Ch. 3 A Gathering of Friends

Jacob grabbed some plates from the cabinet and set them on the bar as Sam rummaged through her refrigerator. They were preparing for the small gathering that was to take place that evening.

Curiosity was getting the best of Jacob, so he blurted out what had been on his mind.

"You don't seem very upset about Jack leaving."

Sam looked up, startled. She slowly closed the fridge door. "We'll stay in contact, Dad. With technology these days, it won't be hard. Besides, I'm sure his job will allow him to visit the SGC on occasion."

"Sam, this is Jack we're talking about."

Fortunately for Sam, and unfortunately for Jacob, the doorbell rang as the timer for the cookies went off. They were making chocolate-walnut cookies, Daniel's favorites.

"Uh, I'll get the door. Can you…?" Sam asked, pointing towards the oven.

"Sure," he sighed. Thwarted again, but the night was still young. Jacob pulled open the oven door, the aroma of fresh baked cookies filling his nostrils. Mmmm… Sometimes he really missed being on Earth.

Jacob turned the oven off and set the tray on the stovetop to let it cool. Sam still hadn't returned with whoever had shown up. Peeking his head around the corner, he glanced down the hall.

Jack stood with a grocery bag in his hands, listening intently to whatever his daughter was telling him. Sam motioned slightly with her hands, looking just a bit panicked. Jack leaned closer and whispered something to her, and she nodded in return. Jacob couldn't help but notice she looked considerably calmer.

Jacob ducked back into the kitchen, quickly busying himself with food preparations.

'This is certainly getting interesting,' Selmak said.

'The plot thickens,' Jacob answered.

'They would make a wonderful couple.'

'I know that, Selmak. I was trying to set them up, remember?'

'Indeed. It may have worked.'

"Jake!" came Jack's exuberant greeting. "Glad you could make it."

"Yeah, I told the Tok'ra I was going to be here for a few days."

"It's nice to have you around," he replied, emptying the contents of his bag. Beer, chips and salsa, and ice cream. "Mmmm. Junk food."

Sam half laughed, half snorted at Jack. He smiled brilliantly in return. Jacob looked back and forth between them. Jack was…unique, to say the least. Jacob knew his daughter was special. Maybe they were the only two people in the universe that could put up with each other.

But no matter how much he hoped the two had finally had that talk, he didn't want them to be blatantly violating the regulations. He knew they both had too much respect for each other and their careers to do that. Perhaps Jack's transfer to Washington, and Sam's seeming lack of concern about it, were signs they'd finally gotten their acts together.

The doorbell shook him from his thoughts. It was probably Daniel and Teal'c. Jacob grinned.

Jacob and Selmak were keeping their eyes peeled for any 'unusual' behavior between Sam and her soon to be ex-CO. She was crammed on the sofa between Jack and Daniel, while he and Teal'c sat in the armchairs. She looked very…cozy.

If Daniel and Teal'c knew anything, they weren't letting on. And it didn't help that Sam and Jack weren't actually doing anything incriminating.

Most of the evening had been spent recalling past missions-both good and bad. Jacob almost felt like an outsider at some points, but then at other times, he knew exactly what they were feeling because he'd been there too.

Jacob noticed Sam looking hopefully at Jack's plate. So did Jack. "Wanna cookie?" he asked.

"Just half."

Jack picked up his cookie and held it for her to see. "You don't want the whole thing? What, are you watching your weight or something?"

Sam narrowed her eyes at him. "I only have room for half."

Jack began to munch nonchalantly on the chocolate-walnut cookie. Soon, only half was left. "It's so good. No wonder Daniel loves them so much."

Daniel nodded vigorously from his place next to Sam.

"Fine, you can have the rest. I was more in the mood for ice cream anyway," she announced, grabbing Jack's spoon and gulping down a mouthful of the cold treat.

"That was not wise, ColonelCarter," Teal'c informed her, a bit too late.

"Oh, brain freeze," Sam moaned, holding her head.

"Tisk, tisk, tisk. We can't have any damage to that brain. It's priceless," Jack told her.

"Oy," she said, smiling and grimacing at the same time.

That's when it hit Jacob. There was a distinct lack of "Sir" in Sam's vocabulary tonight. Granted, this was downtime, but Sam had always referred to Jack as Sir or the Colonel(or now General). Always.

The chirping of a cell phone caught everyone's attention. There was only a moment of confusion before Sam realized it was hers. It was clipped to her belt. As she went to retrieve it, Jacob noted how close her hands came to Jack's…posterior, and how neither seemed to mind.

"Carter…uh huh…uh huh…ok…I'll be there as soon as I can…it's fine…no…bye." Sam snapped her phone shut. "That was Siler. They're having some issues with the dialing computer."

"What?" Jack asked, alarmed. The SGC was still under his command after all.

"It's ok, I can handle it. You guys have fun. I'll be back." Sam rose from the couch and grabbed her purse and keys.

"Hey," Jack called as she headed for the door. "For the road." He tossed his half cookie to Sam, who caught it with one hand.

"Thanks," she smiled, taking a bite. With that, she left the men to their own devices.

"Sorry, Jack. I don't see it," Jacob said, leaning back in his chair.

"Don't worry, no one else does either," Daniel snickered.

"Carter does. She gets it now. Burns as Goa'uld," Jack nodded satisfactorily.

Teal'c raised his eyebrow. "ColonelCarter has seen The Simpsons?"

"Yeah, Jack. Since when does Sam watch The Simpsons?"

Jacob stifled a laugh. Obviously Jack had not considered the implications of his words before he said them.

"She's watched a few. Just to humor me, you know," he recovered. Jack looked down as his pocket began to vibrate. "Dang," he muttered. "No peace." Pulling the phone from his pants, Jack answered. "Hello? General Hammond!" Jack walked towards Sam's office, motioning he'd be a minute.

As Jack shut the door for some privacy, Jacob turned to Daniel and Teal'c. Alone at last.

TBC in 'Getting to the Bottom of Things'