The characters are definitely driving this story! Boy howdy, they are talkative right now! LOL

-begin-

Jack cursed as another wave of pain emanated from his ribs. They'd been climbing downward for the past two hours and had made very little progress. It had taken him too long to figure out how to maneuver without causing much pain. To make matters worse, he heard Sam's sharp intake of breath every time he moved the wrong way. While he could easily deal with the pain, it destroyed him to know he was hurting her. He should be the one to protect and help her, not the other way around. Of course, she merely breathed through any discomfort and continued on, carrying both of their packs. Utterly useless is what he was.

"No you're not," Sam answered his thought aloud. "Besides, there's no one I'd rather be stuck with than you, even if you are acting like a surly caveman."

His reply was a low grunt that even he recognized as caveman-like. Her laugh rang out through the canyon at his thought. The idea of being a caveman triggered a particular memory of a de-evolved Sam attacking him in the locker room. At the time, he'd resisted her advances, but now—well, now he would gladly be the one to help her alleviate any urges. Thinking about it, there were many times over the years that they could have helpedeach other out of tricky situations. He wondered how long before they'd encounter another civilization with unique societal customs that required them to—

"Hopefully, a long, long time," Sam called over her shoulder. Jack felt his ears turn red as he realized she'd caught him fantasizing.

"Sorry," he offered, but his tone wasn't one bit apologetic.

"We need a break," Sam said stopping to drop their packs.

"I'm fine," he told her ignoring the throbbing in his sides.

"Despite the fact that I know that's a lie," Sam eyeballed him, "I'm stopping because I need to. My muscles are getting fatigued carrying both packs; I don't want to push myself too hard and suffer an injury."

Realizing she was right, he gave her a lopsided smile and sat down on a flat rock, patting the area next to him. She sat and leaned her head against his shoulder. It struck him how intimate this little scene was; how often they'd been in a similar situation, but maintained a respectable distance. That distance wasn't necessary anymore. Along with that realization came a newfound freeness. Despite their impending court martial, his aching ribs, and being lost on an unknown planet, he was content just sitting close to Sam.

"Want a quick massage?" He asked, gently rubbing the back of her neck where it met her back.

"Hmmm," was her answer as he dug his fingers a bit deeper into the muscles. Taking her sigh and little hum as an affirmative, he shifted so he could put both hands on her back. He pushed the twinges of pain aside as his ribs protested the movement; nothing would stop him from this.

"So many times, I wanted to do this when we were off-world," he said quietly. "Every time you'd try to shake off the fatigue and soreness." Leaning forward, he pressed his lips to her skin, enjoying her soft moan. Resuming his ministrations, he dug his thumbs into her muscles until he felt the knots begin to relax.

"You're hands are magical," she said, automatically leaning back against him. At his bit back noise of pain, she sprung up. "Oh Jack, I'm sorry!"

"It's alright," he ground out, "I was caught up in the moment too and didn't even think to stop you." He stood up as the pain receded, watching Sam absently rub her side in the exact spot his hurt.

"Let's get moving," she said picking up their packs. "We've got a ways to go before dark and I've hurt you enough for one afternoon."

Jack wanted to argue, but knew better. No matter what he said, Sam would continue blaming herself for his condition. They were both stubborn like that. Of course, once his ribs healed, he wouldn't let her get away with blaming herself. Maybe he'd hold her down and kiss every inch of her body until that impressive brain of hers stopped thinking and just succumbed to the pleasure. Maybe he could find a way to recreate the fire she'd experienced during their first time together.

"Dammit, Jack!" Sam growled as his thoughts and arousal made her stumble. Laughing, despite the pain it caused, he pressed a quick kiss to her mouth and took the lead, leaving Sam to glare at his back. He could tell she was no longer feeling guilty; instead she was a mixture of aroused and irritated. Mission accomplished.

—POV—

The sun was just setting as they finally made it out of the canyon. Luck was on their side when they'd found some sort of trail upon reaching the bottom.

Sam's side ached with every step as they finally reached the grouping of trees. The setting sun, along with the evening dew, provided much needed relief from the scorching heat.

The blessed relief, however, did nothing to dull the pain she knew Jack was feeling. His playful banter and teasing had stopped quite a ways back, and he'd purposely blocked her from parts of his mind. They needed to double-back and meet up with Teal'c, but there was no way he could continue much longer.

"Jack," she said stopping as they entered the tree line. "Can you make it just a little further?"

"Sure, you betcha," he said with a forced smile. Despite his bravado, the sheen of perspiration against his paling skin, would have told her everything she needed to know about his condition even if they weren't connected.

After a few more hundred feet, Sam called for them to stop and dropped the packs she'd been carrying all day. Dropping to her knees, she immediately searched for the med kit and remaining pain relievers, ignoring her screaming muscles demanding she lay down and rest.

"I'm fine, Sam," Jack groaned easing himself to the forrest floor and propping his back against a tree.

"Take these," she thrust the pills at him, followed by the canteen. Sam nodded in satisfaction as he did what he was told. "Rest there, I'm going to start a fire. I haven't seen any signs of wildlife, but I'm not chancing anything since you can't climb a tree."

"I could climb—," Jack huffed out a painful breath. "You're right, good idea." As she walked away, he called her name. "If I haven't said it already, thank you."

Coming back next to him, Sam knelt, bringing them eye level. "No need," she said seriously. "You'd do it for any member of the team." Leaning forward, she brought her lips a breath away from his. "Besides, I need you operating at full capacity—understand." Making sure not to touch any other part of him except his lips, she lightly traced them with the tip of her tongue before executing the softest kiss she'd ever experienced. Jack responded immediately, but when she felt him begin to deepen the kiss, she pulled back, not wanting to hurt him. Sam smiled at his frustrated grumble, pleased to see something other than pain in his eyes.

"I'll stay in sight, but I've got to get this fire started," she said walking a few feet, bending over to gather fallen limbs, twigs, and anything that could be used as firewood. It didn't escape her notice that she'd inadvertently, or maybe purposefully, angled her stance, giving Jack a perfect view of her backside.

"You're either the most amazing woman in the world of the cruelest," Jack huffed out. "Either way, I won't be out of commission for long."

"I sure hope not," Sam gave him a sexy wink at his veiled threat as she arranged the kindling around the fire starter retrieved from her pack.

Within minutes a small fire had engulfed the dry wood. Sam settled down next to Jack; smiling as he rested a hand on her knee, gently squeezing.

They sat in comfortable silence; everything around them slowly engulfed into total darkness as the sun finished it's decent from the sky. The light from the fire cast shadows across their bodies, the fire snapping and popping. Sam stared into the fire as her mind stilled, as if in a hypnotic trance. Jack's light snore was the only thing keeping her conscious mind active; the sound comforting, something she'd grown accustomed to hearing whenever they spent the night off-world. The soft rhythmic noise, combined with the dancing flames, urged Sam to seek sleep, but she fought the pull. Jack needed his rest, she wanted to give him at least four hours before waking him to take over watch.

Her eyelids grew heavier and her mind sluggish. Reaching for the canteen, she took a long drink, hoping the cool water would wake her up. A shimmer around the fire caught her attention, but she couldn't reason why part of her was alarmed. Her body grew incredibly heavy, sleep becoming imminent, though part of her still struggled to comprehend what she was seeing.

The shimmer hovered closer, now in front of the fire. The particles began forming an object, and with all of her remaining resolve, she forced her herself to speak.

"What are you?" Her voice was barely a whisper.

"Sleep," a deep voice said as the shimmer finally took form. "Just sleep."

Sam tried to speak again, instinctively knowing something wasn't right, but darkness engulfed her mind as she finally succumbed to the pull of sleep.