Part Four

"Sam; you remember the first time I stuck my head in that ... dang Ancient head-sucker thing?" Jack began.

Like I could ever forget. He'd been so bewildered at the rapid changes occurring in his mind - why he was doing things not of his own volition - and the look in his brown eyes had frightened me. I'd seen the then-Colonel at low points before, but I'd never seen him so helpless.

Then he'd managed to 'gate to Othalla where the Asgard had wiped the knowledge from his mind. He'd returned to the SGC with no memory of what he'd done while 'possessed', for want of a better word, and life had returned to whatever passes for normal in the SGC.

"Jacob ..." - Jack turned to my dad - "more than a year ago, I did it again."

Succinctly put.

"I remember sticking my head in that thing ... I spent some time with Sam and the kids before we came back to work, then I didn't remember anything until I woke up on Thor's ship." He sighed and fiddled with a tassel on one of the cushions. "Thor told me he'd taken all that crap outta my head, then we had that whole big thing with the bugs." He grimaced and shifted his long legs. "I got promoted, and we went back to work."

"But that's not all, obviously," Jacob said impatiently.

"No," Jack admitted. "I've been noticing ... stuff for a few weeks now. I could feel people's pain if they were ill or injured, but the first time I really realized it was when ..." - he gripped my hand tightly. "Sam," he said gently. "It was that night."

I gasped. The night I lost my baby. At the time, I'd not thought to question how he'd seemed to sense that I needed help, but now ... "You still have the Ancient healing ability," I said slowly. "That's how you were able to help Selmak."

"Sammie?" My dad stared hard at our linked hands, then cleared his throat. "What 'night'?" he queried.

I felt tears spring to my eyes, then Jack's arm came around my shoulders. I leaned gratefully into his warm body, taking solace from his strength. "A couple of weeks ago, I had a miscarriage," I told my dad.

My dad looked at me in pain. "Oh, baby," he said softly, "I'm so sorry."

I managed a wisp of a smile. "It's okay," I said. "I wasn't alone, and it's getting a bit easier every day." I looked at the two men I loved most in the world. "What else did the Asgard not take out of your head?" I asked Jack.

Jack shrugged, the nonchalant manner belied by the uncertainty in his eyes. For a hardened soldier pushing fifty, he looked more like a hurt child when he wore that look. "No idea, Sam," he said. "I trusted Thor - thought he was my buddy - and then he screws me over. But if things go down the crapper again ... no heroic measures. And I certainly don't trust those little gray guys to pull my ass out of the fire."

I stared at him. "That's why you've taken command of the Daedalus, isn't it?" I said. "To go out in a blaze of glory in some God-forsaken part of the universe?" And yet I wasn't surprised. A man like Jack O'Neill would never have dreamed of dying peacefully in his sleep. He firmly believed that it would be at the wrong end of a staff weapon.

He looked surprised at my vehemence. "I'm ... sorry, Sam," he said in low tones. "I was kinda hoping you'd never find out - that I'd be off world before I started changing. But I couldn't ignore Selmak's pain, now that I know how to control my abilities."

He closed his eyes, then opened them, and I gasped. They were pitch black and didn't seem quite human. "What on Earth ...?" I said.

"I love you, Sam," Jack said, not seeming to care that my dad was sitting right there. He rested his hand on my abdomen. "I haven't got much to offer, but I can give you this," he said.

A warmth spread from his fingers into my abdomen and I gasped as my muscles began twitching from the warmth. I felt the soreness and stretched feeling ease and a strange rhythmic contraction in my uterus as the abused muscles healed under Jack's gentle ministration.

His eyelids fluttered closed, the long lashes sweeping the heavy shadows under his eyes and he swayed, falling into my lap. "Get Janet," I told my Dad quietly, trying to hide the panic clawing at me. He was going Ancient again ... God; how many times could this man be put through this without it finally killing him?

I put a gentle hand to Jack's neck, noting that the pulse was strong and steady - if a little slower than normal. "God, sir - you have to fight this." I was calling him 'sir' now?

His eyes opened, showing their normal brown, and he smiled weakly. "Hey, you know me, Carter - I'm a stubborn son of a bitch, right?"

I gave a reluctant laugh. "Yes, sir," I replied, helping him into a sitting position.

Janet came in, armed with her stethoscope and ubiquitous penlight. "Doc ...," Jack warned her as she flashed the light in his eyes. "I'm goin' Ancient again - you know exactly what's gonna happen!"

Janet squared her tiny shoulders. "Yes, sir," she replied softly, clicking off the penlight. "How are you feeling?"

"Bit crappy," Jack muttered, "and my cozars are hurting. I could've sworn Bocce had healed 'em." He looked at us. "What?"

"You said cozars," my dad pointed out.

"I did not," Jack argued.

"You did," Dad said firmly.

"Did not."

"Did."

Before they could get into a Daniel Jackson/Jack O'Neill-patented moment of lunacy, I intervened. "Jack ... you did," I said.

He sat up and looked deep into my eyes. "Damn," he mumbled, trusting my word. "Seems to be happening faster than last time."

I nodded my head. "Possibly because your brain wasn't returned to normal," I said thoughtfully, determined not to cry. How could Thor have done this to us? I thought he was looking out after the people of Earth! I took a deep breath. "Dad ... Janet ... I want to talk to Jack alone," I added.

"Sure, Sammie," Dad said. He got up and clasped mine and Jack's shoulders. "For what it's worth, Jack; Selmak and I are grateful to you," he added.

"Thanks, Jacob," Jack said. "Means a lot."

"Call if you need me," Janet said, appearing to have forgotten her own troubles in dealing with this latest body blow.

They left the living room and I sighed, turning back to the man I loved. "Sir ... Jack ... Based on what happened the last two times, we've got a couple more days before your behavior starts changing. Jack - before that happens, I want us to ... you know ... make love." I closed my eyes against the tears that threatened. "I don't want to lose you without knowing how great we could be together."

Jack breathed in deeply and leaned his forehead against mine. "I want it too," he said huskily. He put a finger under my chin, then pressed a soft kiss to my lips. "I'm sorry, Sam," he added. "But you understand why I couldn't have told you sooner?"

I did. If the Trust had found out, they would've found a way to experiment on him. After all, he'd been host to a Tok'ra and had gone Ancient twice and survived. Add to that the fact that he'd pissed them off on many occasions - going right back to when they'd been part of the NID and had tried to imprison the Tollan - and he was a prime target for them.

"I do," I assured him. I linked his fingers with mine and we headed out to the porch swing. We sat in a comfortable silence, watching the world go by. "I'm glad you finally managed to get me here," I told the man I loved. "It really is beautiful."

"Land of clear blue waters, home of the loon, yeah sure ya betcha, snookums!" he replied with a wry grin. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall of the cabin with a weary sigh.

I looked at him thoughtfully, memorizing all the planes and angles of his face. One of his eyes popped open. "What?" he asked.

"Just thinking," I said.

He snorted softly. "Like you ever stop," he criticized affectionately. "So ... whatcha thinking about?"

"Jack; I know you've got a bachelor's ... at least." He grunted an affirmative, and that emboldened me to continue. "What was it in?"

"Ah ...". He grumbled and shifted slightly in the swing. I prodded him in the side with a bony forefinger. "Uh ... Economics," he said hurriedly.

"What?" This from the man who came to me every year for help with his 1040 returns and his 401K? The sneaky son of a bitch. "Okay ... and what else?" I just knew he was hiding something else from the world.

"And what?" he said. "You and Daniel are the geniuses round here, not me." He frowned. "Or is that genii?"

"You know; I never bought the 'dumb Colonel' act," I retorted. "What makes you think I'll buy the dumb General one?"

The shifting had become pronounced by now. "Mastersinquantummechanics," he blurted out all in one word.

Unfortunately for him, I could understand gabble. My jaw dropped - until that moment, I'd always thought that was an over-used metaphor. But no ... my mouth literally gaped open. General Jack "Don't talk to me about science" O'Neill had a Masters degree in quantum mechanics. The guy who referred to the Ancient time ship as a 'nice ride'.

I recalled our preparations for the mission that ended up propelling us back to 1969. I'd been up in the control room, recalibrating the Stargate to account for the fact that we would be passing very close to the sun. The Colonel looked up and shouted, "Carter?"

I sighed, then looked up from my calculations and leaned into the microphone. "Almost there, sir. This time of year, the direct line between P2X-555 and the Earth takes us within 70,000 miles of the sun. I have to update the computer's drift calculation to include gravitational space/time warping."

The Colonel paused for a micro-second, then said: "We know that. Let's go!"

At the time, I'd just thought he was being his usual smart ass self. Especially when we were discussing ways out of our containment cell in 1969 Cheyenne Mountain. Daniel had suggested that we could go back before we left and it wouldn't happen.

Teal'c and I turned to stare at him. "Well, think about it," he pointed out. We're the first people in human history to go back in time ... well, for all we know. If we could figure out how to do this again, just think of what we could do. We could actually visit Babylon, we could ... we could ... we could see the Great Wall of China being built."

Teal'c put in his five cents' worth. "Or prevent regrettable events from your history from ever occurring."

"No! That's exactly what we can't do," I exclaimed, alarmed.

"Why not?" the Colonel asked.

"Because of the grandfather paradox." He looked blank and I explained: "If you went back fifty years and murdered your own grandfather, your own father would never have been born."

Now, though, I realized that he had actually understood the paradox - a basic tenet of quantum mechanics - and about gravitational space-time warping. He had in fact been in a better position than me to calculate the necessary calibrations. I poked him in the shoulder. "So, why the dumb act all these years?" I asked sternly.

He shrugged the abused shoulder with a guilty smirk. "Hey, if I gave you the clueless look, you'd have to think about it to put it in simple terms. Then you'd pull a brilliant Carter solution out of your ... uh ... head."

I just knew he'd been about to say 'butt', not 'head'. I thought about what he'd said, and realized it had been one of the many ways he'd helped me over the years. I'd become a better soldier and a better scientist, thanks to him. But I wished he hadn't felt the need to hide his intelligence to do so. "I wish I'd known sooner," I said softly.

A thought struck me. "Hey! So ... what was with that comment about you having a problem with scientists when we first met?"

He gave another slightly guilty grin. "You pissed me off," he said simply. "Marched in there, all piss and vinegar and ready to take on the world. Read our reports and thought you were prepared for going through the 'gate."

"Ah." I blushed at how arrogant I'd been.

"But you were cute, too," he added.

Cute? Could a five nine USAF officer with Advanced LevelThree hand to hand be described as cute? Then again, I thought that a certain six three USAF officer with Advanced LevelFour hand to hand was cute, so probably yes.

"You're completely off your head," I commented, the smile that hovered on my lips taking the sting out of my words.

"Yeah, but you love me, Carter," he returned confidently.

Damn the man. I did, too. I slid my hand round to the nape of his neck. "Shut up, General," I ordered, pressing my lips to his. It occurred to me that this was probably the first time a Brigadier General had been told to shut up by a Lieutenant Colonel, then dismissed the weird thought in favor of the pleasure of kissing Jack.

He rested his palm against my cheek as he deepened the kiss and I wrapped my arms around his neck, leaning heavily against him. God; this man was one deadly kisser! My blood heated at the thought of what other talents he might have in this area, and I slid a hand inside his tee shirt to caress the lean muscles of his abdomen.

I felt those muscles tense, then his chest quivered as he expelled a short laugh. "Uh ... Sam? The body's willing, but the mind knows we're outside," he said.

I snorted. "Like you've never had sex outdoors before!" I said. What the hell had happened to the 'edit' button in my mind?

He slid a wicked hand along my thigh and laughed softly. "Don't toy with me, Colonel Sex Kitten," he taunted. "Our first time together will be in a warm soft bed; it'll be long, slow, passionate and loving."

Colonel Sex Kitten? My eyes widened and I breathed in heavily. "That sounds ... nice," I said huskily, cursing myself for the lame word. Nice? It sounded like heaven.

Later that day

I started as another thunderclap rattled around the cabin, then started again when the telephone pealed out. With everything that had happened the last few weeks, my equilibrium had become almost non-existent.

I picked up the receiver. "Hello?" I said, wincing at the squealing down the line. Reception was completely shot to hell.

"Sam; it's Janet," my best friend said. "General Carter, Cassie and I aren't brave enough to try to get back to the cabin tonight - some of the roads are washed out. So we've got rooms in St. Paul. I ..." - her voice faded out, then came back - "worry about us."

"Thanks for calling, Jan," I replied. The line went dead as another clap of thunder echoed around the cabin, then I heard a muffled curse come from the living room.

I put down the phone and wandered in the direction of the curse. Jack O'Neill had an impressive array of curses - some doubtless garnered from his Special Ops days - and I wondered mildly what had honked him off this time.

He looked up from behind the television set, his eyes wild and his hair even wilder. "TV's out," he said, pouting - he was actually pouting! "And I wanted to watch my new Simpsons DVD."

I shook my head with a small fond smile - he was such a child at times. "So watch it on the set in my room," I said patiently.

"D'oh!" he mumbled. "Guess I shoulda thought of that, huh?" He got up and stretched, then patted my butt in a friendly manner. "Wanna join me?"

"I'll pass," I said lightly. "Not a big Simpsons fan, sir."

He gasped theatrically. "Sacrilege, Carter!" He grabbed my hand. "Time to educate you in the finer things of life!" He dragged a giggling Lieutenant Colonel all the way to his guest bedroom. Not exactly the way I'd pictured him taking me to a bedroom, but it'd have to do for now.

He dumped me unceremoniously onto the bed, then switched on the TV. "Watch and learn, Carter," he ordered.

The credits rolled to an end and I leaned back against the headboard. "Actually, that was pretty funny," I admitted. I doubted I'd ever be as nuts about the show as Jack was, but some of its humor was sly and sharp - much like Jack. I could easily watch the show more often.

I didn't have to look at him to know he was smirking. "Cool," he said simply.

The door opened and Daniel and Teal'c peered in. "Uhh ... we interrupting something, guys?" Daniel asked.

I cursed my fair skin for the blush that immediately appeared. We hadn't even been doing anything, for God's sake! Too many years of having to hide my attraction to this man had made me cautious to the point of paranoia.

"Not a thing, Daniel," Jack said. "TV in the living room's blown, so Sam said I could watch my favorite show on hers."

"That is unfortunate, O'Neill," Teal'c said. "I have rented Star Wars Episode II and am keen to see it before I have to return it."

"Oh, for crying out loud!" I said. I really had spent too much time with Jack O'Neill. "Get in here!" Although we lived sci-fi, I had to admit to a sneaking interest in science fiction movies; even if it was only to see how much they were actually getting wrong.

"I brought ice cream," Daniel said hurriedly when Jack scowled. The man hated science fiction.

That was the magic word. The scowl melted away. "Sweeeeet," Jack said. "Okay; put the movie on, T!"

Teal'c sat down on my left, Jack was at my right and Daniel lay at the foot of the bed like an over-sized puppy. I giggled suddenly.

"What?" Jack eyed me curiously as he passed me a pot of Phish Food and dug into his own pot of French Vanilla.

"Just thinking - SG-1 has to be the strangest unit on the base," I said. "Can you imagine ... SG-3 for instance clambering into bed together to stuff themselves with ice cream and watch Star Wars?"

His eyes widened. "Thanks for sharing, Carter!" he complained with a grin. "Christ ... Reynolds and his jarheads in bed together!" He shifted slightly. "Besides, I haven't been in SG-1 for nearly a year now."

Technically, I guess he hadn't, but we still had the great team dynamic forged by seven years of joy, sadness, triumph and tragedy. "You'll always be part of SG-1, Jack," I told him softly.

He gave me a broad smile. "For a kick-ass USAF Colonel, you're pretty sweet, Carter," he said cheerfully.

"Be quiet," Teal'c said sternly, then muttered something under his breath in Goa'uld. I couldn't catch what it was, but it sounded derogatory.

"Sorry," Jack said meekly, stretching out his long legs and kicking Daniel in the ribs.

"Jack!" the linguist yelped, rolling off of the bed in a smooth maneuver he couldn't have performed a few years ago. "Watch where you're sticking those great boats!" He got back on the bed, but kept out of the way of Jack's feet.

Teal'c shook his head, then slapped at Jack's hand, which was heading toward his tub of Cookie Dough. "Tauri!" he muttered disgustedly.

I couldn't help but agree. "We are so weird," I mumbled as I inhaled my ice cream.

Later that evening

The movie had ended about a half hour earlier, and Teal'c and Daniel had gone off to their own rooms, leaving Jack and I curled up together on my bed. Quite when we'd gone from sitting up to lying spooned I didn't know, but I wasn't about to fight it. He felt ... right against me, in a way that Pete and Jonas never had.

I turned in his embrace and put a hand to his face. "Jack," I said softly, determined not to blush, "I want you."

He gave me a cheeky grin. "Well, far be it for me to deny you!" he said.

I returned the grin. "Egomaniac," I accused him.

"Always," he retorted.

He appeared to have tired of the banter, because he sat up, pulled me tightly against him and began to kiss me hotly and passionately. His long fingers molded to the curves and plains of my body, taking care to memorize each one.

Passion built and I tugged his tee shirt over his head, feasting my eyes on that very nice torso. "Damn," I muttered softly. "You are one sexy man, Jack O'Neill."

He chuckled, ignoring the compliment. "Hey, this is a little one-sided, dontcha think, Carter?" he complained. He placed his long strong fingers on my thighs, hitching my dress upward, then bent his head to take my lips in a swift hard kiss. "I love you, Sam," he muttered.

I returned the kiss as passionately as I knew how, then slid my hands down his chest, reveling in the fact that I could now legitimately ogle him. Not like those quick guilty - yet pleasurable - moments on missions. The concept of watching my CO's six had taken on a certain smutty quality once I'd been assigned to SG-1.

He tugged at my hips, bringing them to meet his own, and slid his hands round to my butt, before kissing my neck.

My eyes rolled back in my head. Hot damn; the man was talented! But this was getting a bit one-sided. I dipped my head and nuzzled into his neck, enjoying his smell. I sucked gently on the strong tendon at the side of his neck - mmmm, he tasted good, too!

"Sam!" he gasped when I sucked a little too firmly.

I brushed at the darkening mark on his neck with a guilty grin. "Whoops," I muttered. It had been a long time since I'd given anyone a hickey. I kissed the wound softly. "It's actually pretty cool," I added.

"Christ; how old are you?" he laughed.

At this moment, I wondered that myself. On the slippery slope to forty, and certainly no virgin, yet I was pleased at the purple mark I'd left on Jack's neck. And all of a sudden, I was struck by the urge to tickle him.

I walked my fingers down his chest, and he flinched when I brushed my fingers over his ribcage. "Ticklish, huh?" I asked with a laugh, repeating the movement.

He grabbed my hands. "Geez, Sam; ya tryin' to kill me or something?" he quipped.

I stared at him incredulously for a moment.

Seconds ago, this man had been kissing me. Passionately. Desperately.

Seconds ago, this man had been pulling on my hips in an effort to get my body closer to his.

Seconds ago, this man had made me feel like the most desirable woman in the world. The galaxy. The universe.

The son of a bitch. Making jokes about his own death?

I hit him.

I didn't slap him. I'd been an Air Force officer most of my adult life. I punched him.

Hard.

He must've been more worn out from the changes in his body and mind than he'd let on. My punch caused him to sway unsteadily. The man that sparred with Teal'c on a regular basis was swaying.

He was going to fall. I knew it in the split second before it happened. At the last moment he reached out and grabbed my arm, trying to steady himself.

I tried to wrench it out of his grip, and ended up toppling to the bed with him, landing on top of him. Even mad at him, I felt a tingle of pleasure at the close contact. How could one man drive me so insane?

We regarded one another for a long moment, chests heaving against each other, before I dropped my head guiltily. Jack's lower lip was bleeding. "You hit me," he said indignantly. "What the hell's the matter with you?"

I swallowed. I was lying on top of Jack O'Neill, my lips once more on his neck. The sensation wasn't exactly conducive to coherent thought. So I kissed him again, thrusting my tongue into his mouth as soon as he opened it, tasting blood from his lip.

I pulled his lip between my teeth, feeling his moan of mingled pain and pleasure, rather than hearing it.

Jack soon seemed to forget about his bleeding lip, thrusting his tongue into my mouth, exploring.

I moaned softly as his hands began to journey down my back toward my butt, cupping it and pulling me close to him.

I wriggled against him, giggling when I heard him growl low in his throat. I couldn't quite work out how I'd gone from explosive anger to ... this. But I liked it.

I'd always known he'd be good at this, I mused as he deftly unsnapped my bra. With one hand. Even I sometimes had trouble with this bra. The man had skills.

Okay, the talking thing he was not so good at.

But this ... this, he was good at. Especially when his hands were doing ... that and his lips were ...

And I think we'll leave it there.

Several hours later, we lay together in a post-coital glow that was nonetheless bitter-sweet. After many years of waiting and wanting, this could have been a huge anti-climax - no pun intended! Instead, we fit together perfectly, his sure touch doing amazing things to me. He was tender and passionate, hard and soft, sweet and forceful - a bucket-load of contradictions all wrapped up in one brown-eyed, gray-haired, six three USAF General.

I sat up and put a hand to his cheek, drawing him into a powerful kiss. "That was amazing," I said when we separated.

"Yeah," he agreed, stroking the bare flesh of my shoulder with a callused palm.

"I can't believe we didn't do this before," I muttered. Wow; if I'd known he was so talented, I would've screwed the regs a long time ago.

Nah; I just would've transferred out of his command.

"Yes, well ... let's not dwell," he said, then he smiled. "Hey! The knees have stopped hurting! Mind-blowing sex with Carter must be the cure-all."

I giggled at the silly comment, although part of me was flattered. He was a good deal older than me, and much more experienced. He was such a sexy, sensual man - I couldn't believe he thought I was mind-blowing. But I could live with it.

I slid my hands down his chest to rest on his thighs. Long and lean - yet powerful, like the rest of his body - I enjoyed the freedom of being able to touch them. I skimmed down his legs to touch his slightly swollen left knee; evidently the effects of Baal's sarcophagus were temporary. The years of abuse since the healing had obviously set off the problem once again.

"Great legs," I commented, massaging the tender joint carefully.

"Now I'm blushing," he said faintly, his eyes closing under my gentle ministrations. "You don't have to, Sam," he added.

"It's okay, Jack," I reassured him, my strong fingers now massaging his calves. "I want to." He was always so busy taking care of everyone else, it probably never occurred to people that sometimes the tough Brigadier General needed a little TLC too.

He sat up and looked at me. "You hit me," he said.

I sighed. "You made me angry," I replied, determined that I wasn't going to apologize. I wasn't known for losing my temper - had always been fairly self-controlled - but when it did happen, look out! "Making stupid jokes about what's going to happen."

"Sam ... that's who I am," he said with a yawn. "You've known me for years - you should know that by now." He paused, then offered me a crooked grin, his brown eyes soft with affection. "Guess my timing could've been better, huh?"

I shook my head. Damn those velvety eyes of his. Fighting with him now would be like swatting a puppy unjustly. "I know," I told him, relinquishing his legs as a yawn ripped through me. I'd have to ask Janet one day why yawning was so infectious. "Let's sleep for a while," I suggested. "It's been a hard day."

He waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Sure has," he said, brushing a teasing kiss to my collarbone, then leering at me. I giggled at the immature comment, and he pressed a tender kiss to my lips. "Dormata, Sam," he added.

I closed my eyes against the stupid tears, then put my arm around his waist, snuggling into his warm body.

The next day

I woke up, struggling to breathe. A heavy weight lay on my chest, constricting my lungs. I shifted uncomfortably and opened my eyes.

Then I saw what the weight was.

It was Jack O'Neill's silver head. Resting comfortably on one of my breasts. One of his hands was under his pillow while the other one curved possessively on my hip.

I stroked some unruly hair off his forehead, still a little surprised at how soft it was. "Jack," I said softly.

He lifted his head and squinted at me. "Hey," he said in a gravelly tone. "Nice pillow."

I ... blushed. After everything we'd done last night, he could still make me blush. "Uh ... thanks," I said. I waved my hand out of the window. "Looks like the storm's cleared," I said. "Janet, Cassie and Dad should be back soon."

"Paternas." Jack sat up and shoved a hand through his hair. "Crap. He's gonna kill me."

I chuckled, but wondered what that first word was. "Jack; he likes you, remember?"

"Yeah, but as the guy taking advantage of his little girl?"

"I'm hardly a little girl; I'm a grown woman," I objected.

"I can vouch for that," he said teasingly. "But trust me on this, Sam, all he sees when he looks at you is big blue eyes, skinned knees and pigtails." He gave me a whisper-soft kiss. "I was a dad myself and if I'd had a girl, I'd be just the same." He got off of the bed. "Besides, I respect him too much to rub his nose in this."

I stared at him. He'd never been very good with the words, but now and then he could come up with a speech that would rival Daniel at his most diplomatic. "Who knew you could be so charming?" I teased lightly.

He chuckled. "Charm of the Irish, me dear," he returned in an awful brogue. "Charm of the Irish."

I threw a pillow at his head. "You're about as Irish as a croissant, O'Neill."

He grinned, then a white light appeared and whisked him away. "Thor!" I muttered. The little guy's timing was impeccable. Then I felt the white light move over me and grabbed the sheet.

I appeared on an Asgard ship naked as the day I was born and quickly wrapped the sheet around my body.

"Greetings, Major Carter," a gentle Asgard voice said.

I turned and saw the geneticist Heimdall. "Hey," I said lamely, not bothering to correct her. "Where's General O'Neill?"

The Asgard tilted her head slightly, a flash of mischief on her face. "You mean you cannot hear him from here?" she said. "He is currently shouting at Thor."

I pricked up my ears and could indeed hear Jack's peeved tones. "Take me to him, please," I said, not wanting Jack to do something he might later regret. Jack bore grudges. He bore them for a long time. And I knew that he was going to have trouble forgiving Thor.

"Of course." Heimdall moved a crystal and we transported onto the bridge where Jack - dressed in a strange white outfit; Asgard scrubs, maybe? - was standing in mulish silence, fists balled, ignoring the little Asgard near him.

"Dad?" I said.

"Hey, Sam," my dad replied. "Uh ... nice outfit," he teased.

I blushed and tugged tightly at the sheet. "Thanks," I said.

He turned to Jack. "Jack; get your head out of your ass and quit sulking."

"I don't sulk," Jack snapped.

"You do," Dad insisted. "Never met a surlier officer in my life."

Jack just shrugged, then folded downward to lean up against one of the bulkheads. He looked over at me. "Nice outfit, Carter," he said.

I was beginning to wonder if there was something to the thing that girls fell for guys who reminded them of their father. "Shut up," I said mildly, then turned to Thor. "Can you help him?"

"I cannot, Colonel Carter," Thor said, "but Heimdall can. She is a much more skilled scientist than I am."

Jack looked at the two Asgard suspiciously. "You can get this crap outta my head?"

"No," Heimdall said bluntly, "but we can teach you how to control it, rather than it control you."

"Way to beat around the bush," Jack grumbled.

If Heimdall had been human, I'm sure she would have rolled her eyes. "You are a very bad patient, General O'Neill," she said. "Nevertheless, I wish to help you. Will you accept, or would you rather ... sulk?"

I leapt in before Jack could say something else to piss off the little being. "Does that mean he won't die?" I said.

"Die?" The geneticist shook her head. "No, Major ... Colonel Carter; he will not die." She turned back to Jack. "You will not die. You are advanced genetically for your kind, and a goddamn stubborn SOB. That is a good combination."

Jack expelled a short huff of laughter. "Nice language!" he taunted, then turned to my dad. "Jake; whatcha been teaching these guys?"

Heimdall took Jack's chin in her tiny hand. "After our last encounter, I decided to learn some of the more ... colorful aspects of your language to facilitate a better working relationship." The huge black eyes twinkled. "You learned our language; why could we not learn yours?"

He could speak Asgard? Jack looked over at me and did that cute little 'busted' expression he usually wore when I caught him fiddling with one of my 'doohickeys'.

Jack shrugged. "Fair enough," he conceded. "Okay; let's do this!"

"O'Neill; are you sure?" Thor said. "It is a long tedious process, and you are not the most ... patient of individuals."

Delicately put, I thought.

"The only other choice is death, and that's not acceptable," Jack said. "I've got too much to live for now." He sent a tender smile my way. "Ego amato, Sam," he added.

"What?" I was fogged.

"O'Neill told you that he loves you, Colonel Carter," Thor translated.

Ah.

Jack got up, ignoring my dad's raised eyebrows and took my hand in his. "Pretty soon, I won't be your CO any more," he said, ignoring the fact that we'd pretty literally screwed the regs last night. "So," he continued, "will you marry me?"

I gaped at the man. "Wow; I did not see that coming!" I muttered. I fell into a brown study. I loved him, and we were pretty damn good together - okay; Sierra Hotel - but it had only been a few weeks since I'd been planning to marry someone else. Wasn't it a bit soon?

"Sam?" Jack squeezed my hand. "Kinda out on a limb here!"

"Sammie; for once, follow your heart, not your head," Dad said. He tapped my shoulder. "I pretty much resigned myself years ago to having this guy as my son in law - and Selmak likes him too."

"See?" Jack said. "Even the snake likes me!"

I chuckled at that, knowing that Selmak was likely spouting off some Tok'ra profanities in my dad's head right now. I looked into Jack's deep brown eyes. "Then, yes," I said. "I'll marry you. But I want to do it before you head off to Pegasus."

I found myself wrapped in a massive Jack O'Neill hug, and he ducked his head into my neck in that familiar mannerism. He always hugged people the same way regardless of height differences - it had to be murder on his neck. It was nice to know that although things were going to change, some things would always be the same. "Ego amato," he reiterated, kissing the pulse point under my ear softly.

I shivered. "I love you, too," I said.

"Break it up, Airmen!" my dad said, pulling Jack off of me to shake his hand.

"Oy!" Jack muttered when I giggled. "You know the rules, Carter - no giggling!"

"Yes, sir," I teased.