dropped to her mouth before moving in and doing it again… and again… and again. He teased her, his kisses barely lingering before pulling back. Swift and playful, she met him. Every kiss. Every nip until she finally snagged her fingers in the loops of his belt and pulled him closer for a full on kiss that almost made his toes curl.

He hooked his fingers around hers as she continued to slow them down, letting her mouth take his for a ride. She pressed him against a video console. It was all he could do to let her keep control as she continued to take her time pressing her warm mouth against his. And yet he knew she wanted to pick this up as much as he did. While her kisses were leisurely and unhurried, he could feel her body buzzing beneath his hold. He wasn't sure how long either of them could hold out under this kind of slow pace.

All of a sudden a surprised cheer and happy child-like squeals interrupted their kiss. Vala paused, lifting her lips from his for a moment to look over Daniel's shoulder. Her eyes widened and before she could explain, a large bully-sized boy with dark freckles charged by them waving a giraffe in his hands. "Mom! Mom!" he called in triumph as a whole bunch of his smaller friends trailed behind him, all of them racing for the lanes.

Vala looked back at Daniel in wide-eyed astonishment. Daniel had the feeling that his expression said it all, because moments later a small smile began to creep into her cheeks.

"Don't say it," Daniel said before she could speak, irritation evident in his voice.

She grinned wide, but tried to cover it with false condolence and sympathy. "Oh, Daniel-"

"Don't," he ordered, halting her from saying another word.

She pressed her lips together in amusement and kept quiet, but it was obvious it wasn't going to stay locked up for long.

"They're probably wondering where we are," Vala offered as a change of topic, continuing to play with the belt loops in his jeans as she smiled up at him.

"Yeah, well, ask me if I care," he murmured, suddenly caught up in her smile.

"Do you care?" she said staring at his mouth.

"Nope," he said, pressing a kiss on her lips. It was another short one. As much as he would've liked spending many more hours kissing her in the arcade, he suddenly decided he had other plans. "When we get back to the lanes, put your shoes on and grab your things."

He followed his words with another kiss to which she happy replied with her own. Then his directive seemed to sink in and she pulled back with a curious frown and cocked her head. "What? Why?"

"Your part of the date is over."

"Is it?"

"Yep, my turn," he smirked at her expression. It was a cross between wanting to be obstinate and wanting to know what he had planned.

He raised his brows at her, waiting to see which one she would choose.

She twisted her mouth and eyed him suspiciously. "Will I like it?"

He shrugged nonchalantly. "I guess you'll have to wait and see."

Her eyes narrowed even further, and he could barely manage the grin that wanted to escape to the surface. After a few more lengthy moments of trying to figure out what he was hiding, she finally gave up and huffed in defeat.

His grin finally escaped and tucking her hand into his, he guided her back to their lanes where the rest of the team was impatiently waiting for them.

Daniel released her, so he could sit down and take off his shoes. He ignored all the stares. Vala was, of course, oblivious.

"You two were gone an awfully long time," Jack said, leaning back causing his plastic chair to squeak. He raised his brows. "What'd you do? Get lost?"

"Daniel was trying to win me a stuffed giraffe with this metal claw device," Vala explained to the group as she stuck her toes into her shoes and tried to shoehorn her feet back in with her fingers. "He wasn't very successful at it. A child won it not long after Daniel spent thirty dollars trying."

Daniel looked over at Vala in mild exasperation.

"Nice," Jack smirked. He got an irritated glare in return.

"I am familiar with this game," Teal'c spoke up in Daniel's defense. "The task is quite difficult."

"He did win me this lovely leprechaun hat," Vala said, lifting up the tiny piece of felt.

Mitchell looked up from the console where he and Carolyn were attempting to set up a new game and grinned before dropping his eyes back to the computer screen.

Jack looked over at Vala. "Are you sure that's all you were doing? Trying to win a little hat."

"Well, no of course not. Daniel and I spent some time in an arcade nook making out-"

"Vala!"

She looked over at Daniel and managed a somewhat chagrined expression. "Daniel, I was just answer-"

"Just- get your shoes on," he sputtered as he tied up the last of his laces.

Mitchell looked up again, affronted. "You're leaving? Already?"

"Yes."

"Other plans, Daniel?" Jack asked in amusement.

"Yes," Daniel snapped again, only his voice was directed at Jack. "And it's none of your damn business."

"Did I ask?"

Daniel grunted as he picked up his bowling ball and stalked away to place it over on the rack against the wall.

"Well, isn't he just a treat this evening?"

Vala slipped her purse over her shoulder and moved to sit next to Jack. "Don't take it personally. I think he's just a little sexually frustrated."

"Ya think?" his voice sarcastic as his eyes trailed Daniel. Daniel had busied himself by throwing out the empty pizza box and plates for everyone while he waited for Vala. Jack leaned his head in Vala's direction. "You're going to be taking care of that tonight, right?"

Vala gave him a wide smile.

"It's about damn time," Jack snorted before raising his eyes to Daniel. "When was the last time, Daniel? Hathor? That princess chick that had you cracked out on the sarcophagus? Oh wait, no it was that old lady, wasn't it?"

Daniel's teeth clenched as he waited at the top of the stairs. "She was not old."

"Well, not physically, but in here…" Eyebrows lifted, Jack tapped his temple with his thumb.

Daniel didn't even surmount a glare. "Vala," he ground out impatiently.

"Oh," she jumped. "Sorry, Daniel. Coming." She turned around and waved. "Thanks for the wonderful night everyone. We'll have to do this again sometime."

Daniel's eyes widened dubiously. "Uh… no," he said bluntly before dragging her away without a single wave to his teammates.

"Can't wait," Jack countered in his patented dry enthusiasm. Then he turned to Teal'c and rubbed his hands together. "All right, T. It's you and me against those two."

"I do not think it would be wise to take you as a teammate, O'Neill. You do not seem to be very proficient at bowling."

"Bah, that was just me sticking it to Daniel. I was saving all my skill for when he left. Mitchell, you owe me twenty bucks by the way."

"I can't believe he couldn't hold out until the second game at least."

"Yeah, you don't know the space-monkey like I do."

Jack's snark trailed away as Daniel and Vala furthered their distance from their lanes. Once they reached the entrance, Daniel hesitated and passed her his keys. "Go start the car. I'll be right out."

Vala's answer was a curious stare, but she didn't argue. She left him, and he hurried off to complete one last thing before the second half of their evening began.

Minutes later he returned to find the car humming with life and Vala waiting for him in the passenger seat. She looked up at him expectantly as he climbed into the driver's side seat and tried to keep what was in his hand hidden as he closed the door.

He sighed and looked over at her with a smirk. "You have no idea what I had to do to get this."

She cocked her head in confusion and waited for him to elaborate.

He pulled the something extra he had brought with him out in plain sight for her to see.

Vala's eyes widened. Unable to contain her squeal, she snatched it out of his grasp and squeezed it affectionately to her chest, immediately giving it a swift kiss on the head.

She looked up, an elated grin spread out across her face. "Daniel, how did you-"

He shrugged. "Bought it off the kid. I paid a little more than I should have," a slow smile warmed his face, "but just seeing your face. It was worth it."

Vala gave no warning of intent. A moment later she jumped him, her stuffed giraffe completely forgotten as it rolled to the floor.

He laughed as he caught her. Kisses rained over him until he was finally able to capture one of his own. She hummed in response, continuing to feed on him until she half-settled on his lap for further conversation. His mouth opened to hers without hesitation, allowing her tongue to tangle with his. She wasn't greedy. She took her time exploring his mouth, and readily allowed him entrance into hers as his tongue moved in to trace the hot warmth.

It took his own groan as she shifted erotically against his lap to break him out of his reverie. He was so caught up he nearly forgot that he had other plans…and the bowling alley parking lot was not where he intended for those plans to take place.

The one who had tried to slow things down inside the bowling alley was now extraordinarily difficult to peel away. "Mmm… Just -hold on to that thought," Daniel murmured as he tried to move her off him, but not without a few more breathy sighs and moans as Vala took every chance she could to keep her lips locked with his. "We still have a date to finish," he said, finally managing to remove himself from her.

She pouted in dissatisfaction, her lips flushed. "Do we have to? I'm enjoying myself right here."

"Yeah, I know you are," he replied with a smirk, "but I have other date plans."

Her mouth lifted slightly at his expression. "Hmm…plans as good as mine?"

"No. They are nothing like yours. Thank god." He half-grinned at her offended glare. "Trust me."

She lifted her brows dubiously. "Haven't we discussed how that phrase has gotten quite the reputation when coming from you?"

He merely smiled before putting the car in reverse and peeling out of the parking lot.