It was Thursday and it had been a hell of a week. After lunch, Sam would teach the last lecture of the semester and she was relieved. Next Tuesday, she would do an extensive review for all of her classes, and then the Fall semester would be finally over. After the allotted number of study days, Sam would give her final exams and then be off for her two-week Christmas break with the girls. She couldn't wait.

She also couldn't wait to see Jack. She hadn't seen him since the weekend and she was having a really hard time focusing. Her memories of their time together assaulted her at the most inopportune times. She had woken him up sometime that Saturday after five in the morning, and they had made love again, slowly and sweetly, learning each other and devoting attention to each other's bodies. They had fallen asleep again, in the early morning, and Sam remembered how Jack had woken her with gentle caresses at 9:40 in the morning. She hadn't slept in that late since before her pregnancy, and now, sitting in her office and daydreaming, she recognized that it wasn't just the exhaustion that had caused her to sleep so soundly or so late. It had been the man sharing the bed with her that caused the whole room to transform into a safe and comfortable shelter. He had made her body hum and relax to such a point that she had no other option but to succumb to a deep and restful sleep, both times. She had jumped out of bed, kissing him and collecting what clothing she could find around the room. She had rushed back to her house to relieve Janet, whom she found sitting on her couch sporting a huge, knowing grin.

Shaking her head to clear the memories, Sam took a deep breath and looked at the clock, 11:47 a.m. She had more than an hour until her 1:15 p.m. lecture, the last of the semester. She pursed her lips and reached inside her purse for her phone. Getting it out, she quickly composed her message to Jack:

"Can you escape for lunch?"

She waited. She knew his office scheduled appointments until 11:30 a.m., but that Jack could be stuck there through the lunch hour if they were running behind. She looked at her office clock again, 11:49 a.m. Come on, Jack.

Her phone buzzed. YES! She swiped at the screen and read the message, "I have 2 more appointments. Don't you have class at 1?"

"1:15," she texted back and waited.

Buzz. "I can be quick. Where?"

"My house." She wrote. "I'll pick up sandwiches." She locked the screen on her phone and immediately stood up to put her jacket on, already on the outside of the door, locking her office. She made her way quickly to the sub shop, ordered a tuna and a meatball sub, and rushed back to her car. She checked her phone again.

"One more. Be there as fast as I can." He had texted.

SsSsSsSs

Jack had never been so quick to prescribe a remedy in his life. He examined that last kid in record time and feeling guilty, had even given the concerned dad his cell number in case he had questions later on. He sped through town making his way to Sam's house. He really couldn't stop thinking about her. It had been a long week and he couldn't wait to see her, to tell her again that he loved her, to feel her lips on his. They had spoken on the phone every day, but he longed to actually touch her.

He parked and made his way to the front door. He looked down at his watch, 12:32 p.m. He was posed to knock but she opened the door before he could, and yanked him inside the house. Jack was barely able to shut the door with his body as she plastered herself against him, kissing him right there against the door. His arms snaked around her and he laughed through the kiss.

"Hi," he mumbled and kissed at the same time.

She pulled back and looked up at him, "hi." But she wasn't giggling. Or laughing. Her eyes were dark and fierce and her look dangerous. Jack swallowed and let his hand trace her jaw. She closed her eyes and relished his touch, leaning into his hand.

"I know," he said, "I've miss you too."

She opened her eyes at the admission, and he kissed her this time, and letting his keys fall to the floor, picked her up in his arms and made his way to her bedroom. "We have to hurry," she said, while doing things to his neck that made him wild, "I have to be back in the car by one or I'll be late."

He laughed again. "Yes, ma'am!"

Sssssssssssssss

"Here, don't forget your sandwich," he said, handing her the bag through the open window of the car.

"I won't have time to eat it," she said and he placed his head practically inside the car to kiss her one last time. "Jack! I have to go, it's 1:05!"

"You'll get there. Eat it on the drive." He waved as she backed out of the driveway, thinking that she really looked quite disheveled. He grinned. He got into his truck, opened his sandwich bag and looked inside. Pulling out the sandwich, he sat back in his seat and took a bite. Somehow, this meatball sandwich, though now cold and soggy, tasted like heaven. It was the best lunch break he'd had in years.

A/N: I must continue to acknowledge my wonderful beta, SAMnJACK ALWAYS!