Title: "Out of the Darkness"
Author: Jackie W.
Email: jackiesfica...
Rating: PG-13
Additional Author's Notes: Those of you that live in Colorado…. Please excuse my error if your state does not issue limited Driver's licenses. I spent more time than was appropriate trying to find out on the CO. DMV site and finally gave up. Many states do issues these,
especially to senior citizens, so I'm going with it.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Jack had been right about one thing, Sam thought with a scowl as she looked at the man in front of her. By the time they returned home Pete was there waiting with his tail tucked between his legs, ready to do whatever it took to salvage their relationship. Trouble was Sam didn't want to attempt to rekindle what she had finally come to realize was her attempt at getting over Jack O'Neill.
She knew now that she had no desire to 'get over' Jack O'Neill.
So she let Pete down as gently as she could and still managed to get across the message that they were over. She felt guilty and a bit sad for a couple of days, and then picked herself up, and moved on with her life.
The first thing she did was go to the Academy and work out a schedule with General Kerrigan. She would be lecturing two days a week, two classes each day. She was quite excited and spent the entire next two days mapping out her curriculum. By the end of her first week back on Earth, she was down to wearing sunglasses only outdoors during the day, so she went to the Department of Motor Vehicles to see about getting a driver's license. As she suspected the light flares were a problem and she was issued a license limited to daylight hours only. Hopefully when the condition improved she could get a regular license issued.
During the week she kept in close touch with Daniel and Teal'c, and both explained that Jack was swamped with issues that had arisen while he was gone. They kept asking when she was coming back. At first she was able to hold them off by explaining that she had to wait for an official job offer, as she was no longer in the military. A contract hiring her as a civilian contractor would need to be ironed out.
Of course that came quickly. The Pentagon had no intention of letting their Stargate expert get away. The offer was generous, but Sam had some problems with it. First of all it was for a full time position and she wanted to allow for time to lecture. Also, with a limited driver's license she was going to have to either leave the mountain early every day, stay on base a lot, or rely on an airman to drive her back and forth all of the time. None of those options appealed to her.
She would just have to work on the idea that did appeal to her, and the USAF could wait. Because if she was going back to the SGC she would want a permanent chauffeur, and at the moment he seemed to be avoiding her.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Jack wasn't exactly avoiding Sam, but he was glad to have the excuse of work to keep him too busy to spend any time with her for a week or so. He wanted to give her an opportunity to settle back into her life on her own. Still, he couldn't help but be thrilled when Daniel told him that Pete had been given his walking papers. Nor could he help starting to think about asking a certain scientist out. However in true Jack O'Neill style he even avoided that and instead started planning a gathering where he could be with Sam in a social setting without risking rejection.
Daniel was the first one to let something slip to Sam about Jack organizing a party to celebrate her miraculous recovery. Sam had smiled a bit too brightly at the idea and Daniel had wanted to know what she was up to.
"Nothing. Why?" Sam asked.
"You have that look in your eyes," Daniel commented.
"What look would that be, Dr. Jackson?" she inquired.
"The one you and Jack get just before one of you tells us the wild-assed plan you have for escaping," Daniel explained.
"Don't be ridiculous, Daniel," she assured him in her most innocent voice.
Still Daniel warned Teal'c that something was up, and on the night of the party the two were on guard. Neither was prepared for what Samantha Carter had planned.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
She took a taxi to the General's house. Besides not being able to drive home after dark anyway, it would allow her to get roaring drunk if her plan failed. Still, if the once over the taxi driver gave her when she opened her front door was any indication, she should have one Brigadier General eating out of the palm of her hand by the end of the evening.
For the first time in a good twenty years, Sam Carter was dressed in an outfit that would have scandalized her father. Even when she had been dating Pete she had only ever let her hair down so far, ever mindful that she needed to keep to a certain image as an officer in the USAF. Now however, she had no such restraint, and she'd gone shopping with the express purpose of finding an outfit to make jaws drop and eyebrows raise (depending on the gender and age of the observer).
The skirt was black, slim and very short. The amount of legs displayed between the black strappy shoes with the three-inch heels and the hem of the skirt was enough on it's own to make any grown man fall to his knees and beg for mercy. When paired with a raspberry top that clung in all the right places and showed a fair amount of cleavage (Yes cleavage - It was amazing what a non-sports bra could do!), a new stylish haircut with blond highlights and just the enough make-up to make her blue eyes stand out, she was every mother's worst nightmare. She was the woman that would steal their sons' hearts without lifting a finger.
Of course there was only one heart she was after that night, and she knew that it was well protected and wouldn't go down without a fight, since she had hurt it so badly in the recent past. That was why she was prepared for battle. All was fair tonight. It's not like she could be court marshaled for her actions. Just embarrassed to death.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Teal'c had been busy answering the door for the past 15 minutes as SGC personnel had been arriving in a steady stream, so when he opened the door to see the blond standing there he at first didn't realize who it was. When recognition hit him he literally sucked in a lung full of air and let it out in an almost whistle.
"Samantha," he welcomed, automatically addressing her as she appeared tonight, not as a colleague or friend but as a beautiful woman.
As his eyes appreciatively slid from head to toe his eyebrow raised to an impossible new height. "I believe this is a new look for you," he commented with a grin. "You look stunning," he assured her once again looking her in the eye.
Sam blushed lightly. She couldn't fault him for his reaction, after all that was what she'd been going for. She just hadn't expected it from Teal'c.
"Thank you Teal'c," she acknowledged with a nervous smile, reaching up to give a brief hug.
As he stepped back to let her in, she saw Daniel approaching. As she moved towards her friend to greet him she saw his eyes open in shock.
"Sam?" he choked out.
She moved in to give him a hug before he could recover.
"Hey Daniel," she grinned as she stepped back and used one finger to snap his jaw shut.
"Is that Carter?" Jack yelled from the kitchen where he was getting drinks organized.
Sam raised a finger to her lips and quickly took the couple of steps to the kitchen doorway.
"What have I told you about calling me Carter, Jack," she scolded.
"Sorry, Sam," he apologized with his head still in the freezer pulling out a bad of ice. As he turned he realized that everyone in the room with him had gotten very quiet and he looked over to the doorway. Suddenly the bag of ice in his hands hit the counter with a bang and he looked down at it in surprise. Then with a shake of his head he raised his eyes to the vision standing in the doorway.
Holy Mary Mother of God!
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
A half an hour later Jack was wondering if it would be bad manners to slip away from his guests and go take a cold shower. For the last thirty minutes the guest of honor had been steaming up every room of the house. It's not that she was being flirty or outrageous. Quite the opposite. She'd talked science with the science geeks and battle strategy with the Marines. However throughout it all there hadn't been a male in the house that hadn't been mesmerized. Including Jack.
The few women present started out confused. But it became clear to them soon after Sam arrived that the woman was on a mission, and their confusion turned to amusement as they watched Jack's reaction. Eventually they congregated in one corner of the family room to watch the show. As the evening wore on they were joined by Major Griff and Colonel Reynolds, Daniel and Teal'c. Soon bets were made. They started out fairly modest. How many more minutes would Jack hold out? How long before Sam lured him away from the party out onto the deck? As the drinks flowed though they began into the more risqué bets with Daniel laying odds that Jack was going to take Sam right there in front of the fireplace while they watched. (He was promptly cut off from further alcohol consumption)
Across the room Jack was starting to have fantasies about doing just that very thing. Good lord would these people never leave? If he didn't get Sam to himself soon he was going to explode. Five minutes later he saw his chance when the lady in question slipped out on the deck for some fresh air. As he followed, he missed the groan that rose from the family room as everyone began paying off Captain Laura Philips.
"Having a good time?" Jack asked.
Sam turned towards him and flashed him one of her brilliant smiles causing his breath to catch.
"Yes, Jack. Thank you. It's wonderful to catch up on everything that's been going on in the past two months," she told him, all the while studying him carefully. She almost broke out laughing at what she saw.
The man looked positively shell-shocked. She wasn't about to back down now though. So she took a step closer to him and reached out with one hand to lay it on his arm.
"I never got to thank you for being there with me up with the Asgard. I never would have made it through that without you," she told him sincerely.
"No problem. That's what friends are for," Jack told her forcing himself to not take a step towards her.
Sam looked sad for a moment then looked him in the eyes. "Is that all we are? Just friends?"
Jack cleared his throat nervously. Was Sam coming on to him? A voice in his head screamed at him to just kiss the woman, while another desperately reminded him of Pete and the pain that her moving on had caused.
"Best friends?" he suggested.
Sam shook her head in the negative.
Jack took a deep breath. So this was it. She was making it perfectly clear she wanted more. The ball was in his court. He could feel his carefully constructed walls beginning to crumble.
"Best friends who would like to be more?" he tried again, his voice now taking on husky tone. He saw her eyes darken in response.
"You're getting warmer," Sam nodded taking another step towards him.
He looked into those blue eyes and was totally lost. How could he possibly hold his heart in check when everything he'd wanted for the last seven plus years was waiting right in front of him looking slightly anxious.
He swayed forward so that their lips were just a hair's width apart. "Two idiots who are both too scared to admit they love each other?" he whispered, his lips brushing hers.
"There you go," she approved and he felt her lips touch his in response.
Then there were no more words. He pulled her firmly into his arms,
and kissed her like there was no tomorrow.
From inside the house a cheer went up and money once again began to change hands.
tbc
Author: Jackie W.
Email: jackiesfica...
Rating: PG-13
Additional Author's Notes: Those of you that live in Colorado…. Please excuse my error if your state does not issue limited Driver's licenses. I spent more time than was appropriate trying to find out on the CO. DMV site and finally gave up. Many states do issues these,
especially to senior citizens, so I'm going with it.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Jack had been right about one thing, Sam thought with a scowl as she looked at the man in front of her. By the time they returned home Pete was there waiting with his tail tucked between his legs, ready to do whatever it took to salvage their relationship. Trouble was Sam didn't want to attempt to rekindle what she had finally come to realize was her attempt at getting over Jack O'Neill.
She knew now that she had no desire to 'get over' Jack O'Neill.
So she let Pete down as gently as she could and still managed to get across the message that they were over. She felt guilty and a bit sad for a couple of days, and then picked herself up, and moved on with her life.
The first thing she did was go to the Academy and work out a schedule with General Kerrigan. She would be lecturing two days a week, two classes each day. She was quite excited and spent the entire next two days mapping out her curriculum. By the end of her first week back on Earth, she was down to wearing sunglasses only outdoors during the day, so she went to the Department of Motor Vehicles to see about getting a driver's license. As she suspected the light flares were a problem and she was issued a license limited to daylight hours only. Hopefully when the condition improved she could get a regular license issued.
During the week she kept in close touch with Daniel and Teal'c, and both explained that Jack was swamped with issues that had arisen while he was gone. They kept asking when she was coming back. At first she was able to hold them off by explaining that she had to wait for an official job offer, as she was no longer in the military. A contract hiring her as a civilian contractor would need to be ironed out.
Of course that came quickly. The Pentagon had no intention of letting their Stargate expert get away. The offer was generous, but Sam had some problems with it. First of all it was for a full time position and she wanted to allow for time to lecture. Also, with a limited driver's license she was going to have to either leave the mountain early every day, stay on base a lot, or rely on an airman to drive her back and forth all of the time. None of those options appealed to her.
She would just have to work on the idea that did appeal to her, and the USAF could wait. Because if she was going back to the SGC she would want a permanent chauffeur, and at the moment he seemed to be avoiding her.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Jack wasn't exactly avoiding Sam, but he was glad to have the excuse of work to keep him too busy to spend any time with her for a week or so. He wanted to give her an opportunity to settle back into her life on her own. Still, he couldn't help but be thrilled when Daniel told him that Pete had been given his walking papers. Nor could he help starting to think about asking a certain scientist out. However in true Jack O'Neill style he even avoided that and instead started planning a gathering where he could be with Sam in a social setting without risking rejection.
Daniel was the first one to let something slip to Sam about Jack organizing a party to celebrate her miraculous recovery. Sam had smiled a bit too brightly at the idea and Daniel had wanted to know what she was up to.
"Nothing. Why?" Sam asked.
"You have that look in your eyes," Daniel commented.
"What look would that be, Dr. Jackson?" she inquired.
"The one you and Jack get just before one of you tells us the wild-assed plan you have for escaping," Daniel explained.
"Don't be ridiculous, Daniel," she assured him in her most innocent voice.
Still Daniel warned Teal'c that something was up, and on the night of the party the two were on guard. Neither was prepared for what Samantha Carter had planned.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
She took a taxi to the General's house. Besides not being able to drive home after dark anyway, it would allow her to get roaring drunk if her plan failed. Still, if the once over the taxi driver gave her when she opened her front door was any indication, she should have one Brigadier General eating out of the palm of her hand by the end of the evening.
For the first time in a good twenty years, Sam Carter was dressed in an outfit that would have scandalized her father. Even when she had been dating Pete she had only ever let her hair down so far, ever mindful that she needed to keep to a certain image as an officer in the USAF. Now however, she had no such restraint, and she'd gone shopping with the express purpose of finding an outfit to make jaws drop and eyebrows raise (depending on the gender and age of the observer).
The skirt was black, slim and very short. The amount of legs displayed between the black strappy shoes with the three-inch heels and the hem of the skirt was enough on it's own to make any grown man fall to his knees and beg for mercy. When paired with a raspberry top that clung in all the right places and showed a fair amount of cleavage (Yes cleavage - It was amazing what a non-sports bra could do!), a new stylish haircut with blond highlights and just the enough make-up to make her blue eyes stand out, she was every mother's worst nightmare. She was the woman that would steal their sons' hearts without lifting a finger.
Of course there was only one heart she was after that night, and she knew that it was well protected and wouldn't go down without a fight, since she had hurt it so badly in the recent past. That was why she was prepared for battle. All was fair tonight. It's not like she could be court marshaled for her actions. Just embarrassed to death.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Teal'c had been busy answering the door for the past 15 minutes as SGC personnel had been arriving in a steady stream, so when he opened the door to see the blond standing there he at first didn't realize who it was. When recognition hit him he literally sucked in a lung full of air and let it out in an almost whistle.
"Samantha," he welcomed, automatically addressing her as she appeared tonight, not as a colleague or friend but as a beautiful woman.
As his eyes appreciatively slid from head to toe his eyebrow raised to an impossible new height. "I believe this is a new look for you," he commented with a grin. "You look stunning," he assured her once again looking her in the eye.
Sam blushed lightly. She couldn't fault him for his reaction, after all that was what she'd been going for. She just hadn't expected it from Teal'c.
"Thank you Teal'c," she acknowledged with a nervous smile, reaching up to give a brief hug.
As he stepped back to let her in, she saw Daniel approaching. As she moved towards her friend to greet him she saw his eyes open in shock.
"Sam?" he choked out.
She moved in to give him a hug before he could recover.
"Hey Daniel," she grinned as she stepped back and used one finger to snap his jaw shut.
"Is that Carter?" Jack yelled from the kitchen where he was getting drinks organized.
Sam raised a finger to her lips and quickly took the couple of steps to the kitchen doorway.
"What have I told you about calling me Carter, Jack," she scolded.
"Sorry, Sam," he apologized with his head still in the freezer pulling out a bad of ice. As he turned he realized that everyone in the room with him had gotten very quiet and he looked over to the doorway. Suddenly the bag of ice in his hands hit the counter with a bang and he looked down at it in surprise. Then with a shake of his head he raised his eyes to the vision standing in the doorway.
Holy Mary Mother of God!
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
A half an hour later Jack was wondering if it would be bad manners to slip away from his guests and go take a cold shower. For the last thirty minutes the guest of honor had been steaming up every room of the house. It's not that she was being flirty or outrageous. Quite the opposite. She'd talked science with the science geeks and battle strategy with the Marines. However throughout it all there hadn't been a male in the house that hadn't been mesmerized. Including Jack.
The few women present started out confused. But it became clear to them soon after Sam arrived that the woman was on a mission, and their confusion turned to amusement as they watched Jack's reaction. Eventually they congregated in one corner of the family room to watch the show. As the evening wore on they were joined by Major Griff and Colonel Reynolds, Daniel and Teal'c. Soon bets were made. They started out fairly modest. How many more minutes would Jack hold out? How long before Sam lured him away from the party out onto the deck? As the drinks flowed though they began into the more risqué bets with Daniel laying odds that Jack was going to take Sam right there in front of the fireplace while they watched. (He was promptly cut off from further alcohol consumption)
Across the room Jack was starting to have fantasies about doing just that very thing. Good lord would these people never leave? If he didn't get Sam to himself soon he was going to explode. Five minutes later he saw his chance when the lady in question slipped out on the deck for some fresh air. As he followed, he missed the groan that rose from the family room as everyone began paying off Captain Laura Philips.
"Having a good time?" Jack asked.
Sam turned towards him and flashed him one of her brilliant smiles causing his breath to catch.
"Yes, Jack. Thank you. It's wonderful to catch up on everything that's been going on in the past two months," she told him, all the while studying him carefully. She almost broke out laughing at what she saw.
The man looked positively shell-shocked. She wasn't about to back down now though. So she took a step closer to him and reached out with one hand to lay it on his arm.
"I never got to thank you for being there with me up with the Asgard. I never would have made it through that without you," she told him sincerely.
"No problem. That's what friends are for," Jack told her forcing himself to not take a step towards her.
Sam looked sad for a moment then looked him in the eyes. "Is that all we are? Just friends?"
Jack cleared his throat nervously. Was Sam coming on to him? A voice in his head screamed at him to just kiss the woman, while another desperately reminded him of Pete and the pain that her moving on had caused.
"Best friends?" he suggested.
Sam shook her head in the negative.
Jack took a deep breath. So this was it. She was making it perfectly clear she wanted more. The ball was in his court. He could feel his carefully constructed walls beginning to crumble.
"Best friends who would like to be more?" he tried again, his voice now taking on husky tone. He saw her eyes darken in response.
"You're getting warmer," Sam nodded taking another step towards him.
He looked into those blue eyes and was totally lost. How could he possibly hold his heart in check when everything he'd wanted for the last seven plus years was waiting right in front of him looking slightly anxious.
He swayed forward so that their lips were just a hair's width apart. "Two idiots who are both too scared to admit they love each other?" he whispered, his lips brushing hers.
"There you go," she approved and he felt her lips touch his in response.
Then there were no more words. He pulled her firmly into his arms,
and kissed her like there was no tomorrow.
From inside the house a cheer went up and money once again began to change hands.
tbc