Chapter Forty

"You've got to stop."

"I can't help it!" Vala insisted.

"They're gonna notice," Daniel warned her. "You seriously have to stop."

She twisted in his lap and pinned him with a knowing look. "Then they should seriously stop being so damn cute!" she hissed so only he could hear.

Daniel glanced back over to his friends as they sat on the dock in front of Jack's infamous pond and reluctantly admitted that Vala had a point – but he wouldn't say cute…just happy. Truly happy for once. "Okay, I'll give ya that," he surrendered much to her pleasure, but instead of being annoyed like he would've in the past, he just smiled fondly at her. "But maybe try not to stare too hard. They're seasoned officers and sense that. Focus on something else."

Wrong choice of words. Vala immediately switched gears and became his little vixen. "What did you have in mind exactly?" she purred into his ear. While he normally wouldn't mind, they were currently outside and surrounded by their closest friends. This wasn't the time for…that.

"Vala," he warned gently and almost smiled at her pouting. He kissed her forehead. "Later," he promised and that seemed to do the trick.

It had been a long and hard month. Sometimes it was hard to believe it had only been a month. In the last month, Vala had come face to face with her past, and Daniel believed that had been one of the pivotal points in their relationship – knowing what she went through, and it still affected her today. She had allowed him to see her at what he suspected was what she thought was her worst – she allowed him in, and that alone should be proof enough. Then there was the County Fair where they almost kissed. The disappointment he felt Jack when interrupted was insane.

He just hadn't been given the proper time to fully figure out what it meant, because the situation with the System Lords came up days later. Then the Replicators happened. He died again. Anubis was back. He tried to take over the galaxy again. Oma took care of him. Daniel retook human form only to find out that Vala had been captured by Ba'al. They rescued her. She got shot and he realized that he loved her.

This wasn't even mentioning the hell the rest of the team went through. Poor Sam.

But things were looking up.

They discovered a ZPM that a former version of themselves left for them. Sam was still upset that she allowed them to go back in time – even though it wasn't exactly her. Jack retired shortly after they rescued Vala. He had taken the CIA Agent's advice to retire and run the SGC as a civilian – it worked for Dr. Weir for a while. The President agreed to Jack's proposal, which did surprise most of them. His first act after his retirement was accepted was asking Sam to go fishing. Yes, he invited the rest of them, knowing they all needed a much-deserved break.

So yeah, watching his two friends flirt when Daniel had barely seen them show any emotion outside of teammates – and sometimes friendship – was a little weird, and he understood why Vala was having a hard time not staring…and she hadn't even known them for as long as he did.

"I'm holding you to that promise," she told him and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. "Now, we should go fish."

Daniel groaned. "God, please no." That was the last thing he wanted to do.

"Teal'c is a third tire and it's not fair to him."

"Third wheel," he automatically corrected. "Well, more like a fifth wheel."

She rolled her eyes. "This is a fishing trip, darling. I was promised to be taught how to fish."

"Actually, Jack has tried to get all of us up here for over eight years. So, at this point, it really isn't about fishing," he told her, hoping she would change her mind, but it seemed to be made up. Damn, she really did wanna fish. Over the last week, he found himself unable to deny her anything…within reason. He sighed. "Okay, let's go fish."

Vala's squeal of delight made it all worth it.

o0o

"What?"

Vala had been staring at Samantha while they lounged near the pond while the men…well, she didn't know what they were doing, but based on all the smoke, it had something to do with the grill. Yes, she told Daniel she'd stop, but she couldn't help it. "I know we haven't known each other long – though sometimes it feels like years – but I've never seen you so happy, so serene, and at peace."

Samantha blushed lightly and ducked her head, but Vala could see the small smile. "I don't think I've ever felt it either," she confessed.

Vala felt her heart squeeze in compassion. If anyone deserved happiness, Samantha was it. "I know it's been a hard month for you – with Pete and then…your dad. I think he would be happy knowing that you're happy. He seemed like a very devoted father."

Samantha smiled sadly. "He was, and you're right – he told me before he passed that he wanted to see me happy and that I deserve to be happy."

"And you do," Vala agreed with the former General and Tok'ra. "You are the happiest I've ever seen you," she reiterated with another smile.

"I could say the same to you," the Colonel retorted and shot Vala a knowing look. "I've never seen Daniel this happy either. He's been so carefree since you two got together."

"That can't be true," Vala retorted. "Surely you saw him like this with Sha're." She didn't mind bringing up Daniel's late wife. The woman played a vital role in his life, and she could never begrudge the woman nor Daniel for that love.

"For like a hot minute, maybe. He was also different then – younger and naïve," Samantha retorted. "She was taken shortly after we met, and he changed. The situation forced him to mature and become who he is, but when he met you, he slowly started to come out of…whatever he crawled into after she died."

"My poor Daniel," she mumbled to herself. She couldn't blame him for it. Had she not been a slave in her own body at the time, she suspected she would've grieved her own fiancée in a similar manner.

"He stopped living after her and only went through the motions of life. I didn't realize how bad it was until you came along," Samantha continued gently, and Vala stared at her with a curious expression. "He started living again because of you. You brought out this side of him I've never seen. You've made him so happy, Vala. I don't know how to repay you for that – thanking you doesn't seem to be enough."

She shook her head. "I don't want your thanks, Samantha," she told her. It was never about that. "You never have to thank me for loving him."

"Daniel is practically my brother. I'm actually closer with him than my actual brother, and you completely transformed him. So, yes, I do have to thank you. All I ask is that you don't break his heart."

Vala could never consciously break his heart. He probably had a better chance at breaking hers. But she wouldn't deny Samantha the assurance. "That's the last thing I want, and I'll do my best to never break it."

Samantha seemed satisfied.

o0o

Daniel didn't know what happened between lunch and dinner or what conversation between Jack and Sam took place, but it certainly was a doozy, and the result was…drastic, for the lack of a better word. But it wasn't a bad thing by any stretch.

"Do you ever think that'll be us?" Vala asked as she rested in his lap and watched the newly married couple dance for the first time as man and wife.

The wedding had been spontaneous and only SG-1 was in attendance with the exception of the officiant. Daniel didn't know Jack had such connections in the small town not far from his cabin, but he did, and he and Sam were legally married – he and Vala signing as witnesses was enough to make it real for him. Thank God Vala had been a legal citizen of the U.S these last two months or else they would've needed another witness. Teal'c never did want to be a full citizen of Earth. That hadn't been the plan.

Daniel kissed the inside of her neck and she stretched it to give him more room. He knew she was teasing, but he still heard the undertones of seriousness, curiosity, and even desire. He smiled into her neck at the knowledge that she saw a future for them – better yet, she wanted one. This was the real deal for her, just like it was for him. "Not for a while," he mumbled into her neck before pressing another kiss.

He married Sha're the day he met her – whether he knew it or not. He embraced that marriage the second he realized it. Shortly after he'd begun having feelings for Vala, he realized his marriage to Sha're hadn't been perfect and he had been idolizing it too much for years. Back then, he had been naïve and barely knew her. They hadn't spoken the same language for months, and when he finally learned, there had been other things he wanted to know and learn about other than her. Don't get him wrong – he loved Sha're and always would, but their relationship had been on fast-forward the second they met.

He already knew Vala better than he ever had Sha're, and there was still so much he had left to discover – and he couldn't wait. He wanted this to last, and he wasn't about to risk going too fast. She meant everything to him, so he would do this right.

"Define a while," she demanded but he heard the intrigue. "A year?"

"Five," he countered and did his best to sound serious.

"Two."

"Three."

He could imagine her nose crinkling in displeasure "Two and a half."

Daniel kissed her neck again. "Deal," he agreed.

Vala sighed dramatically. "I hope you're worth it," she quipped.

He smiled and leaned his head against the side of hers. "I don't want to rush this," he confessed, and grabbed one of her hands to press a kiss to it. "Give me six months."

She squeezed his hand. "I'll hold you to that." She tried to sound stern, but the joy overwrote any traces of it.

"I'd expect nothing else."

She turned in his lap and sealed the deal with a kiss.

The End.

o0o

Author's Note:

As always, let me know your final thoughts.

Thank you all for the love, support, encouragement, reviews, favorites, and follows. You're the best.

This will be the last long one I'll be putting out for a while. Life is already crazy right now, leaving me little to no time to write. I'll probably put out some one-shots here and there, but don't expect them to be well edited – again, time issues. I don't expect life to slow down until sometime next year.

Sorry if I'm disappointing anyone out there. If you're the praying type, pray for me.

Until next time,

-DesertKactus