DISCLAIMER: Nope. Not mine. Not making any money off this. But a girl can dream can't she????
SUMMARY: Sam is starting to realize that maybe she made a mistake by accepting Pete's proposal. What is she going to do about it and can she save herself before it's too late? Meanwhile, Daniel is fast falling in love with a young lady he met off world.
SPOILERS:Right up through Affinity. That was where I got upset. Sam and Jack need to be together. Pete's just in the way.
A/N: Pete lovers, beware. I do not like Pete and have some serious Pete bashing to do before I can take this story where it's supposed to go. You have been warned.
Daniel knew, by the way she looked at him in the commissary, that she knew that Cassie had called him the night before. He sat down next to her.
"Sam, Cassie was worried about you. That's all. If I had, for even one moment, thought that either one of you was actually in danger, I would have been there in a moment."
"I know. And I appreciate it, Daniel. Really I do. But everything turned out just fine. Pete would never hurt me. Not intentionally." Some part of her inside cringed. 'Protecting him. Denial. Here we go again.'
"Just don't let this become another Jonas incident. That's the last thing you need right now."
"Daniel, I promise. This is nothing like Jonas." 'No. It's not like that. It IS that. All over again.' "Just do me a favor. Don't tell the General or my dad. You know how they are." 'Protective. That's what they are. You know that they'd kill him if they thought that he had hurt you.'
"Only as long as you promise me that you'll take care of yourself. Just be careful, Sam. That's all I ask."
"You have a deal." They shook hands over a bowl of Sam's blue jello.
On Thursday, Pete called Sam. She didn't answer the phone the first or even the second time it rang. On the third call, however, she decided that she had better go ahead and answer it.
"Sam, thank God! I was beginning to think that Jack had lied to me about you being planetside for the time being."
"Checking up on me, Pete?"
"Of course not! I just wanted to make sure that you would be home. Can I take you to dinner tonight? I was a real ass a few days ago. I just want to apologize. Please?"
Sam faltered in her conviction that she would end things between them. "I guess. No repeats of that night?"
"I swear. Can I pick you up about 6?"
She was hoping that she wasn't getting in over her head. "Ok. I'll see you then."
"See you then. I do love you, Sam. You know that don't you?"
"I know, Pete." With that one little comment, she hung up the phone and went to get ready.
Just before Pete arrived at six, Cassie flew in and out of the house for a study date with a group of her friends. Sam hadn't even had a chance to tell her about Pete. She guessed she'd just have to tell her later.
The date went well enough. Pete had been the perfect gentleman through the whole thing. He held the doors for her as they entered and left the restaurant and held her chair as she sat down and stood up after the meal.
It wasn't until he pulled into her driveway and walked her to the door that his attitude changed.
When she had unlocked her door and turned to wish him a good night, he pushed his way into the house and sat down on the couch. "Pete, you can't stay. I have to go to bed. I have to be at work by 0600 tomorrow. I'm going to be working on some special projects."
"What about your precious team?" he sneered. "What are they doing?"
"Daniel's going off-world with another team and Teal'c is visiting his son. R'yac and Kar'yn are expecting their first child soon. I'm going to be doing some fine tuning on the Gate."
"That doesn't sound like anything that can't be put off for a few hours to spend some time with me. What about Jack? He seemed kind of distracted when I called him earlier to make sure that you weren't needed on base tonight."
"He has to go to Washington tomorrow morning to brief both the President and General Hammond."
"So there won't be anyone around for you to talk to tomorrow?"
"I'm supposed to spend some time with our off-world visitors."
"I think I should spend the night."
"Pete, I think you should go home."
"I want to make love to you tonight. We haven't done that in a long time."
"Not tonight." Sam was getting scared. She hadn't seen this coming and right now didn't know what to do. She hoped that this would be one night that Cassie had cut short her study group.
Pete got up and walked right up to Sam, backing her up until she was flush against the wall. "I said tonight. I meant tonight."
"No. I want to go to sleep alone tonight."
Sam never saw the slap coming. She only felt it swipe across her face. Placing her own hand alongside her face, she looked at Pete in shock.
Pete was now thinking that he had her right where he wanted her. She would do as he said now. He grabbed her arm and started walking her down the hall toward her bedroom.
Sam snapped out of her shock about the time Pete shoved her into the bedroom. "We are not doing this tonight," she bit out at him.
"I said we are. And I mean we are."
She tried to pull away from him. He held on for a few minutes more before letting go and watching as she fell to the floor. He dragged her back to her feet and before she could get herself together enough to mount an attack against him, he punched her twice in rapid succession. Once in the stomach and once in the face.
When his fist connected with her face, Sam spun out of his grasp and fell against her dresser, hitting her head and knocking her out. When Pete saw her laying on the floor, bleeding from a cut on her forehead, he ran. Out of the house and into the night.
Cassie walked through the front door at about midnight, hoping that Sam wouldn't be too angry. She walked down the hallway and noticed that Sam's bedroom door was wide open and the light was on.
Walking through Sam's bedroom door, Cassie pulled up short. "Oh God!" There lay Sam, unconcious and bleeding from the wound on her head.
Cassie knelt beside Sam in tears. "Sam! Sam! Sam, wake up!"
Looking around, Cassie saw the phone sitting in its usual place on the end table. She ran over and called the base. Dr. Brightman told her that he would be there shortly, knowing that Sam couldn't go to a regular hospital. Not with the protein markers Jolinar had left in her body.
Cassie was waiting at the front door when he arrived. She accompanied him as they took Sam back to the base infirmary.
Sam woke up the next morning to find herself with one hell of a headache and laying on a bed in the infirmary on base. Cassie was sleeping on a nearby bed.
Dr. Brightman walked out of his office to see Sam trying to sit up. "Take it easy, Colonel. You have quite a nasty bump on the head. Care to tell me how this happened?"
"It's nothing. Really. I just fell and hit my head on the dresser in my room."
"And what about the bruise on your face?"
"It's ---" He held up a hand before she could come up with another lie.
"Don't tell me it's nothing. I've seen battered women before. My own daughter was in an abusive relationship for a long time."
"Really, Dr. Brightman. It's not what you think."
"Who hit you, Colonel? You can't tell me that you did this to yourself."
Sam's shoulders slumped in defeat. "I wish I could. It was my fiance."
"I hope you broke off the engagement."
"Not before he did this to me. I don't ever want to see him again. Not as long as I live."
"At least you got smart." The doctor looked closely at Sam. "What's wrong?"
"It hurts to breathe. He hit me. I thought in the stomach but now I'm thinking it might have been in the ribs."
"Let me take a look." As Sam lay back and pulled up her shirt so the doctor could see, he found the large purple bruise that adorned her abdomen. "I think we ought to xray this. Make sure there's no broken ribs."
Sam just nodded as she sat up. "Would you do me a favor, doc? Don't tell my team or the General."
"I won't as long as you take care of this now. Don't wait. I would hate to see what would happen to that beautiful young woman that wouldn't leave your side last night. She had the presence of mind to call me instead of calling an ambulance. She's smart."
"I will. After last night, I don't want him as a part of my life."
Just after the doctor had settled Sam back in the bed, Shey and Talorn found their way into the infirmary. "Samantha, are you alright?"
"Yes, Shey. I'll be fine. A little bruising but I'm ok."
"Cassandra told us that she had found you unconcious at home. Thankfully, she called Dr. Brightman. I hope that you heal fast."
"I usually do. Thankfully, I don't have any broken ribs."
"Have you dealt with those emotions?" She didn't have to say any more about it. Sam knew which emotions she meant.
"I'm trying to." Daniel rounded the corner.
"Shey, the guard at the front gate told me that you and Talorn had come down here." Just then, he saw Sam laying on the bed. "Sam? What happened?"
"Nothing to worry about, Daniel. I just tripped and fell. Clumsy of me, huh?" 'Lying to your teammate? Shame on you, Sam. He'll figure it out. He's too smart not to.'
"Are you sure? It looks like someone hit you."
"How was the trip? Which planet did you guys go to?"
"P7H-446. It looked like there had once been a very advanced civilization there. Lots of ruins and artifacts. I'm going to talk to Jack and see if we can set up a site there so that we can study it."
At least, he's easily sidetracked. It won't be that easy with Jack.
A/N: There you go. Just for all my fellow Pete Bashers. Now things are starting to get interesting. What's Jack going to do if (when) he finds out.